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Book review

Title: Nirvana and Ineffability

Author: Asanga Thilakaratne

Reviewed by Dr. Keerthi Jayasekera

Among the publications of the Post Graduate Institute of Pali and Buddhist Studies of the Kelaniya University is a book in titled "Nirvana and ineffability" by Asanga Thilakaratne, a member of the staff of the Institute. This book is the research work submitted by the author for his Ph.D. to the University of Hawaii in the United States.

This book is on display at the Institute with its other publications for the benefit of those students both foreign and local in pursuit of their post graduate studies. This book looks unique in that so far no Buddhist scholar seems to have tried to prove that Nirvana can be explained. However Thilakaratne inspired by western empiricism seems to give the impression that he had done this with the help of concepts burrowed from others.

Having read this book several times I wish to quote relevant sections from this book with reference to this question of Ineffability of Nirvana which I am afraid Thilakaratne conjected to be Non-Ineffable, or in other words engages himself in a vein attempt to explain Nirvana to the academic world.

Bhikkhu Nanananda writes, "Samma ditthi (right view) may be regarded as unique among all forms of ditthis owing to its peculiar dialectical element. A dramatic illustration of this unique character is reflected in the apparently drab and uninspiring opening of the Madhupindika Sutta. There we found Dandapani the Sakyan, questioning the Buddha in order to ascertain the 'theory' he preached. Dandapani would have expected, like most of us to get a reply in the form of some short lable of a dogma.

Dandapani was dissatisfied with the Buddha's reply which might have appeared to him as a piece of verbal papanca; and so he shook his confused head, raised his puzzled eye brows, grimaced and went away. One might be tempted to show a similar response to the Buddha's reply if one fails to appreciate its deeper implications. The Buddha had no theories to be declared other than that he had put an end to all theories, and all proclivities towards him. His purpose as a teacher was to indicate the path to the same goal that he had attained.

"One of the most important among those suttas which offered us a deeper insight in to the enlightened attitude towards concepts, is the Mulapariyaya Sutta. It portrays for us the following types of individuals. 1. The uninstructed average person, 2. The monk who is a learner, not attained to perfection, but who lives striving for the incomparable security from bondage, 3. The monk who is perfect and free from cankers. 4. The Tathagatha, the perfected one, fully self-awakened.

In this sutta, the Buddha sets out to preach the fundamental mode of all phenomena. He enumerates a list of twenty four concepts and explains the attitude of the above mentioned individual types towards those concepts. The list includes the following: earth, fire, air, beings, devas, pajapati, Brahma, the radiant ones, the lustrous ones, the Vahapphala (Brahmas), the over lord, the realm of infinite space, the reals of infinite consciousness, the realm of nothingness, the realm of neither perception nor-non-perception, the seen, the heard, the sensed, the cognised, unity, divesity, universality."

For all the apparent diversity among these terms, they are all of a piece as 'concepts'. The average person uninstructed in the Dhamma, with mere sensory perceptions to guide him, cognises those twenty four concepts as objects of thought. Having so cognised, he proceeds to imagine in terms of them in accordance with the flexional pattern and delights in those concepts. This is because he lacks clear comprehension. He is mislead by naive sense-experience and by his tendencies towards 'tanha-mana-ditthi-papanca'.

Having evolved a concept, he proceeds to make it flexible. He resorts to inflexion which is an elementary feature in language. By establishing a correspondence between the grammar of language and the grammar of nature, he sets about weaving networks of 'papanca'.

"The aim of the Buddha in preaching this sutta is to point out the elementary modes in which all phenomena present themselves to the mind of the four types of individuals.

The grammatical structure of the language is the most elementary mode of presentation. It is here that the concepts are invested with the necessary flexibility and set on their tracks to proliferate as tanha-mana, and ditthi-papanca. The uninstructed average person succumbs to it; the disciple training on the Aryan-Path resists it; and the emancipated one transcends it. The commentary tells us that the immediate purpose for which the Buddha preached this sutta was to dispel the conceit of five hundred monks who were proud of their theoretical knowledge ('pariyatti') of the Dhamma. It also says that their conceit was due largely to the fact that they were formerly Brahamins well versed in the three Vedas."

"Thus we arrive at the uncompromising position that as a concept 'Nibbana' is no more real or absolute than other concepts. It merely symbolises conceptually the transcendental experience in negative terms. All the definitions of Nibbana have validity only from the wordling's point of view and takes the form of negations of various aspects of wordly existence either explicitly or implicity. Now, if the most predominant and pervasive characteristic of the world is prolific conceptualization, it follows that the transcendental experience of Nibbana could be defined as the 'non-prolofic' (nippapanca) or the cessation, the appeasement, of conceptual proliferation (papanca-niridha; papanca-Vupasama).

It is that very often in those suttas which refer to the consciousness of the Arahants, we are baffled by a string of negations in some form or other. The consciousness of the Arahants is said to be so ineffable that even the gods and Brahmas are incapable of discovering its basis or support. He has the ability to attain to a unique samadhi in which he has no recourse to any of the data of sense-experience normally considered essential for a jhana or samadhi".

Labuduwe Siridhamma Thera, a close associate of the late Professor K. M. Jayathilaka from his days at the Peradeniya University, after five years of research and study carried out at the Oxford University, under Professor. R. F. Gombrich was awarded the Ph.D. degree for that brilliant thesis 'The Theory of Kamma in Early Theravada Buddhism' in 1976. On the subject of Nirvana, ineffability, and empicism, this is what the brilliant scholar monk has to say:

"Language has a static structure although we have to use it to describe a dynamic world. Once we see the reality for what it is and see the limitations of language, we can still employ the conventional terminology without being misled by the erroneous implications of language and the assumption we make because of our distorted view of reality. Though language is a necessary tool of thought and communication, we have to guard against the linguistic sources of error in describing and understanding the nature of reality referring to the limitations of ordinary language, the Buddha says,"

They are expressions, turns of speech, designation in common use in the world which the Buddha makes use of without being led astray by them". Because of the above mentioned characteristics Buddhism becomes a form of Empiricism. But between Buddhism and the normal western understanding of 'Empiricism' there is a notable difference."

'Empiricism' involves merely sense-experience. But perception in Buddhism is used in a wider connotation to include both sensory and extra-sensory forms of perception such as telepathy, clairvoyance and the recall of prior lives. Nevertheless, the extra-sensory powers taught in Buddhism are merely products of the natural development of the mind. So, these powers are not mystical experiences derived from some supernatural source.

Five types of super knowledge (pancabhinna) are taught in Buddhism. But what they do is merely to extend the sense functions of the ordinary sense-faculties (indriya) to a certain degree. Therefore, the difference between sense-perception and extra-sensory perception is merely a degree of penetration. Early Buddhism, therefore adopts an empiricist theory of knowledge.

'The necessity for extra-sensory perception is emphasised in Buddhism for two reasons. One is that, the understanding of reality of verification, which according to Buddhism is the most important factor in reversing the wheel of existence (bhava cakkha), is impossible with the mere help of ordinary sense-faculties, for some complications connected with causality, karma and rebirth are too subtle and complex to be within the range of ordinary sense-organs. On the other hand the human mind is luminous and radiant (pabhassara) in its instrinsic nature. Removal of such sankharas from one's process of consciousness means returning the mind to its natural position.

Such a mind is penetrative and is endowed with all powers which Buddhism describe as higher knowledge.

Therefore, clearing one's mind and letting it shine in its natural lustre is, in a way not a supernatural process, but merely a restoration of mind to its natural state. Some extra-sensory powers are the natural result of the suppression of mental defilements". "This suppression was achieved even by some pre-Buddhistic yogis such as Alara Kalama and Uddaka Ramaputta. Under their instructions the recluse Gothama learned those techniques and practised them.

Then he went further, discovering new techniques on the same lines. Having the yogic method as basis he developed control of his mind up to the stage where there is cessation of perception and sensation (sannavedaita nirodha). But he understood that all these methods give merely temporary satisfaction and that any time the dispositions (Sankharas) temporarily suppressed might emerge and overcome man, subjecting him to the miseries of life. So, he abandoned some of them as preliminary steps towards attaining enlightenment. What he adopted as the efficient means of eliminating all sankharas without residue is the three fold knowledge (tissovijja)."

The three fold knowledge is purely Buddhistic and with which the Buddha not only was able to verify the doctrines of karma and rebirth but also to bring them to an end. The highest aim of the Buddhist way of life, the state of enlightenment or arahantship, rests on the three-fold knowledge.

The first two of the three-fold knowledge verify the phenomena of rebirth and karma respectively. The third arises as a result of eliminating all sankharas or karmic forces which are the causes of rebirth. The attainment of these three-fold knowledge is the final stage of a gradual discipline (anupubbasikkha), a gradual mode of action (anupubbakiriya), and a gradual mode of conduct (anupubbapatipada). This gradual way of eliminating all sankharas or passions (asavakkhaya) is found in various places in the early Buddhist texts. The Samannaphala Suttanta of the Dighanikaya sets out the way in great detail.

The following passage in Dr. Siridhamma Thera's book is of particular relevance to 'papanca pundits'. The purpose of developing a dialectical consciousness is not to play intellectual hide and seek but to be alive to the unsound facts of experience within and without oneself. Hence the dialectician has to realise the fact that he is at the mercy of concepts even in his dialectical attempt to demolish concepts.

A dream may be proved false in the light of waking experience, but all the same, it is relatively true as a fact of experience. Similarly the deluding character of concepts is a fact of experience and must not be ignored on that ground. Concepts, for all the vicious potency to delude us, are not be blamed per se, for they are merely objectifications or projections of our own tanha, mana, and ditthi - our cravings, our conceit and our views.

Hence in the last analysis concepts have to be tackled at their source. They are not so much to be demolished, as to be comprehended, and transcended. The attempt to dislodge concepts at the purely intellectual level leads to infinite regress in thought."

"According to the early Buddhist standpoint, the middle path consisted neither in the confrontation of every thesis with its antithesis, nor in their synthesis, nor again in their total reputation, but in the balance understanding of the relative and pragmatic value of concepts. Dialectical consciousness, therefore as an intellectual experience of the ultimate futility of concepts, is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for the attainment of the goal. Nor is it a panacea for the all pervasive dukkha. It is no doubt an essential ingredient in samma ditthi, which is but the first step in the path. Middle path lies right through conceptual formulations as a steps of training, which are to be made use of with circumspection and detachment".

Way back in the nineteen fifties few years after independence, Socialism was the fashion of the day. Scholar monk Narawila. Dhammaratana in trying to keep up with the joneses, wrote a book titled 'Buddhism and Marxicism' in Sinhala, showing the many socialist features in the Buddha Dhamma. Many years thereafter, with greater understanding of life and reality, he undid what he did in this book by writing another book titled 'Discovery of Buddhism' again in Sinhala in which he corrected his position with reference to the unique nature of the Buddha Dhamma, which does not need any 'ism' for support for its wisdom.

Thilakaratna if he still calls himself a Theravada Buddhist, then he has the option of correcting his position with reference to Nirvana by disproving all what he has said in his book 'Nirvana and Ineffability' and writing another book under same title "Ineffability of Nirvana" on second thought"; and perhaps present it to a University of International repute in Oriental philosophy, for a second Ph.D. which I am sure he is capable of doing with samma ditthi! The Buddha is reported to have said immediately after his enlightenment that his mind was free from sankharas. For those with minds endowed with sankhara, let alone explain, can they ever aspire to know a mind free of sankharas!

How far could Sita lift the bow?

"Building Women's Capacities" is a book that deals with the empowerment of the marginalised;i.e., women. Though it focuses on women in India, many of the ideas given can be used as a source of inspiration by donor agencies and NGOs, and students in the field of gender studies, no matter where in the world they be. "Why Capacity Building of Women"? Asks Ranjani K. Murthy in the Introduction. The answer, in simple terms - because women "continue to occupy a subordinate position in all spheres of life - economic, social and political.

Why they are subordinated is visible in the response shown by ten men who were asked to choose from three underlying reasons for women's marginalized status in today's society.

(i) Women's oppression is God-ordained (ii) Women's oppression is due to biological factors (iii) Women's oppression is due to social structures. Of the ten men present six had perceived that gender differences were God-ordained. They had used the following arguments to support their choice (i) God has created this society. If women occupy a subordinate position in society, it is His creation (ii) In Ramayana, Rama alone (not Sita) could lift the bow and break it during the swayamvara. Therefore, God has made men superior to women.

The book attempts to dispel such myths, to make men sensitive to gender issues and to strengthen the capacities of women. The first part, therefore, presents six case studies focusing on specific issues confronted by women in present day India i.e., how self help methods could be used by women to gain control over their bodies, fertility, sexuality and their identities.

The next three chapters highlight experiences in strengthening the capacities of women to earn a livelihood for themselves and to keep control of what they had earned.

The second part focuses on training women to negotiate with the outside world. The third deals with strategies, other than training, that could be used to help women expand their capabilities. The concluding essay which forms the fourth part brings together the lessons learnt from the other three and provides insights into helping women overcome subordination in a "patrilocal system of residence".

Men, doubtless have "male-specific advantages such as freedom of mobility, speech and interaction, easier access to leadership positions as opposed to "female specific disadvantages - unequal access to education, double burden of work, male violence within the family, oppression by in-laws after marriage and the over all low status accorded to women by the society." But, if donor agencies, NGOs and governments are to heed the ideas given in this volume, the day would not be far when women would be equal with men, when their arguments about the subordination of women would be opposed with the following counter arguments.

(i) There are goddesses as well. (ii) This is just one version of Ramayana. Sita could lift the bow as well (according to another version). But that day may be far to come for the men would surely argue back "Sita may have lifted the bow, but only a little bit above the ground level, while Rama could lift it to above his shoulder and break it."

Literary surveys on post colonial literature

Post colonial literature - obviously English - creative works of those who have mastered the language of their colonial masters.

Association for Commonwealth Literature and Language Studies (ACLALS) is a body of academics and writers that periodically meet and assess the 'harvest' of post-colonial literature. This book is a compendium of seventeen papers presented at the tenth Triennial Conference of ACLALS held in 1995, Colombo.

On the whole, these scholarly essays are critiques not only of the literature that is post-colonial, but also of the socio-political, and gender relations in the regions under discussion.

Writers are either academics mainly in English language/literature departments of Universities of the Commonwealth, and in Europe and America or distinguished writers in the Commonwealth.

They are the descendants of those who were privileged to master the language of their colonial masters while being either in their own countries or in their master's country - that is England.

This generation hardly opted to live in their own land. And, many of them have been quite comfortable being away from their native land - at least for some period of their lives. By the mid 20th century there was a diaspora of these self-exiled intellectuals, academics and writers. Most of the works of post-colonial have been written by them.

These seventeen papers discuss the Commonwealth literature in general and related topics. But, one feels that there is something conspicuously lacking. No single writer has touched on the subject of contemporary Commonwealth literature like a literary critic.

This lacunae is to a little extent filled by Nayanthara Sahgal's essay. Hers is a holistic perspective of the whole issue of post colonial literature. Nayanthara Sahgal is a novelist and a political writer from India who has won several international awards for literature.

She unhesitantly points out what the need of the Commonwealth literature at the time should be.

While recording the transition from colonialism to post-colonialism she defines globalisation as the latest form of colonialism and goes further to name it as market terrorism. For her, the concept of national identity is not something outdated as many post colonial academics and writers in self-exile - very often they are in exile in their own lands - see it. 'National identity is a source of self-hood' she says. And, she emphasizes the need of post colonial academics and writers to harmonise their ways of living and thinking. It is the way to bring forth a 'truly cosmopolitan world and a genuinely universal literature,' she says.

For Ken Goodwin, professor of English from Australia, post-colonial writings are a reflection of reactions to the colonial encounter from its beginning to the current situation.

Yasmine Gooneratne, a Sri Lankan writer and a professor of English living in Australia raises the issue of gender. She discusses the challenges of Asian women as writers.

Bernth Lindfors, an authority on African literatures and also a professor of English, discusses the English literature teachings in South African university departments. He conclude that what should be taught in universities is a generous mixing of different racial, social temporal and national backgrounds that is representative of the best from both the past and the present. And, he emphasises that literature teaching should be a profoundly multicultural enterprise.

Satendra Nandan, the current international chairperson of ACLALS discusses the phenomenon of Indian exiles - Indian indentured labourers in Fiji - who were battered both by colonialism and caste system which they could not leave behind. He cites V. S. Naipul - the grandson of such an indentured labourer, as the best person who understood this phenomenon.

Gerhard Stilz's is a long essay on the changed landscapes and nature in colonial and post colonial writing.

Dan Jakobson views imperialism as the major force which underlies the contemporary world literature. According to him, imperialism has divided the world into 'capitals' and 'provinces'. He sees these two phenomenons continually changing places and provinces coming out better.

There are also essays on outstanding writers and their specific novels. James Harrison, a professor of English, poet and a literary critic writes on Salman Rushdie, one of the most controversial writers of the East. S. S. Manzooral Islam discusses the works of J. M. Coetze, the South African writer.

There are two essays on V. S. Naipaul - this year's winner of Nobel prize for literature - by Frank Schulz Engher and Victor J. Ramraj, both academics of English literature. Periodical assessment these international academics and writers have offered on post-colonial literature is a fulfilment of periodical need for the growth and recognition of literature that is post-colonial. A valuable piece of work for the use of university students of contemporary literature, a considerable slice of which is representative of post-colonial writers. This is also an interesting scholarly work for any person who has a specific interest in post-colonial writings.

Educative handbook on Labour Law

A research book written in Sinhala entitled 'Labour Laws and Conventions' and published by its author Upasiri Kariyawasam, who is a retired senior assistant commissioner of labour. He explains in simple language the intricacies of labour legislation as applied in practice by various employers, employees and their trade unions in relation to their rights, privileges and obligations.

The four chapters and six schedules in the book explains in a nutshell the various implications and complications as would be applicable to contrasts of employment, working hours, payment for overtime, various types of leave, welfare facilities and limitations prescribed in legislation, and the disciplinary measures that could be taken.

This book would be extremely useful not only to employers, employees and their trade unions, but also to lawyers, management officers and students and libraries. It would be acceptable to those in industrial relations circles as a very educative handbook on all types of labour matters.

Mr. Kariyawasam counts well over 40 years experience in the enforcement of labour law and has previously written in English and Sinhala many books and research articles on labour enforcement, conciliation, trade unionism and other subject areas.

Innermost thoughts of a poet

Anthologies of poems like "Moments of Reflection" by young poetess Mahesha Weeraratne, leads one to almost presumptuously conclude that English has taken its deep roots in Sri Lanka despite its relegation to the backgrund due to the post-independence language policy.

Her poetic style is obviously churned out in her own mental factory, just like her ideas and thought processes.

Very short lines that convey cryptic messages on a vast multitude of theme ranging from exams, youthful aspirations via love and marriage to lofty and broad fields as justice and politics.

Here is apparently a young woman with a promising world before her in English writing - prose and verse - since she is well equipped with almost all the basic ingredients that go to make up a good creative writer - in English. To name a few, the ability to look beyond the immediate horizons of the subject matter, to perceive powerful messages, interest in and compassionate love for all living beings and of course to be able to utilise a generously acquired vocabulary to convey ideas and thought streams.

Many things that others take for granted she finds fertile ground to question and philosophise - the frolics and antics of politicians, the cricket craze, the fervour of the army recruit, the role played by relatives in Eastern society. It is needless to content that many Lankan citizens have turned hypocritical yes-men and women openly revering such phenomena while harbouring their own privy thoughts about these and not necessarily reverent either. Mahesha using seven or eight of her short lines whips up new and controversial view-points on such topics in a very admirable way.

A philosophical streak almost incredulous in a writer of that age runs through out her poems that probably is generated out of her own invidualistic thinking on many of the issues that beset her generation.

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