Śūnyatā

In the Buddhism, the vacuity (Sanskrit: शून्यता, Śūnyatā ; Faded: suññata ), or ainsity (tathatā) of the things, indicates their absence to be in oneself , in other words the inexistence of all gasoline , of any nature fixed and inchangeant. It applies to the things as well as with the thoughts and the frames of mind.

vacuity does not empty the things of their contents, it is their true nature (Philippe Cornu, encyclopedic Dictionary of Buddhism, 2001, Seuil). It thus is not about Nihilisme.

The vacuity is a term which can be badly interprêté. Thus, Ringou Tulkou Rimpotché speaks about it in these terms (extracted the book And if you explain me Buddhism? ):

According to Buddhism, all is out of gasoline vacuity (shûnyatâ or śūnyatā), as well will samsâra it as the nirvâna. Shûnyatâ does not mean “empties”. It is a word very difficult to include/understand and define. It is with reserve that I translate it by “vacuity”. The best definition is, in my opinion, “interdependence”, which means that any thing depends on the others to exist. All is by nature interdependent and thus empties clean existence.

Buddhist vacuity is not a concept which concerns only the discursive thought, it is initially intended to open the metaphysical intuition ( prajñā ) of the practitioner.

In the Buddhism hînayâna

Vacuity, translation of sunnata , sign that all perceptions, feelings, the conscience are deprived of a personality (Anātman) and are deprived of permanence (Anitya). The term of vacuity is treated in several Sutta S, as a
  • Qualité, characteristic of the things;
  • Objet to which the attention is related;
  • Contemplation of vacuity: sunnata Vipassana .

In the same way, in the Visuddhimagga, vacuity corresponds to the absence of me, or Anatta. Vacuity, in the theravada, thus returns to the three characteristics.

The topic of vacuity appears in the Suñña Sutta of Canon faded: " Since it is deprived of one oneself or anything pertaining to one oneself, one says in this direction that the world is vide" .

Vacuity also forms part of the three Samadhi S, or doors of the Nirvāna: vacuity, " without-signe" (animitta), " without préhension" (apranihita).

In the Buddhism mahâyâna

Vacuity is the object of the Prajñaparamita, the Perfection of Wisdom, groups will sûtras of bearing Mahâyâna on the transcendent wisdom, centered around vacuity. She is in particular studied by Nagarjuna, which states eighteen particular forms of vacuity, the principal one, which summarizes all the others, being the vacuity of all the dharma ( sarvadharmasūnyatā ).

Four vacuities

  1. Vacuity of the substantial things
  2. Vacuity of the not-things: the space, the Nirvāna
  3. Vacuity of inherent nature
  4. different Vacuity, is the transcendent character phenomena.

Sixteen vacuities

Prajñaparamita Sûtra exposes sixteen vacuities that Chandrakirti commented on.
  1. Vacuité of the internal phenomena ({{oe}} it, Oreille, Nez and another faculties of the directions)
  2. Vacuité of the external phenomena, perceived
  3. Vacuité internal and external at the same time
  4. Vacuité of vacuity
  5. Vacuité of the vastness
  6. Vacuité of ultimate the
  7. Vacuité of the composed phenomena, to see conditioned Coproduction
  8. Vacuité of the incomposés phenomena
  9. Vacuité of what is beyond the extremes (Néant and permanence)
  10. Vacuité of what has neither beginning nor end, the Samsara
  11. Vacuité of what should not be rejected
  12. Vacuité of nature of phenomena
  13. Vacuity of all the phenomena
  14. Vacuity of the clean characters
  15. Vacuity of the inappréhendable
  16. Vacuity of insubstantial the

Two vacuities

The anagārika Prajñānanda indicates two possible directions for vacuity, expressed for example in writings such as the Sūtra of the Heart:
On the one hand, phenomenal quality indicating the not-gasoline of the phenomena; better than by vacuity, it could result in “bulleity”. The phenomena are comparable with bubbles which are born, inflate, deflate or burst. This concept of vacuity-bulléité is always to join with tathatā , the telleity, the quiddity. Each bubble is “empty” but “such”. The second significance is what one could call “absolute vacuity”, for example: sūnyatāyam Na rūpam, Na vedanā, Na samjnā, Na will samskāra, Na vijnānam (" in vacuity, there is neither form, neither feeling, neither concept, neither factor of existence nor knowledge discriminative"). The negation is total. ( gnostic Buddhism , 1981)

This distinction between " vacuity relative" and " vacuity absolue" joined the distinction established by Nagarjuna between conventional truth and absolute truth, distinction which is itself conventional. The relative vacuity of the phenomena does not constitute in an ultimate way a clean nature (" vacuity of the vacuité") and conditioning cannot be inconditionné: the Not-duality does not lead to any Monisme, because if it is true that the beings are empty, the non-being is empty, and the Absolute itself is empty, and the distinction between relative and absolute does not take place to be ultimement. We are thus not different from the Absolute, and therefore a release (Nirvāna) is possible.

In the hindouism

Buddhism is not the only doctrines to have developed the concept of vacuity. Certain Hindu schools refer there also. The Shivaïsme of the Cashmere particularly developed this concept.

For them, vacuity is a stage necessary, but nonsufficient. It is intended has to be exceeded. There are thus several stages of vacuity going of the inferior (to be started with the deep sleep), at the stages higher. Vacuity is conceived there like a kind of vacuum or hole characteristic of an insufficient development of the conscience. It is thus not to be better delayed there, or one is likely to lose oneself there without remedy.

Thus they developed a critical principle of the Buddhist vacuity against which they sent severe warning statements. However, the definition used varies between the two movements: while the Buddhists regard vacuity as being the true nature of the things, the shivaïsme of the Cashmere regards it as a means of spiritual development. Although the terms are similar, they do not recover the same concepts.

See too

Related articles

  • three characteristics of the conditioned existence:
    • Dukkha, or dissatisfaction
    • Anatta, or not-oneself
    • Anitya, or impermanency

External bonds

  • What reality? , by LAMA Thubten Yeshe

References

  • Cula-suññata Sutta , small speech on vacuity, (Majjhima Nikaya, 121)
  • Maha-suññata Sutta , great speech on vacuity (Majjhima Nikaya, 122)
  • Suñña Sutta , vacuum (Samyutta Nikaya, XXXV, 85)
  • stanzas of the medium, Nagarjuna, Threshold.

  • Christian Thomas Kohl, Buddhism and Quantum physics: http://ctkohl.googlepages.com/3

Random links:611 | Juan Milton | Origanum | Tendō | Bruce McDonald | Sint-Ulriks-Kapelle | Agence_créatrice_d'artistes