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Reconciliation of Buddhist and Vedantic Notion of Self
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Nāgārjuna, the great Madhyamika philosopher, also misunderstood the notion of Ātman and criticises it as an unreal entity. But his conception of Absolute Reality or non-dual Tattva or Śūnya is nothing else but Absolute consciousness or Ātman of the Upanişads which is indescribable. He defined reality as transcendental or beyond the reach of thought as non-relative, non-determinate, quiescent, nondiscrusive, non-dual.56 Even his conception of Sūnya is the indescribable Ātman or Brahman of the Vedāntins. "Absolute cannot be called void or non-void or both or neither, but, in order to indicate, it is called Sūnya'.57 Here the reality is described in negative terms. Reality which is unconditioned, indeterminate, and incapable of verbal elaboration is not apprehended by thought. Like Upanişadic thinkers, for Nāgārjuna language applies only to the finite or phenomenal world.
The same negative description of Ātman is given in the Upanişads. Nāgārjuna's definition of reality is similar to the description of Ātman given in the Mandūkyaupanişad. It is said that Ātman cannot be described, cannot be grasped, is beyond the reach of thought, cannot be designated.58 The Brhadāranyaka also describes Ātman in negative terms saying that Atman is not this, not this. 59 It also describes Ātman as the not gross and the not subtle, the not short and not long ... the speechless, the mindless".00 It is clear that Nāgārjuna accepts the existence of pure self or Atman of the Upanişads but only describes it by the negative term "Śūnya'.
Nāgārjuna's followers, Aryadeva and Candrakirti, accept the Absolute Reality. Aryadeva says that Reality is pure Citta or Consciousness. The Jewel of Self' is absolutely pure and self-luminous and appears to be impure only on account of ignorance, just as a white crystal appears coloured on account of coloured thing placed near it.61 Sāntideva's Bodhicitta or Pure Buddha is similar to the notion of Ātman of the Upanişads. Pure Citta or Pure Consciousness is the Absolute Reality for Santideva.
It is clear that Absolute or Śünya or non-dual Tattva (advayam tattvam) of Nāgārjuna, Pure Citta of Aryadeva, and Pure Buddha of śāntideva are nothing else but self-luminous Ātman of the Upanişads which is indescribable pure consciousness (cit-prajñānaghana). Let us examine the Vijñānavādins' view. Even though the Lankāvatāra-sütra teaches the two fold selflessness i.e. self-lessness of persons and the self-lessness of things, the reality defined by it is nothing but Vedāntic Ātman or Brahman. It identifies the reality with Tathāgatagarbha or Alayavijñāna. It says that Tathāgatagarbha or Alaya is indescribable and transcends all categories of thought.62 It tries to distinguish Tathāgatagarbha from Ātman of the Vedāntins on false ground. It says that it is not similar to the Ātman because it transcends all categories of finite thought (nir vikalpa) because it is neither affirmation nor negation nor both nor neither, and because it is to be directly realised by spiritual experience while the Ātman leads to eternalism
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