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PROBLEM OF AVIDYA
[CH.
born blind, and unfamiliar (with the right path), sometimes treads upon the right path and sometimes upon the wrong, so does the fool, ignorant of the world (samsāra), sometimes commit puñña (good act) and sometimes apuñña (bad act) in the world. But when he knows the reality (dhamma) and attains the truth his ignorance ceases, and he roams unperturbed.' With the cessation of avidyā, trsnā (craving) naturally ceases. If the truth is known desire for the illusory cannot exist. One seeks for permanence so long as the truth of impermanence does not dawn upon him. Ego-centric activity ceases when the falsity of the notion of a static self is comprehended. Desire for happiness disappears when the truth of universal suffering is realized. Avidyā consists in mistaking suffering for happiness, an ever-changing aggregate of vedanā (feeling), vijñāna (consciousness), samjñā (coefficients of consciousness) and sarskāras (predispositions) for an abiding ego, perpetual fiow for unchanging staticity. But if this perverted outlook ceases, tysnā (craving) naturally disappears. This is the general outlook of Buddhism towards avidyā. But along with the development of thought, it was but natural that the meaning of avidyā should change. Avidyā means ignorance or wrong cognition of truth, and hence its meaning would naturally change along with the change in the conception of the nature of truth. It, therefore, follows that the meaning of avidyā cannot remain constant. Let us now see the nature of avidyä in later Buddhist thought.
We shall begin with the Vijñānavādins. The Buddhists distinguish between the samurti satya (empirical truth) and the paramartha satya (transcendental truth). The function of samurti is to cover the knowledge of the truth. Samurti covers the real nature of truth and reveals it only as covered by itself, and is also called avidyā (ignorance), moha (delusion), and viparyāsa (perversion). The Buddhists further distinguish three characteristics (laksana) or natures (svabhāva) of a thing viz. (I) parikalpita (imagined), (2) paratantra (dependent), and (3) parinişpanna (real or true), sometimes briefly called kalpita, tantra and nişpanna respectively.* Vasubandhu gives
1 Visuddhimagga, XVII. 119. 2 Cf. dve satye samupäśritya buddhānām dharmadeśanā.
lokasamvrti-satyam ca satyam ca paramārthatah.-MK, XXIV. 8. duve saccāni akkhāsi sambuddho vadatam varo
sammutim paramattham ca tatīyam nūpalabbhati. Quoted by Buddhaghoṣa in Asthakatha on KV, p. 30. For further references see AS, p. 162, footnote 5.
3 Cf. samvriyata āvriyate yathābhūtaparijñānam svabhävävaraņād ävịtaprakāšanāc cä 'naye 'ti samvrtih avidyā moho viparyāsa iti paryāyāḥ-BAP, pp. 352 ff. 4 Cf. buddhyā vivecyarnānam hi na tantram na 'pi kalpitam
nişpanno nā 'sti vai bhāvaḥ katham buddhyā prakalpyate. -LA, X. 374. kalpitaḥ paratantraś ca parinişpanna eva ca-MVS, I. 68-b.
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