Traverses on Less Trodden Path of Indian Philosophy and Religion

Author(s): Yajneshwar S Shastri
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

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Traverses on less trodden path...
lod him to accept three kinds of truth. According to him, even at the phenomenal level, there are two kinds of experences, one is utterly unreal or illusory (parikal pita) and another is dependent, real for all practical purposes. The world parikalpita itself indicates that it is merely imagined truth and has no intrinsic existence of its own. It is illusory or utterly uoreal even at the phenomenal leveal, 0 It is purely mental creation and thus absolutely upreal.41 Paratanıta is dependent on causality. It is a false thought creation about the subject-object duality. It is imagination of non existent phenomenal world ou pure consciousness. It applies to the phenomenal world of subject-object duality. 2 Parinişpanna is well established truth (paritaḥ nişpannaḥ). It is paromärtha satya which is equated with the absolute. It is non-dual, beyond speech and indescribable by verbalizing mind. 45 The highest state which transcends opposities in which existence aod non-existence, the positives and negatives are one and the same, is called parinişpannaa. 44 This is the only existent (Sat) reality and except for this nothing exists in reality.45 Parikalpita and paratantra are related to worldly things, wbile parinişpanna is related to the highest truth Nirvana, Where all Klešas and imaginations cease to exist. - 6
Lankāvarāra sūtra, one of the authoritiative works on Vijnanavāda, also refers to these three kinds of truth by stating that parikalpita is purely imaginary like the hare's horn or a sky flower or dream etc. and paratantra is relative, depends on causes and conditions and comes under the realm of phenomenal and parinişpanna is the paramärtha sarya (highest truth), absolutely real, which transcends subject-object duality and is purely based on spiritual experience. 7
Vasubandhu, known as the second Buddha' or 'pratibuddha'48, also follows Asanga's line of thought. Parikalpita is purely imagination of the intellect, thus it does not exist in reality.49 Paratantra is dependent, relative, it arises out of causes and conditions. Whatever is caused and
40. Asarkalpanimittam hi perikalpitatalaksanam-M. S. A. XI-39. 41. Pari alpita svabhavah atyantamasaltvāt-M. S. A. XI-13 Com. 42. Grāhyagrāhaka lakṣaṇaḥ--M. S. A. XI-40. 43. Apabhilapyam aprapancatmakam ca parinispanna svabhāvaḥ-M.S A. X1-13 Com. 44. Abhavabhāvatāyaca bhāvābhāva samānala. Asanta santāklapă ca parinispadnalaksanam
-M. S. A. XI-41. 45. Na khalu jagati tasmad vidyate kiAcidanyat..Sat samantad vihāya-M.S.A. XJ-14. 46. Vikalpopašamārthah śāntārthah parinispanna laksanam--M.S.A.XVIII 81, Com. 47. Lan kāvatarasūtra-Suzuki P. 56. 67, 222. 229. 48. Buddhist Logic-Stcherbatsky. Vol. I, p. 32. 49. Yena yeda vikalpena yad yad vastu vikalpyate. Parikalpita eväsau svabhavo pasa
vidyate--Trimsika-20,