Recent Researches in Buddhist Studies

Recent Researches in Buddhist Studies: Festschrift in Honour of Professor A.K. Chatterjee is a welcome addition to the ever-growing scholarship on Buddhist studies. It is befitting to acknowledge and appreciate the profound scholarship of Professor Ashok Kumar Chatterjee on Buddhist philosophy. It is laudable that the students and finds of Professor A.K. Chatterjee keep on record the respects for him on his 81st birthday through this volume of 10 scholarly papers. Professor Chatterjee had made known four and a half decades ago his philosophical acumen and masterly talent through his magnum opus The Yogacara Idealism, and that has run into different editions after its first publication in 1962. Often it has been said: ‘a tree is known through its fruits’ and this is true of Professor Chatterjee, as he is known through his erudite writings to the academic world.

The papers in this volume are scholarly research articles by different authors who have established their mark in Buddhist studies. As these are re search papers following r e s e arch methodology, the scholars and serious readers in the field would find it more useful than the popular readers.”

C.D. Sebastian is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Indian Institute of Technology. Bombay, Mumbai. He holds his M.A. in Indian Philosophy and Religion (First Rank with two Gold Medals) and Ph. D. in Philosophy and Religion (Buddhism) from the Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India. Having an abiding interest in Comparative Philosophy and Religion, he has published on many aspects of Buddhism and Indian philosophy, and his work include Metaphysics and Mysticism in Mahayana Buddhism. He is the Editor (Indian Scriptures) of Journal of Scared Scriptures.

Recent Researches in Buddhist Studies: Festschrift in Honour of Professor A. K. Chatterjee is a welcome addition to the even-growing scholarship on Buddhist studies. It is befitting to acknowledge and appreciate the profound scholarship of Professor Ashok Kumar Chatterjee on Buddhist philosophy. It is laudable that the students and friends of Professor- A. K. Chatterjee keep on record the respects for him on his 81/st birthday through this volume of l0 scholarly papers. Professor Chatterjee had made known four and a half decades ago his philosophical acumen and masterly talent through his magnum opus. T he Yogacara Idealism and that has run into different editions after its first publication in 1962. Often it has been said: ‘a tree is known, through its fruits’ and this is true-of Professor Chatterjee, as he is known throug his erudite writings to the academic world.

Buddhism, as a discipline, permeates into Philosophy, Religion and even Psychology. It is not just a form of faith or system of religion to be treated through its doctrines and philosophies, but it is most intimately linked to the life of the people and the world culture as whole. It has a universal message to offer. It is so catholic that within its orbit all could be accommodated and dealt with, because Buddhism never thinks of identity and uniformity, but unity.

The papers in this volume are scholarly research articles by different authors who have established their mark in Buddhist studies. As these are research papers readers in the field would find it more useful than the popular readers.

Professor Ashok Kumar Chatterjee was Professor of Logic and Analytic Philosophy, and Head of the Department of Philosophy and Religion, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India. He is an unparalleled authority on Buddhism in general and the Yogacara in particular. "In Indian Philosophy, the whole emphasis falls on self- abnegation on the part of the individual thinker. Indian philosophy is a-temporal, and a-historical. Systems here are presented as timeless verities", wrote A. K. Chatterjee in his ‘Reasoning in Indian Philosophy. This is true of him. He falls in line with the tradition and contributes his ‘share’, (though enormous it is for ignorant beings like me), to the large horizon of Indian thought. In this eighty-second year of Professor A. K. Chatterjee’s admirable life, when he is completing sahasra candra darsanas (catching sight of thousand full moons), a very auspicious period according to Indian tradition, and this volume is being brought out as festschrift in honour of him.

This volume Recent Researches in Buddhist Studies: Festschrift in H0n0ur 0f Professor A. K. Chatterjee contains ten papers:

In this volume, the first paper is by Professor Ashok Kumar Chatterjee himself. In this erudite paper he explores and unravels the types of absolutism that of Buddhist and non-Buddhist.

The second paper is by late Professor Chinmoy Goswami, most probably his last philosophical investigation and musings before his untimely demise on the first of December, 2006. This paper has got much of autobiographical touch where the reminiscence of the author comes to pass a bit; and the author has taken the cue for the entire paper from Professor A. K. Chatterjee’s significant succinct treatise "Insight and Paradox in Buddhist Thought".

Professor Charles Willemen in his "Proto-Samkhya in the Chinese Buddhacarita" brings out the Samkhya-yoga passages that are translated or explained in Buddhist terms in the Chinese Buddhacarita. He concludes in his scholarly paper that the Chinese audience thought that Jaigisavya, Janaka, and Vrddha Parasara (alias Pancasikha), just like Arada, were very much advanced on the Buddhist path even before Sakyamini’s bodhi. They must have considered Samkhya-yoga to be a pre-Buddhist phase for Brahmanas.

Professor Abhimanyu Singh in his "The Significance of Causation in Early Buddhism" unravels the subtle nuances of Paticcasamuppada in a scholarly fashion, making a thorough analysis of the original texts and argues that "the doctrine of dependent origination plays an irrevocably crucial role in Buddhism: it elucidates not only the process of that binds beings to samsara, but also the one necessary for attaining enlightenment."

Professor Ineke Van Put in her "The Indian Teacher Zhu Tanwulan and his Devadutas€1tra" narrates about the esteemed Indian teacher in Chinese Buddhist tradition named Zhu Tanwulan and his work Devadutasutra from the earliest Chinese catalogues.

Dr. John K. Locke, S. J., gives a comprehensive view ' about the Nepalese Buddhism in his "The Vajrayana Buddhism of Kathmandu Valley." He provides details on the Viharas, the order of the Buddhist monks, rituals and feasts, initiation ceremonies, laity, history and development, and also the present scenario of Buddhism in Nepal in his paper.

Dr. Tomy Augustine’s paper "Theory and Praxis of Tibetan Buddhism" makes clear the theory and practice of Vajrayana Buddhism, or the Buddhism of mainland Tibet. He brings to light the development of Vajrayana, and classification of Buddhist tantras. Part two of his paper is all about the theory of tantric Buddhism, where the philosophical implications are dealt with, whereas part three deals with the practice of it.

Nichalaus J. Shaji in his "Sik5dsamuccaya being the Manuel on the Path of Bodhisattva: An Analytical Exposition" gives an analytical study of the Siksasamuccaya of Santideva. It is a brief survey of the disciplines of the Bodhisattva along with the foundational principles underlying these disciplines, as found in the text.

Arun Kumar Ojha sheds light on the concept of ‘Consciousness’ as understood in the Yogacara—Vijnanavada school of Buddhism in his paper "Consciousness and Yogacara-Vijnanavada." He argues in this paper that Yogacara—Vijnanavada, has two purposes. First, the sole purpose is to establish the ultimacy of vijnanas, and second one, though allied, is to present a comprehensive and logical structure of this phenomena through the explanation of the three vijnanas.

C. D. Sebastian expounds the metaphysics and ethics in Mahayana Buddhism by focusing on the Tathaga doctrine. He writes that the metaphysics of Tathagatagarbha is the basis of the ethics of Bodhisattva ideal. In this doctrine one could trace the unity of all sentient beings, and work for the well being of all.

I believe that this volume of ten papers will be of interest not only to the lovers, researchers, students and teachers of Buddhism, but also to a much broader range of readers and scholars of philosophy and religion. It is my hope that this work will illuminate multiple ways of researching the unexplored areas of Buddhist studies.

In the most pleasant duty of giving thanks, I must first express my sincere gratitude to and deep appreciation for the Most Venerable Professor Samdhong Punpoche, Honourable Prime Minister, Central Tibetan Administration of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Dharamsala, for writing ‘Foreword" to this volume. I thank him for his continuing inspiration for genuine scholarship, religious life and sddhana.

I would like to thank all the scholars of Buddhist studies who have contributed to this volume. Their scholarship is highly valued and friendship is sincerely cherished. All of them are from academia; and each of them has established their mark in her/his own respective areas of research and teaching.

I wish to remember with gratitude my esteemed teachers and well wishers in my life like His Excellency Mar Sebastian Vadakel, Dr. K. Ammanathukunnel, Professor Sebastian Thurutlrel, Dr. D.B. Chaube, Dr. Abhimanyu Singh, Professor D. A. Gangadhar, Professor S. Vijayakumar. Professor Sebastian Karotemprel SDB, Professor Hans Jurgen Findeis, Professor U. C. Dubey, Professor A. K. Rai, Professor Peter Vattapara, Professor J. Athikalam, Dr. Kripa Shankar Ojha, Dr. Mukul Raj Mehta, Professor Sebastian Kizhakkeyil, Dr. Munni Agrawal, Dr. Alaka H. Agera, Dr. K. P. Mishra and Professor Urmila Chaturvedi.

I wish to thank my colleagues Professor A. Ramanathan (Head of the Department), Professor L. M. Bhole, Professor P. R. Bhat, Professor Ranjan K. Panda, and Professor Vikram Singh Sirola and all others in the Department of Humanities and Social-Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai for their constant support and encouragement.

I wish to thank Ms Sai Arun Thakur, doctoral student in sociology, IIT Bombay, who helped me to get the manuscript ready. I thank my doctoral students Mr. Arun Kumar Ojha, Mr. Jayant Prasad, Mr. Gyan Prakash and Ms. Sarita Kar for their love and sustained interest in my work.

My sincere thanks are due to Mr. Sunil Gupta and Mr. Naresh Gupta of Sri Satguru Publications, a Division of Indian Books Centre, Delhi, for publishing this volume in "Bibliotheca Indo-Buddhica Series".