The Philosophy of Buddhism

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xi

   PDF

2. Pre-totalistic Theories of Causation in Buddhism

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

      PDF

   2. Introduction

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 3-4

   3. The “Dharma-Theory” of Causation: Phenomenalism in Hīnayāna Buddhist Thought

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 5-17

   4. Causation-by-Ideation Theory:Subjective Idealism in Mahāyāna Buddhist Thought

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 18-25

3. Buddhist Totalism: General Doctrine of “Causation-by-Tathatā” and the Basis of the Causative Process: the Substance, the Function and the Manifestations

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 27-27

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   2. Buddhist Totalism: “Causation-by-Tathatā”

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 29-42

4. Buddhist Totalism: The Substance and Its Function

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 43-43

      PDF

   2. Introduction

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 45-47

   3. The “Totality” of the Substance

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 48-50

   4. The “Totality” of the Function

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 51-56

5. Buddhist Totalism: The Manifestations, Entitative and Cognitive

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 57-57

      PDF

   2. Introduction

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 59-61

   3. The Entitative Manifestations. Doctrine of “Three Natures.” Universality and Particularity

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 62-64

   4. The Cognitive Manifestations. Individuality: Consciousness, Individual Karma (Volitive Action) and Enlightenment

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 65-79

6. Buddhist Totalism: The Ontological Manifestations

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 81-81

      PDF

   2. Introduction

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 83-86

   3. The Nirmāna-Kāya or Natural, Historical Manifestations

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 87-90

   4. The Nirmāṇa-Kāya or Historical Manifestations (Cont.)

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 91-138

   5. The Saṃbhoga-Kāya or Preternatural Manifestations

      • Alfonso Verdu

      Pages 139-146

The riddles that world-causation pose to the human mind lie at the bottom of all cosmological systems of thought. In their origins, all philosophical attitudes are conditioned by partiality and "perspectivism. " The philosopher's attempted flight towards the seemingly remote kingdom of truth is often aborted by the binding twines of perspectival language. Thus his insights lose themselves in conflicting, contradictory manifestos. Greek cosmology, as it is formally set forth by the pre-Socratics, is a clear example of this weary pilgrimage of mind's embodied vision from angle to angle, from perspective to perspective. Not less is to be expected from the systems of Hinduism and, mutatis mutandis, also of Buddhist thought. More confined from the very outset to the study of reality as a study of human existence, of its awareness of embodiment, of its spatio-temporal bondage, and of its ultimate ontological status, Buddhism gave rise to truly astounding theories of "life-world" causation. The process of Buddhist thought, as it refers to the nature of the human experience as "in-the-world" existence, covers a vast range of doctrines, from original theories of pluralism and phenomenalism with sectional, multifarious and relativistic notions of causality, through the unitary conceptions of monistic idealism, up to the top of universal integrationism and dialectical totalism.

• Age of Enlightenment
• Buddhism
• Japanese
• enlightenment
• freedom
• idealism
• individual
• issue
• knowledge
• liberty
• media
• nature
• phenomenalism
• singular
• subject

• The University of Kansas, USA

  Alfonso Verdu

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