- Yoshito Hakeda, trans., Awakening of Faith attributed to Aśvaghoṣa (New York: Columbia, 1967), pp. 50-51; passage on "suddenly a thought rose ... " in Taishō Daizōkyo (henceforth T.) 44, p. 577c of the Paramārtha text, 'interestingly edited off in the Śikṣānanda text, T. 44, p. 586a. See note 2 below.
Hu-Jan Nien-Ch'i (Suddenly a Thought Rose): Chinese Understanding of Mind and Consciousness
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:There has been much discussion on the meaning of ''hu-jan'' in connection with the origin of ignorance, mainly on the basis of interpretations proposed by Fa-tsang,<sup>d</sup> (1) that ignorance alone becomes the source of defiled states of being. It is the subtlest; no other state of being can be the origin of this. It is therefore said in the text that ignorance emerges suddenly. (2) Commenting on a quotation from a ''sūtra'', he says "suddenly" means "beginninglessly," since the passage quoted makes clear that there is no other state of being prior to the state of ignorance. (3) The word "suddenly" is not used from the stand point of time, but is used to account for the emergence of ignorance without any instance of inception. | :There has been much discussion on the meaning of ''hu-jan'' in connection with the origin of ignorance, mainly on the basis of interpretations proposed by Fa-tsang,<sup>d</sup> (1) that ignorance alone becomes the source of defiled states of being. It is the subtlest; no other state of being can be the origin of this. It is therefore said in the text that ignorance emerges suddenly. (2) Commenting on a quotation from a ''sūtra'', he says "suddenly" means "beginninglessly," since the passage quoted makes clear that there is no other state of being prior to the state of ignorance. (3) The word "suddenly" is not used from the stand point of time, but is used to account for the emergence of ignorance without any instance of inception. | ||
. . . A monk of Ming<sup>e</sup> China, glosses "suddenly" as ''pu-chüeh'',<sup>f</sup> which may mean "unconsciously" or "without being aware of the reason." | :. . . A monk of Ming<sup>e</sup> China, glosses "suddenly" as ''pu-chüeh'',<sup>f</sup> which may mean "unconsciously" or "without being aware of the reason." | ||
. . . If ''hu-jan'' is a translation of a Sanskrit word, the original word ''asasmāt'' may be posited. ''Akasmāt'' means "without reason" or | :. . . If ''hu-jan'' is a translation of a Sanskrit word, the original word ''asasmāt'' may be posited. ''Akasmāt'' means "without reason" or | ||
"accidentally."<ref>Yoshito Hakeda, trans., ''Awakening of Faith attributed to Aśvaghoṣa'' (New York: Columbia, 1967), pp. 50-51; passage on "suddenly a thought rose ... " in ''Taishō Daizōkyo'' (henceforth T.) 44, p. 577c of the Paramārtha text, 'interestingly edited off in the Śikṣānanda text, T. 44, p. 586a. See note 2 below.</ref> | "accidentally."<ref>Yoshito Hakeda, trans., ''Awakening of Faith attributed to Aśvaghoṣa'' (New York: Columbia, 1967), pp. 50-51; passage on "suddenly a thought rose ... " in ''Taishō Daizōkyo'' (henceforth T.) 44, p. 577c of the Paramārtha text, 'interestingly edited off in the Śikṣānanda text, T. 44, p. 586a. See note 2 below.</ref><br> | ||
4rhe above remark does not actually answer the question of the origin | |||
;"pfthe concept, hu-jan (suddenly) or the identity of nieng (thought). We | |||
Ybecome only more aware that hu-jan is one crucial justification fo!" | |||
,(ck'an h (zen) "sudden enlightenment," itself a unique idea. Concerning | |||
~!the meaning of nien and wu-nieni (no-thought), I have shown in a | |||
Slfelated articl~ that (a) Hakeda is not the first repeatedly to read nien as | |||
~I:;;ang-nien) vikalpa; Sik~ananda's AFM was bothered by ,the same | |||
;;term; (b) but both managed to distort the original meaning; for (c) nien | |||
,:is rooted in a peculiar understanding in. pre-Buddhist Han China. 2 | |||
'~Nien is the incipient thought, associated with yink that disrupts the | |||
,(otherwise passive, yang, I mind. In this present article, I will cite more | |||
'::~vidences-this time focusing upon the concepts of shih, m conscious.- | |||
ness, and hu-jan, suddenness-to ~how again why the AFM cannot be | |||
:)ully understood without referenc~ to the native mode of thought. | |||
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Hu-Jan Nien-Ch'i (Suddenly a Thought Rose): Chinese Understanding of Mind and Consciousness
Article
Article
| Citation: | Lai, Whalen. "Hu-Jan Nien-Ch'i (Suddenly a Thought Rose): Chinese Understanding of Mind and Consciousness." Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 3, no. 2 (1980): 42–59. https://journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/jiabs/article/view/8520/2427. |
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Article Summary
The Issue: In the Awakening of Faith in Mahāyāna (Ta-ch'eng ch'i-hsin lun,b henceforth abbreviated as AFM), is found a unique explanation of the origin of avidyā, ignorance:
- Hu-jan nien-ch'i, ming wei wu-mingc
- Suddenly a thought rose; this is called ignorance
This idea has baffled many modern scholars as it has traditionally charmed many a Far Eastern Buddhist. What is meant by "suddenly"? What constitutes "thought"? The most recent translator of the AFM, Yoshito Hakeda, has appended this remark to the passage:
- There has been much discussion on the meaning of hu-jan in connection with the origin of ignorance, mainly on the basis of interpretations proposed by Fa-tsang,d (1) that ignorance alone becomes the source of defiled states of being. It is the subtlest; no other state of being can be the origin of this. It is therefore said in the text that ignorance emerges suddenly. (2) Commenting on a quotation from a sūtra, he says "suddenly" means "beginninglessly," since the passage quoted makes clear that there is no other state of being prior to the state of ignorance. (3) The word "suddenly" is not used from the stand point of time, but is used to account for the emergence of ignorance without any instance of inception.
- . . . A monk of Minge China, glosses "suddenly" as pu-chüeh,f which may mean "unconsciously" or "without being aware of the reason."
- . . . If hu-jan is a translation of a Sanskrit word, the original word asasmāt may be posited. Akasmāt means "without reason" or
"accidentally."[1]
4rhe above remark does not actually answer the question of the origin
- "pfthe concept, hu-jan (suddenly) or the identity of nieng (thought). We
Ybecome only more aware that hu-jan is one crucial justification fo!" ,(ck'an h (zen) "sudden enlightenment," itself a unique idea. Concerning ~!the meaning of nien and wu-nieni (no-thought), I have shown in a Slfelated articl~ that (a) Hakeda is not the first repeatedly to read nien as ~I:;;ang-nien) vikalpa; Sik~ananda's AFM was bothered by ,the same
- term; (b) but both managed to distort the original meaning; for (c) nien
,:is rooted in a peculiar understanding in. pre-Buddhist Han China. 2 '~Nien is the incipient thought, associated with yink that disrupts the ,(otherwise passive, yang, I mind. In this present article, I will cite more '::~vidences-this time focusing upon the concepts of shih, m conscious.- ness, and hu-jan, suddenness-to ~how again why the AFM cannot be
- )ully understood without referenc~ to the native mode of thought.
