Buddhist Hermeneutics: A Conference Report Author(s): Donald S. Lopez, Jr. Source: Philosophy East and West, Vol. 37, No. 1 (Jan., 1987), pp. 71-83 Published by: University of Hawai'i Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1399084 Accessed: 06/12/2009 03:08 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=uhp. Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. University of Hawai'i Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Philosophy East and West. http://www.jstor.org and Japan to investigate the special problems faced and the solutions set forth by the great Buddhist schools of India. as in the Catuhpratisaranasutra and the Samdhinirmocanasutra. Great Britain. a major issue in Buddhism. the beginning of Buddhist hermeneutics. Yet all the teachings of the Buddha must be free from error and contradiction. current interest in hermeneutics is focused primarily on more modern theories of interpretation. However. and Ricoeur. The conference was sponsored by the Kuroda Institute for the Study of Buddhism and Human Values. Lopez. especially from a text. the Buddha sometimes provided his own hermeneutics. Jr. .Comment and Discussion Donald S. China. and Japan as they attempted to interpret consistently the vast corpus of scriptures attributed to the Buddha. The interpretation of sacred scriptureis. Jr. This problem provided the impetus for the development of interpretative formulae in India. ? by University of Hawaii Press. The Conference brought together a group of twenty scholars from the United States. from May 31 to June 3. Gadamer. where the problems faced by the interpreters of the Buddha's word were somewhat different from those found in the West. such as Origen. so the Buddha was said to teach different things to different persons depending upon their capacities and needs. Lopez. no. Tibet. however. is Associate Professor in the Department of Religion at Middlebury College. They were still faced with the difficulty. a tradition beginning with the work of Friedrich Schleiermacher and continuing into the twentieth century with such figures as Bultmann. Vermont. Heidegger. 1 (January 1987). Buddhist hermeneutics: A conference report A research conference on Buddhist hermeneutics was held in Los Angeles. It is by no means a new science. of explaining those statements that seemed to contradict what they understood the Buddha's final position to be on some point of doctrine. in effect. Major funding for the conference was provided by a grant from the Division of Research Programs of the National Endowment for the Humanities. of course. Philosophy East and West 37. All rights reserved. Hermeneutics is a discipline concerned with establishing principles for the retrieval of meaning. Besides the sheer bulk of the canon. the sixth scholarly conference sponsored by the Institute over the past five years. California. The major schools of Buddhist thought in India each set forth its own opinion as to the nature of the Buddha's final view. 1984. sophisticated systems of interpretation were devised by Talmudic rabbis and by early Church fathers. The situation was further complicated by the existence of interpretative guidelines in discourses attributed to the Buddha. Korea. Southeast Asia. the various schools of Buddhist thought were faced with a peculiar dilemma: just as a physician does not prescribe the same remedy for all maladies. The purpose of the conference was to assemble a group of Buddhologists to assess the development of Buddhist hermeneutics as formulated by the major Donald S. Centralto the various methods of interpretation employed by these texts is the concept of the gradual path to nibbdnaas a hermeneuticaldevice or strategy to explain the logic and structure of the dhamma. although the path has many levels and applications. with Friday being devoted to Indian and Sinhalese Buddhism. Northwestern University. George D. the Netti shows. Professor Bond examined the Netti Prakarana and the Petakopadesa.72 Lopez schools of Asia. This. Summaries of the sixteen papers follow in the order in which they were presented. The Netti and Petakopadesademonstrate the diversity of the dhammaby identifying various types of suttas that have relevance to various types of persons at different levels. Sunday morning to Japanese Buddhism. The conference encompassed six sessions of three hours each over three days. the critical tools at the Buddhologist's disposal for the analysis of a text remain comparatively primitive. is the secret to understanding the logic and meaning of the Buddha's teaching. Present as a discussant was Professor David Tracy of the University of Chicago.The gradual path provides a framework that permits the dhammato have both great diversity and an underlying unity. a leading formulatorof modern hermeneuticaltheory. Professor Tracy contributed greatly to the conference with his questions and comments. With almost infinite variations. Bond. These manuals accept all these forms of religious practice and link them together via the gradual path. To demonstrate this thesis. together with the models they employed and the goals they set for themselves. Saturdaymorning to Buddhist Tantra. the conference sought to establish the range of motivations for the interpretation of scripture and assessed the philosophical and soteriological agendas that led to sometimes conflicting views of the same text. they do not separate the kammic from the nibbdnicpath. The dhammais one and the path is one. Saturday afternoon to Chinese Buddhism. In the clash of religious contexts that Dumont and Poussin describe. these combinations of types of suttas and types of persons constitute an immensely long and gradual path to the goal of nibbdna. Professor Bond went on to speculate about the historical situations that gave rise to these interpretative schema. the manuals do not regard these as distinct religious paths. these texts had to clarify the nature of the path and roles of the renouncers and the men-in-the-world. while also providing for the individualistic discipline and cosmology requiredby the adept. although the Netti and . which served to sensitize the participants to the possibilities and challenges that remain to be confronted in Buddhist hermeneutics.Despite diverse categorizations. Because Buddhologists have not had the opportunity to undertakethe sophisticatedhermeneutical and semiotic studies of sacred texts that have been so important in Biblical exegesis during the twentieth century. Thus. and Sunday afternoon to concluding remarks by Professor Tracy and the other discussants. "The Gradual Path as a Hermeneutical Approach to the Dhamma in the Netti Prakaranaand the Petakopadesa" The central hermeneutical principle or vehicle for the Theravada tradition is the path to enlightenment. which provides for the kind of hierarchicalreligion needed in the social context of the man-in-the-world. In addition to identifying the various schools of interpretation. Theravada's two most explicit treatiseson textual interpretation. It provides the meaning and structure for the teachings and the tradition as a whole. Kyoto University. Amitabha appeared declaring that all beings would be saved through faith in him. That same wisdom. the law of karmic retribution. The Sarvastivada held that a sage could exchange the enjoyment of happiness resulting from past deeds for long life and vice versa (as in the and The Jndnaprasthdna the Abhidharmakosabhdsya). Yuichi Kajiyama.. using as source materials the analyses of these schools by two fourteenth-centuryTibetan scholars of the dGe-lugs-pa school. being empty of own being in the ultimate sense. In the Mahayana solution to the inexorable nature of karma. Donald S. Lopez. and that the agent of a deed is alone responsible for its effect. and Prasafigika schools of Indian Mahayana Buddhism between the fourth and eighth centuries. the theory developed of a transfer of merit (parindmana)that functioned in two ways to provide the ground of Mahayana soteriology. The Theravada invented a means by which one could transfer the effect of his deed to another (as described in the Pettavatthu. The principle underlying Amitabha's merciful deliverance was the transfer of his merits to others. focusing especially on all three schools' treatment of the seventh chapter of the Samrdhinirmocanasutra the Maand He dhyamika's use of a passage from the Aksayamatinirdesasuitra. The later Hinayana schools developed two remedies to the theory of karma. including karman and its effect. Svatantrika. a later context in which Theravada was wrestling with the question of how to give the dhammaan inclusive interpretation. were longing for a savior who would redeem them from a life full of sins. Professor Kajiyama argued that Mahayana Buddhism can be regarded as a movement to transcend the traditional Indian theory of karmic retribution and transmigration and to demythologize faith in heavenly saviors such as Amitabha. "Transfer and Transformation of Merits in Relation to Emptiness" The Indian theory of karmic retribution was based on two principles: that a deed. agreeable or disagreeable. then went . who. Middlebury College. Transfer and transformation of merit. sufferingfrom successive foreign invasions. depends on a believer's mind and other causes for his appearance. the latter changes the content of the karmic result. and so forth). however. Jr. Through an analysis of the development of theories by which the effects of karma could be avoided. in turn. satisfying to both monks and lay persons. The Prajndparamitd literature and the Madhyamaka school held that one could change worldly merits into supramundaneenlightenment because all things. Tsong-kha-pa and Pan-chen bSod-nams-grags-pa. belief in karman and rebirth was firmly established among Indians while people. Professor Kajiyama demonstrated the hermeneutical principles that allowed for reinterpretations of a fundamental Buddhist doctrine. good or evil. in large part. former remedy changes the direction of karmic retribution. Professor Lopez began with a presentation of the salient points of the systems of interpretationtheory developed by these schools. are empty of their own being. in accordance with the deed. Around the beginning of the Christian Era. "The Hermeneutics of Suspicion in Indian Mahayana Buddhism" This paper examined the interpretativeprinciples developed by the Yogacara.73 the Petakopadesaattempt to recontextualize this understanding of the gradual path by attributing it all to the Buddha. At this point. necessarily brings about an effect. the conception of the dhamma and its interpretation presented here seem to reveal. were made possible by virtue of the wisdom of emptiness. tends to demythologize the cult of Amitabha. despite their accumulation of karman that should lead them to hell. which transcended the law of karmic retribution. without sacrificing its true intention. although the interpreteris free to choose. the basis of which is a determinationof what actually exists. Professor Lopez argued that in the formulation of a critical theory of interpretation. Tsong-kha-pa's presentation is very interesting in light of the work of scholars such as Schmithausen. Professor Lopez concluded that the Yogacarin and Svatantrika hermeneutic is essentially Romantic in the sense that their primary concern is to stand behind the text in an effort to establish the intention of the Buddha in terms of his audience. Paul Ricoeur. This is accomplished by the Prasafigikas.dhinirmocana asserting that the first and second wheels of the teaching are interpretable (neyartha)and that the final wheel is The Svatantrikasagree that the firstwheel is interpretable definitive (nttdrtha). but find both interpretable and definitive statements in the second and third wheels. With extensive reasoning and citation of sources he proposes that the two are intertwined-that the fact that objects are not established by way of their own character as bases of names and bases of conception by thought is concomitant with a nondifference in entity between subject and object. specifically that of Hans-Georg Gadamer. The Prasafigikasare also concerned with this but employ a more universal and disinterested approach in which the time.yongs grub). definitive. interpretation of scripturein that school is based on the literalityand nonliteralityof particularpassages.74 Lopez on to analyze their respective approaches in the light of modern hermeneutical theory. Jeffrey Hopkins. Professor Hopkins contrasted these more recent publications with Tsong-kha-pa to derterminewhether or not the evidence that he presents has successfully been refuted. The issue of the relationship between these two types of emptiness (that of the object's serving naturally as the basis of a name and that of a difference of entity between subject and object) is central to Tsong-kha-pa's delineation of the procedure of hermeneutics in the Cittamatra or Yogacara school. As the doctrine of the three charactersthoroughly established (parinispanna.and the Svatantrikastake a synthetic approach incorporating elements from both sutras. other-powered (paratan- . the Yogacarins follow the Samdhinirmocana. Yet. the Buddhist is free to choose as the scriptural authority for his hermeneutic the sutra that best accommodates the assertions of his own the school. Prasafigikas follow the Aksayamatinirdesa. he is obliged to account for the scriptural authority of the other. and mind-only in the sense of no external objects. According to the dGe-lugs-pa interpreterPan-chen Bsod-nams-grags-pa. University of Virginia. Professor Lopez examined at some length the criteria employed by each school in the determination of whether a statement is interpretable or definitive and considered the philosophical positions that underlay those criteria. Tsong-kha-pa addresses at length the issue of the relationship between the view of reality. place. put forth in Asafiga's "Chapter on Reality (tattva)" in the Bodhisattvabhumi. Wayman. "The Question of Mind-Only in Asafiga's Bodhisattvabhimi" In his Essence of Good Explanations (Legs bshad snying po). This conflict of interpretation among the schools and its attendant mutual suspicion challenges the schools constantly to reassess their explanatory methods. Thus. by their assessment that the Samdhinirmocanais interpretable and intended for Yogacarin disciples not yet capable of understanding the Madhyamika view. audience. and mode of expression of a text are not of overriding significance in the judgment of the text as definitive or interpretable. and David Tracy.for example. The Prasafigikas find the first and third wheels to be interpretable and the middle wheel. According to Tsong-kha-pa. the in Yogacarins follow the Sam. and Willis that attempts to show that the view of Asafiga's Bodhisattvabhumiis not of mind-only. The issue of whether Asanga holds a nondifference of entity between subject and object to be the final mode of subsistence of phenomena is. but says later that in reality there is no self. University of Chicago (in absentia). is of special importance." In his paper. Professor Hopkins explained Tsong-kha-pa's position in contrast to that of recent scholars and suggested possible refinements in their arguments. the thoroughly established character. University of Michigan. Luis 0. Professor Gomez sought to show that the contemporary "hermeneutical question" opens new problems to which the Buddhist exegete has to respond with a new understanding or a revision of his tradition. The ostensible similarity between the theory of the tathdgatagarbhaand dtmavdda of the Tirthikas did not go unnoticed in the Mahayana sutras. to differentiate between.the Buddhist notion of absolute reality in- . The question guiding our efforts seems to be. "The Buddhist Notion of an Immanent Absolute as a Problem in Hermeneutics" Professor Ruegg's paper analyzed the philosophical and religious significance of the Mahayanist theory of the tathdgatagarbhain Indian thought. He began with a consideration of the soteriological and metaphysical status of the tathdgatagarbhaas a problem in exegesis and hermeneutics.75 tra. then. thereby employing the principle of the Middle Way to eschew both the eternalist and nihilist views. G6mez. The question of the possible relationship or interaction between modern methodology and mentality on the one hand and traditional Buddhist exegetical and hermeneutical concepts on the other was the main focus of Professor Gomez's paper. therefore. however. very pure. "Precedents and Possibilities for a Buddhist Hermeneutic" Buddhist scholars and scholars of Buddhism seem to have decided to adopt the term "hermeneutics" to describe a type of intellectual activity for which the ancient Buddhists did not have a single term. authority. Professor Gomez explored the meaning of history and "the conflict of interpretations" in terms of traditional Buddhist metaphysics and hermeneutics. one of simply asking for specific instances of "the hermeneuticalactivity in Buddhism. seems motivated primarilyby a desire to prove that the Buddhist tradition did not lack in hermeneutical sophistication. David Seyfort Ruegg. The Buddhist philosophers were obliged. it forces the requirement that scriptures speaking of contradictory modes of being be interpreted. and exegesis in classical Buddhist thought. on the one side. uncovering with the contemporary categories a number of tensions and inconsistencies in the tradition. and imputed (parikalpita. kun btags)-is central to this school's presentation of what does and does not exist. The paper concluded with a note on the ways in which the impact of historical and hermeneutical consciousness on Buddhism may differ from or be similar to the effect of the emergenceof hermeneuticpluralismand historical criticism on Christianity. By means of selected examples of hermeneutical categories and their application to problems of authenticity. gzhan dbang). In particular. Professor Gomez sought to give our enthusiasm a new twist by exploring some of the ways in which Western contemporary awareness of the problems of understanding and interpretation present a new challenge to traditional Buddhist hermeneutics. the tathdgatagarbha. therefore. and without marks. blissful self. The new hermeneutical enthusiasm. In the Mahiaparithe nirvdnasuitra Buddha describes the tathdgata as a permanent. thereby converting many Tirthikas to the dharma. As the final object of observation of a path of purification. the determination of emptiness. of pivotal importance in his hermeneutic. and the status of what exists. an eternal and unchanging entity like the atman. In the final section of his paper. the teaching of the ship tathdgatagarbhais held to be definitive (nitdrtha)because it refers in the end to sunyata. The former approach is more common. but had a long history in Indian semantics and semiotics. often seems to be little more than a collection of rules of thumb handed down through the tradition. and. Rather. too. The second solution to the problem of dbhiprdyika centers on establishing the relationraised by the status of the tathdgatagarbha between the tathdgatagarbhaand siinyatd. and must indicate. Hence. many of the discussions of interpretivetheory found in the sastraic literature seem not to be intellectually satisfying. The basis for these principles implicitly appears to be the demand of reason that a system of thought be coherent and cohesive. they had available two hermeneuticalpossibilities. Any system of interpretation that fails to ground itself in anything more profound than the mere desire for consistency brings this problem with it. it is not the case that the tathdgatagarbhatheory represents a Brahmanical monism.as opposed to actual interpretations. Hence. but the latter is found in both the earliest texts as well as in the Mahayana. In order to elucidate this difference. Buddhist theories of interpretation run the risk of becoming arbitrary principles whereby the Buddha's teaching can be forced into the mold established by any given later thinker. either of which would allow them to remain faithful to their fundamental principle of nonsubstantiality (nairdtmya). but whether the theory adopted actually avoids representingreality as a nihilistic destruction of some entity or as a literal void to which one might cling dogmatically. dealing specifically with the question of the role of faith in the understanding of the Absolute. University of Chicago. but must ground its principles in more fundamental reason. or to inspire those who lacked confidence in their ability to achieve Buddhahood. in which reality is represented negatively and approached apophatically. specifically. And he saw those to be themselves dependent upon still more fundamental . on the other side. "Mi-pham'sTheory of Interpretation" Buddhist theory of interpretation. As such.76 Lopez formed by certain inseparable and constitutive factors.The first possibility was based on the idea that the Buddha's teaching that the tathdgatagarbhais present in all living beings is but not definitive (nTtdrtha). Professor Ruegg considered the cognitive status of the tathdgatagarbhaand the Absolute. that the doctrine of the tathdgatagarbhawas an expedient device employed by the Buddha to attract persons attached to the idea of a Self. Professor Ruegg argued that what is of paramount importance is not whether absolute reality is to be described positively or negatively. Matthew Kapstein. a complete theory of interpretation must give us not merely rules of thumb. contrary to what has sometimes been suggested. in which it is represented positively and approached cataphatically. Here. Read with this in mind. there is a striking parallel between the semantic theory of suggestion (vyafjand) and poetical resonance (dhvani)on the one hand and the Buddhist hermeneuticians'theory and neydrthaon the other. that apparent contradictions be removed. Mi-pham places his discussions of the interpretative rules of thumb in an overall philosophical context that shows that he expected them to depend upon and be validated by the more fundamental principles of logic and epistemology. One rather late Buddhist thinker who seems to have been aware of these difficulties was 'Jam-mgon 'Ju Mi-pham rnam-rgyal (1846-1912). the means by which those principles are to be applied. Professor Ruegg demonstrated that this concept of the intentional (dbhiprdyika) was not something invented by the Buddhist commentators. Buddhist Mahayanist thought contains both a via negationis. and a via eminentiae. For example. that is. requires interpretation (neydrtha). The main sastraicsources for these topics appear to have been the Abhidharmasamuccaya and the Mahdydnasuitrdlamkdra. Mi-pham commented on the four modes of reasoning in at least three works: (1) a short verse tract entitled Don rnampar nges pa shes rab ral gri (The Sword of Discernment:An Ascertainmentof Meaning). Professor Kapstein focused his discussion on the general structrue of Mi-pham's theory and then went on to inquire into the manner in which that structure suggests a possible fulfillment of some of the requirements of a theory of interpretation. in the philosophical context. the year preceding his demise. In the Tantras this problem is compounded by the element of esotericism. "Vajra Hermeneutics" Tsong-kha-pa described the role of philosophy in Buddhist thought as essentially hermeneutical. Professor Kapstein based his discussion on the first work. in which the theory of interpretation would be found as a particular subtheory. F. and difficult to understand (rtogs dka' ba). Amherst College. Professor Thurman argued that it comes as no surprise. which is the business of the Yogacara and Madhyamika philosophers.has its meanings sealed within by means of . So the canonical context already relates these topics to the problem of interpretationin general. A consideration of the means whereby something difficult to understand may be understood provides a tenuous link with the primary concerns of recent hermeneutics. It is said that the meaning of the King of Tantras. the Guhyasamdja. rigspa bzhi). Thus. Mi-pham's stated purpose in composing The Sword was to provide illumination for those who wished to partake of the Sugata's teaching. composed in 1900.77 metaphysical truths. And since the Tantras themselves involve perhaps the furthest elaboration of interpretations of the Buddha's life and teachings. then. rather than to the Heidegger-Gadamer School. Thurman. as conceived by Western philosophers during the past two centuries. that the Guhyasamdjatradition as articulated by Vajra-Nagarjuna and Vajra-Candrakirti is deeply involved in hermeneutical strategies. His discussions elsewhere of these three properties of the teaching suggest that it is the last mentioned that is of foremost concern here.Tibetan. that of thefour modes of reasoning(yukticatustayam. which is profound. written in 1911.(2) Mkhaspa'i tshul la 'jugpa'i sgo (Introductionto scholarship). Mi-pham's general orientation here seems prima facie to relate his thought to Emilio Beti's approach to hermeneutics. with its dominant concern with the ontology of understanding. Robert A. The full exploration and criticism of Mi-pham's theory would involve a thorough investigation of his treatment of all its many ramifications. last great exegetical his work. and (3) his mammoth commentary on the Mahdydnasuztrdlamkdra.also said to be a jewel casket of all the suitras. therefore. written in 1885. These make it clear that his views on the present subject matter were in much their final form when the first of these was composed. Both works introduce the four modes of reasoning in connection with the exposition of the dharma. is conducted as a determination of the interpretability and definitiveness of the various statements of the Buddha. they must pay particular attention to the hermeneutical procedures necessary to a proper understanding and to an efficient practice. historically essential to the preservation of their teachings.a lengthy scholastic manual for more or less elementary instruction. in that the determination of the authentic view of reality. Mi-pham saw the need for a coherent philosophical system. In principle. extensive. Mi-pham's overriding architectonic here follows a classical outline. hermeneutics has the double function of reconciling apparent contradictions between the Buddha's diverse statements while keeping alive the methodologies of interpretation by which one can extract the practical essence of each particular statement. Of these. Tsung-mi(780-841). The six parameters contain the most important concepts utilized in exoteric hermeneutics. "Killing. the "six parameters" (satkoti) and the "four procedures" (caturvidham)of elucidation (vydkhydna)and exposition (akhydnam)are the most important hermeneutical ornaments. however. One set of six is described these have to do with the "channels. was not followed in India.that of Advanced Mahayana. Peter Gregory.illustrated how they are used in the interpretation of selected texts. Oxford University. esoteric. Michael Broido. omitted the Perfect Teaching from his classificatory scheme in his Inquiry into the Originof Man (Yiian-jenlun). and ultimate meanings."The other set is describedas requiringinterpretation (neydrtha)and enjoins the adept not to take the verse literally unless he has attained the five special insights (abhijnd)." "winds. common. the three pairs of interpretable/definitive. "circles. the problem he discussed in his paper bears on the tradition's assessment of its cardinal teaching. The hermeneuticvocabulary of nTtdrtha neydrtha is used in a way differentfrom that familiar from the GuhyasamSjaliterature. a doctrine that has been traditionally explained as teaching the unobstructed interrelation of all phenomena (shih-shihwu-ai). In his study. which teaches the interpenetration of the absolute and phenomenal (li-shih .intentional/nonintentional. The Vimalaprabhd gives two interpretations for each recommended activity. University of Illinois. Professor Thurman elucidated the presentation of these hermeneutical strategies by Candrakirti in his Pradipoddyotana. which themselves are subdivided into twenty-eight principles. and Adultery in the Kdlacakratantra" The Kdlacakratantra (111. a doctrine based on the teaching of the tathdgatagarbhaarticulated in Awakeningof Faith (Ta-sheng ch'i-hsinlun) and representativeof that which Fa-tsang classifies as the third teachingwithin his Treatiseon theFive Teachings. and literal/nonliteral. Professor Gregory suggested various reasons for the revalorization of Huayen teachings seen in this shift in the interpretation of the meaning of the Hua-yen Siutra. Since this scripture. a teaching which corresponded to that which Fa-tsang had merely ranked third in his fivefold scheme.78 Lopez seven ornaments. Fa-tsang (643-712) had identified the Huayen Sutra with the "Perfect Teaching" (yiian-chiao). is central to the tradition's identity. Professor Broido argued from the evidence in the Vimalaprabhdthat the practice of applying the Guhyasamaja style of hermeneuticsto all the Tantras. He concluded with a consideration of how this Tantric refinementof Buddhist hermeneutics completes the tradition in such a way as to make comparison with modern disciplines of hermeneutics possible and fruitful. according pride of place to the "Teaching which Reveals the Nature" (hsien-hsingchiao). This is contrasted with Nature Origination (hsing-ch'i).in which case the otherwise immoral actions may and be turned to good effect. and reflected on how this presentation relates to hermeneutical approaches of exoteric commentators. The four procedures add four types of meaning into the scheme: literal. In his Treatise on the Five Teachings(Wu-chiaochang). Stealing.He characterized Fa-tsang's understanding of the purport of this scripture in terms of the conditioned origination of the dharmadhdtu (fa-chieh yiian-ch'i). which is extolled as the most profound teaching of the Buddha." and as definitive (ntadrtha). from which the Hua-yen tradition takes its name. which was common in Tibet. Lying.97-98) seems to recommend six apparentlyimmoral activities (correlated with the six types of adepts). "What Happened to the PerfectTeaching?" Professor Gregory discussed a hermeneutical problem within the doctrinal classification (p'an-chiao) of the Hua-yen tradition of Chinese Buddhism-a problem centering on the classification of the Avatamsaka (Hua-yen) Sitra. Professor Buswell explored the contributions of the Korean Ch'an school. Los Angeles. Li T'ung-hsuan's comments represent a more sensitive and nuanced reading of the text itself. its hermeneutical considerations evolved into more gnoselogical and ontological concerns. in part. which prided itself on being a "separate transmission outside the sutras. unlike text-based Buddhist hermeneutics. its praxis led to the state of the unimpeded interpenetration of the dharmadhatu. Ch'an descriptions of enlightenment that seem to parallel those used in Hua-yen actually are "live words. This difference is clarified in the Ch'an hermeneutical principle of the "live word. Professor Gimello used the difference between the approaches of these two Hua-yen exegetes to draw a more general distinction between what he called explicit and implicit hermeneutics. Chinul attempted to counter the claim of the Hua-yen school that Ch'an was nothing more than a glorified sudden teaching. Robert Buswell. the consummation of the complete teaching of the scholastic doctrine." Professor Buswell concluded with a discussion of levels of Ch'an discourse in order to indicate that Ch'an has close affinities with the analysis of the . this is because. was less reliant on conceptual modes of expression. Professor Gregory went on to contend that the most important factor behind Tsung-mi's reevaluation of Hua-yen teachings was the rise of Ch'an. although parallel in content to that achieved in Hua-yen practice. Professor Gregory suggested in conclusion that Tsung-mi's position was further related to his reaction against what he perceived to be the antinomian implications of some of the more radical Ch'an teachings of the late eighth and early ninth centuries. It also reflected his personal preference for the Scripture of Perfect Enlightenment (Yian-chiieh ching). "Ch'an Hermeneutics:A Korean View" The hermeneutical perspectives of the East Asian Ch'an tradition. University of California. which he saw as more suited to the needs of the times and which served as the catalyst for his initial enlightenment experience. Ch'an was distinguished from the sudden teaching because. Gimello. on the Huayen legacy he had inherited from Ch'eng-kuan. "Hua-yen Hermeneutics" Professor Gimello discussed the different exegetical styles of Chih-yen and Li T'ung-hsuan in their commentaries to the Avatamasaka(Hua-yen) Sutra. the fourth of the five divisions proposed by Fa-tsang (643-712)." which is intended to catalyze awakening." which is merely a theoretical description of truth. known as S6n-which was the successor to a vigorous critical tradition in Chinese Ch'an Buddhism-focusing on the work of Chinul (1158-1210). He pointed out that whereas Chih-yen seemed to have used the text as an opportunity to address an agenda of doctrinal issues that often had more to do with the scholastic debates of the Chinese Buddhist world in the sixth and seventh centuries than with the contents of the scripture. a movement with which he was intimately involved. observing that explicit hermeneutical schemes (such as p'an-chiao) frequently had little to do with the implicit hermeneutic revealed in the way a particular commentator dealt with the actual words of a text. University of Arizona." presents a unique set of interpretative problems. unlike the sudden teaching that culminated in the abandonment of thought. and the "dead word. Professor Gregory argued that Tsung-mi's emphasis on li-shih wu-ai over shih-shih wu-ai throughout his writings was based. by showing that Ch'an was in fact the only true complete (yuan) and sudden (tun) teaching. But Ch'an was also superior to the complete teaching because its description of the enlightenment experience. Robert M. Tsung-mi saw li-shih wu-ai as providing a philosophical rationale for Ch'an practice and so as offering a more effective soteriological prescription than shih-shihwu-ai.79 wu-ai). and Attainment (sho) which Shinran draws from T'an-luan.Other Power (tariki). Sangishiki (Aims of the Three Teachings). The first part of his paper explained the historical and intellectual context of Kuikai's early life as a student and religious ascetic. The connection between these later writings and Kukai's earlier work is that throughout his life. Duke University. Kukai evaluated Confucianism. is simply Dainichi's act. the founder of Japanese Shingon Buddhism. University of North Florida. Northland College. in which language is seen as a surface manifestation of the subperceptible resonances (kyJ). Professor Kasulis suggested that Kukai's mountain practice based on the text known as Kokizogumonjiho was a youthful expression of his desire to correlate religious ritual (in this case. and Buddhism with reference to how they could improve people. is evaluated according to how well it leads the listener to an awareness of the cosmic and microcosmic. In the second part of his paper.in which there is a progression from naive cataphasis to radical apophasis to perfected cataphasis. "Shinran's Proofs of True Buddhism: Hermeneutics and Doctrinal Development in the Kyogyoshinsho'sUse of T'anluan's Lun-chu" Shinran's Kyogyoshinshois a collection of proof texts intended to show the superiority of Faith (shinjin). Faith (shin). Thomas P. and it has been alleged that Shinran grossly misinterpreted his sources. Kukai tended to understand what words mean in light of what they do. in which language. Professor Corless claimed that the circularity of this hermeneutic is legitimate because it is congruent with his new vision of the coinherence of the unmanifest and manifest aspects of the dharmakdyaencapsulated in the Hongan and because it is a hermeneutic of persuasion intended to induce in us a paradigm shift of vision away from the "miscellaneous practices" of Tendai towards the Absolute Tariki of Shinshu. By an analysis of those proof texts on the True Teaching (kyo). There is Dogen the first patriarch of the S6ot . Roger Corless. Practice (gyo). He suggested that Kukai's Shingon theory analyzes language on three levels: the cosmic. and the macrocosmic. Professor Kasulis then went on to discuss the "ten stages of mind" classification system as exemplifying the results of applying the Shingon view of language to the interpretation of religious texts and traditions.80 Lopez teachings found in the general Chinese hermeneuticalstructure. Taoism. In his major work of this early period. John C. the microcosmic. Maraldo. and the Fundamental Vow (hongan) of Amida Buddha. indeed all the universe. "Why Doesn't Dogen Say What He Means? Text and Intertext in a Medieval Zen Master's Writings" Professor Maraldo began by discussing the ambiguities that surround the identity of Dogen as author. The proof texts are quoted out of context and apparently arbitrarily. in which language. "The Basis of Kukai's Theory of Interpretation" Professor Kasulis set out to explain the basic hermeneutic theory implicit in the works of Kukai (774-835). rather than to how consistent or comprehensive they were as pure systems of thought. Kasulis. Professor Corless contrasted T'an-luan'shermeneuticof commentatorial notation (chu) with Shinran'shermeneuticof selection (senchaku) and sought to show that Shinran's hermeneutic is circular. as we ordinarily understand it. the chanting of dhdrani)with textual interpretation (this particular practice promised the development of the ability to memorize and understand all Buddhist scriptures). Professor Kasulis began by explaining Kukai's fully developed theory of language. What is the "true dharmaeye" and what is the "treasury"?We know that the text was compiled as a single work long after Dogen's death. D6gen's words work very literally to disperse any sense of a literal transmission of mind. independent of the interests of its redactors? There is reason to believe that the discourses that comprise the Shobogenzo are based upon or condensed from sermons D6gen addressed to his disciples. It is as if D6gen were writing to demonstrate how Zen is "a separate transmission outside the writings. These. in fact. Dogen the philosopher. then. The first and most obvious are the classificatory systems. Rather. In this way. To define the text is to multiply it. and so on. It never existed as a single work and there is no original as far as any kind of definitive. but those assumptions are rarelyarticulatedby the systems themselves. uniform monograph is concerned. Professor Sponberg warned against a wholesale adoption of the principles and presuppositions of Western hermeneutical theory. Can we discern an internal unity to the work. The author of the Shobogenzo is. A similar ambiguity characterizes the nature of the Shobogenzo itself. why did he write in such an inexplicable style? To illustrate this style. In Buddhism.The second category of hermeneutics. consists of the principles and strategies that are descriptive of the process of understanding. are in fact the products of hermeneutical reflection rather than hermeneutical principles themselves. and now." During the final session. letting recombinations remind us of other passages. D6gen the historical figure. with study the ways of reading a passage grow more numerous. Professor Maraldo gave examples of the widely variant translationsof arbitrarilyselected passages of the text. as it were. the text in translation. The third and deepest sense of hermeneutics in Buddhist thought is as a theory of understanding. a structural or thematic or logical universe of discourse. Buddhist Studies can make a contribution to the field of hermeneutics and has a responsibility to do so. the four discussants offered their reflections on the conference. repeatable work and the performance of the reader. D6gen the proto-poststructuralist. He went on to illustrate some of the various approaches at interpretation that have been attempted by modern scholars. It is not clear why Dogen wrote them down at all. it is essential that scholars of Buddhism construct a hermeneuticsthat will be useful to the study of Buddhism. What is read in the words set down in writing emerges from an intertext. indeed. He argued that the variant readings of D6gen have been arrived at by writing new texts. It is in the consideration of this last aspect of hermeneutics that there is much to be gained from the study of current hermeneutical reflection in the West. It is not the case that the study of a passage allows one to eliminate possible translations. Dogen the Buddhist monk. for example. Dogen the Zen master. however. D6gen the phenomenologist. re-forming combinations of kanji. This network allows the reader to collect dispersed meanings and to formulate yet other works. it seems that the hermeneutical enter- . However.81 Sect. by transferringwords from one context to another. an interplay between the written. Professor Alan Sponberg of Princeton University identified three types of hermeneutics in Buddhist thought. They clearly reflect certain hermeneutical assumptions. such as the four siddhdnta of Indian Buddhism or the p'an-chiao of Chinese Buddhism. if his intention was to transmit his teaching. not dependent on words and letters. a network of writers participating in a structured activity that transcends them individually. when a pioneering thinker. both. the Hinayana sutras teach being. that a more fruitful parallel in the analysis of the hermeneutics of traditional Buddhist commentators is not with modern Western theorists. in Buddhism there is a process of inner cultivation that prepares one for interpretation. Professor Carl Bielefeldt of Stanford University reflected that the very fact that there is a discipline of hermeneuticswhereby meaning is to be retrievedfrom the past implies an estrangement and alienation from tradition. and the emphasis on lineage and transmission in the Ch'an tradition. this is only the third of three stages of hermeneutical practice in Buddhist history. Professor David Chappell of the University of Hawaii noted that a hermeneutical principle central to Buddhist thought that seems to be absent in the West is the centrality of spiritual development in the understanding of a text. ProfessorBielefeldtofferedthe case of Chih-i'sformulationof the four teachings as illustrative of the problem of the historical in Buddhist thought. who sought deepening levels of understanding of their sacred scriptures. It is important to consider what kinds of historical consciousness occur in Buddhism and how they have affected the ways in which Buddhists have understood their texts and tradition. provides a radically new and revolutionary reading to a text. for if we are living in an age in which the perfect teaching has been fully revealed. and the perfect teaching. That is. then. notions of the evolution and devolution of the dharma. Professor Chappell argued that the discussions during the conference had dwelt inordinately on the idea of a hermeneutics of control. that of the Lotus Suitra. Despite the fact that the problem of historical consciousness is not generally associated with Buddhism. Although there are ample examples of this in the history of Buddhist thought. The first he called a hermeneutic of individualization. nonbeing. such as Hui-ssu or Shinran. Professor Chappell suggested. effected by figures such as Chih-i. But such an historical system raises an entire new set of questions. Also reflecting on what is unique in Buddhist hermeneutics. Chih-i saw these doctrines as unfolding sequentially in the teachings of the Buddha historically and as unfolding in the experience of the practitioner. but rather with the medieval interpreters of the Bible. That new reading must then be restored to the historical milieu and to the tradition. whereby an interpreter forces a text to fit into his own doctrinal position.teaches neither. The importance of the historical in Buddhism is evidenced by the need perceived by the Mahayana to account for its temporal distance from the Buddha. the early Madhyamika teaches nonbeing. This is the hermeneutics of integration. the discovery of hidden texts in Tibet. it is indeed there. and neither. as a theory of understanding.82 Lopez prise plays an important role in soteriology in the sense that hermeneutics. provides a technique for divesting oneself of illusion. It is when the once radical reinterpretation of a text becomes simply a received and unquestioned gloss that one encounters the hermeneutics of control. the tathdgatagarbha teaches both. what is left for us to discover? . Corresponding to the four alternatives of being. this is a problem of temporal distance. Professor Tracy referred to this as a radical hermeneutics of suspicion. Studies in East Asian Buddhism. Another area was the question of understanding and the application of understanding. Professor Tracy observed that. It is in this conversation that the various Buddhist traditions provide means of identifying systemic distortions in our view of reality. Buddhology can look forward to the discovery of resources that will contribute to the hermeneutical enterprise as a whole. He observed further that Buddhist texts seem to differ from those of other religious traditions in their emphasis on the authority of reason. One of the most important enterprises for the scholars of a particular tradition is to engage the question of which texts of the tradition are classics and which are merely period pieces in terms of their history of effects on the tradition. The papers summarized here were working drafts submitted for the conference. Are there criteria for classic texts in Buddhism. but with scholars of Buddhism both suffering from and challenged by the double distance of time and culture. It is at this point that the interpreterenters into what Gadamer called a "conversation" with the text. Lopez. and can these criteria be profitably discussed? A second point for consideration is the problem of distance from the classics. The revised essays resulting from the conference will be edited by Donald S.demanding not the obedience of the will but self-criticism. Jr. and published by the University of Hawaii Press as part of the Kuroda Institute series. that is radically situational and considerably more refined than much current speculation on the question. This was one of several areas in which Professor Tracy felt that Buddhist thought could contribute to hermeneutical theory. in listening to the papers and discussion during the conference.. an alienation that is not wholly negative in that it provides the opportunity for the effective use of historical critical method. The double distance also magnifies the problem of what the interpreterdoes with the claims of the text. it seemed that Buddhologists are struggling with problems similar to those encountered in the West. . the texts are disclosive rather than authoritarian.83 Professor David Tracy of the University of Chicago began his remarks by identifying possible areas of further inquiry for Buddhologists. Their encounter with this dilemma will result in alternative ways of thinking about the problems of Western hermeneutics so that. especially when the text. This double distance problem induces a kind of double alienation from the text. the conference director. He also felt that Buddhism has much to say on the relationship between language and experience. is setting forth a vision of reality. exemplified in Kiikai's ten stages. far from fearing having some monolithic "modern Western hermeneutics" forced upon it. He discerned in Buddhism a theory of application. as is most often the case in Buddhism. including classic texts of hermeneutics. but also is faced with a cultural chasm. The Buddhologist not only must negotiate a temporal distance of often considerably greaterexpanse. In the West.