BUDDHISM IN KERALA: The Anatta Doctrine is the core of Buddhism!

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

The Anatta Doctrine is the core of Buddhism!

Individual existence, as well as the whole world, is in absolute reality nothing
but a process of ever changing phenomena, which all are included in the five
groups of existence: Form, Feeling, Perception, Construction & Consciousness!
This process has gone on from time immemorial, before one's birth, & also after
one's death it will continue for an endless period of time, as long, and as far,
as there are causing conditions feeding it! These five groups of phenomena in
no way constitute an ego-entity, enduring personality, same self or inner soul
neither when taken separately nor when combined... Neither can any identity
or substance be found 'outside' of these all-embracing groups of phenomena...
In other words, the five groups of existence are not-self or no-self = anatta,
nor do they belong to a self = anattaniya. In view of the impermanence & the
conditionality of all existence, a belief in any form of self must be evaluated
as an illusion. Why so? Self must stay the 'same' in order to remain a true self.
But nothing here or there ever stays the same! All is transient & impermanent!
Secondly: Self must be in control to be called a self. But no self can control
causality... Things arise & cease - despite whatever self - due to conditions...
Since nothing stays the 'same' as an identical identity, no thing can ever be self!
Since nothing is in full control even of itself or any other, no thing ever can be self!
Just as what we designate by the name car, has no existence apart from axle,
wheels, motor, chassis, and so forth, or as the word house is only a convenient
designation for various materials such as cement, clay, wood etc. put together
in a specific way so as to close a portion of space. Apart from these materials
there is no separate 'house entity' in existence! In exactly same way is that,
which we call a 'being' or 'individual', or 'person', or by the name 'I' or 'Me'
nothing but an ever changing mixture of physical & mental phenomena, made up
of the above mentioned five groups and has as such no real existence in itself.
This is, in brief, the anatta doctrine of the Buddha: The teaching that fathoms
that all that exists dead or alive is void (suñña) of a permanent self or substance!
It is the fundamental Buddhist doctrine, not found at all in any other religious
or philosophical system. To comprehend it fully, not only in a neat abstract and
intellectual way, but by constant reference to actual experience, is indeed an
indispensable condition for the true understanding of the Buddha-Dhamma and
for the realization of its goal: Nibbāna... Yeah!