Key Terms/prasajyapratiṣedha
Basic Meaning
A negation that merely denies the existence of something without implicitly suggesting an alternative.
Has the sense of
This is the type of negation that is associated with the classical Madhyamaka presentation of emptiness, in which that absence is taken literally. It is typical of the philosophical position that became known as self-emptiness.
dgag pa'i nang gses/ rang dngos su rtogs pa'i blo'am rang brjod pa'i sgras rang gi dgag bya dngos su bcad tsam gyis rtogs par bya ba ste/ gang zag gi bdag med lta bu/ bdag bkag pa'i shul du don gzhan mi 'phen pa'o/
A nonimplicative negation is simply denial, like the denial of essence or identity, without implying anything else or deferring that essence to some “other.” . . . [W]hen we consider the classic example of a nonimplicative negation, “Brahmins should not drink alcohol,” we can see how the connotative force of this negation is simple denial devoid of implication. (Douglas Duckworth, "Onto-theology and Emptiness: The Nature of Buddha-Nature" [Journal of the American Academy of Religion 82, no. 4, 2014], 1075-76).
On this topic
