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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><br> | ||
"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> | The above remark does not actually answer the question of the origin of the concept, ''hu-jan'' (suddenly) or the identity of ''nien''<sup>g</sup> (thought). We become only more aware that ''hu-jan'' is one crucial justification for ''ch'an''<sup>h</sup> (zen) "sudden enlightenment," itself a unique idea. Concerning the meaning of ''nien'' and ''wu-nien''<sup>i</sup> (no-thought), I have shown in a related article that (a) Hakeda is not the first repeatedly to read ''nien'' as ''wang-nien'',<sup>j</sup> ''vikalpa''; Śikṣānanda'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.<ref>Whalen W. Lai, "A Clue to the Authorship of the ''Awakening of Faith'': Siksananda's Redaction of the Word ''' Nien' '' '."</ref> Nien is the incipient thought, associated with ''yin''<sup>k</sup> that disrupts the (otherwise passive, ''yang'',<sup>l</sup> mind. In this present article, I will cite more evidences—this time focusing upon the concepts of ''shih'',<sup>m</sup> consciousness, and ''hu-jan'', suddenness—to show again why the AFM cannot be fully understood without reference to the native mode of thought. | ||
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| 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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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:
Mahāyāna - Mahāyāna, or the Great Vehicle, refers to the system of Buddhist thought and practice which developed around the beginning of Common Era, focusing on the pursuit of the state of full enlightenment of the Buddha through the realization of the wisdom of emptiness and the cultivation of compassion. Skt. महायान Tib. ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོ། Ch. 大乘
avidyā - Literally "unknowing," it refers to a lack of knowledge or misunderstanding of the nature of reality. As such, it is considered to be the root cause of suffering and the basis for the arising of all other negative mental factors. Skt. अविद्या Tib. མ་རིག་པ་ Ch. 無明
avidyā - Literally "unknowing," it refers to a lack of knowledge or misunderstanding of the nature of reality. As such, it is considered to be the root cause of suffering and the basis for the arising of all other negative mental factors. Skt. अविद्या Tib. མ་རིག་པ་ Ch. 無明
sūtra - Sūtras mainly refer to the discourses delivered by the Buddha and his disciples, and the Sūtra corpus is one of the three main sets of teachings which form the Buddhist canon. Skt. सूत्र Tib. མདོ། Ch. 佛经
Taishō - Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō, Chinese Tripiṭaka
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