The interrelationship between consciousness and sensuality in Nāgārjuna’s philosophy

Abstract

The interrelationship between consciousness and sensuality is a significant problem in many philosophical systems. The peculiarities of religious philosophy consists in the congruence of using argumentation with the basic religious dogmata, which are unchangeable and uncritiqued. This aspect, in turn, stimulates the development of exegetics and hermeneutics. In comparison with the Western philosophy, the particularity of Indian and Buddhist philosophy infers a larger quantity of polemical materials directed against the representatives of other competing schools. This article discusses the formation of the concept of “sensuality” in various Buddhist schools (Theravāda, Sarvastivāda, Madhyamaka) and the mutual conditionality of the sensual and mental (nāma-rūpa) in the conceptions of Theravādins and Sarvastivādins is noted. The peculiarities of using the terms “Hīnayāna” and “Hīnayānist” in Mahāyāna texts are explained. The representatives of Theravāda and Madhyamaka distinguished the terms of “clear sense” and “hidden sense”, which, in turn, led to the appearance of the concept of “two truths” in Nāgārjuna’s philosophy. The particularities of his argumentation regarding sensuality’s absence of self-nature (rūpa) and his analysis of the various aspects of reality (including illusions, perceived as real ones) make it possible, which Nāgārjuna could admit, that consciousness could be more real in comparison with sensuality. It is concluded that there are no clear statements by Nāgārjuna about consciousness having an ontological status. In the author’s opinion, the absence of a clear division between “two truths” makes it possible to use this concept in social practice. The author’s translation to Russian of one of Nāgārjuna’s hymns “The praising of inconceivable” (Acintyastava) from Sanskrit and from Tibetan is provided.