Giuliana Martini, "The Meditative Dynamics of The Early Buddhist Appamā As", Canadian Journal of Buddhist Studies 7 (2011) : 137-180.

The Meditative Dynamics
of the Early Buddhist Appamas

Giuliana Martini

Abstract:

With this article I review distinctive aspects of the
early Buddhist practice of the appamas, the
boundless states of benevolence (mett), compassion
(karu), sympathetic joy (mudit) and equanimity
(upekkh) !y concern is specifically the function
and potential of the appamas in relation to the
unfoldin" of the spiritual path of the individual #uite
apart from their beneficial relational and social
effects, how are they meant to support the path to
liberation$ %ince I focus on the early phases of
Buddhist thou"ht, and its position vis&'&vis the
contemporary ancient Indian conte(t, I employ the
early Buddhist te(tual material as my main source,
"enerally leavin" aside commentaries and later
developments A close readin" of the te(ts indicates
that the specifics of appama meditation in the
conte(t of the early Buddhist soteriolo"ical scheme
are the prescription to develop it in dependence on
the factors of awa)enin" (sambojjhagas) and the use
of this practice as a platform for insi"ht (vipassan)
and thereby for the realisation of awa)enin"

1. Introduction

In order to explore the distinctive aspects of the early
Buddhist practice of the appam*+as vis--vis the
contemporary ancient Indian context I !ill begin my
discussion by briefly surveying the impact of
appam*+a practice on defusing karmic patterns of
reactivity etc" against the background of the

Dharma Drum
Buddhist
College, Taiwan

,anadian -ournal of
Buddhist %tudies,
.umber /, 0122

30122
by .alanda ,olle"e
of Buddhist %tudies
,anadian -ournal of Buddhist %tudies, .umber /, 0122

#$%
Buddhist conception of karma and liberation"
#
In discussing the
psychological &pivot point' !here the appam*+as karma and liberation
meet each other I also critically examine the conclusion reached by some
scholars that the appam*+as provide a self-sufficient soteriological path
()*"

+xploring the relationship bet!een the appam*+as and a!akening
firstly I take up the correlation bet!een the appam*+as and the factors of
a!akening" ,ere the presence or absence of a cultivation of the a!akening
factors defines rightly or !rongly directed practice of the appam*+as and
therefore sets the appropriate Buddhist context for this practice ($*"

-hen I explore in more detail ho! the dynamics of revie!ing the
meditation based on the appam*+as from an insight perspective can
provide a gate!ay to the highest stage(s* of a!akening (.*"

I conclude that the normative Buddhist approach to the practice of
the appam*+as (in themselves a tran/uillity-based exercise* combines
them !ith a progressive realisation of the three characteristics of imper-
manence du))ha and not-self and of the four truths thus subordinating
the appam*+as to realisation of insight kno!ledge if they are to be
instrumental in a breakthrough to liberation" -hese conclusions impinge
on the position taken by some scholars that early Buddhism kne! t!o
different paths to liberation one consisting only in the cultivation of
tran/uillity (samatha* opposed to one of insight (vipassan** often
understood to be predominantly a process of intellectual reasoning and
thus distinct from the 0mystic1 or 0cataleptic1 approach through tran-
/uillity (2*"

2. Karma, liberation, and the appamas

3ne perspective on the appam*+as in regard to !holesome or un!hole-
some intentions and thereby to karma and the possibility of liberation
from sa4s*ra is to contemplate the dynamics of appam*+as and inten-
tionality from the point of vie! of the conditioned process of personality
building that is the five aggregates affected by clinging (pa5cup*d*na&
))handhas* that are activated in response to sense contact" ,ere intention
(cetan** afflicted by un!holesome tendencies and habits can easily
function as an agent of craving an automatic goal-oriented drive of
reaction to experience governed by and in turn resulting in sensual
-he 4editative 5ynamics of the +arly Buddhist Appam*+as

#$6
passion ill !ill and delusion" -he task of the appam*+as in this respect is
to re-condition intentions !ith regard to any mental object making the
response of the mind less and less influenced by defilements that have
arisen in relation to objects"

7ustained practice and implementation of the appam*+as 8 that is
d!elling in and radiating appam*+a perceptions and states of
consciousness 8 provide a training in de-conditioning and re-conditioning
perception and consciousness according to &positive' patterns" In the
presence of mindfulness this can substantially help reshape volitional
responses to perceptions and it redirects the conceptual identifications
prevalent in the mind"

-his type of training certainly provides beneficial results as it
increases the sense of personal !ell-being and ease" 9rom the Buddhist
vie!point ho!ever before a transformative apprehension of the root
causes of un!holesomeness takes place this is an exercise that can only
at best determine a limited behavioural change in the mind: positive
feelings and positive thinking"
)
-his is not to say that the inherent value of
happiness and subjective comfort in the spiritual journey are to be
overlooked" -hese are crucial aspects of the path to liberation" ;oy (p6ti* is
indeed one of the a!akening factors and it is a necessary re/uirement for
the arising of the other a!akening factors of tran/uillity (passaddhi* and
concentration (sam*dhi*" <nd most importantly the experience of non-
!orldly happiness aloof from sensuality naturally leads to loss of interest
in the coarser pleasures of the senses (that is of any object of sense-door
experience* a crucial stepping-stone to!ards deeper spiritual maturation
in early Buddhism"
$

=ognitively the practice of the appam*+as relies on transcendence
of a sense of individuality diversification of perception and of any
discursive reification of experience in terms of identification of a subject
of experience in opposition to its objects or in terms of a relation of
neediness and attachment to the objects in /uestion (a person a mental
state etc"* 8 !ith the emotional nuances of each individual appam*+a
having their o!n particular characteristics"

-he all-pervasive dimension of boundless appam*+a radiation in all
directions is illustrated !ith the image of a trumpeter !ho makes himself
heard in all directions:
.


#.>
""" ;ust as a vigorous trumpeter could make himself heard !ithout
difficulty in the four /uarters so too !hen the deliverance of mind
by benevolence (etc"* is developed in this !ay no limiting action
remains there none persists there """ this is the path of communion
!ith Brahms"
2

In terms of meditation theory a boundless radiation independent
from the presence of an object to be aroused and extended in
consciousness seems to be particularly effective in refining intentionality
to!ards progressively higher levels of freedom from arising as a
conditioned often automatic response to experience" -he practitioner's
inner autonomy is much strengthened as is his or her insight into the
ultimately deluded nature of any fabrication of (a* a subject appropriating
its objects and (b* the perceptual field itself" In this !ay the movement of
identification !ith and appropriation of a self is all the !hile de-
potentiated by genuine cultivation of the appam*+as"

5eveloping a perception of benevolence and of the other boundless
experiences on the basis of a given conceptual object (a friend a stranger
an enemy* by directing it to single individuals or to group(s* of individuals
as prescribed for example by later -heravda texts
?
and found in a number
of popular modern approaches seems to be someho! not fully exploring
the !hole range of this thorough exercise to!ards independence from
&objects' grasping at and reification of experience prescribed by the early
Buddhist appam*+as a training in inner independence and kindness by
means of !hich in due course the end of all conceivings becomes
possible"

7uch an ultimately &unprompted' /uality of the appam*+as s/uares
!ith the discourses' method of all-pervasive practice a method in !hich
the perceptual training seems to be particularly consistent !ith the
soteriological goal and also !ith the final existential mode of a liberated
being !ho has escaped from the need for any form of conceptual
identification and mental impurity"

-herefore I !ould hold (a* that the appam*+as address hindrances
to meditation resulting from the meditator's conflict-laden relationship
!ith the !orld of the senses by helping dissolve the erroneous cognition
and personal identification that lie at the basis of such affective reactions
and (b* that cognitive rectification and deflation of sensual desire are
natural by-products of the practice"
@


#.#
In this !ay the inner joy receptivity happiness and e/uanimity of
appam*+a meditation become important spiritual forces that give po!er to
the relin/uishment of the !hole sensual sphere and eventually to the going
beyond future rebirth in a !omb" -his holds true especially but by no
means exclusively for appam*+as cultivated at the level of absorption" I
return to this in the next section ($* of this article"

-o sum up because of their impact on mental tendencies and
intentions 8 counteracting negativity enhancing goodness inducing
spiritual joy and !ithdra!al from the senses supporting meditation 8 the
appam*+as can effectively impact on karma on a psychodynamic level"

Aarma ho!ever can only be eradicated for good on seeing
through the fundamental ignorance that keeps it in motion" In the context
of revie!ing the results of sustained appam*+a practice the early
discourses hold that through meditative cultivation of these states no
limiting actions (karma* remains" -o /uote a discourse in the A7"uttara&
ni)*ya the 8araja)*ya&sutta:

,e Bi"e" a monkC kno!s thus: &Dreviously this mind of mine !as
restricted undeveloped !hereas no! this mind of mine is
boundless !ell developed" Ehatever action has been performed in
a limiting !ay it neither remains there nor persists there (ya4 )ho
pana )i5ci pam*+a)ata4 )amma4, na ta4 tatr*vasissati na ta4
tatr*vati99hat6*"'
%

7imilarly !orded the parallel to the 8araja)*ya&sutta in the
=hinese !adhyama&*"ama says:

""" &9ormerly my mind !as narro! and not !ell-developed no! my
mind has become boundless and !ell-developed"' BEhenC the mind
of that !ell-taught noble disciple has in this !ay become boundless
and !ell-developed if because of Bassociating !ithC evil friends
Bthat !ell-taught noble discipleC formerly d!elt in negligence and
performed un!holesome deeds those BdeedsC cannot lead him
along cannot defile BhimC and !ill not further follo! BhimC"
6

-hus limiting actions through !hich one !ould be bound to take
birth again in the sense realm are temporarily neutralised" -heir results
lose their conditioning po!er because the corresponding mental
inclinations have been superseded"
#>
In other !ords !ith the attainment

#.)
and mastery of liberation of the mind (cetovimutti* through benevolence
and the other appam*+as based on absorption the karmic potential
generated by virtue of the absorption attainment !ill take precedence over
sense sphere karma and result in rebirth into the form rather than the sense
realm"
##

-he canonical example found in the discourses to illustrate the all-
pervasive dimension of boundless appam*+as radiation !ith the image of
a trumpeter !ho makes himself heard in all directions illustrates !ell ho!
the appam*+as leave no scope for the continuity of the effect of limiting
actions: the trumpeter's 0is not a measured performance" 7imilarly !hen
one cultivates love and the other attitudes according to the method given """
no measured intentions remain"1
#)

,o!ever bright such karmic prospects are unless combined !ith
the establishment of right vie! they can only secure exceptionally good
birth for a limited though comparatively long period of time as is the case
of Brahm gods !ho are held to live above the sense realm" 9rom the
perspective of early Buddhist soteriology to obtain a happy celestial birth
cannot possibly guarantee that the individual !ill not eventually fall again
into lo!er states even belo! the human destiny" -he insurance of being
free from the lo!er states of birth and of being irreversibly heading to
emancipation from existence can only come !hen the mental make-up of
the practitioner is radically changed by !isdom to the extent that the
tendency to delusion and ignorance of the three characteristics has been
seen through !ith stream-entry the first level of a!akening (and has
eventually been eradicated !ith full a!akening*" -hat is such insurance is
only attained on entering the stream of the 5harma !ith the establishment
of right vie! by definition not subject to retrogression"

It can be thus evinced that the practice of the appam*+as generally
improves and brightens the karma of the individual in the sense of his or
her general mental condition in the present and of future mental states but
that in itself as a meditative exercise it falls short of determining
liberating effects"

-his important point can be best appreciated by keeping in mind
that practices such as the immeasurables (appam*+as* or Brahm abodes
(brahmavih*ras* !ere most probably common in ancient India and
originally embedded in religious thinking and goals /uite different from
those of the early Buddhists"

#.$

-o the best of my kno!ledge the early Buddhist discourses
themselves do not provide definitions of the appam*+as nor of the
brahmavih*ras definitions !hich are to be found only in later literature"
#$

-his absence can be easily explained in vie! of the non-scholastic nature
of the early Buddhist discourse material" 4oreover if no need to define
these concepts !as felt by the early Buddhist tradition this is a strong
indication that the audience of the discourses must have already been
ac/uainted !ith the terminology and meditation techni/ue in /uestion"
Instead the discourses engage !ith a re-definition of the appam*+as by
re-addressing them on Buddhist terms at least on one occasion directly
contrasting them to those taught by non-Buddhist recluses (cf" belo!
sections ($* and (2**"

In vie! of the ancient Indian conception of the high purity of
Brahm gods it !ould not be surprising if the brahmavih*ras had been
employed long before the time of the Buddha as means of achieving
meditative &communion !ith Brahm'"
#.
-he ever-expanding and all-
encompassing radiation of the boundless states of benevolence and of the
other appam*+as experienced as a psychophysical non-dual state may
indeed have been considered as an entry to the goal of communion !ith
Brahm by means of transcendence of the individual self by a merger !ith
the divine absolute of the Brahm's state of existence"

Fet in early Buddhist thought existence is not in itself desirable
but much rather something to be escaped from" -he discourses in fact
report that the Buddha !as accused of being a destroyer of existence
#2
a
destruction !hich is in fact endorsed by early Buddhist thought: from a
normative perspective even divine modes of existence are not to be sought
after" -he immeasurable mental dispositions of a Buddha or of an arahant
fall outside any &Brhmic' state and births simply because Buddhas and
arahants have transcended birth and becoming" =onversely even the Great
Brahm the highest among beings in the present !orld-system is
considered as subject to change and to becoming other!ise for any
Brahm realm is held to be impermanent and thus far from providing a
lasting escape from existence"
#?

In addition to this !hat is important is that a Buddhist practitioner
is able to develop some !isdom through insightfully investigating his or
her o!n experience of states of consciousness that in the ancient Indian
context !ere understood as &Brhmic'" 7uch experiences are not relevant

#..
to the Buddhist path of liberation as long as they are not grounded in
rightly directed vie! according to the Buddhist vision !hich re/uires that
the practitioner applies insight evaluation of the impermanent du))ha-
bound and not-self nature to any (non-meditative and meditative*
experience ho!ever lofty these attainments might be"

-he :hana5j*ni&sutta of the !ajjhima&ni)*ya records an occasion
!hen the standard appam*+a instruction is given by the venerable
7riputta to the Brahmin 5hanaHjni gravely ill as &the path to the
communion !ith Brahms1 after a /uestion and ans!er session on the
most desirable states of birth" 3nce 7riputta has left !ithout giving
further instructions 5hanaHjni is reported to have died and reappeared in
the Brahm-!orld" -he discourse goes on !ith the Buddha commenting to
the monks that 7riputta had left 0!hen there !as still more to be done
having established 5hanaHjni in the inferior Brahm-!orld (h6ne
brahmalo)e*1" <fter 7riputta comes to pay homage to the Buddha he is
/uestioned !hy he had left !hile there !as still more to be done"
#@

Interestingly here 7riputta's reply emphasiIes that he had given an
instruction limited in scope on account of the Brahmins' firm devotion to
the (attainment of* the Brahm-!orld (brahmalo)*dhimutt**"

<nother case of teaching the appam*+as to a non-Buddhist is
reported in the %ubha&sutta of the !ajjhima&ni)*ya in !hich the Brahmin
7ubha !ho is neither a noble disciple nor a monastic (i"e" he is not
aiming for final liberation* is instructed on the practice of the
brahmavih*ras just as a means to attain rebirth in the Brahm realm"
#%
<t
the end of the discourse the Brahmin 7ubha goes for refuge" -hus in this
instance compared to the :hana5j*ni&sutta mentioned above the same
appam*+a instruction and the same result that 0no action performed in a
limiting !ay remains or persists there1
#6
lead to /uite different an end
that is 7ubha's setting out on the path by becoming a Buddhist disciple"

-his backdrop clarifies that not!ithstanding its po!er to overcome
&karma performed in a limiting !ay' the appam*+as are only able to
provide partial and temporary solace to unpleasant saJsric embodiments
by bringing about types of birth and mental conditions that are ho!ever
not at all devoid of the characteristics of change unsatisfactoriness and
lack of substantiality and that as much as any other form of existence
ultimately need to be let go of" -he insight instructions on appam*+a
meditation I discuss in part (.* of this article bring in precisely this

#.2
potential to develop insight into the three characteristics of the experience
of appam*+a meditation as a gate!ay to final liberation"

,o!ever according to 4aithrimurthi (#666: $.* the appam*+as
ought to be able to remove the limiting karmic effect of delusion (moha*
as !ell as sensual passion and aversion"
)>
<s already remarked by <nlayo
()>>6b: 6 note $2* the effect of appam*+a practice on limiting action
described in the discourses refers as such to the next rebirth and does not
imply complete elimination of karma" 9irstly the appam*+a deliverances
of the mind are meditative attainments that as such can be lost again: in
fact the expression 0deliverance of the mind1 (appam*+* cetovimutti or
appam*+ena cetas* vimutti*
)#
!hen occurring on its o!n !ithout being
/ualified as &unshakeable' does not imply eradication of du))ha"
))

7econdly as !e have seen in the case of someone !ho is not endo!ed
!ith right vie! (that is someone !ho is not at least a stream-entrant* the
development of appam*+a meditation can only insure birth in one of the
sensuality-free higher destinies of saJsric existence for a limited period
of time"

3n the other hand for example the 8araja)*ya&sutta and its
parallels envisage the attainment of either final liberation or non-return for
a noble disciple !ho is diligent in carrying out this practice"
)$
In other
!ords it is only through further deepening of the practice !ith the gro!th
of !isdom and insight that full liberation is possible" 9rom !hat I have
discussed so far it seems that in the soteriological scheme set forth in
early Buddhist texts the appam*+as are auxiliary and instrumental to
liberation (0eine BeiIiehung Ium +rlKsungskontext1 as 4aithrimurthi
himself comments* but neither self-sufficient nor indispensable for
reaching the end of craving and ignorance the abandonment of the higher
fetters and the eradication of the influxes"
).

9urther as regards the scope of this practice it can be noted that a
trend to!ards a &therapeutic' type of implementation of the appam*+as
oriented to!ards an increase of self-esteem is often observable in modern
meditation circles in the Eest" < perusal of popular publications and
!ebsites and attendance of some meditation programs on this theme can
give an impression of the type of attitude in /uestion" 5octrinally and
practically selective this mode of presentation of the appam*+as is /uite
limited in scope !hen compared to the early Buddhist radical &cure' to
all du))ha a program of cure the appam*+as are functional to" 7uch an
approach in itself a case of doctrinal adaptation and change represents an

#.?
instance of overlooking the implications of the original soteriological
paradigm and context occurred in turn !ithin a process of ideological
de-contextualisation and re-contextualisation (and conse/uently of
realignment of the practice*" -hus interestingly it provides one more
example of interpretation of this practice that is the precise opposite of the
conclusions reached by academics !ho hold that the appam*+as are a path
that on its o!n leads to a!akening"

In the early Buddhist soteriological scheme the presence or absence
of insight according to right vie! and of the a!akening factors constitutes
the most distinctive aspect" 9or any form of liberation of the mind to be
able to lead to any of the stages of a!akening it needs to be developed in
conjunction !ith the factors of a!akening" I look in more detail at the
relationship bet!een (the factors of* a!akening and the appam*+as and in
particular at the meaning of rightly directed concentration in relationship
to the appam*+as and the soteriological benefits of concentration in the
context of this practice in the next section ($* of this article"

-o conclude my foregoing discussion on the pivot point !here
karma liberation and the appam*+as meet each other: close readings of
the discourses make it clear that !hereas the practice of the appam*+as
has no independent salvific role to play in early Buddhism the dynamics
of spiritual and meditative cultivation that emerge from the texts indicate
that !hen it is carried out by noble disciples its liberating potential
becomes particularly outstanding"

7uch potential is of particular relevance to someone !ho is on the
path of progress from stream-entry or once-return to non-return" +arly
Buddhism defines the levels of a!akening on account of the fetters
(sa4yojana* that have been abandoned and advancement on the higher
stages of the path is described in standard terms as the !eakening or
eradication respectively of t!o (once-return or non-return* and five
(arahantship* remaining fetters" 9rom stream-entry on!ards the task of
the practitioner 8 and the hallmark of the progress he or she may have
achieved 8 is the !eakening (for stream-entrants* and final disappearance
(for once-returners* of any reaction of and tendency to passion and
negativity based on sensuality !ith the attenuation and eradication of the
corresponding fetters of sensual desire and ill !ill"

In vie! of the nature of the fetters as mental tendencies that !hen
present can be manifest or latent strong or attenuated one perspective

#.@
that suggests itself is to look at them in terms of karma i"e" patterns of
reactivity to sense experience that are to some degree present in the mind
or else have been left behind forever" <s asserted by a discourse in the
A7"uttara&ni)*ya, the three spheres of becoming that should be abandoned
are the sense form and formless spheres and the three trainings !hich
should be undertaken are the three further or higher trainings in morality
(cultivation of* the mind and !isdom" Ehen these three spheres of
becoming are abandoned and one trains in these three higher trainings he
or she has cut off the remaining fetters and made an end of du))ha"
)2

-his vie!point helps understand the practical implication of the
passages in the discourses !here a clear correlation bet!een the
appam*+as and progress on the path of emancipation from karma is set
forth" In brief: in the case of stream-entrants and once-returners their
further spiritual development coincides !ith karmic emancipation from
the t!o fetters to be overcome in the noble disciple's progress to!ards
non-return" -herefore unlike the instance of &generic' appam*+a practice
it is only in the case of these noble disciples that a degree of proper so-
called liberation from karma has unmistakeably taken place as sho!n by
the texts' specification that the recollection of the having transcended
limiting karma is made by a noble disciple (endo!ed !ith right vie!* !ho
has abandoned un!holesomeness etc"
)?
-he practice of the appam*+as of
a noble disciple !ho is not yet a non-returner heads precisely for this
direction of emancipation from karma"

3. The appamas and the factors of aa!enin"

3n the !hole the potential of the immeasurables to lead to the ultimate
goal of liberation (namely a!akening* or else their falling short of such a
potential !ould depend on the development of the essential tools
conducive to this goal" <s indicated by their name the tools in /uestion
are the factors (leading to* a!akening (sambojjha7"as or bojjha7"as*"
)@

3ne of the discourses on benevolence found in the %utta&nip*ta
(popularly kno!n as 0the !etta&sutta1*
)%
begins by stipulating the need for
a foundation of moral integrity" -hen it poetically instructs one !ho is
0not going into !rong vie!s virtuous and endo!ed !ith BrightC vie!1
(di99hi5 ca anupa"amma s6lav* dassanena sampanno 7n #2)ab* on ho!

#.%
to free himself or herself from birth in the sense realm !hich is to be
achieved !ith the help of mett* practice the first of the four appam*+as"

-he discourse unfolds according to the threefold division of the
path in ethics or s6la (7n #.$8#.2ab* meditation or sam*dhi (7n
#.2bc8#2#* and !isdom or pa55* (7n #2)*"
)6
-his se/uence parallels for
example that of the probably original single Dali discourse consisting of
the present %a5cetani)a&suttas and 8araja)*ya&sutta of the A7"uttara&
ni)*ya and their parallels (!here the placement of the abandonment of the
ten un!holesome actions and development of the ten !holesome actions
is follo!ed by a samatha based development of the appam*+a radiation
and by a revie! of the attainment that has been achieved by dint of the
practice*
$>
and that of the ;atth<pama&sutta of the !ajjhima&ni)*ya and
its parallels"

-he same eminently ethical characteristic 8 abandoning the
un!holesome and nurturing the !holesome achieved through directing
mindfulness to one's intentions (cetan** 8 evident in the applications of
the appam*+as described !ith the help of the poetic imagery of the so-
called 0!etta&sutta1 becomes especially evident in the illustration of the
acrobat simile of the %eda)a&sutta of the %a4yutta&ni)*ya and its =hinese
parallel as !ell as in the statement regarding the impossibility (for a noble
and successful practitioner of the appam*+as* of undertaking any harmful
action as indicated in the 8araja)*ya&sutta and its parallels"
$#

7imilar to the se/uence of the probably original single antecedent to
the %a5cetani)a&suttas and 8araja)*ya&sutta
$)
the meditative radiation in
the ;atth<pama&sutta is preceded by a detailed description of ethical
purification prior to the meditative undertaking of the appam*+as" -he
state of purity thus attained thanks to having &bathed !ith an inner
bathing' is held superior to any form of purification obtained through
ritual bathing"
$$

-hus the discourses clearly present a high level of ethical purity and
mental clarity as furnishing the necessary path!ay to the complete
fulfilment of non-greed and non-ill-!ill (non-return* as !ell as non-
delusion (arahantship*"

In this regard the progression intimately correlating ethical purity
and further developments of the practice as found in ;atth<pama&sutta is
!orth closer examination" ,ere initial ackno!ledgement of mental

#.6
defilements is follo!ed by partial success in abandoning them" -his then
e/uates to the ac/uisition of perfect confidence in the three je!els (i"e" the
attainment of stream-entry* concentration based on happiness derived
from such confidence arises at !hich point the instruction on appam*+a
radiation is given follo!ed by insight revie! and the ensuing realisation
of final liberation"
$.

In the discourses such an organisation of the subject matter is
typical for occasions !here a more advanced teaching is preceded by a
preliminary exposition or else a &reminder' of the gradual path" In this
particular instance the establishment of mindfulness (sati* the first in the
standard list of the a!akening factors is an essential re/uisite that needs to
be in place so that the development of the boundless mental states can lead
to further fulfilment of the path to liberation for one !ho is already
endo!ed !ith morality and right vie!"
$2

<ccording to a discourse in the bojjha7"a&sa4yutta of the
%a4yutta&ni)*ya the Buddha declares that !anderers gone forth in other
communities of recluses (a55atitthiy* paribb*ja)** !ould not be able to
explain the development and final goal of liberation of the mind attained
through benevolence and the other immeasurables because this is not
!ithin their domain" < satisfactory ans!er to these /uestions could only
be given 0by the -athgata or a disciple of the -athgata or one !ho has
heard it from them"1
$?

-he explanation given by the Buddha in the same discourse is that
liberation of the mind through benevolence and the other appam*+as
!hich have respectively the &beautiful' (subha* the base of infinite space
the base of infinite consciousness and the base of nothingness as their
culmination for a practitioner 0endo!ed !ith vie! !ho has not yet
attained a superior liberation1 should be practised by developing each of
the a!akening factors 0accompanied by benevolence (etc"* in dependence
on seclusion dispassion cessation and leading to relin/uishing"1
$@

< series of short discourses on benevolence and the other
appam*+as found in the same bojjha7"a&sa4yutta of the %a4yutta&ni)*ya
presents the fruits and benefits of the appam*+as developed on the basis
of the a!akening factors further clarifying their foundational role"

-hese short discourses are in fact part of a sub-section of the
bojjha7"a&sa4yutta (the *n*p*na&va""a* devoted to describing the

#2>
development of the bojjha7"as in association !ith a number of meditation
subjects including besides mindfulness of breathing meditations on
impurity and the four appam*+as" ,ere each meditation subject is
elaborated according to a sixfold method that consists of an explanation of
the !ay the meditation subject in /uestion brings about (#* great fruit and
benefit ()* one of t!o fruits (either final kno!ledge in this very life or if
there is a residue of clinging the state of non-return* ($* great good (.*
great security from bondage (2* a great sense of spiritual urgency (?*
d!elling in great comfort"
$%

-hese discourses on the development of the appam*+as and the
a!akening factors have parallels in the =hinese %a4yu)ta&*"ama and in in
a discourse /uotation found in the -ibetan Abhidharma)o=op*yi)*"
$6
-he
%a4yu)ta&*"ama version reads as follo!s:

-hus have I heard" <t one time the Buddha !as living at 7vatthi
in ;eta's Grove <nthapiLika's Dark" <t that time the Eorld-
,onoured 3ne told the monks: &If a monk !ho cultivates a mind of
benevolence has cultivated it much he !ill attain great fruit and
great benefit" ,o! does a monk !ho cultivates a mental attitude of
benevolence attain great fruit and great benefitM ,ere !ith a mind
endo!ed !ith benevolence a monk cultivates the a!akening factor
of mindfulness in dependence on seclusion in dependence on
dispassion in dependence on cessation and leading to
relin/uishing' """ up to """ &he cultivates the a!akening factor of
mindfulness in dependence on seclusion in dependence on dis-
passion in dependence on cessation and leading to relin/uishing"'
.>

<ccording to the discourse extract in Oamathadeva's Abhidharma&
)o=op*yi)*:

&4onks if benevolence is developed and fre/uently attended to
there is great fruit and great benefit" <nd ho! is it that meditation
on benevolence is of great fruit and of great benefitM ,ere a monk
develops the a!akening factor of mindfulness accompanied by
benevolence based upon seclusion based upon dispassion based
upon cessation and leading to relin/uishing" ,e develops the
a!akening factors of investigation of 5harma of energy of joy of
tran/uillity of concentration and of e/uanimity accompanied by
benevolence based upon seclusion based upon dispassion based
upon cessation and leading to relin/uishing" It is in this !ay that

#2#
meditation on benevolence is of great fruit and of great benefit"' (In
the same !ay as benevolence compassion sympathetic joy and
e/uanimity should be expounded"*
.#

Po! the /uestion that occasions this instruction is: how is the
practice of the immeasurables able to bring about great fruits and great
benefitM -he (prescriptive* ans!er is !orded in all parallel versions
according to the standard refrain of the &climax' of the a!akening factors
(i"e" the 0vive)a&nissita1 formula*
.)
the ground upon !hich the mind is
suffused !ith benevolence compassion sympathetic joy and e/uanimity"
4editatively speaking this can be understood as a mind endo!ed !ith the
/ualities of a!akening that takes as its objects benevolence and se/uen-
tially the other immeasurable perceptions that radiates in an expansive
manner the resultant states of consciousness" -hus the foundational role is
assigned to the a!akening factors on !hich basis the practice of the
immeasurables is developed"

-he other discourses in the bojjha7"a&sa4yutta mentioned above
present different forms of meditative perceptions according to this same
pattern hence highlighting the fact that the a!akening factors are the
primary frame!ork and ground of the practice and that the different
&contents' of the practice (the appam*+as etc"* are to focus on different
aspects of experience by &filling' it so to speak !ith !holesome and
useful objects of meditation targeted to a range of different purposes" In
this respect the immeasurables are no exception to the rationale
underlying the multiplicity of meditation objects that are taught in early
Buddhist texts"
.$

<s far as concentration (!hich is both the sixth penultimate factor
in the list of the a!akening factors and the eighth culminating factor of
the eightfold path* is concerned according to a discourse in the !ajjhima&
ni)*ya the !ah*m*lu7)ya&sutta it is impossible to overcome the five
lo!er fetters !ithout undertaking the path necessary for such overcoming"
-he path at stake is contemplation of an absorption experience from an
insight perspective"
..
-he !ah*m*lu7)ya&sutta's assertion of the
indispensability of concentration for progress to the higher levels of
a!akening is consistently found in a range of canonical materials" 9or
example according to a discourse in the A7"uttara&ni)*ya a person !ho
has fulfilled morality and concentration but has not yet fulfilled !isdom
destroys the five lo!er fetters"
.2
-his implies that to achieve the
destruction of the five lo!er fetters (non-return* mastery of concentration

#2)
abilities is necessary and the discourses repeatedly mention that one !ho
is concentrated kno!s things as they have presently come to be according
to reality"
.?

Qeams of paper have been devoted by modern scholarship to the
dispensability or indispensability of absorption and on the correct
interpretation of rightly directed concentration (samm*&sam*dhi* in the
early Buddhist path and centuries long debates have been held by
monastics"
.@
=lose contextual readings of passages such as that in the just
mentioned !ah*m*lu7)ya&sutta against the backdrop of early Buddhist
meditation theory and philosophy taken as a !hole strongly indicate that
at least the attainment and mastery of the first level of absorption is
presented as indispensable for progress to full a!akening"
.%
Ehile on the
one hand the appam*+as are not a self-sufficient path to liberation on the
other hand the instructions given to noble disciples as seen above clearly
affirm that these practitioners upon practicing them on the basis of ethical
purification are bound to attain either the highest liberation or non-return"
=onversely the type of arising in the Dure <bodes attained by such
meditators is said to be 0not shared by !orldlings"1
.6

-o remain !ithin the scope of the a!akening factor of
concentration and the appam*+as it seems to me that here concentration
has a t!ofold function: (a* instrumental to the reduction of sensual
involvement in general and (b* instrumental to the development of insight"

<s regards the first function (a* cultivating the immeasurables at
the level of absorption inherently !eakens the search for sensual gratifi-
cation because any absorption experience trains the practitioner in inner
!ithdra!al from sense experience and is based on a momentum of
detachment and letting go !hich prepares the mind for increasing levels
of giving up (the giving up of all grounds for Bthe establishment ofC
clinging being a definition of nirv*+a*"
2>
<t the same time by making
such a letting go not merely the &object' but the actual key impulse of the
meditative momentum one-pointedness of the mind and deeper sam*dhi
can be attained as per definition of the faculty (indriya* of sam*dhi given
in a discourse in the %a4yutta&ni)*ya"
2#

-his form of mental &habituation' can also facilitate the attainment
of the higher levels of a!akening in that it offers an integral training
to!ards cooling do!n the compulsive impetus of personality building

#2$
!ith liberation entailing the complete relin/uishment and cessation of
personality i"e" the five aggregates affected by clinging"
2)

-hus the immeasurables cultivated at absorption level counter the
fetters that bind to existence in the same !ay as in more general terms they
function as antidotes to the hindrances to meditation and outside a setting
of formal meditation to gro!th of un!holesome mental states" -he
!eakening and eventual overcoming of the fetters once the corresponding
compulsions and reactions have been given up leads in this !ay to a
condition !here their e/uivalent binding karma !ill no longer be
generated"
2$
-herefore !hile progress from stream-entry or once-return to
non-return appears to be naturally facilitated by the ability to enter and
master absorption all those !ho attain absorption based on the
immeasurables and the corresponding temporary liberation of the mind
!ould not become de facto non-returners or arahants by virtue of their
attainment of absorption alone but only !hen their remaining t!o (lo!er*
fetters have been overcome through insight as set forth in the
!ah*m*lu7)ya&sutta"

<s regards the second function (b* absorption can be used both as a
preliminary to insight meditation and as a mental experience to be
revie!ed in the light of insight for the development of !isdom" In turn
rightly directed absorption depends on the preliminary presence of a pure
ethical foundation and on a correct understanding of its o!n purpose
!ithin the path the concomitant development of the a!akening factors
being re/uired for it to culminate in a!akening"

In brief in order to fully express their liberating potential the
appam*+as necessitate the a!akening factors and the a!akening factors
necessitate each other" -he texts indicate ho! the appam*+as are to be
used as platforms !hereby !ith the culmination of the path of ethical
emotional and intellectual purification the breakthrough to the higher
levels of a!akening can occur" -his type of guidance is provided in the
form of revie! of appam*+a based meditative experiences to !hich I no!
turn"

#. The insi"ht dynamics of appama meditation


#2.
-he already mentioned !ah*m*lu7)ya&sutta states that the indispensable
path for the overcoming of the five lo!er fetters is contemplation of an
absorption experience from an insight perspective" -he discourse reads:

""" a monk enters upon and abides in the first absorption """ Ehatever
exists therein Bi"e" during that state of absorptionC that is
classifiable as bodily form feeling perception volitional
formations and consciousness such states he Bi"e" that monkC
contemplates as impermanent as du))ha as a disease as a tumour
as a barb as a calamity as an affliction as alien as disintegrating
as empty as not-self" ,e turns his mind a!ay from those states and
directs it to!ards the deathless element Bcontemplating thusC: &-his
is peaceful this is sublime that is the stilling of all volitional
formations the relin/uishing of all grounds for Bthe establishment
ofC clinging the destruction of craving dispassion cessation
nirv*+a"' 7tanding upon that he attains the destruction of the
influxes or if he does not attain the destruction of the influxes
then because of that desire for the 5harma that delighting in the
5harma
2.
!ith the destruction of the five lo!er fetters he becomes
one of spontaneous arising Bin the Dure <bodesC !ho attains final
nirv*+a !ithout ever returning from that !orld" -his is the path the
!ay to the abandoning of the five lo!er fetters"
22

-his stipulation implies that the t!o !ings of concentration and
insight are necessary for the attainment of a!akening or liberation"
<bsorption experience is the basis of contemplation and insight is the
mode of such contemplation in that 0B!Cithout having attained absorption
such contemplation can obviously not be undertaken"1
2?
<s the content of
the &guided' meditation described in the !ah*m*lu7)ya&sutta indicates
insight contemplation is a direct kno!ledge of the three characteristics
according to right vie!"
2@
-his passage 0sho!s the development of insight
(vipassan** upon a basis of serenity (samatha* using the jh*na on !hich
the practice of insight is based as the object of insight contemplation1
2%

and each of the three characteristics is sho!n respectively by the first t!o
and then the follo!ing three and six terms listed in the contemplation" <s
suggested by the %a4yutta&ni)*ya commentary !hat the monk 0turns his
mind a!ay from1 are the five aggregates experienced during the jh*na
!hich he has seen to be marked !ith the three characteristics"
26

=ontemplation of the three characteristics of the five aggregates is
in fact relevant from the first breakthrough reached !ith stream-entry all

#22
the !ay through to the higher levels of a!akening culminating in arahant-
ship"
?>
<s summed up in the conclusion of the !ah*hatthipadopama&sutta
of the !ajjhima-ni)*ya the five aggregates affected by clinging are
dependently arisen and desire indulgence inclination and holding based
on them is the origin of du))ha !hereas to remove desire and lust for
them is the cessation of du))ha" 3r else as the parallel to this discourse in
the =hinese !adhyama&*"ama concludes seeing the conditionality of the
five aggregates affected by clinging leads to disenchantment !ith and
dispassion from any of their past present or future manifestations and
thereon to a!akening"
?#

<ccording to another discourse in the A7"uttara&ni)*ya if one !ere
to take anything to be permanent or satisfactory or a self instead of their
opposite and if one !ere to look on nirv*+a as unhappiness instead of
happiness this !ould amount to being incapable of finding the right
ground for the attainment of any of the levels of a!akening"
?)

+lse!here instructions on insight contemplation of states of
absorption based on the appam*+as are !orded follo!ing the same
se/uence found in the !ah*m*lu7)ya&sutta" 9or example after the
standard passage on radiating benevolence in all directions one of the
A7"uttara&ni)*ya discourses on benevolence explains:

Ehatever exists therein Bi"e" during that state of absorptionC that is
classifiable as bodily form classifiable as feeling classifiable as
perception classifiable as volitional formations or classifiable as
consciousness such states he Bi"e" that monkC contemplates seeing
them as impermanent as du))ha as a disease as a tumour as a
barb as a calamity as an affliction as alien as disintegrating as
empty as not-self" 3n the breaking up of the body after death he
arises in the retinue of the gods of the Dure <bodes" <nd this type
of arising is not shared by !orldlings"
?$

-hrough these eleven perceptions developed !ith regard to the state
of absorption the reality of such a &beautiful' and &gro!n great'
(mah*""ata* mental experience (corresponding to birth beyond the sense
sphere* is seen as characterised by the same marks as any other mental
phenomenon: impermanent du))ha not-self" In this !ay delusion and
clinging !ith regard to even the most sublime and !holesome mental
states is dispelled by the vision of insight" 7uch insight kno!ledge alone
has the potential to herald the realisation of nirv*+a"

#2?

<nother insight contemplation of the experience of appam*+a
meditation re/uires one to consider and understand it thus:

-his liberation of the mind through benevolence (etc"* is
conditioned and intentionally produced (abhisa7)hata4 abhi&
sa5cetayita4* but !hatever is conditioned and intentionally
produced is impermanent subject to cessation"

If the practitioner is steady in this contemplation he or she attains
the destruction of the influxes or at least non-return"
?.

<ccording to yet another insight revie! of the appam*+a pervasion
in the ;atth<pama&sutta of the !ajjhima&ni)*ya:

,e understands thus: &-here is this there is the inferior there is the
superior and beyond there is an escape from this !hole field of
perception"' Ehen he kno!s and sees thus his mind is liberated
from the influx of passion from the influx of being and from the
influx of ignorance" Ehen it is liberated there occurs the
kno!ledge: &It is liberated"' ,e understands: &Birth is destroyed the
holy life has been lived !hat had to be done has been done there is
no more coming to any state of being"' """ this recluse is called one
bathed !ith an inner bathing"
?2

-hus the content of these contemplations fully reveals the liberating
potential of seeing the !holesome and beautiful mind experienced as
&appam*+a' !ith insight and !isdom"
??

$. The appamas and the early Buddhist soteriolo"ical
%ath

<s I have discussed in the preceding pages the distinctive potential of a
fully-fledged practice of the appam*+as for a disciple in higher training
combines ethical purification cultivation of concentration and
development of insight" -hese mutually enhance each other along the path
that !ithers a!ay the hindrances and brings to full blooming the
a!akening factors"


#2@
-hese dynamics of practice entail a development similar to that
illustrated by a se/uence found in a short discourse of the %a4yutta&
ni)*ya the >panis*&sutta"
?@
-his se/uence is based on a principle that
accounts for the dependent arising of a series of supportive factors for the
realisation of arahantship thus offering an interpretative tool for the
meditative development based on !hich the unfolding of personal
realisation of the teachings takes place"
?%
-he special relevance of this
se/uence as a hermeneutic tool for early Buddhist meditation theory and
practice lies in the fact that it is consistent !ith the principle of condi-
tionality that stands at the heart of the entire vision of the 5harma"
Because it indicates the direction of practice of the gradual training
culminating in liberation this model is complementary to the standard
exposition of dependent cessation !hich proceeds from the cessation of
ignorance to the cessation of du))ha" -he development of appam*+a
meditation seems to me to be in tune !ith such a principle in that it
nurtures the supportive factors for liberation and it can spark the
meditative drive that leads to liberation"

-hus gradual training in purity and !holesomeness in conjunction
!ith the appam*+as and insight !ill empo!er and support the noble
disciple's practice of the path initiated by insight into du))ha heading to
perfect comprehension and purification" Insight into du))ha is of relevance
not only !hen one first enters the path but it is in fact at the core of the
insight revie! of the unsatisfactory nature of the appam*+a absorption
prescribed by the discourses"

-o apply the paradigm of the four truths to the context of the
training !ith the appam*+as: the &disease' is the existential karmic
predicament itselfR the &cause' an ignorant and un!holesome conduct of
the body speech and the mindR &cessation' the noble disciple's attainment
of the liberation of the mind through the immeasurables and eventually the
reaching of non-return and of the higher goal through further development
of insightR and the &appropriate remedy' !holesome conduct in con-
junction !ith the establishment of right vie! and the a!akening factors"

In particular right vie! the forerunner and precursor of insight into
the four truths as they really are
?6
in the context of the discourses on kar-
ma and the appam*+as (the already discussed %a5cetani)a&suttas and
8araja)*ya&sutta !ith their parallels* results especially from the
abandonment of the last group of un!holesome actions those entailing
mental un!holesome attitudes rooted in the holding of !rong vie!"


#2%

-hus the !ay the practice unfolds is in harmony !ith a liberating
shift through !hich the dependent generation of karmic bondage du))ha
and un!holesomeness is replaced by the &nirvic dynamics' of their
dependent cessation (i"e" the reverse form of dependent origination*" -he
climax of the standard refrain of the a!akening factors in the discourses
culminates !ith the 0leading to relin/uishing1 (vossa""apari+*mi4*
applied in the present context to the appam*+as" 7emantically and
conceptually this is similar to final liberation culminating in the giving up
of all grounds for (the establishment of* clinging (sabb<padhipa9i&
nissa""o*
@>
through direct kno!ledge of their real nature"

Eith the immeasurables much in the same !ay as any other form
of early Buddhist meditation the foundation is right vie! and the path of
purification progresses !ith the abandonment of the mental hindrances
and increased aloofness from the !orld of the senses 8 all of !hich make
deep meditation possible" -hroughout the practice is guided and directed
by a fine-tuning of the a!akening factors"

-his pattern of development of the bojjha7"as and abandonment of
the hindrances is of crucial importance in that these t!o aspects of the
practice represent the foundation of the establishment of mindfulness and
the point of arrival of the early Buddhist soteriological path" 7uch a
progression brings about !isdom leading in this !ay to the realisation of
nirv*+a and the final destruction of the influxes" In this !ay the
appam*+a experiences converge to cessation and relin/uishing to
nirv*+a"

-hus as regards the conclusion reached by some scholars that early
Buddhism kne! t!o different paths to liberation one of tran/uillity versus
one of insight the foregoing analysis of the meditative dynamics of the
early Buddhist appam*+as is in my opinion a case in point sho!ing that
such conclusions are at odds !ith the doctrinal foundation as !ell as
practical instructions recorded by the early Buddhist texts"
@#
Briefly stated
the early discourses do not present a single normative approach to the
development of tran/uillity and insight: different practitioners !ould first
develop one or the other or else cultivate them in conjunction but neither
of them is dispensable"
@)

+arly Buddhist texts propose an integrated approach to the
appam*+as that entails a process of relin/uishing based on concentration

#26
and insight and culminating in the experience of a!akening"
4ethodologically speaking I need to emphasise that my understanding of
the overall soteriological implications of the dynamics that seem to
emerge from the textual descriptions of early Buddhist meditation
practice in the present case the application of insight to the practice of the
appam*+as is suggested by the hermeneutic principle of &dependent
cessation' as per the earlier mentioned >panis*&sutta a principle that is
articulated throughout the texts themselves" I choose this approach rather
than for instance attempting to come to an independent taxonomy relying
on principles external to the textual materials in /uestion"
@$

-his key point of the indispensability of insight is valid not only for
early Buddhism but for all Buddhist meditative traditions" 9or example
Eangchuk ()>>@: #66* makes the follo!ing remarks on the necessity of
&gnosis' (i"e" liberating insight* besides benevolence etc" for the purpose
of release from sa4s*ra according to 4ahyna sources:

B-Che concept of gnoseological bodhicitta is based on the general
Buddhist notion that the actual soteriological breakthrough comes
in the form of an intellectual event gnosis and not an emotional
one no matter ho! positive such as benevolence """ It is one's vie!
of or insight into =<nyat* then !hich actually releases one from
the fetters of sa4s*ra"

<t least according to the early Buddhist perspective ho!ever the
&intellectual' or &gnoseological' and &emotional' levels !ould be along
!ith the ethical one organically interrelated as sho!n by close
investigation of the dynamics of the appam*+as" < distinction of this type
seems to me possibly to echo in traditional and possibly academic
scholarship a reception of some positions and polemical strands found in
4ahyna !orks that in themselves seem to stem from a form of soterio-
logical exclusivism based on proposing specific solutions to doctrinal
problems arisen !ith later scholastic interpretations of the earlier Buddhist
teachings" 9or example the claim that the vehicle of the bodhisattvas is
superior to both the vehicle of the =r*va)as and that of the
pratye)abuddhas is based on the idea that a bodhisattva is destined to the
attainment of a!akening by removing the )le=aj5ey*vara+a (emotional
and mental afflictions or impediments* !hereas the follo!ers of the other
vehicles !ould simply aim at nirv*+a interpreted as the extinction of the
sole emotional afflictions" Fet the early Buddhist conception does not
kno! a substantial distinction bet!een these spheres of experience !hich

#?>
are both e/ually rooted in feeling !hereby nirv*+a !ould not be correctly
represented in terms of the extinction of purely emotional afflictions" <s
summed up by GSmeI (#666: @>$* in his criticism of de la TallUe
Doussin's (#6$@* seeing a dichotomy bet!een j5*na and dhy*na at the
root of many doctrinal conflicts in Buddhism:

-he contrast is not bet!een the intellectual apprehension and the
intuitive apprehension but bet!een all mental apprehension and an
experience in the body or the !hole person: in short a realiIation"
@.

Ehatever epistemic value one is !illing or else un!illing to place
on such a realisation the subordination 8 or instrumentality 8 of the
practice to the final goal of cessation of du))ha attained !ith the
destruction of the influxes and the uprooting of existence is in my
opinion the soteriological key to read the appam*+as training of the mind
taught in early Buddhist texts"
@2
Pone of the culminations of the lofty
appam*+a meditative developments are said to e/ual liberation" -he texts
never indicate that the destruction of the influxes (or any e/uivalent
designation of the final goal* has been attained just through cultivating the
appam*+as" =onversely insight contemplation of the appam*+as occurs
only in passages that deal !ith the attainment of liberation"

Vike the Buddha !anderers of other renunciate communities !ere
also able to teach the abandonment of the five hindrances and the
boundless suffusion of the !hole !orld !ith a mind accompanied by
benevolence compassion sympathetic joy and e/uanimity but to combine
this !ith a development of the factors of a!akening in dependence on
seclusion dispassion cessation and leading to relin/uishing !ith the sole
aim of purifying the mind by virtue of such process and to simply realise
its conditioned and impermanent nature is peculiar to the teaching of the
-athgatha"
@?
<s already noted by Gethin ()>>#: #%>8#%#* the Buddha is
not represented as categorically denying the claim of non-Buddhist !an-
derers to a teaching that bears some similarities to his o!n (although the
claim of superiority on the part of the .i)*yas is une/uivocal*
@@
but:

""" B-Chere is a certain subtlety of argument here" -he !anderers of
other schools may abandon the five n6vara+as and develop the
seven bojjha7"as but the full potential inherent in this practice is
not understood or fulfilled by them" In short they do not really
understand !hat they are doing """ If !e bear in mind the !ay in
!hich the bojjha7"as are related to various meditation subjects the

#?#
point all in all !ould seem to be not that the Buddha teaches ne! or
original meditation subjects but that he is unsurpassed in defining
the finer points of techni/ue and relating these to progress to!ards
the final goal"
@%

I !ould suggest that this mode of functioning is in fact a recurrent
characteristic of early Buddhist meditation and philosophy one of !hose
distinctive procedures is to provide frame!orks to realise the nature of
experience according to right vie! rather than being concerned !ith
suggesting or inducing any particular type of meditative experience to be
pursued for its o!n sake" 7uch a repositioning of perspectives is achieved
by means of a corrective that can be defined as a concurrent epistemic and
epistemological realignment" -his is in every sense a major paradigm shift
on the early Indian philosophical and religious scene"
@6


#?)
&BB'E(I&TI)*+

<bhidh-kh-bh Abhidharma)o=abh*?ya (ed" Dradhan #6@2*
<bhidh-kh-vy Abhidharma)o=avy*)hy* (ed" Eogihara #6$)8#6$?*
<P A7"uttara&ni)*ya
B
e
Burmese edition
=B+-< =hinese Buddhist +lectronic -ext <ssociation
=
e
=eylonese edition
5 5erge edition (-Whoku*
5X :6r"ha&*"ama (- #*
5hp :hammapada
5hs-a :hammasan"an6&a99a)hat*
5P :6"ha&ni)*ya
+
e
+uropean edition (D-7*
4X !adhyama&*"ama (- )?*
4P !ajjhima&ni)*ya
4p !anorathap<ra+6
DaYis @a9isambidh*ma""a
Ds @apa5cas<dan6
D-7 Dali -ext 7ociety
Z Deking (Zianlong* edition ([tani*
7X %a4yu)ta&*"ama (- 66*
7
e
7iamese edition
7i 7ichuan (Beijing* edition
7P %a4yutta&ni)*ya
7n %uttanip*ta
7pk %*ratthappa)*sin6
- -aishW Aripi9a)a (=B+-< edition )>##*
>p*yi)* Abhidharma)o=op*yi)* (Z 2262*

<ll references to Dali texts are to the D-7 editions unless other!ise
indicated" 9or Dali and other languages on occurrence I have adjusted the
sandhi punctuation capitalisations etc"


#?$
'E,E'E*-E+

<nlayo )>>$: %atipa99h*na: the :irect @ath to BealiCation Birmingham:
Eindhorse"
\\ )>>.: 0-he Qole of Brahm in Dli 5iscourses1 Ahe %ri Dan)a
-ournal of the Eumanities vol" )6]$> pp" #2@8#??"
\\ )>>?: 0-he +kottarika-gama Darallel to the 7accavibhaga-sutta
and the 9our (Poble* -ruths1 Buddhist %tudies Beview vol" )$ no"
) pp" #.28#2$"
\\ )>>@: 07ukha1 in Fncyclopaedia of Buddhism ed" E"G"
Eeeraratne 7ri Vanka: 5epartment of Buddhist <ffairs vol" % no"
# pp" #?.8#?%"
\\ )>>6a: 0Aarma and Viberation \ -he Aarajakya-sutta (")>%*
in the Vight of its Darallels1 @*s*di)ad*na: Gestschrift fr
Bhi))hu @*s*di)a ed" 4artin 7traube et al" 4arburg: Indica et
-ibetica Terlag pp" #8)."
\\ )>>6b: Grom ,ravin" to Diberation: F(cursions into the Ahou"ht&
world of the @*li :iscourses =armel Pe! Fork: -he Buddhist
<ssociation of the ^nited 7tates"
\\ )>>6c: 0-he Vion's Qoar in +arly Buddhism \ < 7tudy Based on
the F)ottari)a&*"ama Darallel to the ,<as6han*da&sutta1 ,hun"&
Ewa Buddhist -ournal vol" )) pp" $8)$"
\\ )>#>: Grom Hraspin" to Fmptiness: F(cursions into the Ahou"ht&
world of the @*li :iscourses =armel Pe! Fork: -he Buddhist
<ssociation of the ^nited 7tates"
\\ )>##a: A ,omparative %tudy of the !ajjhima&ni)*ya -aipei:
5harma 5rum Dublishing =orporation"
\\ )>##b: 0-he 5evelopment of Insight \ < 7tudy of the ^ Ba Ahin
Tipassan 4editation -radition as -aught by 7"P" Goenka in
=omparison !ith Insight -eachings in the +arly 5iscourses1
Guyan Buddhist %tudies vol" ? pp" #2#8#@."
\\ )>##c: 0Brahm's Invitation: -he Ariyapariyesan*&sutta in the Vight
of its !adhyama&*"ama Darallel1 -ournal of the I(ford ,enter for
Buddhist %tudies vol" # pp" #)8$%"
\\ )>##d: 0Oakra and the 5estruction of =raving \ < =ase 7tudy in
the Qole of Oakra in +arly Buddhism1 Indian International
-ournal of Buddhist %tudies vol" #) pp" #2@8#@?"
\\ forthcoming )>##: 05eveloping 3neself and =aring for 3thers \
-he <crobat 7imile in the %a4yu)ta&*"ama1 %ri Dan)a
International -ournal of Buddhist %tudies vol" )"

#?.
\\ forthcoming )>#)a: 0Durification in +arly Buddhist 5iscourse and
Buddhist +thics1 Buddhist %tudies J Bu))yK 8en)y<
vol" .>"
\\ forthcoming )>#)b: 0-he 9irst <bsorption (:hy*na* in +arly Indian
Buddhism \ < 7tudy of 7ource 4aterial from the !adhyama&
*"ama1 in ,ultural Eistories of !editation ed" ,alvor +ifring
3slo: ^niversity of 3slo"
<ronson ,arvey B" #6@6: 0-he Qelationship of the Aarmic to the
Pirvanic in -heravda Buddhism1 -ournal of Beli"ious Fthics
vol" @ no" # pp" )%8$?"
<ronson ,arvey B" #6%>: Dove and %ympathy in Aherav*da Buddhism
5elhi: 4otilal Banarsidass"
BergonIi 4auro #6%>: 03sservaIioni su samatha e vipassan nel
buddhismo -heravda1 Bivista de"li %tudi Irientali vol" 2. pp"
#.$8#@> and pp" $)@8$2@"
Bodhi Bhikkhu #66@: Qevie! of Gombrich #66?: -ournal of Buddhist
Fthics vol" . pp" )6)8)6?"
\\ #6%>: Aranscendental :ependent Arisin": a Aranslation and
F(position of the >panisa %utta Aandy: Buddhist Dublication
7ociety"
\\ )>##: 0Ehat 5oes 4indfulness Qeally 4eanM < =anonical Der-
spective1 ,ontemporary Buddhism vol" #) no" # pp" #68$6"
Bronkhorst ;ohannes #6%?: -he -!o -raditions of 4editation in <ncient
India 7tuttgart: 9ranI 7teiner Terlag Eiesbaden"
de la TallUe Doussin Vouis: #6$@: 04us_la et Prada: le chemin du
nirva1 in !Llan"es chinois et bouddhiques 2 (#6$?8#6$@*
Bruxelles: Institut Belge des ,autes `tudes =hinoises pp" #%68)))"
de 7ilva Vily #6@%: 0=etovimutti DaHHvimutti and ^bhatobhga-
vimutti1 @ali Buddhist Beview vol" $ no" $ pp" ##%8#.2"
5hammajoti AV )>#>: 0-he <prama 4editation in the 7arvsti-
vda !ith 7pecial Qeference to 4aitr_-bhvan1 -ournal of the
,entre for Buddhist %tudies, %ri Dan)a vol" % pp" #?28#%?"
9eldman G" et al" )>#>: 05ifferential +ffects of 4indful Breathing Dro-
gressive 4uscle Qelaxation and Voving-kindness 4editation on
5ecentering and Pegative Qeactions to Qepetitive -houghts1
Behaviour Besearch and Aherapy vol" % no" #> pp" #>>)8#>##"
9redrickson Barbara V" et al" )>>%: 03pen ,earts Build Vives: Dositive
+motions Induced -hrough Voving-Aindness 4editation Build
=onse/uential Dersonal Qesources1 -ournal of @ersonality and
%ocial @sycholo"y vol" 62 no" 2 pp" #>.28#>?)"

#?2
Gethin Qupert #66@: 0Erong Tie! (micch-diYYhi* and Qight Tie!
(samm-diYYhi* in the -heravda <bhidhamma1 in Becent
Besearches in Buddhist %tudies: Fssays in Eonour of @rofessor M
8arunadasa ed" A"V" 5hammajoti et al" =olombo: F" Aarunadasa
9elicitation =ommittee pp" )##8))6"
\\ )>>#: Ahe Buddhist @ath to Awa)enin" 3xford: 3ne!orld
Dublications (first ed": Ahe Buddhist @ath to Awa)enin": A %tudy of
the Bodhi&@a))hiy* :hamm* Veiden: +";" Brill #66)*"
\\ )>>.: 03n the Dractice of Buddhist 4editation <ccording to the Dali
Pikyas and +xegetical 7ources1 Buddhismus in Heschichte und
He"enwart (,amburg* vol" #> pp" )>#8))#"
Gilbert Daul and 7ue Drocter )>>?: 0=ompassionate 4ind -raining for
Deople !ith ,igh 7hame and 7elf-=riticism: 3vervie! and Dilot
7tudy of a Group -herapy <pproach1 ,linical @sycholo"y and
@sychotherapy vol" #$ pp" $2$8$@6"
Gombrich Qichard 9" #66?: Eow Buddhism Be"an: Ahe ,onditioned
Henesis of the Farly Aeachin"s" Vondon a <tlantic ,ighlands
P";": <thlone"
\\ #66%: 8indness and ,ompassion as !eans to .irvana (#66@ Gonda
Vecture* <msterdam: Qoyal Petherlands <cademy of <rts and
7ciences"
\\ )>>6: What the Buddha Ahou"ht Vondon: +/uinox"
GSmeI Vuis 3" #666: 07eeing -ouching =ounting <ccounting
7Jkhya as 9ormal -hought and Intuition1 Asiatische %tudien ]
Ntudes Asiatiques vol" 2$ no" $ pp" ?6$8@##"
Griffiths Daul #6%#: 0=oncentration or Insight: the Droblematic of
-heravda Buddhist 4editation -heory1 -ournal of the American
Academy of Beli"ion vol" .6 no" . pp" ?>28?)."
\\ #6%?: In Bein" !indless: Buddhist !editation and the !ind&Body
@roblem Illinois Va 7alle: 3pen =ourt"
,arvey Deter #662: Ahe %elfless !ind: @ersonality, ,onsciousness and
.irv*+a in Farly Buddhism Vondon: =urIon Qichmond 7urrey"
,onjW Foshifumi #6%.: A Aable of O"ama ,itations in the
Abhidharma)o=a and the Abhidharma)o=op*yi)* Ayoto"
,utcherson =endri <" et al" )>>%: 0Voving-Aindness 4editation Increases
7ocial =onnectedness1 Fmotion vol" % no" 2 pp" @)>8@)."
;ohnson 5avid D" et al" )>>6: 0Voving-Aindness 4editation to +nhance
Qecovery 9rom Pegative 7ymptoms of 7chiIophrenia1 -ournal of
,linical @sycholo"y: In %ession vol" ?2 no" 2 pp" .6682>6"

#??
Aeo!n 5amien #66): Ahe .ature of Buddhist Fthics Pe! Fork:
Dalgrave"
Aiblinger Aristin Beise )>>2: Buddhist Inclusivism: Attitudes Aowards
Beli"ious Ithers <ldershot: <shgate"
Araus 7ue and 7haron 7ears )>>6: 04easuring the Immeasurables:
5evelopment and Initial Talidation of the 7elf-3ther 9our
Immeasurables (739I* 7cale Based on Buddhist -eachings on
Voving Aindness =ompassion ;oy and +/uanimity1 %ocial
Indicators Besearch vol" 6) no" # pp" #?68#%#"
Aristeller ;ean V" and -homas ;ohnson )>>2: 0=ultivating Voving
Aindness: a -!o-stage 4odel of the +ffects of 4editation on
+mpathy =ompassion and <ltruism1 Py"on vol" .> no" ) pp"
$6#8.>@"
Auan -se-fu )>>%: !indfulness in Farly Buddhism: .ew Approaches
throu"h @sycholo"y and Ae(tual Analysis of @ali, ,hinese and
%ans)rit %ources Vondon: Qoutledge"
Vusthaus 5an )>>): Buddhist @henomenolo"y: a @hilosophical
Investi"ation of Mo"*c*ra Buddhism and the =h'eng Eei-shih Vun
Vondon: Qoutledge"
VutI <ntoine et al" )>>%: 0Qegulation of the Peural =ircuitry of +motion
by =ompassion 4editation: +ffects of 4editative +xpertise1 DVo7
3P+ vol" $ no" $ pp" e#%6@"#8#> (electronic publication*"
VutI <ntoine et al" )>>6: 0B3V5 7ignal in Insula is 5ifferentially
Qelated to =ardiac 9unction 5uring =ompassion 4editation in
+xperts vs" Povices1 .euroima"e vol" .@ no" $ pp" #>$%8#>.?"
4ahsi 7ayada! #6%2]n"d": Brahmavih*ra :hamma Qangoon: Buddha
7asana Puggaha 3rganiIation 4ahasi 7asana Feikhta (digitised
ed": -ullera <ustralia: Buddha 5harma +ducation <ssociation Inc"
] buddhanet"net*"
4artini Giuliana )>##: 0!ah*maitr6 in a 4ahyna 7btra in Ahotanese
\ =ontinuity and Innovation in Buddhist 4editation1 ,hun"&Ewa
Buddhist -ournal vol" ). pp" #)#8#6$"
\\ forthcoming )>#)a: 0-he &5iscourse on <ccumulated <ctions' in
Oamathadeva's Abhidharma)o=op*yi)*1 Ahe Indian International
-ournal of Buddhist %tudies vol" #$"
\\ forthcoming )>#)b: 0-ranscending the Vimiting Do!er of Aarma \
-he +arly Buddhist Appam*+as1 in Buddhist @hilosophy Q
@ra(is, @apers ,ontributed to the 0nd International Association of
Buddhist >niversities Academic ,onference R2 !ay&0 -une, 0120
ed" 5ion Deoples Eangnoi: 4ahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya
^niversity Dress (provisional title*"

#?@
4aithrimurthi 4udagamu!e #666: Wohlwollen, !itleid, Greude und
Hleichmut: Fine ideen"eschichtliche >ntersuchun" der ;ier
Apram*+as in der Buddhistischen Fthi) und %piritualitSt von den
AnfSn"en bis hin Cum Grhen Mo"*c*ra 7tuttgart: 9ranI 7teiner"
\\ )>>.: 0+ntfaltung des Eohl!ollens als +ine 4editative cbung1
-ournal of the Institute of Advanced Buddhist %tudies J 8o)usai
bu))yK"a)u dai"a)uin dai"a)u )en)y< )iyo
vol" @ pp" #?28)#. Bd pp" #>?8#2@C"
4cGovern Pathan )>##: 0Brahm: <n +arly and ^ltimately 5oomed
<ttempt at a Brahmanical 7ynthesis1 -ournal of Indian @hilosophy
(preliminary online version )# ;une )>##*"
eamoli Bhikkhu (tr"* )>>#: Ahe !iddle Den"th :iscourses of the
Buddha: a Aranslation of the !ajjhima .i)*ya ed" Bhikkhu Bodhi
Boston: Eisdom Dublications Bsecond ed"C"
3berhammer Gerhard #6%$: In)lusivismus: Fine Indische :en)form
Eien: Gerold"
Dace -haddeus E"E" et al" )>>6: 0+ffect of =ompassion 4editation on
Peuroendocrine Innate Immune and Behavioral Qesponses to Dsy-
chosocial 7tress1 @sychoneuroendocrinolo"y vol" $. pp" %@86%"
Dsdika Bhikkhu #6%6: 8anonische Pitate 8anonische Pitate im Abhi&
dharma)o=abh*?ya des ;asubandhu GKttingen: Tandenhoeck a
Quprecht"
\\ )>>@: 0&9riedensforschung' in -heorie und Draxis im -heravda1 in
Innerer Griede und die Tberwindun" von Hewalt ed" ,ans-4artin
Barth and =hristoph +lsas ,amburg: +B-Terlag"
DUreI-QemSn ;oa/ufn #6%>: %elf and .on&self in Farly Buddhism -he
,ague: 4outon Dublishers"
Dieris <loysius )>>$: 0Ehat ,appens to TiHHa in the =essation
<ttainmentM <n +xegesis of 4"I" )628)6?1 Buddhist %tudies J
Bu))yK 8en)y< vol" $# pp" .$8?%"
Dradhan D" #6@2: Abhidharma)o=abh*?ya Datna: A"D" ;ayas!al Qesearch
Institute"
Quegg 5avid 7eyfort )>>%: Ahe %ymbiosis of Buddhism with
BrahmanismJEinduism in %outh Asia and of Buddhism with UDocal
,ultsV in Aibet and the Eimalayan Be"ion Eien: Terlag der
gsterreichischen <kademie der Eissenschaften"
7chmithausen Vambert #6%#: 03n 7ome <spects of 5escriptions or
-heories of &Viberating Insight' and &+nlightenment' in +arly
Buddhism1 in %tudien Cum -ainismus und Buddhismus: Heden)&

#?%
schrift f4r Dudwi" Alsdorf ed" Alaus Bruhn and <lbrecht EeIler
Eiesbaden: 9ranI 7teiner pp" #668)2>"
7omaratne G"<" )>>?: 07aHHvedayitanirodha1 in Fncyclopaedia of
Buddhism ed" E"G" Eeeraratne 7ri Vanka: 5epartment of
Buddhist <ffairs vol" @ no" . pp" @.)8@2>"
\\ #666: 0Intermediate +xistence and the ,igher 9etters in the Dli
Pikyas1 -ournal of the @ali Ae(t %ociety vol" )2 pp" #)#8#2."
7!earer 5onald A" #6@): 0-!o -ypes of 7aving Ano!ledge in the Dli
7uttas1 @hilosophy Fast and West vol" )) no" . pp" $228$@#"
-ilakaratne <sanga #66$: .irvana and Ineffability: a %tudy of the
Buddhist Aheory of Beality and Dan"ua"e ^niversity of Aelaniya
7ri Vanka: -he Dostgraduate Institute of Dali and Buddhist 7tudies"
van heyst ,"G"<" #6?#: 0<theism1 in Fncyclopaedia of Buddhism ed"
G"D" 4alalasekera 7ri Vanka: 5epartment of Buddhist <ffairs vol"
) fasc" ) pp" $>.8$>%"
Terardi Giovanni )>##: Eardhsips and :ownfalls of Buddhism in India
Pe! 5elhi: 4anohar"
Tetter -ilmann #6%%: Ahe Ideas and !editative @ractices of Farly
Buddhism Veiden: Brill"
Eangchuk 5orji )>>@: Ahe Besolve to Become a Buddha: a %tudy of the
Bodhicitta ,oncept in Indo&Aibetan Buddhism -okyo: Inter-
national Institute for Buddhist 7tudies"
Eogihara ^nrai #6$)8#6$?: %phu9*rth* Abhidharma)o=avy*)hy*
-okyo"
Eynne <lexander )>>@: Ahe Iri"in of Buddhist !editation Vondon:
Qoutledge"

*)TE+

i I am indebted to Bhikkhu <nlayo Bhikkhu Dsdika and <lberto
-odeschini for comments and suggestions on an earlier draft of this article"
#
< more detailed study of the theme of intentionality and the appam*+as
can be found in 4artini forthcoming )>#)b" In the present article I use
Dali terminology as I take the four main Dali .i)*yas as my main source
representative of the early Buddhist teachings in that they are the most
completely preserved literary corpus" -he broader textual basis I consider
as documenting the earliest phases of transmission of the Buddhist

#?6

teachings includes their counterparts in the =hinese O"amas and the
corresponding materials extant in 7anskrit fragments and in -ibetan
translation" ^nless dealing !ith particularly note!orthy differences or
controversial points bearing on my main theme I do not give in each and
every case reference to extant parallels in 7anskrit =hinese -ibetan etc"
)
-he therapeutic effects of the appam*+as have indeed been made the
object of contemporary psychological research to the extent that such
effects of the immeasurables become &measurable' according to
physiological changes in the plastic structure of the brain and]or
psychometric parameters e"g" Aristeller and ;ohnson )>>2 Gilbert and
Drocter )>>? 9redrickson et al" )>>% ,utcherson et al" )>>% VutI et al"
)>>% VutI et al" )>>6 ;ohnson et al" )>>6 Araus and 7ears )>>6 Dace et
al" )>>6 and 9eldman et al" )>#> (I am indebted to 5aphna 4cAnight for
most of these references*" Ehile this type of research !hich is not devoid
of its o!n methodological challenges can claim a degree of empiric
accuracy the next and higher step in appam*+a practice !here a
soteriological orientation becomes prominent is obviously less likely to be
measurable through the instruments of Eestern natural or psychological
science"
3
Cf., e.g., the maxim at Dhp 290; on the role of spiritual happiness in
early Buddhism cf" Gethin )>>#: #2.f <nlayo )>>@ and <nlayo
forthcoming )>#)b" I return to the relationship bet!een the a!akening
factors and the appam*+as in section ($* of this article"
.
3bjectless immeasurables as these !ere to be defined in later scholastic
treatises stemming from 7arvstivda-Fogcra meditative milieus on
!hich cf" 5hammajoti )>#> and 4artini )>##: #?6f seem to me to be
particularly akin to this type of earlier meditative development"
2
+"g" 4P 66 ad 4P II )>@)): seyyath*pi balav* sa7)hadhamo
appa)asiren Veva c*tuddis* vi55*peyya: evam eva )ho eva4 bh*vit*ya
)ho mett*ya cetovimuttiy*, ya4 pam*+a)ata4 )amma4, na ta4
tatr*vasissati, na ta4 tatr*vati99hati ayam pi )ho brahm*na4
sahabyat*ya ma""o (the same is repeated for the other appam*+as*R the
example of the trumpeter is also found in the =hinese parallel 4X ad - I
??6c#> (for differences in the t!o versions cf" <nlayo )>##a: 2@%* on
this passage cf" also <ronson #6%>: ?)f and esp" ?6 (commenting on its
occurrence in another discourse 5P #$ ad 5P I )2#2*"
?
+"g" DaYis II #$>8#$6 and Tism )6?f (d Ijf*"

#@>

@
-hese t!o aspects especially the first are much developed in later
scholastic literature but an a!areness of &meditation theory' is already
found in a section of the A7"uttara&ni)*ya !here the appam*+as appear
among a number of practices that are considered instrumental in the giving
up of defilements )#"
%
")>% ad ")>% and its =hinese and -ibetan parallels cf" <nlayo )>>6a 4artini
forthcoming )>#)a and )>#)b" 9or other occurrences of pam*+a)ata4
)amma4 cf" e"g" 5P #$ ad 5P I )2#@ 4P 66 ad 4P II )>@)2 and 7P
.)"% ad 7P IT $))#$ (in the first t!o cases the =hinese parallels 5X )?
ad - I #>?c#@ and 4X #2) ad - I ??6c#> do not have the reference to the
effect of appam*+as on limiting actions !hereas in the third case the
parallels 7X 6#? ad - II )$)b2 and 7X
)
#$# ad - II .)2b)6 do refer to the
effect of appam*+as as noted by <nlayo )>>6a: 6 note $2*"
6
4X #2 ad - I .$%a##8#2 transl" !ith minor modifications after <nlayo
)>>6a: %fR the -ibetan parallel does not have the statement on limiting
actions >p*yi)* Z 2262 tu )@)a. or 7i #?# p" 2%#? transl" in 4artini
forthcoming )>#)a and )>#)b"
#>
=f" the explanation given by the commentary on the A7"uttara&ni)*ya
4p T @%$ on ")>% ad >##: sabba4 ta4 idha vedaniyan ti
di99hadhammavedaniya99h*navasena vutta4" na ta4 anubhavissat6 ti
mett*ya upapajjavedaniyabh*vassa upacchinnatt*
upapajjavedaniyavasena na anu"ata4 bhavissat6 ti 8 ida4 sot*panna&
sa)ad*"*mi&ariyapu""al*na4 paccave))a"a+a4 veditabba4 0&it !ill all
be experienced here' is said !ith regard to karma that !ill be experienced
in this present existenceR &it shall not follo! one along' means that !ith
regard to !hat should be experienced in the next existence it !ill not
come about in the future because the experiencing in the next existence
has been cut off through the practice of benevolence: -his passage has to
be understood as a reflection made by a noble person !ho is a stream-
entrant or a once-returner"1
##
4p T @@#@: pam*+a)ata4 )amma4 n*ma )*m*vacara)amma4
0&action performed in a limiting !ay' refers to &sense-sphere karma'1R cf"
also the similar gloss introducing a definition of &action performed in a
non-limiting !ay' at 7pk III #>2)@: ya4 pam*+a)ata4 )amman ti,
pam*+a)ata4 )ata n*ma )*m*vacara4 vuccati: appam*+a&)ata4
)amma4 n*ma r<p*vacara4" 7pk III #>2)2 commenting on the
expression 0liberation of the mind through benevolence1 in 7P .)"% ad 7P

#@#

IT $))#) explains: mett*ya cetovimuttiy* ti, ettha mett* ti vutte upac*ro
pi appa+* pi va99ati cetovimutti pana vutte appa+* va va99ati 0!ith regard
to &liberation of the mind through benevolence' !hen BonlyC benevolence
is mentioned it refers either to access concentration or to absorption but
!hen it is /ualified as &liberation of the mind' (cetovimutti* it refers to
absorption"1 ")>% ad >) etc" and its =hinese parallel 4X
#2 ad - I .$%a#6 etc" employ the standard formulations 0liberation of the
mind through benevolence1 and the other appam*+as (mett*cetovimutti
and etc"* !hereas the -ibetan parallel >p*yi)* Z 2262 tu
)@)a? or 7i #?# p" 2%)% etc" (collated edition based on 5* has: byams paVi
sems )yi (5]7i omit: )yi* tin" n"e VdCin s"om par byed pa 0development
of concentration of the mind of benevolence"1 -his expression does not
seem to occur else!here in the Abhidharma)oop*yi)* and !ould
presumably render a 7anskrit e/uivalent to Dali cetosam*dhi&bh*van* cf"
4artini forthcoming )>#)bR on appam*+o cetosam*dhi cf" e"g"
4aithrimurthi #666: )%f"
#)
<ronson #6@6: $#"
#$
=f" e"g" -heravda 5hs-a .))f ad 5hs-a #6)#. and 7arvstivda
W!ah*vibh**&*stra - #.2. ad - jjTII .)>c#$8c#6 .)2b68.)2c#)
.)>c#$8.)>c). and .)2b)?8.)2c# partially transl" and discussed in
5hammajoti )>#>: #??f and #@#f"
#.
+"g" 5P #$ ad 5P I )2#6: brahm*na4 sahabyat*ya ma""o 0the path
to union !ith Brahms1R on similar passages cf" e"g" 4aithrimurthi #666:
#$f including a survey of previous scholarship and references to non-
Buddhist sources" 9or recent studies of Brahm in early Buddhism cf"
<nlayo )>>. and <nlayo )>##c: #)f (including references to relevant
secondary literature* and esp" #. note ? for an example of a Brahmin
retiring into seclusion to practice so as to attain direct communion !ith the
Brahm and on the effect of Buddhist criti/ue of the notion of the Brahm
in Brahmanism 4cGovern )>##"
#2
4P @2 ad 4P I 2>)#2: bhunahuno (7
e
: bhunahanassa* lit" &destroyer
of beings' or &destroyer of gro!th'R on this expression cf" <nlayo )>#>:
.6@ note 6#"
#?
+"g" ")6 ad #: mah*bramuno pi atthi Veva
a55athatta4 atthi viparin*mo and 7P 22"2. ad 7P T .#>#?: brahmalo)o
pi anicca adhuvo sa))*ya pariy*panno" -he significance of the
compound brahmabhuto &Brahm-become' in the pericope of the
attainment of liberation e"g" 4P #$# ad 4P III #622 apparently at odd

#@)

!ith the early Buddhist philosophical and non-theological tenets is
discussed e"g" in DUreI-QemSn #6%>: ##$f and 4aithrimurthi #666: ?@
note @%" Tan heyst #6?#: $>% sums up that in Buddhism there is no
ground 0for either a goal of divine union or a scheme of salvation in !hich
man has to cooperate !ith the divine"1
#@
<s commented by Bodhi in eamoli )>>#: #$># note %66 0BtChis
remark has the force of a gentle reproach" -he Buddha must have seen that
5hanaHjni had the potential to attain the supramundane path1 since
else!here 0he himself teaches only the !ay to the Brahm-!orld !hen
that potential is lacking in his listener1 cf" 4P 66 discussed belo!R the
=hinese !adhyama&*"ama parallel 4X #2) ad - I ??6c2 ho!ever is
much less critical of the venerable 7riputta's action: 0instead of
reproaching 7riputta for not having done his duty the Buddha much
rather praises 7riputta's !isdom1 cf" <nlayo )>##a: 2@# !ith note )#%"
#%
4P 66 ad 4P II )>?R for a comparative study of 4P 66 cf" <nlayo
)>#>: 2@)f and esp" 2@% note )2> (in this case the sentence 0no limiting
action remains or persists there1 is not found in the parallel 4X #2) but a
similar statement occurs in 4X #2 ad - I .$%a#.*"
#6
-he !ajjhima&ni)*ya commentary Ds III .2>#> gives the same
explanation as the above /uoted A7"uttara&ni)*ya commentary cf" note
##"
)>
04eines +rachtens haben somit beide <spekte von appam*+a 8 einmal
im 7inne der brahmavih*ras Ium anderen im 7inne des ohne-r*"a&dosa&
moha&7eins 8 (Iumindest ursprnglich* eine BeIiehung Ium
+rlKsungskontext: die Draxis der brahmavih*ra-cbung hat eben Ium
Qesultat dak die pam*+a)ata)ammas (ein Begriff der mKglicher!eise
eine 7ekndarbildung analog Iu appam*+a darstellt* beseitigt !erden1R cf"
also 4aithrimurthi #666: @?"
)#
+"g" 4P .$ ad 4P I )6@6 4P #)@ ad 4P III #.?2 7P .#"@ ad 7P
IT )6?)?"
))
=f" de 7ilva #6@% and <nlayo )>>6b: #22"
)$
=f" the discussion in 4artini forthcoming )>#)b"
).
Dace the already mentioned conclusions reached by 4aithrimurthi #666
(cf" also 4aithrimurthi )>>.* as !ell as Gombrich #66?: ?) (as already
pointed out by Bodhi #66@: )6.* Gombrich #66%: ?f and recently
Gombrich )>>6: @%f %%f and #62f !ho elaborates in more detail on the
position presented in his previous publications that the divine abodes are a
sufficient soteriological paradigm: (0love and compassion can be salvific

#@$

for the person !ho cultivates those feelings to the highest pitch1 p" #62*
holding that benevolence !as originally taught by the Buddha as a !ay to
a!akening but that the Buddha's immediate follo!ers !ould have then
failed to understand the full import of the brahmavih*ras and arrived at
the 0dogma that someone !ho practised the brahma&vih*ras !as reborn in
the Brahma !orld but no higher1 (p" %%*R cf" also Dsdika )>>@: )??f and
4artini )>##: #@."
)2
2 ad ")>% ad >#>: so eva4 paj*n*ti: yam )ho me idha
)i5ci pubbe imin* )araja)*yena p*pa)amma4 )ata4, sabban ta4 idha
vedan6ya4, na ta4 anu"a4 bhavissat6 ti 0one kno!s thus: &!hatever evil
actions I performed before !ith this physical body their results !ill be
experienced here and !ill not follo! me'1R 4X #2 ad - I .$%a)#:
: & " " ' 0monks
you should reflect like this: &formerly I !as negligent and performed
un!holesome deeds" Vet the fruits of these be experienced entirely no!
not in a later !orldl'1 transl" !ith minor modifications after <nlayo
)>>6a: 6R >p*yi)* Z 2262 tu )@)b)# or 7i #?# p" 2%#)>: V"aV Chi" Vdi
s)ad du n"aVi lus Vdi nyid )yis sn"on sdi" pa mi d"e baVi las byas shin"
bsa"s la nye bar bsa"s pa de thams cad Vdi la myon" bar "yur ci" s)yes
nas dan" lan "ran"s "Chan la myon" bar ma "yur ci" 0one says: &!ith
this body of mine formerly I performed evil un!holesome actions that
have been accumulated" Eith regard to all that has become accumulated
let it be experienced Bno!C and not be experienced further at the time of
birth"'1 <ll parallel versions of this discourse present the statement of the
leading to or the certainty of the attainment either of non-return or of the
highest cf" ")>% ad >#$R 4X #2 ad - I .$%a)$R >p*yi)*
Z 2262 tu )@)b$ or 7i #?# p" 2%))"
)@
Eith regard to benevolence <nlayo )>>$: #628#6? explains that its
0distinctive character """ as taught by him Bi"e" the BuddhaC lies in
combining it !ith the a!akening factors in this !ay directly harnessing
loving kindness to the progress to!ards realiIation"1
)%
7n #.$8#2) ad 7n )22R this discourse transmitted in the %uttanip*ta of
the 8hudda)a&ni)*ya does not have kno!n parallels preserved by other
traditions of reciters"
)6
-he sam*dhi stanIas (7n #.2bc8#2#* comprise an initial discursive part
(7n #.2bc8#.%* follo!ed by practical instructions (7n #.68#2#* !hich
are further subdivided into samatha meditation (7n #.68#2>* and a more

#@.

dynamic application of mindfulness !ith revie! of the result of the
practice (7n #2#*" -he meaning of the passage on the attainment of ta4
santa4 pada4 in the context of the so-called 0!etta&sutta1 benevolence
and the experience of nirv*+a (cf" also 5hp $?%* has been discussed by
several scholars cf" e"g" the revie!s in 4aithrimurthi #666: ?2f and
Auan )>>%: ##2f" 9or the purpose of the present discussion I !ould just
like to point out that nirv*+a is experienced at different levels on the path
to full a!akening from stream-entry on!ards and the transition to a
higher level of the path (as evidenced by the context of the /ualities that
are already established in the practitioner and those that have to be further
fulfilled* seems to me to simply imply that the experience of nirv*+a of a
disciple at a comparatively lo!er stage on the path is not completed by a
level of moral affective and insight development corresponding to the one
expected from an arahant at the highest point of spiritual pursuit"
$>
")>? ad ")>@*" -he t!o %a5cetani)a&suttas (")>? ad ")>@ ad ")>% ad * at present consecutively located in the
8araja)*ya&va""a of the A7"uttara&ni)*ya !ere most probably
interrelated during oral transmission !ith the original textual situation
consisting of a single Dali discourse (")>? m ")6@ m ")>%*" -his probably original single Dali discourse is parallel to 4X #2
ad - I .$@b).8.$%b## and >p*yi)* Z 2262 tu )@>a.8)@)b2 or 7i #?#
pp" 2@@)82%)#> cf" <nlayo )>>6a and also 4artini forthcoming )>#)a
and )>#)b" -he complete se/uence of instructions can be reconstituted by
reading the three Dali discourses together and clarified in the light of their
parallels"
$#
")>% ad >) 4X #2 ad - I .$%a#? and >p*yi)* Z 2262
tu )@)a? or 7i #?# p" 2%##)R cf" 4artini forthcoming )>#)a" In fact the
removal of any doubt in recognising !hat is !holesome ()usala* and !hat
is un!holesome (a)usala* is concomitant !ith the attainment of the first
level of a!akening cf" e"g" <nlayo )>>$: #6%R from this discriminating
ability follo!s an ever deepening understanding of the nature of karma
and intention and !ith it a gro!ing sense of subjective moral
accountability"
$)
=f" above note $>"
$$
4P @ ad 4P $6#: aya4 vuccati bhi))hu sin*to antarena sin*net*ti"

#@2

$.
4P @ ad 4P I $@#R on variations in the parallel versions cf" <nlayo
)>##a: .6f" 9or a study of the notion of purity and purification in early
Buddhist discourse cf" <nlayo forthcoming )>#)a"
$2
-he discourse on the parable of an acrobat and his apprentice in the
%a4yutta&ni)*ya devoted to illustrate a t!ofold dimension of
mindfulness self-protection and protection of others also brings in the
relationship of mindfulness and benevolence" <ccording to the instruction
to truly fulfil these t!o protective tasks mindfulness has to be cultivated
through patience harmlessness benevolence and altruistic solicitude 7P
.@"#6 ad 7P T #?6#%R on the significance of this discourse and for a
translation of the =hinese parallel cf" <nlayo forthcoming )>## cf" also
<ronson #6%>: 2$f" <s regards &mindfulness' in this discourse Auan
)>>%: 2? remarks that 0BICt should be noted that satipa99h*na
(establishment of mindfulness* here is singular different from the plural
form in the context of the four satipa99h*nas"1 -he singular form is also
found in the context of the development of the perception of benevolence
in 7n #2# ad 7n )?#6: eta4 sati4 adi99heyya 0one should resolve on this
mindfulness"1 3n this passage Bodhi )>##: )? comments: 0BtChe !etta
%utta even refers to meditation on loving-kindness as a kind of
mindfulness1 and Auan )>>%: 2? that: 0loving-kindness may also be
counted as a type of emotion produced by deliberately transforming sa55*
!hich is the job of sati" Ehile the !etta %utta mentions &this mindfulness'
(eta4 sati4* it probably does not mean that loving-kindness itself is a
kind of sati but it implies that the process of developing loving-kindness
involves sati" -he development of loving-kindness is uni/ue for its
altruistic aspect !hich seems to be lacking in other types of sati1R on this
point cf" also 4aithrimurthi #666: ?@ note @6" 9or another instance of a
perspective on mindfulness (in this case directed to the elements* !hich
combines a!areness of their /ualities !ith the cultivation of analogous
/ualities of the four appam*+as as found in the !ah*r*hulov*da&sutta of
the !ajjhima&ni)*ya 4P ?) ad 4P I .)$#% and its parallel in the
=hinese F)ottari)a&*"ama cf" the discussion in 4artini )>##: #?@f"
$?
7P .?"2. ad 7P T ##%$#: n*ha4 tam pass*mi sadeva)e lo)e
sam*ra)e sabrahma)e sasama+abr*hma+iy* paj*ya sadevamanuss*ya yo
imesam pa5h*na4 veyy*)ara+ena cittam *r*dheyya a55atra tath*"atena
v* tath*"atas*va)ena v* ito v* pana sutv*R this discourse is taken up also
by Gethin )>>#: #@@f"

#@?

$@
7P .?"2. ad 7P T ##6$: mett*saha"ata4 satisambojjha7"am bh*veti
vive)anissita4 vir*"anissita4 nirodhanissita4 vossa""apari+*mi4 " 3n
the bojjha7"as and the 0vive)a&nissita1 formula in the Dali .i)*yas cf"
Gethin )>>#: #?)fR on the bhojja7"as in general cf" <nlayo )>>$: )$$f"
$%
-he treatment of the appam*+as in dependence on the bojjha7"as (or
else of the development of the bojjha7"as accompanied by the
appam*+as* in the *n*p*na&va""a has already been noted by Gethin
)>>#: #%>"
$6
-he Dali parallel is 7P .?"?) ad 7P T #$# Bm 7P .?"?$ 7P .?"?. and
7P .?"?2C"
.>
7X @.. the translated section ranges from - II #6@c#28)#"
.#
-he translated section ranges from >p*yi)* Z 2262 tu #6>b)8#6>b2 or
7i #?# p" .>>#28.>#%" -he Abhidharma)o=abh*?ya /uotation 0thus the
a!akening factor of mindfulness Bis developedC accompanied by
benevolence etc"1 is found at Z 2262 tu #6>b# or 7i #?# p" .>>#. cf"
<bhidh-kh-bh #.?#$ yath* maitr6saha"ata4 smXtisa4bodhya7"a4
bh*vayat6ty follo!ed by a reference to the introductory narrative ("len"
Chi 7anskrit nid*na* at Orvast_R the same passage is commented upon in
<bhidh-kh-vy $>6))8)? cf" ,onjW #6%.: .) no" ?$ and Dsdika #6%6:
?. no" ))." -he Dali parallel is 7P .?"?) ad 7P T #$##2 Bm 7P .?"?$ 7P
.?"?. and 7P .?"?2C"
.)
=f" above note $@"
.$
3n the characteristics of the bojjha7"a&sa4yutta in general cf" Gethin
)>>#: #@$f"
..
4P ?. ad 4P I .$.)2"
.2
#: s6lesu pari-
p<ra)*r6 hoti sam*dhismi4 parip<ra)*r6 pa55*ya mattaso )*r6 so
pa5canna4 orambh*"iy*na4 sa4yojan*na4 pari))hay*R on the
implication of this passage cf" esp" <nlayo )>##b: #2) note .R for a study
of the higher fetters in the Dali .i)*yas cf" e"g" 7omaratne #666"
.?
<n instance can be found e"g" in the &discourse on concentration' 7P
))"2 ad 7P III #$$>: sam*hito bhi))hu yath*bh<ta4 paj*n*tiR on the
implications of the expressions yath*bh<ta4 and yath*bh<ta5*+adassana
cf" e"g" <nlayo )>>6b: #).f" 9or an assessment of concentration and
especially rightly directed concentration in early Buddhist discourses cf"
<nlayo )>#>: ##2f and esp" #$#f on the relationship bet!een
concentration and a!akening"

#@@

.@
=f" the survey in <nlayo )>>$: ?@f and additional references in
<nlayo )>##b: #2) note #"
.%
<s sho!n by a recent study of the role of the first absorption in the early
discourses based on comparative research <nlayo forthcoming )>#)b
!ith !hose analysis I agreeR cf" also <nlayo )>>$: @)f and <nlayo
)>#>: #>@f and ##2f"
.6
 cf" also my discussion belo!"
2>
+"g" "?> ad )$: eta4 santa4, eta4 pan6ta4, yad ida4
sabbasa7)h*rasamatho sabb<padipa9inissa""o ta+ha))hayo vir*"o
nibb*na4
2#
7P .%"6 ad 7P T #6@#2: vossa""*ramma+a4 )aritv* labhati
sam*dhi4 labhati cittassa e)a""ata4 idha4 vuccati sam*dhindriya4"
2)
+"g" 4P .. ad 4P I )66#R for a comparative study of the parallels cf"
<nlayo )>##b"
2$
=f" above notes ## and )?"
2.
4P ?. ad 4P I .$?2: ten Veva dhammar*"ena t*ya dhammanandiy*R
on the meaning of dhammar*"a cf" <nlayo )>>6b: $$f"
22
4P ?. ad 4P I .$2$#8.$?6 (the same progression is repeated for the
subse/uent levels of absorption*"
2?
<nlayo )>#>: #$2"
2@
<s discussed at length by <nlayo )>#>: #$#f the development of
concentration in harmony !ith the other path factors beginning !ith right
vie! is !hat defines concentration as rightly directed to!ards the purpose
of a!akening"
2%
Bodhi in eamoli )>>#: #)?% note ?22"
26
Ds III #.?#>"
?>
=f" 7P ))"#)) ad 7P III #?%# !ith 7pk II $$.% commenting on this
passage similar to Ds III #.?#> mentioned above in note 26"
?#
4P )% ad 4P #6#)6 and 4X #2 ad - I .?@a)>"
?)
# ad <P III ..##6"
?$
<P ."#)? ad <P II #)6. (the passage is abbreviated in +
e
R text supplied
by <P ."#).*R for instructions on the insight revie! of appam*+a
absorption in contemporary -heravda cf" 4ahsi #6%2]n"d": ).@f"
?.
4P 2) ad 4P I $2##% (the text is abbreviated in +
e
R the abbreviated
part is supplied by the preceding passage on the first absorption*"
?2
4P @ ad 4P I $%$#R on differences in the parallel versions of this
passage cf" <nlayo )>##a: 2?f"

#@%

??
3n insight and the appam*+as cf" also <ronson #6%>: @.f and
5hammajoti )>#>"
?@
7P #)")$ ad 7P II )6 !ith its parallels 4X 22 ad - I .6>b)6 and
>payi)* Z 2262 tu 2.b. or 7i #?# p" ##@#>"
?%
-o look at the progression from this perspective highlights a distinctive
aspect of the training in that as explained by Bodhi #6%>: ## it 0vie!s
the same chain of events dynamically from the inner perspective of living
experience"1
?6
7P $@"@ ad 7P T ..)6 comparing the function of right vie! as a
forerunner and precursor of the breakthrough to the da!n in relation to the
rising of the sunR on the four truths cf" <nlayo's article in the same issue
of the present journal"
@>
+"g" "?> ad )$R on the terminology related to vossa""a
and pa9inissa""a cf" <nlayo )>#>: #.2f"
@#
-he discussion !as initiated by de la TallUe Doussin #6$@ (!ith a
critical examination by GSmeI #666* !hose position has been follo!ed
and articulated e"g" by Griffiths #6%# 7chmithausen #6%# Bronkhorst
#6%? (!ith a critical response by Gethin )>>#: #%>f* Gombrich #66?: 6?f
Tetter #6%% and Eynne )>>@ ##@f and critically revie!ed (in some of his
aspects or in general terms* e"g" by 7!earer #6@): $?6f BergonIi #6%>:
$$) Aeo!n #66): @@f Gethin #66@: ))# Gethin )>>.: )>6 and <nlayo
)>>6b: #?2f"
@)
 ad <P II #2@#"
@$
<nother meditative instance that highlights the interdependence of the
emotional ethical and intellectual spheres in early Buddhism is the
attainment of cessation of perception and feeling (sa55*vedayitanirodha*
a meditative experience possible !hen a very high degree of emotional
and intellectual purification has been attained" -he re/uisites for the
attainment of this experience (at least non-return* also indicate that the
intellectual dimension in early Buddhism embraces the emotional and
ethical aspects" 3n this attainment !hich in my opinion has not yet been
fully clarified by modern scholarship cf" e"g" de la TallUe Doussin #6$@:
)#>f 7chmithausen #6%#: ).6 Griffiths #6%? ,arvey #662: #%@f
Vusthaus )>>): #)6f Dieris )>>$ 7omaratne )>>? and <nlayo )>#>: )>%
note )?"
@.
=f" also Gethin )>>.: )>6"
@2
Gethin )>>#: #%# further comments that 0!hat is claimed as distinctive
about the teaching of the Buddha is that it al!ays perfectly relates the

#@6

abandoning of the n6vara+as and the development of the bojjha7"as to
progress to!ards the cessation of suffering" It is this completeness of the
Buddha's teachings that is emphasiIed rather than its radical departure
from the !anderer's teachings"1
@?
Gethin )>>#: #@6 remarks that this development is 0perhaps slightly
unexpected in that the consideration of the vive)a&nissita formula sho!ed
that for the commentaries the bojjha7"as are characteristically developed
at the time of insight practice and the arising of the transcendent path and
fruit" ,o!ever """ the commentaries do suggest that this is not /uite the
!hole story"1 Gethin further comments that although it is not cited as
such the account of the practice of the immeasurables developed in
dependence of the bojjha7"as 0!ould appear to be the kind of passages
the commentaries have in mind !hen they say that the bojjha7"as can be
brought out in respect of divine-abiding jh*nas1 (p" #%>*"
@@
Gethin )>>#: #%> points out that the commentaries seem to play this fact
do!n cf" 7pk III #?%). as transl" in Gethin )>>#: #%> note #?$: 0-he
!anderers do not really teach the abandoning of the n6vara+as and the
development of the bojjha7"as" -hey merely overhear the Buddha
teaching and then return to their *r*ma !here they teach their o!n
follo!ers making it appear that the method has been penetrated as a result
of their o!n kno!ledge"1 < %a4yu)ta&*"ama partial parallel to 7P .?"2.
7X @.$ ad - II #6@b#2 although !ithout going as far as the %a4yutta&
ni)*ya commentary seems to describe the Buddha's foreseeing the
distraught reactions of the outside !anderers on hearing !hy their
teaching cannot be compared to the apparently similar teaching taught by
the -athgatha in stronger terms anticipating their defeated and angry
reaction cf" 7X @.$ ad - II #6@c?" 9or another example of a negative
emphasis in the portrayal of interactions !ith non-Buddhist renunciates
cf" the case studied by <nlayo )>>6c"
@%
<s an instance of refinement in the mode of presentation of the
teachings Gethin )>>#: #@%f discusses the Buddha's exposition of the !ay
the five n6vara+as are ten and the seven bojjha7"as fourteen cf" 7P .?"2)
ad 7P T #>%))"
@6
I !ould conclude that the instance of the &Buddhist' specifics displayed
by the Buddhist appam*+as indicates that the early Buddhist spiritual and
intellectual history (to the extent that this is !itnessed by the texts*
participates in the dynamics of cultural religious and social inclusivism
that characterise the early Indian religious milieux in such a !ay that as

#%>

far as soteriology is concerned it remains marked by a very distinctive
identity and orientation" Individual &case studies' of &inclusivist' choices
and elements and an analysis of the patterns that emerge from them seem
to point in this direction cf" e"g" the recent studies by <nlayo )>##c and
)>##d" 9or more general assessments of inclusive or inclusivistic
modalities in the early Indian context cf" e"g" the contributions in
3berhammer #6%$ Aiblinger )>>2 and Quegg )>>%: 6@f" Terardi )>##:
#)f #% and @#f comes to a radical reading of early Buddhist thought and
discourse 8 in history 8 in terms of a fundamentally antinomian (and
thereby historically subaltern* stance" -hough Terardi's position is too
articulated to be discussed here and it !ould entail an overall assessment
of the early Buddhist &4iddle Eay' in relation to institutions and history
it seems to me that the proposed notion of &subalternity' might be able to
provide an alternative interpretative paradigm and definition for such
religio-historical tides no! understood at best in terms of &inclusivism'
that deserves further in-depth scrutiny"

Giuliana Martini, "The Meditative Dynamics of The Early Buddhist Appamā As", Canadian Journal of Buddhist Studies 7 (2011) : 137-180.

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Giuliana Martini, "The Meditative Dynamics of The Early Buddhist Appamā As", Canadian Journal of Buddhist Studies 7 (2011) : 137-180.

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The Meditative Dynamics

of the Early Buddhist Appamas

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