There was another sect of Buddhists who denied the existence of the material world. They said that “all that exists is only the minds. What we think as something existing outside is actually inside our mind!”
Before we give these people in the hands of our Brahma supporters, let us allow them to present their case. These people who were called Vijnyaana Vadis had a very interesting explanation of the world and what their preceptor Buddha actually preached.
The word Vijnyaana means consciousness. Today we see many consciousness theorists trying to put forth their mystical theories of existence. But Vijnyaana Vadis may be the first of such consciousness theorists! Let us listen to their theory.
The Vijnyaana Vadis said:
“Buddha talked about the material world only for the sake of ignorant people who are unable to understand abstract things. Actually, what Buddha preached is a theory based merely on consciousness. It is a ‘mind only theory’ to put it in laymen terms.When we see an object, or rather, when we think that we see an external object, what we actually perceive is the image of the object in our mind. We never come in direct contact with any object as such. So, our mental perception is what we experience as an external object. In fact, there is no external object at all! It is just that the mind ‘imagines’ an external object which does not exist in reality.It is like what you see in a dream. In a dream, you see lot of things. Do any of those things really exist? No. They are just images created by the mind. Our so called ‘wakeful experiences’ are also like dreams. What we perceive are images of things, and we think that there are objects outside our mind that correspond to these images. But in reality, no such objects exist.Let me give you another example. You probably have seen a magic show. The magician shows you lot of things which are unbelievable. But do any of the things that you see in a magic show real? Every one knows that they are just mental illusions. But you think that what you perceive in the magic really exist. So, to perceive something, it is not necessary that what you perceived should actually exist. You can perceive non existent things as well, since it is your mind that perceives them.Our conclusion is that the external world does not exist. All that exists is just minds that keep creating images of things ‘as if they really exist outside’…”
The Brahma supporter immediately interrupts:
“Wait a minute. You said that your mind perceives things ‘as if objects corresponding to them actually exist outside’. But we perceive varieties of objects. How does the mind create these varieties of images if no such diversity of objects exists outside?”.
The Vijnyaana Vadi clarifies:
“Oh! You see, there is an endless cycle of births and deaths. And this cycle is beginning less. So, over a period of time, due to various reasons, different mental images are created and carried forward from birth to birth. Since this cycle is beginning less, we cannot really say when exactly these images were created.”
The brahma supporters object:
“But how was the image created in the first place, no matter when? How can an image be created when there is nothing outside? If you say the images are randomly created with no correspondence to external objects, why do two people perceive the same image when they are encountered with the same object? How can there be such a coincidence unless both images are created by the same external object common to both?”
The Vijnyaana Vadis justify their stand by saying:
“You see, if we admit that there is an external object that creates a mental image, then to perceive that mental image there has to be another mental image of that image and so on. This leads to infinite regress. That is why we say that the mental image stands for itself without needing anything else. It is self-illuminating. It does not require another object to convey it.”
The Brahma supporters intervene:
“The endless regress that you are talking about is your own creation, and does not really exist. It is not one mental image perceiving another mental image. There is a soul who is at the end of the chain which actually perceives all these mental images. That soul breaks the chain that you are imagining! It is not cognition cognizing another cognition. But a soul which is not a part of the mind is cognizing the mental images. So, there is no endless regress as you imagine. But unfortunately, you don’t accept the concept of soul!As for your similarity of dream and wakeful experiences, you are wrong once again….”
In this way the two opponents find fault with each other’s theories. The Buddhists are hell bent on denying the existence of the soul and the Brahma supporters insist on its existence. Let us continue this debate in the next episode.
A series on ancient Indian composition Brahma Sutra. © Dr. King, Swami Satyapriya 2020-21
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