Tathāgata

Explore the ancient language of the Tipitaka and Theravāda commentaries
pererin

Tathāgata

Post by pererin »

In his translation and commentary on the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta (see http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .harv.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;), Dr Peter Harvey discusses Tathāgata as follows:
One Who Moves in Reality: Tathāgata is a term for a Buddha. It literally means "Thus-gone" or "Thus-come." What is "thus" is what is real. Translating the term as "One Who Moves in Reality" brings the term alive as referring to person who has awakened to the real nature of things, and experiences things as they really are, most significantly in terms of dukkha, its origination, its cessation, and the way to this.
Any thoughts on this?

Metta
User avatar
jcsuperstar
Posts: 1915
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 5:15 am
Location: alaska
Contact:

Re: Tathāgata

Post by jcsuperstar »

"One Who Moves in Reality" seems, i dont know, vague?
สัพเพ สัตตา สุขีตา โหนตุ

the mountain may be heavy in and of itself, but if you're not trying to carry it it's not heavy to you- Ajaan Suwat
User avatar
Nicholas Weeks
Posts: 4210
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 11:26 pm
Location: USA West Coast

Re: Tathāgata

Post by Nicholas Weeks »

There are differing ways of looking at the meaning: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Tathagata" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The plainest meaning is that Buddhas follow the same path trod by the Buddhas who came before them - thus "one who has come (or gone)" like all the other Buddhas.
Good and evil have no fixed form. It's as easy to turn from doing bad to doing good as it is to flip over the hand from the back to the palm. It's simply up to us to do it. Master Hsuan Hua.
User avatar
stuka
Posts: 171
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 12:37 am

Re: Tathāgata

Post by stuka »

Will wrote: The plainest meaning is that Buddhas follow the same path trod by the Buddhas who came before them - thus "one who has come (or gone)" like all the other Buddhas.
That is a Mahayana meaning.
User avatar
Dhammanando
Posts: 6490
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:44 pm
Location: Mae Wang Huai Rin, Li District, Lamphun

Re: Tathāgata

Post by Dhammanando »

Hi Stuka,
stuka wrote:That is a Mahayana meaning.
That's not so. Most of the various derivations of 'Tathāgata' were held in common by Indian Buddhist schools, with only a few being unique to a particular school. The one mentioned by Will is supported by the teaching of the Mahāpadāna Sutta.

Best wishes,
Dhammanando Bhikkhu
Rūpehi bhikkhave arūpā santatarā.
Arūpehi nirodho santataro ti.


“Bhikkhus, the formless is more peaceful than the form realms.
Cessation is more peaceful than the formless realms.”
(Santatarasutta, Iti 73)
User avatar
retrofuturist
Posts: 27839
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 9:52 pm
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Contact:

Re: Tathāgata

Post by retrofuturist »

Greetings venerable Dhammanando,

I tend to think of it as "thus gone one" in a sense analogous to having "crossed the river" to nibbana.

Is that explanation, or something with a similar intent, supported by any of the established derivations?

Metta,
Retro. :)
"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
User avatar
Dhammanando
Posts: 6490
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:44 pm
Location: Mae Wang Huai Rin, Li District, Lamphun

Re: Tathāgata

Post by Dhammanando »

Hi Retro,
retrofuturist wrote:I tend to think of it as "thus gone one" in a sense analogous to having "crossed the river" to nibbana.

Is that explanation, or something with a similar intent, supported by any of the established derivations?
It doesn't ring a bell it but I would have to go to the library to check. 'Pāragū' is what's usually used for that. You will find all the canonical etymologies of 'Tathāgata' in the Pāsādika Sutta, DN. 29. The commentaries add one or two more; see Bhikkhu Bodhi's translation of the comm. to the Mūlapariyaya Sutta, MN. 1. If I remember right, the derivation given by Will is the one that the commentators most favoured.

The Mahayanists inherited all or most of these and also came up with one or two of their own, notably: "He is one for whom there is neither coming nor going, thus he is called 'Tathāgata'."

Best wishes,
Dhammanando Bhikkhu
Rūpehi bhikkhave arūpā santatarā.
Arūpehi nirodho santataro ti.


“Bhikkhus, the formless is more peaceful than the form realms.
Cessation is more peaceful than the formless realms.”
(Santatarasutta, Iti 73)
User avatar
stuka
Posts: 171
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 12:37 am

Re: Tathāgata

Post by stuka »

Dhammanando wrote:Hi Stuka,
stuka wrote:That is a Mahayana meaning.
That's not so. Most of the various derivations of 'Tathāgata' were held in common by Indian Buddhist schools, with only a few being unique to a particular school. The one mentioned by Will is supported by the teaching of the Mahāpadāna Sutta.

Best wishes,
Dhammanando Bhikkhu

It seems there is some controversy as to the authenticity of this sutta, is there not, Bhante...?
User avatar
tiltbillings
Posts: 23046
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 9:25 am

Re: Tathāgata

Post by tiltbillings »

That which is the destruction of greed, hatred and delusion is asankhata, free from the conditioned." SN IV 359 and SN IV 362

That which is the destruction of greed, hatred and delusion is nibbana. SN IV 251 and IV 321

The destruction of greed, hatred, and delusion is arahantship. SN IV 252.

"Whoever frees himself from the passions of greed, hatred, and ignorance, they call him, one who is self developed, made divine, thus-gone (tathagata), awake (buddha), one who has left fear and hatred, and one who has let go of all." Itivuttaka 57

Since a tathagata, even when actually present, is incomprehensible, it is inept to say of him – of the Uttermost Person, the Supernal Person, the Attainer of the Supernal – that after death the tathagata is, or is not, or both is and is not, or neither is nor is not SN III 118 (For the full text of this passage, see: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/su ... 2-086.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; )
(SN III 116: a tathagata is describing a tathagata.}

Of this Bhikkhu Bodhi states: “This should establish that “the Tathagata” here is not just “a being” [as the commentary states], but a Buddha or an arahant…” pg 1080 n163.
There is the case where a monk's conceit 'I am' is abandoned, its root destroyed, like an uprooted palm tree, deprived of the conditions of existence, not destined for future arising. This is how a monk is a noble one with banner lowered, burden placed down, unfettered.

"And when the devas, together with Indra, the Brahmas, & Pajapati, search for the monk whose mind is thus released, they cannot find that 'The consciousness of the one truly gone
(tathagata) [ftns: 11/226] is dependent on this.' Why is that? The one truly gone (tathagata) is untraceable even in the here & now. – MN I 139
Ven Thanissaro’s FN: 11. The term "tathagata" is often, but not always, reserved for the Buddha. Sometimes, as in the case here, it is used to refer to the arahant.

Bhikkhu Bodhi’s fn 226, p 1210: “Thus Gone” is, in Pali, Tathagata, the usual epithet of the Buddha, but here applied more broadly to the arahant [following the commentary].”

Thich Nhat Hanh translates the Chinese version of the above as: “the Buddha says: Indra, Prajapati, Brahma, and the other gods in their entourage, however hard they look, cannot find any trace or basis for the consciousness of a Tathagata.”

As for untraceable see:
Dhp 179-180

Whose conquest can't be undone,
whose conquest no one in the world
can reach;
awakened
[buddha], his pasture endless,
pathless:
by what path will you lead him astray?
In whom there's no craving
— the sticky ensnarer —
to lead him anywherever at all;
awakened
[buddha], his pasture endless,
pathless:
by what path will you lead him astray?
Another text where Tathagata and buddha can be understood to include the arahants:
Dhp 254-5: There's no trail in space,
no outside contemplative.
People are smitten
with complications,
but devoid of complication are
the Tathagatas.
There's no trail in space,
no outside contemplative,
no eternal fabrications,
no wavering in the Awakened
[buddha].
In the Sutta-Nipata take a look at the sutta that starts with v 455. Take note of the use of tathagata starting in v 467.

I.B. Horner states in her introduction to her translation of the Majjhima Nikaya, THE MIDDLE LENGTH SAYINGS, Vol 1 p xvii:
  • ‘Five reason why a Tathagata is called are given at D. iii 135 (cf A. ii. 24; It. P. 121) and the Commentaries provide another eight reasons (…). Each is somewhat complex, so it would appear that the word Tathagata had no simple, narrow or rigid meaning but was, on the contrary, one with a wide sweep. In sense probably “Accomplished One” or “Perfect One” comes nearest although having no etymological justification and being, moreover, equally applicable to any arahant, the perfect one who has done all there is to be done.’
It is not only tahagata that gets used for the arahant but, as we can see, also buddha.
Dhammapada 181: They, the enlightened, intent on jhana,
delighting in stilling
& renunciation,
self-awakened
[sambuddha] & mindful:
even the devas
view them with envy.
Dhammapada 398: Having cut the strap & thong,
cord & bridle,
having thrown off the bar,
awakened
[buddha]:
he's what I
[the Buddha] call
a brahman.
Dhammapada 419: "Who knows in every way the passing away and rebirth of beings, unattached, well-gone [sugata], awake [buddha], That one I [the Buddha] call brahmana."
Dhammapada 422: A splendid bull, conqueror,
hero, great seer —
free from want,
awakened
[buddha], washed:
he's what I call
a brahman.
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
User avatar
Dhammanando
Posts: 6490
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:44 pm
Location: Mae Wang Huai Rin, Li District, Lamphun

Re: Tathāgata

Post by Dhammanando »

Hi Stuka,
stuka wrote:
Dhammanando wrote:It seems there is some controversy as to the authenticity of this sutta, is there not, Bhante...?
As far as I know there's never been any dispute about it within the historical Theravada. The texts whose status as buddhavacana was challenged by some groups of reciters (bhāṇaka) were the Parivāra of the Vinaya Piṭaka, the Kathāvatthu of the Abhidhamma Piṭaka, and a handful of texts in the Khuddaka Nikāya. The contents of the first four Nikāyas seem to have been quite uncontroversial.

Best wishes,
Dhammanando Bhikkhu
Rūpehi bhikkhave arūpā santatarā.
Arūpehi nirodho santataro ti.


“Bhikkhus, the formless is more peaceful than the form realms.
Cessation is more peaceful than the formless realms.”
(Santatarasutta, Iti 73)
User avatar
Nicholas Weeks
Posts: 4210
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 11:26 pm
Location: USA West Coast

Re: Tathāgata

Post by Nicholas Weeks »

Too lazy to copy out the paragraphs on Tathāgata's meaning in Pāsādika Sutta, DN. 29, but Walshe's translation is on page 436, for those who have it.
Good and evil have no fixed form. It's as easy to turn from doing bad to doing good as it is to flip over the hand from the back to the palm. It's simply up to us to do it. Master Hsuan Hua.
pererin

Re: Tathāgata

Post by pererin »

Will

Many thanks for the link. In it, the author notes:
For faithful of the Theravada tradition, the notion of the Buddha as Tathagata resonates with many of their metaphysical, cosmological, and soteriological views.
I was surprised to see a reference to 'soteriology', which is a loaded term and one which I have to say I view with some suspicion, particularly given its use in Christological discourses. Evidently, from this article, it has a different significance in a Buddhist context. Could someone elaborate?
User avatar
Dhammanando
Posts: 6490
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:44 pm
Location: Mae Wang Huai Rin, Li District, Lamphun

Re: Tathāgata

Post by Dhammanando »

Hi Pererin,
pererin wrote:I was surprised to see a reference to 'soteriology', which is a loaded term and one which I have to say I view with some suspicion, particularly given its use in Christological discourses. Evidently, from this article, it has a different significance in a Buddhist context. Could someone elaborate?
Those who realize nibbāna are saved from mental dukkha for the remainder of their present life and from further birth and death in saṃsāra after the present life.

Is there something about the use of 'soteriology' in Christianity that would make it an unfit term to apply to teachings relating to such an attainment?

Best wishes,
Dhammanando Bhikkhu
Rūpehi bhikkhave arūpā santatarā.
Arūpehi nirodho santataro ti.


“Bhikkhus, the formless is more peaceful than the form realms.
Cessation is more peaceful than the formless realms.”
(Santatarasutta, Iti 73)
User avatar
stuka
Posts: 171
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 12:37 am

Re: Tathāgata

Post by stuka »

pererin wrote:Will

Many thanks for the link. In it, the author notes:
For faithful of the Theravada tradition, the notion of the Buddha as Tathagata resonates with many of their metaphysical, cosmological, and soteriological views.
I was surprised to see a reference to 'soteriology', which is a loaded term and one which I have to say I view with some suspicion, particularly given its use in Christological discourses. Evidently, from this article, it has a different significance in a Buddhist context. Could someone elaborate?
Wiki wrote:Soteriology is the branch of theology that deals with salvation.[1] It is derived from the Greek sōtērion "salvation" (from sōtēr "savior, preserver") + English -logy.[2] The term itself can be used to refer to any kind of religion, and no savior figure or figures are required.[3] Soteriology is a key factor that distinguishes religion from philosophy.[4]

The Buddha's soteriology ("What is 'salvation' in Buddhism...?') is concerned with the liberation from suffering.
pererin

Re: Tathāgata

Post by pererin »

Dhammanando wrote: Is there something about the use of 'soteriology' in Christianity that would make it an unfit term to apply to teachings relating to such an attainment?

Best wishes,
Dhammanando Bhikkhu
Greetings, Venerable, and thank you for your post. It's a minor (and lexical) point, but I hadn't realised that soteriology was also a term used in discussing the Buddhadhamma. Given the specific Christian associations of σωτηρία / σωτήριον with the idea of a 'personal saviour'; a 'salvation' of divine origin which in their view is uniquely mediated through Christ; and all the baggage of the theological underpinning which goes with that, I wondered whether this was a term which Theravadin scholarship would have wished to avoid. I had assumed that, by definition, Buddhism doesn't have a 'theology'. Do I understand you correctly that the use of this term is not unacceptable in a Buddhist context?

[Edited by OP]
Post Reply