Nagarjuna
Nagarjuna (नागार्जुन) (c. 150 – c. 250 CE) or Nāgārjuna or Nagarjjuna was one of the most important Buddhist philosophers after Gautama Buddha.[1]
Along with his disciple Āryadeva, he is considered to be the founder of the Madhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhism.
Contents
In Rajatarangini
Rajatarangini[2]Then there were on the throne of Kashmira three kings reigning jointly, namely, Hushka, Jushka and
[p.13]: Kanishka ; they built three cities and called these after their names, Jushka also caused a monastery to be built and another town named Jayasvamipura. Though they were of Turashka origin, they yet built several monasteries and places of worship on the plains of Shushkaletra. During their long reigns Buddhist hermits were all-power-ful in the country, and Buddhist religion prevailed without opposition. From the death of Buddha Shakyashiha to this time of Lokadhatu, one hundred and fifty years had passed. Nagarjjuna a great Boddhisattva then stopped for six days in the woods of Kashmira.
Mystery about His life and home town
Very little is reliably known of the life of Nāgārjuna, since the surviving accounts were written in Chinese[3] and Tibetan centuries after his death.
According to some accounts, Nāgārjuna was originally from South India.[4][5]
Some scholars believe that Nāgārjuna was an advisor to a king of the Satavahana dynasty.[6]
Archaeological evidence at Amarāvatī indicates that if this is true, the king may have been Yajña Śrī Śātakarṇi, who ruled between 167 and 196 CE. On the basis of this association, Nāgārjuna is conventionally placed at around 150–250 CE.[7]
Some sources claim that in his later years, Nāgārjuna lived on the mountain of Śrīparvata near the city that would later be called Nāgārjunakoṇḍa ("Hill of Nāgārjuna").[8] The ruins of Nāgārjunakoṇḍa are located in Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh. The Caitika and Bahuśrutīya nikāyas are known to have had monasteries in Nāgārjunakoṇḍa.[9]
Philosopher
Nāgārjuna is credited with developing the philosophy of the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras and, in some sources, with having revealed these scriptures in the world, having recovered them from the nāgas (snake-people). Furthermore, he is traditionally supposed to have written several treatises on rasayana as well as serving a term as the head of Nālandā.[10]
Practitioner of Ayurveda
According to Frank John Ninivaggi, Nagarjuna was also a practitioner of Ayurveda. First described in the Sanskrit medical treatise Sushruta Samhita, of which he was the compiler of the redaction, many of his conceptualisations, such as his descriptions of the circulatory system and blood tissue (described as rakta dhātu) and his pioneering work on the therapeutic value of specially treated minerals knowns as bhasmas, which earned him the title of the "father of iatrochemistry".[11]
Theory of Relativity
Nagarjuna also taught the idea of relativity; in the Ratnāvalī, he gives the example that shortness exists only in relation to the idea of length. The determination of a thing or object is only possible in relation to other things or objects, especially by way of contrast. He held that the relationship between the ideas of "short" and "long" is not due to intrinsic nature (svabhāva). This idea is also found in the Pali Nikāyas and Chinese Āgamas, in which the idea of relativity is expressed similarly: "That which is the element of light ... is seen to exist on account of [in relation to] darkness; that which is the element of good is seen to exist on account of bad; that which is the element of space is seen to exist on account of form."[12]
References
- ↑ Garfield, Jay L. (1995), The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way, Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ↑ Rajatarangini of Kalhana:Kings of Kashmira/Book I,pp.12-13
- ↑ Rongxi, Li; Dalia, Albert A. (2002). The Lives of Great Monks and Nuns, Berkeley CA: Numata Center for Translation and Research, pp. 21–30
- ↑ Kalupahana, David. A History of Buddhist Philosophy. 1992. p. 160
- ↑ Buddhist Art & Antiquities of Himachal Pradesh By Omacanda Hāṇḍā (Page 97)
- ↑ Buddhist Art & Antiquities of Himachal Pradesh By Omacanda Hāṇḍā (Page 97)
- ↑ Kalupahana, David. A History of Buddhist Philosophy. 1992. p. 160
- ↑ Hirakawa, Akira. Groner, Paul. A History of Indian Buddhism: From Śākyamuni to Early Mahāyāna. 2007. p. 242
- ↑ Hirakawa, Akira. Groner, Paul. A History of Indian Buddhism: From Śākyamuni to Early Mahāyāna. 2007. p. 242
- ↑ Hsing Yun, Xingyun, Tom Manzo, Shujan Cheng Infinite Compassion, Endless Wisdom: The Practice of the Bodhisattva Path Buddha's Light Publishing Hacienda Heights California
- ↑ Frank John Ninivaggi Ayurveda: A Comprehensive Guide to Traditional Indian Medicine for the West, page 23. (Praeger/Greenwood Press, 2008). ISBN 978-0-313-34837-2.
- ↑ David Kalupahana, Causality: The Central Philosophy of Buddhism. The University Press of Hawaii, 1975, pages 96–97. In the Nikayas the quote is found at SN 2.150.