| Summary: | 博士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 哲學研究所 === 106 === This dissertation is based on the Suvikrāntavikrāmi-Paripṛcchā, which is the 16th assembly of the Prajñāpāramīta-sūtras or the Perfection of Wisdom Sutra in 2500 lines. The whole text focuses on “the ineffability of all related factors”, which can be studied from the philosophy of language of this sutra. Briefly speaking, if a practitioner wishes to achieve enlightenment or reach the spiritual realm, he or she must first generate a genuine renunciation from the sufferings of samsara. Next, there are two lines of inquiry to be followed according to this sutra. (1) From an epistemological aspect, one should start with “all dharmas including aggregates (skandhāḥ), sense fields (āyatanāni), and realms (dhātavaḥ) etc.” and scrutinize all related factors directly by way of “the state of reality as it truly is (yathābhūtatā)” to comprehend reality. In other words, he or she should explore the compositions, processes, associated contexts and systems behind all phenomena, as well as the previously actuated conditions and possible future destinations or outlets about them. (2) From a metaphysical aspect, one should cut into the reasons behind all phenomena that cause the current states and untie them one by one. Additionally, one should keep exploring until they arrive at the realization of the fundamentally consistent state of dharmas by way of “the state of true reality as it reasonably is (yathāvattā)”. By doing so, he or she can comprehend emptiness, non-self, non-duality, like illusion or magic, as well as suchness (tathatā), dharma realm (dharma-dhātu), dharma nature (dharmatā), non-falseness (avitathatā), unaltered suchness (ananyatathatā), and suchness such as it actually is (yathāvattathatā).
Thus, truthfully scrutinizing the first line of inquiry, one may understand that all related factors are not the same as words, namely all statements are just expediencies. The real state or realm is not as it is described. Reasonably observing the second line of inquiry, one may comprehend that all phenomena are the unsayable dharma nature, are inconceivable, unable to be apprehended, and exist at the ineffable level of the unconditioned (asaṃskṛta). Thus, through these two approaches, “the ineffability of all related factors” in the linguistic view of the Prajñāpāramīta-sūtras is revealed. Further, this dissertation adopts the parallel approach of philology and the study of Buddhist doctrine, as well as the method of inner construction. The underlying “four reliances and four unreliences” are furthermore applied as the supreme principle.
In the whole dissertation, there are three major parts: the introduction, Part I - Annotation of Suvikrāntavikrāmi-Paripṛcchā, and Part II - An inquiry into the philosophy of language of “the ineffability of all related factors”. In the introduction, the outline of the dissertation is presented and the necessity and value of the translation and annotation is justified. Secondly, Part I includes the vernacular translation, annotation, and paragraph gist scattered in chapter 1~5, which constitutes the core of this dissertation. Thirdly, Part II is based on the key notion of “but again it is not so as one speaks of it”, which appears in 19 segments throughout the sutra and the two lines of inquiry mentioned above are followed to reach in-depth discussion of the meaning of related themes. Through “but again it is not so as one speaks of it”, these discussed words are abandoned in order to remove mask (saṃvṛtti) and reveal reality (tattva). This part then follows Mañjuśrī’s five-character mantra, namely a、ra、pa、ca、na, which correspond respectively to “wisdom”, “non-arising”, “utmost”, “suchness”, “all related factors are ineffable” in the five chapters of this part, which is similar to the mode of Nāgārjuna’s discourse in Mūlamadhyamakakārikā. Finally, we arrive at the conclusion, that is, “all dharmas are nonapprehesible and ineffable, whether they are based on yathābhūtatā-way or yathāvattā-way”.
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