Tenet system mainly Vaibhasika (objects of the path)

Question 1

What constitutes a person in the Vaibhasika tenet system?

Answer 1

The mere collection of the 5 aggregates is the illustration of a person.

Question 2

What are the 5 aggregates?

Answer 2

Form
Feeling
Discrimination
Conciousness
Compositional factors

Question 3

What is the illustration of person/self for the Avarantaka Vaibhasikas?

Answer 3

Mental consciousness
(The majority of Buddhist groups say that the mental consciousness/mind is the self of a person)

Question 4

What is the self of a person for Sautrantikas?

Answer 4

The continuum of the aggregates

Question 5

What is the self of a person for Cittamatrens?

Answer 5

Alaya (foundational consciousness)

Question 6

What is the self of a person for Savatantrika Madhyamaka?

Answer 6

Mental consciousness

Question 7

What is the self of a person for Prasangika Madhyamaka?

Answer 7

Mental consciousness can not be asserted as a self

Question 8

All Buddhist schools separate the self into 2 (apart from Prasangika). What are these 2 groups?

Answer 8

1. substantial self: majority of Buddhist schools agree on the mental consciousness as the self, apart from the Vaibhasika and Aravantaka Vaibhasikas.
2. putative self: when staying on the level of conventions of ordinary beings (imputation)

Question 9

What did Buddha teach in context of the aggregates and the self/person?

Answer 9

The 5 aggregates (impermanent, multiple,dependent)are the loads and the self/person (permanent,unitary,independent) is the carrier of the load. ==> Self exists

Question 10

Which consciousness is 1. not accepted by Vaibhasika and 2. what are the usual classifications of consciousness/mind?

Answer 10

1. self cogniziant conciousness: not accepted by Vaibhasika
2. prime cognition (valid):
   - Sensory direct (prime) cognition (not necessarily consciousness), because the physical sense power is the locus point of material object, view and valid cognition ( unacceptable for Vaibhasika))
   - Mental direct cognition
   - Yogic direct cognition

Question 11

In comparison to all other Buddhist schools what do Vaibhasika say about the perception of an object?

Answer 11

Vaibhasika say that the object is cognized by the sense consciousness in its real, bare form, as real sound, smell etc. The conceptual mind sees the object through an image.

All other schools agree that all consciousnesses when engaging with its object, it should necessarily engage through an image one creates.

Question 12

What are the outlines of the assertions of the different paths?

Answer 12

-The base
Object
Subject
Person
Conciousness
Terms/lables

• The path
  Objects of the path (f.ex.: wisdom)
  Objects to be abandoned by the path (f.: defilements)
  The nature of the path( broader picture of the spiritual journey)
• The result

Question 13

Name the Author of the book we study

Answer 13

Konchock Jigme Wangpo

Question 14

Why do Vaibhasika not assert the concept of gross and subtle selflessness of phenomena?

Answer 14

Because they accept that anything that exists should be established as selfhood of phenomena

(But the emptiness of autonomous substantial self is accepted as the subtle selflessness of person)
(Out of the 18 sub schools the 5 Sammitiya sub schools posit that the autonomous substantial self does exist)

Question 15

Which 2 selflessness are Vaibhasika and Sautantrika interested in?

Answer 15

Selflessness of permanent unitary independent self
Selflessness of autonomous substantial self
(They never talk about selflessness of phenomena, they only talk about selflessness of person)

Question 16

Which are the 2 selflessness of person for all Buddhist schools and which school does not accept this categorization?

Answer 16

1.Gross
Selflessness of permanent unitary independent self

2. Subtle
   Selflessness of autonomous substantial self

Prasangika do not accept this

(For Vaibhasika and Sautrantika selflessness and selflessness of person are synonyms because they don’t accept selflessness of phenomena)