Conceptual and Non-conceptual Mental States in the Yogācāra Tradition
Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia is now 14 years old
Our Encyclopedia recently received a wonderful opportunity for a major renewal on its 14th birthday . After many years of growing our Encyclopedia had become bit slow and sometimes even decided not to answer when people knocked on the door.
A very big thank you and blessings to Dmytro Rudiy (rudiy.nl) for his great work in upgrading the server, website and all of the infrastructure and helping make TBE fast and reliable again for everyone!
We kindly ask our readers to help us cover the cost of this important upgrade and also help with the ongoing costs of keeping the Encyclopedia alive and freely available.
or card
Every little donation helps and every one is deeply appreciated. 🙏🙏🙏
OM AH HUM VAJRA GURU PADMA SIDDHI HUM 🙏🙏🙏
May blessings shower down on all of yous 🙏🙏🙏
by Jowita Kramer
“concept” (vikalpa) <> “non-conceptual(ity)” (nirvikalpa)non-conceptual awareness (nirvikalpajnana) true awareness (samyagjnana) mind (citta) and mental factors (caitasika) imprints (vasana) stored in the “store mind” (alayavijhana) imprints of
• all sense perceptions (vijhana)
• mental perception (manovijhana)
• concept of I (klistamanas)
• all emotions, such as hatred, anger, jealousy (and all the other samskaras) imprints of
• “everyday usage of phenomena, names and conceptions” (nimitta- nama-vikalpa-vyavahara-prapahca)
• “sticking to the imagined nature [of reality]” (parikalpitasvabhavabhinivesa) • duality of the grasper and the grasped (grahadvayavasana) • concepts of one's own self (atmadivikalpa) and • concepts of entities, such as matter (rupadidharmavikalpa) concepts of • the nature [of a phenomenon] (svabhavavikalpa) • its characteristics (visesavikalpa), • wholes (pindagrahavikalpa)
these first three give rise to "things" (vastu) which themselves become the basis for vikalpa and proliferation • "I" (aham iti vikalpah)
• "mine" (mameti vikalpah)
• pleasant (priyavikalpa)
• opposite of both (tadubhayaviparitavikalpa)“mental representation only” (vijhaptimatra) from imprint of language
from imprint of “the wrong view of the self”
Mental representation (vijhapti) of
• body (= five sense faculties)
• the one who possesses the body (= klistamanas)
• experiencer (bhoktr; manodhatu)
• that which is experienced by him (= six objects)
• experiencing with regard to this (= six vijhanas)
• time
• numbers • abode (= surrounding world,bhajanaloka)
• conventional speech (vyavahara)
• distinction between oneself and others _[[usmagata mu rd han ksanti
seeing all factors as "mental representation only"
1. no object
2. no subject
1st stage (bhumi) path of seeing (darsanamarga) » non-conceptual awareness (nirvikalpajhana) 2nd to 10th stagemind (citta) in the sense of true awareness (samyagjnana) or neither citta nor acitta
• pure realm (anasravah dhatuh)
• liberation (mukti)
• abiding in the realm of the mind (cittasyadhatau sthanam)
• realm without proliferation (nisprapancadhatu)
• “suchness” (tathata) of all phenomena
• = non-differentiated truth preparatory stage
usmagata mu rd han ksanti laukikagradharma 1st stage (bhumi) path of seeing (darsanamarga) 2nd to 10th stage. no object
2. no subject
» nirvikalpajnanapreparatory stage
usmagata mu rd han ksanti laukikagradharma 1st stage (bhumi) path of seeing (darsanamarga) 2nd to 10th stage1. no object
2. no subject
"non-differentiated"
(avyavasthapita) usmagata murdhan ksanti
seeing all factors as "mental representation only"
1. no object
2. no subject
1st stage (bhumi) path of seeing (dars'anomargo) » nirvikalpajhana
"non-differentiated"
2nd to 10th stage path of cultivating (bhavanamarga)
"differentiated"
5 sense perceptions klistamanas> mirror-like awareness (adarsajnana)
= non-conceptual awareness (nirvikalpajndna)
> awareness of differentiation (pratyaveksajnana)
> awareness of accomplishment of deeds
(krtydnusthdnajndna) > awareness of equality (samatajnana) feelings (vedana) >> mastery of the pleasant abodes (sukhavihara) apperception (samjha) >> mastery of teaching by means of words (naman), phrases (pada) and syllables (vyahjana)