Pojmi odsotnosti, praznine in niča z vidika theravādskega budizma

This article discusses three important concepts of ancient Indian discourse, namely absence, nothingness and emptiness, and examines their representations in Theravāda Buddhism. Firstly, it overviews the early Indian records of the concept of absence and then focuses on the role of absence in Theravāda Buddhism. It shows how the ethical foundations of the Buddhist path to liberation from suffering are largely expressed through the absence of unethical behaviour, and how meditation practice involves the cultivation of mental states that are based on the absence of unwholesome mental factors. The article then discusses specific higher states of meditative absorption, as presented in the canonical and postcanonical Pāli sources, which include experiences of infinite space, infinite consciousness, and nothingness, the latter being articulated as the absence of anything at all. According to the Theravāda tradition, the experience of nothingness, which is perceived as complete absence, devoid of any phenomena, is not considered final liberation, because it still involves perception, feeling and other mental components and thus remains in the sphere of impermanence. Only in the state of ultimate emptiness of nibbāna (Sanskrit nirvāṇa) is complete liberation from suffering reached. The realization of nibbāna is presented as the very foundation of a deep transformation of consciousness, reflected in the partial or complete absence of fetters, defined as phenomena that bind living beings to suffering. In summary, the article shows how, in Theravāda Buddhism, absence plays the central role in the cultivation of moral virtue and meditation, including the experience of nothingness, and how the realization of the emptiness of nibbāna, regarded as the final liberation from suffering, is reflected in the concomitant ethical perfection. Članek obravnava tri pomembne koncepte staroindijskega diskurza, in sicer odsotnost, nič in praznino, ter proučuje njihove predstavitve v okviru theravādskega budizma. Najprej na kratko predstavi staroindijske zapise o konceptu odsotnosti, nato pa se osredotoči na vlogo odsotnosti v theravādskem budizmu. Pokaže, kako se etični temelji budistične poti do osvoboditve od trpljenja večinoma izražajo skozi odsotnost neetičnega delovanja in kako meditacijska praksa vključuje razvoj mentalnih stanj, ki temeljijo na odsotnosti škodljivih mentalnih faktorjev. Članek nato obravnava višja stanja meditativne absorpcije, kot so predstavljena v kanoničnih in postkanoničnih virih, ki vključujejo izkušnje neskončnega prostora, neskončne zavesti in niča, pri čemer je slednji izražen kot odsotnost česar koli. Po theravādskem izročilu izkušnja niča, ki jo dojemamo kot popolno odsotnost, brez kakršnih koli pojavov, ne velja za končno osvoboditev, saj še vedno vključuje zaznavo, občutke in druge mentalne faktorje ter tako ostaja v območju spremembe in minljivosti, medtem ko je popolna osvoboditev od trpljenja dosežena šele v stanju dokončne praznine, nibbāne (sanskrtsko nirvāṇa). Uresničitev nibbāne je predstavljena kot temelj globoke preobrazbe zavesti, ki se odraža v delni ali popolni odsotnosti vseh mentalnih faktorjev, ki živa bitja vežejo na trpljenje. Če povzamemo, članek pokaže, kako ima v theravādskem budizmu odsotnost osrednjo vlogo pri razvoju moralnih vrlin in meditaciji, vključno z izkušnjo niča, in kako se spoznanje praznine nibbāne, ki velja za končno osvoboditev od trpljenja, odraža v etični popolnosti.

Perturbative Expansion around the Gaussian Effective Action: The Background Field Method

We develop a systematic method of the perturbative expansion around the Gaussian effective action based on the background field method. We show, by applying the method to the quantum mechanical anharmonic oscillator problem, that even the first non-trivial correction terms greatly improve the Gaussian approximation.Comment: 16 pages, 3 eps figures, uses RevTeX and epsf. Errors in Table 1 are corrected and new references are adde

Situating the Concept of Mindfulness in the Theravāda Tradition

Mindfulness plays a prominent role in traditional and modern Buddhist meditation practice. This paper examines the theoretical background of the concept of mindfulness (sati) as presented in the early Buddhist sources, recorded in Theravāda Buddhism. It outlines the definitions and presentations of mindfulness (sati) in the Pāli Canon and examines how it is embedded within the fundamental models of Buddhist discourse. Then it investigates mindfulness within the philosophical framework of the Abhidhamma, where it is presented as one of the mental factors (cetasika) involved in cognitive processes; it outlines its characteristics, functions, conditions, and compatibility with other mental factors, which occur as components within the interdependent processes of consciousness (citta). The article shows how mindfulness has a special role as a component on the Buddhist path to liberation from suffering (dukkha) and how it is integrated within the soteriological and ethical goals of Buddhist practice.

The Concept of smṛti in the Yogasūtra: Memory or Mindfulness?

One of the key concepts in Buddhist meditation is mindfulness which has recently been introduced into new environments, including contemporary yoga. This paper identifies some of the parameters involved in the rather seamless integration of Buddhist mindfulness and yoga and explores whether this synthesis is an ancient one, already found in the oldest recorded text on yoga, the Yogasūtra, by investigating if the word smṛti, usually translated as “memory”, can refer to mindfulness. This would imply that mindfulness may have been a component of ancient Yogic practices, although perhaps lost at some stage in the transmission only to be reintroduced recently by the syncretistic new trends in the globalised spiritual movements.  IzvlečekEden od osnovnih konceptov budistične meditacije je pozornost ali čuječnost. V zadnjih desetletjih se je praksa meditacijske pozornosti razširila na številna nova področja, med drugim tudi v sodobne jogijske prakse. Prispevek poskuša identificirati nekaj glavnih parametrov, ki pogojujejo integracijo budistične meditacije in joge in raziskuje, ali je koncept pozornosti morda bil prisoten že v najstarejšem poznanem besedilu o jogi, v Yogasūtri. V tem besedilu se večkrat pojavi koncept smṛti, ki je ponavadi preveden kot “spomin”. Prispevek predlaga novo intepretacijo tega koncepta in ga prevaja kot “meditacijska pozornost”. Nova interpretacija odpira vprašanje, ali je praksa pozornosti bila prisotna že v starodavnih jogijskih praksah, a se je pri prenosu jogijskih tradicij izgubila in se šele danes ponovno pojavila v jogi kot odsev sinkretističnih duhovnih gibanj 21. stoletja.Ključne besede: Yogasūtra, Patañjali, sodobna yoga, pozornost, sodobni budizemEden od osnovnih konceptov budistične meditacije je pozornost ali čuječnost. V zadnjih desetletjih se je praksa meditacijske pozornosti razširila na številna nova področja, med drugim tudi v sodobne jogijske prakse. Prispevek poskuša identificirati nekaj glavnih parametrov, ki pogojujejo integracijo budistične meditacije in joge in raziskuje, ali je koncept pozornosti morda bil prisoten že v najstarejšem poznanem besedilu o jogi, vYogasūtri. V tem besedilu se večkrat pojavi koncept smṛti, ki je ponavadi preveden kot “spomin”. Prispevek predlaga novo intepretacijo tega koncepta in ga prevaja kot “meditacijska pozornost”. Nova interpretacija odpira vprašanje, ali je praksa pozornosti bila prisotna že v starodavnih jogijskih praksah, a se je pri prenosu jogijskih tradicij izgubila in se šele danes ponovno pojavila v jogi kot odsev sinkretističnih duhovnih gibanj 21. stoletja.

Female Renouncers in India: A Neglected Chapter in the History of Indian Religions

Prispevek najprej predstavi večtisočletno tradicijo indijskega asketizma in monasticizma ter oriše njihove glavne verske predpostavke in prakse. Pri tem se osredotoči na položaj žensk v starih asketskih tradicijah Indije, predvsem v budizmu, hinduizmu in džainizmu, kar predstavlja področje, ki je bilo doslej deležno malo pozornosti sodobnih raziskovalcev. Ker je prispevek del večjega raziskovalnega projekta o delovanju katoliških misijonark v kolonialni Indiji, na koncu identificira pomembna stičišča med indijskimi asketinjami in katoliškimi nunami in razmišlja o srečanju katoliškega in indijskega verskega diskurza.This paper is a panoramic survey of a millennia-long tradition of asceticism and monasticism in the Indian subcontinent. The main ascetic traditions of India are overviewed, with a particular focus given to female renouncers. Their doctrinal premises and religious practices are discussed within a historical framework, and major emerging themes are identified. Since this paper forms part of a research project investigating the lives of Catholic female missionaries in India in the twentieth century, it concludes with the identification of significant overlaps between female renunciation in the Indic and Christian traditions, and engages in some reflections on the encounter between the two discourses

A Comparison of the Renal Structures of the Anaconda and the Ball Python

The renal vascular system of the Ball python (Python regius) and the anaconda (Eunectes noteus; Serpentes - Squamata) has been investigated using light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of vascular corrosion casts and critical-point dried non-corroded specimens. The average glomerular diameters of these two species differ significantly (anaconda: 59.1 μm, python: 124.3 μm). Also, the relative proportions of the renal tubules are different. These findings can be related to the different habitats of the two species (aquatic versus terrestrial environment)

Functional Aspects of Renal Glomeruli Based on Scanning Electron Microscopy of Corrosion Casts, with Special Emphasis on Reptiles and Birds

The glomerular complexity of several species of birds and reptiles is investigated in this study by scanning electron microscopy of vascular corrosion casts. Comparing these results with those of a freshwater teleost and a mammalian species, a trend towards small, simple glomeruli of the avian type, beginning with large, well vascularized glomeruli resembling the type found in fish, can be observed in reptiles. A close correlation between glomerular size and habitat can be established comparing related species having a similar physiological mode of renal function. Entirely different from this sauropsidian evolutionary line of development is the highly complex, large differentiation of the mammalian glomerulus

Kidney Structure Investigations Using Scanning Electron Microscopy of Corrosion Casts - A State of the Art Review

The corrosion casting technique using acrylic resins in the scanning electron microscope (SEM), was originally developed to investigate renal microvascular structure and is now also successfully used in studies on various other organs. However, in the last two decades nearly 100 papers have been published on the renal vascular anatomy of various taxa of vertebrates or on pathomorphological structures of kidneys, using this technique. Analyzing these works, trends and developments in this field can be summed up as follows: The majority of studies are anatomical works on the vascular system of kidneys from all vertebrate classes. In addition, experimental pathological investigations, mostly done using rodents, and documentation of pathologically altered renal structure form another large part of the publications covered in this review. Perspectives for future research on renal systems using this versatile method may be derived from this survey

Scanning Electron Microscopy of Vascular Corrosion Casts in Comparative Studies on Renal Vascular Structure

In comparative microcorrosion casting studies on renal vascular systems the following demands should be met: The preparation procedure (anaesthesia, operation, flushing of the blood vascular system, ...) should be in accord with the specific physiological properties of the animal under investigation and the casting procedure (injection, curing, maceration, ...) should be kept constant as far as possible. If these points are considered, comparative data, even of quantitative nature, can be obtained from corrosion casts. Examples of results at the organ, single vessel and intercellular level as well as correlation of the results with physiological data are given