This thesis will investigate the theory of Pudgala from the perspective of Abhidhamma Kathvatthu. First of all, it sets out the background of the debate on what Pudgala means. This debate occurred about 200-300 years after the Nirvana of Buddha during the Sectarian period of the Theravadin School, which was during the Indian Ashoka era. Since the Indian philosophy and the views of the Vātsīputrīyāḥ Sect of the Theravadin School advocate "the theory of the presence of an actual self personality". Therefore, the debate is centred around the issues of criticism raised in the fifth of 226 topics of the debate. Its main concern was the critical views of the Vātsīputrīyāḥ Sect and also the existence of variant perspectives and interpretations. This is the point of “Pudgala”, in the Theravadin School, it had been translated as “Kathvatthu-puggala”, the critical method used was based on logical debate. Therefore, I would like to start from the perspective of Northern Buddhist School text of Samayabhedoparacanacakra, being one of the most complete translations available. The main method of investigation in this study is based on the use of Theravadin School’s eight methods of logical reasoning from the “Abhidhamma Kathvatthu”.
This thesis has three main areas of discussion:
1. The theory of the origin and meaning of “Self-personality” 2. The viewpoints from the Sarvastivada Sect and the Vātsīputrīyāḥ Sect about Pudgala are different The perspectives from different schools about Pudgala will all be different. 3. The logical methodology of critical debate on “Pudgala” based on the Southern Schools’ “Kathvatthu-puggala”. 4. The theory of “Pudgala” from the perspective of Vātsīputrīyāḥ Sect of the Theravadin School.
In the criticism of the Externalists during the early Buddhist period, it was made clear that the so-called "Self-Personality theory" truly exists without change and this view has been declared by the Buddha as "extreme" and belongs to one of the false views. Buddha then expounded the Madhyamika viewpoint - "karma - cause and effect". Included in this "karma – cause and effect" are the principles of "with - without", "birth - extinction ", you can say that it itself has neither beginning nor ending, also it does not have the internal quality of the role of an original creator as proposed in other religions. The attitude towards the theory of the supreme god or Brahma God created everything is not recognized as a common concept in early Buddhism and thus advocated a "non-self" theory.
The Sectarian Buddhist period, Vātsīputrīyāḥ Sect of the Theravadin School should have the view point of an actual real entity, “The Self Theory” and hence the view of “Pudgala”. The Vātsīputrīyāḥ Sect perspective is that if there were no self – then who were to go through the cycle of birth and death, and who were to receive retribution, and so on. The controversy still surrounds “the existence and non-existence” of “Pudgala”, the lengthy discussion on issues such as the authenticity of the soul and so forth, these various perspectives are initiated from the different schools, such as those from “Kathāvattu”、those from Sarvāstivādaḥ Sect、Sautrāntika Sect and so on.
The perspective on "non-self" comes from the early Buddhist scri
