Jñanagarbha (ca. early eighth century) is one of the most important Indian Buddhist masters belonging to the tradition of Madhyamaka, due to the explanation of the Two Truths Theory (satyadvaya) that he outlines in his text, the Satyadvayavibhangavṛtti (SDVV). This treatise influenced Mādhyamikas such as Śāntarakṣita (ca. 725-788) and Kamalaśīla (ca. 740-795), who played important roles in introducing Indian Buddhism into Tibet. The Two Truths Theory has not developed significantly since Jnanagarbha's own time, thus, the SDVV can be viewed as presenting the theory in its most fully developed form.
Unfortunately, however, we have little historical information about Jñānagarbha or his texts. According to certain Tibetan sources, such as the Tāranātha and the Deb ther sṅon po, he was originally from Odiviśa (today's Orissa in eastern India), he wrote the text known as the SDVV, and is said to have been one of the teachers of Śāntarakṣita. Although we can refer to texts that are attrib- uted to him, it is difficult to positively assert what Jñānagarbha actually wrote, or whether some texts may have been authored by another person, possibly with the same name.
While his Two Truths Theory was certainly highly influential on later Buddhists, his theory in turn was no doubt strongly influenced by the epistemology that had been chiefly developed by Dharmakīrti (ca. 600- 660) and his followers from around the seventh century. This paper will examine Jñānagarbha's Two Truths Theory, while noting the various theories that he depends on in his SDVV.
目次
Introduction 69 1 The ultimate truth 69 2 The conventional truth 73 2.1 The correct and incorrect conventional truths in verse eight 73 2.2 The correct conventional truth and incorrect conventional in verse twelve 75 2.3 Some remaining questions concerning the conventional truth 76 2.3.1 The negation of the incorrect conventional truth 76 2.3.2 Are Karma and Phala the conventional truth? 78 2.3.3 The conventional truth should not be examined 79 2.3.4 The interpretation of the Āryākṣayamatinirdeśasūtra 81 2.3.5 Atathyasaṃuṛti or Mithyāsaṃuṛti? 87 3 The secondary ultimate truth 89 4 Conclusion 92 Notes 93 Abbreviation 103 Bibliography 104
