Pratītyasamutpāda

Translations of Pratītyasamutpāda
English	dependent origination, dependent arising, interdependent co-arising, conditioned arising, etc.
Pali	paṭiccasamuppāda
Sanskrit	pratītyasamutpāda (Dev: प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद)
Bengali	প্রতীত্যসমুৎপাদ prôtityôsômutpadô
Burmese	ပဋိစ္စ သမုပ္ပါဒ် IPA: [bədeiʔsa̰ θəmouʔpaʔ]
Chinese	緣起 (pinyin: yuánqǐ)
Japanese	縁起 (rōmaji: engi)
Sinhala	පටිච්චසමුප්පාද
Tibetan	རྟེན་ཅིང་འབྲེ ལ་བར་འབྱུང་བ་ (Wylie: rten cing 'brel bar 'byung ba THL: ten-ching drelwar jungwa)
Glossary of Buddhism

Pratītyasamutpāda (Sanskrit: प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद; Pali: पटिच्चसमुप्पाद paṭiccasamuppāda), commonly translated as dependent origination or dependent arising, states that all dharmas ("things") arise in dependence upon other dharmas: "if this exists, that exists; if this ceases to exist, that also ceases to exist." It is a pragmatic teaching, which is applied to dukkha and the cessation of dukkha.

The term is also used to refer to the twelve links of dependent origination, which describes the chain of causes which result in rebirth. By reverting the chain, liberation from rebirth can be attained.

Etymology

Pratityasamutpada (Sanskrit: प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद) consists of two terms:

• pratitya: "having depended"
• samutpada: "arising", "rise, production, origin"

The term has been translated into English variously as dependent origination, dependent arising, interdependent co-arising, conditioned arising, and conditioned genesis. The term could be translated somewhat more literally as arising in dependence upon conditions.

The term may also refer to the Twelve Nidānas, the twelvefold chain that describes the chain of rebirth. Generally speaking, in the Mahayana tradition, pratityasamutpada (Sanskrit) is used to refer to the general principle of interdependent causation, whereas in the Theravada tradition, paticcasamuppāda (Pali) is used to refer to the twelve nidanas.

Dependent origination

According to Bowker, pratityasamutpada means that

... all physical and mental manifestations which constitute individual appearances are interdependent and condition or affect one another, in a constant process of arising and ceasing.

A key formulation of pratityasamutpada is idappaccayatā(Pali) or idaṃpratyayatā (Sanskrit), "specific conditionality" or "this/that conditionality":

This is, because that is.

This is not, because that is not.

This ceases to be, because that ceases to be.

Relation to other Buddhist concepts

The principle of dependent origination is a key element in other Buddhist teachings.

Four Noble Truths

The Four Noble Truths are an expression of the principle of dependent origination. The Four Noble Truths explain the arising of dukkha, which is dependently originated, and the cessation of dukkha, by removing the "causes."

Karma

The principle of dependent origination underpins the concept of karma, the individual actions and their fruition. Every fruition is said to depend upon multiple causes and conditions.

The Twelve Nidanas

Main article: Twelve Nidānas

The Twelve Nidanas are a series of causal links that describe the process of samsaric rebirth and the arising of dukkha. In reverse order they also describe the way to liberation from samsara. When certain conditions are present, they give rise to subsequent conditions, which in turn give rise to other conditions, resulting in the cyclical nature of life in Samsara.

Understanding within the Buddhist traditions

Theravāda

In the Theravada-tradition, Pratityasamutpada implies that "several causes give rise to several results:"

The Theravāda tradition records [...] as a fundamental axiom the principle that a single cause does not give rise to either a single result or several results; nor do several causes give rise to just one result; but rather several causes give rise to several results.

Within the Theravada Buddhist tradition, the twelve nidanas are considered to be the most significant application of the principle of dependent origination.

Mahayana

Madhyamaka

Main article: Madhyamaka

In the Madhyamaka, to say that an object is "empty" is synonymous with saying that it is dependently originated. Nāgārjuna equates emptiness with dependent origination in Mūlamadhyamakakārikā 24:18;

Whatever arises dependently

Is explained as empty.
Thus dependent attribution
Is the middle way.

Since there is nothing whatever
That is not dependently existent,
For that reason there is nothing

Whatsoever that is not empty.

In his analysis, any enduring essential nature (svabhāva) would prevent the process of dependent origination, would prevent any kind of origination at all, for things would simply always have been and will always continue to be, i.e. as existents (bhāva). Madhyamaka suggests that impermanent collections of causes and conditions are designated by mere conceptual labels, which also applies to the causes and conditions themselves and even the principle of causality itself since everything is dependently originated (i.e. empty). If unaware of this, things may seem to arise as existents, remain for a time and then subsequently perish.

Dzogchen

In the Dzogchen tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, the concept of dependent origination is considered to be complementary to the concept of emptiness. Specifically, this tradition emphasizes the indivisibility of appearance and emptiness—also known as the relative and absolute aspects of reality:

• Appearance (relative truth) refers to the concept that all appearances are dependently originated;
• Emptiness (absolute or ultimate truth) refers to the concept that the ‘’nature" of all phenomena is emptiness—lacking inherent existence.

In Mipham Rinpoche’s Beacon of Certainty, this relationship is explained using the metaphor of the reflection of the moon in water. According to this metaphor:

• The nature of all phenomena is like the reflection of the moon in water—completely lacking inherent existence. However,
• The appearance of the moon in the water is an expression of dependent origination—the appearance is completely dependent upon causes and conditions.

One of the founders of Tibetan Buddhism, Padmasambhava, emphasized his respect for this relationship as follows:

Though my View is as spacious as the sky,
My actions and respect for cause and effect are as fine as grains of flour.

Hua Yen school

The Huayan school taught the doctrine of the mutual containment and interpenetration of all phenomena, as expressed in Indra's net. One thing contains all other existing things, and all existing things contain that one thing. This philosophy is based in the tradition of the great Madhyamaka scholar Nagarjuna and, more specifically, on the Avatamsaka Sutra. Regarded by D.T. Suzuki as the crowning achievement of Buddhist philosophy, the Avatamsaka Sutra elaborates in great detail on the principal of dependent origination. This sutra describes a cosmos of infinite realms upon realms, mutually containing one another.

Modern interpretations

Western science and philosophy

The Mahayana presentation of pratītyasamutpāda (and shunyata) has been compared to the scientific theory of quantum mechanics (there is a variety of interpretations of quantum physics, including deterministic ones) — the contemporary branch of physics that examines matter on atomic and subatomic levels. The doctrine of pratītyasamutpāda has also been compared to modern systems theory. Bhikkhu Thanissaro relates the Buddhist concept of causality to modern deterministic chaos theory.

Jay Garfield points out the similarities between pratītyasamutpāda and the philosophies of Hume, Kant, and others.

The concept of pratītyasamutpāda has also been compared to the Western philosophy of metaphysics (the study of the nature of being and the world). Bhikkhu Thanissaro explains that the Buddha did not intend to put forth a system of metaphysics, yet, scholars have noted the similarities between pratītyasamutpāda and metaphysics. One source (Hoffman, 1996) asserts that pratītyasamutpāda should not be considered a metaphysical doctrine in the strictest sense, since it does not confirm nor deny specific entities or realities. Noa Ronkin notes that while the Buddha suspends all views regarding certain metaphysical questions, he does not deny the significance of the questions.

Bhikkhu Thanissaro relates the Buddhist concept of karma to the modern philosophy of radical phenomenology.

Interconnectedness and deep ecology

One of the basic ideas behind the Buddha's teaching of mutual interdependence is that ultimately there is no demarcation between what appears to be an individual creature and its environment. Pratityasamutpada has been applied to explain the interconnectedness of all being, as expressed in the metaphor of Indra's net, or Thich Nhat Hanh's "interbeing".

Harming the environment (the nexus of living beings of which one forms but a part) is thus, in a nontrivial sense, harming oneself. This philosophical position lies at the heart of modern-day deep ecology and some representatives of this movement (e.g. Joanna Macy) have shown that Buddhist philosophy provides a basis for deep ecological thinking.

See also

• Bhavacakra
• Five Skandhas
• Reality in Buddhism
• Three marks of existence

Further reading

• Bhikkhu Thanissaro (2008), The Shape of Suffering: A study of Dependent Co-arising, Metta Forest Monastery [1]
• Bucknell, Roderick S. (1999). Conditioned Arising Evolves: Variation and Change in Textual Accounts of the Paticca-samuppada Doctrine, Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 23 (2), 311-342
• Dalai Lama (1992). The Meaning of Life, translated and edited by Jeffrey Hopkins. Wisdom.
• Geshe Sonam Rinchen (2006). How Karma Works: The Twelve Links of Dependent Arising. Snow Lion
• Gethin, Rupert (1998). Foundations of Buddhism. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (Chapter 6, pp. 133–162)
• Khandro Rinpoche (2003). This Precious Life. Shambala
• Thich Nhat Hanh (1999). The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching. Three Rivers Press. (pp. 221–249)
• Thrangu Rinpoche (2001). The Twelve Links of Interdependent Origination. Nama Buddha Publications.
• Walpola Rahula (1974). What the Buddha Taught. Grove Press.

External links

• Maha-nidana Sutta
• Kamma & the Ending of Kamma
• The Doctrine of Paticcasamuppada by U Than Daing
• A Discourse on Paticcasamuppada by Venerable Mahasi Sayadaw
• Paticca-samuppada-vibhanga Sutta
• Upanisa Sutta translation by Bhikkhu Thanissaro
• A Translation and Exposition of the Upanisa Sutta by Bhikkhu Bodhi