Hebrew and Buddhist Selves: A Constructive Postmodern Study

Authors: Gier, Nicholas; Petta, Johnson

Source: Asian Philosophy, Volume 17, Number 1, March 2007 , pp. 47-64(18)

Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group

Key:

- Free Content

- New Content

- Subscribed Content

- Free Trial Content

Abstract:

Our task will be to demonstrate that there are instructive parallels between Hebrew and Buddhist concepts of self. There are at least five main constituents (skandhas in Sanskrit) of the Hebrew self: (1) nepes as living being; (2) ruah as indwelling spirit; (3) leb as heart-mind; (4) bāsār as flesh; and (5) dām as blood. We will compare these with the five Buddhist skandhas: disposition (samskāra), consciousness (vijñāna), feeling (vedanā), perception (samjñā), and body (rupa). Generally, what we will discover is that both Buddhists and Hebrews have a 'bundle' theory of the self; both see the body as an essential part of personal identity; both overcome the modernist distinction of the inner and the outer; and both avoid language about the will as a distinct faculty. In sum, both present us with a fully somatic and nondualistic view of being human.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1080/09552360701201098

We were unable to expand this article. Please try again later. If the problem continues, please contact help@ingentaconnect.com.

The full text electronic article is available for purchase. You will be able to download the full text electronic article after payment.

$38.49 plus tax Refund Policy