Going Off the Map

‘Transcendental Dependent Arising’ in the Nettippakarana

Authors

  • Dhivan Thomas Jones University of Chester

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/bsrv.38816

Keywords:

Dependent Arising, Nettippakaraṇa, Buddhist hermeneutics

Abstract

The early Buddhist exegetical text, the Nettippakarana, apparently uniquely, describes the stages of the path as ‘transcendental dependent arising’ (lokuttara paticca-samuppada), in contrast with the twelve nidanas, called ‘worldly dependent arising’ (lokiya paticca-samuppada). A close reading of the Nettippakarana in relation to another, related, exegetical text, the Petakopadesa, reveals that the latter interprets the same stages of the path in a different way. More broadly, while the Petakopadesa takes paticca-samuppada to refer only to the twelve nidanas, the Nettippakarana’s exegetical strategy takes paticca-samuppada to refer to an over-arching principle of conditionality, both ‘worldly’ and ‘transcendental’. This exegesis has proved popular with modern western Buddhist exegetes. 

Author Biography

  • Dhivan Thomas Jones, University of Chester

    Lecturer in Religious and Philosophical Studies, Department of Theology and Religious Studies

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Published

2020-03-19

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Articles

How to Cite

Jones, D. T. (2020). Going Off the Map: ‘Transcendental Dependent Arising’ in the Nettippakarana. Buddhist Studies Review, 36(2), 167-190. https://doi.org/10.1558/bsrv.38816