Along with Maitreyanātha, the historical co-founder of the Yogācāra school of Mahāyāna Buddhism and half-brother of Vasubandhu. Born in north-west India during the 4th century ce, he was originally a member of the Mahīśāsaka school but was later converted to Mahāyāna. After many years of intense meditation, he went on to write many of the key Yogācāra treatises such as the Yogacārabhūmi Śāstra, the Mahāyāna-saṃgraha and the Abhidharma-samuccaya as well as other works. There are discrepancies between the Chinese and Tibetan traditions concerning which treatises are attributed to him and which to Maitreyanātha.
Asanga
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Asaṅga (also called Āryāsaṅga), (c. 300–370 CE) , was an exponent of the yogācāra school of Buddhist philosophy. Traditionally, he and his half-brother Vasubandhu are regarded as the founders of this school.
Born the son of a Kshatriya father in Purushapura, now in Pakistan, Asanga was perhaps originally a member of the Mahīśāsaka or the Mūlasarvāstivāda school but later converted to Mahāyāna;[1] after many years of intense meditation, during which time some traditions say that he often visited Tushita Heaven to receive teachings from Maitreya-nātha. He went on to write many of the key Yogācāra treatises such as the Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra, the Mahāyāna-samgraha and the Abhidharma-samuccaya (refer Abhidharma) as well as other works, although there are discrepancies between the Chinese and Tibetan traditions concerning which works are attributed to him and which to Maitreya-nātha.[2] According to Walpola Rahula, the thought of the Abhidharmasamuccaya is invariably closer to that of the Pali Nikayas than is that of the Theravadin Abhidhamma.[3]
The Tibetan tradition attributes authorship of the Ratnagotravibhaga to him, while the Chinese traditions attributes it to a certain Sthiramati or Sāramati. Peter Harvey finds the Tibetan attribution less plausible.[4]
References
- ^ 'Doctrinal Affiliation of the Buddhist Master Asanga' - Alex Wayman in Untying the Knots in BuddhismISBN 81-208-1321-9
- ^ On Some Aspects of the Doctrines of Maitreya (natha) and the Asanga - Giuseppe Tucci, Calcutta, 1930.
- ^ Dan Lusthaus, Buddhist Phenomenology. Routledge, 2002, page 44, note 5. Lusthaus draws attention to Rahula's Zen and the Taming of the Bull.
- ^ Peter Harvey, "An Introduction to Buddhism." Cambridge University Press, 1993, page 114.
External links
- Digital Dictionary of Buddhism (type in "guest" as userID)
- Vasubandhu: Entry at the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Distinguishing Dharma and Dharmata by Asanga and Maitreya By: Thrangu Rinpoche
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