Of Seeds and Sprouts: Defilement and its Attachment to the Life-stream in the Sarvstivda Hdaya Treatises

摘要

The notions of selflessness (antmaka) and karman are two key concepts in Buddhist philosophy. The question how karman functions with respect to the rebirth of a worldling who is, actually, devoid of a self, was a major philosophical issue in early Buddhist doctrine. Within the Sarvstivda school, the Vaibh⋅ikas became the representative of an interpretation of this problem that hinges on the notion of ''possession'' (prpti). Their theory was contradicted by the Sautrntikas, whose interpretation is based on the notion of ''seed'' (bīja). The Sarvstivda Hdaya treatises, compiled in a time period spanning from the beginning of the common era to the fourth century AD, i.e. the period of the rise of the Sautrntika school, are a particularly interesting set of works, as they reflect the gradual development of these two major theories.