Nàgàrjunas Reflection on Motion and Rest

Nagarjuna C.150 - C.250 is considered to be one of the most famous thinkers of Indian Mahayana Buddhism, specially, in the Tibetan tradition and referred to as The Second Buddha. Nagarjuna categorically repudiates the reality of motion as well as rest. He is known as the founder of the Madhyamika school of Buddhist thought, the school of the middle way. The middle way avoids both the extremes of eternalism as well as of nihilism. The main theory of Madhyamika is the doctrine of emptiness or 'sunyata' which shows that all phenomena lack a permanent, unchanging and independent self-existence. Phenomena possess a conventional existence in which they appear to have a self-nature, although in reality they do not. This teaching is also found in the Four Noble Truths of Buddha. Just like all other Hindu philosophical schools, according to Buddha too, all sentient beings live in an infinite cycle of suffering which is caused by their ignorance concerning the true nature of phenomena. Beings do not realize the emptiness both of things as well as of mental phenomena and adopt attitudes of like and dislike, which creates the process of suffering. But it can be stopped if the appearance of phenomena and their true nature is realized. In Mulamadhyamakakarika, Nagarjuna tries to provide a philosophical rationale for the notion of emptiness, which is the key term in the Prajñaparamita Sutras, the earlier Mahayana literature. For Nagarjuna, Motion cannot be comprehended as identical with the mover for the mover and its activity motion cannot be distinguished then. If we have the conception of an inherent identity of the agent and its activity, the agent cannot really change its activity. A mover is identified with reference to motion and therefore, it would be a contradiction to say motion with mover. Again, 'motion without mover' also, is not accepted, if it is accepted, then, motion would be absolutely different from the mover. He argues that the mover cannot be motionless in himself apart from the motion, as it is a contradiction to say a mover without motion. It is also impossible to say that it has a motion other than the motion which inheres in it, because it implies two motions, for it is a mover that moves. Therefore, it is difficult to explain whether the mover can be understood with or without the motion. But without motion our usual life would be stopped. Sun, moon, stars, planets and other stars cannot move without motion. If motion is not accepted then astronomy would be in vein. Even we cannot speak and write without the movement of our vocabulary organs and that of fingers respectively. So, the existence of motion has to accept in usual life, in scientific research and in all other aspects of life. Dr. Sudipta Chattopadhyay "Nàgàrjuna's Reflection on Motion and Rest" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-2 | Issue-6 , October 2018, URL: http://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd18808.pdf