Contexts and dialogue Yogācāra Buddhism and modern psychology on the subliminal mind

Abstract

Many people made it possible for me to complete this book, and in the limited space I have here I can do little justice to what is owed them. During my graduate years at Temple University, Shigenori Nagatomo, an inspiring philosopher and teacher, was instrumental in leading me into the world of comparative philosophy. His command of philosophical traditions, East and West, has greatly stimulated my own philosophical endeavors. His inexhaustible patience with me and unwavering confidence in my project and my ability to carry it out were crucial to my fruitful years as a graduate student under his supervision. I will always remember the lively exchanges we had in his Japanese reading classes as well as at his dinner table. I am also grateful to have had the opportunity to learn from J. N. Mohanty during my years at Temple. His presentation of the ideas of Kant, Hegel, Husserl, Heidegger, and classical Indian philosophy was unparalleled. He has had a major impact on the way I approach philosophy. I would like to express my appreciation to Ellen Zhang, who constantly pushed me to think more critically about the Chinese and Buddhist philosophical traditions, both inside and outside the classroom. Several other teachers made my life at Temple memorable. Barbara Thornbury of the Critical Languages Center was a great support to me, both in my Japanese study and other academic pursuits. Louis Mangione and John Means of the Critical Languages Center also extended a helping hand when I needed it. Kathleen Uno of the Department of History offered me valuable insights into historiography, particularly in the study of modern Japanese history. The late Charles Wei-hsun Fu was a stimulating teacher whose lectures, per sonality, and confidence in me I will always cherish. My appreciation also goes to Rosane Rocher of the University of Pennsylvania, whose brilliant exposition of Sanskrit and other Indo-European languages provided me with a completely new perspective on how human languages work. Nathan Sivin of the University of Pennsylvania kindly invited me to his classes on Taoism and traditional Chinese medicine, which opened my eyes to many dimensions of ancient Chinese medical practices of which I was largely ignorant. The friends I made in graduate school, both inside and outside the religion department, were all amazing people, and in many different ways they taught, supported, challenged, and nurtured me through the program. A special appreciation goes to Amy Weigand, who had the courage and the patience to proofread an earlier version of this work. I would like to thank my colleagues and friends at Southern Illinois University Carbondale for the memorable four years I spent there. Regular encounters with Thomas Alexander and Stephen Tyman were crucial to sustaining my effort to approach Buddhism and comparative philosophy more critically. Their nurturing care over the years made my life at Carbondale a wonderful experience. Discussions with Anthony Steinbock helped me clarify my thesis in Chapter Five. Our chats after a movie were always refreshing and stimulating. My often heated debates with Randall Auxier challenged me to further my study of philosophy. Robert Hahn was very helpful in showing me how to navigate academia. Larry Hickman, Pat Manfredi, George Schedler, and Kenneth Stikkers were all very generous with their help and encouragement. My close friendship with Sara Beardsworth and Andrew Youpa will always be near to my heart. Our conversations every Friday night at the Chicago Underground restaurant are among my most cherished memories. My student Travis Smith was a great help in early on weeding out errors in the manuscript. Department secretaries Richard Black, Jeletta Brant, Francis Stanley, and the late Christian Martin as well as many graduate students all helped to make my four years at Carbondale memorable. Thomas Kasulis and Kenneth Inada were gracious enough to read an early version of this work. Their perceptive comments were very important in the revision process. The insights of two anonymous reviewers are also much appreciated. Rutgers University Research Council provided a generous sub vention for the production of this book. The author expresses appreciation to the University Seminars at Columbia University for their help in publication. Material in this work was presented to the University Seminar on Buddhist Studies. The Office of Research Development and Administration, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, also offered financial support. A Yin Shun Foundation fellowship allowed me to devote my time and energy to writing. I would like to thank John Schroeder, editor of the Monographs on Asian and Comparative Philosophy, for including my book in the series, and Keith Leber, editor at the University of Hawai‘i Press, for his invaluable assistance in producing the final work. I am also grateful to copy editor Stephanie Chun for her perfectionist professionalism in weeding out problems in the manuscript. A slightly different version of Chapter Two was published as “0layavijñ1na and the Problematic of Continuity in the Cheng Weishi Lun” in Journal of Indian Philosophy 33:3. A shortened version of Chapter Four appeared as “The Storehouse Consciousness and the Unconscious: A Comparative Study of Xuan Zang and Freud on the Subliminal Mind” in Journal of the American Academy of Religion 72:1. A revised version of Chapter Five was published as “Accessibility of the Subliminal Mind: Transcendence vs. Immanence” in Continental Philosophy Review 38:3–4. Last, but not least, I would like to thank my parents for their loving affection and unwarranted pride in their son. This book is dedicated to them as a small token of my gratitude and love.