Dhivan Thomas Jones
\nThe Open University, UK<\/p>\n
The doctrine of five niy\u0101mas<\/em>, or \u201corders of nature,\u201d was introduced to Westerners by Mrs. Rhys Davids in her Buddhism <\/em>of 1912. She writes that the list derives from Buddhaghosa\u2019s commentaries, and that it synthesizes information from the pi\u1e6dakas <\/em>regarding cosmic order. Several Buddhist writers have taken up her exposition to present the Buddha\u2019s teaching, including that of karma, as compatible with modern science. However, a close reading of the sources for the five niy\u0101mas <\/em>shows that they do not mean what Mrs. Rhys Davids says they mean. In their historical context they merely constitute a list of five ways in which things necessarily happen. Nevertheless, the value of her work is that she succeeded in presenting the Buddhist doctrine of dependent arising (pa\u1e6dicca-samupp\u0101da<\/em>) as equivalent to Western scientific explanations of events. In conclusion, Western Buddhism, in need of a worked-out presentation of pa\u1e6dicca-samupp\u0101da<\/em>, embraced her interpretation of the five niy\u0101mas <\/em>despite its inaccuracies. <\/p>\n Read article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ISSN 1076-9005 Volume 19, 2012 The Five Niy\u0101mas as Laws of Nature: an Assessment of Modern Western Interpretations of Therav\u0101da Buddhist Doctrine Dhivan Thomas Jones The Open University, UK The doctrine of five niy\u0101mas, or \u201corders of nature,\u201d was introduced to Westerners by Mrs. Rhys Davids in her Buddhism of 1912. She writes that the … Continue reading Western Interpretation of the Five Niy\u0101mas as Laws of Nature<\/span>