The Two Truths of Buddhism: Absolute and Relative
- Unshin Sangaku
- Feb 17
- 2 min read
In Zen we adopted the essence of the two-truth construct asserted by Siddhartha Gautama, and championed by Nagarjuna. https://www.originalbuddhas.com/blog/nagarjuna-buddhist-philosopher?srsltid=AfmBOooArW9Kl_ua_M6YdFHhRHSwYnuQg0C4GCZF_xeNDcMN_sv0mOae
The Two Truths inter-are and may also be referred to as less than two. Hence we have the idea of Oneness or Wholeness which is another view of Emptiness which represents potential.
Overall the Two Truths are Upaya or skillful means. That is we understand the applicability of the form and emptiness of being in everyday life. For example, relative refers to everything existing interdependently. Absolute epistemologically, refers to the absolute behind the interrelational or distinctive illusion of things being singularly independent. In everyday life we can know a chair we sit on and the quantum of its relative “reality”
Another example is asking in the relative sense, whether something is real or not. That chair has a reality but the word chair, nor what we see the chair to be, is the absolute complexity of a chair’s existence.
The Absolute truth is not a reference to divinity but rather the flux, interplay of the whole through parts, here the wave and ocean metaphor is useful. What is the difference between ocean and wave? It is distinction, differentiation, or partitioning through sensory awareness.
If we had the ability to see every object/phenomenon as a CAT-scan or MRI we would see the relative and among it the entire universe splade-out before us and all of it in movement. See below and the underlining is mine:
On to the Sarvāstivādin definition, for an entity to be real, it does not need to be ultimately real, exclusively. For a thing to be ultimately real is for that thing to be “foundationally existent” (dravya-sat / rdzas yod)[3] in contrast with being “compositely existent” (avayavidravya / rdzas grub).
By “foundationally existent” the Sarvāstivādin refer to the entity which is fundamentally real, the concept or the cognition of which is not dependent on conceptual construction, hence not conceptually existent (prajñaptisat) nor a composition of the aggregative phenomena.
In the case of foundational existent there always remains something irreducible to which the concept of the thing applies, hence it is ultimately real. A simple entity is not reducible to conceptual forms, or conventional designations, nor is it a compositely existent entity. We will have a lot more to say on this point shortly. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/twotruths-india/#pagetopright
Below is a good talk on Emptiness and Absolute and Relative Truths. Please pay attention to-- not getting stuck on the Absolute. This happens when we run from the conventional and fall in love with the absolute. Balance is needed which in turn is a key to liberation from suffering.
Please join us this Tuesday night February 18, 2025, as we explore these two teachings either in person at 7:00 PM/ET or online at https://zoom.us/j/7096899032?status=success#success password FSZS
Palms together,
Sangaku
Unshin Sangaku Dan Joslyn-sensei
Founder and Guiding Teacher
Falmouth Soto Zen Sangha
404-702-7646
2025: FSZS 15th ANNIVERSARY
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