Dr. Chang-Seong Hong, Philosophy, to present paper “Transmigration and Liberation”
Dr. Chang-Seong Hong, Philosophy, is going to present his paper “Transmigration and Liberation” in MacLean Hall 273, Wednesday September 24 at 5:15 pm. His colloquium will make the first meeting of this year’s Philosophy Colloquium Series of the MSUM Philosophy Department. All are welcome. Refreshments will be served.
The following is the abstract of his paper:
Transmigration is a problem because we believe it brings about sufferings. Once we understand the Buddha’s teaching of non-self, it will no longer be a problem because we will realize that there is in fact no one who transmigrates. Buddhism can respond to the problem of transmigration not by providing a solution but by ‘dissolving’ the problem itself.
Denying the existence of self does not make Buddhism a version of nihilism. Although there is no real person who lives and dies, Buddhism still recognizes the existence of the phenomenon of life and death. One may choose to use her life and death as a tool to create positive impacts that will propagate across the entire network of dependently arising world.
