- Prabhat Mukherjee

Buddhism undoubtedly influenced the philosophy of the medieval vaiShNavism. The theory of piNDa-brahmANDa was partly adapted from the dehavAda of the Sahajiya Buddhists. The Buddha-within-the-body was adored by the Sahajiya Buddhists in place of external Buddha. mahAmahopAdhyAya H. P. Shastri agrees with this hypothesis and remarks, “The sahajiyas found the great world i.e. the universe, within the human body”. kriShNAchArya and Lui-pa were exponents of the Sahaja vehicle.

N. N. Vasu has pointed out the Buddhist influence on the theory of Creation. According to the mahAyAnists, Adi-buddha or svayambhUH created in the beginning, the five dhyAni Buddhas, “for the duration of the present systems of the worlds”. “This theory of creation”, he opines, “is exactly what is to be found in Chaitanya Dasa’s work viShNugarbha-purANa.

Nevertheless, there is slight difference between the two conceptions. The five meditative Buddhas were of equal status. But Chaitanya Dasa states that alekha or anAkAra viShNu assumed form and was named nirAkAra-viShNu. Four subsidiary nirAkAra-viShNu-s were born out of original nirAkAra-viShNu, who was thus primus inter pares.

AchyutAnanda has referred to nirvana in shUnya-samhitA. kriShNa says to uddhava that after the destruction of the world, he will keep uddhava in the state of nirvana. he also says to varuNa that nirAkAra has made varuNa the lord of the nirvana region. Thus, it is clear that the conception of nirvana was imperfectly understood.

N N Vasu mentions that in the Svayambhu purANa of Nepal, dharma has been represented as Buddha-mAtA or prajnA-pAramitA. AchyutAnanda refers to Buddha-mAtA in shUnya-samhitA. As Sudama approached the rAsa arena of eternal rAdhA-krShNa, a sakhI came and accosted him. She asked him the reason of his visit and introduced herself, as one of the eight sakhIs of mahAmAyA mahA-durgA. After imparting nirAkAra mantra to Sudama, she returned to the rAsa arena. krShNa in his mundane form told Sudama, “Verily hath Buddha-mAtA, the sakhI of Adi-shakti, said that I derive real devotion from the worship of the Formless.” Prof. A. B. Mohanty is of the opinion that Buddha-mAtA is mahAmAyA herself. She has been addressed as sakhI as she is identical with vrndA. We however beg to differ with his opinion.

jagannAtha was considered to be the Buddha incarnation of the Lord. In dAru-brahma gItA of jagannAtha dAsa, deulatolA of krShNa dAsa and in shUnya-samhitA, the story of the manifestation of the Buddha incarnation is narrated. It is said that after the incarnation of krShNa, the Lord appeared again as jagannAtha. Gautama Buddha and later on Chaitanya appeared as the incarnations of jagannAtha.

It is clear from shUnya samhitA that Buddhist philosophy (particularly of the nAgArjunIya and yogAchAra branches of the mahAyAna school) was studied in Orissa even by the vaiShNavas. The philosophy certainly did not exist in its pristine form. So we find krShNa to be the expounder of the Buddhist philosophy. nAgAntaka and yogAntaka theories were grouped with tAntric principles of expelling and killing. Achyutananda had described the followers of nAgArjuna as hypocrites or ‘hidden devotees’ (Chadma-bhakta).

But the doctrine of the Void, as expounded by nAgArjuna, undoubtedly influenced the philosophy of Orissan Vaishnavism. nAgArjuna came to Orissa and preached Buddhism. In the seventh century A.D., Hiuen Tsiang found the mahAyAnists in all their glory and greatness in Odra country. The nAgArjunIya doctrine of the Void was but a reflection of the Great brahmavAda as inculcated in the upaniShads and the gItA and was thus acceptable to the Orissan Vaishnavas.

A word of caution is needed here. In spite of their references to Buddha, Buddha-mAtA and nirvana, vaiShNavas like achyutananda, Chaitanya Dasa and others were not lacking in sincerity. Our opinion thus completely differs from that of N N Vasu who thinks that “though outwardly professed the vaiShNava faith and propagated the Chaitanya cult, yet in their heart of hearts they were but sincere and staunch pioneers and champions of the long neglected and almost forgotten mahAyAna school.”