The Dichotomized States of Shame in the Scholastic Buddhism

Shame is by and large dichotomized into hrī and (vy)apatrāpya in the Buddhist context. In the Sarvāstivāda and Yogācāra scholasticism, both hrī (in Chinese translation: 慚 cán) and (vy)apatrāpya (in Chinese translation: 愧 kuì) are subsumed under the wholesome (kuśala) states (dharmas). In this paper, firstly, previous studies and the etymologies of the two terms above will be closely reviewed; secondly, the exposition and contrast of hrī and (vy)apatrāpya between the Sarvāstivāda and Yogācāra will be minutely contextualized; thirdly, the merit of possessing dichotomized states of shame will be thoroughly investigated. Central to my research is a glimpse of the scholastic Indian Buddhist sophistication, exemplified by two kinds of shame, as well as the initial consideration of hrī and (vy)apatrāpya in the context of shame, guilt, and conscience in the Anglophone philosophy, while also taking their association with Buddhist morality (śīla) and concentration (samādhi) into account.