Concentration in Action in Greek Neoplatonism and Buddhaghosa

Abstract

How do contemplative exercises, like meditation, help us to become better people in practice? Is there a risk that they might do the opposite, by distracting us from the world to such a degree that we neglect our everyday moral obligations? This chapter develops a dialogue between two historical traditions within Buddhism and Platonism, represented by Buddhaghosa in Sri Lanka and the Neoplatonist commentators of Mediterranean late antiquity. These schools, the chapter suggests, offer two distinct models for resolving this kind of concern. First, a practitioner might alternate between contemplative absorption and action, with contemplation cultivating positive mental qualities that make for better moral agency in each moment of decision. Second, we may simultaneously experience a highly receptive contemplative state even while we act in the world, making us much less likely to react in harmful, misguided ways to everyday impressions. In both cases, genuine moral improvement flows from a radical transformation of our perception of the world.