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Beyond the Dualism of Creature and Creator a Hindu-Christian Beyond the Dualism of Creature and Creator A Hindu-Christian Theological Inquiry into the Distinctive Relation between the World and God Daniel John Soars Faculty of Divinity University of Cambridge This thesis is submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Clare College August 2019 Preface This thesis is the result of my own work and includes nothing which is the outcome of work done in collaboration except as declared in the Preface and specified in the text. It is not substantially the same as any that I have submitted, or, is being concurrently submitted for a degree or diploma or other qualification at the University of Cambridge or any other University or similar institution except as declared in the Preface and specified in the text. I further state that no substantial part of my thesis has already been submitted, or, is being concurrently submitted for any such degree, diploma or other qualification at the University of Cambridge or any other University or similar institution except as declared in the Preface and specified in the text. It does not exceed the prescribed word limit for the relevant Degree Committee. The text is 79,995 words long including footnotes but excluding bibliography. i Daniel John Soars, Clare College Beyond the Dualism of Creature and Creator: A Hindu-Christian Theological Inquiry into the Distinctive Relation between the World and God SUMMARY This thesis is one particular way of clarifying how the God Christians believe in is to be understood. The key conceptual argument which runs throughout the thesis is that the distinctive relation between the world and God in Christian theology is best understood as a non-dualistic one. The ‘two’ (God + world) cannot be added up as separate, enumerable realities or contrasted with each other against some common background, since God does not belong in any category, while the creature is ontologically constituted by its relation to the Creator. In order to explore the unique character of this distinctive relation, I take up David Burrell’s invitation to turn to Sara Grant’s work on the Hindu tradition of Advaita Vedānta and the metaphysics of creation found in Thomas Aquinas. Through a careful examination of the concept of relation in Aquinas and Śaṁkara, she argues that both were issuing the same challenge: to move beyond binary oppositions between the world and God to a ‘non-dualism’ (a-dvaita) which means neither ‘one’ (i.e. God = world) nor ‘two’ (i.e. God + world). I develop her work and that of the earlier ‘Calcutta School’ by drawing explicit attention to the (Neo)Platonic themes in Aquinas which provide some of the most fruitful areas for comparative engagement with Vedānta. The fact that the world only exists in (dependence on) God means – to the Christian - that ‘God’ and ‘world’ must be ontologically distinct (since God does not exist in dependence on the world) and simultaneously means – to the Advaitin – that they cannot be ontologically separate either. The language of non-duality allows us to see, I argue, that both of these positions can be held coherently together without entailing any contradiction or disagreement at the level of fundamental ontology. What it means to be ‘world’, in other words, does not and cannot exclude what it means to be ‘God’. ii Contents Acknowledgements v List of Abbreviations and Conventions vii Introduction 1 Framing the Questions 1 Which ‘Non-Dualism’? 4 Why ask a question about non-dualism in Christianity at all and why ask it now? 5 The Research and Methodological Context 8 Outline of Chapters 11 Chapter 1. The distinctive relation between creature and Creator in Christian theology: Non-dualism from David Burrell CSC to Sara Grant RSCJ 15 David Burrell on the distinction-and-relation between the world and God 16 A distinction unlike any other 19 ‘Distinction’, ‘relation’, and ‘creation’ in Aquinas and Burrell 25 The theological significance of this distinctive relation 28 Aquinas’ interfaith achievement 31 From David Burrell to Sara Grant 36 Summing Up 39 Chapter 2. Roman Catholic Encounters with Advaita Vedānta: Between Transcendental Illusion and Radical Contingency 42 An Outline of Advaita Vedānta 43 Different Readings of Advaita Vedānta 45 iii An Overview of some Encounters between Roman Catholicism and Advaita Vedānta 48 Brahmabandhab Upadhyay 50 Georges Dandoy, S.J. and Pierre Johanns, S.J. 53 Richard De Smet, S.J. 63 Conclusion 71 Chapter 3. The Relation between the World and God in Śaṁkara and Thomas: Sara Grant’s Case for a Form of Christian Non-Dualism 73 Sara Grant, RSCJ 75 Grant’s Encounters with Advaita Vedānta 79 Grant on ‘Relation’ 82 Re-turning to Aquinas 91 Whose Śaṁkara? Which Aquinas? 96 Conclusion 101 Chapter 4. Creation: ‘ex nihilo’ or ‘ex deo’? 103 Creation ex nihilo versus satkāryavāda 104 Satkāryavāda versus asatkāryavāda in Indian philosophy 108 Production ex materia versus creation ex nihilo (or satkāryavāda versus asatkāryavāda?) in Christian thought 110 The Relation of the One to its Many in Advaita Vedānta – Śaṁkara’s Understanding of satkāryavāda 113 The Relation of the One to its Many in Christian Theology – Aquinas’s Understanding of creatio ex nihilo 115 What Kind of Cause is Brahman? 119 iv What Kind of Cause is God? 123 Creation as Emanation: Aquinas and Neoplatonism 129 Conclusion 135 Chapter 5. How Real is the World? Being and Nothingness in Śaṁkara and Thomas 137 How Does the World Exist ‘in’ Brahman? The Concept of nāmarūpa 139 Nāmarūpa in Thomas Aquinas? The Doctrine of Divine Ideas 143 The (Un)reality of the World in Advaita Vedānta 150 The (Un)reality of the World in Christian Theology 157 Conclusion: Much Ado about Nothingness? 166 Conclusion 170 Bibliography 175 v Acknowledgements It is hard for me to imagine anything much more idyllic than being given three years to pursue full-time doctoral research in Cambridge, so I am enormously grateful to the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council for awarding me the funding which made this possible. I am extremely thankful to the Spalding Trust and the Teape Trust, as well, for generously providing me with extra funding to help organise two conferences during my time as a doctoral student. The Teape Trust also enabled me to spend a month in India, where I benefitted hugely from time spent at the Ajatananada and Swami Dayananda Ashrams in Rishikesh. Sitting at the feet of Swami Atmananda Udasin and Swami Tattvavidananda Saraswati reminded me – if I needed reminding – that this journey into Christian Advaita was never merely an intellectual exercise. Clare College has provided a friendly and welcoming environment within which to live and work and the Faculty of Divinity has been a helpful and stimulating academic home. I am grateful, in particular, to Clemens Gresser and Matthew Patmore in the Divinity Library, who have never been too busy to help and have always responded generously to my occasional recommendations for new books. I have benefitted from a host of outstanding teachers who have all inspired and nurtured my love of learning in different ways. At St Bede’s College in Manchester, my interest in languages was kindled by Phil Maree and Terry Barnes, and my apprenticeship in Theology and Philosophy began at the hands of Tony McCabe and Matthew Taylor. As an undergraduate, I was particularly influenced by the teaching of Chris Insole. I was first seriously introduced to the possibilities of comparative theology and, in particular, to the fascinating area of engagements between Hinduism and Christianity by Michael Barnes and Martin Ganeri, and I thank them for their ongoing support and friendship. I am grateful to Eivind Kahrs and Vincenzo Vergiani for sharing their expertise and patiently opening my eyes to Sanskrit. As a secondary school teacher of Theology and Philosophy myself, I have been fortunate to work alongside colleagues whose passion for the subject has been infectious. I have learned much from these friends in the RS Departments at Stonyhurst College and St Benedict’s, Ealing, as well as from the wisdom transmitted over the ages by the two great Christian traditions to which these schools belong. More recently, I have found teaching at Hills Rd 6th Form College an ideal counterbalance to the solitary nature of doctoral research. I have been challenged and enriched, personally and academically, by students at all of these schools, and vi am particularly grateful to my last U6 group at St Benedict’s who were extraordinarily kind and encouraging to me when I left them to begin this PhD. Over the course of writing the thesis I have benefitted from feedback and critique from a number of more senior academic colleagues who have given generously of their time and advice. My sincere thanks go to: Mario Aguilar, David Burrell, Francis Clooney, Simon Gathercole, Christian Hengstermann, Bernard McGinn, Martin Poulsom, and Janet Soskice. I am particularly grateful to Brad Malkovsky for his careful reading of various chapters and valuable suggestions. The thesis as a whole is much the better for the expert input of all of these scholars, though obviously any remaining deficiencies and errors are mine alone. My time as a doctoral student has been enriched by the friends and family who have been there throughout. I am especially grateful to Nadya Pohran and Daniel Tolan who have been wonderful friends to share this journey with. My parents, John and Barbara, and my brothers, Barry and Luke, are never anything but completely supportive (even though they probably do think I have just had three years ‘off’), and Melissa makes me think, laugh (and work!) in the way that only she can. Finally, I have heard it said many times that the most important relationship for a successful PhD is that between the student and his supervisor.
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