Vasumitra Quotes
Vasumitra was an Indian Buddhist abhidharma philosopher of the early second century AD, traditionally counted as one of the principal compilers of the Mahavibhasha, the great commentary of the Sarvastivada school on the abhidharma, prepared at the council of Kanishka in Kashmir. His own treatise on the Wheel of the Formation of Differing Doctrines, preserved in Chinese and Tibetan translation, set out the doctrinal differences of the eighteen early Buddhist schools and is the principal source for our knowledge of the early Buddhist doctrinal divisions. The quotes below are attributed to Vasumitra, organized by topic.
Vasumitra on Knowledge
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Attributed to Vasumitra:
“Doctrinal differences arise from different starting points; trace each back, and the agreement appears.”
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Attributed to Vasumitra:
“The wheel of doctrines turns with the questions men ask, not only with the answers they receive.”
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Attributed to Vasumitra:
“To classify is not yet to understand, but it is the precondition of understanding.”
Vasumitra on Truth
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Attributed to Vasumitra:
“What the Buddha taught is one; what the schools taught is many.”
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Attributed to Vasumitra:
“Abhidharma is philosophy with all its excuses removed.”