What if Husserl had meditated? The Phenomenological and the Buddhist Attitude towards the Consciousness
Abstract
The paper provides an answer to the question what Husserl could have got known if he had not only read Buddha's suttas but also practiced meditation. At first, the meditation Vipassanā is set forth, as it is practiced in the spirit of the Theravada tradition, and the basic concepts are explained.
Further, it is shown that the phenomenon of "affection" is the focal point of both the Buddhism and the phenomenology and Husserl's conception of the affective impact of object onto consciousness is discussed. In conclusion, the paper advances an argument for the thesis that the core of meditation experience lies outsides the scope of Husserl's theory of affection and surveys the consequences for the notion of reflexive attitude towards one's consciousness.