사고(思考)에 대한 붓다와 알버트 엘리스(Albert Ellis)의 견해 (The Buddha's and Albert Ellis' View of Thinking)

서지정보

· 발행기관 : 인도철학회
· 수록지 정보 : 인도철학 / 35호 / 191 ~ 217페이지
· 저자명 : 안양규

초록

인간의 고통이라는 정서 문제의 근본원인을 인지적인 관점에서 해결하려고 한 점에서 붓다와 엘리스는 공통 기반을 공유하고 있다. 붓다는 욕심의 생각[欲念], 성냄의 생각[恚念], 해침의 생각[害念]은 불선법(不善法)의 근본 원인으로 자신에게도 타인에게도 유해한 결과를 초래하며 지혜를 소멸시켜 열반을 성취하지 못하게 한다고 관찰하고 있다. 불선한 생각이 가져오는 단점은 두 단계로 나누어 살펴볼 수 있다. 첫 번째 단계는 자신과 남에게 해로움을 입힌다는 것으로 이는 세속적인 것이라고 할 수 있다. 두 번째 단계는 지혜를 소멸시켜 불교의 궁극적인 목표인 열반에 이르게 하지 못한다는 것으로, 이는 초세간적인 것으로 분류할 수 있다. 첫 번째 단계에서 엘리스의 치료 이론 체계와 비교 논의할 수 있다. 기본적으로 엘리스의 REBT는 일상적인 생활에서 발생하는 정서문제를 다루는 것으로 붓다의 가르침 중 세간적인 것에 관한 가르침과 비교될 수 있다.

영어초록

The Buddha classifies thoughts(vitakka) into two categories: wholesome thoughts; unwholesome thoughts. He sees the unwholesome thoughts as causes of sufferings for oneself and others as well. Albert Ellis(1913-2007), an American psychologist analyes irrational beliefs as a source of emotional and behavioral problems. Both the Buddha and Ellis agree to conclude that negative thinking plays a big role in sufferings.
In the Dvedhavitakka Sutta(MN 19), the Buddha talks about 2 kinds of thoughts: thoughts of sensuality, thoughts of ill will, thoughts of harm; thoughts of non-sensuality, thoughts of non-ill will, thoughts of non-harm. The former leads to one's own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to nibbana. The latter leads neither to your own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to nibbana. How good the latter may be, if you keep thinking of it, it may exhaust you. When the latter thoughts are thought and discursively thought too long, the body gets exhausted. When the body is exhausted, the mind is disturbed, the disturbed mind is far from concentration. In order to enter the higher jhana, one must have thought(vitakka) removed. Overcoming thoughts, the mind internally appeased, in one point, without thoughts, experiencing joy and pleasantness born of concentration one can abode in the second jhāna.
Albert Ellis, who became disenchanted with psychoanalysis and, strongly influenced by the Stoic philosophers of ancient Greece, formed "Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy". He identified a number of dys-functional beliefs that people often hold. Harmful emotions and dys-functional behaviors are the product of irrational thinking. Ellis believed that many emotional and behavioral problems were largely the result of irrational beliefs. His therapeutic approach emphasizes helping people to become more aware of irrational beliefs. Ellis held that beliefs are irrational if they: (1) distort reality, (2) contain illogical ways of evaluating oneself, others, and the world, and/or (3) create extreme emotions and block a person from achieving their goals.
The Buddha regards the unwholesome thought as a cause of suffering while Ellis sees irrational beliefs as causes of emotional problems. The Buddha's idea of the unwholesome thoughts is wider and deeper than Ellis' irrational beliefs, which contains the demand of "must". The unwholesome thought includes irrational beliefs, the kind of attachment to wrong views in Buddhism.

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