[Buddha-l] Withdrawal of the senses

[James Ward]

On Nov 22, 2006, at 2:39 PM, Dan Lusthaus wrote:

> So I see nothing legitimate in the misrepresentation of Yogacara as 
> idealism, much less gnostic or neoplatonic mirrors -- starting with 
> the fact that ruupa is considered "pure", and sensory perception is 
> "pure", devoid of negative karma, that it is the mind that introduces 
> all the problem (Dignaga and Dharmakirti agree with this). That is the 
> opposite of gnosticism, neoplatonism, manichaeanism.

Am I a quibbling pedant to shrink from thinking of Neoplatonism and 
Gnosticism as being cut from the same cloth?  Plotinus seems pretty 
adamant in his rejection of the idea that the world and its maker are 
not good.  Surely that's not just a superficial difference?

James Ward