Abstract:

The relationship between language and Metaphysics is an important philosophical topic in Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra. Vimalakirti Nirdesa thinks that the way to express the unspeakable such as the dharma character is to use special methods （including“saying according to the thing itself”，“saying with specious or figurative language”，“saying with body language”，and“saying with silence”）. The first method isn’t speaking ordinary language but explaining by dharma itself. The second can not only break the boundary of phenomenon and ontology to combine each other，but also make full use of analytical thinking and imagination to help you out of a bind. The third is different from indirect statement，in which listeners needn’t introspect and imagine and can directly face the thing itself. Silence is not equal to not speaking since there are two types of silence: not being able to speak and being able to speak but keeping silence instead. Vimalakirti Nirdesa’s silence is the second type: understanding the unspeakable and expressing his thought in silence.

Key words: Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra；the paradoxes of speaking；silence；speak&ldquo, the unspeakable&rdquo, ；negative method