Always it puzzles me that of all the Buddhas, the historical Buddha has rarely been said to reincarnate.
However, I am mistaken, and apologize for giving the impression that the Buddha never reincarnates.
For he does...
Reflection Means Both Incarnation and Reincarnation
Imagine the Adi-Buddha sitting in contemplation with the 108 Buddhas in a field. Imagine further that all Buddhas possess the diamond mind which reflects upon the all the Buddhas.
With respect to the term "diamond", it refers to the unwavering mind which arises from the depths of deep meditation that is known as the clear mind of contemplation and is admired for its clarity and pureness.
Indeed, the diamond mind of the Buddha is the pure mind of Amida Buddha, which is one ofthe 108 Buddhas.
Thus all Buddhas in reflecting Adi-Buddha, reflect on the primordial wisdom of the Buddha.
For the diamond mind of the Buddha is indeed unwavering, unyielding in the face of evil yet yielding to good, and hard to fathom yet soft as a lotus petal.
As the Adi-Buddha is reflected in all the 108 Buddhas, so too is the Buddha Gautama reflected in all the Buddhas
Yet these Buddhas are but reflections of Great Compassion and Great Wisdom, and thus reflect on Amida Buddha.
For the qualities of compassion and wisdom as reflected by Amida Buddha represent the compassion and wisdom of the Buddha.
Therefore, Amida Buddha represents both compassion and wisdom of the Buddha. Thus, Amida is an incarnation of the Buddha, representing the dual aspects of compassion and wisdom.
With respect to the incarnation and reincarnation of the Buddha, it is not the soul that incarnates in the Five Wisdom Buddhas, but the spiritual qualities of the Buddha. This is why the term "reflection" is used in accurately describing the Buddha's relationship with all the Buddhas including Amida Buddha.
Great is the Life of Amitayus and Great is the Light of Amida
In a previous essay I wrote about the Boundless Wisdom of Amida as represented by Infinite Light and the Boundless Compassion of Amitayus as represented by Infinite Life.
With respect to the Buddhist principle of non-self, the term "infinite" implies permanence as in the phrase "that which never goes out."
However, because the wisdom of Amida Buddha and the compassion of Amitayus Buddha are two aspects of the Buddha, the words, "infinite" and "boundless" imply that the Buddha"s wisdom and compassion are everywhere.
For wherever the Buddhist follower sees the words Infinite or Boundless, their actual meaning is "great as the diamond mind of the Buddha, great as the pure mind of Amida", which in its short form is "Great", which has no misleading implications of permanence.
Adi-Buddha is introduced in the following essay: http://gandhara.blogspot.com/2013/01/buddhism-isnt-about-king-in-heaven.html
Showing posts with label All is Buddha. Show all posts
Showing posts with label All is Buddha. Show all posts
20101213
All are Buddha
"Buddha does not always appear as a Buddha. Sometimes He appears as an incarnation of evil, sometimes as a woman, a god, a king, or a statesman; sometimes He appears in a brothel or in a gambling house. In an epidemic He appears as a healing physician and in war He preaches forbearance and mercy for the suffering people; for those who believe that things are everlasting, He preaches transiency and uncertainty; for those who are proud and egoistic, He preaches humility and self-sacrifice; for those who are entangled in the web of worldly pleasures, He reveals the misery of the world. The work of Buddha is to manifest in all affairs and on all occasions the pure essence of Dharma-kaya (the absolute nature of Buddha); so Buddha's mercy and compassion flow out from this Dharma-kaya in endless life and boundless light, bringing salvation..." — Chapter 3 - The Form of the Buddha and His Virtues III Buddha's Virtue, Verse 4: http://www.hinduwebsite.com/sacredscripts/buddhist_bible.asp#ch3bv
Thus the Buddha represents compassion and mercy through human agents. In one sense then, the Buddha is loving-kindness and its positive action on society. With respect to Dharma-kaya:
"As Essence it (Dharma-kaya) is the substance of the Dharma; that is, it is the substance of Truth as it is in itself. ... As the aspect of Essence, Buddha has no figure nor color, and since he has no form nor color, Buddha comes from nowhere and there is nowhere for him to go. Like the blue sky he overarches everything, and since he is all things he lacks nothing.
"He exists not because people think that he does or as they think, neither does he disappear because people forget him. He is under no particular compulsion to appear when people are happy and comfortable, neither is it necessary for him to disappear when people are inattentive and idle. Buddha transcends every conceivable trend of human thought; Buddha's body fills every corner of the universe; it reaches everywhere, it exists forever, regardless of whether people believe in him or doubt his existence." — Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtrendrarājaḥ ( Golden Light Sutra ) 3
— Dharma-kaya and its relation to the Buddha's three bodies: http://www.hinduwebsite.com/sacredscripts/buddhist_bible.asp#ch3
Hence, the Buddha may not be noticed by the world since the world expects a Buddha to be what they ascribe to their primitive understanding of Buddhism.
Yet the Buddha clearly states what he is not:
A brahmin once asked The Blessed One:
"Are you a God?" "No, brahmin." said The Blessed One.
"Are you a saint?" "No, brahmin." said The Blessed One.
"Are you a magician?" No, brahmin." said The Blessed One.
"What are you then?" "I am AWAKE."
By "awake" the Buddha meant the karmic seeds planted in his psyche by his experiences awakened the spiritual qualities resulting in his enlightenment. His teaching of the Four Noble Truth thus have the potential to sow the karmic seed of enlightenment in Buddhists.
Thus, the Buddhist path is neither godly nor saintly not magical. Thus bodhisattvas are not saints but heroic-minded ones for Enlightenment who have returned from the Pure Land (Buddha-field) to help guide followers to the Pure Land.
However, a Buddha does not always take the guise of a monk or other holy person. he could be a classical Asian daemon, which is more benign than the Christian daemon, the Jewish golem or the Muslim djinn.
He might even appear as the devil if need be.
Yet this is only if one sees solely through the monotheist lens. This is probably why a few Christians misunderstand Buddhism to be pagan.
It's mainly why when the Moghul hordes arose to conquer Central Asia, they forced all the Buddhists in what is now the Afghanistan province of Kandahar (which used to be the Gandharan Buddhist kingdom prior to Islam's spread into the region) to become Muslim.
However, the Kandahar people who are not Pashtun are severely oppressed by by the Pashtun precisely because their Muslim ways aren't good enough for the Taleban since they are less blood-thirsty than their Pashtun overlords, perhaps due to their Buddhist past. It may also explain why Kandahar people tend to be ambivalent whether their overlord is Taleban or NATO.
Sadly though, the Bamiyan Buddhas are blown up, thanks to the Taleban, possibly to give a middle finger to Dalia Lama, who commented on the Afghanistan theatre of the mass media circus called War on Terror.
But I digress.
Anyone is Buddha, even your god, be he human, divine or an idol.
Reference:
Dharmakaya: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharmakaya
Golden Light Sutra: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Light_Sutra
A Brahmin once asked The Blessed One: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Buddhism
Buddha-field: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lokottaravada#Buddha-fields
Pure Land: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pure_Land
Enlightenment: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhi
Bodhisattva: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisattva
Thus the Buddha represents compassion and mercy through human agents. In one sense then, the Buddha is loving-kindness and its positive action on society. With respect to Dharma-kaya:
"As Essence it (Dharma-kaya) is the substance of the Dharma; that is, it is the substance of Truth as it is in itself. ... As the aspect of Essence, Buddha has no figure nor color, and since he has no form nor color, Buddha comes from nowhere and there is nowhere for him to go. Like the blue sky he overarches everything, and since he is all things he lacks nothing.
"He exists not because people think that he does or as they think, neither does he disappear because people forget him. He is under no particular compulsion to appear when people are happy and comfortable, neither is it necessary for him to disappear when people are inattentive and idle. Buddha transcends every conceivable trend of human thought; Buddha's body fills every corner of the universe; it reaches everywhere, it exists forever, regardless of whether people believe in him or doubt his existence." — Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtrendrarājaḥ ( Golden Light Sutra ) 3
— Dharma-kaya and its relation to the Buddha's three bodies: http://www.hinduwebsite.com/sacredscripts/buddhist_bible.asp#ch3
Hence, the Buddha may not be noticed by the world since the world expects a Buddha to be what they ascribe to their primitive understanding of Buddhism.
Yet the Buddha clearly states what he is not:
A brahmin once asked The Blessed One:
"Are you a God?" "No, brahmin." said The Blessed One.
"Are you a saint?" "No, brahmin." said The Blessed One.
"Are you a magician?" No, brahmin." said The Blessed One.
"What are you then?" "I am AWAKE."
By "awake" the Buddha meant the karmic seeds planted in his psyche by his experiences awakened the spiritual qualities resulting in his enlightenment. His teaching of the Four Noble Truth thus have the potential to sow the karmic seed of enlightenment in Buddhists.
Thus, the Buddhist path is neither godly nor saintly not magical. Thus bodhisattvas are not saints but heroic-minded ones for Enlightenment who have returned from the Pure Land (Buddha-field) to help guide followers to the Pure Land.
However, a Buddha does not always take the guise of a monk or other holy person. he could be a classical Asian daemon, which is more benign than the Christian daemon, the Jewish golem or the Muslim djinn.
He might even appear as the devil if need be.
Yet this is only if one sees solely through the monotheist lens. This is probably why a few Christians misunderstand Buddhism to be pagan.
It's mainly why when the Moghul hordes arose to conquer Central Asia, they forced all the Buddhists in what is now the Afghanistan province of Kandahar (which used to be the Gandharan Buddhist kingdom prior to Islam's spread into the region) to become Muslim.
However, the Kandahar people who are not Pashtun are severely oppressed by by the Pashtun precisely because their Muslim ways aren't good enough for the Taleban since they are less blood-thirsty than their Pashtun overlords, perhaps due to their Buddhist past. It may also explain why Kandahar people tend to be ambivalent whether their overlord is Taleban or NATO.
Sadly though, the Bamiyan Buddhas are blown up, thanks to the Taleban, possibly to give a middle finger to Dalia Lama, who commented on the Afghanistan theatre of the mass media circus called War on Terror.
But I digress.
Anyone is Buddha, even your god, be he human, divine or an idol.
Reference:
Dharmakaya: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharmakaya
Golden Light Sutra: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Light_Sutra
A Brahmin once asked The Blessed One: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Buddhism
Buddha-field: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lokottaravada#Buddha-fields
Pure Land: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pure_Land
Enlightenment: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhi
Bodhisattva: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisattva
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