Sometimes I'd rather be a Westernized Asian rather than fall for propaganda designed to create hatred against another nation, be it Japan, Germany or America.
Hatred causes and arises from mental negativity. It is but an ally of anger which is the root of all negativity.
Indeed, negativity is the dark side of the ego left in control of the mind, sometimes with tragic yet preventable results (war, famine, and other human problems).
Only patience and love will stand up to anger. As for hatred, it is transformed by love into compassion. For love has opened the eyes of people who once hated and they repented.
Within context of Buddhism repentance is mandatory after admitting your faults in front of fellow Buddhists.
This brings out humility, which helps the Buddhist vow to "think good thoughts" as Zen Master Hui-Neng suggests.
Showing posts with label Hui Neng. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hui Neng. Show all posts
20130418
The Last Stanza of Hui-Neng
Before his Mahaparinirvana, the Sixth Patriarch Hui-Neng said:
The Essence of Mind or Tathata (Suchness) is the real Buddha,
While heretical views and the three poisonous elements are Mara.
Enlightened by Right Views, we call forth the Buddha within us.
When our nature is dominated by the three poisonous elements,
We are said to be possessed by Mara;
But when Right Views eliminate from our mind these poisonous elements,
Mara will be transformed into a real Buddha.
The Dharmakaya, the Sambhogakaya and the Nirmanakaya --
These three Bodies emanate from one — the Essence of Mind.
He who is able to realize this fact intuitively
Has sown the seed, and will reap the fruit of Enlightenment.
It is from the Nirmanakaya that our 'Pure Nature' emanates;
Within the former the latter is to be found.
Guided by 'Pure Nature,' the Nirmanakaya treads the Right Path,
And will some day attain to the Sambhogakaya, perfect and infinite.
'Pure Nature' is an outgrowth of our sensual instincts;
By getting rid of sensuality, we attain the Pure Dharmakaya.
When our temperament is such that we are no longer the slaves of the five sense-objects,
And when we have realized the Essence of Mind even for one moment only, then Truth is known to us.
Should we be so fortunate as to be the followers of the Sudden School in this life,
In a sudden we shall see the Bhagavat of our Essence of Mind.
He who seeks the Buddha (from without) by practicing certain doctrines
Knows not where the real Buddha is to be found.
He who is able to realize the Truth within his own mind
Has sown the seed of Buddhahood.
He who has not realized the Essence of Mind and seeks the Buddha from without
Is a fool motivated by wrong desires.
I have hereby left to posterity the teaching of the Sudden School
For the salvation of all sentient beings who care to practice it.
Hear me, ye future disciples!
Your time will have been badly wasted if you neglect to put this teaching into practice.
Reference:
Last Stanza of Hui Neng: http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng10.html
The Essence of Mind or Tathata (Suchness) is the real Buddha,
While heretical views and the three poisonous elements are Mara.
Enlightened by Right Views, we call forth the Buddha within us.
When our nature is dominated by the three poisonous elements,
We are said to be possessed by Mara;
But when Right Views eliminate from our mind these poisonous elements,
Mara will be transformed into a real Buddha.
The Dharmakaya, the Sambhogakaya and the Nirmanakaya --
These three Bodies emanate from one — the Essence of Mind.
He who is able to realize this fact intuitively
Has sown the seed, and will reap the fruit of Enlightenment.
It is from the Nirmanakaya that our 'Pure Nature' emanates;
Within the former the latter is to be found.
Guided by 'Pure Nature,' the Nirmanakaya treads the Right Path,
And will some day attain to the Sambhogakaya, perfect and infinite.
'Pure Nature' is an outgrowth of our sensual instincts;
By getting rid of sensuality, we attain the Pure Dharmakaya.
When our temperament is such that we are no longer the slaves of the five sense-objects,
And when we have realized the Essence of Mind even for one moment only, then Truth is known to us.
Should we be so fortunate as to be the followers of the Sudden School in this life,
In a sudden we shall see the Bhagavat of our Essence of Mind.
He who seeks the Buddha (from without) by practicing certain doctrines
Knows not where the real Buddha is to be found.
He who is able to realize the Truth within his own mind
Has sown the seed of Buddhahood.
He who has not realized the Essence of Mind and seeks the Buddha from without
Is a fool motivated by wrong desires.
I have hereby left to posterity the teaching of the Sudden School
For the salvation of all sentient beings who care to practice it.
Hear me, ye future disciples!
Your time will have been badly wasted if you neglect to put this teaching into practice.
Reference:
Last Stanza of Hui Neng: http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng10.html
Mahaparinirvana is not Death
Hui Neng, The Sixth Patriarch, said:
The Supreme Maha Parinirvana
Is perfect, permanent, calm, and illuminating.
Common people and ignorant ones miscall it death,
While heretics hold arbitrarily that it is annihilation.
Those who belong to the Sravaka Vehicle or the Pratyeka Buddha Vehicle
Regard it as 'Non-action'.
All these are mere intellectual speculations,
And form the basis of the sixty-two fallacious views.
Since they are mere fictitious names invented for the occasion
They have nothing to do with the Absolute Truth.
Only those of super-eminent mind
Can understand thoroughly what Nirvana is, and take up the attitude of neither attachment nor indifference towards it.
They know that five Skandhas
And the so-called 'ego' arising from the union of these Skandhas,
Together with all external objects and forms
And the various phenomena of sound and voice
Are equally unreal, like a dream or an illusion.
They make no discrimination between a sage and an ordinary man.
Nor do they have any arbitrary concept on Nirvana.
They are above 'Affirmation' and 'Negation' and they break the barrier of the past, the present, and the future.
They use their sense organs, when occasion requires,
But the concept of 'Using' does not arise.
They may particularize on all sorts of things,
But the concept of 'Particularization' does not arise.
Even during the cataclysmic fire at the end of a Kalpa, when ocean-beds are burnt dry,
Or during the blowing of the catastrophic wind when one mountain topples on another,
The real and everlasting bliss of 'Perfect Rest' and 'Cessation of Changes'
Of Nirvana remains in the same state and changes not.
Here I am trying to describe to you something which is ineffable
So that you may get rid of your fallacious views.
But if you do not interpret my words literally
You may perhaps learn a wee bit of the meaning of Nirvana!
Reference:
The Supreme Maha Parinirva: http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng7.html
The Supreme Maha Parinirvana
Is perfect, permanent, calm, and illuminating.
Common people and ignorant ones miscall it death,
While heretics hold arbitrarily that it is annihilation.
Those who belong to the Sravaka Vehicle or the Pratyeka Buddha Vehicle
Regard it as 'Non-action'.
All these are mere intellectual speculations,
And form the basis of the sixty-two fallacious views.
Since they are mere fictitious names invented for the occasion
They have nothing to do with the Absolute Truth.
Only those of super-eminent mind
Can understand thoroughly what Nirvana is, and take up the attitude of neither attachment nor indifference towards it.
They know that five Skandhas
And the so-called 'ego' arising from the union of these Skandhas,
Together with all external objects and forms
And the various phenomena of sound and voice
Are equally unreal, like a dream or an illusion.
They make no discrimination between a sage and an ordinary man.
Nor do they have any arbitrary concept on Nirvana.
They are above 'Affirmation' and 'Negation' and they break the barrier of the past, the present, and the future.
They use their sense organs, when occasion requires,
But the concept of 'Using' does not arise.
They may particularize on all sorts of things,
But the concept of 'Particularization' does not arise.
Even during the cataclysmic fire at the end of a Kalpa, when ocean-beds are burnt dry,
Or during the blowing of the catastrophic wind when one mountain topples on another,
The real and everlasting bliss of 'Perfect Rest' and 'Cessation of Changes'
Of Nirvana remains in the same state and changes not.
Here I am trying to describe to you something which is ineffable
So that you may get rid of your fallacious views.
But if you do not interpret my words literally
You may perhaps learn a wee bit of the meaning of Nirvana!
Reference:
The Supreme Maha Parinirva: http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng7.html
20130417
The Fivefold Incenses and the Formless Repentance
Zen Master Hui-Neng said:
"The first is the Sila Incense, which means that our mind is free from taints of misdeeds, evil jealousy, avarice, anger, spoliation, and hatred.
"The second is the Samadhi Incense, which means that our mind is unperturbed in all circumstances, favorable or unfavorable.
"The third is the Prajna Incense, which means that our mind is free from all impediments, that we constantly introspect our Essence of Mind with wisdom, that we refrain from doing all kinds of evil deeds, that although we do all kinds of good acts, yet we do not let our mind become attached to (the fruits) of such actions, and that we are respectful towards our superiors, considerate to our inferiors, and sympathetic to the destitute and the poor.
"The fourth is the Incense of Liberation, this means that our mind is in such an absolutely free state that it clings to nothing and concerns itself neither with good nor evil.
"The fifth is the Incense of 'Knowledge obtained on the Attainment of Liberation.' When our mind clings to neither good nor evil we should take care not to let it dwell upon vacuity, or remain in a state of inertia. Rather should we enlarge our study and broaden our knowledge, so that we can know our own mind, understand thoroughly the principles of Buddhism, be congenial to others in our dealings with them, get rid of the idea of 'self' and that of 'being', and realize that up to the time when we attain Bodhi the 'true nature' (or Essence of Mind) is always immutable. Such, then, is the Incense of 'Knowledge obtained on the Attainment of Liberation.' This five-fold Incense fumigates us from within, and we should not look for it from without."
...
"May we, disciples so and so, be always free from the taints of ignorance and delusion. We repent of all our sins and evil deeds committed under delusion or in ignorance. May they be expiated at once and may they never arise again.
"May we be always free from the taints of arrogance and dishonesty (Sathya). We repent of all our arrogant behavior and dishonest dealings in the past. May they be expiated at once and may they never arise again.
"May we be always free from the taints of envy and jealousy. We repent of all our sins and evil deeds committed in an envious or jealous spirit. May they be expiated at once and may they never arise again."
Reference:
Chapter 6: On Repentance: http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng6.html
http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng6.html
"The first is the Sila Incense, which means that our mind is free from taints of misdeeds, evil jealousy, avarice, anger, spoliation, and hatred.
"The second is the Samadhi Incense, which means that our mind is unperturbed in all circumstances, favorable or unfavorable.
"The third is the Prajna Incense, which means that our mind is free from all impediments, that we constantly introspect our Essence of Mind with wisdom, that we refrain from doing all kinds of evil deeds, that although we do all kinds of good acts, yet we do not let our mind become attached to (the fruits) of such actions, and that we are respectful towards our superiors, considerate to our inferiors, and sympathetic to the destitute and the poor.
"The fourth is the Incense of Liberation, this means that our mind is in such an absolutely free state that it clings to nothing and concerns itself neither with good nor evil.
"The fifth is the Incense of 'Knowledge obtained on the Attainment of Liberation.' When our mind clings to neither good nor evil we should take care not to let it dwell upon vacuity, or remain in a state of inertia. Rather should we enlarge our study and broaden our knowledge, so that we can know our own mind, understand thoroughly the principles of Buddhism, be congenial to others in our dealings with them, get rid of the idea of 'self' and that of 'being', and realize that up to the time when we attain Bodhi the 'true nature' (or Essence of Mind) is always immutable. Such, then, is the Incense of 'Knowledge obtained on the Attainment of Liberation.' This five-fold Incense fumigates us from within, and we should not look for it from without."
...
"May we, disciples so and so, be always free from the taints of ignorance and delusion. We repent of all our sins and evil deeds committed under delusion or in ignorance. May they be expiated at once and may they never arise again.
"May we be always free from the taints of arrogance and dishonesty (Sathya). We repent of all our arrogant behavior and dishonest dealings in the past. May they be expiated at once and may they never arise again.
"May we be always free from the taints of envy and jealousy. We repent of all our sins and evil deeds committed in an envious or jealous spirit. May they be expiated at once and may they never arise again."
Reference:
Chapter 6: On Repentance: http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng6.html
http://www.sinc.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/huineng/huineng6.html
20130310
Buddha Recitation as Mind Tool
With each breath I take, I let go of attachment, and cease constructing in my mind all conceptions detrimental to understanding the nature of reality as it is.
Thus, "I, me, mine" are pronouns that describe the person writing these words, yet this person is not attached to such words. For "I, me, mine" are empty of inherent permanent reality.
Then, being the practice to prepare the mind, Buddha Recitation is also empty of permanent reality.
Also, the desire to be reborn in the Pure Land of Bliss is impermanent.
Thus the desire for rebirth inspires me to practice Buddha Recitation, a mindful practice.
Being a mindful practice, it settles my mind and helps me to prepare for meditation.
Thus Buddha Recitation ceases to be a pervasive mental construction, and becomes one of many tools in the Buddhist's tool kit to free the mind.
For it helps me to develop the Pure Mind that is pacified by the pure heart of compassion. This compassion is reflected in the idea that when I call out to Amida, it is actually him calling to me. Realizing this, I will continue to maintain the practice of Buddha Recitation before meditation.
Buddha Recitation helps me to remember the Buddha. As Buddha Remembrance is essential to my meditation, I practice daily.
As well, having realized the importance of always maintaining happy thoughts through understanding the essence of Master Hui-Neng's advice on the topic, I endeavour to remain in the present moment.
For all of this I am grateful to Amida Buddha.
Thus, "I, me, mine" are pronouns that describe the person writing these words, yet this person is not attached to such words. For "I, me, mine" are empty of inherent permanent reality.
Then, being the practice to prepare the mind, Buddha Recitation is also empty of permanent reality.
Also, the desire to be reborn in the Pure Land of Bliss is impermanent.
Thus the desire for rebirth inspires me to practice Buddha Recitation, a mindful practice.
Being a mindful practice, it settles my mind and helps me to prepare for meditation.
Thus Buddha Recitation ceases to be a pervasive mental construction, and becomes one of many tools in the Buddhist's tool kit to free the mind.
For it helps me to develop the Pure Mind that is pacified by the pure heart of compassion. This compassion is reflected in the idea that when I call out to Amida, it is actually him calling to me. Realizing this, I will continue to maintain the practice of Buddha Recitation before meditation.
Buddha Recitation helps me to remember the Buddha. As Buddha Remembrance is essential to my meditation, I practice daily.
As well, having realized the importance of always maintaining happy thoughts through understanding the essence of Master Hui-Neng's advice on the topic, I endeavour to remain in the present moment.
For all of this I am grateful to Amida Buddha.
20130307
Pure Heart, Pure Mind, Pure Land
In the Diamond Sutra - Commentary Part IV refers to Commentary on Chapter 10 "The Adornment of Pure Lands".
In Chapter 10 of the Diamond Sutra, it is written:
The Buddha said to Subhuti, "What do you think? Was there any dharma which the Tathagata obtained while with Burning Lamp Buddha?"
"No, World Honored One, there was actually no dharma which the Tathagata obtained while with Burning Lamp Buddha."
"Subhuti, what do you think, does a Bodhisattva adorn Buddhalands?"
"No, World Honored One. And why? The adornment of Buddhalands is no adornment, therefore it is called adornment."
"Therefore, Subhuti, the Bodhisattva, Mahasattva, should thus produce a pure heart. He should produce that heart without dwelling in forms. He should produce that heart without dwelling in sounds, smells, tastes, tangible objects, or dharmas. He should produce that heart without dwelling anywhere."
"Subhuti, suppose a person had a body like Sumeru, King of Mountains. What do you think, would that body be big?"
Subhuti said, "Very big, World Honored One. And why? It is said by the Buddha to be no body. Therefore it is called a big body."
Bdhisattvas and Buddhas have conquered attachment to Dharma or phenomena such as "sounds, smells, tastes, tangible objects or dharmas". Thus, they are not unlike the sages of arhatship
For arhats, bodhiattvas. and Buddhas have attained nirvana.
Likewise, a Mahasattva, being a bodhisattva who has reached the eighth stage out of the ten stages of the bodhisattva, produces the pure heart by not being attached to forms.
Nor should he have attachment to the formless, which is depicted as the big body of Sumeru. Being very big, the Buddha calls it "no body".
"Being the King of Dharma, the Bodhisattva can perfect the beings in a chosen part of the world, and gradually transform into a Pure Land by the adornment of his merit and virtues. Pure Land is developed by pure mind; pure mind is developed when it does not abide in anything."
"King of Dharma" refers to the bodhisattva, an awakened being who has conquered attachment to forms, and thus is "not abiding in anything". Thus, he is free to perfect the sentient beings who dwell in his Pure Land, which is gradually transformed "by the adornment of his merit and virtues."
By conquering attachment to forms, the bodhisattva develops the pure mind that is able to develop the Pure Land into which she shall be reborn as Buddha.
In Buddhism, this world of birth-life-death is due to Karma. Since the spiritual maturity of sentient beings determines their living conditions, the Buddhaland, i.e. the Pure Land is forged through willpower and the result of the Bodhisattva's Karma. It offers the perfect conditions for quick spiritual progress.
When a Bodhisattva neither thinks nor says "I adorn Buddhalands", he truly realizes the emptiness of self and Dharma.
Unattached to any thought of self, and unattached to the Dharma of Buddhalands, the bodhisattva who adorns Buddhalands has no thought of adorning Buddhalands. Since the adornment of Buddhalands is but a name and lacks substance, a Bodhisattva such as a Mahasattva should produce pure heart.
Free from attachment with no mark, he produces that pure heart without dwelling in the Six Dusts, which are the Worldly Dusts — form, sound, scent, taste, touch, dharmas (external opinions and views). These dusts correspond to the five senses and the discriminating, everyday mind (the sixth sense, in Buddhism).
"He should produce that heart without dwelling in forms" summarizes the entire meaning of Diamond Sutra. When he heard of this sentence, the famous Sixth Patriarch Hui Neng experienced sudden enlightenment, resulting in his teaching of "no-thought", the "pure and unattached mind" which "comes and goes freely and functions fluently without any hindrance".
Consider the following doubt: "If there is no adornment of Buddha Lands, where would the Buddha's Retribution Body abide or dwell?" In Zen, the Retribution Body is the Sambhogakaya, which along with Nirmanakaya (transformation body) and Dharmakaya (Truth body) are metaphors for future good thoughts, discriminative thinking and the true Buddha. On this point, Master Hui Neng writes, "The successive thoughts that forever involve good are thus the Sambhogakāya."
In the Commentary, it is written:
"Shakyamuni Buddha cut off this doubt by declaring that the Dharma Body was not a body. His idea was that the land of no-land was permanently pure and illuminating and that the body of no-body was the Dharma Body. Both of them has no form. As the body could not be perceived by means of form, how then could the land be adorned?"
Likewise, Truth itself has no form, yet its marks are clearly seen in the Diamond Sutra.
"It is said by the Buddha to be no body, a body without comparison, a body without measurement, thus it is truly big body. No matter how big the physical body is, it is finite and measurable. The No body of Buddha is his Dharma Body as the result of his teachings, his wisdom and his merits, which is, of course, infinite immeasurable and incomparable. The Dharma Body is the true Buddha, while the Reward Body and the Transformation Body are not."
Thus the truth of the Buddha's teachings, his wisdom and his merits are immeasurable and incomparable.
When thinking discriminatively of the true Buddha, successive thoughts that forever involve good are truly future thoughts which are always good.
Original post: October 16, 2003 0153H
Update posted: March 6, 2013 2249H
References:
Arhat: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arhat_%28Buddhism%29
Diamond Sutra: Commentary Part IV: http://web.archive.org/web/20030905132041/http://www.buddhistdoor.com/bdoor/archive/sutra_comm/diamond/diamond_07.htm#d2
Dipankara Buddha: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C4%ABpankara_Buddha
Hui Neng: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huineng
Mahasattva: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahasattva
Sambhogakaya: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sambhogak%C4%81ya#Ch.C3.A1n_Buddhism
In the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, Chan Master Huineng describes the Samboghakaya as a state in which the practitioner continually and naturally produces good thoughts:
Think not of the past but of the future. Constantly maintain the future thoughts to be good. This is what we call the Sambhogakāya.
Just one single evil thought could destroy the good karma that has continued for one thousand years; and just one single good thought in turn could destroy the evil karma that has lived for one thousand years.
If the future thoughts are always good, you may call this the Sambhogakāya. The discriminative thinking arising from the Dharmakāya (法身↔fashen "Truth body") is called the Nirmanakāya (化身↔huashen "transformation body"). The successive thoughts that forever involve good are thus the Sambhogakāya
Worldly Dusts: Thich Thien Tâm, Buddhism of Wisdom and Faith, p. 335
20130217
We Can Become Buddhas
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche says:
It is because this ground or sugatagarbha or potential is common to all beings that they are capable of attaining enlightenment. If they did not have such a ground then they could never become buddhas.
For example: a stone doesn’t have the ‘ground’ or potential to produce oil, and so no matter how much you might press it and grind it — even if you use modern tools and machinery — you will never extract any oil. A sesame seed, on the other hand, does have the potential to produce oil, and by pressing it in the right way, sesame oil can and will be produced. So it is because the potential exists as part of our basic nature that we can become buddhas.
In my previous blog post, I wrote about the Eight Consciousnesses of Yogacara School. In it, the eight consciousnesses revealed, and of them, it is the eighth consciousness that will help with the understanding of the Buddhist term of "ground". For the eighth consciousness is also called "all-ground consciousness" in Tibetan Buddhism.
Sugatagarbha is the Tibetan Buddhist term for Tathagatagarbha, or Buddha Nature.
Buddha Nature is common to all sentient beings, for every being is capable of attaining enlightenment.
Since the potential to become Buddha exists as part of our primordial nature, we all can become buddhas.
Indeed, Buddha Nature is awaken by hearing the Teaching of the Buddha. Inspired by his message, one may choose to become a Buddha, and develop Bodhi Mind, which is both the determination to become a Buddha and the aspiration to help other sentient beings become enlightened.
One of the ways to become enlightened is to become a Zen master, which might involve a backache and perhaps the risk of hemorrhoids. Seriously though, traditional Zen involves the preliminary chanting of the Heart Sutra followed by hours of the sitting in meditation of zazen.
However, the whole point of meditation is to firstly develop the calm mind and secondly, achieve samadhi (one-pointedness of mind or single-minded concentration). To aid in this task, the disciple is given a koan, which is like a Chinese finger puzzle for the mind. For the intent of a koan and zazen is to make the mind flexible enough to achieve satori (seeing into one's true nature).
This happens when the disciple lets go of clinging to what Zen is supposed to be, and has that moment of sudden enlightenment when he lets go of what he thinks Zen is.
When the Zen practitioner carries the burden of Zen as a bunch of rules requiring discipline to practice just sitting in excellence, it's like the Zen master who carried a beautiful girl across a flooded stream and his disciple.
For the purpose of meditation is not just to achieve a calm mind, but to also develop the flexibility of mind to let go of clinging to thoughts. With every breathe he takes, the disciple learns discipline.
Even though sometimes I may mock the Zen practitioner, it is to discover if his meditation has resulted in the joy of satori. This is why when I meditate, it is done with a smile.
Master Hui-Neng inspired his disciples by teaching them about "no-thought."
No-thought is the state of mind where one cannot find the word for objects he sees and his mind clings to nothing.
In contrast, Hui-Neng's description of the "pure and unattached mind" which "comes and goes freely and functions fluently without any hindrance" reminds me more of the coming and going of the flow of thoughts without doing more than returning to just breathing when their distraction leads one away from meditating.
Even if we meditate and do not achieve Nirvana in this life, it still is possible to become a Buddha in the afterlife.
Yet the Buddhist remembers that she does her mindful practice for all sentient beings. If she chanted daily even ten Buddha Recitations, then that will help her become reborn in the Pure Land of Bliss.
As long as she did this with utmost sincerity to help all sentient beings become Enlightened, and is determined to be reborn in the Pure Land, her rebirth there is assured.
If she would rather chant the Heart Sutra before meditation, and she chanted it with single-mindedness, it's said she'd discover its true meaning.
In Sanskrit, the beauty of the mantra is found in chanting "gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā."
This mantra is pronounced as: "Guh-teh guh-teh PAH-ruh-sum-guh-teh bohd-hee swa-ha."
The Dalai Lama translated the Heart Sutra mantra as "go, go, go beyond, go thoroughly beyond, and establish yourself in enlightenment."
It's been said that all sentient beings have the potential to become buddha, for Self nature is Buddha Nature. Indeed, the Self is filled with selflessness, that sense of psychic prowess performing acts of random kindness in a friendly, loving manner.
Yet it is also empty of the self, which is depicted in Buddhism as the egocentric Monkey mind swinging from thread to thread of thought without a clear focus on the truth of one's actions, or even better, the truth of the Dharmakaya.
For Dharmakaya is but the Truth of the Tathagata that all phenomena, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are essentially empty of permanence, being a part of the temporary nature of all phenomena. Even Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are finite despite living uncountable ages.
It is wonderful to contemplate the myriad Buddhas, bodhisattvas and the Buddhist pantheon of gods and goddesses pacified by the Buddha to protect him, the Dharma and the Sangha through skillful means.
Although my words about Buddhism may seem hypocritical for exposing the less interesting aspects of Buddhism for Westerners, it is not so.
All my words on Buddhism are inspired by what the Buddha said. For the truth is, we can become Buddhas, by going beyond an intellectual understanding of the Dharma to actually practising meditation.
Though I prefer silent Nembutsu practice of Buddha Remembrance in combination with some kind of breath meditation to prevent my chanting from annoying the neighbours! >:)
References:
Buddha nature: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Sugatagarbha
Eight Consciousnesses Revisited: http://gandhara.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-eight-consciousnesses-revisited-poem.html
Yogacara: the Eight Consciousnesses: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogacara#The_eight_consciousnesses
It is because this ground or sugatagarbha or potential is common to all beings that they are capable of attaining enlightenment. If they did not have such a ground then they could never become buddhas.
For example: a stone doesn’t have the ‘ground’ or potential to produce oil, and so no matter how much you might press it and grind it — even if you use modern tools and machinery — you will never extract any oil. A sesame seed, on the other hand, does have the potential to produce oil, and by pressing it in the right way, sesame oil can and will be produced. So it is because the potential exists as part of our basic nature that we can become buddhas.
In my previous blog post, I wrote about the Eight Consciousnesses of Yogacara School. In it, the eight consciousnesses revealed, and of them, it is the eighth consciousness that will help with the understanding of the Buddhist term of "ground". For the eighth consciousness is also called "all-ground consciousness" in Tibetan Buddhism.
Sugatagarbha is the Tibetan Buddhist term for Tathagatagarbha, or Buddha Nature.
Buddha Nature is common to all sentient beings, for every being is capable of attaining enlightenment.
Since the potential to become Buddha exists as part of our primordial nature, we all can become buddhas.
Indeed, Buddha Nature is awaken by hearing the Teaching of the Buddha. Inspired by his message, one may choose to become a Buddha, and develop Bodhi Mind, which is both the determination to become a Buddha and the aspiration to help other sentient beings become enlightened.
One of the ways to become enlightened is to become a Zen master, which might involve a backache and perhaps the risk of hemorrhoids. Seriously though, traditional Zen involves the preliminary chanting of the Heart Sutra followed by hours of the sitting in meditation of zazen.
However, the whole point of meditation is to firstly develop the calm mind and secondly, achieve samadhi (one-pointedness of mind or single-minded concentration). To aid in this task, the disciple is given a koan, which is like a Chinese finger puzzle for the mind. For the intent of a koan and zazen is to make the mind flexible enough to achieve satori (seeing into one's true nature).
This happens when the disciple lets go of clinging to what Zen is supposed to be, and has that moment of sudden enlightenment when he lets go of what he thinks Zen is.
When the Zen practitioner carries the burden of Zen as a bunch of rules requiring discipline to practice just sitting in excellence, it's like the Zen master who carried a beautiful girl across a flooded stream and his disciple.
For the purpose of meditation is not just to achieve a calm mind, but to also develop the flexibility of mind to let go of clinging to thoughts. With every breathe he takes, the disciple learns discipline.
Even though sometimes I may mock the Zen practitioner, it is to discover if his meditation has resulted in the joy of satori. This is why when I meditate, it is done with a smile.
Master Hui-Neng inspired his disciples by teaching them about "no-thought."
No-thought is the state of mind where one cannot find the word for objects he sees and his mind clings to nothing.
In contrast, Hui-Neng's description of the "pure and unattached mind" which "comes and goes freely and functions fluently without any hindrance" reminds me more of the coming and going of the flow of thoughts without doing more than returning to just breathing when their distraction leads one away from meditating.
Even if we meditate and do not achieve Nirvana in this life, it still is possible to become a Buddha in the afterlife.
Yet the Buddhist remembers that she does her mindful practice for all sentient beings. If she chanted daily even ten Buddha Recitations, then that will help her become reborn in the Pure Land of Bliss.
As long as she did this with utmost sincerity to help all sentient beings become Enlightened, and is determined to be reborn in the Pure Land, her rebirth there is assured.
If she would rather chant the Heart Sutra before meditation, and she chanted it with single-mindedness, it's said she'd discover its true meaning.
In Sanskrit, the beauty of the mantra is found in chanting "gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā."
This mantra is pronounced as: "Guh-teh guh-teh PAH-ruh-sum-guh-teh bohd-hee swa-ha."
The Dalai Lama translated the Heart Sutra mantra as "go, go, go beyond, go thoroughly beyond, and establish yourself in enlightenment."
It's been said that all sentient beings have the potential to become buddha, for Self nature is Buddha Nature. Indeed, the Self is filled with selflessness, that sense of psychic prowess performing acts of random kindness in a friendly, loving manner.
Yet it is also empty of the self, which is depicted in Buddhism as the egocentric Monkey mind swinging from thread to thread of thought without a clear focus on the truth of one's actions, or even better, the truth of the Dharmakaya.
For Dharmakaya is but the Truth of the Tathagata that all phenomena, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are essentially empty of permanence, being a part of the temporary nature of all phenomena. Even Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are finite despite living uncountable ages.
It is wonderful to contemplate the myriad Buddhas, bodhisattvas and the Buddhist pantheon of gods and goddesses pacified by the Buddha to protect him, the Dharma and the Sangha through skillful means.
Although my words about Buddhism may seem hypocritical for exposing the less interesting aspects of Buddhism for Westerners, it is not so.
All my words on Buddhism are inspired by what the Buddha said. For the truth is, we can become Buddhas, by going beyond an intellectual understanding of the Dharma to actually practising meditation.
Though I prefer silent Nembutsu practice of Buddha Remembrance in combination with some kind of breath meditation to prevent my chanting from annoying the neighbours! >:)
References:
Buddha nature: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Sugatagarbha
Eight Consciousnesses Revisited: http://gandhara.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-eight-consciousnesses-revisited-poem.html
Yogacara: the Eight Consciousnesses: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogacara#The_eight_consciousnesses
20130131
Good Thoughts Destroy Evil Karma
Hui Neng said:
Think not of the past but of the future. Constantly maintain the future thoughts to be good. This is what we call the Sambhogakāya.
Just one single evil thought could destroy the good karma that has continued for one thousand years; and just one single good thought in turn could destroy the evil karma that has lived for one thousand years.
If the future thoughts are always good, you may call this the Sambhogakāya. The discriminative thinking arising from the Dharmakāya (法身↔fashen "Truth body") is called the Nirmanakāya (化身↔huashen "transformation body"). The successive thoughts that forever involve good are thus the Sambhogakāya.
Commentary:
Consider the Samboghakaya as the state of mind in which you continually and naturally produces good thoughts.
It may be thought of as the pure mind of future good, that thinks good of both self and others without discrimination.
One does not get such a mind by merely reading but also by practice of meditation.
As well, one does not stop with just meditation but also practices Buddha Remembrance, as all the Zen Patriarchs have.
For me, by practicing Buddha Remembrance & meditation in my spiritual practice for the benefit of all sentient beings, my intent is produce good thoughts to destroy evil karma.
By mindfully practicing in this manner with the benefit of all sentient beings, I believe that the good thoughts which arise will destroy not only my evil karma, but also a portion of all sentient beings' evil karma.
By doing so, I try to treat friends, loved ones and strangers, with the utmost respect.
However, I am not perfect and sometimes fail to practice for a few days. Then I return to my spiritual practice, both Buddha Remembrance and meditation focused on good thoughts.
Think not of the past but of the future. Constantly maintain the future thoughts to be good. This is what we call the Sambhogakāya.
Just one single evil thought could destroy the good karma that has continued for one thousand years; and just one single good thought in turn could destroy the evil karma that has lived for one thousand years.
If the future thoughts are always good, you may call this the Sambhogakāya. The discriminative thinking arising from the Dharmakāya (法身↔fashen "Truth body") is called the Nirmanakāya (化身↔huashen "transformation body"). The successive thoughts that forever involve good are thus the Sambhogakāya.
Commentary:
Consider the Samboghakaya as the state of mind in which you continually and naturally produces good thoughts.
It may be thought of as the pure mind of future good, that thinks good of both self and others without discrimination.
One does not get such a mind by merely reading but also by practice of meditation.
As well, one does not stop with just meditation but also practices Buddha Remembrance, as all the Zen Patriarchs have.
For me, by practicing Buddha Remembrance & meditation in my spiritual practice for the benefit of all sentient beings, my intent is produce good thoughts to destroy evil karma.
By mindfully practicing in this manner with the benefit of all sentient beings, I believe that the good thoughts which arise will destroy not only my evil karma, but also a portion of all sentient beings' evil karma.
By doing so, I try to treat friends, loved ones and strangers, with the utmost respect.
However, I am not perfect and sometimes fail to practice for a few days. Then I return to my spiritual practice, both Buddha Remembrance and meditation focused on good thoughts.
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