Maitreya said, "Discrimination is consciousness. Nondiscrimination is wisdom. Clinging to consciousness will bring disgrace but clinging to wisdom will bring purity. Disgrace leads to birth and death but purity leads to Nirvana."
"Discrimination" refers to discriminating and holding views. To the Buddhist, discrimination is a wilderness, a turmoil, a clinging, a bad path and a false way. He who travels on it will not achieve nirvana, even if he becomes a Buddhist. A mind filled with discrimination is a mind that is always in turmoil.
No matter how long he meditates, the man who discriminates will not achieve through samatha the calm mind necessary practice vipassana meditation with success. For vipassana helps the Buddhist achieve the Pure Mind.
"Pure Mind" is achieved by "abandoning the killing of living beings, abstaining therefrom; abandoning the taking of what is not given, abstaining therefrom; abandoning misconduct in sensual pleasure...abandoning false speech...malicious speech...harsh speech...gossip, abstaining therefrom. Abandoning greed, he is no more greedy. Abandoning malevolence and hatred, his heart becomes free from ill will. Abandoning wrong-view, he
becomes one of right view.”
"Consciousness" refers to rebirth in the six realms of desire, which is the destination of people with a mind of discrimination, which results in an impure mind. Thus "discrimination is consciousness" implies that discriminations leads to the evil karma associated with rebirth.
It is good karma to achieve nirvana, since the goal of Buddhist practice is to escape the wheel of karmic existence that is rebirth. For hard is it to achieve nirvana, and most consciousnesses are destined for rebirth due to evil karma from both past and present existences.
"Nondiscrimination" is associated with the mind tamed by samatha practice, for a calm mind is a mind of clarity. With a clear mind, it is possible with vipassana meditation to achieve Pure Mind.
"Wisdom" refers to fruit of the Pure Mind. For a Buddhist who has achieved Pure Mind is freed from the bonds of discrimination and the evil karma arising from acts of discrimination. Indeed, discriminations results in evil karma for anyone who acts upon it. Anyone who holds the discriminating view is sure to becloud his mind, judging other people and acting out of the ignorance that such discrimination causes. For ignorance is the result of evil karma due to discrimination.
Thus vipassana helps the Buddhist with his mind calmed by samatha practice to abandon the six worldly dusts of killing, theft, misconduct in sensual pleasure (including sexual misconduct such as adultery, child abuse, rape and sexual deviancy), wrong speech (lying, gossip, criticism, verbal abuse, and greed), ill will (malevolence and hatred), and wrong views.
Freed of the six dusts, the Buddhist becomes wise through practice of samatha-vipassana. This is why it is important to not just practice samatha and achieve the calm mind. For the Buddhist who practices samatha meditation is like a farmer who plants soy and other legumes to make a field fertile. After the season of soy is over, he can plant rice and flood the land to obtain rice and other grains, provided he alternate with grozing legumes on it. Likewise, the practice of samatha meditation not only prepares the mind of a Buddhist for vipassana meditation, it also helps him to deal with the challenges of daily living. Thus, samatha-vipassana meditation not only prepares the Buddhist to achieve Nirvana, it also prepares him to become a better person than he would be were he a farmer ignorant of Buddhist practice.
Thus "nondiscrimination is wisdom" means the abandonment of the six dusts which frees the Buddhist from ignorance and the cycle of rebirth. With continuing practice of samatha-vipassana meditation he can then understand that "clinging to consciousness will bring disgrace but clinging to wisdom will bring purity."
With the Pure Mind achieved through samatha-vipassana meditation, the Buddhist will realize that "disgrace leads to birth and death but purity leads to Nirvana."
For what is birth and death but the cycle of rebirth in Samsara, the Six Realms of Desire? And what is the Pure Mind but the means by which the Buddhist achieves Nirvana?
So go forth and practice meditation, knowing that your practice will result in the Pure Mind. Indeed, with the Pure Mind, the Buddhist shall achieve Nirvana!
References:
East Asian Yogācāra - Later history and the modern era: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Asian_Yog%C4%81c%C4%81ra#Later_history_and_the_modern_era
Discrimination: a Buddhist perspective: http://www.burmalibrary.org/docs14/Paul_Fuller.pdf
Showing posts with label Samsara. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Samsara. Show all posts
20140114
20130421
Becoming Unborn
When we are reborn in the Six Realms of Desire, samsara is not nirvana.
When we are attached to nirvana, nirvana is samsara for it leads to rebirth in samsara.
Samsara consists of the Six Realms of Desire —
When one is attached to rebirth in the human realm, that is not Buddhism but Sanatanadharma and results in rebirth. This attachment consists of a strong belief in transmigration and the permanent soul that is reincarnated solely as a human. It also violates the law of karma, which allows for rebirth in the Six Realms.
In Buddhism, non-attachment is an ideal which may be achieve by purifying the mind. The difficult route is to practice No-thought i.e. let no thought attract you to follow it to its end, but first let each thought go and return to the breath. With practice, it becomes as easy as breathing. This is the essence of Zen.
As for the easy route, Buddha Recitation leads to non-attachment as the Name-that-calls purifies the mind with earnest repetition, burning evil karma as you remember the Buddha. This is why it is called Buddha Remembrance. This is the essence of Pure Land Buddhism.
By remembering the Buddha, the mind is purified so that non-attachment to Nirvana is easily assured!
For non-attachment to Nirvana is essential to becoming Unborn.
When we are attached to nirvana, nirvana is samsara for it leads to rebirth in samsara.
Samsara consists of the Six Realms of Desire —
- the Hells,
- the Realm of Hungry Ghosts,
- the Realm of Animals,
- the Realm of Humans,
- the Realm of Daemons, and
- the Realm of the Gods
When one is attached to rebirth in the human realm, that is not Buddhism but Sanatanadharma and results in rebirth. This attachment consists of a strong belief in transmigration and the permanent soul that is reincarnated solely as a human. It also violates the law of karma, which allows for rebirth in the Six Realms.
In Buddhism, non-attachment is an ideal which may be achieve by purifying the mind. The difficult route is to practice No-thought i.e. let no thought attract you to follow it to its end, but first let each thought go and return to the breath. With practice, it becomes as easy as breathing. This is the essence of Zen.
As for the easy route, Buddha Recitation leads to non-attachment as the Name-that-calls purifies the mind with earnest repetition, burning evil karma as you remember the Buddha. This is why it is called Buddha Remembrance. This is the essence of Pure Land Buddhism.
By remembering the Buddha, the mind is purified so that non-attachment to Nirvana is easily assured!
For non-attachment to Nirvana is essential to becoming Unborn.
20130417
Truth about Nirvana (poem)
Nirvana is when
we awaken from this dream
called Life, and
realize we were never
the caterpillar dreaming
we were the butterfly.
Nor are we God.
All we are is free
from rebirth in
the Realms of Desire.
we awaken from this dream
called Life, and
realize we were never
the caterpillar dreaming
we were the butterfly.
Nor are we God.
All we are is free
from rebirth in
the Realms of Desire.
20130416
Truth about Samsara
In this world of dreams — Samsara itself —
it is impossible to imagine Ultimate Reality,
let alone fully realize Nirvana.
20130413
Pure Land, Pure Mind, Pure Zen
My reasoning for blending Zen with Pure Land is the same reason the Pure Land has a Long Pure Land sutra and a Short Pure Land sutra as well as an Amida meditation sutra: I want to cover all my bases for the afterlife.
What if Zen does not end in Buddhahood in the next life? What if in the next life, I am randomly thrown into another realm, next time the hells, the time after that human, then animal, then god, then demon, then hungry ghost? If I am destined for samsara, then what good is Zen except to develop a calm mind and to carefully observe the mind, and nothing more??
For endless rebirth in samsara is worse than the Pure Land of Bliss which is OUTSIDE the Six Realms of existence.
Once I die, because I have recited the Nembutsu, my rebirth in the Pure Land is assured by Amida Buddha's Primal Vow, once I repent from the Ten Evils.
However, it is not Buddha Recitation that burns away evil karma; it is the practice of the Ten Virtues!
All Buddha Recitation does as far as karma is concerned is ensure rebirth in the Pure Land. There I shall listen to Amida preach his Dharma, practice to be a bodhisattva, return to any of the Six Realms of existence to aid hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, humans, demons and even the gods themselves in attaining their own Buddhahood.
This is the path of the bodhisattva, and has always been the Buddhist way.
Denial of this is like disrepecting the Buddha, which is surely evil karma.
Want to erase that bad karma? Remember Buddha! How? It's simple calling the Name-that-calls!
Why? Because when I call, it is only Amida Buddha calling through me!
This is exactly why samsara is Nirvana, for Zen cure mental unrest by way of samatha-vipassana meditation.
FOr Buddha Recitation prepares us for future Nirvana in the Pure Land — not in this life — but in the afterlife of the Pure Land!
What if Zen does not end in Buddhahood in the next life? What if in the next life, I am randomly thrown into another realm, next time the hells, the time after that human, then animal, then god, then demon, then hungry ghost? If I am destined for samsara, then what good is Zen except to develop a calm mind and to carefully observe the mind, and nothing more??
For endless rebirth in samsara is worse than the Pure Land of Bliss which is OUTSIDE the Six Realms of existence.
Once I die, because I have recited the Nembutsu, my rebirth in the Pure Land is assured by Amida Buddha's Primal Vow, once I repent from the Ten Evils.
However, it is not Buddha Recitation that burns away evil karma; it is the practice of the Ten Virtues!
All Buddha Recitation does as far as karma is concerned is ensure rebirth in the Pure Land. There I shall listen to Amida preach his Dharma, practice to be a bodhisattva, return to any of the Six Realms of existence to aid hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, humans, demons and even the gods themselves in attaining their own Buddhahood.
This is the path of the bodhisattva, and has always been the Buddhist way.
Denial of this is like disrepecting the Buddha, which is surely evil karma.
Want to erase that bad karma? Remember Buddha! How? It's simple calling the Name-that-calls!
Why? Because when I call, it is only Amida Buddha calling through me!
This is exactly why samsara is Nirvana, for Zen cure mental unrest by way of samatha-vipassana meditation.
FOr Buddha Recitation prepares us for future Nirvana in the Pure Land — not in this life — but in the afterlife of the Pure Land!
20130412
Long is The Night
A verse from Dhammapada: Long is the night to one who is wakeful; long is (the journey of ) one yojana* to the traveller who is tired; long is sansara (round of rebirths) to the fool who is ignorant of the true Dhamma (the Teaching of the Buddha).
- The Fools 60
* Yojana: a measure of length, about twelve miles
20130406
The Finest Place to Practice (poem)
It is because of attachment
to the many distractions of worldliness
that, despite decades of meditation,
many devotees of the Middle Way fail
to develop even a single siddhi.
Therefore, do not become attached at all
to anything in this world,
lest you give up meditation in haste
and return to worldliness,
only to obtain rebirth in the Hells.
However, even if you develop
a siddhi, try not to show off,
lest your attachment delude you.
It is better to take up Vajrayana,
and devote yourself to a Tibetan guru.
Yet, it is said that the Nembutsu
will surely lead to Amida
and his Pure Land of Bliss. O!
The Name-that-calls is
all that the Pure Land practitioner needs!
For the Pure Land is
the finest place to practice and decide
if you wish to return
to help others by being of service
to other sentient beings in Samsara.
to the many distractions of worldliness
that, despite decades of meditation,
many devotees of the Middle Way fail
to develop even a single siddhi.
Therefore, do not become attached at all
to anything in this world,
lest you give up meditation in haste
and return to worldliness,
only to obtain rebirth in the Hells.
However, even if you develop
a siddhi, try not to show off,
lest your attachment delude you.
It is better to take up Vajrayana,
and devote yourself to a Tibetan guru.
Yet, it is said that the Nembutsu
will surely lead to Amida
and his Pure Land of Bliss. O!
The Name-that-calls is
all that the Pure Land practitioner needs!
For the Pure Land is
the finest place to practice and decide
if you wish to return
to help others by being of service
to other sentient beings in Samsara.
20130319
The 55th Step
How to be positive: use patience and love rather than complaining about how crappy life is for you.
Nobody cares but you, for that's an affliction called delusion, the ignorant craving for attention in a roomful of strangers. It's egocentricity to the core.
The world does not revolve around you or I or the other sentient beings out there in this world.
How do I know? I've walked farther of this journey called life with each step being a year: I have taken 54 steps, but stopped counting after the 12th.
Every step after the last seven steps have been steps leading to the joy found actually practicing Buddhism rather than remaining uncommitted.
One of the things about Buddhists is that they are honest, sometimes to the point that most people run away from the truth they say.
The truth is, this world is a world of birth, life and death. When we make death a taboo, this world becomes an endless cycle of birth and death.
When a Buddhist faces the King Death in the afterlife, knowing what to say to him, that shows that our training has freed us from fear.
She who goes through life ignorant of the tools that Buddhism could offer her to develop fearlessness and relieve her suffering truly is a sentient being.
For sentience means having a mind that suffers the delusion called permanence, or as the monotheists call it "the soul."
Buddhism helps the courageous to face their fears about birth, death and life by giving them tools to make the journey less unsettling than it is now.
Two of these tools are samatha and vipassana, that is, the meditation of the calm mind and the meditation to develop insight of the mind.
Nobody cares but you, for that's an affliction called delusion, the ignorant craving for attention in a roomful of strangers. It's egocentricity to the core.
The world does not revolve around you or I or the other sentient beings out there in this world.
How do I know? I've walked farther of this journey called life with each step being a year: I have taken 54 steps, but stopped counting after the 12th.
Every step after the last seven steps have been steps leading to the joy found actually practicing Buddhism rather than remaining uncommitted.
One of the things about Buddhists is that they are honest, sometimes to the point that most people run away from the truth they say.
The truth is, this world is a world of birth, life and death. When we make death a taboo, this world becomes an endless cycle of birth and death.
When a Buddhist faces the King Death in the afterlife, knowing what to say to him, that shows that our training has freed us from fear.
She who goes through life ignorant of the tools that Buddhism could offer her to develop fearlessness and relieve her suffering truly is a sentient being.
For sentience means having a mind that suffers the delusion called permanence, or as the monotheists call it "the soul."
Buddhism helps the courageous to face their fears about birth, death and life by giving them tools to make the journey less unsettling than it is now.
Two of these tools are samatha and vipassana, that is, the meditation of the calm mind and the meditation to develop insight of the mind.
20130314
The Root of Nirvana is Found in Adversity (poem)
Even though I speak of
love and compassion,
patience and wisdom,
the disciple who believes
that they only arise
out of peaceful situations
will never find love,
compassion, patience,
or wisdom on a good day,
because they arise out of
the muck and mire of a bad day.
For the root of Nirvana is not
found by contemplating your navel
but by dealing in adversity!
love and compassion,
patience and wisdom,
the disciple who believes
that they only arise
out of peaceful situations
will never find love,
compassion, patience,
or wisdom on a good day,
because they arise out of
the muck and mire of a bad day.
For the root of Nirvana is not
found by contemplating your navel
but by dealing in adversity!
20130313
Samsara is Nirvana (poem)
Samasara is Nirvana,
Nirvana, Samsara.
Empty is Nirvana
of all carnal things.
Yet he who is attached
to Nirvana will not
attain the higher mind
until one sees Samsara
as Nirvana, golden and
resplendent and pure.
Nirvana, Samsara.
Empty is Nirvana
of all carnal things.
Yet he who is attached
to Nirvana will not
attain the higher mind
until one sees Samsara
as Nirvana, golden and
resplendent and pure.
The Truth of Non-self (poem)
The self is empty of existence,
though all sentient beings claim
otherwise, even to the point of
threatening the truth talker
with imprisonment and abuse.
Yet she who talks the truth
bases her words on the Bodhi Mind
and its effect on her mind,
the sixth consciousness,
through the samadhi of truth.
Why would she who sees the truth
keep silent about Emptiness,
when it opens her eyes to
nonexistence of the self?
Only a fool agrees with the world.
This is the truth of non-self,
that the self is nonexistent.
He who denies this to be true,
is but a sentient being, lost
in this world of birth-life-death.
though all sentient beings claim
otherwise, even to the point of
threatening the truth talker
with imprisonment and abuse.
Yet she who talks the truth
bases her words on the Bodhi Mind
and its effect on her mind,
the sixth consciousness,
through the samadhi of truth.
Why would she who sees the truth
keep silent about Emptiness,
when it opens her eyes to
nonexistence of the self?
Only a fool agrees with the world.
This is the truth of non-self,
that the self is nonexistent.
He who denies this to be true,
is but a sentient being, lost
in this world of birth-life-death.
20130310
Samsara and the Buddha Worlds
In this article the six realms of samsara and the Buddha worlds will be defined. Once this is done, I will describe the six realms and what quality of the mind each realm represents. Then the Buddha world will be described, using Sukhavati (the Pure Land of Bliss) as the example. This will be followed by the references used in this article.
The Six Realms of Samsara
Samsara is represented by the Buddhist Wheel of Life, which depicts the traditional view of samsaric existence. It is the third layer found on the picture of the Buddhist Wheel of Life.
In Samsara — this world of birth-life-death — there are six realms of existence. They are divided into the three higher realms and the three lower realms. The higher realms consist of the god realm, the demi-god realm and the human realm. The lower realms consists of the animal realm, the hungry ghost realm, and the hell realm.
From a psychological aspect, in Tibetan Buddhism, the six classes of beings who dwell in the six realms and the qualities of the mind they represent are:
hell beings — anger
hungry ghosts, or pretas — miserliness
animals — stupidity
human beings — desire
demi-gods, or asuras — jealousy, and
gods — pride.
In the Abhidharma literature, the six realms are also know in Buddhism as the Desire Realm, which is the first of the Three Realms (Trailokya).
Above the Desire Realm is the Form Realm, where the Seventeen Heavens are. They are only populated by gods
Above the Form Realm is the Formless Realm, where gods without any form dwell in four types of perception spheres.
Within context of this article, the Form Realm and the Formless Realm will not be described.
Buddha World
In contrast to the six realms, the Buddha worlds (Pure Lands) are where the various Buddhas and their Pure Lands exist.
Each of the Buddhas lives for an almost infinite number of years.
Sakyamuni Buddha does not have a Buddha World and may appear to the residents of a particular Buddha world i.e. in the Pure Land of Bliss.
However, the Buddha worlds are not found in the three realms of the Abhidharma. They exist outside of Samsara.
References:
Six Realms of Samsara: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhavacakra#Third_layer:_the_six_realms_of_samsara
Six classes of beings: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Six_realms
Three Realms: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Three_realms
Three Worlds: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail%C3%B5kya
Form Realm: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Form_realm
Formless Realm: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Formless_realm
Wheel of Life: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Wheel_of_Life
Abhidharma: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Abhidharma
Abhidharma is the third collection of the Buddha's teachings, which holds the special knowledge of Buddhism, and teaches the Higher Training of Wisdom.
Tripitaka: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripitaka
Three pitakas: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Three_pitakas
The Six Realms of Samsara
Samsara is represented by the Buddhist Wheel of Life, which depicts the traditional view of samsaric existence. It is the third layer found on the picture of the Buddhist Wheel of Life.
In Samsara — this world of birth-life-death — there are six realms of existence. They are divided into the three higher realms and the three lower realms. The higher realms consist of the god realm, the demi-god realm and the human realm. The lower realms consists of the animal realm, the hungry ghost realm, and the hell realm.
From a psychological aspect, in Tibetan Buddhism, the six classes of beings who dwell in the six realms and the qualities of the mind they represent are:
In the Abhidharma literature, the six realms are also know in Buddhism as the Desire Realm, which is the first of the Three Realms (Trailokya).
Above the Desire Realm is the Form Realm, where the Seventeen Heavens are. They are only populated by gods
Above the Form Realm is the Formless Realm, where gods without any form dwell in four types of perception spheres.
Within context of this article, the Form Realm and the Formless Realm will not be described.
Buddha World
In contrast to the six realms, the Buddha worlds (Pure Lands) are where the various Buddhas and their Pure Lands exist.
Each of the Buddhas lives for an almost infinite number of years.
Sakyamuni Buddha does not have a Buddha World and may appear to the residents of a particular Buddha world i.e. in the Pure Land of Bliss.
However, the Buddha worlds are not found in the three realms of the Abhidharma. They exist outside of Samsara.
References:
Six Realms of Samsara: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhavacakra#Third_layer:_the_six_realms_of_samsara
Six classes of beings: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Six_realms
Three Realms: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Three_realms
Three Worlds: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail%C3%B5kya
Form Realm: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Form_realm
Formless Realm: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Formless_realm
Wheel of Life: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Wheel_of_Life
Abhidharma: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Abhidharma
Abhidharma is the third collection of the Buddha's teachings, which holds the special knowledge of Buddhism, and teaches the Higher Training of Wisdom.
Tripitaka: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripitaka
Three pitakas: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Three_pitakas
Shunyata (poem)
Shunyata is Emptiness.
In the Western definition,
"Emptiness" seems sad and lonely,
yet, as the Buddhist term,
Emptiness is found in creating
happy thoughts to help
learn from the past,
and look forward to tomorrow,
because anything is possible.
Shunyata is when the disciple
understands with his very being
that all phenomena is
empty of inherent existence.
Shunyata is openness.
Openness suggests open-mindedness,
and the potential of becoming Buddha.
All the disciple is required
to do is to practice
the two-fold meditation
of shamatha-vipassana,
the meditation of the calm mind
and insight meditation
Shunyata is when the disciple
first meditates to calm his mind,
and when his mind is clear,
seeks insight by just sitting.
Shunyata is thusness,
tathata, suchness, Dharmata.
When Gautama became the Buddha,
he referred to himself as Tathagata,
the one who arrives at suchness,
the appreciation of the true nature of reality,
and is liberated from Samsara,
this world of birth-life-death.
For shunyata is the seat of nirvana.
Shunyata is when the disciple, inspired by
the Four Noble Truths, understands Dependent Origination,
and is determined to achieve Buddhahood and
aspires to rescue all sentient beings as Bodhisattva.
Reference:
Shunyata: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9A%C5%ABnyat%C4%81
In the Western definition,
"Emptiness" seems sad and lonely,
yet, as the Buddhist term,
Emptiness is found in creating
happy thoughts to help
learn from the past,
and look forward to tomorrow,
because anything is possible.
Shunyata is when the disciple
understands with his very being
that all phenomena is
empty of inherent existence.
Shunyata is openness.
Openness suggests open-mindedness,
and the potential of becoming Buddha.
All the disciple is required
to do is to practice
the two-fold meditation
of shamatha-vipassana,
the meditation of the calm mind
and insight meditation
Shunyata is when the disciple
first meditates to calm his mind,
and when his mind is clear,
seeks insight by just sitting.
Shunyata is thusness,
tathata, suchness, Dharmata.
When Gautama became the Buddha,
he referred to himself as Tathagata,
the one who arrives at suchness,
the appreciation of the true nature of reality,
and is liberated from Samsara,
this world of birth-life-death.
For shunyata is the seat of nirvana.
Shunyata is when the disciple, inspired by
the Four Noble Truths, understands Dependent Origination,
and is determined to achieve Buddhahood and
aspires to rescue all sentient beings as Bodhisattva.
Reference:
Shunyata: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9A%C5%ABnyat%C4%81
20130221
Samsara: Its Causes the Origin of Suffering
Reflecting on the causes of samsara,
the origin of suffering,
the devotee learns suffering is
the inevitable consequence of karmic actions
which result from negative emotions,
being the six primary types —
Ignorance, Desire, Anger,
Pride, Doubt and Beliefs —
or the nine fetters —
Ignorance, Attachment, Aversion
Pride, Jealousy, Desire,
Anger, Doubt, and Beliefs —
and the fifty-one mental states —
all of them included within the three root poisons —
ignorance, attachment and aversion.
References:
Samsara: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Samsara
Six root destructive emotions: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Six_root_destructive_emotions
Three root poisons: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Destructive_emotions
the origin of suffering,
the devotee learns suffering is
the inevitable consequence of karmic actions
which result from negative emotions,
being the six primary types —
Ignorance, Desire, Anger,
Pride, Doubt and Beliefs —
or the nine fetters —
Ignorance, Attachment, Aversion
Pride, Jealousy, Desire,
Anger, Doubt, and Beliefs —
and the fifty-one mental states —
all of them included within the three root poisons —
ignorance, attachment and aversion.
References:
Samsara: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Samsara
Six root destructive emotions: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Six_root_destructive_emotions
Three root poisons: http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Destructive_emotions
20130217
The Eight Consciousnesses Revisited (poem)
Introduction
In this world of birth-life-death,
when we do not interact with the world we live in,
reality appears non-existent.
Through the six senses organs
and their corresponding objects
we interact with the world.
During sleep or unconscious,
our six consciousnesses are dormant.
The Sixth Consciousnesses Arise
Reality exists through our experience of phenomena.
By interacting with it through the six senses,
we constantly experience reality as being real.
Our experiences are moderated by our mind as consciousness.
Therefore reality exists because we constantly interact with it.
While awake and fully conscious, our six consciousnesses arise.
When eyes see a visual object, sights lead to visual consciousness arising.
When ears hears a sound, sounds lead to auditory consciousness arising.
When nose detects an odor, smells lead to olfactory consciousness arising.
When tongue detects tastes, tastes lead to gustatory consciousness arising.
When body feels tangibles, feelings lead to tactual consciousness arising.
When mind ideates, thoughts leads to mental consciousness arising.
the Seventh and Eighth Consciousness
From the mind arises
two more consciousnesses,
base consciousness and
storehouse consciousness.
When mind experiences a disturbing emotion or attitude, self grasping leads to deluded awareness.
When mind experiences reflexive awareness, memory leads to all-encompassing foundation consciousness.
The Sense of Self is of the Mind
According to the Tibetan Lama Thrangu Rinpoche,
When sometimes you have a sense of self,
and you think “I”, that is an operation
not of the seventh consciousness
but of the sixth.
The Three Mental Consciousnesses
In the Chittamatra and Svatantrika-Madhyamika schools,
three mental consciousnesses exist, mental consciousness,
base consciousness, and store-house consciousness.
Of these three consciousnesses, mental consciousness
and base consciousness are active, and
the store-house consciousness is not active
being a subtle, neutral level of consciousness.
In it, traces of past actions are stored as "seeds"
ready to ripen into future experience.
For their further manifestations and activities, these seeds are potential energy
retained by the store-house consciousness, which receives impressions
from all functions of each of the other seven consciousnesses.
Seventh Consciousness as Source of the Other Consciousnesses
According to conventional Yogacara tradition, deluded awareness,
being the base consciousness, is the "source" of
the other seven consciousnesses, which all evolve and transform
based on experience of phenomena which make up reality.
The Names of the Seventh and Eight Consciousnesses
According to the Tibetans lamas of Vajrayana,
base consciousness is called emotional consciousness.
Lama Chökyi Nyima calls it afflictive aspect of consciousness.
Padmakara calls it defiled emotional consciousness.
Gyurme Dorje, the Agyur Rinpoche, calls it deluded consciousness.
The store-house consciousness is called all-ground consciousness.
Called the "seed consciousness" or container consciousness,
it serves as the "container" for all experiential impressions
Store-house Consciousness Empowers Rebirth
The store-house consciousness accumulates all potential energy
for the mental and physical manifestation of a sentient being's existence.
It is the storehouse-consciousness which induces transmigration
or rebirth, causing the origination of a new existence.
Base Consciousness Focuses Inward
In Tibetan Buddhism, the base consciousness
focuses inwards on the ground of all (alaya)
that is mistaken for a self that is real,
which results in all experience of reality
then consists of the choice of wanted or unwanted.
Always present, it is the basis for
all ordinary mental states,
be it virtuous, non-virtuous or neutral,
The base consciousness only stops
when the Bodhi Mind arises,
in the highest state of samadhi,
or during the non-abiding nirvana —
the great nirvana beyond
both ordinary existence in Samsara —
this world of birth-life-death, —
and in the basic nirvana of self-power.
Tathagata and Alaya Vijnana are One
Both the Lankavatara Sutra and Ch'an & Zen agree:
the Tathagatagarbha and alaya vijnana are one,
identical and fundamentally pure.
Atman is the permanent, unchanging self,
and prakrti, the original and primal nature
from which all things evolve, whether
it be mental, emotional and physical.
Though the Tathagatagarbha looks similar to atman
and alaya vijnana, prakrti, the Tathagatagarbha
conforms to the non-self doctrine,
and alaya vijnana is the mind-stream.
Mind-stream or consciousness-stream,
both streams are the same, but
cannot be reified as atman at all.
Ayatana (sense bases): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayatana
Salayatana (the six sense bases): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E1%B9%A2a%E1%B8%8D%C4%81yatana
Eight consciousnesses: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight_Consciousnesses
http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Eight_consciousnesses
In this world of birth-life-death,
when we do not interact with the world we live in,
reality appears non-existent.
Through the six senses organs
and their corresponding objects
we interact with the world.
During sleep or unconscious,
our six consciousnesses are dormant.
The Sixth Consciousnesses Arise
Reality exists through our experience of phenomena.
By interacting with it through the six senses,
we constantly experience reality as being real.
Our experiences are moderated by our mind as consciousness.
Therefore reality exists because we constantly interact with it.
While awake and fully conscious, our six consciousnesses arise.
When eyes see a visual object, sights lead to visual consciousness arising.
When ears hears a sound, sounds lead to auditory consciousness arising.
When nose detects an odor, smells lead to olfactory consciousness arising.
When tongue detects tastes, tastes lead to gustatory consciousness arising.
When body feels tangibles, feelings lead to tactual consciousness arising.
When mind ideates, thoughts leads to mental consciousness arising.
the Seventh and Eighth Consciousness
From the mind arises
two more consciousnesses,
base consciousness and
storehouse consciousness.
When mind experiences a disturbing emotion or attitude, self grasping leads to deluded awareness.
When mind experiences reflexive awareness, memory leads to all-encompassing foundation consciousness.
The Sense of Self is of the Mind
According to the Tibetan Lama Thrangu Rinpoche,
When sometimes you have a sense of self,
and you think “I”, that is an operation
not of the seventh consciousness
but of the sixth.
The Three Mental Consciousnesses
In the Chittamatra and Svatantrika-Madhyamika schools,
three mental consciousnesses exist, mental consciousness,
base consciousness, and store-house consciousness.
Of these three consciousnesses, mental consciousness
and base consciousness are active, and
the store-house consciousness is not active
being a subtle, neutral level of consciousness.
In it, traces of past actions are stored as "seeds"
ready to ripen into future experience.
For their further manifestations and activities, these seeds are potential energy
retained by the store-house consciousness, which receives impressions
from all functions of each of the other seven consciousnesses.
Seventh Consciousness as Source of the Other Consciousnesses
According to conventional Yogacara tradition, deluded awareness,
being the base consciousness, is the "source" of
the other seven consciousnesses, which all evolve and transform
based on experience of phenomena which make up reality.
The Names of the Seventh and Eight Consciousnesses
According to the Tibetans lamas of Vajrayana,
base consciousness is called emotional consciousness.
Lama Chökyi Nyima calls it afflictive aspect of consciousness.
Padmakara calls it defiled emotional consciousness.
Gyurme Dorje, the Agyur Rinpoche, calls it deluded consciousness.
The store-house consciousness is called all-ground consciousness.
Called the "seed consciousness" or container consciousness,
it serves as the "container" for all experiential impressions
Store-house Consciousness Empowers Rebirth
The store-house consciousness accumulates all potential energy
for the mental and physical manifestation of a sentient being's existence.
It is the storehouse-consciousness which induces transmigration
or rebirth, causing the origination of a new existence.
Base Consciousness Focuses Inward
In Tibetan Buddhism, the base consciousness
focuses inwards on the ground of all (alaya)
that is mistaken for a self that is real,
which results in all experience of reality
then consists of the choice of wanted or unwanted.
Always present, it is the basis for
all ordinary mental states,
be it virtuous, non-virtuous or neutral,
The base consciousness only stops
when the Bodhi Mind arises,
in the highest state of samadhi,
or during the non-abiding nirvana —
the great nirvana beyond
both ordinary existence in Samsara —
this world of birth-life-death, —
and in the basic nirvana of self-power.
Tathagata and Alaya Vijnana are One
Both the Lankavatara Sutra and Ch'an & Zen agree:
the Tathagatagarbha and alaya vijnana are one,
identical and fundamentally pure.
Atman is the permanent, unchanging self,
and prakrti, the original and primal nature
from which all things evolve, whether
it be mental, emotional and physical.
Though the Tathagatagarbha looks similar to atman
and alaya vijnana, prakrti, the Tathagatagarbha
conforms to the non-self doctrine,
and alaya vijnana is the mind-stream.
Mind-stream or consciousness-stream,
both streams are the same, but
cannot be reified as atman at all.
Ayatana (sense bases): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayatana
Salayatana (the six sense bases): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E1%B9%A2a%E1%B8%8D%C4%81yatana
Eight consciousnesses: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight_Consciousnesses
http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Eight_consciousnesses
20130212
The Four Worths (poem)
This world is worth not clinging to,
So this mind is empty of clinging.
Let forty-nine repetitions of Nembutsu
burn away all evil karma, and
create great karma to fruit in
the Buddha World called Sukhavati.
This life is worth keeping.
This heart beats due to body nature,
But Buddha Nature is freely shared
by 102 Buddhas, of which Amitabha
is the most compassionate and wise!
For he calls to all from the Pure Land!
This Teaching is worth learning.
All the willing need to do is listen,
Not only with the ears but with the heart!
Only then is the seed of Buddha Nature
planted in the heart of each Buddhist.
With mindful practice, it becomes Self Nature.
This universe is worth knowing,
And it all becomes evident from
years of meditation and Buddha Recitation
that this old fool is neither Enlightened
nor has he ever entered into Samadhi.
However, the refund I shall get is the Pure Land!
So this mind is empty of clinging.
Let forty-nine repetitions of Nembutsu
burn away all evil karma, and
create great karma to fruit in
the Buddha World called Sukhavati.
This life is worth keeping.
This heart beats due to body nature,
But Buddha Nature is freely shared
by 102 Buddhas, of which Amitabha
is the most compassionate and wise!
For he calls to all from the Pure Land!
This Teaching is worth learning.
All the willing need to do is listen,
Not only with the ears but with the heart!
Only then is the seed of Buddha Nature
planted in the heart of each Buddhist.
With mindful practice, it becomes Self Nature.
This universe is worth knowing,
And it all becomes evident from
years of meditation and Buddha Recitation
that this old fool is neither Enlightened
nor has he ever entered into Samadhi.
However, the refund I shall get is the Pure Land!
20130207
Caught on the Endless Wheel
All states that can be returned to external causes are obviously not you, but that which cannot be returned to anywhere, if it is not you, what is it? Therefore, you should know that your mind is fundamentally wonderful, bright, and pure and that because of your involvement with the things of the world you have covered it up and lost it. In this way you are caught on the endless wheel of becoming this or that, sinking and floating in that sea of endless becoming. Awaken yourself now to your own bright mind.
— Surangama SutraExternal causes refer to worldliness and the risk of evil karma.
The mind that is "fundamentally wonderful, bright, and pure" is the mind aware of Buddha Nature, being Bodhi Mind.
By getting involved with the world, the Buddhist covers up her Buddha Nature, and her Bodhi Mind is lost.
"The endless wheel of becoming this or that" is Samsara, this world of birth-life-death.
"That sea of endless becoming" too is Samsara.
"Awaken" refers to mindful practice that develops wisdom and compassion for all sentient beings, including being of service to others.
"Your own bright mind" is Bodhi Mind.
To awaken the mind to Bodhi Mind, meditation with Buddha Recitation will develop wisdom and compassion.
Originally posted: March 11, 2006 at 1524H
Updated: February 7, 2013 0051H
20130203
How to Damage Samsara
Samsara and Nirvana are
empty of permanence and
full of impermanence.
Thus Emptiness aligns with
the no-self principle.
Develop doubts about Samsara
as real to understand Emptiness.
Developing doubts about Emptiness
will damage Samsara until
only Nirvana remains.
empty of permanence and
full of impermanence.
Thus Emptiness aligns with
the no-self principle.
Develop doubts about Samsara
as real to understand Emptiness.
Developing doubts about Emptiness
will damage Samsara until
only Nirvana remains.
20130202
Ultimate Liberation
Because of Birth and Death,
Develop the Bodhi Mind;
With deep Faith and Vows,
Recite the Buddha's Name. — Elder Master Ch'e Wu
"Birth and Death" refers to samsara, the cycle of birth-life-death.
"Bodhi Mind" refers to the mind awakened to the spirit of Enlightenment. It consists of two aspects: the determination to achieve Buddhahood and the aspiration to rescue all sentient beings.
"Faith" refers to the faith in the Primal Vow and the belief in Amida's Pure Land.
"Vows" refers to the 48 Vows of Amida Buddha.
"Buddha's Name" refers to the name of Amida.
Reminded by suffering and death, the Buddhist's current practice is for the goal of ultimate liberation, to save himself and others.
At first glance, the previous statement seems depressing and sad. However, it is actually the affirmation of two facts of life: people do suffer and fear death.
Thus suffering and death motivate the practitioner to seek liberation from suffering and death.
Liberation is achieved through Buddha Recitation and meditation by freeing the mind from suffering and the fear of death.
Buddha Recitation helps free the practitioner from the fear of death by affirming the Primal Vow. With his rebirth in the Pure Land fully assured, the fear of death of removed.
Meditations helps free the mind from suffering by calming it. Once calm, the mind is able to clearly see hope where once suffering offered despair.
Through instruction and practice, one learns to let go of the thoughts in one's mind, clinging to neither positive nor negative thoughts.
Without clinging to thoughts, one is able to produce good thoughts which lead to good karma (actions).
For example, I am currently thinking of joy. The good action is viewing the world as a good place to live. This leads to a positive outlook on life. I am ready to greet the day. Nothing can change my mind about this.
Freed of suffering, I am able to choose to think good thoughts and remain focused on them.
Develop the Bodhi Mind;
With deep Faith and Vows,
Recite the Buddha's Name. — Elder Master Ch'e Wu
"Birth and Death" refers to samsara, the cycle of birth-life-death.
"Bodhi Mind" refers to the mind awakened to the spirit of Enlightenment. It consists of two aspects: the determination to achieve Buddhahood and the aspiration to rescue all sentient beings.
"Faith" refers to the faith in the Primal Vow and the belief in Amida's Pure Land.
"Vows" refers to the 48 Vows of Amida Buddha.
"Buddha's Name" refers to the name of Amida.
Reminded by suffering and death, the Buddhist's current practice is for the goal of ultimate liberation, to save himself and others.
At first glance, the previous statement seems depressing and sad. However, it is actually the affirmation of two facts of life: people do suffer and fear death.
Thus suffering and death motivate the practitioner to seek liberation from suffering and death.
Liberation is achieved through Buddha Recitation and meditation by freeing the mind from suffering and the fear of death.
Buddha Recitation helps free the practitioner from the fear of death by affirming the Primal Vow. With his rebirth in the Pure Land fully assured, the fear of death of removed.
Meditations helps free the mind from suffering by calming it. Once calm, the mind is able to clearly see hope where once suffering offered despair.
Through instruction and practice, one learns to let go of the thoughts in one's mind, clinging to neither positive nor negative thoughts.
Without clinging to thoughts, one is able to produce good thoughts which lead to good karma (actions).
For example, I am currently thinking of joy. The good action is viewing the world as a good place to live. This leads to a positive outlook on life. I am ready to greet the day. Nothing can change my mind about this.
Freed of suffering, I am able to choose to think good thoughts and remain focused on them.
20130123
Emptiness As Everything and Nothing (poem)
Emptiness is when one
sees no difference
between self and other,
man and Buddha, man and woman,
samsara and Nirvana.
For Emptiness concerns
everything and nothing.
However, to see no difference
between life and death
is foolish as there is only
birth, life and death.
For birth is full of life,
and death is empty of
both life and birth.
Yet life consists of
birth, itself and death.
And the mind that chooses
life over death does not
understand samsara.
Likewise, he who seeks
Nirvana should let go of
seeking Nirvana in order
to arrive on the Other Shore.
sees no difference
between self and other,
man and Buddha, man and woman,
samsara and Nirvana.
For Emptiness concerns
everything and nothing.
However, to see no difference
between life and death
is foolish as there is only
birth, life and death.
For birth is full of life,
and death is empty of
both life and birth.
Yet life consists of
birth, itself and death.
And the mind that chooses
life over death does not
understand samsara.
Likewise, he who seeks
Nirvana should let go of
seeking Nirvana in order
to arrive on the Other Shore.
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