Like a Virgin (satire)

One popular white lie is to say you're still a virgin. Originally, the word "virgin" meant only "unmarried".

Today, its meaning refers to a person who is innocent of carnal knowledge, both of the heart and in the flesh. However, the original meaning still applies to all unmarried single people, as born-again virgins.

Yet the ideal of the virgin is to remain pure and innocent of carnal desire and all temptations of the flesh by dedicating yourself to a worthy cause, be it a religious theology or a political ideology or even a humanist philosophy.

This virginal ideal shall be accomplished by being of service to the cause of your choice, provided you remain free of desire and temptation, all for the common good of society.

By maintaining a chaste mindset, the dedicated virgin is able to sublimate desire into service for her chosen cause.

Since such a path is only an ideal, few of us are able to remain a virgin unless we are free of desire in the midst of the temptations of the modern world, be it television and other forms of technology.

Though a lesser man might succumb to carnal desires in the midst of temptation, the superior man has made the worthy cause noble.

Yet dedication to the noble cause requires the strength of will to purify the mind until it becomes virginal, and thus free of desire.

Desire thus is sublimated into unconditional love for humanity.

This may be sought through meditation and prayer, be it through yoga and/or other spiritual means. However, such dedication also requires each of us to reduce the use of alcohol, cigarettes, illegal drugs, and even meat, depending on the circumstances.

For the purpose of reducing consumption is to dedicate ourselves to the goal of the pure mind and the pure heart that remains free of desire.

Ultimately a person by sheer will and determination will become like a virgin, free of desire to consume and ready to act for the greater good.

Thus the ideal of the virgin is to free yourself from crass materialism, and consciously choose to be of service to the greater good in society.

Such service can be found through work, volunteerism and similar social activities.

Yet only a few people are dedicated to a noble cause.

Whatever path is chosen, the noble cause is each person's choice and requires a simple code of conduct: acceptance that whatever is asked of you, you do it as long as it harms no one.

Thus the ideal of the virgin is the path of innocence, free of the world yet being in service to the greater good of society.

Free of clinging to the world yet ready toserve for the good of us all, those of us dedicated to the noble cause shall realize that the white lie -"still a virgin" - is the metaphor for feeling like a virgin, untouched by desire and free of temptation.

Forgiveness the Economy of the Heart

Forgiveness is the economy of the heart... Forgiveness saves the expense of anger, the cost of hatred, the waste of spirits. — Hannah More

Moderation is encouraged by forgiveness. When for anger is spent, hatred is cast away, and the spirit is redeemed.

Just as gold is refined by fire, so too do we pass through the hells of life to transcend and encounter briefly the momentary joy due to the power of love, namely loving-kindness which is the wellspring of human compassion.

Due to the working of the Primal Vow, which is enabled through the power of love, it is said in Pure Land Buddhism that the Buddhist is truly assured of rebirth in the Pure Land of Bliss.

With this mantra am I reborn there: Namu Amida Butsu.

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Original posted: January 7, 2006 8:56 PM

Reference:

Primal Vow: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primal_Vow‎

Only Human / Ningendesu / 人間です

私は西洋の理想に同化さしていたが、
私は日本人の祖先のように人間です。
西と東は、この中心部に集中している。

Romaji transliteration:
Watashi wa seiyō no risō ni dōka sa shite itaga,
watashi wa nihonjin no sosen no yō ni ningendesu.
Nishi to azuma wa, kono chūshin-bu ni shūchū shite iru.

English translation:
(Though) I am assimilated to ideals of the West,
I am only human like my Japanese ancestors.
East and West are one in my heart.

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.

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.

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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

Pure Mind, Pure Heart: a Poem of the Heart-Mind

With humility and patience,
She who succeeds in mastering
her ego is given the greatest treasure
of all: the Pure Mind bathed in Wisdom
and the Pure Heart of Loving-kindness
arising out single-minded meditation
thinking of Good today and tomorrow
for the benefit of all sentient beings.

The Buddha is not a God but Inspiration for Buddhahood

Regarding Buddhism, the Buddha is not a god, yet Buddha-essence is like a gift given to everyone on birth. She who accepts this wisdom shall uncover the Buddha within.

It takes listening carefully to the Buddha's story to awaken this essence, and every Buddhist who keeps his own story a secret is turning the Buddha away. For everyone is free to become a Buddha, yet few of them are ready.

For they who are not ready have yet to understand what the Buddha means to them.

For me, the Buddha means peaceful bliss and the aspiration to be of service to anyone seeking the calm awakening that meditation provides.

If this is a turn-off to atheists, then that's their karma for confusing Mahayana Buddhism with monotheism.

In my opinion Zen Buddhists are closet atheists. They achieve their Buddha-hood by self-power.

Because self-power sometimes leads to ego delusion, this may explain why Zen Buddhists do not think much of chanting a mantra or Buddha Remembrance (repeating the Nembutsu (Nian-fo) until one reaches samadhi).

Yet the fathers of Zen and the Chinese Ch'an master before them praised the Nian-fo practice since it quickly hastens the practitioner's path to Buddha-hood due to intent to be reborn in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

Zen masters do not understand this as their self-power path blinds them, and thus prevents them from considering the easy way to Buddha-hood.

I on the other hand find zazen practice to only contribute to hemorrhoids rather than satori. YMMV

For Nian-fo practice quickly aids the mind-stream in achieving Buddha-hood, as the Pure Land that in which the practitioner believes he will be reborn is surely the optimal place to swiftly achieve Buddha-hood.

Any Zen master who doubts this is thus blinded by the ego delusion arising from his flavor of self-power.

Indeed, it is the Other-power of Nian-fo that helps the Nembutsu practitioner to achieve what the Theravada and Zen practitioners cannot: rebirth in a Pure Land that helps all Buddhists who have faith in Other-power to quickly help them achieve Nirvana and ultimately, Buddha-hood.

For the Pure Land is conducive to achieve Buddha-hood.

Thus it is by Buddha Remembrance that Nembutsu practitioners become Buddha.

The Meaning of Good (poem)

Listen: right means good.
Good means pure, pure means right, and
once again, listen:
Right concentration arises
from a good meditation
to help attain the pure mind.

See: loving-kindness is good.
For compassion pours from a pure heart
working with the right mind to see
the Buddha world in all its goodness
certainly is the Pure Land,
until everything is right with the world.

Speak of the goodness
in the heartmind that is pure,
for right-mindedness speaks
with a good heart to all
who seek the pure mind
For this is the meaning of good.

True Heart, True Mind (poem)

the true heart can taste
the difference between love and hate,
yet the boundless compassion
of the awakened
transcends this difference,
and the boundless wisdom
of the enlightened
sees love and hate for what they are:
manifestations of passion,
delusions rooted in desire.

the true mind knows all of this,
and thus so do I...
even so... but then...
and then again...
always do I return to thee,
smiling and laughing,
sharing the love that arises
from the innocence we create together.

Your Heart Has Blossomed

If your heart has blossomed
and given birth to a wish
for what can't be expressed,
your mind not enmeshed
in sensual passions:
you're said to be
in the up-flowing stream.

-Dhammapada, 16, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.

Consciousness as Creator

Mind precedes & initiates all phenomena,
mind is their chief, mind is their maker...
When one speaks or performs an action
with a mind that is internally all pure,
then happiness & pleasure follows,
like a shadow that never departs...

Dhammapada 2: "Phenomena are preceded by the heart, ruled by the heart, made of the heart. If you speak or act with a calm, bright heart, then happiness follows you, like a shadow that never leaves."

Difficult to detect and very subtle,
mind can seize & take up any object,
so let any wise being guard the mind,
for a guarded mind brings happiness...

Dhammapada 36: "Let the discerning man guard the mind, so difficult to detect and extremely subtle, seizing whatever it desires. A guarded mind brings happiness."

Neither mother, nor father, nor any other
family member can do greater good both
for oneself and for others as well, than
the well controlled & directed mind...

Dhammapada 43: Whatever a mother, father or other kinsman might do for you, the well-directed mind can do for you even better.

Rise Above Passion: a Second Look (poem)

Chasing passion,
my desire has ended,
now to be fulfilled.
I chased the girl of my dreams.
Who can do better than that?

Time and time again
crawling after mirages,
I had fooled myself.
Now I rise above passion,
and start to know what love is.

Indeed, love makes clear
the heart shrouded in passion.
It controls the mind
with the music of the heart,
until passion goes away.

For love is greater
than the conditions we place
on the ones we love.
Though passion has brought me here,
it is love that holds me close.

Rise above passion (poem)

Chasing passion,
my desire is endless,
always unfulfilled.
Why chase the girl of my dreams?
I can do better than that!

Time and time again
crawling after mirages,
I have fooled myself.
When I rise above passion,
I start to know what love is.

Indeed, love makes clear
the heart clouded by passion.
It controls the mind
with the music of the heart,
until passion fades away.

For love is greater
than the conditions we place
on the ones we love.
Though passion has brought me here,
it is love that holds me close.