August 10, 2009
August 09, 2009
we are all everything
Quotations attributed to the historical Buddha
All that we are is the result of what we have thought. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him. If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him.
All things appear and disappear because of the concurrence of causes and conditions. Nothing ever exists entirely alone; everything is in relation to everything else.
He who experiences the unity of life sees his own Self in all beings, and all beings in his own Self, and looks on everything with an impartial eye.
No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.
Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others.
You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection.
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Buddhism teaches that we are already Buddha whether we realize it or not. "Realize" means "to make real". In Buddhism the realization that is referred to is not something that happens just in our minds or to our perceptions. It is said that realization must penetrate every cell of our bodies, down to the marrow of our bones and out to each tip of our hair. This realization that penetrates our body and mind goes beyond our thinking process. When we practice zazen, our attitude shouldn't be to try to stop our thinking, but rather to set aside our belief in our thinking, or to set aside our belief that our point of view is right so our intention to practice can settle into our flesh and bones. Suzuki Roshi emphasized practice through Right Effort both in zazen and in our everyday activity. He emphasized wholehearted effort, by bringing our whole body and mind, bringing ourwhole attention, our undivided attention to whatever we are doing. In this way, there is no separation between ourselves and our activity. When our attention is undivided, our experience of ourselves and of the world is undivided.
There are some instructions called "The Way to Practice Throughout the Day" that were given to laymen when they visited Zen monasteries in the 14th century: "the way to practice throughout the day is to throw yourself completely into each activity." When you do zazen, do nothing else but zazen; do not think about enlightenment, do not think about Buddhist teaching. When you go to service, hold the sutra card with two hands and chant wholeheartedly; do not think about the meaning of the sutras, do not think about zazen. When you go to breakfast, fully attend to the food in front of you and realize the mind of eating; and when you rest, just rest. So when you sit zazen, just do zazen; and when you work, just work. This spirit of just sitting or just working becomes common to all our activity when we practice. In this way, wherever we are, whatever we are doing, we have the opportunity to practice. We don't have to be in the meditation hall or in the mountains to practice. Our practice isn't even dependent on meditation. Since we are already Buddha, we can never leave the environment of practice.
Buddhism teaches that it is not even "we" who practice, but the Buddha we are who practices. We just resume our true nature, or our true nature resumes itself. Suzuki Roshi, quoting Dogen, said, "So we say, we practice our way not for ourselves and not for others. We practice our way for the sake of our way. There is no other reason why we practice our way. We just want to go back to our home as a duck wants to return to water... like a traveller who comes back and lies down in his own bed."- The Buddha We Are by Josho Pat Phelan
Dying to all but One.
Dying to all personalities.
Dying to all desire.
One alone is left.
Illusions gone.
Hurry death, come quickly, return me to my home.
I sing for you, I dance for you, I joy in the knowing
that each last breath I take,
brings a new first breath.
Let me desire only the One.
Let me be consumed by the fire of that desire.
And let me hold back not one thing,
for I know in the release of death,
I have the All.
Come, o death, you are surely welcome here.
http://www.thepathofenlightenment.com/2009/07/02/death-my-friend/
August 08, 2009
Cakkavatti-Sīhanāda Sutta (DN26): Be an Island to Yourself: Take Refuge in Your Ownself
My wife subscribes to the SGI publications and sometimes when I'm looking for something to read I look at them.
Apparently there is only one buddhist concept that is worth talking about, "Mentor Disciple". This is said to contain everything of any value.
It would seem that anything can be achieved through praising your mentor, and without a mentor nothing can be achieved.
I can't buy it. I wonder who can. What I really wonder is who would perpetrate this.
I found this article at the newly revised Buddist Door
http://www.buddhistdoor.com/
Cakkavatti-Sīhanāda Sutta (DN26): Be an Island to Yourself: Take Refuge in Your Ownself
K.Wong
Introduction
The Word of Gotama Buddha in the Cakkavatti-Sīhanāda-sutta (DN26) which captivates and inspires me to the utmost is reproduced as follows :
Be islands unto yourselves, be refuge unto yourselves with no other refuge. Let the Dhamma be your island, let the Dhamma be your refuge with no other refuge. And how does one dwell as an island unto himself …?
Here, one abides contemplating body as body, ardent, clearly aware and mindful, having put aside hankering and fretting for the world, he abides contemplating feelings as feelings, …. He abides contemplating mind as mind, … He abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects , ardent, clearly aware and mindful, having put aside hankering and fretting for the world.
Exoteric or external teaching of taking refuge in Buddha, Dhamma and Saṅgha may be misleading or misinterpreted unknowingly some times. The learning exoteric Buddhists generally take refuge externally from the Buddha, Dhamma and Saṅgha with the hope they will be blessed from their worship bestowed upon them by an external Buddha. They erroneously regard the Buddha as an external supernatural Agent who can bless the devotees from his supernormal power (abhiññā). This is actually an incorrigible, subtle attachment in Buddhism as well as in Monotheism.
The true teaching of Buddhism unravels that the exoteric worship of Buddha is a form of attachment of attachment (imagination of imagination) which actually impedes liberation (vimutti). Likewise, the true tenet of Monotheism unveils that such exoteric worship of God is the idolatry of idolatry (shirk shirk). The idolatry of idolatry is the false imagination in the unreal imagination. Succinctly put, it is mental obsessions (papañca) caused by mental fabrications. Mental fabrications are false mental constructs. The soteriological agenda of religion is to eliminate false mental constructs rooted in ignorance (avijjā).
In the Mahaparinibbana-sutta (DN16), Gotama Buddha promulgates that every Buddhist must regard himself or herself as an island. He a or she must take refuge in his or her own island in order to be liberated. In other words, a Buddhist treading on the right Buddha Path must take refuge in his or her own self-development and self-cultivation of mental rectification through training in morality (sīla), concentration (samādhi) and wisdom (paññā). This noble (ariya) training is undertaken through personal development and self-cultivation of the Noble Eight Fold Path (Ariyo Ațțhangiko Maggo). This is the golden admonition of Gotama Buddha who expounds the Buddhist right concept of taking refuge in oneself in the Mahāparinibbana Sutta (DN16). Taking refuge in oneself is know one’s True Self. Knowing one’s True Self, one knows the Buddha.
This soteriological message of taking refuge in one’s own island was communicated to his foremost and immediate disciples headed by Ānanda before the Goatma Buddha passed into parinibbāna. Taking refuge in oneself connotes that one ought to strive diligently, resolutely and ardently in the tranquility and insight meditation so as to develop wisdom (paññā) and virtue (sīla). The liberating or non-discriminative wisdom and virtue are the Attributes and Essence of the Buddha. Only wisdom and virtue can help one completely avert the pitfalls of committing misdeeds or evil actions or crimes.
The second portion of the golden admonition of Gotama Buddha is actually the concise instruction or guide on the application of the four foundations of mindfulness (cattāri satipațțhāna). The insightful application of four foundations of mindfulness is the Buddhist meditational expedient device or skillful means (upāya) of employing Anattā (Insubstantiality) strategy to obliterate the self-centric ego superimposed by an ordinary worldling’s (puthujjana) ignorance of the Absolute Truth of Dependent Co-arising (Pațiccasamuppāda). This soteriological strategy of cattāri satipațțhāna eliminates the grasping (upādāna) upon the five aggregates (pañcakkhandhā) as this is I; this is mine; this belongs to me. The purpose of executing the Anattā (Insubstantiality) strategy of right mindfulness (sammā Sati) and clear awareness or comprehension (sampajañña) is to annihilate the illusively superimposed self-centric ego (attā or ahaṃkāra).
Right Mindfulness is the 7th training aggregate of the Buddhist soteriological Dhammic faring in the Noble Eight Fold Path. The annihilation of self-centric ego through the right Mindfulness and clear awareness of the Insubstantiality or Selflessness of the five aggregates effectively destroys one’s attachment or aversion when external environmental stimuli impinge upon the six human sense faculties. The destruction of attachment and aversion obliterates the arising of the unwholesome states of greed (lobha) , hatred (dosa) and delusion (moha). These three poisons of life motivate the worldlings to commit misdeeds or evil actions or crimes.
The non-arising of these three poisons of life of greed-hatred-delusion through the wisdom of Anattā prevents a practising Buddhist from committing misdeeds, evil actions or crimes. The meditation skill of the application of the four foundations of mindfulness consummates the right efforts (sammā vāyāma) of preventing the arising of evil thoughts that have not arisen and the eliminating of evil thought that have arisen. The four establishments of mindfulness are powerful spiritual defences guarding the six sense doors from being corrupted with taints or cankers (āsavas). Taints or cankers are mental impurities produced by self-centric ego. Taints or cankers condition human misbehaviours or crimes.
Right efforts is the 6th training aggregate of the Noble Eight Fold Path. This completely formulated Buddhist Path shepherds a Buddhist towards soteriological goal of complete mental appeasement known as Nibbāna. Evil thoughts condition evil actions through the body, speech and mind. The application of four foundations of mindfulness invigorates the safeguarding of the Buddhist Precepts, namely the Five Precepts (Pañcasī̄las) and the Ten Good Precepts (Dasasīlas) to avert the pitfalls of human moral fallibilities and vulnerabilities. These moral weaknesses condition misbehaviours or crimes.
Let’s examine more closely the right practice of the four foundations of mindfulness. ‘Contemplating upon the body, feelings, mind and mind-objects clearly aware and mindful’’ denotes that the sensual experiences of the body, feelings, thoughts and phenomena are mindfully and heedfully perceived. The mindfulness and heedfulness are supported by clearly comprehension of the Insubstantiality of the five aggregates moment by moment through the wisdom of insight. Most importantly, all perceptions are mindfully noted without superimposing the illusory self-centric ego upon the human personality. In other words, there is no whatsoever grasping (upādāna) upon the five aggregates. Letting go all attachment and aversion is heedfully and vigilantly executed moment by moment. The mind is said to be purified if and only if it is not directed and empowered by the illusory self-centric ego or it is not corrupted by grasping of Iness or mineness. Self-centric ego creates the false view of self-identity (sakkāyadițțhi) of Iness (Ahaṃkāra) or Mineness (Mamakāra).
‘Put aside hankering and freeting for the world’ instructs that the practioner does not grasp upon or cling to the five aggregates as this is I; this is mine; this belongs to me. In other world, the Insubstantiality or Selflessness (Anattā) of the human personality as well as the Unity of the multiplicity of the world is recognized or acknowledged mindfully with complete clear awareness of all sensual activities moment by moment . The Anattā strategy of right mindfulness and heedfulness is aimed as depersonalizing the five aggregates as this is not I; this is not mine ; this does not belong to me. Depersonalization of the five aggregates is non-alienation of the human personality from the cosmic Unity of Existence. Everything or every being is an integral part of the larger whole. No discrete entity exists. The Unity of Existence of Interconnectedness and interrelatedness among all things or beings is the only timeless Reality veiled by the apparent separate multiplicity. The Unity of Existence is the right knowledge of Anattā or Pațiccasamuppāda.
The Anattā strategy of mindfulness meditation (satipațțhāna-bhāvanā) annihilates the ego self in sitting, walking, standing, lying and in all forms of daily activities. Consequently, the practice of the four foundations of mindfulness makes the practioner fully aware of the pitfalls of the slightest moral flaws through heedless grasping or clinging. In this way, the four foundations of mindfulness becomes the most powerful Buddhist self-defence system of heedfulness or vigilance against the commission of misdeeds or evil actions or crimes. All the six sense doors are well guarded so that the mind is not tainted with cankers (āsavas).
The practice of cattāri satipațțhāna is moral self-protection through complete moral heedfulness or vigilance. Self-protection is not selfish protection. It is moral self-rectification, personal development and self-cultivation. Self-cultivation is self-control, ethical improvement and wisdom development heading towards human perfection. Human perfection is innate human potentiality existing in all human beings. Self-enlightenment or Gnosis is the self-redemption or resurrection of the innate perfection in Man. All world’s great religions are the teaching of unveiling the intrinsic supremacy of Man. Buddhism is no exception. It is common aspiration of any genuine spiritual practioner to strive on diligently, resolutely and ardently to arrive at the final station of human perfection in wisdom and virtue.
In the Mahāparinibbā̄na-sutta (DN16), before the parinibbāna of Gotama Buddha, he admonished his disciples to strive diligently for Nibbāna. Nibbāna is the state of human perfection in wisdom and virtue. Likewise, in Monotheism, all lovers of God are commanded by God to see God and to be born of God. To see and to be born of God is to resurrect the innate human perfection in wisdom and virtue.
Human perfection in wisdom and virtue is not only the highest self-protection, it is also the first class human asset that can transmit the authentic message of the Buddha to others to illuminate the world. It is this self-protection that safeguards others. Moral self-protection safeguarding others is the protection of others. Protection of others is protection of the interests, welfare and wellbeing , rights of an individual, a community, a society, a nation and the world at large. Oneself and all others are the systemic parts of the larger whole of systemic unity of existence. When an individual is taught to cease his or her conduct of misbehaviour or the commission of crimes, the whole family, the society, the nation and the world benefit from the systemic unity of existence. This is so because every human being is a systemic contigent condition of the systemic unity of existence of the entire human family. Conversely, badly or evil behaviour of any individual create a systemic risk or risks that may erupt into a systemic crisis or even catastrophe that harms the whole human family.
For instance, the development of systemic risks rooted in human cravings, selfish impulses, laxities and irresponsibilities of some fallible individuals have harmed many innocent victims in the 2008-2009 global financial crisis. The entire human family of the global village is being negatively affected.
Another concrete example of the failure to protect the security of the treacherous sea off the Horn of Africa by Somali government has facilitated the pirates menacing the security of the international waterway. The treacherous piracy does not merely affect adversely the balance sheets of the victimized shipping or logistic companies alone. They affect the regular incomes of families, businesses and governments of international trading nations. GNP (Gross National Product) is closely related to GNH (Gross National Happiness) for underdeveloped, developing and developed nations.
In the Satipațțhāna Saṃyutta (SN19), Gotama Buddha promulgates the golden rule of life thus : Protecting oneself, one protects others. Protecting others, one protects oneself. Being nice to others is being nice to oneself. Cessation of misbehaviours and crimes protects oneself and others. Satipațțhāna is not only a means of moral restraint. It is also expedient means (upāya) to develop wisdom of insight (vipassanā) into the eternal Truth of Impermanence (Aniccatā), Insubstantiality (Anattatā), and Suffering (Dukkha). When satipațțhāna is consummated in the form of wisdom of discernming the Truth, the wise will not commit any more misdeeds or evil actions or crimes through immoral heedlessness and negligence.
References:
The Collection of the Middle length Sayings: Majjhima Nikāya (3 Vols.). Trans. I.B. Horner. Oxford: The Pāli TexT Society, 1995).
The Book of Gradual Sayings: Anguttara Nikāya (5 Vols.)Trans. E.M.Hare.Oxford.: The Pāli Text Society, 1995.
Harvey,Peter. An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics. Cambridge : Cambridge
University Press, 2000.
The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of Dīgha Nikāya.Trans. Maurice Walshe. Kandy : Buddhist Publication Society, 1996.
Dhammananda. K.Sri. The Dhammapada. Kuala Lumpur: Sasana Abhiwurdhi Wardhana Society, 1988.
Dhammananda,K.Sri. Treasure of Dhamma.K.L : sasana Abhiwurdhi Wardhana Society, 1994.
Dr.Siriwardeva, Bodhippriya Subhadra. The Buddhist Perspective of Lay
Morality. http://www.lankaweb.com/dhamma/view12.html. accessed
15.4.09
Nyanaponika Thera. Protection Through Satipațțhāna. Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society, 1990
http://www.cambodianbuddhist.org/english/website/lib/bps/leaves/bl034.html accessed 16.04.09.
The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A New Translation of Saṃyutta Nikāya.Trans. Bhikkhu Bodhi. Boston : Wisdom Publication, 2000.
the Lotus Sutra is called myo
![](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3054/2931591768_be8b761cc4.jpg?v=0")
from HELL IS THE LAND OF TRANQUIL LIGHT Nichiren Daishonin
Those who embrace the Lotus Sutra, however, can turn all this around. Hell becomes the Land of Tranquil Light; the burning fires of agony become the torch of the wisdom of a Thus Come One of the reward body; the dead person becomes a Thus Come One of the Dharma body; and the fiery inferno, the “room of great pity and compassion”6 where a Thus Come One of the manifested body abides. Moreover, the walking stick becomes the walking stick of the true aspect, or the Mystic Law; the river of three crossings becomes the ocean of “the sufferings of birth and death are nirvana” ; and the mountain of death becomes the towering peak of “earthly desires are enlightenment.” Please think of it in this way. Both attaining Buddhahood in one’s present form and “opening the door of Buddha wisdom”7 refer to realizing this and to awakening to it. Devadatta’s changing the Avichi hell into the blissful Land of Tranquil Light, and the dragon king’s daughter’s attaining Buddhahood without changing her form, were nothing other than this. It is be cause the Lotus Sutra saves those who oppose it as well as those who follow it. This is the blessing of the single character myo, or mystic.
6. A rephrasing of a passage in chapter of the Lotus Sutra that reads, “Great pity and compassion are the [Thus Come One’s] room . . .”
7. Lotus Sutra, chap. 2.
from LETTER TO THE SAGE NICHIMYO, Nichiren Daishonin
The jewel of the character myo contains all the benefits that the Thus Come One Shakyamuni received by practicing the six paramitas in his past existences: the benefits he obtained through the practice of almsgiving by offering his body to a starving tigress8 and by giving his life in exchange for that of a dove;9 the benefits he obtained when he was King Shrutasoma who kept his word, though it meant his death,
in order to observe the precepts;10 the benefits he obtained as an ascetic called Forbearance by enduring the tortures inflicted upon him by King Kali;11 the benefits he obtained as Prince Earnest Donor12 and as the ascetic Shojari,13 and all his other benefits. We, the people of this evil latter age, have not formed even a single good cause, but [by bestowing upon us the jewel of myo] Shakyamuni has granted us the same benefit as if we ourselves had fulfilled all the practices of the six paramitas. This precisely accords with his statement “Now this threefold world is all my domain, and the living beings in it are all my children.”14 Bound as we common mortals are by earthly desires, we can instantly attain the same virtues as Shakyamuni Buddha, for we receive all the benefits that he accumulated. The sutra reads, “Hoping to make all persons equal to me, without any distinction between us.”15 This means that those who believe in and practice the Lotus Sutra are equal to Shakyamuni Buddha.
9. According to The Garland of Birth Stories, one day the god Vishvakarman disguised himself as a dove and Shakra changed himself into a hawk to test King Shibi. The hawk pursued the dove, which flew into King Shibi’s robes for protection. To save the dove, Shibi offered his own flesh to the hungry hawk. King Shibi was Shakyamuni in one of his past existences when he was carrying out the paramita of almsgiving.
10. Shrutasoma, also called Universal Brightness, was the name of Shakyamuni when he was a king in a past existence engaged in the paramita of observing precepts. According to Great Perfection of Wisdom, King Universal Brightness and 99 other kings (999 kings according to another source) had been captured by King Deer
Feet and were about to be killed. King Universal Brightness asked King Deer Feet to let him keep a promise he had made to give offerings to a certain monk. Deer Feet granted him seven days’ grace to fulfill his promise, and Universal Brightness returned to his country, where he gave the monk offerings and transferred the throne to his son. After proclaiming to the people that keeping one’s promise is the most important precept, he returned to King Deer Feet; the latter was so impressed by the captured king’s sincerity that he released him and the other kings, and moreover, converted to Buddhism.
11. This story appears in the Sutra on the Wise and the Foolish. The ascetic Forbearance was Shakyamuni when he was carrying out the paramita of forbearance in a past existence. The ascetic once preached the paramita to the female attendants of King Kali of Varanasi. The king assumed that the ascetic had been trying to seduce them and flew into a rage. Being informed that the ascetic was engaged in the practice of forbearance, the king cut off his hands, legs, ears, and nose. But the ascetic did not flinch. His blood turned into milk, and his body restored itself. At this sight, the king repented his conduct and thereafter protected the ascetic.
12. This story appears in the Sutra on the Wise and the Foolish and elsewhere. Born to a royal family, Prince Earnest Donor felt pity for the poor and suffering people of his country, and implored his father to give all his treasures to them. When his father had exhausted his treasures, the prince went into the sea to look
for a fabulous wish-granting jewel owned by the dragon king. He faced many obstacles but finally found the jewel and, bringing it back with him, caused treasures to rain down upon his people. This prince was Shakyamuni in a past existence.
13. Shojari was the name of Shakyamuni when he was an ascetic practicing the paramita of meditation in a past existence. According to Great Perfection of Wisdom, while Shojari was engaged in meditation, a bird happened to build a nest in his hair and laid several eggs. One day he gained a great insight, but, being aware of the eggs on his head, he did not move until they had hatched and the baby birds were able to fly away.
14. Lotus Sutra, chap. 3.
15. Ibid., chap. 2.
from THE DAIMOKU OF THE LOTUS SUTRA, Nichiren Daishonin
Coming now to the character myo, the Lotus Sutra says, “This sutra opens the gate of expedient means and shows the form of true reality.”19 The Great Teacher Chang-an states, “Myo means to reveal the depths of the secret storehouse.”20 The Great Teacher Miao-lo says of this, “To reveal means to open.”21 Hence the character myo means to open.
If there is a storehouse full of treasures but no key, then it cannot be opened, and if it cannot be opened, then the treasures inside cannot be seen. The Buddha preached the Flower Garland Sutra, but he did not therein expound the key to open this sutra. Likewise, in the more than forty years that followed, he preached the sutras of the Agama, Correct and Equal, and Wisdom periods as well as the Meditation Sutra, but he did not reveal their meaning. Their doors remained closed, and therefore no one could understand these sutras. Even though people thought they understood, their understanding was in fact distorted.
But then the Buddha preached the Lotus Sutra and in this way opened the storehouses of the sutras. And for the first time in more than forty years, all the people of the nine worlds were able
to view the treasures that lay within. To give an analogy, even though there are people and animals, plants and trees on the earth, without the light of the sun or moon, even those with good eyes cannot make out their shapes and colors. It is when the sun or moon rises that one can discern for the first time what these things really look like. The sutras that preceded the Lotus Sutra were shrouded in the darkness of a long night, and the essential and theoretical teachings of the Lotus Sutra were like the sun and moon.
Among the bodhisattvas with their two good eyes, the cross-eyed people of the two vehicles, ordinary people with their blind eyes, or icchantikas who have been blind since birth, there were none who could make out the true color or shape of things by means of the earlier sutras. But when the Lotus Sutra was preached and the moon of the theoretical teaching came forth, first the bodhisattvas with their two good eyes gained enlightenment, and then the cross-eyed people of the two vehicles. Next the blind eyes of ordinary people were opened, and then even icchantikas, who had been blind from birth, were able to establish a relationship with the Lotus Sutra that assured them that their eyes would one day open. All this was due entirely to the virtue of the single character myo.
There are two myo, or mystic, principles expounded in the Lotus Sutra, one in the first fourteen chapters, which constitute the theoretical teaching, and one in the latter fourteen chapters, which constitute the essential teaching.22 From another point of view, there are twenty mystic principles,23 ten in the theoretical teaching and ten in the essential teaching; or there are sixty mystic principles,24 thirty in the theoretical teaching and thirty in the essential teaching. From yet other points of view, forty mystic principles25 may be discerned in each half of the
Lotus Sutra. By adding these to the forty mystic principles concerning the observation of the mind,26 the single character myo will be found to contain fully one hundred and twenty myo, or mystic, principles.
One fundamental myo, or mystic, principle underlies every one of the ,384 characters that make up the Lotus Sutra. Hence the Lotus Sutra comprises a total of 69,384 mystic principles.
Myo in India is rendered as sad, and in China, as miao. Myo means to be fully endowed, which in turn has the meaning of “perfect and full.” Each word and each character of the Lotus Sutra contains within it all the 69,384 characters that compose the sutra. To illustrate, one drop of the great ocean contains within it the waters of all the various rivers that flow into the ocean, and a single wish-granting jewel, though no bigger than a mustard seed, is capable of showering down the treasures that one could wish for with all the wish-granting jewels.
To give another analogy, plants and trees are withered and bare in autumn and winter, but when the sun of spring and summer shines on them, they put forth branches and leaves, and then flowers and fruit. Before the preaching of the Lotus Sutra, the people in the nine worlds were like plants and trees in autumn and winter. But when the single character myo of the Lotus Sutra shone on them like the spring and summer sun, then the flower of the aspiration for enlightenment blossomed, and the fruit of Buddhahood or rebirth in the pure land emerged.
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna in his Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom says, “[The Lotus Sutra is] like a great physician who can change poison into medicine.” This quotation occurs in a passage in Great Perfection of Wisdom that explains the virtues inherent in the character myo of the Lotus Sutra.
The Great Teacher Miao-lo remarks, “Because it can cure what is thought to be incurable, it is called myo, or wonderful.”27
In general, there are four kinds of people who have great difficulty in attaining Buddhahood or rebirth in the pure land. First are those predestined for the two vehicles,28 second are icchantikas, third are those who cling to the doctrine of void,29 and fourth are those who slander the Law. But through the Lotus Sutra, all of these people are able to become Buddhas. That is why the Lotus Sutra is called myo.
Devadatta was the eldest son of King Dronodana and a nephew of King Shuddhodana [the father of the Buddha Shakyamuni], which made him the Buddha’s cousin. He was also the elder brother of the Buddha’s disciple, the Venerable Ananda. He was thus by no means a person of low station in the southern continent, Jambudvipa. He became a disciple of the monk Sudaya30 and entered the religious life. From the Venerable Ananda he learned the eighteen miraculous powers, and he committed to memory the sixty thousand teachings of the non-Buddhist schools and the eighty thousand teachings of Buddhism. He observed the five ascetic practices31 and appeared almost more saintly than the Buddha himself. Thinking to make himself a leader like the Buddha, he dared to commit the crime of disrupting the Buddhist Order by establishing his own ordination platform on Mount Gayashirsha32 and inviting the Buddha’s disciples over to his side. He confided to Crown Prince Ajatashatru: “I intend to kill the Buddha and become the new Buddha. You must kill your father, the king [Bimbisara], and become the new king in his place!”
After Crown Prince Ajatashatru had in fact killed his father, Devadatta kept watch on the Buddha’s activities and with a large stone caused his blood to flow. He also struck and killed the nun
Utpalavarna who had reached the state of arhat. Thus he committed fully three of the five cardinal sins.
In addition, with the Venerable Kokalika as his disciple and King Ajatashatru as his patron, Devadatta began to attract followers from everywhere, until throughout the five regions of India with its sixteen great states, five hundred middle-sized states, and ten thousand small states, every soul guilty of one, two, or three of the cardinal sins was a member of his group. They gathered about him as the various rivers gather in the great ocean, or as plants and trees gather on a great mountain. As the wise gathered about Shariputra, and those with transcendental powers flocked to Maudgalyayana, so did evil persons throw in their lot with Devadatta.
As a result, the great earth, which is 168,000 yojanas thick and rests on a windy circle33 as hard as a diamond, nevertheless split open, plunging Devadatta alive into the great citadel of the hell of incessant suffering. His leading disciple Kokalika also fell into hell alive, as did the Brahman’s daughter Chincha, King Virudhaka, and the monk Sunakshatra. Moreover, the people of India with its five regions and sixteen great states, five hundred middle-sized states, and ten thousand small states all observed this. Those in the six heavens of the world of desire and in the four meditation heavens, all beings in both the worlds of form and formlessness,34 including Brahma, Shakra, the devil king of the sixth heaven, and King Yama, likewise witnessed their fate.
All the beings throughout the major world system and the worlds of the ten directions heard about this, and unanimously concluded that, even though as many kalpas should pass as there are dust particles of the land, Devadatta and the others would never escape from the great citadel of the hell of incessant suffering, and that, though the stone that
marks the duration of a kalpa might be worn completely away, they would continue to suffer in the Avichi hell. How astounding, then, that in the “Devadatta” chapter of the Lotus Sutra Shakyamuni Buddha should reveal that Devadatta was his teacher in a past existence and should predict that he would attain enlightenment in the future as a Thus Come One called Heavenly King! If the sutras preached before the Lotus Sutra are true, then the Lotus Sutra must be an outrageous lie. But if the Lotus Sutra is true, then the previous sutras must be guilty of perpetrating the wildest deceptions.
If Devadatta, who committed three of the five cardinal sins and in addition was guilty of countless other grave offenses, could become the Thus Come One Heavenly King, then there can be no doubt that the other evildoers who committed only one or two of the cardinal sins will surely attain the way as well. For if the great earth itself could be overturned, then the plants and trees on it would as a matter of course be overturned. And if one can crush the hardest stone, one can certainly bend the pliant grasses. Therefore, the Lotus Sutra is called myo.
19. Lotus Sutra, chap. 10.
20. Preface by Chang-an to The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra.
21. The Annotations on “The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra.”
22. The mystic principle of the theoretical teaching is that the Buddha discards the provisional teachings and reveals the true teaching, the Lotus Sutra, which allows people of the two vehicles to attain Buddhahood. The mystic principle of the essential teaching is that the Buddha discards his transient status and reveals his true identity as the Buddha who attained enlightenment countless kalpas ago.
23. Principles set forth by T’ien-t’ai in his Profound Meaning. The ten mystic principles of the theoretical teaching are based on the concepts of the true aspect of all phenomena and the replacement of the three vehicles with the one vehicle of Buddhahood. The ten mystic principles of the essential teaching are set forth on the basis of the revelation of the Buddha’s original enlightenment numberless major world system dust particle kalpas ago, as expounded in the “Life Span” chapter.
24. Added to each of the two sets of ten mystic principles—the ten mystic principles of the theoretical teaching and the ten mystic principles of the essential teaching—are the ten mystic principles grasped from the relative standpoint and the ten mystic principles grasped from the absolute, or all-encompassing, standpoint.
25. Thirty mystic principles related to the life of sentient beings, the Buddhist Law, and the nature of one’s mind, or the Law within, plus ten in either the theoretical teaching or the essential teaching.
26. To perceive or awaken to the ultimate reality inherent in one’s life. This is particularly stressed in T’ien-t’ai’s practice, in which meditation is focused on the true nature of one’s mind rather than some exterior object.
27. The Annotations on “Great Concentration and Insight.”
28. This refers to the two of the five groups into which people are by nature divided according to the Dharma Characteristics school. People in these two groups can eventually attain the state of arhat and that of pratyekabuddha, respectively.
29. This refers to non-Buddhists who held fast to the view of void, denying the causal law, and, according to the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings of Buddhism, could not attain Buddhahood.
30. Sudaya was a Brahman master who taught Devadatta occult powers, according to the Increasing by One Agama Sutra.
31. Here, austerities established and practiced by Devadatta. According to The Great Commentary on the Abhidharma, they were: (1) wearing only clothing discarded by others after washing and mending it; (2) obtaining food only by begging; (3) eating only once a day; (4) always seating oneself outside under a tree; and (5) never eating salt or other food possessing the five tastes.
32. A mountain whose summit resembled an elephant’s head, located about 1.5 km southwest of Gaya in Magadha. In China it was translated as the Elephant-Headed Mountain.
33. The circle formed first when a world takes shape and living beings appear in it in the kalpa of formation. According to The Dharma Analysis Treasury, the power of the karma of living beings first causes a small wind to arise in space. This wind grows and forms the windy circle thought to lie at the base of a world. Upon this circle a watery circle and then a gold circle take shape, and upon them the land itself is formed, with its Mount Sumeru, seas, and mountains.
34. The two divisions of the threefold world, the realm where unenlightened beings transmigrate within the six paths. Beings in the world of form have material form but are free from desires, and those in the world of formlessness are free from both desire and the restrictions of matter.
August 07, 2009
Are You Listening to the Cosmic Concert
The Vedic Conception of Sound in Four Features
By Jahnava Nitai Das
In the Vedantic traditions, sound is considered one of the most important principles of existence, as it is both the source of matter and the key to become free from it. One who can thoroughly understand the four stages of sound as explained in the Vedic texts can utilize this science to become free from the bondage of matter.
When trying to understand the four levels of sound, we must first understand what is "sound" as defined in the scriptures. In the Srimad Bhagavatam (3.26.33) we find an interesting definition for sound (shabda) as follows:
arthashrayatvam shabdasya
drashtur lingatvam eva ca
tan-matratvam ca nabhaso
lakshanam kavayo viduh
"Persons who are learned and who have true knowledge define sound as that which conveys the idea of an object, indicates the presence of a speaker and constitutes the subtle form of ether."
This may not be an absolute definition of sound, as there are various levels of sound to define, but it provides us with a solid foundation to begin our study of this topic. This definition, as given in Srimad Bhagavatam, is very interesting in that it differs completely from western and modern views of defining sound.
First, those who are learned and who have true knowledge define sound as that which conveys the idea of an object. Sound is not just the vibration created by the meeting of two objects. Sound is that which conveys the idea of an object. The exact word used in this connection is "artha-ashraya" or "the shelter of the meaning". In the Vedic conception the aksharas (letters) are bijas, or seeds of existence. The audible sound is categorized into 50 alphabets of Sanskrit starting from "a" and ending with "ksha". Hence the alphabet is called "akshara", which literally means "infallible" or "supreme". Akshara is also a synomyn for pranava (Om), the sum of all syllables and source of all vedic hymns. The Bhagavad Gita confirms this as follows:
karma brahmodbhavam viddhi
brahmakshara-samudbhavam
tasmat sarva-gatam brahma
nityam yajne pratisthitam
"Regulated activities are prescribed in the Vedas, and the Vedas are directly manifested from akshara, the sacred syllable Om. Consequently the all-pervading Transcendence (pranava or the syllable 'Om') is eternally situated in acts of sacrifice."
Karma, or duty, is manifested from the Vedas. This manifestation is not exactly direct, for one is spiritual and the other is material. This is indicated by the word udbhavam. On the other hand, the manifestation of the vedas from the pranava (Om) is direct, and thus the word used to describe it is sam-udbhavam, and not just udbhavam.
In the tantras the aksharas are traced back to their material source level which is a particular deity of Shakti. Each of her stages of manifestation are phases in the evolution of the universe. Thus the aksharas are potent sound, constitutionally connected to objects as sound (shabda) and its meaning (artha).
This is interesting in that it draws a distinction between sound and noise. Noise, as distinct from sound, is not the artha-ashraya, or the shelter of meaning.
Sri Baladeva Vidyabhushana in his commentary to Vedanta Sutra 1.3.28 says that the creation of all living entities proceeds from the remembrance of their form and characteristics by Lord Brahma reciting the corresponding words. From this we can begin to understand to potency of sound and its meaning.
The second aspect of Srimad Bhagavatam's definition of sound that is unique from modern thought is that sound is defined as "that which indicates the presence of a speaker". Thus sound must be a product of consciousness. In this senses, sound is sometimes referred to as vak, or speech, throughout the Vedic texts.
In the tantra system the purva mimamsaka’s theory of the eternality of shabda (sound) and artha (meaning) is accepted. They go a little further to assert that shabda and artha are the embodiment of Shiva and Shakti as the universe itself. They name their original source as shabdartha-brahman instead of a mere shabda-brahman. For, that is the source of both the objects and their descriptions. Words and their meanings - what they denote in the objective world - are the variety of manifestations of shakti.
As sound is of the nature of the varnas (syllables) composing it, the tantra affirmes that the creative force of the universe resides in all the letters of the alphabet. The different letters symbolize the different functions of that creative force, and their totality is designated as matrika or the "mother in essence".
Thus Tantra sees the mantras as not just a mere combination of whimsical sounds but as the subtle form of the presiding deity; and the real purpose of one’s meditation through the mantra is to communicate with the deity of that particular mantra.
Just as a sankalpa - a pure thought - has to pass through several stages before it actually manifests as concrete creative force, the sound of a particular mantra also has to pass through several stages before it is fully experienced by the listener in perfection. These stages are termed as para, pashyanti, madhyama and vaikhari.
Each level of sound corresponds to a level of existence, and one's experience of sound depends upon the refinement of one's consciousness.
It takes a realized consciousness to experience the full range of sound, the full range of existence. The seers who can comprehend the four stages of sound are known as Manishis.
The higher three forms of shabda are described in the Rig Veda as hidden in "guha", or within the self, whereas the forth is the external manifested speech, known as laukika bhasha.
These four levels of sound correspond to four states of consciousness. Para represents the transcendental consciousness. Pashyanti represents the intellectual consciousness. Madhyama represents the mental consciousness. And Vaikhari represents the physical consciousness. These states of consciousness correspond with the four states known technically as jagrat, svapna, sushupti, and turiya - or the wakeful state, the dreaming state, the dreamless state, and the transcendental state.
Shabda-brahman in its absolute nature is called para. In manifestation the subtle is always the source of the gross, and thus from para-vak manifests the other three forms of sound.
Though the manifestation of sound takes place from para-vak down to vaikhari-vak (or fine to gross), in explaining these stages we will begin from the external vaikhari-vak, as that is the sound we all have most experience of.
Vaikhari-vak is the grossest level of speech, and it is heard through the external senses. When sound comes out through the mouth as spoken syllables it is called as vaikhari.
Madhyama-vak is the intermediate unexpressed state of sound, whose seat is in the heart. The word Madhyama means "in between" or "the middle". The middle sound is that sound which exists between the states of sushupti and jagrat. Madhyama-vak refers to mental speech, as opposed to external audible speech. It is on this level that we normally experience thought. Some hold that wakeful thought is still on the level of vaikhari.
In the manifestation process, after sound has attained the form of pashyanti-vak, it goes further up to the heart and becomes coupled with the assertive intelligence, being charged with the syllables a, ka, cha, tha, ta, etc. At this point it manifests itself in the form of vibratory nada rupa madhyama-vak. Only those who are endowed with discriminative intelligence can feel this.
On the levels of madhyama and vaikhari, there is a distinction between the sound and the object. The object is perceived as something different from the sound, and sound is connected to an object mostly by convention.
Pashyanti-vak is the second level of sound, and is less subtle than para-vak. Pashyanti in Sanskrit means "that which can be seen or visualised".
In the pashyanti stage sound possesses qualities such as color and form. Yogis who have inner vision can perceive these qualities in sound. On this stage the differences between language do not exist, as this sound is intuitive and situated beyond rigidly defined concepts. On the stage of pashyanti-vak, speech is intuitively connected to the object. There is near oneness between the word and the experience described.
Pashyanti-vak is the finest impulse of speech. The seat of pashyanti is in the navel or the Manipura Chakra. When sound goes up to the naval with the bodily air in vibratory form without any particular syllable (varna), yet connected with the mind, it is known as pashyanti-vak.
Para-vak is the transcendent sound. Para means highest or farthest, and in this connection it indicates that sound which is beyond the perception of the senses.
Para-vak is also known as "rava-shabda" - an unvibratory condition of sound beyond the reach of mind and intelligence (avyakta), only to be realized by great souls, parama-jnanis.
On the stage of para-vak there is no distinction between the object and the sound. The sound contains within it all the qualities of the object.
In terms of the universal cosmology, vaikhari, madhyama and pashyanti correspond respectively to bhuh, bhuvah, and svah. The para-shabda ultimately corresponds to the Lord's tri-pada-vibhuti.
Within the pashyanti-vak exists the nature's iccha-shakti, or the power of will. Within the madhyama-vak exists the nature's jnana-shakti, or the power of knowledge. And within the vaikhari-vak exists the nature's kriya-shakti, or power of action.
The pranava, or the syllable "om", is the complete representation of the four stages of sound and their existential counterparts. The existential realities are the physical (sthula) which is connected to the vaikhari-shabda, the subtle (sukshma) which is connected to the madhyama-shabda, the causal (karana) which is connected with the pashyanti-shabda, and the transcendental (para) which is related to the para-shabda. These four existential realities further correspond to the four states of consciousness.
The sthula sarira, or physical body, operates in the state of jagrat (wakeful state). It is in this realm of consciousness, and through this body, that the vaikhari-vak is manifested.
The sukshma-sarira, subtle or psychic body, operates in the state of svapna. It is in this realm of consciousness, and through this body, that the madhyama-vak is manifested.
The karana-sarira, or causal body, operates in the state of sushupti, or deep sleep. It is in this realm of consciousness, and through this body, that the pashyanti-vak is manifested.
The para-vak is manifested through the fourth state of consciousness, known as turiya.
The sacred syllable "om" is composed of three matras, namely "a", "u", and "m". These three matras correspond respectively to bhuh, bhuvah and svah; jagrat, svapna and sushupti; sukshma, sthula and karana; and vaikhari, madhyama and pashyanti. Besides these three matras, the pranava ("a-u-m") is also composed of a forth constituent, namely the a-matra or anahata-dhvani - the non-syllable or unstruck sound. For our practical understanding, this a-matra corresponds to the humming sound after one recites the "om" syllable. The a-matra represents the transendence, the turiya, the para-vak.
Thus the syllable om contains all elements of existence. It is the reservoir of all energies of the Supreme Lord, and for this reason Lord Krishna states in the Gita:
om ity ekaksharam brahma
"The single syllable Om is the supreme combination of letters."
Elsewhere the Lord states:
yad aksharam veda-vido vadanti
"Those knowers of the Vedas recite Om (akshara)."
Why do they do this? Because the syllable om is the Supreme Lord and the potency of all Vedic mantras:
pranava sarva vedeshu
"Within all the Vedas, I am the symbol Om."
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu established the pranava as the maha-vakya (the greatest statement) of the vedas, for within it exist all Vedic hymns (and shabda). The world itself is a manifestation of this syllable. It is the sound representation of the Abslute Truth.
The vak is not a manifestation of the material nature, for the Vedanta sutra 2.4.4 states as follows:
tat-purvakatvad vacah
This indicates that the vak existed before the pradhana. Pradhana is the root of the material manifestation - the three qualities non-differentiated in absolute equilibrium. Yet prior to this is the vak. Thus the vak is non-material.
For this reason we find in the Vedanta Sutras the following statement:
anavriti shabdat
"Liberation by sound."
Since sound is the non-material source of the material manifestation, it is the key by which we can become free from bondage. It is the thread-like link between the material and spiritual realms.
In describing the four phases of sound, sometimes the descriptions of one will overlap another, or sometimes an aspect of one will seem to be attributed to another. For example sometimes pashyanti is described as "mental sound", whereas madhyama will be described as "intellectual sound". This will require a deeper explanation of the intricacies of these stages of sound and their relationships. Such an explanation is not possible here at this time.
To study these concepts in greater depth one may refer to the Nada-bindu Upanishad, Bhartrihari's Vakyapadadiya, Prashna Upanishad, Mundaka Upanishad, Mandukya Upanishad, Maitri Upanishad and Katha Upanishad, as well as the concepts of shabda, vak, matrikas, hiranyagarbha, four states of consciousness, etc., as found in the tantras and throughout the upanishads. One should remember that in Vedic study one will not generally find a book on a particular topic (such as "vaikhari", etc.) One must study from numerous sources and assimilate a number of apparently diverse concepts. These concepts must then be harmonized internally. This constitutes the meditation and sacrifice of svadhyaya yajna.
For those who have assimilated these topics, they will find all this information contained in detail within nine technical verses of Srimad Bhagavatam beginning from 11.2.35 and ending at 11.2.43. For example, if one sees verses 38 through 40 one will find a complete explanation of sound in four levels and the process of manifestation. One must be trained to see the inner meaning of words, for these topics are discussed in esoteric and confidential manners:
paroksha-vada rishayah
paroksham mama ca priyam
"The Vedic seers speak about these topics indirectly in esoteric terms, and I am pleased by such confidential descriptions."
When we see such words as pranah, manasa, sparsha-rupinah and chandah-mayah as occuring in verses 38 and 39, we should immediately understand the indirect and esoteric nature of the discussion, and thereby conclude the direct meaning being inferred by these words. We must learn the transcendental code of the Vedas. In reality everything is explained in the Srimad Bhagavatam in full, but because we generally lack the proper vision to understand the indirect and esoteric discussions, we therefore need to study and refer to other more direct scriptures. Thus the commentaries of the Acharyas will help us to understand these topics.
The science of sound, shabda-vijnana, as explained in the above mentioned verses of Srimad Bhagavatam, is also summarily explained in the pancharatrik text known as Lakshmi-tantra as follows:
mulam adharam arabhya dvistkantam upeyusi
udita aneka sahasra surya vahnindu sannibha
cakravat punar adharat santa pasyatha madhyama
vaikhari sthanam asadhya tatrasta sthanavartini
varnanam jananim bhutva bhogya prasnoumi gouriva
"Seated in the area starting from the muladhara to the position of dvistkanta with effulgence equal to the rising of millions of suns, fires and moons. Like a wheel from the adhara becoming the sounds known as santa, pashyai, madhyama. Reaching the posititon of vaikhari, there situated in eight places, viz., the throat etc. Being the mother of all sounds I bestow enjoyments like a cow."
August 06, 2009
blinded by the light
