eastern_religon_.pptAs rain penetrates the poorly thatched dwelling, so passion penetrates the untended mind.
As rain does not penetrate the well-thatched dwelling, so passion does not penetrate the well-tended mind.
(Dhammapada, 13 & 14)
Explain what is meant by the well-tended mind in the Buddhist tradition. Be specific about why passion is something that ought to be kept out of such a mind. Also be specific about how a practicing Buddhist would pursue this state of keeping their mind well-tended. And be sure to explain how the tending of one’s mind fits into Buddhist beliefs in general. Why should a Buddhist care about their mind in the same way they care about the quality of the roof of their dwelling?
2 pages, typed and double-spaced. th.
The Pali Canon:
The “three baskets” (tripitika)
-Vinaya (rules for monks)
-Sutta (discourses of the Buddha)
-Abhidhamma (philosophical analysis of
states of consciousness)
These texts were written down about five centuries after the death of the Buddha, during the 1st century c.e. The Sutta and Vinaya pitika had been passed down orally until being put in writing. The tradition holds that the Suttas comprise an accurate record of the words and teachings of Gautama.
These texts are considered apocryphal (not authentic) by Theravada Buddhists, but they do form the basis of much of Mahayana beliefs and practices. They were composed for the most part between the first and seventh century c.e. They purport to represent teachings of Gautama, but the style of the texts introduces a number of supernatural elements to how both the world and the being of the Buddha in the world are represented.
Prominent among them are:
- Diamond Sutra
- Heart Sutra
- Lotus Sutra
- Amitabha Sutra (pure land)
- Platform Scripture of Hui Neng
These tell stories of the Buddha’s past lives, stories which carry moral lessons for all Buddhists.
357 lives as a human; 66 lives as a god; 123 lives as an animal.
These stories reinforce the moral precepts applicable to laypersons; they also make apparent the level of commitment to enlightenment shown by the Buddha.
five for laypersons
do harm to no beings
do not steal
do not engage in illicit sexual relations
do not lie
do not use intoxicants
five for monks
do not eat after noon
do not dance, sing, or attend shows
do not wear jewelry or use perfume, etc.
do not sleep on a soft bed
do not handle gold or silver
The lives of monks and nuns are taken to exemplify the accumulation of merit.
Laypersons are believed to accumulate merit by the giving of alms.
Worship also takes the form of ritualized prostration toward idols and stupas.
A bodhisattva is a being who has achieved enlightenment but chooses to be reborn, either in a transcendent realm from which they may transfer merit to living beings, or in samsara itself in order to help other beings achieve their own enlightenment, nirvana. Bodhisattvas are sometimes spoken of as “once-returners,” beings who are on the threshold of enlightenment and have only one round of samsara left before attaining their moksha.
There are a number of bodhisattvas to whom devotional worship and prayers are directed (e.g.: Maitreya, the future Buddha). These beings have quasi-divine status and are invoked as salvational figures.
Community festivals and holidays celebrate the work of bodhisattvas.
Basic meaning: emptiness
(alternatively: openness).
Experience of truth transcends conceptual understanding.
Anything, even the dharma, can become an object of craving and put to use by ego.
To resist this, all things must be seen as fundamentally empty of essence.
The Heart Sutra:
“form is emptiness; emptiness is form”
Shunyata does not mean things are “unreal,” only that they are dependent on causes, void of inherent existence. This insight is the result of realizing the truth of dependent origination.
This “qualified realism” lies between the view that samsara has inherent or necessary existence and the view that nothing is ultimately real except our consciousness (This is the viewpoint of Cittamatra, the “mind-only” school of Buddhism).
The world is real.
The world is unreal.
The world is neither real nor unreal.
The world is both real and unreal.
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The challenge here is to think of all four of these options as true at the same time, or false at the same time. This will lead to the experience of emptiness.
Dhyana is the word we translate as meditation.
Samadhi is the word we translate as “concentration.” This is the eighth step on the eight-fold noble path, and so developing samadhi is essential to practicing Buddhism. This is where meditation comes into play for Buddhists. There are two main methods of meditation practiced in Buddhism:
Samatha: This is mindfulness meditation, in which concentration upon a specific object (like one’s own breathing) is sharpened along with the development of a calm and tranquil attitude.
Vipasyana or Vipassana: This is insight meditation, in which realization of the true nature of oneself and the world is sought. It is through the practice of vispasyana meditation that one would come to see the truth of the four noble truths, the reality of dependent origination, the unreality or emptiness of the self (anatta), and ultimately realize one’s own liberation, the thought of enlightenment.
Generally speaking, samatha is practiced as a preparation for vipasyana. The calming effect of focused concentration opens a space in which the true nature of reality can appear.
