Monthly Archives: February 2013

Coming in March: The Śūrańgama Sūtra

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Vajragoni

In this super-sonic speed samsaric whirlpool we find ourselves in these days, it’s all too easy to get caught up in the Tsunami-wave of it all and lose track of one’s essential centeredness in the Buddhadharma. The Śūrańgama Sūtra is an indispensible Mind-tool that empowers both the seasoned student and, even more so, the inexperienced adapt to never lose sight of one’s spiritual foundation in the Mahayana. It is not some kind of a limited and sectarian vehicle, but rather intrinsically the seed-bed from which diverse schools like the Yogācāra and Esoteric-Vajarānā, C’han and Zen, Mādhyamaka and in particular—the Tathagata-garbha school of Zen—all find common doctrinal themes and special accentuation on cultivating one’s meditational practices with a specific impetus on Samādhi. One could say that the Śūrańgama Sūtra is a catechism for the Buddhadharma; in this sense, its foundational underpinning is a must for the serious student. Also, the Śūrańgama Mantra contained therein can prove to be a stabilizing and protective source for one’s spiritual-life. As the Fifty Demonic States of Mind will reveal later on, there is much destabilizing and even outright destructive forces (even at infinitesimal levels) at work unbeknownst most of the time, yes forces that seek to disrupt and even destroy one’s advancement along the way of the Mahayana. read more

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Women and the Unborn

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Vajragoni

(Haskel) 

“I can tell you something about this matter of women’s Buddha Mind. I understand that women feel very distressed hearing it said that they can’t become buddhas. But it simply isn’t so! How is there any difference between men and women? Men are the Buddha Body, and women are the Buddha Body too. You shouldn’t entertain any doubts of this sort. When you thoroughly grasp the Unborn, then, in the Unborn, there’s no difference whether you’re a man or a woman. Everyone is the Buddha Body. read more

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Practice Makes Perfect

Posted on February 19, 2013 by Vajragoni

(Haskel)

To practice is hard 

“Even among those in the assembly now who acknowledge what I say, there are some who merely teach the Unborn with their mouths and don’t continually abide in the Unborn, people who only know about the Unborn, people of merely intellectual understanding. From the standpoint of the Unborn, intellectual understanding too is empty speculation, so you can’t say such a person has conclusively realized the Unborn. When you come right down to it, this kind of approach is worthless. Even if you teach others about the Unborn, they won’t realize it. read more

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In Sickness and in Health

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Vajragoni

(Haskell) 

Illness and the Buddha Mind 

“With my only thought to find the Buddha Mind, I struggled fruitlessly, floundering desperately and dashing all over. But what happened was that I got myself ill and was laid up in bed for a long time, so that I’ve come to know a lot about sickness too. Being born into this world and having a body, we must expect to meet with illness. But when you conclusively realize the Unborn Buddha Mind, you don’t distress yourself over the sufferings of illness: you clearly distinguish illness as illness, suffering as suffering. This is because the Buddha Mind, being originally unborn, has nothing to do with joy or suffering, the reason being that that which is unborn transcends thought. read more

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A Psychology of the Unborn?

Posted on February 16, 2013 by Vajragoni

(Haskel)

Like little children of three or four 

The Master instructed the assembly: “As you’ve all been hearing me say, everyone has the innate Buddha Mind, so all you need to do is abide in the Unborn just as it is. However, [following] the ways of the world, you get into bad habits in life and switch the Buddha Mind for the wretched realm of hungry ghosts with its clinging and craving. Grasp this thoroughly and you’ll always abide in the Unborn Buddha Mind. But if, wishing to realize the Unborn, you people try to stop your thoughts of anger and rage, clinging and craving from arising, then by stopping them you divide one mind into two. It’s as if you were pursuing something that’s running away. As long as you deliberately try to stop your rising thoughts, the thought of trying to stop them wars against the continually arising thoughts themselves, and there’s never an end to it. To give you an example, it would be like washing away blood with blood. Of course, you might get out the original blood; but the blood after that would stick, and the red never go away. Similarly, the original angry thoughts that you were able to stop may have come to an end, but the subsequent thoughts concerned with your stopping them won’t ever cease. read more

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Anger Not

Posted on February 15, 2013 by Vajragoni

(Waddell)

A monk said to Bankei: I was born with a short temper. It’s always flaring up. My master has remonstrated with me time and again, but that hasn’t done any good. I know I should do something about it, but as I was born with a bad temper, I’m unable to rid myself of it no matter how hard I try. Is there anything I can do to correct it? This time, I’m hoping that with your teaching, I’ll be able to cure myself. Then, when I go back home, I’ll be able to face my master again, and of course I will benefit by it for the rest of my life. Please, tell me what to do.   read more

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On Death

Posted on February 14, 2013 by Vajragoni

(Waddell)

People generally have the wrong idea about living and dying at will. They think it means that someone decides on one day that he will die on the next, or that he predicts the day and month in the following year when he is to die and then does indeed die a natural death on that date, or they think it means the ability to extend one’s lifetime so many days or months. read more

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A Blessing or a Curse

Posted on February 12, 2013 by Vajragoni

Self-power/other-power 

“My teaching isn’t concerned with either self-power or other-power: that which transcends both self-power and other-power, that’s what my teaching is about. Let me prove this to you: While everyone is turned this way to hear me saying this, out back there may be sparrows chirping, crows cawing, the voices of men or women, or the sighing of the wind. But, without your deliberately trying to hear every one of those sounds, each of them comes to you clearly recognized and distinguished. It’s not you doing the hearing, so it’s not a matter of self-power. On the other hand, since you can’t very well have someone else do your hearing for you, you couldn’t call it other-power! So, that which isn’t concerned with self-power or other-power but transcends them both is what my teaching is about. Isn’t that right? When you listen this way with the Unborn, you transcend whatever there is. And all the rest of your activities are perfectly managed like this with the Unborn too. For the man who functions with the Unborn, whoever he may be, all things are perfectly managed. So, whoever he is, the man of the Unborn isn’t concerned with either self-power or other-power, but transcends them both.” read more

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Don’t take it Personally

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Vajragoni

Self-centeredness 

One day, the Master addressed the assembly: “All delusions, without exception, are created as a result of self-centeredness. When you’re free from self-centeredness, delusions won’t be produced. For example, suppose your neighbors are having a quarrel: if you’re not personally involved, you just hear what’s going on and don’t get angry. read more

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Year of the Black Naga

Posted on February 10, 2013 by Vajragoni

Traditionally, we have entered into the Year of the Black Water Snake. Looked at from an astrological perspective, the snake falls under the Element of Water; although combined with the snake’s fiery energy can yield conflict. There have been numerous disasters occurring during this sign, like the attack of the World Trade Center in 2001 and the Stock Market Crash of 1929. Although contemplated from the mystical vantage point the full import shifts considerably. In the older annals of Indian Buddhism, the Naga was the symbol of Wisdom, much like the Dragon.The Nagas were the ancient protectors of the Dharma. In the Lankavatara Sutra, we find the Palace of the Sea Serpents (nagas) figuring as the opening scenario from which the Tathagata emerges and begins to expound the Buddhadharma. Earlier on, when Śākyamuni attained awakening at Bodhgayā, the Naga King became the first sentient being to receive the Buddhadharma. In this sense, the Naga is considered as a sign of the renewal of life, helping to perpetuate and protect the living teachings of the Tathagata. Śākyamuni was also sheltered from a violent wind and rainstorm—created during his struggle with Mara—by the protective coils of the Naga King. The following passages from the International Journal of Buddhist Thought and Culture (Hye-young Tcho: The Dragon in the Buddhist Korean Temples) further elaborates on the full import of the Nagas: read more

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