The Teaching of Intermediate State:
Mahayana,Vajrayana Teaching:
Contemplating death helps us live
better, fuller lives
Death, however, is unavoidable.
The more honest we can be about it with ourselves and our loved ones, the less
shocked we will be when it arrives, and the more joy and meaning we will find
in life.
From the Buddhist perspective, life is
not just this life we are leading now, but also the infinitude of future lives
that extends before us, for Buddhism believes in reincarnation. We die to
continue living. Our body merges into the elements, but our consciousness
migrates and is reborn in a new body.
Death, according to Buddhism, is life’s
the most critical juncture. It offers us the single greatest opportunity to
make the most sweeping improvements in our circumstances.
Buddhism teaches that everything we
think, feel, and do creates a correspondingly positive or negative habit, or
karmic imprint, in our mind-stream. Selfless, peaceful, and joyful
thoughts leave imprints that give rise to wonderful, peaceful, loving
experiences in our future. Selfish, negative, hateful thoughts give rise
to unhappy experiences. So whether our next life will be happy or not depends
on whether our mental habits were positive or negative.
At death, when all we are is
consciousness, we will be led by the habits that we imprinted in our
mind-stream. They will unfold as our new reality. If we cultivated peace
and kindness, we will be reborn in a peaceful world filled with loving beings.
We might come back as a wonderful human being. Or we might take rebirth in one
of the infinite joyful celestial paradises of light and wisdom that Buddhists
call “pure lands.” Beings born in the pure lands become enlightened in that
very lifetime. Once enlightened, they can manifest in our world by choice to
benefit beings -- not because their karma compels them to.
If, on the other hand, we were filled
with, say, jealousy, we will reincarnate in a world that reflects that trait: a
world where beings are always scheming to harm each other.
When we truly understand the
implications of our own and others’ mortality from the heart, we will
automatically want to use every precious day to purify our faults and grow in
compassion, peace, joy, and wisdom. Death will then become a launching
pad to increasingly better, more beneficial lives until we become a Buddha
ourselves.
In contrast, not to prepare for
death, and to leave this world with the same faults that we came in with, is a
sad waste of our precious life. Once lost, it can be hard to get such a good
opportunity to progress aga
Notes:
1. Tathagata
(de bzhin gshegs pa) literally means One gone thus (to Nirvana), or the
transcendental one, usually used as an epithet of Budhha.
2. The age of five degenerates (snyigs ma lnga bdo ba)
period of decline characterized by a spread of five corruptions or
degenerations, viz. (i) Impurity of life (tshe'i snyigs ma),
(ii) impurity of view (lta ba'i snyigs ma), (iii) impurity of conflicting
emotions (nyon mongs kyi snyigs ma), (iv) impurity of sentient beings (sems can
gyi snyigs ma), and (v) impurity of time (dus kyi snyigs ma)
3. Buddha Khorwa Jig (‘khor ba ‘jig) literally
translated as “destroyer of transmigratory existence”, is the name of one of
the previous seven buddhas (sangs rgyas rab bdun), and the fourth Buddha in
this kalpa, and first Buddha of the
fortunate aeon.
4. The Buddhist cosmology talks about four stages of the
formation, existence, destruction and absence of world systems, each lasting
the same duration. The stage of existence begins with ‘the long beginning’
which starts with a human life span of 1054
years and gradually decreases at the rate of two years every hundred years.
When the life span reaches a minimum of 10 years, the process reverses taking
it back up 80,000 years and then drops again until it is 10 years. This cycle
beginning with the rise from 10 years and ending with a drop to 10 years is
known as ‘an intermediate aeon’. After 18 such cycles, the life span climbs
back to 1054 years
gradually during a period known as ‘the long end’. These 18 cycles and the long
beginning and end are equal in duration. After the long end, the world system
begins the process of destruction, which takes the same time scale as
existence. After complete destruction, the world remains absent with nothing
but empty space where the world system used to be.
5. Abhidharmakośa (mdzod), translated as Treasury of Knowledge by
Vasubhandu. This statement appears in Chapter
3.Chanting:
3.Chanting:
6. Śravakas
(nyan thos) literally means those who are content with listening; usually
refers to disciples of lesser vehicle or Hinayana.
7. Vedas
(rig byed) are the ancient pre-Buddhist scriptures of India.
8. Countless
aeon (skalpa grangs med) ....
9. Path
of the Accumulation (tshogs-lam) is the first of five paths (lam) which forms
the foundation for the journey towards liberation and involves gathering a vast
accumulation of merit dedicated towards this attainment. The other four are the
paths of preparation (sbyor lam), the path of seeing (mthong lam), the path of
meditation (sgom lam), and the path of no more learning (mi slob lam).
10. rhino-like solitary realizers
11. Heat
level on the Path of Preparation (sbyor lam drod) is the first of four
levels in the path of preparation
characterized by the experience of meditative heat (drod).
12. Equality of all phenomena (chos mnyam pa nyid) or ultimate
sameness of all the constituents of reality.
13. six
perfections (pha rol tu phyin pa drug) or the six paramitas (viz. Charity
(sbyin-pa), ethical conduct (tshul-khrims), tolerance (bzod-pa), perseverance
(brtson-'grus), meditation (bsam-gtan), and wisdom (shes-rab).
14. The lion’s roar refers to the Buddha’s claim
immediately after his birth that he is the supreme in the world. In Buddhist
literature, the Buddha’s speech is often figuratively called the lion’s roar.
15. meditation
of “Nothing Whatsoever” (ci-yang med) and “Peak of Existence”(srid-rtse’i
snyoms ‘jug)......
16. “all-pervading"
meditative state (mkha’ khyab kyi ting nge ‘dzin)...
17.
The full name
for this place as given in the text is drang srong lhung ba ri dags kyi nags,
“the forest of deer where ascetics have fallen”. The last part is in reference
to story of how the physical remains of some solitary realizers have fallen on
this grove after they have attained nirvana.
18.
These are
different forms of non-human spirits. They are yak·a, kumbhanda, mahoraga, rak·a, piśāca and preta in Sanskrit and gnod sbyin, grul
bum, lto ‘phye, srin po, sha za and yi dags in Tibetan. These generally fall
within the preta group.
19.
The Pure Places
are five highest levels of existence in the form realm.
20.
Three kinds of knowledge (rig-pa gsum)
refer to (1) knowledge of past lives (sngon gyi gnas shes pa). 2) knowledge of
the process of death and birth ('chi 'pho ba dang skye ba shes pa). 3) knowledge
of the end of imperfections (zag pa zad pa shes pa)
21. Ten
Powers (stobs bcu) developed by bodhisattvas are (1) reflection (bsam pa'i
stobs/ ashayabala); (2) superior
reflection (lhag bsam/ adhyasa); (3) acquisition (sbyor ba/pratipatti); (4)
discriminative awareness (shes rab/ prajna); (5) aspiration (smon lam/
pranidhana); (6) vehicle (theg pa/ yana); (7) conduct (spyod pa/carya); (8) transformation
(rnam par 'phrul pa/vikurvana); (9) enlightenment (byang chub kyi sems/bodhichitta);
and (10) turning the doctrinal wheel (chos kyi 'khor lo bskor ba/ dharmacakrapravartana).
22. Centre
of earth (sa’i nying-po) here refers to Dorji Dhen (rdo-rje gdan) or Vajrasana
which is present day Bodh Gaya in India where Buddha attained enlightenment.
23. Three-thousandfold
universe or Great Billionfold World System (stong gsum gyi stong chen po'i 'jig
rten). The world system of Mount Sumeru and the four continents multiplied a
thousand times a thousand times a thousand, adding up to one billion. Mount
Sumeru, the [abodes of the] six desire gods, along with the Abode of Brahma,
are called a Four Continent World System. One thousand of these are called a
First Order Thousandfold World System. One thousand such world systems are
called an Intermediate Thousandfold World System. One thousand of these world
systems are called a Great Billionfold World System that contains one billion
Four Continent Worlds, and it is the domain of influence of a single supreme
nirmanakaya.
24. Tshangs-pa
or Brahma, ruler of the realm of form (skye dgu'i bdag po)
25. brGya-byin
or lord of the realm of desire
26. eclipse,
gza’ or Rahula, a god believed to cause lunar eclipse.
27. The
Five Noble Disciples were the first five disciples of the Buddha (Kaundinya,
Acvajit, Vaspa, Mahanaman, and Bhadrika). They were also his ascetic companions
prior to enlightenment.
28. mthong
lam, the third of the five paths (see note number 9 above) which is the
realization of the truth of reality
29. The
Eight classes (of Gods and
Spirits/lha srin sde brgyad) which consists of (1) lha brgyad; (2) klu chen
brgyad; (3) gza' chen brgyad; (4) rgyu skar nyi shu tsa drug; (5) rgya sbyin la
sogs phyogs skyong bcu; (6) rgyal chen bzhi;
(7) gnod sbyin gyi sde dpon bcu gnyis; and (8) gnyan chen brgyad.
30. Four
Noble Truths are (1) the truth of suffering (sdug bsngal gyi bden pa); (2) the
truth of origin (kun 'byung gi bden pa); (3) the truth of cessation ('gog pa'i
bden pa); and (4) the truth of path (lam gyi bden pa).
31. cho
'phrul rnam pa gsum or the three-fold miraculous action refers to (a) the body
miraculous manifestations (sku rdzu 'phrul gyi cho 'phrul), (b) the speech
miraculous display of the doctrine (gsung nges su bstan pa'i cho 'phrul), (c)
the mind miraculous communication (thugs kun brjod pa'i cho 'phrul).
32. School
of Elders (gnas-brtan sde-pa) or the Sthavira school
33. Mind
only School (sems tsam pa) or Chittramata/ Yogacara school founded by Maitreya
and Asanga is one of the two main schools of Mahayana Buddhist thought. The
other one is the Middle Way (dbu-ma pa) or Madhyamika school.
34. Vajrayana
(rdo-rje theg-pa) or the vehicle of indestructible reality, also referred to as
the vehicle of secret mantras (gsang sngags) or guhyamantra.
35. The
Great Four Gods (lha chenpo bzhi) or Mahadevas refer to Brahma (tshangs pa),
Indra (brgya byin), Vishnu (khyab 'jug), and Shiva (dbang phyug).
36. Stainless
Light (dri med ‘od, a commentary on Kalacakra tantra by Padma Karpo
Dalai Lama:
38. Vinaya
(‘dul ba) or monastic discipline.
39. Four
Meditative Concentrations (bsam gtan bzhi): The first which possesses both
ideas and scrutiny (rtog pa dang bcas shing dpyod pa dang bcas pa'i bsam gtan
dang po); the second which possesses no ideas but scrutiny alone (rtog pa med la
dpyod pa tsam dang bcas pa bsam gtan gnyis pa); the third or mental action
which is devoid of ideas and scrutiny (rtog pa dang dpyod pa yang med pa yid la
byed pa bsam gtan gsum pa); and the fourth or mental action which is united
with delight (dga' ba sdud pa yid la byed pa'i bsam gtan bzhi pa).
40. The
Four Formless states (gzugs med bzhi) are (a) Infinite Space (nam mkha' mtha'
yas), (b) Infinite Consciousness (rnam shes mtha' yas), (c) Nothing Whatsoever
(ci yang med pa), and (d) Neither Presence Nor Absence of Perception (yod min
med min).
41. Arhathood,
state of being an arhat (dgra-bcom-pa) or literally “one who has vanquished his
enemies”, the obscuring emotions (nyon mongs), in this case.
42. Unfortunate
migration (ngan song) refers to lower realms of existence such hell beings,
hungry ghosts, and animals that are bereft of appropriate conditions to
practice Dharma.
43. Four
mindful establishments (dran-pa nye bar bzhag pa bzhi): (1) mindful
establishment of body; (2) mindful establishment of feelings; (3) mindful
establishment of thoughts; and (4) mindful establishment of phenomena.
44. One endowed with the ten powers (stobs bcu
mnga’-ba), an epithet of Buddha who posses the ten powers developed
by bodhisattvas, viz. (1) power of reflection (bsam pa'i stobs); (2) power of
superior reflection (lhag bsam); (3) power of acquisition (sbyor ba); (4) power
of discriminative awareness (shes rab); (5) power of aspiration (smon lam); (6)
power of vehicle (theg pa); (7) power of conduct (spyod pa); (8) power of
transformation (rnam par 'phrul pa); (9) power of enlightenment (byang chub kyi
sems); and (10) power of turning the doctrinal wheel (chos kyi 'khor lo bskor
ba).
BuddhistSong:
BuddhistSong:
45. Ten
Transgressions (rung ba ma yin pa'i gzhi bcu): (1) exclamations of alas (hu lu
hu lu); (2) celebrating the arhats (yid rangs); (3) the deliberate practice of
agriculture (kun spyod); (4) sipping medicine from a pot of ale (snod); (5) the
misuse of the sacred stored salt (len tsha); (6) eating while on the road (lam);
(7) desecration of offerings with two fingers (sor gnyis); (8) stirring curd
and milk together as an afternoon beverage (dkrug); (9) using a new mat without
an old patch (gding); and (10) begging for gold or silver (gser).
....
46. The
Sixteen Elders (gnas brtan chen po bcu
drug) or the
Sixteen Mahasthaviras, are the disciples of the Buddha who vowed to preserve
the Dharma until the coming of Maitreya, the next Buddha.
47. Nirgrantha (gcher-bu-pa) refers to Jain
ascetics, literally meaning the 'Naked Ones', or followers of Jainism in the
Digambara tradition.
48. Yaksha (gnod-sbyin) are one of the eight classes of
gods and spirits (see note 29) that can be helpful as well as harmful guardian
spirits.
49. Tripitaka
(sde snod gsum), the three
Pitakas or collections of the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni: Vinaya pitaka ('dul
ba sde snod), Sutra pitaka (mdo'i sde snod), and Abhidharma pitaka (mngon chos
kyi sde snod). Their purpose is the development of the three trainings of
discipline, concentration and discriminating knowledge while their function is
to remedy the three poisons of desire, anger and delusion.
50. A
signless Buddha refers to an arhat. He is signless because he does not possess
the 32 and 80 major and minor marks of excellence.
51. Nagas
(klu) belong half to the animal realm and half to the god realm and are
believed to generally live in the form of snakes, but many can change into
human form. They are believed to inhabit bodies of water and often guard great
treasure.
52. rma
bya chen mo is one of the five types of sacred incantations (gzungs chen grwa
lnga).
53. Arya Manjushri (‘phags pa ‘jam dpal dbyangs)
is the
Buddha of wisdom, a bodhisattvas or an enlightened being. He is the
personification of the perfection of transcendent knowledge.
54.
The five sciences (rig pa’i gnas lnga), the five
branches of traditional Buddhist learning: 1) spiritual philosophy (nang gi rig
pa). 2) dialectics / logic ({gtan tshigs kyi rig pa), 3) grammar (sgra'i rig
pa), 4) medicine (gso ba'i rig pa), 5) mechanical arts and craft (bzo gnas kyi
rig pa)
55. This must be a corrupted form of Raja which means
king.
56. A
unit of liquid measurement. A zho of water, which is four times of Dre
is like saying ‘a bucket of water,’ while Dre of water is like saying
‘quarter or half bucket full of water.’
57. The Three Wheels (‘khor lo gsum): 1)
the study wheel of learning (klog pa thos bsam gyi 'khor lo); 2) the
renunciation wheel of meditation (spong ba bsam gtan gyi 'khor lo); and 3) the
action wheel of dharmic activity / practical conduct (bya ba las kyi 'khor lo)
Lama Novices:
Lama Novices:
......
58. Bhavaviveka
(legs-ldan), a disciple and precept-successor of Nagarjuna; founder of
Sautrantika-Madhyamika (mdo sde'i dbu ma)
59. Sala tree like
messenger ???
60. used the words: zer,
grag, and lo – (what is the
significance of these words?)
61. Shudra caste (dmangs rigs) is one of the four castes in the ancient
Indian caste system....
62. Sugata (bde bar gshegs pa), literally one who has gone to
bliss, or enlightenment, buddhahood
63. exegetical trilogy
64. Prajnaparamita7
(phar phyin) teachings – phar phyin literally means “to reach the other side”,
refers to perfection. Hence, prajna paramita means the perfection of wisdom.
65. One of the 10
Bodhisattva grounds (byang sems 'phags pa'i sa or Arya bodhisattva bhumi). Boddhisattva
grounds include: 1) the first ground, the Very Joyful (sa dang po rab tu dga'
ba); (2) the second ground, the Stainless (gnyis pa dri ma med pa); (3) the
third ground, the Radiant (gsum pa 'od byed pa); (4) the fourth ground, the
Effulgent (bzhi pa 'od 'phro pa); (5) the fifth ground, the Difficult to Tame
(lnga pa sbyang dka' ba); (6) the sixth ground, the Manifest (drug pa mngon du
gyur pa); (7) the seventh ground, the Gone Afar (bdun pa ring du song ba); (8)
the eighth ground, the Immovable (brgyad pa mi g.yo ba); (9) the ninth ground,
the Good Intelligence (dgu pa legs pa'i blo gros); (10) the tenth ground, the
Cloud of Doctrine (bcu pa chos kyi sprin)
66. Grub thob is a Siddha,
an accomplished spiritual master or saint having gained the supreme and
ordinary siddhis (mchog dang thun mong gi dngos grub).
67. Lnga bgrya phrag bzhi
pa
In contrast, not to prepare for
death, and to leave this world with the same faults that we came in with, is a
sad waste of our precious life. Once lost, it can be hard to get such a good
opportunity to progress again.
Dharmma song:
Dharmma song:
No comments:
Post a Comment