Approaching the Heart Sutra in terms of Time: 12 links of dependent arising

In this video, Master Sheng Yen explained the verse, "No ignorance and also no ending of ignorance, until we come to no old age and death; and no ending of old age and death" from the Heart Sutra.  无无明，亦无无明尽，乃至无老死，亦无老死尽.

Craving and grasping foster our attachment, and therefore forms the karmic force that will bring us to our next life in the circle of birth, aging, and death.  

Ignorance without beginning is the root cause of samsara and our mental affliction. 

There are 12  links of dependent arising. The 12 links involve 12 stages but the Heart sutra stops at "there is no ignorance" and skips the following volition, sensation, name and then jumps to aging and death.

This reflects our life as continued and incessant existence emanating from ignorance without beginning. The ignorance from life to life brings about volition and consciousness life after life, and therefore there is consciousness going through rebirths one life after another.

After consciousness enters the womb, "name and form" begins and thus another life is started. Name and form mark the start of life. Entering the womb as a foetus. After birth, there is "contact". When the foetus is four or five months old, it can move on its on and make contact. In Chinese custom, a newborn is considered to be one year old which is actually more correct. Since it has been in mother's womb for 40 weeks, it has started its present life. A foetus actually can perform many activities like kicking, and sucking his/her thumb. 

Since conception since entering the womb and becoming a foetus, its life has started. The start of this present life. After the start, there is contact. And then birth, after which there are sensation/feeling and craving. And craving actually includes the element of dislike, That is one likes what is desirable or agreeable, while rejecting and refusing what is detestable and undesirable. "Craving" actually has two levels of meaning. One being what we like the other something we don't like. This becomes a stage, a rather long stage. 

It starts from birth with feeling, hunger, desiring and pursuing. It doesn't stop until death. This is craving (爱)and the next is grasping（取）。

Grasping actually follows closely on craving. What do we grasp? We grasp what is good, what we like and what we want. But we also grasp what work against our ends. In that case, we reject it or discard it. One is grasping and the other is rejecting or refusing. Craving includes love and hate, like and dislike. 

Craving and grasping as two elements and two stages actually last a long period; from birth until death. It's all within the state of mind. When we like something, we want to seize it right away. When we dislike something, we can't wait to get rid of it. We are constantly experiencing this situation. 

Craving makes us greedy, greedy without satisfaction or limitation. What we dislike we find detestable and want to throw it away and when we can't, we are full of hatred. When we can't get what we desire, we feel hatred too. Therefore we give rise to various mental afflictions. It's because we crave and grasp that we create various karma in our life. However, its not without its advantages because we crave and grasp, we get to sustain our life. 

Haven't you seen small babies? Not long after they're born, they grasp things and stuff them in their mouth. Even as a grown up, we still constantly crave and grasp. But out of courtesy and moral consideration and various factors that restrain us, we can't rampantly go about craving and grasping whatever catches our eye. We can't completely go along with what we desire. But still deep down in our hearts, we hope we can get more and more still. This continues until death. There we create karma and then existence follows on from that. Existence in what way? Existence of causes for the future. The causes for the future will then lead one to the future life. The force that forms the cause for the future will then already be in existence. 

With its existence, consciousness will form. And this consciousness will enter the womb for the next life. In the next life, there will be birth, aging and death again. So the existence will lead to the next life, life after life. This is the 12 links of dependent arising throughout three periods of time.

Craving and grasping foster our attachment, and therefore forms the karmic force that will bring us to our next life in the circle of birth, aging, and death. 

The 12 Dependent Origination by Venerable Guan Cheng

Image from here

The Suårangama Sutra: Looking into the roots of klesa

From the Suarangama Sutra, pg 150.
The point of departure 

Ananda, if you wish to bring your seeing, hearing, feeling and knowing into line with the Tathagataís absolute Eternity, Bliss, Self and Purity, you should first pick out the root of birth and death, and turn its worldly falseness back to its un- worldly profound nature until it is subdued and reverts to Basic Bodhi, and then use this pure nature as the causal mind-ground (i.e. as the point of departure) to perfect your practice and realization of the fruit-ground.

This is like purifying muddy water in a clean container; left unshaken in complete calmness, the sand and mud will sink to the bottom. When the clear water appears, this is called the first suppression of the intruding evil element of passion. When the mud has been removed leaving behind only the clear water, this is called the permanent cutting off of basic ignorance. Enlightenment is (pure and) unmixed; and its manifestations are not of the nature of kle ̃a, but are in accord with the immaculate virtues of Nirvana. Looking into the roots of klesa to find the sense organ suitable for meditation.

What is the second decisive factor? In your determination to develop the Bodhi Mind and to advance boldly along the Bodhisattva Path by relinquishing everything worldly, you should look closely into the origin of klesa, caused by your basic ignorance and developing discrimination, and see who .  Ananda, in your cultivation of Bodhi, if you do not inquire into the root of klesa, you will never know (how and) where the organs and sense data are turned upside down. If you fail to understand this, how can you overcome them to win the Tath‡gata stage ë‚nanda, if a man who is good at untying knots, does not see them, how can he undo them? And you have never heard that the void can be unfastened for it has neither form nor shape and is not like a knot that can be untied. But your eyes, ears, nose and tongue as well as your body and mind, are the six decoys which a thief uses to steal the treasures of your house. For this reason, since the time without beginning, living beings and this world, have always been interlocked (in time and space) hence you are unable to leap beyond the material world. Ananda, what is (this) realm of time and space?( Time means duration and space location.) You know that the ten directions are in space and that the past, present and future are in time. There are ten directions (of space) and three (aspects of) time. All living beings owe their bodies to illusory time and space which are interwoven within them and continue to affect them. Although there are ten directions, the worldly man recognizes only the east, west, south and north as cardinal points but disregards the intermediate ones and the zenith and nadir which he considers as unimportant. 

Effect of Reciting Mantra

It has been a month since I recite the Buddhist mantra like Om Mani Padme Hum and the Heart Sutra. After reciting for a month, I don't have much desire to eat meat. Now I eat mostly vegetables and nuts like almond and walnut. What about you?

Surangama Sutra on Not Using Animal Products (Leng Yen Ching)愣严经

I was reading Surangama Sutra on Discipline and its Three Decisive steps and read that Buddha told Ananda and followers not to eat living beings. This is to remind me not to eat meat. To read more, click here, pg 215 to 217.

"Ananda, I permit the bhiksus to eat only the five kinds of pure flesh which are the product of my transcendental power of transformation and not of animal slaughter. You, Brahman, live in a country where vegetables do not grow because it is too damp and hot and because of all the gravel and rock. I use my spiritual power of compassion to provide you with illusory meat to satisfy your appetite. How then, after my nirvana, can you eat the flesh of living beings and so pretend to be my disciple? You should know that those who eat meat, though their minds may open and realize a semblance of Samadhi, are but great rakasas who, after this life, will sink back into the bitter ocean of samsara and cannot be my disciples. They will kill and devour one another ceaselessly; how then can they escape from the three worlds of existence?

 "In addition you should teach worldly men who practise Samadhi not to kill. This is called the Buddha"s profound teaching of the second decisive deed. Therefore, Ananda, if killing is not stopped, the practice of dhy‡na-samadhi is like shutting one's ears while crying in the hope that people will not hear one's voice, or like trying to hide something that is already exposed to full view. All bhiksus who live purely and all Bodhisattvas always refrain even from walking on the grass; how can they agree to uproot it? How then can those who practise great compassion feed on the flesh and blood of living beings? If bhiksus do not wear garments made of (Chinese) silk, boots of local leather and furs, and refrain from consuming milk, cream and butter, they will really be liberated from the worldly; after paying their former debts, they will not transmigrate in the three realms of existence. Why? Because by using animal products, one creates causes (which are always followed by effects), just like a man who eats cereals grown in the soil and whose feet cannot leave the ground. If a man can (control) his body and mind and thereby refrains from eating animal flesh and wearing animal products, I say he will really be liberated. This teaching of mine is that of the Buddha whereas any other is that of evil demons."

Sakyamuni Buddha 释迦牟尼佛传（佛教电影）

This is a movie on Sakyamuni Buddha. There are many meaningful teaching from the Buddha. I hope you find it helpful. 

From Sakyamuni Buddha

"All sentient beings (include the 6 realms: Hell, Animal, Hungry ghost, Asura, Human and Heaven) have the wisdom of virtues of the Buddha, but due to the clinging to delusion, one cannot be enlightened. Only when one can resume to the nature of their pure self, all sentient beings can attain Buddhahood."

" All sentient beings are equal, possess Buddha nature and can attain Buddhahood. But due to our clinging to delusion, our true hearts are blocked by the 3 poisons- greed, hatred and ignorance. The things we do are completely transposed, hence, sinking into the sea of bitterness, remaining in cyclic existence within the six realms. "

" A real Buddhist practitioner should have lesser and lesser vexation. One's temperament should also be soften and heart filled with joy."

"One should also give up on the thoughts of self-worry. If we don't abandon that desire, our pain and vexation will not be eliminated. To abandon desires, we need to have the right observations, right thinking, maintain a pure heart and a peaceful life." 

"If we live for the happiness of others, our heart will naturally be limpid."

"Real happiness is to live with a beautiful heart."

"All living being have Buddha nature. As long as one forsake hatred and selfish desires, then we can become friends." 

"If your heart is pure, whatever deeds you have done will be favorable causation. If your heart is not pure, then you've to eat the bitter fruition."

"All phenomena are created by causation, all phenomena are destroyed by causation."

"Its the heart that counts. A person who has a heart to help is spiritually abundant. Having a sense of shame, a person who dares to reflect on themselves, that's already a spiritual person."

The Surangama Sutra (Leng Yen Ching)愣严经: Expedient Instruction on the One Mind

An enlightening read from Surangama sutra (Leng Yen Ching)愣严经. To read more, click here.

Ananda said: World Honoured One, as the Buddha has said, the causal ground used as the point of departure in quest of Reality should be compatible with the fruit-ground. World Honoured One, though realization of the fruit-ground is called by seven different names: Bodhi, Nirv‡ıa, the Absolute, Buddha-nature, Immaculate Knowledge (Amalavij§‡na), Immaterial Tath‡gata Store, the Great Mirror Wisdom, it is pure, clean and perfect, and its substance does not change, like the royal diamond which is permanent and indestructible. 

Now the faculties of seeing and hearing have no independent nature in the absence of brightness and darkness, stillness and motion, and clearance and obstruction, and are like the thinking mind which ceases to exist in the absence of sense data. How can they be used as the point of departure in the search for the Tath‡gataís seven permanent fruits? World Honoured One, seeing ceases to exist in the absence of light and darkness, like the thinking mind which comes to an end when there are no external phenomena. As I look into all this, I search in vain for my mind and its objects: what then should I set up as the cause in my quest of Supreme Bodhi? Does the Tath‡gataís previous teaching on (the nature of) seeing which is profound, pure, perfect and permanent, contradict your true words and become sophistry (as well)? Will you please be compassionate enough to clear away my delusion and perplexity?

The Buddha said: "You have widened your knowledge by hearing but have failed to get out of the stream of trans- migration completely. Though you know the cause of your upset, yet when you find yourself in the presence of that cause, you fail to recognize it. Lest your trustfulness remain incomplete, I will now do something to clear away your doubt and suspicion. The Buddha then ordered R‡hula to ring the bell and asked Ananda: "Do you hear it?" Ananda and the others in the assembly replied that they did. When the bell was no more heard, the Buddha asked again: "Do you still hear it?" They all replied that they did not. R‡hula again rang the bell and the Buddha asked: Do you hear it?í They replied that they did. The Buddha then asked Ananda: "What do you mean by hearing and not hearing?‚Ananda and the others replied: "When the bell is rung, we call it hearing and when the sound and its echo stop, we call it not hearing."The Buddha again ordered R‡hula to ring the bell and asked ‚Ananda: "Is there any sound?" ‚Ananda and the others replied that there was a sound of the bell. A little later when it could no longer be heard, the Buddha asked again: "Is there any sound?" They all replied that there was none. Then Ràhula rang the bell again and the Buddha asked: "Is there any sound?" They all replied in the affirmative. 

The Buddha then asked ‚Ananda: What do you mean by sound and no sound?" Ananda and the others replied that if the bell was rung, there was sound and when both the sound and its echo stopped, this was called no sound. The Buddha said: "Why did you talk so wildly?"‚Ananda and the others asked: "Why do you say that we talked wildly?" 

The Buddha said: "When I asked you about hearing, you spoke of hearing and when I asked you about the sound, you spoke of it. So merely about hearing and sound, your answers were ambiguous; how could they not be called wild? ‚Ananda, when both the sound and its echo ceased, you said there was no hearing: if there really was no hearing, its nature would have died and would be like a withered log, but when the bell was rung again, how did you hear it? Existence and non-existence concern only the sound which may be present or not, but how can the nature of your hearing follow your discrimination to exist or not? If it really ceased, who then knew there was no sound?  Therefore, ‚Ananda, in your hearing, the sound may exist or not, but this does not mean that the sound, whether heard or not, (can) cause your hearing to exist or not. In your delusion you mistake the sound for your hearing and so regard the permanent as transient. You should not say that hearing has no nature when it exists apart from (the conditions of) disturbance, stillness, obstruction and clearance. 

"For instance, when a man sleeps soundly, if people pound rice, he may hear the beating of a drum or the ringing of a bell. So when asleep he may find it strange that the bell is like the beating of a (piece of) wood or stone, but if he suddenly wakes up and hears the pestle, he will tell his family about his mistake when asleep. "Ananda, does that man remember in his sleep (the conditions of) stillness, disturbance, clearance and obstruction? Although his body rests, the nature of his hearing is present. "Even when your body perishes and your life comes to an end, how can this nature vanish? For since the time without beginning all living beings have followed forms and sounds and pursued the flow of their thoughts without awakening to their pure, profound and permanent nature. By straying from the permanent and by following birth and death, they have been contaminated with defilements in successive lives. If you (only) keep away from sams‡ra and dwell in real permanence, your eternal Light will appear thereby causing your organs, sense data, consciousness and (mad) mind to vanish simultaneously. The objects of your thinking process are (polluting) dust and the feelings that arise from your consciousness are impurities; if both are kept away, your Dharma eye will appear pure and bright instantly. Why then cannot you realize Supreme Bodhi?"

缘起性空Conditioned Arising is Empty in Nature

五蕰是空，因为因缘所生。All phenomena rise and perish, dependent on causes and conditions. Emptiness is not nothingness. Emptiness indicates change. Things that change has no permanent nature and so is emptiness. The 5 aggregates like forms, sensation, perception, volition and consciousness have no permanent nature and so are emptiness. 

Emptiness in nature while existence produced by causes and conditions, which involves change, not remaining in the same state. Since it is ever changing in appearance, its nature changes. They exist out of emptiness, in their existence you see emptiness. Just like a seed exists for the time being due to the results of causes and conditions coming together, the seed is perceived as emptiness. Its nature is empty so it can change. Conditional arising means things exist by causes and conditions. But emptiness can also mean many possibilities! With the suitable causes and conditions, the seed will sprout, then to plant and then wilt for example; all these dependent on the causes and conditions. 

A lot of suffering is due to people attachment to desire, forms be it sound, materialism, hatred that has no permanent nature. When you contemplate on五蕰是空, you will let go attachment and be more at peace. Once you contemplate that aggregates are emptiness, why be angry, sad or worry over a form that is temporary? Realizing emptiness does not negate phenomenal existence. All phenomena are there yet if remain undisturbed by them in our minds, then we don’t experience any affliction, or be affected by all kind of negative reactions.

Lotus Sutra Exhibition at The Arts House

This Friday, I went to The Arts House to view the Lotus Sutra Exhibition at The Arts House. It is about 5 to 10 minutes walk from the City Hall and Raffles Place MRT stations. 

"The Lotus Sutra-A Message of Peace and Harmonious Coexistence" is jointly organised The Institute of Oriental Philosophy(Japan), Dunhuang Academy (China) and Singapore Soka Association. Singapore is the 16th country to host this exhibition since 2006. 

At the exhibition, one of the guides shared with me the how the Lotus Sutra arrived in China. He shared the story of how Kumārajīva from the Kingdom of Kucha who translated many sutras, including the Lotus Sutra into Chinese language.

Before Kumarajiva passed on, he proclaimed that if his translation was true and according to the principles of Buddhism, his tongue would remain intact and not turn to ash. After cremation, the tongue was intact.

At the exhibition, I saw a statue of young Kumarajiva and many replicas of Lotus Sutra in various languages. Photography is not allowed in the exhibition. So I took photos from the brochures given to the visitors. 

The Lotus Sutra exhibition 
Venue: The Arts House, 1 Old Parliament Lane, Singapore 179429
Date: 1 to 25 October 2017
Time: 2pm to 9pm. (Last entry at 8pm) 
MRT: City Hall, Raffles Place, Clarke Quay
Free admission

 I like these beautiful paper lotus flower.

 There are engagement activities like Lotus flower origami.

Reincarnation

Many people have this misconception that only Buddhists preach about reincarnation and karma only. But others like Hinduism also talk about it like reap what you sow. In fact this karma, retribution and reincarnation is also mentioned in one of the great philosophy books (about 2400 years ago), in The Republic, last section of Book X by Plato, a student of Socrates. 

In the Republic, Book X, it detailed the account of a soldier Er who returned to the earthly realm 10 days after his death. He was told in the other realm that he would be a messenger and that he must witness what he saw in the other realm and share when he returns. Some extracts from The Republic, Book X For impiety toward gods and parents, and personal homicide, he described still heavier retribution. 

"The souls which arrived from time to time appeared to have arrive from a long journey, and were glad to come out into the meadow. The souls that came out of the earth asked the others news of their part, and the souls from heaven asked those what befell in their place. They recounted their histories to each other;-those weeping and lamenting when they recalled what they had suffered and seen in their sojourn underground-the sojourn, they said lasted a thousand years; on the other hand, the souls out of heaven told of bliss and sights incredibly beautiful."  Christianity talked about 7th heaven (maybe the lower heaven level were sent down). Buddhism also mentioned about many different heavenly realms. Each had paid satisfaction to all persons that he had wronged, and for each offence in turn ten times. To make the payment for each wrong tenfold. 

On reincarnation. After the lots were drawn, the souls will choose which form they are going to reincarnate. The drawer of the first soul (from heaven) chose the greatest tyranny, in his folly and greed he did not in choosing examine all the details. The soul which had been Orpheus chose a swan’s life, through hatred of womankind, because women killed him, and therefore he would not be conceived and born of a woman. Now I understand why Buddha said forgive and do not let hatred dominate you and Jesus said forgive and love your enemy. When all the souls had chosen their lives in the order of their lots, they travelled to the plain of Oblivion. Every soul had to drink the River of Neglectfulness, to forget everything. (This is similar to the Chinese version of drinking Mengpo soup.) 

It is amazing this account is similar to the Chinese’s version of reincarnation, judgement and drinking of mengpo. This is similar to many accounts by those near-death experience (nde) survivor of seeing beautiful heavenly realm. Why do I believe in nde’s accounts? Because the website owner will ask for medical record to check and through his discretion publish it.

In one of the accounts from near-death experience, Duane share, "

"My death was not just falling asleep into a state of nothingness forever. Rather it was an awakening to a reality I couldn’t imagine. As I was greeted by those I loved, I felt as if I were dissolving into the most intense love I had ever known. The love rolled over me like the waves of a great tsunami; a happy, joyous love full of anticipation, promise, and closure. No words were exchanged. Thoughts moved instantaneously, with perfect clarity, from one part of the eternal mind to another; without the ability to withhold or judge anything. It was all an expression and celebration of love. On earth, this reunion would have been unfathomable, between members of an ancient soul group who were celebrating the return home of one of their own. Slowly, as I looked at those gathered to greet me, I realized they were all there. Surprisingly they were not only from this life, but also from a prior life in Germany. I realized that the same souls have possibly played different parts in my multiple lives.

My joy deepened as I realized that I had only left behind an earthly vestige of those I love. The essence of each of those souls, was also here with me now. Besides my friends and family, there were the friendly Germans who had been hauntingly familiar while I was a young soldier in Germany. Now I knew why they seemed so familiar at the time, they had been friends and family from a prior lifetime there. I now understood that I had left nothing behind on earth. The eternal essences of all my loved ones from that life, as well as all other incarnations, were all here to greet me. All I had left behind was a character, playing a role in a drama that we had chosen to experience. In the meantime, our real eternal essence remained in God’s realm. Suddenly, it was all so simple. "

I think it is a blessing that we are born with human forms as we have the opportunity for spiritual cultivation. Just look at this earthly realm which we share with billions of other beings in the animal realm be it from sky, earth and water.(ocean, sea, river, lake).  

The most important thing is to love, live with awareness, help others and give our all in this life so that we do not waste this precious gift of life. That's why there is a saying, If you want to know your past life, look at your present life. If you want to know your future, look at what you are doing now.

Human realm. Image from google.com

Emptiness is not Nothingness

This year I have a better understanding of Heart Sutra and Buddhism thanks to Venerable Master Sheng Yen. I like his teaching as it is easy to relate and funny. He departed in 2009 but fortunately there are many of his teachings available in youtube. 

The 5 aggregates (a whole formed by combining several separate elements) are empty. The 五蕴 or 5 aggregates are 色受想行识 or form(material), sensation, perception, volition (act of making a choice) and consciousness. 

Your action is determined by your thoughts and what you see/sense. Life is composed of the 5 aggregates. 

The 5 aggregates have no permanent nature and so are empty. Our physical body is changing, our mental actions are changing, our main entity of life consciousness is constantly changing. The content is changing, and appearance is changing. That’s why its said that five aggregates are all empty. 色即是空，空即是色 (form is empty, empty is form). 

Although we don’t take thing seriously due to emptiness, but karmic causality is certainly always at work. Buddhism advocates the concept of “emptiness” to teach us not to be attached to anything while we are working hard for the well-being of other people.  

The True Meaning of Emptiness

The Heart Sutra

The Heart sutra also known as The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom is the core of The Mahaprajna Paramita sutra in six hundred scrolls.The Heart Sutra is one of the best-known and most popular Buddhist scriptures.

Please click the link here as it has very good explanation on the Heart Sutra.

https://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/heartstr.htm
http://usashaolintemple.com/chanbuddhism-heartsutratranslation/ English Translation. 

In-depth explanation at http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/heart_s2.pdf 


When Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara practised the deep Prajnaparamita, he saw that the five skandhas were empty; thus he overcame all ills and suffering. 

"HE PERCEIVED THAT ALL FIVE SKANDHAS ARE EMPTY"

The five skandhas, namely form, feelings, perceptions, volitions and consciousness continually provide five occasions for craving and clinging. Two types of craving and clinging characterize the human mind: 1) Craving and clinging to form and 2) Craving and clinging to mind. Clinging to form is the domain of the form skandha; the remaining four skandhas constitute the domain of the mind and the clinging to mind is generated in those four realms. All our grasping, manifested in our attachments and aversions, is generated and developed due to the activity of these four skandhas. Craving and clinging emerge at birth, and the Buddhadharma aims to sever them.

 “O Sariputra! Form does not differ from the void, and the void does not differ from the form. Form is the void, and the void is form. 

The same is true for feelings, perceptions, impulses and consciousness. O Sariputra, the characteristics of the void is not created, not annihilated, not impure, not pure, not increasing, not decreasing. 

 Therefore, in the void there are no forms and no feelings, perceptions, impulses and no consciousness: there is no eye, ear, nose, tongue, body or mind; there is no form, sound, smell, taste, touch or idea; no eye elements, until we come to no elements of consciousness; no ignorance and also no ending of ignorance, until we come to no old age and death; and no ending of old age and death. 

 Also, there is no truth of suffering, of the cause of suffering, of the cessation of suffering or of the path. There is no wisdom, and there is no attainment whatsoever. Because there is nothing to be attained, a Bodhisattva relying on Prajnaparamita has no obstruction in his heart. Because there is no obstruction he has no fear, and he passes far beyond all confused imagination and reaches Ultimate Nirvana. 

 All Buddhas in the past, present and future have attained Supreme Enlightenment by relying on the Prajnaparamita. Therefore we know that the Prajnaparamita is the great magic Mantra, the great Mantra of illumination, it is the supreme Mantra, the unequaled Mantra which can truly wipe out all suffering without fail.” 

 Therefore, he uttered the Prajnaparamita mantra, by saying: “Gate, Gate, Paragate, Parasemgate Bodhi-svaha!” 

观自在菩萨，行深般若波罗蜜多时。照见五蕴皆空，渡一切苦厄。舍利子，色不异空，空不异色，色即是空，空即是色，受想行识，亦复如是。舍利子，是诸法空相，不生不灭，不垢不净，不增不减。是故空中无色，无受想行识，无眼耳鼻舌身意，无色声香味触法，无眼界，乃至无意识界。无无明，亦无无明尽，乃至无老死，亦无老死尽。无苦集灭道，无智亦无得。以无所得故，菩提萨埵，依般若波罗蜜多故，心无罣礙，无罣礙故，无有恐怖，远离顚倒梦想，究竟涅槃。三世诸佛，依般若波罗蜜多故，得阿耨多罗三藐三菩提。故知般若波罗蜜多，是大神呪，是大明呪，是无上呪，是无等等呪，能除一切苦，眞实不虚。故说般若波罗蜜多呪，卽说呪曰：揭谛揭谛，波罗揭谛，波罗僧揭谛，菩提萨婆诃。

Heart Sutra（ 心经）受想行识

One day, I was flipping through TV channels and coincidentally I switched to a TVB channel which was showing 通天干探(The Ultimate Crime Fighter), a Hong Kong TVB police drama starred by Moses Chen. In the scene, the cop with supernatural ability was sharing the Heart Sutra ( 心经）to the character played by Moses Chen who abused his authority as a policeman as he seek revenge. From the scene, I began to understand the verse 受想行识. Although its only 4 words, it has very deep meaning. 受想行识 means your action is determined by your thoughts. The reason why the policeman became evil was because he thought the world was unfair, and everyone was not helping him. 

He became disillusioned and decided to commit crime since he thought there was no justice and he decided to take revenge. In the end, he committed the crime as his mind was filled with anger and revenge and he felt everyone was against him. Now I understand why Buddha stated Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much as your own unguarded thoughts. “All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts and made up of our thoughts. If a man speak or act with an evil thought, suffering follows him as the wheel follows the hoof of the beast that draws the wagon.... If a man speak or act with a good thought, happiness follows him like a shadow that never leaves him.” ― Gautama Buddha 

观自在菩萨，行深般若波罗蜜多时。照见五蕴皆空，渡一切苦厄。舍利子，色不异空，空不异色，色即是空，空即是色，受想行识，亦复如是。舍利子，是诸法空相，不生不灭，不垢不净，不增不减。是故空中无色，无受想行识，无眼耳鼻舌身意，无色声香味触法，无眼界，乃至无意识界。无无明，亦无无明尽，乃至无老死，亦无老死尽。无苦集灭道，无智亦无得。以无所得故，菩提萨埵，依般若波罗蜜多故，心无罣礙，无罣礙故，无有恐怖，远离顚倒梦想，究竟涅槃。三世诸佛，依般若波罗蜜多故，得阿耨多罗三藐三菩提。故知般若波罗蜜多，是大神呪，是大明呪，是无上呪，是无等等呪，能除一切苦，眞实不虚。故说般若波罗蜜多呪，卽说呪曰：揭谛揭谛，波罗揭谛，波罗僧揭谛，菩提萨婆诃。

Faith in Buddha's Teaching

Hi I decided to start a blog on Buddhism as recently I finally accept Buddhism. I hope to share what I learned on Buddhism with everyone. Although my parents have been praying to Guanyin Bodhisattva since I was born, its only last month that I fully embrace its teaching after reading from other books like Dying to be Me by Anita Moojani and Proof of Heaven, A Neurosurgeon's Journey into the Afterlife by Dr Eben Alexander. Prior to that, I read some books on Buddhism and Heart sutra but I was still skeptical. Also Buddha advised us not to blindly follow him but to analyse his teachings before accepting them.

Many years ago, I read on Heart Sutra（心经） but could not really comprehend them. Even though Heart Sutra is one of the shortest sutra with 260 Chinese characters, it has deep meaning of which I have yet to understand all. But in this blog, I will share on what I understand on Buddhism and Heart Sutra. 

Ironically it was from reading the Dying to be Me and Proof of Heaven that I understood parts of Heart Sutra and Buddhism.

In Dying to be me, Anita shared her near-death experience. She was told that she only had hours left she was suffering from end-stage cancer. Despite leaving her body, without her five physical senses ( eye, hear, smell, touch, mouth), she continue to exist and she could see her past, present and future lives simultaneously. In the other realm, time does not run linearly. After realising how magnificent she was, her cancer miraculously shrink by 70% in 5 days and completely disappeared within 5 weeks. 

From Proof of Heaven, Dr Eben Alexander shared what he saw in his near-death experience. Initially I was thinking, he might preach on Christianity since he is a Christian. Surprising he did not preach but instead shared what he saw in the other realm when he was in coma from meningitis. 

He first arrived in the Realm of the Earthworm's Eye View where he saw "grotesque animal faces bubbled out of the muck, groaned or screeched." This must be what Buddha said about the Hell realm. Next Dr Eben said that through conscious effort, he ascended towards the light where he saw beautiful countryside where people sang and danced. That must be Heavenly realm. However he also described above the heaven, he saw higher beings with no forms up at the sky in the Heavenly realm. Perhaps even in Heavenly realms, there are different levels of heavenly realms. In Chinese, there is a saying 天外有天( sky above sky or heaven above heaven). I read that there are many different Heavenly realms from Buddhist books. The lower Heavenly realm still have forms or ego and after enjoying the good karma, they'll still be reborn as human. However the higher heavenly realms have no forms and will not be reborn as human.

He was next guided to the Core and he heard the sound Om. Surprisingly in Buddhism, there is this 6-syllable mantra Om Mani Padme Hum. I will share this mantra in next post. Surprisingly I thought I'll learn more on Buddhism if I only read Buddhist books. Sometimes other books just help me to connect the dots. 

I will continue to read and put into practice what I learnt from Buddha's teaching. I will use this blog to share what I find is useful to me.