All living beings are made of the five skandhas of form, feeling sensation, perception, mental formations and consciousness which accumulate to form the body and they are known as the five aggregates of clinging. The five aggregates arise through causes and conditions, therefore they are illusory and not permanent. Do not be attached to not pleasant feelings and thoughts, and just let go of not helpful thoughts. When we observe he five skandhas are empty, it doesn't mean it is nothingness. It means we have understood that it is the law of dependent origination and no longer cling to it. Everything is just arising and cessation.
Venerable Hui Neng, the Sixth Patriarchof Chan (February 27, 638 – August 28, 713) was said to attain awakening when he heard a verse from the Diamond Sutra 应无所住而生其心. Without abiding anything, give rise to the pure mind.
When the Fifth Patriarch of Chan Venerable Hong Ren explained to him the Diamond sutra. Venerable Hui Neng was "suddenly and completely enlightened, and he understood that all things exist in self-nature.
应无所住而生其心，Without abiding anything, give rise to the pure mind
云何应住，云何降伏其心 When does the cloud abide, how does the cloud calm the mind
佛说应无所住而生其心 Buddha said without abiding in forms, arises the mind
即是说心即是佛,佛即是心 Meaning Pure Mind is Buddha and Buddha is Pure Mind.
他做了一首偈子Venerable Huineng came up with the following stanza when he understood the verse.
何其自性本自清净！What is self, it is intrinsically pure
何其自性本不生灭！What is self, it is neither born nor extinguish
何其自性本自具足！What is self, it is self-sufficient
何其自性能生万法！What is self, it can produces immeasurable dharma/ideas
From the Diamond Sutra
Subhuti, all great bodhisattvas should give rise to purity of mind in this way: they should not give rise to a mind that abides in form; they should not give rise to a mind that abides in sound, smell, taste, touch, or dharmas. They should give rise to a mind that does not abide in anything.
Subhuti, a bodhisattva should turn away from all notions, and initiate the mind of anuttara samyaksambodhi. He should not give rise to a mind abiding in form, and he should not give rise to a mind abiding in sound, smell, taste, touch, or dharmas. He should give rise to a mind that does not abide in anything.
When we contemplate the following verses from the Diamond Sutra, your mind should not be affected by forms which are transient, dependent on causes and conditions.
一切有为法，如梦幻泡影，如露亦如电，应作如是观
“All conditioned phenomena Are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows, Like dew and lightning. One should contemplate them in this way. “
All phenomena appear in the world is a combination of causes and conditions that is temporary by nature. It will pass. There is no permanent nature to form which is subjected to change due to causes and conditions, thus it is illusory.
A lot of suffering comes from the mind which is influenced by forms like sight, hearing, touch, taste or perception. When someone criticised us, we get upset, when someone own something we don’t have, we want it. We are always influenced by the three poison, greed, anger and delusion.
From the book, Miracles Happen: The Transformational Healing by Dr Brian Weiss, “ Chinese philosopher Hui-neng (6thpatriarch of Chan Buddhism/Zen) wrote, “When we are free from attachment to all outer objects, the mind will be in peace. Our essence of mind is intrinsically pure, and the reason why we are perturbed is because we allow ourselves to be carried by the circumstances we are in. He who is able to keep his mind unperturbed (calm), irrespective of circumstances has attained enlightenment. “
A woman who went through a near-death experience shared,” I realized that life is like a dream”. She wrote, “ When you are born, you wake up into mortality in this physical body. When your physical body dies, you return to immortality.”
I realised what is 无我 no-self as our consciousness or mind changes identity in various body forms in our many reincarnations. Thus there is no permanent self-identity. Do not cling to anger and just let go.
Happy Vesak Day to all Buddhists who follow Buddha's teaching. On this day, I spent about an hour meditating and thanking Buddha for his teaching after he was enlightened and awakened on this full moon day. Yesterday after work, I went to temple to pray. I am grateful that Buddha' teaching is still available now even though Buddha (Buddha means Awakened) already entered parinirvana about 2500 years ago. Buddha said everyone has Buddha nature.
On Vesak day, Buddhists commemorate the birth, enlightenment and parinirvana of Gautama Buddha. The compassionate and kind Buddha spent 49 years teaching the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold path to end samsara. Buddhism or Buddha's teaching is not about pessimism. There is a way to end suffering and that is to follow the Noble Eightfold path which helps to end rebirth.
Before enlightenment, Buddha spent 6 long years practicing asceticism and long fasting, causing his body to be weakened and he almost lost his life. While meditating one day, he heard someone playing a string instrument and came to the realisation that the Middle Path is the way for achieving the liberation of body and mind.
"Cultivation is like playing a musical string instrument. The string will snap if it is too tight, or not make any sound if it is too loose. Indulgence in sensual pleasure or extreme penance are attachments. The Middle Path is the way for achieving the liberation of body and mind."
After attaining enlightenment after 7 days of deep meditation, Buddha had compassionately taught sentients being the Four Noble Truths. Buddha reminded us to think and investigate his and others' teaching before accepting it.
The Four Noble Truths are
1) The truth of suffering. Like it or not, both rich and poor go through suffering. The suffering of old age, not getting what you want, separation, sickness.
2) The truth of the cause of suffering (craving, anger and delusion)
3) The truth of the end of suffering. (There is a way to end suffering)
4) The truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering is the Noble Eightfold paths.
The Noble Eightfold paths which helps to develop Sila (ethical conduct), samadhi (mental discipline or meditation) and panna (wisdom) 戒定慧 are as follows
1) Right Thought (be aware of your thinking with good intention. Eliminate greed, anger and delusion)
2) Right View (understanding of cause and effect, 12 links of dependent origination)
3) Right Speech (Refrain from lying, gossip, idle, harsh speech. If one has nothing helpful to say, be silent) Hmm, this is something I might need to work on it but hey I'm just stating the truth and my intention is to warn people. Not instead of me warning, people are complaining about the person.
4) Right action (moral, honorable and peaceful conduct). Hmm sometimes I'm quite mischievous.
5) Right livelihood (Honest living, Refrain from making a living that harm others like selling weapons, intoxicating drinks, and toxins) This is why I don't support people making use of Buddhism to make money especially in places like night clubs that sell alcohol. Buddha warned his disciples not to drink alcohol as it might cause them to be careless in their action and thus create bad karma. If that dj wants to perform, don't wear monk robe as real monks and strict Buddhists don't drink alcohol. Not drinking alcohol is one of the five precepts for lay Buddhists.
6) Right effort (prevent unwholesome state of mind)
7) Right mindfulness (be aware and mindful of one's thoughts and feelings
8) Right concentration (meditation)
On Vesak Day, this is the day for me to remember Buddha's teaching and to remind myself to be mindful. There were some days when I was not mindful and I reacted.
I like this story about how Buddha interacted with an angry man and was not affected by his insulting words. From my workplace, I see a lot of angry outburst because people tend to be affected by what others say and thus they kept thinking about unhappy thoughts. I was affected for a while but will just let go since I don't accept what they said after learning from this story.
In this story, as Buddha was walking in a village, a very angry man insulted the Buddha and said that he had no right to teach others. Buddha was calm and serene as usual and he asked the man, “Tell me, if you buy a gift for someone, and that person does not take it, to whom does the gift belong?”
The young man was surprised to be asked such a strange question and answered, “It would belong to me, because I bought the gift.”
The Buddha smiled and said, “That is correct. And it is exactly the same with your anger. If you become angry with me and I do not get insulted, then the anger falls back on you. You are then the only one who becomes unhappy. All you have done is hurt yourself.”
On the night of enlightenment, Buddha attained the ability to recollect his past lives at dusk. In late night, Buddha attained the second knowledge which is the passing away and rebirth of beings according to their actions and closer to dawn, Buddha attained the knowledge of the destruction of mental defilements and came to be the fully self-awaked Buddha. Buddha had compassionately spent the next 49 years teaching sentients being the path to end suffering with the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold path. More than 2500 years later, with the advance of technology and past lives regression, it verified what Buddha had taught about rebirths and karma- cause and effect. If you want to read about rebirths, you can read Dr Brian Weiss's book like Many Lives, Many Masters which touched on individual and collective karma and rebirths.
Noble Eightfold paths
Be mindful of your action. Many people who died and returned back to their body shared that during their life review, they experienced the other person's emotion caused by their action.
Saw this interesting explanation on the above verse on the Eight Winds article here. This is a story of how one of my favourite Chinese poets, Su Dongpo was upset by his friend's reaction to his poem. This story reminds me that we should be calm and not react impulsively.
Felt very tired after work. No time to translate. But found a good website from here and here with good introduction and translation.
Su Dongpo was a Song Dynasty poet and government official in Guazhou. Though the Yangzi River separated Guazhou from Jinshan Temple, Su Dongpo crossed it regularly to converse with the temple’s abbot, Chan Master Foyin, about Chan and the Way. One day, when Su Dongpo felt that his cultivation had reached full maturity, he composed the following poem and dispatched his young attendant to deliver it to Master Foyin for his approval: Bowing, Heaven within Heaven, I am the light that illuminates the boundless universe. The eight winds cannot move me, who am seated mindfully upon the purple golden lotus.
Upon reading it, the master dashed off a one-word comment for the young attendant to carry back. As soon as Su Dongpo read “fart” an uncontrollable anger began to rise. So he embarked for the other shore to debate the master. As his boat approached Jinshan Temple, Master Foyin was already waiting. Su Dongpo said, “We are the closest of Dharma friends. My poem, my cultivation — if you don’t praise it, that’s fine. But how could you insult me?” Acting as if nothing had happened, the Chan master asked, “How did I insult you?” When Su Dongpo showed him his comment, the master roared with laughter, saying, “Didn’t you say ‘the eight winds cannot move me?’ So how come a fart has blown you across the river?”
Cultivation is achieved, not by talk, but by action.
The “Eight Winds” in the poem referred to praise, ridicule, honor, disgrace, gain, loss, pleasure and misery - interpersonal forces of the material world that drove and influenced the hearts of men.
Before Buddha entered parinirvana,Buddha reminded the monks and laypeople to practise the Noble Eightfold Path that leads to the end of suffering. Most importantly to observe the precepts. He reminded them not to believe everything they read or listen , even if they were from the Buddha. Buddha advised us to use our knowledge and wisdom to think and investigate. Only if it investigated to be true by our experience and investigation, then we accept the teaching even if it supposedly said by the Buddha.
A monk asked what he should do if he meet the Buddha in his spiritual path. Buddha reminded him not to deviate from the right path even he met his relative. I think Buddha was trying to remind him not to be deluded by form illusions as other beings could manifest in any forms and deluded the practitioner but to remember Buddha's teaching on the Noble Eightfold path which leads to the end of suffering. The Noble Eightfold path in essence covers Precepts, Meditation and Wisdom (戒定慧）.
The Four Noble Truth
1) Suffering exists in everyone's life. ( aging, sickness, death, unpleasant sensation due to 5 aggregates. )
2) The causes of suffering are greed, anger and ignorance.
3) Nirvana, the extinction of suffering is achievable
4) The end of suffering is by following the Noble Eightfold path
The Noble Eightfold Path are as follows.
1. Right View
2. Right Thought
3. Right Speech
4. Right Action
5. Right Livelihood-
6. Right Effort
7. Right Mindfulness
8. Right Concentration
Recently I read the book, The Boy Who Saw Truth which is based on a Victorian boy's diary. The humorous boy had the ability to see people's aura and also spirits. Initially he didn't know what the different aura colour meant but slowly he realised the meaning. In his past life, he was an advanced soul thus he had this ability to communicate with the spirits including his past life teacher who was part of the Elderly Brothers. I find it interesting as it reminds me of Buddha's teaching about craving and desires which are fetters that bind one to earth and to avoid evil so as to incur no debts to be paid off in future reincarnation as there is karma or Cause and effect. You can read an excerpt of this book below. That is why Buddha taught the Noble Truth and the Noble Eightfold path for 45 years which lead to end of suffering from samsara rebirth.
I like to share this book, Messages from the Masters by Dr Brian Weiss, a Jewish American who served as a chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Centre in Miami Beach, Florida. Initially he didn't believe in reincarnation until he met a patient, Catherine who inexplicably recalled her many past-life memories.
Some people could recall their past lives through past-life regression, near-death experiences (for example Duane here) or deep meditation.
In the book, he shared about karma and lessons. Karma is not just Buddhism concept. It is the universal law of the universe taught by great spiritual teachers like Buddha on karma and rebirth and Jesus Christ who taught, "You reap what you sow". You can read more on Karma and Lessons and the Golden Rule as shown below.
I hope all world leaders can read this book so that there be no war. We are all spiritual beings on human journey to develop our spirituality and hopefully graduate from this earth school. If we could treat all fellow human beings as family, there will be no war. If your relatives were in the building, would you still drop the bomb on the building? Only love, understanding and empathy can resolve conflict and differences in opinions. Technology should not be used to hurt people.
A friend asked me why I chose to follow Buddha's Teaching. As more people from the western countries recalled their past lives from past life regression and near death experiences, they verified what I read from the Buddhism books that there is a reason to the cause to your current life. It connected the dots to all the knowledge I acquired since young. Thus now I believe in karma and rebirth and there is a path to extinguish suffering. Don't just believe, you can go investigate and check whether it is true. These are the books on reincarnation here.
I felt happy when I finally understand some verses from the Heart sutra and Diamond sutra after some personal experiences and shared the previous post on Five Skandhashere with five of my Buddhist friends. I also have many Christian friends and relatives but don't think it's appropriate to share with them. I received only one feedback from a wise friend and I am grateful that she shared her perspective. Another of my friend who is following Theravada path (traditional) said that he will refrain from commenting on Mahayana sutras as he follows Theravada teaching. To me I read both Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism sutras if they focus on the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold path which leads to cessation of samsara.
All living beings are made of the five skandhas of form, feeling sensation, perception, volition and consciousness （色受想行识）which accumulate to form the body and they are known as the five aggregates of clinging. The five aggregates arise through causes and conditions, therefore they are illusory and not permanent. I asked my friend if she is okay with me sharing her post here and she agreed. I am grateful to my wise and kind friend H.
The following in blue is my friend's sharing and purple my reflection.
H: "To me, the most important is to recognise that you are feeling hot, or cold, and the choice you make after that. That choice is made based on your wisdom, your understanding of the fire and the ice's nature. So if it is too hot or too cold, you distant yourself, but you don't blame yourself for feeling hot or cold. We human are energetic linked to each other, and no matter how much you practice, you will still be affected at energetic level. Just like when you stand near fire, you can't help feeling hot. When you stand near ice, you can't help feeling cold."
S: True. For the physical sensation, we can easily move away from the source of discomfort. The most important thing is to observe our feeling and react appropriately. After rereading the Heart Sutra and Diamond sutra, I'm no longer clinging to others' words or action for long after seeing the aggregates empty of self. For example, someone recently made a funny face at me. Instead of being angry, I find it funny when I saw the distorted funny face as an amalgamation of particles moving and twisting. One you see the person as impermanent form made up of five aggregates, you don't cling to anger. We have the freedom to choose our reaction. I just move away from people I'm uncomfortable with.
H: "Slowly with practice and observe your own reactions to external event, you will be less affected by it. Every emotional reaction is telling you that there is something within you that is still disturbing. So nowadays, when I get affected by external people, I look within myself and try to understand what disturbs me from inside. If I cannot find out, I will pray to Buddha for guidance. Fortunately, his guidance is very simple, wise and visual. I can't understand and appreciate the contemporary Buddhist teachings which appears very complicated haha."
S: Now I am more mindful of why I feel certain way and react in calm way. Perceiving the five skandhas as empty, I don't feel so upset as all existence is impermanent and is made up of the five aggregates. To be honest, I also find some Mahayana sutra complex so I just focus on the shortest sutra, Heart Sutra and some verses from Diamond sutra. However this requires daily practice of meditating and reading the sutras to remind oneself to be mindful.
H: "To me, if there is a goal, there is desire and attachment. Isn't Buddhist teaching about non-attachment and free of desire?"
S: Yes that is why Buddha said that his teaching is like the raft. Once you have crossed the shore, you don't have to carry the raft with you.
H: "I don't quite subscribe to this " right" concept, rather, I am more towards the Zen philosophy " Everything happens is the right things that need to happen". So I no longer differentiate between right and wrong. Even darkness has its meaning and reason for existence, so are the wrongs."
S: When I read the above, image of Yin Yang symbol appeared in my mind. There is no right or wrong situation but there is right action. Generally most people do agree that it is right not to take other people's thing as that is stealing. In Yin Yang symbol, it implies duality. There is a small circle or difference from the main white half. half. Ultimately, we must be mindful of our action. We don't do things to others that we don't like. There is karma, cause and effect, the universal law of the universe.
