vimalo kulbarz - awakening to the truth

8/3/2019 Vimalo Kulbarz - Awakening to the Truth

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AWAKENING TO THE TRUTH

By Vimalo Kulbarz

This article attempts to clarify the meaning of some important terms found in the Discourses of the Buddha.Since I believe that the study of the Mahāyāna and the writings of the other great mystics in other religionshave great value and may widen and deepen one´s understanding of the Buddha´s teaching, I have quotedoften from the Zen and Mahāyāna scriptures and occasionally also from the writings of other enlightenedmen. The notes which contain some parallels are marked by an asterisk.*I hope the reader will approach any novel interpretation with the critical, but open-minded attitude as theBuddha taught in the Kālāma-sutta.

The Process of PAPAÑCA

The notion of multiplicity, various emotional projections, as well as the habit of thinking in dualistic

concepts is called in Pali papañca.1

Through past conditioning the perception of things is coloured anddistorted ( papañca-saññā). At the root of papañca is the notion of “I” and “mine”.2* Because papañcainvests objects with various projected characteristics, it prevents us from seeing things as they are( yathabhūta-ñāņa-dassana). “The world is attached to a dualistic way of thinking.” 3 According to thecommentaries4 there are three forms of papañca: taņhā-papañca, diţţi-papañca and māna-papañca. Taņhā-

papañca means various, largely unconscious projections with which desire invests obejcts so that theyappear attractive and `desirable´. The unconscious expectations, demands and projections directed towardsother people, which are based on unfilfilled needs, also fall under taņhā-papañca.The Buddha, speaking about the understanding of sensuality (kāma), said: “Sensuality does not lie in the pleasant objects; they are only the “raw materials” for sensuality (kāma-guņa). Sensuality is the desire in themind ( sankappa-rāgo purisassa kāmo). Never mind about the beautiful objects in the world, but the sagesgive up the desire for them.”5 If all the projections are withdrawn, the world of phenomena ceases to be

desirable. Diţţi-papañca means that the mind jumps to conclusions or forms opinions and concepts in order to feel secure; prejudices and preconceived ideas are another aspect of diţţi-papañca. Māna-papañca meansthat one identifies oneself with various objects or experiences, it also includes pride and conceit. It appears,though, as if the traditional commentary list of three papañcas should be supplemented by at least two more:bhaya-papañca would be the distortion of objects out of fear, out of the desire to avoid the recurrence of painful feelings. All the phobias and unconscious defence mechanisms would fall under this category. Wecould also add dosa-papañca which would be the projection of aversion and hatred distorting the perceptionof things.

In the following passage from the Suttas we find a detailed explanation of the process of perception and papañca . Since it is a very important, though amittedly difficult, passage I shall analyze it sentence bysentence. I shall give the Pali text first, then the translation and in brackets I shall try, where necessary, toclarify the meaning. Cakkhuñ ca paţicca rūpe ca uppajjati cakkhu-viññāņam. “Dependent on the eye andmaterial sharpes arises cakkhu-viññāņa“. (Cakkhu-viññāņa means the assimilition of bare sense data, for example, mere patches of colour which are not yet identified by the mind.) Tiņņam sangati passo; passa-

paccayā vedanā. “If these are there, there is contact; dependent on contact is feeling.” (Due to pastemotional associations – which already involve memory a certain feeling or emotion arises regarding thissense impression.) Yam vedeti tam sañjānāti. “What one feels one perceives.” (The sense datum which wasat the state of cakkhu-viññāņa a mere patch of, let us say, blue colour, is by now identified as, perhaps, amotorcar. That one recognizes it as a car definitely involves memory but does not mean that, as some peopleassert, saññā is memory.)6 Yam sañjānāti tam vitakketi. “One has thoughts about that which one perceives.”(Vitakka in this connection means associations, memories, plans and other thoughts connected with this particular object.) Yam vitakketi tam papañceti. “Out of these associations papañca is `manufactured´.”

( Papañca means that due to these associations which are loaded by emotions one arrives at particular notions about the object which are coloured and distorted by all sorts of largely unconscoius projection, preconceived ideas, prejudices, identifications, desires and so on and so on.) Yam papañcetitato-nidānam purisam papañca- saññā-sankhā samudcāaranti atītânāgata-paccuppannesu cakkhu-viññeyyesu rūpesu .

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“What is turned into papañca , due to that papañca- saññā-sankhā assail him in the form of material shapescognizable by the eye, belonging to past, present or future.” (These notions which are concerned about the past, present or future and distorted by all this mess of desires, emotions and projections, hopes, fears andexpectations, identifications and prejudices – the term papañca- saññā-sankhā denotes all that – assail andoverwhelm a person who has no insight and no awareness of this process.)7

Defining the term sankhārakkhandha the Buddha said the sankhāras are the six kinds of cetanā (volition)with regard to the objects of the senses: rūpa-sañcetanā, sadda- sañcetanā, etc.8 The abovementioned passage which we have examinated in detail throws some light on the meaning of these six kinds of cetanā. Rūpa-sañcetanā is the reaction to any visible object, it is the liking or disliking of it, the interest in it and thewhole attitude towards it; the various projections (tanhā- papañca) by which our past conditioningdetermines our attitude towards the object and distorts it, is another aspect of rūpa-sañcetanā. In theSatipaţţhāna sutta is said: “He is aware of the six senses and the objects of the six senses and also of thefetter that arises.”9 The fetter is, of course, not the object – which is quite neutral – but desire for the objector aversion for it.10*

The Guarding of the Senses

In order to prevent the arising of desire and aversion for the objects of the senses, the Buddha taught theguarding of the senses (indriya-samvara). He said: “When he has become aware of an object, he shouldneither grasp at the sense impression (nimitta) nor at the anuvyañjana.”11 The commentaries say thatanuvyañjana means the details or particulars of an object.12 That is quite correct but I think the wordanuvyañjana has still another meaning which is deeper and has more significance concerning the practise of guarding the senses. I believe anuvyañjana means also the associations connected with an object. Then theabove-mentioned passage about the guarding of the senses would mean: When he has become aware of anobject, he should neither grasp at the sense impression nor at the details or the associations connected withan object.” In other words: If he does not grasp at vitakka and papañca and the various reactions to theobjects, then liking and disliking and other forms of attachment would find no foothold in the mind. Theyfind a foothold as long as there is unwise attention ( ayoniso manasikāra). Guarding the sense means to stop being occupied with sense objects and “with past and future but to see things here and now with detachment

and in clarity” (atītam nânvāgameyya, náppatikankhe anāgatam ... paccuppannam ca yo dhammam tatthatattha vipassati...)13 Most people spend most of their time thinking either about the past or the future, day-dreaming or carrying on with imaginary discussions. Few are they that are fully awake to the present andlive in the `here and now´ with detachment and clarity. “This, briefly, is the characteristic of total awareness:the continual examination of the state of body and mind.” 14 “A state of mind should be developed whichrests on no thing whatever” (apratisţhitam cittam bhāvayitavyam).15 When the mind does not take its standon anything, it is “boundless and immeasurable” (appāmana-cetaso).16 “Keep your minds from dwelling onanything whatsoever: keep them for ever still as the void and utterly pure.”17 “What I mean by not letting themind dwell upon anything whatsoever is keeping your minds free from hatred and love. This means that youmust be able to see attractive things without love for them arising in your minds, which is termed havingminds free from love; and also that you must be able to see repulsive things without hatred for them arisingin your minds, which is termed having minds free from hatred. When these two are absent, the mind is

unstained and the nature of forms is seen as void.” 18* “The Perfect Way is only difficult for those who pick and choose. Do not like, do not dislike; all will then be clear.....If you want the truth to stand clear beforeyou, never be `forór àgainst´. The struggle between `foránd àgainst´ is the mind´s worst disease.” 19 “Hewho feels attachment or loathing for anything does not know emptiness.” 20 “Wisdom neither loves or hates,”21 it is “beyond liking and disliking” (anurodha-virodha-vippahīna,22* anurodha-virodhâpagata).23

“The characteristic of the Perfection of Wisdom is non-attachment.”24

“Wether he walks or stands, sits or lies down, talks or remains silent, his concentration does not leave him.He does not fidget with his hands or feet, or twitch his face; he is not incoherent in his speech, confused inhis senses, exalted or uplifted, fickle or idle, agitated in body or mind. Calm is his body, calm is his voice,calm is his mind. His demeanour shows contentment, both in private and in public. . . . He is frugal, easy tofeed, easy to serve, of good life and habits; though in a crowd he dwells apart; even and unchanged, in gainand loss; not elated, not cast down. Thus, in happiness and suffering, in praise and blame, in fame anddisrepute, in life or death, he is the same unchanged, neither elated nor cast down. And so with foe or friend,with what is pleasant or unpleasant, with holy or unholy men, with noises or music, with forms that are dear

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or undear, he remains the same unchanged, neither elated nor cast down, neither gratified nor thwarted. Andwhy? Because he sees all dharmas as empty of marks of their own, without true reality, incomplete anduncreated.”25 “He abides in peace who does not abide anywhere.” 26 “When one is not leaning on anything,that is the development of perfect wisdom.”27

“Whereon should the mind settle and dwell? – It should settle upon non-dwelling and there dwell. – What isthis non-dwelling? – It means not allowing the mind to dwell upon anything whatsoever. – And what is themeaning of that? – Dwelling upon nothing means that the mind is not fixed upon good or evil, being or non- being, inside or outside or somewhere between the two, void or non-void, concentration or distraction. Thisdwelling upon nothing is the state in which it should dwell; those who attain to it are said to have non-dwelling minds – in other words, they have Buddha-minds.”28*

“He who sees the DHAMMA, sees the BUDDHA”

Once the Buddha visited a bhikkhu who was very ill. When the monk said that he had long wished to see theBuddha but had been to weak to do so, the Buddha replied: “Never mind about that. What is there to be seenin this impure body? He who sees the Dhamma, sees me; and he who sees me, sees the Dhamma” ( yodhammam passati so mam passati. Yo mam passati so dhammam passati).29 In other words: whoever sees

the asankhata dhamma, the Unconditioned, realizes the Buddha-nature because the Buddha-nature is theUnconditioned. Therefore, it is said: “The Buddha is the embodiment of the dhamma ( Dhamma-kāya), theembodiment of the Absolute (brahma-kāya); he is one with the Dhamma (dhamma-būhta), one with theAbsolute.” (brahma-būhta)30* The Buddha also said even if someone would walk behind him and grasp thehem of his robe, if that person were greedy, full of lust, corrupt in mind and purpose, confused anddistracted, without recollection and concentration, then that person would be far from him, and why? “Sincehe does not see the Dhamma, he does not see me.”31 “He who is still immersed in Samsāra (the `cycle of birth and death´), does not see the Truth.”32

The saying “He who sees the Dhamma, sees the Buddha” is interpreted by many peopla thus: whoever understands the doctrine of the Buddha, sees the Buddha. Usually they are not too explicit as to what ismeant by the phrase `seeing the Buddha´. Some think it implies having a vision of a Buddha-image. If the

Buddha had really meant only the understanding of the doctrine, it is most unlikely that he would have usedthe expression ̀sees the Dhamma´. He was always very precise in his expressions; more likely he wouldhave used the words `he who understands the doctrine´(viññāta-sāsana.)33 If it needs only an intellectualunderstanding of the main tenets of Buddhism in order to see the Buddha, there would be a super-abundanceof people who had seen Him. For those who have `eyes to see and ears to hear´, these passages show quiteunmistakably that `seeing the Buddha´ can only mean realizing the Buddha nature which is theUnconditioned.

Reading the Mahāyāna scriptures it is fairly obvious that their authors had a deep understanding of thesesayings of the Buddha. They say: “If anyone by form sees me by voice seeks me, he walks the false path andcannot see the Tathāgata.”34 An interesting parallel to this passage from the Diamond Sutra is found in thePali Canon: “Those who identify me with form (rūpa) or who follow me because of words (literally: voice),

are really under the influence of their own desires and attachments. They do not know me.” 35 “TheUncreated – that is a synonym of the Buddha.” 36 “ Nirvāna is the name for the Dharma-kāya of theTathāgata.”37 “ The Tathāgata is Suchness.” (Ya cā tathatā sa Tathāgatah).38* “The Buddha is to be seenthrough the Dhamma, because the Enlightened one is the embodiment of the Dhamma.”39 “The Tathāgata isone with the Absolute” (dharma-dhātus Tathāgatah,40* dharma-dhāture eva Bhagavān,41 dharma-kayasTathāgatah).42 “Those who wisely know the true nature of the Tathāgata, are near to full enlightenment,they have the perfection of wisdom.43

After the Buddha had realized complete enlightenment, this thought came to him: “I have found this deepand superb ( paņīta) Dhamma which is difficult to see and to awaken to, which is subtle and beyond thereach of thought (atakkâvacara), full of peace and obvious to the wise.” 44 Very often the word Dhamma inthis and in similar passages is translated by `Norm´ or `Doctrine´ or something like that. It is most unlikelythat a doctrine revealed itself to the Buddha in the night of awakening. What he found was not a doctrine butthe asankhata dhamma, the Unconditioned,45* the dhammnirūpadhi,46 the Absolute. In finding It he had become the Buddha, the Enlightened one or the Awakened one, because he awakened to the ever present

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( sarvatraga)47 reality of the Unconditioned. Sakulā Therī said while she was still leading a household lifeshe heard one day a bhikkhu expounding the doctrine and she “saw Nibbāna, that Immaculate Dhamma, therealm beyond change” (addasam virajam dhammam nibbānam padam accutam).48 The asankhata dhamma,the Unconditioned, the dhamma nirūpadhi, the Absolute, is the Buddha-dhamma in the deepest sense of theword. The Buddha-dhamma does not only mean – as many Buddhists seem to think – the doctrine of theBuddha but also the Unconditioned. “Those who have faith in the Dhamma have faith in the best. . . . andthat dhamma is Nibbāna.”49* “As the ocean has only one taste, namely the taste of salt, so this Dhamma andthe practice (leading to the realization of this Dhamma) have only one taste – the taste of liberation.” 50 “It issaid that Nirvāna has only one taste, the taste of Wisdom and Liberation.” 51 It is said that all the Buddhasrevere the Dhamma.52 The Dhamma which is revered by the enlightened ones is the asankhata dhamma, theUnconditioned.

Out of all insights (vimutti-ñāņa-dassana) the Buddha gained in the night of awakening he formulated adoctrine and a spiritual discipline (dhamma-vinaya). Many people think that vimutti-ñāņa-dassana meansthe full awareness of liberation, but such an interpretation misses the deeper meaning of that word which isthe insight and apprehension of Absolute Truth gained in seeing the Unconditioned. One could hardly saythe doctrine of the Buddha is `beyond the realm of thought´ (atakkâvacara), since the Buddha has frequentlyemphasized that one should reflect over the doctrine (dhammam anuvicintayam, dhammam anussaram).53*

The asankhata dhamma, though, is beyond the realm of thought, it is “the freedom (from all conditionedthings), the real, beyond the sphere of thought, eternal, unborn, unproduced, the sorrowless, immaculaterealm” (nissaranam santam atakkâvacaram dhuvam ajātam asamuppannam asokam virajam padam)54.Thought cannot reach the Unconditioned; it is not the key which opens the door to the Deathless. “Onlywhen no thought arises are the dharmas without blame. . . . The more you think about It, the further from Ityou go. Stop talking, stop thinking, and there is nothing you will not understand.” 55 “With a mind free fromthoughts (vitakkūpasamena cetasā) he has found the realm of peace” ( santi-pada) which is Nibbāna.56 “It is by preventing the rise of conceptual thought that you will realize enlightenment; and when you do, you will just be realizing the Buddha who has always existed in your own Mind! Aeons of striving will prove to be somuch wasted effort.”57 The Buddha said: “Whoever, whether standing or walking, sitting or lying down,calms his mind and strives for that inner stillness in which there is no thought, he has the prerequisite torealize supreme illumination.”58*

Did the Buddha teach annihilation ?

Already at the time of the Buddha some people thought he was teaching annihilation, and thismisunderstanding has persisted ever since. But the Buddha said that it is only in one sense true that heteaches annihilation, namely the eradication of desire, aversion and delusion. 59 Speaking of a personcompletely freed from all attachment, he gave the simile of a lamp or a fire which goes out when no fuel isadded.60 Misunderstanding this simile quite a few people came to the conclusion that the Buddha wasteaching nihilism and annihilation, but the real meaning of this simile is quite different. When in therealization of Truth ( saccâbhisamaya)61 the first of desire, aversion and delusion is extinguished and there isno identification left with anything in the world, then there is only the Unconditioned about which nothingcould be said since it is utterly beyond words. “There is no (possibility) to measure him who has reached the

goal. No words apply to him. When all things have come to an end, all ways of speaking cease.” 62 “AbsoluteTruth goes beyond the realm of speech, of thinking and discrimination.” 63 “When there is no moreattachment to the objects of the senses, (the world of phenomena) comes to an end, but that has nothing todo with nihilism. Then the realm of Suchness reveals itself which is the domain of the enlightened ones.” 64

“Free from the notion of body and mind (and the identification with them) is the Enlightened One deep,immeasurable and unfathomable as the great ocean.”65* “The Enlightened One is like Suchness” ( yathā catathatā tathā caisa Tathāgatah).66 He is as immeasurable and unfathomable as the Unconditioned, he has“transcended everything” ( sabba-dhammāna pāragū).67

Very often the phrase bhava-nirodho nibbānam 68 is translated as `the cessation of existence is Nibbāna´ .This might give the impression that Nibbāna is annihilation. But bhava-nirodho nibbānam does not meanannihilation at all; it means that any notion of being something or becoming something becomes completelymeaningless when the Deathless is seen (khemâbhipassam). The notion of existence (bhava) dissolves because it is seen that all so-called `existence´ is unreal ( sabbam vitatham inam)70 and Nibbāna is the onlyReality (ekam eva bhavet satyam nirvānam).71 Thus, the illusion of the ego and existence (bhava) and the

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identification with them cease when Nibbāna is reached (khemappatta).72 He who has opened his eyes to theever present reality of the asankhata dhamma, the Unconditioned and therefore does not identify himself with anything, was called by the Buddha atammaya 73 or akincana; 74 such a person is nothing, does not become anything, has nothing, does not want anything and does not take his stand on anything.75*

Once a bhikkhu, whose name was Yamaka, came to the conclusion that Nibbāna meant annihilation.Sāriputta went to see him and talked the matter over with him. He asked Yamaka whether he thought thatthe body or feeling or perception or the impulses or consciousness were the Enlightened One. Yamaka saidone could not maintain such a thing. Then Sāriputta asked whether the Tathāgata be in the five Khandhas or outside of the five Khandhas or be without body or feeling or perception or the impulses or consciousness,and each time Yamaka answered: “no”. Then Sāriputta asked him: “Since in the world of phenomena theTathāgata is untraceable, would it be meaningful to hold the view that an Enlightened One is annihilatedafter death?” Then Yamaka had a deep insight into the Truth ( dhamma abhisameta) and he saw how he had before completely misunderstood the meaning of Nibbāna.76

The Realization of the Unconditioned

The Buddha said: “ Nibbāna is the highest bliss” (nibbānam paramam sukham)77* because no worldly

happiness is comparable to the bliss and peace of seeing the Unconditioned ( amānusīraī hoti, sammādhamam vipassato;78 satyâbhisamayāt sukham 79). “With a mind free from thoughts he experiences thesupreme bliss of enlightenment.”80 “Blessed are those who have found the Peace of the Unconditioned.” 81

“There is no happiness higher than peace” (natthi santi-param sukham) and82 seeing the Unconditioned isthe “highest peace” ( paramā santi).83 “For the sages the dissolution of the (illusion of) personality in seeing(the Unconditioned) is pure bliss ( ̀sukhan` ti dittham ariyehi sakkayass` uparodhanam), but the wholeworld abhors it.”84 “The cessation of conditioned things in reaching the `Realm of Peace´ is bliss”(adhigacche padam santam, sankhārūpasamam sukham).85*

Awakening, which is the very goal and essence of Buddhism, is the sudden breakthrough into theUnconditioned in which it is seen that this Ultimate Reality (uttamā dhammatā)86* which is

Nibbāna, was there all the time but one “did not see it, one missed it for countless aeons of time”

(adittham abbhatītam bahukehi kappa-nahutehi);87 one was blind to the ever present reality of theUnconditioned, blind to the true nature of things, and this blindness is called avijjā.88 “Not knowinghow near the Truth is, people seek it far away; what a pity! They are like him who, in the midst of the water, cries out in thirst so imploringly.”89 “The Dhamma which is difficult to realize (dhammadurājāna),90 difficult to awaken to (nâyam dhammo susambuddho),91 is to the wise as obvious as islight to a clear-sighted person; but the foolish do not see it though it is so near.”92 When the Eye of Wisdom is opened, all of a sudden and everywhere there is seen only Unconditioned ( khemam

passati sabbadhi)93* and an extraordinary, supermundane peace and detachment is felt. “Whether we see It or fail to see It, It is manifest always and everywhere” 94* “As to seeing It, the seeing isclear enough, but no objects are here to be seen.”95* “Paradoxically stated, when seeing is no-seeingthere is real seeing.”96 “In that limitless, completely radiant consciousness which makes nothingmanifest (anidassana), the four elements do not find a foothold. There (all notions of) long or short,gross or subtle, beautiful or ugly, mind and body completely cease”.97 “Here there is nothing to beremoved and absolutely nothing to be added; the Truth must be seen as it really is, and he who seesthe Truth is liberated.”98 “There is that realm where there is neither earth nor water, fire or air,where there is neither the sphere of infinite space or of infinite consciousness, of nothingness or the borderline of perception, where there is neither this world nor another world, neither sun nor moon, where there is neither coming nor going nor abiding, neither arising nor passing away. Itdoes not rest on anything and knows no continuity and no object.”99 “For him who discerns this, theworld of phenomena ceases” (evamsametassa vibhoti rūpam).100 “For him who sees (the Truth, thisworld of phenomena) is nothing” ( passato natthi kiñcanam,101 * evam dharmān vijānanto na kimcit

pratijānati).102

When in the vision of Nibbāna (nibbānam abhipassato)103

it is realized that theworld of phenomena is empty and unreal, then the ‘end of the world’ is seen “where there is neither arising nor passing away, neither birth nor old age nor death.”104 “Without having reached the ‘end

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of the world’, “ the Buddha says, “ one cannot reach the cessation of suffering. “ 105“He who hasseen the ’end of the world’ with perfect wisdom cannot take the world as real.” 106 “He knows thiswhole living world is like a mock show.”107 *

Freedom from PAPAŇCA

Those who know only the world of phenomena, the ‘world of multiplicity’, know nothing about that Dhamma which is Truth. “They are attached to papañca, but the enlightened ones are free from papañca”(papañcâbhirata pajā, nippapañcā Tathāgatā).108 “Freed from the notion of multiplicity he lives in peace” (ñanātva-samjñā-vigato upasānta-cāri).109 “This Dhamma is only for those who find happiness in being free from papañca, it is not for those who are attached to papañca” (nippapañcārā-massâyamdhammo, nâyam dhammo papañcarāmāssa).110 “There is no need to seek Truth, only stop having views. “ 111

King Milinda asked Nāgasena: “What is this state which is free from papañca?” Nagasena replied: “Therealization of any one of the four stages of awakening – that is nippapanca112. When one sees theUnconditioned, the pada asankhata,113 all notion of duality and multiplicity ceases. Nāgārjuna said: “In (therealization of) emptiness papaãca ceases” (prapaãcas tu śūnyatāyām nirudhyate).114 “He who has given up

papañca and has (found) the bliss of that realm which is free from papañca, has reached Nibbāna, thesupreme peace.”115 The Buddha said the highest form of gnosis is to see everything in its suchness.116 To see

everything in its suchness ( yathābhūta-ñāna-dassana) means to see everything without attachment, withoutidentification and free from all duality. The mind must be free from all these distortions to see things as theyare and then there is “in the seeing only the seeing (ditthe dittha-mattam), in hearing there is only thehearing ( sute suta-mattam) etc.”117

Non-dual Gnosis (ADVAYA_JĀŇŇA)

In the well-known simile of the raft the Buddha says that even the good should be abandoned. Elsewhere hesays that when liberation is attained, then even virtue or goodness is dissolved. 119 “Him I call a sage for whom there exists neither ‘this shore’ nor ‘the other shore’.”120 “Having a mind free from the concepts of ‘delivered’ and ‘undelivered’ is called real deliverance.”121 How is all this to be understood? In theexperience of the Highest Reality it is seen that in the Unconditioned there is no time, - “for it is not a thing

with extension in Time and Space; a moment and an aeon for It are one.” 122* Neither is there good nor evil,neither beauty nor ugliness, neither birth nor death, neither coming nor going, neither arising nor passingaway, neither ‘inner’ nor ‘outer’, neither this world nor another world, neither bondage nor liberation from bondage. In reality there is also no such thing as attainment or development. In the vision of Truth one goes beyond good and evil ( puññañ ca pāpañ ca…upaccagā),123 beyond all duality and “the mind does not takeits stand on anything” (appatitthita-citta)124* When the “Deathless is realized” (amatam sacchi katvā)125 it isseen that there is really no multiplicity there is only the Unconditioned. “In the Dharma there are noseparate dharmas, only the foolish cleave to their own preferences and attachments.” 126 “All the fettersdissolve when the sage goes beyond all duality.”127* ”In the Perfection of Wisdom there is nodiscrimination.”128* “As long as there is a dualistic way of looking at things there is no emancipation.” 129

Meister Eckhart, the German mystic, said: “Such a man is free from distraction and multiplicity, for he isone in that One in which all multiplicity is one and a non-multiplicity.”130 What characterizes “a Tathāgata isthe Perfection of Wisdom, the non-dual gnosis” ( prajñā-paramitā jñānam advayam sā Tathāgatah).131

“When discrimi-nation no longer takes place, and when one abides in the suchness of things, there is therealization of the Vehicle of Oneness or the One Way” (eka-yāna).132 “When the sage is nowhereestablished, neither in inferior, nor in mediocre or exalted things, neither in the conditioned nor in theunconditioned, neither in the real nor in the unreal when he does not discriminate ‘this is a woman’ and thisis a man, when he examines all things but does not find anything because all things are unborn, then he is onthe way of those dedicated to enlightenment.”133 The Buddha said: “The abode of great men is Emptiness”(mahāpurisa-vihāro h’esa, Sāriputta, yadidam suññatā),134 and urged us to strive to abide in that “pure,supreme, ultimate Emptiness (tasmātih’ Ānanda, parisuddham paramânuttaram suññatam upasampajjaviharissāmi ti-evam hi vo, Ānanda, sikkhi-tabbam).135 The Theravāda tradition has always interpreted theword suññatā only in the meaning of anattā, while the Mahāyāna gave the word a much deeper meaning.

For them it was a synonym of Nirvana (… varnayanti Tathāgatāh śūnyatām eva nirvānam…).136

The above-mentioned passages from the Pali Canon seem to indicate quite clearly that also for the Buddha suññatāmeant sometimes more than just anattā.

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Holiness is beyond Good and Evil

The Buddha said; “One cannot say that holiness ( suddhi)137 consists of virtue or of any practices, nor does itconsist of views, of knowledge or of understanding. (But one cannot say either that holiness) is withoutvirtue or practices, without understanding, knowledge or insight. Leaving all these (completely unrealthings) behind, (the sage) is at peace and without taking his stand on anything, he does not hanker after (anyrealm of ) existence” (bhava).138* That, of course, was spoken from the standpoint of Absolute Truth( paramârthasatya) and it is not surprising that the Brahmin Māgandiya with whom the Buddha wasconversing, did not understand the Buddha at all. Since he – like most unenlightened people – could imagineholiness and perfection only as the perfection of moral qualities or attainments, he felt completely bewildered and said that a doctrine which maintains that holiness has nothing to do with the perfection of certain qualities but is utterly beyond good and evil, must be a very confused doctrine. The Buddha oftensaid that an Arahant “has gone beyond good and evil” ( puñña-pāpa-pahina),139 that he is undefiled by goodand evil ( puññe ca pāpe ca anūpalitto)140 just before his death Hui-Neng said: “Imperturbable and serene theideal man practises no virtue. Self-possessed and dispassionate, he commits no sin. Calm and silent, he givesup seeing and hearing. Even and upright his mind abides nowhere.”141

The Pure Radiant Mind of Suchness (PABHASSARA CITTA)

He who reaches Nibbāna (nibbānam adhigacchati)142 experiences the clear, radiant mind ( pabhassara citta)of suchness which in its natural state “is utterly free from defilement” (āgantukehi upakkilesehivippamuttam143 prakrtis cittasya prabhasvara144*). He sees that “intrinsically all dharmas are pure, radiantand uncontaminated” ( prakrtyābhāsvarā dharmā ādi-śuddhā hyanāvilāh).145 * The Buddha said this puremind is realized by the wise but the unenlightened person (puthujajana) knows nothing about it and does notunderstand it as it really is.146 “Our Essence of Mind is intrinsically pure, and if we knew our mind andrealized what our nature is, all of us would attain Buddhahood.” 147* “This pure Mind… shines forever andon all with the brilliance of its own perfection. But the people of the world do not awake to it, regarding onlythat which sees, hears, feels and knows as mind. Blinded by their own sight, hearing, feeling and knowing,they do not perceive the spiritual brilliance of the source-substance. If they would only eliminate allconceptual thought in a flash, that source-substance would manifest itself like the sun ascending through the

void and illuminating the whole universe without hindrance or bounds.”148

* “The essence of mind is onlyawareness or consciousness. When the ego, however, dominates .it, it functions as the reasoning, thinking or sensing faculty.. The cosmic mind being not limited by the ego, has nothing separate from itself and istherefore only aware.149 “There is no trace of particular marks to be noted in it, as it is the sphere thattranscends thoughts and is in harmony with enlightenment alone,” 150 “Our Essence of Mind is intrinsically pure, and the reason why we are perturbed is because we allow ourselves to be carried away by thecircumstances we are in.”151 “If you students of the Way do not awake to this Mind substance, you willoverlay Mind with conceptual thought, you will seek the Buddha outside yourselves, and you will remainattached to forms, pious practices and so on, all of which are harmful and not at all the way to supremeknowledge.”152

The Experience of ‘Stream-Entry’

The Buddha said there are four stages of awakening. The first is called ‘stream-entry’ and the person whorealizes it is known as Sotāpanna. It is said that he has “entered the stream of the Dhamma” (dhamma-

sotam samāpanno)153 and is free from three fetters: belief in personality ( sakkāya-ditthi), doubt (vicikicchā)and attachment to virtue and practices ( sïlabbata-paramasa). The person who realizes the second stage iscalled ‘once-returner’ ( sakadāgāmin) because he returns only once more to this world. With him the fettersof sensual desire and aversion have become very weak. Reaching the third stage a person is called ‘Non-returner’ (anāgāmin) because he will not be reborn in this world. In him the experience of the Highest Truthhas led to the complete annihilation of all sensual desire and aversion. He who has reached the fourth stage,which is complete liberation and in which “the Truth is seen all the time” ( sabbadā ājānāti dhammam),154* iscalled Arahant .

Since many sincere Buddhist strive to reach at least the level of stream-entry, it might be useful to examinethis experience of stream-entry and the different explanations which have been advanced at various times.One well-known teacher in Thailand has said: “If a Buddhist cannot at least become a Sotāpanna in this very

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life, he can indeed be said to have wasted his entire existence.”155 “Better than absolute sovereignty over theearth, better than going to heaven, better than even lordship over all the worlds is the realization of stream-entry. “156 In the Discourses of the Buddha we find the following account of the experience of stream-entry:“As a clean cloth free from dirt will easily take the dye, even so, as he was sitting on that very seat (andlistening to the Buddha), there arose in him the stainless, purified ‘Eye of the Dhamma’ (and he saw):“Whatever is subject to arising, all that is subject to passing away.’ Seeing the Dhamma, reaching the

Dhamma, realizing the Dhamma, merging in the Dhamma he had gone beyond doubt, was free fromuncertainty and independent of others as far as the teaching of the Master was concerned.” 157 The word

Dhamma in this context means again the asankhate dhamma, the Unconditioned. The central issue in this passage is not so much the insight into the impermanence of all conditioned things, but rather the realizationof the Unconditioned, which is a mystical,158 a lokuttara (supermundane) experience. In that experience of seeing the Truth it is realized that the Unconditioned is the Only Reality and that all conditioned things areempty and unreal “like a mirage or bubbles of water.” 159 The dyeing of the cloth in the passage above is asimile for the fundamental transformation taking place in the depth of the mind when the Truth is realized(dhamma-dhātu suppatividdhā).160 Elsewhere it is said: “Those who see the Dhamma are established in (therealization of) the first stage of awakening” (dhammaddasā pathamapphale patitthitā).161

“As soon as the Eye of the Dhamma opens in him and he gains insight (into the Truth), the three fetters are

dissolved.”

162

“You will know the Truth, and the Truth will make you free.”

163

“For that higher vision poisons all meaner choice for evermore.”164 “He who sees the Deathless” (amataddasa),165 that “Realm of Peace which is free from all conditioning” ( padam santam anūpadhïkam),166 realizes how absurd it is toidentify oneself with body and mind and thus the belief in a personality dissolves. Fathoming the “HighestTruth” (dhamma settha)167 one cannot consider anything as ‘I’ or ‘mine’ and one no longer discriminates between ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ because such discrimination has lost all meaning. When the eyes are opened tothe Truth ( yathātatham dhammam viditvā),168 there is no more room for doubt about the Truth. Most people, because they are lacking in understanding, are dependent on all sorts of authorities. The Sotāpanna in thevision of the Unconditioned gains an extraordinary amount of deep supermundane insights ( aññ’indriya)169

and “as soon as (the true nature of) things is revealed to him, all doubts vanish” ( Yadā have patubhavantidhammā…ath’assa kankh vapayanti sabbā).170 “He has seen the Truth; it is for him not a matter of hearsay”( sakkhi dhammamañitiham adassi)171 and the religious texts dealing with Absolute Truth have suddenly

become self evident. Because he has “profound understanding” (asādhāranena ñānena samannāgato),172

“when he listens to the Dhamma he understands the meaning immediately”.173*

Following Buddhaghosa who interpreted sïlabbata-parāmāsa rather trivially as meaning attachment tocertain absurd forms of behaviour and practice among the ascetics at the time of the Buddha, 174 mostTheravādins translate and explain sïlabbata-parāmāsa as ‘attachment to rules and rituals.’. Since the Buddhafrequently says that an Arahant is endowed with sïla-vata (sïlav tupapanna),175 it is obvious that the usualinterpretation as ‘attachment to rules and rituals ’brings out only the most superficial aspects of the meaningof this word and overlooks the deeper meaning and significance. This interpretation has been conducive to agreat deal of confusion because it has led people to imagine they are free from this fetter when in fact theyare not. Some people have wondered, if sïlabpata-parāmāsa means only the attachment to rules and rituals,why the Buddha had included it among the fetters which a Sotāpanna is free from. The reason for the

widespread misinterpretation of such an important term is simply that an unenlightend person does not andcannot know the deep significance of this word and he has not the faintest idea what is the realization whichfrees the Sotāpanna from this fetter. “Realizing the Realm of Peace” ( santam padam abhisamecca)176 theUnconditioned, the Sotāpanna sees how impossible it is through virtue or any practices to add anythingwhatsoever to the timeless, all-embracing perfection of the Unconditioned. When one looks at the Pharisees,the Puritans and others who have a very rigid code of morality one can see how often such strictness of behaviour is accompanied by considerable conceit, narrow-mindedness and self-righteousness. Very oftensincerely religious people get attached to particular forms of behaviour and certain practice and in this waythey strengthen their ego. For the unenlightened person it is difficult to get rid of the delusion that everythingdepends on making himself perfect. And how much frustration and hypocrisy and self-deception are created by this attempt to make himself perfect! When the Sotāpanna realizes the Deathless (amatam adhigata)177 hesees that perfection is not to be found in virtues or in practices but only in the vision of the Unconditioned.He sees that the real perfection and blessedness of his spiritual life does not lie in making himself perfect, but to live in, share in, the timeless perfection of the Unconditioned. 178* This realization frees him from theattachment to virtues and practices.

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The Buddha said a Sotāpanna has virtues which lead to freedom and to peace of mind. 179 That means he hassuch virtues but he does not identify himself with them ( sïlava hoti no ca sila-mayo).180 “He does notconsider virtue to be the highest and does not make it an end in itself (na sïla-parama),181* he also does notidentify with his meditation practice” (na samādhi-tanmaya).182 The type of virtue which the Pharisees andthose similar to the Pharisees practise leads only to conceit and self-righteousness and to other forms of attachment, but not to freedom and to peace of mind. The Buddha said that a Sotāpanna has unshakeableconfidence in the Dhamma.183 Because he “knows the Highest” (varaññũ),184 the Uncreated (akataññũ),185

the Sotāpanna has unshakeable confidence in the doctrine of the Buddha and he also has unshakeablecertainty regarding the Unconditioned.

In the vision of the Unconditioned the Sotāpanna knows: this is the liberation of the mind, the liberatinggnosis, and if this state is not just a transient one, then this is the end of all suffering, complete liberation.The Sotāpanna, the Once-returner and the Non-returner in seeing Nibbāna experience temporarily the stateof liberation. Therefore, this experience is called ’temporary liberation’ ( sāmāyikā vimutti).186* “When wehave realized the Essence of Mind even for one Moment only, then Truth is known to us.”187

All Buddhist schools agree that the attainment of any of the four stages of awakening is a supermundane

experience in which Nibbāna is realized. If the realization of the four stages of awakening consisted only – as quite a few Buddhists maintain – in overcoming certain fetters, then it would hardly be justified to callthat a supermundane experience, because the overcoming of certain attachments outside of the vision of Truth is not a supermundane experience. If there has been no deep, mystical experience bringing about a profound transformation how can one be certain that the fetters have really been overcome? On the higher levels of an intensive course of Stipatthāna meditation the meditator gains such a depth of concentration andawareness that he is fully aware of every feeling, every thought and perception (viditā vedanā, vitakkā,

saññā uppajjanti, vidita upatthahanti, viditā abbhattham gacchanti).188 “If he experiences a pleasant, a painful or a neutral feeling, he experiences it with detachment.”189 Therefore, none of the lower fetters190

have a chance to strike root in the mind. In this way the meditator “ has his mind under control but is notunder the control of his mind”.191 The fact that his meditation is on such a high level that the fetters do notarise does not mean that he is completely free from them. The tendencies ( anusaya)192 which lead to the

arising of the fetters, are still there and can only be ‘burnt out in the fire of insight’ (ñān’agginā daddha,193

* jhapita)194 gained in the vision of the Unconditioned. “All enlightened men – from the Sotāpanna upto theBuddha – are transformed through the Unconditioned” (asamkrta-prabhāvitā hyāya-pudgalāh).195 “Fromthis Source are all the Saints of all the ten quarters descended.”196 *

Many books on Buddhism assert that the four stages of awakening are realized through an intuitive insightinto the three characteristics of existence, i.e. that all conditioned things are impermanent ( sabbe sankhārāaniccā), in reality unsatisfactory and leading to suffering ( sabbe sankhara dukkhā) and that everything is notto be considered as ‘I’ or ‘mine’ ( sabbe dhammā anattā). The insight into these three characteristics of existence is without any doubt a genuine vipassana (insight) experience and is, as the Buddha has frequentlystressed,197 very helpful for the development of detachment and equanimity. But we should not forget thatonly through “seeing the Unconditioned is one liberated from the conditioned” ( asamskŗtam ca sampaśyam

samskŗtāt parimucyate)198 The Buddha said that Nibbāna is the Unborn and Unconditioned, and if there werenot the Unconditioned then it would not be possible ever to reach liberation. 199 “Having realized the Truth(the asankhata dhamma) he is free from all attachment” (ñatvā dhammam anissito).200

There are some meditation schools which claim that certain experiences occurring during the course of practice are the attainment of stream-entry. These often are remarkable meditation experiences but are in noway related to the true experience of stream-entry which is nothing other than the seeing of Nibbāna. Someschools of vipassanā meditation say that a particular experience in which the meditator looses consciousnessis the experience of stream-entry. This may have some significance but the genuine experience of stream-entry is something quite different. Considering these various explanations of stream-entry it really does seemthat the genuine experience has become rather rare. “Few are they that get a taste of reality (attha-rasa), ataste of the Dhamma (dhamma-rasa), a taste of liberation” (vimutti-rasa).201 Most people seek security insome form or another; some seek it in material things, others in religion. The Buddha said that a Sotāpannacould not be reborn in the lower realms of existence and would certainly within seven life-times realize

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complete liberation.202*Because of this people, seeking security, imagine all sorts of insights and unusualexperiences to be stream-entry and so delude themselves.

SAMATHA and VIPASSANÃ

Up till today there have been taught some rather dubious meditation practices which have been held to be samatha, but are in fact often merely trance states. Due to this, the word samatha got a bad name. Therefore, probably, more than a few meditation teachers nowadays speak against samatha and talk only aboutdeveloping vipassanā. Unfortunately, many people use the words samatha and vipassanā just like sloganswithout being aware of their true meaning and significance. Let us now see what the Buddha taught withregard to samatha and vipassanā. Vipassanā has two aspects: a sudden intuitive understanding (somethinglike Satori) and a sustained contemplation in which one sees from moment to moment into the true nature of things. The word samatha has a much more profound meaning than many Buddhists seem to think. Samathameans stillness of the mind ( santa-citta,203 santam tassa manam hoti)204 in shich “all discursive thinking hascome to an end” (upasamanti vitakkā).205 “He who has calmed his mind will find peace.”206 This ‘freedomfrom discursive thinking’ (avitakka) is called ‘the holy silence’ (ariya tunhïbhāva).207 “He who is dedicatedto calming his thoughts (vitakkūpa same ca yo rato) will cut Mara’s fetters.”208* He who lives in peace( santa-vutti), is free from restlessness and dedicated to stillness of mind (cetosamatham anuyutto), will

attain the cessation of suffering.”

209

“He whose body, speech and mind are calm, whose concentration is welldeveloped and who has spewed out all worldly concerns, is truly called ‘peaceful’.”210 The Buddha said thathe who has developed vipassanā but has not yet found peace of mind should also try to develop samathā.211

H also said that samathā leads to citta-bhāvanā (development of the mind), and if there is citta-bhāvaā thenall desire is overcome.212 In the highest sense citta-bhāvanā means the realization of clear, radiant mind( pabhassara citta) of suchness. ( pabhassaram idam, bhikkhave, cittam tañ ca kho āgantukehi upakkilesehivippamuttam. Tam sutavā ariya-sāvako yathābhūtham pajānāti; tasmā sutavato ariya-sāvakassa citta-bhavanā atthi ti vadāmi).213 All desire stems from a lack and a need. When the Truth is realized in whichthere is all perfection and in which nothing is wanting, all desire dissolves 214 “What could perturb him for whom there is neither birth nor death, and what should he desire?”

The JHĀNAS

Defining Sammā-samādhi, right contemplation, the last of the ’Noble Eightfold Path’ the Buddha said thatSammā-samādhi is the realization of the four jhānas.215* Throughout the Sutta-pitaka the Buddhaemphasizes the importance of the four jhānas: “The wise man/woman devotes himself to the jhānas”(jhāna-pasuto dhiro, 216 samāhito dhyāna-ratah sumedhah),217 * the sincere bhikkhu) “ is dedicated to the jhānas” ( jhānānuyutta),218 “those who are dedicated to the jhānas are not interested in sensual pleasures”(yeşā dhyāna’rata citta kamās teşā na vidyate).219 In spite of the fact that the Buddha said the jhanas arethe direct way to enlightenment (eso`va maggo bodhāya),220* nowadays many meditation teachers, probablymisunderstanding the jhānas to be some sort of trance states, speak against them. They call them samathaand detrimental to the development of insight. But the Mahāmālunkyasutta of the Majjhima-nikāya leavesno doubt that the jhānas are not att all incompatible with deep insight.221 In the Suttas it is frequentlymentioned that many of those who easily reach the jhānas had also developed various ‘psychic powers’

(iddhi). It is probably because many people were trying to develope the jhānas in order to gain psychic powers. Wise men consider the various psychic powers only as an epiphenomen of the contemplative lifeand do not attach too much significance to psychic powers. The great Zen masters understood the closerelationship between the jhānas and the insight into the true nature of things. The Zen master Shen-hui said:“Where no thoughts are awakened, and emptiness and nowhereness prevails, this is Right Dhyāna. Whenthis nonawakening of thought, emptiness and nowhereness are the object of perception, there is right Prajñ ā(wisdom). Where this takes place we say that Dhyana… is the Body Prajñ ā and is not distinct from Prajñ āand is Prajñ ā itself; and further that Prajñ ā… is the Use of Dhyāna and is not distinct from Dhyāna and is

Dhyāna itself.”222 This is certainly a remarkable parallel to the verse from the Dhammapada: “There is no jhāna for him who lacks wisdom, there is no wisdom in him who lacks contemplation; but he who has(developed) the jhānas and has wisdom is indeed close to Nibbāna” (natti jhana apaññassa, paññā natthi

ajjhāyato; yamhi jhnañ ca paññ ca, ve nibbna-santike).

223

“Therefore the sage should strive after (thatoneness of) contemplation and wisdom” (tasmād dhyana tathā prajñām anuyujyeta pañditah ) 224

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Those who are far advanced in the contemplative life and maintain stillness of mind all the time (Jhāyino sātatikā)225 are always in one of the jhānas. It is for them the ‘natural’ state of mind. The Buddha once saidthat even the Arahants who are asekha (there is no need for them to practice anything) are ‘practicing’Satipaţţhāna.226 That means that for the Arahants the state of ‘total attention’ or ‘choiceless awareness’, asKrishnamurti calls it, which is the quintessence of Satipaţţhāna and the jhānas, is the ‘natural’ state of mind. “A bhikkhu whose mind is perfectly liberated is always in the following state of mind: Whatever heexperiences makes him neither glad nor sad and he abides with equanimity, mindfulness and recollection”(upekkhako viharati sato sampajāno.)227 In the description of the third jhāna the same expression is usedupekkhako ca viharati sato ca sampajāno. “Samādhi must be the natural life of every one… Having onceexperienced the Bliss of Peace no one would like to be out of it or engage himself otherwise.”228

The Brahma-vihāras

In the Visuddhi-magga Buddhagosa says one should develop the four brahma-vihāras (love, compassion, joy and equanimity) by calling up the image of a person and developing love and compassion for that person;229 then one should gladden the mind by thinking about the merits or achievements or attainments of that person and finally one should develop equanimity towards that person. Later one is told to expand one’s

love, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity until they become immeasurable and boundless. If onereads the Visuddhi-magga critically one cannot help but get the impression that Buddhaghosa was not a manof practice. What he has to say about the jhānas or the brahma-vihāras or any other aspect of the practicedoes not seem to stem from practice, but seems to be just his ideas about the practice. It is interesting tonotice that, so far as I know, in the Sutta-pitaka the Buddha nowhere says that one should develop the four brahma-vihāras in the way Buddhaghosa has explained it. The Buddha’s approach is quite different: he tellsus first to develop a state of mind which is steady and not subject to evil tendencies. 230 If the mind hasreached a high level of steadiness (cittam subhāvitam)231 of peace and detachment, then love andcompassion, joy and equanimity may arise spontaneously, and they are immeasurable (appam āņa) andindependent of any person or any object. The four brahma-vihāras are the ‘natural attitude’ of a mind inwhich there is detachment and freedom from self-centeredness. “In the Aksayamatisutra it is said: ‘At the beginning of the spiritual life Love (maitrī , Pali Mettā) is directed towards beings. With those who are

further advanced on the path Love is based on the Dharma and for those who have seen the UnconditionedLove is not based on anything.”232 “They give rise to the great compassion, which is, however, free from anynotion of a being. This is the life of wisdom, the highest perfection.” 233 Buddhaghosa explains upekkhā inthe four brahma-vihāras as meaning equanimity with regards to living beings. He again misses the deeper meaning which is the ‘holy indifference’ with regards to everything.234

The meaning of Muditā

Almost everybody seems to accept Buddhaghosa’s explanation that muditā means `sympathetic joy´ thoughthere are passages in the Suttas which leave no doubt that this interpretation is rather limited and overlooksthe deeper meaning and significance of the word muditā. In the Siksa- samuccaya, which is the Mahāyānaequivalent of the Visudhi-magga, is a long list of synonyms of muditā which gives one an idea of the wide

range of meaning of that word. Among many other things Sāntideva explains muditā as serenity, gladness,exaltation of the mind, delight in giving, being uplifted by the virtuous, elation at being able to help eventhose whose conduct is evil, always a smiling face, no frowning, a habit of always praising and the joy of the

Dharma. 235 In the Mahārāhulovāda-sutta of the Majjhima-nikāya 236 and in several other places the Buddhasaid if muditā is developed, the all dissatisfaction (arati) is overcome. If one is dissatisfied with leading amonastic or spiritual life, then- according to Buddhaghosa’s explanation 237 – he could and should overcomethat dissatisfaction by rejoicing at other people’s attainments or achievements. It is most unlikely that such aremedy would work, but if instead through meditation and insight he would find deep spiritual joy, thendissatisfaction would be an unlikely problem. If one examines critically and with an open mind all the passages where the Buddha speaks about muditā, it becomes fairly obvious that the main meaning of muditāis `spiritual joy´. “At such a time the bhikkus abide in the brahma-vihāra, namely in that joy which liberatesthe mind (muditā-cetovimutti). In him who has joy, rapture is born ( pamuditassa piti jāyati). In one whoexperiences this rapture, the body is calmed and he experiences happiness. The mind of one who is happy isrecollected.” 238 “He who is full of joy and faith in the Buddha’s teaching, will reach the state of peace.” 239

“Those are always happy who know neither like or dislike of anything.”240

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In the Śiksā-samuccaya is a very moving and profound account of the real depth of spiritual joy andhappiness: “There is a type of contemplation which finds happiness everywhere. When the Bodhisattva (onededicated to enlightenment) acquires it, he feels in all things pain as pleasant, not painful 241 nor indifferent.Even when he is subjected to some devilish treatment, the contemplation of happiness continues…And whyis that? Because the Bodhisattva practiced for a long time, this attitude was developed in him: ‘may thosewho give me food and protect me, who honour and respect me, all participate in the happiness of tranquility.And may those who beat and abuse me, who maltreat me and even kill me with knives, all receive the blissof enlightenment and gain the supreme awakening’. With these thoughts and actions and these aspirations,he seeks and ensures, he cherishes and multiplies the feeling of joy in relation to all beings; and by theripening of this course of action he obtains the contemplation that finds happiness everywhere. At the timewhen the Bodhisattva has obtained the contemplation that finds happiness everywhere, he becomesimperturbable.”242

The Interpretations of the Commentaries

It seems to be a peculiar feature common to all Buddhist schools that they neglect the Buddha’s words andDiscourses and that books written much later assumes a position of authority. Though the Ăgamas

(corresponding to the Pali Nikāyas) were translated into Chinese, they do not seem to have exerted as muchinfluence as the later Mahāyāna-sũtras. Most of the Mahāyāna-sũtras were translated into Tibetan, but veryfew of the Discourses of the Buddha were translated. The Theravādins are very proud that they have preserved the original teaching of the Buddha and have not changed so much as other schools have. It wasmuch easier for them because they were cut of from the mainstream of Indian culture, religion andspirituality and unlike other schools in India or China were never confronted by a highly developed religionor culture. But where there is no such challenge, there is always the danger of stagnation and ossification.

In Theravāda the trend has often been to follow later scriptures, occasionally even to the point of regardingthe Suttas as ‘stories for children’. Many Theravādins follow mainly Buddhaghosa’s explanations. They donot seem to know that sometimes his explanations may be found to be contrary to the Buddha’s words. For instance, the commentaries say there are two duties for a bhikku: either the study of the scriptures ( gantha-

dhura) or the development of insight (vipassanā-dhura). This stands in sharp contrast to the Buddha’sattitude and of all others who have realized the Truth. A bhikku once asked the Buddha how one might livein accordance with Dhamma (dhamma-vihāri). The Buddha replied: “If a bhikku studies scriptures all thetime, but neglects contemplation and makes no attempt to calm his mind, then one could say of such a manthat he is one who studies a great deal, but he is not one who lives according to the Dhamma.” 243 In spite of this unequivocal statement of the Buddha we generally find in the Theravāda countries that the studies of thescriptures is divorced from meditation. Therefore, it is fairly common that the learned bhikkus return to laylife. They would probably not do so if they had besides their studies also developed meditation and throughmeditation had gained peace of mind. “If, instead of pacifying our minds, we rely on Scriptures to achieveEnlightenment, we are undertaking the impossible.”244 Ramana Maharashi was asked whether the study of the sacred books will reveal the Truth. “That will not suffice,” he replied. “Why not? – “Samādhi alone canreveal it.245* Thoughts cast a veil over Reality and so it cannot be clear in states other than Samādhi.”246

Even in the times of the Buddha there seems to have been a tendency to specialize in studies or incontemplation.247 The Buddha frequently praised those who have a thorough knowledge of the Dhamma(bahussuta), a deep insight, and who do not neglect contemplation. He recommended a very broad, balancedapproach; these days, unfortunately, such a comprehensive approach is rarely to be found or appreciated.

The Scholastic Approach

It is a great pity that the Suttas with all their extraordinary subtlety and clarity, profundity andcomprehensiveness, have been so much neglected and many Theravāda Buddhists rely more on thecommentaries, the and on later writings. The Buddha, speaking about what is going to happen, said: “Themonks will no longer wish to hear and learn the Suttānas proclaimed by the Tathāgata, wich are deep, profound in meaning, reaching beyond the world (lokuttara), dealing with the Void ( suññ atā-patsamyuttā) but will only lend their ear to the trivial writings of the disciples, made by poets and verse-mongers, adornedwith beautiful words and syllables.”248 It seems that soon after the Paranirvāna of the Buddha many learnedbhikkhus got lost in the labyrinth of purely scholastic approach. Realization of the Truth was replaced by

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scholasticism. In the Theravāda countries many people believe that the Buddha taught the Abhidhamma.However, there is not there is not the slightest historical evidence for such a belief. In fact the story that theBuddha taught the Abhidhamma in Tusita Heaven was most likely put forward in order to give authority tothe Abhidhamma exactly the same way as some of the later Mahāyāna-sũtras were said to be taught by theBuddha himself. For if the Buddha had really taught the Abhidhamma to his mother in Tusita Heaven itwould seem most likely that he would have taught it to the monks afterwards as well. Actually, it is widelyagreed that the Abhidhamma books were written much later. The Hinayāna schools all had quite different

Abhidhamma. If the Buddha had himself taught the Abhidhamma, the different schools would have had thesame Abhidhamma.

The attitude of deep veneration for the Abhidhamma which is so wide-spread in the Theravāda countries, isnot without dangers. Scholasticism and the concern over scholastic categories may cause people to forgetthat the essence of the Buddha’s teachings is the realization of Nibbāna. To be caught in scholasticism is to be caught in views and as long as one is caught in views one will never reach Supreme Enlightenment. Wisemen were aware of the attachment to views and opinions ( ditth’updāna) which is so common andwidespread among ascetics and they have warned against it. In the scholastic approach to religion thisattachment to views and opinions is, quite frankly, allowed to run riot. When one sees how those who aremainly interested in the Abhidhamma explain Buddhism it is obvious that there is another danger inherent in

the scholastic approach of the Abhidhamma. Many of the followers of the Abhidhamma conceive of several‘ultimate realities’ (param’attha-dhamma).They teach a realistic pluralism which is quite foreign to the original teachings of the Buddha as we find it inthe Suttas. Unenlightened people, busying themselves with classifying conditioned things into variouscategories and making more and better charts of these categories, only too easily lose sight of the essence of

Dhamma and come to interpret the Buddha’s teaching as some sort of realistic pluralism.

For the Buddha there was only One Ultimate Reality, Nibbāna (ekam eva, bhiksavaah, paramam satyam yaduta apramosa-dharma nirvāanam, ekam hi saccam ),250 and therefore he taught us to consider the worldof phenomena as empty and unreal ( sunnato lokam avekkhassu,251 sunyatah sarva-samskaram prajnaya

passyate yada…252* sabbam vitaham idam); he told us to see that everything in the world is “like a mock show (maya) or a mirage or bubbles of water.”253 The difference for the enlightened and unenlightened

people is that for the enlightened, Nibbāna is the Only Reality, while scholars, philosophers and theologianswho have never seen the Unconditioned will take many things for real which to the enlightened are unreal(mosa-dhamma). 254 Prof. Murti says: “The inadequacy and inconsistency of the Abhidharma system -thetheory of the elements- led to the Madhyamika dialectic, “255 and de la Vallée Poussin says: “There is a greatdeal of Madhyamika philosophy in the Pali Canon.”256 Only the ‘typical Theravāda approach’ as manifestedin the Abhidhamma, the Pali commentaries and the later Theravāda writings has so much ignored this aspectof the Buddha’s teaching that many people are very surprised if someone points out how many of the‘Mahāyāna ideas’ are already to be found in the Pāli Canon.

All those concepts which loom so very large in many Mahayānā writings – that the Buddha is the Dharma- Kāya, that the world of phenomena is unreal and Nibbāna is the only reality, the intrinsically pure, radiantmin ( pabhassara citta), non-duality, Absolute Truth, Emptiness as synonym for Nirvāna, the importance of freedom from discursive thinking etc. – they can all be found in the Pali Canon, but one looks in vain for anyof them in any of the later Theravāda writings. Somehow the Theravāda tradition has managed to disregardall these important aspects of the Buddha’s teachings which interestingly enough are at the very core of Mahayāna thought, and the really ‘orthodox Theravādins’ reject these ideas when they hear about them. It issignificant that all these aspects of the Buddha’s teaching which the Theravādins have ignored are of a very profound nature. They are inaccessible to unenlightened people and to a merely intellectual understanding.Buddhaghosa himself admitted that he was only a puthujjan. Therefore, he could not possible know whatthese things mean. It really does seem that the ‘typical Theravāda approach’ with its scholastic bias wasformulated and maintained by very learned, very intelligent, but unenlightened monks. It is inevitable thatunenlightened men present the doctrine of the Buddha in a way which is considerably different from the wayenlightened men would. In the Suttas we find that experienced bhikkhus like Mahakācāna were frequently

asked to explain terse sayings of the Buddha. Mahakācāna’s explanations reveal great wisdom, clarity anddepth of understanding. Unfortunately, the later commentaries don’t reflect any of the same profundity andclarity. This shows that without enlightenment even the greatest learning and intelligence is not sufficient tofathom the real depth and essence of the Buddha’s teaching. The Buddha said that if a person teaches the

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Dhamma to others just as he learnt it, but he himself is without wisdom and does not understand the deeper meaning, then (one could say of) such a person that he has a lot of concepts, but is not living with theDhamma (paňňatti bahulo no dhamma-vihara).258* Such a person “has only grasped the letter, but not the realmeaning”259 and “ the letter brings death, but the Spirit gives life.”260*

Many intelligent people interested in Buddhism find the scholastic approach prevalent in the Theravādawritings rather dry and barren. Unfortunately, hardly any of the translations from the Pāli Canon conveyanything of the depth, the clarity and the inspiring quality of the original but tend to be rather tedious,shallow and uninspiring. This may well be one of the reasons that many Buddhists turn to Zen Buddhism. InZen they find something lively and dynamic because the great Zen masters were vitally concerned only withthe essence of Buddhism which is enlightenment. Even in Thailand which is traditionally a Theravādacountry many critical, intelligent people show an interest in Zen Buddhism.

The significance of the KĀLĀMA-SUTTA

In the Kālāma-sutta the Buddha tells the people of Kālāma that they should not thoughtlessly accept andfollow any tradition which has been handed down to them, but they should examine it critically. 261 Though

many Buddhists are very found of quoting this Sutta which shows the liberal and enlightened attitude of theBuddha, very few seem to apply this critical approach to their own traditions. Merely to quote this Suttawitout applying these things in one’s own life is, though fairly common, not very helpful. Such an attitudewas compared to a physician who gives medicin to others but does not cure his own illness. Admittedly, to become aware of the conditioning influence of our environment and society is not easy because many of our value judgements were absorbed early in life and later taken for granted. But the awakening to a life of fullawareness, a living in the here and now, includes a growing awareness of the conditioning influences of authority and tradition. If there had been more of this critical, intelligent attitude which the Buddhaimpressed on us it is most unlikely that the Pāli commentaries could have achieved so much authority andinfluence. Without such a critical attitude which tries to keep to the very essence of religion, there is alwaysthe danger stagnation, decadence, fossilization and many devious bypaths. To stem the further decline of Buddhism it would be of vital importance to reduce the influence of the commentaries and the Abhidhamma

and return to what the Buddha himself said regarding the spiritual life and emphasise that without practice,without contemplation a merely intellectual, theoretical and philosophical approach to Buddhism is quiteinadequate. When Ānanda asked the Buddha shortly before his Parinirvāna for some final instructions, theBuddha told him that each one, by relying on the Dhamma, has to find the Truth in and for himself (tasmatih’nanda, Āatta-dipa viharatha atta-sarama ananna sarana ananna-sarana; dhamma-dipa dhamma-

sarana ananna-sarana).262* And the way to do this is the practice of awareness ( satipaţţhana).

Theravāda and Mahāyāna

Quite a few people identify Theravāda with the Pali tradition, but that is misleading. We should make adistinction between the Suttas and the later commentaries and traditions and reserve the name for the

commentaries and the approach as it has evolved in the Theravāda countries. All the early Buddhist schoolshad their own collection of Sūtras, though, unfortunately, only the texts of a few schools have survived. Theothers are probably irretrievably lost. There have been some interesting studies showing that the Chinesecollection of Sūtras – though grouped differently – is in remarkable agreement with the Pali Sūttas.Therefore non of the Buddhist schools can claim the Discourses of the Buddha to be their exclusive property.263 The different schools of Buddhism have each a different interpretation of the doctrine of theBuddha as contained in the Sutta-piţaka and the Agamas. Each school emphasizes certain aspects andneglects others, but perhaps this is – unavoidable. Unfortunately, in the Theravāda countries there are many prejudices about the Mahayana, and in the Mahāyāna there are equally many just as unfounded prejudicesabout the Theravāda. Those Theravādins who rely mostly on the scholastic writings of the Abhidhamma andthe commentaries, find the scriptures vague and lacking in precision. Not having any access to the realm of Absolute Truth, they do not understand the paradoxical sayings of Absolute Truth in which the Zen andMahāyāna scriptures abound and consider them as downright and deplorable errors. An openminded studyof all Buddhist schools and traditions seems to be fairly rare. This is a very regrettable situation because aTheravādin could learn quite a lot from studying the Mah āyāna scriptures open-mindly. If the followers of

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Mahāyāna would also take the trouble tostudy the Pali Suttas, they would very likely discover far moredepth than they have attributed to them.Those who know only the the tenets of their own particular religiousgroup, are very often somewhat narrow-minded in their approach. An open-minded study of other religionsmay not only widen one’s outlook, but very often help to understand one’s own religion better.

Though one can speak of Theravāda and Mahāyāna doctrines and interpretations of the doctrine of theBuddha, the essence of the Buddha’s doctrine and of all schools is awakening and enlightenment. Nāgārjunasaid: “When in Mahāyāna (we refer) to sūnyatā (we call it ‘non-arising) (anutpāda) and the other (schoolscall it ) ‘cessation’; but it should be (clearly ) understood that they mean the same thing.” 264 If we woulddisregard all our preconceived ideas, we could not fail to see to what an extraordinary extent the greatTibetan sages and Chinese Zen masters are in complete agreement with the teachings of the Buddha found inthe Pāli Canon. Sometimes one cannot help feeling that they, being enlightened men, have preserved far more of the real depth and essence of the Dhamma than the commentators of the Pāli traditions, who were probably just scholars without the experience of enlightenment.

Relative and Absolute Truth

Both the Theravāda and the Mahāyāna hold that there are two kinds of truth: relative truth and absolute

truth. Buddhagosa in one of his commentaries

265

quotes from an unknown source: “The fully enlightenedOne…declared two truths – the relative and the absolute.” For most Theravādins paramattha- sacca means precise philosophical terminology. This is a rather trivial interpretation which fails to fathom the real depthof meaning of that word. When the Buddha says that an enlightened sage ( muni) is a paramattha-dassi,266 *

he obviously does not mean that the sage has had an insight into philosophical terminology, but that he seesinto the ultimate nature of things and if he expresses the insights which he has gained in the vision of theUnconditioned, then one says that he speaks from the standpoint of Absolute Truth. Very often somethingwas condemned as heresy or notion because men could not discriminate between relative and absolute truth,that means, they had erroneous wisdom. Nāgārjuna said: “Those who are unaware of the distinction betweenthese two truths are incapable of grasping the deep significance of the teaching of the Buddha.” 267* For thosewho have not the Eye of Wisdom the expression of relative and absolute truth appear to be irreconcilable.For the wise they are just different way of speaking which have both their value and significance.

Postulating these two truths it is not too difficult to arrive at a synthesis between the Pali Canon and the later Zen and writings. In the Pali Canon, especially in the Sutta-nipāta, we can find quite a few examples of Absolute Truth ( Paramattha-samhita) 268 and in Zen and Mahāyāna here are even more. Many translators donot understand those passages where the Buddha speaks from the standpoint of Absolute Truth and oftenmake a complete mess of it. Or they translate and so literally we get translations which are faithful to theletter but have utterly killed the meaning. Some of the deepest sayings of the Buddha lie buried under rather meaningless literal translations.

Since Absolute Truth is difficult to understand (na hi saccam suddasanam)269 for unenlightened person, hemight conclude that all those paradoxical statements of the mystics which seem to contrsdict the commonlyaccepted relative truths, be false or heretical. “To a frog living in a well one cannot speak about the ocean,”says Chuang-tze, “because it knows nothing but its well.” All the paradoxical and seemingly nonsensicalexpressions which the great mystics use and which are so incomprehensible to unenlightened people are notopinions but attempts to express the Unnameable and formulate their insights into the ultimate nature(uttamârtha) of things. They are attempts to put into words what is utterlybeyond words, concepts andopinions (diţţhinam samatikkama). 271 Therefore, Seng-Ts’an, the Third Zen Patriarch of China, said: “I havespoken, but in vain; for what can words tell of things that have no yesterday, tomorrow or today?” 272 Tothose who had an insight into the ultimate nature of things (nipuņ’attha-dassi)273* a new dimension isrevealed ( sūksmam padam abhijňāya)274 about which “unenlightened people who are blind” to the Truth(andhabhûtā puthujjana)275 know nothing. Seng-Ts’an, speaking about the realm of the Absolute Truth,said:” At the ultimate point, beyond which you can go no further, you get to where there are no rules, towhere thought can accept Impartiality, to where effect of action ceases, doubt is washed away, belief has noobstacle. Nothing is left over, nothing remembered; space is bright, but self-illumined; no power of mind is

exerted. Nor indeed could mere thought bring us to such a place. Nor could sense or feeling comprehend it.It is the Truly-so, the Transcendent Sphere, where there is neither He nor I. For swift converse with thissphere use the concept ‘Not Two’; in the ‘Not Two’ are no separate things, yet all things are included. Thewise throughout the Ten Quarters have had access to this Primal Truth; for it is not a thing with extension in

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Time or Space; a moment and an aeon for it are one. Whether we see it or fail to see it, it is manifest alwaysand everywhere:” 276*

In one of the Suttas the Buddha said the view that there is neither this nor another world is micchā diţţhi, awrong view. 277 On another occasion he spoke about the Unconditioned and said: “In Nibbanā there isneither this world nor another world.” 278 The explanations for these seemingly incongruous sayings is quitesimple. From the standpoint of relative truth it is wrong to say that there is neither this nor another world, but from the standpoint of Absolute Truth it is true, because everybody who had reached Ultimate Reality(uttadam dhammatam patto) 279 knows that there is really neither this nor another world.

Again and again in the Suttas one comes across such exhortations: “Therefore, stir up even more energy for attaining the unattained, for winning what is not yet won, for realising the unrealised.”280

The Buddha also said there is a gradual process in the spiritual path and realisation. 281 This is, of course,relative truth. Since many great Zen masters emphasized that there is only sudden enlightenment, some people feel a bit bewildered but the apparent contradiction. Hui-Neng said: ”Those who are wise realize thetruth in a flash, while those who are under delusion have to train themselves gradually…..Therefore, theseterms ‘gradual’ and ‘sudden’ are not really opposed to each other.” 282 It is interesting to note that theTheravāda is in complete agreement with Zen as far as ‘sudden enlightenment’ is concerned. 283 When the

Buddha speaks about a gradual process he refers to the gradual maturation of the mind and when Zenmasters speak about ‘sudden enlightenment’, they refer to the sudden breakthrough into the Unconditionedwhich of necessity cannot be gradual. So the contradiction is more apparent then real. Huang Po, speakingfrom the standpoint of Absolute Truth, says: “When al last, in a single flash, you attain to full realisation,you will only be realizing the Buddha-nature which has been with you all the time; and by all the fore-goingstages you will have added to it nothing at all. You will come to look upon those aeons of work andachievements as no better than unreal actions performed in a dream. That is why the Tathāgata said: I trulyattained nothing from complete, unexcelled enlightenment.”284* But only a man to whom the Unconditionedrevealed itself, can fully grasp the meaning of such baffling statements.

The core of the Buddha’s teaching are the ‘Four Noble Truths’: suffering, origin of suffering, cessation of suffering and the way leading to the cessation of suffering. Yet in the Heart-sūtra ( Prajňāpāramitā-hŗ daya-

sǔtra) it is said: “In śūnyatā (emptiness) there is no suffering, no origin (of suffering), no cessation (of suffering) and no way (leading to the cessation of suffering).” 285 Some might think what is expressed in theHeart-sūtra must be a mistaken and untenable opinion because it contradicts what the Buddha has taught.They do not understand that when the Buddha speaks about the Four Truths he speaks from the standpoindof relative and what is said in the Heart-sūtra is Absolute Truth, and Absolute Truth does not admit anyduality because “non-duality is the characteristic of enlightenment” (bodhir advaya-lakşaņā).286* In theHeart-sūtra it is also said: The five Skandhas are śūnyatā, and śūnyatā is the same as the five Skandhas; thefive Skandhas are not different from śūnyatā, nor is śūnyatā different from the five Skandhas.” A little later in the same Sūtra one reads: “In śūnyatā there is neither body, nor feeling, nor perception, nor impulses, nor consciousness.” In the vision of the Unconditioned it is seen that the world of phenomenena is not differentfrom the Unconditioned, and at the same time it is seen that there is only the Unconditioned and that theworld of phenomena is utterly unreal. The great mystics often use such paradoxical, seemingly illogical

statements to express their insights into the ultimate nature of things.

Out of compassion the Buddha taught his doctrine so that beings aimlessly wandering in Samsāra mightreach the end of Samsāra by realizing Nibbāna.287 Many Theravādins become rather furious when they hear that in the Mahāyāna writings it is said that Samsāra is not really different from Nirvāna, and theyimmediately and often fiercly reject that. Not understanding the difference between relative and absolutetruth, they jump to the conclusion that it is a completely fallacious view. In this they are quite wrong becausefor those who first spoke of the identity of Samsāra and Nirvāna288* it was a matter of fact which they hadseen directly when they had seen the Deathless. It was not a speculation and not just an idea or an opinion, but a mystical insight into Absolute Truth and it belongs to those things which are “difficult to see and torealize and beyond the reach of the intellect” (duddasā duranubodhā... atakkâvacarā).289* Mystical insightsinto Absolute Truth cannot be judged by unenlightened people from the worm's eye view of book-learning,and a little book-knowledge does not really entitle anyone to pass judgement on mystical experiences.People who have not yet seen the Unconditioned are in no position whatsoever to determine whether suchsayings are true or not. Unenlightened people should not be so presumptuous to pass judgement on mystical

16



experiences which are beyond their ken. When the Buddha says that by the full comprehension of the Four Truths290 and by realizing ( Nibbāna) one will be liberated from Samsāra he speaks from the viewpoint of relative truth. Some Buddhist scholars try to prove logically that Samsāra is not different from Nibbāna byarguing that one realizes Nibbāna if the mind is even temporarily free from defilement. That interpretationwould only be correct if Nibbāna meant nothing more than the allayment of various defilements. But

Nibbāna is the Unconditioned and to explain away one of the profoundest and most difficult Mahāyānateachings in such a purely ethical sense is a complete misunderstanding. When unenlightened people whoknow only relative truth try to explain statements which were spoken from the point of view of AbsoluteTruth, they are like blind men speaking about colours. "The more you talk about It, the more you think aboutIt, the further from It you go."291

The Goal and Essence of Spiritual Life

In a few similes the Buddha showed how easily a person who originally was seeking for Nibbāna gets stuck by identifying himself with virtue, with certain levels of contemplation or even with understanding. Then hegoes on to say: "The essence of spiritual life does not lie in virtue, meditation or understanding. Theunshakable liberation of the mind – that is the essence, the goal and the perfection of spiritual life." ( iti kho,bhikkhave, nayidam brahmacariyam... silasampad 'ānisamsam na samādhisampad' ānisamsam na

ñānadassan' ānisamsam yā ca kho ayam, bhikkhave, akuppā ceto-vimutti – etad-attham idam, bhikkhave,brahma-cariyam etam-sāram etam-pariyosānam)292* So easily we tend to lose sight of the real goal of thespiritual quest293 by identifying ourselves with any attainmant and in that way we arrive at inner stagnation.Although many people believe they are searching for Nibbāna, they are really only seeking security in oneform or another. As soon as they feel secure they stop going any further. If any discontent arises they oftensmother it by pursuing the objects of their desires without seeing that they cannot solve the problem in thatway. Only he can go very far on the spiritual path who can keep alive the discontent 294 with anything whichhe has attained short of the highest goal. The Buddha said he had always kept two things in mind: never to become content with (the development of) good qualities and not to become lax in his spiritual quest 295 "Aslong as the bhikkhus do not stop half-way by being content with some minor attainments, they can go far andwill not fall back."296

Consciously or unconsciously, many Buddhists hold the view that in this unfavourable time it is not

possible to reach Nibbāna and therefore they do not exert themselves overmuch. "Far, far away isenlightenment for those who are lazy."297 "As long as there is real dedication to the Dharma, Buddhism willnot disappear."298* "This, the Deathless, has been reached by many and even now it can be won, but onlywhen there's total dedication. Strive not and you will not attain!"299* "The realization of Nibbāna – that is theHighest Blessing."300*

Nibbāna-sacchikiriyā ca – etammangalamuttamam

Bhikkhu Vimalo

NOTES

In these notes I have tried to give a few examples of the considerable consensus among the great mysticsregarding the experience of the Highest Truth. The popular forms of religion and their various brands of scholasticism differ widely, but all the great mystics affirm that there is only One Ultimate Reality. In somereligions this Ultimate Unconditioned Reality is called 'God', in India it was called Brahman or Sat-cit-ānanda. Plotinus called it 'The One', the Taoists call it Tao, the Buddha called it Nirvāna and in Mahāyānathey call it Sūñyatā (emptiness) or Tathatā (suchness): but they all mean the same thing. They are all one insaying that this Ultimate Reality is there all the time, "but the people of the world do not awake to it." – Those interested in comparative religion will find the following little book useful: D. E. Harding: Religionsof the World. A Liberal Studies Book, Heinemann, London.

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All quotations from Pali texts refer to the editions of the Pali Text Society.The following abbreviations are used:A Anguttara-nikāyaAst Aşţasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā, (BST. vol.4)BST Buddhist Sanskrit Texts, edited by the Mithila Institute of Post-Graduate Studies and Research in

Sanskrit Learning, Darbhanga, India.D Dīgha-nikāyaDh DhammapadaIt ItivuttakaLa Lankāvatāra-sūtra (BST.3)M Majjhima-nikāyaS Samyutta-nikāyaSi Siksā-samuccaya (BST.11)Sn Sutta-nipataTh Thera-gāthāThi Theri-gāthāUd UdānaUv Udāna-varga, edited by F. Bernhard, Goettingen, Germany, 1965

Vaj Vajracchedika-sūtra (in BST.17)1. Those who are interested to study this in greater detail are advised to read "Concept and Reality" by

Bhikkhu Nānananda, Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, Ceylon2. Cp. Sn. 916:"Let him completely cut off the root of papañca-sankhā, namely the notion 'I am the thinker

(or the experiencer)..."3. S.12.15; II.P.174. Mahāniddesa p. 2805. A. 6.63; III. p.4116. Saññā corresponds very closely to perception, and though perception involves a certain amount of

memory, one should nevertheless not confuse the two.7. M. 18; I.p. 111

8. S. 22.56; III. p. 609. M.10; I.p.61. D.22; II.p.30210. see S. 41.1; IV. p. 28311. D. 2; I.p.70; Si.12.p.112. M.39; I.p.27312. Visuddhi-magga p.2013. M. 131; III.p.18714. Bodhicaryāvatāra 5.108; BST.12 p.8015. Vaj. 10; p.7816. S.35.132; IV.p.12017. The Zen Teaching of Hui Hai on Sudden Illumination, J. Blofeld, Rider, p.7818. ibid . p.85.Cp. "Having perceived anything pleasant he does not desire it and he has no aversion for the

unpleasant things" (M38;I.p.270. S.35.202; IV.p.186). Similarly at S.46.6; V.p.74 and Bhagavad-Gitā5.2019. Seng-Ts'an: On Trust in the Heart, transl. by A. Waley in 'Buddhist Texts Through the Ages', edited by

E. Conze and others, Cassirer Oxford, p. 295. 'For' and 'against' mean desire and aversion.20. Si.14; p.14021. Seng Ts'an, op. cit. (19) p.29722. Sn.362. M.38; I.p.270. Cp. Saundarananda 17.67 and Bhagavad-Gitā 2.57: "Where there is neither like

nor dislike, there wisdom is firmly established" (nâbhinandati na dvesti, tasya prajñā pratişţhita)23. Si.12; p.11224. Ast.22; p.19825. Si.12; p.112. Transl. by Conze in "Selected Sayings from the Perfection of Wisdom", London, p.69 and

op. cit . (19) p.13826. Vaj.9; p.78. Cp.Sn.94927. Saptasatikā Prajñāpāramitā; BST.17. p.34228. Hui Hai, op.cit. (17) p.45. For this 'dwell upon nothing' see M.143; III.p.259

1



29. S.22.87; III.p.12030. D.27; III.p.84 Cp. Bhagavad-Gitā 5.24: "That yogi who has become one with Brahman reaches Nirvāna

(which is) Brahman" ( sa yogī brahma-nirvānam brahma-bhūto dhigacchati).31. It.3.5.3; p.9032. Th.117433. A.6.10; III.p.28534. Vaj.25; p.87. transl. by S. Ogata in "Zen for the West", Apollo Editions, p.1435. A.4.65; II.p.71. Th.469. Uv.22.1236. La.3; p.7837. Ratnagotravibhāga Mahāyānottaratantra'sāst-ra , ed. by E.H. Johnston,Pata, India, 1950, p.5638. Ast.31; p.253. Cp. the saying of Jesus: "I Am Who I Am" (John 8.24). Also Hui-Neng said: "The

Essence of Mind or Tathatā (Suchness) is the real Buddha." (Sutra spoken by the Sixth Patriarch on theHigh Seat of 'The Treasure of the Law', transl. by Wong Mou-lam, chapter 10)

39. Vaj.26; p.8740. Suvarņaprabhāsa-sūtra 2; BST.8.p.9. Already in the Pali Canon dhamma-dhatu means the Highest

Truth, see S. 12.32; II. p.56. M. 58; I. p.396. D. 14; II. p.841. Saptaśatikā Prajñāpāramitā; BST.17. p.34742. Ast.31; p.253

43. Ast.31; p.25444. M.26; I. p.16745. In the account of the Buddha's enlightenment in the Buddhist Sanskrit scriptures it is said that the

Dharma which the Buddha found was asamskrta, the Unconditioned and paramārtha, Absolute Truth.( Lalitavistara25; BST.I.p.286)

46. A.5.57; III.p.75. Ud.5.6; p.59. Uv. 28.447. Vimalakīrtinirde'sa-sūtra 3.648. Thi.9749. It. 3.5.1;p.88. The Buddha said of the Dhamma and also of Nibbāna (A.3.55; I.p.159) that they are

obvious, timeless and the wise have to realize it in and for themselves.50. Culla-vagga 9.1; Vinaya II.p.239

51. Ratnagotravibhagā, op.cit . (37) p.5952. S.6.2; I.p.14053. Dh. 364. It. 3.4.7; p.82 Cp. A. 3. 100: I.p.254: dhamma-vitakkā; A. 6. 43; III.p.346: vimamsā dhamma-

cintanā.54. It. 2.2.6; p.3755. Seng-Ts'an, op.cit . (19) p. 29656. It.3.4.8; p.8357. The Zen Teaching of Huang Po on the Transmission of Mind, J. Blofeld, Rider, p.3858. It.4.11; p.118. A.4.11: II.p.14. In one of the really great Christian books on contemplation it is said: "He

who has no prayer free from thoughts has no weapon for battle." (Philokalia, Faber, London, p.283)59. A.8.11; IV.p.17460. M.72; I.p.487. Sn.1074, Schopenhauer, speaking about Nirvāna, said: "What remains after complete

cessation of attachment is nothing for all those who are full of desires. Vice versa is this socalled realworld with all its suns and galaxies nothing for all those who have transcended attachment." (end of 'DieWelt als Wille und Vorstellung ')

61. Thi.338. Uv.20.262. Sn.107663. La.2; p.3764. La.3; p.6065. M.72; I.p.487. "To say that an enlightened one is after death is as impossible as to say that he is not."

(S.44.I; IV.p.376)66. Saptaśatikā Prajnāpāramitā; BST.17.p.34967. Sn.992, 1105. Th.1253

68. S.12.68; II.p.11769. Sn.89670. Sn.9-13. Uv.32.55

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71. La.3; p.6172. A.3.35; I.p.142. Uv.30.1773. see A.3.40; I.p.150. M.113; III.p.43. Sn.84674. S. 6.3; I.p.141. Ud. 2.6; p.14. Dh. 88, 221. Sn. 176,455,501,645. Uv. 16. 14,20.1, 30.4075. In the doctrine of Jesus Christ the term 'Poverty of Spirit' corresponds to akiñcana. He said: "Blessed are

those who have the Poverty of Spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven." (Matthew 5.3) The

Kingdom of Heaven, of course, does not mean devaloka, but the Unconditioned.76. S. 22.85; III.p.10977. Dh. 203, 204. Uv.26.6. Cp. Bhagavad-gītā 6.28: "He experiences the infinite bliss of the realization of

Brahman" (brahmasamsparśam atyantam sukham asnute).78. Dh. 373 Uv. 32.979. Uv. 20.280. Uv. 12.1881. Uv .30.1782. Dh. 20283. It. 3.3.8; p.69. Uv. 30.11. Bodhicariyāvatāra, p.20084. Sn.76185. Th.11 Uv. 32.21 Cp. Thi. 350: "They have reached unshakable happiness" ( pattá te acalam sukham);

also at Uv. 30.3686. Th. 712: uttamam dhammatam patto: cp. Uv. 33.33: uttamartham anupraptām, both mean 'having

reached the Highest Reality'.87. Mahāvagga 23.5; Vin.I.p.40. When an old Sufi mystic, Bāyazid Bisţāmi, was asked how old he was, he

replied "Four years". "How is that?" "For seventy years I lived under the veil of this world. For only four years I have been seeing Him. Those veiled years I do not count as part of my life." (The Persian Šūfis,C.Rice, O.P.Allen and Unwin, London, p.86)

88. In the Visuddhi-magga (p.582 )avijjā is compared to a blind man and in the Tibetan Samsara-cakraavidyā is always represented by a blind person.

89. Hakuin's Song of Meditation, in Ogata, op.cit . (34) p.1590. Sn.762

91. Sn.76492. Sn.763. To illustrate the sudden seeing of the Unconditioned, the reader is referred to an ambiguous picture which the Gestalt psychologists and therapists use. (see "Gestalt Therapy" by Peris, Hefferlineand Goodman, Pelican, p.53; this book gives also very helpful exercises and suggestions aimed at livingwith greater awareness in the here and now). This picture consists in reality of two pictures, but most people are able to see only one. When it is pointed out that in that picture there is still another picturewhich they had completely overlooked, they are often able to suddenly see that other picture as well.The Gestalt therapists call that the 'aha' experience. In the same way it is with seeing the Unconditioned.He who suddenly sees it, realizes that it was there all the time but he was not aware of it. He alsorealizes that the world of phenomena is not different from the Unconditioned, and by a slight switch of attention he sees there is only the Unconditioned.

93. Sn. 953. The Mahāniddesa (p.130) explaining the word khema-dassi (Sn.809) says: khemam vuccati

amatam nibbānam, khema means Nibbana, the Deathless. Also at S. 43.28; IV. p.371 khema is used assynonym of Nibbana. Cp. Thi.350: "Having reached the realm of khema (i.e. the Deathless) they areliberated" (khemattaneā vimutta)

94. Seng-Ts'an, op.cit .(19) p.298. Chuang-Tse was asked: "Where is that what you call Tao?" He replied: "Itis everywhere." (chapter 22)

95. from Yung-chia's 'Realization-way Song', transl. by D.T.Suzuki. Meister Eckhart said: "When he sawnothing, then he saw God." (Quint: Meister Eckehart, Deutsche Predigten und Traktate, Hanser Verl. p.333)

96. D.T. Suzuki: The Zen Doctrine of No Mind, Rider, p.2997. D. II; I.p. 22398. Ratnagotravibhāga I. 154; op.cit . (37) p. 75

99. Ud. 8.1; p. 80100. Sn. 874

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101. Ud. 7.10; p.79. Uv. 27.6 Cp. Dh. 421 and La. 10.120: p. 115: "According to relative truth all thingsexist, but not in Absolute Truth" ( sarvam vidyati samvrtyām, paramārthe na vidyate)

102. La. 10.33; p. 109103. A. 3.39; I. p. 147104. A. 4.45; II. p. 48. S. 2.3.6; I.p. 62105. S. 35.116; IV. p. 96

106. S. 12.15; II. p. 17107. Rantagunasamcayagāthā 1.19; BST.17. p.354, similarly at S. 22.95; III.p.140108. Dh. 254. Uv. 29.38: prapañcâbhitatā bālā........109. Rantagunasamcayagāthā 1.14; BST. 17.p.354110. A. 8.30; IV. p.235111. Seng-Ts'an, op.cit . (19) p. 296112. Milinda-pañhā p.262113. It. 2.2.7; p. 39114. Mādhyamika-kārikā 18.5; BST. 10.p.149115. A. 6.15; III.p.295. Th. 990.116. A. 10.22; V.p.37117. S. 35.95; IV. p.73. Ud. 1.10; p.8. Uv. 26.17

118. M. 22; I.p.134. Vaj. 6; p. 77. Hui Hai. op.cit . (17) p.82119. M. 78; II. p. 27120. Dh. 385. Uv. 33.26121. Hui Hai, op.cit . (17) p. 81122. Seng Ts'an, op.cit. (19) p. 298. There are some delightful stories how Zen masters expressed the

timelessness of the Unconditioned: "Shuo-shan Shih-chieh was asked by a general, 'What is the age of Shuo-shan?' 'Same as vacuity of space.' 'What is the age of space?' 'Same as Shuo-shan.' (D.T. Suzuki:Essays in Zen Buddhism, II, p.195). Cp. also Huang Po,p. 97, and John 8.58: "Before Abraham was born, I Am."

123. Dh. 412. Uv. 33.29. Cp. Dh. 267. Sn. 520124. S. 46.6; V. p.74. Vaj. 10; p.78. Cp. S. 22.55; III.p.58, and Kāśyapaparivarta- sūtra 103: "In that

realm there is no (notion of) inferior, medium or exalted states; and why? Because that realm is likespace (everywhere) the same, without any discrimination, because there all things have only one taste."(see 50 and 51)

125. A. 6.119; III. p.450126. Seng-Ts'an, op.cit . (19) p. 297127. Dh. 384. The commentary explains yada dvayesu dhammesu paragu hoti... thus: "When in two

things, namely samatha and vipassana, he has crossed to the other shore..." (sic) Surely, this means "hewho has transcended all duality". Cp. Bhagavad-gītā 5.3: "He who is free from duality is easily liberatedfrom bondage" (nirdvandvo hi...sukham bandhāt pramucyate).

128. Ast. 26; p. 218. Cp. Gauadpadaā's Kārikā 1.18 (Māndūkya Upanişad ): "For the wise there is noduality" ( jñāte dvaitam na vidyate), only "unenlightened people (literally 'fools') are attached to a

dualistic way of thinking" (balah kalpa-dvaye ratāh). La. 10.49; p. 110129. Hui-Neng, quoted by Suzuki, op.cit. (96) p. 36130. Eckehart, op.cit .(95) p. 59. Cp. Bŗhadārayņaka Upanişad 4.4.19: "In it there is no multiplicity

whatsoever" (neha nānā'sti kimcana)131. Prajñāpāramita-piņdârtha 1; BST. 4. p.263132. La. 2; p. 55133. Sadharmapuņdarika- sūtra 13; BST. 6. p. 168134. M. 151; III. p. 294135. M. 121; III. p. 109136. Catuhśataka 12.23137. according to Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary suddhi means also holiness.138. Sn. 839. Cp. Sn. 900.1082139. Dh. 39. Uv. 11.12, 28.6140. Sn. 790141. Hui-Neng, op.cit . (38) chapter 10

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142. A. 3.57; I. p. 162143. A. 1.5.10; I. p. 10144. Ast. I; p. 3. Cp. La. 10.253; p. 124: "The (intrinsic) nature of the mind is pure." (cittasya dharmatū

śuddhū)145. Jñanasiddhi, 84. Cp. Gaudapāda's Kārikā 4.98 (Māndūkya Upanisad ) "All dhardmas are

intrinsically pure and not under any veil" (alabodh'ūvaranāh sarve dharmāh prakŗti-nirmalāh) and the

Heart-sutra: "Alldharmas

have the characteristic of sūnyatā" ( sarva-dharmāh Śūnyata-lakşanā

)146. A. 1.6.1; I. p. 10147. Hui-Neng, op.cit. (38) ch. 2. In La. 10.750; p. 156 it is said that this intrinsically radiant mind is the

immaculate womb of the Tathāgata ( prakŗti-prabhāsvaram cittam garbham Tathāgatam śubham)148. Huang Po, op.cit. (57) p. 36. Tao-Hsin, the Fourth Zen Patriarch of China, said: "Let the mind

together with its world be quietened down to a perfect state of tranquillity; let thought be cast in themystery of quietude, so that the mind is kept from wandering from one thing to another. When the mindis tranquillized in its deepest abode, its entanglements are cut asunder... The mind in its absolute purityis the Void itself... It abides in the utmost purity of the Dharmakāya." (Suzuki, op.cit . (122) ThirdSeries, p. 28)

149. Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi, Tiruvannamalai, India, volumes I-III, p. 155150. The Awakening of Faith, transl. by Y.S. Hakeda, Columbia University Press, p. 35

151. Hui-Neng, op.cit . (38) chapter 5152. Huang Po, op.cit . (57) p. 31153. S. 12.50; II. p.80. A. 6.10; III. p. 285154. Sn. 536. Cp. S. 8.8; I. p. 193: "Those who see the Dhamma are firmly established in the Deathless."155. Ven. Chao Khun Upālī (Siricando)156. Dh. 178157. M. 56; I.p.380. D.3; I.p.110. Ud. 5.3; p.49158. Since many Buddhists have prejudices against some religious terms, they are reminded that

mysticism – which is, after all, the real essence of religion – means the spiritual apprehension of Truth,the insight into the true nature of things.

159. Cp. Dh. 170. Uv. 27.15. S. 22.95; III p. 140

160. M. 58; I. p. 396. S. 12.32; II. p. 56161. Vim ‾ na-vatthu 147; p. 13162. A. 3.92; I. p. 242163. The Gospel according to John, 8.32164. George Eliot165. A. 6.120; III. p. 451. Th. 296,336166. Mahāvagga 22.5; Vin. I. p. 36167. Sn. 1064168. Sn. 368169. D. 33; III. p.219. S. 48.23; V. p. 204170. Ud. 1.2; p. 1. Uv. 33.77171. Sn. 934

172. A. 6.97; III. p. 441173. M. 48; I. p. 325. Cp. "He who realizes that Dhamma which is beyond all duality (i.e. Nirvāna)

understands the teachings of the enlightened ones." (Suvikrantavikramipariprccha 1; BST. 17, p. 11) because he "has reached the essence of the Dhamma" (dhamma-saradhigama). It.2.2.7;p.39. S. 55.43 V. p.402

174. Visuddhi-magga p. 659175. Sn. 212. Th. 12. It. 3.4.5; p. 80176. Sn. 143177. Mahavagga 23.6; Vin. I. p. 41178. I would interpret the saying of Jesus, "Be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect."

(Matthew 5.48) similarly: that we should participate in the timeless perfection of the Unconditioned.

Meister Eckhart said: "Know that all perfection and all blessedness depends on whether man cantranscend all conditioned things and all time and all existence and enter that ground which is noground." (op.cit . (95) p. 342)

179. D. 33; III. p. 227. S. 55.4; V. p. 347

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180. M. 78; II. p. 27181. Cp. Sn. 898182. Kāśyapaparivarta-sūtra 137. Cp. M. 113183. A. 9.27; IV. p. 406184. Sn. 234185. Dh. 97, 383. Uv. 33.60186. Cp. A. 6.44; III. p. 351 where it is said that he who has attained to 'temporary liberation' is said to be

carried along by the 'stream of the Dhamma' .187. Hui-Neng, op.cit . (38) chapter 10188. S. 47.35; V. p. 180. M. 123; III. p. 124189. M. 140; III. p. 244. S. 36.6; IV. p. 209190. i.e. the delusion of personality, doubt, attachment to virtue and practices; sensual desire, all-will191. M. 32; I. p. 214. Si. 6; p. 68192. M. 64; I. p. 434193. Mahāniddesa p. 433 (Sn. 948). In the Bhagavad-gītā (4.19) a very similar expression occurs: "The

wise call him a sage whose whole Karma is 'burnt out in the fire of wisdom'" ( jñānâgni-dagha).194. Th. 67195. Vaj. 7; p. 27

196. The Faithful Mind, by Seng-Ts'an, transl. from the Chinese by T. Prince, verse 31. Cp. Bŗhadāranyaka Upanişad 4.4.22: "He who has seen This (Highest Truth) is a sage."

197. Dh.277-279.Uv.12.5-8.D.16,II.p.79.A. 7.16.17; IV. p. 13,14. Ud. 4.1; p.37198. Uv. 26.21199. It. 2.2.6; p. 37. Ud. 8.3; p. 80200. Sn.947.Cp.Uv.28.4: jañātvā dharmaniraupadhim201. A.1.19.1; I.p.36202. A.9.12; IV. p.381. It is said that there are three kinds of Sotāpannas: the first will be reborn seven

times, the middling three to five times and the best will reach Parinirvāna in this life. (La.2;p.48)203. Th. 671. It. 2.2.8; p. 39. Uv. 32.40204. Dh. 96. Uv. 31.45

205. Th. 50206. It. 3.4.7; p. 82207. Th. 650,998. S. 21.1; II. p. 273208. Dh. 350. Cp. Uv. 3.2209. It. 2.1.10; p. 30210. Dh. 378. Uv. 32.24211. A. 4.93; II. p. 93212. A. 2.3.10; p. 61213. A. 1.6.2; I. p. 10214. Sn. 902215. S. 45.8; V. p. 10. Cp. S. 48.10; V. p. 198216. Sn. 709. Dh. 181. Uv. 21.9

217. Uv. 31.34. Cp. S. 4.3.3; I.p.122. Sn. 1009218. Sn. 972219. Uv. 31.47220. M. 36; I.p.246. Cp. Buddha-carita 12.106: "Through the practice of Dhyāna are developed those

dharmas which lead to the highest, timeless Realm of peace, the Deathless, which is difficult to realize.221. M. 64; I. p. 435222. D.T. Suzuki, op.cit. (96) p. 47223. Dh. 372. Uv. 32.25224. Uv. 32.26225. Dh. 23. Th. 1011. It. 3.4.2; p. 74. Uv. 4.12226. S. 47.4; V. p. 145227. A. 4.195; II. p. 198228. Ramana Maharshi, op.cit. (149) p. 123,124229. Visuddhi-magga p. 297230. A. 8.63; IV. p. 299

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231. see A. 10.208; V. p. 299232. Si. 12; p. 117233. Ratnaguņnasamcayagāthā 1.24; BST.17.p.355234. Visuddhi-magga p. 317235. Si. 9; p. 102236. M. 62; I. p. 424

237. Visuddhi-magga p. 316238. A. 3.93; I. p. 243239. Dh. 381240. Si. 11; p. 107241. following the Tibetan translation242. Si. 9; p. 101243. A. 5.73; III. p. 86. Bodhidharma, the First Zen Patriarch of China, is reported to have said: "How

about those moderners who, being able to discourse only a few Sūtras and Sāstras, regard themselves asexponents of Buddhism? They are truly simple-minded ones... To see directly into one's original Nature,this is Zen. Even if you are well learned in hundreds of the Sūtras and Sāstras, you still remain anignoramus in Buddhism when you have not yet seen into your original Nature." (D.T. Suzuki, op.cit .(122) I. p. 234,235)

244. Hui Hai, op.cit . (17) p. 77245. Cp. S. 22.5; III. p.13: "He who has Sāmadhi sees things as they are or in their Suchness"

( samāhito...yathābhūtam pajānāti)246. Ramana Maharshi, op.cit . (149) p. 178247. see A. 6.46; III. p. 355248. S. 20.7; II. p. 267249. quoted from a Sūtra by Prajñākaramati in his commentary to Bodhicaryāvatāra, BST. 12. p.175250. Sn. 884251. Sn. 1119252. Uv. 12.7 Candrakirti ( Prasannapada, BST.10. p.104) quotes a saying of the Buddha which in Pāli is

somewhat shorter: "All conditioned things are unreal and of deceptive appearance. The Highest

Reality,which is Nirvāna, is free from all illusiveness" (tan mŗşā moşa-dharma yad idam samskŗtam;etaddhi khalu bhikşacah paramam satyam yad idam amoşa-darma nirvāņam). Cp. M. 140; III. p. 245253. S. 22.95; III. p. 140. Dh. 170254. Sn. 739, 757255. T.R.V. Murti: The Central Philosophy of Buddhism, Allen and Unwin, London, p. 57256. quoted by Murti, ibid . P. 53257. see M. 18, 133, 138. S. 22.3; III. p. 9258. A. 5.74; III. p. 88. The Buddha said that a man sunk in the mire cannot pull out another who is in the

same predicament, and an unenlightened man cannot lead others to enlightenment. (M. 8; I. p.45)259. A. 4.140; II. p. 139260. 2 Corinthians 3.6. It was probably because one finds so often that learned but unenlightened people

distort the teaching of the Buddha that led a Zen master to say if unenlightened people give lecturesabout Buddhism, they help to kill Buddhism. (P. Reps: Zen Flesh, Zen Bones; Pelican, p. 63) "Even this

Dhamma which was so well taught will be distorted by men who have no wisdom" ( sudesitam imamdhammam kilesessanti dummati) (Th. 954)

261. A. 3.65; I. p. 189262. D. 16; II. p. 100. S. 47.9; V. p. 154. Cp. the saying of Jesus: "The Kingdom of God is within you."

(Like 17.21)263. in the Nālandā-Devanagārī-Pāli-Series, Majjhimanikāya, p. xvii264. Ratnāvalī 4.86; BST. 10. p. 309265. to M. 5. Similarly at La. 2; p. 53266. Sn. 219. He has "a supermundane insight inaccessible to unenlightened people" (ñāņam, ...ariyam

lokuttaram asādhāranam puthujjanehi); (M. 48; I. p. 323) this supermundane insight is the insight into

Absolute Truth, also called vimutti-ñāna-dassana. Because he has this insight, he is called a papramatthadassī . It is a completely new way of seeing the world which brings about a deep

7



transformation ( parāvŗtti) of the mind. (see La. 22; p. 41) Jesus said: " I tell you the truth: no one cansee the Kingdom of God unless he is born again." (John 3.3)

267. Mādhyamika-kārika 24.9; BST. 10.p. 215. in all mystical religions one can find relative and absolutetruth, though it may not be expressed in this way. But where religion has degenerated to blind belief or scholasticism, Absolute Truth is not to be found. In the monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianityand Islam it was often dangerous for a mystic to speak from the standpoint of Absolute Truth. WhenJesus said: "Before Abraham was born, I am," (John 8.58) the Jews picked up stones to throw at him.And when he said on another occasion: "The Father and I are one," (John 10.30) the Jews wanted tostone him again. Meister Eckhart, who was one of the greatest and most eloquent of Christian mystics,also said: "God and I, were one." (op. cit . p.186) He was condemned as a heretic because he spoke toooften from the standpoint of Absolute Truth. Because he said quite a few things which to all enlightenedmen are obvious and self-evident but to blind, deluded, unenlightened men sound like dangerousheresies and outrageous blasphemies, H.H. the Pope regretted that Meister Eckhart had "turned his ear away from the truth". When one of the Sufi mystics, Manşūr al Hallāj, said, "I am God", the pious believers were enraged and thought it was their holy duty to kill him for such a blasphemy, and they didit, and it was all for the greater glory of God.

268. Thi. 210269. Ud. 8.2.; p. 80. Uv. 26.14

270. Uv. 33.33271. Thi. 185272. Seng-Ts'an, op.cit . (19) p. 298273. Th. 372. Since nipuņa according to Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary means also

'perfect, complete, absolute', nipuņattha-dassī is a synonym of paramattha-dassī (see 266 n.). Dr.Suzuki said: "There is no Zen without satori" (enlightenment). (op.cit. (122) I.p.229) This is very true, but not only for Zen but for the whole of Buddhism because there is not much left of the real essence of Buddhism if there is no more any enlightenment.

274. Uv. 33.57275. Thi. 353. Uv. 18.13276. Seng-Ts'an op.cit .(19) p. 298. Cp. Gaudapāda's Kārikā (1.18) (Māņdūkya Upanişad ): "All this

duality is just like a mock-show. From (the standpoint of) Absolute Truth there is only non-duality"(māyā-mātram idam dvaitam, advaitam paramārthatah). Many 'orthodox Theravadins' reject the termMāyā as not fitting into the Buddhist way of thinking. It may not have been used in the commentaries, but it is already in the Pāli Canon. (see S .22.95; III.p.142)

277. M. 41; I. p. 287278. Ud. 8.1; p. 80279. Th. 712. Uv. 33.33280. M. 118; III. p. 79281. M. 70; I. p. 479. Ud. 5.5; p. 54282. Hui-Neng , op.cit . (38) chapter 4283. see Kathā-vatthu p. 212284. Huang Po, op.cit. (57) p.35. This is a quotation from Vaj. 10; p. 78. Cp. Sankara (Viceka-cudāmaņī

228): "When the Supreme Truth ( paramartha-tattva), which is non-dual, is fully realized, nothing elseremains." (see 100-107) Enlightened men have expressed their insight into the intrinsically pure, radiantmind ( pabhassara citta) and the timeless, all embracing perfection of the Unconditioned by saying that"ordinary man is Buddha" (Hui-Neng, op.cit . (38) ch. 2), but he does not know it and that is his blindness (avidyā). (When in the Bible (Psalm 82.6, John 10.34) it is said: "You are gods", it may verywell be that something like this was meant). Seeing Nibbāna a Sotāpanna is inclined to smile or laugh atall his previous deluded ideas. Ramana Maharshi once said: "A day will dawn when you will yourself laugh at your past efforts. That (namely the Unconditioned) which will be on the day you laugh is alsohere and now." (op.cit. (149) p. 130)

285. Prajñāpāramitāhŗdaya-sūtra; BST.17, p.97, 98286. Bodhicaryāvatāra; BST.12, p.200. One Sufi mystic said: "I never saw anything without seeing God

in it" and another Sufi said: "I saw nothing at all but God." (op.cit. (87) p. 87) Cp. Bhagavad-gītā 6.30287. S. 15.1-20; II. p.178 f. Dh. 153

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288. Mādhyamika-kārikā 25.19, BST. 10, p.234. At La. 2; p. 19 it is said the Bodhisattvas reach fairlysoon (that stage where they see intuitively) the identity of Samsāra and Nirvāņa ( samsāra-nirvana-

samatāprāpta).289. D. 1; I. p. 17. When some of the great sages in Mahāyāna had in the vision of the Unconditioned

seen that even the evil is not different from the all-embracing perfection of the Unconditioned, theyexpressed this insight by saying: " Kleśa (defilement) is Bodhi (enlightenment)". (Hui-Neng, op.cit . ch.

2) Independently Milarepa said the same thing (G.C.C.Chang: The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa, University Books, New York, vol. 2, p. 389) Meister Eckhart said something very similar (p.450) and it is not surprising that it was condemned as heresy. Of all the paradoxical expressions of Absolute Truth this is for most unenlightened people the most outrageous. There is no doubt that suchsayings can be dangerous because some foolish, deluded people might use them as rationalizations.

290. D. 16; II. p. 90291. Seng-Ts'an, op.cit. (19), p. 296292. M. 29;I. p.197. Cp. Dh. 271-272. Uv. 32.31-32293. For the Buddha's account of his own spiritual quest see M. 26294. Krishnamurti has written something very valuable about discontent. See his 'Commentaries on

Living', three volumes, and "First and Last Freedom", Gollancz, London295. A. 2.1.5; I. p. 50

296. D. 16; II. p. 78. A. 7.22; IV. p. 22297. Si. 16; p. 146298. La. 3; p. 79. The Buddha said we should be heirs to the Dhamma, not just recipients of material

things (dhamma-dāyādāme, bhikkhave, bhavatha mâ āmisa-dāyādā) (M.3; I. p. 12) This expression 'heir of the Dharma' can of course be interpreted in different ways but it is most unlikely that any of the reallygreat Zen masters would have accepted any unenlightened person as a true 'heir of the Dharma' . (see243n. 582,260n. and 273n.)

299. Thi. 513. Aśvaghoşa says: "I deem that the highest aim of the human being to reach that realmwhere there is neither birth nor old age nor death, where there is no fear, no illness and no sorrow."( Buddha-carita 11.59)

300. Sn. 267. Cp. Sn. 182. Uv. 10.3: "Of all tastes, the taste of Truth is the sweetest and a life dedicatedto wisdom is the best."

vimalo kulbarz - awakening to the truth

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