Podcasts about Vasubandhu

Vasubandhu was a 4th–5th century Indian Buddhist monk, philosopher, and co-founder of the Yogācāra school of Mahayana Buddhism. Renowned for his works on Abhidharma, he developed key philosophical concepts such as “consciousness-only” (vijñaptimātra) and authored texts on Buddhist metaphysics, logic, and meditation. His influential treatises, including Abhidharmakośa and Thirty Verses, significantly shaped Buddhist thought in India, Tibet, and East Asia.

Speaking of watching your Ps and Qs, when taking up the way of Zen meditation, it may seem all too easy to get things backward. In fact, according to the great Zen ancestors, getting it wrong is a natural and necessary part of the process, expressed as "Fall down seven times, get up eight," apparently an old Chinese saying adopted by Master Dogen. He also said that hitting the bullseye depends upon the 100 prior misses. So we are inevitably immersed in trial and error. In considering Buddha's original teaching in the First Sermon — outlining the Four Noble Truths, including the Eightfold Path — one aspect is often overlooked. Along with the fact that they consist of a description of reality and a prescription for practice, respectively, they also include four admonitions, or instructions for how to approach implementing them. I think of these as the four "charges," one accompanying each of the Noble Truths, namely: 4 CHARGESExistence of dukkha - (we are to fully) UnderstandOrigin of dukkha - () AbandonCessation of dukkha - () RealizePath to cessation of dukkha - () Follow The translator's choice of "understand" in this context seems woefully inadequate, given that even Buddha himself pointed out that what he realized was beyond understanding, in any ordinary sense of the word. But setting aside the semantics, let's consider all four commands as outlining a process of assimilating and acting upon Buddha's teaching. We are to fully understand, or comprehend, the existence of suffering in this world. We are to abandon its main source, or origin, namely our own craving. We are to realize the cessation of suffering, hopefully in this lifetime. And we are to follow the Path in our daily actions, so that everything we do becomes the path. And thus, as Buddha taught in the Lotus Sutra, widely regarded as his last teaching, there is actually no separate Path, if everything is the path. We are on this path whether we know it or not. And, of course, we do not necessarily engage the process in the order implied by the sequencing of the sentence. In fact, we begin at the end, with the Eightfold Path. It, too, is usually laid out in reverse order of its implementation: Right wisdom: view and thought; right conduct: speech, action and livelihood; and right discipline: effort, mindfulness and meditation. Again, we begin at the end, with meditation, which leads to mindfulness and greater effort, which affect our conduct, and so on, leading eventually to right wisdom of understanding and worldview. Or so we hope. But when we consider the difficulty of what Buddha did, and is asking us to do, it seems impossible on the surface — as do the Precepts, when considered as literal and absolute. So we are left with the prospect of figuring out what these directives actually mean, and how they might be accomplished, by contemplating them in meditation, which brings us full circle to where Buddha realized these truths, on the cushion. In Zen meditation, we are encouraged to give up our reliance on the ability of the discriminating mind to analyze and understand, and instead to trust our intuition to come to an insight into reality that is not accessible to reason alone, what Master Dogen referred to as "non-thinking": neither thinking, as such, nor notthinking. So we are to find the sweet spot, the balance between these two aspects of our original mind. In light of this attitude adjustment to the way we ordinarily approach problem-solving, let me suggest another analogy to clarify the long and broad teachings of Buddha's tongue. P's & Q's of ZenKeying off of this common trope, engage with me in an experiment in semantics that may hopefully shed some light on buddha-dharma. Setting aside the "Qs" for now, I propose that we can frame the basics of Buddhism in alliterative form, as a collection of words beginning with P, or more precisely, "Pr," which turns out to be a substantial set of considerations to be assimilated before ("pre-") setting a course of action: • Premises & Principles• Predilections & Proclivities • Prescriptions & Practices• Promises & Predictions Premises & PrinciplesBuddhism, and for that matter any body of teaching, is based on a set of premises, defined as: ... a previous statement or proposition from which another is inferred or follows as a conclusion: if the premise is true, then the conclusion must be true. Another pr word pops up in the definition: proposition, which has a less definitive connotation, being a mere proposal, than a premise, which indicates a more settled basis. Premises, when proven out by experimentation or sheer experience, may become principles, much as hypotheses become theories (and with enough evidence, laws, or precepts) of the profession under consideration, such as science; or, well, law. Predilections & ProclivitiesHowever, Buddhism — dealing as it does with fallible human nature — also takes into account our predilections, proclivities, and predispositions, as well as any pertinent preconceptions we may be harboring. These words, too, have definitions and synonyms that often reflect each other, such as predisposition and predilection, i.e. sharing similar connotations of preference and propensity. Prescriptions & PracticesWhen it comes to taking action based on the premises and principles laid out in Zen's teachings, and in light of the weaknesses of our predilections and proclivities, semantic hair-splitting does not help much, except perhaps to illustrate the subtlety of the task of discerning which prescriptions and practices might prove to be most productive for following the Zen Way under the present predicament in which we find ourselves. The default mode of action prescribed in Zen is meditation, of course, but many of the practices surrounding and supporting it raise issues of protocols in a starkly different social and cultural environment than that in which the ancestors found themselves. This is the key challenge of propagating Zen today, in a context of over-choice on every level of society. Promises & Predictions The promise of Zen, however, remains the same, no matter the situational causes and conditions surrounding our life and practice. Success in penetrating the koan of existence, while not predictable, may be predicated upon the simple formula of sitting still enough, upright enough, for long enough that the effects of zazen begin to manifest. Buddha predicted the future buddhahood of many of his followers, including his cousin Devadatta, who reputedly tried repeatedly to assassinate the great sage. AfterwordThis familiar "Ps & Qs" phrase came to mind while mulling over the design of Buddha's initial teachings, and after reading Ben Connelly's excellent commentary on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures." The first page that comes up from an internet search on Ps and Qs tells us that the phrase can be traced back to the 1779 Oxford English Dictionary. The most plausible origin, of several possible provenances, is that it refers to early typography, where "p" and "q" were likely to be mistaken, one for the other, when setting lead type. This factoid comes from a site hosted by The Guardian that you may want to check out if you are interested in the origin of words and phrases (etymology), semantic enigmas, and the evolution of language in general In our next segment we will continue delving deeper into the design intent of Zen's teachings and their implications for living in times of increasing uncertainty. Other than death and taxes, the beneficial effects of Zen and zazen are one of the few things that are certain in life. But that does not mean that we should take them for granted. We have to put in the work, making "effort without aiming at it as Master Dogen prescribes. Please plan to join our new online and onsite practice opportunities for 2025. My new Thursday evening Advanced Workshop, in particular, is designed to take a deep dive into the more subtle secrets of Zen and the details of zazen.

Neste cap 28, Vasubandhu aborda a iluminação.

https://youtu.be/njmV6tacBIw

"Kaasaegne eksperimentaalteadus on tuvastanud inimese tajuorganite võime hämmastavalt tundlike aistingute saamiseks. Näiteks ettevalmistatud tähelepanu ja pimeda ruumiga kohanenud inimsilm võib märgata lausa üksikut footonit (kvantmehaanilist valgusosakest). Ent väited joogide ülitajust lähevad sellistest täppisaistingutest kaugemale ning tõstatavad rea tunnetusteoreetilisi küsimusi, mille vastamisele pidid mõtlema kõik india klassikalise filosoofia koolkonnad," kirjutas füüsikateoreetik Laur Järv Tähenduse teejuhtide 40. numbris ("India joogide ülitaju", 3.24 [1]).Samanimelise saatesarja 248. vestlusringis rääkis Laur Järv india joogide ülitajust koos religiooniuurija Erki Linnuga [2].Tulenevalt teema võõrapärasusest käis vestlusest läbi terve trobikond mulle tundmatuid pärisnimesid ja mõisteid. Konspekti said kirja järgmised:1. Patañjali "Yogasūtra" pani aluse askeetlikule maailmavaatele, mis levis sajandite jooksul Indiast üle kogu maailma [3].2. saankja (sanskr 'loendamine'), india pärimusliku filosoofia süsteem. Käsitleb maailma mõistusepäraselt, üldiselt üksikule kulgeva põhjuste ja tagajärgede jadana, eristades selles 24 põhilüli ehk tattva't (EE, 8. kd).3. jooga (sanskr 'ike, side') india traditsioonilise maailmakäsituse põhimõisteid, väljendab inimese püüdu reguleerida ja korrastada oma käitumist, hoiakuid ja mõtlemist senise teadvusseisundi ületamiseks ning teatava seisundi (nirvaana) saavutamiseks (ENE, 4. kd).4. karma (sanskr 'tegu') india mütoloogia ja traditsioonilise filosoofia põhimõisteid. Karmaseaduse järgi sõltuvad kõikide loomulike ja üleloomulike olendite, sealhulgas ka inimese praegused ja tulevased olemisseisundid jätkuvate ümberkehastumiste ahelas tema tegude eetilisest olemusest (ENE, 4. kd).5. charvaka (lokāyata) ühendas vanaindia filosoofias materialismi, naturalismi, skeptitsismi ja religioosse ükskõiksuse erinevaid süsteeme (Vikipeedia [4]).6. mantra (sanskr 'mõttevahend'), india usundeis (eriti tantrismis) maagilise toimega palve või loits. Koosneb tavaliselt sanskriti keele häälikute kombinatsioonidest (EE, 6. kd).7. Vasubandhu (ca 330–400) Loode-Indiast Gandhārast pärit budistlik munk ja õpetlane, keda peetakse koosa tema vanema venna Asangaga joogatšaara ehk vidžnjaanavaada koolkonna rajaks (Ida mõtteloo leksikon [5]).8. seadmus, kõikide india õpetuste keskse sanskritikeelse mõiste 'dharma' eestikeelne vaste (Ida mõtteloo leksikon [6]).9. abhidharma (sanskr 'seadmuste kohta, seadmuste üle'), seadmusi kui budismi põhimõisteid süstematiseeriv ja nende tähendust selgitav õpetus (Ida mõtteloo leksikon [7]).10. Abhidharmakośa (sanskr 'abhidharma varamu'), Vasubandhu teos, tuntumaid sanskritikeelseid mittekanoonilisi abhidharma tekste (Ida mõtteloo leksikon [8]).11. Dharmakīrti, india budistlik filosoof (7. saj), Dignāga järglane, budistliku loogika ning pramāṇa väitlusteaduse üks olulisemaid esindajaid (Ida mõtteloo leksikon [9]).12. Dignāga (u 480–540), india budistlik õpetlane-filosoof, budistliku loogika, tunnetusteooria ja väitlusteaduse (pramāṇa) üks olulisemaid esindajaid ning alusepanijaid (Ida mõtteloo leksikon [10]).13. braahmanad, rühm vanaindia kirjanduse teoseid, brahmanismi pühad raamatud, pärinevad 8.–5. sajandist eKr. Veedasid täiendavad ja seletavad braahmanad kirjeldavad peamiselt usurituaale ning nendega seoses olevaid kujutelmi, sisaldavad rohkesti müüte ja legende (ENE, 1. kd).14. brahmanism, hinduismi varane arengujärk. Brahmanism kujunes I aastatuhande esimesel poolel eKr veedade usundist, lähtus ka upanišadidest ja braahmanatest, talle olid omased keerukas kombestik, esivanematekultus, asketism ja braahmanite eesõiguste toonitamine. Peajumal oli Brahma (brahman), austati ka veedade jumalaid, näiteks Indrat ja Varunat, sugenemas oli Šiva ja Višnu kultus, I aastatuhande lõpus eKr teisenes brahmanism hinduismiks (ENE, 1. kd).H. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bright on Buddhism - Episode 98 - Who is Vasubandhu? What were some of his views? How did he affect Buddhism in East Asia? Resources: David J. Kalupahana, The Principles of Buddhist Psychology, State University of New York Press, Albany, 1987, pp 173–192.; Francis H. Cook, Three Texts on Consciousness Only, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Berkeley, 1999, pp 371–383 ("Thirty Verses on Consciousness Only") and pp 385–408 ("Twenty Verses on Consciousness Only"); Erich Frauwallner, The Philosophy of Buddhism, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 2010 [1956].; Li Rongxi, Albert A. Dalia (2002). The Lives of Great Monks and Nuns, Berkeley CA: Numata Center for Translation and Research; Thich Nhat Hanh Transformation at the Base (subtitle) Fifty Verses on the Nature of Consciousness, Parallax Press, Berkeley, 2001; inspired in part by Vasubandhu and his Twenty Verses and Thirty Verses texts; Kochumuttom, Thomas (1982). A Buddhist Doctrine of Experience: A New Translation and Interpretation of the Works of Vasubandhu the Yogacarin. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Do you have a question about Buddhism that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by finding us on email or social media! https://linktr.ee/brightonbuddhism Credits: Nick Bright: Script, Cover Art, Music, Voice of Hearer, Co-Host Proven Paradox: Editing, mixing and mastering, social media, Voice of Hermit, Co-Host

Continuamos a estudar os 30 Versos sobre a Mente Apenas, de Vasubandhu, na tradução de Ben Connelly.

No capítulo 8 dos 30 versos Vasubandhu sugere o método para cuidarmos das emoções aflitivas.

As meditações neste período têm sido pareadas com as falas do darma sobre os 30 Versos sobre a Mente Apenas de Vasubandhu, em leitura direta do livro Inside Vasubandhu's Yogacara, de Ben Connelly.

Continuamos o estudo dos 30 versos, abordando o capítulo 5, onde Vasubandhu define Manas, a 7a consciência.

Esta meditação, como as anteriores e as posteriores, é paralela ao estudo dos 30 versos sobre a mente apenas, de Vasubandhu.

In this lecture today, we will first review the discussion about the “three natures” that I introduced last month from the work of the Yogacara philosopher, Vasubandhu. Then we will begin to discuss a contemporary philosophical school called Phenomenology and its similarities to Yogacara. We will then finish today's lecture by reading and discussing a chapter from Joko Beck's first book called Experiencing and Behaviour which I think will help us make the link between what these Yogacarins and Phenomenologists are on about because Joko has this way of being able to express these complex ideas in a simple and straightforward way.

In this lecture we sample the Yogacara teachings of Vasubandhu called the Treatise on the Three Natures, which form the philosophical backbone of Yogacara. So, what are the three natures? They are three interrelated aspects of our experience: the imaginary, dependent and complete or realised nature. In a nutshell they are: The imaginary nature of things is what we think they are. Their dependent nature of things is that they appear to depend on other things. The complete, realised nature of things is that they are not what you think they are

Voltamos à introdução ao livro do Ben Connally sobre os 30 versos da transformação da consciência de Vasubandhu

The Abhidharmakośabhāṣya (Treasury of Metaphysics with Self-Commentary) is a pivotal treatise on early Buddhist thought composed around the 4th or 5th century by the Indian Buddhist philosopher Vasubandhu. This work is a complete and systematic account of the Abhidharma, and is the peak of scholarship in the Fundamental Vehicle. It elucidates the Buddha's teachings as synthesized and interpreted by the early Buddhist Sarvāstivāda school. Vasubandhu (4th to 5th century CE) was an influential Buddhist monk and scholar from Gandhara or Central India. He was a philosopher who wrote commentary on the Abhidharma, from the perspectives of the Sarvastivada and Sautrāntika schools. After his conversion to Mahayana Buddhism, along with his half-brother, Asanga, he was also one of the main founders of the Yogacara school. Vasubandhu's Abhidharmakośakārikā ("Commentary on the Treasury of the Abhidharma") is widely used in Tibetan and East Asian Buddhism, as the major source for non-Mahayana Abhidharma philosophy. Vasubandhu is one of the most influential thinkers in the Indian Buddhist philosophical tradition. Because of their association with Nalanda university, Vasubandhu and Asanga are amongst the so-called Seventeen Nalanda Masters. In Jōdo Shinshū, he is considered the Second Patriarch; in Chan Buddhism, he is the 21st Patriarch.

At the end of Upaya's practice period studying Vasubandhu's Yogacara teachings, Sensei Shinzan shares with us the story of Vasubandhu's awakening. Vasubandhu, a diligent student attached to his ascetic form […]

Through engaging, contemporary examples, Making Sense of Mind Only: Why Yogacara Buddhism Matters (Wisdom Publications, 2023) reveals the Yogacara school of Indian Buddhism as a coherent system of ideas and practices for the path to liberation, contextualizing its key texts and rendering them accessible and relevant. The Yogacara, or Yoga Practice, school is one of the two schools of Mahayana Buddhism that developed in the early centuries of the common era. Though it arose in India, Mahayana Buddhism now flourishes in China, Tibet, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. While the other major Mahayana tradition, the Madhyamaka (Middle Way), focuses on the concept of emptiness—that all phenomena lack an intrinsic essence—the Yogacara school focuses on the cognitive processes whereby we impute such essences. Through everyday examples and analogues in cognitive science, author William Waldron makes Yogacara's core teachings—on the three turnings of the Dharma wheel, the three natures, the storehouse consciousness, and mere perception—accessible to a broad audience. In contrast to the common characterization of Yogacara as philosophical idealism, Waldron presents Yogacara Buddhism on its own terms, as a coherent system of ideas and practices, with dependent arising its guiding principle.  The first half of Making Sense of Mind Only explores the historical context for Yogacara's development. Waldron examines early Buddhist texts that show how our affective and cognitive processes shape the way objects and worlds appear to us, and how we erroneously grasp onto them as essentially real—perpetuating the habits that bind us to samsara. He then analyzes the early Madhyamaka critique of essences.  This context sets the stage for the book's second half, an examination of how Yogacara texts such as the Samdhinirmocana Sutra and Asanga's Stages of Yogic Practice (Yogacarabhumi) build upon these earlier ideas by arguing that our constructive processes also occur unconsciously. Not only do we collectively, yet mostly unknowingly, construct shared realities or cultures, our shared worlds are also mediated through the storehouse consciousness (alayavijñana) functioning as a cultural unconscious. Vasubandhu's Twenty Verses argues that we can learn to recognize such objects and worlds as “mere perceptions” (vijñaptimatra) and thereby abandon our enchantment with the products of our own cognitive processes. Finally, Maitreya's Distinguishing Phenomena from Their Ultimate Nature (Dharmadharmatavibhaga) elegantly lays out the Mahayana path to this transformation. In Waldron's hands, Yogacara is no mere view but a practical system of transformation. His presentation of its key texts and ideas illuminates how religion can remain urgent and vital in our scientific and pluralistic age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Through engaging, contemporary examples, Making Sense of Mind Only: Why Yogacara Buddhism Matters (Wisdom Publications, 2023) reveals the Yogacara school of Indian Buddhism as a coherent system of ideas and practices for the path to liberation, contextualizing its key texts and rendering them accessible and relevant. The Yogacara, or Yoga Practice, school is one of the two schools of Mahayana Buddhism that developed in the early centuries of the common era. Though it arose in India, Mahayana Buddhism now flourishes in China, Tibet, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. While the other major Mahayana tradition, the Madhyamaka (Middle Way), focuses on the concept of emptiness—that all phenomena lack an intrinsic essence—the Yogacara school focuses on the cognitive processes whereby we impute such essences. Through everyday examples and analogues in cognitive science, author William Waldron makes Yogacara's core teachings—on the three turnings of the Dharma wheel, the three natures, the storehouse consciousness, and mere perception—accessible to a broad audience. In contrast to the common characterization of Yogacara as philosophical idealism, Waldron presents Yogacara Buddhism on its own terms, as a coherent system of ideas and practices, with dependent arising its guiding principle.  The first half of Making Sense of Mind Only explores the historical context for Yogacara's development. Waldron examines early Buddhist texts that show how our affective and cognitive processes shape the way objects and worlds appear to us, and how we erroneously grasp onto them as essentially real—perpetuating the habits that bind us to samsara. He then analyzes the early Madhyamaka critique of essences.  This context sets the stage for the book's second half, an examination of how Yogacara texts such as the Samdhinirmocana Sutra and Asanga's Stages of Yogic Practice (Yogacarabhumi) build upon these earlier ideas by arguing that our constructive processes also occur unconsciously. Not only do we collectively, yet mostly unknowingly, construct shared realities or cultures, our shared worlds are also mediated through the storehouse consciousness (alayavijñana) functioning as a cultural unconscious. Vasubandhu's Twenty Verses argues that we can learn to recognize such objects and worlds as “mere perceptions” (vijñaptimatra) and thereby abandon our enchantment with the products of our own cognitive processes. Finally, Maitreya's Distinguishing Phenomena from Their Ultimate Nature (Dharmadharmatavibhaga) elegantly lays out the Mahayana path to this transformation. In Waldron's hands, Yogacara is no mere view but a practical system of transformation. His presentation of its key texts and ideas illuminates how religion can remain urgent and vital in our scientific and pluralistic age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/buddhist-studies

Through engaging, contemporary examples, Making Sense of Mind Only: Why Yogacara Buddhism Matters (Wisdom Publications, 2023) reveals the Yogacara school of Indian Buddhism as a coherent system of ideas and practices for the path to liberation, contextualizing its key texts and rendering them accessible and relevant. The Yogacara, or Yoga Practice, school is one of the two schools of Mahayana Buddhism that developed in the early centuries of the common era. Though it arose in India, Mahayana Buddhism now flourishes in China, Tibet, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. While the other major Mahayana tradition, the Madhyamaka (Middle Way), focuses on the concept of emptiness—that all phenomena lack an intrinsic essence—the Yogacara school focuses on the cognitive processes whereby we impute such essences. Through everyday examples and analogues in cognitive science, author William Waldron makes Yogacara's core teachings—on the three turnings of the Dharma wheel, the three natures, the storehouse consciousness, and mere perception—accessible to a broad audience. In contrast to the common characterization of Yogacara as philosophical idealism, Waldron presents Yogacara Buddhism on its own terms, as a coherent system of ideas and practices, with dependent arising its guiding principle.  The first half of Making Sense of Mind Only explores the historical context for Yogacara's development. Waldron examines early Buddhist texts that show how our affective and cognitive processes shape the way objects and worlds appear to us, and how we erroneously grasp onto them as essentially real—perpetuating the habits that bind us to samsara. He then analyzes the early Madhyamaka critique of essences.  This context sets the stage for the book's second half, an examination of how Yogacara texts such as the Samdhinirmocana Sutra and Asanga's Stages of Yogic Practice (Yogacarabhumi) build upon these earlier ideas by arguing that our constructive processes also occur unconsciously. Not only do we collectively, yet mostly unknowingly, construct shared realities or cultures, our shared worlds are also mediated through the storehouse consciousness (alayavijñana) functioning as a cultural unconscious. Vasubandhu's Twenty Verses argues that we can learn to recognize such objects and worlds as “mere perceptions” (vijñaptimatra) and thereby abandon our enchantment with the products of our own cognitive processes. Finally, Maitreya's Distinguishing Phenomena from Their Ultimate Nature (Dharmadharmatavibhaga) elegantly lays out the Mahayana path to this transformation. In Waldron's hands, Yogacara is no mere view but a practical system of transformation. His presentation of its key texts and ideas illuminates how religion can remain urgent and vital in our scientific and pluralistic age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/south-asian-studies

Through engaging, contemporary examples, Making Sense of Mind Only: Why Yogacara Buddhism Matters (Wisdom Publications, 2023) reveals the Yogacara school of Indian Buddhism as a coherent system of ideas and practices for the path to liberation, contextualizing its key texts and rendering them accessible and relevant. The Yogacara, or Yoga Practice, school is one of the two schools of Mahayana Buddhism that developed in the early centuries of the common era. Though it arose in India, Mahayana Buddhism now flourishes in China, Tibet, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. While the other major Mahayana tradition, the Madhyamaka (Middle Way), focuses on the concept of emptiness—that all phenomena lack an intrinsic essence—the Yogacara school focuses on the cognitive processes whereby we impute such essences. Through everyday examples and analogues in cognitive science, author William Waldron makes Yogacara's core teachings—on the three turnings of the Dharma wheel, the three natures, the storehouse consciousness, and mere perception—accessible to a broad audience. In contrast to the common characterization of Yogacara as philosophical idealism, Waldron presents Yogacara Buddhism on its own terms, as a coherent system of ideas and practices, with dependent arising its guiding principle.  The first half of Making Sense of Mind Only explores the historical context for Yogacara's development. Waldron examines early Buddhist texts that show how our affective and cognitive processes shape the way objects and worlds appear to us, and how we erroneously grasp onto them as essentially real—perpetuating the habits that bind us to samsara. He then analyzes the early Madhyamaka critique of essences.  This context sets the stage for the book's second half, an examination of how Yogacara texts such as the Samdhinirmocana Sutra and Asanga's Stages of Yogic Practice (Yogacarabhumi) build upon these earlier ideas by arguing that our constructive processes also occur unconsciously. Not only do we collectively, yet mostly unknowingly, construct shared realities or cultures, our shared worlds are also mediated through the storehouse consciousness (alayavijñana) functioning as a cultural unconscious. Vasubandhu's Twenty Verses argues that we can learn to recognize such objects and worlds as “mere perceptions” (vijñaptimatra) and thereby abandon our enchantment with the products of our own cognitive processes. Finally, Maitreya's Distinguishing Phenomena from Their Ultimate Nature (Dharmadharmatavibhaga) elegantly lays out the Mahayana path to this transformation. In Waldron's hands, Yogacara is no mere view but a practical system of transformation. His presentation of its key texts and ideas illuminates how religion can remain urgent and vital in our scientific and pluralistic age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/indian-religions

Through engaging, contemporary examples, Making Sense of Mind Only: Why Yogacara Buddhism Matters (Wisdom Publications, 2023) reveals the Yogacara school of Indian Buddhism as a coherent system of ideas and practices for the path to liberation, contextualizing its key texts and rendering them accessible and relevant. The Yogacara, or Yoga Practice, school is one of the two schools of Mahayana Buddhism that developed in the early centuries of the common era. Though it arose in India, Mahayana Buddhism now flourishes in China, Tibet, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. While the other major Mahayana tradition, the Madhyamaka (Middle Way), focuses on the concept of emptiness—that all phenomena lack an intrinsic essence—the Yogacara school focuses on the cognitive processes whereby we impute such essences. Through everyday examples and analogues in cognitive science, author William Waldron makes Yogacara's core teachings—on the three turnings of the Dharma wheel, the three natures, the storehouse consciousness, and mere perception—accessible to a broad audience. In contrast to the common characterization of Yogacara as philosophical idealism, Waldron presents Yogacara Buddhism on its own terms, as a coherent system of ideas and practices, with dependent arising its guiding principle.  The first half of Making Sense of Mind Only explores the historical context for Yogacara's development. Waldron examines early Buddhist texts that show how our affective and cognitive processes shape the way objects and worlds appear to us, and how we erroneously grasp onto them as essentially real—perpetuating the habits that bind us to samsara. He then analyzes the early Madhyamaka critique of essences.  This context sets the stage for the book's second half, an examination of how Yogacara texts such as the Samdhinirmocana Sutra and Asanga's Stages of Yogic Practice (Yogacarabhumi) build upon these earlier ideas by arguing that our constructive processes also occur unconsciously. Not only do we collectively, yet mostly unknowingly, construct shared realities or cultures, our shared worlds are also mediated through the storehouse consciousness (alayavijñana) functioning as a cultural unconscious. Vasubandhu's Twenty Verses argues that we can learn to recognize such objects and worlds as “mere perceptions” (vijñaptimatra) and thereby abandon our enchantment with the products of our own cognitive processes. Finally, Maitreya's Distinguishing Phenomena from Their Ultimate Nature (Dharmadharmatavibhaga) elegantly lays out the Mahayana path to this transformation. In Waldron's hands, Yogacara is no mere view but a practical system of transformation. His presentation of its key texts and ideas illuminates how religion can remain urgent and vital in our scientific and pluralistic age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/religion

Ben Connelly takes us on a deep dive into the history and the heart of Buddhist philosopher Vasubandhu and the influential Yogacara teachings. Ben describes how the Yogacara school sought […]

Sensei Kathie Fischer skillfully delves into the teachings of Vasubandhu and the influential Yogacara school of Buddhism. The Yogacara teachings “offer what we call an education, scaffolding, for understanding our […]

In this talk, Sensei Monshin discusses the Yogacara or “Mind Only” teachings of 5th century Buddhist scholar Vasubandhu. Central to Vasubandhu's teaching is the idea that we create separateness with […]

Iniciamos o estudo dos 30 versos sobre a transformação da consciência de Vasubandhu, seguindo o livro de Ben Connelly

Author Ben Connelly speaks on his book  "Vasubandhu's Three Natures"  to the Dharma Seminar. This is the eleventh and concluding talk of the series. Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Talk-by-author-Ben-Connelly-Talk-11.mp3

Norman gives his tenth and final talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-10.mp3

Norman gives his ninth talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-9.mp3

Norman gives his eighth talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Vasubandus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-8-1.mp3

Norman gives his seventh talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-7.mp3

The Ground of Being: Vasubandhu's Trisvabhāva-nirdeśa, 6-week, course Thursdays, 7:00pm - 8:30pm (Pacific) January 25th – February 29, 2024 Tuition: $270 The concept of the Trisvabhāva (‘Three Natures') is considered the conclusion of, what might be called, Buddhist ontology, the study of ‘being.' In the earliest forms of Buddhism, all phenomena are momentary and, therefore, quite impermanent. In the more developed forms of Mahāyāna Buddhism, the concept of Emptiness negates there being any thing to be. In light of Emptiness, how is the perceived world to be understood? That is the essence of the ‘Ground of Being' and the Yogacara teaching on the Three Natures, wherein all phenomena are understood to be fabricated, dependently originated, and yet completely perfect. This six-week course is based on Vasubandhu's brief 4th Century treatise on the Three Natures, the Trisvabhāva-nirdeśa, and is part of the LUSB Dharma series on the ‘Mind-Only' teachings of Yogacara Buddhism. The Space of Time: Buddhist Chronology and Kairology from kṣaṇas to kalpas 9:00am – 12:00pm (Pacific) Saturday, February 10th, 2024 Tuition: $90 ‘How long is a minute?' Why do we use spatial terms like ‘long' and ‘short' to speak of Time? Long before Einstein and Hawkings, Buddhist thinkers such as Dōgen and Nāgārjuna had already noted the inextricable relationships between Space and Time. This presentation is an overview of these Buddhist conceptions of Time; from kṣaṇas, the ‘nano-seconds' used to measure the arising and passing away of mental states, to kalpas, the longest measurement of time, which is immeasurable. In this way, Time will be explored in terms of chronology, the elapsing or passage of Time, and in terms kairology, specific instances or moments of Time.

Norman gives his sixth talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-6.mp3

Norman gives his fifth talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-5.mp3

Norman gives his fourth talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://everydayzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-4.mp3

Norman gives his third talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Texts Discussed Vasubandhu's “Three Natures”: A Practitioner's Guide for Liberation, by Ben Connelly, translated by Weijen Teng Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary, by Jay Garfield Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/edz.assets/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-3.mp3

Norman gives his second talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/edz.assets/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Vasubandhus-Thee-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-2-1.mp3

Norman gives his first talk on "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" of the Yogachara (Mind Only School). Our main text will be the book "Vasubandhu's Three Natures" by Ben Connelly as well as the Jay Garfield's  "Vasubandhu's Treatise on the Three Natures: A Translation and Commentary." Suggested donation: $7 https://bit.ly/donate-edz-online-teachings We cannot continue offering teachings online without it. Thank you! https://s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/edz.assets/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Vasubandhus-Three-Natures-Yogachara-Mind-Only-School-Talk-1.mp3

“Good news! Everything is of complete, realized nature.” In this energized dharma talk, author and teacher Ben Connelly beautifully articulates Vasubandhu's teachings of “The Three Natures” – that all things […]

Vasubandhu was a 5th century Buddhist monk who, along with his brother Asanga formulated the teaching called Yogacara. It arose as means of finding balance between the two major paths of the Early Buddhist teachings and The Mahayana teachings. Vasubandhu and Asanga sought to bring harmony to the vast differences in these two practices, showing that both of them have very important roles in freeing us from suffering and delusion. This talk with be an introduction only...the Thirty Verses are complex; but more importantly, an eye opening into the nature of the Egoic birth and ultimately, its overturning.

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/philosophy

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/intellectual-history

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/buddhist-studies

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/south-asian-studies

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/indian-religions

Buddhists are famous for their thesis that selves do not exist. But if they are right, what would that thesis mean for our apparent sense of self and for ordinary practices involving selves—or at least persons? In Selfless Minds: A Contemporary Perspective on Vasubandhu's Metaphysics (Oxford University Press, 2022), Monima Chadha answers these questions by considering Vasubandhu's arguments against the self. She argues that he—and Abhidharma philosophers like him—denies the existence of selves as well as persons and should take a strongly illusionist stance about our apparent senses of agency and ownership. The book also investigates how Vasubandhu ought to explain episodic memory and synchronic unity of conscious experiences without a self. Chadha weaves together philosophers from a range of traditions, drawing on contemporary and premodern interpreters of Buddhism as well as analytic philosophy, phenomenology and continental philosophy, and modern cognitive science. Malcolm Keating is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Yale-NUS College. His research focuses on Sanskrit works of philosophy in Indian traditions, in the areas of language and epistemology. He is the author of Language, Meaning, and Use in Indian Philosophy (Bloomsbury Press, 2019) and host of the podcast Sutras & Stuff.

ADZG 1057 ADZG Sunday Morning Dharma Talk by Ben Connelly

10/30/2022, Kokyo Henkel, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. Different types compassion as taught by Shakyamuni Buddha, Vasubandhu, Maitreya, Chandrakirti, and Zen Ancestors Yunyan and Daowu

Ben Connelly of the Minnesota Zen Meditation Center gives a guest talk at the Greater Boston Zen Center. His topic is practicing Yogacara Buddhism with Vasubandhu's Three Natures. (October 18, 2022)

Dharma talk by Eran Junryu Vardi Roshi of Eiryu-ji Zen Center in Wyckoff, NJ, USA on 6/26/22

Video discussion from which this episode's audio is taken: https://youtu.be/8e847S4uGWoBryce's webpage: https://brycehuebner.weebly.comGold, Jonathan C., "Vasubandhu", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2021/entries/vasubandhu/

In classical South Asian philosophy, as in common sense, most thought that the first-person pronoun “I” stands for the self, something that persists through time, undergoes conscious thoughts and experiences, and exercises control over actions. The Buddhists accepted the “no-self” thesis: they denied that such a self is substantially real. This gave rise to a puzzle for these Buddhists. If there is nothing substantially real that “I” stands for, what are we talking about when we speak of ourselves? Nilanjan Das presents one Buddhist answer to this question, an answer that emerges from the work of the 4th-5th century CE Abhidharma thinker, Vasubandhu.Nilanjan Das is a lecturer philosophy at University College London. He works on the connections between self-knowledge and irrationality and also debates between buddhist and brahmanical thinkers about the nature of the self, knowledge and self-knowledge. He's also currently writing a book on the 12th century Indian philosopher and poet Śrīharṣa. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Contemplation Sutra - Join us as we read and discuss the Contemplation Sutra Resources: Inagaki, Hisao, trans. The Sutra on the Visualization of the Buddha of Infinite Life Delivered by Sakyamuni Buddha. BDK English Tripitaka Series. (Berkeley: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2004), pp. 63-87.; The Three Pure Land Sutras, translated by Inagaki Hisao, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2003.; Fujita, Kotatsu. “The Textual Origins of the Kuan wu-liang-shou fo ching.” In Chinese Buddhist Apocrypha, edited by Robert Buswell, Jr., 149-173. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1990. "Discourse on the Pure Land (浄土論)." (Vasubandhu's Commentary on the Pure Land from the extant Chinese text) Trans. by David Matsumoto, Pacific World Journal, Third Series, 17 (2015) 23–42.; Pas, Julian. Visions of Sukhavati: Shandao's commentary on the Kuan Wuliangshou-fo ching. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1995. Payne, Richard. “The Five Contemplative Gates of Vasubandhu's Rebirth Treatise as a Ritualized Visualization Practice,” in The Pure Land: History and Development, eds. James Foard, Michael Solomon, and Richard Payne (Berkeley: Regents of the University of California, 1996), 233–266. Tanaka, Kenneth K. The Dawn of Chinese Pure Land Buddhist Doctrine: Ching-ying Hui-yüan's Commentary on the “Visualization Sutra.” Albany: State University of New York Press, 1990. Yamabe, Nobuyoshi. “The Sūtra on the Ocean-Like Samādhi of the Visualization of the Buddha: The Interfusion of the Chinese and Indian Cultures in Central Asia as Reflected in a Fifth Century Apocryphal Sūtra.” PhD diss., Yale University, 1999.; Paul Williams, “Trust, Self-Abandonment, and Devotion: the cults of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas,” in Mahāyāna Buddhism, the Doctrinal Foundations (Routledge, 2008), pp. 209-218. ; Fujita, Kōtatsu. “Pure Land Buddhism in India.” In The Pure Land Tradition: History and Development. Translated by Taitetsu Unno. Edited by James Foard, Michael Solomon, and Richard K. Payne, 1–36. Berkeley: Regents of the University of California, 1996.; “Recollection of the Buddha,” in Chapter Seven of the Visuddhimagga: The Path of Purification. Trans. Bhikkhu Ñanamoli. (Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society, 2010), pp. 186-209.; Harrison, Paul. “Buddhānusmriti in the Pratyutpanna-buddha sammukhāvasthita-samādhi sutra.” Journal of Indian Philosophy 6 (1978): 35-57.; Harrison, Paul; McRae, John, trans. The Pratyutpanna Samādhi Sutra, Berkeley, Calif.: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1998. Banzhou sanmei jing (佛說般舟三昧經): Earliest Chinese Translation of the Pratyutpanna-buddha-saṃmukhâvasthita-samādhi-sūtra, CBETA.; Harrison, Paul. 1998. “Women in the Pure Land: Some Reflections on the Textual Sources.” Journal of Indian Philosophy 26 (6): 553-572.; James, Dobbins, “Women, Sexuality, and Pure Land Buddhism,” in Letters of Eshnni: Images of Pure Land Buddhism in Medieval Japan, (Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press, 2004), pp. 74-106.; Starling, Jessica. “Neither Nun nor Laywoman: The Good Wives and Wise Mothers of Jōdo Shinshū Temples.” Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 40, no. 2 (2013): 277–301. Do you have a question about Buddhism that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by tweeting to us @BrightBuddhism, emailing us at Bright.On.Buddhism@gmail.com, or joining us on our discord server, Hidden Sangha https://discord.gg/tEwcVpu! Credits: Nick Bright: Script, Cover Art, Music, Voice of Hearer, Co-Host Proven Paradox: Editing, mixing and mastering, social media, Voice of Hermit, Co-Host

“If you can sit zazen until you don't need to get up in the middle, then you're really content with nothing. When you're content with nothing, you don't need to go out and find things to fill that big empty hole inside of you. The less you need, the less you have to worry about. I highly recommend it.” - Dave Cuomo   In the thrilling conclusion to his Yogacara series, Dave wraps it all up with some epic poetry from Vasubandhu and a brief overview of how exactly all this theory helps, what exactly it helps us do, and why none of that is the point since all of it was just an illusion anyway. Why do Zennies take themselves so seriously when everything is ultimately imaginary? How is being depressed the cure for depression? And what is the fundamental essence of text anxiety?? Find out here!

Bright on Buddhism Episode 23 - How does Buddhism deal with the issue of destiny and fate? How much control does one have over destiny and fate? How does karma affect how much agency we have in our lives? Resources: Kevin Trainor: Buddhism: An Illustrated Guide; Donald Lopez: Norton Anthology of World Religions: Buddhism; Chan Master Sheng Yen: Orthodox Chinese Buddhism; Nagarjuna: Verses of The Middle Way (The Madhyamakarika); Conze, Edward, trans. The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines and Its Verse Summary. Bolinas, CA: Four Seasons Foundation, 1973.; The Bodhisattva Vow: A Practical Guide to Helping Others, page 1, Tharpa Publications (2nd. ed., 1995) ISBN 978-0-948006-50-0; Flanagan, Owen (2011-08-12). The Bodhisattva's Brain: Buddhism Naturalized. MIT Press. p. 107. ISBN 978-0-262-29723-3.; Williams, Paul, Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations, Routledge, 2008, pp. 195–196.; Bronkhorst, Johannes (1998), "Did the Buddha Believe in Karma and Rebirth?", Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, 21 (1): 1–20; Burke, Erin (2003), "Karmic Calculations: The Social Implications of Karmic Causality in Tibet", Chrestomathy: Annual Review of Undergraduate Research at the College of Charleston, Volume 2, 2003; Dowling, Thomas L. (2006), "Karma Doctrine and Sectarian Development", in Narain, A.K. (ed.), Studies in Pali and Buddhism: A Memorial Volume in Honour of Bhikku Jagdish Kashyap, B.R. Publishing Corporation; Gethin, Rupert (1998), Foundations of Buddhism, Oxford University Press; Goodman, Steven D. (1992), "Situational Patterning: Pratītyasamutpāda", in Tarthang Tulku (ed.), Karma and Rebirth: Post Classical Developments, Crystal Mirror Series I-III, Dharma Publishing; arvey, Brian Peter (2000), An Introduction to Buddhist ethics: Foundations, Values, and Issues, Routledge, ISBN 0-521-55640-6; Kalupahana, David (1975), Causality: The Central Philosophy of Buddhism, University of Hawaii Press; Kalupahana, David J. (1992), The Principles of Buddhist Psychology, Delhi: ri Satguru Publications; Kalupahana, David (1995), Ethics in Early Buddhism, University of Hawaii Press; Keown, Damien (2000), Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, Kindle Editiom; Klostermaier, Klaus K. (1986), "Contemporary Conceptions of Karma and Rebirth Among North Indian Vaisnavas", in Neufeldt, Ronald W. (ed.), Karma and Rebirth: Post-classical Developments, Sri Satguru Publications; Kopf, Gereon (2001), Beyond Personal Identity: Dōgen, Nishida, and a Phenomenology of No-self, Psychology Press; Kragh, Ulrich Timme (2006), Early Buddhist Theories of Action and Result: A Study of Karmaphalasambandha, Candrakirti's Prasannapada, verses 17.1-20, Arbeitskreis für tibetische und buddhistische Studien, Universität Wien, ISBN 3-902501-03-0; Lamotte, Etienne (1987), Karmasiddhi Prakarana: The Treatise on Action by Vasubandhu, Asian Humanities Press; Lusthaus, Dan (2002), Buddhist Phenomenology: A philosophical Investigation of Yogācāra Buddhism and the Ch'eng Wei-shih lun, RoutledgeCurzon, ISBN 0-415-40610-2; Macy, Joanna (1991), Mutual Causality in Buddhism and General Systems Theory: The Dharma of Natural Systems, SUNY Do you have a question about Buddhism that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by tweeting to us @BrightBuddhism, emailing us at Bright.On.Buddhism@gmail.com, or joining us on our discord server, Hidden Sangha https://discord.gg/tEwcVpu! Credits: Nick Bright: Script, Cover Art, Music, Voice of Hearer, Co-Host Proven Paradox: Editing, mixing and mastering, social media, Voice of Hermit, Co-Host

Bright on Buddhism Episode 22 - What are the different realms of Samsara? What are their native inhabitants like? What happens when they die? Resources: Kevin Trainor: Buddhism: An Illustrated Guide; Donald Lopez: Norton Anthology of World Religions: Buddhism; Chan Master Sheng Yen: Orthodox Chinese Buddhism; Nagarjuna: Verses of The Middle Way (The Madhyamakarika); Conze, Edward, trans. The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines and Its Verse Summary. Bolinas, CA: Four Seasons Foundation, 1973.; The Bodhisattva Vow: A Practical Guide to Helping Others, page 1, Tharpa Publications (2nd. ed., 1995) ISBN 978-0-948006-50-0; Flanagan, Owen (2011-08-12). The Bodhisattva's Brain: Buddhism Naturalized. MIT Press. p. 107. ISBN 978-0-262-29723-3.; Williams, Paul, Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations, Routledge, 2008, pp. 195–196.; Bronkhorst, Johannes (1998), "Did the Buddha Believe in Karma and Rebirth?", Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, 21 (1): 1–20; Burke, Erin (2003), "Karmic Calculations: The Social Implications of Karmic Causality in Tibet", Chrestomathy: Annual Review of Undergraduate Research at the College of Charleston, Volume 2, 2003; Dowling, Thomas L. (2006), "Karma Doctrine and Sectarian Development", in Narain, A.K. (ed.), Studies in Pali and Buddhism: A Memorial Volume in Honour of Bhikku Jagdish Kashyap, B.R. Publishing Corporation; Gethin, Rupert (1998), Foundations of Buddhism, Oxford University Press; Goodman, Steven D. (1992), "Situational Patterning: Pratītyasamutpāda", in Tarthang Tulku (ed.), Karma and Rebirth: Post Classical Developments, Crystal Mirror Series I-III, Dharma Publishing; Harvey, Brian Peter (2000), An Introduction to Buddhist ethics: Foundations, Values, and Issues, Routledge, ISBN 0-521-55640-6; Kalupahana, David (1975), Causality: The Central Philosophy of Buddhism, University of Hawaii Press; Kalupahana, David J. (1992), The Principles of Buddhist Psychology, Delhi: ri Satguru Publications; Kalupahana, David (1995), Ethics in Early Buddhism, University of Hawaii Press; Keown, Damien (2000), Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, Kindle Edition; Klostermaier, Klaus K. (1986), "Contemporary Conceptions of Karma and Rebirth Among North Indian Vaisnavas", in Neufeldt, Ronald W. (ed.), Karma and Rebirth: Post-classical Developments, Sri Satguru Publications; Kopf, Gereon (2001), Beyond Personal Identity: Dōgen, Nishida, and a Phenomenology of No-self, Psychology Press; Kragh, Ulrich Timme (2006), Early Buddhist Theories of Action and Result: A Study of Karmaphalasambandha, Candrakirti's Prasannapada, verses 17.1-20, Arbeitskreis für tibetische und buddhistische Studien, Universität Wien, ISBN 3-902501-03-0; Lamotte, Etienne (1987), Karmasiddhi Prakarana: The Treatise on Action by Vasubandhu, Asian Humanities Press; Lusthaus, Dan (2002), Buddhist Phenomenology: A philosophical Investigation of Yogācāra Buddhism and the Ch'eng Wei-shih lun, RoutledgeCurzon, ISBN 0-415-40610-2; Macy, Joanna (1991), Mutual Causality in Buddhism and General Systems Theory: The Dharma of Natural Systems, SUNY Do you have a question about Buddhism that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by tweeting to us @BrightBuddhism, emailing us at Bright.On.Buddhism@gmail.com, or joining us on our discord server, Hidden Sangha https://discord.gg/tEwcVpu! Credits: Nick Bright: Script, Cover Art, Music, Voice of Hearer, Co-Host Proven Paradox: Editing, mixing and mastering, social media, Voice of Hermit, Co-Host

Soto Zen Teacher Ben Connelly joins us to explore the relationship between science and reality, whether karma really exists, and how to be a Buddhist activist while remaining unattached to "winning." In the process, Ben teaches us about the ancient Buddhist philosopher Vasubandhu and what the Yogacara school of Buddhism teaches us about taming our minds.Episode 97: Esoteric and Everyday Buddhism with Ben Connelly Support the show (https://www.skepticspath.org/support/)

Geoffrey Shugen Arnold, Roshi - Zen Mountain Monastery, New York, Saturday 11/20/2021 - From Transmission of the Light, Case 22 - The 21st Indian Ancestor, Vasubandhu

Hi Dharma Friends, This week we cover the five remaining Wasan verses by Shinran on Bodhisattva Vasubandhu. The teachings of Bodhisattva Vasubandhu on "the mind that is single" is central to Shinran's understanding of Buddhism. That is why Shinran regarded Vasubandhu as the second of the seven masters in the Jōdo Shinshū lineage. The Wasans in this episode are among my personal favorites. See what you think! Next time we will start the next section, which is on Master T'an-luan, 34 gathas or hymns based on his writings. If you "follow" or "subscribe" to this podcast on your provider's platform, each episode will be delivered to your device as soon as it is published and you can listen at your convenience. Please be well and, if you are enjoying the Wasan readings, please tell your friends to listen as well. With palms together, Gary

Hi Dharma Friends! Welcome back to our traversal of the Kōsō Wasan by Shinran Shonin. Today's verses are based on the writings of Bodhisattva Vasubandhu, who lived in India from around 320-400 C.E. Shinran particularly wishes us to pay attention to Vasubandhu's understanding of "the mind that is single," the mind that focuses completely on the path to awakening, which is Nembutsu Path. This episode covers the first five of Shinran's verses on Vasubandhu. Next time, we'll hear the second five. Please be well, always saying Namo-Amida-Butsu! With palms together, Gary

Hi Dharma friends! With this episode we begin a new collection of Wasan by Shinran Shōnin, The Kōsō Wasan or Gathas of the Pure Land Masters. The Seven Masters comprise the lineage of Jōdo Shinshū from Śákyamuni Buddha to today, as transmitted to us through the teaching of Shinran. The Seven Masters are: 1. Nāgārjuna (c. 150-250) 2. Vasubandhu (c. 320-400) 3. T'an-luan (476-542) 4. Tao-ch'o (562-645) 5. Shan-tao (613-681) 6. Genshin (942-1017) 7. Genkū (Hōnen 1133-1212). Each wasan verse is about a point on the Master that Shinran considered important for us to know and understand. Shinran wrote ten wasan verses on Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna. This episode covers the first five and next time we'll continue with the remaining five. As before, we are using the translation in The Collected Works of Shinran. Maybe you will be inspired to read the works of the Seven Masters in translation where they are available (or in the originals if you are fortunate to possess the language capacities)! Palms together, Gary

A compilation of varied studies in Early Mahayana concepts. I prefer to read the writings on which it is based; like the Perfection of Wisdom of Nagarjuna, and theSkandhas of Vasubandhu. There are passages of Yogacara and other Hinayana ideas as well, depending on the origins and translations.

In this talk, Abbot David weaves together personal stories regarding “seeing” with teachings by Vasubandhu, Shakyamuni Buddha, and Suzuki Roshi in an exploration of the nature of perception.The radical proposition at the heart of the ‘Third Turning' Yogacara teachings is that we construct, through our way of looking, what we experience. We do not see the “real world” and others in it, but only projections of our karmic consciousness, which more often than not leads to our suffering. 08/08/2021, Tenzen David Zimmerman, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.

Kulaprabha recounts an episode from the Vimalakirti Nirdesa to draw out how one generates the great love in response to the suffering of beings. This is the third of four talks exploring Vasubandhu's Four Factors entitled Contemplating the Suffering of Beings given at Taraloka Retreat Centre, 2010. In his treatise Generating Bodhi Resolve, Vasubandhu describes them as able to generate the resolve to cultivate and accumulate the bases for the Arising of the Bodhicitta. You can find out more about them in Sangharakshita's books The Meaning of Conversion in Buddhism and The Bodhisattva Ideal.   *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every week! Follow our blog for news and new Dharma FBA on Twitter FBA on Facebook FBA on Soundcloud

In this part Nichiren analyzes the fallacies of Jikaku's dream inspired commentaries as a composition outside of the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha. This is an example of the Buddha's caution to follow the Law and not to follow the persons. Jikaku is an excellent example of the hundreds of years of tradition obfuscating the true and correct teachings of Buddha. Nichiren then shows how he is in fact the actual teacher of the teachings in the lineage of Nagarjuna, Vasubandhu, Tien-Tai Chi che, Miaoli and Dengyo.

Nichiren now elucidates that the teachings of the Lotus Sutra were in fact well known throughout the history of propagation from Shakyamuni's time through Nagarjuna, and later Vasubandhu, Tien-Tai Chi Che and Miao-Lo, and Dengyo. The difference was in the exposure and spread of the teaching to the laity and common people. whose time was not yet prepared or ready for the depth of the Lotus Sutra teachings or method.

I discuss self imposed living hell. Is it the other or the self. Vasubandhu and the self as a nascent object. Upacara. Yogacara. Vijnanayana.

I discuss the self. Modern science about self and yogacara philosophy. Vasubandhu and Evan Thompson. They think they agree... I have news...

I discuss upacara, the 37 practices of a Bodhisattva, 8 verses of mind training, the 30 verses by Vasubandhu. Evan Thompson's books, Robert Wright, bachelor...

(Chinese) Do you want to know which two saints appeared in the country of Nādikā one thousand years after Shakyamuni Buddha entered Nirvana? Why did King of Gotama give up his throne to follow Reverend Manorhita and become a monk? Why could he, even at such an old age, attain enlightenment soon after he became a monk? Why were the disciples of Bhiksu Haklenayaśas reborn as white cranes? What did Haklenayaśas do to free them from this karma? Though the king of Gotama had the whole country, the moment he ...

(Chinese) When the twentieth Patriarch Jayata met the diligent ascetic Vasubandhu during his world travel while transforming sentient beings, Vasubandu was already very famous in that local area and had many followers. Why did the twentieth Patriarch say that Vasubandu was still far away from attaining the Tao even if he practiced ascetic? Hearing that, why did Vasubandu felt happy instead of angry? Supreme Master Ching Hai explains that practicing ascetic doesn’t necessarily mean one can attain the Tao, ...

Jay Garfield, delves into the philosophical implications of Dogen’s Painted Rice Cakes fascicle, entering into conversations with many notable philosophers across time and tradition; Vasubandhu, Sankappa, and Wilfrid Sellars are all brought into account. These discussions of phenomenology conclude with a lively discussion with the other Varela panelists. Click here for more resources and information […]

Kokyo Henkel, Saturday 11 January 2020, Austin Zen Center

  Vasubandhu lived in northern India and Nepal in the 4th century CE. He was a renowned teacher in the Sarvastivadin School of Buddhism but later converted to Mahayana Buddhism under the influence of his brother Asanga. In this talk Kulaprabha introduces us to a work of his dealing with the conditions necessary for the arising of the Bodhicitta - here translated as Bodhi Resolve. In particular, she compares and contrasts Vasubandhu's Four Factors as they are described in this text with Sangharakshita's description and evocation of them in his book 'The Meaning of Conversion in Buddhism'. The Four Factors are: 1. Contemplation of All Buddhas 2. Contemplation of the Faults and Perilous Aspects of the Body 3. Seeking the Most Supreme of All Fruits of the Path 4. Kindness and Pity for Beings From the talk Vasubandhu's Treatise on Generating Bodhi Resolve given at the London Buddhist Centre, September 2009 *** Help keep FBA free for everyone! Become a supporter today.  Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast - bite-size pieces of Dharma inspiration, two times a week! Follow our blog for news and new Dharma FBA on Twitter FBA on Facebook FBA on Soundcloud  

This talk is inspired by Ju Mipham’s Second Reliance: Rely on the meaning and not on the words. Here Sokuzan ties in many of the Mahayana teachings like the famous Zen metaphor of “the finger pointing at the moon”, Atisha’s slogan “of the two, keep the principle witness”, Nagarguna’s “cage of your afflictions” and “consciousness-only” teachings of Vasubandhu. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiKWZBxNgKc

Sokuzan’s dharma talk is inspired by verse three of Vasubandhu’s “Tri-Svabhava-Nirdesa” also known as “The Three Natures”, here translated by Stefan Anacker: “The constant state-of-not-being-found of “how it appears” [the constructed] in that which appears [the interdependent] can be known as the fulfilled own being because of it’s state of non-otherness.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pHbjgUXNNY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuAB4Rsx8rU&t=2s

In this archive recording from the Force For Good class “The Buddha Soul, Nature, Essence, Element, or Womb” Robert A.F. Thurman gives a teaching on the secular nature of Buddhist meditation and mantra practices. Recording opens with discussions of: mindfulness of the breath, instructions on mantra recitation, a history of Zen on Chan Buddhism and an introduction to the Bodhisattva Maitreya’s “The Sublime Continuum Super-Commentary with the Sublime Continuum Treatise Commentary” published by AIBS, Tibet House US and Columbia University Press. Robert A.F. Thurman provides a quick fire summary of the historical Buddha’s core teaching of The Four Noble Truths, an introduction to Buddhism’s messianic figure of Maitreya, Asanga and his brother Vasubandhu, and a humorous perspective of the film “Death Becomes Her”. Includes an extended re-telling of the story of Asanga and the Dog, an in depth discussion of the Three Jewels of Buddhism and an exploration of the Buddhist perspective on the soul, death and the existence of both heavenly and hell-like realms. Buddha Soul – Podcast Bonus RAFT Archives of the Bob Thurman Podcast Photo Young Monks studying by Tenzin Chojeor via www.dalailama.com. This talk was recorded during the “The Buddha Soul, Nature, Essence, Element, or Womb” Force For Good Class at Tibet House US in New York City, October 2017 with Robert A.F. Thurman & is apart of the THUS Member Archive. “When we really feel that there is some need to change, then our minds can change. Wishing and praying alone will not transform your mind, but with conviction and reason, reason based ultimately on your own experience, you can transform your mind. Time is quite an important factor here, and with time our mental attitudes can certainly change..” H.H. Dalai Lama To watch the full recordings from this + other past events please consider becoming a Tibet House US member. Learn about joining the Tibet House US Membership Community with a monthly tax-deductible donation by visiting: www.tibethouse.us. ‘

In this archive recording from the Force For Good class "The Buddha Soul, Nature, Essence, Element, or Womb" Robert A.F. Thurman gives a teaching on the secular nature of Buddhist meditation and mantra practices. Recording opens with discussions of: mindfulness of the breath, instructions on mantra recitation, a history of Zen on Chan Buddhism and an introduction to the Bodhisattva Maitreya’s “The Sublime Continuum Super-Commentary with the Sublime Continuum Treatise Commentary” published by AIBS, Tibet House US and Columbia University Press. Robert A.F. Thurman provides a quick fire summary of the historical Buddha’s core teaching of The Four Noble Truths, an introduction to Buddhism’s messianic figure of Maitreya, Asanga and his brother Vasubandhu, and a humorous perspective of the film “Death Becomes Her”. Includes an extended re-telling of the story of Asanga and the Dog, an in depth discussion of the Three Jewels of Buddhism and an exploration of the Buddhist perspective on the soul, death and the existence of both heavenly and hell-like realms. Buddha Soul - Podcast Bonus RAFT Archives of the Bob Thurman Podcast Photo Young Monks studying by Tenzin Chojeor via www.dalailama.com. This talk was recorded during the "The Buddha Soul, Nature, Essence, Element, or Womb" Force For Good Class at Tibet House US in New York City, October 2017 with Robert A.F. Thurman & is apart of the THUS Member Archive. “When we really feel that there is some need to change, then our minds can change. Wishing and praying alone will not transform your mind, but with conviction and reason, reason based ultimately on your own experience, you can transform your mind. Time is quite an important factor here, and with time our mental attitudes can certainly change.” H.H. Dalai Lama To watch the full recordings from this + other past events please consider becoming a Tibet House US member. Learn about joining the Tibet House US Membership Community with a monthly tax-deductible donation by visiting: www.tibethouse.us. ‘A Force For Good’ is a Tibet House US course to further the Dalai Lama’s contemporary world initiatives, from His Holiness’ American Institute of Buddhist Studies and Mind & Life Institute science dialogues (Universe in a Single Atom) and His creation of Abhidharma 2.0 through the “Science for Monks” programs, his “secular ethics” (Ethics for the New Millennium and Beyond Religion), His nonviolent approach to conflict resolution, including His Nobel Peace Laureate activities to seek dialogue and a win-win reconciliation with China in the face of the ongoing ethnicidal policies in Tibet (Freedom in Exile and Man of Peace: The Illustrated Life Story of Tibet’s Dalai Lama) & along with his emphasis on positive activism (A New Reality: Charter of Universal Responsibility). This on-going series was inspired by Daniel Goleman’s ‘A Force For Good: The Dalai Lama’s Vision for Our World‘. To learn more about this year’s Force For Good Series please click the image above or visit: www.tibethouse.us. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by Tenzin Choegyal from the album ‘Heart Sutra‘ (2004) by Ethno Super Lounge is used on the Bob Thurman Podcast with artist’s permission, all rights reserved.

A teisho in the series about the chant "The Ancestral Line".

Opening this week's podcast with a discussion of mindfulness of the breath as it relates to the practice to reciting mantras Professor Thurman gives instructions from the Zen Buddhist tradition before introducing the root text from the 2017 Force For Good Class Series: Dr. Bo Jiang’s translation of Bodhisattva Maitreya’s "The Sublime Continuum Super-Commentary with the Sublime Continuum Treatise Commentary" published by AIBS, Tibet House US and Columbia University Press. In this two part podcast Robert A.F. Thurman provides a quick fire summary of the historical Buddha's core teaching of The Four Noble Truths, an introduction to Buddhism's messianic figure of Maitreya, the future Buddha before going on a deep dive into the history of the 4th Century Indian Author Asanga and his brother Vasubandhu, co-founders of the Yogacara school of philosophy and a humorous perspective of the film "Death Becomes Her". Podcast concludes a re-telling of the story of Asanga and the Dog, an in depth discussion of the Three Jewels of Buddhism (The Buddha, His Teachings and the Community of practitioners of his philosophy known formally as The Sangha) their relationship to mindful bliss, clear light, the subtle body and the death process. Buddha's Mindful Bliss + The Sublime Continuum - Episode #168 of the Bob Thurman Podcast Photo of Hotei Buddha with Asanga and Vasubandhu by Ryan via www.flickr.com. This talk was recorded during the Final #ForceForGood Class at Tibet House US in New York City in 2016 with Krishna Das & Robert AF Thurman & is apart of the THUS Member Archive. "The Dharma doesn't Belong To Buddhism." H.H. Dalai Lama To watch the full recordings from this + other past events please consider becoming a Tibet House US member. Learn about joining the Tibet House US Membership Community with a monthly tax-deductible donation by visiting: www.tibethouse.us. ‘A Force For Good’ is a Tibet House US course to further the Dalai Lama’s contemporary world initiatives, from His Holiness’ American Institute of Buddhist Studies and Mind & Life Institute science dialogues (Universe in a Single Atom) and His creation of Abhidharma 2.0 through the “Science for Monks” programs, his “secular ethics” (Ethics for the New Millennium and Beyond Religion), His nonviolent approach to conflict resolution, including His Nobel Peace Laureate activities to seek dialogue and a win-win reconciliation with China in the face of the ongoing ethnicidal policies in Tibet (Freedom in Exile and Man of Peace: The Illustrated Life Story of Tibet’s Dalai Lama) & along with his emphasis on positive activism (A New Reality: Charter of Universal Responsibility).   This on-going series was inspired by Daniel Goleman’s ‘A Force For Good: The Dalai Lama’s Vision for Our World‘. To learn more about this year’s Force For Good Series please click the image above or visit: www.tibethouse.us. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by Tenzin Choegyal from the album ‘Heart Sutra‘ (2004) by Ethno Super Lounge is used on the Bob Thurman Podcast with artist’s permission, all rights reserved.  

Opening this week’s podcast with a discussion of mindfulness of the breath as it relates to the practice to reciting mantras Professor Thurman gives instructions from the Zen Buddhist tradition before introducing the root text from the 2017 Force For Good Class Series: Dr. Bo Jiang’s translation of Bodhisattva Maitreya’s “The Sublime Continuum Super-Commentary with the Sublime Continuum Treatise Commentary” published by AIBS, Tibet House US and Columbia University Press. In this two part podcast Robert A.F. Thurman provides a quick fire summary of the historical Buddha’s core teaching of The Four Noble Truths, an introduction to Buddhism’s messianic figure of Maitreya, the future Buddha before going on a deep dive into the history of the 4th Century Indian Author Asanga and his brother Vasubandhu, co-founders of the Yogacara school of philosophy and a humorous perspective of the film “Death Becomes Her”. Podcast concludes a re-telling of the story of Asanga and the Dog, an in depth discussion of the Three Jewels of Buddhism (The Buddha, His Teachings and the Community of practitioners of his philosophy known formally as The Sangha) their relationship to mindful bliss, clear light, the subtle body and the death process. Buddha’s Mindful Bliss + The Sublime Continuum – Episode #168 of the Bob Thurman Podcast Photo of Hotei Buddha with Asanga and Vasubandhu by Ryan via www.flickr.com. This talk was recorded during the “The Buddha Soul, Nature, Essence, Element, or Womb” Force For Good Class at Tibet House US in New York City, October 2017 with Robert A.F. Thurman & is apart of the THUS Member Archive. “The Dharma doesn’t Belong To Buddhism.” H.H. Dalai Lama To watch the full recordings from this + other past events please consider becoming a Tibet House US member. Learn about joining the Tibet House US Membership Community with a monthly tax-deductible donation by visiting: www.tibethouse.us. ‘A Force For Good’ is a Tibet House US course to fu

Our FBA Dharmabyte today is called Enlightenment Is Possible by Saddhanandi from the talk Reflecting On the Life of the Buddha. This is the first of four talks exploring Vasubandhuand#8217;s Four Factors. In his treatise Generating Bodhi Resolve, Vasubandhu describes them as able to generate the resolve to cultivate and accumulate the bases for the Arising of the Bodhicitta. You can find out more about them in Sangharakshitaand#8217;s books The Meaning of Conversion in Buddhism and The Bodhisattva Ideal. Saddhanandi gave this talk on a meditation retreat for women who have asked for ordination. The complete set of talks is as follows and each one finishes with a led reflection on the theme, given at Taraloka in February, 2010.

In this podcast Robert AF Thurman discusses the history of Nālandā & why the Dalai Lama of Tibet identifies Tibetan Buddhism as well as himself as heirs to the university whose ruins are located in modern-day Bihar, India. Founded under the patronage of the Gupta King Chandragupta II Vikramāditya in the 5th Century then Destroyed in 1203 by Turkish Muslim invaders, Professor Thurman illustrates how Nālandā University brought together the greatest minds of India, Persia, Indonesia, China & Tibet finding it’s highest expression in the seventeen greatest Pandits of Nālandā Monastery, whom the Dalai Lama celebrates in his famous eulogy. Podcast includes an overview of the most influential of the “Great Seventeen” Mahayana Buddhist yogi scientist sages (Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Buddhapalita, Bhavaviveka, Chandrakirti, Shantideva, Shantarakshita, Kamalashila, Asanga, Vasubandhu, Dignaga, Dharmakirti, Arya Vimuktisena, Haribhadra, Gunaprabha, Shakyaprabha & Atisha) known for their middle-way centrist perspective & the popular Stages of the Path (lam-rim) teachings. “I am the longest guest of government of India for the last 58 years and am now paying back for that gesture by becoming the messenger of Indian culture. In fact, I consider myself a son of India. A few years ago, some Chinese reporters asked me why I identified myself as India’s son. I told them that my mind and each part of my brain are filled with the knowledge and thought of Nalanda. Besides, in last 50 years this body survived on Indian dal, chapati and rice. That is why both physically and spiritually, I am a son of India. Buddha himself stated my followers should not accept my teaching out of faith or out of devotion, but rather thorough investigation and experiment, the scientific way of approach. So all the Nalanda masters like Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Asanga, Chandrakirti, all these great masters of Nalanda, even Buddha’s own words, they carry investigation whether Buddha’s statement is acceptable or not. So they are always based on logic and experiment so, therefore, I follow that pattern, tradition.” HH Dalai Lama from www.huffingtonpost.in. This podcast is an excerpt from “Why does the Dalai Lama say he is “Son of Nālandā”? a talk given in October 2017. Photo by Abhishek Sundaram via www.flickr.com. To listen to more recordings from past programs with Robert AF Thurman at Tibet House US in New York City + Menla in Phoenicia, New York in the Catskills please consider becoming a Tibet House US Member. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by

In this podcast Robert AF Thurman discusses the history of Nālandā & why the Dalai Lama of Tibet identifies Tibetan Buddhism as well as himself as heirs to the university whose ruins are located in modern-day Bihar, India. Founded under the patronage of the Gupta King Chandragupta II Vikramāditya in the 5th Century then Destroyed in 1203 by Turkish Muslim invaders, Professor Thurman illustrates how Nālandā University brought together the greatest minds of India, Persia, Indonesia, China & Tibet finding it’s highest expression in The seventeen greatest Pandits of Nālandā Monastery, whom the Dalai Lama celebrates in his famous eulogy. Podcast includes an overview of the most influential of the "Great Seventeen" Mahayana Buddhist yogi scientist sages (Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Buddhapalita, Bhavaviveka, Chandrakirti, Shantideva, Shantarakshita, Kamalashila, Asanga, Vasubandhu, Dignaga, Dharmakirti, Arya Vimuktisena, Haribhadra, Gunaprabha, Shakyaprabha & Atisha) known for their middle-way centrist perspective & the popular Stages of the Path (lam-rim) teachings. “I am the longest guest of government of India for the last 58 years and am now paying back for that gesture by becoming the messenger of Indian culture. In fact, I consider myself a son of India. A few years ago, some Chinese reporters asked me why I identified myself as India's son. I told them that my mind and each part of my brain are filled with the knowledge and thought of Nalanda. Besides, in last 50 years this body survived on Indian dal, chapati and rice. That is why both physically and spiritually, I am a son of India. Buddha himself stated my followers should not accept my teaching out of faith or out of devotion, but rather thorough investigation and experiment, the scientific way of approach. So all the Nalanda masters like Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Asanga, Chandrakirti, all these great masters of Nalanda, even Buddha's own words, they carry investigation whether Buddha's statement is acceptable or not. So they are always based on logic and experiment so, therefore, I follow that pattern, tradition.” HH Dalai Lama from www.huffingtonpost.in. This podcast is an excerpt from "Why does the Dalai Lama say he is "Son of Nālandā"?: The inaugural ISAS-VSB Lecture on Religion in the Modern World" A Talk given in October 2017. Photo by Abhishek Sundaram via www.flickr.com. To listen to more recordings from past programs with Robert AF Thurman at Tibet House US in New York City + Menla in Phoenicia, New York in the Catskills please consider becoming a Tibet House US Member. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by Tenzin Choegyal from the album ‘Heart Sutra‘ (2004) by Ethno Super Lounge is used on the Bob Thurman Podcast with artist’s permission, all rights reserved.

Vasubandhu’s path to Yogācāra Buddhism, a form of idealism which holds that nothing can be mind-independent.

Sokuzan’s dharma talk is inspired by verse three in Vasubandhu 's “The Teaching of the Three Own-Beings” (Tri-svabhava-nirdesa), here as translated by Stefan Anacker: The constant state-of-not-being-found of “how it appears” in that which appears, can be known as the fulfilled own-being, because of its state of non-otherness. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J23YaIuEpxM

Sokuzan's talk is inspired from verse 26 of the Trimsatika (Thirty Verses) of Vasubandhu on the "Consciousness Only" teachings of the Yogacara: "As long as consciousness does not see that subject-object distinctions are simply forms of consciousness, attachment to twofold grasping will never cease" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gstDd3ReviI

Sokuzan's dharma talk is inspired by several lines from Trimsatika (Thirty Verses) of Vasubandhu. From one translation: "As long as consciousness does not see That subject-object distinctions are simply forms of consciousness Attachment to twofold grasping will never cease" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwAQL0hXXuk

Sokuzan’s talk is inspired by Yogacara teachings on The Three Natures: the imaginary, the dependent, and the fulfilled. He references a verse from “The Teachings of the Three Own Beings” by Vasubandhu, a fourth century Indian Buddhist scholar-monk: “The constant state of not being found of “how it appears” in that which appears, can be known as the fulfilled own being…” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDt3rbC3iBY

Are we living in a virtual reality? If we are, what should we do about it? Jonathan Gold joins me on this episode to discuss how the first-millennium Buddhist philosopher Vasubandhu might answer these questions. We discuss Vasubandhu’s views about the hidden causes of the reality we experience and the mentally constructed nature of the world. We compare his position to the idea that we live in a computer-generated simulation, like the characters in the movie “The Matrix.” Then, we explore theoretical and practical implications of his view. If this world is a virtual reality, you might think that our efforts to understand it or act morally within it don’t matter. Gold’s analysis of Vasubandhu suggests that this is the wrong conclusion. Paving the Great Way: Vasubandhu’s Unifying Buddhist Philosophy is available here: https://www.amazon.com/Paving-Great-Way-Vasubandhus-Philosophy/dp/0231168276 Additional music: Title - 12 Days of Christmas (Instrumental) - Jingle Punk; Free Music Archive; Creative Commons.

In this podcast professor Thurman introduces great Buddhist masters Vasubandhu and Dignaga. Vasubandhu was a brother of the famous Asangha, who met with the future Buddha Maitreya. Vasubandhu wrote a famous work of the Abhidharmakosha (The Treasury of the Clear Science), which is the third of the “three baskets” of the Buddhist teachings (vinaya, sutra and abhidharma – are the three baskets). The Abhidharma brings out the Buddhist psychology in the most systematic fashion. Dignaga (who was Vasubandhu’s teacher) explains the notion of “bare attention.” He says that the only way to “get” reality is through “bare awareness”, and that “we all are knowing ultimate reality all the time with that awareness, which is underneath and obscured by our discursive, conceptualizing awareness.” The goal is to escape from entanglement in conceptualized reality and recover bare awareness. However, Dignaga continues, since we have to acknowledge that we are trapped in this web of conceptuality, it is critical reasoning within the web of conceptuality that liberates us from the conceptuality. So, one should not demonize conceptuality. Professor Thurman goes on to explain the famous “four mindfulnesses.” He says that the Buddhist psychology is based on the idea that the more awareness touches reality, the more realistic a person becomes, the more well they become. This episode was recorded in August, 2009 at a retreat co-led by Robert Thurman and Mark Epstein, M.D. at Menla Mountain Retreat.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Our Reaction to Sufferingand#8221;, Kulaprabha offers quite personal reflections on our responses to suffering. From the talk and#8220;Contemplating the Suffering of Beingsand#8221; given at Taraloka.

Originally given in Vietnamese, available from Lang Mai, the talk from the Upper Hamlet of Plum Village is dated Thursday, February 6, 2014 and is the twenty third talk of the 2013-2014 Winter Retreat. This is an English translation, available below, by Sr. Tue Nghiem. In this teaching we have a great review of basic practices that bring joy and peace followed by a teaching on 3 verses from the 30-verses of Vasubandhu text. 0:00 Chanting 7:18 Vitality 27:50 The Three Energies 41:30 Walking Meditation 55:00 Eating Meditation 1:06:33 Thirty Verses Study There is a mental formation called vitality.  Life. In Theravada tradition there are two types of life. The name and the form (material aspect). Even with the fetus, there is already the form and the vitality of the fetus is intermingled with the vitality of the mother. They are not two separate things. The child and mother are one. We can see vitality even in an inanimate object, such as a grain of rice. Quantum physics see this now in the subatomic particles. In the grain of corn there is vitality and in the speck of dust. There are no borders between animate and inanimate objects. We learn this in the Diamond Sutra. We have to live our life deeply. Matter and energy - their nature is no birth and no death. We use our breathing to bring peace to our breath. We can become light like a cloud and let go of all our anxiety. We train to breathe like this. We can generate the energy of mindfulness. Concentration is one-pointed mind. At that moment, we are truly present. A free person. These are mindfulness and concentration. We can generate this with our breathing.  In this case the breathing is the object of our mindfulness. Then, with these two we generate the third energy - insight. This is a training. We are here at Plum Village to learn how to do this because it had the capacity to heal and to nourish. To feel the joy of breathing in and breathing out. The joy of the dharma. The joy of the practice is our daily food. We are consuming food that nourishes and heals us. We have to live deeply in our breathing to generate peace and joy. Then we let go of anxiety and tension. Walking with peace and joy. What is slow walking meditation? How and why do we practice walking? Legendary steps. While we sit, we need to calm our breathing. We allow our body to rest, sitting upright, to harmonize the body. This too can generate joy and happiness. The same can be done with eating. While we wait together, we can immediately begin generating joy and happiness. And we can practice this at home. In a meal, we pay attention to two things: to each morsel of food and our friends who are sitting around us. Mindfulness of food and mindfulness of sangha. This food is the gift of the whole universe. Learning how to stop our mental discourse. We are learning verse #5-7 from the 30 Verses we've been studying this week. These three verses talk about manas. We begin with manifestation. Store consciousness was the first manifestor and the second is manas. Manas relies on the store consciousness to manifest. It grasps onto store consciousness and relies on it and returns to it. Manas has a distorted perception. Inferiority, superiority, and equality complexes. Manas also goes along with the four kinds of afflictions. And the five universal mental formations. It is also undetermined - neither wholesome or unwholesome. The five views of manas. Wisdom of discrimination.

This talk is taken out of order as there was a little difficulty in getting the English translation to share with you. In this talk, Thich Nhat Hanh focuses on the theme of volition as it relates to our relationships and to being a monastic followed by a teaching on the functions of alaya consciousness. It was originally given in Vietnamese, available from Lang Mai,  the talk from New Hamlet, Plum Village is dated Thursday, December 19, 2013 and is the tenth talk of the 2013-2014 Winter Retreat. English translation, available below, is by Sr. Chan Duc. 00:00-10:30 Volition Food 10:30- 14:40 The Mind of Love - Bodhicitta 14:40-21:00 Volition and Marriage 21:00-28:48 The Path and Realizing the Dream 28:48-57:47 The Functions of Alaya 57:47-end Ripening and Impermanence Last time we learned the alaya consciousness are tied to the five universal mental formations. What does alaya want to realize? In the teachings we talk of the four nutriments and the third is volition. Alaya wants to live  the good of volition should always be there - not temporary. Volition can be a positive nutrient and give us a lot of energy but it can also be unwholesome. What is my deepest desire? What do I want to do with my life? What is the source of volition food? The Buddha had a desire to end suffering, worries, fears - to find a path. He had a desire to become a monk. The mind of love - bodhicitta. We must have this commitment to be a monk or a nun. This is our volition food as a monastic in the sangha. People in the world may do something similar when they get married - what is the volition food of my partner? Do we share the same direction and the same ideal?  What do I want to realize in my life? We can also look at our parents and see their dreams and aspiration. Have they realized their dreams? There is a path to realize our dream. The path is not different from the end. Every step has the dream for it to be reality in every moment of daily life. Don't wait. We look to see our source of energy - our volition food - and we nourish it every day. We have learned the self nature of alaya and that it is unobstructed, indeterminate, not good or bad, neutral. The 11 nature of seeds are the characteristics of the store. Now we talk about the function. First, the main function of alaya is to maintain and preserve - it is all the seeds. Second, alaya learns and manage the information it stores. Third, it has the capacity to make/ripen things. Fourth, it has the capacity to nourish and heal. Alaya is self directing and can behave in an automatic way. It has the capacity to sustain life. The body and mind rely on each other and the basis are the seeds in alaya. Matter and spirit arise together because of alaya. From the 30 Verses of Vasubandhu, we look at the 19th verse. Consciousness is the totality of the seeds. Transformation takes place in the way it does because of a reciprocal influence; out of this, the different constructions arise. The alaya consciousness is also impermanent and birth/death is always taking place. Impermanent in every instant. There is also cyclical impermanence - we are born here and we die here. Maturation is cyclical. You can support this site by donating to the Plum Village Online Monastery Team.

In this 2-hour dharma talk, Thich Nhat Hanh teaches how and why we can live our lives deeply and provides methods such as gatha practice. We also continue the theme of the winter retreat by learning more about the characteristics of the seeds. Originally given in Vietnamese, available from Lang Mai, the talk from New Hamlet, Plum Village is dated Thursday, December 5, 2013 and is the sixth talk of the 2013-2014 Winter Retreat. English translation, available below, is by Sr. Tue Nghiem. 00:00-14:30 What is the purpose of human life? 14:30-23:00 Practice gathas 23:00-41:35 Spirituality and Plum Village practice 41:35-end Store consciousness and characteristics of seeds Some trees live thousands of years and certain turtles can live hundreds of years. A human span is about a 100-years. What is the purpose of this human life? We should live deeply so the time here doesn't go to waste. We should not wait to answer this question. The quality of life; not just living it to pass the days. The quality depends on how deeply we live each moment and not the emotional and material comforts. Money, power, prestige may not provide this quality or happiness. In Vietnam we had king who had given his throne to his son in order to become a monk. This gave him more time to live more deeply. He wore the color brown, the color for monastics. In Vietnam, it represents simplicity and humility. It's the color of those who work in the fields. When we become monastics, we learn the gathas to practice mindfulness. This Sunday we will ordain seven aspirants in Plum Village. There are about 60 Gathas to memorize and the first gatha to memorize is the walking up gatha. Waking up this morning, I smile.  Twenty-four brand new hours.  I vow to live deeply each moment And look at all beings with the eyes of compassion and love.  Every breath and every step is legendary. The quality of life is awareness and our capacity to live deeply. Science and philosophy both study our humanity. There is also Tao - spirituality. It is also a branch of research to understand our own suffering and happiness. Spirituality is not to run away from life and it is not religion. It is a path to understanding and love to live deeply our lives. We can use the discoveries of science and philosophy. We come to Plum Village to learn how to live life. We look for elder brothers and sisters to guide us. We don't practice for merit in the future but to live deeply in this moment. For example, walking meditation is not a mean to an end. It's a daily practice. It is the path of happiness. The same with sitting meditation  First we need calmness and stillness in our body and mind. The sixteen exercises of mindful breathing can help us calm and still our body and mind. If we don't know how, we ask a dharma teacher for help. These practices liberate us. We're learning the 8th consciousness - Store. We begin with a review of The first three verses of 30 Verses of Vasubandhu  What is a self? There are also dharmas and phenomena. All this manifests from the same route - store consciousness. Store both receives and maintains the seeds. It also holds the body and the environment in which we live in. What goes into our store consciousness? There are three different kinds of seeds that go into store: the image of the objects of phenomena, the names of the objects, and the last is discrimination (habit of discriminating). That was the review of previous weeks. Characteristics of the Seeds The first characteristic of a seed is that it changes every millisecond. They are changing all the time. Another characteristic is that it's also continuous, like a steam. It maintains the nature of the seed over time. Every seed is waiting for the conditions to manifest. Manifestation only teachings. Individual and collective manifestation

December 1, 2013. 93-minute dharma talk given by Thich Nhat Hanh from Upper Hamlet of Plum Village. This is the fifth talk of the 2013-2014 Winter Retreat. We begin with two chants from the monastics. The talk was given in Vietnamese and this is an English translation by Sr. Tue Nghiem. An issue in Christianity has been the question whether God a human or not a human. Theologians have said, though God is not a person but God is not less than a person.  In Buddhism, there is the idea of sentient beings that suffer and Buddha's who have enlightenment. But when we become a Buddha, we continue to be a sentient being. I'm Mahayana Buddhism, these two are not separate. Sentient beings and Buddha's are not different but two pairs of opposite. One cannot be without the other. Humans are composed of non-human elements. This is a non-dualistic insight. Interdependent co-arising. Everything is impermanent, including enlightenment and Buddha. We must continue to cultivate happiness and insight. Can the Buddha be recognized in another form than a human? Consider what is written in the Diamond Sutra. We also need to remove the dualistic thinking regarding inanimate objects. Even a rock has Buddha-nature. We have to transcend the idea that Buddha must be a human. Applying this teaching using sitting and breathing. Thay provides instructions. At 58-minutes, we continue with the winter retreat teachings from the 30-verses of Vasubandhu with the 3rd verse. Its appropriations and its manifestation of locality cannot be known intellectually. It is always associated with contact, mental attention, feeling, perception, and volition. Seeds. Form. Signs. Consciousness. Names.

November 21, 2013. 93-minute dharma talk given by Thich Nhat Hanh from New Hamlet of Plum Village. This is the second talk of the 2013-2014 Winter Retreat. We begin with two chants from the monastics. The talk was given in Vietnamese and this is an English translation by Sr. Tue Nghiem.  Story of a poet Thay met in the 1940s in Saigon. Shares a poem called the Dalia. Another poem from the 60s called  Song of April. A flower in the poem is used to teach on manifestation-only and the dharma body. This is the work of Mahayana Buddhism. We can hear the dharma in everything. The Buddha is the flower. Where does the flower come from in manifestation-only?  We can apply this same teaching to our own seeds, such as anger. We don't always see our anger until it manifests, but to say that it is not there is incorrect. It's just hidden.  Text of the 30 Verses of Vasubandhu.  Consciousness has two parts. The subject and object. The two parts rely upon one another to manifest.  Can our mind see the object of reality? The object and the subject rely upon one another order to manifest. Cognition.  Understanding this alcan free us from the idea of birth and death, being and non-being.  The mental formation contact. The relationship between subject and object and the mental formation of contact. We also look at the second mental formation of attention. This teaching is illustrated by the sound of the bell and other distractions that may be occurring at the same time. Appropriate attention. As a practitioner, we can choose the object of our Mindfulness. With practice this can become automatic. No effort. The cells of the body and the collective energy of a group of people. Can we sit peacefully? Individual manifestation and collective manifestation. The collective is comprised of the individual. Our practice can affect other people.  http://youtu.be/hWH_LdnQSxk

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte is lovely excerpt from the talk titled and#8220;Contemplating the Suffering of Beingsand#8221; by Kulaprabha, titled and#8220;Robins, Despair, Earthquakes andamp; Other People.and#8221; This is the third of four talks exploring Vasubandhuand#8217;s Four Factors given on a meditation retreat for women who have asked for ordination. In his treatise Generating Bodhi Resolve, Vasubandhu describes them as able to generate the resolve to cultivate and accumulate the bases for the Arising of the Bodhicitta. You can find out more about them in Sangharakshitaand#8217;s books The Meaning of Conversion in Buddhism and The Bodhisattva Ideal . Taraloka, February, 2010.

Shoshinge "The Hymn of True Faith" A crucial component of the Buddhist faith is chanting. The practice of chanting is much akin to the Christian hymns. Much like the past practice of the Catholic churches tradition of chanting in Latin, one does not need to know Japanese in order to be absorbed by the melodic rhythm of foreign sounds. This podcast is a recording of Shoshinge, one of the many Jodo Shinshu chants. Here's some background on this important chant. About Shoshige The following introduction is from Shinshū Seiten, Jōdo Shin Buddhist Teaching, published by the Buddhist Churches of America. The English translation of the gāthā is from The True Teaching, Practice and Realization of the Pure Land Way, Vol. I., Shin Buddhist Translation Series, Hongwanji International Center, Kyoto, Japan. The full title of this gāthā, Shoshin Nembutsu Ge, means ‘Gāthā on the Right (or True) Faith in the Nembutsu.’ The title consists of three terms: Shōshin, lit. ‘Right Faith’ refers to Shinjin, or Faith. Nembutsu, lit. ‘thinking of the Buddha,’ refers to the practice of uttering Amida’s Name. Ge, or ‘gāthā’ in Skt. Means ‘verse,’ or ‘hymn.’ Faith and Nembutsu are very important ideas constituting the central concepts of Shin Buddhism. In the passage which introduces the Shoshin Ge, Shinran notes; Relying upon the true words of the Great Sage and reading the commentaries of the great masters, I have realized the profound grace of the Buddha. Hence I here compose the Gāthā of True Faith in the Nembutsu. This shows that he composed this gatha out of his gratitude to Amida Buddha on the basis of the Teachings of Śākyamuni and the commentaries of the Seven Patriarchs. ‘The words of the Great Sage’ directly refers to the Dai Muryōju Kyō (The Larger Sutra), in which Shinran Shonin found the true religion by which a sinful and helpless man can be saved. He trusted in the Teachings of this Sutra singleheartedly, and conceived of all the other Teachings of the Buddha as being expedients to Pure Land Buddhism. It is also important to note that Shinran approached the Teachings of Amida’s Salvation through seven predecessors, namely, Nāgārjuna and Vasubandhu from India; Doran, Dōshaku and Zendō in China; Genshin and Genkū in Japan. In the Kyō Gyō Shin Shō he abundantly quotes from their discourse, and in the Shōshin Ge he gives their essentials. The whole gāthā is an exposition of the Pure Land Teaching which may be divided into two parts: 1) based on the Sutra and 2) based on the commentaries. The contents of the gāthā with minor divisions are as follows: I. Exposition based on the Sutra 1. Homage to Amida 2. Adoration, in particular, to a. Amida Buddha b. Śākyamuni Buddha 3. Exhortation II. Exposition based on the commentaries 1. General statement 2. Exposition, in particular, to a. Nāgārjuna [2nd or 3rd cen. A.D.] b. Vasubandhu [4th cen. A.D.] c. Donran [T’an Luan, 476-542 A.D.] d. Dōshaku [Tao-ch’o, 562-645 A.D.] e. Zendō [Shan Tao, 613-681 A.D.] f. Genshin [942-1017 A.D.] g. Genkū [Honen, 1133-1212 A.D.] 3. Exhortation Ki myo mu ryo ju nyo rai Na mu fu ka shi gi ko Ho zo bo satsu in ni ji Zai se ji sai o bus-sho To ken sho butsu jo do in Koku do nin den shi zen maku Kon ryu mu jo shu sho gan Cho hotsu ke u dai gu zei Go ko shi yui shi sho ju Ju sei myo sho mon jip-po Fu ho mu ryo mu hen ko Mu ge mu tai ko en no Sho jo kan gi chi e ko Fu dan nan ji mu sho ko Cho nichi gak-ko sho jin setsu Is-sai gun jo mu ko sho Hon gan myo go sho jo go Shin shin shin gyo gan ni in Jo to gaku sho dai ne han His-shi metsu do gan jo ju Nyo rai sho i ko shus-se Yui setsu mi da hon gan kai Go joku aku ji gun jo kai O shin nyo rai nyo jitsu gon No hotsu ichi nen ki ai shin Fu dan bon no toku ne han Bon jo gyaku ho sai e nyu Nyo shu shi nyu kai ichi mi Ses-shu shin ko jo sho go I no sui ha mu myo an Ton nai shin zo shi un mu Jo fu shin jitsu shin jin ten Hi nyo nik-ko fu un mu Un mu shi ge myo mu an Gyaku shin ken kyo dai kyo ki Soku o cho zetsu go aku shu Is-sai zen maku bon bu nin Mon shin nyo rai gu zei gan Butsu gon ko dai sho ge sha Ze nin myo fun da ri ke- fi Mi da butsu hon gan nen butsu Ja ken kyo man naku shu jo Shin gyo ju ji jin ni nan Nan chu shi nan mu ka shi In do sai ten shi ron ge Chu ka jichi iki shi ko so Ken dai sho ko se sho i Myo nyo rai hon ze o ki Sha ka nyo rai ryo ga sen I shu go myo nan ten jiku Ryu ju dai ji shut-to se Shitsu no zai ha u mu ken Sen zetsu dai jo mu jo ho Sho kan gi ji sho an raku Ken ji nan gyo roku ro ku Shin gyo i gyo shi do raku Oku nen mi da butsu hon gan Ji nen soku ji nyu hitsu jo Yui no jo sho nyo rai go O ho dai hi gu zei on Ten jin bo Satsu zo ron setsu Ki myo mu ge ko nyo rai E Shu ta ra ken shin jitsu Ko sen o cho dai sei gan Ko-yu hon gan riki e ko I do gun jo sho is-shin Ki nyu ku doku dai ho kai Hitsu gyaku nyu dai e shu shu Toku shi ren ge zo se kai Soku sho shin nyo hos-sho jin Yu bon no rin gen jin zu Nyu sho ji on ji o ge Hon shi don ran ryo ten shi Jo ko ran sho bo satsu rai San zo ru shi ju jo kyo Bon jo sen gyo ki raku ho Ten jin bo satsu ron chu ge Ho do in ga ken sei gan O gen ne ko yu ta riki Sho jo shi in yui shin jin Waku zen bon bu shin jin potsu Sho-chi sho-ji soku ne hon His-shi mu ryo ko myo do Sho-u shu jo kai fu ke Do shaku kes-sho do nan sho Yui myo jo do ka tsu nyu Man zen ji riki hen gon shu En man toku go kan sen sho San-pu san shin ke on gon Zo matsu ho metsu do-hi in Is-sho zo aku chi gu zei Shi an nyo gai sho myo ka Zen do doku myo bus-sho I Ko ai jo san yo gyaku aku Ko myo myo go ken in nen Kai-nyu hon gan dai-chi kai Gyo-ja sho-ju kon go shin Kyo-ki ichi nen so o go Yo-I dai to gyaku san nin Soku sho hos-sho shi jo raku Gen shin ko kai ichi dai kyo Hen ki an nyo kan is-sai Sen zo shu shin han sen jin Ho ke ni do sho ben ryu Goku ju aku nin yui sho butsu Ga yaku zai-hi ses-shu chu Bon no sho gen sui fu ken Dai-hi mu ken jo sho ga Hon shi gen ku myo buk-kyo Ren min zen maku bon bu nin Shin shu kyo sho ko hen shu Sen jaku hon gan gu aku se Gen rai sho-ji rin den ge Ket-chi gi jo I sho shi Soku nyu jaku jo mu I raku Hit-chi shin jin I no nyu Gu kyo dai ji shu shi tou Jo sai mu hen goku joku aku Do zoku ji shu gu do shin Yu-I ka shin shi ko so se-tsu Shoshinge Translation I take refuge in the Tathāgata of Immeasurable Life! I entrust myself to the Buddha of Inconceivable Light! Bodhisattva Dharmākara, in his causal stage, Under the guidance of Lokeśvararāja Buddha. Searched into the origins of the Buddhas’ pure land, And the qualities of those lands and their men and devas; He then established the supreme, incomparable Vow; He made the great Vow rare and all-encompassing. In five kalpas of profound thought, he embraced this Vow, Then resolved again that his Name be heard throughout the ten quarters. Everywhere he casts light immeasurable, boundless, Unhindered, unequaled, light-lord of all brilliance, Pure light, joyful light, the light of wisdom, Light constant, inconceivable, light beyond speaking, Light excelling sun and moon he sends forth, illumining countless worlds; The multitudes of beings all receive the radiance. The Name embodying the Primal Vow is the act of true settlement, The Vow of entrusting with sincere mind is the cause of birth; We realize the equal of enlightenment and supreme nirvāņa Through the fulfillment of the Vow of attaining nirvāņa without fail. Śākyamuni Tathāgata appeared in this world Solely to teach the ocean-like Primal Vow of Amida; We, an ocean of beings in an evil age of five defilements, Should entrust ourselves to the Tathagata’s words of truth. When the one thought-moment of joy arises, Nirvāņa is attained without severing blind passions; When ignorant and wise, even grave offenders and slanders of the dharma, all alike turn and enter shinjin, They are like waters that, on entering the ocean, become one in taste with it. The light of compassion that grasps us illumines and protects us always; The darkness of our ignorance is already broken through; Still the clouds and mists of greed and desire, anger and hatred, Cover as always the sky of true and real shinjin. But though light of the sun is veiled by clouds and mists, Beneath the clouds and mists there is brightness, not dark. When one realizes shinjin, seeing and revering and attaining great joy, One immediately leaps crosswise, closing off the five evil courses. All foolish beings, whether good or evil, When they hear and entrust to Amida’s universal Vow, Are praised by the Buddha as people of vast and excellent understanding; Such a person is called a pure white lotus. For evil sentient beings of wrong views and arrogance, The nembutsu that embodies Amida’s Primal Vow Is hard to accept in shinjin; This most difficult of difficulties, nothing surpasses. The masters of India in the west, who explained the teachings in treaties, And the eminent monks of China and Japan, Clarified the Great Sage’s true intent in appearing in the world, And revealed that Amida’s Primal Vow accords with the nature of beings. Śākyamuni Tathāgata, on Mount Lankā, Prophesied to the multitudes that in south India The mahasattva Nāgārjuna would appear in this world To crush the views of being and non-being; Proclaiming the unexcelled Mahāyāna teaching, He would attain the stage of joy and be born in the land of happiness. Nāgārjuna clarifies the hardship on the overland path of difficult practice, And leads us to entrust to the pleasure on the waterway of easy practice. He teaches that the moment one thinks on Amida’s Primal Vow, One is naturally brought to enter the sage of the definitely settled; Solely saying the Tathāgata’s Name constantly, One should respond with gratitude to the universal Vow of great compassion. Bodhisattva Vasubandhu, composing a treatise, declares That he takes refuge in the Tathagata of unhindered light, And that relying on the sutras, he will reveal the true and real virtues, And make widely known the great Vow by which we leap crosswise beyond birth-and-death. He discloses the mind that is single so that all beings be saved By Amida’s directing of virtue through the power of the Primal Vow. When a person turns and enters the great treasure-ocean of virtue, Necessarily he joins Amida’s assembly; And when he reaches hat lotus-held world, He immediately realizes the body of suchness or dharma-nature. Then sporting in the forests of blind passions, he manifests transcendent powers; Entering the garden of birth-and-death, he assumes various forms to guide others. Turning toward the dwelling of Master T’an-laun, the Emperor of Liang Always paid homage to him as a bodhisattva. Bodhiruci, master of the Tripitaka, gave T’an-laun the Pure Land teachings, And T’an-laun, burning his Taoist scriptures, took refuge in the land of bliss. In his commentary on the treatise of Bodhisattva Vasubandhu, He shows that the cause and attainment of birth in the fulfilled land lie in the Vow. Our going and returning, directed to us by Amida, come about through Other Power; The truly decisive cause is shinjin. When a foolish being of delusion and defilement awakens to shinjin, He realizes that birth-and-death is itself nirvāna; Without fail he reaches the land of immeasurable light And universally guides sentient beings to enlightenment. Tao-ch’o determined how difficult it is to fulfill the Path of Sages, And reveals that only passage through the Pure Land gate is possible for us. He criticizes self-power endeavor in the myriad good practices, And encourages us solely to say the fulfilled Name embodying true virtue. With kind concern he teaches the three characteristics of entrusting and non entrusting, Compassionately guiding all identically, whether they live when the dharma survives as but form, when in its last stage, or when it has become extinct. Though a person has committed evil all his life, when he encounters the Primal Vow, He will reach the world of peace and realize the perfect fruit of enlightenment. Shan-tao alone in his time clarified the Buddha’s true intent; Sorrowing at the plight of meditative and non-meditative practicers and people of grave evil, He reveals that Amida’s Light and Name are the causes of birth. When the practicer enters the great ocean of wisdom, the Primal Vow, He receives the diamond-like mind And accords with the one thought-moment of joy; whereupon, Equally with Vaidehī, he acquires the threefold wisdom And is immediately brought to attain the eternal bliss of dharma-nature. Genshin, having broadly elucidated the teaching of Śākyamuni’s lifetime, Wholeheartedly took refuge in the land of peace and urges all to do so; Ascertaining that minds devoted to single practice are profound, to sundry practice, shallow, He sets forth truly the difference between the fulfilled land and the transformed land. The person burdened with extreme evil should simply say the Name: Although I too am within Amida’s grasp, Passions obstruct my eyes and I cannot see him; Nevertheless, great compassion is untiring and illumines me always. Master Genkū, well-versed in the Buddha’s teaching, Turned compassionately to foolish people, both good and evil; Establishing in this remote land the teaching and realization that are the true essence of the Pure Land way, He transmits the selected Primal Vow to us of the defiled world: Return to this house of transmigration, of birth-and-death, Is decidedly caused by doubt. Swift entrance into the city of tranquility, the uncreated, Is necessarily brought about by shinjin. The mahasattvas and masters who spread the sutras Save the countless beings of utter defilement and evil. With the same mind, all people of the present, whether monk or lay, Should rely wholly on the teachings of these venerable masters. Sutras: Juseige | Junirai | Sanbutsuge | Shoshinge Copyright © 2006 by Nishi Hongwanji L.A.