Mahayana Buddhism

With Ajahn Boon

Homework: Please read part 1 or chapter 2 of the book about Wisdom.

26/1/2011

You always start from where you are when you’re studying. We have some Theravada background. So we will start from there and move to other knowledge. In Theravada wisdom has three aspects: listening/reading, thinking and experience/meditation. Mahayana have a similar system. To learn involves: listening, thinking/philosophy, mental training/meditation.

Tathagarbha everyone has the seed to become Buddha.

In Mahayana you need the Bodhisatva to help you to progress, including teachers.

The Perfection of Wisdom Suutraas were written by an enlightened teacher.

Whether you begin with wisdom, compassion or faith depends on your character. All teachings in Buddhism are important. They all lead to enlightenment, or Buddhahood. This is also according to Theravada. Gradually you will get there with practice. Mahayana method is very comprehensive.

Wisdom in Theravada is about the three characteristics, seeing things as they are. In Mahayana it means you attain the state of Buddhahood. They are different interpretations. In both senses you attain the highest, just there are different ideas of the highest.

In both M and T we believe people have the ability to attain liberation/enlightenment. Both teach people have to develop over a period to realize the ultimate. In Christianity they believe they also can become like God [their ultimate] over time.

In T Wisdom is more important theoretically, in practice people start with beliefs. Faith, morality and wisdom are all linked. They are different steps on the path. T focuses on mental training. We are responsible for our own liberation, but we can have help from others.

In M there are similar ideas. They believe people have different capacities, or paaramis, but you might need some help from the Bodhisatva.

Three parts in this book: Wisdom, Compassion and Faith.

Pure Land means the land of the Buddha, they first listen to then chant the name of the Buddha Amitofo [Amida Buddha]. If we have higher experience we don’t tell anyone. We may have unusual experience, but we should not stop, or get attached to it. After meditation practice, we should share the merits with other beings and not want to harm any being, but only help them, thus arises bodhicitta.

5/1/2011

It may be that Theravada is more conservative and original and Mahayana a later development. This situation is familiar in religion, e.g. first there was only Catholics, then later Protestants developed.

In studying religion and philosophy one must study from one’s own experience and background.

In Theravada Wisdom is the highest, but wisdom must be applied to life. You apply wisdom according to your conditioning.

China has 5000 year history and they adopted Buddhism. So they had to adapt it according to their culture.

Many books suggest samatha is not the real Buddhist way of practice, but that we must practice vipassanaa, but according to Visuddhimagga, at the fifth ~naa.na one will have cetovimutti, which is commonly understood to refer to samatha. So maybe both paths samatha and vipassanaa meet.

Chapter 10 in the text is about “faith and devotion: the cult of Buddha and bodhisattva”. The Mahayana don’t want to attain “nirvana” as they want to stay to help others.

Faith helps people in their general way of life. In Asia faith affects many aspects of life. In Europe Buddhism focuses on mediation. Ajahn Boon said all the lecturers he has met in England, show interest in Buddhism, but they never forget their original religion.

Science and religions were combined at first. They used herbal medicine and a ceremony. There were beliefs and feelings involved. Christianity concentrates on faith mainly. It may sound silly, but in practice one cannot achieve a goal without faith.