20110402 six consciousness and suffering cycles

Updated Mar 2010

Buddhist Association of Canada

Cham Shan Temple

Updated Mar 2010


Cham Shan Temple

ná mó fó tuó南無佛陀

Namo Buddha

ná mó dá mó 南無達摩

Namo Dharma

ná mó sēng qié南無僧伽

Namo Sangha

加拿大佛教會 © 2006 Buddhist Association of Canada


Towards a

Liberated and

Enlightened Life

煩惱輕智慧長

Master Huì kě is a native of Wǔ láo ( 武牢 ), a region now part of the northwest county in Hé nán province, central China. His lay surname was Jī ( 姬 ). His father, whose name was Jì ( 寂 ) [note the different tone mark], had no son and lamented: “My family is of virtue and should not be without an heir.” He prayed earnestly for a long time, until one auspicious night when a wonderful light illuminated the house and his wife realized she was pregnant. He was named Guāng ( 光 ), which means bright, or rays of light, in memory of that auspicious occasion.

Story of Huì kě , the Second Patriarch of Chán (487-593, 二祖神光慧可 )

His ambition and love of learning was above average, even at an early age. He studied the Chinese classics, and was especially good in philosophy. To his father’s dismay, however, he was not interested in the family business. Rather, he yearned to travel. Later, he read various Buddhist scriptures and understood them all by himself, without instruction. With this understanding, Huì kě left home and became a monastic at Xiāng shān Temple ( 香山寺 ) in Luò yáng , Lóng mén ( 洛陽龍門 ), finally taking full ordination, the grand precepts, at Yǒng mù Temple ( 永穆寺 ). He stayed in Yǒng mù Temple for a while, then travelled around from temple to temple, attending and studying both the Theravada and Mahāyāna lectures.


He returned to Xiangshan Temple at the age of 32 and meditated all day for eight years until a deva told him during Samadhi: “To be fruitful, you should not dwell here any longer. The great way is not far, go South!” He knew the deva came to help and changed his name to Shen (deva) Guang. Next day, he got a big headache and tried to cure it. A voice told him: “This is not a headache but a change of your bones (nature). He told his Master whom saw five peaks on his head and said: “This is auspicious and you will certify the way. The deva told you to go South where the Great Master Bodhidharma stays and should be your teacher.”


So Huì kě went to Shàolín Temple where Bodhidharma stayed. He served the Great Master day and night, but never heard a word of teaching form the Great Master, who always sat facing the wall. Huì kě said to himself: “When the ancients seek the way, they break their bone to give the marrow, give blood to feed the hungry, pave the mud with their hair, jump from the cliff to feed the tiger. How am I among the ancients?” On the evening of December 9th (lunar calendar), snow was heavy. Huì kě stood unmoved outside the cave entrance until the snow was above his wrist. The Great Master was compassionate and asked: “You stand so long in snow, what do you want?” Huì kě was in tear: “Great Compassionate Master, please show the gate of the great dew and ferry sentient beings.”


Bodhidharma: “The supreme wonderful way of the Buddhas is through kaplas of diligent practices, through walking the challenging path, and through enduring impossible tolerance. It is a waste of effort and hardship to ride the true vehicle with small virtue and small wisdom, taking it lightly and arrogantly.”

Upon the admonishment, Huihe cut off his left arm with a sharp knife quietly and offered it in front of the Great Master. Bodhidharma realized that Huì kě was a real treasure of the Dharma and said: “When the Buddhas first seek the way, they would give even away their body. Now you cut off your arm in front of me, you can find the way!” Bodhidharma named his new disciple Huì (wisdom) Kě (can/able).


Huì kě : “Can you tell me the mind seal of the Buddhadharma?” Bodhidharma: “The mind seal of Buddhadharma cannot be obtained from others.” Huì kě : “My mind is not at ease. Can the Venerable pacify it?” Bodhidharma: “Give me your mind and I shall pacify it.” Huì kě : “I cannot find the mind upon searching.” Bodhidharma: “I have finished pacifying your mind.”

He was awaken that “unease”, “mind” are all delusions. He stayed and served Bodhidharma for six (some say nine) years. He received the transmission of the bowl and robe from Bodhidharma and later transmitted them to the Third Patriarch Sēngcàn ( 僧璨 ). He went to Yèdū ( 邺都 ) and taught for 34 years. Sometimes he changed robes and taught at any opportunities. Sometimes he went to bars and slaughter houses, or talked street talks and worked with laborers. People in all directions followed his words and took refuges.


Someone asked Huì kě : “Venerable Sir, you are a Master of the Way. How can do you such things?” Huì kě is said to have replied: “I am cultivating my mind. What is it to do with you?”

Huì kě was good with words and his influence became so great that even students, entrenched in studying the Sutras, went to follow his Chán teaching instead. A Dharma Master, Ven. Biànhé ( 辯和 ), was so upset by his method that he had him prosecuted for fostering a cult. It was in the year 593CE, when the Magistrate at the time, Dízhòngkǎn ( 翟仲侃 ), had Huì kě executed. The Great Master was killed at the age of 107. He was posthumosly honored with the name Dà (Great) Zǔ (Patriarch) Chánshī (Chan Master).


His Chán style is based on the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra ( 楞伽經 , léngqié jīng). He emphasized the importance of sitting meditation and the cultivation of the mind instead of endless debates on words. His method gave the cartwheel of the Chán school momentum which has carried it through to our time.

References:1. 楞伽師資記 Record of the Masters and Disciples

of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra2. 景德傳燈錄 The Jǐngdé Records of the

Transmission of the Lamp

Chinese 中文 :

http://read.goodweb.cn/news/news_view.asp?newsid=23680




Presentation Topics and Schedule

April 2 - Six sense organs, six sense objects and six sense consciousness and Cycle of Suffering presented by

Edward Malik April 9 - Twelve links of causation (nidāna) – Presented by Les

Skibinski April 16 - Six Paramitas presented by Kitty Cheung April 23 – Ten Titles of Tathagata presented by Mike Feeley April 30 – Four Persuasions presented by Wai Fun Lai May 7 - Four Elements presented by Doris Lau May 14 - Five Iniquities of Mundane World presented by Elena

Morelli May 21 - Five Aggregates (skandhas) presented by Grace Lau May 28 - Eightfold path presented by Shirley Lew June 4 - Ten realms presented by Winnie Tsang

It arises through one of the five sense doors and also through the mind door.

Six Sense Organs: Eye Ear Nose Tongue Body Mind Element

Visible object Sound object Smell object Taste object Tangible object Mental object

Visual consciousness Auditory consciousness Nasal consciousness Taste consciousness Tactile consciousness Mind-consciousness

The Bhavacakra or Wheel of Becoming is a complex symbolic representation of samsara in the form of a circle used primarily in Chinese/Tibetan Buddhism. Samsara is the continuous cycle of birth, life, and death from which one liberates oneself through enlightenment.

In the Buddhist depiction, different karmic actions contribute to one's metaphorical existence in different realms, or rather, different actions contribute to one's characteristics similarity to those of the realms. Leading from the human realm to the outside of the wheel depicts the Buddhist path. The Bhavacakra is sometimes displayed with five sections, but the more recent and more common form has six sections.

1) BackgroundThe Bhavacakra is represented as being held by the jaws, hands, and feet of a fearsome figure who turns the wheel. A common choice for the figure is Yama, the god of death or Kala the lord of time. This figure is also known as the "Face of Glory”. There is always a figure or symbol in the upper left and the upper right. The exact figure or symbolvaries; common examples include the moon, a buddha, or a bodhisattva.

2) Outer rimThe outer rim of the wheel is divided into twelve sections and given such names as the Twelve Interdependent Causes and Effects or the Twelve Links of Causality. Ignorance is the first of the 12 causes and conditions, both of our rebirth and of maturing any karma within our dependent existence. Different causes can overlap in different stages and even mature in next existences - lives. Yet the turning of the wheel goes onward. The twelve causal links are: (1) ignorance; (2) volitional action or conditioning; (3) consciousness; (4) name and form; (5) six sensory organs (i.e. eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind); (6) contact or touch; (7) sensation; (8) desire, craving, thirst;(9) grasping; (10) becoming or existence; (11) birth; (12) decay and death.

3) Six WorldsThe wheel is divided into six sections which represent the Six realms (or Worlds) of Existence. These Six Worlds are:

The World of Devas or GodsThe World of Asuras (Demigods, Titans, Fighting Demons)The World of HumansThe World of AnimalsThe World of Hungry GhostsThe World of Hell

The World of Devas is always at the very top of the wheel. The World of Asuras and the World of Humans are always in the top half of the wheel, bordering the World of Devas on opposite sides, but which of the two is on the left and which is on the right varies (leading to two different arrangements of the wheel). The World of Animals and the World of Hungry Ghosts is always in the bottom half of the wheel, with the World of Animals bordering the World of Humans and the World of Hungry Ghosts bordering the World of Asuras. Between the World of Animals and the World of Hungry Ghosts, at the very bottom of the wheel, is the World of Hell. Sometimes, the wheel is represented as only having five sections because the World of the Devas and the World of the Asuras are combined into a single world. In Buddhist representations of the wheel, within each of the Six Realms, there is always at least one Buddha or bodhisattva depicted, trying to help sentient beings find their way to nirvana.

4)HubThe rim of the hub has a clear binary demarcation of black and white. An exoteric exegesis holds that one side is the White Path or Path of Bliss and represents how sentient beings may move upward to the Godly Realms; the other side is the Dark Path which represents how sentient beings may move downward to the Hellish Realms. A more esoteric exegesis is that it represents the Right-handed Path and the Left-handed Path of Tantra, not in opposition but as complements in unity.

5)The Three Venom In the hub, the center of the wheel, the Three Poisons are sometimes personified as the boar, serpent and fowl or iconographically delusion, hatred and greed respectively. The Three Poisons are turning in a 'Wheel of Woe', each consuming and energised by the poison affronting them and being consumed by that which they affront in turn (each of the Poisons has one of the other Poisons in its mouth).

The desire realm is one of three realms or three worlds in traditional Buddhist cosmology into which a being wandering in saṃsāra may be reborn. The other two are the form realm, and the formless realm

Within the desire realm are either five or six domains The thirty-one realms are also known as the "thirty-one

paths of rebirth", the "six paths of suffering", the "six planes", and the "six lower realms". They stand in contrast to the higher attainments of the Ten spiritual realms.

One's previous actions and thoughts determine which of the six domains one is reborn into.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_cosmology

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsara_(Buddhism)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebirth_(Buddhism)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_spiritual_realms

The Six Domains The six domains of the desire realm are as follows: the god domain the jealous god domain the human domain the animal domain the hungry ghost domain the hell domain

God Realm (Blissful State) The Deva realm is the realm of bliss. The disadvantage of

this realm is that things are so very comfortable there, that these beings completely neglect to work towards enlightenment. Instead they gradually use up the good karma they had previously accumulated, and so they subsequently fall to a lower rebirth.

The Deva realm is sometimes also referred to as the gods' realm, because its inhabitants are so powerful within their own realm, that compared to humans, they resemble the gods of Greek or Roman mythology. However, while the Devas may be referred to as gods, they are not immortal, omniscient, nor omnipotent, and they do not act as creators or judges at death, so they are notably very distinct from Western concept of God.

Asura Realm The Asura realm is the realm of the demigods.

They are here because of actions based on jealousy, struggle, combat or rationalization of the world. They may be here because in human form they had good intentions but committed bad actions such as harming others.

The Asuras are said to experience a much more pleasurable life than humans, but they are plagued by envy for the devas, whom they can see just as animals can perceive humans.

Human Realm The Human realm is based on passion, desire, doubt, and pride. Buddhists see this realm as human existence. A human rebirth is in fact

considered to be the by far most advantageous of all possible rebirths in samsara because a human rebirth is the samsaric realm from which one can directly ensure enlightenment either in the present or future birth. This is because of the unique possibilities that a human rebirth offers.

A human rebirth is considered to have tremendous potential when used correctly, however we usually waste our human lifetime in materialistic pursuits, and end up reinforcing our unhelpful emotions, thoughts, and actions. Because of this, it is almost always the case that one descends to a lower rebirth after a human life, rather than immediately going on to another human birth.

In the lower realms, such as for example, the animal realm, it is a very slow and difficult process to accumulate enough merit to achieve a human birth once again, so it may be countless lifetimes before one has another chance.

Animal Realm The Animal realm is based on strong mental states

of stupidity and prejudice cultivated in a previous life or lives.

Buddhists believe that this realm is the realm of existence of the nonhuman animals on Earth. Humans can however be seen by the animals, in the same way that the Asura can see the Devas.

Hungry Ghost Realm The Hungry Ghost realm is a rebirth based on

strong possessiveness and desire which were cultivated in a previous life or lives.

The sentient beings in this realm are known as "hungry ghosts". They are constantly extremely hungry and thirsty, but they cannot satisfy these needs. In the Bhavacakra these beings are drawn with narrow necks and large bellies. This represents the fact that their desires torment them, but they are completely unable to satisfy themselves.

Hell Realm The Naraka realm, or "hell realm" is a rebirth based

on strong states of hatred cultivated in a previous life or lives.

They are not trapped in this realm permanently. Rather, they remain there until their negative karma is used up, at which point they are reborn into another realm.



www.ChamShanTemple.org

www.shengguangshi.blogspot.com

[email protected] Shi 釋聖光Tom Cheung 張相棠Kam Cheung 張仁勤Dennis Yap 葉普智

Questions and Comments 討論



yuàn xiāo sān zhàng zhū fán năo

願消三障諸煩惱We wish to rid ourselves of the three hindrances and all klesas.

yuàn dé zhì huì zhēn míng lĭao

願得智慧真明了We wish to gain wisdom and real understanding.

pŭ yuàn zuì zhàng xī xiāo chú

普願罪障悉消除 We wish all sinful hindrances to be totally eradicated.

shì shì cháng xíng pú sà dào

世世常行菩薩道In one life after another we always follow Bodhisattvas’ paths.

回向Parinamana (Transfer of Merit)

20110402 six consciousness and suffering cycles

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