Mahayana Buddhism

[Skull]

A disciple of Buddha dwells pervading all directions, with his heart filled with loving kindness, compassion, joy for others' goodness and equanimity. He dwells pervading the entire world everywhere and equally with his heart filled with loving kindness, compassion, joy for others' goodness and equanimity; abundant, grown vast, measureless, free from enmity, and free from distress.

Digha Nikāya 13

 

[Skull]

A large excerpt from Nagarjuna on essentials for becoming a bodhisattva, with comments by a monk from long ago:

http://kalavinka.org/Jewels/book_excerpts/Bsam-EZ_excerpts/BsamEZ_X-49_X-04.pdf

 

[Skull]

All the joy the world contains
Has come through wishing happiness for others.
All the misery the world contains
Has come through wanting pleasure for oneself.

Is there need for lengthy explanation?
Childish beings look out for themselves;
Buddhas labor for the good of others:
See the difference that divides them!

From chapter 8 of Shantideva's Guide for Bodhisattvas.

 

[emilynghiem]

All the joy the world contains
Has come through wishing happiness for others.
All the misery the world contains
Has come through wanting pleasure for oneself.

Is there need for lengthy explanation?
Childish beings look out for themselves;
Buddhas labor for the good of others:
See the difference that divides them!

From chapter 8 of Shantideva's Guide for Bodhisattvas.

Close
Misery from wishing ill on others we wouldnt want on us!

There is nothing wrong with wanting good for oneself equally as others.

Abusing guilt to demonize good things in life is part of the problem, of scarcity mentality where wealth is seen as evil selfish greed which is still jealousy envy and coveting,
Instead of abundance mentality and faith that all people can contribute to and access good in the world by working together in harmony.

Nothing wrong with seeking equal benefit that helps everyone and is sustainable for the greater good of the public interest.

 

[Skull]

A new free book on stages of the bodhisattva path that leads to buddhahood for self and others. It gives short daily practices for one year.

Lamrim Year

 

[Skull]

Although a Bodhisattva abides in the realms of births and deaths,
his mind nonetheless remains free of defiling attachment.
He abides securely in the Dharma of all buddhas
and always delights in the Tathāgata’s practices.

Everything within the world,
including the aggregates, the sense realms, and other such dharmas
are such as he entirely abandons
in his exclusively focused quest to acquire the Buddha’s qualities.

Avatamsaka Sutra, ch. 39

 

[Skull]

If used with a sincere mind this Great Compassion mantra will benefit in amazing ways:

 

[Skull]

Here are the lines of the Great Compassion mantra accompanied by verses from Master Hua:

大悲咒句偈　上宣下化老和尚講述 Great Compassion Mantra Verses by the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

There is no GOD SAVIOR connected with Buddhism.

Which right off the bat makes Buddhism much less immoral than Christianity.

 

[Skull]

On Virtue in the Path
Venerable Master Hsuan Hua

Cultivators should value virtue in the spiritual Path., Such virtue takes the form of benefiting others. Put aside the concern for helping yourself and devote yourself to helping others. Be willing to take harm upon yourself in order to protect others from harm. In other words, if you want to benefit others and not harm them, it is essential to cultivate virtue in the Path. The Path is external, whereas virtue is internal. Externally, you nurture the Path by cultivating various paths. Once you are in accord with the Path on the outside, a sense of great happiness wells up within. You have attained virtue in your mind.

When you have virtue, everyone admires you.
When you are in accord with the Path, everyone respects you.

Once your conduct is virtuous, everyone thinks well of you. If you are virtuous, then people will be delighted even if you were to scold or beat them. If you lack virtue, then even if you make obeisance to people, they will want to kick you. Virtue wins everyone’s respect. Therefore, it is of the foremost importance. All of you should keep the words “virtue in the Path” firmly in mind, so that you see them as soon as you open your eyes.

Some people have no concern for virtue or the Path. It could be said that they have forgotten what is most fundamental. The most fundamental thing is virtue in the Path. Without virtue, one cannot follow the Path to its end and realize Buddhahood. Buddhas are adorned with the myriad virtues. Having perfected and realized the myriad virtues, they were able to become Buddhas.

Virtue in the Path represents righteous energy. It can be compared to the sun and moon. It is equivalent to heaven and earth. Therefore, no one can afford to overlook virtue in the Path. Virtue in the Path also serves as our place of practice. Virtue in the Path requires cultivation. If you cultivate, you can be virtuous. Without cultivation, there is no virtue.

Therefore, if cultivators fail to consider virtue, they will not be able to cultivate. Virtue in the Path consists of renouncing oneself for the sake of others. Forgetting about ourselves, we should help others; we should do that without harboring even a single thought of selfishness and without ever thinking of our own benefit. A mind devoid of selfish and self-benefiting thoughts is a virtuous mind.

Thus, in everything they do, cultivators should pay attention to virtue. Do everything within your capacity to help others. Therefore, each of you should use your utmost ability to perfect your virtue. Then, you will have some accomplishment.

Don’t be so preoccupied with yourself that you cannot forget about yourself. To practice the Bodhisattva Path, you must forget yourself. While it is important to enlighten yourself, it is even more important to enlighten others. As students of the Buddhadharma, we ought to realize this and never forget about helping others.

Timely Teachings. Page 293

 

[Skull]

With this body of yours, you ought to do some work and make a contribution to the world.

Master Hsuan Hua, Spring Sun, Lotus Flower.

 

[Skull]

Nothing should be taken as ultimately real. As the Vajra Sutra says: “All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows, like dew drops or flashes of lightning. One should contemplate them thus.”

Spring Sun, Lotus Flower.

 

[Skull]

Bodhisattva Je Tsongkhapa's final work on the path to buddhahood:

The Middle-Length Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment

 

[Skull]

First comes practice, then comes faith:

 

[Skull]

Bodhisattva Je Tsongkhapa's final work on the path to buddhahood:

The Middle-Length Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment

One of many good reviews:

“This is an excellent translation of Tsongkhapa’s Middle-Length Treatise (Lam rim ’bring ba), which sets out the way to skillfully progress through the stages of the path to enlightenment. This translation successfully conveys that Tsongkhapa is speaking not only to his fifteenth-century disciples but to us as well, more than six hundred years later. I am absolutely sure that this work offers us a key to concisely comprehend the profound and magnificent system of Tsongkhapa’s lam rim teaching.”

– Kodo Yatsuya, professor, Komazawa University

 

[Skull]

You don’t have to believe in me or believe in the Buddha. Believe in your own inherent wisdom. Discover the wisdom in your own nature.
What is wisdom? It is a manifestation of selflessness. What is idle thinking? It is an indication of selfishness. Once selfishness takes hold, idle thoughts arise.

Master Hsuan Hua, Spring Sun, Lotus Flower

 

[Skull]

A free, full translation of the Gandavyuha Sutra, a major part of the Avatamsaka Sutra is now available in e-book formats. It is over 1100 pdf pages long with several hundred of those pages being notes, Introduction and glossary.

https://read.84000.co/translation/toh44-45.html#toc

 

[Skull]

A few verses from the Gandavyuha Sutra on the nature of a bodhisattva:

“Whatever worldly good fortune there is
That occurs within the realms of beings,
The resolute ones renounce it all,
And they remain in the Buddha’s good fortune.

“The world remains fruitless,
Continuously in bondage.
Those whose conduct is free from attachment
Are continuously fixed on benefiting beings.

“Their unequaled conduct
Is inconceivable for all beings.
They who think of the world’s happiness
Bring an end to suffering.

“They have compassion for the whole world
And have the pure wisdom of enlightenment.
They are a light for the world
And bring liberation to the entire world.”

 

[Unkotare]

Buddhism is a dead end; it's just the idea of developing narcissism to its ultimate extremes,.......

Wow, you have that exactly backwards.

 

[Skull]

The Library of Wisdom and Compassion is up to six volumes now, with #7 coming out in 2022. The Dalai Lama made sure that this comprehensive series was aimed at non-Buddhists who wish to understand. He insisted that the Pali and Chinese traditions be included as well as the Tibetan. It is a magnificent project! Who knows how many volumes it will contain when finished!

The Library of Wisdom and Compassion