Vajrayana Buddhism Association
Buddhism In the Nyingma Tradition
Buddha answers Voice of Discernment by teaching the twenty-five expedient devices. Now we have introduced ten practices, we move on to the next set of alternating practices, the eleventh to the seventeenth. For this set, samāpatti is the core practice.…
Buddha answered Voice of Discernment, taught the twenty-five expedient practices. Previously we discussed the first three. Among the twenty-five, twenty-one belong to the alternating practice, within which, they can be further divided into three groups. The first group include seven practices with śamatha as the main practice, where the primary practice is cessation; there are seven practices with samāpatti as the main practice, where the primary practice is on the illusion; there are also seven practices with dhyāna as the main practice, where one dwells in neither cessation nor illusion, the primary practice is on the awareness.…
Buddha answered Voice of Discernment by teaching the twenty-five expedient practices. He called them pure samādhi chakras, “pure” because the practice leads to purity, “samādhi” is the name for all meditation practices, its application is then called “samādhi maṇḍala” for these meditations can be seen as meditations in accordance with the maṇḍala.…
To answer Voice of Discernment, Buddha said that the three expedient methods can turn into 25 applications. The scripture says, “[T]he Perfect Enlightenment of all tathāgatas is originally pure, it has neither practice nor practitioner. When they practice, all bodhisattvas and sentient beings of the degenerate age depend upon the power of unenlightened illusion.…
Translator’s note: In the previous column, Buddha illustrated the three practices of śamatha, samāpatti and dhyāna. While different, like sunlight, whether it is a ray through a slit into a dark room, or sunlight in the wide open, they are like the many roads leading to Rome.…
Translator’s note: In the previous column, Majestic Virtue Unhindered’s question finally led to the key of the sutra, where all Buddhist practices are expedient devices leading to the oneness of perfect enlightenment. In this column, Buddha will begin to illustrate the three practices of śamatha, samāpatti and dhyāna.…
Translator’s note:
In the previous columns (18, 19, 20), bodhisattva Pure Wisdom asked if there were any differences in the realization by sentient beings, bodhisattvas, and buddhas. While the realization is oneness, Buddha illustrated the stages of practice in spite of Pure Wisdom’s casting it in terms of “differences in realization.”…
Translator’s note: In this section, Buddha highlights the different positions “according with the nature of enlightenment” as a way to illustrate the practice in stages, where Buddha mentions the famous analogy of “finger pointing to the moon.” We take this opportunity to repost to Master Tam’s original introduction to the “Beyond Word” series, where the discussion makes a journey from dependent arising due to interdependence and relativity, to dependent arising due to mutual obstruction, and beyond.…
In the previous column, bodhisattva Pure Wisdom asked if there were any differences in the realization by sentient beings, bodhisattvas, and buddhas. Below is the first part of the answer.
Click here for the table of contents to revisit the dialogue between Buddha and previous bodhisattvas.…
In the previous column, bodhisattva Maitreya asked Buddha the way to sever the root of samsara (cyclical existence). Here, bodhisattva Pure Wisdom will continue the line of inquiry, inquiring into the different levels of realization, and the stages of practice.…
