Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh (7)

But why negate all the teachings? What does this negation mean?

1. We need to keep in mind that, in Bát Nhã, negation and affirmation are the same—sắc tức thị không, không tức thị sắc; negation is affirmation, affirmation is negation. And as we have seen, Bát Nhã affirms all things as they truly are.

Looking at the sea, if we focus our attention on the water only, we can say that the waves don't exist—waves are just the movement of water. However, if we focus our attention on the waves themselves, we can say that the waves do exist, but only briefly. Thus, when we are talking with our attention focused on không, we say, "In không there is no teaching." If our attention is focused on the teachings themselves, we say, "Yes, there are teachings, but they are impermanent."

The strong focus on không in Bát Nhã is a practical way to focus our attention on impermanence. Affirmation of the impermanence of the teachings means "Yes, there are teachings, so learn them and practice them. But they are impermanent, temporary, so don't be attached to them." That means:

a. Each listed teaching is important and deseves to be mentioned individually and specifically in Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh. So, please practice each teaching seriously.

b. But each teaching is also impermanent and temporary. So, please don't attach yourself to it. That means, be flexible with the teachings. Don't follow them rigidly like a robot. Teachings are guidelines; use your mind/heart and be flexible when applying the teachings to life.

c. Teachings are there temporarily to help, like a raft used to cross the river. When you have crossed to the other shore, don't carry the raft on your shoulder.

2. "In không there is no teaching" also describes the state of enlightenment.

All the teachings are there to help the practitioner achieve enlightenment, achieve nirvana.

But what is nirvana?

Nirvana means "the fire is out"—the completely pure and tranquil mind, the mind that has absolutely no attachment, the mind that sees all things but is attached to nothing, the mind of không.

This mind understands that không is its substance as well as the substance of everything else in the universe. This mind has found its true nature—không, the absolute, the never-born never-destroyed nerver-dirty never-clean never-increasing never-diminishing, the absolute tranquility, the Buddha. This mind, which has found its true nature, is now Buddha. Minh tâm kiến tánh thành Phật. Shine the mind, see true nature, become Buddha.

But has this mind just, in fact, turned itself from a regular human mind to a Buddha?

Yes and no. If we think the way we normally think with a time line of past, present and future, then "yes," this mind has just turned from a regular human mind to a Buddha. Five minutes ago it was an ignorant mind, now it is a Buddha.

However, from the stand point of enlightenment, the mind has not become anything. The mind has always been there, has always been không. It didn't know that it is không, but now it knows that it is không. That's all. It did not become something else better or higher.

When ignorance is still around, ignorance acts like a veil that obstructs the mind's vision; therefore, the mind cannot see itself clearly. When the mind has no attachment, the veil of vô minh (ignorance) is lifted, and the mind can see itself truly as không. The mind is now back to its true nature—không, the absolute tranquility, nirvana, Buddha. Nirvana has always been there, Buddha has always been there. It is just a matter of seeing or not-seeing.

So, indeed, there is no becoming Buddha, no attaining enlightenment, no river to cross, no crossing over. The Buddha has always been there. This is why at the beginning of this exposition, we say, "All the crossing is just a fleeting phenomenon of the mind."

A note on "seeing"

When we say "the mind sees itself as không," we may think of the word "see" as a function of the intellect, an intellectual capacity of our brain to understand. But true seeing involves much more than the intellect. Example: Wife tells drunken husband, "Do you know how miserable I am?" Husband answers, "Of course... I know… I spend all… the money… on booze... I get home late… and drunk every night… I mess … up the floor with… my vomit... You… are stressed all the time… What is… so hard to understand… about that …?" And he continues drinking day after day. That is the understanding or seeing of the intellect.

Until one day, the husband feels in every fiber of his body and in every cell of his brain how irresponsible he has been. He now feels every single miligram of his wife's pain, and her pain burns every cell in his body and mind like a holocaust. He wakes up, as if from a dream. Then he just quits drinking, forever. That is true seeing.

So, when we talk about seeing or understanding in the sense of enlightenment, we talk about a total "awakening" experience that involves every single aspect of our mental existence--the intellect, the will, the emotion, the id, the ego, the super-ego, the consciousness, subconsciousness, the nonconscious and what have you--a total transformation, a total rebirth, that brings the mind to a completely new level of seeing, understanding, feeling, thinking and acting.

This total awakening, therefore, cannot be achieved merely by the intellect—i.e. not merely by reading Buddhist philosophy. The Buddhist road to achieve this total awakening contains three major elements: Giới (rules of conduct), định (meditation, concentrating the mind), huệ (wisdom). A typical example is Bát Chánh Đạo (The Noble Eightfold Path). The eight lanes of Bát Chánh Đạo are grouped into three groups as follows:

Huệ (wisdom): 1. Chánh kiến (right view), 2. Chánh tư duy (right thought).

Giới (rules of conduct): 3. Chánh Ngữ (right speech), 4. Chánh Nghiệp (right action), 5. Chánh mạng (right livelihood).

Định (meditation): 6. Chánh tinh tấn (right effort), 7. Chánh niệm (right mindfulness), 8. Chánh định (right concentration)

Giới định huệ are called tam học (three studies) and work together. Good conduct, calm attitude and wise knowledge go together; we cannot leave one out and hope to gain an accurate understanding of Buddhism, not mentioning enlightenment. Reading Buddhist books while embezzling government money or getting drunk every day will not give us an accurate understanding of Buddhism. Buddhism is more than an intllectual philosophy. It is a comprehensive way of living. And all living needs practice.

IV. The Power of Bát Nhã to Bring Enlightenment

In the opening verse, we have Bồ tát Quán Tự Tại crossing beyond all suffering from practicing Bát Nhã. Now in the ending section, we come back to the power of Bát Nhã to bring enlightenment.

Dĩ vô sở đắc cố, Bồ-đề tát-đỏa y Bát-nhã-ba-la mật-đa cố tâm vô quái-ngại; vô quái-ngại cố vô hữu khủng-bố; viễn ly điên-đảo mộng tưởng; cứu cánh Niết-bàn.

(Bởi chẳng có gì để đạt, Bồ tát nương tựa Bát nhã ba la mật đa, nên tâm không vướng mắc; vì không vướng mắc nên không sợ hãi, xa lìa mộng tưởng điên đảo, rốt ráo niết bàn.)

(Because nothing is attained, the Bodhisattva, through reliance on prajna paramita, is unimpeded in his mind. Because there is no impediment, he is not afraid, and he leaves distorted dream-thinking far behind. Ultimately Nirvana!)

Bồ tát, with Bát Nhã wisdom, sees that Không is the true substance of all things, everything is just a fleeting manifestation of Không, and in Không there is nothing--no nirvana, no attaining nirvana. Therefore, Bồ tát does not think about attaining nirvana and, thus, has no attachment in his heart. (If Bồ tát keeps aiming at the goal of attaining nirvana, then Bồ tát would never reach nirvana, because the attachment to the goal is there in his heart).

Since the heart is not attached to anything, Bồ tát is not afraid of anything. Here, we need to make a note that fearlessness is a very significant feature of the Bồ tát way. In lục độ ba-la-mật (Bồ tát's six virtues of enlightenment), bố thí (giving) comes first. (The other five are trì giới—keeping rules and precepts, nhẫn nhục--patient and humble, tinh tấn--effort, thiền định—mediation, and trí huệ—wisdom).

There are 3 kinds of giving: Tài thí (giving money), pháp thí (giving Dharma, giving Buddhist teachings), vô úy thí (giving fearlessness; vô úy means không sợ). "Giving" here doesn't mean just giving the extra things one doesn't need; it may be giving one's own life for others. Among the three givings, giving money is lowest and giving fearlessness (vô úy thí) is highest.

Thus, we can see the important role of fearlessness in the Bồ tát way. But no fear of what? No fear of pain and suffering; no fear of losing anything, including one's own life; no fear of not-gaining anything, including not gaining enlightenment; no fear of following and teaching a human-based way to liberation, in which man—and no one else, neither saints nor gods--is responsible for his actions.

Without attachment, without fear, Bồ tát drops all "crazy upside-down dream-thoughts" (điên đảo mộng tưởng), all distorted notions about life, and all attachments resuling from these distorted notions. Thus, Bồ tát attains nirvana.

(For more about the Bồ tát way, please see Lục độ ba-la-mật by Thích Thông Huệ, http://www.buddhismtoday.com/viet/phatphap/lucdobalamat.htm; Khuyến Phát Bồ Đề Tâm by Đại Sư Thật Hiền, http://www.dharmasite.net/khuyenphatbodetam_hanviet.htm).

Tam-thế chư Phật, y Bát-nhã-ba-la mật-đa cố đắc A-nậu-đa-la tam-miệu tam-bồ-đề.

(Chư Phật ba đời nương tựa Bát-nhã ba-la-mật-đa nên đạt được vô thượng chánh đẳng chánh giác.)

(All Buddhas of the three periods of time attain Anuttarasamyaksambodhi through reliance on prajna paramita.)

A-nậu-đa-la tam-miệu tam-bồ-đề is the transliteration of the Sankrist term Anuttarasamyaksambodhi, which is the fullest level of enlightenment. Anuttara means highest, nothing higher (vô thượng). Sammyak means main/essential comprehensive level (chánh đẳng). Sambodhi means main/essential enlightenment (chánh giác). It is translated into hán việt as vô thượng chánh dẳng chánh giác.

As we have mentioned previously, there are 4 levels of enlightenment—A la hán (Arhat), Bích Chi Phật (pratyekabuddha), Bồ tát (Bodhisattva), and Phật (Buddha). All the Buddhas of the past, the present, and the future attain the highest rank of enlightenment—vô thượng chánh đẳng chánh giác--from relying on Bát Nhã.

Cố tri Bát-nhã Ba-la-mật-đa, thị đại-thần chú, thị đại minh chú, thị vô-thượng chú, thị vô đẳng đẳng chú, năng trừ nhứt thiết khổ, chơn thiệt bất hư.

Cố thuyết Bát-nhã-ba-la-mật-đa chú, tức thuyết chú viết: Yết-đế Yết-đế, Ba-la yết-đế, Ba-la-tăng yết-đế, Bồ-đề. Tát bà ha

(Nên biết Bát-nhã ba-la-mật-đa là thần chú lớn, là minh chú lớn, là chú tối cao, là chú không gì sánh bằng, trừ hết mọi khổ ách, chắc thật, không dối.

Nên nói chú Bát-nhã ba-la-mật-đa, tức là nói chú rằng: Yết đế, Yết đế, Ba la Yết đế, Ba la tăng Yết đế, Bồ đề, Tát bà ha. (Qua rồi, qua rồi, qua bờ rồi, qua bờ hết rồi, giác ngộ rồi, vậy đó!))

(Therefore, know that prajna paramita is a great spiritual mantra, a great bright mantra, a supreme mantra, an unequalled mantra. It can remove all suffering; it is genuine and not false. That is why the mantra of prajna paramita was spoken. Recite it like this:

Gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha! )

This final verse is about the power of Bát Nhã as a mantra. In addition to being very sophisticated knowledge that can be learn consciously, Bát Nhã also operates at the level of human subsconscious as a mantra. Mantra (chú) is a saying that is supposed to have supernatural power. Psychologically, a phrase, with a particular pattern of sound vibration of the words when spoken, the meaning of the words, and the regular repetition by the speaker, operates as a smoothing self-hypnotism. For example, if someone keeps repeating every day "Be rich, be rich, I be rich" a hundred times a day, chances are he will find enough motivation to work hard to be very rich some day. In addition, many people also believe that mantra has supernatural power by invoking secret energies from the cosmos.

The Bát Nhã mantra is Gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha!, which means "Gone, gone, gone to the other shore; all gone to the other shore, already enlightened, so be it!"

Mantra is recited in the original language to invoke its power. In Vietnam, the Bát Nhã mantra is written and recited as a transliteration of the Sankrist original.

V. Conclusion

Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh is highly abstract, contains very high level of logic, and uses very sophisticated logic language unfamiliar to many people. Therefore, it generates great confusion for many. But the sutra is not a game of words by philosophers with too much time on their hand. It is a solid philosophy about the cosmos and the human life. Upon that philosophical foundation grows a very good system of ethics that governs our conduct. Buddhist ethics and philosophy bind together in a very coherent structure.

A word of caution for new students of Bát Nhã: Since Bát Nhã language is extremely versatile, one can quote any little phrase of Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh to say anything crazy, such as "You are talking to me but you are not existing" or "It is OK to do that, wrong is right and right is wrong." Bát Nhã is a comprehensive way of living—a logical philosophy, a system of practices and ethics, and a serious-but-non-attaching attitude on living. Playing word games with bits and pieces of Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh is like children building a house of cards, thinking that the house is the real shelter for them and their family. It is"Lost." Don't fall into that game.

As a living philosophy, Bát Nhã is positive, active, engaging, selfless, peaceful and liberating. It is a very good philosophy, upon which to build education and social development for any society. We Vietnamese are very fortunate to be the torch carrier of this philosophy. It is our honor and duty to preserve, nourish, enrich and share this philosophy widely with all our brothers and sisters, Vietnamese and non-Vietnamese alike, throughout the world.

Trần Đình Hoành

Washington DC

Friday, October 17, 2008

Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh (6)

Vô khổ tập diệt đạo.

(Chẳng có khổ, nguyên nhân khổ, sự diệt khổ, và con đường diệt khổ.)

(There is no suffering, no cause of suffering, no extinction of suffering, no path to extinction of suffering.)

This is the negation of the most fundamental of all Buddhist teachings: The Fourth Noble Truth (Tứ Diệu Đế) and the Noble Eightfold Path (Bát Chánh Đạo).

Tứ diệu đế (The Four Noble Truth) is four basic truths about life: khổ tập diệt đạo (suffering, causes of suffering, extinction of suffering, path to extinction of suffering). Tứ Diệu Đế is the first teaching by the Buddha after he reached Enlightenment, written in Kinh Chuyển Pháp Luân (Dharma-Wheel Turning Sutra).

1. Khổ (Suffering): Life contains suffering. Generally we can classify suffering into physical suffering and mental sufering. (a) Physical suffering includes birth, old age, sickness, and death (sinh lão bệnh tử). (b) Mental suffering includes losing what we like (thương mà mất), contacting what we don't like (ghét mà gặp), and unfulfilled desires (muốn mà không được). (c) However, there is also another kind of suffering that encompasses all other suffering—it is the suffering coming from "grasping onto the self" as a permanent everlasting self. We all can just see how a person who lives like he never dies will suffer.

But what about so many happy times we have in life? Wouldn't it be too negative to define life merely as a sea of suffering?

Yes, life contains both unhappy times and happy times (assuming that they are really happy times and not miseries in disguise as our experience shows often). Let's just say that Buddhist knowledge and practices take away unhappy times, by training our mind to be absolutely tranquil. A tranquil mind is always calm. It is not excited. It surpasses the typical excitement of sorrow and jollity. It constantly carries with it a quiet everlasting joy, which is different from the noisy happiness of a beer drinking bout.

Suffering, ultimately, is a mental phenomenon. Even if the stimulus is external, such as a hard slap on the face, it is still the mind that suffers or not—if your cheek is burning from the slap but your mind feels happy about it, then where is the suffering? Therefore, Buddhism teaches the extinction of suffering by teaching us to control our mind, i.e., to keep the mind tranquil at all time. The mind is the beginning and the end—the mind is ignorance and Buddha.

Kinh Pháp Cú (Dhammpada) is the most important sutra in Theravada Buddhism (Phật giáo nguyên thủy) and one of the most fundamental sutras in the entire Buddhist tradition. The first verse of Kinh Pháp Cú says, "The mind leads all the phenomena of existence; the mind is the leader, the mind makes them." (Ý dẫn đầu các pháp, ý làm chủ ý tạo). And verse 35 says, "The mind is unstable and flighty. It wanders wherever it desires. Therefore it is good to control the mind. A disciplined mind brings happiness." (Khó nắm giữ, khinh động, theo các dục quay cuồng. Lành thay điều phục tâm, tâm điều an lạc đến). (English by Harischandra Kaviratna at http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/dhamma/dham-hp.htm; Vietnamese by Thich Minh Chau at http://buddhismtoday.com/viet/kinh/pali/phapcu1.htm).

Thus, ultimately, the mind is the cause of both suffering and liberation. Buddhism takes away our suffering by training our own mind, not by directly changing the external world that we live in. But of course, when our mind is changed inside, we will change our external world accordingly.

2. Tập (Causes of Suffering)

Craving causes suffering. In Vietnamese, it is tham ái (greed and desire) or ái dục (desire and want). Verse 335 of Kinh Pháp Cú (Dhammapada) says, "Whosoever is overcome by this shameful craving which creates entanglements in this world, his sorrows increase like the luxuriant birana grass in the rainy season" (Ai sống trong dời này, bị ái dục buộc ràng, sầu khổ sẽ tăng trưởng, như cỏ Bi gặp mưa).

Kinh Chuyển Pháp Luân (Dharma-Wheel Sutra) mentions 3 types of craving: a) Craving for sensual things; b) craving based on the idea that life is permanent—chasing after things thinking that life never ends, c) craving based on the idea that death is the end of all things—indulging in things thinking that there is nothing after death.

3. Diệt (Extinction of Suffering)

Since craving is the cause of suffering, to stop suffering we need "to stop, to denounce, to leave, to cut away craving." The extinction of craving means the extinction of suffering and, therefore, means nirvana.

Please note, in Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên (twelve links of cause and effect), we have said ignorance is the first cause of suffering, and craving is the 8th link in the causal chain. To stop suffering there, we stop ignorance. But here in Tứ Diệu Đế (Four Noble Truths), we say that to stop suffering, we stop craving, meaning cutting off the causal chain in the middle at the 8^th link.

This seemingly technical distinction has a profound implication in practice: If we are intelligent enough to gain wisdom, our wisdom will conquer everything, including craving and suffering. If we are not endowed with high intellectual capacity to gain the ultimate wisdom, we still can stop suffering by following the simple rules of conduct to stop craving. The Buddhists usually say "There are 84 thousand Dharmas" (tám mươi bốn ngàn pháp môn), enough for each person in the world to choose a practice (pháp môn) that fits him/her. This methodology of using appropriate means for different kinds of people is called "phương tiện" (means, method). It allows Buddhism to grow everywhere, in all cultures, among all peoples, at all times.

4. Đạo (the Path to Extinction of Suffering)

This path has eight lanes and is called The Noble Eightfold Path (Bát Chánh Đạo)

1. Chánh kiến (right view): The understanding of the Four Noble Truths (Tứ Diệu Đế), vô thường (non-permanence) and vô ngã (non-self)

2. Chánh tư duy (right thought): Thoughts about stopping craving (lìa bỏ ái dục), about no anger and violence (vô sân), about no harmful activities (vô hại).

3. Chánh ngữ (right speech): no lying (không nói láo), no divisive speech (không nói hai lưỡi, nói đâm thọc), no abusive speech (không nói lời đôc ác), no idle chatters (không nói lời phù phiếm).

4. Chánh nghiệp (right action): No killing (không sát sinh), no stealing (không trộm cắp), no wrongful sexual conduct (không tà dâm).

5. Chánh mạng (right livelihood): No engaging in trade or profession that, either directly or indirectly, results in harm to other living beings.

6. Chánh tinh tấn (right effort): Try to prevent wrongful thoughts and actions from arising; if they have already arisen, try to stop them. Try to bring up good thoughts and actions; if they have already come, try to continue them.

7. Chánh niệm (right mindfulness): Observing our body, our feelings, our thoughts and Dharma (all things, all teachings) to conquer all cravings and distress.

8. Chánh định (right concentration): This is about the practice of meditation (thiền).

(For more about Tứ Diệu Đế and Bát Chánh Đạo, please read http://www.budsas.org/uni/1-bai/phap002.htm by Bình Anson, http://zencomp.com/greatwisdom/uni/u-4de-pkk/4de-01.htm, by Phạm Kim Khánh, http://www.budsas.org/uni/1-bai/phap002.htm by Thích Viên Giác).

Tứ Diệu Đế is the first and most fundamental Buddhist teaching about a path to enlightenment. It is the way to reach A la hán enlightenment in Theravada. However, Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh now negates Tứ Diệu Đế.

Vô trí diệc vô đắc.

(Không có trí, cũng không có đạt. No understanding and no attaining).

This is another negation of a very fundamental principle of Buddhism. All Buddhist teachings, regardless of what school, focus heavily on wisdom and knowledge (Trí), to conquer ignorance. Ignorance creates suffering. In Tứ Diệu Đế (Four Noble Truths), right view is the first element of The Noble Eightfold Path to extinction of suffering. In Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên (the twelve links of cause and effect), eliminating ignorance is the method to stop suffering. And of course, Bát Nhã itself is supposed to be the highest wisdom ever. Simply put, there is no Buddhism without knowledge and wisdom.

And, of course, the ultimate purpose of Buddhism is to cross over to the other shore, to attain enlightenment. But now Bát Nhã negates both wisdom and attaining (Nirvana). This is another way to say that no Buddhist teaching exists at all! The negation of all teachings has completed!

But why negate all the teachings? What does this negation mean?

(To be continued)
--
Tran Dinh Hoanh, Esq., LLB, JD
Washington DC

Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh (5)

Vô vô minh, diệc vô vô minh tận; nãi chí vô lão tử, diệc vô lão tử tận.

(Chẳng có vô minh, cũng chẳng có chấm dứt vô minh; cho đến chẳng có già chết, cũng chẳng có chấm dứt già chết.)

(No ignorance or ending of ignorance, up to and including no old age and death or ending of old age and death.)

Here is another major Buddhist teaching that is negated—Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên (mười hai nhân duyên, the twelve links of cause and effect, or Law of Causation). As we have mentioned earlier, everything comes and goes by causation. Thập nhị nhân duyên enumerates twelve causation links to show how ignorance ends up causing old age, sickness and death, which are at the core of suffering. Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên is also known as duyên khởi or duyên sinh (arising/birth from law of causation, or "dependent origination").

The twelve links starts with ignorance and ends with old age and death, with 10 other links in between. Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh does not enumerate all twelve, but only mentions the first link (ignorance) and the last link (old age and death) to indicate the entire chain of twelve.

The twelve links are:

1) Vô minh: Ignorance.

2) Hành: Mental moving, mental formation

3) Thức: Consciousness.

4) Danh sắc: Name and Form.

5) Lục Nhập: Six entrances through six organs (mắt,tai mũi, lưỡi, thân, ý--eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind).

6) Xúc: Contact

7) Thọ: Feeling, sensation.

8) Ái: Desire, craving

9) Thủ: Grasping, attachment

10) Hữu: Owning, possessing, existing.

11) Sanh: Birth.

12) Lão Tử: Old Age, (Illness) and Death.

Ignorance (vô minh), the 1st link, makes the mind lose its true nature of tranquility; ignorance causes the mind the move; this moving of the mind (hành) is the 2^nd link. The moving mind forms Consciousness (thức), the 3rd link. Consciousness looks at the world of forms and gives names to the forms, that is the 4th link (danh sắc; names and forms). This world of names and forms enters our body and mind through six entrances (lục nhập), that is the 5^th link. Six entrances generate contact with our body and mind; contact (xúc) is the 6^th link. Contact gives us sensations (thọ), the 7^th link. Sensations make us desire (ái), the 8^th link. Desire makes us grasp onto things (thủ), the 9^th link. Grasping gives us Posession (hữu), the 10^th link. Desire, grasping and possession are said to carry the karmic force of samsara (nghiệp lực của luân hồi), which will bring people back to a rebirth (reincarnation) at death, thus after Possession comes birth, the 11^th link. And of course, birth brings old age, illness and death, and all kinds of suffering, the 12th link.

The conventional explanation of Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên is usually connected to the concept of luân hồi (samsara) and tái sinh (rebirth). However, there is also a bio-psychological explanation that desire, grasping and possession make us constantly, in every second of the day, die and be reborn into the suffering of the mind.

Thus, ignorance is the ultimate cause of suffering. Ignorance starts the causal chain that ultimately results in suffering. If we eliminate ignorance, we subsequently eliminate rebirth, old age, death and suffering. (For in-depth study of Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên, please see Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên by Thích Thông Huệ at http://www.buddhismtoday.com/viet/phatphap/thapnhinhanduyen.htm, and Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên, translated by Phạm Kim Khánh at http://www.thuvienhoasen.org/ducphatvaphatphap-25.htm ).

Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên is said to be studied and practiced in Theravada Buddhism (phật giáo nguyên thủy). Such a practice is called tu duyên giác (training based on Law of Causation), and the person who achieves enlightenment through tu duyên giác is called Bích Chi Phật (pratyekabuddha) or Duyên Giác Phật (Enlightened through learning Law of Causation).

However, now Bát Nhã negates this major teaching of Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên: Vô vô minh, diệc vô vô minh tận. Nãi chí vô lão tử, diệc vô lão tử tận. No ignorance, also no elimination of ignorance. Through the 12 links, all the way to no old age and death, and no elimination of old age and death. Thus Thập Nhị Nhân Duyên is completely negated.

At this point, we should take a brief break, to address the most misunderstood point in Buddhism:

If there is vô ngã (non-self, no permanent self), then what is it that is reborn many times, living many lives after many deaths?

Samsara (luân hồi) and reincarnation (tái sinh) were taught in Hinduism before Buddhism appeared. In Hinduism, each person has an eternal soul (Atman). This Atman survives death and reincarnates in next life, according to his karma (nghiệp). Karma is the result of each person's actions and is the force that determines reincarnation. The cycle of birth-death-reincarnation is samsara (luân hồi). When the person attains spiritual purity, he achieves salvation and is not reincarnated anymore. Then his Atman resides with Brahman (the One, God) in eternity.

Buddhism talks about karma, samsara and rebirth; however, Buddhist rebirth is different from Hindu reincarnation in a very fundamental point: In Buddhism, vô ngã means there is no permanent self. There is no permanent soul that survives death. A person's self dissolves after death. All the elements that made up him also dissolve; however, there is one element that survives—the alaya vijnana (a lại da thức).

Vijnana (thức) is consciousness, the knowing ability of the mind. There are eight vijnanas, the first five are associated with the five sense organs, the last three are associated with the mind.

1. Nhãn thức (eye consciousness, cakshu vijnana)

2. Nhĩ thức (ear consciousness, shrotra vijnana)

3. Tỉ thức (nose consciousness, ghrana vijnana)

4. Thiệt thức (tongue consciousness, jihva vijnana)

5. Thân thức (body consciousness, kaya vijnana)

6. Ý thức (mental consciousness, mano vijnana—evaluate and process information from the first five vijnanas)

7. Mạt-na thức (afflicted consciousness, klesha vijnana—thinking about itself, thinking that there is a self)

8. A-lại-da thức (store consciousness, alaya vijnana—the leader of all consciousnesses, storing memories of all thoughts and actions)

The 8th vijnana, alaya vijnana (a-lại-da thức), is the only element of a being's self that survives death. It is called "store consciousness" because it stores karma of the self as well as karma of all previous selves (in previous lives). It determines how the next rebirth will be and carries the karmic seeds from one self (one life) to the next self (next life), and it accumulates karma as it goes through lives. But this "storage" is neutral; it doesn't do "thinking;" all the thinking is done by the first seven vijnanas. In other words, this alaya vijnana is not "me" or "my soul" or my "self." It is only an element of me (during in my life) and carries the karmic seeds of countless lives from the endless beginning, through my life, and countless more lives to come.

In simple language of the computer age, we can say alaya vijnna is just a "memory chip." After my death, the alaya vijnana carries "the memory of me" (and memory of countless lives before me) to the next life in a new self. This new self is not my self, although it does has "the memory of me" in it.

Upon enlightenment, alaya vijnana becomes pure and one with the Truth (Chân Như, Tathagatagarba, Phật, Buddha), which is Không. Alaya vijnana itself as a separate entity ceases to exist. No more rebirth.

This subject of rebirth and samsara is very confusing, because:

1. Most Buddhists of Asia believe in the reincarnation of a permanent soul. This is really a Hindu teaching and is against the Buddhist teaching of non-self (no permanent self, no permanent soul). However, the idea of a permanent soul is very simple and straight forward and fits human intuition well. It is also supported by some Buddhist sutras themselves, such as Kinh Vu Lan (Ullambana Sutra), in which Mục Kiền Liên (Mu-lien) found his mother's soul being punished in hell. (See Kinh Vu Lan at http://www.budsas.org/uni/u-kinh-bt-ngan/vulan.htm). The strong influence of this sutra is shown in the fact that Vu Lan festival (Ullambana day) is an annual observed day in the Buddhist Asia. Of course, Mu-lien's mother may symbolically stands for our own ego, our own self, which is the mother of our confusing mind, with its attachment to greed, anger and ignorance (tham, sân, si). But the point is, the vast majority of Asian Buddhists believe in the reincarnation of a soul.

2. Alaya Vijnana, and a rebirth without a permanent self, is a very complex teaching of a major school of Buddhism: Yogacara (Duy Thức Tông). Very few Buddhists master this subject.

3. Most western Buddhists don't believe in Samsara and karmic rebirth. They think the Karmic rebirth theory is unnecessary in the large structure of Buddhist teaching. (Please see "A Buddhist Ethic Without Karmic Rebirth?" by Winston L. King at http://www.quangduc.com/English/Ethics/20.buddhistkarma.html.

(For some easy reading on non-self and Buddhist rebirth, please see "Anatta or Soul-lessness" by Narada Mahthera at http://www.enotalone.com/article/4090.html, and "Is there an Eternal Soul?" at http://www.purifymind.com/EternalSoul.htm. For a quick reading on A lại da thức, please see definition of A lại da thức at http://thuvienhoasen.org/tudienphathoc-vietanh-thienphuc-A.htm. For Duy Thức Luận (Yogaraca), please see http://thuvienhoasen.org/index-phathoc-tamlyhocphatgiao.htm).

--
Tran Dinh Hoanh, Esq., LLB, JD
Washington DC

Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh (4)

Further expansion of Bát Nhã

As we've mentioned previously, the first 2 verses summarize the gist of Bát Nhã teaching. The following verses are further expansion of Bát Nhã.

Xá-Lợi-Tử! Thị chư Pháp không tướng, bất sanh bất diệt, bất cấu bất tịnh, bất tăng bất giảm.

(Xá Lợi Tử, mọi sự đều là không, chẳng sanh chẳng diệt, chẳng dơ chẳng sạch, chẳng tăng chẳng giảm.)

(Shariputra, all dharmas are emptiness. They are not borrn, not destroyed, not defiled, not pure, and they neither increase nor diminish).

This is the second and last time Xá-Lợi-Tử is addressed directly by name in Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh. This time is to indicate the major shift of không from human being to all things in existence. Recall in the first verse, we have ngũ uẩn giai không (five skandhas are emptiness) and ngũ uẩn indicates human being. In this verse we have chư pháp không tướng (all dharmas are emptiness). Chư pháp means tất cả các pháp, all things in the universe--both in the universe of the mind and in the external universe. Thus, now Bát Nhã expands its territory to affirm that not only human being but everything else in the universe is không.

Recall, previously in the example of my coming into the world and death, we have said "From the universe I come, and back to the universe I go," and from that we change to "From không I come, and back to không I go." The same thing can be said about everything else in the universe. From không the stars come, and back to không the stars go. Stars are born from không, and in due time, stars burst and disappear back to không.

But the universe itself, although serving as a good example to understand không, is not không yet, because we still can see the universe with our eyes and our mind—the universe itself is dharma (pháp) and all dharmas are không. We need to push our logic further, to its ultimate limits, to the absolute—all universes, both externally and in the mind, come from không and back to không they go. Không is the true nature of all things, and everything is only a fleeting manisfestation of không, just like waves are fleeting manifestation of water.

Here we can see the relationship between "substance" and "phenomenon." Water is the substance, wave is the phenomenon. Subtance and phenomenon are not 2 different things; substance and phenomenon are just 2 different ways to talk about the same thing. Wave is not different from water, water is not different from wave; wave is water, water is wave. Everthing is not different from không, không is not different from anything; all things are không, không is everything.

Standing on the beach to watch the sea, if we look at the waves, we can see that some new waves are born, some old waves are destroyed, some waves are muddy, some waves are clean, some waves increase, some waves decrease. However, the water is just water, always there, not born, not destroyed, not dirty, not clean, not increasing, not decreasing. Thus, when we look at all things in the universe, we see comings and goings and all kinds of movements and changes. But if we look at the substance of all things, which is không, then không is just không, always there, never born, never destroyed, never dirty, never clean, never increasing, never decreasing. That is the meaning of "Thị chư pháp không tướng, bất sanh, bất diệt, bất cấu, bất tịnh, bất tăng, bất giảm."

So now we have the defining characteristics of Không:

1. Không is the substance of all things in the universe (and everything in the universe is the manifestion of Không).

2. Không is absolute—always there, never born, never destroyed, never dirty, never clean, never decreasing, never increasing, etc.

This concept of Không is somewhat similar to the concept of God in theist religions, with one major difference: God has an active personality that actively engages in human life and the life of the universe, while Không is absolutely neutral.

Thị cố không trung, vô sắc, vô thọ, tưởng, hành, thức; vô nhãn, nhĩ, tỷ, thiệt, thân, ý; vô sắc, thinh, hương, vị, xúc, pháp; vô nhãn giới, nãi chí vô ý-thức-giới.

(Cho nên, trong không chẳng có sắc, chẳng có thọ, tưởng, hành, thức; chằng có mắt, tai, mũi, lưỡi, thân, ý; chẳng có màu sắc, âm thanh, hương thơm, vị nếm, xúc cảm, các pháp; chẳng có nơi để nhìn, cho đến chẳng có nơi để ý thức.)

( Therefore, in emptiness there is no form, feeling, cognition, formation, or consciousness; no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no sights, sounds, smells, tastes, objects of touch, or dharmas; no field of the eyes, up to and including no field of mind-consciousness).

From this verse on, Bát Nhã presents a list of all fundamental teachings by the Buddha himself. These teachings are the foundation of Buddhism. They make up Buddhism. However, Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh starts to negate all teachings, one by one.

At this time, we need to keep in mind these points:

First, in Bát Nhã language, negation and affirmation are the same. Sắc bất dị không, không bất dị sắc; sắc tức thị không, không tức thị sắc.

Second, không is the substance of all things, including all teachings, all practices. Like everything else, teachings and practices are merely phenomena--fleeting manifestation of không.

Third, if we observe the sea and focus our thinking on the water, we can say that only the water exists and the waves do not really exist—they are just movements of water. Similarly, when we focus our thinking on the substance of all things in the universe—không—we can say in không nothing really exist; everything is just fleeting manifestation of không. That is why in this verse that we are examining, Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh says, "In không, there is no…"

And then Bát Nhã lists a full list of Buddhist teachings. The question is "Why does Bát Nhã Tâm Kinh take the trouble to list an entire list of teachings, just to negate them one by one? What is the purpose of this careful negation?"

We will answer this question, but before that we have to know what teachings are listed and negated. Let's examine the list.

Ngũ uẩn (sắc thọ tưởng hành thức—five skandhas: form, feeling, perception, mental formation, consciousness) are what make a human being. Bát Nhã now negate five skandhas.

Lục căn (nhãn nhĩ tỷ thiệt thân ý—sáu gốc: mắt tai mũi lưỡi, thân ý-- six roots, six sensing organs: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, mind): These are the gate, the interface, between the external world and the world of our mind. Without these we do not exist, both physically and mentally. But Bát Nhã now negates lục căn.

Lục trần (sắc thanh hương vị xúc pháp—six dusts or six gunas or six sense objects: sights, sounds, smells, tastes, objects of touch, and dharmas). Lục trần correspond to lục căn in the preceding paragraph. Lục trần make up the entire universe. The first five (sights, sounds, smells, tastes, objects of touch) make up the physical universe, the last one "dharmas"—all things (that the mind can sees)--makes up the mental universe.

Lục trần (six dusts) from outside enter our boby and mind through lục căn (six roots) and will give us sensations, which will make us desire, and from desire all troublesome things come. That is why these six things are called six dusts (lục trần). The act of lục trần entering our body through lục căn is called lục nhập (six entrances).

Lục trần is another fundamental Buddhist teaching. Lục trần make up the universe. But Bát Nhã now negates lục trần.

Vô nhãn giới, nãi chí vô ý thức giới. Chẳng có nơi để nhìn, cho đến chẳng có nơi để ý thức. No field of the eyes, up to and including no field of mind-consciousness.

Here we are talking about lục giới (six realms of six sense organs), starting with nhãn giới (realm of the eyes), to nhĩ giới (realm of the ears), tỉ giới (realm of the nose), thiệt giới (realm of the tongue), thân giới (realm of the body), all the way to ý thức giới (realm of the mind). Bát nhã uses the short way of mentioning only the first (eyes) and the last realm (mind) to indicate all six realms.

These six realms make up the entire universe—tangible universe of the first five sense organs and intangible universe of the mind. But again, Bát Nhã negates all six realms.

--
Tran Dinh Hoanh, Esq., LLB, JD
Washington DC

Ý nghĩa Tịnh độ

Tịnh độ của Đức Phật hiện hữu trong từng suy nghĩ, trong từng việc làm với tâm từ bi và tuệ giác của Ngài...

Khi Đức Phật an trụ trong Thiền định dưới cội Bồ Đề và thành tựu quả vị Vô thượng Chánh đẳng giác, bấy giờ, Tịnh độ mười phương hiện ra trước Ngài. Có thể nói, Tịnh độ của Đức Phật hiện hữu trong từng suy nghĩ, trong từng việc làm với tâm từ bi và tuệ giác của Ngài.

Ở giai đoạn đầu, khi Ngài khoác áo Sa môn đi khất thực, sống cuộc đời vô cùng thanh đạm mà những người xung quanh thấy Ngài sống cực khổ, vất vả, nhưng thật sự cuộc sống phạm hạnh cao quý đó đã cho Ngài niềm an lạc vô biên. Ngài nhận ra được tâm an lạc chính là Tịnh độ.
Tinh thần này về sau được Thiền tông triển khai thành học thuyết Tịnh độ ở tâm. Người tu theo lý này cũng có đời sống phạm hạnh như Đức Phật, tưng bước chân chậm rãi hành Thiền, họ bước vào Tịnh độ và tâm họ cũng theo đó an trú ở Tịnh độ. Như vậy, cả thân tâm thanh tịnh thì thế giới hiện hữu là Tịnh độ; nói cách khác, Tịnh độ được hình thành trong tâm, thế giới nôi tâm trong sáng, thuần khiết là Tịnh độ.

Tuy nhiên, pháp môn Tịnh độ đi xa hơn một bước nữa. Bắt đầu tâm ở trong Tịnh độ rồi, nhưng hành giả không thể đem thân tứ đại vào Tịnh độ được, mà phải đem thân phước đức và trí tuệ mới có thể đi theo tâm thanh tịnh để thâm nhập Tịnh độ, từ đó hình thành cõi Tịnh độ thứ hai gọi là Thật báo trang nghiêm Tịnh độ, một thế giới do phước đức, trí tuệ và tâm thanh tịnh tạo nên.
Như vậy, qua loại hình thế giới thứ hai hiện thành Tịnh độ chư Phật mười phương; vì chư Phật đã có đầy đủ ba yếu tố cần thiết tạo thành Tịnh độ, đó là tâm chư Phật thanh tịnh, phước đức chư Phật viên mãn và trí tuệ chư Phật tuyệt đỉnh. Trang nghiêm bằng ba Thánh tài như vậy, chư Phật mới xây dựng được thế giới vật chất thanh tịnh thực và với phước đức trí tuệ hoàn mỹ, các Ngài tập họp được chúng Hiền thánh một cách đơn giản. Thực tế cho thấy nơi nào có phước đức và trí sáng, nơi đó dễ dàng quy tụ được người tốt, người giỏi. Tịnh độ Thật báo được kết hợp như vậy.
Đức Phật Thích Ca cho biết Đức Phật Di Đà trải qua vô lượng kiếp tu hành để kết thành thọ mạng viên mãn của Báo thân, nghĩa là từ khi phát tâm tu hành cho đến thành tựu đạo quả, Ngài đã hành Bồ tát đạo không mệt mỏi, phát huy được trí tuệ vô thượng và phước đức vô cùng, mới kiến tạo thành thế giới Cực lạc ở phương Tây.
Riêng pháp môn Tịnh độ chịu ảnh hưởng tinh thần Tịnh độ của Đức Phật Di Đà mà Đức Phật Thích Ca đã nói rằng chúng sinh ở Ta bà có duyên với Đức Phật Di Đà và Tịnh độ tông đã được triển khai từ Tịnh độ tam kinh, Tịnh độ ngũ kinh. Tịnh độ tam kinh đặt nền tảng trên ba bộ kinh là kinh Vô Lượng Thọ, kinh Quán Vô Lượng Thọ và kinh Di Đà. Kinh Vô Lượng Thọ nói về hành trạng của Đức Phật Di Đà khi tu hành Bồ tát đạo. Kinh Quán Vô Lượng Thọ chỉ phương cách cho chúng ta đưa tâm về Tịnh độ Tây phương của Phật Di Đà. Và kinh Di Đà rút gọn lại nhân hạnh quả đức của Phật Di Đà để chúng ta lấy đó làm hành trang thực tập pháp môn Tịnh độ.
Pháp môn Tịnh độ ở Việt Nam cũng hình thành trên tinh thần Tịnh độ tam kinh, nhưng vì đất nước chúng ta có truyền thống tu Thiền từ lâu đời, nên pháp tu Thiền và Tịnh thường được hòa nhập lẫn lộn. Vì vậy, có người tu niệm Phật nhưng thực tập Thiền quán, hoặc có người tu Thiền nhưng niệm Phật để cầu chứng Niệm Phật tam muội, hay cầu sự gia bị của Đức Phật Di Đà để được vãng sinh Tây phương Cực lạc.

Pháp môn Tịnh độ phát triển mạnh ở Việt Nam trong thời kỳ chấn hưng Phật giáo. Các Hòa thượng nghĩ rằng Phật pháp đang suy đồi, người ta không có điều kiện nâng cao trình độ kiến thức học Phật để biết rộng tất cả các pháp môn của Phật dạy cũng như khó thực tập các pháp môn khác, nên quý Ngài cho rằng pháp niệm Phật đơn giản, ai cũng thực hành được. Từ đó, pháp môn niệm Phật được đề cao và đứng đầu là Hòa thượng Trí Tịnh, Ngài đã thành lập Tịnh độ Liên hữu quy tụ những người tu Tịnh độ chuyên niệm Phật Di Đà. Và tiếp nối pháp môn niệm Phật của Hòa thượng Trí Tịnh là cố Hòa thượng Thiền Tâm đã thành lập đạo tràng tu Tịnh độ ở Đại Ninh. Từ đó đến nay, pháp môn Tịnh độ được phổ cập trong cả nước, tập trung nhiều Phật tử hành trì được lợi lạc.
Cầu mong rằng tất cả đệ tử Phật thực hiện đúng đắn giáo pháp Phật dạy để xây dựng cho mình cõi Tịnh độ tâm ngay trên nhân gian này và khi cánh cửa ở thế giới Ta bà khép lại, chúng ta bước vào Tịnh độ chư Phật trong mười phương.

HT. Thích Trí Quảng