We finished Lesson 20 of Learning from Buddha College and Seminary (LFBCS) course DCB23 with a discussion of the truth of emptiness as expressed from the Heart Sutra that says, “. . . no avidya and also no ending of avidya, up to and including no aging and death and also no ending of aging and death; . . .” We covered the first eight of the twelve links of conditioned origination and will hopefully finish the last eight next Saturday. What follows is a summary of what we discussed in these eight links: 1-avidya, 2-action, 3-consciousness, 4-name and form, 5-six entrances, 6-contact, 7-feeling, and 8-craving. Next week we will discuss the remaining: 9-grasping, 10-existence, 11-birth, 12-aging and death.
1-What is “avidya” the condition for?
“Avidya [or ignorance] is the condition for action [or volition, predispositions, activity, impulses]. Avidya being the condition for action refers to us human beings and the beginningless afflictions from our past lives. That instigates inverted dream-thinking. That lack of knowledge covers the original appearance of ordinary people. . . the essence of avidya is the non-understanding of reality. Whether it is innate or arises through differentiation, its function is the obstruction of right understanding. . . it is the karmic hindrance of non-understanding from continual lifetimes and eons. It relates to past lifetimes, to any number of years in the past.”
What is “inverted dream-thinking”?
Although the Buddha Master does not give us a definition in this part of the text, He does explain it later on in Lesson 30:
“. . . inverted dream-thinking refers to ordinary people being attached to the five aggregates, thinking that they truly exist. Their attachment to form, feeling, conceptualization, action, and consciousness produces experiences and usages resulting from a deluded consciousness that differentiates. Such experiences and usages are those of an ordinary person and are afflictive. They are not the experiences and usages of a holy person stemming from the state of a Buddha. . . Thus, ordinary people are joyfully attached to the afflictions of cyclic birth and death. They naturally regard the afflictions of cyclic birth and death as the joys of human life. Although they are in the midst of the afflictions of cyclic birth and death, they still do not want to die. However, in the end, they are unable to escape from death. To be in such a state over a long period of time is called inverted dream-thinking. This refers to living beings that forever remain in such a state, living beings that undergo the sufferings of birth, aging, sickness, and death. That is what is meant by inverted dream-thinking.”
“Dream-thinking also refers to the four kinds of dreaming minds that are produced from the internal consciousness—arising, abiding, changing, and delusion. These four kinds of dreaming minds are like ropes that bind living beings to birth and death, tightly tethering them to the pillar of samsara. They thus forever remain in samsara, unable to achieve liberation. Dream-thinking mainly refers to the four kinds of dreaming minds engendered by the internal consciousness, namely, arising, abiding, changing, and delusion.”
The Buddha Master also defines what is meant by “arising, abiding” and more in this lesson which we will cover when we do LFBCS course DCB25.
2-What is “action” the condition for?
“Action is the condition for consciousness. Avidya produces conditions that produce action. Because there is action, the condition of action produces consciousness. Action depends upon afflictions resulting from avidya and cognitive distortion in the past to create all kinds of good and evil karma that will move along in the flow of transmigration through the three times. . . The karmic forces from all of the good and evil karma one has created out of avidya pull and lead one’s deluded consciousness, generating the one thought that causes one to enter a mother’s womb. This is how action, as the condition, gives rise to consciousness. . . That is, as for action, it relies upon afflictions that are based on past avidya and inverted thinking. It relies upon afflictions resulting from past avidya and distorted thinking. Avidya is relied upon as the condition for action. Action relies upon avidya to conditionally arise, leading to cognitive distortion and afflictions that result in the doing of all kinds of good and evil acts or karma. . . After creating evil karma, one will move along in the flow of transmigration through the three times—the past time, present time, and future time. . . Here, the term “mother’s womb” is not some metaphor. It means a real human being entering a mother’s womb. This is action being the condition for consciousness. Having planted the embryo cause, consciousness is then produced.”
3-What is “consciousness” the condition for?
“Consciousness is the condition for name and form. Because there is mind consciousness, it then has to attach itself to form. Thus, consciousness is the condition for name and form. Form here means shape or visual appearance. Consciousness still must depend on the karma of action that stems from avidya and afflictions of previous lifetimes. Such karma is contained in the eighth consciousness, the alaya consciousness, the mind of differentiation. Then, with all of the karma brought along, all of the karmic forces are thereby brought along. . . Consciousness is the root of differentiating all phenomena. Consciousness is our mind consciousness. . . it is the root of differentiating all phenomena, including our six sense bases.”
4-What is “name & form” the condition for?
“Name and form are the conditions for the six entrances. . . In this context, the word “name” always means mind. Mind is the mind sense base. . . The mind consciousness or differentiating mind is the differentiations made by an ordinary person. . . This mind consciousness does not have a concrete shape or appearance.”
“Form is an entity with substance. . . , form has the physical shape and appearance of sense bases and sense objects. . . As soon as consciousness enters the embryo, the overall term for everything there is “mind and form.” With the passage of time, the six sense bases gradually, in accord with conditions, give rise to the appearance of sense bases.”
5-What are the six entrances” the conditions for?
“The six entrances are the conditions for contact. The complete set of six sense bases that the fetus has is called the six entrances. Since the fetus possesses eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind, they are called the six entrances. They are integrated into the body and are complete. . . This condition of the entrances will generate attachment. Attachment is clinging or grasping with attachment.”
6-What is “contact” the condition for?
“Contact is the condition for feeling. After there is the condition of contact, the power of feeling naturally arises. This refers to the feelings generated by the contact of the six sense bases with their external objects right after the newborn leaves the womb. With the arising of attachment, there naturally are feelings.”
7-What is “feeling’ the condition for?
“Feeling is the condition for craving. . . The condition of craving can engender all the afflictions of birth and death and the determination to liberate oneself from birth and death. Feeling means reception. To feel means to receive everything, to accept everything. It refers to the differentiation of painful, pleasant, and neither-painful-nor-pleasant feelings produced from the six sense bases contacting the six sense objects.”
8-What is “craving” the condition for?
“Craving is the condition for grasping. . . After feeling is produced, it is natural to use thought to differentiate between what is good and what is bad, what is kind and what is evil, what is beneficial or, on the contrary, what is harmful, and whether or not something should be taken as one’s own. . . It means that the mind differentiates anything and then immediately determines whether to love it or not love it. . . If the mind loves it, one will grasp for it. It will be loved at different degrees. That is, distinctions are made based on how much love there is. It may be great love or love involving violent force, and so forth. . . When it [intense craving] actually occurs depends on the person’s innate character, inner quality, environment, living conditions, and other factors that differ among people.”
“The condition of craving produces the condition of grasping. Then, one becomes confused about one’s own intrinsic nature. Hence, the condition of craving is indeed a big enemy. . . Craving is the root of birth and death. As long as you have craving, you will give rise to the root of birth and death. . . Craving includes the seven emotions and six desires. Hence, it is the foremost of all karmas [that lead to birth and death].”
What are the seven emotions?
“They are joy, anger, sorrow, pleasure, love, hatred, and desire. . . Joy is gladness or cheerfulness. Anger is indignation, fury, or wrath. Sorrow is sadness, grief, or melancholy self-pity. Pleasure is happiness or delight. Love is having a liking or fondness. It has the same meaning as craving, which links to grasping. Hatred is detestation, loathing, or opposition stemming from aversion. Desire is greedy or covetous desire.”
What are the six desires?
“[1] The first of the six desires is called desire for colors and forms. That is the desire or craving from greed or attachment that arises when one sees the various colors, such as blue, yellow, red, white, and black, and when one sees the myriad appearances, such as that of a man, a woman, and so on. [2] The second desire is the desire for appearances. This is the craving of greedy desire that arises upon seeing a dignified or beautiful face or the various appearances of men and women. [3] The third one is called the desire for a majestic demeanor. [4] The fourth is the desire for language, tone, and sound. [5] The fifth is the desire for delicateness and smoothness. [6] The sixth is the desire for loveliness between a man and a woman. This is a type of desire or pleasure that arises from seeing the outward appearance of men or women who have a dignified bearing, attractive manner, handsome face, or elegant manner.”
The Buddha Master also gave many examples to illustrate each of the links and how and why we should understand them. He provides a very detailed description of the “Wheel of Life”— how human beings come into existence and how the condition of contact is produced. It is only briefly described here. You need to read the entire text of Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra to fully understand this.
Next:
We will hopefully finish our discussion of the twelve links of conditioned origination by starting Lesson 21 of DCB23 at our November 9, 2024 ZOOM session at 9:00 am discussing the Heart Sutra, starting with question #243.
The class is still open to anyone who wants to join. If you have enrolled in C41 or DCB22 (or DCB21 or DCB26) you may continue to use the same ZOOM link to attend the Saturday morning discussions. You will need to enroll in DCB23 to be able to watch the video recordings of the classes, download study materials, or study the related questions.
TO DATE: DCB23-Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra: PART TWO–II and C41-Three Principal Stages & Paths of Buddhist Practice
The recording of the November 2, 2024 DCB23-Lesson 20B class is now available. You must be enrolled in DCB23 in one of the membership programs at the LFBCS to access the course materials, questions covered (in parenthesis), and/or the class recordings. Please note that these links will only work if you are logged into LFBCS with your membership identification number AND are enrolled in this class.
“Sariputra, Form Does Not Differ from Emptiness; Emptiness Does Not Differ from Form. Form is Emptiness; Emptiness Is Form. The same is true of feeling, conceptualization, action, and consciousness. Sariputra, emptiness is the characteristic of all dharmas. They do not arise or perish, are not defiled or pure, do not increase or decrease. Therefore, in emptiness there is no form, no feeling, conceptualization, action, or consciousness; no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, or objects of mind; no realm of eyes, up to and including no realm of mind consciousness; no avidya and also no ending of avidya, up to and including no aging and death and also no ending of aging and death; . . .”
November 2, 2024: Lesson 20B-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “. . . . No avidya and also no ending of avidya, up to and Including no aging and death and also no ending of aging and death; . . . ” (235-242) and (HERE) for recording of class.
October 26, 2024: Lesson 20A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “. . . . No avidya and also no ending of avidya, up to and Including no aging and death and also no ending of aging and death; . . . ” (220-235) and (HERE) for recording of class.
October 26, 2024: Lesson 19B-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “. . . no forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, or objects of mind; no realm of eyes, up to and including no realm of mind consciousness; . . . ” (215-219) and (HERE) for recording of class.
October 19, 2024: Lesson 19A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “. . . no forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, or objects of mind; no realm of eyes, up to and including no realm of mind consciousness; . . . ” (177-191 192-214) and (HERE) for recording of class.
October 12, 2024: Lesson 18B-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “. . . no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind; . . . ” (155-176) and (HERE) for recording of class.
October 5, 2024: Lesson 18A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “Therefore, in emptiness there is no form, no feeling, conceptualization, action or consciousness; . . .” (133-154) and (HERE) for recording of class.
September 28, 2024: Lesson 17B-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “The same is true of feeling, conceptualization, action, and consciousness. Sariputra, emptiness is the characteristic of all dharmas. They do not arise or perish, are not defiled or pure, do not increase or decrease.” (122-132) and (HERE) for recording of class.
September 21, 2024: Lesson 17A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “The same is true of feeling, conceptualization, action, and consciousness. Sariputra, emptiness is the characteristic of all dharmas. They do not arise or perish, are not defiled or pure, do not increase or decrease.” (86-89 and 90-121) and (HERE) for recording of class.
September 14, 2024: Lesson 16B-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “Form is Emptiness; Emptiness Is Form.” Second-Phase Principles” (71-85) and (HERE) for recording of class.
September 7, 2024: Lesson 16A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “Form is Emptiness; Emptiness Is Form.” Second-Phase Principles (49-70) and (HERE) for recording of class.
August 31, 2024: Lesson 15B–The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “Form is Emptiness; Emptiness Is Form.” (34-48) and (HERE) for recording of class.
August 24, 2024: Lesson 15A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–II, “Sariputra, Form Does Not Differ from Emptiness; Emptiness Does Not Differ from Form. Form is Emptiness; Emptiness Is Form.” (1-33) and (HERE) for recording of class.
CLICK for article on the entire text of Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra.
CLICK for article with instructions on how to enroll in LFBCS classes and how to register for the 8 ZOOM discussions.
CLICK for article on the last class held on DCB22 and links to videos of all 21 ZOOM class discussions on DCB22 held from February 10, 2024 to August 3, 2024.
CLICK for article on the last class held on DCB21 and links to videos of all 18 ZOOM class discussions on DCB21 held from November 2022 to April 2023. Note: not all of the forwards, notes, and introductions are complete.
CLICK for article on last class held on DCB26 and links to videos of all 8 ZOOM class discussions held on DCB26 held from April 2024 to June 2024.
CLICK for Background information on Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra and why it is such an important text.
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