In China, some modern men and women – who have experienced a university education – decide to embrace the hard life of Buddhist monasticism. This is at the point in their lives when they could be embarking upon a ‘paid’ career, earning a salary, falling in-love and travelling the world! This is the time – much the same as in the West – where young people enjoy their lives and find their way through existence. Of course, although the language and culture are very different – modernity brings its own equivalents. Yes – the outer-layer of history, tradition and everyday culture is different in China to that found to the West – but there are certain underlying realities that prove that we are all human! Giving-up their modern clothes and shaving the styled-hair from their heads – these people are entering an entirely different world which is controlled by the strictures of the Vinaya Discipline. The following of the Vinaya Discipline is not a ‘choice’ (as it is in Japan), but is a ‘legal’ requirement in China. Yes – the Vinaya Discipline has been ‘written’ into China’s ‘Secular Law’ so that it is a ‘Criminal Offence’ for anyone who has left society and embarked upon the Buddhist monastic path – not to follow the Vinaya Discipline (this was decided by Master Xu Yun 1840-1959). From the day of full ordination, a Chinese Buddhist monastic ‘gives-up’ all rights to a paid livelihood, marriage, off-spring and normal social interaction. From this day onwards the desire mechanism is permanently ‘switched-off’ never to be re-activated at any time! (The recipient is only bound to these rules for as long as he or she remains wearing a robe and being a monastic. Should they decide to leave this lifestyle – then they must follow the equally strict ‘disengagement’ rules so that they can ‘legally’ and ‘lawfully’ exit the Vinaya Discipline without fear of prosecution, and return to the condition of ‘lay’ life). A Buddhist monastic must also take the Bodhisattva Vows which can never be cancelled as they do not require celibacy or living as a monastic as pre-requisites. Bodhisattva Vows exist to include the entirety of a) humanity, and b) all other life, in an all-embracing attitude of wisdom, loving kindness and compassion in all circumstances! The Vinaya Discipline and Bodhisattva Vows do overlap in many of their requirements – particularly in ‘not killing’ or ‘causing to kill’. Perhaps the Vinaya Discipline can be referred to as ‘wisdom’ based leaning toward compassion – whilst the Bodhisattva Vows are premised upon ‘compassion’ leaning more toward wisdom. Within China, Buddhist monastics often undergo a ritual whereby one, two, three, six, nine, or twelve symmetrical dots are ‘burned’ onto the naked, shaven scalp (usually at different times and steady progressing in numbers as more Bodhisattva Vows are taken). This ritual is unique to Chinese Buddhism and is believed to have started in 1288 CE (during the Yuan Dynasty) – when Shi Zhide (释志德) [(1235-1322] introduced the practice whilst Head Monk of the ‘Tianxi’ (天禧) Temple in Jinling! As the recipient receives and recites the Bodhisattva Vows – burning incense cones are placed on top of the head forming a rectangle or square-shape. This is known as the practice of applying the 'Fragrant Scar' (香疤 - Xiang Ba). The recipient must be ‘detached’ from the pain of burning – whilst understanding that the ‘world is burning’ and that ‘humanity is suffering’! The Buddhist monastic path is dedicated to the permanent uprooting of greed, hatred and delusion from the mind and body of the of the monastic, from the minds and bodies of all living beings, and from the physical environment! As this is such an awesome responsibility – the Chinese Buddhist monastic forfeits all rights to an ordinary existence...
0 Comments
Many people view matter as a solid wall of obscuration that the bodily organs can ‘sense’ but do little else with. Matter can be measured and it can be manipulated, but Buddhist meditation offers another way of ‘seeing’ matter. Quantum Physics explains that matter as a solid wall is an illusion regardless of how powerful this image might at first seem. Matter, we are told, is a non-permanent assemblage of sub-atomic particles. In other words, regardless of how it seems to be, it is not ‘solid’ by any means. The Buddha, for instance, taught that material reality is comprised of atoms which flash in and out of existence at a tremendous speed! To the perceiving mind at its normal rate of frequency, this ‘flashing’ cannot be seen and so reality seems solid and unchanging. Modern science has also proven that human consciousness also flashes on and off tremendously fast – creating the false impression of perceptual permanency. When a practitioner meditates for long periods of time, the operating frequency of the mind is slowly altered and changed so that the perception of reality changes to accommodate a more scientifically correct understanding of reality. This is why the Buddha explains reality as comprising of a simultaneous perception of ‘form’ and ‘void’ - with no contradiction whatsoever! Once the base frequency of the ‘everyday’ mind is dislodged from its dominant position – the perceptual foundation sees reality from a new depth of perception. As the default position that everyone is born with is set to perceive ‘matter’ only – it is the ‘empty’ essence of material reality that needs to be penetrated, understood and normalise. This is not a matter of leaving one state of mind for another, but rather the act of ‘expanding’ the mind so that it can perceive more data per second or mili-second, etc. Matter is just as solid as before - but now its ‘empty’ nature is fully understood. Emptiness is just as pervasive as before – but now its material aspect is better understood. The Buddha never denies the existence of the physical universe – but he does advocate that humanity must develop the mind to realise a different way of ‘perceiving’ reality as it actually is.
An Earnest Dhamma Appeal🙏
Dear Dharma Friend, As requested by a forest monk name as Venerable Suman Jyoti Thero, I am reaching out to you with lot's of Metta for a generous appeal for DONATION for construction of Aryagiri Vipassana Meditation Center. Bhante is not active on social media and he only rarely used it. It is said that through wisdom can the mind be freed from defilements, but Dana is also a prerequisite for meditation, and Samadhi leads to wisely reflection, and wisely reflection leads (together with the power of Samadhi) to wisdom, and wisdom leads to detachment, and detachment leads to awakening. The subject of this letter presents just such an opportunity and it is for the most worthy of causes-to support a place of worship and cultivation of mind, at Aryagiri Hill situated near Indo-Bangladesh Border in southern Mizoram, India. In so doing through your generous support make manifest the words of the most basic Buddhist prayer, to support the teachings of the Vipassana Meditation, the remembrance of the Buddha, and the followers of the Buddha. Establishment and construction of a Vipassana Meditation Center at this remote areas will serve the diverse spiritual needs of all Micro minority chakma Buddhists and non-Buddhists with warmth and spiritual openness. It will also serve as a center to teach and practice the techniques of meditation for the purpose of spiritual development. The first phase for construction of Buddha shrine hall and two rooms for the monks have been completed with the generous donations made by various donor's from different countries. The second phase will have to be built for the meditation hall and it's the second floor of the vihara. So, Please help Bhante to raise funds to build a Vipassana Meditation Center at Aryagiri Hill. I am really compelled to reaching out to you on behalf of Ven. Suman Jyoti Thera in this meritorious deed, to raise funds required to contribution the main building for the Vipassana center. Bhante live alone in the hill surrounded by deep jungle in search of the ultimate truth. The contribution will help and in its entirety go towards a new Vipassana Retreat Meditation Center. By making a donation to your ability, you are indeed lending a hand to continue this precious effort to spread the lucid word of the Lord Gauthama Buddha. So please help Venerable Sumanjyoti Bhante with your donations to build the Vipassana Meditation Center at Aryagiri Hill. Let us share the wonderful and rare gift of Dhamma, learn it, understand it, and live accordingly. The plan estimate for construction of second floor of the Ariyagiri Vipassana Meditation Center can be sent if required. Any amount of donation either big or small is heartily accepted. All the pious Dharma friends are requested to ask for the bank details to send your donation towards building the Vipassana Retreat Center of Bhante Suman Jyoti of Ariyagiri Hill near Bangladesh Border. May you all have the blessing by the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha. Your's in the Dhamma, With Metta, Sudip Fundraiser of The Ultimate Truth Preaching Mission (A registered Buddhist Organization based in Mizoram, India) & Volunteer of Aryagiri Vipassana Foundation. Lunglei District, Mizoram, India. Email: [email protected] WhatsApp 91+9612602899 Donation can be sent to the following methods:- Our PayPal Email-- [email protected] Our Bank Transfer method- Account Name: Sudip Chakma A/c No: 1463104000036962 Bank Name: IDBI BANK, LUNGLEI BRANCH. IFSC: IBKL0001463 MICR: 796259102 SWIFT CODE: IBKLINBB136 Sabbe Satta Bhavantu Sukhitatta - May all beings be well, may all beings be happy, may all beings be free from suffering _/\_ Richard Hunn (1949-2006) was an expert in the history, philosophy and cultural interpretation of the Yijing (易經) or ‘Change Classic’. This is this the common name for the far earlier ‘Zhouyi’ (周易) ‘Zhou Change’ - as the hexagrams (and probably the trigrams) were laid-down during early part of the Zhou Dynasty of ancient China (1134-256 BCE) - with Confucius (and others later adding explanatory texts affixed to divination judgements. The (broken and straight) lined-structures themselves, arose from the practice of a hot-poker touching the flat (underpart) of a turtle shell (plastron) - or an 'ox scapula' (or shoulder-bone), with cracks forming on the shell from the transferred heat. A question was asked (usually by the King) with a royal minister writing the question on the shell (thus forming legal a record of the consultation). The hot-poker would touch the shell with the resulting ‘steam’ interpreted as the question being transported up into the divine sky as the steam ‘rose’ upwards. The ancient ancestral spirit dwelling in the sky would answer the question by way of sending deliberate ‘cracks’ downwards into the shell – with the diviner interpreting these ‘received’ cracks according to the question asked in relation to the over-all situation being investigated by the King. This divining ‘judgement’ (and other observations) would be etched onto the turtle shell alongside the question and stored away in a special depository of used turtle-shell divinations. Through this process, vast libraries of ‘royal’ divination prognoses were developed, and it is from this array of data that the original ‘Yijing’ was eventually formed into book. As the average number of cracks appeared to be ‘six’ - a ‘hexagram’ was chosen to represent this system of continuous change, together with the resultant judgements, situations and line commentaries, etc. There is a debate as to whether the ‘hexagram’ or ‘pentagram’ (five lined structure) was the original structure due to the complete nature of certain five-lined commentaries (as if the sixth-line is superfluous and added later), just as there is a debate about whether the eight trigrams were in the original Yijing or added during the rise of the Yin-Yang School (C. 300 BCE) with their content projected backwards. Trigrams are not specifically mentioned in the sixty-four chapters of the Yijing, and neither is the ideal of yin and yang (Hexagram 61 mentions ‘yin’ as a ‘shadow’ only). The eight trigrams and the Yin-Yang ideal is contained in the ‘Great Treatise’ (大傳 - Da Zhuan) - which was compiled from a number of disparate texts from around 500 BCE onwards (a process continuing perhaps into the Latter Han Dynasty). This information is either ‘new’ and was cleverly integrated into the Yijing – or it was a clarification of what had already come before. No one knows for sure. Besides all this interesting study, it is said that the sixty-four hexagrams of the Yijing prepare the enlightened Ch’an practitioner to ‘integrated’ the void aspect of the mind into the ‘material’ (form) aspect of the physical world, and exhibit behaviour that is never out of step with the Dao (道).
Note: It is recorded in Chinese language sources that different (but similar) divination manuals existed during the Xia Dynasty (2205 -1766 BCE) and the Shang Dynasty (1783 - 1122 BCE) - and that these evoled into the 'Zhouyi' - but no evidence of these texts has yet been uncovered. “A man like this will not go where he has no will to go, will not do what he has no mind to do. Though the world might praise him and say he had really found something, he would look unconcerned and never turn his head; though the world might condemn him and say he had lost something, he would look serene and pay no heed. The praise and blame of the world are no loss or gain to him.” Daoist Immortal Zhuangzi Anyone who penetrates the empty mind ground instantly realises the ‘Dao’ (道) of reality. After-all, this perception of inner ‘void’ will always accompany the enlightened person as they traverse the materiality of the external world. One is neither ‘attached’ to the bliss-like nature of the inner void – and neither are they ‘hindered’ by the attractive nature of the external world! Perception, moment by moment, is a continuous ‘integration’ of form and void so that there is no contradiction or paradox present in everyday experience. This is why chopping wood and fetching water are prime examples of expressing the genuine and true ‘Dao’. Enlightenment within the Chinese Ch’an School is a living reality. It is not a dead teaching once known but now no longer understood. Chinese scholarship does not adhere to the various trends of interpretation extant in the West (or Japan) - as the Chinese people know their own culture. In my view it is the Cao Dong School that expresses the Chinese Ch’an School with the greatest scientific precision. The other four schools of Ch’an are all excellent in their own ways, and certainly contribute greatly to the reality of the living tradition of ancient Indian Buddhism (Dhyana) as it was transmitted into China. However, from the perspective of integrating the native Confucianism of China with the ‘foreign’ religion of Indian Buddhism – the ‘roundel’ system devised by Master Dong and Master Cao is nothing less than an Ingenious device for explaining the inner mind, the outer body and environment – and how both integrate and operate in the enlightened state! The Cao Dong School is the personal (and preferred) lineage of Master Xu Yun (1840-1959) - even though he agreed to ‘inherit’ ALL Five Schools of Chinese Ch’an (and did not discriminate in anyway). His root teaching was the Cao Dong School and this is what he passed-on to his personal students and disciples. This is known within China as Master Xu Yun had thousands of such descendants, but it is a reality he seldom discussed in public or talked about in his biography. A Ch’an monastic, for example, must be ‘lower’ than the lowest lay-person – so that he or she can act as a supportive foundation for all lay-Dharma practice! By following the Vinaya Discipline a Ch’an monastic learns to be like the broad earth found in the ‘Classic of Change’ (Yijing), so that the ‘divine sky’ of an expansive consciousness can be correctly cultivated in the sincere Dharma student. Charles Luk (1898-1978) inherited this Cao Dong teaching from Master Xu Yun and was tasked with transmitting it to the West. Charles Luk taught hundreds of people in the West, and I am sure he transmitted the Dharma to a number of discerning practitioners. However, Charles Luk taught my teacher - Richard Hunn (1949-2006) - who lived in the UK. One of the first instructions Richard Hunn gave me was that I was to spend at least ten years studying the ‘Book of Change’ (Yijing) - reading the profound text daily. I tended to read a single chapter ascribed to each of the 64 hexagrams and continued to repeat this cycle until the thinking (and symbolism) of the Yijing penetrated deep into my being! This is how I developed the inherent understanding of how the Five Ranks of Prince and Minister operates within the Cao Dong School. The understanding of these five roundels is either misunderstood in the West, or only superficially grasped. Most people simply ignore it due to the influence of the Japanese Soto Master – Dogen – and his emphasis on ‘just sitting’ - but he must have studied and understood this device as a Dharma-Inheritor! By looking into the empty foundation that is beyond perception and non-perception – a Cao Dong practitioner is literally looking into the profound essence of the single roundel that contains all roundels! After-all, what other possible explanation could there be? On top of this, the Cao Dong Masters drew the ‘thunderbolt’ as a means to explain this interconnectivity and how a genuine student tends to experience an unfolding mind as it develops. Some state that this ‘thunderbolt’ may be influenced by the imagery associated with Tibetan Buddhism. A Western (and Japanese) tendency is to view the five roundels as indicating five ‘ranks’ through which a practitioner traverses – from the lowest to the highest – as if each roundel represents a coloured belt in Judo. This is not the case at all. In the ‘Book of Changes’ there are 64 chapters – but no single chapter is considered ‘superior’ or ‘inferior’ to any other! Each of the 64 chapters exists as part of the other 63 chapters – perfect in its placement, situation and function. This is exactly how the Five Ranks interact with one another. All are contained within each – and there is never an implication that a practitioner moves from one self-contained level to another! Just as consciousness is infinite – the Cao Dong roundels represent an insight into the bottomless nature of human awareness. The Buddha, of course, stated that enlightenment is that conscious awareness which exists just beyond (and behind) the ability to ‘perceive’ (form) and ‘non-perceive’ (void). Chinese Ch’an does not go beyond this.
Master Xu Yun (1840-1959) certainly understood the paradox of looking into the fabric of our minds – to ‘see’ beyond that which we look with and that which we look at and through. This process, for a Ch’an Master at least, was not considered a contradiction. This Chinese Ch’an method was and still is viewed as the true essence of the message of the historical Buddha (born in India)! Furthermore, the Chinese Ch’an School considers itself unique in preserving the ‘true’ transmission of the historical Buddha free of all the later modifications, distractions and pollutions that entered the various Buddhist communities. Contemporary Western scholars, of course, consider this attitude to be flawed and its assumption to be wrong. According to Western scholarship (which takes its cue from Japanese Buddhism), this ‘Chinese’ attitude is ‘ahistorical’ and nothing but a culturally bias fabrication. According to Japanese researchers (whose work stems from the 1868 Meiji Restoration) - genuine Buddhism ‘died-out’ centuries ago in China and has never recovered! How strange it must seem to them then, when they encounter Master Xu Yun’s biography (amongst many other eminent Masters) who assert the exact the opposite! Indeed, Master Xu Yun considered many practices associated with Lamaism to be ‘corrupt’, and repeatedly asserted that the immorality and barbarity of the Imperial Japanese Army in China (1931-1945) was the product of the moral corruption of Buddhist practice in Japan. As most Westerners cannot read either the Japanese or Chinese script, they remain unaware of the War Crimes advocated and committed by various Japanese Zen teachers before and during WWII (much of it anti-Western in nature as well as being anti-Chinese) - who later became very famous in the US and lived lives of relative luxury after the War! How strange it seems that very few people have read of how Master Xu Yun heavily criticised a group of Chinese Buddhist monks who had been to Japan and returned home eating meat, drinking alcohol and with wives and children in tow! Although it is true that our minds should be that distracted by worldly matters, at the same time it is equally true that when engaging in worldly matters, the engaging itself must be morally pristine. Of course, there are people living in Japan who are aware of these contradictions and who do seek to make amends and put historical wrongs right. In the heart of those dojo that teach genuine Zen-Ch'an all of it ‘dissolves’ into irrelevance when the correct Dharma is cultivated. I remember how respectful a delegation of Shaolin monks was treated in Japan a few years ago – particularly when they visited a small dojo whose founding ancestor had visited the Shaolin Temple on Song Mountain many hundreds of years ago! The visiting Shaolin Master studied the Chinese Transmission Documents carefully stored away and guarded in Japan – and finally declared them entirely genuine! The name and location of the dojo – together with its historical details – were taken back to the Shaolin Temple and entered in the Records of Genuine Transmission! Although truth maybe difficult to attain at times, this does not mean that we give-up the task of pursuing it. Truth must prevail over falsehood and that is all there is to it!
Polarity is a funny business. Life and death – health and illness, etc – all this often occupies the human mind (and body) above and beyond every other subject. Of course, we must also feed and house the body, but if one of these is missing, at the very least we must provide nourishment for the human-body. Many in the West fear homelessness as the weather in this part of the world is often cold, wet and difficult to endure for at least six months of the year! When I lived in Sri Lanka, poverty and good weather went hand-in-hand so that holy men and women – that is the truly committed to the realm beyond the senses – walked around in the flimsiest of attire – except the Jains who give-up even this modest association with the world! A naked body is not as much of a problem as is a naked ego... Of course, I have heard of a Western Zen monk living (voluntarily) homeless on the streets of New York, although this was at least fifteen years ago, and perhaps more. It is not just the weather that distinguishes East from West – but history and culture as well. There is a particular ‘coldness’ to the ‘individuality’ of the West which is lacking in the ‘collective’ cultures of the East. Even so, regardless of how humanity sets about organising the external aspect of its existence, there is always the thorny issue of how the ‘inner’ life is to be approached, reconciled and processed, etc. Is it possible to ‘give-up’ all desire for physical life – and yet continue to still ‘exist’ on this plane of reality? Can ‘we’ be both ‘here’ and ‘not-here’ simultaneously and in a manner that is not paradoxical or contradictory in any disconcerting or disruptive sense? Can there be ‘peace of mind’ and ‘health of body’ in a state that is ‘beyond all states’? I suspect that this all comes down to the balancing of what the Buddha defines as ‘perception’ and ‘non-perception’. A mind (and body) that is beyond the realms of the world still needs to be fed at least the minimum of food – hence the Buddhist monastic and the agency of ‘begging’ and/or growing their own food (with an emphasis upon vegetarianism). It is in this rarefied ‘space’ that all sophistry for the world is ‘not yet arisen’ and all is peace and tranquillity despite the nature of the external world (which ultimately must also include the ‘health’ of the physical body).
子曰:“不愤不启,不悱不发。举一隅不以三隅反,则不复也。” 孔子「论语」7.8:
The Master said: If a student is not suitably eager to receive genuine knowledge, then I will not eagerly expound genuine knowledge. If a student does not express suitable urgency to receive genuine knowledge, then I will not urgently explain genuine knowledge. If I hold-up one corner and the student does not respectfully bring me the other three corners, then all interaction with that student immediately comes to an end. — Confucius, Analects 7.8 My above translation is exactly how an ethnic Chinese person understands this saying of the Sage known in the West as ‘Confucius’. Indeed, all interaction – even within modern China – which involves a transference of knowledge from some ‘who Knows' to someone who ‘does not know’ is premised on this short paragraph. The agency of ‘silence’ is a time where a student can re-set their mind and body to begin the interaction yet again - until the circuit is complete and the knowledge flows efficiently from teacher to student. ACW (6.6.2021) Master Xu Yun (1840-1959) is the embodied of the Confucian ideal that the manner with which a person organised their inner-being – has a direct co-relation upon how the outer world surrounding that person operates. Why is this correct? It is correct because on the molecular-level, body-cells resonate with a particular frequency. If an individual possesses a mind polluted with greed, hatred and delusion, then his or her body-language will exude these attitudes and his or her behaviour will engineer a physical reality that best represents this inner chaos. In other words, good people will be driven away, and equally bad people will be attracted. Combining these ‘bad’ patterns of behaviour will generate social and cultural structures that emphasis greed, hatred and delusion – and push away or ‘de-emphasis’ any other mode of existence! This is not to say the mind is literally ‘creating’ physical matter – as the world already pre-exists each individual born into it – but rather a ‘frequency’ of existence is manifested through each mind and body living in the world! An individual’s attitude toward life can influence others into changing their lives for the better. An individual whose inner being is thoroughly corrupt will build a life premised upon this chaos and attract others who feel the same way. On the other hand, if an individual meditates effectively, and disciplines their behaviour, then this sets a very different example – as if the ‘frequency’ of the air molecules surrounding such a being resonate with purity, goodness and inspiration! This reality takes on a ‘foundational’ existence which underlies any other expression of communication. This is indicative of the ‘type’ of person the individual happens to be, and pre-exists the words they use and the behaviour patterns they exude! A ‘sagely’ person exhibits every character trait and behaviour pattern that guides humanity away from greed, hatred and delusion, and toward the direct perception of the ‘empty mind-ground'. This is an attitude toward existence that is permanent and no longer a matter of choice or forced will-power. A sagely and awe-inspiring deportment becomes as natural as the wind blowing across the face of a mountain! There is no contrivance – only an eternal and resonating ‘presence’ of ‘goodness’ for all to benefit from! Once an individual establishes this reality within and without them – then their words and actions become messengers of this reality that lead all other beings to this ‘frequency’ of being! This is how greed, hatred and delusion are permanently ‘uprooted’ from the mind of humanity and the patterns of behaviour humanity routinely choices to exhibit to the world!
A number of myths dominate the Western intellectual landscape regarding the history and practice of Chinese Buddhism. Many of these myths are even perpetuated within Japanese scholarship upon the subject. Eurocentric bias, cultural misidentification and blatant racism are often to blame. However, China is a vast country which continues to manifest its own culture (and destiny) regardless of the nonsense said about it in the surrounding countries. Within Chinese Buddhism, for instance, it is not uncommon to find examples of Buddhist nuns and monks ‘dying’ whilst a) sat uptight in the cross-legged meditation posture, and b) to continue hold this posture unassisted after the physical dying process has finished. Indeed, there are many famous examples of this kind in China today, with even ‘enlightened’ lay-people being able to perform this feat! Moreover, even within modern China, for the devout Buddhist the ability to ‘leave the body’ in this manner is seen to be of great spiritual significance (similar to the shocking examples of the Vietnamese Buddhist monastics in the 1960s – who possessed the spiritual maturity and ability ‘not to move’ during the process of setting-fire to themselves in protest to US and Catholic interference in their country). Chinese Buddhism is often thought to have inherited this practice not from India (where some people believe it never existed), but rather from the very similar (if not identical) Daoist practice. This entire procedure is referred to as ‘Seated Transformation’ (坐化 - Zuo Hua) and involves the departing practitioner to retain the meditation posture with full and clear psychological awareness – whilst the breath is slowly brought to a standstill. This process functions through the conscious awareness integrating into the ‘space’ between each breath – so that the breath is finally left behind. Situated near to the Indo-China Border is the Indian village of ‘Gue’, located in the Spiti region of the State of Himachal Pradesh in North India. As Indian collaborates with the US intrusion into Chinese territory – this area is used by the Indian government as a staging post for the 14th Dalai Lama and his ‘movement’. However, during 1975, an earthquake struck this area of Northern India and opened an old tomb that contained the mummified body of the Buddhist monk Sangha Tenzin – who was sat upright and very well preserved. In 2004, the local police excavated the tomb and removed the mummy. On discovery, it astonishing to find that the mummy was well preserved, with his skin intact and a crop of hair on his head. The mummy was eventually placed in a temple and is open to the public – despite the area being very remote and difficult to travel to. This Buddhist monk is said to be around 500-years old and he has a name that is partly Sanskrit (Sangha) and partly Tibetan (Tenzin). He was placed in a ‘stupa’ after he died, and it is this structure that collapsed during the 1975 earthquake. His name was written on the stupa and he appears to have been protecting the area with his spiritual presence. Interestingly, Chinese Buddhist monks were performing this feat over a thousand years prior to this date (c. 1500 CE) with ‘Hui Neng’ (the Sixth Patriarch of Ch’an Buddhism) still sat upright in a temple in Southern China (d. 713 CE)! Even within the Theravada Buddhist tradition of Thailand there are stories of so-called ‘samadhi suicides’ whereby a Buddhist practitioner enters such a profound state of disembodied bliss that they never re-enter their physical bodies again! Hundreds of years later, these bodies are found still sat upright in remote corners of the isolated jungle, and when ‘touched’ usually collapse into piles of dust... Although the example of ‘Sangha Tenzin’ has attracted all kinds of Western speculations about how he actually managed to ‘mummify’ himself – claiming he starved himself, or ate special food – contradictory processes all apparently carried-out whilst absurdly ‘running’ a lit candle over his body! - the reality is that within Chinese Buddhism (a tradition all but ‘ignored’ by the West) - the ability to leave the body through ‘Zuo Hua’ is carried-out only as a product of advanced spiritual attainment that requires no other ability than to have realised the goal of one’s chosen spiritual path! In other words, to ‘die’ whilst sat upright appears all the way through the Chinese Ch’an literature and is generated through the auspices of ‘spiritual’ will-power alone! There is no trickery involved and examples of naturally dying whilst sat upright is still seen within modern China!
|
AuthorAdrian Chan-Wyles (釋大道 - Shi Da Dao) is permitted to retain his Buddhist Monastic Dharma-Name within Lay-society by decree of the Government of the People’s Republic of China, and the Chinese Buddhist Association (1992). A Buddhist monastic (and devout lay-practitioner) upholds the highest levels of Vinaya Discipline and Bodhisattva Vows. A Genuine Buddhist ‘Venerates’ the ‘Dao’ (道) as he or she penetrates the ‘Empty Mind-Ground' through meditative insight. A genuine Buddhist is humble, wise and peace-loving – and he or she selflessly serves all in existence in the past, present and the future, and residing within the Ten Directions – whilst retaining a vegetarian- vegan diet. Please be kind to animals! Archives
April 2024
Categories
All
|
- Home
- ICBI Blog: Mind-Ground (心地)
- ICBI China Office (Beijing)
- Conference: Ch'an & Zen (2021)
- Master Xu Yun
- Degeneration of the Sangha in the Dharma-ending Age By Ch’an Master Xu Yun
- Ch’an Master Jing Hui - History of Master Xu Yun’s Complete Biographical Text
- Xu Yun’s Humanistic Spirit Transmitted into the Modern Era
- Master Xu Yun & Modern Chinese Politics
- On Why Ch’an Master Xu Yun (1840-1959) Rejected Japanese Zen
- Master Xu Yun Memorial Photographic Library
- Dharma Master Ji Qun (济群) Explains Profound (Dharmic) Happiness
- Chinese Buddhism & Vegetarianism
- Qianfeng Daoism (UK)
-
Ch'an Guild of Hui Neng (慧能禅宗协会)
- CGHN Membership Certificate
- Master Ti Guang – Karma
- Master Ti Guang – Mind That Does Not Deviate
- Meditation Instrument - Fragrant Board
- Ch’an Daily Work
- Horse Hair Dust-Whisk in Chinese Ch’an Buddhism
- Deconstructing the Concept of ‘Shikantaza’
- New Shaolin Temple in China
- Master Yuan Chun: Universal Dharma
- Modern Chinese Art and Ch’an Buddhism
- The Huatou and Pain Management
- Martial Virtue (武德–Wu De)
- Seated Transformation (坐化 – Zuo Hua)
- Guiding Principles
- ICBI Projects
- Membership
- Direction of the ICBI
- Journal of the ICBI
- Contact Us
©opyright: Site design, layout & content International Ch'an Buddhism Institute (ICBI). No part of this site (or information contained herein) unless otherwise stated, may be copied, reproduced, duplicated, or otherwise distributed without prior written permission from [email protected]
Proudly powered by Weebly