Three Contemplations toward Buddha Nature

 Search online

Citation

Contents

Contemplation I Bodhidharma's Kong-An

• Chapter 1: The Mind is Nowhere to be Found2
  • (A) A Brief Introduction to Kong-An2
  • (B) Master Huei-ko6
  • (C) Chopping off an Arm for the Dharma8
  • (D) The Kong-An Per se: The Mind is Nowhere to be Found10
  • (E) To Contemplate on the Kong-An11

• Chapter 2: The Patriarch's Quatrain (Gāthā) for Advance Practice15
  • Verse 1. "Cease all the external Quests"17
  • Verse 2. "And Soothe the Mind of its Gasps"22
  • Verse 3. "Uphold your Mind as a Wall"25
  • Verse 4. "So as to embark on the Bodhi Route"28
  • Question and Response29

• Chapter 3: Bodhidharma's Skin, Flesh, Bones, and Marrow33
  • The Skin Kong-An36
  • The Flesh Kong-An38
  • The Bones Kong-An40
  • The Marrow Kong-An41
  • Question and Response44

Contemplation II The Contemplation on "Hua-To"

• Chapter 4: Who is Saying 'Namo Amito-Fo'?46
  • (A) What is a Hua-To?46
  • (B) Where does the voice come from?46
  • (C) Who is chanting 'Namo Amito-Fo'?48
  • (D) To contemplate on the Hua-To about Amitabha Buddha51
  • Question and Response56
  • (1) The Sword of Wisdom56
  • (2)Soul, Cognizances, and the Buddha Nature56
  • (3) What is being reincarnated?61
  • (4) Ālaya does not disappear upon death62
  • (5) The Buddha Nature is real63
  • (6) The Middle Route65

• Chapter 5: Who is Saying 'Namo Amito-Fo'? (contd.)69
  • Question and Resonse71

Contemplation III The Śūraṅgama Enquiries

• Chapter 6: An Overall View of The Śūraṅgama Sūtra78
  • 1. The Māras of Vexation (Kleśa)87
    • (1) Attachment (love)88
    • (2) Aversion (hate)88
    • (3) Ignorance88
    • (4) Arrogance (or Pride)88
    • (5) Doubt (Disbelief)88
      • A. Doubt about oneself89
      • B. Doubt and the Dharma89
      • C. Doubt about the Gurus90
        • 1. Doubt about our "Root Guru"—The Buddha90
        • 2. Doubt about the Holy Saṃgha—Gurus in general90
        • 3. Doubt about the Master who is instructing you—personal Guru91
      • D. Doubt about the Tathāgata Nature or Buddha Nature91
    • (6) Evil Views (Incorrect Concepts)91
      • A. Lateral Views92
        • 1. The View on Constancy92
        • 2. The View of Nihilism (The Views of Nothingness)94
      • B. Vicious Views95
      • C. The View of Corporeality96
      • D. Views of False Precepts97
  • 2. The Māra of "the Five Aggregates"98
  • 3. The Māra of Death98
  • 4. The Celestial Māra102

• Chapter 7: The Seven Positions to Locate the Mind110
  • The Inquiry
    • Where is the Mind?121
  • Proposition 1
    • The Mind is in the body121
  • Proposition 2
    • The Mind is outside of the body124
  • Proposition 3
    • The Mind lies in between—within the Visual Organ125
  • Proposition 4
    • The Mind is on the threshold127
  • Proposition 5
    • The Mind arises at the Rendezvous of Senses and Dusts131
  • Proposition 6
    • The Mind is in the Middle134
  • Proposition 7
    • The Mind is Nowhere136

• Chapter 8: The Epilogue144
  • 1. The Mind of Normalcy and Unfluctuation is the Tao144
  • 2. The Middle Route146
  • 3. About "Auras"149

• About the Author151
• Illustration—Mahayana Guardian Pusa Wei-to157

bodhi - Enlightenment or awakening. In Tibetan it is translated as "purified" (byang) and "perfected" (chub), which corresponds to Siddhartha Gautama's achievement of purifying all obscurations and perfecting or attaining all qualities associated with a buddha. Skt. बोधि Tib. བྱང་ཆུབ་ Ch. 菩提,悟,覺

Go to the page with the definition of 'Bodhi'

sūtra - Sūtras mainly refer to the discourses delivered by the Buddha and his disciples, and the Sūtra corpus is one of the three main sets of teachings which form the Buddhist canon. Skt. सूत्र Tib. མདོ། Ch. 佛经

Go to the page with the definition of 'Sūtra'

kleśa - Often referred to as poisons, these are a class of disturbing or disruptive emotional states that when aroused negatively affect or taint the mind. Skt. क्लेश Tib. ཉོན་མོངས་ Ch. 煩惱

Go to the page with the definition of 'Kleśa'