Property:Gloss-def
From Buddha-Nature
This is a property of type Text.
T
lit. 'the Sage of the Sakyas'; name of the Buddha. +
lit. 'All-perfect'; the highest realiza
tion of the Ātiyoga; a practice in which one can obtain enlightenment in one
lifetime. +
the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth within the six realms of existence,
characterized by suffering, impermanence, and ignorance. +
lit. 'dagger'; used as a symbol in certain tantric ceremonies. +
Whenever a person practises virya he finds delight in it, because it is not based on painfully going on and on and on, but it is a way of seeing the joyous element, of seeing that energy does not have to be forced but that it develops spontaneously. This happens by not regarding things as a duty in the puritanical or religious sense but doing them because one has already established the connection between the action and one's being. +
Symbolic mythical bird used in iconography. According to the story about the Garuda or celestial hawk, it nests in the wish-fulfilling tree of life, is full grown in the egg, and subdues the viciousness of the Nagas (symbolising the swamp-like quality of passion). Since it is mature from birth, it signifies absolute confidence. +
The profit oriented and competitive mentality which could even be applied to "spiritual" activities. It is based on the neurotic need for security and expanding ego's territory. It is the paranoid fear ofloss and greed for achievement which tends to permeate one's whole psychology. Materialism is the "sane" approach to gaining happiness. There's nothing wrong with it, but in the process of seeking happiness the original aim is lost. Instead of the simple primordial happiness one tries to grasp something tangible. At the end one is amazed to find that the search did not fulfil the original aim. Instead, shock and panic result. +
The symbol of indestructibility. It is also referred to as penetrating wisdom which cuts through solidified ignorance. The Tibetan equivalent dorje is "noble stone"; it can destroy that which seemingly cannot be destroyed. +
Passion is contagious in that once you ignore the source of passion it will destroy or burn you, but once you realise that passion is another means of communicating, then it becomes basically an important way of relating yourself to mother earth or the all-encompassing womb. Passion is allembracing in that it can transmute, as Buddha said, into discriminating awareness wisdom (jñāna). +
The followers of the transmission lineage of Mahamudra. This particular school of Tibetan Buddhism is sometimes known as Drupgyud, the tradition which means putting the meditative experience into practice following the example of Milarepa. +
A symbol in the wider sense of gesture or action. It is the inspiring colour of phenomena. Also it is a symbol expressed with the hands to state for oneself and others the quality of different moments of meditation, such as touching the earth with the right hand as a witness to Buddha's freedom from emotional and mental frivolousness . +
Primordial intelligence is the key of the Bodhisattva's actions in dealing with practical details of earth and space. He develops such a sharp and penetrating sense that he can cut through the conceptualised notion of duality and see the simplicity. Prajna is that quality which culminates in acting spontaneously with the help of the other Paramitas with such precision that the spinal cord of duality is cut. +
It is not based purely on ego-inclined common sense. If one relates to open space, then his way of perceiving the display of apparent phenomena is colourful and inspiring, so that he doesn't hesitate to deal with the situation. He simply sees the open situation, the way of unconditioned appropriate response to the nowness. Skilful means is the active masculine principle on the feminine ground of prajfia. +
Morality or discipline. The excitement of the discovery or glimpse of the awakened state of mind should not be abused. One must not miss a moment of its inspiration. Equally, one must develop, with the help of panoramic awareness, stability and precision of insight and a knowledge of situations, so that the conduct of the Bodhisattva is dignified. +
Meditation or concentration. It means being watchful with that basic panoramic awareness that characterises all the other Paramitas. Dhyana is the means of stabilizing oneself within the framework of seeing relationships, and thereby seeing that one can afford to open. This openness and keen meditative intelligence brings one to deal with the nowness of each new situation. +
Structure or a group. The Tibetan word is kgil khor which means centre and periphery. It is the unification of many vast elements into one, through the experience of meditation. It is the process by which seeming chaos and complexities are simplified into patterns. It is usually presented in a diagram with a central figure (a personification of the Buddha principle) surrounded by other elements. The simplicity of the centre is experienced as the basic sanity of Buddha nature. Although the surrounding elements seem to be in chaos, one discovers in the evolution of the meditation that they are related to this centre as well. They are the various colours of emotions which are transmuted into the experience of a unified field. +
Generosity, giving without expectation, or opening, welcoming others. In other words, one does not establish the animal instinct of territory but anyone can help themselves " to me". As is said in the Bodhisattva disciplines, welcoming is the first gesture of the Bodhisattva. Without this, none of the other perfections could be put into practice. +
Forbearance in the sense of seeing the situation and seeing that it is right to forbear and to develop patience. It is patience with intelligence, which is not put off by frivolous situations. It is forbearance which has the inspiration to continue and is based on the Dana Paramita or the perfection of generosity. Whenever a situation is presented, one should get into it without hesitation rather than speculating in the ethical sense. It is a question of acting truly, neither for the benefit of ego, nor in terms of purifying oneself in an attempt to make an exhibition. It means allowing enough space to see the other person's point of view without the distorted filter of ego. +
