Difference between revisions of "Dharma - Spirituality"

Latest revision as of 09:05, 7 March 2024

Dharma, a Sanskrit word that literally means Law, is better translated in the context of Buddhism as Spiritual Reality or Spirituality. The Buddha awakened to this Realm of Dharma or Spiritual Reality when He first attained enlightenment seated in meditation under the Bodhi tree in Gaya some 2500 years ago. He spent the rest of his life teaching of the Dharma to his disciples. In fact the teachings of the Buddha are themselves called the Dharma.

The Dharma is not something that is alien to our normal human experience. This Spiritual Realm (Dharma Dhatu) is the reality of one’s very own mind. It is also the mind of the Buddha and the mind of all living beings. It is all three of these, but it is but in fact a single reality.

Chih-I’s The Hidden Meaning of the Lotus Sutra says:

The Lotus Sutra says:

“Making living beings open up, reveal, awaken and enter into the knowledge and vision of enlightenment.”

How could the Sutra discuss opening up the knowledge and vision of enlightenment if living beings did not already have it in themselves? One must know that this knowledge and vision abides in all living beings.

The Lotus Sutra says:

“No more, no more, it is not necessary to teach. The Dharma is wonderful and inconceivable.”

This is the wonderful wisdom of enlightenment that is both real and provisional and is only fathomed between the Buddhas.

The Lotus Sutra says:

“In cultivating their mindsy observed the true spiritual aspect of reality in all things without being shaken and without regressing, accepting and embracing it in each single thought”

Thus it is cultivated in one’s own mind.

The Sutra on the Observation of the Bodhisattva Universal Virtue says: “With the mind empty of self, sin and blessedness are without an owner.”

The Flower Garland Sutra says:

“The mind, the Buddha, and all living beings are an inseparable trinity.”

When we discuss the spirituality (Dharma) of all living beings, it is in reference to cause and effect generally and to all things spiritual (dharmas).

When we discuss the spirituality of the Buddha, it is in reference to the effect.

When we discuss the spirituality of one’s own mind, it is in reference to the cause.

This table explains these three aspects of the mind in various terms, ancient and modern:

Aspect of Dharma	Component of Spiritual Path	Cause & Effect of Spiritual Cultivation	Modern Analogy
The Buddha	Enlightenment	Effect of Cultivation	Superego
One's Own Mind	One's Own Spiritual Journey	Cause of Cultivation	Ego
All Living Beings	Basic Human Nature	Cause & Effect Generally	Id

The Buddha explained this Dharma or spiritual reality in many different ways, through such teachings as the four truths, the twelve-fold wheel of causality and conditions (dependence upon origination), the two truths, the three truths, the one truth, etc. Each teaching was made in accordance with the capacity of those being taught. All of

these teachings were different ways of analyzing and explaining the Dharma so that others could grasp its reality and its all-embracing totality.

In The Lotus Sutra the Dharma is explained as being the conditions of the ten spiritual realms (Dharma-dhatu) with their ten aspects of causality, and by extension the three thousand spiritual realms inherent in a single thought. This explanation charts the causality and conditions of the human heart from the depths of hell up to supreme enlightenment.

To explain it, we will first examine the ten spiritual realms (Dharma Dhatu).

The Ten Spiritual Realms:

Sanskrit	English	Vehicles & Path	The Spiritual Realm
Buddha-yana	Total Enlightenment Beyond Self and Other	The Enlightenment of The One Vehicle	The Pure Land Nirvana & The Noble Path The Spiritual Journey The Vehicle of Enlightenment
Bodhisattva-yana	Attaining Enlightenment For Oneself & Others	The Engagement of The Great Vehicle
Pratyekabuddha-yana	Spiritual Self-Awakening	The Detachment of The Two Vehicles
Sravaka-yana	Spiritual Discipleship	The Detachment of The Two Vehicles
Deva-gati	Heaven - The Realm of the Gods	The Three Good Paths	The Saha (Endured) World Suffering & Origination Life & Death (Samsara) The Threefold Realm
Manusya-gati	The Human Realm - Personality
Asura-gati	The Realm of Personal Demons
Preta-gati	The Realm of Hunger	The Three Evil Roads
Tiragyoni-gati	The Animal Realm - Brutality
Naraka-gati	Hell - The Realm of Suffering

In discussing the ten spiritual realms, we will first explore the six lower realms.

Source

tientai.net

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 [[File:12 3STnL69.jpg|thumb|250px|]][[File:111.jpg|thumb|250px|]][[File:One-300.jpg|thumb|250px|]][[File:Shakyam.jpg|thumb|250px|]][[File:Timth.jpg|thumb|250px|]]
-[[Dharma]], a [[Sanskrit]] [[word]] that literally means Law, is better translated in the context of [[Buddhism]] as [[Spiritual]] [[Reality]] or [[Spirituality]]. The [[Buddha]] [[awakened]] to this [[Realm]] of [[Dharma]] or [[Spiritual]] [[Reality]] when He first attained [[enlightenment]] seated in [[meditation]] under the [[Bodhi tree]] in [[Gaya]] some 2500 years ago. He spent the [[rest]] of his [[life]] [[teaching]] of the [[Dharma]] to his [[disciples]]. In fact the teachings of the [[Buddha]] are themselves called the [[Dharma]].
-The [[Dharma]] is not something that is alien to our normal [[human]] [[experience]]. This [[Spiritual Realm]] ([[Dharma Dhatu]]) is the [[reality]] of one’s very own [[mind]]. It is also the [[mind]] of the [[Buddha]] and the [[mind]] of all [[living beings]]. It is all three of these, but it is but in fact a single [[reality]].
-Chih-I’s The Hidden Meaning of the [[Lotus Sutra]] says:
+[[Dharma]], a [[Sanskrit]] [[word]] that literally means Law, is better translated in the context of [[Buddhism]] as [[Spiritual]] [[Reality]] or [[Spirituality]]. The [[Buddha]] [[awakened]] to this [[Realm]] of [[Dharma]] or [[Spiritual]] [[Reality]] when He first [[attained]] [[enlightenment]] seated in [[meditation]] under the [[Bodhi tree]] in [[Gaya]] some 2500 years ago. He spent the [[rest]] of his [[life]] [[teaching]] of the [[Dharma]] to his [[disciples]]. In fact the teachings of the [[Buddha]] are themselves called the [[Dharma]].
+The [[Dharma]] is not something that is alien to our normal [[human]] [[experience]]. This [[Spiritual Realm]] ([[Dharma Dhatu]]) is the [[reality]] of one’s very [[own]] [[mind]]. It is also the [[mind]] of the [[Buddha]] and the [[mind]] of all [[living beings]]. It is all three of these, but it is but in fact a single [[reality]].
+[[Chih-I’s]] The [[Hidden Meaning]] of the [[Lotus Sutra]] says:
 The [[Lotus Sutra]] says:
 :“Making [[living beings]] open up, reveal, [[awaken]] and enter into the [[knowledge]] and [[vision]] of [[enlightenment]].”
 How could the [[Sutra]] discuss opening up the [[knowledge]] and [[vision]] of [[enlightenment]] if [[living beings]] did not already have it in themselves? One must know that this [[knowledge]] and [[vision]] abides in all [[living beings]].
 The [[Lotus Sutra]] says:
-:“No more, no more, it is not necessary to teach. The [[Dharma]] is wonderful and inconceivable.”
+:“No more, no more, it is not necessary to teach. The [[Dharma]] is wonderful and [[inconceivable]].”
 This is the wonderful [[wisdom]] of [[enlightenment]] that is both {{Wiki|real}} and provisional and is only fathomed between the [[Buddhas]].
 The [[Lotus Sutra]] says:
-:“In cultivating their [[minds]]y observed the true [[spiritual]] aspect of [[reality]] in all things without {{Wiki|being}} shaken and without regressing, accepting and embracing it in each single [[thought]]”
-Thus it is cultivated in one’s own [[mind]].
+:“In [[cultivating]] their [[minds]]y observed the true [[spiritual]] aspect of [[reality]] in all things without {{Wiki|being}} shaken and without regressing, accepting and embracing it in each single [[thought]]”
+Thus it is cultivated in one’s [[own]] [[mind]].
 The [[Sutra]] on the Observation of the [[Bodhisattva]] [[Universal]] [[Virtue]] says:
-“With the [[mind]] [[empty of]] [[self]], [[sin]] and blessedness are without an owner.”
+“With the [[mind]] [[empty of]] [[self]], [[sin]] and blessedness are without an [[owner]].”
 The [[Flower Garland Sutra]] says:
-“The [[mind]], the [[Buddha]], and all [[living beings]] are an inseparable {{Wiki|trinity}}.”
+“The [[mind]], the [[Buddha]], and all [[living beings]] are an [[inseparable]] {{Wiki|trinity}}.”
 #   When we discuss the [[spirituality]] ([[Dharma]]) of all [[living beings]], it is in reference to [[cause and effect]] generally and to all things [[spiritual]] ([[dharmas]]).
 #   When we discuss the [[spirituality]] of the [[Buddha]], it is in reference to the effect.
-#   When we discuss the [[spirituality]] of one’s own [[mind]], it is in reference to the [[cause]].
+#   When we discuss the [[spirituality]] of one’s [[own]] [[mind]], it is in reference to the [[cause]].
 This table explains these three aspects of the [[mind]] in various terms, {{Wiki|ancient}} and {{Wiki|modern}}:
 {|  bordercolordark="black" bordercolorlight="black" border="1" cellspacing="0" width="748"
 |  bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="132" | <p><strong>Aspect of [[Dharma]]</strong></p>
 |  bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="200" | <p><strong>Component of [[Spiritual]] [[Path]]</strong></p>
-|  bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="270" | <p><strong>[[Cause]] &amp; Effect of  [[Spiritual]] Cultivation</strong></p>
+|  bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="270" | <p><strong>[[Cause]] &amp; Effect of  [[Spiritual]] [[Cultivation]]</strong></p>
 |  bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="128" | <p><strong>{{Wiki|Modern}} {{Wiki|Analogy}}</strong></p>
 |-
 |  width="132" | <p>The [[Buddha]]</p>
 |  width="200" | <p>[[Enlightenment]]</p>
-|  width="270" | <p>Effect of Cultivation</p>
+|  width="270" | <p>Effect of [[Cultivation]]</p>
 |  width="128" | <p>{{Wiki|Superego}}</p>
 |-
-|  width="132" | <p>One's Own [[Mind]]</p>
-|  width="200" | <p>One's Own [[Spiritual]] Journey</p>
+|  width="132" | <p>One's [[Own]] [[Mind]]</p>
-|  width="270" | <p>[[Cause]] of Cultivation</p>
+|  width="200" | <p>One's [[Own]] [[Spiritual]] Journey</p>
+|  width="270" | <p>[[Cause]] of [[Cultivation]]</p>
 |  width="128" | <p>[[Ego]]</p>
 |-
 |  width="132" | <p>All [[Living Beings]]</p>
 |  width="200" | <p>Basic [[Human Nature]]</p>
 |  width="270" | <p>[[Cause]] &amp; Effect Generally</p>
-|  width="128" | <p>Id</p>
+|  width="128" | <p>[[Id]]</p>
 |}
-The [[Buddha]] explained this [[Dharma]] or [[spiritual]] [[reality]] in many different ways, through such teachings as the [[four truths]], the twelve-fold [[wheel]] of [[causality]] and [[conditions]] (dependence upon [[origination]]), the [[two truths]], the [[three truths]], the one [[truth]], etc. Each [[teaching]] was made in accordance with the capacity of those {{Wiki|being}} taught. All of these teachings were different ways of analyzing and explaining the [[Dharma]] so that others could [[grasp]] its [[reality]] and its all-embracing {{Wiki|totality}}.
+The [[Buddha]] explained this [[Dharma]] or [[spiritual]] [[reality]] in many different ways, through such teachings as the [[four truths]], the twelve-fold [[wheel]] of [[causality]] and [[conditions]] ([[dependence]] upon [[origination]]), the [[two truths]], the [[three truths]], the one [[truth]], etc. Each [[teaching]] was made in accordance with the capacity of those {{Wiki|being}} [[taught]]. All of
+these teachings were different ways of analyzing and explaining the [[Dharma]] so that others could [[grasp]] its [[reality]] and its all-embracing {{Wiki|totality}}.
+In The [[Lotus Sutra]] the [[Dharma]] is explained as {{Wiki|being}} the [[conditions]] of the [[ten spiritual realms]] ([[Dharma-dhatu]]) with their ten aspects of [[causality]], and by extension the three thousand [[spiritual]] [[realms]] [[inherent]] in a single [[thought]]. This explanation charts the [[causality]] and [[conditions]] of the [[human]] [[heart]] from the depths of [[hell]] up to [[supreme enlightenment]].
-In The [[Lotus Sutra]] the [[Dharma]] is explained as {{Wiki|being}} the [[conditions]] of the [[ten spiritual realms]] ([[Dharma-dhatu]]) with their ten aspects of [[causality]], and by extension the three thousand [[spiritual]] [[realms]] inherent in a single [[thought]]. This explanation charts the [[causality]] and [[conditions]] of the [[human]] [[heart]] from the depths of [[hell]] up to [[supreme enlightenment]].
 To explain it, we will first examine the [[ten spiritual realms]] ([[Dharma Dhatu]]).
 ===The [[Ten Spiritual Realms]]:===
 {|  bordercolordark="black" bordercolorlight="black" border="1" cellspacing="0" width="748"
 |  bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="145" | <p><strong>[[Sanskrit]]</strong></p>
@@ Line 66: / Line 96: @@
 |  bgcolor="#CCCCCC" width="195" | <p><strong>The [[Spiritual]] [[Realm]]</strong></p>
 |-
 |  width="145" | <p>[[Buddha-yana]]</p>
 |  width="219" | <p>Total [[Enlightenment]]<br>
@@ Line 71: / Line 102: @@
 |  width="171" | <p>The [[Enlightenment]] of<br>
 The One [[Vehicle]]</p>
 |  rowspan="4" width="195" | <p>The [[Pure Land]] <br>
 [[Nirvana]] &amp; The [[Noble Path]]<br>
@@ Line 76: / Line 108: @@
 The [[Vehicle]] of [[Enlightenment]]</p>
 |-
 |  width="145" | <p>[[Bodhisattva-yana]]</p>
 |  width="219" | <p>[[Attaining]] [[Enlightenment]]<br>
@@ Line 83: / Line 116: @@
 |-
 |  width="145" | <p>[[Pratyekabuddha-yana]]</p>
-|  width="219" | <p>[[Spiritual]] Self-Awakening<br></p>
+|  width="219" | <p>[[Spiritual]] [[Self-Awakening]]<br></p>
 |  rowspan="2" width="171" | <p>The [[Detachment]] of <br>
-The Two Vehicles</p>
+The [[Two Vehicles]]</p>
 |-
 |  width="145" | <p>[[Sravaka-yana]]</p>

Difference between revisions of "Dharma - Spirituality"

Latest revision as of 09:05, 7 March 2024

The Ten Spiritual Realms:

Source

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