What is Buddhism?

      In the previous chapter of Applications 8, I briefly touched upon why I believe Kenji Miyazawa deeply understood the true essence of Buddha's teachings. Furthermore, in Applications Part 3, I mentioned briefly why one needs to practice the path of a bodhisattva to become a Buddha and why it requires an incredibly long period. Now, I'd like to explore these topics further. Firstly, let's examine the nature of "suffering." This time, I'd like to offer a more in-depth analysis than a general explanation. Humans undeniably possess a sense of compassion towards other beings. However, in contradiction to this sentiment, to sustain the existence of "self," one inevitably sacrifices others constantly. Even if one feels sorry for chickens, pigs, or cows, to sustain "self," one must sacrifice them. Even in the case of vegetarianism, crops like rice and beans are originally meant for their descendants, yet humans usurp them, essentially sacrific...

      I previously introduced an analogy about waves. This analogy was meant to simplify the narrative but contained elements that could lead to significant misunderstandings from a Buddhist perspective. Suppose a wave in the ocean becomes aware that it is a wave. By becoming aware that it is a wave, it comes to regard many other waves as its rivals, and it spends all its time competing with them for survival. In other words, a delusion arises that it and others are in competition with each other. This delusion is the cause of all suffering. However, when it realizes that it is not just a wave, but the entire ocean, the delusion of self/other conflict disappears, and it experiences a sense of oneness with the entire ocean. However, what could be misleading was that the real self that finally arrived was the ocean itself, the “great ocean. The reason is that, although a metaphor, the actual ocean is a real thing, an object of perception. As explained in the doctrine of the...

      The Six Perfections can be said to be the practice themes that Bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism should master. The term "Perfection" in the Six Perfections comes from the Pāramitā in Sanskrit (ancient Indian language), meaning completion, perfection, and reaching the other shore. So what are the "six pāramitā " that refer to the perfection of six deeds or mental states? 1. Dāna pāramitā = Perfection of Giving, sharing, not being attached to possessions. 2. Śīla pāramitā = Perfection of Self-discipline. 3. Kṣānti pāramitā = Perfection of Not minding, being transcendent. 4. Vīrya pāramitā = Perfection of Making effort. 5. Dhyāna pāramitā = Perfection of Focusing. 6. Prajñā pāramitā = Perfection of Wisdom (Seeing things as they are from the Middle way.) However, it may be difficult to understand what is actually meant by the words "perfection" or "reaching the other shore," but since Mahayana Buddhism is based on the teachings of the Buddha, ...

      In our previous discussion of "emptiness," we explored how, as the disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha organized and classified his teachings, they came to consider several fundamental constituents of the universe as existing entities. However, such theories of existence were seen as contradicting the Middle Way and the teaching of no-self by Shakyamuni. Therefore, scholars such as Nagarjuna, and Nagarjuna's followers systematically rejected these theories of existence and asserted that everything is ultimately "empty," as explained in the previous chapter. However, despite everything being ultimately empty and non-existent, the cycle of delusion of individual entities as elucidated by Shakyamuni Buddha through the Twelve Dependent Originations continues to manifest. As explained earlier, this cycle of delusion persists until one fully comprehends the Middle Way. Nagarjuna and his followers, who expounded on "emptiness," later formed the philosophical...

      So, let's take a closer look at what exactly "emptiness" means. The earlier example involved various elements like a chair or a human being, complexly intertwined. While it's understandable that these combinations form concepts, some might still think that the fundamental elements themselves exist. Let's consider the example of "water." Those with a substantialist viewpoint believe that there's something with the nature or essence of water that exists. However, it's now common knowledge that "water" is composed of molecules made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, known as H2O. In other words, there isn't an unchanging entity called "water"; rather, it's just a manifestation based on the relationship between two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, dependent on environmental conditions such as temperature ranging from 1°C to 99°C. We humans label this manifestation as "water." Essentially, ...

      So far, we have mainly focused on the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha since early Buddhism, but as the later period of the flourishing of Mahayana Buddhism approached, the word "emptiness" began to be frequently used, especially in the Prajnaparamita sutras. "Emptiness" means that fundamentally, everything in this world exists solely in relation to causes and conditions. Nothing has an independent essence or substance on its own, and everything exists merely as conceptualizations labeled and categorized based on various relationships existing in people's minds. Therefore, assigning any fixed meaning to these concepts does not imply their inherent existence or unchanging identity. For example, let's take the example of a chair. Upon closer examination, we find that there is nothing but a combination of sponge, fabric, iron, and plastic. We conveniently label the combination of these materials as a "chair," but the concept of a chair only exists...

      As explained in the Basics Part 8, "If one can attain a state of mind that is a perfect middle way, without setting oneself as a viewpoint and not lingering on any one point, then perhaps one can reach a state beyond all relative perspectives, just like light itself, where there is no time or space. The world of Buddha's enlightenment described in the Buddhist scriptures is a world that transcends even form and concept, much like the world seen from the perspective of light, which transcends time and space. If the Buddha's state of enlightenment is like light itself, without time or space, then just as light from 10,000 years ago can reach anywhere instantly from the view point of light , the Buddha's enlightenment can also reach anywhere instantly from its view point, meaning it is always present at anywhere at any time for those in the relative world. Just as light can reach anywhere instantly beyond time and space, the Buddha's world of enlightenment, whic...

      As we've seen earlier, both the path of Arhat and the path of Bodhisattva require considerable determination and faith, making it difficult to claim that anyone can pursue them. Incidentally, as time progressed, not only within Buddhism but also in a global religious trend, there emerged a flourishing faith in transcendent beings with the great intention of saving people, entrusting oneself entirely to them for salvation. While this faith takes various forms and cannot be uniformly described, the ultimate attitude involves thoroughly recognizing one's powerlessness, abandoning all arrogance that one can manage oneself, and solely entrusting oneself to the will of the transcendent savior, allowing the will of the transcendent to work within oneself. Eventually, one may find oneself in a state of mind where the illusion of "self" that one clung to so tightly is forgotten. Although no academic proof has yet been provided, it seems quite possible that these religiou...

       As I mentioned earlier, like the Arhat, who focuses on their practice of entering Nirvana as quickly as possible, it can be said that this is fundamentally the most direct method to transcend the illusion of self.     That's why I think Shakyamuni taught such methods to his disciples from the beginning.     Also, if fundamentally the notion of self is a product of ignorance that doesn't know the true nature of things, then the existence of many others imagined in contrast to oneself is also only imagined and ultimately insubstantial.     Therefore, being attached to these insubstantial existences obstructs the practice of eradicating all attachments.     However, just as we cannot easily believe that our existence is merely an illusion without substance, many others also believe the same.     Even though enlightened individuals might see everyone struggling within illusions, until one u...