The Heart Sutra is a Mahayana Buddhist text. Mahayana means “The Great Vehicle” (41). This refers to the bodhisattva vow and path, which involves developing the ten perfections. The Heart Sutra is a text centered on the training to develop the perfection of wisdom. At the heart of this training is the realization about the truth about emptiness.
Buddhist scholarship involves commentary on the sutras. In Tibetan Buddhism, there is a practice of acknowledging one’s teacher and monastic lineage so as to provide legitimacy and authenticity to the teachings. In what follows, I shall give my own commentary of the Heart Sutra, and thus I shall acknowledge the lineage through which this information passed down to me. My knowledge of the Heart Sutra comes from the commentary of the Dali Lama (3-52, 63-147) and the rest comes from commentary from Jamyang Gawai Lodro (151-164). Both of these commentaries are in a volume entitled Essence of the Heart Sutra translated by Geshe Thuptn Jipa. This is also where I read the words of the Sutra itself (59-61).
My own personal commentary shall emphasize the ultimate truth about emptiness is realizing all is empty, even the knowledge and practices that allow us to realize it. In this way, Buddhism turns in on itself, negating the existence of its own essence. I also pay special attention to the training of the bodhisattva, who has gained superior insight, and therefore practices the perfection of wisdom in a particular way.
The Heart Sutra can be divided into different parts. Following the work of Lordo, I parse it into four main parts. The first section is the Introduction, consisting of two phrases that constitute a dedication, a declaration and a demonstration of dependency. The de...
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...he Buddha, which is indicated and then reinforced through the Sangha’s praise.
My commentary has been focused on how the Heart Sutra explains the ultimate truth about emptiness. There are many other commentaries on this important text. However, if one wishes to become enlightened, we should be recall the worlds of the Buddha when he advocates for insight through direct experience. Buddhism has a long tradition of scholarship, as the commentaries and interpretations of the Heart Sutra demonstrate, but even scholarship is empty and we must not forget the need for direct experience on which insight is also dependent. Wisdom is perfected through practice, not intellectual understanding alone.
Works Cited
Tenzin, Gyatso and Jamyang Gawai Lodro. Essence of the Heart Sutra. Trans. Geshe Thupte Jinpa. Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications, 2002. i-xii, 1-179. Print.
With guidance from principle beliefs and the XIVth Dalai Lama, Buddhist bioethics and the devotional practice of Temple Puja have an impact of high significance on individuals, and the Buddhist community in ultimately, guiding the life of the adherent to achieve total enlightenment. As the modern figurehead for Buddhism, the XIVth Dalai Lama has contributed to the formulation and reassessment of the Buddhist approach to ethical issues.
24 Amore, Roy C. and Julia Ching. The Buddhist Tradition. In Willard G. Oxtoby, Ed. World Religions: Eastern Traditions. P. 221
...e notion of interbeing provides a full picture of understanding connecting different Buddhist ideas such as emptiness, no-self and impermanence together using just one simple word. As Mahayana Buddhism emphasizes the role of Buddhism as a liberating vehicle for the mass of its practitioners, the “heart” of the understanding of the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra is emancipation from fear. Through the eyes of interbeing and skillful practice of penetration can one attain the “heart of the understanding.”
Armstrong, Karen. Buddha. New York: Lipper/Penguin, 2004. 66-98. Print.
The journey Hsun Ching would embark on began as nothing more than weight on his shoulders. Little did he know, it would be an expedition that would change his life forever. Not only changing his perspective on the world, but also life, his personality, and character. All the risks and sacrifices that Hsun Ching has to make during his journey are a very small price to pay for the positive benefits on his life. The journey not only revolutionizes his outlook on the world and life, but also on the Sutra and what it truly means to the world.
Hasaki, a knowledge sutra. N.p., n.d. Web. The Web. The Web. 19 Mar 2012.
The Heart Sutra is the practice and perfection of wisdom. “There are the five skandhas: form, sensations, perceptions, memory, and consciousness. They are how we are aware. Form is the solid object. For example a hot stove. Sensation is the act of the sense contacting the object. The skin feels,
The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch was most likely written by multiple authors from two rival schools of Zen Buddhism. One school promotes the doctrine of sudden awakening and the other promotes the doctrine of gradual awakening. The sutra reconciles the different teachings and shows that both can lead to enlightenment.
"Basics of Buddhism." n.d. The Living Edens: Thailand. Public Broadcasting Service. Website. 6 March 2014. .
"What is Buddhism? | The Buddhist Centre." What is Buddhism? | The Buddhist Centre. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2014. .
The Web. The Web. 18 Mar. 2014. The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'. " The Buddhist World: Lay Buddhist's Guide to the Monk's Rules. "
Eastern enlightenment religions have been gaining popularity throughout the western world for the past few decades, with many people attracted to a "different" way of experiencing religion. As with many other enlightenment religions, Buddhism requires disciples to understand concepts that are not readily explainable: one such concept is that of no-self. In this essay I shall discuss the no-self from a number of modern perspectives; however, as no-self is difficult to describe I shall focus on both the self and no-self. Beginning with psychological aspects, and neurophysiological research on transcendental meditation, I shall discuss the impact of modern brain science on our understanding of the self and transcendence. Next I will outline the relationship between quantum physics and non-locality, as this gives a western scientific explanation for no-self. Returning to the original source of Buddhism, I will briefly outline the discussion between Siddhartha and Vaccha regarding atman, then discuss the mind and no-self and their relationship to liberation. Finally I will summarize a few issues that the western mindset may face approaching this topic.
Sayings of the Buddha: A selection of suttas from the Pali Nikayas. Gethin, Rupert. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.
History proves that as Buddhism spread throughout the Asian world in the early 1st century, it was occasionally altered to fit the specific needs and beliefs of people it touched. Mahayana Buddhism is one such example of this gradual evolution. It was primarily a movement started and kept alive by monks that slowly gained popularity amongst lay people but was in no way a unified movement. Mahayana Buddhism still adheres to the basic fundamental beliefs presented in the Pali Canons, however, it Sutras often expand upon these basic ideas and traditions in order to answer the questions of a later generation. After closer study of the Mahayana texts the “A Sutra for Long Life” and “The World Universe as a Sutra”, it seems evident that, although Mahayana Buddhism is based on the teachings of the traditional Pali Canon, it places a larger emphasis on philosophical inquires; and ultimately creates a more accessible version of enlightenment, and the Buddhist faith in general, for all.
Radha Krishnan Commission (1948–49) stated, “What we need is not the imparting of instructions but the transmitting of vitality, the civilization of human heart. O...