Cause and Effect

To resolve the problem of dukkha*, we first must understand the teaching of cause and effect.

Throughout the universe, nothing changes haphazardly. Everything follows a common rule. That rule is cause and effect, often mistakenly referred to as karma. However, the word karma simply means action, physical, verbal, or mental. 

It is intention that forms our karma, our action.

The result of karma is referred to as vipaka.

Karma is the action and vipaka is the result, the fruit.

Buddhism teaches every action will cause an effect. And everything effect we experience now was caused by an earlier action.

The correlation between cause and effect is a universal law, not random happenstance.

The law of cause and effect requires neither giver, nor creator, but 'directs" quietly and impartially. 

If we wish to resolve the problem of dukkha and realize liberation, we must understand cause and effect.


*Dukkha
Stress, anxiety, discomfort, dissatisfaction, dis-ease, worry, unpleasantness, sorrow, distress, and suffering.

The Old Man

Know that you don't know.

~Lao Tzu

Our World

Our idea of the world is generated from conceptions based on perceptions based on sensations.

Emptiness

When Buddhist teaching says that things are empty or do not exist as such, what is often meant by "things" or "phenomena" in such statements is things as they are conceived of—the point is then that a name or definition does not encompass or capture a thing, either in its essence or in the totality of possibilities of its conditional existence.

To pursue the matter more deeply, when we consider the idea of the world as conceptions based on perceptions based on sensations, we can see that we have no further direct evidence for anything phenomenal beyond sense. If we seek corroboration of sense by sense, we find that we cannot reach beyond sense, so to speak, except by inference. We cannot therefore directly "apprehend" the objective world; we can only reflect impressions. This "emptiness of ungraspability" is among the major avenues of contemplation leading to authentic appreciation of emptiness.

~Thomas Cleary, in Entry Into the Inconceivable

The Power of Trump Comes When Thought and Reason Are Discarded

Liars

Habitual liars do not realize that they fool themselves first, in order to minimize their own internal conflict. Many are so absorbed in convincing themselves that their own lies are true, that they fail to recognize the signals that others do not believe their lies at all.

~Dharma Master YongHua

Pure Land

If a man's mind becomes pure, his surroundings will also become pure.

~Venerable Master Chin Kung

Skillful Means

All the Buddhas in the worlds of the ten directions know that the inclinations of sentient beings are not the same, and so they teach and train them according to their needs and capacities.

~ The Avatamsaka Sutra

Book Seven

Names of the Buddhas

By His Own Assertion the Buddha Said He is Not a God

Once, the Buddha was walking down a country lane. A man saw him and noticed there was something about him that was different than other people.

The man approached him and asked, "Are you a god?"

"No," the Buddha replied, "I am not a god."

"Are you an angel?" the man asked.

"No, I'm not an angel."

"Are you a saint?"

"No, I'm not a saint."

The man stepped back and asked with a shaking voice, "Are you a spirit?"

"No, I'm not a spirit."

"What are you."

"I'm awake."

The Hua Yen School of Buddhism

The interdependence of phenomena means that ultimately one depends on all and all depend on one, whether immediately or remotely; therefore, the existence of all is considered an intrinsic part of the existence of one, and the existence of one is considered an intrinsic part of the existence of all.

The Hua Yen School of Buddhism

Avatamsaka – Sanskrit

Hua Yen (Hua Yan) – Chinese

Flower Garland (Flower Ornament) – English

The name Flower Garland is meant to suggest the crowning glory of a Buddha's profound understanding of ultimate reality.

Known in Korea as Hwaeom.

Known in Japan as Kegon.

An overview of Hua Yen doctrine: “All in one, one in all.”

The Hua Yen School emphasizes the interdependence and interbeing of all things, the emptiness of all phenomena, the inherent Buddha nature in all Beings, and the Bodhisattva Ideal.

Scriptures of the Hua Yen School: The primary scripture is The Avatamsaka Sutra. Two other important scriptures are the Lotus Sutra, and the Awakening of Faith in the Mahayana.

The Hua Yen School focuses on explaining the ultimate nature of the world, the universe, all things from the point of view of a Fully Awakened Being, a Buddha

The Hua Yen is often said to be the philosophical articulation of Chan (Zen) meditation.

The Hua Yen School was influenced by the Yogacara and Madhyamaka Schools of Buddhism as well as by the Taoist teachings.

Hua Yen teaches any phenomenon exists only as part of the total nexus of reality, its existence depends on the total network of all other things, which are all equally connected to each other and contained in each other.

The Hua Yen Patriarchs used various metaphors to explain the teaching. Two popular metaphors were Indra's Net and a hall of mirrors.

The third Hua Yen Patriarch, Fa-tsang, illustrated the teaching to the great Chinese Empress Wu by surrounding a candle on all sides with mirrors. When the candle was lit it was reflected in each mirror and each of the reflections was reflected in every other mirror. A continuous non-ending reflection on reflection.

The Lion's Roar

The ultimate realm of truth is inconceivable.

~The Avatamsaka Sutra

Entry Into the Realm of Reality

I hope you are not vicious,
Do not steal,
Are not promiscuous,
And do not lie.

I hope you do not cause discord,
Do not slander others,
Do not covet others' goods,
And are not hostile toward anyone.

May you not stand on the wasteland of views;
May your intelligence not be taken away by habits;
May you not exert bad influence on people
By guile or deceit.

Do you love and respect your parents,
Relatives, friends, and elders?
Does your heart reach out
To give to the poor to help them?

Are you well disposed toward spiritual benefactors
Who tell you about religion at the appropriate time?
Are you truly healthy and capable
In body and mind?

Do you respect the buddhas
And love the enlightening beings?
Do you know the supreme Teaching
From which the enlightening beings are born?

Can you abide by the supreme religion
And not do any wrong?
Do you have higher love and respect
For the infinite ocean of virtues?

Are you kind
To the helpless and lost?
Are you really compassionate
Toward evildoers?

Are you most happy
To see the success of others?
Are you indifferent, by the power of wisdom,
To those who annoy you for no reason?

Seeing people in the slumber of ignorance,
Do you firmly seek supreme enlightenment?
Would you not weary of endless ages
Of spiritual practice?

~The Avatamsaka Sutra

I Decide What To Carry

What I carry in my heart is what I am.

The Noblest Way of Living

Just as a mother loves and protects her only child at the risk of her own life, cultivate boundless love to offer to all living beings in the entire cosmos. Let our boundless love pervade the whole universe, above, below, and across. Our love will know no obstacles. our heart will be absolutely free from hatred and enmity. Whether standing or walking, sitting or lying, as long as we are awake, we should maintain this mindfulness of love in our own heart. This is the noblest way of living.

~From the Buddha's Discourse on Love

The Teacher

The teacher teaching the student is the teacher meeting him- or herself.

~John Daido Loori

Civilized People

A civilized nation does not arm its teachers with any weapons other than integrity, honesty, wisdom, compassion, and a desire to nurture.

Clarity

All is empty, clear, self-illuminating,
with no need to exert the mind.

~The Hsin Hsin Ming (Xinxin Ming)

Creamed Celery

4 cups of chopped celery
2 tablespoons of butter
2 cups of milk
2 tablespoons of flour
1 teaspoon of salt
3/4 cup of pecan halves
1/2 cup of bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Lightly oil a 1 1/2 quart casserole.

Boil the celery until it's tender, maybe 10 minutes.

In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, melt the butter and then stir in the milk and the flour.

Stir the milk and flour mixture until it thickens and becomes creamy. Add the salt and the cooked celery.

Pour the mixture into the oiled casserole, top with the pecan halves, and cover with the bread crumbs.

Bake the dish for 15 minutes, or until the sauce bubbles.

Serve.

The Avatamsaka Sutra

The central theme of the Avatamsaka Sutra is all things are interdependent. Therefore, all things imply all other things. The existence of each element of the Universe includes the existence of the whole Universe. Each element of the Universe is as extensive as the Universe itself.

There Is No True Benefit For One Group Alone That Is Won At The Cost Of Another

It is generally characteristic of Mahayana or universalistic Buddhism that the mundane welfare of beings is considered a legitimate, if not ultimate, aim of bodhisattva activity, and many aspects of the ethical and practical life of bodisattvas may be seen in this light. While psychological and physical well-being is not considered the ultimate goal, it might appropriately be thought of as an elementary stage in the realization of humanity, a removal of conflicts and anxieties to free more energy for higher development. It is axiomatic, based on the world view of Buddhism, that since all people and indeed all creatures share in each other's existence, there is no true benefit for one group alone that is won at the cost of another.

~Thomas Cleary, in Entry Into the Inconceivable

One

Although all dualities arise from the One,
do not be attached even to ideas of this One.

~The Hsin Hsin Ming

Oneness

As long as you remain attached to one extreme or another
you will never know Oneness.
Those who do not live in the Single Way
cannot be free in either activity or quietude,
              in assertion or denial.

~The Hsin Hsin Ming

The Liberation and Enlightenment of All Beings

The ethic of the Hua-yen teaching is based on this fundamental theme of universal interdependence; while the so-called bodhisattva, the person devoted to enlightenment, constantly nourishes aspiration and will going beyond the world, nevertheless the striving for completion and perfection, the development of ever greater awareness, knowledge, freedom, and capability, is continually reinvested, as it were, in the world, dedicated to the liberation and enlightenment of all beings.

~Thomas Cleary, in Entry Into the Inconceivable

The Hua-yen School

The Hua-yen doctrine shows the entire cosmos as one single nexus of conditions in which everything simultaneously depends on, and is depended on by, everything else. Seen in this light, then, everything affects and is affected by, more or less immediately or remotely, everything else; just as this is true of every system of relationships, so it is true of the totality of existence. In seeking to understand individuals and groups, therefore, Hua-yen thought considers the manifold as an integral part of the unit and the unit as an integral part of the manifold; one individual is considered in terms of relationships to other individuals as well as to the whole nexus, while the whole nexus is considered in terms of its relation to each individual as well as to all individuals.

~Thomas Cleary, in Entry Into the Inconceivable

The Heart of Great Compassion

If you make sentient beings happy, you make all Buddhas happy. Why? Because the heart of great compassion is the substance of the Buddhas. Therefore they develop great compassion on account of sentient beings, develop the will for enlightenment based on great compassion, and attain true awakening on the basis of the will for enlightenment. It is like a giant tree in a desert; if the roots find water, then the branches, leaves, flowers, and fruits all flourish. The giant tree of enlightenment in the desert of birth and death is also like this. All living beings are the root of the tree; the Buddha and bodhisattvas are the flowers. Benefit living beings with the water of great compassion and you can obtain the flowers and fruits of knowledge and wisdom of Buddhas and bodhisattvas.

~The Avatamsaka Sutra

Big Mind

Before we were born we had no feeling; we were one with the universe. This is called "mind-only," or "essence of mind," or "big mind." After we are separated by birth from this oneness, as the water falling from the waterfall is separated by the wind and rocks, then we have feeling. You have difficulty because you have feeling. You attach to the feeling you have without knowing just how this kind of feeling is created. When you do not realize that you are one with the river, or one with the universe, you have fear. Whether it is separated into drops or not, water is water. Our life and death are the same thing. When we realize this fact we have no fear of death anymore, and we have no actual difficulty in our life.

~Shunryu Suzuki, in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind

Life and Death

Our life and death are the same thing. When we realize this fact, we have no fear of death anymore, nor actual difficulty in our life.

~Shunryu Suzuki, in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind

The Positive

Overcome the anger by non-anger; overcome the wicked by goodness; overcome the miser by generosity; overcome the liar by truth.

~The Buddha

The Three

Mind, Buddha, and Sentient Beings; There is no difference in the three.

~Avatamsaka Sutra

Sentient Beings

In Buddhism, Sentient Beings are Beings with consciousness, sentience.

Consciousness is awareness of oneself and that outside oneself.

Sentience is the capacity to feel, perceive or experience subjectively. 

The Old Man

Respond to anger with virtue.

Deal with difficulties while they are still easy.

Handle the great while it is still small. 

~Lao Tzu

Heaven and Earth

A simple dish of warm mashed potatoes mixed with warm, well seasoned applesauce, salt, and enough sugar and cider vinegar to give a slight sweet-sour tang.

Serve warm with brown butter poured over it.

Note: Brown butter is made by cooking unsalted butter long enough to turn the milk solids brown while cooking out any water present in the butter. Often described as tasting nutty or toasty, it has a deeper, richer, more intense flavor than melted or clarified butter. Brown butter is a  for vegetables.

Heaven and Earth

1 1/3 cups of water
1/2 teaspoon of salt
3 1/2 pounds of potatoes, peeled and diced
3 apples, peeled, quartered, cores removed
1 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 tablespoon of cider vinegar
1/4 pound of tempeh, diced
2 onions, sliced



In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, bring the water and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the boil.

Add the potatoes and return to the boil. Cook until the potatoes are just tender.

Add the apples, return to the boil, and cook until the apples are tender.

Season with the 1 teaspoon of salt, the sugar, and the vinegar.

Saute the tempeh and the onion slices in a very small amount of sesame oil until done to your liking.

Drain any water from the apples and the potatoes.
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Pour the onion and the tempeh mixture over the potatoes and the apples and serve hot.

This Is Buddhism

To have some deep feeling about Buddhism is not the point; we just do what we should do, like eating supper and going to bed. This is Buddhism.

Shunryu Suzuki, in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind