As we all prefer to think of ourselves as dharma practitioners, perhaps we should just check how we have done so far with our own practice. Mahayana Buddhism has named five paths and ten bhumis (grounds). Where do we stand now?

Among the five paths, the paths of joining and of accumulation are practices for ordinary people. Even so, the two paths can gather significant merit already. The path of accumulation has three levels: superior, average and inferior. Not to mention the average and the inferior levels, even those practicing at the superior level may descend to the animal realm. It is because at this stage they are still susceptible to breaking the bodhisattva vows and the root precepts of Vajrayana. And when they do, they will definitely reincarnate in the three lower realms as karma never fails. If meat-eaters were to end up in the hungry ghost or animal realm, they would most certainly be carnivores.

~ Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW : Why Vegetarian?

When fundamental ignorance arises, our mind has already moved away from clarity to its second level. What is fundamental ignorance? At this level or state, the mind, prior to entering clarity, is very calm and relaxed and totally free of thought – correct, incorrect, good, bad, painful, happy ….

To be more specific, the origin of mind is clarity; subsequently, within clarity, slight undulations begin to form; when these undulations appear, the first moment of fundamental ignorance is produced. Although the innate clarity of the mind remains unchanged at this time, fundamental ignorance has already separated from clear light to form our consciousness. Here fundamental ignorance is likened to a ripple in the ocean. Although the ripple is not yet a wave, the calm ocean surface is not quite the same and is showing signs of undercurrent.

~ Depicted from ARE YOU READY FOR HAPPINESS : Suffering is just a Paper Tiger

Vajrayana is also known as Secret Mantra or Esoteric Buddhism. To understand the supposed secret nature of Vajrayana, several explanations can be found in the Guhyagarbha Tantra. That is to say, the secrecy attached to this particular vehicle can be understood from two, three, or four different aspects. They are all correct explanations, just a matter of being broad or brief.

One of the simpler explanations is given from two aspects. One, something is hidden from the public eye. Two, something is kept secret. What is the difference between the two? In the latter, a deliberate action is taken to hide something from others; in the former, no action is required. It is naturally hidden, like the mineral deposits buried under the ground or the sea.

What is hidden? It is tathāgatagarbha. The Buddha did not hide it from us, nor did anyone else. Instead, it is our innate ignorance and defilements that prevent us from knowing its existence. Although tathāgatagarbha has always been with us since our eight consciousnesses were formed, we do not see it. In fact, sentient beings in this boundless universe are basically not aware of this naturally hidden state.

~ Depicted from GATEWAY TO THE VAJRAYANA PATH : A Compendium of the Vajrayana

The Buddha gave us many methods for cultivating the mind. Whether we believe in the Buddha or not, the mind practices are important to all of us. They can also be practiced by anyone.

Undoubtedly, the result of the practice will be different for people with religious belief and those without. However, this is not a problem. We can achieve our goals with these mind practices -- whether we want to attain Buddhahood and benefit all sentient beings, realize self-liberation, or simply alleviate stress, improve the quality of our life, and live a happier and more meaningful life.

What is unfortunate, however, is that everyone seems to be placing emphasis on training the body, not the mind. This preoccupation is leading to an imminent crisis around the world -- not a financial crisis, but a crisis of the mind. Depression, accompanied by symptoms of anxiety and loneliness, has already become the third biggest killer of mankind, following cancer and AIDS, respectively.

~ Depicted from ARE YOU READY FOR HAPPINESS? : The Tibetan Buddhist View on Happiness

The Great Perfection itself is deemed supramundane, but our motivation for practising it or listening to its teachings could turn it into a mundane practice instead. If our motivation were to gain benefits in this or next life, the teaching of the Great Perfection would cease to be supramundane upon entering our mindstream; it would not even be a Mahayana practice. What would it be then? It would just be a mundane practice, or, a practice of mundane Great Perfection.

What kind of practice is animal liberation? That also depends on your motivation. Even if the motivation is for a rebirth in the god or human realm or to avoid rebirth in the three lower realms, rather than for health or longevity in this life, liberating animal is still just a mundane activity. To liberate animals for one’s own freedom from samsara is viewed as a supramundane Theravada practice. To do it out of bodhicitta, the wish to attain Buddhahood for the sake of all sentient beings, is a supramundane Mahayana practice. To couple the Mahayana practice with some Vajrayana views essentially makes animal liberation a Vajrayana practice.

~ Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW : The Three Differences

When our practice reaches a certain level, the external environment will not have much of an effect on us; at that point, there is no difference where we practice. However, to a beginner, the environment is very important.

Firstly, if the surroundings are too noisy, it will be difficult to practice. The sutras say the biggest impediment to meditative concentration is noise.

In general, this is a problem in the cities, but some homes can be very quiet if they have sound-proof installations, and the windows and doors are shut tight.

Secondly, in places where many practitioners in the past have aggregated, blessings are plentiful; this kind of place is particularly conducive to practice.

Whatever the circumstances, the environment is a very important factor. At the least, one should look for a quiet place to practice.

~ Depicted from THE FOUR SEALS OF DHARMA : Preparing for the Preliminaries

WHAT IS A DHARMA SEAL?

The Three Dharma Seals are the axioms that distinguish the Dharma from non-Dharma, Buddhism from non-Buddhism. They are essential to establishing what the Dharma truly is.

The Three Dharma Seals and the Four Dharma Seals are actually the same thing since the first three seals are the practice, while the last seal is the result. The first three are the cause, the fourth its effect. By practicing the first three seals, we can reach the state of nirvana.

As in any practice, we must first know its underlying concept. It is only after full apprehension of the concept that practice can proceed. Without right understanding, our practice is blind. Without practice, right understanding is also useless. Hence, one complements the other; each is indispensable. We can eradicate our afflictions and attain liberation only with the perfect union of the two. Accordingly, before we discuss the actual practice of the Three Dharma Seals, we must also know its concept.

~ Depicted from THE FOUR SEALS OF DHARMA : Summation

One may question, “Many accomplished masters have attained extraordinary realization. Why do they still encounter obstacles or become ill?”

There are two possibilities. One of them can be explained by way of the Twelve Nidanas. Accomplished practitioners may have eradicated all defilements in this life, but they were once ordinary beings in the past. Even Shakyamuni Buddha was an ordinary being before attaining Buddhahood, not to mention the lesser known practitioners. As an ordinary being, one cannot but commit karma and karma is infallible. Consequently, even accomplished masters must still go through suffering in this life due to some distant causes not yet resolved. Nonetheless, this will be the last time they have to experience suffering again in their cyclic existence sinceprimordial time.

We all know the story of Nagarjuna. The prince of King Lexin went to him demanding his head. Nagarjuna said, “You cut it off yourself.” The prince, no matter how expertly he used his sword, could not cut the head off; it was almost like cutting through air. Nagarjuna then said, “I purified all the heterogeneous effects resulting from cutting others with weapons five hundred lifetimes ago, except the one of killing insects while cutting kusha grass. So, you may use kusha grass to cut off my head.” The prince then cut his head off with one kusha grass. This story tells us that even someone as accomplished as Nagarjuna cannot avoid any karmic effect when it ripens. Therefore, it is a possibility that some of these respectable practitioners still have residual karmic effects left to be resolved.

Another possibility can be inferred from the following example. Having attained Buddhahood, Shakyamuni Buddha was forever free from the influence of causality. However, he manifested illness to show sentient beings the infallibility of karma. For instance, the evil king of Sravasti attacked the hometown of the Buddha and killed seventy-seven thousand of the Shakya clan. The streets were all blood red because the king had ordered that only when all the streets were covered with blood could the killing stop. Finally, to satisfy the king, his people had to mix red dye with water and poured on the streets to make it look like blood was running everywhere. At that point, the Buddha started getting a headache. The reason is that in his past life, the Buddha and the slaughtered clansmen had done something bad together. The Buddha himself also said, “Because of that negative karma, I have to endure a headache even though I have attained supreme enlightenment. If it were not for the perfect merit I have thus gathered, I too would have been killed today.” The fact is that the negative effect could never have happened to the Buddha. He manifested a headache only to help beings believe the truth of causality.

~ Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW : The Twelve Nidanas—the sequence of cyclic existence

Human beings do not have methods for facing suffering, thus they hope for happiness and are afraid of suffering. Animals are the same way – they hope bad things go away and that good things come quickly. A whole life is hence wasted in this expectation.

Practitioners also encounter suffering and happiness. How we transform happiness and, in particular, suffering into favorable conditions in our practice is very important. Without the right method, suffering and happiness become obstacles to the path. This not only impedes our practice, it also affects the normal course of our life.

In facing suffering, if we have the right view and understanding, suffering may not be harmful; otherwise, suffering will cause anxiety, mental disturbance, even self-destruction.

~ Depicted from ARE YOU READY FOR HAPPINESS : How to Face Suffering and Happiness-How to Face Suffering