Human Centered Buddhism - A Teaching That is in Accordance to the Acceptance Level of the People

8/2/2019 Human Centered Buddhism - A Teaching That is in Accordance to the Acceptance Level of the People

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Human-CenteredBuddhism


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Venerable Master Yinshun(1906-2005)


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Venerable Master Taixu(1889-1974)


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Ven. Master Jen Chun

( 1919-2011)


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Buddhism for Human World:A Teaching that is in accordance to the

Acceptance Level of the People

Explaining Buddhism among Mankind as a Religion Suited to Conditions


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A talk given in 1952 to the monastic residents of

a monastery named Jing Ye Lin () in Jiang

Su (),

Recorded by Ven. Jenchun Included in Buddha in Human Realm (

), pp.29-73.

Translated into English by Dr. Beng Tiong Tan () (Selected Translations of Miao Yun, Part VI,

pp.44-190)


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Riding the Buddha Vehicle through History:

Buddhist Vehicles and Buddhist History in the

Thought of Ven. Master Yin-Shun

By Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi

Tzung-Kuen Wen

[email protected]


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Various purposes of Buddhist teachings

Characteristics of Buddhist Vehicles

How Buddhism assimilated and rejected Indian religious

practices.

A general picture of the historical development of Buddhist

teachings.

Human-centered Buddhism and Human Bodhisattva

What suggestion Human-centered Buddhism can provide to

Buddhism in the west.


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Content

1 Establishment of Doctrines and Vehicles in Accordance to

the Acceptance levels of Sentient Beings

1.1 Purposes of Various Doctrines

1.2 Classifications of Doctrines and Vehicles

1.2.1 Five Vehicles

1.2.2 Three Vehicles and One Vehicle

1.3 Historical Development of Buddhism

1.3.1. Ven. Taixus Three Classifications of Mahyna

1.3.2. Three Periods in the Historical Development of

Buddhism


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2.3 Bodhisattva Vehicle Based on the Human-Celestial and

rvaka Vehicles

2.3.1 Two Types of Bodhisattva in Jtaka

2.3.2 The Close relationship between Mahyna Dharma

and Lay Disciples.

2.3.3 How Mahyna Buddhism Assimilates Indian CelestialPractices

3 Conclusion


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1. Establishment of Doctrines

and Vehicles in Accordance to

the Acceptance levels of

Sentient Beings


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1.1 Purpose of Various Doctrines

Buddhist doctrines were tailored to accommodate to the

spiritual levels of sentient beings.

The Four Siddhntas as explained in theMahprajn-pramitopadea stra (Great Treaties on Perfection of

Wisdom), represent the four purposes of various doctrines

given by the Buddha, after taking into account the

dispositions of individuals.


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Worldly Siddhnta

Aim: draw out the interest or fulfill the wishes of the hearer.

Method: teach things listeners are familiar with or desire for

Examples

While meeting with a farmer he first talk about farming.

Following the Indian customs

Reciting hymns of praise after accepting offerings

The Buddha is called the teacher of celestial beings and

human (st deva-manuym)

Lay disciples are allowed to offer gifts to the deities.

Mahynas skillful means: *The Bodhisattvas courtesans +First lead them with the hook of desire, Then cause them to

enter the Buddhas wisdom.


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Individually adapted Siddhnta

Aim: to encourage the audience to cultivate wholesomeness

Medthod: To teach in accordance to individual spiritual level

so that wholesomeness will be cultivated

Example

For people reluctant to give gifts, explain the benefits of alms-

giving .

Different from Worldly Siddhnta

Not to draw interest nor to fulfill wishes or desires of the

listener. Teachings given are not necessarily familiar to the audience,

but surely consistent to Buddhist morality


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Therapeutic siddhnta

Aim: to restrain listeners from unwholesome deeds

Example

The Buddha teaches the contemplation of bodily impurities

(aubha-bhvan) for people with strong lust and greed;

Mindfulness of Loving-kindness (maitr-smti) for people withstrong hatred;

Mindfulness on Dependent Origination (pratyayat-prattyasamutpda-smti) for people with strong ignorance;

Mindfulness of Breathing (npna-smti) for people whosemind wanders a lot;

Mindfulness of Elements (dhtu-prabheda-smti) for peoplewith strong self-attachment.


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Why are there these two purpose i.e., cultivating

wholesomeness and restraining from unwholesomeness?

Restraining from unwholesomeness

From not only bodily and verbal unwholesome deeds but also

mental defilements.

Example1: for one who is willing to practice alms-giving only

Example 2: for one who abstains from bodily and verbal wrong

deeds only The reasons why some practices are praised while others are

criticized


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Supreme-Truth Siddhnta

Aim: to reveal the highest truth, the reality perceived and

realized by the Buddha himself.

Teachings delivered with this supreme-truth siddhnta arethe heart of Buddhas Dharma.

Ngrjuna: The first three Siddhanta may be sabotaged andwrecked, the Supreme-truth Siddhanta cannot be wrecked in

any way.

Take the teachings of Worldly Siddhanta as an example:

It depends on situations (customs, ability, dispositions), so it isflexible.

Its effect varies.

It serves as a skilful means.


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As to the other two siddhantas: to cultivate wholesomeness

and to restrain from unwholesomeness

The principle is the same, the ways to practice vary depending

on time, regions, and individuals.

Ex.1 the path of ancient sages: Noble Eight-fold Path

Ex. 2 Morality

The teachings of the Buddha are just like the prescription

given by a doctor to patients.

patients - prescription; hearers- Buddhist teachings Buddhism adapted itself to various conditions in India.

When it spread to China, Japan, and South East Asia, it surely

changes itself due to its adaptations to these places.


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In conclusion, when one is spreading Buddha Dharma, in

order to match the teachings of the Buddha with the spiritual

capacities of the audience , one should

Pay attention to these four siddhantas

Know the difference between the first three and the last one

Not ruin the message of Buddha Dharma by misunderstanding

skilful means as ultimate truth.


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1.2 Classifications of Doctrines

and Vehicles

Diversity of spiritual capability and dispositions - diversity of

Buddhist teaching.

Buddhist teaching is also called yna, vehicle.

Vehicle can take people from one place to another

The Buddhist teachings can carry people who put them into

practice from the human realm to celestial realm, or even

from the realm of worldling to the realm of sages.

The Buddhist doctrines can be classified as five vehicles, three vehicles or one vehicle.


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1.2.1 Five Vehicles

They are 1. Human Vehicle, 2. Celestial Vehicle, 3. rvakavehicle, 4. Pratyekabuddha Vehicle, 4. Bodhisatva Vehicle or

Buddha Vehicle.

Every vehicle has three aspects, i.e. 1. arousal of mind(aspiration), 2. goal, and 3. mthods

Five Vehicles can be regrouped into three vehicles: Human-

Celestial Vehicle, rvaka Pratyekabuddha Vehicle andBodhisattva Vehicle.


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Human-Celestial Vehicle

1. Arousal of mind: mind of improvement

Lives in human realm or celestial realm are relatively better

than in the other four realms.

Some come to Buddhism in order to improve their present

condition in this life.

They wish for better health, wealth, knowledge ..

2. Goal: is to have more happiness in the present life and

better rebirth in future lives.

3. Methods: righteous human conducts, such as alms-giving,observing precepts.

If one practices with the mind of improvement, no matterhow profound teachings he might learn, the result will be

limited to rebirth in either human realm or deity realm.


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rvaka Pratyekabuddha Vehicle

The dispositions of the practitioners in these two vehicles are

similar.

1. Arousal of mind: mind of escape

Rebirth in the human or deity realm is suffering. Everything in

the world is impermanent and thus unsatisfactory.

2. Goal: to stop rebirth in sasra and attain Nirva

3. Methods: emphasis on abandoning ones own defilements.

With the mind of escape, people will gain only the fruitions

of Small Vehicle even though they may practice the teachingsof Mahyna


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Bodhisattva Vehicle

1. Arousal of mind:

Bodhisattvas know the suffering of rebirth and death, but they

also know that sentient beings suffer as much as they do, so

they feel sympathy for sentient beings, and thus arouse

Bodhicitta based on great compassion. 2. Goal: Help sentient beings and attain Buddhahood.

3. Means: practice the wholesome deeds that are beneficial to

oneself and others

Buddhism does not go beyond these five vehicles. To followthe teachings of the Buddha without aspiration and practices

of anyone of these five vehicles, is just fake. It does not avoid

the suffering of awful realm.


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1.2.2 Three Vehicles and One Vehicle

Human-Celestial Vehicle

not the core teachings of Buddhism

mundane, secular, worldly,

Similar motivation and practices are found in other religions

(Confucianism, Taoism, Christianility, Islam)and disciplines.

Not show the uniqueness of Buddha Dharma

Three Vehicles (rvaka, Pratyekabuddha, bodhisattva )

the core teachings of Buddhism

world-transcending, unworldly


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One Vehicle refers to the One Great Vehicle.

The difference between One Vehicle and BodhisattvaVehicle (Great Vehicle)

Doctrine of Three Vehicles: practitioners of any one of the

three vehicles will all enter Parinirva eventually. Theattainments of Arahants and Pratyekabuudha are ultimate,

final.

Doctrine of One Vehicle: Arahants and Pratyekabuudha will

turn from Small Vehicle to Bodhisattva Vehicle, which is the

only one path, and attain Buddhahood eventually .

Tow approaches to the Great Vehicle: 1Directly Entering the

Great Vehicle; 2 Returning to the Great Vehicle


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Debates on Three Vehicles vs One Vehicle

The fundamental issue is whether the attainments in the Two

Vehicles (rvaka, pratyekabuddha) are ultimate, last or final,beyond which no other exists or is possible.

The relationship of these Vehicles can be showed in a figure.


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According to the doctrine of One Vehicle

The Three Vehicles are just expedient means. The Small

Vehicle does not exist, and there is in fact only one vehicle,

the Great Vehicle.

While realizing the nature of sameness of all dharma(samadharmat), all practitioners converge in the same OneVehicle.

Therefore, the Prajparmit Stra says, All Buddhist saintswill definitely accept the Mahynic teachings of perfectionof wisdom (Prajpramit)

The Lotus Stra says, If aspirants of rvaka vehicle dont havefaith in the Mahyna, they must be conceited. Though theyview themselves as arahants, they are not.


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According to the doctrine of Three Vehicles

Doctrine of Two Vehicles and Doctrine of Bodhisattva Vehicle

are both supramundane teachings.

But, the doctrine of Bodhisattva Vehicle is praised as the

supreme among supramundane teachings. Because abodhisattva works to help other sentient beings attain

Buddhahood. Its the unification of great wisdom, greatcompassion, great vow and great practices.

From the perspective of human-celestial Vehicle,

Bodhisattva Vehicle is the unification of mundane practices

and supramundance practices.

While being engaged in worldly events, Bodhisattvas are

disenchanted with the world.


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1.3 Historical Development of Buddhism

From the perspective that every Buddhist will eventually

return to the One Vehicle, the three vehicles are in fact

nothing but three types of Mahyna.

These three types of Mahyna do exist in the historical

development of Buddhism in India.


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1.3.1. Ven. Taixus Three classifications ofMahyna

Ven. Master Taixu had briefly explained these three types in

his article How do I classify and evaluate all the Buddhistdoctrines.

According to Ven. Taixu, there is only One Vehicle, the

Mahyna, all sentient beings will attain Buddhahood in theend.

His divided the history of Buddhism into three periods:

1 through rvaka Vehicle to Mahyna

2. through Celestial Vehicle to Mahyna 3. through Human Vehicle to Mahyna


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The Period of True Dharma The first 500 years from the death of the Buddha (390 BC)

Most Buddhists follow rvaka Vehicle in the very beginning.After having realized noble fruits of rvaka, they turn toMahyna.

For example, according to the Lotus Stra, bhiku and bhikun

,who are either trainees (aika) or byeond-training (aaika),all made a resolution to attain Buddhahood and help sentient

beings.

This trends continued even after the first five hundred years.

Some people are recorded, such as Ngjuna Deva AsagaVasubandhu.

They might not have realized the fruits of the rvaka Vehiclebefore they turned to Mahyna, but generally speaking theywent forth and were fully ordained in the schools of rvaka

(Mainstream Buddhism).


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They might learn the doctrine of rvaka Vehicle beforethey came to learn Mahyna doctrine.

Or they appear as a member of rvaka schools whilepractising the Bodhisattva Path.

Most of the monastic Bodhisattvas fall into this category. These Boddhisattvas who practiced the Two Vehicles

before entering Mahyna are wisdom-oriented.

They emphasize wisdom, dont have enough compassion

They practice meditation diligently and earnestly desire forattainment of arahatship.

On the Bodhisattva Path, these Wisdom-predominant

Bodhisattvas progress much slowly due to their

compassion being less intense.


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The Period of Semblance Dharma

Its during the third 500 years after the death of the Buddha.

Buddhists mostly advanced to the Great Vehicle through the

practices of Celestial Vehicle. They can be called Celestial

Boddhisattvas.

Unlike Monastic Bodhisattvas, they were familiar with thedeity (theistic) teachings of Brahmanism, and integrate these

teachings as an expedient means into Buddha Dharma.

As a result, visualization of Buddhas or Boddhisattvas are

equated with visualization of deities. For example, In Tantric

Buddhism, Iadeva(t) (tutelary deity) are represented by theimages of Yaka, Raka or Braham.

Celestial realms become the ideal world.

The Two Vehicles were given a lower status in Buddhism.


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The Period of Degenerate Dharma

Its after 1500 years of the Buddhas death, Ven. Taixu says.

Buddhists enter the Bodhisattva Path by the practice of

Human Vehicle.

Attainment of rvaka fruits is rare. Even Buddhists in the

countries of Southern Buddhism emphasize such secularactivities as education and charity.

Following the practice of rvaka in forests is criticized asbeing selfish and running away from reality.

Devotion to the practice of Celestial-Vehicle Bodhisattva Pathwith the emphasis on dealing with sexual desires is

reproached as superstitious and absurd

It seems that the suitable way is to follow the Bodhisattva

Path through the teaching of Human Vehicle.


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Ven. Taixus way of classifying bodhisattvas into three types isvery meaningful: Human, Celestial, and Two-vehicle

Bodhisattvas.

Two-Vehicle Bodhisattvas attach importance to wisdom

Celestial Bodhisattvas lay stress on faith (Pure Land Buddhism

and Esoteric Buddhism represent the practice of CelestialBodhisattva)

Human Bodhisattvas put emphasis on loving-kindness and

compassion and engage in various altruistic activities.

According to *Mahprajpramitopadea stra, abodhisattva may have more wisdom, compassion, or faith andeffort. Its true that a true bodhisattva should be equippedwith all these three qualities, but with regard to the approach

to Mahyna, there are these three different ways.


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These three periods mentioned above can also be discerned in

the historical development of Indian Buddhism of 1500 years.

1.3.2. Three periods in the Historical

Development of Buddhism


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MajurSamantabhadra


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First Period Early BuddhismUse the mandalas to Illustrate the differences in the

doctrines and intended hearers between the three

periods.


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First Period (Early Buddhism)

In Early Buddhism, the monastic sangha was the center. The Buddha and his great disciples all lead a monastic life.

The unique attribute of this monastic life is liberty and

freedom. They live a simple life, being content with whatever

they have access to with respect to clothing, food and

dwelling. They devote themselves to destroying defilements in

the wilds.

In the middle ring, there are lay disciples from all walks of life.

They perform generosity and keep precepts, fulfill their

obligations to their family, society and country. They alsopractice meditation with a emphasis on loving-kindness

meditation.

They are able to win liberation from samsara, but they are not

in the position of maintaining Buddhism.


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The out-most layer consists of spirits and deities, ranging

from uddhvsa deva (Deity of Pure Abode) to ghost andanimals.

In gamas and Vinayas, devas, asuras, gandharvas andyakas sometimes came to join the dharma assembly,some came to protect Buddhism from being disturbed by

evil spirits. They played only a insignificant role. They are

characterized by two quality: greed and anger. The Buddha

always taught them not to hurt people due to their stronggreed and anger.

Monastic liberation is placed on the center of this period of

Buddhism, where the disciples, inwardly, were devoted to

meditation and wisdom, and outwardly, concerned for theoutside world. There is less superstitious expedient means.


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The Second Period-- Mahyna Buddhism


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The Second Period

Mahyna Buddhism arose to gain its popularity around 500years after the death of the Buddha.

The center of Buddhism hand changed. Lay disciples occupy

the center of Buddhism in this period. Bodhisattvas such as

Majur, Avalokitevara, Samantabhadra, Vimalakrti,Sudhana and Sadprarudita, all appear as lay disciples.

The Vairocana Buddha, considered as the dharma body in

Mahyna Buddhism was presented as a layman wearing hairsin a bun and a crown, with many precious decorations.

These Buddhas and Bodhisattvas display the virtues of great

compassion, great wisdom and great practice and great vow.

They are shown to emphasize such teachings as the six kinds

of perfection and the four ways of favoring .


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Four Ways of Favoring

catvri sagraha vastuni

four methods of propitiation/attracting /winning/favoring

1. Dna - almsgiving ()2. Priyavacana - loving speech ()

3. Arthakriy - conduct and action that benefits other ()

4. Samanrthat - co-operation with others ()


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The root of Buddha Dharma became

the One Great Vehicle which stresses

on cultivating Bodhicitta and helping

sentient beings.

During this period, the monastic

community were moved to the right

side, it no longer occupied the

central place, it was regarded as theaudience for whom certain

expedient means were made. They

became auditors in classroom.

They were depicted as blaming

themselves for not knowing andpracticing earlier the Boddhisattva

Path. But, eventually, they all decide

to turn to the Great Vehicle.


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Deities (including spirits and animals)

were elevated to the left side of the

center. For example, the Vajradhara,

a guardian of Buddhism during thetime of the Buddha, was a yaka. Inthis period of Mahyna, it washonored as the transformation

body of bodhisattva.

Even the king of Mara was perceived as great Bodhisattva.

These celestial Bodhisattvas, motivated by the qualities of

compassion, wisdom, effort and vow, helped the Buddha to

preach the teachings of the six perfections and four ways offavor. However they were deified a bit.

Other deities of lower class were mostly earnest guardians

of Buddhism


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The teachings of benefiting others in Mahyna Buddhism arefull of the spirit of a Bodhisattva as described in the Jtakastories. Meanwhile, there is an inclination of deities worship,

and their role became notable gradually. So this is Buddhism

getting more and more involved with humanization as well as

deification.

Mahyna Buddhism flourished and became popular in Indiatogether with these two contexts, which had an great impact

on its later development.

Mahyna Buddhism was not as plain as Early Buddhism ,which valued living in community. Mahyna was relativelymore adapted to Indian customs, it had an inclination towards

the idea of mind-only and the greatness of individual.


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The third Period Esoteric Buddhism


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The third Period

Compared to the first period, everything in this period is

reversed.

The images of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas in the middle are

mostly those of yaka and rakas, freaky and frightening.

with many heads, many hands, many weapons, wearing a

necklace of skulls and treading on fierce deities or spirits.

In addition to these fierce or, to be precise, wrathful looks,

there is images of man and woman hugging each other,

which is called greedy look


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The amiable lay Bodhisattvas were

moved to middle ring, while monastic

disciples relocated to the outermost

layer. This can be clearly discernedfrom Tantric Maala.

Since deities (especially those of low

rank) became the center of Buddhism,

all heretic rituals and practices were

integrated into Buddhism as expedient

means.

Since deities (especially those of low rank) became the

center of Buddhism, all heretic rituals and practices related

deities were integrated into Buddhism as expedient means. This is what Venerable Taixu means by speaking of advance

to Buddha Vehicle through the practice of Celestial Vehicle.


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Summary of the three periods

It can be seen that rvaka Vehicle is the center of earlyBuddhism; Human (and celestial )Bodhisattva Vehicle is the

center of Buddhism in the middle period; and Celestial

Bodhisattva Vehicle is the center of Buddhism of later period.

Mahyna Buddhism, Buddhism of the middle period, inclinedtowards not only celestial Bodhisattva but also HumanBodhisattva. The idea of Human Bodhisattva was fully

documented during the middle period of Buddhism in India.

In order to accommodate the deity culture in India, Buddhism

in its later development assimilated the practices ofBrahmanism and developed fully the idea of Celestial

Bodhisattva.


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Now, we advocate Human-centered Buddhism.

Since were humans, we should focus on humans. So weshould learn the compassion and wisdom of human

Bodhisattvas who are fully depicted in the early and middle

periods of Buddhism.

In particular, we should develop wisdom out of compassion,

and not to follow the teachings of Celestial Bodhisattva in the

later period of Buddhism. During the Tang Dynasty in China, it was only the beginning of

the third period of Buddhism in India. The Buddhism in China

was not as deity-influenced as in Tibet. The Buddhism in China

was less deity-influenced and inclined moreto the teachings of

rvaka vehicle.


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In short, the pure practice of Human Bodhisattva is to arouse

Bodhicitta as a human, to help sentient beings with the help

of wisdom and compassion, and to go directly to attain the

supreme enlightenment.

We should pay more attention to the middle period ofBuddhism and shake off all the inclination of deity-influence


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2 Analysis of Various Vehicles

that are Tailored to the

Temperaments of SentientBeingAnalysis of Vehicles Adaptations

2 1 The Human Vehicle and the Celestial


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2.1 The Human Vehicle and the Celestial

Vehicle based on the Human Vehicle

Buddhist teachings used to develop in order to adjust itself todifferent capacities and temperaments of sentient beings. A

look at why a doctrine was addressed to a particular person

will show us the different characteristics of the Human,

Celestial vehicles, the Two Vehicles and the Bodhisattva

Vehicle.

Buddhism emerged in India, so it necessarily adjusted itself to

the culture and people in India at that time.

Since Buddhism adapted itself to the temperaments of the

people of a particular time and area, its doctrines may becharacterized by the time period and geographical location.

In other words, Buddhist doctrines may be temporal and

regional.


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Buddhism is closely connected to ancient Indian culture. Wehave to see through this connection and not to be bound to it,

so that we will not misunderstand an expedient teaching,

which was made to accommodate ancient Indian culture , as

the universal and everlasting truth.

Whishing to be reborn as a human being in the next lives

come under the category of Human Vehicle. If one values the

value of being a human being and do whatever righteous

conducts one should do as a human being, he will definitely

be reborn in the human realm as a result of his righteousconducts.

Likewise, following the way of Celestial Vehicle will definitely

lead to a rebirth in celestial realm.

2 1 1 Religious Culture of India at the


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2.1.1 Religious Culture of India at the

Time of the Buddha

Before kyamuni appeared in India, there were the practicesof Human and Celestial Vehicles, only that people make no

difference between them. Their main interest lies in obtaining

happiness in this human life.

In Buddhism, this is called de-dharme sukham, present-lifehappiness.

However, this kind of happiness is transitory, it will disappear

at any time. In addition, there are many flaws in this human

world, such as natural calamity (storm, tornado, flood,

landslide, earthquake), and man-caused disaster (killing andinvasion in war). Therefore, there emerges the thought of

rebirth in heaven.

This trend of thought was common to all ancient religions, and

in Buddhism its called after-life happiness.


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Do you believe in rebirth?

Th t t f li i th ht l t th


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These two streams of religious thought are very close to the

teachings of Human-celestial Vehicle.

However these teachings are not saying that human beings

should practice Human Vehicle and deities should followCelestial Vehicle, but that human beings can be reborn as a

human or a deity according to their conducts. In both cases,

one starts as a human being.

The ideas of eternal life and immortality were later introduced

into Indian religions. This is similar to the Christian belief in

the eternal life of heaven.

At that time, Indian people believed that most of the deities

die eventually, so they tried to discover the way to immortality

and concluded that only the highest god, Brahma, is beyonddeath. If humans can return to Brahma, they will enjoy

permanent happiness. The idea of liberation underlies this

concept of reunion with Brahma.


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Repeated birth and death is a big puzzle, which needs to be

resolved once and for all.

Buddhists go beyond present-life and after-life happiness to

seek for the ultimate bliss of liberation.

For other Indian religions the solution is to be reborn in the

Brahma world and to unite with Brahma, this is considered

the ultimate happiness. When the Buddha was born, the thought of ultimate

liberation already permeated the whole of India. They tended

to prefer heaven and believed that it is better than human

realm.

Heaven is not only a place for after-life happiness but also a

place for ultimate happiness if one is reborn in Brahma

heaven.


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In Indian religions, people followed six types of practice toobtain present-life happiness and better rebirth in either

human or celestial realm.

They are: sacrificial offerings, incantation, morality, asceticism,

seclusion, and yoga.


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Sacrificial Offering

The Chinese also think that sacrificial offering to ancestors or

deities such as Earth God, is a important thing. However, the

significance of these practices is not understood fully now. In

ancient China, religious sentiments are strong, sacrificial

offering became the most important activity.

There were well-defined time-rules for performing thesacrifices on a daily, monthly and yearly basis. This is equally

true for Judaism of Hebrew, Brahmanism in India and the local

religion in China (the one later shared by Confucianism and

Taoism). A solemn ritual of sacrifice would be performed on

the occasions of marriage, death and harvest.

In China, sacrifice to the Heavenly Being (such as the God) is

the most important sacrifice. The Chinese people gradually

forgot this because It was performed by the king only.


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As to the rite of sacrifice in ancient India (and also for religionssuch as Judaism and Zoroastrianism), fire was set up in house

for the whole year, and would never be put out.

The things offered were ordinary human food such as fresh

fruits, rice, grain, cheese, lamb and cow. The daily necessitieswere thrown into the fire as sacrifice.

It was thought that the smell of food and items burned would

reach the gods, who being happy with the offerings will give in

return their blessings, such as a good harvest, well-bred cattle

and sheep, mental and bodily happiness, and a future rebirthin the human or celestial realms.


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The Homa found in the Esoteric Buddhism originated from theoblation with fire in Brahmanism. There were more

complicated rites of sacrifice that require to be performed by

a priest with three different fires.


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Incantation

The belief of incantation/mantra was not only popular in Indiabut also in many other ancient cultures, such as Taoism in

China.

Incantation is always accompanied by special gesture together

with some symbolical items. The meanings of the incantations are somewhere between

explainable and unexplainable.

The ancient people believed that the incantations were very

powerful and could be used as a tool to communicate

between human beings and divine beings or ghosts.


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Incantation in India were sometimes part of thesacrificial rituals, where the motive was still upright. But,

there were other incantations that are used with evil

intention to benefit oneself by harming others. .


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Morality In ancient India, all the wholesome conducts supposed to be

done by a human being, such as, abiding by the ancestralcustoms, fulfilling one's responsibilities to the family, and

fighting for one's nation, can bring a better rebirth in the

human and celestial realms.

For a sacrifice ritual, people were asked to make offerings tothe priests. Thus, the practice of generosity was gettingprevailing.

The priests would also admonish the institutors of a sacrifice

to be honest and respectful, or observe some precepts so that

the sacrifice would be effective. Here, some right conducts areinvolved.

Right conducts, such as abstaining from killing, stealing, sexual

misconduct and telling lies, were emphasized since ancient

times.


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These three kind of conduct mentioned above are thepractices leading to present-life and after-life happiness.

(Among them, sacrifice is also meant for ultimate happiness)


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Asceticism Asceticism contains the meaning ofsuppressing desires, for

example, abstaining from material pleasure. It also means

effort.

Most people can follow the three practices mentioned above.

However, only a few would practice asceticism, they are the

most diligent among religionists. The aim of asceticism is to overcome material desires. For

example, Gandhi was also an ascetic, led a life of strict self-

discipline. He inspired millions of people miraculously, was a

driving force behind independence movement of India.

There are some meaningless ascetic practices, which bring

nothing but bodily injures, such as longtime standing, fasting,

and lying down on thorns.

dh d h h hl


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In Magadha and Aga, there were many ascetics, highlyrespected by the public. They practiced so to gain rebirth

in the heaven and ultimate liberation.


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Seclusion

Some people thought that the spiritual practice such assacrifice, incantation are only formal, and that the family and

worldly activities are obstruction to spiritual life.

For them, the genuine practice is to get rid of religious

formality, and to practice diligently in mountains and forests.

This kind of thinking had been very popular even before the

Buddhas appearance.

Such kind of practitioners were called ramaa; among them,some, after having fulfilled their family responsibilities,

renounced the world at around the age of fifty to sixty yearsold; others went forth and became aramaa at a very youngage.


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Yoga

The recluses usually followed the ascetic way and practicedyoga. In general, yoga is similar to meditation in Buddhism.

By suppressing worldly desires, controlling the breath and

focusing the mind, one could achieve an extraordinary mental

state and experience great freedom.

This experience of the mind and body in yogic practices was

considered as the ultimate way to be reborn in the heaven or

to liberate oneself from the round of rebirth and death.


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In conclusion, of the six practices described above, sacrificialofferings and incantation were the most common practices,

motivated by the wish of rebirth as a human or as a deity.

Morality is right conduct for humans, it severs as the

foundation of advanced practice.

The aim of the other three practices (asceticism, seclusion,

and yoga) was to take rebirth in the heavenly (Brahma) realm,

which was believed to be the ultimate liberation.

The Buddha was born in India, he gave his teachings according

to the dispositions of the audience. So, whats the attitude ofthe Buddha towards these religious practices in India?

2.1.2 The Buddhas attitudes Towards


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2.1.2 The Buddha s attitudes TowardsIndian Religious Practices

The Buddha did not include the practice ofsacrifice in theHuman Celestial Vehicle. He rejected the complex rituals of

sacrifice as practiced in Brahmanism. This is similar to Jesus

rejecting the emphasis of Judaism on sacrificial rituals.

As to incantation, the Buddha rejected it categorically.

In ancient India, the practice ofsacrificial offerings to deities

often involved killing cows and goats, spending a lot of fortune

and employing much manpower. The Buddha said that this

would only accumulate more unwholesomeness and bring no

benefits.


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However, the Buddha allowed that lay Buddhists makeofferings to deities in a moderate way, using such items of

incense, flowers, fruits and grains. This is a skillful means to

guide sentient beings, and belongs to the Worldly Siddhnta.

This clearly reveals that, unlike Christianity or Islam, which

denounces everything practiced in other religious, Buddhism

does have the spirit of tolerance towards other religious

practices.

Although tolerance is a virtue valued in the East, Buddhism

sometimes deteriorated due to the misuse of this spirit in thepart of some Buddhists, who did not know well the

fundamental teachings of the Buddha.


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Making offerings to ancestors was a common practice in bothlndia and China.

Buddha was asked once, "Is it beneficial to make

sacrifice/offerings to our ancestors?"

Buddha replied, "If our parents are reborn in the realm of thehungry ghost, offering can temporarily release them from the

suffering of hunger. However, if they are reborn in the human,

celestial, hell or animal realms, there is no need to make

offerings to them because they do not live on sacrificial

offerings." The Buddha's response is some food for thought.


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The person then asked, "If our parent was not reborn in therealm of the hungry ghost, do we still have to make sacrificial

offerings?

Buddha replied, "You can still make offerings because it is

possible that your parents in the past lives may have been

reborn in the realm of the hungry ghost."

The Buddha was not against making offerings to ancestors

because this could allow the hungry ghosts to obtain some

foods and would also avoid serious conflicts with the Indian

custom.


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In order to be reborn as a human or a celestial being, oneneeds to perform human-celestial right conducts. With these

right conducts, one acquires happiness in this and future lives.

In contrast, wrong conducts such as killing and stealing will

lead to suffering in this life and a rebirth in the lower realms

after death.

The virtues in the Human-Celestial Vehicle include alms-giving

(dna), morality(la) , and meditation (bhvan). These arecalled the 'Three Meritorious Actions (pua-kiriya-vatthu).


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First, alms-giving is to sacrifice what one possesses and to giveaway their possessions for the benefit of others, without

attachment and unwillingness.

Second, morality, observing precepts is to counteract

defilements, to build up a proper relationship with people and

to guide oneself away from actions that were harmful to

others.

Third, the practice ofmeditation is to purify the mind and to

sever mental defilements. In this context, the point is to

develop loving-kindness and compassion through meditation,to cultivate great sympathy of benefiting others.


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In the Human Vehicle, there are two types of practice : alms-giving and morality.

The practice of the Celestial Vehicle further includes

meditation (mental development). To be reborn in celestial

realms, one has to cultivate concentration. For example, by

attaining the four dhynas, one can be reborn in the fourdhyna realms in the form sphere.

Seclusion is another practice of the Celestial Vehicle (but this

is not a necessary practice for taking rebirth in the sensual

sphere). The practice ofyoga is a principal method for a rebirth in the

celestial realms.


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With respect to the asceticism, the Buddha adopted only itsessence (shared by the Human-Celestial Vehicles), and taught

wanting-little and contentment; diligence and lion-

heartedness; a middle path which avoids self-mortification

and sensuality-indulgence.


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In short, the practices which Indian religions believed asleading to rebirth in heavens, which is the ultimate liberation

for them, were modified and integrated into his teachings by

the Buddha, who approved these practices as ways to rebirth

in heaven realms, not to ultimate liberation.


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Giving and morality, generally speaking, are the virtues of theHuman Vehicle. If practiced excellently, they can ,with a little

experience of meditation, lead to a rebirth in the celestial

realm of sense sphere.

But, if one wishes to be reborn in the form or formless sphere,

one must practice meditation [and seclusion].

So, the Human Vehicle lays importance on both generosity

and morality, with more emphasis on morality. Without

morality one will be reborn in the realms of the hungry ghost

or animals. The practice of the Celestial Vehicle is based on both morality

and meditation, and meditation is given a greater weighting.


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The Human Vehicle was tailored to the dispositions of theIndian people at that time. The practices of Human Vehicle

represent the virtues of lay people. From a Buddhist

perspective, they are the urgent needs of this human world.

However, the highest and profound teaching of Buddhism was

not revealed in the Human Vehicle. This Human Vehicle is

close to the teachings of Confucianism in China.

2.2 The rvaka Vehicle Based on the


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Human and Celestial Vehicles

The Human-Celestial Vehicle was established by the Buddha toadjust his teachings to the culture and dispositions of Indian

people at his time. On the basis of these two vehicles, the

Buddha establish further the rvaka Vehicle.

Originally, the term rvaka (hearer) referred to the disciplesof the Buddha. They were those who listen to the Buddha's

teachings, practicing accordingly and attain liberation.

Later, it was used to specifically refer to a particular portion of

Buddhists (who aspire for arahatship or Individual

Buddhahood).

2.2.1 rvaka Vehicle and Six Indian


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Religious Practices

In explaining the rvaka Vehicle based on the Human-Celestial Vehicle, we need to begin with its relationship with

the six Indian practices mentioned above.

From the perspective of the Buddha, the common practices

aimed at better lives and ultimate liberation are not without

flaws.

The practices for liberation held by other religions are

unrealistic and faulty fundamentally. In contrast, the rvakaVehicle, taught by the Buddha, is the genuine, complete and

ultimate path.


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To practice for the ultimate liberation one should follow the'Three Undefiled Trainings' i.e. morality (sla), concentration(samdhi), and wisdom (praj). Only with the help of thesethree trainings, can one abandon mental defilements, free

oneself from the cycle of birth and death and attain liberation.

Other than these three trainings, there is no way leading to

the goal of the final liberation.


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Other Indian religions claimed sacrificial offerings as a part ofthe practice leading to ultimate liberation by a rebirth in the

heavens. However, in Buddhism, this sacrificial practice has no

place at all in the rvaka Vehicle of Early Buddhism.

The authentic ultimate liberation, which is realized with Right

View, has nothing to do with sacrificial offering.

It is to avoid unnecessary arguments (with the public) that the

Buddha permitted offering to the deities and spirits to some

extent in accordance to the Worldly Siddhnta. However

offering is never adopted by the Buddha as a part of theworld-transcending practices.


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The practice ofincantation originated from Indian theistic

religions, which believed that the liberation of unification with

the real Self (Brahma) can be achieved by mentally reciting'Om. This incantation practice has no place at all in thervaka Vehicle of Early Buddhism.

The Buddha said, "Even if being seriously ill, suffering from

enormous pain or facing death, those who see the truths will

not resort to the help of a single incantation, a fewincantations, or a few thousand incantations, whishing that it

will relieve themselves from suffering or death.

Thus, it can be seen that, only those who are ignorant and

blind to the four noble truths would resort to incantation.

The pure genuine Supramundane Dharma stems from right

understanding and right conduct, not from the sacrifice or

incantation, which are influenced by the belief in deity.


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Morality, keeping precepts diligently, was emphasized in thervaka Vehicle; it is the right path leading to thesupramundane dharma.

Alms-giving, from the perspective of the supramundane

liberation, does not always conform to the path of liberation.

Alms-giving may be done out of vanity, or to draw large

crowds, or to pursue good fortune and avoid bad fortune, or

to have a comfortable living in the human and celestial realms.

These intentions are secular, and do not conform to the

teaching of liberation in Buddhism. Despite the fact that alms-giving is praised in Buddhism, giving material items based on

worldly intentions is not a way to ultimate liberation.


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The supra-mundane practice emphasizes observing precepts.And keeping precepts embraces the essence ofasceticism.

To keep precepts one should live a simple life and be content

with rough clothing, simple food and moderate sleep.

Such ascetic practices as exposing oneself to the blazing sunor to freezing weather in winter, which was followed by some

religious wanderers in India, were denounced in the liberation

path of the rvaka Vehicle.


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Although his contemporaries regarded the yoga practices as away leading to liberation, the Buddha viewed these practices

as ways to develop concentration at most.

For example the four dhynas, the four Immeasurables, andthe formless-sphere concentration are just some states of

concentration.

It is impossible to attain Nirvaajust through these state of

deep concentration.

If concentration can free us from the round of rebirth and

death, Buddhism will no longer be needed.


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Other religions in India emphasized on concentration, but theessence of the teachings of the Buddha is wisdom. To end the

round of rebirth, one has to extinguish ignorance [through

wisdom] to abandon defilements and self-attachment.

Some teachers in ancient India believed that the end of

sasra and the liberation of unification with the true self areachieved when yoga is practiced to the extent that the gross

thoughts and subtle discriminative minds do not arise.

According to the Buddha, however, the gross thoughts and

discriminative minds result from not being able to correctlyunderstand the true nature of all phenomena.


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If one just subdues the deluded thoughts by controlling themind, without correcting the erroneous understanding, one

achieves only certain state of deep concentration where the

defilements are suppressed only temporarily, and still lying

beneath the surface.

The reason why following the teachings of the Buddha

necessarily leads one to the true liberation is that putting his

teachings into practice will necessarily cut off the root cause

responsible for the cycle of birth and death.


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What is the root cause of birth and death? The teachers of other religions stated that there exist a true

Self (tman) in each individual and Brahma is the entity ofthe universe. They perceived these two (Self and Brahma) as

the "Little Self' and "Supreme Self' respectively, both are

permanent, blissful and free in nature.

According to the Buddha, this kind of theory results from the

wrong view of identity (satkya-di), which is the root ofsasra. In order to completely sever this major defilement,

one needs to develop wisdom and realize that they are allimpermanent (anitya), unsatisfactory (dukha), and non-self(anatman), i.e. empty( of substance )(nya) .


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This contrast clearly highlights the uniqueness of the Buddhistteachings.

Take weeding for example. Some gardeners in weeding cut

only the head part of grass but not the roots. When it rains,

the grass will grow again. This like the way of cutting off

defilements in other religions. In contrast, following the

teachings of the Buddha, Buddhists eradicate of the grass of

defilements by pulling up the roots completely. It is impossible

for the grass to grow up again.

Thus we see that it is important, as we learn Buddhism, tocorrect our wrong views. Through right understanding of

impermanence, suffering, and non-self, one can develop

wisdom and attain liberation.

2.2.2 The Relationship between rvaka


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Vehicle and Human-Celestial Vehicle

We shall discuss the relationship between the Human-Celestial Vehicle and the rvaka Vehicle.

There are several types of rvaka disciples.

1 rvaka Vehicle Lay disciples


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1. rvaka Vehicle Lay disciples

Some people misunderstood that one must give up ordinarylife in order to follow the teachings of the Buddha.

They dont know that neither all bodhisattvas of Mahynagave up household life, nor did all the disciples of the rvakaVehicle (= Early Buddhism).

Due to misunderstanding the point of the teachings of the

Buddha, some Buddhists blindly imitate the life style of

monastic disciples and regard that as the only genuine way.


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In Original Buddhism, during the time of Skyamuni Buddha(,which belongs to rvaka Vehicle), many lay disciplesattained the noble fruits.

For example, King Bimbisra, King Prasenajit, Anthapiika,Householder Citta, General idatta, scholars, famers,workers and merchants.

For rvaka disciples, it is not necessary to go forth and giveup household life. It will suffice if one find a way to cultivate

right faith and right understanding, and practice the three

trainings (ik-traya), i.e. morality, concentration andwisdom.


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Lay disciples observe the five precepts and sometimes theeight precepts, which are additional. They do not need to

adopt the austere asceticism.

When Buddha first turned the wheel of Dharma in the Deer

Park, he said that there were two types of people in this

world.

First, there are the pleasure seekers indulge in the five

sensuous desires. Obviously this is not the way to liberation.

Second, the ascetics who are inclined to torture themselves.

Clearly, this is also not the way to liberation. In Buddhism, What should be followed is the Middle Path,

which avoids the two extremes: self-mortification and

sensuality-indulgence.


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Buddhist lay disciples, whether they are farmers, workers,merchants, scholars, or soldiers, all lead a household life.

The difference between a lay Buddhist disciple and other

laymen lies in the faith in the Triple Gem and the practice to

abstain from indulging in the five types of sensuous pleasure.

They lead a righteous ordinary life during the day. When the

night falls, they practice meditation for developing loving

kindness, compassion, appreciative joy and equanimity (the

Four Immeasurables), or develop wisdom through the

contemplation of impermanence and non-self.


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As long as they cultivate wisdom on the basis of morality, theycan put an end to the cycle of rebirth and attain the ultimate

liberation even without abolishing the ordinary life.

If one does not follow the three trainings, as taught by

Buddha, no matter how one practices asceticism, worshipping,

or incantation, such effort will all be irrelevant and in vain.


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So we can see that rvaka Vehicle was also adapted to the laydisciples, who were introduced to rvaka Vehicle fromHuman Vehicle.

As long as one maintain right conducts of human and proceed

to learn the three trainings while performing the daily duties

for family and country, one is stll walking on the path leading

to the ultimate liberation of rvaka Vehicle.

Therefore, neither Bodhisattva Vehicle, which advocates the

development of bodhicitta, nor rvaka Vehicle advises that in

order to attain liberation, it is necessary to lead a life of arecluse and practice in mountains or the wildness.

rvaka Vehicle - Monastic disciples


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rvaka Vehicle Monastic disciples

There are two types of monastic disciples. One is the free bhikus' or the forest-dwelling bhikus (the

araya bhikus).

They prefer living in the araya (wilderness or forest) and tendto withdraw from society. They lead a simple and austere life

for their personal benefits.

They devoted themselves to the development of

concentration and wisdom, while avoiding the disturbance of

worldly interactions.


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The twelve disciplines ofdhtga in Buddhism, are in factpracticed by this type of disciples (these disciplines are

originally the practices among recluses at that time).

They may live without shelter and sleep under trees or even in

graveyards.

They may wear only the garments made of cast-off rags,

which were picked up from garbage heap or cemetery,

washed and sewed together.

Some of the forest-dwelling bhikus were reluctant to go out

for alms food. They simply ate anything available in themountain and wilderness.


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However, not all monastic disciples lead an ascetic and toughlife as such.

The araya bhikus have the disposition of a Pratyekabuddha.

Venerable Mahkayapa, who was foremost in observing thedisciplines ofdhtga, once said,

When kyamuni Buddha appears in this wor1d, I follow him.If kyamuni Buddha does not appear in this world, I wouldstill attain enlightenment.

He dislikes worldly affairs and focused on living a reclusive life

and practicing asceticism. He lacked enthusiasm in preachingthe Dharma.


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This way of practice might be called the rvaka Vehicle withthe celestial practice as skillful means.

The celestial practices of other Indian religions emphasized

asceticism, meditation (especially, deep concentration) and

seclusion. The forest-dwelling bhikus shows a inclination tothis kind of disposition.

Thus the celestial practices were adopted as a skillful means in

the rvaka Vehicle.

In other words, on the basis of the celestial practices, the

three trainings was introduced to guide these practitioners tothe liberation of rvaka.

The ways the forest-dwelling bhikus practiced are in contrastto the ways the lay disciples did.


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Another type of bhikus is called the village-dwelling bhiksus.They are entirely different from the two types of rvakadisciples mentioned above.

These monastic disciples, such as riputra, Pra, Katyayana,and nanda, practiced the three undefiled trainings diligently.They had little material desires, and lived on whatever was

available to them.

They neither desired for luxury items nor rejected good items

offered to them. Regardless of the lack of food and shelter,

their minds remained at peace. This is the life style of village-dwelling bhikus.


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They are different from the lay rvaka disciples with respectto their renunciation and alms-seeking and they are different

from the forest-dwelling bhikus in that they lived togetherharmoniously and engaged themselves in Dharma preaching

as well as their self-practice.

The villages-dwelling bhikus form a Sagha community underthe guidance of the rules of Vinaya. The number of people

living together in a sagha community may range from ten toa few thousands. The 'Six ways to Harmonies' were the

principles that guided them on how to live together.

They practiced diligently towards liberation with the support

of this harmonious community. This is very different from the

forest-dwelling bhikus.


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Apart from observing the precepts and developingconcentration and wisdom, the village-dwelling bhikus alsowent for alms-giving in towns and villages.

They travelled among people and preached to people

regardless of their religious background. This in turn promoted

the teachings of the Buddha to the public and helped purify

the society.

The village-dwelling bhikus abandoned secular life and livedin a Sagha community, but they still maintained a close

relationship with society. They were the ones who spread theteachings of the Buddha across the country.


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kyamuni Buddha also led a life of village-dwelling bhiku.

He was always at ease regardless of the external conditions.

For example, he would frequently be offered delicious food,

but sometimes the offering was just rice left over in the pot

and occasionally there was no food and he would come back

with an empty bowl.

There were times when the Buddha lived under a tree and

there was also times when he stayed comfortably in grand

buildings such as Jetavana Vihra and Mgramt prsda.

Sometime he wore the garment of cast-off rags but he wouldalso accept the offer of expensive gold-threaded robes.

Regardless, the Buddha would accept the offerings and

situation joyfully.


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The Tenderness Sutra in Madhyama gama said that Buddhaenjoyed whatever requisites was available with ease and was

praised by people for being content and wanting little.

The village-dwelling bhikus do not fall into the extremes ofsensuality-indulgence and self-mortification.

On the one hand, they lived together in community, felt

contented with little requisites, traveled to teach Dharma to

people. They performed their duties just like the lay disciples

performed the righteous human conducts. On the other hand, they lead a monastic life. They don't get

married, but live a celibate and simple life. This is indeed close

to the celestial practice.


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In the rvaka Vehicle, the practice of lay disciples is based onthe practice of Human Vehicle. In contrast, the forest-dwelling

bhiksus valued more the celestial practices. The practice of

village-dwelling bhikus is a compromised combination of thehuman and celestial practices.

The practice of asceticism and seclusion was popular at that

time in India. To adapt his teachings to such a circumstance,

kyamuni Buddha adopted the tradition of going-forth(pravrajita).

But, the village-dwelling bhiksus represented the main streamof the disciples in rvaka Vehicle. It is obvious that theirpractices are based on Human vehicle with emphasis on

observing precepts and cultivating wisdom.

2.3 Bodhisattva Vehicle Based on the

H C l ti l d k V hi l


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Human-Celestial and rvaka Vehicles

The Mahyna Bodhisattva Dharma was introduced toaccommodate to the temperaments of the Indian people too.

Although truth is universal and eternal, in response to the

ever-changing circumstances of different eras, it is

unavoidable that Buddha Dharma (Human-Celestial and

rvaka Vehicles) and Bodhisattva Dharma (BodhisattvaVehicle) were adapted to the temperaments of the Indian

people in different times.


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The Buddha taught the teaching of Human-Celestial Vehicle toaccommodate the common right conducts in India. He also set

up the supramundane teachings of rvaka Vehicle toaccommodate the reclusive yoga-practitioners in India.

The Bodhisattva Dharma unifies the mundane and supra-

mundane teachings and constitutes the most profound and

perfect teachings ever since.

The Mahyna Dharma flourishes only about 500 years afterthe Buddha entered Parinirvaa. During the earlier period of

Buddhism, the word rvaka was used to refer to all thedisciples of the Buddha, there was no Small Vehicle nor GreatVehicle. However, we still can identify two Bodhisattvas in this

early period of Indian Buddhism, namely, SkyamuniBodhisattva and Maitreya Bodhisattva.


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Before kyamuni attained Buddhahood, he was a Bodhisattvawho followed the Bodhisattva Path.

Maitreya Bodhisattva had initiated Bodhicitta but he is not yet

a Buddha. According to the stras, sixteen youths from theSouth of India visited the Buddha and vowed to follow his

teachings. One of them was Maitreya who made a vow to

attain Buddhahood. Buddha predicted that he would be the

next coming Buddha in the future.

Both kyamuni Bodhisattva and Maitreya Bodhisattva lead a

life similar to the one of a monastic disciple: they alsoabandoned household life, observed precepts and went for

alms food.


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These two Bodhisattvas possessed more profound wisdomand greater compassion and vow to serve all sentient beings.

The rvakas, the direct disciples of the Buddha, with lesswisdom and compassion, listened to Dharma from the Buddha

and eagerly sought the attainment of Nirvaa. Thus, they are

very different from the two Bodhisattvas.

Maitreya Bodhisattva was described as one who "neither

abandons [all] mental defilements nor cultivates [deep]

concentration". This clearly reveals the unique spirit of the

Bodhisattva Vehicle.


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The spirit is even more highlighted in the Jtaka, past-lifestories of kyamuni, which explain in great detail how theBuddha could not bear to see sentient beings killing each

other and consequently initiated Bodhicitta; how he had been

practicing loving kindness and compassion diligently; and how

he taught Dharma without rest even when he was ill and old.

This is truly in contrast to the lifestyle of some disciples of the

Buddha, who were eager to attain Nirvaa, reluctant to teachDharma. Some would even bear hunger to avoid contact with

villagers instead of going out for alms food.

The three attributes of the Buddha, i.e. wisdom, compassion,

and diligence, are far different from the spirits of rvakaVehicle.

2.3.1 Two Types of Bodhisattva in Jtaka


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yp

In order to attain Buddhahood, a Bodhisattva is required toaccumulate merits for three Asakhyeya Kalpas.

The stories about the practice of the Buddha as a Bodhisattva

in his past lives were recorded in Jtaka.

In Jtaka, two types of Bodhisattvas are found: One is theBodhisattva in the human realm and the other is the

Bodhisattva in the other realms.

Bodhisattvas in the human realm


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Bodhisattvas often appear at the time when Buddha Dharmadoes not exist.

They may be born as kings, ministers, elders, and even

followers of heretics. They may live on trades, labor work,

hunting, sailing, crafts etc. They lead a household life and

sought benefits for others.

There are about 500 stories regarding the Bodhisattva Path.

Treading on the Bodhisattva Path, the Bodhisattvas, when

requested, are willing to give away everything they have, such

as their livestock, elephants and horses even their head, eyes,brain, marrow; country, city.


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There is a story about a scabies-infected patient who was insearch of a specific cure, ie the blood and bone marrow of a

human who never get angry.

The patient came to ask for help from kyamuni Bodhisattva,who was then a prince. Out of great compassion, he donated

his blood and bone marrow to the patient.

Noticeably, to accomplish the great vow of serving all sentient

beings, a Bodhisattva is prepared to give everything away.

They seek for the Dharma earnestly and would be willing to do

whatever it takes, including peeling off their skin to be used aspaper, piercing oneself for blood to be used as ink, and

breaking apart the skeleton to be used as pens. They would be

a slave for the sake of Dharma, without feeling regret.


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As the Chinese saying goes, " I would not regret dying in theevening provided I would have come to know the truth in the

morning." The moral of this saying is fully revealed in the

Bodhisattva Path.

Bodhisattvas would regard keeping the precepts intact as

more important than their own lives. When there is noalternative, they would choose to give up their lives rather

than break the precepts. They also develop, with great

courage, patience, effort, concentration, and wisdom.


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The Six Pramits or the Ten Pramits in Mahyna Buddhismsum up the attributes of the Bodhisattva practices as

described in Jtaka.

The resolution to practice what is difficult to practice and to

endure what is difficult to endure fully represents the

underlying spirit of Mahyna Buddhism, the willing to helpsentient beings with various kinds of skillful means.

This was what kyamuni did before he attained Buddhahood.

Bodhisattva found in other realms


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There are also bodhisattvas found in the other realms,especially in the animal realm.

According to the Jtaka, a bodhisattva may be born as a deerking, dragon king, elephant king, peacock king, bird king,

monkey king etc.

Why was a bodhisattva reborn in the animal realm? According

to the ancient legends, animals can speak just like human

beings and their behaviors exhibit honorable virtues. The

Jtaka use the stories ofanimal bodhisattvas to show the

bodhisattva spirit.


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For example, one of the stories stated that once, a bird haddiscovered a fire spreading in the forest.

Worried that the intense fire would take the lives of the

creatures in the forest, it flew to a river, soaked its feathers in

the water, then flew back to the forest, and flapped its wings

to sprinkle water on the fire. It flew back and forth again andagain without a rest.

akra, lord of the devas told the bird that it was silly to do sobecause it was just wasting its effort. The bird responded and

said, It doesnt matter if he can manage to put out the fire inthe end, what matters is he should do his best to save hisrelatives and friends who are still trapped in the forest by the

fire."


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The bird in this story was kyamuni in one of his past lives. The great compassionate vow of sacrificing oneself for others,

as highlighted by the story, deserves to be praised and taken

as an inspiring model by human beings.

There were profound lessons to be learned in Jtaka stories.Having understood the moral hidden behind the stories in the

Jataka, people should follow the compassionate vow and great

deeds of these animal Bodhisattvas, whether they are a deer,

elephant, or snake. These great beings are inspiring and worth

following.


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If these stories are taken literally as facts, we may say, theanimals in these stories were the metamorphosis of the

bodhisattva, who, out of great loving kindness and great

compassion, spares nothing and endures suffering in order to

help sentient beings.

The bodhisattva path as showed in the Jtaka illustrates thebodhisattvas spirits of serving sentient beings and BuddhaDharma. The Tien-Tai School called this the 'Bodhisattva of

Piaka Teachings.

The Bodhisattva practices as recorded in the Jtaka arerecognized by various rvaka schools. From these stories, wecan tell that among human bodhisattvas, only a few are

monastic disciples, the majority are lay disciples.


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We see that the Jtaka stories highlight two important factsabout bodhisattvas.

First, bodhisattvas are born not only as humans, but also as

animals. Second, they are usually born in the time when there

was no Buddha. They can be a king, minister, elder, lay

disciple, and even follower of other religions.

A bodhisattva is an outstandingly virtuous person, very rare.

So, unlike the rvaka disciples who lived together in acommunity, bodhisattvas did not form a community. As

described in the Jtaka, most of the bodhisattvas practicedindividually. This is the reason why a bodhisattva communitywas never found in Mahyna Buddhism.


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In Jtaka stories, a bodhisattva could be reborn as a deer king,dragon king, elephant king, and etc.

From these stories, some people deduced that bodhisattvas

are present everywhere. So the belief that bodhisattvas could

manifest in any form as he wishes to relieve the suffering of

sentient beings became stronger and stronger.

In contrast, the human Bodhisattvas who performed the great

noble deeds were looked down as Bodhisattvas who simplypracticed the six perfections .


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These two aspects had great impacts on the development ofMahyna Buddhism in India.

There is no doubt that Buddhism in its early stages had put a

lot of efforts in promoting the practice of the human

bodhisattva to accommodate the dispositions of Indian

people.

However, with the idea that Bodhisattvas practice individually

and may manifest in the form of other creatures, some

Mahynists, who adhered to this superficial understanding,

became inclined to the idealism and mysticism of the celestialbodhisattva practice.


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Mahyna Buddhism became popular about five hundredyears after the Parinirvaa of the Buddha. As it is said,"Avatasaka in the first three seven days,Saddharmapuarika and Mahparinirvaa in total eightyears ", some people believed that the Buddha taught

Mahyna stras when he was alive. In fact, the teachings of the Buddha were at first transmitted

orally from one disciple to another. The time when Mahynastras were compiled and distributed was not early.

The Mahyna stras themselves usually say tha

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Human Centered Buddhism - A Teaching That is in Accordance to the Acceptance Level of the People