Buddha-nature (as Depicted in the Lankavatara-sutra)

by Nguyen Dac Sy | 2012 | 70,344 words

This page relates ‘Self-Power’ of the study on (the thought of) Buddha-nature as it is presented in the Lankavatara-sutra (in English). The text represents an ancient Mahayana teaching from the 3rd century CE in the form of a dialogue between the Buddha and Bodhisattva Mahamati, while discussing topics such as Yogacara, Buddha-nature, Alayavijnana (the primacy of consciousness) and the Atman (Self).

5. Self-Power

< Previous

Next >

Self-power and other-power is always a hot topic in all Buddhist forums. Normally, the last will or last word of a dying man is very reliable and important.

The last words of the Buddha recorded in the Pāli Mahāparinibbānasūtta

atha kho bhagavā bhikkhū āmantesi -handa dāni, bhikkave, āmantayāmi vo: “vayadhammā saṅkhārā appamādena sampādethā” ti. ayaṃ tathāgatassa pacchimā vācā.^[1]

Then the Blessed One addressed the brethren, and said, 'behold now, brethren, I exhort you, saying, “ Decay is inherent in all component things! Work out your salvation with diligence! ” This was the last word of the Tathāgata.^[2]

The above last words of the Buddha advise us two things. Firstly, all phenomena (saṅkhārā) are decay in nature (vayadhammā); and secondly, strive to accomplish the aim (sampādethā) with vigilance (appamādena). This Buddha‘s message clearly emphasizes on the self-power to accomplish enlightenment.

The Laṅkāvatārasūtra also emphasizes on self-ability to develop the inner strength of noble wisdom to reach the realm of self-realization of the Buddha-nature. This way of practice based on self-effort to attain Buddhahood is known as “self-power” in the Laṅkāvatārasūtra and the idea of self-power forms the fundamental subject-matter of the Sūtra.

The Laṅkāvatārasūtra gives the four things needed for a Bodhisattva‘s preparation for self-realization. These are also the four characteristics of self-power according to the Laṅkāvatārasūtra.

At that time Mahāmati the Bodhisattva-Mahāsattva in consideration of future generations made this request again of the Blessed One: Pray tell me, Blessed One, about the perfecting of the discipline whereby the Bodhisattva-Mahāsattvas become great Yogins.

The Blessed One replied: There are four things, Mahāmati, by fulfilling which the Bodhisattvas become great Yogins. What are the four? They are: (1) To have a clear understanding as to what is seen of Mind itself, (2) to discard the notions of birth, abiding, and disappearance, (3) to look into [the truth] that no external world obtains, and (4) to seek for the attainment of inner realization by noble wisdom. Provided with these four things the Bodhisattva-Mahāsattvas become great Yogins.^[3]

These four things can be simply explained in the two main practices of self-power as follows:

(1) Understanding this world is Mind-only and self-realizing the Buddha-nature.

(2) Watching the world with the eyes of “egoless of person” and “egoless of thing”

Firstly, a Bodhisattva has to turn back his former understanding about the world to recognize that world is nothing but Mind itself. The world is actually devoid of an ego, but it is manifested and imagined as real and ego such as body, property, and abode, under the influence of the habit-energy accumulated since beginningless time by false thinking and imagination. After understanding this world is the manifestation of Mindonly, the Bodhisattva has to see into the real nature of the Mind (Ālayavijñāna) to self-realize the Buddha-nature and attain enlightenment. This process is always accompanied with the support of the noble wisdom and the revulsion as presented above.

Secondly, by watching the world with the eyes of “egoless of person” and “egoless of thing”, it is meant that all things are to be regarded as forms born of a vision or a dream and have never been created, since there are no such things as self, the other, or both. The Bodhisattvas will see that the external world exists only in conformity with Mind-only; and seeing that there is no stirring of the Vijñānas and that the triple world is a complicated network of causation and owes its rise to discrimination, they find that all things, inner and external, are beyond predicability, that there is nothing to be seen as self-nature, and that the world is not to be viewed as born; and thereby they will conform themselves to the insight that things are of the nature of a vision, etc., and attain to the recognition that things are unborn.^[4] Establishing themselves on the eighth stage of Bodhisattvahood, they will experience a revulsion in their consciousness by transcending the Citta, Manas, and Manovijñāna, and the five Dharmas, and the three Svabhāvas, and the twofold Egolessness, and thereby attain the mind-made body (Manomayakāya). Thus, Mahāmati, the Bodhisattva-Mahāsattva will discard the notion of birth, abiding, and disappearance.^[5]

Thus, the purpose of Laṅkāvatārasūtra, when it presents various logical and psychological theories that is to make clear the path and the result of the self discipline. Without self cultivation, the Bodhisattva cannot attain the Buddhahood.

The self cultivation also needs a suitable quiet and secluded place to develop.

“Thereupon the Blessed One said: In accordance with the authoritative teachings in which there are no discriminations, Mahāmati, let the Bodhisattva-Mahāsattva retire by himself to a quiet secluded place, where he may reflect within himself, not relying on anybody else, but by means of his own inner intelligence, in order to discard erroneous views and discriminations, make successive advances and exert himself to finally enter upon the stage of Tathagatahood. This, Mahāmati, is the characteristic feature of the inner realization to be gained by means of noble wisdom.^[6]

“The Bodhisattva-Mahāsattva is said to have grasped meaning well, when, all alone in a lonely place, he waLVS the path leading to Nirvana, by means of his transcendental wisdom (prajñā) which grows from learning, thinking, and meditation, and causing a revulsion first at the source of habit-energy by his self-knowledge (svabuddhi), abides on the stages of self-realisation where he leads a life full of excellent deeds.”^[7]

The Buddha-nature is a state of innate pure, calm, and subtle realm; therefore, one cannot self-realize the Buddha-nature when he lives in a busy life, a noisy and crowd environment. A lonely place is suitable for him to reflect within himself to attain the Buddha-nature. The above ideas of self-power of “not relying on anybody else” and “retire by himself to a quiet secluded place” are not only presented in the Laṅkāvatārasūtra, but also available in Early Buddhism.

In the Kālāma Sutta (Aṅguttara-Nikāya i, 188), the Buddha listed ten specific sources which knowledge should not be immediately viewed as truthful without further self investigation that it brings happiness: “Be not misled by (1) repeated hearing; (2) tradition, (3) rumor, (4) a scripture, (5) surmise, (6) axiom, (7) mere logic, (8) approval of some theory (9) because it is becoming, and (10) a recluse teacher. But, Kālāmas, when you know for yourselves: These things are good, not blamable, praised by the wise; when undertaken and observed lead to benefit and happiness, you enter on and abide in them”^[8]

The Visudhimagga (The Path of Purification) by Buddhaghosa mentions 5 factors of a good place for practice concentration: (1) A lodging is not too far, not too near, and has a path for going and coming (for alms); (2) It is little frequented by day, with little sound and few voices by night; (3) There is little contact with gadflies, flies, wind, burning [sun] and creeping things; (4) One who lives in that lodging easily obtains robes, alms food, lodging, and the requisite of medicine as cure for the sick; and (5) In that lodging there are elder bhikkhus living who are learned, versed in the scriptures, observers of the Dharnma, observers of the Vinaya, observers of the Codes.^[9]

The above conditions suitable for cultivation are also shown by Laṅkāvatārasūtra as the following passages.

“Further, Mahāmati, if the Bodhisattva should wish to understand fully that an external world to be subsumed under categories of discrimination, such as the grasping (subject) and the grasped (object), is of Mind itself, let him be kept away from such hindrances as turmoil, social intercourse, and sleep; let him be kept away from the treatises and writings of the philosophers, from things belonging to the vehicles of Śrāvakahood and Pratyekabuddhahood; let the Bodhisattva-Mahāsattva be thoroughly acquainted with objects of discrimination which are to be seen as of Mind itself.”^[10]

Buddhism is the religion of enlightenment, so it always emphasizes on self-power to realize the truth. The truth of enlightenment must develop from within oneself and intuitively grasped.

Enlightenment is also the ultimate object of the four Dhyāna disciplines recommended in the Laṅkāvatārasūtra. They are:

(1) The Dhyāna practised by the ignorant,

(2) the Dhyāna devoted to the examination of meaning,

(3) the Dhyāna with Tathatā (suchness) for its object, and

(4) the Dhyāna of the Tathagatas.

“What is meant by the Dhyāna practised by the ignorant? It is the one resorted to by the Yogins exercising themselves in the discipline of the Śrāvakas and Pratyekabuddhas, who perceiving that there is no ego-substance, that things are characterised with individuality and generality, that the body is a shadow and a skeleton which is transient, full of suffering and is impure, persistently cling to these notions which are regarded as just so and not otherwise, and who starting from them successively advance until they reach the cessation where there are no thoughts. This is called the Dhyāna practised by the ignorant.

“Mahāmati, what then is the Dhyāna devoted to the examination of meaning? It is the one [practised by those who,] having gone beyond the egolessness of things, individuality and generality, the untenability of such ideas as self, other, and both, which are held by the philosophers, proceed to examine and follow up the meaning of the [various] aspects of the egolessness of things and the stages of Bodhisattvahood. This is the Dhyāna devoted to the examination of meaning.

“What, Mahāmati, is the Dhyāna with Tathatā for its object? When [the Yogins recognise that] the discrimination of the two forms of egolessness is mere imagination, and that where he establishes himself in the reality of suchness (yathābhūta) there is no rising of discrimination, I call it the Dhyāna with Tathatā for its object.

“What, Mahāmati, is the Dhyāna of the Tathagata? When [the Yogin], entering upon the stage of Tathagatahood and abiding in the triple bliss which characterises self-realisation attained by noble wisdom, devotes himself for the sake of all beings to the [accomplishment of] incomprehensible works, I call it the Dhyāna of the Tathagatas.”^[11]

Briefly, these four Dhyānas are also representative of the self-power comprising the self-realizations of (1) Egolessness of persons, (2) Egolessness of things, (3) Tathatā, and (4) The Buddha-nature. However, to achieve well these self-power practices, the practisers must first choose a suitable environment as the Laṅkāvatārasūtra presented such as a quiet secluded place, being kept away from hindrances as turmoil, social intercourse, sleep, from treatises and writings of the philosophers, from things belonging to the Śrāvakahood, etc.

The Laṅkāvatārasūtra includes not only the conception of self-power, but also the conception of Buddha‘s power which support and retain the practisers going on his right way.