Buddha Nature Research Articles

Fazang's Huayan Doctrine and Tathagatagarbha thought

In the Tang dynasty, Fazang (_??__??_ 643-712) developed his teaching on Huayan based on the teachings centered on the Avatamsakasutra (_??__??__??_) he received from his master Zhiyan (_??__??_ 602-668). His system of thought is organized by a classification of doctrines called the Five Doctrines and Ten Schools (_??__??__??__??__??_), which was first mentioned in the Huayan yicheng jiaofen ji (_??__??__??__??__??__??__??_ aka _??__??__??_).In the Five Doctrines, the distinction of the standpoints between beings and emptiness is used to characterize Mahayana Buddhism into early (_??__??_) and final teachings (_??__??_). However, in his later work Huayan jing tanxuan ji (_??__??__??__??__??__??_), early and final stages are distinguished by whether all beings possess the Buddha nature (and will achieve Buddhahood) or not. This shows that the criteria for distinguishing between the early and final teachings changed.There are also some commentaries by Fazang on the texts of Tathagatagarbha thought. These commentaries contain another classification of doctrine (the Four Schools _??__??__??_) and also display an interest in the attainment of Buddhahood by all beings. This suggests a possible cause of the changes found in the Huayan jing tanxuan ji and provides evidence of the influence of Tathagatagarbha thought in Fazang's Huayan Doctrine.

Popular Buddhist Orthodoxy in Contemporary Japan

The writings of popular lay Buddhist writers Kino Kazuyoshi and Hiro Sachiya affirm traditional Japanese Buddhist ideas of original enlightenment, suchness, nonduality, immediacy, Buddha nature, emptiness, ineffability, and the valorization of everyday life. Kino presents his ideas of self-affirmation through a loose association of stories and lessons drawn from life, literature, and Buddhist texts. Rejecting early Buddhist teachings such as the Four Noble Truths and dependent origination, Hiro Sachiya argues for a Zen that champions individual freedom and disengagement from social expectations as an alternative to the stresses of Japanese life. Despite their free and contemporized interpretations, both writers present a pansectarian Buddhism consistent with traditional Mahayana orthodox ideals.

Towards a queer dharmology of sex

Lay practitioners of Buddhism, especially lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender/queer persons, are given little guidance by the traditional Dharmology (Buddhist theology) of sex. The most extensive discussions are the detailed prohibitions in the monastic rule, which focus on the mechanics of sex rather than on love and relationships. What advice there is on sex for lay persons is either vague or over‐determined by its cultural context. Christianity, despite being homophobic and mistrustful of sex, has developed a positive attitude towards sex within heterosexual marriage. An investigation of this suggests a Dharmology of sex as relationship, based on central Buddhist doctrines such as interdependent arising. This Dharmology can be strengthened by queering it with reference to Harry Hay's notion that gay subject–subject consciousness is more compatible with Buddhist non‐duality than the hetero subject–object consciousness. It can be claimed, therefore, that Buddha Nature, and Buddhism itself, is queer.

Reification and deconstruction of Buddha nature in Chinese Chan

Although much has been said about deconstruction in Madhyamika Buddhism, very little has been done in the study of deconstructive strategy in Chan Buddhism. In his study of deconstruction in N~g~juna's thought, Robert Magliola adds several passages that discuss the same topic in Chan/Zen Buddhism. Magliola's major contribution is his distinction between logocentric and differential trends in Chan/Zen Buddhism (Magliola: 96-7). This distinction allows us to take a fresh look at, and to re-examine, those inner struggles in the evolution of Chan Buddhist thought. However, Magliola's study of deconstruction in Chan is not systematic, despite its insights. He uses only a few cases to show the deconstructive tendency in Chan, without applying his distinction to a closer examination of the different schools of Chan thought. Thus, his study leaves only the impression that the deconstructive or differential trend is connected with the Southern School of Chart. He does not justify this thesis through a closer doctrinal and textual-contextual investigation. Bernard Faure, on the other hand, touches upon the same issue of logocentric and differential trends in Chan in his comprehensive critique of the Chan tradition. Faure's study of this issue has two main problems. First, since his study is a criticism, he shows only what he thinks is the logocentric side of Chan, without providing a constructive study of deconstruction in Chan. Second, he criticizes Magliola for relating his logocentric/differential

Wonhyo and Ji: their views on True Buddha nature and Sentient Beings

Wonhyo and Ji: their views on True Buddha nature and Sentient Beings

The Role of Spirituality in Culturally Relevant and Transformative Adult Education

Spirituality is an important part of human experience. So is culture. Most discussions of spirituality focus on the individual dimension of spirituality. But we believe that there is a cultural dimension to spirituality and a spiritual dimension to culture. By drawing on the connection between the two, adult educators can create educational experiences that are both culturally relevant and transformative. Culture is the common beliefs, values, language, images, symbols, and behaviors shared by a particular social group (Guy, 1999). Nearly all human knowledge and experience, including spiritual experience, will be shared and given expression through culture--in language, in music, in art, or in symbol making. Indeed, people construct knowledge and make meaning in powerful and ways through symbol, music, art, metaphor, and ritual--what faith development theorist James Fowler (1981) refers to as and unconscious structuring (p. 103). These aspects of knowledge production and ways of knowing are at the of the way spiritual knowing is often expressed. But such manifestations of knowing through symbolic and processes are also deeply cultural. Thus, they connect us back to our cultural selves, which is why spirituality can have an important role to play in culturally relevant education that draw on learners' cultural and group-based identities in the learning environment. We are making certain assumptions as we try to teach for social transformation and cultural relevance. First, it is important to define what we mean by spirituality. As we've discussed elsewhere (Tisdell, 2003; Tolliver & Tisdell, 2001), spirituality is related to: (a) a connection to what many refer to as the Life-force, God, a higher power or purpose, Great Mystery, or Buddha Nature; (b) a sense of wholeness, healing, and the interconnectedness of all things; (c) meaning-making; (d) the ongoing development of one's identity (including one's cultural identity) moving toward greater authenticity; (e) how people construct knowledge through largely and symbolic processes manifested through image, symbol, and music, which are often cultural. In addition, spirituality is different from, but for some people, related to religion. Finally, spiritual experiences often happen by surprise. Understanding how these dimensions of spirituality play out in our own lives and those of adult learners with whom we work offers new direction to culturally relevant adult education. Second, based on our experience as educators, we are assuming people are more likely to have transformational experiences if they are engaged on three levels of their individual being: the cognitive, the affective, and the symbolic or spiritual. Clearly, people do not have transformative learning experiences about issues of race, gender, or culture and power disparities therein, only through rational discourse or critical reflection. While we agree, as Mezirow (1995) suggests, that critical reflection is necessary, we believe that it is EQUALLY necessary to engage people on the affective or heart level. Further, transformative learning is perhaps better anchored if we engage on the spiritual level as well, and draw on how people construct knowledge through processes. Thus, in our classes, participants often create and share a poem, an art piece, a story, a symbol that gives further meaning to their learning journey at the end of the course. This sometimes connects the cultural, the spiritual, the affective, and the cognitive dimensions of who they are. It's important for educators to both set the stage for connecting spirituality and culture and to provide some role modeling. We often begin our classes with a greeting or ritual that encourages learners to make contact with every other person in the group. As a woman of African descent, Derise (Tolliver) also incorporates African proverbs as a way to reflect upon the content of a course, the process of the work, or the energy of the group. …

Zhiyi's Understanding of the Middle Path and Buddha Nature

Zhiyi's Understanding of the Middle Path and Buddha Nature

Buddha's Nature: Evolution as a Practical Guide to EnlightenmentBuddha's Nature: Evolution as a Practical Guide to Enlightenment by Wes Nisker Bantam Books, New York, NY, 1998, 208 pp. $23.95, ISBN: 0-553-10601-5

Buddha's Nature: Evolution as a Practical Guide to EnlightenmentBuddha's Nature: Evolution as a Practical Guide to Enlightenment by Wes Nisker Bantam Books, New York, NY, 1998, 208 pp. $23.95, ISBN: 0-553-10601-5

Christ as the Truth, the Light, the Life, but a Way?

A conservative Korean Presbyterian pastor asks me what I know about Christ. He asks again what a Buddhist can know about Christ. He claims that Christ cannot be understood from the other aspects of view, but only from the Christian view. Then do I know at all about Christ? My Buddhist understanding of Christ does not start with how Christ has been understood in the Christian context. My understanding is based on the reading of the Christian scripture. My reading of the scripture is guided by Sot'aesan's understanding of Christianity.1 According to my reading, the Bible presents two meanings of Christ: Christ in the transhistorical sense and Christ in the historical sense. The meaning of Christ as the Truth, the Light, and the Life represents a Christ in the transhistorical sense. The meaning of Christ as a way represents a Christ in the historical sense. Because Jesus did not make any distinction or clarification between these two meanings, it is obvious that even the Christian tradition has confusion on the meaning of Christ. As a result, most Christians hold to an exclusive view of Christ that claims his uniqueness. My attribution of two meanings of Christ is derived from a similar distinction in Buddhism. Buddha in the transhistorical sense represents the universal nature of Buddha, which is identical with Truth. Truth can be replaced by other terms, such as Light or Life. Buddha in the historical sense means the historical nature of Buddha. In this sense, Buddha is unique and should not be depicted as absolute nor as universal. Likewise, Christ can be construed in these two ways.

DNA and Buddhist Ideas of the Buddha Nature

DNA and Buddhist Ideas of the Buddha Nature

Zhiyis's View of Buddha Nature

Zhiyis's View of Buddha Nature

Dogen: Enlightenment and Entanglement

Dogen refused to accept any metaphysical interpretation of Buddha-nature as some kind of entitive being or essential potenti- ality, yet he continued to engage the doctrine of Buddha Nature in his teachings and writings. Dogen worked to develop an approach to Buddha-nature most conducive to practice. For Dogen, the doctrine of Buddha-nature must be understood in the context of the Buddha Dharma as practice.

Is “Buddha-Nature” Buddhist?

AbstractRecent controversies in Japanese Buddhist scholarship have focused upon the Mahāyāna notion of a “Buddha nature” within all sentient beings and whether or not the concept is compatible with traditional Buddhist teachings such as anātman (no-abiding-self). This controversy is not only relevant to Far Eastern Buddhism, for which the notion of a Buddha-nature is a central doctrinal theme, but also for the roots of this tradition in those Indian Mahāyāna sūtras which utilised the notion of tathāgatagarbha (Buddha-embryo or Buddha womb). One of the earliest Buddhist texts to discuss this notion is the Queen Śrīmālā Sūtra (Śrīmālādevīsūtra), which appears to display a transitional and revisionist attitude towards traditional Mahāyāna doctrines such as emptiness (śūnyatā) and no-abiding-self (anātman). These and related issues are examined as they occur in the Śrīmālā Sūtra and as they might relate to the issue of the place of Buddha-nature thought within the Buddhist tradition. Finally some concluding remarks are made about the quest for “true” Buddhism.

Does a Systemic Therapist Have Buddha Nature?

The study and practice of Zen Buddhism involves long hours of sitting meditation and koan study. Koans, usually anecdotes from the history of Zen in China and Japan, confound logical thinking. They pose questions that cannot be answered conceptually, yet must be answered somehow in private encounters between student and teacher. This practice, on the surface, seems to have little in common with systemic therapy. This paper describes some of the ways in which the 20 plus years of Zen practice of one therapist has influenced his work.

When the Iron Bird Flies: A Commentary on Sydney Walter'sDoes a Systemic Therapist have Buddha Nature?

When the Iron Bird Flies: A Commentary on Sydney Walter'sDoes a Systemic Therapist have Buddha Nature?

Sally B. King: Buddha nature: (SUNY Series in Buddhist Studies.) xi, 205 pp. Albany, N.Y. State University of New York Press, 1990. $12.95.

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Buddha Nature. By Sallie B. King. SUNY Series in Buddhist Studies. Albany, New York: SUNY Press, 1991. xi, 205 pp.

Buddha Nature. By Sallie B. King. SUNY Series in Buddhist Studies. Albany, New York: SUNY Press, 1991. xi, 205 pp.

Buddha Nature and the Concept of Person

Buddha Nature and the Concept of Person

‘Buddha Nature’ in the T'ien-t'ai School of the Sung Period

‘Buddha Nature’ in the T'ien-t'ai School of the Sung Period

The Buddha Nature: True Self as Action

Buddhism, and especially early Buddhism, is known for theanātman(no self) teaching. By any account, this teaching is central to both doctrine and practice from the beginning. Zen Buddhism (Chinese Ch'an), in contrast, is known for its teaching that the single most important thing in life is to discover the ‘true self’. Is there a real, or only an apparent, conflict between these two versions of Buddhism? Certainly there is at the least a radical change in the linguistic formulation of the teaching. Examining the two teachings on the linguistic level, we note that the use of the term ‘true’ in the phrase ‘true self’ may indicate that we have here a conscious reformation of the place of the term ‘self’ in the tradition, or perhaps that the use of this phrase in Zen is the product of such a conscious formulation. Thus we may expect, upon investigation, to find an evolution from one teaching to the other, rather than a true doctrinal disparity. The apparent, or linguistic, conflict between the two, however, remains; hence we must also expect to find a doctrinal formulation at some point in this evolution in which the apparent conflict is consciously apprehended and resolved.