ccording the sage Kapila: "And from the contrast with that which is composed of the three constituents, there follows, for the Purusha, the character of Being, a witness; freedom from misery, neutrality, percipience, and non-agency."
We can deduce from this that the historical Buddha was much influenced by the Samkhya philosophy. Samkhya may be the original dualistic doctrine, which in turn might be based on the Vedic concept of a battle between opposing forces. Apparently Samkhya was also the predominant doctrine of the Avesta. Samkhya is perhaps the root doctrine of all Indian philosophy as well as the Tao and of Manichaeism. The non-agency is the interplay of the gunas born of nature that issues the appearance of creation, and as Sri Kapila states: "Change implies something to change; whatever is, always is, and whatever is not, never is." Based on this teaching, Pantanjali wisely refrained from attributing the existence of prakriti to the creation of Purusha. According to Indian philosophy, the Being, Purusha, and prakriti, the relative, is an eternal cyclic dualism, based on the law of causation. Gunas: Three modalities of a quasi-psychic act. Prakriti is substance and is as real and as eternal as Purusha, spirit; but, unlike Purusa, substance is dynamic, and is homogeneous, in that the primordial substance possesses three modes of being, which allow it to manifest itself in three different ways. (1) sattva - the modality of luminosity and intelligence; (2) rajas - the modality of motor energy and mental activity; (3) tamas - the modality of static inertia and psychomental obscurity. The importance that Samkhya and Yoga accords to the principle of individuation through "consciousness of self." Thus the genesis of the world is a quasi-psychic act, and objective and psycho-physiological phenomena have a common matrix: the mechanics of a bound instrument origination, without Exception. Purusha, the Absolute, is never an instrument or an object of knowledge. Prakriti, that is, matter, is governed solely by the law of karma - the law of cause and effect, so nicely explained by Sakya the Muni as "Dependent Origination" or in Sanskrit, "samsara". Sri Buddha, the ninth incarnation of Vishnu, and the Avatar for this age, according to the Hindu Scriptures, did not endorse the notion that physical matter is the result of a Creator. This being so, the Sage Kapila also found no reason to postulate a causal agent. Patanjali does not support the theory that there is a "force" which intervenes in human history; even Ishvara is subject to the law of causation. The Samkhya philosophy of the Sage Kapila, which is fully supported by Maharishi Patanjali, describes all the categories of nature or prakriti as eternally separate from the Absolute or Purusha. In "A New Commentary on Bhagavad Gita" Maharsihi explains this very nicely, concerning how nature is the result of the interplay of the three gunas, which in every case, govern the entire universe of man and the Gods, without exception: "But he who knows the truth about the divisions of the gunas and their actions, O mighty armed, knowing that it is the gunas which act upon the gunas, remains unattached." Work cited: 'Commentary on Bhagavad Gita' by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi V: 27; p. 220 On Sun, Dec 29, 2013 at 10:51 PM, Richard Williams <[email protected]>wrote: > The term "Nirodha" in Sanskrit means cessation: an experience of > epistemological reflection. According to some scholars, the most ancient > sustained expression of yogic ideas is found in the early discourses of the > historical Buddha. Patanjali's conception of freedom is related to the > ancient Buddhist view that the source of suffering is the craving for > permanence in a universe of impermanence. > > Both the 'Four Noble Truths' and the 'Eightfold Path' articulated in the > Buddha's first discourse are elements that underlie the yoga system. Two > striking examples of this are Patanjali's use of the word "nirodha" in the > opening definition of yoga as "citta-vrtti-nirodha", that is, 'Yoga is the > cessation of the turnings of thought' and the statement that "all is > suffering, dukkha, for the wise man." In Sanskrit, both "dukkha" which > means suffering, and "nirodha", cessation, are crucial terms in Buddhist > vocabulary. The doctrine of suffering is the core of what Buddhists believe > the Buddha taught after gaining enlightenment. Patanjali's Ashtang > eight-limbed practice is parallel to the eight-limbed path of Buddha. > > The Concluding Yoga Sutra of Patanjali: > > "Freedom is a reversal of the evolutionary course of prakriti, which is > empty of meaning for the Purusha; it is also the power of consciousness > in a state of true identity." (Y.S. 4.34) > > Work cited: > > 'Yoga: Discipline of Freedom' > by Barbara Stoler Miller > Bantam Wisdom Editions 1998 > p. 5, 52. > > > On Sun, Dec 29, 2013 at 7:37 AM, Richard Williams <[email protected]>wrote: > >> [image: Inline image 2] >> >> When Shakya the Muni attained the buddha state, he is reported to have >> said: "Profound, simple, transparent!" What did he mean by this? >> >> The 'Buddha', Shakya the Muni, was born in 563 BCE - in the sixth century >> in what is now Nepal, at Kapilavastu. He was the founder of the >> 'Enlightenment Tradition' in South Asia, that is, 'original Buddhism' >> before the rise of the eighteen sects. Shakya was a householder who became >> a recluse at the age of twenty-three, by renouncing the world in pursuit of >> finding the answer to the cause of suffering and how to eradicate it. >> >> Shakya was the first historical yogin in India. According to Shakya, he >> became 'enlightend' while sitting under a tree and practicing meditation. >> That's why in the Mahayana Shakya is depicted in a sitting meditative pose. >> Buddha in Sanskrit means 'the awakened one', that is he 'woke up' to the >> Reality that all events and conditions are the result of causes, and that >> everything happen for a reason. Shakya Buddha taught *Causation*, the >> central philosophy of Buddhism. Shakya practiced a form of yogic >> meditation, according to the Shakya himself in numerous talks and >> conversations. The question is: >> >> 'Did the Shakya use a specific yoga meditation technique in order to >> become enlightened, and if so what was it? According to the Soto Zen >> Tradition, Shakya passed down a special meditation that is very similar to >> TM practice. It involves a sitting type of meditative repose in which the >> mind becomes empty of thoughts allowing one's own Buddha nature to be >> realized. >> >> According to R. A. F. Thurman, "What can be said with some certainty is >> that what the Shakya taught was not a religion. A young seeker who would >> later become one of the Buddha's most famous disciples met an old monk on >> the streets of the Indian city of Varanasi whose composure and contented >> glow were notable. The youth asked the old mendicant about his teacher and >> the teaching he followed. The monk avowed an inability to explain and >> invited the seeker to visit his teacher, the Buddha. The seeker insisted on >> some explanation, and the monk said, "The Buddha has said that all things >> arise from causes, what are their causes, and what their cessation. Such >> being his philosophy!" This mantralike statement contains the core insight >> of Shakya the Muni. >> >> In Sanskrit 'dhyana', Chinese 'chan', and in Japan, 'zen', which >> translated into English means 'meditation'. So, Bodhidharma took the >> Shakya's teaching to China, hence it was taken to Japan by Dogen who >> founded the Soto Zen sect. Thus a direct link back to Buddha Shakya >> himself. According to Dogen, the practice of sitting zazen IS the >> experience of enlightenment - they are one and the same. Shakya the Muni >> formulated the Twelve Fold Chain of Causation in order to explain cause >> and effect to our understanding. The Shakya taught Causation and he offered >> the Eight Fold Path to liberation. He said that each of us must work out >> our own salvation with diligence. >> >> Naga Arjuna said that all things and events are devoid of own-being; He >> also said that any statement when taken to extremes will be found to be >> self-contradictory, thus teaching the Middle Way. However, Naga Arjuna said >> that it's important to understand the law of the excluded middle: you are >> not going to get any more enlightenment than you are going to get. It's >> also important to remember that wanting to change that which cannot be >> changed will only result in despair and frustration. These calm and >> rational words of the Shakya are like a cool, refreshing breeze. It's >> probably a fact that there are no Buddha's in heaven and none of the Gods >> are enlightened. >> >> So, lets sum up what we know: >> >> Shakya realized that everything happens for a reason - things don't just >> happen at random. So, there is causation - all things owe their existence >> to other things; and all things change due to the change in other things - >> in short, for each action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It's >> the law of physics: co-existent determination. Shakya realized that all >> things are relational and momentary. There's not a single thing in this >> world that is really absolutely, permanent and non-changing. Shakya saw all >> his previous existences; he saw all his future existences; he saw all the >> suffering he had endured and would endure for myriads of lifetimes. He saw >> that he would suffer in being reborn, going through old age, and dying, >> over and over again. >> >> Work cited: >> >> 'Inner Revolution' >> by Robert Thurman, Ph.D. >> Riverhead Books, 1998 >> p. 322 >> >> >> On Sun, Dec 29, 2013 at 7:23 AM, Richard Williams >> <[email protected]>wrote: >> >>> > Om, have either of you earned a real PhD from a real university >>> > or are you just pretty well read in spiritual things? >>> > >>> Most of what I know I learned from my teachers: MMY, Suzuki Roshi, Lama >>> Govinda, and Chogyam Trungpa. After learning how to meditate I was >>> interested in learning exactly what it was that I was doing. So, I started >>> to read some books and take some courses. I took several courses with Dr. >>> Patrick Olivelle, who was the Chair of the Department of Asian Studies, and >>> Director of the Center for Asian Studies, at the University of Texas at >>> Austin. Later I took some courses with Professor Brougham at a >>> community college. All this reading and taking courses would probably have >>> been almost worthless without a grounding in how to meditate. No degree >>> could ever provide the practical knowledge of exactly how to contact the >>> transcendent. It's not complicated, but it is interesting to read about >>> spiritual paths. >>> >>> >>> On Sat, Dec 28, 2013 at 8:52 PM, <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Om, have either of you earned a real PhD from a real university or are >>>> you just pretty well read in spiritual things? Just wondering. Das after >>>> your name can work pretty good too. Das is a different credential than >>>> just being a Phd. >>>> >>>> -Buck Das on the lone prairie >>>> >>>> >>>> >>> >>> >> >
