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Mahayana Buddhism – what is it? a plain English View
anataman
Who needs a title?Where am I? Veteran
Namaste New Buddhists
I thought I would take a little time to offer up my understanding of Mahayana Buddhism with anyone who chooses to indulge. perhaps you'd like to make a cup of tea and make yourself comfortable. Perhaps you can teach me more about it in the exploration that will hopefully unfold.
I don’t want to discuss the various schools, literature, the languages of Pali or Sanskrit , the doctrines, dogma or practices themselves, nor the historical aspect, but what is it really about? I know there is no one view that would be appreciated as being correct – if there was we would all be enlightened wouldn’t we, and the Mahayana ideal would be fulfilled? I want to speak about it in plain old English (as far as possible).
I realize that many of you will be of the Theravada school, and your contributions are welcome, so I will try to do a little comparing and contrasting of Mahayana and Theravada, as I see it as both can give insight and perspective on the other. I see Vajrayana as having the same goal as Mahayana and as essentially the same thing, forgive me for that.
My understanding is that Theravada focuses on enlightenment for the individual. However, Mahayana focuses on the enlightenment of all beings, but what does this really mean if it's all under the umbrella of 'Buddhism'. The devil is in the detail for me, and the subtlety of the understanding of our self and our relationship with the world.
The ultimate goal of Mahayana is to become a bodhisattva, which is someone who works in various skillful ways to liberate all the other beings who are wandering about with no specific direction or purpose in the endless cycle of birth and death, which is punctuated by suffering and is called Samsara. What drives the goal of the bodhisattva is the understanding of the four noble truths and it's revelation of the human condition of suffering which the buddha boldly said he could end,(if you followed his directions- the 8-fold path), and the individual self seeking an understanding of it's ‘true’ or ‘Ultimate’ ‘nature of self’.
With a a good teacher as a guide, or study of the sutras, reading a good article on it, or just by chatting with other buddhists you can come to understand 'this Ultimate self' as Anatman (no self).
Now I believe Theravada and Mahayana Buddhists understand Anatman in different ways. I am not going to go into too much detail, as I am sure there are many here whom can more precisely explain it than me. Theravada’s see ‘the self’ as ‘the ego of the individual’ that because there is Anatman, this self-ego is in all reality a delusion, and can be conceptually demonstrated, but it is what binds us to this existence in samsara, as it seeks out happiness and tries to avoid things that make it unhappy . The goal of Theravada’s is to become enlightened, and exist in the true natural state of the mind, or our ‘true self’ and this blissful state of Nirvana is achieved by becoming free of the ‘individual ego’. This can be achieved here and now, if you practice in the right way.
Mahayana, on the other hand, considers all physical forms to be fundamentally ‘empty’ of intrinsic self and that autonomy of the self is a delusion. Therefore, according to Mahayana, individual enlightenment is not possible. Thus, the ideal in Mahayana is to work together in a communal way toward the goal of enlightenment for all. It's a self-fulfilling ideal.
There are those who have advanced significantly, and skillfully, often through long meditative retreats and through study and practice and who introduce, teach and guide others along the path. In this way, as people enter the stream, and seek answers to those questions commonly asked on forums like this one, they are welcomed and perhaps shown some love, compassion, kindness and wisdom, and humour that may lead them to conclude that there is some ultimate truth we can know about our self which motivates and enables them to gain the further skills and insight to practice, and gain the wisdom of the buddha.
The introduction of the 4 noble truths is usually the first step, and then as the realisation of the truth of suffering unfolds, they may well become another link in the unbroken chain of liberated and liberating beings. In their turn they can assist (by formally taking bodhisattva vows, or just being mindful) liberating others from the ego mind, which will eventually enable all beings to become enlightened, not only out of a sense of compassion (kind-hearted empathy and concern for each others suffering), but because we cannot separate ourselves from each other. We share the same ‘true’ or ‘Ultimate nature’, that we call buddha-nature. This buddha-nature is here and now presently fully manifested but unrecognized because of our delusions. The way we can experience it is through mindfulness and meditation. It’s not a big secret, it’s what you really are. That is just my understanding, of an ideal.
The question it raises for me really is, is it the reality?
gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate, boddhi svaha
May all beings achieve happiness and the causes of happiness
May all be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.
May all dwell in the great happiness, free from delusion, and live believing in the equality of all that lives.
Mettha
I thought I would take a little time to offer up my understanding of Mahayana Buddhism with anyone who chooses to indulge. perhaps you'd like to make a cup of tea and make yourself comfortable. Perhaps you can teach me more about it in the exploration that will hopefully unfold.
I don’t want to discuss the various schools, literature, the languages of Pali or Sanskrit , the doctrines, dogma or practices themselves, nor the historical aspect, but what is it really about? I know there is no one view that would be appreciated as being correct – if there was we would all be enlightened wouldn’t we, and the Mahayana ideal would be fulfilled? I want to speak about it in plain old English (as far as possible).
I realize that many of you will be of the Theravada school, and your contributions are welcome, so I will try to do a little comparing and contrasting of Mahayana and Theravada, as I see it as both can give insight and perspective on the other. I see Vajrayana as having the same goal as Mahayana and as essentially the same thing, forgive me for that.
My understanding is that Theravada focuses on enlightenment for the individual. However, Mahayana focuses on the enlightenment of all beings, but what does this really mean if it's all under the umbrella of 'Buddhism'. The devil is in the detail for me, and the subtlety of the understanding of our self and our relationship with the world.
The ultimate goal of Mahayana is to become a bodhisattva, which is someone who works in various skillful ways to liberate all the other beings who are wandering about with no specific direction or purpose in the endless cycle of birth and death, which is punctuated by suffering and is called Samsara. What drives the goal of the bodhisattva is the understanding of the four noble truths and it's revelation of the human condition of suffering which the buddha boldly said he could end,(if you followed his directions- the 8-fold path), and the individual self seeking an understanding of it's ‘true’ or ‘Ultimate’ ‘nature of self’.
With a a good teacher as a guide, or study of the sutras, reading a good article on it, or just by chatting with other buddhists you can come to understand 'this Ultimate self' as Anatman (no self).
Now I believe Theravada and Mahayana Buddhists understand Anatman in different ways. I am not going to go into too much detail, as I am sure there are many here whom can more precisely explain it than me. Theravada’s see ‘the self’ as ‘the ego of the individual’ that because there is Anatman, this self-ego is in all reality a delusion, and can be conceptually demonstrated, but it is what binds us to this existence in samsara, as it seeks out happiness and tries to avoid things that make it unhappy . The goal of Theravada’s is to become enlightened, and exist in the true natural state of the mind, or our ‘true self’ and this blissful state of Nirvana is achieved by becoming free of the ‘individual ego’. This can be achieved here and now, if you practice in the right way.
Mahayana, on the other hand, considers all physical forms to be fundamentally ‘empty’ of intrinsic self and that autonomy of the self is a delusion. Therefore, according to Mahayana, individual enlightenment is not possible. Thus, the ideal in Mahayana is to work together in a communal way toward the goal of enlightenment for all. It's a self-fulfilling ideal.
There are those who have advanced significantly, and skillfully, often through long meditative retreats and through study and practice and who introduce, teach and guide others along the path. In this way, as people enter the stream, and seek answers to those questions commonly asked on forums like this one, they are welcomed and perhaps shown some love, compassion, kindness and wisdom, and humour that may lead them to conclude that there is some ultimate truth we can know about our self which motivates and enables them to gain the further skills and insight to practice, and gain the wisdom of the buddha.
The introduction of the 4 noble truths is usually the first step, and then as the realisation of the truth of suffering unfolds, they may well become another link in the unbroken chain of liberated and liberating beings. In their turn they can assist (by formally taking bodhisattva vows, or just being mindful) liberating others from the ego mind, which will eventually enable all beings to become enlightened, not only out of a sense of compassion (kind-hearted empathy and concern for each others suffering), but because we cannot separate ourselves from each other. We share the same ‘true’ or ‘Ultimate nature’, that we call buddha-nature. This buddha-nature is here and now presently fully manifested but unrecognized because of our delusions. The way we can experience it is through mindfulness and meditation. It’s not a big secret, it’s what you really are. That is just my understanding, of an ideal.
The question it raises for me really is, is it the reality?
gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate, boddhi svaha
May all beings achieve happiness and the causes of happiness
May all be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.
May all dwell in the great happiness, free from delusion, and live believing in the equality of all that lives.
Mettha
3
Comments
Some Mahayanists still refer to pratyekabuddhas-individual enlightened beings--as if it is a real thing, but not as worthy as striving for group enlightenment. Yes. Unless you subscribe to the notion that what things really are is sublime, ineffable, transcendental and so on. In which case you don't get it until you are reduced to mute hand waving.
Personally I subscribe to the idea that enlightenment as a metaphysical realization is hard, but not so hard that one can't do it and that working through *consequences* is what will be a much bigger chore, with all those infinite beings to liberate. So lets get to work, eh?
It's been quite organic, how it seems to be unfolding 'on it's own'. Right now I'm focused upon samatha and vipassana meditation, therefore am experiencing Buddhism through a more Theravadin lens. This kind of meditation just sort of took root over other kinds, I didn't really CHOOSE.
What little I know of the Theravadin focus upon individual enlightenment, it is deeply tempered with the understanding that individual enlightenment means squat in a world of suffering, unawakened fellows. I am living a sort of boddhisatva-by-default life (nurse for 22 years). I am better able to actually HELP others the more I practice on behalf of this speck of existence in this body.
All the doohickeys and frills and furbelows (gods, realms, bardos, Pure Land(s)); I am curious about them, but not prone to them, if that makes sense. It hasn't yet made 'more sense' of Life and Existence and Truth to include the Mahayana pantheon. When my very close girlfriend died, though, I sat with her body for several hours, in between visitors, reading to her from Sogyal Rinpoche's book of the Dead, hoping (as she'd instructed me) to help her navigate her way immediately post death. I have no idea if we were successful, she hasn't sent word
All these wheels (one of the meanings of yana) mandalas or turnings are appropriate to the needs, growth and requirements of a situation, mind set and potential. The important thing is finding what focusses your attention on the useful.
My own school, the non existent YinYana, classes itself as the fourth wheel of the dharma ending Kaliyuga. As such it flits between Therevadin, Mahayana, vajrayana and anything else inappropriate or not.
You will find only what you bring in.
Master Yoda (JediYana)
:wave:
The difficulty in describing it lies not in language but in the heart/minds relationship to it.
http://www.watflorida.org/documents/Mahayana Buddhism_Williams.pdf
All appearances have the nature of awareness. Whatever is there is within your awareness.
We wish you well on your spiritual journey to eliminate suffering and all that is expected is you respect each other and show a little compassion and companionship to your fellow passengers if you feel they need it. There is no manual but you will find that historical figures have worked out how this greatest of vehicle works and hopefully these instructions are made available to you.