Good afternoon and welcome back to the Diamond Sutra class. So, I felt like the first class was a lot of fun. It provided a good background and framework for presenting the sutra and its place in the teachings and in the history of Buddhism. So, today... We need to get into the sutra, actually. My ambition is to cover the first five chapters. The first five chapters are considered, and some people break that into part one, and many commentators say that the first five chapters sort of contains the whole sutra, contains the essence of the whole sutra. And it's not much, but it still feels like a lot to cover in a one-hour class to me. That is my ambition.

[01:01]

So, yes, I have, as I mentioned in the last class, I have multiple translations. As I read it and study it and compare, more and more I'm really grown fond of Bill Porter's translation. This is Bill Porter's translation. It's... his translation and nobody else's, from the Chinese and the Sanskrit. Both he studied extensively to get a translation that really, for me, brings forth the flavor of the Dharma. So what I'm actually going to do is read Bill Porter's translation, read the sutra. I mean, the sutra itself is not long. And then we'll comment it, and we're going to take it. chapter by chapter. That's today and for the rest of the sutra, however long it takes. Practice period next year.

[02:04]

We'll see. Thus have I heard. Once the Bhagavan was dwelling near Shravasti at Anatta Pindada Garden in Jetta Forest, together with the full assembly of 1,250 bhikshus and a great many fearless bodhisattvas. One day before noon, the Bhagavan put on his patched robe and picked up his bowl and entered the capital of Shravasti for offerings. After begging for food in the city and eating his meal of rice, he returned from his daily round in the afternoon, put his robe and bowl away, washed his feet, and sat down on the appointed seat. After crossing his legs and adjusting his body, he turned his awareness to what was before him. A number of bishus then came up to where the Bhagavan was sitting. After touching their heads to his feet, they walked around him to the right three times and sat down to one side.

[03:09]

So this sets the scene, right? In fact, this is the purpose of the first chapter and a lot of other sutras, you know, it sets the scene. Now, if you're familiar with other Mahayana scripture, like the Bhimala Kirti Sutra or the Avatamsaka Sutra or the Lotus Sutra, one thing might become immediately evident to you. Whereas in these other later Mahayana Sutras, the introduction, they usually say, there were all these bodhisattvas, there were thousands of them, and then there were these devas and asuras, and then name them by name, you know, often, and just like, especially the Avatamsaka Sutra, multiple chapters goes on and on and on about who was there. The Dhammas Sutra is early Prajnaparamita literature.

[04:15]

This is the beginning of the Mahayana. So it doesn't make a big deal out of that. You don't get all those bodhisattvas, nor colored lights or flowers falling from the sky. None of that. There were 1,250 bhikshus there. In fact, also, Bill Porter says in many translations, from the Sanskrit say, and a great many fearless bodhisattvas. Fearless bodhisattvas, as far as I can tell, is Bill Porter's unique translation of bodhisattva, mahasattva. Mahasattva, bodhisattva means, Thomas Cleary translates it as awakening being. Sattva is being, and bodhi means awakening. I should be asking you. You're all just looking at me.

[05:16]

That was the one thing about the first class. I was like, yeah, wake up. What's a bodhisattva anyway? Let me just explain it to you. And how does that operate? How do you understand that? I guess I think there's probably many ways to understand it. One would be somebody who is, you know, practicing... Buddhism. One other way I would understand it is you're practicing Buddhism on the path. Another way would be somebody who's, whether they're on the path or not, that they have some sort of somatic experience of justification with thoughts and emotions as a variety of phenomena, a self-experience of no-self permanence. So I think it depends on the context and how you understand what it means to be awake, which I feel like when teachers often say awake, you know, awake, like, well, I don't know.

[06:30]

Can I understand that always? And I think it has a whole ways to understand it and experience what it means to be awake. So then also, I think, pretty good before then. Paul. Can you say more about that? Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Actually. That's a classic understanding. And that is Bodhisattva's great bow. E for bow. Thou. Should we write down the word bodhisattva? Linda has volunteered to be a writer of words. Like the last class, I said I'm going to throw so much Sanskrit at you and see how many words stick.

[07:34]

So what can we say about Anatta Pandada's Park in the Jetta Grove? It's a great story. There was this wealthy merchant in the time of the Buddha. His name was Suddata. Because he was so generous, he was known as Anathbindata, which means the benefactor. He was deeply moved hearing the Buddha preach. And when he returned to his home of Shravasti, which, according to Nagarjuna, was a major urban center of 900,000 people at that time. Amazing. He... really wanted to help the Buddha out by providing him with a place to practice and teach. So he requested Prince Jetta, who was the prince in Srivasti, that he sell him this amazing grove, this forested place, a very peaceful and beautiful place, Jetta's Grove. And as rich guys will do, Prince Jetta joked around with him, and he said...

[08:37]

Oh, yeah, sure, I'll sell you, I'll sell you whatever part of it you can cover in gold. And Sudata didn't even blink. He went and got all his gold. He started laying it out. He covered about 200 acres. Of course, according to the story, there are different versions of the story, but according to one version, the version that I prefer... Prince Jedha was a little embarrassed and gave him the land, the whole forest, actually. Gave the whole forest to the Buddha. Was moved by Anatta Pindada's generosity and donated the whole forest. And the part that got covered with gold became Anatta Pindada's park or garden. And they created there a vihara, which I talked about earlier.

[09:38]

in the last class, a monastery, a place of practice. The name, Anatta Pindada, Bill Porter points out, is significant in that Anatta means without reliance, and Pindada means to give offerings. It's usually translated as benefactor in the sense that you're giving offerings to people without means, people without reliance. But it can also be understood as giving offerings without relying on anything. Giving offerings without relying on anything. Anatta Pindada. Yes. Yes, yes. That was maybe his nickname. The benefactor. Anatta Pindada. So, his name, as we will get into... A very important part of this sutra is how we practice giving.

[10:44]

And so his name is not only the practice that's praised in the sutra, it is the actual teaching. His name is giving offerings without relying on anything. Supposedly the number 1250 is the original sangha. the so-called shravakas, the voice hearers, those who heard the voice of the Buddha. Want to write down shravaka? Do you want it with an H? Either way is good. We're way into Sanskrit diacriticals. More Sanskrit diacriticals, the better. Which is the Kashyapa brothers, 500 disciples of Uruviva Kashyapa, that's our guy, Maha Kashyapa, 300 of Gaya Kasyapa, 200 of Nadi Kasyapa, 150 of Shariputra, and 100 of Makal Yajana. I mean, who knows? What's interesting is that, as I was saying before, the Sanskrit text, some Sanskrit texts say also that these fearless bodhisattvas were present, and the Bodhisattva Mahasattvas.

[11:57]

Other texts, other Chinese translations from the Sanskrit have no mention of bodhisattvas. Thich Nhat Hanh says, There were no bodhisattvas there. It was just the bishus, just the shravakas. And this is a, I mean, it could be significant or not. Actually, if you want to make it significant, you could say this is about the evolution of the Mahayana and the evolution of a greater understanding, which this sutra is the Buddha relating to Subuddhi in a practice discussion, actually. its practice discussion, taking him through this beginning understanding of, you know, sort of old-school Nikaya Buddhism evolving into the Mahayana, Prajnaparamita study of emptiness and non-duality. In any event,

[13:03]

Also, at the end of the Sutra, there's not only monks, nuns, bodhisattvas, anishuras, and laymen and laywomen, that everybody shows up for the party. More like the later Mayana Sutras, when you get to the end of the Diamond Sutra. So, the significance of Chapter 1, it's got a lot to do with our practice, actually, because it just tells what the Buddha's doing. What is he doing? That's so Zen. This is what the Buddha was doing. This is what he's doing. He puts on his robe, goes out, begs for food, eats his meal, returns, puts his robe and bowl away, washes his feet, sits down, crosses his legs and adjusts his body. Does that sound familiar to you?

[14:04]

turning his awareness to what was before him. This is what the Buddha does. It puts me in mind of a story that I heard that I like a lot, which is, I cannot give you any, what's the word I want, the source of this story. I have no idea whether it's true or not. So you might as well just regard it as a made-up story that I made up. But it's something that somebody told me about a glossy magazine in Europe, like Party Match or whatever that big one in German is. Oh, what's the big magazine in Germany? Anyway... are one of those magazines wanting to get an article about Eastern religion in the 60s or 70s, saying, you know, this is a coming thing.

[15:14]

This is cool. We need to get an article about this. Let's get a reporter to go to some far eastern country like Thailand and talk to a Buddhist teacher and find out what it's all about. So they do that. They give a reporter this assignment, and... And he goes far into the woods and the mountains and asks around. And people say, oh, yeah, there's this teacher. We're pretty sure he's an enlightened sage. And the reporter's like, oh, yeah, yeah, good. I talked to an enlightened sage. So he finds this guy. And there's an interpreter because he can't speak Thai. Anyway, there's an interpreter. And he asks the teacher, what is enlightenment? And the teacher says, OK, well, you get your robe, and you put on your robe, and you sit down on your platform, and you cross your legs, and you get your bowl, and you put your bowl right here. And the reporter says, what?

[16:17]

That's his answer? That's enlightenment? I don't think he understood me. So he says to the translator, look, let me explain. What I'm trying to ask about is enlightenment. I want to know about enlightenment. So translator, okay, got it. Ask the teacher again. There's some back and forth between the teacher and the translator. Then the translator says, okay, you put your robe on, put it on like this, tie it here, tuck it in there, arrange it like that. And then you sit down, sit down, cross your legs like this. And when you get your ball, put your ball right here. Just like that. Okay? Now are we clear? So it's like that. It's like that. The Chinese commentary says, in the very beginning, the six paramitas are taught. Picking up his bowl to go begging is Dana.

[17:20]

Putting on his robe, Sheila. Begging for food, Kshanti. Putting away his bowl and cloak, and washing his feet, virya, turning his awareness to what was before him, dhyana, and remaining unattached through the midst of all these activities, prajna. So it's right there in the first chapter, all the teaching. Do you want to write them down? The six paramitas? Use all the dialects as you can. Okay. Again, just write the paramitas. Dana is picking up his bowl to go begging. Sheila is putting on his robe. Kshanti is begging for food. Virya putting away his bowl and cloak and washing his feet, taking care of his... Dhyana turning his awareness to what was before him.

[18:30]

And remaining unattached through the midst of all those activities is prajna. That's good, because the Diamond Sutra is all about the six paramitas. Chapter 2. On this occasion, the Venerable Tsubuti was also present in the assembly. Rising from his seat, He uncovered one shoulder and touched his right knee to the ground. Pressing his palms together and bowing to the Buddha, he said, It is rare, Bhagavan, most rare indeed, Sugata, how the Tathagata, the Arhan, the fully enlightened one, blesses fearless bodhisattvas with the best of blessings. And it is rare, Bhagavan, how the Tathagata, the Arhan, the fully enlightened one, entrusts fearless bodhisattvas with the greatest of trusts. Even so, Bhagavan, If a noble son or daughter should set forth on the bodhisattva path, how should they stand, how should they walk, and how should they control their thoughts?

[19:39]

The Buddha told the venerable Subuddhi, Well said, Subuddhi, well said. So it is, Subuddhi. It is as you say. The Tathagata blesses fearless bodhisattvas with the best of blessings, and it trusts fearless bodhisattvas with the greatest of trusts. You should therefore listen, Subuddhi, and consider this well. I shall tell you how those who set forth on the Bodhisattva path should stand, how they should walk, and how they should control their thoughts. The Venerable Subuti answered, May it be so, Bhagavan, and gave his full attention. So I think I neglected to mention also that Mahasattva was a term in use before Buddhism, and it meant lion. So Mahasapha is a great being or a courageous being. That's why Bill Porras is fearless bodhisattvas. And it's a synonym for it.

[20:41]

It also means lion. Which, true fact, India used to be lousy with lions. Lions and tigers all over the place. Okay. So who was Rudy? Apparently, he was the younger brother of Anatta Pindada, the donor of the monastery. Sabuti, I don't know if you know, but in the Buddha's original assembly, there's many of his disciples are associated with certain practices, with certain skill sets, if you will. Renowned for this, like Sharipucho was renowned for wisdom. And Kashyapa was renowned for austerities. That's right. And Subuti was renowned for his practices of loving kindness. Aww. Yeah.

[21:42]

Yeah. Subuti was really well known for practicing loving kindness and apparently was a really sweet guy. And... You pick up on that, actually, in the sutra, which is, as I said, a practice discussion, basically. Or you could say maybe since there were 1,250 witnesses, sort of like a shosan ceremony with just one long extended interchange between the Buddha and Tsuburi. Most of our koan stories in the Zen tradition... come from these shosan, which means a small gathering, as opposed to dokasan, which is just two people present, when there's an interchange between teachers and students that are witnessed by other people, and it gets written down. It gets saved for posterity. Oh, that was a good one. Let's remember that. Yeah, that's where all our koan stories come from. So, kind of a practice discussion between subuti and

[22:47]

the Buddha. Sibuddhi is also known in the Mahayana as the one who best understands the doctrine of emptiness, which Prajnaparamita is all about. His name means born of emptiness because his family was quite rich and had storehouses of silver and gold. On the day he was born, the family's wealth Disappeared. Gone. Demonstrating the truth of emptiness. Seven days later, it reappeared. Demonstrating that true emptiness is empty of emptiness. To his father's great relief, no doubt. So, Sabuti totally follows the form You know, there's a form.

[23:48]

We have lots of forms. Subruti follows the form. You know, he rises, he uncovers one shoulder, touches his right knee to the ground and presses his palms together and bowing. That's what we do every morning. You know, he's following the form and it's devotional. I said that the rise of the Prajnaparamita, the Mahayana... is marked by devotion. So this is sincere devotion to the Buddha. He's expressing devotion with his whole body. And he asks this question. Basically, Saburi wants to know how the Buddha does what he does. How do you do that? What's operating for you there? I want to know. In the recovery work, In recovery communities, sometimes when somebody meets, they're doing the recovery work and they meet a sponsor that they really admire, they really want to be like that, they have a saying that says, I want what he's got.

[24:54]

So I feel like Sabuti wants what the Buddha's got. I certainly felt that way about, well, I still do feel that way about Soja Roshi. I want what he's got, whatever he's doing 20 years ago. I said to myself, whatever he's doing, I want to do that. I want to practice. Whatever he's practicing, I want to practice that. Okay. So, chapters 3 through 5 actually describe the career of a bodhisattva in one way of understanding it. Loosely. Chapter 3 is about the big V, vow. Chapter 3 is about the bodhisattvas vow. Chapter 4 is about the practice of the paramitas, particularly dana, which is the first, but really all the paramitas.

[25:57]

And you can't practice the other paramitas without practicing dana. You actually can't practice the bodhisattva way without a generous heart. So the sutra puts a great deal of emphasis on the practice of giving. And then chapter five is about Buddhahood itself and what it means, what actually, what is the body of Buddha all about? Chapter three, the Buddha said to him, so this is the beginning of Buddha's answer to Sabuti's question and the beginning of this dialogue, this practice discussion. The Buddha said to him, Sabuti, Those who had now set forth on the bodhisattva path should thus give birth to this thought. However many beings there are, in whatever realms of being might exist, whether they are born from an egg or born from a womb, born from the water or born from the air, whether they have form or no form, whether they have perception or no perception, or neither perception nor no perception, in whatever conceivable realm of being one might conceive of beings,

[27:03]

In the realm of complete nirvana, I shall liberate them all. And though I thus liberate countless beings, not a single being is liberated. And why not? Subuddhi, a bodhisattva who creates the perception of a being cannot be called a bodhisattva. And why not? Subuddhi, no one can be called a bodhisattva who creates the perception of a self or who creates the perception of a being, a life, or a soul. these four perceptions. Okay. So it starts with vow. Those who would set forth on the bodhisattva path should give birth to this thought. So, Sabuti's question, how shall the practitioner control her thoughts, is answered here, but maybe not in the way Sabuti might have been expecting. Okay. This is...

[28:03]

kind of a detour from Nikaya Buddhism onto a new road called the Bodhisattva Path. Instead of suppressing your thoughts, it's entering on the path of the Bodhisattva. So the Buddha's answer might seem a little indirect to first, but he's not... like a good, patient teacher. He's not going to meet Sibuti, where Sibuti's coming from. He's trying to bring him along to liberation. So it's active, not passive. It's active. Give birth to this thought. It's an activity. Give birth to this thought. Arouse this vow. It's doing. Not non-doing. It's not... Controlling thoughts like suppressing or what have you.

[29:08]

That kind of controlling. So, there's a kind of introduction here of the theme. If this were music, it would be like It would be like a French horn going, which in chapter 4 is like, which is giving, which is dana paramita. So actually giving birth to this thought is giving. So it's introduced here in a subtle way. We are reaching out. We're reaching out. We're giving. We're offering. By our vow, we're offering. So, are you up for writing some more Sanskrit words? The Buddha sort of warns Subhuti not to get stuck to the perception of a self when you're practicing the Bodhisattva way.

[30:24]

This is the beginning. This theme is repeated over and over again. And self is atma, which refers to an inner reality. So the Buddhist doctrine of anatman means no self. A-T-M-A. And then sattva, stay there. Sattva, being, refers to an outer reality, like there's hero. You know, he's a sattva. Right, there he is. You know, I understand that. That's my conventional understanding. And it's a darn handy conventional understanding. Just don't get stuck to it. Wait, go, go. There's two more. Jiva, J-I-V-A. Life refers to our present reality. Living, breathing, metabolizing, what we're doing, right? Talking, talking, talking. I'm doing all the talking, you're not talking. talking present reality.

[31:25]

And Pudgala, that's a fun one, P-U-D-G-A-L-A, Pudgala, soul, refers to a future or past reality, you know, imagined. But according to the teachings, they're all imagined, actually. But we, you know, we operate that way, which is not a bad thing. The only problem Another time we get in trouble is when we're stuck to it. Do you have any questions, comments, appreciations? Views of a self. So, you know, my... My inner self is kind of my inner life, maybe, in a way. My interiority, my interior experience.

[32:29]

More or less. The teachings is that all these can continue to operate without being fixed at all. You just don't attach to them. Doesn't mean they're not in operation anymore. That is the practice, the paramitas. Moreover, chapter 4. Moreover, subuddhi, when bodhisattvas give a gift, they should not be attached to a thing. When they give a gift, they should not be attached to anything at all. They should not be attached to a sight when they give a gift, nor should they be attached to a sound, a smell, a taste, a touch, or a dharma when they give a gift. Thus, Subhuti, fearless bodhisattvas, should give a gift without being attached to the perception of an object. And why? Subhuti, the body of merit of those bodhisattvas who give a gift without being attached, is not easy to measure. What do you think, Subhuti?

[33:35]

Is the space to the east easy to measure? Subhuti replied, No, it is not, Bhagavan. The Buddha said, Likewise, is the space to the south, to the west, to the north, in between, above, below, or in any of the ten directions easy to measure? Subhuti replied, No, it is not Bhagavan. The Buddha said, So it is, Subhuti. The body of merit of those bodhisattvas who give a gift without being attached is not easy to measure. Thus, Subhuti, those who set forth on the bodhisattva path should give a gift without being attached to the perception of an object. So this is all about dhanaparamita. How do we practice dhanaparamita? Well, how do we practice Dhanaparamita? Right. Thank you very much. Yes.

[34:46]

Does that sound familiar to anybody? We chanted in the meal chant? May we with all beings realize the emptiness of the three wheels, giver, receiver, and gift. Dr. Kanzai says, Bodhisattva should be completely disinterested in the classic sense of the word. Not uninterested, but just There's nothing in it for me. I'm not doing this for anything. I'm just doing it. Joyfully. Just doing it. Just doing the practice. Joyfully. Giving up the idea of giver, receiver, and gift. Not being attached to any dharma. Remember? Abhidharma. Things. Not being attached to any perception of a thing. And yet, and yet, and yet, you may recall I mentioned that Bill Porter read 53 Chinese commentaries on the Diamond Sutra to write this book.

[35:57]

So he will name these names, and I have no idea who these people are. He just names them. According to Chong Wei Nung, he must have been a heck of a guy. Guess this. Here's what Chong Wei Nung has to say about it. The Buddha says we should not be attached to the six senses. He does not tell us to eliminate the six senses. Cultivation takes place in the world. It does not deny the world. We have to depend on the world to practice. Charity and merit show us where to begin our practice. Isn't that beautiful? Well, I think so. I want to read it again. The Buddha says we should not be attached to the six senses. He does not tell us to eliminate the six senses. Cultivation takes place in the world. This is where our practice happens. This is the body with which the practice happens.

[37:01]

The body depends on the six senses. Pretty straightforward. So, what about this? question of merit. Actually, merit is very important. You're going to make progress as you practice the Buddha way. You are. It's absolutely essential. Dr. Kazza says, for merit is the indispensable condition for all further spiritual progress. Nevertheless, to aim at merit is to diminish it. And why? Because giving, etc., when accompanied by wrong metaphysical views, assuming the reality of gift, giver, and reward, produces only limited results. But if it aims at emptiness alone, then the reward becomes truly infinite. The selfless bodhisattva's merit, as Kamala Shila says, is here compared to space or the sky because it is all-pervading, vast, and inexhaustible.

[38:09]

And apparently, according to one commentator, using the sky as a metaphor you know the Buddha also as a kind of skill and means divides it into ten parts when of course the sky is indivisible but he talks about the ten directions you know that we always chant ten directions dividing the sky how can it be divided he divides it into ten parts but that's what we're doing all the time so this is kind of a according at least to one commentator, a subtle teaching from the Buddha to Subuddhi, like, here's what we do, just learn that, practice with it, you'll be okay. So, what has all this got to do with our daily life here in Tassahara? Yes.

[39:31]

I'm inclined to agree. Anybody care to get into some specificity around that? Say more. Taking care of each other. We're offering all day long to each other. We rely on the dana of our guests. We give back to our guests. We give to each other. Like you said, it's the crucial beginning of the unfolding of the Paralitas. We do this. It's also, dana is a direct antidote to... and grasping. And so in that sense, it's a normal freedom practice, in addition to heart practice.

[40:39]

When we practice without attaching to a view of giver, receiver, and gift, just practicing generosity for its own sake, just practicing generosity in order to cultivate a generous heart. Great freedom is there. And what happens if there is attachment? What happens if there is a whispering of trying to get something or at least trying to fix something or change something? It's not quite as pure as what then? That's okay. Hell is just another place to practice, as Sojan Roshi is always saying.

[41:46]

I think we can all relate that to guest season as well. My books, my books. Take out how I love. So good. So, here's what Thich Nhat Hanh has to say about it. A subject that should be dear to every Tazahara practitioner's heart. Dishes. The happiness that results from practicing generosity without relying on signs is boundless. We often say that the fruits of practice are peace and liberation. If we are washing dishes... and thinking of others who are enjoying themselves doing nothing, we cannot enjoy washing the dishes. We may have a few clean dishes afterwards, but our happiness is smaller than one teaspoon. If, however, we wash the dishes with a serene mind, our happiness will be boundless.

[42:50]

This is already liberation. The words in the sutra are very much related to our daily life. Isn't that beautiful? I just love that. And I totally agree. So what do we do with all this merit? Am I getting ahead of myself? I don't think so. What about the merit? What happens in service? Turn it over, right? Why? We're accumulating all this merit, apparently. Why would we do that? Why would we give it away? Yeah, because that's the practice of Dhanaparamita, too. So whatever merit we accumulate, we give away. We turn it over. That's what the word echo means. The end of every service, all through the services, are echoes.

[43:54]

Dedication of merit. That's what it means. So we dedicate the merit to various people. Listen in service. Every service we do, we're dedicating the merit. Yes. We dedicate that too. Just keep letting go over and over and over again. And then you enter the place where self and other are not two. You enter liberation. The non-dual Dharma. Okay, gang. Chapter 5. Hang in there with me. Chapter 5. What do you think, Suburi? Can the Tathagata be seen by means of the possession of attributes? Or you could say marks. Sometimes they say marks or signs.

[44:56]

Actually, his signs is chapter 4. Attributes, or marks. Subuti replied, No, indeed, Bhagavan, the Tathagata cannot be seen by means in the possession of attributes. And why not? Bhagavan, what the Tathagata says is the possession of attributes is no possession of attributes. This having been said, the Buddha told the venerable Subuti, Since the possession of attributes is an illusion, Subuti, and no possession of attributes is no illusion, By means of attributes that are no attributes, the Tathagata can indeed be seen. Wow. So this is about the Buddha, actually, the actual Buddha. And it starts with this question. Can the Tathagata be seen by the means and possession of attributes? The Buddha will ask the same question three more times. In the Sutra, it's pretty important.

[45:58]

It's pretty critical to the Sutra. How do you understand the Buddha? What do you see? The Buddha is trying to help the Subuddhi. He's trying to help Subuddhi get past his limited understanding of what the Buddha is, who the Buddha is. With this teaching of signlessness. The 32 characteristics are what he's referring to. It's in here in the Diga Nikaya, the long discourses of the Buddha. This is early Buddhism, Nikaya Buddhism. Right there, the Lakana Sutta, the marks of a great man or woman. And the Buddha says, There are, monks, these 32 marks peculiar to a great person. And for that great person who possesses them, only two careers are opened. If she lives the household life, she will become a ruler, a wheel-turning righteous monarch of the law, conqueror of the four quarters, etc., etc., etc., etc.

[47:05]

But if she goes forth from the household life into homelessness, she will become an arahant, a fully enlightened Buddha who has drawn back the veil from the world. Isn't that beautiful? And this was, you may know, you may be aware, prediction that... a fortune teller who later became one of the Buddha's disciples. I forget which one at the moment, but Kandinya. Wow. Kandinya means the one who knows, made this prediction when the Buddha was born. He would either be a great wheel-turning king or a great religious leader. Here's a nifty little statue. As you can see, the first two marks that are mentioned in the sutta, right there for your view, flat feet and thousand-spoke wheel sign on the feet. There they are.

[48:08]

You can see them plainly in that delightful statue of the Buddha somebody brought me a picture of from Myanmar. And, you know, bulge on the top of the head and all the rest. This has got to do with devotionalism again. Even though it's mentioned in this sutta, not much was made of it. Early Buddhism was definitely kind of counter to personality cult. They weren't into it. It was strictly about the teaching and the discipline. That was it. Teaching and the discipline and then later on the Abhidharma. But devotionalism, cult of personality, no, not so much. So, yikes. Moosong, this book too. Awesome. He says, the belief in the 32 marks combined with several outside factors

[49:16]

may have contributed greatly to the rise of devotionalism in Mahayana. The first of these factors is that around the time of the beginning of the Common Era, in northwestern India, under Greek and Mediterranean influences, Buddha statues were sculpted for the first time. Aww! If you were on the altar tour, you know that's our Gandharan Buddhas, the one in Tassajara and the one in city center. This... Definitely one of the earliest sculptures of the Buddha made. And the Greek, the Western influence is very clear in that sculpture. Isn't that cool? But the sutra is Buddha is giving us some advice here to not get caught by the science. He's advising Sibutti. Don't be caught by those 32 signs.

[50:17]

Even though we venerate the Buddha, we venerate the signs of a Buddha, be careful. Be careful. Because, you know, a wheel-turning king also has the same marks. It's right there. Buddha said so. And allegedly, so does Mara. Yeah, you know, Mara, tempter, allegedly also has the same marks. Because, you know, who knows what might show up. And what does this make me think of? Good old Tazahara. Good old Zen Center. We're color-coded, right? We have marks. Blue rock-a-sues, black rock-a-sues, brown rock-a-sues, green rock-a-sues. You see someone in a brown rock-a-sue? Oh, she's probably an enlightened sage. She's going to solve all my problems. That could be big trouble. Maybe, maybe not. Don't get caught.

[51:18]

Don't get caught. So... Here's a... By means of attributes that are no attributes, the Tathagata can indeed be seen. The Chinese Zen master, Ching Yuan, explained it this way. When I first began to practice, the mountains and rivers were simply mountains and rivers. After I advanced in my practice, the mountains and rivers were no longer mountains and rivers. But when I reached the end of my practice, the mountains and rivers were simply mountains and rivers again. So, don't eliminate the six senses. Practice with the six senses. But see clearly. See clearly. See how it is. Don't be caught by the attributes.

[52:21]

So in this way, the arhat's denial of reality becomes the bodhisattva's affirmation. When I say arhat, I mean the arhat as held up by Mahayana teachings as a kind of counterpoint. I don't mean arhats. Arhats are awesome. Arhats are amazing, of course. in the context of this teaching. The Arhat's denial of reality becomes the Bodhisattva's affirmation. Wow. Should we do this? What do you think, Linda? There's four minutes left to talk about the Chikaya. What is the true body? I'm doing it. What is the true body of Buddha beyond the 32 marks? So, in this teaching, according to some commentators, And I think it's pretty interesting, interesting enough to me to want to bring it up. In this teaching is the embryo of this teaching on the three bodies of Buddha.

[53:24]

As I said in the first class, part of the Mahayana, the evolution of the Mahayana is a different understanding of Buddha. Not just the historical Buddha, but a transcendental understanding of Buddha. What is Buddha? So... in the evolution of the Mahayana, after the Prajnaparamita school, which Diamond Sutra and Heart Sutra and the others I talked about in the last class. After that came the Matyamaka and then the Yogacara. All three of these major schools, major philosophical systems of Buddhism heavily influence Mahayana Buddhism, heavily influence Zen and Tibetan Buddhism. All three. The Yogacara really informs esoteric Buddhism, including Zen. And it's in the Yogacara where they totally evolved the doctrine of the three bodies of Buddha.

[54:30]

What are the three bodies of Buddha? We chant it sometimes, you know. Yeah? The ones that we chant are the Dharmakaya. And the Dharmakaya is the reality body. Actually, reality. I'll read a little bit of Muzang. Because he says it's so much better than I can. And I really appreciate this because... I've heard these teachings many ways, many times, but it's pretty good. The Dharmakaya is the unformed, unmediated, primordial consciousness. It is a synonym for ultimate reality itself. The final development of Buddhahood, an abstract resolution of all dualities in shunyata.

[55:31]

Beyond any conceptualization or designation, the Dharmakaya is beyond time and space. The Sambhogakaya is the subtle... quasi-material body neither a fully relative nor a fully absolute body through which the Buddha guides highly developed practitioners on the path of Buddhahood Sambhogakaya is also translated as communal enjoyment body which communicates the idea of sharing in the joy of a community both in causal and effective modalities it's kind of like what May was saying about guest season I think that's the same spirit Same thing when you were talking about how we practice dhanaparamita, that joyful interaction, not clinging to any view. And the nirmanakaya is the body of the historical Shakyamuni Buddha, who is visible to ordinary human beings and intended to inspire people to embark on the path of Dharma.

[56:33]

Sometimes nirmanakaya... is called the shadow body. Isn't that interesting? Because the understanding is it's the physical form of the Buddha. But everything is created. We see the shadow body. If you take that as the actual Buddha, then you're caught by a mere shadow, actually. And the Lotus Sutra talks about this so beautifully. in the chapter on the lifespan of the Chitagada. And the Buddha explains, I only appear to be born and die. But that's not what the Buddha is. That's not who I am. So there's this transcendental understanding. I'm going over time. Just another second. Thich Nhat Hanh says,

[57:37]

Before continuing, please read the first five sections of the sutra again. All of the essentials have been presented, and if you reread these sections, you will come to understand the meaning of the diamond that cuts through illusion. Once you understand, you may find the Diamond Sutra like a piece of beautiful music. Without straining at all, the meaning will just enter you. Thank you very much for your attention. May our intention equally extend to every being.

[58:12]

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