Buddhism
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Is it really not breaking the Sila to steal from a Bodhisattva (or other enlightened people)?
Today I see a great Vajrayana khenpo monk (also a vajra master) sharing an interesting opinion in [this video][1]: > (Translation) > > One of the 5 Silas of monks forbids stealing... However, you will not break the Sila if you steal from a bodhisattva. > > Why? Because a bodhisattva has no obsession...
Today I see a great Vajrayana khenpo monk (also a vajra master) sharing an interesting opinion in this video :
> (Translation)
>
> One of the 5 Silas of monks forbids stealing... However, you will not break the Sila if you steal from a bodhisattva.
>
> Why? Because a bodhisattva has no obsession (on material posessions),
> he has given them up. So, if you take something from a bodhisattva...
> you steal something from a bodhisattva, it is not breaking the Sila. If you steal from a normal person, because he will be obsessive on his possesions, so it is breaking the Sila.
>
> What the Sila forbids is robbing or stealing something from another person who cares about them...what about an enlightened bodhisattva? His thing is practically owned by no one (because of his Dāna). Remember this.
>
> This is how the bodhisattva's Dāna is different with normal person's Dāna...
The Khenpo mainly wants to tell us bodhisattva's Dāna donates everything, and a normal person's Dāna does not, by this example.
But this really sounds strange. In modern legistration system, a crime of theft or robbery is determined by the convict's will and action, and not by whether the victim cares about his/her property. The Khenpo says otherwise, since a bodhisattva does not care about his/her property, then it is not owned and can be taken away freely. Does the Sila here work more like the police than laws, that if the victim does not call the "police" (Sila? Karma?), then the convict will not be arrested?
My question is,
1. Is it really legal (in perspective of Sila) to steal from a Bodhisattva? Is there any books or written creeds confirming this? Or the Khenpo just makes simile and not really means it is legal?
2. Is it also legal (in perspective of Sila) to steal of other enlightened people, like, an Araham?
3. Is it also legal to steal from a monk who claim him/herself as bodhisattva, or vow to follow a bodhisattva's standard?
Cheshire_the_Maomao
(228 rep)
Apr 20, 2025, 04:08 AM
• Last activity: May 2, 2025, 02:23 PM
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Is Tulku (Living Buddha)'s reincarnation process determined by its Karma or by Willpower(Praṇidhāna)?
This question is inspired by [this online video][1]: A lady asked a Rinpoche 3 questions, that translate to (a bit complicated logics here): > 1. Is Tulku's (Living Buddha)'s reincarnation process predetermined by his/her [Karma(Karmaphala)][2] or by [Willpower(Praṇidhāna)][3]? > > Some explanations...
This question is inspired by this online video :
A lady asked a Rinpoche 3 questions, that translate to (a bit complicated logics here):
> 1. Is Tulku's (Living Buddha)'s reincarnation process predetermined by his/her Karma(Karmaphala) or by Willpower(Praṇidhāna) ?
>
> Some explanations: Here she was actually asking, that by Buddhism doctrines, the *fact* that (bodhisattva) reincarnation will *happen* is result of Praṇidhāna, but is the *process* or *outcome* also determined by Praṇidhāna? Or like all other Sentients, that it is determined by Karmaphala?
>
> 2. If reincarnation is mainly determined by Karma, does a Tulku still have Karma? Why can bodhisattva still be affected and get life determined by
> Karmaphala? Shouldn't a Tulku be already liberated from (Karma-driven) Saṃsāra or at least have already purified his/her Karma in his first life?
>
> 3. If reincarnation is mainly determined by Praṇidhāna, why would next-generation Tulku still need to be selected, to study his/her
> knowledge before, to suffer from real-life setbacks? Why does his/her
> Praṇidhāna determine his/her life to be so?
In the video this Rinpoche said:
> 1. He believes he is mainly affected by Karma, but many other greater Tulkus believe reincarnation is determined by Praṇidhāna.
But he didn't explain why he or the others think so.
> 2. Either by Karma or by Praṇidhāna, the setbacks that real-life Tulkus meet (*e.g. forgetting many knowledge after
> reincarnation*) makes a Tulku more human-like, and that make people
> believe in him/her because people think Tulku and theirselves are equal.
I am confused on this too - shouldn't people believe in him/her more firmly if Tulku is more god-like? Like Jesus Christ revived and ascended, everyone saw this will believe in him.
I also asked Deepseek R1, it says something similar like the Rinpoche said in the video, plus
> Tulku can purify the Karma in their every new life in order to help achieve the Praṇidhāna will.
I think here Deepseek indicates, every reincarnation brings new karma. after reincarnation and before Karma is fully purified, a Tulku is still predetermined by Karmaphala.
Also I find a video from a much respected Taiwan Mahayana monk's view, Bodhisattva's reincarnation relies on both Praṇidhāna and Karmaphala . A Tulku is a Vajrayana Buddhist Lama who has taken the *bodhisattva vow*, but still different from Mahayana bodhisattva.
I believe this is an open, speculatve, theoretical question. I want to listen what more others think about this question, and think about the above Rinpoche's explanation. Any view is welcomed.
Cheshire_the_Maomao
(228 rep)
Feb 23, 2025, 05:47 PM
• Last activity: Feb 24, 2025, 10:47 AM
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References for the history of Śāntideva's Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra
Śāntideva's *Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra* is a renowned Mahayana text and the source of many ideas, prayers and practices, down to today, particularly the Bodhisattva ideal, Bodhicitta, and practices for achieving it. Śāntideva wrote it in the 8th-century CE (with a miraculous story to go with it), and i...
Śāntideva's *Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra* is a renowned Mahayana text and the source of many ideas, prayers and practices, down to today, particularly the Bodhisattva ideal, Bodhicitta, and practices for achieving it.
Śāntideva wrote it in the 8th-century CE (with a miraculous story to go with it), and it was a major source of Atiśa's teachings in India and Tibet in the 11th-century CE. Atiśa learned about it from Dharmakīrtiśrī (Tibetan: Serlingpa), an Indonesian master, particularly the eighth chapter on practices for the development of Bodhicitta, according to commonly accepted history. Since then, it has become a standard part of the Mahayana literature across Asia and the world.
My question: are there any extant references to the *Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra* **between those dates -- its origin in the 8th-century and Atiśa's 11th-centuries teachings** -- commentaries or other mentions? The Indian Mahayana was at its peak in those years, prior to its decline in the wake of various invasions, so it stands to reason that the *Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra* would have been a significant part of it. Or did Serlingpa and Atiśa resurrect it from a relatively unknown, under-appreciated state?
------------
Addendum 1/6/2021 -- The fact that Atiśa had to go to Indonesia for twelve years to study Bodhicitta and its practices with Serlingpa suggests that the subject was indeed under-appreciated in India prior to Atiśa, even at the great centers such as Nalanda and Vikramaśilā (where Atiśa was abbot upon return from Indonesia).
That all raises the question of ancient Mahayana history in Indonesia, which seems little studied or documented, at least in English.
David Lewis
(1187 rep)
Jan 6, 2021, 02:43 AM
• Last activity: Jan 4, 2025, 04:03 AM
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Jataka Number of the Bodhisatta's aspiration for Buddhahood?
1. ***Please someone know the Jataka (past lives of the Buddha) reference number of the Bodhisatta's aspiration for Buddhahood? As Sumedha in the city of Amaravatī?*** > [The E. B. Cowell Jataka edition][1] 2. ***Secondly how many Buddhas ago was it?*** 3. ***What was the Buddhas name?*** 4. ***Fina...
1. ***Please someone know the Jataka (past lives of the Buddha) reference number of the Bodhisatta's aspiration for Buddhahood? As Sumedha in the city of Amaravatī?***
> The E. B. Cowell Jataka edition
2. ***Secondly how many Buddhas ago was it?***
3. ***What was the Buddhas name?***
4. ***Finally how many aeons was it between Buddha Gotama and that Buddha?***
> notes:
> 1. "four asaṃkhyeya and a hundred thousand kalpas ago" (from memory)
The second and third question may come from secondary sources.
Bhikkhu111
(581 rep)
Nov 23, 2024, 07:16 AM
• Last activity: Dec 17, 2024, 04:00 AM
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Who qualifies as a bodhisattva?
Does a person cultivating bodhicitta qualify as a bodhisattva? Or to qualify as a bodhisattva, does one need to have levelled-up to some degree in the perfection of the great perfections. I have seen/heard this discussed before, but it was a while ago and I can't remember where I would find the refe...
Does a person cultivating bodhicitta qualify as a bodhisattva? Or to qualify as a bodhisattva, does one need to have levelled-up to some degree in the perfection of the great perfections.
I have seen/heard this discussed before, but it was a while ago and I can't remember where I would find the references.
I'm not sure any answers to this question would have a major impact on the actual application of cultivating bodhicitta, but I would enjoy exploring the concepts around it.
This is my first question on Stack Exchange, so I am open to feedback about whether the format and content of my question is suitable for this forum.
Bodhi 心
(51 rep)
Sep 27, 2024, 01:47 AM
• Last activity: Nov 24, 2024, 05:38 AM
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Are the heavens and hells in karamdhatu meant to be physical places?
Are the heavens and hells in karamdhatu meant to be physical places? I was looking at the abhidharmakośa-bhāsya, and Vasabandhu lists 20 places: 8 hells; 6 heavens; pretas; animals; physical world; and the circle of wind (I'm fairly sure the last one is also a "place" -- sthana). You might think tha...
Are the heavens and hells in karamdhatu meant to be physical places? I was looking at the abhidharmakośa-bhāsya, and Vasabandhu lists 20 places: 8 hells; 6 heavens; pretas; animals; physical world; and the circle of wind (I'm fairly sure the last one is also a "place" -- sthana). You might think that these are all physical because e.g. animals live among us, but just as the desert is the place of some hell beings (not being included in the main hells, due to not being created through the "force of the actions of beings"), animals primarily live in the "Great Ocean". So I reckon that the heavens and hells are not physical, even-though rebirth there inlcludes all five skandhas, descriptions of suffering there refers to bodies, etc..
Am I right, and if so does that mean they lack the organs of the eye etc.?
I am asking not because I want to underplay the suffering of hell beings etc. (avici *is* worse than the desert) but because I'm interested in whether suffering is different there insofar as bodhisattvas, when unmoved by their own suffering in hell, might be better off than they are with the vicissitudes of physical suffering in this human place.
user25078
Apr 27, 2024, 03:07 PM
• Last activity: Sep 25, 2024, 11:00 PM
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Identification of Buddhist saints or sages
I have a pair of antique statuettes which were made in Japan. I assume they are Buddhist saints or sages and I am hoping someone can identify who they represent: [![buddhist statuettes][1]][1] [1]: https://i.sstatic.net/IwDdk.jpg
I have a pair of antique statuettes which were made in Japan. I assume they are Buddhist saints or sages and I am hoping someone can identify who they represent:

Tyler Durden
(121 rep)
Feb 26, 2023, 02:55 PM
• Last activity: Sep 21, 2024, 09:06 PM
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How should a bodhisattva respond to evil?
Not saying I have bodhicitta, one assumes I would know the answer if I did, but we can all emulate enlightening beings. What is the best way to respond to an nominally (nothing like that is innate) evil person doing evil (whatever you think amounts to that enough to at know not only that they should...
Not saying I have bodhicitta, one assumes I would know the answer if I did, but we can all emulate enlightening beings.
What is the best way to respond to an nominally (nothing like that is innate) evil person doing evil (whatever you think amounts to that enough to at know not only that they should be stopped but that a lot hinges on it for other people) to get what they want?
We vow to save all sentient beings: can we postpone it for some? Do we say "a Buddha would help you in your next life, but I cannot"?
I suppose the answer is just to offer help to others first: after-all, we are all said to have undergone countless, trillions by trillions of lives, so no one life can be blamed for how it has suffered. But what if the evil doer turns to you for a better rebirth, after or even before their evil actions?
user23322
Feb 20, 2022, 11:26 PM
• Last activity: Jun 15, 2024, 11:27 AM
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How a Bodhisattva make the choice to keep suffering for others?
It's said Bodhisattva is very kind and he decided to keep in the Samsara until he fulfill his Pāramitā and become Buddha, so others can free from Samsara by listening to him. Even he could attain Nirvana at past Buddhas, that he didn't. **How he did it?** **What kind of thinking was there?** **How h...
It's said Bodhisattva is very kind and he decided to keep in the Samsara until he fulfill his Pāramitā and become Buddha, so others can free from Samsara by listening to him.
Even he could attain Nirvana at past Buddhas, that he didn't.
**How he did it?**
**What kind of thinking was there?**
**How he decided keep suffering / keep live in Samsara, for others?**
**It can't be just kindness. Can be?**
Reference :-
There's no linkage between people, they are just individual consciousness in vast universe. There's no actual family, friends.
So how could there be kindness?
Not normal kindness.
But to play **most dangerous game** of, playing in the Samsara for saving others.
Pycm
(599 rep)
Mar 16, 2024, 04:04 PM
• Last activity: Mar 16, 2024, 04:40 PM
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Difference between abiding nirvana and non-abiding nirvana?
In Mahayana Buddhism, what is the difference between abiding nirvana and non-abiding nirvana? Are there official Sanskrit terms for "abiding nirvana" and "non-abiding nirvana"? What are they? When a Buddha has achieved non-abiding nirvana, "his enlightened activities are uninterrupted". What does th...
In Mahayana Buddhism, what is the difference between abiding nirvana and non-abiding nirvana?
Are there official Sanskrit terms for "abiding nirvana" and "non-abiding nirvana"? What are they?
When a Buddha has achieved non-abiding nirvana, "his enlightened activities are uninterrupted". What does this mean?
This question is based on this answer :
> A Hinayana arhat abandoned afflictive obscurations by way of realizing
> emptiness, but has not abandoned knowledge obscuration. **He has achieved
> abiding nirvana**. Therefore, although they are free from the conception
> of true existence, and from true suffering, they are not free from the
> imprints of ignorance (i.e. knowledge obscurations). We say that it is
> like removing garlic from a container: the smell will still be there.
> So, because they still have the imprints of ignorance, (1) they are
> not free from the appearance of true existence, and (2) they are
> reborn with a mental body, due to the imprints of ignorance (in our
> case, we are reborn to due karma and afflictions).
>
> A bodhisattva is a person who generated effortless bodhicitta (the
> wish to achieve enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings).
> Since effortless bodhicitta is the entry gate to the Mahayana path, he
> entered the Mahayana small path of accumulation. When he cultivates
> wisdom, it is conjoined with emptiness and that makes his mind vast
> (due to bodhicitta) and profound (due to realizing emptiness). **He
> wishes not to abide in individual liberation (abiding nirvana) but to
> be free from the extreme of peace (abiding nirvana) as well as from
> samsara. Therefore, he wishes to achieve non-abiding nirvana, which is
> the attainment of a buddha.**
>
> A Buddha abandoned both afflictive and knowledge obscuration, having
> generated the path perfection of wisdom (the wisdom of emptiness
> conjoined with bodhicitta). In his continuum, wisdom and bodhicitta
> are the same mind: the omniscient mind of a buddha that realizes all
> objects of knowledge directly, past present and future, in an
> unmistaken way, etc. **He achieved non-abiding nirvana, abiding neither
> in samsara nor in individual liberation. His enlightened activities
> are uninterrupted.**
ruben2020
(39432 rep)
Dec 22, 2018, 06:15 PM
• Last activity: May 22, 2023, 05:19 PM
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I don't understand bodhicitta
I have difficulty with the notion of bodhicitta and the concept of Boddhisattva, and the difference with the concept of Buddha. If I understand correctly, the idea is to have an altruistic intention in one's practice: to seek liberation not for oneself, but for all sentient beings. I can understand...
I have difficulty with the notion of bodhicitta and the concept of Boddhisattva, and the difference with the concept of Buddha. If I understand correctly, the idea is to have an altruistic intention in one's practice: to seek liberation not for oneself, but for all sentient beings.
I can understand the usefulness of having an altruistic intention as a basis for one's practice, but I have the impression that for Mahayana this must be taken as a real objective: however, it is held in Buddhism that samsara has no beginning and no end, therefore neither does ignorance, and that there will never be a moment when all beings will be liberated. In the same way, the practitioner who attains enlightenment obtains it only for himself, and cannot give it to others like a deity who would offer a grace: "each one is his own refuge".
So what is the real scope of bodhicitta? Is it only a pious wish? How can one truly believe that one is really practicing for the liberation of the world and not only one's own, if one knows for a fact that awakening is always "personal" and that samsasra will always exist? If the idea is only to awaken in order to be able to teach others, this is what a Buddha does and there is no need for the concept of Boddhisattva for that. If the idea is to help others and to have a mind radiating compassion, this is also what a Buddha does with the brahmavihara and I don't see the difference with the Bodhisattva.
Kalapa
(826 rep)
Jan 22, 2023, 10:06 PM
• Last activity: Feb 2, 2023, 04:17 AM
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What is bodhisattvahood in personal practice?
I've read a lot of english language scholarship on the mahayana, probably about 150 books thoroughly, with notes, though not always with very good notes. I wanted an opinion from a broadly Mahayana perspective, so here's my story. I was a sensitive youth, and had a number of religious like epiphanie...
I've read a lot of english language scholarship on the mahayana, probably about 150 books thoroughly, with notes, though not always with very good notes. I wanted an opinion from a broadly Mahayana perspective, so here's my story.
I was a sensitive youth, and had a number of religious like epiphanies while backpacking, before a more intense near visionary one with a basic Buddhist textbook.
But this was truncated by a frank insanity: there is schizophrenia in my family. Anyway, my psychosis is doing a good job of shrivelling up with medication and therapy. But before all that, and before I clawed back some sense of Buddhism from my relatively committed reading habits, did I have an authentic religious (or Mahayana) moment? Or was it a religious delusion and / or escapism?
How do I tell? I had taken a couple of Thai meditation classes, and since then have sat with a couple of zen groups, and attended a 7 day ch'an retreat. No-one took much interest, but then I am **near** broken now. I'm not asking for authentication from a web community, only:
1. What is bodhisattvahood in personal practice: is it OK to believe one (has or) did have that quality?
2. Does anyone *here* suppose they are a bodhisattva, without any group accreditation and with little engagement - outside their own personal striving / story / narrative?
More esoteric or indeed polemical answers, are of course weclome.
user2512
Aug 18, 2015, 08:40 PM
• Last activity: Jan 9, 2023, 10:20 AM
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Source for bodhisattva transforming hell?
I vaguely remember reading how some bodhisattva out of compassion went to some hell and then transformed it into a pure land. Does anyone know that story? About which bodhisattva it is? And what's the source for it...
I vaguely remember reading how some bodhisattva out of compassion went to some hell and then transformed it into a pure land. Does anyone know that story? About which bodhisattva it is? And what's the source for it...
zeleni sok
(101 rep)
Sep 16, 2022, 06:22 PM
• Last activity: Sep 29, 2022, 04:48 AM
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Do Buddhas and Bodhisattvas care and have compassion for all sentient beings equally
Do Buddhas and Bodhisattvas care and have compassion for all sentient beings equally. On the one hand, my question is a little facetious (if only because, at least within the laity, not doing so is impractical in the extreme: why would spiritual help be any different?). On the other, it may raise so...
Do Buddhas and Bodhisattvas care and have compassion for all sentient beings equally. On the one hand, my question is a little facetious (if only because, at least within the laity, not doing so is impractical in the extreme: why would spiritual help be any different?). On the other, it may raise some interesting riddles.
What does "the one taste of the dharmadhatu" mean except that? And, wouldn't that mean that a Buddha could in principle approve of hells, at least if the suffering in them is, like I believe it kinda is in Christianity, to assure the good and beneficent that virtue is loved, via granting us "free will" (don't quote me on that).
user23973
Jul 27, 2022, 10:38 PM
• Last activity: Aug 2, 2022, 03:20 AM
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How to understand this teaching: "Whenever others treat me badly, may I accept this defeat myself and offer the victory to others"
Below is one of the verses from the "Eight Verses for Training the Mind" by Geshe Langri Tangpa > Whenever others, because of their jealousy, treat me badly with abuse, insult, slander, or in other unjust ways, may I accept this defeat myself and offer the victory to others. When I read about the Bo...
Below is one of the verses from the "Eight Verses for Training the Mind" by Geshe Langri Tangpa
> Whenever others, because of their jealousy, treat me badly
with abuse, insult, slander, or in other unjust ways, may I accept this
defeat myself and offer the victory to others.
When I read about the Bodhisattva path, I always come across teachings such as the above, which seem to espouse 'accepting defeat' as the highest virtue & a way to cultivate spiritually.
Perhaps I am missing some context, but teachings like these seem to me like they are promoting unhealthy codependent relationships with an abuser; which ultimately benefits no one. When one accepts defeat & offers victory to the abuser, doesn't this further encourage the abuser to continue his abusive tendencies, thereby worsening their own karma? It would seem to me that the compassionate thing to do would not be to 'accept defeat' but to 'stand up in instances of injustice'; not in the way of revenge or eye-for-an-eye, but in a skillful way that protects others from the abuser's actions?
'Accepting defeat' seems like a way of dismissing the situation or worse still, trying to gain power by declaring a moral victory over the abuser ("look at me, I am so kind and compassionate, I am willing to forgive you and accept defeat!"). The abuser will continue projecting his hurt on another victim & doesn't learn in the end.
cgtk
(566 rep)
Oct 18, 2021, 11:40 AM
• Last activity: Jul 16, 2022, 11:00 PM
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Buddhas (and Bodhisattva) are real individuals or manifestations?
As early as Mahasamghika schools of Buddhism there was a view that there are countless Buddhas in the ten directions, that all Buddha's have one body (dharmakaya), and that they are just manifestations (nirmanakaya). The last part says how Buddhas, including Gautama, didnt and dont actually ever get...
As early as Mahasamghika schools of Buddhism there was a view that there are countless Buddhas in the ten directions, that all Buddha's have one body (dharmakaya), and that they are just manifestations (nirmanakaya). The last part says how Buddhas, including Gautama, didnt and dont actually ever get hungry, or eat, or got dirty, or defecate, or struggle to achieve enlightenment, or grow old and die, but that all that is for show, a part of teaching people. Are all Buddhas like this, just like some 'holograms' that Dharmakaya projects in various world to teach people? If that is the case, that seems to imply that we cant actually become Buddhas, because the Buddhas are just manifestations. I know the stories in some Sutras about how some humans aeons ago made vows to become a Buddha and now they are a Bodhisattva (such as Avalokitesvara) or a Buddha (such Amitabha), but if that is also all just for show, skillful means to teach people, it seems there are no examples of actual people becoming a Bodhisattva or Buddha..? Whats going on there?
zeleni sok
(101 rep)
Apr 29, 2022, 10:48 PM
• Last activity: May 3, 2022, 06:08 PM
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The unity of samadhi and prajna
Does any extant tradition claim that the unity of samadhi and prajna^ is actual from the beginning of the bodhisatva path, so that it is available to the neophyte - just with less power of something similar to more advanced bodhisatvas? ^e. g. Chinul: >Samadhi being prajna, it is quiescent and yet a...
Does any extant tradition claim that the unity of samadhi and prajna^ is actual from the beginning of the bodhisatva path, so that it is available to the neophyte - just with less power of something similar to more advanced bodhisatvas?
^e. g. Chinul:
>Samadhi being prajna, it is quiescent and yet always knowing.
or Platform Sutra:
>To argue whether prajna or samadhi comes first would put one in the same position as those who are under delusion... a lamp and its light.
So you can see, they are one, yet - perhaps - not everyone realizes this in their practice?
Just asking because I think it may be the meaning of human life etc..
user2512
Aug 24, 2020, 04:23 PM
• Last activity: Feb 18, 2022, 01:44 PM
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Why is Budai often associated with the future Buddha Maitreya?
Many times I've heard of [Budai][2] (pictured below) being associated with Maitreya, the future Buddha. Why is this so and how widespread is this belief? Wikipedia lists a short verse uttered before Budai's death: >Maitreya, the true Maitreya has billions of incarnations. Often he is shown to people...
Many times I've heard of Budai (pictured below) being associated with Maitreya, the future Buddha. Why is this so and how widespread is this belief? Wikipedia lists a short verse uttered before Budai's death:
>Maitreya, the true Maitreya
has billions of incarnations.
Often he is shown to people at the time;
other times they do not recognize him.
Is there more to this association or was the simple utterance of that verse so long ago the sole reason for believing that Budai was the bodhisatta?

Robin111
(9612 rep)
Apr 23, 2015, 12:15 AM
• Last activity: Oct 9, 2021, 03:46 AM
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Relationship between truth and compassion
Can a bodhisattva or lay Buddhist be too concerned with truth at the expense of compassion and altruism? **What is the relationship between truth and compassion?** e.g.. is the truth always compassionate, and if not, which is more important? Or, can we pursue the Buddha dharma out of a desire for th...
Can a bodhisattva or lay Buddhist be too concerned with truth at the expense of compassion and altruism?
**What is the relationship between truth and compassion?** e.g.. is the truth always compassionate, and if not, which is more important? Or, can we pursue the Buddha dharma out of a desire for the truth alone. etc.
user20628
Feb 25, 2021, 11:26 PM
• Last activity: Jun 12, 2021, 07:52 AM
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Does there exist a Pali Canon sutta that claims that a Bodhisattva can only be a male Brahmin or Kshatriya? If yes, is it possibly apocryphal?
I ask this question as someone on Twitter was arguing that Buddhism is casteist. He claimed that only upper castes were permitted to enter monkhood. I told him this was completely false and shared the example of Upali the barber. He shared the following link: [Buddhism: An Atheistic and Anti-Caste R...
I ask this question as someone on Twitter was arguing that Buddhism is casteist. He claimed that only upper castes were permitted to enter monkhood. I told him this was completely false and shared the example of Upali the barber. He shared the following link: [Buddhism: An Atheistic and Anti-Caste Religion?](https://t.co/3V1fy9fwKP?amp=1) by Edmund Weber.
>The standpoint which caste a Buddha should belong to has not been revised in Buddhism up to the present day. It is dogmatised in the Lalitavistara in the following way: a Bodhisattva can by no means
come from a lower or even mixed caste:
>
>>“After all Bodhisattvas were not born in despised lineage,
among pariahs, in families of pipe or cart makers, or mixed castes.”
>
>Instead, in perfect harmony with the Great Sermon, it was said that:
>
>>“The Bodhisattvas appear only in
two kinds of lineage, the one of the brahmanas and of the warriors (kshatriya).”
I corrected him that the document referred to Bodhisattvas and not ordinary monks who could grow to become full Arahants. He claimed that the religion was still casteist as only Brahmin and Kshatriyas could become Bodhisattvas. What does the Pali cannon say regarding this? Can you share any studies done on this by scholars?
Luv
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Jul 31, 2020, 02:32 PM
• Last activity: May 5, 2021, 03:37 AM
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