The Buddhist Hour Radio Broadcast for Sunday 5 May 2002

Broadcast Script 223

Glossary

angst: anxiety, distress, worry, uneasiness

inundate: overwhelm, cover, provide with in abundance

lucidity: the quality or condition of being lucid; brightness, luminosity, rationality; clarity of thought or expression

Today's broadcast is called:
A review of recent Prajna Paramita Teachings

The Prajna Paramita is not a tea party for ordinary persons.

Attention to anything is a scarce commodity because of three factors. Firstly, ordinary persons do not seem to produce more than 24 hours of attention per day.

Secondly, for ordinary persons their capacity to pay attention is limited and as a result of these two things persons are inundated with so much information they do not know what to pay attention to.

In the Prajna Paramita minds that can be developed a person can see a mandala of events which may have spanned several lifetimes, within say, one minute of reflection. This may be summarised as saying ‘8,000 worlds in a single glance’.

In the Prajna Paramita mandalas the person’s capacity to pay attention is vastly increased. When entering a sphere of infinite knowledge, such as is found in 2nd arupa jhana, the mind with Prajna Paramita can select a constructive theme and examine information until it is resolved with the knowledge ‘I do not need to give this any more attention’.

It might be as simple as observing various persons on their deathbeds are totally different.

Some holding a degree of lucidity about their own dying process that enables them to have a peaceful death, while others end up viewing a mass of fragmented rememberings of near and far events that creates panic and confusion, fear and dread, angst and un-satisfactoriness about the dying process, because they fear the dis-aggregation and re-aggregation of events.

This aggregation enables entirely new kinds of values to be viewed. It breaks down experiences and social organisational structures and makes it possible to restructure lived experiences into a set of logical events.

The Prajna Paramita minds can act as effective strategists because they can honestly face the inherent many weaknesses inherited from their parents and educational culture.

They can redesign, build upon and reconfigure the elements of their culture to radically transform the value proposition for the benefit of self and others, on which they live and that is only the beginning of what re-aggregation of value propositions and lead to.

On Tuesday 21 May 2002 the Prajna Paramita Teachings at our Centre taught by Master John D. Hughes from Versak 1999 to Versak 2002 will conclude. John D. Hughes Buddha Dhamma name is Sariputta.

Members wrote down what they have learnt and we would like to share their observations with you.

We apologise for any errors in understanding in the recording of the Prajna Paramita Teachings that might have occurred.

Some students have recorded their recollections of Teachings attended for the benefit of present and future students of Prajna Paramita. Their recollections in no way claim to be a comprehensive guide to the Teachings given and the students should cite the Prajna Paramita texts and have a Teacher to guide them.

We have audio taped the Teachings over time and in the later days, we videotaped the Teachings.

The student wanting to learn Prajna Paramita, the Perfection of Wisdom, ought to pay respect to the Buddha:

Om Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammasambuddhassa
Om Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammasambuddhassa
Om Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammasambuddhassa

The student ought to pay respect to Prajna Paramita (a female goddess):

Om Namo Bhagavatyai Aryaprajnaparamitaya
Om Namo Bhagavatyai Aryaprajnaparamitaya
Om Namo Bhagavatyai Aryaprajnaparamitaya

The Prajna Paramita student ought to keep at least Five Precepts at all times.

In Pali these are:

Panatipata Veramani Sikkhapadam Samadiyami
Adinnadana Veramani Sikkhapadam Samadiyami
Musavada Veramani Sikkhapadam Samadiyami
Kamesu Micchacara Veramani Sikkhapadam Samadiyami
Surameryamajjapamadattana Veramani Sikkhapadam Samadiyami

Before the Teaching starts, the student ought to have established refuge in the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha (many times in Pali):

Buddham Saranam Gacchami
Dhammam Saranam Gacchami
Sangham Saranam Gacchami

Dutiyampi Buddham Saranam Gacchami
Dutiyampi Dhammam Saranam Gacchami
Dutiyampi Sangham Saranam Gacchami

Tatiyampi Buddham Saranam Gacchami
Tatiyampi Dhammam Saranam Gacchami
Tatiyampi Sangham Saranam Gacchami

The student ought to request to be taught in a generous manner. The Buddha Dhamma Teacher does not wish to teach any being that has not made the request to be taught free of doubt. Without confidence (in Pali, Saddha) there will be little learning. And remember, ignorance is not remembering.

The female deity Prajna Paramita is often described as "the mother of all Buddhas".

Prajna Paramita means the Perfection of Wisdom. In heaven worlds, beings have functional names.

In this response the Sanskrit term Prajna Paramita is usually translated in English as the Perfection of Wisdom will be used to refer to both the deity Prajna Paramita and the Teachings of the Perfection of Wisdom held by the deity.

In the beginning, the student requested to be taught Prajna Paramita by our Teacher. In later practice, a direct request was made to the Deity and Her Retinue to help.

The Prajna Paramita text recommended by our Teacher is titled: The large Sutra On Perfect Wisdom With The Division Of The Abhisamayalankara, translated from the Sanskrit and edited by Edward Conze, 1979, ISBN: 81-208-0752-9, Delhi, Publishers: Motilal Banarsidass 42 U.A. Bungalow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi, 110 007, India.

The original substance of the Prajna Paramita texts were delivered on a platform provided by the Dragon King.

The Sutra was spoken in seven places and in nine assemblies. This verse facilitates remembering those places and assemblies:

“The first was in the Bodhi field;
The ninth in the Jeta Grove;
The third and fourth in the Trayastrimsha and Suyama Heavens;
The second, seventh and eighth were held in the Universal Light Palaces;
The fifth and sixth took place in the Tushita and Paranirmitavashavartin Heavens”.

Some of the Teachings were by way of commentaries beyond textual transmission. The Teacher is the shower of the way. The Teachers help us to access and learn the Prajna Paramita teachings. Our Teacher recommends that we read the text with our best minds.

Having access to the Prajna Paramita teachings in the written form is a blessing, but no substitute for having a Teacher to guide.

The dedicated student will learn from a Teacher and by studying the text repeatedly.

Our Teacher guided us to take refuge in the Buddha Dhamma and Sangha, to take Five Precepts and request to be taught before the Teachings. These practices bring us into the present and prepare the mind to be taught. The students are requesting to be taught how to course in perfect wisdom.

The aim of Buddha Dhamma Teachings including the Prajna Paramita is to wake up and see things as they really are. To avoid delusions and fantasy in meditation our Teacher recommends keeping the eyes open when practicing.

There are forty types of meditation in Buddha Dhamma practice. Eighteen of these are on death. One is on the 32 parts of the body. A dedicated practitioner will meditate on some of these topics this life.

At the highest level it is said that, the mark of Prajna Paramita is no mark.

To course in the Perfection of Wisdom is to have right view, to view all dharmas as inherently empty.

There are 18 kinds of emptiness.

Reflect on what percentage of your time during the day you spent in the present. There is past time, present time, future time and timeless time.

The knowledge that a lie cannot be repeated three times in a row can be used to find out the truth about something. If you ask three times and the question is only answered in the same way twice then the answer cannot be verified as true.

Asking a question in response to a question instead of answering the question asked is a common time wasting error. Texts may be distorted.

On Tuesday 11 April 2002, our Teacher taught about finding the real history behind texts and Teachings. He talked about the origin of mantra. He was able to guide many students to find out for himself or herself the origin of mantra.

Using the example of a baby cry of ‘wah wah’ the students were able to see that female persons have an intuitive response to this sound of a baby.

When a baby says ‘wah wah’ the minds of female persons go towards the baby. Most times the minds of male persons do not.

Many texts are written by male persons. Are men entirely responsible for these texts?

Behind the scenes, female persons are often initiating or guiding these male writers and perhaps their help is not always acknowledged.

Some texts acknowledge the help of the Dakinis.

Some texts acknowledge the help of the Dragon King and His Retinue.

Our Teacher shared with us some examples of how women have affected our organisation.

One of these was the use of Om. Om can be traced to Hindu practice. Om is a sound that the devas recognise. By saying Om merits are shared with the devas. It is because of an Indian woman that Om is used before the mantra “Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammasambuddhassa” at our Centre. The original can be found in the Buddhist canonical records of the Sermon on the Highest Blessings or Mangala Sutta where the deva asked the Buddha what are the highest blessings. After the discourse given by the Buddha this deva then responded “Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammasambuddhassa”.

It is suggested the deva’s voice may have emulated the sound of Om.

It is important to make sufficient offerings and gain merit to be able to remember Prajna Paramita.

The Prajna Paramita student has taken refuge in the Triple Gem. He or she takes no other refuge.

Prajna Paramita teaches that Bodhisattvas are beings that chose to stay in birth to be able to help and teach those beings that can be taught, that is both human beings and devas and devatas - sattadevamanussanam. Our Temple is a sattadevamanussanam Temple.

During the Prajna Paramita course, the student might make Bodhisattva vows to the Buddha.

It is these vows that are the causes to keep coming back, and it is these vows that stop Mara, the negative forces in the world, from interfering with the Bodhisattva’s work. When completed, Prajna Paramita itself is out of Mara’s reach.

The Prajna Paramita practitioner must practice 4 things: to recognise blessings, cherish blessings, cultivate blessings and constantly sow the seeds for blessings.

Ideally, the Prajna Paramita student is taught by a Teacher, because although being taught with body and speech alone can lead to the highest order knowledges, it is better if mind contact can be made.

The Prajna Paramita student becomes a conqueror. It means to conquer first, and to realise later. The Bodhisattva does not get stuck at realising.

Some new Prajna Paramita students may have a latent death wish. After cognating that this is the case, the student can free himself or herself from the death wish. Not wanting to be is suffering just as wanting to be is suffering.

All suffering comes from not understanding.

Prajna Paramita supplies many tools for the students on how to act and practice correctly in particular situations. Prajna Paramita provides antidotes that need to be studied, realised and applied.

When the student has practiced much and made much merit, he or she may be able to see the link between the Buddha, Prajna Paramita and the Teacher.

The student learning Prajna Paramita must come to understand the law of causes and effects.

The Prajna Paramita student aims to understand the Five Groups: rupa, vedana, sanna, sankhara and vinnanam. That is, materiality, emotions, perceptions, mental formations and mind.

There is not doubt that there are wholesome and unwholesome mental states. The student practices to make the wholesome mental states stay, and the unwholesome mental states to cease arising. Prajna Paramita teaches to conquer your own minds, both wholesome and unwholesome.

A being can only have one mental state at a time. To learn Prajna Paramita, it is especially helpful to develop the wholesome cetasikas kaya-muduta, pliancy of mental states, and citta-muduta, pliancy of mind.

One of the students wrote:

“By the merit and guidance of my Guru, Prajna Paramita Deity and Her Retinue I have been able to enter the Prajna Paramita Teaching mandala.

My practice I offer in gratitude to my Guru, Prajna Paramita Deity, Her Retinue and the Triple Gem.

I have been able to know the areas of knowledge that I had to learn, I have been able to see how to and what to do and how to measure the quantity and quality of knowledge learnt in order to know what it is to practice as a Bodhisattva.

I have been able to know what I must do in order to live my vow. I have been able to know the meaning of my vow.

It is through hearing the Prajna Paramita Teachings and reading the Prajna Paramita text that I am able to put into action wholesome causes to come out of suffering by my own actions and have rebirths that will enable me to tell other teachable beings about the Teachings of Buddha Dhamma.”

Earlier our Teacher had taught the Prajna Paramita at our Centre from 25 May 1992 to 9 September 1995.

A paper on the teachings titled ‘Comment on Three Years and Three Moons Teaching of Prajna Paramita at the Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd.’ by John D. Hughes. Dip.App.Chem.T.T.T.C. GDAIE. Nicolas S. Prescott. BSc (Hons). MBA and Julie M. O'Donnell

These comments were edited by John D. Hughes for presentation at a Conference arranged by Geshe Nawang Jangchup of the Lingshed Gonpa Cultural & Welfare Society in Zanskar, Nepal from 3 to 9 July 1995.

Rather than arrange the processes and references used over the three years into some theoretically perfect ideal lexicon form, our Teacher constrained himself in favour of a paper giving a more practical performance.

This earlier Comment Paper may look like work in progress, but, in balance, it is more important to share a small amount of merit with others of what Student "seed" (Bodhicitta) insights have been developed over these three years rather than stall for time to produce the ideal publication.

It would, of course, be unreasonable to look for perfection in the results of our combined efforts. Maturation of "seeds" (Bodhicitta) takes time.

The Comment paper was published in the Buddha Dhyana Dana Review Volume 5 No.2 September 1995, pages 38 to 50. ISSN 0818-8254

This teaching review will be offered in our mandala constructed on 29 April 2002. The major offerings on the mandala include rice, milk and pink flowers.

A photograph of our Guru and his consort was placed within the mandala. We will describe the construction of this mandala on next week’s Buddhist Hour radio program.

The mandala was dissolved on 4 May 2002 CE as a Celebration of the 41st Birth Anniversary of Anita.

You may view photographs of this mandala at www.bsbonline.com.au.

May all beings be well and happy.



This script was written and edited by John D. Hughes Dip. App. Chem T.T.T.C. GDAIE, Anita Hughes R.N. Div1, Julian Bamford B.A. App.Rec., Evelin Halls Dip. Foreign Language Correspondence, Vanessa Macleod B.A. M.A. and Pennie White B.A. Dip.Ed.


References

Buddha Dhyana Dana Review. Volume 5 No.2 September 1995, pages 38 to 50. Published by Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd. ISSN 0818-8254.

ISYS Search: LAN1: ‘Comment on Three Years and Three Moons Teaching of Prajna Paramita at the Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd.’ by John D. Hughes. Dip.App.Chem.T.T.T.C. GDAIE. Nicolas S. Prescott. BSc (Hons). MBA, Julie M. O'Donnell. Buddha Dhyana Dana Review. Volume 11 No.2 September 1995.

Textual References used during the period of the Teachings

Extensive use was made of E. Conze's (1975) translation to the English language of the "Introduction to The Large Sutra on Perfect Wisdom with the divisions of the Abhisamayalankara" was used as a key basis for commentary during these Teachings.

One basis for considering that the Prajna Paramita Teachings are valid is that they are independent of temporal circumstances (akaliko), at all times, and throughout the Universe. The Pali term, lokajettha, meaning " oldest in the World" has been applied to Dhamma. In this sense it follows the edict: ROYAL CHARIOTS WEAR OUT BUT THE DHAMMA DOES NOT AGE.

List of References:

Over 2,000 texts were used over the 3 year and three moon period, however only the major texts have been listed as references.

1. KEY TEXTS
A Systematised Collection of Chenian Booklets. Vol. 1 No. 1 - 62. and Vol. 2. No. 63 - 100. Yogi C.M. Chen.

A Systematised Collection of Chenian Booklets. Vol. 1 - 7. Yogi C.M. Chen. Edited by Dr. Yutang Lin.

The Skill in Means Sutra (Upayakausalya). Mark Tatz, Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, Delhi.

The Vajracchedika-Prajna-Paramita Sutra. The Prajna-Paramita-Hrdaya Sutra. Kumarajiva. Translated by Upasaka Lu K'uan-Yu (Charles Luk). The Bhaisaijya Guru Vaitureya Prabha Rajaya Tathagata Puja Prayer Ritual. Translated by John D. Hughes and Francisco So.

The Sukhavati-Vyuha Sutra Puja Prayer Ritual. Translated by John D. Hughes and Francisco So.

The 100 syllable Vajrasattva Mantra.

2. PERIODICALS
The Buddha Dhyana Dana Review. Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd.

Vajrayana Quarterly. Guru Lau Yui-Chi.

3. DICTIONARIES
The Pali Text Society's Pali-English Dictionary Edited by T.W. Rhys Davids and William Stede.

A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms. William Edward Soothill and Lewis Hodous.

A Sanskrit-English Dictionary Sir Monier-Williams.

Reassessing the Buddhavarmsa (Buddhavamsa). From ancient times, the Buddhavarmsa of the Pali Canon (Chronicle of Buddhas) has appeared as the fourteenth book of the Khuddaka Nikaya. The Dighabhanakas excluded the Buddhavamsa from their Canon, but it was accepted by the Majjhimabhanakas. Buddhadatta, a contemporary of Buddhaghosa wrote a commentary on the Buddhavarmsa. According to the Burmese tradition, Buddhaghosa was born in Northern India in the 5th. Century CE
Upali Karunaratna (1973) is of the view that the Buddhavamsa can only be classified among the latest productions of canonical Pali literature. Even if this was so, it seems most likely it was intact, say, in 4th. Century CE
Prof. Jeffrey Hopkins' (1983) major work- "Meditation on Emptiness"
notes that Nagarjuna who founded Madhyamika through his writing of the Prajna Paramita was "further clarified" as being Prasangita - Madhyamika by Chandrakirti's system. I was unable to find any reference to the Buddhavarmsa being used a Tibetan source material in Prof. Hopkins extensive references. It would be a good thing if the contents of this Chronicle text, appearing as Pali Text Society Part 111 of the Minor Anthologies of the Pali Canon, became better known in the Western World.

Twenty years have passed since this Buddhist Text was translated to the English language by I.R. Horner (Pali Text Society 1975).

At that time, it is notable that her translation was accepted in the series of translations from the literature of "Burma, India, The Khmer Republic, Laos, Sri Lanka, and Thailand" (sic) by the national Commissions for UNESCO in these countries.

This Chronicle is a supreme Bodhisattva parami text and, given the opportunity, it could wake up ("inspire"?) many persons as it did in ancient times.

There is no intention to slander any other Texts or nationals in any place.


Tapscott Don, Ticoll David, Lowy Alex. Digital Capital – Harnessing the Power of Business Webs. Nicholas Brealey Publishing, London UK. 2000 ISBN 1-85788-209-1


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