Buddhism

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A community for Buddhism.

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founded 2 years ago
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submitted 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) by nyamlae to c/buddhism
 
 

tl;dr: Up to five sense vijnanas can arise at a time, but only one mind vijnana arises at a time to cognize the object of those sense vijnanas. The alayavijnana is equated with the mind (citta).


From chapter 5 of the Samdhinirmocana Sutra:

“Viśālamati, when such and such beings are reborn and manifest in this saṃsāra comprised of six destinies, in any class of beings or state of birth, be it egg-born, womb-born, moisture-born, or spontaneously generated, there is first a twofold appropriation: the appropriation of the physical sense faculties together with their supports, and the appropriation of mental imprints producing the elaboration of conventional expressions with regard to phenomenal appearances, names, and conceptualizations. In dependence upon this twofold appropriation, the mind containing all the seeds matures, merges [with the embryo], grows, increases, and expands. This twofold appropriation occurs in the realm of form but it does not appear in the realm of the formless.

“Viśālamati, this cognition is also called ‘appropriating cognition’ because it grasps and appropriates the body. It is also called ‘subliminal cognition,’ (alaya-vijnana) because it dwells and lies hidden in this body, sharing a common destiny. It is also called ‘mind,’ because it is accumulated and developed by visual forms, sounds, smells, flavors, tangible objects, and phenomena.

“Viśālamati, taking this appropriating cognition as support and basis, the six kinds of cognition, that is, visual, auditive, olfactory, gustatory, tactile, and mental cognitions, arise. Among these, a visual cognition arises on the basis of the eye, which is connected with a visual cognition and a visual form. Simultaneously and in conformity with this visual cognition, a mental cognition that conceptualizes the object arises at the same time, having the same object. [Likewise,] Viśālamati, an auditive, olfactory, gustatory, or tactile cognition arises on the basis of a sense faculty connected to a cognition, such as the ear, nose, tongue, or body, and a sound, smell, flavor, or tangible object. Simultaneously and in conformity with this auditive, olfactory, gustatory, or tactile cognition, a mental cognition that conceptualizes the object arises at the same time, having the same object. If only one visual cognition arises at one time, then only one mental cognition that conceptualizes the object arises simultaneously, having the same object. If two, three, four, or five cognitions arise simultaneously, then also in that case, having the same object as the group of five cognitions, only one mental cognition that conceptualizes this object arises simultaneously.

“Viśālamati, it is like this: If the conditions for the arising of a single wave in a large stream of water are present, then only one wave arises. If the conditions for the arising of two or many waves are present, then two or many waves arise. However, the river [itself] neither stops as a stream of water nor becomes exhausted. If the conditions for the arising of a single reflection in a perfectly polished mirror are present, then only one reflection arises. If the conditions for the arising of two or many reflections are present, then two or many reflections arise. However, the mirror neither transforms itself into the object corresponding to the reflection nor manifests reflections by being in close contact [with the reflected objects]. Viśālamati, similarly, taking this appropriating cognition as support and basis, as in the examples of the river and the mirror, if the conditions for the arising of one visual cognition are present, then only one visual cognition arises. If the conditions for the simultaneous arising of up to five cognitions are present, then up to five cognitions simultaneously arise.

[...]

"Profound and subtle is the appropriating cognition.
Containing all the seeds, it flows like a stream of water.
I did not teach it to the immature,
Lest they would imagine it to be a self."

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he mad!! (i.imgur.com)
submitted 2 years ago by [email protected] to c/buddhism
 
 
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Our Inheritance (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 years ago by ahimsabjorn to c/buddhism
 
 

Our you carrying the weight of your ancestors or lightening the load?

Day 193 from Your One True Home by Tich Nhat Hanh

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submitted 2 years ago by ahimsabjorn to c/buddhism
 
 

From Your One True Home by Tich Nhat Hanh

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First Cessation? (self.buddhism)
submitted 2 years ago by tree_frog_and_rain to c/buddhism
 
 

I started mediating and studying buddha-dharma when I was incarcerated in 2015 and sustained a daily mindfulness practice for three years or so.

I was released just before covid and my practice fell off during the pandemic.

Over the week leading up to father's day I had a breakdown and some of the mental health issues that got me arrested in 2015 resurfaced. At the tailend of the breakdown I put on a body scan and had taken a small dose of psilocybin. I had also been working with a Buddhist therapist who has mentioned something about resting in the space between the end of the outbreath and the beginning of the inbreath.

The bodyscan starts by anchoring to the breathing and I let my attention rest completely in the breathing. And as the guided meditation was finishing up I noticed a vibration, like a snore but in consciousness itself, this vibration. Coarse. And I understood this is dukkha. And in the next moment, at the bottom of the breath, there was a moment where this vibration was absent.

The birds were still singing. My body was still on the mat. But for a moment, the intense suffering I had been experiencing over the previous week, was completely absent. And the moment was most defined by this contrast.

I experimented with it over the course of the night and was able to repeat the experience. At the bottom and top of the breathing, but also right in the middle. And I could tell a difference between clinching (trying to make the skip happen by holding the breathing or holding the thinking) and finding the skip by being aware of and letting go of dukkha.

My therapist is on vacation right now so I haven't had a chance to ask her about it.

But I am curious for other people's thoughts or experiences.

Thanks

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I understand each person is going to have a different take on them and I’m curious to hear what yours maybe. It seems to be a very interesting practice.

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We Are Vast (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 years ago by ahimsabjorn to c/buddhism
 
 

From Your One True Home by Tich Nhat Hanh

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submitted 2 years ago by ahimsabjorn to c/buddhism
 
 

From Your One True Home by Tich Nhat Hanh

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"As long as you conceive of yourself as being somebody who has to do something in order to become something else, you still get caught in a trap, a condition of mind as being a self, and you never quite understand anything properly. No matter how many years you meditate, you never really understand the teaching; it will always be just off the mark." – Ajahn Sumedho, 'Everything That Arises Passes Away' (from the book, 'The Way it is')

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Virtuous friends (self.buddhism)
submitted 2 years ago by nyamlae to c/buddhism
 
 

"The sages praise virtuous friendship, when they speak about the world. By associating with virtuous friends, even a fool may become wise.

One should associate with good people, as that is how wisdom grows. If one associates with good people, one would be freed from all suffering."

-Kisā Gotamī (from the Therīgāthā)

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The mind is the ocean for a person (www.hillsidehermitage.org)
submitted 2 years ago by ichimokuclown to c/buddhism
 
 

“The eye, bhikkhus, is the ocean for a person; its tide consists of forms. One who endures that tide consisting of forms is said to have crossed the ocean of the eye with its waves, whirlpools, sharks, and demons. Crossed over, gone beyond, the brahmin stands on high ground. The ear, bhikkhus, is the ocean for a person…. The mind is the ocean for a person; its tide consists of mental phenomena. One who endures that tide consisting of mental phenomena is said to have crossed the ocean of the mind with its waves, whirlpools, sharks, and demons. Crossed over, gone beyond, the brahmin stands on high ground.” - SN 35.228

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Aversion to your own senses (bbballs.github.io)
submitted 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) by ichimokuclown to c/buddhism
 
 

"If you overcome all sensuality and subdue all of the patigha that you have towards your own senses and towards anything or anyone in the world, present, past or future, then you will be ready to follow the Buddha’s detailed instructions on anapanasati."

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submitted 2 years ago by metic to c/buddhism
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"As long as you're not finding contentment in wholesome phenomena it means you're still within the domain of sensuality, because one of the defining traits of sensuality is to expect things to provide you with pleasure or, rather, that pleasure is the result of things you're engaged with. But wholesome states don't work like that, which means you can stay with wholesome states all you want but they won't provide you with pleasure. You need to discern the contentment.

That's quite an important thing, but the practice of meditation usually revolves around replacing the pleasures you're used to with a new set of pleasures – more peaceful, more refined, but still expecting meditation to give you the pleasure back. You get the pleasure back only once you start discerning it on the basis of wholesome, and that pleasure is the pleasure that is not underlined by craving, which is the pleasure of sensuality, so having non-contentment in wholesome states means being still within the sensuality even if you're perfectly restrained.

It still belies the attitude of restrained in order to get more, the attitude of expecting things to do it to you.

You need to develop (contentment in wholesome phenomena) through that discernment of wholesome, the sensual seclusion, the sensual freedom – unless that's done it won't happen to you because whatever happens to you is going to be on account of sensuality."

Paraphrasing Ajahn Ñāṇamoli in 'Discussions From a Mountain Top #11':

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jg4X-jHR9cw

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submitted 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) by kaxora to c/buddhism
 
 

I am anyway trying to reduce my screen time and time on Reddit, and the new changes they're making spurred me to check out Lemmy when I heard about it. I like the simple feel of it and hope that it will create smaller, tighter knitted communities, encourage individual posting (I never posted on Reddit but it feels more acceptable here somehow), and also help to further reduce my screen time.

I'm glad to see there's a Buddhist instance here. I think this may be the first or second post ever on this instance, so for the sake of encouraging conversation I would like to ask those who may see this post:

  1. What sect of Buddhism do you subscribe to? What do you like most about that sect?
  2. What is one way you have incorporated the teachings into your life recently, or one thing you would like to incorporate?

For me:

  1. Tibetan Buddhism (Gelug tradition). I like the fact that it purports that enlightenment can be achieved in just one lifetime; that negative karma can be purified; and that bad things happening is just our negative karma ripening, which means you are paying your karmic debt in those situations. It's very motivating for this lifetime.
  2. I am trying to be more mindful in everyday life because I don't meditate much at all, and I think mindfulness is the next best thing.

I hope this instance / community grows in the future!