Friday, May 11, 2012

Class 15 - Conventional & Ultimate Refuge - Final Vehicles

Download PDF's of Class Handouts, Notes, and MP3 Tracks from the 15th class of Spring 2012 term held on Friday, May 11.

DOWNLOAD Handouts - text for Class 15:

Handout 12 - General Meaning's 5 Topics that explain Three Refuge Objects:  #2 - Identifying the nature (i.e., meaning) of the three objects of refuge:  Nature (i.e., meaning)  of the three Jewels according to:  a) Hearer Tenets (Vaibashika & Sautantrika Tenets), cont.  b)  Mahayana Tenets (Chittamatra, Madhyamika Svatantrika & Madhyamika Prasangika Tenets): (1) Nature (meaning) of the (i) Buddha Jewel, (ii) Dharma Jewel (per 8 qualities cited in Maitreya’s Uttaratantra (Sublime Continuum).

Handout 13 - General Meaning's 5 Topics that explain Three Refuge Objects:  #2 - (b)  Mahayana Tenets: (1) Nature (meaning) of the (ii) Dharma Jewel, cont.; and (iii) Sangha Jewel (per 8 qualities cited in Maitreya’s Uttaratantra (Sublime Continuum).  #3 - Difference between Conventional Refuge (not a genuinely final refuge) & Ultimate Refuge (genuinely final refuge, e.g., Buddha Rupakayas).

ALL SPRING 2012 PDF Handouts are HERE.
DOWNLOAD MP3 TRACKS:

Track 1 - Homework review:  Others benefit and self benefit, which is more important?

Track 2 - Taking Refuge: Conventional Refuge & Ultimate Refuge - [Handout 13]
  • Meaning of Conventional for Buddhist philosophy.
    • Ultimate Truth is the lack of inherent existence, Emptiness.
    • Everything that exists other than Emptiness, itself, is a Conventional Truth (e.g., Buddha, Buddha’s love, etc.) are all Conventional Truths.
Conventional (Truth) is NOT:                              BECAUSE:                                                            
“Imputed by name and thought.”         Emptiness is imputed by name and thought.
“What appears to us”                           Emptiness appears to beings; Buddha’s Mind does not.
“it functions”                                       Permanent phenomena do not.
“What most people believe”                 Most people don’t believe in Buddha’s Omniscient. Mind).
“Interdependence”                              Ultimate Truth is interdependent.
“That which can be deduced                Extremely hidden phenomena, e.g., subtle workings of karma,
  from experience”                                    cannot be deduced by ordinary beings).
Samsara                                              Your/My contaminated Five Aggregates (Body & Mind produced by 
                                                          contaminated Karma and afflictions) & Samsaric Reality (created by 
                                                          each sentient being’s mental perception.
  • Conventional refers to the Deceptive or False appearance of all phenomena (other than Emptiness). 
  • Phenomena appear to exist in one way (objectively) but actually exist in another (subjectively).
Track 3 - Conventional Refuge and Ultimate Refuge.
  • Meaning of an Ultimate Refugee is: an object of refuge that is genuinely final because they are the highest possible achievement.  E.g., for:
    • Mahayana Tenets of One Final Vehicle: two Rupakayas of the Buddha;
    • Hearer tenets of Three Final Vehicles: for greatest portion of sentient beings, attainments of Hearer & Solitary Realizer Self-Liberated Arhats are genuinely final.
Three Final Vehicles (for Hearers, Solitary Realizers and Bodhisattvas).
  • Three Final Vehicles tenet holders (Vaibhāṣika, Sautrāntika Following Scriptures and Cittamātra Following Scriptures) assert Refuge attainments that appear to them as Final:  Hearer Self-Liberation, Solitary Realizer Self-Liberation & a Buddhahood that ends.
Track 4 - One Final Vehicle
  • One Final Vehicle (Three Temporary Vehicles) tenet holders (Sautrāntika Following Reasoning, Cittamātra Following Reasoning and Mādhyamika) assert the attainments of Hearer Self-Liberation & Solitary Realizer Self-Liberation are Conventional Refuges since they are not Final Refuges because, Buddhahood is the Final Refuge state for all sentient beings.
  • One Final Difference in Buddhas: Karmic Connections with different Sentient Beings
NOTES of Class 15 (May 11) rough draft transcript of class offered for what it's worth.
   [This link was fixed on 9/8/2012.]

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This is the 15th class of the Spring 2012 term Perfection of Wisdom course
which addresses Refuge, the 3rd sub-topic of the 2nd Topic
(Mahayana Practice Instructions) of Chapter 1 of Maitreya's
Ornament for Clear Realizations - Abhisamayalamkara.


Note:  Typo in MP3 file names that prevented download has been corrected.

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