..續本文上一頁ee Bodies of the Buddha: ” A concept adopted in Mahayana to organize different concepts of the Buddha appearing in the sutras.” (A Dictionary of
Buddhist Terms and Concepts, p. 448)
“The three bodies are:
1. Dharmakaya: t he Dharma-body, or the “ body of reality”, which is formless, unchanging, transcendental, and inconceivable. Synonymous with suchness, or emptiness.
2. Sambhogakaya: t he “body of enjoyment”. “ t he bliss or reward body”, the celestial body of the Buddha. Personification of eternal perfection in its ultimate sense. It “resides in the Pure Land and never manifests itself in the mundane world, but only in the celestial spheres, accompanied by enlightened Bodhisattvas. ”
3. Nirmanakaya: t he “manifested or incarnated body” of the Buddha. In order to benefit certain sentient beings, a Buddha incarnates himself into an appropriate visible body, such as that of Sakyamuni Buddha…” (G. C. C. Chang).,
10. Third lifetime: a general Buddhist Teaching which can be summarized as fo lows: In the first lifetime, the practitioner engages in mundane good deeds which bring ephemeral worldly blessings (wealth, power, authority, etc.) in the second lifetime. Since power tends to corrupt, he is then likely to create evil karma, resulting in retribution in the third lifetime.
Thus good deeds in the first lifetime are potential“enemies” of the third lifetime. To ensure that mundane good deeds do not become“enemies, ” the practitioner should dedicate all merits to a transcendental goal, i. e., to become Bodhisattvas or Buddhas or, in Pure Land teachings to achieve rebirth in Amitabha”s Pure Land – a Buddha-land beyond Birth and Death.
In the mundane context, these three lifetimes can be conceived of as three generations. Thus, the patriarch of a prominent family, through work and luck, amasses great power, fortune and influence (first lifetime). His children are then able to enjoy a leisurely, and, too often, dissipated life (second lifetime). By the generation of the grandchildren, the family”s fortune and good reputation have all but disappeared (third lifetime).
11. For example, a practitioner may have a telephone next to him while he is reciting the Buddha”s name. The phone rings and he answers it, while continuing to strike the wooden fish! This indicates a lack of earnestness.
12. The Questions of King Milinda Sutra contains the fo lowing parable: “A minute grain of sand, dropped on the surface of the water, will sink immediately. On the other hand, a block of stone, however large and heavy, can easily be moved from place to place by boat.
The same is true of the Pure Land practitioner. However light his karma may be, if he is not rescued by Amitabha Buddha, he must revolve in the cycle of Birth and Death. With the help of Amitabha Buddha, his karma, however heavy, will not prevent his rebirth in the Pure Land.”
13. This teaching is reflected in t he Brahma Net Sutra (note 5):
“Now, if you wish to save a certain being but it ”s beyond your capacity, then you should single-mindedly recite the Buddha”s name. For example, you may see some pigs or sheep that are about to be slaughtered, and you can”t liberate them because you aren”t able to buy them all. At this time you should singlemindedly recite the Buddha”s name so those creatures can hear it. You can speak Dharma also. You can say to them, “All of you living beings should bring forth the Bodhi resolve [Bodhi Mind].” This is creating causes and conditions for rescuing their wisdom-light. Although you are not saving their physical bodies, you are rescuing their wisdom- light.” (Master Hui Seng)
14. According to Buddhist cosmology, our earth is suspended in space as a result of the unceasing movement of cosmic winds. This section illustrates the basic teaching of Pure…
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