Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

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meditation the Dharma Assembly of the Saddharma-Pundarika Sutra appear. "The assembly of the Lotus Sutra is still here, and has not disappeared," he exclaimed, though his guru warned him that his experience was only preliminary to a thorough realization of the Dharma-Lotus samadhi in which Lord Buddha preached this sutra. This assembly is assuredly still present, to be seen by those who practice these meditations earnestly. All of us should have a reverence for this august assembly that we too may have direct knowledge of it. Other Dharma-assemblies (such as the one in the Amitayus Sutra) have inspired other sages; this we may find from their biographies. Here we should only recognize that every Dharma-assembly always remains in the meditation of yogis who know the doctrine taught in the Avatamsaka Sutra. In these three Dharma-assemblies we may see parallels with our system of the three-yanas-in-one. The assembly of the Amitayur Samapatti Sutra corresponds to the Hinayana. How? To come to know this assembly through one's meditations, the world has to be renounced, so that one can get to Sukhavati (the Western Pure Land). The importance of renunciation both in the Hinayana and in this meditation makes this correspondence clear. 374

The assembly of the Dharma-Lotus Sutra stressed the Mahayana aspect. This sutra is the main canon of the Tian Tai School in which many Mahayana doctrines of samatha and samapatti were established. The Avatamsaka Sutra and its assembly have some relationship to the Vajrayana. In fact, this sutra is sometimes called the "tantra of exoteric Buddhism." In it many causations of mystic samapatti are described, and this process, though not these particular examples, is taken up and extensively used in the visualizations of esoteric tantra or Vajrayana. It is true that all these Dharma assemblies belong to the Mahayana, but there are still correspondences in our three-ways-in-one, as our homage is given with these in mind. B. Meditations of the Hua Yan School This school and its meditations originated with the monk Du Shun and the method generally is called Dharmadhatu samapatti. This venerable patriarch was not only well practiced in the meditations he described, he had attained to their realization. Sad to say, few of his followers have practiced these methods and most of the great masters of this school have only had a good knowledge of the deep philosophy. I doubt very much whether there is anyone practicing these meditations in China at the present time. The school has mostly been 375

meditation the Dharma Assembly of the<br />

Saddharma-Pundarika Sutra appear. "The assembly of<br />

the Lotus Sutra is still here, <strong>and</strong> has not disappeared,"<br />

he exclaimed, though his guru warned him that his<br />

experience was only preliminary to a thorough<br />

realization of the Dharma-Lotus samadhi in which Lord<br />

Buddha preached this sutra. This assembly is assuredly<br />

still present, to be seen by those who practice these<br />

meditations earnestly. All of us should have a reverence<br />

for this august assembly that we too may have direct<br />

knowledge of it.<br />

Other Dharma-assemblies (such as the one in the<br />

Amitayus Sutra) have inspired other sages; this we may<br />

find from their biographies. Here we should only<br />

recognize that every Dharma-assembly always remains<br />

in the meditation of yogis who know the doctrine taught<br />

in the Avatamsaka Sutra.<br />

In these three Dharma-assemblies we may see parallels<br />

with our system of the three-yanas-in-one.<br />

The assembly of the Amitayur Samapatti Sutra<br />

corresponds to the Hinayana. How? To come to know<br />

this assembly through one's meditations, the world has<br />

to be renounced, so that one can get to Sukhavati (the<br />

Western Pure L<strong>and</strong>). The importance of renunciation<br />

both in the Hinayana <strong>and</strong> in this meditation makes this<br />

correspondence clear.<br />

374

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