Buddhism and the Meaning of Life

1
Buddhism and the Meaning of Life

• Life and reincarnation
• Eternal life without God/heaven
• Karmic repayment for behavior
• Hindu and Western bias
• Permanent soul
• Soul mind real value
• Body emotions distraction (evil)
• Sex, gluttony, selfishness

2
Nirvana Samsara Distinction

• Christian heaven and Nirvana
• Puzzling nature of Nirvana
• Samsara is this lifeand next ? ?
• Blowing out the candle ? ?
• No value ? value in Nirvana (nothing)
• Pessimistic Life is suffering
• Negative (Renunciation religion) escape

3
Buddha Story

• As a foreign religion in China
• Zen (Chan ?) a Chinese version
• Related to Daoism
• Divine birth (no sex) and prophecy
• Fathers resolveonly pleasure
• Exposure and realization
• Life is suffering
• Meditation and enlightenment
• Becomes Buddha (Nirvana?)

4
Mystery of Meaning of Life

• Four Noble Truths
• Life is suffering
• Suffering caused by desire
• Cessation of desire cessation of suffering
• Eight-fold path ? cessation of desire
• No value or meaning
• Avoid suffering
• Sickness, old age, death

5
Mahayana ? ? development

• Individual soul paradigm (Arhat)
• Hinayana ? ? or Theravada
• Bodhisattva ? ?
• Waits for everyone to be enlightened at once
• Comes back to teach the rest of us
• Buddha as historical model
• Some in this class

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Paradox of Desire

• Why give up desires
• Desire for nirvana
• To reach nirvana we have to stop wanting
• Logic of the bodhisattva
• One more step for Chan (Zen)
• Why make it the last?

7
Daoist Influence

• Desires come from distinctions ?
• Optimism about life
• Opposite mood
• Model of total involvement
• Cook Ding (??) and absorption in skill
• Choice of butcher!

8
Chinese Schools

• All Mahayana
• Universal salvation (moral equality)
• Positive reading of Nirvana, Buddha Nature
• Tiantai (? ?) Huayen (? ?) and Chan (?)
• Theory and practice!

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Story of Hui Neng

• Southern, illiterate woodcutter
• Hears and instantly englightened
• Goes to temple (why?)
• Assigned ordinary labor no study
• Poem competition
• Constant care to make mind clear (the mirror)
• Mind is originally clearno dust (no illusions)
• Leaves temple (kicked out?)
• Throws away robe, wanders and chops wood

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Nirvana Samsara

• To give up a desire is to give up the distinction
• Giving up desire for nirvana
• Giving up distinction between nirvana and this
  life
• No distinction between meditation and everyday
  life
• Between enlightenment and ordinary consciousness
• Meditation school with no meditation

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Buddha Nature Self-nature

• Everything is Buddha nature
• Paradoxes of Chan masters burning Buddha
• All are already bodhisattva
• Nothing to seek
• Self acceptance stop seeking for enlightenment
• Meaning of life from giving up the search
• And just living

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Meditation Everyday Consciousness

• What Im doing now
• Butcher, flower arranger, tea ceremony, actor
• Samurai warrior
• Painter, philosopher, Zen priest

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Every Moment Zen

• Umbrella to left or right of clogs?

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Doctor Story

• Zen is care for patients
• A Koan meaningless
• Absorbed in care for patients and lost fear of
  death

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The Strawberry

• Values of eating, drinking, sleeping
• Tiger and strawberry

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Awake!

• Beating
• Spitting and abuse
• Throwing out (walking zen)
• Shouting
• Koans

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Five Common Doctrines

• Highest truth cannot be spoken (thought)
• Spiritual cultivation cannot be cultivated
• In the end nothing is gained
• Nothing much in Buddhist teaching
• In carrying water and chopping wood, therein lies
  the wonderful dao