Fri, 03 Sep 2010
The Highest Stages of the Path
The remainder of Jigten Sumgo's prayer describes the highest stages of the bodhisattva, which I can only talk about from an abstract and philosophical perspective.
Although some abide in the perfect meaning, they don't understand the interdependence of cause and effect. They are ignorant of the meaning of objects of knowledge. Please protect them, Omniscient Deity Mother.
The nature of space is free from elaboration. Nothing is different from that. Still practitioners and disciples don't realise this. Please protect them, Perfect Buddha Mother.
There is no higher truth than emptiness, nothing more to understand. So it would seem that the recognition of emptiness is the end of the path. But there is something further, one needs to integrate one's understanding of emptiness (ultimate truth) whith everyday experience (relative truth). With emptiness evertyhing is seen as a dream or illusion, but if one is going to help other people, one needs to function within this illusion and work with its rules, which means understanding cause and effect. One does not truly practice the six perfections until one understands emptiness. What makes them perfect is the understanding of emptiness. So one praactices generosity while seeing there is no giver, no gift, and no recipient. This understanding is called the threefold purity and all six perfections are made perfect because they are practiced with this attitude. This ability to integrate practical activity with an understanding of emptiness is called skillful means.
Beyond the integration of ultimate and relative truths is complete enlightenment, or buddhahood. This understanding is compared with space, which pervades everywhere and is unaffected by anything. This complete freedom of buddhahood is beyond any effort or elaboration and spontaneously perfect. This nature is in all beings from the beginning, yet they do not see it. Full enlightenment is copared to shattering a vase. The space inside the vase was always the same as the boundless space outside it. And there was never a differenc ebetween the two. Yest they seemed different until the vase was gone.
