Having discussed the Five Aggregates in the last post, we explore why they are so immensely important in Buddhism by examining how a well-known Bodhisattva, Avalokiteśvara, “perfected his understanding of emptiness,” “cognized all objects of knowledge,” understood “things as they are” through a proper understanding of the Five Aggregates, thereby overcoming his Cognitive Obstructions, achieving his Buddhahood, became a Tathgata and fulfilled Buddha soteriological mission.
1) Bodhisattva (Chinese: 菩薩), according to The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen, is “Skt., lit., ‘enlightenment being;’ in Mahāyāna Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a being who seeks Buddhahood through the systematic practice of perfect virtues (paramita) but renounces complete entry into Nirvana until all beings are saved. The determining factor for his action is compassion (karuna), supported by highest insight and wisdom (prajna).”
2) Mahabodhisattva (Chinese: 摩訶菩薩), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, is “in Sanskrit, ‘great bodhisattva.'”
These “great bodhisattvas” are the bodhisattvas close to achieving the highest level of enlightenment, such as Avalokiteśvara.
3) Avalokiteśvara “is a tenth-level bodhisattva associated with great compassion (mahakaruṇā). He is often associated with Amitabha Buddha.” A tenth-level bodhisattva is the highest level of the Bodhisattva Path. After finishing the tenth level, a bodhisattva is ready to “attain full Buddhahood,” known as a Tathagata. Avalokiteśvara is also known as Guanyin (Chinese: 觀音菩薩) in East Asia.
As an enlightened being, Mahasattva Avalokiteśvara has overcome his afflictive obstructions, one of the Two Obstructions that the Buddha teaches, as discussed in Post 10.
- Because he has overcome his afflictive obstructions, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara is no longer subject to cycles of “determinative birth-and-death(Chinese: 分段生死),” the samsara all unenlightened beings are subject to.
- Instead, he enters “Parinamikajaramarana,” or “transfigurational birth-and-death.”
- Parinamikajaramarana (Chinese: 變易生死), or “transfigurational birth-and death,” is the samsara experienced by enlightened beings, such as Arhats or Bodhisattvas. According to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, “while these beings have already achieved some measure of enlightenment, when they undergo rebirth and death, these occur as a ‘transfigurational birth-and-death’ of the mind made body, not a ‘determinative birth-and-death.’ Although these beings have overcome afflictive obstructions that tie one to the cycles of samasara (and specifically to paricchedajaramarana), they may still be subject to cognitive obstructions that block full understanding (Romanized Sanskrit: jnana; Chinese: 智); thus, while they may engage in actions, these are not karma-producing actions (viz., ‘uncontaminated actions (Romanized Sanskrit: anasravakaraman; Chinese: 無漏業) that do not lead to a determinative rebirth. While such beings may then appear to be reborn, these rebirths are actually transfigurations of their mind-made bodies (Romanized Sanskrit: manomayakaya; Chinese: 意生身), which may be manipulated at will to change their appearances or to extend their life spans indefinitely”.
- However, although a Bodhisattva has overcome his afflictive obstructions, he still has to overcome his cognitive obstruction, the second of the Two Obstructions that the Buddha teaches.
- Cognitive or Noetic Obstructions (to Omniscience) (Romanized Sanskrit: jneyavarana; Chinese: 所知障), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, “The second of the two categories of obstructions, together with the afflictive obstructions, that must be overcome in order to perfect the Bodhisattva path and achieve Buddhahood. In the Yogacara and Madhyamaka systems, cognitive obstructions are treated as subtle hindrances that serve as the origin of the afflictive obstructions and result from fundamental misapprehensions about the nature of reality. According to Yogacara, because of the attachment deriving ultimately from the reification of what are actually imaginary external phenomena, conceptualization and discrimination arise in the mind, which lead in turn to pride, ignorance, and wrong views. Based on these mistakes in cognition, the individual engages in defiled actions, such as anger, envy, etc., which constitute the afflictive obstructions. The afflictive obstructions may be removed by followers of Sravaka (Chinese: 聲聞), Pratyekabuddha (Chinese: 緣覺/獨覺), and beginning Bodhisattva paths by applying various antidotes or counteragents (Pratipajksa) to the afflictions (Klesa); overcoming these types of obstructions will lead to freedom from further rebirth. The cognitive obstructions, however, are more deeply ingrained and can only be overcome by advanced bodhisattvas who seek instead to achieve Buddhahood by perfecting their understanding of emptiness. Buddhas, therefore, are the only class of beings who have overcome both types of obstructions and thus are able simultaneously to cognize all objects of knowledge in the universe; this is one of the sources of their unparalleled skills as teachers of sentient beings. The jneyavarana are therefore sometimes translated as “obstructions to omniscience.”
According to Buddha, for Mahasattva Avalokiteśvara to overcome cognitive obstructions and “achieve Buddhahood,” he must understand the “subtle hindrances that serve as the origin of the afflictive obstructions that result from fundamental misapprehensions about the nature of reality by perfecting his understanding of emptiness.” Furthermore, “fundamental misapprehensions about the nature of reality come from the reification of what are actually imaginary external phenomena.”
In other words, the ultimate goal of perfecting the understanding of emptiness is to understand why the external phenomena are imaginary. The goalpost is very. The question is how.
The story of how Mahasattva Avalokiteśvara achieved his goal is recorded in the Heart Sūtra.
Heart_Sutra (Chinese: 心經) “is a popular sūtra in Mahāyāna Buddhism.” “It has been called “the most frequently used and recited text in the entire Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition.” “In Sanskrit, the title Prajñāpāramitāhṛdaya translates as ‘The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom (Chinese: 般若波羅蜜多心經).'”
The Heart Sūtra is a highly influential Buddhist text in Mahāyāna Buddhism because this extremely short Sūtra summarizes the core teachings of the entire collection of Prajñāpāramitā sūtras by using Mahabodhisattva Avalokiteśvara as an example to show how an advanced Bodhisattva can overcome his cognitive obstructions and fulfill the Buddha’s soteriological goal by perfecting his understanding of emptiness through the Five Aggregates, specifically that emptiness and the Five Aggregates are equal.
In the Heart Sūtra, “Vista” is used to refer to the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara.
Vasita (Chinese: 自在), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, is “in Sanskrit, ‘mastery,’ or ‘autonomy;’ a list of ten types of master or autonomy developed by a Bodhisattva, viz., of one’s life span (命自在), action (Karman) (業自在), necessities of life (財自在), determination (如意自在), aspiration (願自在), magical powers (信解自在), birth (生自在), dharma (法自在), mind (心自在) and wisdom (智自在).”
In Mahāyāna Buddhism, complete attainment of the ten masteries is reserved for all tenth-level Bodhisattvas. Therefore, vasita applies not only to Avalokiteśvara but also to all ten-level Bodhisattvas, who, like Avalokiteśvara, are close to overcoming their Cognitive Obstructions and fulfilling the Buddha’s soteriological goal.
The Heart Sūtra starts as follows:
“The Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara Vasita, as he practices the Perfection of Wisdom profoundly, gained an illuminating insight into the Emptiness of all the Five Aggregates, thus realizing that this is the way to relieve all beings from sufferings.” (Chinese: 觀自在菩薩, 行深般若波羅蜜多時. 照見五蘊皆空, 度一切苦厄.”
- Perfection of Wisdom, known in Romanized Sanskrit as Prajñāpāramitā (Chinese: 般若波羅蜜多/智度), is a combination of wisdom (Romanized Sanskrit: prajna; Chinese: 般若) and perfection (Romanized Sanskrit: Paramita; Chinese: 波羅蜜多).
- According to the Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, prajñāpāramitā “refers to a level of understanding beyond that of ordinary wisdom, especially referring to the wisdom associated with, or required to achieve, Buddhahood.“
Immediately after his proclamation that all the Five Aggregates are Empty, Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara said the following lines that make the Heart Sūtra “the single most commonly recited, copied, and studied scripture in East Asian Buddhism.”
- Rupa is no different than emptiness (Chinese: 色不異空).
- Emptiness is no different than rupa. (Chinese: 空不異色).
- Rupa is just emptiness (Chinese: 色即是空).
- Emptiness is just rupa. (Chinese: 空即是色)
- So are the four other Aggregates (Chinese: 受想行識亦復如是).”
- Emptiness (Romanized Sanskrit: shunyata/sunyata; Chinese: 空), according to The Dictionary Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen, also known as “void,” is a “central notion of Buddhism….Shunyata is often equated with the absolute in the Mahāyāna since it is without duality and empirical forms.”
- The “void” referred to in the definition of Emptiness is the same “void” Adyashanti experienced upon his enlightenment, as discussed in Post 10. In Adyashanti’s own words, the “void” refers to the absence of “something” and “someone.”
- In other words, the “void” is the absence of anything deemed “physical.”
- In the absence of any “physical phenomenon,” the “void” is the “void” of Citta, the quiescent mentality of the Ultimate Reality that is “without empirical forms” because it is Nothing but Awareness.
- “Absolute” in the definition of Emptiness carries the same meaning as Ultimate in the Ultimate Reality. The two terms are often used interchangeably and are considered synonymous.
- “Without empirical forms” refers to the inconceivability of mentality, meaning that it cannot be perceived, i.e., it can not be seen, heard, smelled, tasted, or touched.
In other words, while Emptiness refers specifically to the quiescent mentality of the Ultimate Reality, it can also be used generally to indicate the inconceivable nature of mentality, the reason why it lacks empirical forms.
In these few lines in the Heart Sūtra, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara showed that he had perfected his “understanding of Emptiness,” thereby overcoming cognitive obstructions.
i) As an enlightened being, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara already understood that Rupa is illusory because he had witnessed the universe vanish at the time of his initial enlightenment. Therefore, by becoming enlightened, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara had overcome afflictive obstruction and rid himself of “reifying what are actually imaginary external phenomena.”
However, while he understood that the universe is illusory and rid himself of “reifying what are actually imaginary external phenomena,” he did not understand why the universe is illusory.
In the Five Aggregates, he found his answer. The universe is illusory because it is “imaginary.” The universe is “imaginary” because it is “conceptualized in the mind in ways we do not govern,” and manifested through the “mere projections of consciousness” from the mind. Consequently, he understood why the universe disappeared upon his enlightenment: his quiescent mind. When the mind was quiescent, projections of consciousness could not happen, and therefore, the universe could not be manifested.
ii) As mentioned in the discussion of the Five Aggregates, among the Five Aggregates, only the Aggregate of Rupa is considered to contain “body” or “materiality,” because the remaining four Aggregates are obviously Empty. By acknowledging that he understood “the Emptiness of the Five Aggregates,” and repeatedly equating rupa with Emptiness, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara not only indicated that Rupa is Empty, but also that they are Empty because Rupa is “conceptualized in the mind in ways we do not govern,” and is manifested through “mere projections of consciousness.”
Therefore, by understanding that Rupa is Empty through the Five Aggregates, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara realized that all five constituents of all beings in the universe are Empty and that there is no “body” or “materiality” anywhere in the cosmos. In this way, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara had “perfected his understanding of Emptiness.”
With Rupa and Emptiness being equal, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara realized that “The Emptiness is the mark of all phenomena (Chinese: 是諸法空相).)
Mark (Romanized Sanskrit: laksana, Chinese: 相), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, is “In Sanskrit, a polysemous term for a ‘mark.’ ‘characteristic,’ ‘attribute,’ or ‘sign;’ used in a variety of contexts to indicate either the principal characteristics or defining quality of something.”
Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara continued, “There is no birth nor death. No impurity nor purity. No addition or subtraction. There are no Five Aggregates. No six sense bases (Chinese: 六根). No six objects of sensing (Chinese: 六塵). No consciousness of the six sense bases (Chinese: 六識). No non-luminosity nor the end of non-luminosity. No aging and death, nor the end of aging or death. No truths for the four nobles. No prajna and nothing to grab.” (Chinese: 是諸法空相. 不生不滅, 不垢不淨. 不增不減. 是故空中無色, 無受想行識. 無眼耳鼻舌身意, 無色身香味觸法, 無眼界, 乃至無意識界, 無無明, 亦無無明盡. 乃至無老死, 亦老死盡, 無苦集滅道, 無智亦無得”).
Indeed, since Emptiness is the mark of all phenomena, they all exist as “mere projections of consciousness.” Indeed, if everything exists as a “mere projection of consciousness,” there is no “somebody” or “something,” as Adyashanti confirmed upon his enlightenment. If there is “no somebody” or “something,” how can there be sensory bases, or objects of their sensing? If births, agings, or deaths are “projections of consciousness,” how can there be their ends? If all phenomena are “projections of consciousness,” non-luminosity is illusory. If non-luminosity is illusory, how can there be its end?
Indeed, with everything being a “projection of consciousness,” what is there to hold onto? Consequently, Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara acknowledged, “there is nothing to possess.”
However, having nothing to possess is not bad, as Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara continued, “Because there is nothing to possess, the Bodhisattvas, relying on the practice of the perfection of wisdom, become carefree. Being carefree and without fear (the Bodhisattvas) are far from topsy-turvy reveries and ultimately enter Nirvana. Buddhas of past, present, and future(Romanized Sanskrit: tirkala; Chinese: 三世), relying on practicing the perfection of wisdom, realize anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. (Chinese: 以無所得故，菩提薩埵, 依般若波羅蜜多故, 心無罣礙, 無罣礙故, 無有恐怖, 遠離顛倒夢想, 究竟涅槃. 三世諸佛, 依般若波羅蜜多故, 得阿搙多羅三藐三菩提).”
Indeed, by perfecting his understanding of Emptiness and overcoming his cognitive obstructions, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara realized he could now live a carefree life, without fear and far from topsy-turvy reveries, and was liberated from his suffering from “obstructions to omniscience.” Being an “advanced bodhisattva associated with great compassion,” the first thing that comes to his mind is “that this is the way to relieve all living beings from sufferings.”
But what does “no prajna‘” mean? Having practiced the Perfection of Wisdom to understand the “Emptiness of the Five Aggregates,” why did Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara suddenly say there is no wisdom?
- To understand that, we quote again on what Buddha teaches in the Avatamsaka Sūtra upon his awakening from his deep state of enlightenment, “Surprise! Surprise! All the living beings of this land, while possessing the wisdom of a Tathāgata, are foolish and confused and have neither knowledge nor insight. I must teach them the proper path, turn them permanently away from their delusions and attachments, so they realize from within the immense wisdom of a Tathāgata, without any difference from a Buddha (Chinese: 奇哉奇哉,此處眾生,雲何具有如來智慧,愚癡迷惑,不知不覺,我當教以聖道, 令其永離妄想執著,自於身中,得見如來廣大智慧,與佛無異.).
- By practicing the Perfection of Wisdom, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara gained the “immense wisdom” of a Tathāgata.
- Upon gaining the “immense wisdom” of a Tathāgata, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara realized that all he had done through the journey in Buddhism was to “turn away permanently” from his “delusions and attachment.” In other words, instead of gaining wisdom, he was removing delusions and attachments.
- Indeed, like dust covering a mirror prevents one from seeing oneself in it, attachments and delusions mask one’s essential original nature, which, as Buddha describes, is enlightened, luminous, and “possessing the wisdom of a Tathāgata.”
- Therefore, although Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara gained no prajna, by turning away permanently from his attachments and delusions, he revealed his original, naturally enlightened, and luminous nature, along with the immense wisdom of a Tathāgata.
- Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara had gained nothing, nor had he lost anything, because becoming a Tathāgata was a journey back home to his original, essential nature that is enlightened, luminous, and possessing the immense wisdom of a Tathāgata.
As discussed in Post 3, Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi (Chinese: 阿搙多羅三藐三菩提)” is “in Sanskrit, “unsurpassed (anuttara), complete (samyak), and perfect enlightenment (sambodhi).”
By practicing the perfection of wisdom and realizing anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara revealed his “supreme or highest wisdom from within,” equivalent to the Perfection of Wisdom.
So, what is the supreme or highest wisdom?
Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara’s statements, “No birth or death, no defilement or purity, no addition or subtraction,” shed light on the topic of supreme wisdom because they reflect the second part of the definition that Emptiness is “without duality.” It is a concept known in Romanized Sanskrit as grahyagrahakavikalpa.
Grahyagrahakavikalpa (Chinese: 所取能取分別), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, is “in Sanskrit, “discrimination between the grasped and the grasper,” or “false conception of apprehended and the apprehender,” a special kind of discrimination (Vikalpa) used in the Yogacara school to refer to the misconception that there is an inherent bifurcation between a perceiving subject (grahaka) and its perceived object (grahya).”
Like Emptiness, Suchness (Romanized Sanskrit: Tathaga, Chinese: 真如) is “a term for ultimate reality,” but from a different perspective. The definition of Suchess contains the following: “In Yogacara/Vijnanavada, the term refers to the ultimate wisdom that is free from the subject-object distinction (grahyagrahakavikalpa). “In the Madhyamaka school, any attempt to substantiate the nature of reality is rejected, and tathata is instead identified with Emptiness and the cessation of all dichotomizing tendencies of thought.”
In other words, the ultimate wisdom in Buddhism is identified with “the cessation of all dichotomizing tendencies of thought” and “free from the subject-object distinction.”
By stating that there was “No birth or death, no defilement or purity, no addition or subtraction,” Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara showed he had ceased his “dichotomizing tendencies of thought,” thus proving that he had revealed the ultimate wisdom from within. With his inherent wisdom revealed, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara could “cognize all objects of knowledge,” thereby overcoming his “obstructions to omniscience” and therefore, his cognitive obstructions. With his cognitive obstructions removed, Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara could permanently turn away from his delusion, the cause of his “obstructions to omniscience.”
With his delusion gone, Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara could enter the path of Buddhahood, be ready to enter Nirvana, and lead a lifestyle that is “carefree, without fear and far from topsy-turvy reveries.”
Nirvana (Chinese: 涅槃), according to The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, is “in Sanskrit, ‘extinction,’ the earliest and most common term describing the soteriological goal of Buddhism.”
As an enlightened being, Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara had already entered the “nirvana with a vestige of conditions (Romanized Sanskrit: sopadhishesha-nirvana; (Chinese: 有餘涅槃),” as mentioned in Post 10.
The Nirvana that Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara entered now is known as the “Final Nirvana,” or “Nirvana without a vestige of conditions (Romanized Sanskrit: anupadhisesan-nirvana; (Chinese: 無餘涅槃,)” and started living a life that is “carefree, without fear and far from topsy-turvy reveries.”
So, how long can that lifestyle last? Let us learn it from the Buddha himself, specifically what he said in the Lotus Sūtra.
In the Lotus Sūtra, Buddha said, “Listen carefully to the Tathāgata’s secret and transcendent powers. The devas, humans, and asuras in all the worlds all think that the present Buddha, Śākyamuni, left the palace of the Śākyas, sat on the terrace of enlightenment not far from the city of Gayā, and attained anuttara-samyaksambodhi. However, O sons of a virtuous family, immeasurable, limitless, hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of nayutas of kalpas have passed since I actually attained Buddhahood. (Chinese: 汝等諦聽, 如來秘密神通之力. 一切世間天, 人, 及阿修羅, 皆謂, 今釋迦牟尼佛, 出釋氏宮, 去伽耶城不遠, 坐於道場, 得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提. 然善男子, 我實成佛已來, 無量無邊, 百千萬億那由他劫.”
Rather than elucidating the various Buddhist terms contained in the message, I would like to summarize it: “While everyone thinks that I, as Shakyamuni Buddha, was enlightened in this lifespan, the fact is that I have been a Buddha for eons upon eons.”
In other words, the reason Buddha wants everyone to turn away from delusions and attachment permanently, enter the path of Buddhahoog to become a Tathāgata is that, by gaining the ultimate wisdom and understanding “things as they are,” not only can everyone enjoy a carefree life, without fear, and “far from topsy-turvy reveries,” but also so they can enjoy this lifestyle for eons upon eons, and maybe forever.
Given that these kinds of teaching are impossible to verify for unenlightened individuals, it is therefore comforting to know that, in the Diamond Sūtra, Buddha promises that he, like all the Tathagatas before him, is “a speaker of the truth, a speaker of veracity, a speaker of thusness, a non-deceptive speaker, and an un-contradictory speaker (Chinese: 如來是真語者，實語者，如語者, 不誑語者, 不異語者) The fact that the Ultimate Reality can be verified by third parties, as discussed earlier, is a significant step toward establishing confidence in the Buddha’s teachings.
However, the path from attaining the ultimate wisdom to becoming a Tathagata may still take some time.
Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara still had to eliminate latent tendencies (Romanized Sanskrit: vasana; Chinese: 習氣); habituations accumulated over innumerable previous cycles of samsara. However, removing habituation does not require effort (Chinese: 無功用道). As long as no additional habituations are incurred, getting rid of habituations is like getting rid of the smell from an open wine barrel; it happens naturally with time.
Given that Nirvana is described as “the soteriological goal of Buddhism,” it is critical to understand it accurately. As Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara’s example shows, entering the final Nirvana represents an elevation in enlightenment and wisdom. It is certainly not to be confused with “achieved at death,” as some like to believe.
Given that Nothing but Mentality exists in the universe, the journey in Buddhism can only be mental, not physical. Buddha’s aspiration for all to enter Nirvana is, without a doubt, not an aspiration for anyone who has achieved the highest level of Buddhahood with extreme effort and time, only to be met by the death of an illusional physical body that is but a “mere projection of consciousness.”
Instead, one should understand what Nirvana extinguishes from what Buddha said in the Avatamsaka Sūtra (Chinese: 大方廣佛華嚴經): “delusions and attachments.”
As the example of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara showed, only when one can turn away permanently from delusion and attachment can one truly be “carefree and without fear, far from topsy-turvy reveries and ultimately enter Nirvana.” This is the meaning of Nirvana.
When one understands that the world exists as an illusory “mere projection of consciousness,” one realizes that having an illusional body is a burden because it is the cause of existential suffering: suffering resulting from an inevitable death that comes with birth, with aging and sickness sandwiched in between. As Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara realized, without a body, there is “no Aging and Death, no End of Aging and Death.” By becoming a Tathagata, one not only continues to exist, but exists “carefree, without fear, and far from topsy-turvy reveries” for a very, very long time, maybe forever.
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