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Flashcards by larafcosta, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by larafcosta
over 10 years ago
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| Question | Answer |
| State the definition of the Mahayana conventional generated mind. What are its boundaries? | a Mahayana special main mental knower that arises concomitant with an accompanying aspiration observing complete enlightenment for others’ welfare and is distinguished by abiding in a class of paths that serves as the entrance to the Mahayana paths. Boundaries: from the mahyana path of accumulation until the buddha ground. |
| What are the body and mind supports of Mahayana conventional generated mind? | The body support is any of the six classes of migrating beings, and the mind support is a preparation of a concentration or an actual concentration. |
| List any five of the causes of Mahayana conventional generated mind that have been explained in the Indian treatises. | From Asanga's Bodhisattva grounds: - the four causes: 1. having an excellent lineage; 2. being guided by a spiritual guide; 3. having great compassion for sentient beings; 4. having fear of the sufferings of cyclic existence; - the four conditions: 1. seeing and hearing about the magical emanations of buddhas and bodhisattvas; 2. hearing the Mahayana scriptural baskets; 3. seeing that the Mahayana Dharma is close to decline; 4. seeing that sentient beings have many afflictions; |
| Santideva’s Compendium of Trainings (Siksasamuccaya) explains the four modes of generating the mind [of enlightenment]: | (1) having seen the exalted body of a buddha, one wonders, “What if I were to attain such [a body]?”; (2) seeing and hearing about the inconceivable strength of buddhas and bodhisattvas, and so forth; (3) not being able to bear the decline of the Mahayana teachings; and (4) not being able to bear sentient beings tormented by suffering. |
| What is the necessary motivation for the fully qualified principal generated mind that is explicitly indicated in the 1st chapter ? | what is explicitly indicated here is a fully qualified principal generated mind that acts as the support of deeds; hence it must definitely be motivated by a compassion that cannot bear sentient beings’ suffering and wishes to free them from it. |
| Explain the difference between wishing bodhicitta and engaging bodhicitta. | Engaging bodhicitta is actually conjoined with the activity of the practice of the deeds, while wishing bodhicitta is not. Being actually conjoined with a mindfulness and aspiration that seeks omniscience (at a time of actually practicing the deeds, generosity and so forth,) after having obtained the engaging vows is the meaning of a generated mind being actually conjoined with the activity of the practice of deeds. |
| wishing bodhicitta and engaging bodhicitta - What are their respective boundaries? | Wishing bodhicitta exists from the Mahayana path of accumulation through the end of the continuum. Engaging bodhicitta exists from the Mahayana path of accumulation through buddha ground. |
| The Mahayana conventional generated mind is designated by the name “desire for others’ welfare” and also by the name “desire for enlightenment.” Explain each of these designations in terms of its three attributes. | The Mahayana conventional generated mind is designated by the name “desire for others’ welfare.” The reason is the Mahayana generated mind arises from the desire seeking others’ welfare that is its cause. The purpose is to make known that “all the virtuous qualities in the continua of bodhisattvas who seek others’ welfare will increase.” The damage to fact is that it is true that whatever is a mental factor is not the generated mind. The Mahayana conventional generated mind is designated by the name “desire for enlightenment.” The reason is the Mahayana generated mind is concomitant with the desire seeking enlightenment that is its companion. The purpose is to make known that “the mind concomitant with the desire seeking enlightenment is generated in the continua of bodhisattvas.” The damage to fact is that it is true that whatever is a mental factor is not the generated mind. |
| What is the meaning of this verse from Bodhisattvacaryavatara: "As is understood by the particularities Of desiring to go and going, So the wise should understand respectively The particularities of these two." | while the general definition of the generated mind does not have the attribute of engaging, the divisions into the two [possibilities] of being and not being actually conjoined with the activity of the practice of deeds is the meaning of the above passage. / "Going" = engaging B. = actually conjoined with the activity of the practice of deeds / "Desiring to go" = wishing B. = NOT actually conjoined with the activity of the practice of deeds |
| What is the meaning of a generated mind being actually conjoined with the activity of the practice of deeds? | Being actually conjoined with a mindfulness and aspiration that seeks omniscience (at a time of actually practicing the deeds, generosity and so forth,) after having obtained the engaging vows. |
| What are the benefits of bodhicitta? | 1. the causes of bad migrations that were accumulated previously are purified, and their future continuity is severed (because one no longer creates the causes of bad migrations); 2. the causes of good migrations are newly accumulated, and those accumulated previously do not have a limit to their exhaustion (when virtues are dedicated to enlightenment, they become very powerful and there is no limit to their exhaustion); 3. becoming worthy of being paid homage by the world, including gods; 4. one will attain unsurpassable enlightenment. |
| Which of the two mind-generations are present in the continuum of a bodhisattva in meditative equipoise? | If it is a mind-generation in the continuum of a bodhisattva in meditative equipoise, it is pervaded by being wishing mind-generation. |
| What is the relationship between wishing and engaging bodhicitta? | WB and EB are mutually exclusive because one is conjoined with the practice of deeds and the other is not – so the bodhisattva has either one or the other. |
| What are the boundaries of: Conventional and ultimate bodhicitta? | Conventional bodhicitta (CB) – from path of accumulation until buddha ground / Ultimate bodhicitta (UB) – from path of seeing until buddha ground |
| Which of the two bodhicittas exists during a bodhisattva’s subsequent attainment? | WB or EB (they are mutually exclusive) |
| Which of the 2 bodhicittas is manifest during a bodhisattva’s meditative equipoise? | None - only emptiness appears. What is manifest is a wisdom directly realizing emptiness (WB is dormant – not manifest) |
| Which of the 2 bodhicittas is manifest during a bodhisattva’s subsequent attainment ? | WB, EB or none of the two (ex.:WB is dormant when the bodhisattva is sleeping). / The criteria for two things to be actually, or explicitly, conjoined, is that both must be manifest. In this case, the two things are: (i) the activity of the practice of the deeds (that which conjoins) and (ii) mind-generation (that which is conjoined). |
| Can a person who does not possess engaging vows in his/her continuum generate engaging bodhicitta? | NO – a bodhisattva that has taken the vows and then degenerated them will have only wishing bodhicitta. |
| What is the difference between the conventional and the ultimate mind of enlightenment? | We can think about the conventional and ultimate bodhicitta in the following terms: Ultimate bodhicitta – strives for the nature truth body; / Conventional bodhicitta – strives for the conventional bodies of the buddha - mind and form body. / "The difference between the two is as follows. An intention for the conventional exalted body (without intending for the mere ultimate mode of abidance of unsurpassable enlightenment) is the former. An intention for only the ultimate mode of abidance of enlightenment, in a manner of water placed in water, is the latter;" |
| What is the meaning of these 2 lines of the root text: "The generated mind is desire for/ Perfect complete enlightenment for others’ welfare." | The entity of the generated mind itself, as well as its objects of observation: Having explicitly indicated the meaning here to be the Mahayana generated mind, indicating it with the expression “desire” is for the sake of a special purpose. Merely this name implicitly indicates here the meaning of the two implied desires of others’ welfare and of enlightenment. Further, that is for the sake of making known that the desire for others’ welfare is necessary as a cause of the generated mind, and the desire for enlightenment is necessary as a companion. |
| The Mahayana conventional generated mind is designated by the name “desire for others’ welfare”. Explain this designation in terms of its three attributes. | There is not the fault of asserting a common locus [between a mental factor and the generated mind], because it is a designation by way of the three attributes being complete: The reason is the Mahayana generated mind arises from the desire seeking others’ welfare that is its cause. The purpose is to make known that “all the virtuous qualities in the continua of bodhisattvas who seek others’ welfare will increase.” The damage to fact is that it is true that whatever is a mental factor is not the generated mind. |
| The Mahayana conventional generated mind is designated by the name “desire for for enlightenment.” Explain this designation in terms of its three attributes. | The reason is the Mahayana generated mind is concomitant with the desire seeking enlightenment that is its companion. The purpose is to make known that “the mind concomitant with the desire seeking enlightenment is generated in the continua of bodhisattvas.” The damage to fact is that it is true that whatever is a mental factor is not the generated mind. |
| Explain the meaning of: "That and that are, just as in the Sutra, / Expressed briefly and extensively". | “That and that” - the 2 objects of observation: enlightenment and other’s welfare / “Sutra” – the 25000 verse PW sutra / “Expressed briefly and extensively” – in the all the 3 versions of the PW sutras there is a short and and long explanation |
| What is the meaning of “distinguished by abiding in a class of paths that serves as the door of entry into Mahayana paths”? | "Door of entry into Mahayana paths": • The door of entry is the first instant of uncontrived bodhicitta / "Abiding in a class of paths": • In order to expand the category to the 2nd, 3rd, etc., moments of bodhicitta. |
| Can beings in a formless realm generate bodhicitta? | If they have generate bodhicitta before being reborn in the formless realm - YES. If not, NO. Beings in the formless realm do not have the mental support for newly generating bodhicitta The union of CA and SI is not one of the 4 absorptions of the formless realm. / SERA ME textbook: There is no new generation of bodhicitta in the support of the formless realm, since there is no form in this realm there are no other sentient beings possessing suffering to serve as the observed objects. However, having said that there is bodhicitta on the support of the formless realm, because there is a bodhisattva who has taken rebirth there through karma and afflictions. |
| What methods are there for generating bodhicitta? | 7-fold cause and effect method / Equalizing and exchanging self and others / 11 point – a combination of the other 2 |
| Which of the two, wishing bodhicitta and engaging bodhicitta, is the bodhicitta in the continuum of a bodhisattva giving some food to a beggar? | It depends. For it to qualify as engaging bodhicitta it needs to be actually conjoined with the activity of the practice of deeds. Meaning that the following is required: a) actual presence of a mindfulness and aspiration that seeks omniscience; b) an enhanced intention to give also dawns; c) the bodhisattva has taken the engaging vows and the vows have not degenerated. If any of these is not present then it is wishing bodhicitta. |
| Explain how the 2 observed objects of bodhicitta are indicated briefly and extensively by means of method in the middle sutra. | “the Perfection of Wisdom” [method for enlightenment - brief] and “regarding all—generosity and so forth—the act of generosity, the giver, the recipient, and so forth are to be established as not observed,” [method for enlightenment - extensive] bearing the meaning that causes understanding; and “pass beyond sorrow exactly in accordance with the fortunes of all sentient beings” [method for others’ welfare - brief] and “those who desire to set the miserly and so forth in generosity and so forth, should accomplish this very Perfection of Wisdom” and so forth [method for others’ welfare - extensive]. |
| What is the substantial cause of bodhicitta? | Substantial cause – it produces a result that has a substantial continuity with it – so a substantial cause for bodhicitta needs to have a substantial continuity. / Great compassion is different from bodhicitta in terms of attributes (the observed object is not the same, etc). However, we cannot posit something else that is a main cause or even a substantial cause for bodhicitta - this presentation is from the point of view of entity, not from the point of view of attributes. Certain authors say that great compassion is the root for bodhicitta but it is not the substantial cause We can say that the main mind that is concomitant with great compassion is the substantial cause of bodhicitta, but this extra wordiness does not add anything because the main mind has no flavour beyond great compassion. |
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