Bro Teoh’s 27 August 2019 Tuesday class

Brother Teoh’s 27 Aug 2019 Tuesday Class outline Short Notes

Book Reference: The Buddha and His Teachings by Narada (Chapter 39 – The State of an Arahant, Page 560; and Chapter 40 – The Bodhisattva Ideal, Page 565)

1. This so called living being (5 aggregates of form and mind) is just a karmically conditioned ‘vehicle and tool’ for us to come to this existential world to live life, develop the cultivation and experience the beauty and wonders of life; to use it with wisdom to arise the right thoughts, right speeches, and right actions to be a blessing to all and not be deluded by it. For those without wisdom it is for them to come and pay back their karma.
2. There 3 category of enlightenment:
   1. Sāvaka­Bodhi
      – sound hearer, sainthood way leading to the Arahant ideal.
   2. Pacceka­Bodhi

      – awaken to the 12-links / condition-arising Dharma on their own (without the help of sasana)

      – Difficult for other beings to understand as there’s no existing framework/structure/foundation to teach the dharma understood by them.  

   3. Sammā­Sambodhi

      –  Those cultivating the Bodhisattva way leading to the Bodhisattva ideal of realizing samma Sambuddhahood.

       

3. 10 Dhamma realms:
   1. Realms 1-6 (covers the 31 planes of existence of the Theravada tradition)
   2. Realm 7 (realm of Sound Hearers)
   3. Realm 8 (realm of Pacceka Buddhas)
   4. Realm 9 (realm of Bodhisattvas)
   5. Realm 10 (realm of Samma Sambuddhas)

       

4. There are 3 types of Bodhisattva ways of cultivation:
   1. Emphasised Panna/Wisdom perfection (perfected over 4 world cycles)
   2. Emphasised Viriya/Spiritual Zeal perfection (perfected over 8 world cycles)
   3. Emphasised Saddha/Faith perfection (perfected over 12 world cycles)
5. All 5 spiritual faculties (Saddha, Viriya, Sati, Samadhi and Panna) are crucial mind states needed for cultivation (to enable us to understand spiritual teaching of the Buddha). Building on top of each one until they become Balas (or powers) to aid us in times of tribulations.

    

6. Sis Tammy asks about the true meaning of defining “this ‘form and mind’ as non-self, yet not no-self and nothingness” as stated in our last Thursday class outline short notes.

7. Bro Teoh clarifies further that, within the conditioned world/phenomena world of consciousness of ours, there is such a thing as life. There is such a thing as a human being within the conditioned world but this human being is nothing but just a fleeting or a momentary condition-arising causal phenomenon which is not so real (not a permanent unchanging entity) which is subject to karma. As real as it can be, it is only within the moment. Moment to moment, life passes by and that Present moment is the only reality because the past is already gone and future yet to come. Yet how stable is the present moment? As real as it can be, split second the moment is ‘dead’ and gone. This is the true meaning of empty nature of existence.

    

8. Yet, if we have the wisdom to make use of our good and blessed life for the good of the many, to continue our cultivation and to fulfil our vows then this form and mind (of our this “segmented life”) can serve us well to enable us to live the beautiful 3^rd phase of dharma – Pativedha, the noble life.

9. Understanding the wisdom of both the conditioned and the unconditioned dharma, we will know how to truly live. Even though anatta/empty, but there is such a thing as “life” within the conditioned world. This is the reason why it is not no-self and nothingness. There are things but they are not so real. It is just a phenomena world of consciousness. Dependent originating.

    

10. Sis Tammy asks about her observation of the 6 senses and an inkling she has that it is distant or disassociated from the self.
11. Bro Teoh implores us all to enquire deep into all our senses experiences (which forms our experiences of the world), and how the form and mind functions with the sense bases and the mundane mind.

12. Inquire how do we know the world and how do we interact with the world? Through our senses right? And what is thought? Who thinks and what thinks? Is there a ‘thinker’ behind the thought? Silent your mind to find out. Find out what the “mind” is, and discern the true mind.

13. Only after investigating deep into our nature to understand clearly who are you and what are you? E.g. how do we know the world, will we understand the external “world” as manifestations of mind. Mind make are they and mind is the forerunner of all things. When mind arise, all things within the phenomena world arise. Exist already and everything is like real.

14. To be able to see “things as they are”/ “reality”/ “truth”, without the perception through our memory-lens is true wisdom which is truly beautiful.

    (Above outline short notes draft was prepared by Sis Soo Yee) – Sadhu! And very good!
    

With metta always,