Wheel of Life
Gather up and cast away Engage in the Buddha’s teaching. Like a great elephant in a house of mud, Conquer the Lord of Death’s battalions.
Whoever with great conscientiousness Practises this discipline of the Dharma, Abandoning the wheel of births, Will make an end to suffering.
Reference text: Steps on the Path to Enlightenment by Geshe Lhundub
Download the slides: http://www.fpmtabc.org/download/teaching/zmisc/ Wheel of Life
Causes of cyclic existence - Three animals symbolising the three afflictions - White and black karma
Environments that one can take rebirth in - Six types of transmigratory beings
Manner in which one cycles in cyclic existence - Twelve links of dependent originations Ignorance ~ blind old man
Comes from Latin word “ ignarus” which means Not Knowing
• Conception that is contradictory and incompatible with wisdom
• Not just ‘Not a friend’ but is your worst enemy
• Looking at the body and mind then imputing a real, independent and substantial person
• Arising the thoughts “mine” and “others”
• Projecting a real, independent and substantial other phenomena
• Causes affliction to arise: Attachment and Aversion
• Afflictions: an inner mental event whose nature is to disturb or unsettle the mental state Ignorance
Asanga’s Compendium of Knowledge : 2 types of Ignorance
• Not knowing about cause and effect of karma and its result - non virtuous actions, lower rebirths
• Not knowing reality, engage in virtuous actions motivated by an interest to gratify a self - higher rebirths
Antidote : Wisdom realising selflessness Formative activity ~ potter making earthenware
Actions that arises out of ignorance : Karma of body, speech and mind Karma is intention and intended action : mental
Non virtuous karma • Ten non virtues e.g.. killing, stealing, lying • Lower rebirths e.g. hell, hungry ghost or animal
Virtuous karma • Practicing giving, patience, ethical conduct • higher rebirths of desire realm e.g. human, desire realm devas
• Immovable karma eg. cultivating meditative states such as single minded concentration • rebirths in form or formless realm e.g. devas of form and formless realm Formative activity
Heaviness of karma depends on the action, motivation, object to which it is done and frequency.
Formative activity refers to Projecting Karma which propels us to take rebirth in cyclic existence - seed
Completing Karma or Actualising Karma is the supporting condition which brings the seed to fruition. Consciousness - casual ~monkey swinging from tree to tree
Mental consciousness divided into two
Casual consciousness - receives the impression deposited by a seeding action (nonvirtuous) - seed leaves a potential to experience suffering in future
Resultant consciousness - first moment of casual consciousness when it ripens to produce a new unpleasant rebirth Name and form ~ people sitting in a boat
Name - non- physical parts of mind-body - feeling, discrimination,compositional factors, consciousness - basis for naming
Form - body, blood and semen
Except for formless realm, all have 5 aggregates
Name and form refers to the moment of conception when 5 aggregates come together and before the six sense organs developed - in tibetan there are 5 stages
- resultant consciousness joins fertilised ovum - small soft mass - grows longer into oval shape - grows longer and harder and more substantial - develop limps and have 5 bumps Six Sense bases ~empty house with six windows
Body organs fully developed - eye, ear, nose, tongue, tactile organs - empowering condition for the arising of the six consciousness
Develops capability to experience an object through coming together of sense organs, object and consciousness
Gradual development for beings born from womb, egg or warmth and moisture
Miraculous birth e.g. devas and beings in intermediate state - sense faculties fully manifested at birth Contact ~ couple embracing
Sense faculty, an object and a moment of consciousness meets - Object will be distinguished as attractive, unattractive or neutral
Six kind of contacts - tactile, visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, mental Feeling ~ person whose eye is pierced by an arrow
- pleasant, unpleasant or neutral feeling
- when feeling has arisen, entire experience is complete
- ripening of previous karmic seed
- Eg. human being as an experiencer has 2 parts - physical and mental
Form and formless realm beings - pleasant and peaceful feeling
Lower realms - suffering feeling
Humans and some other desire realm beings - mixed feeling Craving ~alcoholic
Feeling + ignorance about the object = craving for pleasant feeling, aversion for unpleasant feeling - object perceived in a distorted way
Not all craving or desire are bad e.g. desire of bodhisattva to liberate others - this desire is free of ignorance or other afflictions
Once ignorance is cut out from its root e.g. arhat and buddha - blissful feeling but no craving Craving
How the links operates as a chain
Previous set of causes - ignorance, karma, etc culminates in feeling
Carving starts a whole new set of cause and result - motivates action which produces karma
Different type of craving : desire, form , formless realm Desire realm beings : attached to sense feeling Form realm beings : attached to the blissful feeling of meditation Formless realm beings: attached to the deep, peaceful feeling of meditation
Cravings plays a key role in deciding our samsaric experiences Grasping ~monkey plucking fruit Intensified form of craving that has power to bring forth its result immediately
4 types of grasping
Grasping out of desire, attachment to sensory objects - form, sound, smell, taste, touch
Grasping for views - various types of wrong views e.g. no cause and effect
Grasping for mistaken morality and ascetics - mistaken system of ethics or behaviour will lead to freedom e.g. animal sacrifices
Grasping for a self - holding mental and physical aggregates as real I, view of transitory collections - all other afflictions arise from this e.g. attachment, pride, jealousy
Karmic seeds are moistened by craving and grasping Arhat have dry karmic seeds - not moistened by craving and grasping Existence ~pregnant woman
Seed planted in second link is moistened by craving and grasping ready to be fruit - just need warmth, Mental karma - refers to moment just before rebirth happens, the name Existence is given to the result
Craving and grasping must be of the same level that you are going to be born.
Example If you are going to be reborn in lower realm your last thought must be non virtuous.
If you are going to be born in the first concentration of the formless realm, your afflictions must be of the first concentration Existence - Samsaric Rebirth
Afflictions Karma
Seeding Ignorance Formative Activity
Mental thought Craving & Germination at time of Grasping Death Birth ~ newborn baby First moment when the consciousness enters its new body is “birth”
- from womb, egg, heat and moisture, miraculous
Hell beings, devas and intermediate stage beings - miraculous birth
Hungry ghosts - miraculous and womb
Humans and animals - all four types Aging and Death ~ person carrying a corpse on his back
Second moment of birth - ageing starts all way till death
Aging is the maturation of the aggregates, unstoppable change they undergo every moment
Death is the cessation of the continuum of that identical set of aggregates, severe pain and sorrow Question
For an object that has fluidity
It can be experienced as water by human - neutral blood and pus by hungry ghosts - unattractive and nectar by gods - attractive
Question: Are various modes of existence for the same object real for these beings in their respective realms?
Example of eating durian mousse Condense Presentation
Four types
1.Projecting factors - ignorance, formative activity, consciousness
2.Projected effects - name and form, six sense bases, contact, feeling
3.Actualising factors - craving, grasping, existence
4.Actualised effects - birth, aging and death
Every life requires all six causes and includes all six results
Minimum of how many lives to complete the 12 link? Condense Presentation
Projected effects means they remain in a state of potentiality until they meet the actualising factors
Projected effects become suffering factors at some point in future, maybe several life time later
Actualised effects ripens immediately in the next life
Every causal relationship requires a primary cause and a secondary actualising condition
Two types of causes are necessary for cyclic existence
Projected and actualised effects are “ mixed” together Condense Presentation
Example
Birth, Name and form starts at the same time
When six sense bases, contact, feeling are operating, aging is happening too.
Shows how different causes bring about different suffering effects
Endless Chain - In this life experience the results of previous ignorance and karma but at the same time creating the cause for another rebirth. Example ~ Plant
Example of farmer who plants a crop
Causes Farmer ~ ignorance Seeds ~ formative activities Field ~ consciousness
Does not mean the seed will grow e.g. seeds plant in winter will only grow in spring
Craving ~ fertiliser Grasping ~ water Existence ~ warmth
Effects Sprout ~ name and form Shoots ~ six sense bases Fully grown plant and flower ~ contact Fruit ~ birth Fruit starts to decay ~ aging and death
Note: Name and form should happen at the same time as birth From the fruits, seeds are produced which produce more rounds of effects Completion of 12 links in 2 lifetimes
Example of rebirth in lower realm
Ignorance + Strong negative karma = imprint of non virtue ~ projecting causes
In same life just before death Imprint nurtured by Craving + Grasping + Existence ~actualising causes
All six causes completed in same lifetime
Next life will experience the six results - four projected results - two actualised results
Minimum number of lifetime for one cycle to complete is 2 Completion of 12 links in 3 lifetimes
Example of rebirth in lower realm
First life Ignorance + Strong negative karma = imprint of non virtue ~ projecting causes
At the end of first life, imprint to go lower realm was not nurture but another positive imprint was nurtured so rebirth as human
At the end of Second life as human, Negative imprint from first life nurtured by Craving + Grasping + Existence ~ actualising causes All six causes completed so next life reborn in lower realm
Third life he will get the aggregates of lower realm beings and experience the six results - four projected results - two actualised results
Don’t need more than 3 lifetime to complete one cycle of 12 links Qualm
There can be a long interval of many eons between the first and second life. Many other cycles of 12 links can take place
Usual presentation of 12 links - not indicative of how the 12 links is completed - shows how we come from previous life into this life and how we are going to the next - it shows the 12 links of 2 different cycles, shows how we are chain in samsara
The factor of craving which is the actualising factor and feeling which gives rise to craving are not the same sequence of dependent arising. One Complete 12 link Projected effects
10. Feeling
Actualised effects 9. Contact
12. Aging 8. Six Sense bases & Death
11. Birth 7. Name & Form
6. Existence Actualising factors 5. Grasping 4. Craving 3. Consciousness Projecting factors 2. Formative activity 1. Ignorance One complete 12 link Projected effects
10. Feeling
9. Contact Actualised effects
12. Aging 8. Six Sense bases & Death
11. Birth 7. Name & Form
6. Existence Actualising factors 5. Grasping 4. Craving 3. Consciousness Projecting factors 2. Formative activity 1. Ignorance Wheel of Life
12. Aging 1. Ignorance & Death
2. Formative activity 11. Birth
3. Consciousness 6. Existence
7. Name & Form
5. Grasping 8. Six Sense bases
9. Contact 4. Craving 10. Feeling Heart of Dependent Arising
Three afflictions - ignorance, craving, grasping
Two karma - formative activity, existence
Seven effects - consciousness, name and form, six sense bases, contact, feeling, birth, aging and death
From the three arise the two,
From the two the seven arise,
And from the seven three arise,
That is the wheel of life, going round and round.
~ Arya Nagarjuna Tantra Requested by Subaru
Path of dependent origination destroys ignorance
Destroys wrong view about the past - denying existence has a cause - imputing a wrong cause ~ eternal divine creator ~ permanent pervasive principle
Destroys wrong view about the future - there is no future life
Destroys wrong view about the present - the cause you create in this life will have no result - nihilism Benefits
Thought of renunciation - suffering and its causes, karma & afflictions - key to Hinayana, Mahayana, Tantrayana
3 scopes of Lam Rim (Lamp of Path to Enlightenment) Lower scope - apply 12 links to birth in 3 lower realms - best protection is taking refuge in three Jewels, ethical conduct
Middle scope - Apply 12 links to higher rebirths, still suffering due to karma and afflictions - root of cyclic existence is ignorance - meditate on 4 Noble truths, direct realisation of emptiness of self
Higher scope - all sentient beings are like us suffering and had been our close relations - develop compassion and love for them - obtain buddhahood in order to liberate them Emptiness
Self No absolute self who is a creator of the karma - projecting and actualising causes are impermanent
No absolute self who is experiencer of the karma - projected and actualised effects are impermanent
On the changing factors of body and mind we impute I No independent absolute creator of karma or experiencer of result
Phenomena Everything in this world is not independent as they appear - depends on parts - depends on causes and conditions
Emptiness of an absolute, independent mode of existence for all phenomena How to practise
First - need to develop confidence,faith in teaching through understanding
Second - need to be familiar through meditation
Third - need to gain experience on how it works Process is unfolding everywhere where you find joy, pain, sorrow, agitation, aging, sickness
Through listening and reading we gain some understanding - planted the seeds
Need to actualised seeds into wisdom directly seeing truth - meditation on dependent origination, best antidote to ignorance - apply it to real life situations - transform our behaviour