The Awakening of Faith

The Awakening of Faith in the Mahayana is one of the most profound, concise and convincing summaries of Mahayana philosophy and metaphysics that this tradition has bequeathed to us in comparison to other Buddhism philosophy. In Mahayana Buddhism, the Buddha, transcending his mere physical form, is viewed as a boundless, beginningless and endless being, present in all times and all places, yet beyond the reach of logic or mundane conceptualisation.

The principal concern of The Awakening of Faith is to give of what the absolute reality is in Buddhism. ‘The Mind in terms of the Absolute is the one world of Reality and the essence of all phases of existence in their totality. This is, of course, another way of saying that ‘Samsara is Nirvana’. According to Asvaghosha, this ‘One Mind’ or Suchness is ‘unborn’ and ‘imperishable’ and that it is only through delusion (avidya) that all things come to be differentiated into independent existences separate from it. Since it has been made clear that the essence of all things is empty, the true Mind is eternal, permanent, immutable, pure, and self-sufficient; therefore, it is called “nonempty. The Mind as phenomena, called the Storehouse Consciousness is that in which “neither birth nor death (nirvana)”diffuses harmoniously with “birth and death (samsara),” and yet in which both are neither identical nor different.

The highest reality in Buddhism is considered by Asvaghosha to be both sunya (’empty’) and a-sunya (‘not empty’). An important distinction raised by Asvaghosha is that between the ‘essence’ of Suchness which is immutable, inconceivable, eternal etc. and the ‘attributes’ of Suchness which serve to infuse the opaqueness of samsara with the radiant influences and qualities of Buddha-nature. Ultimately, there is no real distinction between the realms of nirvana and samsara.

Asvaghosha states:  Since the Dharmakaya is the essence of corporeal form; it is capable of appearing in corporeal form because, from the beginning, corporeal form and Mind have been non-dual…. Since the essential nature of wisdom is identical with corporeal form, the essence of corporeal form, which has yet to be divided into tangible forms, is called Dharmakaya pervading everywhere. For Asvaghosha, what is immortal and what is mortal are harmoniously blended, for they are not one, nor are they separate…. herein all things are organised; hereby all things are created. He says that various magic-like manifestations (maya) of both enlightenment and non-enlightenment are aspects of the same essence. The one aspect of the World of Reality (dharmadhatu) is none other than the undifferentiated Dharmakaya, the “Essence-body” of the Tathagata. Since the essence of Mind is stuck on the Dharmakaya, it is to be called the original enlightenment. Original enlightenment, when analysed in relation to the defiled state,

 presents itself as having two attributes. One is the “Purity of Wisdom” and the other is the “Supranational Functions.” Purity of Wisdom, By virtue of the permeation (vasana, perfuming) of the influence of dharma (original enlightenment), a man comes to truly discipline himself and fulfils all expedient means; as a result, he breaks through the compound consciousness [the Storehouse Consciousness that contains both enlightenment and non-enlightenment, puts an end to the manifestation of the stream of (deluded) mind, and manifests the Dharmakaya, for his wisdom (prajna) becomes genuine and pure. Supranational Functions is capable of creating all manner of excellent conditions because his wisdom is pure. The Characteristics of the Essence of Enlightenment are a mirror, which is really empty, a mirror, influencing (vasana) (all men to advance to-ward enlightenment), serving as the primary cause, a mirror that is free from (defiled) objects, a mirror influencing (a man to cultivate his capacity for goodness), serving as a coordinating cause (to encourage him in his endeavours). Differences exist between the states of enlightenment and non-enlightenment, and between the magic-like manifestations of Suchness manifested in accordance with the mentality of men in defilement, and those of men in ignorance that are defiled (blinded) as to the essential nature of Suchness.

Because of not truly realizing oneness with Suchness, there emerges an unenlightened mind and, consequently, its thoughts. These thoughts do not have any validity to be substantiated; therefore, they are not independent of the original enlightenment. Its non-enlightened state produces three aspects which are bound to non-enlightenment and are inseparable from it. First is the activity of ignorance, second is the perceiving subject, and third is the world of objects. World of objects produces six aspects. First is the aspect of the intellect, depending on the (erroneously conceived) world of objects. Second is the aspect of continuity. By virtue of (the discriminating function of) the intellect, the mind produces an awareness of pleasure and pain (with regard to things) in the world of objects. Third is the aspect of attachment. Fourth is the aspect of the speculation (vikalpa) on names and letters. Fifth is the aspect of giving rise to (evil) karma. Sixth is the aspect of anxiety attached to the (effects of evil) karma, (The mentality) which emerges in the state of non-enlightenment, which (incorrectly) perceives and reproduces (the world of objects) and, conceiving that the (reproduced) world of objects is real, continues to develop (deluded) thoughts, is what we define as mind.

Asvaghosha’s notion is that the human state lies at the intersection of the Absolute and Relative orders; in other words, that sentient beings, by nature, are able to participate in both realms. The state of man belongs intrinsically to the Absolute and yet, in actuality, remains in the phenomenal, finite and profane order, is expressed in terms of the tathagata-garbha. The tathagata-garbha is the Dharmakaya immanent within all sentient beings and the phenomenal order, the intrinsic Buddha-nature in its latent form awaiting its full flowering into enlightenment, which has yet to be realized.

Therefore, man is originally enlightened or saved but because he does not realize this, he continues to suffer and wander aimlessly in samsara seeking illumination and deliverance in places other than where it is to be truly found. If it were not for the constant presence of the tathagata-garbha in all-sentient beings, their eventual enlightenment would not be possible. A man is in samsara results from the fact that his mind and consciousness develop on the ground of the Storehouse Consciousness. However, even though, the principle of Suchness in men is absolutely pure in its essential nature, it is filled with innumerable impurity of defilements effectively obscuring it from our consciousness and realization. Identifying Buddha’s-nature with the Dharmakaya, the innermost reality of all ordinary beings is Suchness itself and that it is this reality that expresses itself in the minds of deluded beings.

In samsara, two categories may be distinguished. The one is “crude,” for united with the mind; the other is “subtle,” for disunited from the mind, It may be said that there is the principle of Suchness and that it can permeate into ignorance. Through the force of this permeation, Suchness causes the deluded mind to loathe the suffering of birth-and-death and to aspire for Nirvana. Because this mind, though still deluded, is now possessed with loathing and aspiration, it permeates into Suchness in that it induces Suchness to manifest itself. Thus a man comes to believe in his essential nature. This permeation has traditionally been understood as ‘internal permeation’. It is the inner urge of Suchness in man to emerge, so to speak, from the state of unawareness to the state of awareness. It is an internal movement of Suchness within, from potential to actual, or from essence to existence, so that essence permeates into existence, or nirvana into samsara. Suchness within original enlightenment, is constantly asserting itself in order to be actualised by breaking through the wall of ignorance. One can see that the initiative for seeking enlightenment can only come from Enlightenment itself. Strictly speaking, our limited egos can contribute nothing to this process because they are ultimately insubstantial and unreal – ’empty’ of self-being and thus incapable of generating light out of darkness.

Asvaghosha’s belief that the ultimate reality, being fundamentally non-dual with that which appears to be its complete opposite, can invest any form with its presence and light as a means of making itself known. Although all existence is a conditioned manifestation of Suchness and can, in principle at least, awaken prajna if the proper meditations are performed, the Name has been particularly singled-out by the Buddha as a more direct and efficacious means of providing that very same insight without us having to rely on our own imagined strength or wisdom. In other words, to use the expressions of The Awakening of Faith, Suchness – in the form of the Name – ‘permeates’ or ‘perfumes’ the hearts and minds of deluded beings in order to awaken us and to the realization that all things possess Buddha-nature, being none other than forms and reflections of Suchness itself in the ‘samsaric’ world of relativity and limitation.

Three types of aspiration for enlightenment can be distinguished from Buddha. The first is the aspiration for enlightenment through the perfection of faith. The second is the aspiration for enlightenment through understanding and through deeds. The third is the aspiration for enlightenment through insight.

The basic Buddhist concepts base on Four Noble Truths: – life is suffering mentally and physically in the forms of sickness, injuries, aging, death, tiredness, anger, loneliness, frustration, fear and anxiety, etc.; craving causes all these suffering. A self-centred person with continuous wanting from others will cause mental unhappiness. In turn, it will cause physical exhaust and fatigue in life; all sufferings can be overcome and avoided. When one gives up endless wanting and endures problems that life evolves without fear, hatred and anger, happiness and freedom will then be obtained. Overcome the mentality of self-centre and selfishness, one will then spends time in meeting others needs and feels life more fulfilled and there is a Noble Eightfold path leading to overcome the suffering. The Eightfold path includes Perfect Understanding, Perfect Thought, Perfect Speech, Perfect Action, Perfect Livelihood, Perfect Effort, Perfect Mindfulness and Perfect Concentration. Buddhist practices the above in developing spiritually into a perfect person. This is said to lead one into the ultimate happiness in life and even afterlife. Buddhism also promotes code of conduct in life.

That is what they call Five Precepts of avoiding killing, stealing, indulging, lying and alcohol drinking. Buddhist teaching introduces the way and concepts of meditation, rebirth, intellectual development and comparisons. It leads to self-understanding, instead of blind believing. The enlightenment concept of awakening of faith conveys the Buddhism teaching. Because in Buddhism, A Buddha is considered to be a person who discovers the true nature of reality through years of study, investigation of the various religious practices of his time, and meditation. This transformational discovery is called bodhi or “enlightenment”. Buddhism has the characteristics of what would be expected in a cosmic religion for the future: it transcends a personal God avoids dogmas and theology; it covers both the natural & spiritual, and it is based on a religious sense aspiring from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity.

Mahayana Buddhism shows a great deal of doctrinal variation and development over time, and even more variation in terms of practice. While there is much agreement on general principles, there is disagreement. In Buddhist teaching, there is no aggressive promotion of Buddhism or strong rejection of other religions. All these make Buddhism fall into the same scope of Confucianism and Taoist. Its ability to co-exist with any other religions makes it being developed into one of the largest religions in China.

    When looking at historical perspective, Chinese never accepted Buddhism philosophy, at least not in its purely Indian form. Legends abound Indians such as Bodhidharma introducing various forms of Buddhism to China, but these tales tell us little about the gradual textural changes which result when the yeast of a foreign view of being penetrates and permeates the life of a nation as already rich and diversified as medieval China. When Buddhism first entered China from India two thousand years ago, Chinese viewed Buddhism as an exotic and dangerous challenge to the social and ethical Chinese civil order. In the fifth century AD, Buddhism began to extricate itself from its quasi-Daoist pigeonhole by clarifying definitive differences between Buddhist and Daoist thought, shedding Daoist vocabulary and literary styles while developing new distinctively Buddhist terminology and genres. By the sixth century, the Chinese had been introduced to a vast array of Buddhist theories and practices representing a wide range of Indian Buddhist schools.

Major issues these schools share in common include Buddha-nature, mind, emptiness, tathāgatagarbha, expedient means (upaya), overcoming birth and death, and enlightenment. The Indian Buddhist could easily embrace the kind of deferred gratification prescribed in meditation (meditate and fast moderately now; attain Nirvana later). The Chinese, immersed in a tradition which celebrated hard work and a satisfying life of the senses–including the sense of humor–undoubtedly chuckled at this and other attitudes and practices which seemed other-worldly and irrelevant to day-to-day life. Buddhism in China is quite different from Indian Buddhism in much respect. Chinese believe everyone has a soul, while the Indians don’t believe in souls. Another stark difference is that the Chinese worship the dead and images of their loved ones, while the Indians are disgusted with the dead.

According to Buddhism, there are no “wrong” religions; because eventually they all lead to “enlightenment”, so a person can be of any religion can also be a Buddhist. Therefore there are no “rules” as to what god to worship, or what to do to actually get to “enlightenment”. Both cultures do adhere to the “writings” of Buddha, but don’t worship him anymore because “he is gone” and they only want his state of mind.

Once we are able to accept, admittedly after much struggle and travail, the Primal vow into our lives, we leave ourselves open to its complete embrace which serves to guide us through the stormy ocean of ‘samsara’ towards the blissful shores of the Land of Light wherein all the ‘ice’ of our doubts, anxieties and shortcomings are finally transformed into the soothing waters of emancipation.

References:

1) Hakeda, Yoshito S., trans. Awakening of Faith Attributed to Asvaghosha, Columbia University Press, 1967.

                                                     2) Richard, Timothy, The Awakening of Faith in the Mahāyāna Doctrine—the New Buddhism, 1907                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  3) Walpola Rahula. What the Buddha Taught. Grove Press, 1974..

4) K. Sri Dhammananda, What Buddhists Believe. Buddhist Mission Society of Malaysia. (1964)