The Buddha Nature: A Study of the Tathāgatagarbha and ĀlayavijñānaOne of the fundamental tenets of Mahayana Buddhism animating and grounding the doctrine and discipline of its spiritual path, is the inherent potentiality of all animate beings to attain the supreme and perfect enlightenment of Buddhahood. This book examines the ontological presuppositions and the corresponding soteriological-epistemological principles that sustain and define such a theory. Within the field of Buddhist studies, such a work provides a comprehensive context in which to interpret the influence and major insights of the various Buddhist schools. Thus, the dynamics of the Buddha Nature, though non-thematic and implicit, is at the heart of Zen praxis, while it is a significant articulation in Kegon, Tendai, and Shingon thought. More specifically, the book seeks to establish a coherent metaphysics of absolute suchness (Tathata), synthesizing the variant traditions of the Tathagata-embryo (Tathagatagarbha) and the Storehouse Consciousness (Alayavijnana).The books` contribution to the broader field of the History of Religions rests in its presentation and analysis of the Buddhist Enlightenment as the salvific-transformational moment in which Tathata `awakens` to itself, comes to perfect slef-realization as the Absolute suchness of reality, in and through phenomenal human consciousness. The book is an interpretation of the Buddhist Path as the spontaneous self-emergence of `embryonic` absolute knowledge as it comes to free itself from the concealments of adventitious defilements, and possess itself in fully self-explicitated self-consciousness as the `Highest Truth` and unconditional nature of all existence; it does so only in the form of omniscient wisdom. |
Contents
THE RATNAGOTRAVIBHĀGA 4367 | 43 |
69100 | 69 |
FURTHER CHARACTERISTICS OF THE EMBRYO 101123 | 101 |
NINE ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE GARBHA 125134 | 125 |
THE TATHAGATAGARBHA AND ŚŪNYATA 135159 | 135 |
THE PROPERTIES OF THE BUDDHA 161176 | 161 |
PART | 177 |
THE CHENG WEISHIH LUN 195211 | 195 |
THE ALAYAVIJÑĀNA AND IGNORANCE 213226 | 213 |
THE HOLY PATH OF ATTAINMENT 227244 | 227 |
PART THREE | 245 |
Numerical Listings from the SriMālā Sūtra | 293 |
Numerical Listings from the Cheng | 299 |
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Common terms and phrases
Absolute Body Dharmakaya absolute consciousness Absolute Suchness Tathata activity adventitious defilements Alaya Alayavijñāna antidote Arhats ātman attain bhūmi bijas Bodhisattva Body Dharmakāya Buddha natures Buddhahood Buddhist Ch'eng Wei-Shih Lun chapter Cittaprakṛti conception condition defined Dharmadhātu Dharmakaya dharmas dhātu dynamic embryo emptiness enlightenment essence essential nature forms fundamental garbha gotra ground human consciousness Ibid identity ignorance Illustrious Doctrine impermanence impure inherent Innate Mind Innate Pure interpretation knowledge Lankāvatāra latter Mahāyāna manas manifestation manovijñāna modalities mode Nāgārjuna nescience entrenchment ness nirmalā nirvāṇa Noble Truths noetic non-dual non-substantiality object ontic ontic subject ontological pāramitās paratantra parikalpita path perceived perception perfect phenomenal consciousness phenomenal existence prajñā Prajñāpāramitā Pratyekabuddhas purity Ratna Ratnagotra Ratnagotravibhāga reality realization samalā samsāra śästra self-consciousness self-subsistent sentient skandhas Śrāvakas Śri-Mālā Sūtra stage status suffering Śūnyatā supreme eternity Sutra svabhāva Takasaki Tathā Tathāgata Tathāgata-embryo Tathāgatagarbha Tathāgatagarbha Tathata things tion trans transformation ultimate unconditional universal Vehicle vijñāna virtue void Wayman