Doctrinally, the vimalakirti sutra elaborates ideas deriving from the. This pdf file may be printed and distributed according to the terms of use. The vimalakirti sutra is written in northern india about 100 ce. The goddess chapter of the vimalakirti sutra, online 523. The vimalakirti nirdesa sutra teaches that the bodhisattva ideal of the selfless hand is a path to liberating ones self and others from unsatisfactoriness. Jpn yuimakyo a mahayana sutra about the wealthy layman vimalakirti in vaishali, translated into chinese in 406 by kumarajiva. A commentary on the sutra that vimalakirti speaks by zen teacher joan sutherland, roshi is a timeless meditation on developing a peaceful and generous heart in a world of sorrows, and on how the awakening of each of us is an inextricable part of the awakening of the world. Best known for vimalakirti s thunderous silence that appears in the zen koan collections, the text also has a famous chapter in which a beautiful goddess switches bodies with sariputra, so that she becomes him and he to hisher great consternation. To inquire after his health, the king, the officials, the lords, the youths, the aristocrats, the householders, the businessmen, the townfolk, the countryfolk, and thousands of other living beings came forth from the great city of. Descriptions of fantastic spectacle, verbal contests, and even slapstick humour, all revolve around vimalakirti. According to the vimalakirti sutra sutra means scripture, vimalakirti was a wealthy layperson or householder who was one of the buddhas leading lay disciples. Images of scroll from the metropolitan museum of art northern song dynasty 9601127 gold and silver on purple silk 11 in. How to survive alone in the wilderness for 1 week eastern woodlands duration. Table of contents a complete buddhist sutra collection.
Dosung yoo examines the sutra phrase by phrase, using rich explanations and metaphors drawn from korean folklore, quantum physics, charles dickens, and everything in between to clarify subtle concepts for the. The goddess chapter of the vimalakirti sutra with zoketsu norman fischer the well known vimalakirti sutra is foundational in zen. All that is left is silence, perhaps even a thunderous silence like that of vimalakirti in the vimalakirti nirdesa. Wisdom publications heart sutra with commentary by the 14th dalai lama 2005 doosun yoo thunderous silence. The goddess chapter of the vimalakirti sutra on allevents. The vimalakirti nirdesa sutra translated and edited from the chinese kumarajiva ed. In the last four chapters the scene shifts back to vaisali where the buddha is teaching. At one time the lord buddha was in residence in the garden of amrapali, in the city of. Vimalakirti sutra it places a figure from the merchant class of the hindu caste system as more insightful than buddhas foremost monks or beggars.
It is so insubstantial, perishable, shortlived, painful, filled with diseases, and subject to changes. Up till here, the stage was set for a great discussion at vimalakirtis house. The most famous section might be the one where vimalakirti keeps silent expressing the lions roar of big enlightenment in chapter 9 the dharma door of nonduality in comparison to sariputra who falls silent in order to point to the fact that liberation cannot be expressed by words. Through studying the vimalakirti sutra, we can clearly see that to some extent, many tantric. Expository commentary on the vimalakirti sutra bdk america. It contains a report of a teaching addressed to both arhats and bodhisattvas by the layman vimalakirti undefiled reputation, who expounds the doctrine of sunyata, or emptiness, to them. The full text of the the vimalakirti nirdesa sutra in english is available here and publically accesible free to read online. An ancient buddhist model for todays world huffpost.
Amrapali was a famously accomplished courtesan, ascribed in narrative with various. Venerable thubten chodron begins a series of teachings on the vimalakirti sutra at vimalakirti buddhist center in singapore. Paradoxically paradox is one of its methods it also fascinates as literature. The vimalakirti sutra is a brief and popular scripture and is considered one of the most profound and literarily excellent of all the indian mahayana sutras. This is the famous thunderous silence of vimalakirti and the highpoint of the sutra. It is a teaching with a message of social engagement based on the core buddhist principles of compassion and generosity. Up till here, the stage was set for a great discussion at vimalakirti s house. Download the bible, the holy quran, the mahabharata, and thousands of free pdf ebooks on buddhism, meditation, etc. Because the teaching of the vimalakirti sutra goes back and forth. Thich nhat hanh sounds true audio cd the holy teaching of vimalakirti. The vimalakirti sutra vimalakirtinirdesasutra is renowned in contemporary world buddhism for its breathtaking exposition of the mahayana doctrine of nonduality, and justifiably so. In vimalakirti s house, the discussion centered around the need for a bodhisattva to engage the world in order to attain ultimate wisdom. The vimalakirti sutra is a repository of deep principles.
The vimalakirti sutra can be summarised as follows chapter 1. It reveals the mahayana tradition as one wherein nonmonks beggars and women played a large role in the movement. The sutra of queen srimala of the lions roar and the vimalakirti sutra pdf. The ancient 100page sutra teaches the meaning of nonduality among other themes. The lecture notes of chapter three of the vimalakirti sutra. Best of all, if after reading an ebook, you buy a paper version of thunderous silence. The phantom city of the lotus sutra, the lions roar of queen srimala, and vimalakirti s thunderous silence dont strike us as so outlandish anymore, but rather as descriptions of occurrences that we now become more conscious of. At that time, out of this very skill in liberative technique, vimalakirti manifested himself as if sick. He is featured in the vimalakirti nirdesha sutra, the sutra of displays or teachings of vimalakirti, one of the older mahayana sutras, dating back at least to the first or second century. You can see all this books content by visiting the pages in the below index. Vimalakirti, 8th century wall painting, dunhuang vimalakirti sanskrit. The park is wider to accommodate manjusri and vimalakirti and their large group magically transported back to buddha.
Wisdom publications english translation of the heart sutra with korean seon commentary 20. An important aspect of this scripture is that it contains a report of a teaching addressed to both arhats and bodhisattvas by the layman vimalakirti, who expounds the doctrine of sunyata, or emptiness, to them. The pure and clean buddha land, silence with neither word nor speech, neither pointing, discerning, action nor activity. After all those bodhisattvas statements on nonduality, ending with vimalakirti s thunderous silence, we have come to inhabit a rarefied world where all dualistic distinctions are refined away to nothing. No part of this site or information contained herein may. The well known vimalakitri sutra is foundational in zen. No part of this site or information contained herein may be copied, reproduced, duplicated. This is vimalakirti s great thunderous silence and the high point of the sutra. Feb 07, 2017 venerable thubten chodron begins a series of teachings on the vimalakirti sutra at vimalakirti buddhist center in singapore. An important aspect of this text is that it contains a report of a teaching addressed to both arhats and bodhisattvas by the layman vimalakirti, who. The doctrine of non duality in the vimalakirti nirdesa sutra.
You, lay person, can know the enlightenment of the buddhas. This is followed by the episode in which the emanated incarnation travels. At the time, worldhonored one, i simply listened to this explanation in silence and was. Thus, my friends, as this body is only a vessel of many sicknesses, wise men do not rely on it. Vimalakirti sutra by buddhism now on 4 july 2014 1. The lankavatara sutra buddhistische gesellschaft berlin. Friends, this body is so impermanent, fragile, unworthy of confidence, and feeble. He is featured in the vimalakirti nirdesha sutra, the sutra of displays or teachings of vimalakirti, one of the older mahayana sutras, dating back at least to the. In vimalakirtis house, the discussion centered around the need for a bodhisattva to engage the world in order to attain ultimate wisdom. In this episode professor thurman expounds the profound teaching, contained in the fifth chapter of the famous vimalakirti sutra, which he translated and has been teaching for nearly forty years. It stands out for its conciseness, its vivid and humorous episodes, and its dramatic narratives as well as its profound teachings.
An important aspect of this text is that it contains a report of a teaching addressed to both arhats and bodhisattvas by the layman vimalakirti, who expounds the doctrine of sunyata, or. A talk on the vimalakirti sutra the great love talks on the vimalakirti sutra vimalakirti s gate of nonduality the holy teaching of vimalakirti vimalakirtinirdesa sutra vimalakirti s view on almsgiving and overcomes the enemy vimalakirti nirdesa sutra. The teaching of vimalakirti minnesota zen meditation center. As sangharakshita puts it in what is the dharma, one may be as eloquent and insightful as one likes, but shunyata will always remain ultimately a mystery, even the. Thus, ananda, whatever the buddhas do by either revealing or concealing their aweinspiring majesty, is the work of salvation. There is no mention of him in buddhist texts until after nagarjuna 1st century. Read the book on paper it is quite a powerful experience. Bodhisattva lions roar, bodhisattva thunder sound, bodhisattva mountain form smiting. View vimalakirti sutra research papers on academia.
Northern song dynasty 9601127 gold and silver on purple silk 11 in. A practical guide to the heart sutra, isbn 9781614290537. This sutra is entirely in accord with both the mahayana and theravada traditions. Although i obviously do not have direct access to the mind of medieval chinese readers, i have made frequent use of the zhu weimojie jing taisho shinshu daizokyo vol. When manjusri and vimalakirti and their vast assembly are magically transported back to join the buddha, the park becomes larger to accommodate them. The teachings of vimalakirti minnesota zen meditation center.
This culminates with the wordless teaching of silence. Lord, when i heard this teaching, i was unable to reply and remained silent. In zen, vimalakirti s silence is referred to as thunderous, and there is much discussion about its nature. A talk on the vimalakirti sutra the great love talks on the vimalakirti sutra vimalakirtis gate of nonduality the holy teaching of vimalakirti vimalakirtinirdesa sutra vimalakirtis view on almsgiving and overcomes the enemy vimalakirti nirdesa sutra. The zen tradition is avowedly the buddhism of vimalakirtis silencea claim that is explicitly reinforced by the practice of silent meditation. The lankavatara sutra a mahayana text translated for the first time from the original sanskrit by daisetz teitaro suzuki contents preface xi introduction xiii chapter one. Here is the entire vimalakirti nirdesa sutra ebook in robert a. The main attraction of this influential mahayana text is that the most profound realizations of mahayana buddhist thought emptiness, nonduality, the bodhisattva ideal, the one vehicle, altruistic compassion, and upayaskillful means are shown, by vimalakirti s example, to be available to lay people. The full text of the vimalakirti nirdesa sutra in english is available here and publically accesible free to read online. The sutra teaches, among other subjects, the meaning of nonduality. Though the word silence might suggest a singular experience, in fact there are many possible silences. Even though he was a householder, however, his wisdom was said to exceed that of all of the.
The sutra of queen srimala of the lions roar and the vimalakirti. Dosung yoo examines the sutra phrase by phrase, using rich explanations and metaphors drawn from korean folklore, quantum physics, charles dickens, and. Purification of the buddhafield reverence to all buddhas, bodhisattvas, aryasravakas, and pratyekabuddhas, in the past, the present, and the future. From tibetan and featuring short introduction, extensive notes and glossary entries mcrae, john 2004. The full title of kumarajivas version is the sutra on the expositions of vimalakirti. Many chan poets have alluded to the thunderous silence of vimalakirti. Jun 23, 2010 an important aspect of this scripture is that it contains a report of a teaching addressed to both arhats and bodhisattvas by the layman vimalakirti, who expounds the doctrine of sunyata, or emptiness, to them. Download the entire vimalakirti sutra free pdf ebook. Each of the eight items discussed can be a subject of meditation, and each of these subjects can be further divided. Even in this setting, we may see evidence of the literary sophistication of the authors, and the foreshadowing of key themes antinomianism, female characters as literary tropes. One of the most popular asian classics for roughly two thousand years, the vimalakirti sutra stands out among the sacred texts of mahayana buddhism for its conciseness, its vivid and humorous episodes, its dramatic narratives, and its eloquent exposition of the key doctrine of emptiness or nondualism. Dec 11, 2014 the vimalakirti sutra is a repository of deep principles. They spoke fearlessly, like lions, sounding the thunder of the magnificent teaching. Thus, ananda, whatever the buddhas do by either revealing or concealing their aweinspiring.
This is one of the most powerful passages in the whole book, not least because of where it comes in the text. In the last four chapters, the scene has moved back to vaisali, where the buddha is teaching. Ananda should go in silence and get the milk for the buddhahe should not. Podcast april 29, 2016 in this podcast professor thurman explains what are buddhalands and talks about different buddhalands, based on the vimalakirti sutra, which he translated and has been teaching for nearly forty years. Thunderous silence throws light on the heart sutra a pithy encapsulation of the essence of perfection of wisdom literatureusing stopbystep analysis and an easy, conversational voice.