Teacher Ikko Dai Ajari is Master Mikkiyo - esoteric Buddhism. In Japan, the Mikkiyo Enlightenment teaching system has been passed down from generation to generation for 1,200 years. Ikko Dai Ajari represents the 52nd generation of Mikkiyo Masters.
Ikko Dai Ajari was born in Kyoto. Immediately after his birth, he was taken to the Temple of the Great Golden Dragon (Dai Kin Ryu In), where his appearance was predicted. He was adopted by the first female Mikkiyo master in Japan, Master Mioko. He grew up in a temple, where ordinary studies went on in parallel with a deep study of spiritual knowledge.
Ikko Dai Ajari was trained in the ancient traditions of Mikkiyo and Shinto (the path to God) from childhood. Today, Ikko Sensei has taken the basis of these two paths and combined them with other traditions of the East and West. The result was a powerful combination of the Teachings of Enlightenment and practical Divine Techniques.
Teacher Ikko teaches us that we must be an idealistic realist. Our spiritual life must be in harmony with life in the physical world and create true balance and harmony.
Teacher Ikko travels the world for the following purposes:
dissemination of Enlightenment Techniques through seminars and trainings for members of the International Peace Academy and new interested people,
demonstrating how knowledge can be applied in our daily lives,
purifying the energy of people and places using the most powerful techniques of Mikkiyo and Shintoism,
raising the level of world consciousness through connection with Divine Energy and Deities, Angels and ascended Masters who support all aspects of the planet and ground the energy,
helping us all achieve higher levels of happiness and harmony.
Sri Ganapati Satchidananda
People ask: "Who are you?" Think and you yourself will feel Swamiji. Someone will say - yogi, miracle worker, healer, doctor, yoga man, wizard. Others will say: he follows the Vedic path, others will say that he is a person who confuses minds - everyone is right. Each person has their own view of me, but I say that I am not a spiritual businessman.
His Holiness Sri Sri Ganapati Satchidananda Swamiji of Mysore is one of the greatest spiritual leaders of the present time in India and the world. He is the embodiment of the Great Cosmic Power. Reviving culture, reforming society and establishing peace and happiness among humanity, as well as turning people to God is his mission. His methods include establishing Dharma and Bhakti through singing Divine hymns, chanting the names of the Lord God and inculcating the love of God among the masses through congregational chanting of Bhajans and listening to his meditation music.
Sri Ganapati travels the world to help seekers discover that everything is God. In Him devotees find compassion, love and divine wisdom as He guides them on the path of Yoga Sadhana - the discovery and realization of their true Self. Sri Swamiji conveys an important part of His message through His music composed for His Namasankirtan. Sri Swamiji's music is dedicated to God and is used to transmit spiritual energy. This great master sings bhajans composed by Him in Sanskrit, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and English and plays healing Ayurvedic ragas on an electronic synthesizer along with musicians playing classical Indian instruments. Devotees around the world report receiving immeasurable benefits from his concerts, from physical wellness to spiritual guidance, and a huge outpouring of divine love.
It is easier to describe what He does than to say who He is. In order to find out who He is, you need to feel him, you need to take the position of a seeker of God. Sri Swamiji speaks simply and his words penetrate to the heart. In fact, He is the silent teacher who teaches through your own love and devotion. To experience it means to begin to recognize your own true Self.
Mahavatar Kriya Babaji Nagaraj
(born 203)
The story of the enlightened and immortal yogi and Mahavatar Babaji is contradictory and mysterious. There are numerous testimonies of his miracles: healing people, raising the dead, being in different places at the same time, feeding large number people with a small amount of food.
The date of his birth - November 30, 203 - is reliably known, but it is also known that since then he has not died and over the past centuries has appeared many times before many people and seekers.
Since the beginning of the 19th century, he was remembered as “old Haidakhan Baba”, and, for example, in 1922, Babaji, in the presence of disciples and a large audience, including even the King of Nepal, declared that the time had come for him to leave this world, walked to the middle of the river and, turning into a fireball, he disappeared. He appeared again, after some time, and disappeared again, and in 1970 in the Himalayas he again materialized his body, but in 1984 he again left the physical plane. And, since the first information about Babaji Nagaraja dates back to ... 203, this year, 2003, on November 30, we can celebrate the 1800th anniversary of his birth!
Babaji Nagaraj was born in a small village located near the confluence of the holy river Kaveri into the Bay of Bengal (Tamil Nadu) into a Brahmin family. His parents gave him the name Nagaraj, meaning “Lord of Snakes,” which refers to Kundalini, our divine potential power of consciousness. The story of his childhood and youth is interesting and mysterious. At the age of five he was kidnapped and sold into slavery, at the age of 11 he became a student of the yogi Boganatara and for four years learned meditation and concentration from him. Having experienced an ecstatic state of merging with the Divine (this was a vision of Lord Murugan, the son of Shiva), at the age of 15 he comprehends the secrets of Kriya Yoga from the legendary Maharishi Agastyar, and after 18 months of meditation in Badrinath - a Himalayan temple located at an altitude of 3122 m, reaches enlightenment and transforms into Babaji.
Since Babaji acquired Divine consciousness and became a Mahasiddha, his body was no longer subject to the ravages of disease and did not die. Unlike Avatars of Vishnu, whose stay on the physical plane is limited, Babaji will live on Earth for a very long time. His method of existence surpasses human understanding - he lives in light form, as the source of Universal Love and Truth and brings it to our ignorant world clear light consciousness, higher peace and bliss. Some people in different countries, including in Russia, and today they regularly receive Babaji’s help on the subtle plane. Babaji's mission is to prepare the planet and its inhabitants for great transformation. The time is approaching.
For last centuries he often appeared in the form of an 18-year-old youth and gave initiation to many ascetics and yogis, such as Adi Shankaracharya (788-820), Kabir (1407-1518), Lahiri Mahasaya (1828-1895), Sri Yukteswar (1855-1936) , Paramahansa Yogananda (1893-1952). It is interesting that Elena Petrovna Blavatsky identified Babaji as Maitreya - the Buddha of the future and as the World Teacher of the new era.
One of the last appearances of Babaji occurred in the 19th century, when he was seen at the same time in the guise of a gray-bearded old man, young man with a long beard and a beautiful beardless youth. Two people who spoke to him at the same time, but in different places, described him differently. He knew the sacred texts and showed great wisdom, although there was no evidence that he had received an education. According to eyewitnesses, Babaji could eat nothing for months, but his divine powers and energy were always limitless. It was then that the meeting between Babaji and the Indian householder Lahiri Mahasaya took place, described in detail by Yogananda in “Autobiography of a Yogi” along with many other miracles and lilas* of Babaji: instant revival and healing of the dead, free dematerialization and reconstruction of one’s body, creation of the Golden Palace in the Himalayas...
*Sanskrit. lila - lit. "game, fun" A term meaning large-scale deeds performed by him easily, as if playfully.
Babaji is sometimes called Shiva Baba or an incarnation of Murugan (Subramanya, Kartikeya - in different places in India, Shiva's eldest son is called by different names), but most often - Shiva's Mahavatar. Constantly present on the subtle plane, Babaji has the ability to both incarnate in a human body (always male) and disincarnate. Its appearances were especially frequent in the Himalayas. His last reliably known incarnation was Haidakhan Babaji, when in 1970 he emerged from a ball of energy at the foot of Kumaon's Mount Kailash in northeastern India.
First of all, there is a level - if you can call it that, because it is a level beyond any levels - the enlightened mind, the mind of a buddha as such. We use the expression “buddha mind,” but in reality it is very difficult for us to imagine what it is, because there is no subject or object in it. It is pure homogeneous awareness, absolutely empty, absolutely radiant - that is all we can say about it, although even this formulation is misleading. This is one continuous “mass” of spiritual radiance. If this definition does not provide clarity, you can try a different approach. We can say that this level of experience represents perfect, deep, ultimate and absolute satisfaction, peace and bliss beyond human understanding. Another way to describe it is to say that the mind of a buddha is above and beyond space and time. In other words, at this level of experience everything is known, therefore there are no objects of knowledge.
Clear? Most likely not. It is hardly possible to express in words what, by definition, is completely inaccessible to them. Buddha consciousness is incomprehensible to us in our ordinary state of consciousness, where the division into subject and object predominates. Perhaps the closest we can come to understanding it is through a metaphor that pictures the mind of a buddha as a vast ocean in which millions of universes are just a tiny wave or even a piece of foam in the middle of a boundless surface of water.
Now let's try to imagine that in this incomprehensible enlightened mind, a desire arises to transmit knowledge. Strictly speaking, it is also impossible to imagine this, because we are forced to speak in terms of time (“emergence”) and space (“in it”), although the enlightened mind is beyond both time and space. It is also not entirely appropriate to use the word “desire” in relation to a mind that is completely at rest. However, as we have already said, in the enlightened mind of the Buddha, in some sense, the desire to teach actually arose. And, naturally, the enlightened mind wants to transmit itself - it can hardly convey anything else. In fact, it can be said that an enlightened mind is a mind that transmits enlightenment. This desire of the enlightened mind to communicate with the unenlightened consciousness, at whatever level it may be, is what we call compassion.
Such communication at the highest level is something very, very subtle. There is nothing explicit about it. It is like a slight vibration, a vibration that arises between the enlightened mind and the mind ready for enlightenment. Figuratively speaking, this vibration, or vibration, can be compared to extremely quiet sound. It is not a sound in the ordinary sense of the word, not a gross external sound that can be heard by material ears, and not even a sound that we sometimes hear in our heads. This is something like the primordial sound, something related to the spiritual level and corresponding to what we call sound. This vibration, this vibration, this silent sound is Buddhavacana in the highest sense of the term. This is the sound made by the buddha's mind itself. supreme reality. And since the mind of a Buddha is not limited by either time or space, there is no moment or place where it does not emit such vibration.
In some Indian traditions, this primordial cosmic sound is identified with the mantra OM. It is not a syllable uttered by human lips, but a subtle inner spiritual sound that can sometimes be heard in higher states of consciousness, such as those achieved during meditation. If you are attuned to it, you can hear that it comes from all things, from all the phenomena of the universe, because behind all of them, even in all of them, lies the mind of the Buddha - it shines and resounds through them.
When you hear this sound, you hear the speech of the Buddha in its most subtle form. When you hear it, you hear that everything is contained in this sound, and you understand everything. No words needed. No thoughts are needed. No images needed. There is only this one primordial uniform vibration produced by the Buddha mind, the Buddha consciousness, the highest reality itself. You hear everything, understand everything, realize everything, just by hearing the sound of OM, which comes from everywhere, everywhere and always. This is Buddhavacana in the highest sense, at the highest level.
As you understand, this level of communication is so high that it is almost impossible to imagine. Therefore, the enlightened mind, roughly speaking, must descend to relatively lower levels of communication. And the next level is the level of archetypal images: images of the sun, moon and stars, light and darkness, sky and earth, birds, animals and flowers, rain and wind, thunder and lightning; images of Buddhas and bodhisattvas, gods and goddesses, images of peaceful and angry ones, images of all kinds of monsters and, perhaps, above all, images of bright, sparkling and shining.
These images are not the creation of a single human mind or even of the collective unconscious. Perhaps they were not created by anyone at all, but were born simultaneously with enlightened consciousness - at least in the context of this particular level of transmission. They emerge from the depths of infinite space, and, like the primordial sound, they reveal everything, they tell everything. By means of form and color they depict the mind of Buddha throughout the universe. Here, in the world of images, thoughts are not needed, concepts and words are not needed. At this level, communication is not as subtle as at the level of the sound of a mantra, but much subtler and more complete than what we usually experience.
Going even lower, the enlightened mind also expresses itself at the level of conceptual thinking. Conceptual thinking is common to both the enlightened mind and the unenlightened mind in the sense that it is created by the unenlightened mind, but the enlightened mind can use it, adopting it or even transforming it in accordance with its own higher goals. This is what essentially distinguishes so-called Buddhist philosophy or Buddhist thought from what is usually understood as philosophical thought. Buddhist thought does not consist of the thoughts of ordinary, unenlightened Buddhists. Principles such as dependent origination are not intellectual theories. Buddhist thought is a series of attempts by the enlightened mind - be it the mind of the Buddha Gautama or some other enlightened being - to communicate with unenlightened minds through concepts.
It may surprise you that after the level of concepts comes the level of words - the lowest of the levels at which the enlightened mind communicates. Someone will say that it is completely impossible to separate words and concepts. Of course, the connection between them is very close, closer than between thoughts and images. And yet, thoughts and words are not exactly the same thing. Sometimes we have thoughts that we do not or cannot put into words.
We now see the gulf that separates the enlightened mind from its expression through ordinary human speech. We see how many levels the Buddha had to descend to before he could communicate with the five ascetics. Not surprisingly, it took him eight weeks to complete this transition. We may consider this a reduction in level, but it does not follow that the Buddha abandoned the previous levels. Rather, it seems to be expanding the range of his communication. So Buddhavacana, the word of the Buddha, contains all these levels of communication: the primordial sound of the mantra, archetypal images, concepts and words - and the Dharma, the teaching of the Buddha, is transmitted at all these levels. Dharma as the teachings of the Buddha is not just words and concepts.
The Tantric tradition of India and Tibet clearly recognizes that Buddhavacana is more than just words. At the same time, she puts a slightly different emphasis, but means exactly the same thing. She defines three ways of transmitting the Dharma. First of all, there is what in Tantra is called the transmission of mind, characteristic of the Jins, or “Victorious Ones.” In this case, the transmission occurs from mind to mind, from heart to heart, from consciousness to consciousness. There are no words. There are no thoughts. Transmission occurs from one mind to another directly, directly, intuitively, telepathically. Buddha looks at you and you understand, that's all. None of you say anything, think anything. The transmission occurs entirely on a psychic or even spiritual level.
The second method of transmission is the transmission of vidyadharas, great tantric initiates, tantric teachers. Unlike the Jeans, they are not fully enlightened, but by ordinary human standards they have achieved unfathomable spiritual development. At this level, transmission occurs through actions or gestures. In the Chinese tradition, Chan is famous story about Buddha's silent sermon: he is simply holding a golden flower. He doesn't say anything, just holds the flower - and someone understands. To the rest of the audience, who were all ears, expecting to hear something profound from the Buddha, this gesture says nothing. But for one, Kashyapa, this simple gesture is enough. Even today there are tantric initiations in which the teacher simply shows. He doesn’t say anything, doesn’t explain anything, he just shows – that’s all. If the student is receptive enough, he understands what exactly has been shown. There are no words, no discussions, but if you are really alert you will instantly understand the point.
The third and final method is the transmission through words, which is carried out by the acharyas. Acharyas are ordinary teachers of Buddhism who have not achieved full enlightenment, but have some degree of insight and faithfully convey the teachings through ordinary human thought and speech.
All of these transmission methods are correct. One can comprehend the spirit of the Dharma, its essence, through telepathy, through signs and gestures and through words. But of course, the lower the level of transmission, the greater the likelihood of misunderstanding. If the transmission goes straight from mind to mind, then there can be no question of misunderstanding, because there is no question of even understanding, and if there is no understanding, then what kind of misunderstanding can there be? The gesture creates some potential for confusion because you may not be able to see what exactly is being shown: you may be seeing something else. And at the level of words, the possibility of misunderstanding is indeed very great.
The first precaution against misunderstanding the spoken Dharma is to ensure that both the letter and the spirit of the teachings are accurately recorded. For many years, this responsibility fell on the monks, who memorized the teachings and passed them on orally from generation to generation. Even when people did begin to write down teachings, the process was very gradual - so gradual that, apparently, some things were never written down and are still passed on by word of mouth.
Systematization and connections
Philosophy of religion
Hello. Your opinion about Buddhist enlightenment is very interesting. That enlightenment is our goal, through which we go through many reincarnations (according to Buddhism) in order to finally find nirvana and become free. This enlightenment is a very interesting thing, with philosophical point vision. Enlightenment is limitless consciousness, mercy, bliss. I would be very glad if you would consider this issue.
uzensaha, March 8, 2016 - 00:53Comments
Perhaps we are talking about enlightenment?
Enlightenment
Buddhist parable
Buddha wandered for six years, he visited all the sages, saints, scholars, all kinds of gurus, but nothing happened. Asceticism, fasting, yoga - all in vain.
One day Siddhartha tried to ford a small river, the current was strong, and he was so weak from constant deprivation and malnutrition that his head began to spin, he fell into the water, and was carried downstream. It is unknown how all this would have ended if he had not grabbed a long root. He was washed ashore.
In this position, without the strength to get out, he clearly realized: “Life is like an ocean.” And if life is an ocean, then everything I do is wrong. If I have brought myself to such a state that I cannot even cross this river, then how am I going to cross the ocean of life? My path is not correct. I have become weak, and in order to rise to God, enormous energy is needed.”
He managed to get out of the river, he lay down under a tree and relaxed. That evening there was a full moon, and for the first time in six years of wandering he slept well, he no longer had to rush anywhere, had nothing to achieve; no practice, no exercise. For the first time he felt complete freedom. Without hurrying anywhere, lying under a tree, he watched the sunrise. He watched the last morning star melt away. It is said that when she disappeared, Siddhartha also disappeared. In an instant, six years of wandering flashed before his mind's eye, like a nightmare, but it had already become the past. Buddha became enlightened!
That is, in order to become enlightened, you need to try to almost drown yourself and sit under a tree, relax and look at nature. Then God will see this and say: “Oops! He’s relaxed! Nice, you’ve become enlightened! You can relax and smoke under the tree, since you don’t have to do anything.”
You came to the wrong address - you should have gone to Lotus. Many FS participants probably don’t even know such a word as “enlightenment.” This is not a philosophical topic. Well, at least on the surface it’s not philosophical. And to discuss it seriously, you need appropriate knowledge.
Enlightenment is described in detail in Raja Yoga. Buddha took it from there. Christ also achieved Enlightenment - see Jordanian baptism.
Enlightenment is the self-realization of aspects of the Spirit of Sat-Chit-Ananda (power-knowledge-bliss). Victory over evil, end of suffering. This is the main goal human life. Everyone should strive for it.
Before Achieving Enlightenment
Hardly. How can God be good? Or angry? All sorts of knowledge is required here. Well, there are physics, chemistry, materials science - a lot of things. A bunch more building materials. And they went up in price during the crisis. God! And there is so much energy where you can get it so that there is enough for everything.
If I become enlightened, will I be able to build my own planet or a whole new world? It would be cool to be the good god of the new world. I would be like an admin on a server in a game. I can cheat and do anything!
Absolutely right. Prophets often come to govern the state. That's how it was in ancient history. So Christ and Buddha are rather exceptions to the rule. By the way, Muhammad, the last prophet on Earth was also the head of the state.
To build a society according to divine laws, more exalted and fair than those existing now. And prosperous, of course. With people's high development, more perfect.
Marx and Lenin were not enlightened prophets, but they set such tasks.
How do you understand the word "freedom"? You say you don't have to do anything, nothing at all. How would you describe freedom? Is this when there is neither object nor subject, but only “I”? But even so, it would be great to create a relative world like ours. In it you can create states, space bases, beautiful girls, and create yourself as a little “I”, so as not to get sick, so that it is always good and fun.
God helps those who serve people. Enlightenment is a gift, a grace of God. I follow the path of Krishna, Buddha, Christ in order to achieve myself and show the way to others. Preparing students.
Good films on the topic of enlightenment: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter... "Revolver", The Matrix, Tidal Land, Zen.
What does "Tideland" have to do with it? There's nothing about enlightenment there. The purity and innocence of childhood, a different perception - yes. But a child cannot be enlightened; he is innocent due to his inexperience. The child has not learned much, and due to the childishness of his mind, he is not inclined to reflect on the topic of life. He does not understand the passions of adults, but this does not mean that he is free from them. All this will come to him over time. To become enlightened, you need to grow up, experience life, experience passions, experience lack of freedom. Only an adult who has already known life, who has grown spiritually, outgrowing human passions, can become enlightened. Not a child.
From Wikipedia about enlightenment.
"This cannot be achieved through psychological techniques, tricks of the mind, understanding and even awareness, no knowledge leads to enlightenment, no methods."
From myself: and no films.
So you haven’t become enlightened yet, have you?)))
Well, yes. It’s similar to how they asked the Soviet marshals - Zhukov, Konev, Rokosovsky in March 1945 - “So we haven’t won yet?”
Yes, we have not won yet, there will still be losses and defeats ahead, it is not known exactly what the outcome of the war will be, but victory is close and you can feel it. You can't stop there, you need to move forward. And the last battle, as you know, is the most difficult.
Enlightenment is not war, but avoidance of it, exclusion of oneself from the struggle.
The path to Enlightenment, especially the last stages, is always a struggle. With negativity, the forces of Maya, Satan, with your imperfection, fear and selfishness. There is a concept in Christianity Last Judgment. This is just about last stage to Enlightenment. This is shown figuratively in the films “Phone Booth”, Without Feelings of 2009. In general, the path of struggle is figuratively shown in the films “Revolver”, Outland”, “Perfumer”, “Hero”, in Russian fairy tales. And Christ said that the kingdom of God is by force Pushkin's poem "The Prophet" is about this.
From Wikipedia.
“Enlightenment is a state of full awareness (going beyond the dual mind), in which the ego dissolves and the feeling of being a performer disappears, that is, the illusion of will disappears. This leads to a state of unity with everything around.
Enlightenment is achieved through understanding the fallacy of the so-called “expression of will”, due to which spontaneity of mental activity arises (more precisely, it is now accepted), as a result of which consciousness disidentifies with its body and mind. In this way the consciousness is freed from illusions and identifications and becomes pure witnessing.
Enlightenment, according to the teachings of the Buddha, means knowledge of the Only Path leading to liberation from suffering to nirvana.
Complete enlightenment is a state of realization (from the English realization - awareness), in which the subtlest traces of ignorance regarding the nature of reality are destroyed, both Veils are destroyed; sometimes called the embodiment of the "Three Kais" ( three bodies Buddha). Characterized by the Five Buddha Wisdoms and four types of Activity. IN different systems There are conventional divisions into levels or stages of the path to enlightenment, called Bhumi, Five Paths and Stages of Mahamudra. Full enlightenment means the end of the circle of incarnations (births and deaths). Occurs after achieving the state of samadhi (corresponds to the third initiation). Enlightenment implies a transition to a state of egolessness. Only one who has no ego can be called enlightened. The term “ego” itself is considered in isolation from traditional psychology. The ego is a kind of human energy. The “I” of a person is the ego. When the sense of individual fixed essence disappears, when the “I” disappears, when the energy called “I” disappears, only then does enlightenment come. This cannot be achieved through psychological techniques, tricks of the mind, understanding and even awareness; no knowledge leads to enlightenment, no methods.
According to the works of the Indian philosopher Osho, enlightenment is the highest point of self-realization of a being, occurring to a being as a result of an internal search."
Everything is written very clearly.
Enlightenment is the realization by a human entity of itself as an integral part of the existing world, and perceiving the essences of all things as essences of itself. Typical relativism: previously I looked at the world “from the bottom up”, but in a state of enlightenment the direction of my view changes to “from the top down”, i.e. transition of essence into existence.
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Example: cucumber - as a being for existing seeds. Every seed inside a cucumber is the essence of that being. The seed, realizing that in due time the same entity will grow from it, receives enlightenment, since this thought transforms the seed entity into the category of a living cucumber, thinking on the scale of its whole.
Interesting, with cucumber.)
An idea arose about where to start on the path to enlightenment.
The fact is that somewhere deep down a person knows. But this knowledge is deeply buried under whole layers of lies. To yourself about the world, to yourself about yourself, to others about the world and about yourself. The origins of one lie come from another, which is deeper, and so on. The ego rejects the truth. If you identify these lies in yourself, these other people’s desires, imposed thoughts, hidden complexes, and what lies behind them, then you become lighter and lighter. Without someone else's cargo. See yourself and love, and through yourself love the whole world, and understand that the world and you are one. But it is very difficult to stop lying to yourself.
accept
To stop lying, you need to be free. What's the point free man lie about your lack of freedom?
To become free, you need to understand and accept the understood truth that man, in addition to essence, is part of the existing world. To accept the understood truth, you need to be free. But a person is bound, first of all, by unfree society. Without society, he will cease to be a person. Cutting the Gordian knot? Or reduce your unfreedom by revision social relations? So private property will not allow this (see Sermon on the Mount).
You talk as if you were free yourself.
Agree. Freedom in one thing is compensated by slavery in another. It turns out that a person “will not see the will forever”?
No. Not like that again. Freedom is something universal; you cannot be free while remaining a slave in some way. To be more clear, I can add that we are talking, first of all, about freedom from the known. It is judgments about the world, ideas about it, that are unfreedom. I had little experience of freedom. For a very short time I was free. I will not describe the details; in our case, the only important thing is what I learned from my short “stay in freedom.” But I learned one simple truth, that there is no peace, and all my judgments and assessments about it (the world) have nothing to do with the world. To become free you need to stop evaluating and judging; for freedom it is enough to simply be.
I will add again: lack of freedom is closely related to lies. Because most of our ideas about the world and ourselves are based on other people’s assessments, imposed on us in childhood. A person is not free because he makes a lot of efforts to correspond to the image imposed on him, which he accepts as his own. But in fact, this is a false image behind which it is difficult to see the real one. Which, most likely, is also none. But he can become whatever he wants. For a while. Perhaps enlightenment comes when you realize this. That you are zero, nothing, an egg, potential. That in the end there will be death, and everything that you carried in the palm of your hand, everything that you considered as values, all your beliefs, complexes, desires, goals - everything will have to be left behind. And realizing this, you become calm. It's not all yours. Therefore, why not throw off this burden in advance and enjoy the beautiful view that you never had time to look at.
I don’t know about others, but my moments of happiness have never been associated with material acquisitions. Material things bring moral satisfaction, joy, confidence in the future, and happiness is something transcendental. It occurs very rarely, and you always feel these moments at the same time as eternity and temporaryness. It's difficult to even describe this state.
where to start on the path to enlightenment.
You just need to stop lying, and first of all to yourself.
The path to Enlightenment is described in detail in Book 2 of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. This is what the eightfold path of Buddha is about. And in all religious teachings this is stated fragmentarily.
The commandment of truthfulness is mandatory and is one of the 10 commandments of yoga, also in the path of the Buddha. You are right here. Without the truth there is nowhere.
To begin with about Buddha http://www.alexandrmen.ru/books/tom3/3_gl_09.html At the gates of silence A. Men
Hello, Are you asking what is Buddhist enlightenment? In short, enlightenment is liberation. Liberation from samsara. The main discovery of the Buddha is that he explained the source of things developing from causes and conditions. If causes and conditions bring a thing into existence, then the cessation of the effects of causes and conditions cause the disappearance of the thing. It turns out that a thing has a conditioned existence. It completely depends on the action of causes and effects. Like something that means nothing, a thing is empty. Samsara is the endless reversal of emptiness: pratitya-samutpade: dependent arising or conditioned co-arising. Enlightenment or liberation is the acquisition of spirituality or, which is the same thing, such strength of spirit, over which the law of conditioned co-emergence has no power. That is, niravana is not a place where we come, but a state of the Spirit. In this way, Enlightenment is achieved in a practical way, and not through philosophical speculation. To become a Buddha is to become Reality, to become Being, to become non-duality. Enlightenment, wisdom, lies in the fact that a person discovers a certain way of acting that puts him above the law of dependent arising.
Physiologically, enlightenment is a change in consciousness. In Buddhism, etc., this is achieved through meditative practices.
Changing consciousness can be achieved in other ways. For example, physical impact (a blow to the head). Or chemical (alcohol, drugs, etc.).
The only difference is in the method of achieving the result and in the very state of consciousness when achieving the result.
Yes, one can define enlightenment as a type of bliss.
Someone eats a chocolate bar and “goes crazy”, someone sniffs glue for something like this, and someone meditates or prays.
The forms and processes are different, but the essence is the same: substances are produced that affect the corresponding “brain centers”. That's all.
I would advise you to just smoke marijuana on occasion and not suffer, but I won’t, because I prefer people with an unchanged consciousness.
A sane person understands that since such a state of consciousness was achieved by one of the people, then any other person can achieve it.
Also understands. that in those days no one knew almost anything about human physiology and therefore explanations of this condition were invented in those concepts and terms that were known then 9 with the addition of new ones). That's all.
To seriously consider this issue today from that point of view (description), which was then (and has survived to this day) funny and stupid.
A resident of the 22nd century would look just as funny and stupid if he accepted my words today as truth.
Shaolin Temple - instructions for enlightenment in Buddhism Author: Vsevolod Ovchinnikov, COMMUNIST, "ROSSIYSKAYA GAZETA"DRY hills, rare patches of fields on the slopes. This is the basin of the Yellow River (Yellow River) - the cradle of Chinese civilization. Here, in the distant wilderness, on the slope of the sacred mountain Zongshan, was founded Shaolin monastery. For a long time he was in oblivion.
I confess that I myself could have visited there when I was still thirty, but I ended up only when I was sixty (in the 50s, I was primarily interested in the construction of the first Chinese Five-Year Plan). And today Shaolin has gained enormous popularity and has become a place of pilgrimage. Two million Chinese and thirty thousand foreign tourists come here every year.
There are two reasons for this. Firstly, the Shaolin Monastery is considered the birthplace of Wushu - martial arts. Secondly, the hieroglyphs at its main gate remind: “The Chan school was founded here.” The prayer hall of the monastery is decorated with a statue of Bodhidharma, who came here from India in 527 to preach Buddhism.
Chan School(Zen in Japanese) - a unique fusion of Indian yoga and Taoist psychotechnics - determined the “philosophy of life” of the peoples of the Far East for many centuries. Followers of Chan Buddhism believe that it is not necessary to lead the life of a hermit and ascetic.
You can also come to enlightenment through active meditation, if you strengthen your body with the help of martial arts or develop the perception of beauty through painting, poetry, and calligraphy. Active meditation also includes any joy of communication with nature, be it fishing at dawn or choral singing by the fire. The main thing is that, while improving the body and soul, a person does it with joy and pleasure. In the process of active meditation, it is easier to move from logical thinking to figurative thinking. And this allows you to control your own through the subconscious vitality, which in Chinese philosophy and medicine is called “Qi”.
It was the monks of the Chan school who added to the mastery of the body the ability to control the spirit, redistribute vital energy, which immeasurably increases a person’s physical capabilities. This is the essence of the mysterious art of “Qigong,” which I would translate as “zeal of the spirit.” Wushu is the technical side of martial arts. But Wushu plus Qigong is already a “spiritualized struggle”, which is called “Kungfu”.
Mastering the heights of Qigong mastery, you can even reduce the force of gravity. I was shown this phenomenon of ultra-lightness. Two chairs were placed with their backs facing each other at a distance of about a meter. This opening was blocked with a strip of tissue paper. The two men sat on the chairs, pressing the edges of the tape with their weight. The girl, by no means fragile, grabbed the backs of the chairs, did a handstand, carefully stepped first with one and then the other foot on the sagging tissue paper and spread her arms.
At the end of the show, they brought a board from which six-inch nails stuck out like the bristles of a brush. The monk lay down on their sharp ends. They put a blanket on top, and a meter-long stone slab on top of it, and they began to hit it with hammers until they split it. After this, rows of red dots remained on the man’s back, but the skin was not punctured anywhere.
Unlike our ancestors, we have forgotten how to turn to our subconscious. And if you don’t use the abilities inherent in a person, they fade away. With the help of Qigong, you can identify the reserves of the human body, not only physical, but also intellectual, Qigong researcher Professor Yan Hai told me.
According to him, each of us has innate Qi - the potential of vital energy received in the womb. It is supplemented by acquired Qi through breathing and nutrition. The better a person stores these reserves, the slower he ages. At the highest levels of this skill, you can gain the ability to increase your life energy and direct it outward to heal the sick.
After visiting the Shaolin Monastery, many inexplicable phenomena that surprised me in distant countries, seemed to be lined up in some kind of system. If the body's reserves are so enormous and if they can be controlled by a person, it becomes clearer how a gypsy can walk on hot coals, an Indian yogi can swallow the sharp blade of a dagger, and a Filipino healer can remove nodules with his bare hands and close living tissue again.
This symbol represents the protection of the mind from the sultry heat of obscurations, and also protects from suffering. A symbol of good deeds performed to protect living beings from diseases, harmful forces, obstacles, as well as the suffering of the three lower and three higher worlds. Just as an ordinary umbrella protects from rain and heat, so a precious umbrella provides protection from the adversities and misfortunes of samsara.
The umbrella is a traditional symbol of noble birth and protection. Its shadow protects from the scorching sun, its coolness symbolizes protection from the painful heat of suffering, desire, obstacles, diseases and harmful forces. As a symbol of noble birth and special wealth, an umbrella indicates position in society: the more umbrellas carried by those around you, the higher the status. Traditionally, thirteen umbrellas corresponded to the status of a king, and early Buddhism in India adopted this number as a symbol of the Buddha's supreme position - the "universal monarch" or Chakravartin. Thirteen umbrella-shaped wheels connect to the conical spiers of the stupas, which mark the major events of the Buddha's life or contain his relics.
An umbrella over one's head naturally signifies glory and respect, which led to its emergence as a significant symbol in early Buddhist art. A precious white umbrella was once presented to Buddha by the lord of the gods, Mahadeva, as a head ornament. Symbolizes protection from disease, evil spirits and suffering in this and future lives. On a spiritual level, it dispels anger, passion, pride, envy and stupidity.
According to another version, it is believed that the Naga king presented Buddha with an umbrella decorated precious stones. The umbrella was made of gold, and the stones along its edges exuded nectar. Melodious bells hung from it, and the handle was made of sapphire. In the images there is often a large white umbrella of fine workmanship above the head of the Buddha, and this large white umbrella later evolved into the Vajrayana goddess Dukar. “White Umbrella” is one of the most complex yidams of the Vajrayana - thousand-armed, thousand-legged, thousand-headed and looking with “thousands of millions” of eyes. Her two-armed form is often depicted holding a white umbrella over a seated Buddha. A typical umbrella in Buddhism consists of a long white or red sandalwood handle or shaft, topped with a small golden lotus, a vase and a jeweled tip. Its dome-like frame is covered with white or yellow silk and folds of silk fringe edge the edges along with multi-colored silk pendants and frills. Sometimes the umbrella is also decorated peacock feathers, hanging necklaces made of precious stones and pendants made of yak tails.
The ceremonial silk umbrella is usually just under one and a half meters in diameter, allowing it to be held at least a meter above the head. Square or octagonal umbrellas are also common, and large yellow or red umbrellas are often hung above the throne of the chief lama, as well as above the image of the central yidam in monasteries and temples. A white or yellow silk umbrella is a symbol of spiritual dominion, while a peacock feather umbrella more often represents temporal power. The umbrella's dome symbolizes wisdom, and its hanging silk frills represent various methods of compassion or skillful means. The white umbrella that was offered to Buddha in to the greatest extent symbolizes his ability to protect all beings from delusions and fears.
2. Goldfish
They are called so because of the shine emanating from their scales, similar to the shine of gold. Usually, fish is a decoration and a sign of the well-being of rivers and lakes. So these fish represent full-fledged wealth. A symbol of deliverance from suffering and achievement of spiritual liberation. Just as a fish swims in water without knowing any barriers, so a person who has achieved enlightenment knows no boundaries or obstacles.
In Sanskrit, two fish are known as matsyaungma, which means “pair of fish.” This indicates their origin from the symbol of the two sacred rivers of India: the Ganga and the Yamuna. Metaphorically, these rivers represent the solar and lunar channels or psychic nerves (nadis) that arise from the nostrils and carry the intermittent rhythms of breath or prana.
In Buddhism, golden fish represent happiness and as they have complete freedom of movement in the water. They are also fertile and can reproduce very quickly. freedom from caste restrictions, easy to mix, touch
Fish often swim in pairs and in China a pair of fish symbolizes marital unity and fidelity. The two golden fish, female and male, are usually depicted symmetrically and in the shape of a carp with graceful tails, fins and gills, and long antennae starting from the upper jaw. Carps are traditionally considered the holy fish of the east due to their elegant beauty, size and longevity, as well as their association with certain benevolent deities. Golden fish are an attribute of the Indian Mahasiddha Tilopa, and symbolize his realization as well as his ability to liberate people from the ocean of cyclical existence - Samsara. According to one version, a pair of golden fish was given to Buddha by the god Vishnu as an ornament for his eyes. Symbolizes freedom from the fear of drowning in the ocean of suffering and spiritual liberation.
3. Precious Vase
The precious vessel that fulfills all wishes was presented to the Buddha by the god Shadana as an ornament for his throat. Symbolizes the fulfillment of all desires, both temporary (gaining longevity, wealth and merit), and the highest - gaining liberation and Enlightenment. The storehouse of all realizations, which is the basis of priceless virtues and pure virtues.
Symbol of long life, wealth and prosperity. The Vase of Jewels is mainly a symbol of some yids of wealth such as Dzambhala, Vaisravana and Vasudhara, it is their attribute and is usually placed at their feet. One form of the goddess of wealth Vasudhara stands on a pair of horizontal jewel vases from which flow an endless stream of precious stones.
As a sacred "vase of abundance" (Tib. bumpa zangpo), it has the property of spontaneous manifestation: no matter how many jewels are taken from the vase, it remains invariably full. A typical Tibetan jewel vase is depicted as an ornate golden vase with a lotus petal motif encircling its various parts. A single wish-granting jewel or a group of three jewels crowns its top edge as a symbol of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. The great vase of jewels, as described in the Mandala offering, is made of gold and adorned with numerous precious stones.
A silk scarf from the world of the gods is tied around its neck, and the top is sealed with a wish-granting tree. The roots of this tree exude concentrated water of longevity, miraculously creating all kinds of wealth. Sealed vases of jewelry can be placed or buried in sacred places of the earth, such as mountain passes, pilgrimage sites, springs, rivers and oceans. In this case, their function is to spread abundance and pacify the spirits living there.
4. Lotus
A white lotus flower with a thousand petals was given to Buddha by the god Kama as an ornament for his tongue. Symbolizes the purity of teaching and purification of body, speech and mind, leading to Enlightenment.
Like a lotus flower, born unsullied from mud, so here it personifies non-attachment to samsara, although it resides in it. In Buddhism, it is a traditional symbol of purity. The lotus is born in muddy swamp water, but emerges unsullied and pure.
Likewise, beings born in one of the worlds of samsara, but sincerely practicing the noble teachings of the Buddha, are able to get rid of delusions over time. It represents the flowering of noble qualities that manifest themselves completely independently of the imperfections of cyclical existence. The lotus on which the buddha aspects sit or stand represents their sacred origin. They are spontaneously manifested, innately perfect and absolutely pure in body, speech and mind. These aspects appear in cyclical existence, but are completely uncontaminated by its shortcomings, emotional obstacles and mental veils. The lotus is the emblem of Amitaba - the red Buddha of the west and "the head of the lotus family or padma family."
The qualities of Amitaba are associated with the redness of fire, vital fluids, evening twilight, the summer season and the transformation of passion into discriminating wisdom. Amitaba's wife is Pandara and the red lotus is her attribute. The main bodhisattva of Amitaba is Padmapani Avalokiteshvara - “Lotus Holder” - the bodhisattva of great compassion. A lotus in Buddhism usually has four, eight, sixteen, twenty-four, thirty-two, sixty-four, one hundred or a thousand petals. These numbers symbolically correspond to the inner lotuses or chakras of the subtle body, as well as to the number of components of the mandala. As an attribute held in the hand, the lotus is usually pink or light red with eight or sixteen petals.
Lotus flowers can also be white, yellow, gold, blue and black. White Tara, for example, holds a sixteen-petalled white lotus utpala in her hands. The yellow or golden lotus is commonly known as padma, while the more common red or pink lotus is called kamala. The Sanskrit term utpala specifically refers to blue or black "night lotus", but its Tibetan equivalent under the same name can refer to any color lotus.
5. White shell, with a curl turned to the right
The white shell, twisted clockwise, was presented to the Buddha by the god Indra as an ornament for his ears. Symbolizes the sound of the Buddha's Teachings spreading freely everywhere and awakening disciples from the sleep of ignorance.
This shell is very rare. It is believed that a mollusk acquires it after five continuous births as an ordinary mollusk. The sound of the conch shell represents the euphonious voice of Dharma. A symbol of spreading the Buddha's teachings and awakening from the sleep of ignorance. Just as the sound of a conch shell flies unhindered in all directions, so the teachings of the Buddha spread everywhere, awakening sentient beings from the sleep of ignorance.
The white shell, whose spiral turns clockwise, is a famous Indian attribute of the heroic gods, whose mighty shells proclaimed their courage and victories in war. The fire-spewing conch shell of Vishnu was called Panchajanya, which means “having control over the five types of beings.” Arjuna's conch was known as Devadatta, which means "given by God" and its triumphant voice would strike terror into the enemy. The shell is akin to the modern horn as a war trumpet, as an emblem of strength, power and dominance. It is believed that her auspicious voice drives out evil spirits, wards off natural disasters and scares away harmful creatures.
Vishnu's fire conch (Panchajanya) is in his upper left hand and corresponds to the wheel or chakra in his upper right hand. The first five of the ten avatars of Vishnu hold these two attributes in their hands. In the Hindu tradition, Buddha is considered the ninth of the ten rebirths of Vishnu. When the great gods of the heavens Indra and Brahma are usually depicted in front of the Buddha's throne, they usually hold the attributes of Vishnu - a conch shell and a wheel - which is probably not a mere coincidence. Vishnu is also commonly known as the "great man" (Skt. mahapurusha) or "god right hand"(Sanskrit: dakshinadeva). The same can be applied to the Buddha with his hair curling to the right and his body marked with thirty-two signs of auspicious birth (Skt. mahapurusha-lakshana). Early Hindus classified shells by gender, with thicker convex shells considered male or purusha and thinner, graceful shells considered female or shankhini.
The Hindu division into four castes also found its application to shells: smooth white shells corresponded to the Brahmin priestly caste, red ones to the Kshatriya warriors, gray ones to the Vaishya merchants, and dull gray ones to the simple working Sudras. There was another division based on the type of spiral. Common shells that twisted to the left were called vamavarta, and the rarer ones that twisted to the right were called dakshinavarta - and were considered most suitable for use in rituals. The top of the shell is sawed off to form a horn and the wind swirling in a right-handed spiral to create sound symbolizes the true (“right-hand”) proclamation of the Dharma. Brahmanism adopted the heroic conch as a ritual symbol of religious supremacy. Early Buddhists similarly adopted this symbol as an emblem of the superiority of the Buddha's teachings. Here the conch shell symbolizes fearlessness in proclaiming the truth of the Dharma and his call to awaken and work for the benefit of others. One of the thirty-two symbols of the Buddha's body is his deep and sonorous voice, reminiscent of the voice of a conch shell, which spreads to all ten directions of space. In iconography, this feature is depicted by three shell-shaped curved lines on his throat.
As one of the eight auspicious symbols, the shell is usually turned vertically, often with a ribbon running across its bottom edge. The right direction of the spiral is indicated by the bend and the entrance hole pointing to the right. The sink can also be turned horizontally, in which case there will be aromatic liquids or oils inside. As an attribute that is held in the hand and symbolizes the proclamation of the teachings of the Buddha, as one of the aspects of speech, it can usually be found in the left hand - the hand of “wisdom”.
6. Endless knot
Just as this knot has no end, so this symbol personifies the complete acquisition of the Immeasurable Virtues and the Five Types of Primordial Wisdom. A symbol of the interdependence of all phenomena and living beings in the Universe. The Sanskrit term "srivatsa" means "beloved Sri". Sri is the goddess Lakshmi, the wife of Vishnu, and srivatsa is an auspicious sign that adorns the chest of Vishnu. Distinctive feature Lakshmi on Vishnu's chest corresponds to the fidelity of his heart to his wife, and since Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth and auspicious fortune, the srivatsa naturally becomes an auspicious symbol. This is a regular triangular curl, or a diamond turned up, which closes at four opposite corners. Krishna, the eighth reincarnation of Vishnu, also has srivatsu in the center of his chest. This curl of hair has another name - nandyavarta - which means "curl of happiness", in which case its shape resembles a swastika or a Greek hook-shaped cross (gammadion).
In Indian and Chinese depictions, the Buddha often has a swastika in the center of his chest, which symbolizes his enlightened mind. Another likely variation of the swastika and endless knot comes from the S-shaped markings on the cobra's hood. This in turn gave birth to the Nagayantra, where two or more intertwined snakes form an endless knot or yantra. In its final development into the Buddhist geometric symbol of the eternal knot or "luck diagram" which "revolves like a swastika", this symbol can be related to the srivatsa swastika, as both symbols were used in early Indian traditions.
As a symbol of Buddha, the endless knot represents his infinite wisdom and compassion. As a symbol of the Buddha's teachings, it represents the continuity of the twelve links of dependent origination that underlie cyclical existence.
In one of the descriptions you can find the following words: the endless knot was given to Buddha by the god Ganesha as an ornament for his heart. Symbolizes the changing nature of time, the impermanence and interconnection of all things, as well as the unity of compassion and wisdom.
7. Victory Banner
The victory banner was presented to Buddha by the god Krishna as an ornament for his body. This cylindrical multi-tiered figure symbolizes the victory of the Buddha's teachings over ignorance and death.
The banner means victory over the enemy and obstacles, personifies victory over demons, mara and adherents of false views. A symbol of the victory of the Buddha's teachings over death, ignorance, as well as over everything harmful and destructive in this world.
The Sanskrit word dhwaja means banner, flag or emblem, and was originally a battle flag in the ancient Indian art of war. This banner adorned the back of the great warrior's chariot and was mounted behind the great or royal umbrella. Each flag bore a specific emblem of a king or warrior. Krishna's chariot, for example, was decorated with a garuda flag, and Arjuna's with a monkey flag. But most often the dhwaja was the emblem of Shiva, the great god of death and destruction, whose banner was decorated with a trident. This trident symbolized the victory of Shiva over the three worlds or “three cities” located on the earth, above the earth and below it. In the Indian art of war, the army banner often took on terrifying forms to instill fear in the enemy. This could be, for example, the head impaled on a stake and the skin of an enemy or victim flayed off. The heads and skins of ferocious animals were often used, particularly the tiger, crocodile, wolf and bull. And also placed on the banner large images other fearsome creatures like the scorpion, snake, vulture, raven and garuda.
The crocodile head banner or so-called makaradhvaja was the emblem of Kamadeva, Vedic god love and desire. As a "tempter" or "deceiver", Kamadeva can be considered the Hindu equivalent of Mara, the "evil incarnate" who tried to prevent the Buddha from achieving enlightenment.
In early Buddhism, the image of Mara as a demonic creator of obstacles to spiritual progress was represented by a group of four maras or "evil influences". The idea of these four maras was originally based on the four divisions of the army of Mara: infantry, cavalry, elephants and chariots. The first of these four maras is the demon of the five accumulations of personality (skandha mara). The second is the demon of interfering emotions (klesha mara). The third is the demon of death (mrityu mara). And the fourth Mara - “son of god” (devaputra mara) - the demon of desire and temptation. It is this fourth Mara that corresponds to Kamadeva, the "king of the gods" highest level world of desires." The Buddha is believed to have transcended the veils of Kamadeva's sensual desires in the twilight before Enlightenment by meditating on the "four limitless qualities": compassion, love, sharing joy and equanimity. At dawn he overcame the Mara of accumulation and the Mara of interfering emotions. But only three months before the end of his life he managed to defeat the mara of death through the power of his fearless determination to enter the final nirvana (parinirvana). Early Buddhists adopted the crocodile-headed Kamadeva symbol as a symbol of the Buddha's victory over the four maras. Usually four such banners were installed in the main directions around the stupa of Enlightenment. In a similar way, the gods decided to plant a victory flag on the top of Mount Meru to glorify Buddha as the “victor” who defeated the armies of Mara.
This "banner of victory in ten directions" has a frame of precious stone, a crown with a moon and a sun, and a hanging triple flag of three multi-colored silks, decorated with "three victorious harmonious beings." In the Tibetan tradition, eleven variations of the victory banner correspond to eleven specific methods for transcending veils. Many variants of the banner are found on the roofs of temples and monasteries: four flags are usually placed at the corners of the roof, symbolizing the victory of the Buddha over the four maras.
The most traditional type of banner is a cylindrical banner on a long wooden pole. The top of the banner follows the shape of a small white umbrella, and on top of it is a wish-granting jewel. This domed umbrella is edged with an ornate golden cross with makara tails at the ends from which hang waves of yellow or white silk scarf. The cylindrical base of the banner is draped with several vertical layers of multi-colored silk folds and pendants of precious stones. The base is decorated with a wavy silk apron with flowing ribbons. The upper part is decorated with a tiger skin rim, symbolizing the victory of Buddha over anger and aggression. Many aspects hold the banner of victory, particularly those related to wealth and power. For example, Vaishravana, the great King and protector of the North.
8. Wheel of Dharma
> The golden wheel of teaching with a thousand spokes was given to Buddha by Brahma as an ornament for his feet. It became known as the Wheel of Dharma. Its rotation symbolizes the preaching of the Buddha's Teachings, bringing liberation to all living beings.
This is the wheel of Chakravartin, the Lord of the world, just as it is the means of his transportation, with eight sharp spokes that cut through obstacles on the way, so this symbol personifies the means of advancement towards Enlightenment. The spoke means Wisdom, experience, concentration, the axis means morality. Also three types of Higher Education, Three Baskets of Teaching. The eight spokes signify the Eightfold Path.
The eight spokes of the wheel symbolize the “noble eightfold path” of Buddha Shakyamuni:
- Correct view.
- Correct thinking.
- Correct speech.
- Correct behavior.
- The right way of life.
- The right effort.
- Correct awareness.
- Correct contemplation.
The wheel is an early Indian solar symbol of supremacy, protection and creation. The earliest finds with this symbol date back to the 25th century. B.C. The wheel or chakra is the main attribute of the Vedic god of protection Vishnu, his fierce wheels or discs with six spokes (sudarshana chakra) symbolize the wheel of the manifested universe. The wheel represents movement, duration and change, turning constantly, like the revolving ball of heaven. As a weapon, the rimless chakra had six, eight, twelve or eighteen sharply sharpened blades. It could be thrown like a discus or swung on a rope.
Buddhism adopted the wheel as the main symbol of the "wheel-turner" Chakravartin, but the wheel itself became the "wheel of dharma" dharmachakra (Tib. chokyi korlo), which literally means "wheel of transformation" or spiritual change. The rapid movement of the wheel corresponds to the rapid spiritual transformation that the Buddha's teaching reveals. The juxtaposition of the Buddha's wheel and the rotating tool of Chakravartin corresponds to the teaching's ability to cut off all obstacles and illusions.
The Buddha's first teaching at the Deer Park in Sarnath, where he taught the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, is known as the "first turning of the wheel of Dharma." His subsequent famous teachings in Rajgir and Shravasti are known as the second and third turning of the wheel of Dharma. The three components of the wheel - hub, spokes and rim - correspond to the three aspects of Buddhist teachings on moral discipline (vinaya), wisdom (abidharma) and concentration (sutra). The central hub represents moral discipline, which centers and stabilizes the mind. The sharp spokes represent wisdom or discriminating awareness that cuts away ignorance.
The rim corresponds to the meditative concentration that makes possible and carries out the movement of the wheel. The wheel with eight spokes symbolizes the Noble Eightfold Path and the spread of these teachings in the eight directions. Wheel quality auspicious symbol described as being made of pure gold. This gold is mined in the Jambud River of our continent - Jambudvipa. Traditionally, the wheel is depicted with eight vajra-like spokes and a central hub with three or four “swirls of joy” that unwind outward like the Chinese yin-yang symbol. If there are three curls in the central hub, then they correspond to the Three Jewels - Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, as well as victory over the three poisons of the mind - ignorance, desire and anger.
When four volutes are depicted, they are usually colored different colors, corresponding to the four directions and elements, and also symbolize the Buddha's teachings on the Four Noble Truths. The rim of the wheel may be depicted as a simple round ring, often with small round gold decorations projecting in eight directions. Sometimes he is depicted inside an ornate pear-shaped enclosure made of gold and precious stones. A silk ribbon often drapes the rim of the wheel, and the bottom usually rests on a small lotus flower.