"Self" means "Tathagatagarbha" [Buddha-Womb, Buddha-Embryo, Buddha-Nature]. Every being has Buddha-Nature. This is the Self. Such Self has, from the very beginning, been under cover of innumerable defilements. That is why man cannot see it.
Buddha
The Mahaparinirvana Sutra
>>17377053
>has, from the very beginning, been under cover of innumerable defilements
Such as the idea that it has been, from the very beginning, under cover of innumerable defilements.
>>17377084
Yes, but it's still there underneath all the shit.
So what is the difference between Atma (Self) and Anatma (Non-self) ?
>>17377053
and your interpretation of what this means is...
>>17377500
Anatma = ego
Atman = Self = Buddha-Nature
>>17377506
We're all Buddha in our core, but that core is covered with all the shitty sins and emotional, mental baggage we carry within.
>>17377592
A quote from Mahaparinirvana:
"The thought of Self regarding non-Self, and the thought of non-Self regarding Self, are inversions. The people of the world say that there is Self, and within Buddhism, too, we say that there is Self. The people of the world say that there is Self, but there is no Buddha-Nature. This is having the idea of Self in [what is] non-Self. This is an inversion. "The Self spoken of in Buddhism is the Buddha-Nature." The people of the world say that there is no Self in Buddhism. This is the idea of the non-Self in the Self. "It is definite that there is no Self in the Buddhist teaching. That is why the Tathagata tells his disciples to practise selflessness." If such is said, this is an inversion. This is the third inversion.
bump.
>>17377629
That sounds like nonsense. And I've read and understood a lot of buddha sutras. That's why I don't believe this is real original doctrine. Because it's nonsense.
>>17379449
It's not nonsense, but you're right in that it contradicts the popular view of Buddhism. But maybe the popular view is a misunderstanding of Buddha's teaching?
>>17379590
Anatman is the assembled ghost of a mirage of the imagined Self, and the Buddha-Nature is the real Self (atman) underneath all the layers.
Part 1
When you investigate mental phenomena until you go beyond them completely, the remaining defiling elements of consciousness will be drawn into a radiant nucleus of awareness, which merges with the mind’s naturally radiant essence. This radiance is so majestic and mesmerizing that even transcendent faculties like spontaneous mindfulness and intuitive wisdom invariably fall under its spell. The mind’s brightness and clarity appear to be so extraordinary and awe-inspiring, that nothing can possibly compare. The luminous essence is the epitome of perfect goodness and virtue, the ultimate in spiritual happiness. It is your true, original self — the core of your being. But this true self is also the fundamental source of all attachment to being and becoming. Ultimately it is attachment to the allure of this primordial radiance of mind that causes living beings to wander indefinitely through the world of becoming and ceasing, constantly grasping at birth and enduring death.
The fundamental cause of that attachment is the very delusion about your true self. Delusion is responsible for all the defiling elements of consciousness, and its avenue of escape is the ongoing momentum of conscious activity. In this sphere, delusion reigns supreme. But once mindfulness and wisdom are skilled enough to eliminate conscious activity and therefore close this outlet, delusions created by the flow of mental phenomena cease. Severing all of its external outflows leaves delusion no room to maneuver inside the mind, forcing it to gather into the radiant nucleus from which all knowing emanates. That center of knowing appears as a luminous emptiness that truly overwhelms and amazes.
Part 2
But that radiant emptiness should not be mistaken for the pure emptiness of Nibbana. The two are as different as night and day. The radiant mind is the original mind of the cycle of constant becoming; but it is not the essence of mind which is fully pure and free from birth and death. Radiance is a very subtle, natural condition whose uniform brightness and clarity make it appear empty. This is your original nature beyond name and form. But it is not yet Nibbana. It is the very substance of mind that has been well-cleansed to the point where a mesmerizing and majestic quality of knowing is its outstanding feature. When the mind finally relinquishes all attachment to forms and concepts, the knowing essence assumes exceedingly refined qualities. It has let go of everything — except itself. It remains permeated by a fundamental delusion about its own true nature. Because of that, the radiant essence has turned into a subtle form of self without you realizing it. You end up believing that the subtle feelings of happiness and the shining radiance are the unconditioned essence of mind. Oblivious to your delusion, you accept this majestic mind as the finished product. You believe it to be Nibbana, the transcendent emptiness of pure mind.
But emptiness, radiance, clarity and happiness are all subtle conditions of a mind still bound by delusion. When you observe the emptiness carefully, with sustained attention, you will observe that it is not really uniform, not really constant. The emptiness produced by primal delusion is the result of subtle conditions. Sometimes it changes a little — just a little — but enough for you to know that it’s transient. Subtle variations can be detected, because all conditioned phenomena — no matter how refined, bright and majestic they seem — invariably manifest some irregular symptoms.
If it is truly Nibbāna, why does this refined state of the mind display a variety of subtle conditions? It is not constant and true. Focus on that luminous center to see clearly that its radiance has the same characteristics — of being transient, imperfect and unessential — as all the other phenomena that you have already transcended. The only difference is that the radiance is far more subtle and refined.
Try imagining yourself standing in an empty room. You look around and see only empty space — everywhere. Absolutely nothing occupies that space — except you, standing in the middle of the room. Admiring its emptiness, you forget about yourself. You forget that you occupy a central position in that space. How then can the room be empty? As long as someone remains in the room, it is not truly empty. When you finally realize that the room can never be truly empty until you depart, that is the moment when that fundamental delusion about your true self disintegrates, and the pure, delusion-free mind arises.
Once the mind has let go of phenomena of every sort, the mind appears supremely empty; but the one who admires the emptiness, who is awestruck by the emptiness, that one still survives. The self as reference point which is the essence of all false knowing, remains integrated into the mind’s knowing essence. This self-perspective is the primary delusion. Its presence represents the difference between the subtle emptiness of the radiant mind and the transcendent emptiness of the pure mind, free of all forms of delusion. Self is the real impediment. As soon as it disintegrates and disappears, no more impediments remain. Transcendent emptiness appears. As in the case of a person in an empty room, we can say that the mind is truly empty only when the self leaves for good. This transcendent emptiness is a total and permanent disengagement that requires no further effort to maintain.
Delusion is an intrinsically blind awareness, masquerading as radiance, clarity and happiness. As such, it is the self’s ultimate safe haven. But those treasured qualities are all products of subtle causes and conditions. True emptiness occurs only when every single trace of one’s conditioned reality disappears.
As soon as you turn around and know it for what it is, that false awareness simply disintegrates. Clouding your vision with its splendor, that luminous deception has all along been concealing the mind’s true, natural wonder."
Maha Boowa relates that the core of an individual's being and Nibbana are quite distinct in a dhamma talk with a disciple of his, Mae Chee Kaew -
Bhikkhu Silaratano, Mae Chee Kaew. Forest Dhamma Books, 2009, pages 194-198. Licensed for free distribution.
>>17380255
THANK YOU! I've read Part 1, and I'm going to read the other parts in a bit. Breakfast awaits.
/OP
>>17379627
bullshit
>>17380255
>>17380259
>>17380263
>>17380275
YAAAS you've given us all the keys to success
>>17380275
I've read it all now. From my understanding, it just confirms my current viewpoint, i.e. no viewpoint. The emptiness is the Self, and it's what is covered with the defilements of form.
>>17380388
Stop trying so hard Vishnu
everyone is laughing at you
>Mahayana Buddhism
>>17380842
