Class 3 - Introduction - 1. Support of Mahayana Path of Preparation

The 3rd class of Spring 2014 term was held on Friday, the 11th day of April. The Mahayana Path of Preparation is the topic of the first half of the term.

Download the Spring 2014 Course Text-PDF, prepared by Geshe Kelsang Wangmo.

Please NOTE: Geshe Wangmo presented an overview of the Mahayana Path of Preparation in the 7th Class of the Spring 2013 Term. You can download the Recorded MP3 tracks of that class, together with a transcript of NOTES from the class, and the Handouts Geshe Wangmo prepared as the text for that class at this blog's April 24, 2013 POST.

DOWNLOAD Recorded MP3 Tracks of Class 3:

Track 1 - Review:

Five Steps to Realize Emptiness:  

1. Correctly Assuming Awareness of Emptiness arisen from Hearing.  
2. Inferential Cognition (Incontrovertible) of Emptiness arisen from Contemplation.
3. Awareness of Emptiness on Basis of Meditation arisen from (Calm Abiding) Meditation. 
4. Awareness of Emptiness Mainly on Basis of Meditation (Union of Calm Abiding & Special Insight).
5. Directly Perceiving Realization of Emptiness.

Q&A - DIfferentiating Prasangika presentation of cognizers from other Tenet systems.

Track 2 - Initial Presentation of Path of Preparation per Panchen Sonam Drakpa's Six Topics to Elucidate this Path [Handout p. 27]: 

1. Support (of the Mahayana Path of Preparation)

[Handout pp. 28-30 - sources:  Vasubhandu's Treasury of Knowledge (Skt., Abhidharma-kosha; Tib., མངོན་པ་མཛོད་); Gyaltsab Je's Ornament of the Essence ( རྣམ་བཞད་སྙིང་པོ་རྒྱན་]

• Introduction to Four Levels of Path of Preparation (Heat, Peak, Forbearance & Supreme Dharma), e.g.:  the 1st is named Heat because having attained this Path, one is approaching the Fire (that actually begins burning away obstacles preventing Enlightenment) of the Path of Seeing.  The name of the 3rd level (Forbearance) refers to losing one's residual fear of Emptiness.  Having attained that level, one  cannot be reborn (uncontrollably) in the lower realms again. 

• Who is a person who can attain this path, at what level of existence, physical basis:
• 3 of the 4 types of humans (living on different continents, i.e., planets or realms) & celestial beings of the Desire Realm can generate Path of Preparation. 
• Physical basis to generate the Path of Seeing on the Supreme Dharma Level of the Path of Preparation.

Track 3 - Discussion / Q&A regarding material introduced in this class.


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This is the 3rd class of the Spring 2014 term of

the Perfection of Wisdom course
which addresses 3rd Topic - Mahayana Path of Preparation
of Chapter 1 of Maitreya's
Ornament for Clear Realizations - Abhisamayalamkara.