Class 30 - Middle Way Autonomy (Madhyamaka Svatantrika) tenets

Download PDF's of HANDOUT and MP3 Tracks from the 30th class of Spring 2011 term held on Monday, June 20:

DOWNLOAD Handouts referred to in Class (Handouts are based on Je Tsong Khapa's Illumination of the Thought):

2011 Handout 19 - Explaining the Category of the Conventional Relative to the World:  Chart of Chapter 1 of the Ornament for Clear Realizations' Ten Topic & the 10 Mahayana Practice Instructions of the 2d Topic, and more.

2011 Handout 20 -  a) Explaining, by Means of the Category of the Two Truths, that All Phenomena Have Two Entities;  b) Another Presentation of the Two Truths.

ALL SPRING 2011 HANDOUTS & CHARTS are HERE.

DOWNLOAD MP3 TRACKS:

Track 1 - Middle Way-Consequentialist / Madhyamika Prasangika view of deceptive Conventional Truth "relative to the World".  Mind. Buddha Nature.

• Everyday we are confused by mistaken perception of how phenomena events exist conventionally.

Middle Way-Autonomy / Madhyamika Svatantika's (skillfully taught to lead to higher view) response to fear that Middle Way Consequentialist / Madhyamika Prasangika assertions that'mere mutation' leads to nothing exists; that the only reason phenomena do exist is that they are imputed, dependently arisen.
Autonomy asserts that although the person is imputed, however when you look for the essence of the Self/Person, something is found - the mental consciousness.

Track 2 - Handout 19 - Madhyamika Svatantrika / Middle Way Autonomy Tenets - Explaining the Category of the Conventional Relative to the World.

• Imputation of 'nations', 'money', etc., is not difficult to understand.
• For Middle Way-Autonomy / Madhyamika Svatantika no phenomena Truly Exist. Fearing extreme of nihilism, they assert that all phenomena do exist intrinsically / inherently. 
• Thus conventional direct perceivers, e.g., eye consciousnesses, are not mistaken regarding the appearance of inherent existence of, e.g., a sprout.  
• True existence' does not appear to sense consciousnesses. 
• Nonetheless, e.g., a sprout, does not exist independently, without appearing to a non-defective awareness.  The Emptiness of a phenomena is its lack of existing without appearing to a non-defective awareness.

• Questions & Answers.

Track 3 - Handout 19, p. 2 - Autonomy / Svatantrika tenets.

• "Hence, all conventional direct perceivers are non-mistaken awarenesses regarding the ultimate nature of their main objects so that conventional truths do not have the same deceptive nature as ascribed to them by the proponents of the Prasangika tenet."
• With respect to its ultimate nature, there is no mistake.  True Existence only appears to mental consciousnesses, not sense consciousnesses. 

• Questions & Answers. 
• Applying class material to practice.  Contemplate implications of holding Svatantrika Views.

Track 4 - Continue Handout 19, p.2.

•  Prasangika / Consequentialist assertion.
•  Svatantrika / Autonomy - Two Categories of Conventional Truth: 
• Correct/True Conventional Truths - functioning things like pot.
• Wrong/unreal Conventional Truths -  mirage, echos, rainbows, etc.

• Questions & Answers. 

Track 5 - Sub-divisions of Middle Way-Autonomy:  Sutra (Sutantrika Svatantrika Madhyamika) & Yogic Practitioner (Yogacara Svatantrika Madhyamika).

• In contrast to Mind Only, Middle Way-Autonomy-Sutra tenets assert external existence.  
• Middle Way-Autonomy Yogacara follows Mind Only-Cittamatrin tenets in denying external existence.  
• Yogacara differs from Mind Only tenets, which asserts that mind is Truly Existent. 
• For Yogacara, all sense direct perceives are mistaken because their main objects appear to exist externally but do not exist in that way."

• Autonomy/Svatantrika's division of Conventional Truths as either Correct or Wrong.

Handout 20 - Consequentialist/Prasangika denies Autonomy/Svantantirka's 2-fold division of Conventional Truths into Correct Conventional Truth or Wrong Conventional Truth:

• All Conventional Truths are deceptive so there is no division into True & Wrong Conventional Truth.  
• Deceptive nature of phenomena is not from the side of the object; but the mind's mistaken perception of Conventional Truth.
• Once a mind directly perceives Ultimate Truth, that mind is not fooled anymore although conceptual realization of Emptiness still perceives that Emptiness as inherently existing.
• "[R]elative to the perspective of the world objects which are not Ultimate Truths can be categorized into those that are true and those that are unreal."
• "[A]s conventional phenomena can in general be categorized into subjects (awarenesses) and objects (objects of those awarenesses) likewise there are:
• Subjects (awarenesses) that are True and Unreal relative to the perspective of the world, and
• Objects (objects of those awarenesses) that are True and Unreal relative to the perspective of the world.

• Questions & Answers.

If any of the LINKS don't work, please leave a COMMENT or notify us by E-Mail.

This is the 10th class of the Perfection of Wisdom course addressing the Two Truths, the 1st sub-topic of the 2nd Topic (Mahayana Practice Instructions) of Chapter 1 of Maitreya's Ornament for Clear Realizations.

Class 29 - Two Truths: Definite in Number & Contradictory

Download PDF's of HANDOUT and MP3 Tracks from the 29th class of 2011 held on Friday, June 17:

DOWNLOAD Handouts referred to in Class. (based on Je Tsong Khapa's Illumination of the Thought):

2011 Handout 18 -  a) Explaining, by Means of the Category of the Two Truths, that All Phenomena Have Two Entities;  b) Another Presentation of the Two Truths.

2011 Handout 19 - Explaining the Category of the Conventional Relative to the World:  Chart of Chapter 1 of the Ornament for Clear Realizations' Ten Topic & the 10 Mahayana Practice Instructions of the 2d Topic, and more.

ALL SPRING 2011 HANDOUTS & CHARTS are HERE.

DOWNLOAD MP3 TRACKS:

Track 1 -  Review Class Schedule and last Class - Handout 18.

• What does it mean to be a Buddha?

• Handout 18 - How the Two Truths Relate to each other:
• Every existent must be one of the Two Truths. 
• If it is one of the Two Truths, it must be an existent
• How do the table and its Ultimate Truth relate?  The lack of True Existence of a form (table) makes it possible for this table to exist; the table is a manifestation of its own Emptiness.  Similarly, any problem/discomfort we experience ...

Track 2 - Dispelling Mistaken Views re Two Truths - p. 2, Handout 18:

• e.g., assertions that 
• Ultimate Truth cannot be known (because 'It is Beyond ..."); 
• Everyone has already realized Wisdom.

Track 3 - Another presentation of the Two Truths:

• Exhaustive Categories (of existents) that are of Definite Number, e.g., 
• Being One / being Different, 
• Two Truths Category of the Two Truths is Definite in Number (no more than 2 nor less)

Track 4 - Deceptive (Conventional Truth) & Non-Deceptive (Ultimate Truth) are Directly Contradictory.

• i.e., when you explicitly negate one/you establish the other:  by Negating True Existence of pot, the Emptiness of pot is realized.

• Refuting that, e.g., my hand is not an Object of Knowledge (i.e., a wrong view of Ultimate Analysis):
• If you negate that the hand (Truly Existent) exists among its parts, then you do not find anything (in that Ultimate Analysis).  However, you are not subjecting the Emptiness of the hand to such Ultimate Analysis; therefore, something is found.  Negating the True Existence of the Emptiness of the hand, one finds the Emptiness of the Emptiness of the hand.  
• Emptiness and Emptiness of True Existence are the same thing, so when True Existence of hand is negated, its Emptiness is established, i.e., the absence of True Existence of the hand.  
• Take the "lack of True Existence" of the hand, itself, and negate its True Existence, to establish the Emptiness of the Emptiness of the True Existence of the hand. 

Track 5 - Two Truths are Definite in Number & are Directly Contradictory, cont.

• When a mind realizes sprout is a Conventional Truth, it implicitly realizes sprout is not an Ultimate Truth.
• Conclude presentation of Handout 18.

Track 6 - Handout 19 - Explaining the Category of the Conventional Relative to the World:

• Deceptive / Non-Deceptive Phenomena (e.g., table & reflection of face in mirror.
• Presentation of Middle Way Autonomy (Madhyamika-Svatantrika) tenets (Handout 19):

  In other words, phenomena exist because they appear to a non-defective mind and cannot exist without appearing to such a mind. A non-defective mind is a mind that is not mistaken with respect to its main object, i.e., it is a correct mind whose main object exists. Therefore, since phenomena cannot exist without relying on appearing to a non-defective mind, they are asserted to not exist truly or ultimately. However, according to this tenet, phenomena nevertheless exist inherently, intrinsically and from their own side. If they did not exist inherently, etc., they could not exist at all. Thus, the proponents of the Svatantrika tenet assert that even though phenomena are imputed by conceptual consciousness, they are not merely imputed, for there is something that is found when searching among the basis of imputation of those phenomena. Hence, this tenet claims to avoid the extreme of reification by asserting that all phenomena are empty of existing truly and the extreme of nihilism by asserting that all phenomena exist inherently and intrinsically.

Maitreya's Ornament/Abhisamayalamkara is written from the point of view of Middle Way-AUTONOMY/Madhyamika SVATANTRIKA Tenets that negate True Existence but assert Inherent Existence due to assertion that if Ultimate Analysis cannot find anything, then nothing could exist; therefore, Ultimate Analysis must find 'something'. But what is found?

If any of the LINKS don't work, please leave a COMMENT or notify us by E-Mail.

This is the 9th class of the Perfection of Wisdom course addressing the Two Truths, the 1st sub-topic of the 2nd Topic (Mahayana Practice Instructions) of Chapter 1 of Maitreya's Ornament for Clear Realizations.<