Sunday, September 16th, 1984

WISDOM'S GOLDENROD, ALAN BERKOWITZ CLASS NOTES

(TYPED)

SEPTEMBER 16, 1984

BUDDHISM; YOGACARA

TOPIC: Buddhism

SUBJECT: Yogacara

SUBSUBJECTS: Three Natures, Prasangika Madhyamika

BOOKS READ FROM OR REFERENCED:

• Sangharakshita, A Survey of Buddhism: Its Doctrines and Methods Through the Ages

• Jeffrey Hopkins, Elizabeth Napper (ed.), Meditation on Emptiness

• A.K. Chatterjee, The Yogacara Idealism

TYPED AND REFORMATTED by IT 2023

NOTES:

• RETYPED HANDWRITTEN NOTES (hence V08). From Classnotes AB 1984 0521 to 1984 0919.PDF.

• Per AB, these are his notes for this class.

• Anthony Damiani (AD) not present.

• All capitalization, punctuation, and other mistakes corrected, all abbreviations spelled out.

1984 09/16 at Wisdom's Goldenrod

Buddhism; Yogacara

[Classnotes AB 1984 0916 Begin]

9/16/84 Buddhism - Three Natures (Trisvabhava)

Sangharakshita [Note: See Sangharakshita, A Survey of Buddhism: Its Doctrines and Methods Through the Ages, p. 409, Windhorse Publications, 2001, ©1957.]

Yogacara -- three svabhavas:

1) parinispanna = absolute reality -- Absolute Mind (thoroughly established)

2) paratantra = relative reality -- unreal imagination (other-powered)

3) parikalpita = imputed reality or mere illusion -- the wrong notion of objective and subjective existence (object and subject as distinct) (imaginary or imputed non-existent imaginaries)

Vasubandhu -- by the power of mantra a piece of wood can be made to appear as an elephant

#1 = non-existence of elephant in the wood (emptiness)

#2 = the form of the elephant

#3 = the elephant itself

Mantra = alaya-vijnana

Hopkins [Note: See Jeffrey Hopkins, Elizabeth Napper (ed.), Meditation on Emptiness.]

Parikalpita (#3) for Prasangika Madhyamika is illusion of object's inherent existence, not subject-object duality. A Buddha sees a dependent arising as a thoroughly established nature.

Chatterjee [Note: See A.K. Chatterjee, The Yogacara Idealism, p. 199-202, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, 1962.]

Two phases of existence of the Real -- as absolute purity = parinispanna (#1).

As defiled by phenomena = paratantra (#2).

The unreal aspect = parikalpita (#3).

Parikalpita (#3) = that which has no authentic existence = imagined, its existence is as constructively imagined.

Paratantra (#2) = that which appears as subject-object duality. The form of the appearance is unreal, but the stuff which projects the appearance is real.

Paratantra = consciousness as diversified into forms.

Paratantra = caused by causes and conditions.

I.e., one thought-moment of consciousness as 'causing' the next.

Paratantra = the eight vijnanas, alaya etc. [It] is real but not ultimate.

That which is imagined (#3) is unreal. But consciousness itself, as the basis of this imagination is real, and this is paratantra.

Parinispanna (#1) = the Absolute, pure consciousness undefiled by objectivity.

Paratantra (#2) purified becomes parinispanna (#1).

Question -- are paratantra (#2) and parinispanna (#1) the real aspects of a thing (conventional and ultimate) cognized by a Buddha?

[Classnotes AB 1984 0916 End]