We finished Lesson 35 and all of DCB25 using “So recite the prajna-paramita mantra, recite the mantra that says: gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha.” from the Heart Sutra as our text. We also discussed what to do next with our Saturday morning discussions. Since the Buddha Master was quite clear in His instructions to study and practice the discourse that followed the main text of Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra, we will again study DCB26-“How to Realize Prajna,” most Saturdays starting August 9. We also decided to add another weekly ZOOM class on Tuesdays using P10-“The Great Dharma of Zen Practice,“ a course developed by Gesang Suolang Rinpoche, a long-time practitioner of Zen and devotee of H.H Dorje Chang Buddha III. This course also offers a specific method to implement what we have learned from our study of Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra.
The Heart Sutra related discussion on August 2 included the following:
What is dhyana (chan or zen)?
“The three karmas are body, speech and mind. The three karmas are to be unified into a single whole. When the three karmas are in correspondence, they naturally merge into one entity. Once merged, there is no second entity. Once merged, there simply is no concept of switching to a second entity. Thus, one is free of illusion and delusion. Even the one entity ceases to exist. Illusion and delusion do not arise. Such is dhyana. This kind of state is called dhyana. Dhyana begets wisdom. With dhyana, wisdom naturally arises. Wisdom illuminates prajna. Only wisdom can thoroughly illuminate prajna. Then, reality appears and one unites with the Buddhas. Therefore, when one corresponds with the three mysteries of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, one naturally merges with the Buddhas.”
CLICK for more information on LFBS course P10-“The Great Dharma of Zen Practice,“
What does “correspondence of the three karmas” mean?
“Correspondence of the three karmas means practicing in accord with the three mysteries of the Buddhas. As such, you can acquire boundless merit and perfect realization of the three truths of prajna. You can naturally acquire perfect realization of contemplative-illumination prajna, language prajna, and intrinsic-reality prajna. You can marvelously realize the holy path of enlightenment. You can realize the wisdom-based illumination of prajna and thereby illuminate the holy state of reality. Upon realizing that no state can be attained, you are on the holy path of enlightenment.
The Buddha Master also talks about the “realization of awakening,” why He first used the title of the Heart Sutra to explain the causes and seeds of liberation, and how he progressed in His exposition to teach us the ultimate truth. I included quotes in this posting from His Understanding Definitive Truth Sutra to express those teachings even though they are only preliminary translations. We do not know when that sutra will be available in English. These quotes included the “Dharma of No Dharma,” “Original Mind-Buddha Mind,” and “Wonderful Existence/Tathagata-garbha.”
The Buddha Master ended Part Two related to the actual text of the Heart Sutra with commentary on why so few actually awaken to prajna even though the Heart Sutra is widely studied and chanted. He also included an analogy about weightlifting. CLICK for related article(s) on the Buddha Master and the ability to lift incredible levels of weights as an indication of realization power. He also told us that if we wanted to master and awaken to prajna completely, we must listen to and practice the Dharma contained in DCB26, which we will do again starting next week. It is not enough to just study and chant the Heart Sutra. You must fully understand and implement the principles stated in the sutra as expressed in the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha and in the many discourses and Dharmas transmitted by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III, such as The Dharma of Cultivation and the Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation (SAUMOL).
Be sure and enroll in DCB26-Realizing Prajna, if you want to join our long term study of the Heart Sutra or the broader study of C41(A)-the Three Principle Stages & Paths of Buddhist Practice. There is an expanded article on C41(A) that explains its scope and content. CLICK for video of that discussion and revised maps of this roadmap to C41(A). DCB26 is one of the Learning from Buddha Seminary (LFBS) courses that are included in C41(A). There is also another article that discusses G03(A) and G03 Evolution of Buddhism, two additional courses that are also part of C41(A).
CLICK for a list of available classes in each of the programs: Auditing, Buddhist Studies, and Xiuxing Seminary. Those with membership in the Xiuxing Seminary Program who are only interested in serious practice and not opening a Dharma Center may also elect to follow the Xiuxing Practice Program and take a seven or thirty-day Solitary Retreat.
Next:
The first class on DCB26 will start with a discussion of Lesson 36-“Causality & the Methods of Continual Practice” at our August 9, 2025 ZOOM session at 9:00 am. There will be no ZOOM class on August 16.
Our next class in Hesperia will be held at 19099 Lemon Street on August 17, starting at 10:00 am and continuing until 3:00 pm. It will cover Lessons Three & Four on an “Introduction to Prajna” including anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, scattered or worldly intelligence, great questioning, Buddha nature, samadhi, manas and alaya consciousness, sentient beings, dhyana, and more.
If you have enrolled in C41(A) DCB26 or DCB25 or DCB24 or DCB23 or DCB22 or DCB21, you may continue to use the same ZOOM link to attend the Saturday morning discussions. However, you will need to enroll in the appropriate course to be able to watch the video recordings of the classes, download study materials, or study the related questions.
TO DATE: DCB25-Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra: PART TWO–IV and C41-Three Principal Stages & Paths of Buddhist Practice.
The recordings of the August 2, 2025 DCB25-Lesson 35B class is now available. All of the recordings and summary of ZOOM discussions for DCB21, DCB22, DCB23, DCB24, and DCB26-Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra are now available. You must be enrolled in each of these classes in one of the full membership programs at the LFBS to access the course materials, questions covered (in parenthesis), and/or the class recordings. Please note that these links will only work if you are logged into LFBS with your membership identification number AND are enrolled in this class.
“So recite the prajna-paramita mantra, recite the mantra that says: gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha.”
CLICK for article on the entire text of Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra.
CLICK for article with instructions on how to enroll in LFBS classes and how to register for the ZOOM discussions.
August 2, 2025: Lesson 35B-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, “So recite the prajna-paramita mantra, recite the mantra that says: gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha.” (279-292) and (HERE) for recordings of the class.
July 26, 2025: Lesson 35A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, “So recite the prajna-paramita mantra, recite the mantra that says: gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha.” (255-278) and (HERE) for recordings of the class.
July 12, 2025: Lesson 34E-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, “. . . Which Can Remove All Suffering and Is True, Not False.“ (237-254) and (HERE) for recordings of the class.
July 5, 2025: Lesson 34B-D-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The Great Bright Mantra (197-202), The Supreme Mantra (203-213), The Unequaled Mantra (214-236) and (HERE) for recordings of the class.
July 5, 2025: Lesson 34A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The Great Supernormal Mantra (189-196) and (HERE) for recordings of the class.
June 28, 2025: Lesson 34A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The Great Supernormal Mantra (146-188) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
June 21, 2025: Lesson 33B–The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The Perfection of a Buddha (140-145) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
June 7, 2025: Lesson 33AThe Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The Perfection of a Buddha (104-139) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
May 17, 2025: Lesson 32B–The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The “Three Times, Anuttara, & Samyak” (84-103) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
May 10, 2025: Lesson 32A–The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The “Three Times, Anuttara, & Samyak” (69-83) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
May 3, 2025: Lesson 31-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, The Different Levels of Nirvana (24-68) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
April 26, 2025: Lesson 30–The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, “Having forever left inverted dream-thinking, they dwell in ultimate nirvana.” (25-43 ) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
April 19, 2025: Lesson 29C–The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, “. . . Bodhisattvas rely on prajna-paramita, and thus their minds have no hindrance.” (18-24) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
April 12, 2025: Lesson 29B–The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, “. . . Bodhisattvas rely on prajna-paramita, and thus their minds have no hindrance.” (13-19) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
April 5, 2025: Lesson 29A-The Great Stage–Wisdom Path of the right view of emptiness, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra–IV, “. . . Bodhisattvas rely on prajna-paramita, and thus their minds have no hindrance.” (1-12) and (HERE) for recording of the class.
CLICK for article on July 20, 2025 class held at Hesperia on Lessons 1 & 2: Background and Introduction to the Heart Sutra and H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III’s Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra.
CLICK for article on the last class held on DCB24 and links to all 13 ZOOM class discussions on DCB24 held from January 4, 2025 to March 29, 2025,
January 4, 2025: Roadmap to C41(A)–Three Principal Stages & Paths of Buddhist Practice. Video of class discussion.
CLICK for article on the last class held on DCB23 and links to all 13 ZOOM class discussions on DCB23 held from August 24, 2024 to November 16, 2024,
CLICK for article on the last class held on DCB22 and links to videos of all 21 ZOOM class discussions on DCB22 held from February 10, 2024 to April 20, 2024 and from June 29, 2024 to August 3, 2024.
CLICK for article on the last class held on DCB21 and links to videos of all 18 ZOOM class discussions on DCB21 held from November 21, 2022 to April 1, 2023. Note: not all of the forwards, notes, and introductions are complete.
CLICK for article on last class held on DCB26 and links to videos of all 8 ZOOM class discussions held on DCB26 held from April 20, 2024 to June 22, 2024.
CLICK for Background information on Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra and why it is such an important text.
CLICK for information on S01-Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation (SAUMOL) Seminar.
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