A zoom discussion was held last Saturday, December 17, on DCB21 Lesson 2 that provided H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha’s introduction to the title of the Prajna Parami-ta Heart Sutra and how it would be studied. In the following classes starting next year on January 7, the Buddha Master will explain in detail the meaning of each concept including separating the term “paramita” into two sessions to show the meaning of both “parami” and “ta,” an approach that is unique to the Buddha Master.
In an earlier class, the Buddha Master told us that we needed to be a good person, having the “innate character of kindheartedness of a real human being,” following goodness and abstaining from evil before we could even consider learning Buddha Dharma. In this class He explains how to do that–by “cutting off attachment to self.” This is our first requirement in learning Buddha Dharma.
We also learned what type of sutra we are studying and how the Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra relates to the collection of Prajna Paramita Sutras and why these sutras are the greatest of all sutras. We were introduced to what is the “original appearance of human life, the universe, and all things as well as the three or four bodies and four or five wisdoms of a Buddha and promised that we would learn more about these things later on in our courses. We also learned what it means to have “mahayana aspirations” and who is a dharma king, rinpoche, tulku, eminent monastic, and other beings. This was a class that established a lot of the foundation and concepts we needed to understand to be able to go deeper.
And go deeper we will do, taking on the primary principle of the whole sutra–the study of “prajna” itself–at our next class in January and probably for all of January and part of February.
Those who are enrolled in either the Buddhist Studies or Xiuxing Seminary programs can still register for the class and watch a video of the December 17 and earlier classes.
December 10, 2022: for article on Lesson 1 (54-81) and HERE for the video recording of that class.
December 3, 2022: for article on Lesson 0B (28-53) and HERE for the video recording of that class.
November 26, 2022: article on 0A (1-27) and HERE for the video recording of that class.
November 21, 2022: for earlier article introducing Lesson 0A.
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