Thursday, March 28, 2019

Algunas explicaciones budistas sobre el origen y existencia del Universo

                                                                         

    traducido del inglés por Juan Sebastián Hincapié Arana

“Considerar este mundo fantasma. Como una estrella al amanecer, una burbuja en un arroyo,  Un relámpago en una nube de verano.  Una lámpara parpadeante,
un fantasma, y ​​un sueño”.
Buda Shakyamuni

Pregunta: Si el Dharma del Buda niega la idea de un dios creador, entonces ¿Cómo se explica la existencia de los diversos mundos y universos?

En primer lugar, cuando se refiere a mundos y universos, el Dharma del Buda Los explica como lugares de renacimiento, o reinos samsáricos. Por lo tanto, son habitados por seres no iluminados en varias etapas de evolución o involución espiritual. Que yo sepa, la mayoría de los monoteístas dan el siguiente argumento en apoyo de su creencia en un supremo dios creador: “si ves una casa en un campo, te preguntas quién la construyó.De la misma manera, este mundo complejo es la creación de nuestro dios. Todo lo que existe tiene un creador ”. Esta es la base de su sistema de creencias, pero para los budistas el asunto se aborda erróneamente. Sí, en efecto, todo tiene un creador, pero no en la forma en que los monoteístas piensan. Preferiría decir que cada sueño tiene un creador: el soñador.
¿Y quién es el soñador? Somos nosotros - los seres no iluminados con nuestro karma individual específico, pero también con el karma colectivo o las conexiones karmicas que creamos entre nosotros.

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

No hay un dios supremo o un creador en el Dharma del Buda

           traducido del inglés por 
Juan Sebastián Hincapié Arana


Hoy en día, muchas personas dentro o fuera de la Sangha propagan la idea de que el Buda Shakyamuni no negó ni afirmó la existencia de Dios. Por lo tanto de alguna manera implican que el Honrado por el Mundo dejó la puerta abierta  para  interpretaciones y que está bien para un discípulo budista creer en un creador o dios supremo.

Bueno, esto es un gran engaño y una falsificación de las enseñanzas de Shakyamuni. De hecho, el Buda claramente negó la existencia de un  ser supremo quien creó el mundo, gobierna el mundo y un día juzgará al mundo. En este breve capítulo no tengo la intención de entrar en ningún debate o polémica con seguidores de otras religiones sobre la existencia o la inexistencia de un ser supremo, sino solamente probar que el Buda Shakyamuni claramente negó este punto de vista y lo consideró una falsa y peligrosa ilusión. Para mí lo más importante no es lo que las religiones monoteístas dicen, o si algunos deciden creer o no en un dios creador (es su elección), sino lo que el Buda realmente dijo y predicó. Así que si nos consideramos sus discípulos, debemos conocer su posición en este tema y seguirlo fielmente.

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Explicaciones generales sobre "ser", "karma" y "renacimiento"


                 traducido del inglés por 
Juan Sebastián Hincapié Arana

El Samsara es el ciclo de  repetidos nacimientos y muertes  a través del cual Los seres no iluminados deben pasar debido a sus ilusiones kármicas y pasiones ciegas. Pero antes de entrar en detalles sobre este tema, entendamos, ¿Qué es un "ser" o una "persona", según la enseñanza budista? y también, ¿qué es el “karma” y el “renacimiento”?

Entonces, queridos amigos, imaginemos hay un auto frente a ustedes. Ahora imaginemos que perdemos una de las ruedas y las ponemos a un lado. ¿Es el coche idéntico a esta rueda? Luego tomemos otra rueda y procedamos de la misma manera, haciéndonos la misma pregunta continuamos desarmando el coche y no nos detenemos hasta que se retire cada componente del automóvil. Ahora preguntémonos otra vez: ¿será que todos estos componentes tomados por separado representan el automóvil? Lógicamente te darás cuenta que la respuesta es "no".

Saturday, March 23, 2019

Los 3 refugios en Budismo Jodo Shinshu


 traducido del inglés por Sebastian Lopez
 Haga clic aquí para descargar  la versión en pdf

Los 3 refugios son:

TOMO REFUGIO EN EL BUDA
BuddhamSaranamGacchami[1] (NamoKye Bu[2])
TOMO REFUGIO EN EL DHARMA
Dhammamsaranamgacchami (NamoKye Ho)
TOMO REFUGIO EN LA SANGHA
Sanghamsaranamgacchami (NamoKye So)

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Three grades of aspirants to birth in the Pure Land - commentary on sections 23 to 25 of the Larger Sutra



last revised on November 1st 2019

“The Buddha said to Ananda, ‘Devas and humans in the worlds of the ten directions who sincerely aspire to be born in that land can be classified into three grades. ‘“[1]

As we can clearly see, these grades are not related to beings who are now in the Pure Land, but who aspire to be born there. Practitioners still living in samsara are not equal when it comes to their spiritual achievements, but Amida’s salvation is offered freely to all, without discrimination, so both virtuous people, as well as those who lack any virtue, are assured of birth in the Pure Land if they entrust to Him.

It is not an obligatory condition that only the evilest and corrupt beings should entrust to Amida; even the wise and virtuous should do that. There are high-level Bodhisattvas in various universes who also have faith in Amida and aspire to be born there. Also long-living gods as well as other beings, humans and non-humans, who are more spiritually advanced, some of them acting as unenlightened Dharma protectors, entrust to Amida, too. Such beings, while still not enlightened, are part of the higher grade of aspirants:

Thursday, March 14, 2019

Assurance of attaining Nirvana in the Pure Land through faith and praising of Amida’s merits by all Buddhas - commentary on section 22 of the Larger Sutra




“The Buddha said to Ananda, ‘Sentient beings who are born in that Buddha land all reside among those assured of Nirvana. The reason is that in that land there are neither beings who are destined to adverse conditions nor those whose destinies are uncertain.

‘All Buddha Tathagatas in the ten directions, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges River, together praise the inconceivable, supernal virtue of Amitayus. All sentient beings who, having heard His Name, rejoice in faith, think of Him even once, and sincerely transfer the merit of virtuous practices to that land, aspiring to be born there, will attain birth and dwell in the stage
of non-retrogression. But excluded are those who have committed the five grave offenses and abused the Right Dharma.’”

Friday, March 8, 2019

The Nirvanic features of the Pure Land and its inhabitants – commentary on sections 14-21 of the Larger Sutra (part 2)



As I mentioned earlier, the five senses of samsaric beings (seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, smelling) lead to delusion, attachment, dissatisfaction and suffering, but when the inhabitants of the Pure Land see, hear, touch, smell or taste things belonging to that realm, - because those are enlightened manifestations and their own minds and sense organs are also enlightened, - the states of mind they experience are themselves enlightened and pure.
ANY element in samsara can be both useful or an obstacle to our life and practice, but in the Pure Land EVERYTHING there is conducive to perfect Enlightenment and is a manifestation of perfect Enlightenment.   

We already talked about the effects of seeing the Bodhi Tree or hearing the Dharma sounds produced by the gentle breeze which wafts through its branches and leaves. However, Dharma sounds are not limited to the Bodhi Tree. They are also produced by the seven jeweled trees:

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

The Nirvanic features of the Pure Land and its inhabitants – commentary on sections 14-21 of the Larger Sutra (part 1)


Amida Buddha and His Pure Land

Why did Shakyamuni spend so much time and effort to describe the wonders of the Pure Land? Why did He offer so many detailed explanations of the jeweled trees and their fruits, the Bodhi tree, the bathing pounds, the monasteries, palaces, pavilions, the flowers with their exquisite aromas, the sounds, and so on? The reason is very simple. Because He wanted us to wish to go there! If you know about a nice resort, you would encourage your friends to visit it, wouldn’t you? It’s the same with the Pure Land! Shakyamuni wants us to go there and He makes a lot of publicity to it. Of course, no one ever makes publicity to something which does not exist, and especially Shakyamuni would never praise and describe in so much detail the Pure Land if that place was not real. Please bear this in mind as it is of extreme importance. By making the efforts to describe the Pure Land, Shakyamuni transmits us a double message:

1) the Pure Land exists; it is a real enlightened place, and
2) you should go there.

Sunday, February 24, 2019

The first teaching assembly of Amida Buddha – commentary on section 13th of the Larger Sutra


In the center of this image Amida sits on a glorious
lotus-throne and His hands are in the mudra of
Dharmacakra-pravartana (mudra of turning the
Wheel of Dharma). Source of image:
http://web.mit.edu/stclair/www/horai/large-ex.htm

“The Buddha said to Ananda,  ‘The number of Sravakas at the first teaching assembly of that Buddha was incalculable;

so was the number of Bodhisattvas. Even if an immeasurable and countless number of humans multiplied by millions of koṭis should all become like Mahamaudgalyayana and together reckon their number during innumerable nayutas of kalpas, or even until they attain Nirvana, they still could not know that number. Let us suppose that there is a great ocean, infinitely deep and wide, and that one takes a drop of water out of it with a one-hundredth part of a split hair. How would you compare that drop of water with the rest of the ocean?’

Ananda replied, ‘When the drop of water is compared with the great ocean, it is impossible even for one skilled in astronomy or mathematics to know the proportion, or for anyone to describe it by any rhetorical or metaphorical expression.’
           
The Buddha said to Ananda,  ‘Even if people like Mahamaudgalyayana were to count for millions of koṭis of kalpas, the number of the Sravakas and Bodhisattvas at the first teaching assembly who could be counted would be like a drop of water, and the number of sages yet to be counted would be like the rest of the ocean.’”

Saturday, February 23, 2019

Algunas nociones generales sobre el Budismo Jodo Shinshu


La rueda de la vida y la muerte exponiendo 
los estados samsáricos de existencia
traducido del inglés por 
Sebastian Lopez

     1.      Samsara y Nirvana (Budeidad/Iluminación)

Samsara es el ciclo de repetidas muertes y renacimientos. Debido a que es el efecto del karma[1] personal y colectivo (Interrelacionado) de los seres no-iluminados[2], no tiene ningún otro creador[3] mas que nuestros propios engaños, apegos y deseos. Hay muchos estados Samsáricos de existencia, entre los cuales podemos mencionar los infiernos, espíritus hambrientos, Asuras o espíritus bélicosos, y dioses. Todos los seres nacen, mueren y renacen en estos respectivos reinos de acuerdo a su karma, y su existencia viene acomañada de diferentes tipos de sufrimiento, obscuraciones e ignorancia[4].

Friday, February 22, 2019

The Lifespan of Amida Buddha and of the enlightened beings in His Pure Land – commentary on the 12th section of the Larger Sutra



“The Buddha said to Ananda, ‘The lifespan of Amitayus (Amida) is so long that it is impossible for anyone to calculate it. To give an illustration, let us suppose that all the innumerable sentient beings in the worlds of the ten directions were reborn in human form and that every one became a sravaka or pratyekabuddha. Even if they assembled in one place, concentrated their thoughts, and exercised the power of their wisdom to the utmost to reckon the length of the Buddha’s lifespan by the number of kalpas, even after a thousand million kalpas they could still not reach its limit. So it is with the lifespan of sravakas, bodhisattvas, heavenly beings, and human beings in His land. Similarly, it is not to be encompassed by any means of reckoning or by any metaphorical expression. Again, the number of sravakas and bodhisattvas living there is incalculable. They are fully endowed with transcendent wisdom and free in their exercise of majestic power; they could hold the entire world in their hands.’”[1]

This fragment is related with the 13th Vow of Amida, which I already explained in the section dedicated to the 48th Vows.

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