Shingon's Ninth Level of Mind

Kukai gives the name, "The Profoundest Exoteric Buddhist Mind that is Aware of its Nonimmutable Nature" to his ninth level of mind. (p. 211) Kukai identifies the mythic origin of this level of mind in the following passage:

"Vairocana Buddha preached extensively for two weeks the meaning of this [mind], after having attained enlightenment for the first time, to the great Bodhisattva Samantabhadra and to others. He was residing, as it were, in a lotus-adorned abode of glorious enlightenment in the country called the World of Dharma. He manifested himself in seven places and held eight assemblies to unfold the Avatamsaka Sutra. He first entered the concentration known as the sagaramudra samadhi and meditated on the complete diffusion of the Nature of Dharma (dharmata). (p. 212 - 213)

The reference to the Avatamsaka Sutra links this mind to the Hua-yen (Kegon in Japanese) School of Buddhism.

(Quotations are from "Kukai: Major Works", Hakeda, 1972)

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Unconditioned and signless...

 

"The One Way, unconditioned and signless, is spotless;

It unfolds the teaching of nonduality of neither being nor nonbeing.

When both the seeing and the seen are negated, the eternal ground of quiescence will be found;

When all thought determinations are exhausted, one will meet with Mahavairocana."

Excerpted from the verse conclusion of Kukai's eighth level of mind, "The Mind that is Truly in Harmony with the One Way".  (Kukai: Major Works, Hakeda, 1972, p. 73 or 210)

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Kukai's Ninth Level of Mind...

 

"That which is near to us and yet difficult to perceive is our Mind. He who is infinitesimal and yet who pervades all space is our Buddha. Our Buddha is suprarational and our Mind is boundless... What is really mysterious and unfathomable is the Buddha which is our Mind."

From Kukai's description of the ninth level of mind ("Kukai: Major Works", Hakeda, 1972, p. 211)

If you are interested in the study and practice of Shingon, please contact us at mandalavermont@gmail.com

The roots of all good...

"Just as the sea embraces a hundred rivers, the roots of all good are gathered in this single syllable. Therefore it is called the mantra of the ocean mudra samadhi. Thus if you visualize this syllable one time, it surpasses the merit of reciting simultaneously the eighty thousand Buddhist teachings."

From the "Ajikan Yojin Kuketsu", Kukai's Record of Oral Instructions on the A-syllable Visualization transcribed by his student Jichie. (Shingon: Japanese Esoteric Buddhism, Yamasaki, 1988, p. 193)

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Emptiness of self...

Perhaps everyone knows the Heart Sutra's most famous lines:

"O Shariputra form is emptiness, emptiness is form, form is no other than emptiness, emptiness is no other than form."

There is no doubt that this classic formulation of non-duality has a unique place in Buddhist thought and practice. But today I'd like to draw your attention to the line that follows:

"Of sensation, conception, predisposition and consciousness the same can be said."

So it follows that:

"O Shariputra sensation is emptiness..., conception is emptiness..., predisposition is emptiness..., and consciousness is emptiness..."

All five skandhas are emptiness, shunyata. In truth we could rewrite this passage in a summary form saying:

"Oh Shariputra, the skandhas are emptiness, emptiness is the skandhas, the skandhas are no other than emptiness, emptiness is no other than the skandhas."

And what are the skandhas? They are ourselves...

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Ungraspable void...

From Kukai's "Aji-gi", The Meaning of the A-Syllable...

"The A-syllable is the originally unborn, ungraspable void. This ungraspable void is endowed with a multitude of virtues and embraces the truth of all Buddhas everywhere. Because it is based on mutual empowerment with the void, it embraces all Buddha-truths..."

(Shingon: Japanese Esoteric Buddhism, Yamasaki, 1988, p. 193 - 194)

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Dream...

 

"Meditate deeply to know the very bottom of the mind.

Where the Great Mirrorlike Wisdom of Mahavairocana shines infinite virtue all around."

From "Singing Image of a Dream", number three in a collection of poems called "Poems that Sing Ten Images" ("Tantric Poetry of Kukai", M.Gibson & H. Murakami, 1987, p. 26)

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Release from suffering & cultivating goodness...

From an inscription on a Chinese Buddhist stele circa 543 AD...

"True enlightenment has no words, but without language one cannot interpret its essence. Although manifestations [of the Truth] appear in response to [sublime] stimuli, without [Buddhist] images there would be no way to express its appearance. Therefore, for the release from suffering, nothing surpasses devotion to images; and for cultivating goodness, there is nothing better than reverence for scriptures and icons."

From "With a Single Glance" (C.J. Bogel, 2009, p. 42)

P.S. If you are interested in the study and practice of Shingon, one of Japan's few surviving tantric (vajrayana) traditions please reach out to us at mandalavermont@gmail.com...

Song of the Echo...

"Seeking the origin, we find that things have no essence.

All is unborn, imperishable, and has no beginning or end.

Stay in the One Mind of no discrimination."

From "Singing Image of an Echo", number six in a collection of poems called "Poems that Sing Ten Images" ("Tantric Poetry of Kukai", M.Gibson & H. Murakami, 1987, p. 29)

P.S. If you are interested in the study and practice of Shingon, one of Japan's few surviving tantric (vajrayana) traditions please reach out to us at mandalavermont@gmail.com...