Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Exploring Theravāda's connections to other paths - what can we learn from other traditions, religions and philosophies?
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Enlightenment0106
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Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Enlightenment0106 »

Let's forget about the differences shall we :)? Just to be simple, I think they share rather similar goals and of course their teacher: the Buddha.
Form is emptiness. Emptiness is form--- Heart sutra
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Kim OHara
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Kim OHara »

:candle:
For a list of shared doctrines, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_Poin ... d_Mahayana

:namaste:
Kim
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Enlightenment0106
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Enlightenment0106 »

Kim O'Hara wrote::candle:
For a list of shared doctrines, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_Poin ... d_Mahayana

:namaste:
Kim
Thanks babe . :) good info :twothumbsup:
Form is emptiness. Emptiness is form--- Heart sutra
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Dan74
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Dan74 »

Kim may indeed be a babe. I kind of imagine him somewhere between this kind of a babe

Image

and the iconic

Image

But being a North Queenslander, he might look like this

Image

or indeed this

Image

But not like this

Image

because although Dianne Cilento, Sean Connery's ex, is also a North Queenslander, unlike Kim, she is female.
_/|\_
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Ben
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Ben »

You party-pooper, Danielle!
“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.”
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road

Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725

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Dan74
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Dan74 »

Shshshsh!
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_/|\_
daverupa
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by daverupa »

It's not really accurate to juxtapose Mahayana and Theravada, is it? Suppose we juxtaposed Yogacara and Theravada, for example - this seems much more likely to yield fruit, though whether such fruit looks like an interfaith effort or ecumenism is up in the air...
  • "And how is it, bhikkhus, that by protecting oneself one protects others? By the pursuit, development, and cultivation of the four establishments of mindfulness. It is in such a way that by protecting oneself one protects others.

    "And how is it, bhikkhus, that by protecting others one protects oneself? By patience, harmlessness, goodwill, and sympathy. It is in such a way that by protecting others one protects oneself.

- Sedaka Sutta [SN 47.19]
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Enlightenment0106
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Enlightenment0106 »

daverupa wrote:It's not really accurate to juxtapose Mahayana and Theravada, is it? Suppose we juxtaposed Yogacara and Theravada, for example - this seems much more likely to yield fruit, though whether such fruit looks like an interfaith effort or ecumenism is up in the air...
Yeah but I am just trying to unite different branches of buddhism , although it ain't helping much xD
( yeah I know it's actually quite united but yeah you get the point :)
Last edited by Enlightenment0106 on Wed Aug 15, 2012 3:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Enlightenment0106
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by Enlightenment0106 »

Dan74 wrote:Kim may indeed be a babe. I kind of imagine him somewhere between this kind of a babe

Image

and the iconic

Image

But being a North Queenslander, he might look like this

Image

or indeed this

Image

But not like this

Image

because although Dianne Cilento, Sean Connery's ex, is also a North Queenslander, unlike Kim, she is female.
You just made my day sexay
Form is emptiness. Emptiness is form--- Heart sutra
whynotme
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by whynotme »

From the wiki link above:

4. We consider that the purpose of life is to develop compassion for all living beings without discrimination and to work for their good, happiness, and peace; and to develop wisdom (prajñā) leading to the realization of Ultimate Truth

No, it is more a thinker than buddhist. The Buddha didn't teach the purpose of life, he directly taught life is suffering. The above statement it is like running with light in front of a car (an idiom in my language) much like Putting the cart in front of the horse.

8. There are three ways of attaining bodhi or Enlightenment: namely as a disciple (śrāvaka), as a pratyekabuddha and as a samyaksambuddha (perfectly and fully enlightened Buddha). We accept it as the highest, noblest, and most heroic to follow the career of a Bodhisattva and to become a samyaksambuddha in order to save others

No, if Bodhisattva is the highest, noblest way then the 4 main Nikayas would be full of teachings about it. In reality quite the opposite, none of the statement in the Nikayas teachs the Bodhisattva way, or encourage people follow it (exclude Khuddaka Nikaya coz it includes many later works)

And some of others statement in that link are not totally false but are not well said as well.
Yeah but I am just trying to unite different branches of buddhism
There is the disunion in the sangha, it happened in the Buddha time as well and he already taught about how to deal with it. Many efforts for it in modern time, but I guess not so much succeed

There is only one right way to do it, false things must be accepted as false things, wrong teachings must be accepted as wrong teaching, non dharma must be accepted as non dharma. Otherwise, the sangha has the ability to isolate monks with wrong views

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santa100
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by santa100 »

whynotme wrote:
"There is only one right way to do it, false things must be accepted as false things, wrong teachings must be accepted as wrong teaching, non dharma must be accepted as non dharma. Otherwise, the sangha has the ability to isolate monks with wrong views"

Well, there's a proverb that says: "if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail". There was a great man who practiced that highest, noblest way, and his name was Siddhattha Gotama. There's also another great man following this highest and noblest path right now in the Tusita and his name is Metteyya. Out of compassion for other beings, maybe you should tell him that he's doing it all wrong because the path he's following wasn't mentioned in the Nikayas.. :tongue:
whynotme
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by whynotme »

santa100 wrote:whynotme wrote:
"There is only one right way to do it, false things must be accepted as false things, wrong teachings must be accepted as wrong teaching, non dharma must be accepted as non dharma. Otherwise, the sangha has the ability to isolate monks with wrong views"

Well, there's a proverb that says: "if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail". There was a great man who practiced that highest, noblest way, and his name was Siddhattha Gotama. There's also another great man following this highest and noblest path right now in the Tusita and his name is Metteyya. Out of compassion for other beings, maybe you should tell him that he's doing it all wrong because the path he's following wasn't mentioned in the Nikayas.. :tongue:
Dear santa100,

No, IMO, the most noble way, also the only way that can lead to the nirvana is the Noble Eightfold Path (NEP). If there is another way that can lead to nirvana without NEP, then the Buddha would not teach on many occasions, this is the only way.
By that logic, all the Bodhisattvas in the past and in the future attained nirvana the same way as all other arahants, using the most noble way around, it is Noble Eightfold Path. It is the noblest way, there is nothing higher than NEP. The only difference is that the Bodhisattvas find the way themselves, and master in the way.

If there is another way, so you think the Siddhattha prince achieved nirvana without NEP? So by that you mean nirvana can be achieved without NEP? Or do you think there is another way nobler than the way lead to nirvana, which is NEP?

No my friend, without NEP there is no other way that can lead to nirvana, or there is another way nobler than the way lead to nirvana. Or you should teach your invention to our lord, sir Siddhattha: dear sir, I've found another way than NEP that lead to nirvana. Well, maybe he would accept you :tongue:

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santa100
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by santa100 »

Obviously, there's no question that the 8NB is the way to go. But you seemed to imply that only the sravaka path practices this 8NP while bodhisattva path does not. But now you clarified(or at least seems to) that all paths practice 8NP, which means whether it's Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana, they are still the Buddha's teaching. If this is what you mean, then I totally agree with you. If not, then we certainly differ in our opinions..
whynotme
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by whynotme »

santa100 wrote:Obviously, there's no question that the 8NB is the way to go. But you seemed to imply that only the sravaka path practices this 8NP while bodhisattva path does not. But now you clarified(or at least seems to) that all paths practice 8NP, which means whether it's Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana, they are still the Buddha's teaching. If this is what you mean, then I totally agree with you. If not, then we certainly differ in our opinions..
No, I didn't mean all Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana are still the Buddha's teaching. I don't consider commentary is Buddha teaching but it is some monks teaching. Similar to that, Mahayana and vajrayana are some other monks' teaching, no more, no less.

Truth is hard to face, n8p is the ultimate path but mahayana likes to create a myth there are a nobler way than n8p. No there isn't any, an arahat followed the same way as the buddha, and no way is higher than that, that why the Nikayas didn't mention any thing about bodisattva way, because there isn't any.

Actually the bodhisattva way (if we consider what he did before enlightenment is a way) is a random way, mainly is inferior to n8p, that why the buddha didn't teach that. Because he tried many ways, some lead to brahma, some lead to devas, until his last life he still hadn't founded the n8p so he tried extreme ascetic and many other things. Those things, they are inferior to n8p. Otherwise, he should teach his followers: let do extreme ascetic because I did it before, let try to hold your breath as long as possible, let try to eat as little as possible, those are things I did when I was bodhisattva. No, that is the wrong way and he also pointed out it is the wrong way, and every wrong way is inferior to n8p.

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suttametta
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Re: Similarities of Mahayana and theravada

Post by suttametta »

It's something like trying to find the commonalities between science and astrology.
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