Yang Ning’s Lectures on <the Diamond Sutra> – Review – Page 3

Heart Sutra of Prajñāpāramitā.

In the latter half of the Diamond Sutra, during the dialogue between the Buddha and Subhūti, it is clear that in order to fully comprehend the Buddha’s teachings; one must abide in the state of “true emptiness.” This recalls the well-known essence of prajna wisdom, which is the Heart Sutra of Prajñāpāramitā.

In the Heart Sutra, Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva addresses Śāriputra, the Buddha’s foremost disciple in wisdom, declaring:

“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: All dharmas are neither arise nor cease, neither pure nor impure, neither increase nor decrease, because all dharmas’ inherent nature is empty.
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There is no form, sensation, perception, volition, or consciousness—these are the Five Aggregates.
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There are no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind—these are the Six Sense Organs.
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There are no sights, sounds, smells, tastes, tactile sensations, or mental objects—these are the Six Sense Objects.
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There is no realm of sight, nor any realm of consciousness—there is none of the 18 realms.
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There is no ignorance, nor is ignorance can be eradicated through practice, because ignorance itself is empty originally.
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There is no aging or death, nor aging and death can be eliminated through practice, because birth, aging, sickness, and death are all empty originally.
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There are no Four Noble Truths (suffering, its cause, the cessation of suffering, and the path to its cessation).
“The true emptiness of the Tathāgata”: There is no wisdom to attain, nor any dharma to attain in the world.
By understanding the wisdom of the emptiness of all dharmas, the great Bodhisattvas can have a mind free from hindrances, with no afflictions, gains, losses, fears, and delusions, thus attaining Nirvana.
Upon realizing the emptiness of all dharmas, the form and emptiness is non-dual when employing all dharmas.
The Buddhas of the three times (past, present, and future) all attain the unsurpassed, complete equal, and complete awareness through this wisdom.
Thus, the wisdom of “no-self in all dharmas” and “the emptiness of inherent nature” is the supreme mantra—referred to as the bright, peerless mantra—capable of eliminating all suffering, and it is real and truthful.
This is encapsulated in the mantra of Prajñā Pāramitā, which is recited as: “Gate Gate Pāragate Pārasaṃ gate Bodhi Svāhā”. The meaning of this mantra is: “Go, go, go beyond, realize quickly the wisdom of the Buddha, and together with me, cross from the shore of samsara to the shore of liberation.”

The Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra both expound upon the Buddha’s Prajñā wisdom. The former is regarded as the essence of Prajñā wisdom, while the latter offers a general outline of Prajna wisdom. The texts that detail the Buddha’s teachings on Prajñā wisdom were translated into Chinese in over six hundred volumes, collectively known as the Mahāprajñāpāramitā Sūtra. Both the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra are excerpts from these extensive scriptures.

In this context, let us turn to the full text of the Heart Sutra, as translated by Master Xuan Zang during the Tang Dynasty.

The full text of the Heart Sutra

Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva, while deeply practicing the perfection of Prajñā wisdom realized the emptiness of the five aggregates, thereby overcoming all suffering and distress.

Śāriputra, form is no different from emptiness, and emptiness is no different from form. Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form. The same applies to feelings, perceptions, volition, and consciousness.

Śāriputra, all dharmas are just forms of emptiness: neither arise nor cease, neither impure nor pure, and neither increase nor decrease. Thus, in emptiness, there is no form, feeling, perception, volition, or consciousness. There are no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no forms, sounds, smells, tastes, tactile sensations, or mental objects. There is no realm of sight, sound, and even the realm of consciousness i.e., no realm of total eighteen realms. There is no ignorance, nor the cessation of ignorance, extending up to no aging and death, and no cessation of aging and death. There is no suffering, origination, cessation, or path; no wisdom, and no attainment.

Since there is no attainment, a Bodhisattva, relying on this Prajñā wisdom, then the mind has no any hindrance. With no hindrance, there is no fear, and they are far from inverted views and delusions. Ultimately achieves Nirvana.

The Buddhas of the three times, relying on this Prajñā wisdom, attain the unsurpassed, complete equal, and complete awareness. Therefore, know that this Prajñā wisdom is the great divine mantra, the great bright mantra, the supreme mantra, the incomparable mantra, capable of removing all suffering; it is truthful, not false.

Thus, the mantra of the Prajñā wisdom is as follows: Gate Gate Pāragate Pārasaṃgate Bodhi Svāhā.

Teacher Yang Ning’s Commentary on the Heart Sutra

The Heart Sutra begins by recounting that Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva is practicing deep prajñāpāramitā, this is not achieved in the meditation realm on a meditation cushion. It is achieved by following the Buddha’s prajñā wisdom, without clinging to any form to practice almsgiving, forbearance, and the six perfections, thereby a Bodhisattva can break the attachment to the self， can break the distinction between the observer and the observed, the illuminator and the illuminated, and ultimately realized the emptiness of the five aggregates.

He then spoke to Śāriputra about the true emptiness of the Tathāgata’s state. From the perspective of the Tathāgata’s true emptiness, all phenomena are perceived as illusory and insubstantial, and thus, “form is emptiness.” Realizing that every form is inherently empty, one perceives its emptiness when one perceives form. There is no emptiness with abandonment of all phenomena, so emptiness itself is form. In the state of Tathāgata’s fruithood, the employing all phenomena is non-dual with emptiness.

The same applies to the aggregates of feeling, perception, volition, and consciousness: within these aggregates, the Tathāgata’s complete essence of non-dual form and emptiness is also present. However, this realization must be cultivated and actualized according to the Buddha’s teachings. When one’s mind of seekinging and attainment dissolves, and fully realizes the emptiness of all phenomena, one enters the true emptiness of the Tathāgata’s realm. At this stage, one attains the equanimity among the self-nature, the Buddha, and sentient beings, only then can true and complete cognition be achieved.

Several key concepts introduced in the Heart Sutra

Let us now examine several key concepts introduced in the Heart Sutra, drawing on material from the video series “Learning Buddhism” of Ziguijia (www.ziguijia.com).

The Five Aggregates

Buddhism believes the world and life are composed of five elements: form, sensation, perception, volition, and consciousness. These five elements are collectively known as the Five Aggregates.

The Aggregate of Form refers to materiality, composed of the four great elements—earth, water, fire, and wind. Everything of this world are temporary combinations of these elements. That is why people see the continual processes of birth, existence, decay, and dissolution of material, and the cycle of reincarnation. In human, the form aggregates is divided into internal and external forms. The internal form consists of the five sensory organs (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body), while the external form consists of the five sensory objects (form, sound, smell, taste, and touch).

The Aggregate of Sensation (also referred to as feeling) pertains to the sensory experiences that arise when external stimuli interact with the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body. These sensations may be pain, itching, suffering, joy, sorrow, elation, like, dislike. It is about the mental activities.

The Aggregate of Perception referred to as conceptualization,” pertains to the process of analyzing and evaluating sensations or feelings generated by external objects, leading to the formation of perceptions and mental images. This is an intellectual activity about the functions of concepts. For example, when an individual hears the sound of a horn, the mind discriminates that the sound is produced by a car, and subsequently assigns a name to it. This is perception.

The Aggregate of volition refers to the volitional actions or intentions that arise from our interpretation of external phenomena. This is equivalent to psychological activity or intentional action. The mind caused by volition is the primary cause and force creating karma, as these intention thoughts drive our body, speech, and mind to karmic consequences.

The Aggregate of Consciousness refers to the aggregate of total consciousness, which integrates sensations, perceptions, and volitions into an awareness and distinction of the state. It is the functions and results of recognition.

The Six Senses, Six Objects, and the Eighteen Realms

The Six Senses and Six Objects are called the Twelve Realms. The Six Objects consist of: form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and mental objects. The Six Senses are: eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind. The Six Senses are referred to as the “internal six realms,” while the Six Objects are known as the “external six realms.” Together, these form the Twelve Realms, which are: Eye Realm, Ear Realm, Nose Realm, Tongue Realm, Body Realm, Mind Realm, Form Realm, Sound Realm, Smell Realm, Taste Realm, Touch Realm, Mental object Realm

The Eighteen Realms are an extension of the Twelve Realms, which are enriched by the addition of the Six Consciousnesses, bringing the total to eighteen realms. These Six Consciousnesses are: eye consciousness, ear consciousness, nose consciousness, tongue consciousness, body consciousness, and mind consciousness. The content of eighteen realms are as following：

The Eye Realm and Form Realm together constitute the Eye Consciousness Realm.

The Ear Realm and Sound Realm together constitute the Ear Consciousness Realm.

The Nose Realm and Smell Realm together constitute the Nose Consciousness Realm.

The Tongue Realm and Taste Realm together constitute the Tongue Consciousness Realm.

The Body Realm and Touch Realm together constitute the Body Consciousness Realm.

The Mind Realm and Consciousness Realm together constitute the Mind Consciousness Realm.

The Four Noble Truths

The Four Noble Truths are the four truths talked by the Buddha. These are: suffering, the cause of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the path to the cessation of suffering.

Suffering (Dukkha)

Buddhism believes that the Three Realms—comprising the Desire Realm, the Form Realm, and the Formless Realm—are regarded as a sea of suffering. Suffering is categorized into three distinct types:

The Suffering of Suffering refers to the physical and mental pain experienced by sentient beings, such as hunger, cold, fear, and torment, with little or no relief. This kind of suffering is most intense in realms such as Hell and the Hungry Ghost realm. It exists also within the Desire Realm but is absent from the Form and Formless Realms.
The Suffering of Change arises from the impermanence and constant flux of all things, including illness, aging, loss of wealth and loved ones, and death. This suffering is present in both the Desire and Form Realms but not in the Formless Realm, where the absence of physical form precludes such sufferings.
The Suffering of Existence pertains to the inherent unsatisfactoriness of life, as sentient beings come to realize that existence is in a constant state of flux, and the pursuit of lasting happiness or eternal life is unattainable.

This suffering presents across all three realms, though sentient beings in the Desire Realm have a shallow understanding and experience, or fail to understand and experience this suffering at all while those in the Form and Formless Realms experience a deeper awareness of this suffering.

In the human realm, suffering is further categorized into the Eight Sufferings:

Birth Suffering refers to the pain experienced during conception, gestation, and birth. Although infants cannot express the pain they endure, it is an intrinsic part of their initial experience. When babies can speak, they have forgotten the pain of conception and childbirth.
Aging Suffering involves the physical and mental deterioration that accompanies growing old, such as graying hair, loss of teeth, weakening muscles, sensory decline, cognitive impairment, and increased vulnerability to illness, gradually leading to death.
Suffering from Illness denotes the physical pain caused by sickness or disease. Few people have never been sick once in their lifetime.
Suffering of Death is that humans are destined to die, and death can occur due to various reasons. For humans, regardless of the cause of death, it remains a painful experience.
Suffering from Encountering What One Dislikes refers to the discomfort of encountering people or situations that one finds unpleasant or harmful. Despite efforts to avoid them, one cannot escape or evade these experiences, resulting in suffering.
Suffering from Separation from Loved Ones arises from the pain of being parted from loved ones, and cannot see each other due to all kinds of reasons in this life. Or pain caused by the death of a loved one.
Suffering of Unattainable Desires, it is the pain arising from pursuing unattainable desires driven by numerous cravings.
The Suffering of the Intensified Five Aggregates refers to the cumulative suffering that arises from the Five Aggregates—form, sensation, perception, volition, and consciousness. This intensified suffering results from the accumulation of previous seven kinds of suffering, as everyone is inevitable avoiding of birth, aging, sickness, and death. Everyone’s life has to experience to certain degree of the emotional pain of encountering adversities, separation from loved ones, and the inability to fulfill one’s desires, All these kinds of suffering culminate in the intensified suffering inherent in the Five Aggregates.
This is the truth of suffering, which the Buddha first expounded to his disciples. The Buddha’s intention was to inspire his followers to cultivate the aspiration to break free from suffering and attain liberation from the cycle of Samsara.

The Origin of Suffering

The second of the Four Noble Truths is the Truth of the Origin. This truth explains that the suffering experienced by sentient beings arises from numerous factors, yet these can be ultimately traced to three causes, commonly referred to as the three poisons: greed, anger, and ignorance.

Greed is all sentient beings’ clinging and attachment to the three realms. Greed makes all sentient beings eternally unsatisfied.
Anger arises from the aversion and discrimination toward that which beings find unpleasant or threatening within the Three Realms. Anger manifests as jealousy, animosity, and ill-will.
Ignorance is the absence of complete and perfect wisdom; Ignorance leads all sentient beings to develop erroneous and partial self-perceptions of the world.

Under the influence of these three poisons—greed, anger, and ignorance—beings generate all kinds of karma, which binds them to the cycle of Samsara, along with the inevitable suffering.

The Buddha talked about the birth to death cycle of Samsara, when the individual has sufficient conditions, this is Twelve Links of Dependent Origination. The sequence of these links is as follows:

Ignorance → Karmic formations → Consciousness → Mentality and Materiality → The six sense bases → Contact → Sensation → Craving → Clinging → Habitual Tendencies → Birth → Aging and death

The meaning of the “Twelve links of Dependent Origination” is as follows: When we ask why humans age and die, the Buddha teaches that it is because of birth—where there is birth, there must be aging and death.

Why is there birth? Birth occurs due to existence, it is the habitual tendencies driven by karmas, and one acts without true free will.

Why is there karma? Karma arises from clinging, which refers to the persistent pursuit and acquisition to sensory experiences of form, sound, smell, taste and touch. This pursuit and acquisition will create various karmic actions.

Why do humans persistent pursue these things? It is because of craving, i.e. desire.

Why do beings have cravings? It is because of humans have sensory and mental sensations of everything. Why does sensation arise? It is because of contact.

What is contact? Humans have the six sense faculties (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind), which interacts with the external objects of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and mental objects which is the six sense objects according to Buddhism. These interactions create discriminations and attachments, known as the six contacts.

Why do the six contacts exist? The six contacts arise due to mentality and materiality. “mentality and materiality” refer to the concept of “self.” Ordinary beings mistakenly identify their ever-changing body and mind as a permanent “self,” but in Buddhist teachings, this “self” is considered a mere label, with no inherent, unchanging essence, so it is called mentality and materiality, or false self.

Why does this “false self” exist? It exists because of consciousness, which is a thought that arises from past-life karma leading to present reincarnation, gives rise to the present body from a bardo body.

Why is there consciousness? Consciousness arises due to volitional formations, which are the mental tendencies that arise from the mind’s fluctuations. These lead to the creation of karmic actions, which in turn produce corresponding results.

Why are there volitional formations? These impermanent change are a consequence of ignorance, which is the lack of understanding about the true nature of all things, has no wisdom.

Ultimately, the Buddha teaches that liberation from the cycle of birth and death requires the cultivation of the Buddha’s wisdom. Both Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas believe that, through their understanding of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination, if any one of these links could be severed, the cycle of Samsara can be broken, leading to the cessation of suffering and the attainment of Nirvana. However, this is not the through perception.

In the Buddha’s most ultimate perception, all of these “links” are seen as conventional realities, and the very “causes” themselves are illusory. If Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas cannot fully perceive that these causes are ultimately illusory and do not have a true, independent origin, they are not able to attain the true Nirvana realm the Buddha.

The Twelve Links of Dependent Origination offers a comprehensive explanation of the Four Noble Truths.

The Truth of Cessation

The third truth in the Four Noble Truths is the Truth of Cessation. The term “Cessation” translates the Sanskrit and Bali word nirvāṇa, which means to extinguish, stop, or blow out—akin to the extinguishing of a fire. In the context of Buddhism, the three poisons—greed, anger, and ignorance—are viewed as the fires that burn within all beings of no stop.

The sages, eradicate the illusion of a permanent “self” and remove the root causes of suffering—greed, anger, and ignorance. By severing these roots, they eliminate the karmic seeds that perpetuate the cycle of rebirth. As a result, they attain Nirvana, a state of purity, peace, and liberation from the endless cycle of birth and death (Samsara). This state of cessation represents the ultimate goal of practitioners within the Lesser Vehicle (Hinayana) tradition.

The state achieved by Arahants, known as “Nirvana with Residue”, is a temporary cessation of the cycle of Samsara. While Arahants may halt the flow of Samsara for extended periods with meditative ability, they have not completely severed the cycle of rebirth. Nirvana is not something that can be attained only after death, whereas it can be realized within one’s lifetime.

The Truth of the Path

The fourth truth in the Four Noble Truths is the Truth of the Path. To liberate from the sufferings of birth, aging, illness, death, and all kinds of afflictions, the Buddha taught us that we need to practice, that is the truth of the path. Throughout his forty-nine years of teaching, the Buddha outlined various paths to liberation, tailored to the diverse capacities and circumstances of sentient beings.

In the Lesser Vehicle (Hinayana) tradition, the important part is defined by the Thirty-Seven Factors of Enlightenment. In the Greater Vehicle (Mahāyāna) tradition, the Six Paramitas (Six Perfections) of Bodhisattvas’ path needs to learn.

The Six Paramitas

The Six Paramitas, is also called Six Perfections, Paramitas is the sound translation from Sanskrit, it means “to the other shore,” symbolizing the journey from the shore of samsara (birth and death) to the shore of Nirvana. While pāramitā can be translated as “perfection” or “completion,” it conveys the six methods of crossing over to the ultimate state of enlightenment.

The Six Paramitas are Almsgiving, Morality, forbearance, Diligence, Meditation, and Wisdom. Practitioners must observe the emptiness of all phenomena while practicing the six methods, only through this the practices can be called method of liberation.

The first of the perfections, almsgiving, is the gateway to liberation through selfless giving.

Almsgving involves giving all that one possesses to those in need, such as money, labor, knowledge, smiles, and more. Practice this method of giving without any purpose, without expecting anything in return, and do not dwell on it after giving.

In Buddhist teachings, the concept of the “emptiness of three realms” is how to practice almsgiving: the giver, the recipient, and the giving are all empty. By doing it this way, can one attain the Bodhisattva Perfection of Giving and enter the gate to liberation. Otherwise, it would merely be accumulating meritorious deeds and merits in the human world

The second perfection, morality (Śīla Paramita), is observing ethical precepts to attain liberation.

In both the Lesser and Greater Vehicle, there are many precepts. For lay practitioners in the Mahāyāna, the most fundamental precepts can be summarized by the phrase: “Do no evil, do all good.” Good actions are those that align with national customs, moral standards, and the well-being of sentient beings, while evil actions are those that are in opposite of above.

The essence of the Śīla Paramita is to restrain one’s behavior and control the indulgence of the mind, thereby purifying the three poisons gradually—greed, anger, and ignorance. If one only pays attention to external behaviors and has no change of the mind and heart, it is not called as observing the Sila Paramita.

For example, the precept of non-killing of the five precepts, its aim is to eliminate the intent of killing and anger of the practitioner.

If you are a vegetarian and do mercy release but harbor anger or ill will to the surrounding people or things, and are full of resentment and hostility within the mind, gossips others, wishes all the opponents bad luck, and feels happy for this. All of these violate the non-killing precept, as the hatred poison remains unchanged. When you have killed a mosquito, your mind feels the happiness as its blood dye the white wall red, this is the unnoticeable killing mind during our ordinary life.

It is not merely about killing mosquitoes or eradicating pests but involves a deeper, subtle enjoyment of death. This also broke the non-killing precept.

Therefore, the most important point of morality is to observe the unkindness intention in our minds through all behaviors, be immediately alter and modify it once observing greed, angry and ignorance. This is how to keep morality in Mahayana , which will lead to liberation.

The third perfection, Forbearance Pāramitā, refers to the path of entering the door of liberation through forbearance.

Forbearance does not entail passive acceptance of mistreatment or submission to all things and all people without resistance. Rather, you feel no resentment when facing those who bully you and all the unfair treatment and dire circumstances you perceive. If, in the face of mistreatment, one’s heart becomes filled with intense anger, regardless of how one might outwardly behave, they are no longer practicing forbearance.

The Forbearance in forbearance Pāramitā has the meaning of dwelling in a state of awareness and recognizing the emptiness. In any circumstance, the mind must observe continually the emptiness inherent in self and all phenomena, allowing it to be liberated from the discrimination and sensations elicited by the six senses. Even in moments of anger, but the poison of hatred does not arise; this enters into the door of liberation.

For example, a child may make a mistake and be reprimanded, provoking anger; however, this anger is not accompanied by hatred. Similarly, in Vajrayana Buddhism, deities may appear in wrathful forms. Rather, as they realized the emptiness, their angers are also a manifestation of “true emptiness, wonderfully existent,” imbued with great blessing power.

The fourth perfection, Vigorous Effort, is the path to liberation through persistent and diligent effort.

Vigorous Effort can manifest in various ways. For instance, upon hearing the Dharma, one may immediately abandon unwholesome actions and time-wasting activities of no benefit and generate the aspiration to listen to and study the true Dharma. This is also Vigorous Effort.

In Buddhist practice, one should endure when endurance is called for, let go when letting go is required, be sincere and mindfulness. At all times, the practitioner should have the right attitude toward the Dharma, remain diligent in fulfilling the duties assigned by the Dharma teacher, and avoid making excuses to relax. All these are Vigorous Effort.

The fifth perfection is the path to liberation through meditation.

In the practice of meditation, one should not become complacent or proud after achieving some degree of concentration. The ultimate goal of meditation is to use this concentration to awaken inherent wisdom. While celestial beings may find joy in the tranquility and Nirvana. However, staying indefinitely within the Four Dhyānas or the Eight Concentrations does not lead to liberation from the Three Realms. Only through the wisdom of the Buddha can one liberate from Samsara and attain the ultimate freedom.

Meditation encompasses various techniques, generally categorized into three stages: Calm Concentration, Samatha and Vipassana, Samadhi and Wisdom. These stages progress gradually, with the power of meditation one stabilizes the mind and enabling it to dwell calmly in any situation. As the mind dwells calmly for a long time, it transcends human sensations, revealing the true nature of all things. As meditation power deepens, the clarity and completeness of this insight also grow, leading the practitioner toward liberation.

The sixth perfection, Prajñā (Wisdom), is the path to liberation through the wisdom.

Prajñā is sound translation from Sanskit. It refers to the wisdom that comprehends the true nature of emptiness, distinct from ordinary worldly intelligence or cleverness. By realizing the Buddha’s wisdom, enters the path of liberation.

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