The Lotus and Diamond Sutra

[The Genuine Article]

i was wondering why these two sutras are considered to be enlighteners?

 

and where can i get the sutras in their entirety?

[joshu]

Hi,

I have had some exposure to the Diamond Sutra and I would recommend the translation by Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese zen teacher. Its called "The Diamond That Cuts Through Illusion, Commentaries on the Prajnaparamita Diamond Sutra". I have the Threefold Lotus Sutra as well but it's less accessible in my opinion. Both of these texts and other sacred texts are not read like normal books but are instead "meditated on", which could include repeated reading of the text, small bits at a time, followed by some form of stillness meditation. The texts are also read aloud or chanted.

 

Its difficult to grasp intellectually but my understanding is that Enlightenment is not something to obtain. We are all fully enlightened Buddhas if only we dropped our deluded and incorrect way of perceiving. The Diamond Sutra is great, the name says it all :"The Diamond That Cuts Through Illusion"

[Bruce]

I second Thich Nhat Hanh's commentaries on the Diamond Sutra. Commentary is extremely beneficial, if not crucial to understanding it, and then you're going to have to really contemplate it (unless you're really ripe for understanding).

 

I used to own a copy of the Lotus Sutra with commentary, but no longer have it and couldn't tell you which one. A year or so ago I spent some time with an internet version and accompanying commentary. Again, the commentary is pretty crucial.

 

The Diamond Sutra really gets at the non-dual nature of things, and Nhat Hanh is wonderful at explaining the dialectics of prajnaparamita, which can be mind boggling without explaination. I'll let you make your own judgements about the Lotus Sutra. I need to read it again, and probably again.

[exorcist_1699]

Diamond Sutra is always an important Buddhist classics of Buddhism , especially of Zen Buddhism.

One of the most important claims in it is to " nourish a MIND out of nowhere "; of course , such

an ability is beyond the reach of any dialectics of philosophical reasoning , in fact, most human minds.

Edited February 24, 2009 by exorcist_1699

[ZenStatic]

Lotus Sutra

 

Diamond Sutra

 

_/\_ Amituofo

[Wayfarer64]

Now we are getting at some good spiritual content!- In my humble opinion of course... Tho there are many ideas that I do not find useful to me in Buddhism I thrill to the enlightening words and ideas offered by these works of harmonious spiritual wisdom!- many thanks for the posted translations!-

 

I'm thinking of compiling a set of various translations -in an effort to create a sort of "Gistaldt" - sorry spelling is not my strong suit-

 

Love to all-Pat

[exorcist_1699]

Besides the request of "nourishing a MIND out of nowhere " , the "Diamond Sutra" clearly states that we can't reach the Buddha Heart through making/paying attention to any voices and visions , so chanting it of course is not the right way . Yet why people afterwards still keep on chanting Sutra of Buddhism so as to get Enlightenment ?

 

In fact, it is the incapablility of getting rid of those trivials and layers , going straight directly to the core of the Buddha Heart and grasping it at one stroke that makes many Buddhist ways "degenerate" into searching helps from activities like chanting the Sutra and visualization.

Edited February 24, 2009 by exorcist_1699