For as long as infinite space and sentient beings exist, The compassion of the victorious ones and the

actions Of sentient beings continue without end. Those to be guided and enlightened guides Manifest through inconceivable interconnections. When the characters and dispositions of those to be Guided are activated, [The compassion of] the guides [arises], and configurations of the realms and dimensions of awakening appear; The miraculous methods of guiding others manifest beyond all bounds. - Jamgn Kongtrul Lodro Thaye (19th century)

Bodhisattva as Spiritual Ideal

A Bodhisattva is a being (sattva) who has taken a vow to liberate all sentient beings from suffering in cyclical existence Bodhicitta is the term used to describe the altruistic thought (citta) to attain awakening (bodhi)

Mahayana Cosmology: Innumerable, Interpenetrating World Systems: The Avatamsaka Sutra

The realm Unsurpassed is free from incidental defilement and transcends the experience of the three realms: it is indivisible pristine wisdom. In this self-manifesting, spontaneously appearing [realm,] Richly Adorned, Dwells Vairocana, Great Glacial Lake of Wisdom; A billion realms in his every pore.

The Ground, Path, and Result of the Middle-Way School [skt. Madhyamaka, tib. uma]
Ground- the two truths, relative and absolute Path- the two accumulations of merit and wisdom Result- the two bodies, form and formless

The Two Truths: The Ground

Kunzob Denpa- the relative truth- the way in which phenomena (dharmas) appear (nang tshul) Don Dam Denpa- the absolute truth- the way in which phenomena actually are (ney tshul)

Dependent Origination and One and Many

Dependent origination states that all effects have a cause, and in turn become a cause for a subsequent effect. So at which point is it an effect, and at which point is it a cause? Things are neither one nor many: anything that is one necessarily has sides, and thus has parts. Anything that is many (i.e. made up of parts) can not be found among its constituent parts. The absolute truth is twofold: the selflessness of persons and the selflessness of phenomena

Union of the Two Truths

Things are utterly empty, yet they appear. At first, emptiness is inferred through logic. This is done in a public setting through debate, and in personal meditation through analysis. Then one cultivates the direct perception of emptiness in a state of meditative equipoise. Then one tries to mix the direct perception of emptiness with the appearance of all phenomena. Buddhahood is the direct perception of all things in terms of how they appear and how they actually are. It is the union of the two truths, appearance and emptiness.

The Two Accumulations of Merit and Wisdom: The Path

Merit is accumulated through devotional practices, and primarily through the practice of generosity, motivated by the aspiration to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. Wisdom is accumulated by blending ones conceptual experience with the logical inference or understanding of emptiness

The Six Paramitas: one outline of the Bodhisattva Path

Dana- generosity Kshanti- patience Shila- discipline Virya- exertion Dhyana- meditation Prajna- wisdom

Prajna and Karuna: Two Wings of the Mahayana

Prajna means wisdom or insight, and is cultivated through meditation on emptiness. Karuna means compassion, and is cultivated through perfecting the paramita of generosity, and through meditation on the manifestation of compassion for all beings.

Candrakirti on Wisdom and Compassion

A single man endowed with eyes Can easily lead unseeing multitudes to where they wish to go. And so it is with wisdom, here; It takes the sightless virtues, guiding them to victory. -Chandrakirtis (7th century) Entrance to the Middle Way

The Two Bodies, Form and Formless: The Result

The form bodies arise as a result of the accumulation of merit, and are the nirmanakaya (manifestation body) and the sambhogakaya (enjoyment body) The formless body is called the dharmakaya, which results from the accumulation of wisdom.

Ok, so you said two bodies. Why are there three now?
The three-kaya system is used to explain the absence and presence of enlightened beings such as buddhas and high level bodhisattvas The three map onto a common Buddhist division of all karmic acts- those of body, speech, and mind.

Yogacara
Yogacara represents the other major branch of Mahayana philosophy that dominates in Tibet. Eight consciousnesses Three natures- imputed, other-dependent, and thoroughly established It describes the nature of phenomena as suchness or thusness instead of emptiness

What is a Consciousness?
A consciousness is a technical term used in Buddhist abhidharma to describe the product of the meeting of two factors: 1) A sense faculty, such as the ability to see 2) A sense object, such as the object that is seen These two are simultaneous and mutually dependent. This means we could just stop our analysis here, but Yogacara further develops its theory of consciousness to account for karma and klesha (afflictions).

What are the Eight Consciousnesses?

Five consciousnesses related to the senses (eye, ear, nose, etc.) Three that are purely mental 6) The mental consciousness (manovijnana) 7) The afflicted consciousness (klishtamanas) 8) The storehouse consciousness (Alayavijnana)

The importance of the three purely mental consciousnesses

The sixth consciousness receives data from the five sense consciousnesses as well as from the storehouse consciousness. The data that is perceived as originating in external objects is actually merely the mind, and arises from karmic seeds in the storehouse consciousness The afflicted consciousness is an aspect of the mind that is defined by its tendency toward a subtle clinging at a self of persons, of apprehended objects, and of an apprehending subject.

The Goal of Meditation in Yogacara

The purpose of meditation in yogacara is to train the mind to focus on all objects in terms of their mental nature, or to see them as merely the ripening of habitual tendencies stored in karmic seeds in the storehouse consciousness. By deepening analysis of the minds objects in terms of their origination from within the storehouse consciousness, one sees a nondistinction between apprehended objects and the apprehending subject. This is ashraya-paravriti, or the turning around of the basis.

Ashraya-paravritti: the turning around of the basis

This is the term used to describe the major revolution in mental activity that results from analysis of the mind in Yogacara. The collapse of any distinction between apprehended objects and an apprehending subject is equal to non-conceptual gnosis (nirvikalpakajnana) Yogacara analysis exhausts all possibilities of apprehender and apprehended objects, leaving only the mind itself, which is said to have two fundamental qualities

Mind is that which is clear and aware.

Five Buddha Families

What are the Five Buddha Families?

Note that each of the five Buddhas is associated with a particular color, and located in a particular quadrant of the compass. The five buddha families represent a subtle level of appearance. Their colors correlate to the elements that make up external phenomena, and the mental states that make up all mental phenomena. They are directly related to the cakras of the subtle body. Symbolically representing external elements and internal mental states as Buddhas implies that all objects of sensory perception have an enlightened quality to them.

Buddha Akshobhya
Color- blue Affliction- anger Wisdom- mirror-like wisdom Element- space Aggregate- consciousness Cakra- heart Activity- pacifying

Buddha Ratnasambhava
Color- gold/yellow Affliction- pride Wisdom- wisdom of equality Element- earth Aggregate- feeling Cakra- navel Activity- enriching

Buddha Amitabha
Color- red Affliction- attachment/ desire Wisdom- discriminating wisdom Element- fire Aggregate- perception Cakra- throat Activity- magnetizing

Buddha Amoghasiddhi
Color- green Affliction- jealousy Wisdom- all- accomplishing wisdom Element- air/ wind Aggregate- mental formations Cakra- secret Activity- wrathful

Buddha Vairochana
Color- white Affliction- ignorance Wisdom- wisdom of seeing the true nature of phenomena (dharmadhatu) Element- water Aggregate- form Cakra- head