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| Poster: Anonymous Reply Post Message Date: Sun Apr 7 23:45:44 2002 |
| Subject: Impression |
| Post No: 771 Reply to: 770 |
Your question is very much related to the "Tri Tue, Tuy Duyen" question. There is no doubt that an enlightened being (Buddha) has a lot of compassion for others and possesses a lot of wisdom. But how can he get enlightened? Who showed him the way or helped him? According to what I've read, there wasn't anyone who showed him the way. He discovered enlightenment himself and now showed us his way. Each sentient being possesses a Buddhaseed, the potential to become Buddha. If we know how to train ourselves then we can discover Buddhahood. The Buddha discovered it. Remember, he did not invent it. Enligtenment always exists in nature. Due to his karma, Shakyamuni was able to find an environment where he discovered enlightenment after 6 years of studies. His karma lead him to be born as a Prince (indulged in luxury,) then lived a life of an ascetics (self denial of basic necessity and essential such as food, shelter, medicine,...) This experience offered him an opportunity to find "The Middle Way" or "The Noble Eight-fold Path" which we practice to attain enlightenment. Therefore, his enlightenment is due to his karma, effort, meditation, wisdom. He didn't depend on anybody else. We can do the same, but it's difficult because we're not certain about how much good karma we possess. Why don't we just follow Shakyamuni's path he he found? We don't have to reinvent the wheel. It's easier. His "Tuy Duyen" was His karma; our "Tuy Duyen" depends on His Dharma. |