Welcome to Bright on Buddhism, a podcast where we discuss and explain topics of Buddhism in a casual, conversational, question and answer setting. My name is Nick Bright, scholar of East Asian Buddhism. I am currently studying for my Master’s degree in Religion at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, where I am specializing in pre-modern Japanese Buddhist architecture history. I have researched topics such as Japanese Buddhist responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, Buddhist Haiku poetry, and the Japanese history of science and religion. I will be joined by my friend Proven Paradox.
Do you have a question about Buddhism that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by tweeting to us @BrightBuddhism, emailing us at Bright.On.Buddhism@gmail.com, or joining us on our discord server, Hidden Sangha discord.gg/tEwcVpu! Credits: Nick Bright: Script, Cover Art, Music, Voice of Hearer, Co-Host Proven Paradox: Editing, mixing and mastering, social media, Voice of Hermit, Co-Host
108 is referenced in the Chinese literature classic Water Margin, which is the direct inspiration for the Genso Suikoden games. Water Margin is called Suikoden in Japanese. It's like how Journey to the West inspired Dragon Ball.
Oh my god, your channel looks so epic. There is not tons of in-depth audio content on less popular Buddhist topics. Lesser-known stuff like Shingon needs podcasts and lectures describing the tradition and institution(s). On a positive note, I'd like to recommend a recent lecture here on RU-vid: "Voice as Talisman: Theorizing Sound in Medieval Japanese Treatises on Sutra Chanting". Very interesting from an esoteric Buddhist perspective, making one reflect on the complex and haunting Shomyo chants.
Glad you're enjoying the show and thanks for letting us know. I've got a long queue of Buddhist stuff I want to dig into when I have the time for it. I've added that lecture to the list. Might be a while before I get to it, but first impressions look interesting. Thanks for the recommendation.
I think that Yogācāra is a form of idealism, as Professor Jay Garfield and Professor Mark Siderits, inter alia, would agree. Its different from western forms of idealism but there are a lot of overlaps. Cittamātra (mind-only) does seem to mean that space, time and physical objects are only 'within' consciousness. Śūnyatā for the followers of this school is interpreted to mean that space, time and physical objects are 'empty' of self and inherent existence, which follows from the fact that they only appear in consciousness. What then is consciousness? Is that empty too? I think that the followers of this school do in fact think of consciousness as a kind of ground of being; but its not a self though, it lacks meta-consciousness and so on.
"the dhamma doesn't reincarnate" dhamma is not a being ... how would it reincarnate? dhamma means "phenomena" unless you're referring to the dhamma of the Buddha (the Buddhas' teachings) which still isn't a being so still, no reincarnation. 🤯 this is a very strange discourse. how is dhamma a container? I didn't catch your explanation of what it means that it's a container.
the Buddha taught there's no stable unchanging "self" (atta), this is called anatta. citta is the equivalent of what we call the soul in the west. I don't believe the Buddha taught there's no "soul" (citta). in further reflection, he taught that the citta is "stained" with kilesa so that contradicts that he taught there's no "soul". he taught there's no "transmigration" of the citta but that's not exactly the same as having no citta. citta is the source of awareness, one of the 5 aggregates. this is what the theravada sect says. I wasn't alive when the Buddha was teaching. did I learn incorrectly?
Through our quantic atoms, we are eternal. I am 86, some 50 years ago a wrote a little poem that I like you to read. Eternity. I have been the sky and I have been the sea, I I have been the wind and I have been the tree. This is how I know that I was, that I am and that through the quantic atoms of my body, when I die, I will become part of million things for million of years, sometimes even part of a human body. End of the poem. It reflects the constant change of everybody and everything. We are eternal. Thank you for reading.
"So, if you students of the Way are mistaken about your own real Mind, not recognizing that it is the Buddha, you will consequently look for him elsewhere, indulging in various achievements and practices and expecting to attain realization through such graduated practices. But even after eons of diligent searching, you will not be able to attain the Way." Huang Po ________________________________ "... And this is the dilemma. In most cases many of us are looking for what we are from what we are not. We've been misplaced, we've been put at another reference point and that reference point, what we are, doesn't seem to be available so we are looking for it. Which, as St Francis tried to correct "what's looking is what you are looking for.'' We don't see that because we think we already know what is looking , which is Paul, the body, which it isn't. Paul is not seeing, the eye is not seeing. The eye facilitates something to see." Paul Hedderman ________________________________ "Without a foundation in the conventional truth, the significance of the ultimate truth cannot be taught. Without understanding the significance of the ultimate truth, Liberation is not achieved." Nagarjuna
They want their doctrine to be elevated to the same level as science? No. Doctrine will eternally be incomparable to science, not in the way you think.
😂😂😂😂 I think we should not get involved in this past life search. I have had many past life adventures ..but...I am NOT convinced that these are really my past lives. My thought is...if this past life event , the character has many karmas to process....you might have to inherit them for you to process. I say. .. No, thank you. This karma thing...there is a big hole in it Am not buying. 😅
This originally aired in September 2021. Well, going back to this after so long was an experience. We've both gotten a lot better at presenting, and I've gotten a lot better at editing between this and now. That said, I think we've succeeded in our goals stated here so far, and we actually have managed that "hopefully!" I added 4:33. Anyway. Welcome to our RU-vid channel. Hope you all enjoy.
