Entering the Middle Way, 23 May 1991, part 1

I must for the sake of myself and all sentient beings equal to space attain the state of Buddhahood. Buddhahood. And in order to achieve that end, I must eliminate all my various faults and bring in consummation all my acts and qualities. In order to do that, I must practice. Therefore, to that end, I’m going to listen, reflect, cultivate the profound essence of the great vehicle.

And by that means I will be able to benefit vast sentient beings and thereby enable the Dharma to remain long in this world, and praying that the Dharma may remain long in this world. And to that end we are going to cultivate such a motivation for the next three minutes. The explanation of as presented in the Entering Into the Middle Way amongst the four tenet systems which were expounded by the Buddha, it is explained in terms of the final thought of the Buddha which is the Consequentialist Middle Way school. So in coming to an understanding of this final view, it is necessary to understand the views as presented by the lower tenet systems in order to understand those of the higher. The understanding of the lower tenet systems, the view of the lower tenet system acts as the method for realizing the view of the upper tenet systems.

Without understanding the view of the lower tenet system, we are not able to understand the higher view. For example, as a prerequisite to understanding the view of the consequence of middle way school, one must understand the view as presented by the Autonomy Middle Way School. So if one understands the Autonomy view, this will be a great benefit in coming to an understanding of the Consequentialist view. So, I’m going to explain roughly the view of the middle way school. Numerous varieties of types of things functional phenomena.

Functional, we call them things. And one way of classifying these things are those things which are included within the continuum of sentient beings and those which are not included within the continuum of sentient beings. For example, such things as water, wood, things of this nature. Then there are those types of things which are included in the continuum of sentient beings. For example, a hand or head, a leg, these are all included within the continuum of, for example, the person.

The reason that we include these in the continuum is that if we were to strike them, then we experience some pain. Upon being hit, we a feeling of suffering arises. If we hit a table, the feeling of suffering does not arise. Whatsoever thing it might be, it is produced in dependence upon causes and conditions. Because it rises in dependence upon causes and conditions, therefore, it nominally exists.

Because these things are produced in dependence upon causes and conditions, then they cannot be truly existent. Why are these things not truly existent? Because their existence relies upon causes and conditions. Therefore, they cannot truly exist. Of all products, whether external or internal, do not truly exist because they arise in dependence upon causes and conditions.

But there is the conception of true existence, that is to say, the wrong consciousness which holds to the existence of true existence. So, within the Autonomy Middle Way School, in order to understand, in order to realize emptiness, we must understand that all things whatsoever do not truly exist. That is to say both internal and external phenomena are not truly existent. But not only do we have to understand, be able to identify what is meant by truly existent. But additionally, we must understand that though things do not truly exist, there is the misconception which grasps at the existence of things.

And therefore, we must additionally identify this conception grasping at the true existence of things which in fact do not truly exist. Without identifying true existence and the conception which is grasping at true existence, it will be difficult to realize emptiness. So, how are we going to identify these two factors? Factors? What is the method to help us in this identification process?

We it would it is quite useful to make use of the an illustration, and the illustration of illusion. And then having explained the illustration, not the illustration, the analogy of the illusion, and then we will explain the meaning of that analogy. Similarity with respect to the actual fact, which is the meaning of the analogy. So the analogy is referring to a parallel case, and that is what we want to understand. So, but first, in order to understand the parallel case, we must understand the analogy itself.

So we begin with the presentation of the analogy. Yes. So, beginning begin with there is an illusionist or a magician, and this magician has a stone and a small stick. And the magician recites mantras and blows upon the stone and the stick and then casts them, throws them down before the audience. So, we’ll address this up a little bit.

First they did some good publicity and they said on the first of the month at 01:00 there’s going to be this great magician show, magic show. And so at 01:00 all the people were together was going to come watch the show. But just previous to that, the magician, he took a stick and stone and recited some very powerful mantras. And then he blew on this stone and stick, and he set them down on the stage. And then the audience came in, and due to the effect of the mantra, the mantra affected the eyes of the audience.

And though there were, in fact, no, they did not see the stone stick. What appeared to them due to the effect of the mantra was a horse and an elephant. There was on the stage the appearance of a horse and an elephant. So the members of the audience took the appearance of a horse to be a real horse. They took the appearance of an elephant to be a real elephant and they thought this is real there’s a real horse and a real elephant on the stage and they held to that belief, they acceded to that appearance as being real.

So, dependence upon the a stone and a stick, and the recitation of a powerful mantra, then the magician was able to emanate the appearance of a horse and an elephant. So what do you think? Is there an illusory horse and an illusory elephant there presently or not? An illusory horse and an illusory elephant. Where is it?

Which of their consciousnesses? Sensory consciousness or mental consciousness? So that’s right. There does exist an illusory horse. There does exist the appearance of a horse, but if we were to ask is that illusory horse or that appearance of the horse a horse?

It is not. There is no horse there. There is the appearance of a horse and illusory horse. So using the flower as an example, if we ask the flower appears to the eye consciousness and if we ask where is the flower? The flower is not the eye consciousness.

It is in the vase. It’s there. Then the same if we ask, there is the appearance of a horse. Where does the horse exist? Where does the appearance of the horse exist?

Exists upon the place where there is the stone and the stick. So the appearance of the the So from the side of the the appearance exists from the side of the the appearance of a horse and an elephant exists from the side of the stone and the stick. And this casts its appearance to the eye consciousness. But in dependence upon that, the mental consciousness posits the existence of the horse and the elephant. So the the mental horse, consciousness thinks, Oh, there’s a horse, there’s an elephant.

It accedes to that appearance. And acceding it posits, it imputes, it designates, it posits the existence of horse and elephant. So the horse and elephant arises in dependence upon a combination of from the side of the object an appearance arising and from the side of the mental conscious the accession as to the existence of appearance as being real. So the horse and elephant appear to the eye consciousness, then the mental consciousness goes on from there and it accedes, or that is to say, adheres to the existence of that horse and elephant, thinking this is a horse and elephant. So there is the appearance of a horse and elephant appearing to the eye consciousness, then the mental consciousness goes on and adheres to this appearance as being, in fact, a horse and elephant.

So there’s two factors. There is the appearance of a horse and an elephant, and there is the adhering of the mental consciousness as to this being an actual horse and elephant. So there are these two factors which are with respect to the awareness of of the audience, the appearance and additionally the adhering to the reality of the appearance. Now with respect to the magician, magician who, that is to say the one who actually casts the mantra, there additionally, just like to the audience, there appears from the side of the stone and the stick, there is the appearance of a horse and an elephant. So the appearance is just for the magician is the same as what it is for the audience.

So the magician and the audience are like from the point of view that from the place of the stick and the the stick and the stone, is the appearance of a horse and an elephant. So, and with respect the audience, the audience thinks, Ah, that really is a horse, that really is an elephant, and they adhere to that. But with respect to the magician, because he is the one who casts the mantra, there is not the thought that this is in fact a horse and elephant. There is not the adherence to this appearance as being an actual horse and elephant. So isn’t there a difference between these appearance only arises due to the force of the mantra that I cast.

That actually there is no real horse, there’s no real elephant. What appears to be a horse is not really a horse. What appears to be an elephant is not really an elephant. This appearance is empty of being a real horse. This appearance is empty of being a real elephant.

For the magician, the magician understands that there is no horse coming from the side of the object. There is no horse or elephant coming from the side of the object. The horse and elephant do not objectively exist. That it is merely by the force of its own awareness that the horse and the elephant exist. That it is merely by his mind positing the horse and elephant that the horse and elephant exist.

That the horse and elephant are merely being designated by his awareness. There is in fact no horse or no elephant existing objectively from its own side. Merely by the force of his awareness does it exist. And therefore, he does not grasp at the reality of that horse and elephant. That horse and elephant is empty of being a horse and an elephant.

So, the horse is being posited by the awareness of the magician and its appearance is established from the side of the stone and stick. So the awareness of the magician is positing the horse and elephant. From the side of the object there is established the appearance of horse and elephant. This is common and it is by means of the combination of these two factors that the Autonomy Middle Way School asserts that all phenomena are established. According to the Autonomy Middle Way all phenomena are established by a combination of these two factors, the awareness which is positing the object and the appearance coming from the side of the object.

So, from the point of view of the Autonomy Middle Way School, all phenomena whatsoever are established in this way. As in terms of the magician, the magician by means of his awareness posits the horse and there is the appearance of the horse coming from the side of the object. The, if we take the flower, then there is the petals, the appearance of the petals and stems coming from the side of the object, and then from the side of the awareness, the awareness of that posits flower and in a combination of these two factors, the flower is established, comes into it, exists. So another example, we take the table. The table is made up of a collection of parts.

For example, the top of the table, the flat part, then the legs of the table. From the side of the object is the appears the table or the appearance of the table, either one, either the table or the appearance of the table from the side of the object. From the side of the subject, from the conception imputes table upon that. In the combination of these two, the table existence is established. Another example is Jampa.

Jampa is composed of five aggregates. So from the side of the five aggregates, there is the appearance of Jampa. Appearance of the five aggregates or Jampa, no not the appearance of five aggregates, the appearance of Jampa or Jampa. From the side of the subject there is a conception which conceives of Jampa, applies the name Jampa. Combination of those two from the side of the object and from side of the subject is combination of these two factors, Jampa’s existence is established.

So, we’re all exactly the same as Jampa in this case that we all are established on the basis of imputation from each of our own sides. There is the from our side of our aggregates. So, from the side of the basis of imputation, the object is established and then it is posited by an awareness and a conception and in dependence upon the combination of these two, the existence of the object is established. So from the side of the stone and the stick, the elephant and the horse are established, and then this in combination with being imputed, being designated by the awareness, establishes the existence of the horse and the elephant.