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93-462: The name of the school is derived from the fact that Zhiyi lived on Tiantai Mountain , which then became a major center for the tradition. Tiantai in modern simplified Chinese means "platform of the sky"; however, according to traditional Chinese sources such as Zhanran , the 'tai' refers to stars previously worshipped on the mountain (i.e. Santai .) Zhiyi is also regarded as the first major figure to form an indigenous Chinese Buddhist system. Tiantai

186-661: A central place in early Mahāyāna, also because they "may have given access to fresh revelations and inspiration". Indian Mahāyāna traditions refer to numerous forms of samādhi , for example, Section 21 of the Mahavyutpatti records 118 distinct forms of samādhi and the Samadhiraja Sutra has as its main theme a samādhi called 'the samādhi that is manifested as the sameness of the essential nature of all dharma s' ( sarva-dharma-svabhavā-samatā-vipañcita-samādhi ). Buddhist Pali texts describe three kinds of samādhi which

279-417: A gross level the breath is equal in both nostrils, and on the subtle level pranic flow in ida and pingala nadis is balanced. This is called the sushumna breath because the residual prana of the sushuma, the kundalini , flows in sushumna nadi, causing sattva guna to dominate. "It creates a feeling of peace. That peace is ānanda". In sānanda samādhi the experience of that ānanda, that sattvic flow,

372-507: A kind of idealism influenced by Zongmi, emphasizing what he called the "one pure formless mind". This situation led to the famous debate within the Tiantai school known as the "home mountain" ( shanjia ) vs. "off mountain" ( shanwai ) debate. "Off mountain" supporters, as they were later polemically termed, supported these new doctrines (such as the "one pure mind") claiming they were originally Tiantai doctrines, while "home mountain" supporters saw

465-518: A living tradition to this day, being particularly strong in Hong Kong . The Japanese Tendai school is also an influential tradition which branched off from Tiantai during the 9th century, and played a major role in the development of Japanese Buddhism . A Korean offshoot , the Cheontae school , was also established during the 12th century. Furthermore, Tiantai (and its offshoots) were very influential in

558-669: A native Chinese Buddhist school under the 4th patriarch, Zhiyi , who developed an original and extensive Chinese Buddhist system of doctrine and practice through his many treatises and commentaries. The main center of the school was located in Zhejiang province's Tiantai Mountain , which also gives the school its name. Over time, the Tiantai school became doctrinally broad, able to absorb and give rise to other movements within Buddhism, though without any formal structure. The tradition emphasized both scriptural study and meditative practice, and taught

651-568: A particular interpretation of the Lotus Sūtra . The Indian Buddhist philosopher Nāgārjuna is traditionally taken to be the first patriarch of the Tiantai school. Madhyamaka works associated with Nāgārjuna like the Chung lun (" Madhyamakaśāstra "; Taishō 1564) and the Dà zhìdù lùn (T. no. 1509) are important sources for the Tiantai school. The sixth century dhyāna master Huiwen ( Chinese : 慧文 )

744-531: A relative sense. Ultimately, the Lotus Sutra's Subtle Dharma is "not established in comparison to anything else, for there is nothing outside it to which it might be compared." From this absolute perspective, the Lotus Sutra's One Vehicle is "open and integrated" according to Zhiyi, and includes all other Buddhist teachings and skillful means. From the ultimate point of view, all distinctions of "true" and "provisional" are dissolved since all teachings are expressions of

837-444: A single integrated reality. Swanson also notes that various scholars have criticized Zhiyi for adding a third "truth", when no Indian author explains Madhyamaka this way. However, according to Swanson, the major point of Zhiyi's analysis is that reality is a single integrated truth (which may be explained with two or three aspects). As such, it is not a deviation from classical Madhyamaka according to Swanson. Swanson thinks that one of

930-500: A single process that leads to awakening. She concludes that "the fourth jhāna is the optimal experiential event for the utter de-conditioning of unwholesome tendencies of mind and for the transformation of deep epistemological structures. This is because one embodies and actualizes an awakened awareness of experience." The earliest extant Indian Mahāyāna texts emphasize ascetic practices, forest-dwelling, and states of meditative oneness, i.e. samādhi . These practices seem to have occupied

1023-487: A six-stage model, explicitly rejecting Vacaspati Misra's model. Vijnana Bikshu regards joy ( ānanda ) as a state that arises when the mind passes beyond the vicara stage. Whicher agrees that ānanda is not a separate stage of samādhi . According to Whicher, Patanjali's own view seems to be that nirvicara-samādhi is the highest form of cognitive ecstasy. According to Sarasvati Buhrman, " Babaji once explained that when people feel blissful sensations during sādhanā , on

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1116-535: A student of Miaofeng, was also another important figure who wrote a work entitled "On Nature Including Good and Evil" which presents his ideas on doctrinal classification, the principle of nature-inclusion, and the practice of the Dharma-gate of inherent evil attempting to harmonize these with Confucianism and the thought of the Śūraṃgama Sūtra. Chuandeng was also instrumental in rebuilding Gaoming monastery which had been abandoned by this time. Tianxi Shoudeng (1607–1675)

1209-442: Is "Samma Samadhi" (Right Concentration), and only the first four Jhanas are considered "Right Concentration". When all the jhanas are mentioned, the emphasis is on the "Cessation of Feelings and Perceptions" rather than stopping short at the "Dimension of Neither Perception nor Non-Perception". According to Gunaratana , the term ' samādhi ' derives from the roots ' sam-ā-dhā ', which means 'to collect' or 'bring together', and thus it

1302-432: Is also a key text. Tiantai is often termed the ‘Four Sutras One Treatise School’ (四経一論) because of the strong influence of these texts on the tradition. Apart from these, other classic Mahayana sutras are also important in Tiantai. The Avataṃsaka Sūtra is also very highly regarded in Tiantai and it is seen as one of the subtlest and deepest sutras and to belong to the class of "complete" teachings. The Vimalakīrti Sūtra

1395-472: Is also called "the truth of one reality", as well as "emptiness" (空 kong ), " Buddha-nature " (佛性 fóxìng ), Thusness (Skt. tathātā, 如如 ruru), tathāgatagarbha (如来藏 rulaizang), and the Dharmadhatu (法界 fajie). According to Paul Swanson, this doctrine arose from the need to make explicit the relationship between the first and second truths of classical Indian Mahayana (an issue which also may have led to

1488-540: Is also seen as an important sutra in Tiantai. Zhiyi wrote a commentary on this sutra, the Wuimo yiji ( 維摩義記 T1776). Indeed, the Tiantai school's study makes use of numerous sources. As noted by Donner and Stevenson: When we examine the early [Tiantai] exegetical and textual record, we find that [Zhiyi] and his successors compiled treatises…for any number of sūtras other than the Lotus, including such long-standing Chinese favorites as

1581-503: Is because Sakyamuni Buddha and any other Buddha's meritorious qualities in their practice leading to enlightenment and in the resultant realization do not reject anything, instead embracing all. In the Tiantai terminology, the Buddha and all beings mutually include, inter-pervade, and are identical to each other. Zhanran writes: "Every blade of grass, tree, pebble, and particle of dust is perfectly endowed with buddha nature ...The practitioner of

1674-420: Is controversial, but it seems to me that the third and fourth jhanas are thus quite unlike the second." Alexander Wynne states that the dhyana -scheme is poorly understood. According to Wynne, words expressing the inculcation of awareness, such as sati , sampajāno , and upekkhā , are mistranslated or understood as particular factors of meditative states, whereas they refer to a particular way of perceiving

1767-584: Is essential for the attainment of spiritual liberation (known variously as nirvana , moksha ). In Buddhism, it is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path . In the Ashtanga Yoga tradition, it is the eighth and final limb identified in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali . In Jain meditation , samadhi is considered one of the last stages of the practice just prior to liberation. In

1860-402: Is generally translated as "concentration." In the early Buddhist texts, samādhi is also associated with the term samatha (calm abiding). In the commentarial tradition, samādhi is defined as ekaggata , one-pointedness of mind ( Cittass'ekaggatā ). Buddhagosa defines samādhi as "the centering of consciousness and consciousness concomitants evenly and rightly on a single object [...]

1953-549: Is retained in Zen and Dzogchen. The stock description of the jhānas , with traditional and alternative interpretations, is as follows: Appended to the jhana -scheme are four meditative states, referred to in the early texts as arupas or as āyatana . They are sometimes mentioned in sequence after the first four jhānas and thus came to be treated by later exegetes as jhānas. The immaterial are related to, or derived from, yogic meditation, and aim more specific at concentration, while

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2046-572: Is sometimes also called " The Lotus School ", after the central role of the Lotus Sūtra in its teachings. During the Sui dynasty , the Tiantai school became one of the leading schools of Chinese Buddhism , with numerous large temples supported by emperors and wealthy patrons. The school's influence waned and was revived again through the Tang dynasty and also rose again during the Song dynasty . Chinese Tiantai remains

2139-505: Is the 'locus classicus' of the doctrine of "the Buddha-nature of Insentient Beings." According to Shuman Chen, Zhanran: provides his rationale primarily from the perspective of the all-pervasive quality of Buddha-nature, which he considers synonymous with suchness. This rationale indicates that external tangible objects like water, buildings, and flora, formless sounds and smells, and internal thoughts or ideas all possess Buddha-nature. This

2232-424: Is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path . When samadhi is developed, things are understood as they really are. Samma-samadhi is explicated as dhyana , which is traditionally interpreted as one-pointed concentration. Yet, in the stock formula of dhyāna samādhi is only mentioned in the second dhyana , to give way to a state of equanimity and mindfulness , in which one keeps access to

2325-405: Is traditionally considered to be the second patriarch of the Tiantai school. Huiwen studied the works of Nāgārjuna, and is said to have awakened to the profound meaning of Nāgārjuna's words: "All conditioned phenomena I speak of as empty, and are but false names which also indicate the mean." Huiwen later transmitted his teachings to Chan master Nanyue Huisi ( Chinese : 南嶽慧思 , 515-577), who

2418-449: Is traditionally figured as the third patriarch. During meditation, he is said to have realized the "Lotus Samādhi ", indicating enlightenment and Buddhahood . He authored the Ta Ch'eng Chih Kuan ( Mahāyāna-śamatha-vipaśyanā ). Huisi then transmitted his teachings to Zhiyi ( Chinese : 智顗 , 538-597), traditionally figured as the fourth patriarch of Tiantai, who is said to have practiced

2511-405: Is untainted by any other vrittis , or thoughts, save the awareness of the pleasure of receiving that bliss". According to Maehle, asamprajñata samādhi (also called nirvikalpa samādhi and nirbija samādhi ) leads to knowledge of purusha or consciousness, the subtlest element. Heinrich Zimmer distinguishes nirvikalpa samādhi from other states as follows: Nirvikalpa samādhi , on

2604-751: The Lotus Sūtra ( Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra ) as the main basis, the Mahāprajñāpāramitāupadeśa of Nāgārjuna as the guide, the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra as the support, and the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra (The Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra in 25,000 Lines) for methods of contemplation. The “Book of the Original Acts that Adorn the Bodhisattva,” ( Pusa yingluo benye jing T. 24, No. 1485)

2697-544: The Faxiang school and the Tiantai school concerning the notion of universal Buddhahood were particularly heated, with the Faxiang school asserting that different beings had different natures and therefore would reach different states of enlightenment, while the Tiantai school argued in favor of the Lotus Sutra teaching of Buddhahood for all beings. Zhanran's view of Buddha nature was expanded in his Jingangpi or "Diamond Scalpel," which

2790-618: The Heze school ). Daosui ( Chinese : 道邃; pinyin : Dàosuì ), is important because he was the primary teacher of Saichō , the founder of the Japanese Tiantai tradition (known in Japanese as Tendai ). Other Tiantai syncretists include Deshao (881–972) who was associated with the Fayen branch of Chan and his student Yongming Yenshou (954–974) who attempted to unify Tiantai, Huayen and Yogacara teachings under

2883-653: The Institute of Noetic Sciences , has compared the experience of seeing the earth from space, also known as the overview effect , to savikalpa samādhi . According to Ian Whicher, the status of ānanda and āsmitā in Patanjali's system is a matter of dispute. According to Maehle, the first two constituents, deliberation and reflection, form the basis of the various types of samāpatti . According to Feuerstein: "Joy" and "I-am-ness" [...] must be regarded as accompanying phenomena of every cognitive [ecstasy]. The explanations of

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2976-629: The Rinzai school of Zen stress sudden insight, while the Sōtō school of Zen lays more emphasis on shikantaza , training awareness of the stream of thoughts, allowing them to arise and pass away without interference. Historically, many traditional Japanese arts were developed or refined to attain samādhi , including incense appreciation (香道, kodō ), flower arranging (華道, kadō ), the tea ceremony (茶道, sadō ), calligraphy (書道, shodō ), and martial arts such as archery (弓道, kyūdō ). The Japanese character 道 means

3069-427: The jhanas proper are related to the cultivation of the mind. The state of complete dwelling in emptiness is reached when the eighth jhāna is transcended. The four arupas are: Although the "Dimension of Nothingness" and the "Dimension of Neither Perception nor Non-Perception" are included in the list of nine jhanas attributed to the Buddha, they are not included in the Noble Eightfold Path . Noble Path number eight

3162-481: The jhānas and the contemporary criticisms of the commentarial interpretation. Based on this research, and her own experience as a senior meditation-teacher, she gives a reconstructed account of the original meaning of the dhyanas . She argues that the four jhānas are the outcome of both calming the mind and developing insight into the nature of experience and cannot not be seen in the suttas as two distinct and separated meditation techniques, but as integral dimensions of

3255-621: The Buddha's Mind-seal as an effort to defend the Tiantai tradition against Chan critiques. The Ming Dynasty saw further religious revivals among the major Chinese Buddhist schools, including Tiantai, particularly under the reign of the Buddhist friendly Wanli Emperor. One of the main figures of the Ming Tiantai Buddhist revival is Miaofeng Zhenjue (1537–1589), who lectured widely and whose students revived ancestral Tiantai monasteries such as Gaoming and Ayuwang. Youxi Chuandeng (1554–1628),

3348-434: The Buddha's advent when the vast majority of the people during his time were not yet ready to grasp the 'ultimate truth'. These Āgamas were an upaya , or skillful means - an example of the Buddha employing his boundless wisdom to lead those people towards the truth. Subsequent teachings delivered to more advanced followers thus represent a more complete and accurate picture of the Buddha's teachings, and did away with some of

3441-523: The Lotus Samādhi and to have become enlightened quickly. He authored many treatises such as explanations of the Buddhist texts, and especially systematic manuals of various lengths which explain and enumerate methods of Buddhist practice and meditation. The above lineage was proposed by Buddhists of later times and do not reflect the popularity of the monks at that time. Scholars such as Paul L. Swanson consider Zhiyi ( Chinese : 智顗, 538–597 CE) to have been

3534-468: The One Vehicle or ekayāna (traditional Chinese: 一乘; pinyin: yīchéng ). This doctrine provided a unifying and inclusive framework which could be used to understand all Buddhist teachings. According to Jacqueline Stone , Zhiyi's view of the One Vehicle of the Lotus Sutra is that conventionally, it is "subtle" and "wonderful" in comparison with lesser teachings which are coarse. However this is only true in

3627-497: The One Vehicle. According to Stone, "this is an egalitarian, inclusive reading, in which all teachings in effect become "true". But from the relative standpoint, a clear distinction is preserved between the "true" and the "provisional"; this is a hierarchical, potentially even exclusive reading, which emphasizes the superiority of the Lotus Sutra over other teachings." Tiantai Mountain Tiantai Mountain (also Tí Taî in

3720-571: The Pali canon, but explicitly enumerated in the Visuddhimagga, such as mindfulness of breathing ( ānāpānasati ) and loving kindness ( mettā ). While the Theravada-tradition interprets dhyana as one-pointed concentration, this interpretation has become a matter of debate. According to Richard Gombrich, the sequence of the four rupa-jhanas describes two different cognitive states: "I know this

3813-543: The Spirit as the object of meditation all become one. The separate wave of the soul meditating in the ocean of Spirit becomes merged with the Spirit. The soul does not lose its identity, but only expands into Spirit. In savikalpa samādhi the mind is conscious only of the Spirit within; it is not conscious of the exterior world. The body is in a trancelike state, but the consciousness is fully perceptive of its blissful experience within. Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell , founder of

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3906-670: The Tang into the Five Dynasties and Northern Song, an age marked internally by the deterioration of distinctive Tiantai ideas and marked externally by the loss of crucial texts and monastic institutions, especially after the persecution of 845 (a period that saw the increased influence of Chan)." During this period, Huayan and Chan influences made strong inroads into Tiantai thought. Zhanran's disciple and seventh patriarch Daosui, and syncretic figures such as Zhi Yuan (768–844) and Daochang Ningfen all combined Tiantai with Chan ideas (particularly of

3999-615: The Tiantai lineage into the PRC era. During the Chinese Civil War, various dharma heirs of Dixian moved to Hong Kong , including Tanxu and Baojing. They helped establish the Tiantai tradition in Hong Kong, where it remains a strong living tradition today, being preserved by their dharma heirs. Baojing's dharma heir, Jueguang, helped establish the Guanzong Temple in Hong Kong and transmitted

4092-496: The Tiantai school also created its own meditation texts which emphasize the principles of śamatha and vipaśyanā. Of the Tiantai meditation treatises, Zhiyi's Concise Śamatha-vipaśyanā (小止観), Mahā-śamatha-vipaśyanā (摩訶止観), and Six Subtle Dharma Gates (六妙法門) are the most widely read in China. Rujun Wu identifies the work Mohe Zhiguan of Zhiyi as the seminal meditation text of the Tiantai school. The Major Tiantai treatises studied in

4185-517: The Vimalakīrti, Nirvāṇa, Suvarṇaprabhāsa, and various Pure Land sūtras. Not only is there no evidence that one particular scripture was consistently promoted over others, but [Tang]-period sources indicate that the spiritual descendants of [Zhiyi] realigned [Taintai] doctrine freely in order to accommodate whatever sūtra caught their fancy. In addition to its doctrinal basis in Indian Buddhist texts,

4278-519: The beginning of the Tang and thus suffered because of its close relationship with the house of Sui. After Zhiyi, Tiantai was eclipsed for a time by newer schools such as the East Asian Yogācāra ( Fǎxiàng-zōng ), and Huayan schools , until the 6th patriarch Jingxi Zhanran (711–782) revived the school and defended its doctrine against rival schools such as the Huayan and Faxiang. The debates between

4371-568: The classical commentators on this point appear to be foreign to Patanjali's hierarchy of [ecstatic] states, and it seems unlikely that ānanda and asmita should constitute independent levels of samādhi . Ian Whicher disagrees with Feuerstein, seeing ānanda and asmitā as later stages of nirvicara-samāpatti . Whicher refers to Vācaspati Miśra (900–980 CE), the founder of the Bhāmatī Advaita Vedanta who proposes eight types of samāpatti : Vijnana Bikshu (c. 1550–1600) proposes

4464-480: The commentarial tradition identify as the 'gates of liberation ' ( vimokṣamukha ): According to Polak, these are alternative descriptions of the four dhyanas, describing the cognitive aspects instead of the bodily aspects. According to Polak, in the final stages of dhyana no ideation of experience takes place, and no signs are grasped ( animitta samādhi ), which means that the concentrated attention cannot be directed ( appaṇihita samādhi ) towards those signs, and only

4557-400: The creator goddess Nüwa cut the legs off a giant sea turtle ( Chinese : 鳌 ; pinyin : áo ) and used them to prop up the sky after Gong Gong damaged Mount Buzhou , which had previously supported the heavens. A local myth holds that Tiantai was on the turtle's back before and Nüwa relocated it to its current position when she had to remove the turtle's legs. Guoqing Temple on

4650-403: The development of Yogacara's "three natures"). Zhiyi developed his theory of a threefold truth by drawing on Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā , which explains the two truths as: "We state that whatever is dependent arising, that is emptiness. That is dependent upon convention. That itself is the middle path" (MMK, XXIV.18). Swanson states that this doctrine is a way of expressing three aspects of

4743-450: The development of other forms of East Asian Buddhism, such as Chan and Pure Land . Unlike earlier schools of Chinese Buddhism , the Tiantai school was entirely of Chinese origin. The schools of Buddhism that had existed in China prior to the emergence of the Tiantai are generally believed to represent direct transplantations from India , with little modification to their basic doctrines and methods. However, Tiantai grew and flourished as

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4836-406: The dichotomy of being and non-being. 'Aimlessness', also translated as 'uncommittedness' or 'wishlessness' ( Chinese wúyuàn 無願 , lit.   ' non-wishing ' , or wúzuò 無作 , lit.   ' non-arising ' ), literally means 'placing nothing in front'. According to Dan Lusthaus, aimlessness-samadhi is characterised by a lack of aims or plans for the future and no desire for

4929-564: The following: While the threefold truth can be explained conceptually in this way, for Zhiyi, the highest and most subtle meaning of the threefold truth is ultimately indescribably and beyond words. It is also fully integrated and inclusive of all the Buddhadharma and of all mundane and ultimate truths as well. According to Zhiyi, "the supreme truth of the middle path" is "the reality of non-duality ", as well as "the enlightened perception of all Buddhas and bodhisattvas." Zhiyi also states that it

5022-563: The lineage to numerous monks from Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, Taiwan and mainland China. Tanxuan's heir, Yongxing, founded Xifang Temple in Hong Kong as well as various temples in Malaysia and the United States (as well as the Texas Buddhist association and its Jade Buddha Temple). Furthermore, other monks from this lineage have helped to reintroduce the Tiantai tradition from Hong Kong back to

5115-466: The local language) is a mountain in Tiantai County , Taizhou , Zhejiang Province , China . Its highest peak, Huading, reaches a height of 1,138 meters (3,734 ft). The mountain was made a national park on 1 August 1988. One of nine remaining wild populations of Seven-Son Flower ( Heptacodium miconioides ) is located on mount Tiantai. In the mythology of Traditional Chinese religion ,

5208-498: The main reasons for this development is that it was a useful device for undoing Chinese misunderstandings of the two truths (such as seeing them as referring to being and non-being, to two separate levels of reality or to an essential reality and its functions ). The Threefold Truth may be contemplated independently as the "three contemplations", an important theme in Zhiyi's Mo ho chi kuan . The threefold contemplation, also described as

5301-441: The major founder of the Tiantai school as well as one of the greatest Chinese Buddhist philosophers. He was the first to systematize and popularize the complex synthesis of Tiantai doctrine as an original Chinese tradition. Zhiyi analyzed and organized all the Āgamas and Mahayana sutras into a system of five periods and eight types of teachings. For example, many elementary doctrines and bridging concepts had been taught early in

5394-434: The material realm, in a neutral stance, as different from the kāma -realm (lust, desire) and the arūpa -realm (non-material realm). While interpreted in the Theravada-tradition as describing a deepening concentration and one-pointedness, originally the jhānas seem to describe a development from investigating body and mind and abandoning unwholesome states , to perfected equanimity and watchfulness, an understanding which

5487-500: The meditational practices" he had learned from Alara Kalama and Uddaka Ramaputta. In the sutras, jhāna is entered when one 'sits down cross-legged and establishes mindfulness'. According to Buddhist tradition, it may be supported by ānāpānasati , mindfulness of breathing, a core meditative practice which can be found in almost all schools of Buddhism. The Suttapiṭaka and the Agama s describe four stages of rūpa jhāna . Rūpa refers to

5580-495: The mountain is the headquarters of Tiantai Buddhism , and also a tourist destination . Tiantai, named for the mountain, is an East Asian Buddhist school of Mahāyāna Buddhism that developed in 6th-century China and focuses on the Lotus Sutra . The most prominent teacher of that school, Zhiyi , was based at Guoqing Temple. Over many years it has been an important destination for pilgrims, especially from Japan . The mountain

5673-406: The object of meditation. Samādhi is of two kinds, with and without support of an object of meditation: According to Paramahansa Yogananda , in this state one lets go of the ego and becomes aware of Spirit beyond creation. The soul is then able to absorb the fire of Spirit-Wisdom that "roasts" or destroys the seeds of body-bound inclinations. The soul as the meditator, its state of meditation, and

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5766-434: The objects of perception. According to Nagarjuna, aimlessness-samadhi is the samādhi in which one does not search for any kind of existence ( bhāva ), letting go of aims or wishes ( praṇidhāna ) regarding conditioned phenomena and not producing the three poisons (namely, passion, aggression, and ignorance) towards them in the future. According to Nagarjuna, emptiness-samadhi is the samādhi in which one recognises that

5859-574: The oldest Buddhist sutras , on which several contemporary western Theravada teachers rely, it refers to the development of an investigative and luminous mind that is equanimous and mindful. In the yogic traditions and the Buddhist commentarial tradition, on which the Burmese Vipassana movement and the Thai Forest tradition rely, it is interpreted as a meditative absorption or trance attained by

5952-403: The original Tiantai view as different and superior to this new view influenced by Chan and Huayan doctrines (especially by Zongmi 's works). The most eminent figure during this debate was Patriarch Siming Zhili (960–1028), who wrote various commentaries on Zhiyi's works and defended the "Home mountain" view. Zhili's major criticisms included attacking Chan's failure to understand the necessity of

6045-534: The orthodox Tiantai canon during the Song dynasty . Ciyun Zunshi (964–1032) was another important figure in this second Tiantai revival. His work focused on the promotion of rituals for lay Buddhists and worked on converting the populace away from using blood, meat and alcohol for funerary and ancestral rites. Ciyi also promoted the practice of adopting local Chinese deities and spirits into the Buddhist religion as "vassals" or "retainers" and strongly promoted repentance rituals. These two figures were also associated with

6138-501: The other hand, absorption without self-consciousness, is a mergence of the mental activity ( cittavṛtti ) in the Self, to such a degree, or in such a way, that the distinction ( vikalpa ) of knower, act of knowing, and object known becomes dissolved — as waves vanish in water, and as foam vanishes into the sea. Swami Sivananda describes nirbija samādhi (lit. "samādhi" without seeds) as follows: "Without seeds or Samskaras [...] All

6231-509: The painful ascetic practices of the Jains, while the arūpa jhāna were incorporated from non-Buddhist ascetic traditions. Alexander Wynne argues that dhyāna was incorporated from Brahmanical practices, in the Nikayas ascribed to Alara Kalama and Uddaka Ramaputta. These practices were paired to mindfulness and insight , and given a new interpretation. Kalupahana also argues that the Buddha "reverted to

6324-535: The perception of the six senses remains, without a notion of "self" ( suññata samādhi ). In the Chinese Buddhist tradition these are called the 'three doors of liberation' ( sān jiětuō mén , 三解脫門 ): These three are not always cited in the same order. Nagarjuna , a Madhyamaka Buddhist scholar, in his Maha-prajnaparamita-sastra , listed apraṇihita before ānimitta in his first explanation on these "three samādhi ", but in later listings and explanations in

6417-408: The perfect teaching, from beginning to end, knows that ultimate principle is nondual and that there are no objects apart from mind. Who then is sentient? What then is insentient? Within the assembly of the Lotus, there is no discrimination." After Zhanran, Tiantai declined once again. Brook Ziporyn writes that this period has been seen as the second dark age of Tiantai, a state of crisis "extending from

6510-531: The philosophical 'crutches' introduced earlier. Zhiyi's classification culminated with the Lotus Sutra , which he held to be the supreme synthesis of Buddhist doctrine. The difference on Zhiyi's explanation to the Golden Light Sutra caused a debate during the Song dynasty . Zhiyi's Tiantai school received much imperial support during the Sui dynasty , because of this, it was the largest Buddhist school at

6603-430: The popularization of Pure Land practices through the foundation of lay societies (lotus societies, lianshe ). Tiantai monk Mao Ziyuan (1096?-1166) took this one step further by establishing what became known as the " White Lotus Society " which allowed both men and women to attend together and even to preach and be in charge of society repentance halls as married clergy. Due to the efforts of these major Tiantai figures,

6696-493: The practice of dhyāna . Samadhi may refer to a broad range of states. A common understanding regards samadhi as meditative absorption: In a Buddhist context, a more nuanced understanding sees samadhi as a state of intensified awareness and investigation of bodily and mental objects or experiences: In Hinduism, samadhi is also interpreted as the identification with the Absolute: Various interpretations for

6789-413: The rapid attainment of Buddhahood through observing the mind. The school is largely based on the teachings of Zhiyi, Zhanran , and Zhili , who lived between the 6th and 11th centuries in China. These teachers took an approach called "classification of teachings" ( panjiao 判教) in an attempt to harmonize the numerous and often contradictory Buddhist texts that had come into China. This was achieved through

6882-427: The rest of mainland China, aiding in the reconstruction of Chinese Buddhism after the reform and opening up period . The ancient Guoqing Temple at mount Tiantai , which had suffered from neglect and destruction, was renovated at the behest of Zhou Enlai . Guoqing Temple is now a major center of Chinese Tiantai Buddhism as well as remains a place of pilgrimage for Japanese Tendai Buddhists. The Tiantai school takes

6975-543: The same work reverted to the more common order. Others, such as Thích Nhất Hạnh , a Thien Buddhist teacher, list apraṇihita as the third after śūnyatā and ānimitta . Nagarjuna lists these three kinds of samādhi among the qualities of the bodhisattva . According to Nagarjuna, signlessness-samadhi is the samādhi in which one recognises all dharmas are free of signs ( ānimitta ). According to Thích Nhất Hạnh, "signs" refer to appearances or form, likening signlessness samadhi to not being fooled by appearances, such as

7068-563: The school became one of the dominant forms of Buddhism during the Song, alongside of Chan. The defeat of the Song dynasty was a serious blow to Tiantai which suffered another setback during the Yuan dynasty which supported Tibetan Buddhism, while Chan Buddhism continued to grow in popularity while attacking the legitimacy of other schools. This period saw the Tiantai figure Huxi Huaize (fl. 1310) write his polemical treatise Record of Tiantai's Transmission of

7161-504: The seeds or impressions are burnt by the fire of knowledge [...] all the Samskaras and Vasanas which bring on rebirths are totally freed up. All Vrittis or mental modifications that arise from the mind-lake come under restraint. The five afflictions, viz., Avidya (ignorance), Asmita (egoism), Raga-dvesha (love and hatred) and Abhinivesha (clinging to life) are destroyed and the bonds of Karma are annihilated [...] It gives Moksha (deliverance from

7254-551: The sense objects. Several western teachers (Thanissaro Bhikkhu, Leigh Brazington, Richard Shankman) make a distinction between 'sutta-oriented' jhana and ' Visuddhimagga -oriented' jhāna . Thanissaro Bhikkhu has repeatedly argued that the Pali Canon and the Visuddhimagga give different descriptions of the jhanas, regarding the Visuddhimagga -description to be incorrect. Keren Arbel has conducted extensive research on

7347-457: The senses in a mindful way, avoiding primary responses to the sense-impressions. The origins of the practice of dhyāna are a matter of dispute. According to Crangle, the development of meditative practices in ancient India was a complex interplay between Vedic and non-Vedic traditions. According to Bronkhorst, the four rūpa jhāna may be an original contribution of the Buddha to the religious landscape of India, which formed an alternative to

7440-512: The service of ideals and metaphysical conclusions that are rooted deeply in the indigenous philosophical traditions ." The Tiantai school's main philosophical principle is The Threefold Truth (emptiness, existence, and the middle; 空假中 kong, jia, zhong ). According to Paul Swanson, this is the "central insight" around which the Tiantai system revolves. This view was developed by Zhiyi's reading of Nāgārjuna's Madhyamaka philosophy, especially its doctrine of two truths . The Threefold Truth comprises

7533-533: The state in virtue of which consciousness and its concomitants remain evenly and rightly on a single object, undistracted and unscattered". According to Buddhaghosa, the Theravada Pali texts mention four attainments of samādhi : According to Buddhaghosa, in his influential standard-work Visuddhimagga , samādhi is the "proximate cause" to the obtainment of wisdom . The Visuddhimagga describes 40 different objects for meditation, which are mentioned throughout

7626-475: The term's etymology are possible, either with the root sam ("to bring together") or sama ( "the same, equalized, the convergence of two distinct things"). According to Dan Lusthaus , samadhi refers to either bringing to consciousness the samskaras ("buried latencies"), or meditative concentration on a meditation object: Etymologies for sam - ā - dhā include: Particular Hindu/yoga interpretations include: Common Chinese terms for samādhi include

7719-463: The threefold cessation and insight, consists of what Zhiyi calls a "graded contemplation": There are different levels of subtlety of this threefold contemplation, the deepest of which is when all three aspects are contemplated as a simultaneously non-dual unity which according to Zhiyi is when all three aspects are "present in one thought" (一心) which is "beyond conceptual understanding". According to Chappell: The first contemplation involves moving from

7812-549: The tradition are the following works of Zhiyi: The Three Great Tiantai Treatises: The Five Lesser Tiantai Treatises: David Chappell lists the most important Tiantai teachings as being The Threefold Truth and the corresponding Threefold Contemplation, The Fourfold Teachings, The Subtle Dharma, and The Non-conceivable Discernment (or the "Inconceivable Mind"). Brook Ziporyn writes that Tiantai's "rigorous theoretical edifice" uses "modes of argumentation and praxis that are derived squarely from Indian Buddhism " but applies these "in

7905-415: The transliterations sanmei (三昧) and sanmodi (三摩地 or 三摩提), as well as the translation of the term literally as ding (定 "stability"). Kumarajiva 's translations typically use sanmei (三昧), while the translations of Xuanzang tend to use ding (定 "stability"). The Chinese Buddhist canon includes these, as well as other translations and transliterations of the term. Samma-samadhi , "right samadhi ,"

7998-627: The true natures of all dharmas are absolutely empty ( atyantaśūnya ), and that the five aggregates are not the self ( anātman ), do not belong to the self ( anātmya ), and are empty ( śūnya ) without self-nature . Indian dhyāna was translated as chán in Chinese, and zen in Japanese. Ideologically the Zen-tradition emphasizes prajñā and sudden insight , but in the actual practice prajñā and samādhi, or sudden insight and gradual cultivation, are paired to each other. Especially some lineages in

8091-432: The use of words and scriptural study as part of practice as well as criticizing Zongmi's view of a pure mind as the buddha-nature, arguing instead that the "three truths" as taught by Zhiyi are the ultimate reality. For Zhili, mind or consciousness has no special status relative to other types of dharmas, such as physical matter. Over time, Zhili's "home mountain" view turned out to be victorious, and his works became part of

8184-488: The way or the path and indicates that disciplined practice in the art is a path to samādhi . Traditional Samādhi is the eighth limb of the Yoga Sūtras, following the sixth and seventh limbs of dhāraṇā and dhyāna respectively. According to Taimni, dhāraṇā , dhyāna , and samādhi form a graded series: Samādhi is oneness with the object of meditation. There is no distinction between act of meditation and

8277-416: The wheel of births and deaths). With the advent of the knowledge of the Self, ignorance vanishes. With the disappearance of the root-cause, viz., ignorance, egoism, etc., also disappear". Ramana Maharshi distinguished between kevala nirvikalpa samadhi and sahaja nirvikalpa samādhi : Sahaja samadhi is a state in which a silent level within the subject is maintained along with (simultaneously with)

8370-517: The world of provisionality to seeing its emptiness, which is a different process from the second contemplation in which we move beyond emptiness and back into an acceptance of the role of provisional existence. Only in the third contemplation do we find the balance involving the previous two insights based on the Middle Path of the One Mind. A central doctrine of Tiantai is the Lotus Sutra ' s doctrine of

8463-491: Was designated a scenic area in 1985, with an area of 105 km . This Zhejiang province location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Samadhi Samādhi ( Pali and Sanskrit : समाधि ), in Hinduism , Buddhism , Jainism , Sikhism and yogic schools, is a state of meditative consciousness. In many Indian religious traditions, the cultivation of Samādhi through various meditation methods

8556-643: Was one of the most influential teachers and exegetes of Tiantai during the Qing Dynasty . The most influential figure in modern Tiantai, who carried the Tiantai lineage (specifically the Lingfeng lineage) from the late Qing into the 20th century was Dixian. His student, the monk Tanxu (1875 – 1963), is known for having rebuilt various temples during the Republican era (such as Zhanshan temple in Qingdao ) and for preserving

8649-522: Was visited by Saichō in 805 CE, who went on to found the related Japanese Buddhist school, Tendai . A Korean offshoot , the Cheontae school , was also established during the 12th century. The mountain has a famous temple to the Song-era Chinese Buddhist monk Ji Gong at the Cave of Auspicious Mists that was associated with early modern fuji or "spirit writing" movements. Tiantai Mountain

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