1 00:00:00,417 --> 00:00:02,262 Bodhidharma crossed the sea carrying only the Lankavatara Sutra 2 00:00:02,777 --> 00:00:03,862 and Zen lost it 3 00:00:04,617 --> 00:00:05,921 fifteen hundred years ago 4 00:00:05,937 --> 00:00:09,121 an Indian monk spent three years on a boat to reach China 5 00:00:09,377 --> 00:00:10,662 he brought nothing else with him 6 00:00:11,016 --> 00:00:12,082 only one sutra 7 00:00:12,457 --> 00:00:16,361 later he passed that sutra to Huike his only true successor 8 00:00:16,536 --> 00:00:17,102 and told him 9 00:00:17,577 --> 00:00:19,222 the spiritual capacity of the Chinese lies right here 10 00:00:19,336 --> 00:00:20,202 keep it safe 11 00:00:20,457 --> 00:00:22,242 that sutra is the Lankavatara Sutra 12 00:00:22,531 --> 00:00:23,417 but a few generations later 13 00:00:23,731 --> 00:00:24,656 something strange happened 14 00:00:24,972 --> 00:00:26,557 Zen swapped its textbook 15 00:00:26,652 --> 00:00:29,691 the Lankavatara Sutra that Bodhidharma personally chose was quietly set aside 16 00:00:29,691 --> 00:00:31,037 and replaced by the Diamond Sutra 17 00:00:31,051 --> 00:00:32,957 and it has stayed that way ever since 18 00:00:33,291 --> 00:00:34,016 so here is the question 19 00:00:34,332 --> 00:00:36,037 the sutra Bodhidharma picked with his own hands 20 00:00:36,171 --> 00:00:37,817 why did Zen later give it up 21 00:00:39,045 --> 00:00:39,410 hello 22 00:00:39,685 --> 00:00:40,209 everyone 23 00:00:40,605 --> 00:00:41,709 this is Leo Wang 24 00:00:41,884 --> 00:00:42,709 in this episode 25 00:00:42,844 --> 00:00:45,310 we officially enter the third stage of this series 26 00:00:45,605 --> 00:00:46,829 in the first nineteen episodes 27 00:00:46,884 --> 00:00:49,509 we started from early Buddhism in the Agamas 28 00:00:49,605 --> 00:00:52,670 passed through the Prajna system and the logical summit of the Madhyamaka treatise 29 00:00:52,764 --> 00:00:57,189 then spent a full eleven episodes on a deep dive into Yogacara 30 00:00:57,405 --> 00:00:58,530 if you have followed all the way here 31 00:00:58,884 --> 00:00:59,804 congratulations 32 00:00:59,804 --> 00:01:01,950 your foundation is already solid 33 00:01:02,124 --> 00:01:03,164 from now on 34 00:01:03,164 --> 00:01:06,270 we open the most brilliant chapter of Mahayana Buddhism 35 00:01:06,404 --> 00:01:07,569 and the first text we take apart 36 00:01:07,765 --> 00:01:08,990 is the Lankavatara Sutra 37 00:01:09,734 --> 00:01:10,659 why start with this one 38 00:01:11,213 --> 00:01:13,359 because the Lankavatara Sutra holds a very special place 39 00:01:13,493 --> 00:01:14,499 look across the whole history of Buddhist thought 40 00:01:14,773 --> 00:01:16,719 and it is hard to find another scripture 41 00:01:16,734 --> 00:01:21,198 revered as foundational by two traditions that look completely opposed 42 00:01:21,798 --> 00:01:23,143 on the Yogacara side 43 00:01:23,197 --> 00:01:26,423 the Lankavatara Sutra ranks among the core texts of the six sutras and eleven treatises 44 00:01:26,757 --> 00:01:30,796 the alaya consciousness the three natures the five dharmas and other root Yogacara ideas 45 00:01:30,798 --> 00:01:33,902 all trace important sources and discussions back to the Lankavatara Sutra 46 00:01:34,117 --> 00:01:34,602 you could say 47 00:01:34,757 --> 00:01:37,022 it is one of the source texts of Yogacara 48 00:01:37,955 --> 00:01:39,261 on the Zen side 49 00:01:39,315 --> 00:01:42,821 Bodhidharma treated the Lankavatara Sutra as the text for transmitting the dharma and sealing the mind 50 00:01:43,068 --> 00:01:43,868 according to the records 51 00:01:43,875 --> 00:01:45,761 Bodhidharma once said to the second patriarch Huike 52 00:01:46,196 --> 00:01:47,434 I have looked over the land of China 53 00:01:47,435 --> 00:01:48,621 and only this sutra will do 54 00:01:48,675 --> 00:01:49,601 practice by it 55 00:01:49,875 --> 00:01:51,060 and you will free yourself from the world 56 00:01:51,235 --> 00:01:51,761 meaning 57 00:01:52,036 --> 00:01:53,395 I have looked all over China 58 00:01:53,396 --> 00:01:55,500 and this is the sutra that suits you best 59 00:01:55,595 --> 00:01:57,500 practice it and you will be liberated 60 00:01:58,327 --> 00:01:58,732 think about it 61 00:01:59,008 --> 00:02:00,812 how far apart these two traditions are in style 62 00:02:01,288 --> 00:02:04,473 Yogacara is the most precise analytical system in all of Buddhism 63 00:02:04,568 --> 00:02:06,247 we spent eleven episodes taking it apart 64 00:02:06,247 --> 00:02:07,573 so you know this well by now 65 00:02:08,088 --> 00:02:10,053 how the eight consciousnesses work the six aspects of seeds 66 00:02:10,367 --> 00:02:13,012 the four part theory the three kinds of objects the five stages of practice 67 00:02:13,408 --> 00:02:15,792 it wants to break consciousness down to the atomic level 68 00:02:15,887 --> 00:02:17,726 every part has a name 69 00:02:17,728 --> 00:02:19,672 every process has a number 70 00:02:20,523 --> 00:02:21,129 and Zen 71 00:02:21,643 --> 00:02:23,629 Zen has no patience for that kind of conceptual analysis 72 00:02:23,803 --> 00:02:24,648 point directly at the human mind 73 00:02:24,843 --> 00:02:25,569 do not rely on words 74 00:02:25,963 --> 00:02:28,349 it uses shouts and blows koans and critical phrases 75 00:02:28,444 --> 00:02:29,729 and it chases exactly one thing 76 00:02:30,044 --> 00:02:30,549 directness 77 00:02:30,764 --> 00:02:33,229 until it shocks you awake out of every concept 78 00:02:33,563 --> 00:02:34,768 one is extremely precise 79 00:02:34,924 --> 00:02:36,468 the other extremely simple 80 00:02:36,523 --> 00:02:38,169 how could they share the same scripture 81 00:02:38,952 --> 00:02:41,957 the answer hides in the four words at the heart of the Lankavatara Sutra 82 00:02:42,272 --> 00:02:43,457 the manifestation of your own mind 83 00:02:43,631 --> 00:02:45,137 this is the master principle of the whole sutra 84 00:02:45,151 --> 00:02:49,256 and the key to why it could feed both great traditions at once 85 00:02:49,520 --> 00:02:50,885 what does the manifestation of your own mind mean 86 00:02:51,279 --> 00:02:54,964 the world in front of you the screen the sky your lover your thoughts 87 00:02:55,320 --> 00:02:57,344 there is no objective thing out there 88 00:02:57,360 --> 00:03:00,464 that your senses passively record like a camera 89 00:03:00,559 --> 00:03:01,665 that is not how it works 90 00:03:01,719 --> 00:03:02,445 the Lankavatara Sutra says 91 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:04,224 everything you experience 92 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:06,825 is projected by your own consciousness system 93 00:03:06,839 --> 00:03:08,344 you are not looking at the world 94 00:03:08,399 --> 00:03:10,705 your mind is manifesting the world 95 00:03:11,912 --> 00:03:12,751 at this point 96 00:03:12,752 --> 00:03:15,977 anyone who followed the Yogacara deep dive will feel this is familiar 97 00:03:16,312 --> 00:03:18,437 is this not exactly what we spent eleven episodes on 98 00:03:18,912 --> 00:03:22,178 seeds in the alaya consciousness keep surging up and manifesting 99 00:03:22,273 --> 00:03:24,858 generating every frame of reality you perceive 100 00:03:25,073 --> 00:03:26,311 what you take to be the outer world 101 00:03:26,312 --> 00:03:28,518 is really the image part projected by seeds 102 00:03:29,073 --> 00:03:30,597 and the self you think is doing the looking 103 00:03:30,833 --> 00:03:32,817 is really the seeing part at work 104 00:03:32,912 --> 00:03:33,757 from start to finish 105 00:03:33,953 --> 00:03:35,497 it never leaves your own mind 106 00:03:35,884 --> 00:03:36,685 exactly 107 00:03:36,932 --> 00:03:40,997 but the Lankavatara Sutra says it more bluntly and more ruthlessly than the Cheng Weishi Lun 108 00:03:41,173 --> 00:03:42,817 it does not circle around technical terms 109 00:03:43,173 --> 00:03:43,898 it lays the cards straight down 110 00:03:44,372 --> 00:03:46,758 all phenomena are manifestations of your own mind 111 00:03:47,013 --> 00:03:47,817 the outer world is a dream 112 00:03:48,293 --> 00:03:49,958 and even you the one watching the dream 113 00:03:49,972 --> 00:03:51,437 are part of the dream 114 00:03:52,237 --> 00:03:54,922 the Lankavatara Sutra also offers a compact set of analytical tools 115 00:03:55,198 --> 00:03:59,902 the five dharmas appearance name discrimination right knowledge and suchness 116 00:04:00,117 --> 00:04:04,142 these five ideas map the full path from delusion to awakening 117 00:04:04,517 --> 00:04:05,802 first you see how a thing looks 118 00:04:06,038 --> 00:04:06,563 that is appearance 119 00:04:07,117 --> 00:04:09,003 then you name it and put a label on it 120 00:04:09,438 --> 00:04:09,962 that is name 121 00:04:10,438 --> 00:04:11,122 once names and forms are there 122 00:04:11,438 --> 00:04:13,862 the mind starts telling stories and grasping 123 00:04:13,918 --> 00:04:14,603 that is discrimination 124 00:04:15,038 --> 00:04:17,582 when you see through names and forms as projections of your own mind 125 00:04:17,638 --> 00:04:19,196 and are no longer dragged along by discrimination 126 00:04:19,198 --> 00:04:20,082 you enter right knowledge 127 00:04:20,637 --> 00:04:22,523 and the original face that right knowledge finally points to 128 00:04:22,637 --> 00:04:23,283 is called suchness 129 00:04:24,364 --> 00:04:25,009 notice something 130 00:04:25,483 --> 00:04:27,708 these five words draw a road map 131 00:04:27,963 --> 00:04:32,129 the first three appearance name and discrimination are the ordinary daily mode 132 00:04:32,523 --> 00:04:33,322 you see a thing 133 00:04:33,324 --> 00:04:34,048 you stick on a label 134 00:04:34,403 --> 00:04:35,749 then you cling to the label 135 00:04:35,963 --> 00:04:39,168 the last two right knowledge and suchness are the direction of practice 136 00:04:39,564 --> 00:04:40,643 see through the label 137 00:04:40,644 --> 00:04:42,509 and return to the state before labels 138 00:04:42,872 --> 00:04:46,057 this framework together with the three natures and the eight consciousnesses 139 00:04:46,111 --> 00:04:49,337 forms the Yogacara skeleton of the Lankavatara Sutra 140 00:04:49,632 --> 00:04:52,337 if the Cheng Weishi Lun is an encyclopedia 141 00:04:52,351 --> 00:04:54,216 the Lankavatara Sutra is its outline 142 00:04:54,512 --> 00:04:56,997 that is why Yogacara treats it as central 143 00:04:57,471 --> 00:05:00,377 it is not only a key source of the alaya consciousness doctrine 144 00:05:00,432 --> 00:05:04,017 it is the most condensed and powerful statement of the whole Yogacara worldview 145 00:05:04,489 --> 00:05:06,854 so why did Zen choose it too 146 00:05:07,330 --> 00:05:09,015 recall what Zen is really claiming 147 00:05:09,529 --> 00:05:10,529 point directly at the human mind 148 00:05:10,529 --> 00:05:11,495 see your nature and become a Buddha 149 00:05:12,010 --> 00:05:13,135 what does pointing directly at the mind mean 150 00:05:13,570 --> 00:05:14,995 it means stop looking outside 151 00:05:15,289 --> 00:05:16,495 the Buddha is not in the scriptures 152 00:05:16,770 --> 00:05:17,995 not in the temple 153 00:05:18,010 --> 00:05:19,875 and not in the talks your teacher gives 154 00:05:19,929 --> 00:05:21,395 he is inside your own mind 155 00:05:21,609 --> 00:05:23,054 turn around and see your own mind clearly 156 00:05:23,529 --> 00:05:24,955 and the job is done 157 00:05:25,307 --> 00:05:29,091 this points to the same place as the manifestation of your own mind in the Lankavatara Sutra 158 00:05:29,627 --> 00:05:32,732 the Lankavatara Sutra says the world is entirely projected by your own mind 159 00:05:33,187 --> 00:05:33,992 and Zen says 160 00:05:34,427 --> 00:05:35,865 stop chasing the projections 161 00:05:35,867 --> 00:05:38,372 turn around and look at the source doing the projecting 162 00:05:38,946 --> 00:05:40,345 Bodhidharma chose the Lankavatara Sutra 163 00:05:40,347 --> 00:05:42,972 not because its technical system is so precise 164 00:05:43,307 --> 00:05:44,112 he was a Zen master 165 00:05:44,427 --> 00:05:45,932 he had no interest in technical terms 166 00:05:46,227 --> 00:05:48,432 what he valued was the direction the sutra points 167 00:05:49,066 --> 00:05:50,451 the answer is not out there 168 00:05:50,466 --> 00:05:51,932 it is inside your own consciousness 169 00:05:52,535 --> 00:05:53,439 so look at that 170 00:05:53,655 --> 00:05:56,960 Yogacara and Zen read the same Lankavatara Sutra 171 00:05:57,134 --> 00:05:59,119 and took away completely different things 172 00:05:59,335 --> 00:06:01,379 Yogacara took the analytical framework 173 00:06:01,814 --> 00:06:03,340 how the alaya consciousness works 174 00:06:03,855 --> 00:06:05,220 how seeds surge up 175 00:06:05,775 --> 00:06:07,939 how the three natures nest inside each other 176 00:06:08,895 --> 00:06:11,140 what the detailed blueprint of the projection mechanism is 177 00:06:11,575 --> 00:06:15,080 it treats the Lankavatara Sutra as a precise engineering drawing 178 00:06:15,295 --> 00:06:17,459 Zen took the ultimate pointer instead 179 00:06:17,894 --> 00:06:19,053 forget the drawings 180 00:06:19,055 --> 00:06:21,719 turn around and ask who is the one studying them 181 00:06:22,254 --> 00:06:24,620 a viewer once left a great analogy in the comments 182 00:06:25,134 --> 00:06:27,214 Yogacara teaches you to organize the warehouse 183 00:06:27,214 --> 00:06:29,334 to sort and number every seed 184 00:06:29,334 --> 00:06:31,379 and to learn its triggers and operating rules 185 00:06:31,894 --> 00:06:33,160 but Zen asks you 186 00:06:33,175 --> 00:06:35,699 why do you insist on finding a place to store all this 187 00:06:36,254 --> 00:06:38,959 burning the warehouse down is not the same as redecorating it 188 00:06:39,334 --> 00:06:40,839 that analogy is sharp 189 00:06:41,014 --> 00:06:43,920 Yogacara is the engineer busy inside the warehouse 190 00:06:44,175 --> 00:06:46,560 Zen is the one standing outside it 191 00:06:46,574 --> 00:06:47,699 watching you sweat 192 00:06:47,894 --> 00:06:48,379 asking one question 193 00:06:48,735 --> 00:06:49,894 has it occurred to you 194 00:06:49,894 --> 00:06:52,100 that you built the whole warehouse yourself 195 00:06:53,055 --> 00:06:56,680 the Lankavatara Sutra is the warehouse holding the engineering drawings inside 196 00:06:56,774 --> 00:07:01,040 with a note on the door saying the whole building is an illusion 197 00:07:01,315 --> 00:07:02,281 back to the original question 198 00:07:02,836 --> 00:07:04,380 if the Lankavatara Sutra is this good 199 00:07:04,596 --> 00:07:06,360 why did Zen later switch to the Diamond Sutra 200 00:07:07,075 --> 00:07:09,500 it happened in the time of the fifth patriarch Hongren 201 00:07:09,627 --> 00:07:10,428 before that 202 00:07:10,435 --> 00:07:13,320 the early Zen lineage even had a name of its own the Lankavatara masters 203 00:07:13,875 --> 00:07:17,101 from Bodhidharma to Huike to Sengcan to Daoxin 204 00:07:17,156 --> 00:07:18,940 all of them took the Lankavatara Sutra as their root 205 00:07:18,995 --> 00:07:20,921 later generations even called them the Lankavatara school 206 00:07:21,774 --> 00:07:22,459 when Hongren came along 207 00:07:22,894 --> 00:07:23,892 the wind changed 208 00:07:23,894 --> 00:07:26,038 he began recommending the Diamond Sutra to his students 209 00:07:26,334 --> 00:07:27,558 and by the sixth patriarch Huineng 210 00:07:27,654 --> 00:07:30,759 the Diamond Sutra had completely taken the central place of the Lankavatara Sutra 211 00:07:30,933 --> 00:07:32,339 you may have heard the story 212 00:07:32,733 --> 00:07:34,438 Huineng was selling firewood in the street 213 00:07:34,493 --> 00:07:38,358 when he heard a line from the Diamond Sutra give rise to the mind that dwells nowhere 214 00:07:38,373 --> 00:07:39,259 and he awakened on the spot 215 00:07:39,534 --> 00:07:41,079 only then did he go seek out the fifth patriarch 216 00:07:41,965 --> 00:07:42,691 why the switch 217 00:07:43,246 --> 00:07:44,851 the core reason is actually simple 218 00:07:45,325 --> 00:07:47,111 the Lankavatara Sutra is too hard 219 00:07:47,486 --> 00:07:48,590 this is not a joke 220 00:07:49,005 --> 00:07:51,590 even in the most widely used Liu Song translation 221 00:07:51,726 --> 00:07:54,150 the language is extremely obscure 222 00:07:54,835 --> 00:07:57,994 it is not like the Diamond Sutra with its question and answer building step by step 223 00:07:57,996 --> 00:07:59,820 logic as clean as a scalpel 224 00:08:00,075 --> 00:08:01,840 the Lankavatara Sutra jumps around 225 00:08:02,155 --> 00:08:04,820 the Buddha answers one hundred and eight questions from Bodhisattva Mahamati 226 00:08:05,036 --> 00:08:07,380 often with no obvious logical link between them 227 00:08:07,556 --> 00:08:10,195 you think it is explaining the flow of seeds in the alaya consciousness 228 00:08:10,195 --> 00:08:13,900 then it turns to the tathagatagarbha and the intrinsically pure mind 229 00:08:13,955 --> 00:08:16,780 and turns again to why practitioners should not eat meat 230 00:08:16,916 --> 00:08:17,520 here is an analogy 231 00:08:17,876 --> 00:08:19,940 the Diamond Sutra is a sharp scalpel 232 00:08:19,955 --> 00:08:22,061 cutting away attachment with precision 233 00:08:22,116 --> 00:08:23,280 and when it is done you feel clean 234 00:08:23,596 --> 00:08:25,900 the Lankavatara Sutra is more like a huge mine 235 00:08:25,916 --> 00:08:27,914 countless gems and no signposts 236 00:08:27,916 --> 00:08:29,101 you have to dig them out yourself 237 00:08:29,796 --> 00:08:32,621 for Zen practitioners who care most about actual practice 238 00:08:32,755 --> 00:08:35,741 a good blade beats a whole mine 239 00:08:36,451 --> 00:08:38,116 there is a deeper reason too 240 00:08:38,251 --> 00:08:40,335 the Lankavatara Sutra is packed with Yogacara terminology 241 00:08:40,690 --> 00:08:44,116 the five dharmas the three natures the eight consciousnesses the two kinds of selflessness 242 00:08:44,210 --> 00:08:48,035 in the Indian Buddhist scholarly tradition these were completely natural 243 00:08:48,131 --> 00:08:51,315 but in the Chinese Zen context they felt far too heavy 244 00:08:51,491 --> 00:08:54,555 Zen wants immediacy directness sudden awakening 245 00:08:54,611 --> 00:08:58,636 try explaining the difference between the imagined nature and the dependent nature to a Zen master 246 00:08:58,651 --> 00:09:00,290 he will probably hit you with a stick 247 00:09:00,290 --> 00:09:00,736 and then ask 248 00:09:01,090 --> 00:09:02,055 while you were being hit 249 00:09:02,251 --> 00:09:03,575 which nature were you discriminating 250 00:09:04,706 --> 00:09:06,906 so when Zen put the Lankavatara Sutra down 251 00:09:06,907 --> 00:09:08,505 it was not because the sutra was wrong 252 00:09:08,507 --> 00:09:10,292 it was because the sutra was too right 253 00:09:10,346 --> 00:09:12,292 only its way of saying things was too complicated 254 00:09:12,507 --> 00:09:16,611 the Diamond Sutra put the same truth into a lighter container 255 00:09:16,826 --> 00:09:17,591 the key changed 256 00:09:17,866 --> 00:09:18,731 the lock did not 257 00:09:18,746 --> 00:09:20,611 and what is behind the door did not either 258 00:09:21,425 --> 00:09:23,611 this whole thing is worth sitting with 259 00:09:23,905 --> 00:09:24,550 one single sutra 260 00:09:24,986 --> 00:09:27,451 Yogacara took the precise analytical framework 261 00:09:27,506 --> 00:09:29,711 Zen took the phrase the manifestation of your own mind 262 00:09:30,226 --> 00:09:32,145 one turned left and built a system 263 00:09:32,145 --> 00:09:33,971 the other turned right and tore the system down 264 00:09:34,145 --> 00:09:36,131 but they started from the same crossroads 265 00:09:36,425 --> 00:09:38,050 it is like someone wrote a book 266 00:09:38,106 --> 00:09:40,464 the first half a detailed operating manual 267 00:09:40,466 --> 00:09:41,910 full of steps and principles 268 00:09:42,305 --> 00:09:43,831 the second half just one line 269 00:09:44,265 --> 00:09:45,111 forget the manual 270 00:09:45,425 --> 00:09:46,091 just do it 271 00:09:46,385 --> 00:09:48,664 Yogacara read the first half carefully 272 00:09:48,665 --> 00:09:51,290 Zen only read that one line in the second half 273 00:09:51,506 --> 00:09:53,851 the Lankavatara Sutra is the complete book 274 00:09:54,279 --> 00:09:55,745 let me share something personal 275 00:09:55,840 --> 00:09:58,039 during those eleven episodes of the Yogacara deep dive 276 00:09:58,039 --> 00:10:01,085 we spent a lot of time on the alaya consciousness on seeds 277 00:10:01,279 --> 00:10:03,944 on the three natures the four part theory and other fine grained concepts 278 00:10:04,120 --> 00:10:04,965 looking back now 279 00:10:05,159 --> 00:10:06,684 was all that understanding worth it 280 00:10:07,120 --> 00:10:07,944 of course it was 281 00:10:08,039 --> 00:10:11,865 it showed you how every part of this projector runs 282 00:10:11,960 --> 00:10:13,765 but understanding the projector is not the point 283 00:10:14,079 --> 00:10:15,704 seeing through it is 284 00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:16,644 see through it 285 00:10:16,880 --> 00:10:18,424 and it can no longer fool you 286 00:10:19,130 --> 00:10:22,436 the reason the Lankavatara Sutra could inspire both Yogacara and Zen 287 00:10:22,571 --> 00:10:25,196 is that it spelled out both levels completely 288 00:10:25,331 --> 00:10:27,129 it tells you how the machine runs 289 00:10:27,130 --> 00:10:28,176 and then points at the machine and says 290 00:10:28,410 --> 00:10:30,956 all of this is manifested by your own mind 291 00:10:31,250 --> 00:10:33,529 precise analysis and a sudden blow to the head 292 00:10:33,530 --> 00:10:35,275 living side by side in one sutra 293 00:10:35,650 --> 00:10:38,395 that is almost unique in Buddhist literature 294 00:10:38,730 --> 00:10:40,176 the Prajna sutras talk about emptiness 295 00:10:40,530 --> 00:10:41,296 they demolish and leave 296 00:10:41,730 --> 00:10:43,275 the Yogacara treatises talk about existence 297 00:10:43,331 --> 00:10:45,796 breaking the structure of existence down with extreme precision 298 00:10:46,091 --> 00:10:48,775 the Lankavatara Sutra sews existence and emptiness together 299 00:10:49,211 --> 00:10:50,576 you really do need to understand existence 300 00:10:50,851 --> 00:10:53,696 but only so you can finally see that its nature is emptiness 301 00:10:54,410 --> 00:10:55,809 you need to walk into the maze 302 00:10:55,811 --> 00:10:57,370 not to live there 303 00:10:57,370 --> 00:10:58,755 but to walk back out 304 00:10:59,502 --> 00:11:00,627 in modern terms 305 00:11:01,022 --> 00:11:03,622 imagine you are wearing VR goggles and forgot 306 00:11:03,622 --> 00:11:07,328 you work fall in love suffer and celebrate inside the virtual world 307 00:11:07,343 --> 00:11:09,127 believing all of it is real 308 00:11:09,303 --> 00:11:11,622 Yogacara is the engineer who walks over and tells you 309 00:11:11,622 --> 00:11:13,808 that you are wearing VR goggles 310 00:11:13,982 --> 00:11:17,167 he explains the goggles have eight core components 311 00:11:17,303 --> 00:11:19,287 the rendering engine is the alaya consciousness 312 00:11:19,382 --> 00:11:21,287 the user interface is the first six consciousnesses 313 00:11:21,343 --> 00:11:24,208 the process running constantly in the background is the manas consciousness 314 00:11:24,303 --> 00:11:26,647 and every frame is driven by seeds 315 00:11:26,982 --> 00:11:30,607 Zen is the one who walks over and pulls the goggles off your face 316 00:11:31,063 --> 00:11:31,787 and the Lankavatara Sutra 317 00:11:32,262 --> 00:11:33,747 it drew the engineering blueprint 318 00:11:34,022 --> 00:11:35,308 and wrote on the blueprint itself 319 00:11:35,662 --> 00:11:38,808 that the whole headset was made by your own mind 320 00:11:39,502 --> 00:11:40,548 if you love analysis 321 00:11:41,022 --> 00:11:42,647 the Lankavatara Sutra will satisfy you 322 00:11:42,742 --> 00:11:45,308 its conceptual system rivals the Cheng Weishi Lun 323 00:11:45,782 --> 00:11:47,541 if you want direct experience 324 00:11:47,542 --> 00:11:50,848 the Lankavatara Sutra will hit you out of nowhere on some page 325 00:11:50,862 --> 00:11:52,928 and shock you awake out of concepts 326 00:11:53,222 --> 00:11:53,943 still 327 00:11:53,943 --> 00:11:57,048 we have not touched the most subversive part of the Lankavatara Sutra today 328 00:11:57,262 --> 00:11:59,527 its discussion of the tathagatagarbha 329 00:11:59,782 --> 00:12:03,227 the Yogacara deep dive revolved around the alaya consciousness 330 00:12:03,782 --> 00:12:05,381 seeds are stored there 331 00:12:05,382 --> 00:12:06,668 manifestation happens there 332 00:12:07,063 --> 00:12:09,048 and the engine of rebirth turns there 333 00:12:09,222 --> 00:12:13,168 you may have gotten used to treating it as the bottom layer of consciousness 334 00:12:13,423 --> 00:12:14,428 but the Lankavatara Sutra says 335 00:12:14,823 --> 00:12:15,487 hold on 336 00:12:15,622 --> 00:12:17,568 the alaya consciousness is not the end 337 00:12:17,782 --> 00:12:20,727 behind all that surging of seeds and projection 338 00:12:20,782 --> 00:12:22,808 something deeper is hidden 339 00:12:22,982 --> 00:12:24,247 called the tathagatagarbha 340 00:12:24,936 --> 00:12:26,460 what exactly is the tathagatagarbha 341 00:12:27,016 --> 00:12:28,700 how does it relate to the alaya consciousness 342 00:12:29,215 --> 00:12:31,000 is it another deeper consciousness 343 00:12:31,016 --> 00:12:32,901 or the original face of the alaya consciousness 344 00:12:33,455 --> 00:12:35,600 when you shut the projector off completely 345 00:12:35,696 --> 00:12:38,281 the pure light left on the screen 346 00:12:38,495 --> 00:12:39,380 is that the tathagatagarbha 347 00:12:39,848 --> 00:12:40,648 this question 348 00:12:40,816 --> 00:12:44,360 has been argued between Yogacara and the tathagatagarbha school for a thousand years 349 00:12:44,455 --> 00:12:48,840 and it is the most fascinating most mind bending and most contested part of the Lankavatara Sutra 350 00:12:49,522 --> 00:12:49,968 all of that 351 00:12:50,323 --> 00:12:51,627 we take apart next time 352 00:12:52,002 --> 00:12:52,767 this is Leo Wang 353 00:12:53,083 --> 00:12:54,414 see you next episode