Dharma Wheel

Here is a video of yours truly performing morning Gongyo. 10 points for each of my mistakes spotted

Zazen literally means "seated dhyana"

Generally speaking lay people only take 5, although it's not impossible to take 10 as a lay person. But its usually only for your initial ordination as a priest.

And no, we don't pick and choose which vows to follow.

Yes, refuge, the 5 lay vows and the Bodhisattva Vows.

The ritual and etiquette for taking lay vows is down to the particular teacher/priest. The vows are, of course, standard. With taking ordination, there is a set process and ritual etiquette, but again each temple may have their own specific ritual. Typically a newly ordained student would take the 1...

What sort of initiation are you thinking of? Are you taking about vows and becoming a disciple, or are you talking about empowerments?

Seishin - I think that's right. Just found the Tendai Bhaisajyaguru mantra, but no videos. Is the Tendai mantra secret? The Tendai mantra is the same, but most videos tend to be from shingon, lol! You can usually tell from the pronunciation but this is one of those mantras that are pronounced the s...

Most likely Shingon, however the mantra is
On koro koro sendari matôgi sowaka (Jpn.)
Om huru huru candâli mâtàngi svâhâ (Skt.)

From what I know of the ritual and Saicho's teaching it can be boiled down as this; if you're practicing Buddhism correctly you are protecting the nation. "Do good, avoid evil and purify the mind". As Japan is a nationalistic country I am sure there many within Japan who believe these things don't e...

I would be very interested to hear the explanation of your teacher. My sensei didn't really say either view was right/wrong, only to say that in the Lotus Sutra (according to Tendai) Prabhutaratna Tathagata is viewed as an emanation of Mahavairocana. Shayakyamuni and Mahavairocana share the same "s...

In the Tendai view, one can't say that one is primary compared to the other, I believe. This would be a vertical view, which, as Zhiyi explains in other contexts, is untenable. Notably, these appearances of Buddha do not stand in a horizontal relationship - ie. they are not all independent and equa...

As I understand, the main difference is the manner in which Shingon posits that all phenomena emanate from Mahavairocana while in Tendai, Mahavairocana and all Buddhas are co-equal emanations of Shakyamuni (and, if you shift perspective, the same can be mutually said of all Buddhas.). It might seem...

Just to clarify what I said about the lineages being slightly different; Ennin studied kongokai under Yuanzheng of Daxingshanshi monastery, Taizokai and Susiddhikara sutra under Yizhen of Qinglongsi monastery, further more Taizokai under Faquan of Xuanfasi, siddham under Yuanjian of Da’anguosi, and ...

Thank for all your answers. What are those "sticks" they burn in the Goma ritual? As far as I know it is practiced in Shugendō too, so what is the real meaning behind it? Is it just a tantric practice that we can't fully understand, unless we are an ordained priest? The Goma is a Tantric fire ritua...

Thank you all. I admit that I saw the article in passing whilst researching something completely unrelated. It didn't sink in until much later, by which time I'd lost the article. I'll see if I can find it again

I read a brief article that suggests the term Hōi 法位 (Dharma state) was first coined in the Lotus Sutra. Be that as it may, it seems to have played a role in Tendai, Nichiren, Zen, and Shingon... possibly others too. I was just wondering, for those who are familiar with this term, how do your, or yo...

I will PM you

Welcome Bec,

Seishin - also from England

I have issue with the word "eternal" here. The western meaning of eternal tends to mean "without end". However, in the Lotus Sutra, even those reborn in the Avici Hell for innumerable kalpas do eventually leave; "They will go to the Avīci Hell, And after spending a kalpa there, Will be born in the s...