It was given to me as a gift from my host family when I was a peace corps volunteer. The second box had a small simple stone figure in seated meditation. What is the significance of these figures, and how they are used? Thanks!
Such as Mt. Meru being the center of the universe, and sentient beings arising before the sun?
In Approaching the Buddhist Path (Vol. 1 of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Library of Wisdom and Compassion), His Holiness states:
“If we find contradictory evidence, including scientific findings, we should follow what can be proven rather than What the Buddha said.” But how do we square these contradictions with the Mahayana and Vajrayana teachings on Buddha’s omniscience? (I know I’ve referenced Abhidharma here, which is more coming out of the Pali Canon and the Theravada tradition. But those teachings are still absolutely valid teachings by the Buddha, according to received Mahayana tradition.) I’ve heard a few ideas but for me, they don’t hit the mark.
One idea is that “omniscience” means the Buddha is capable of knowing anything, but must set his mind toward knowing it. This doesn’t seem compelling because I believe he would have done that. He would have set his mind to accurately perceiving cosmology, in order to communicate that knowledge so as to increase the faith of all beings. An accurate knowledge of the material workings of the universe, centuries before having been scientifically validated, would substantially raise people’s faith.
Another idea I’ve heard is that omniscience means supreme recognition of emptiness (of self and phenomena). If so, that seems to greatly diminish the power and value of even using a word like “omniscience.” To me, supreme recognition of the nature of reality sounds amazing, and is absolutely worth lifetimes of training and effort. But it feels very different from “all-knowing.” And I would question the skillfulness of that translation. Maybe another word should be used?
And ultimately, both these lines of reasoning are unsatisfactory to me - because they assign limits or boundaries to the power of a Buddha’s mind, making the omniscient mind of Buddha seem more mundane than I think it really is.
It could come down to my attachment to a materialist worldview, or other cultural baggage or translation issues. Having been raised Protestant, you know we practically worship, honor, and adore words that were written down long ago :) I’m willing to accept this may be the kind of thing only embodied practice can resolve. So of course, we’ll keep going!
In the meantime I’d love to hear what y’all have to say. Have these doubts ever surfaced for you? Are they resolved for you? If so, what resources, practices, experiences, or insights have helped you to resolve it? If not, where do you stand on the matter today?
Any thoughts or ideas are appreciated! Thank you.