PaliSanskrit Buddhism

The advent of the Shakyamuni Buddha brought a revolution in the systems of philosophy and spirituality in India. When Siddharth Gautam was born, there were different spiritual traditions and philosophical views of Vedic, Samkhya and Jain traditions. Siddharth, not having convinced and satisfied with the answers for his queries, went in search of a path to liberate from the suffering of samsara. After his enlightenment at Bodhgaya, Buddha gave his first teaching on the Four Noble Truths at Sarnath.

In this discourse, he laid down the structural foundation of the Buddhist spiritual system and philosophical views, which provided a fundamental shift from the prevailing trends of the spiritual practice and philosophical thought in India. In this teaching, he demonstrated a set of cause and effect pertaining to engagement in saṃsāra, that is, the truth of suffering and the truth of the origin of suffering and the set of cause and effect related to the achievement of nirvana, that is, the truth of cessation and the truth of the path that leads to the cessation of suffering. The teaching reflects on the causality of the engagement in and liberation from samsara demonstrating that both are possible only through the accomplishment of their causes and conditions.

His teachings are characterized by the rejection of the extremes both in terms of the philosophical views and conduct, and thus upholding the Middle path in the pursuit of spiritual realization for the elimination of mental defilements. The mental defilements cannot be eliminated through ritual performances nor through the grace of any supernatural Being. The Buddha wholly disagreed with such a possibility. Rather, he advised to strive oneself to get rid of the defilements or the mental afflictions by applying the mental processes through meditational procedures. The Buddha's entire teachings are for the elimination of the negative mental forces and development of positive mental forces with which one could be liberated and enlightened.

The entire teachings of the Buddha are categorized in the three vessels, the three pitakas, on the basis of the three different contents of the teachings, sikkhā or śikṣā viz. 1. sīla-sikkhā or śīla-śikṣā, 2. samādhi-sikkhā or Samādhi-Śikṣā and 3. paññā-sikkhā or the Prajñā-Śikṣā.

Sīla-sikkhā or śīla-śikṣā, the content of the vinayapitaka contains the moral conducts of the monastics as well as that of the lay people. Out of eighteen schools only three schools have survived: Theravāda, Dharmaguptika, and Mūlasarvāstivāda. The comprehensive codes of conducts detailed in each of these three traditions are identical with a few minor ones which are different in the manner of their presentation. In the recent past a number of meetings of the senior monks from these traditions took place where it was noticed that the vinaya practices in all of the traditions are same. Besides the whole system of monastic code of conducts, there is a vast literature on the moral conducts to be observed by upasakas and upasikas. Other suttas in Pali also contain contents of sīla, moral conducts, just as Silakhandha in MajjhimNikāya. Similarly, in Sanskrit tradition there are many sutras covering sīla for general Buddhist followers. Abstinence of the three bodily and the four verbal misdeeds are emphasized as the basis of moral conduct. Through the training in the moral conducts, one paves the way to enter into the training of concentration, Samadhi - which otherwise is not possible. The training of moral conduct moulds the person to control greed, craving, attachments, hatred, anger, jealousy etc.

Contentment is an essential quality to be cultivated in Buddhist spiritual system, the training for which, begins from the sīlasikkha . It is extremely important to draw the attention of the modern society to the fact that insatiable craving is the root of the all problems that we are facing at the global level. However, on the contrary, according to modern civilisation, insatiability of craving is not only seen as a main cause of problems, rather it is promoted with the idea that it can lead to more demand and supply system leading to higher elevation of development and prosperity.

The samadhi sikkhā or the samadhi śikṣā is primarily the training of the mind to achieve single pointed concentration through meditational processes. When mental and physical pliancy is achieved with the accomplishment of samath, the mind becomes capable to engage in any meditational processes to encounter afflictive mental elements and cultivate positive mental elements. Hence in both traditions of Pali and Sanskrit, there is equally a strong emphasis on the practices of samatha/śamatha , satipaṭṭhāna/smṛtiprasthāna, ariyaaṭṭhaṅgikomaggo/āryaāṣṭāṅgikamārga. There are also other practices of training the mind with detailed methodology of regulating the emotions such as anger, hatred, jealousy, attachment and so on with the application of their antidotes such as patience, equanimity, compassion, loving kindness and the ways to cultivate and enhance them.

As a result of interaction between Buddhism and modern science, in the recent decades, there has been many ground breaking findings, particularly, in the field of emotion that the researches based on the Buddhist account of emotion and their methodologies of regulation of emotions have proven to be immensely effective. Hence, these are, nowadays, being introduced in the school curriculum which has brought transformation among the students thereby changing the atmosphere of schools. Similarly, it is bringing changes in the public life and clinical domain through the practice of mind training. These are in fact reality of the system of mind and the practices in the tradition coming down to this day which are experimented and researched by the scientists and introduced for therapeutic values in a secular.

By bringing transformation at the individual level, if a sizable portion of the society are able to manage emotions, even to some extent, the world would be different. The atmosphere in the family, schools, institutions, communities etc would be more peaceful, thereby countries and the world would be less tormented.

The paññā-sikkhā or the prajñā-Śikṣā demonstrate the realities of the external and internal world. The reason why it is unavoidably important to understand and realise the realities of the world is that we perceive the objects we encounter wrongly. Hence there is a big gap between the perception and reality. Owing to our misperception we develop craving and aversion which in turn give rise to varieties of afflictive mental forces. Having induced by afflictive mind, we indulge in actions which inevitably bring suffering.

With the realisation of impermanence, anicca or anitya, when the rate of attachment is reduced, the whole lot of suffering is reduced. Similarly, realisation of selflessness, anatta/anātma dispels the ignorance which is the primary source of engaging in samsara through actions. Paṭiccasamuppāda/ pratītyasamutpāda, the twelve limbs of dependent arising, displays the system of how sentient beings engage in samsara in the sequential order and how one can liberate from the samsara through the reverse order.

With the understanding of reality of nature and bringing such perspectives in daily life can bring fundamental change in life. Similarly, with the understanding of system of mind and working on the regulation of emotions one can bring real change in life by reducing destructive emotions and developing constructive emotions. For all these practices a decent and ethical life maintaining moral conduct is the prerequisite. This is how the three trainings, the three sikkhā or the śikṣā function.

The presenters would be speaking on the topics according to the canonical literature, tradition and their experience. They would also corelate the systems and their practices with the common people so that such practices may be introduced among the lay people. It is expected that this deliberation does remain a scholarly exercise but the wisdom and the practice of the three trainings reaches to the lay community who could see them as not only practicable but also mandatorily required to manage and lead a peaceful and happy life.

Prof Geshe

Ngawang Samten

Born on July 7, 1956 at Dokhar in Central Tibet, Professor Geshe Ngawang Samten came to India along with his parents after the Chinese occupation of Tibet in 1959. He studied at the Central School for Tibetans in Chandragiri, Orissa, and thereafter at the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies at Sarnath.

He possesses a rare combination of education on modern lines as well as the Tibetan monastic system. He obtained Geshe Lharampa degree, from Gaden Shartse monastery, equivalent to Ph.D. degree in the modern system.

As a result of his outstanding achievement in the field of research, he was promoted to the position of Professor of Buddhist Philosophy. He is also actively engaged in Hindi translations of Buddhist texts in Sanskrit and Tibetan. Professor Samten, with his special interest in the philosophy of Nagarjuna, published the definitive critical edition of the Ratnavali with its commentary as the result of his post-graduate research. He is credited with important publications, such as a critical edition of Abhidhammattha Samgaho, a critical edition of Sanskrit and Tibetan versions of the Pindikrita and the Pancakrama of Nagarjuna, and co-authored The Ocean of Reasoning, an annotated English translation of the commentary on Nagarjuna’s Mulamadhyamaka Karika by the Tibetan master thinker Tson-Kha-Pa, published by Oxford University Press. The Ocean of Reasoning is acclaimed far and wide.

He has contributed to the improvement of academic standards at CIHTS, particularly through teaching and research. He is instrumental in promoting Buddhist Studies in India. A number of Indian universities have greatly been benefited by his scholarship and insight in formulating courses and initiating Buddhist studies. He strongly advocates to make the education system instrumental in transforming the students through inculcation of value along with development of skills in various fields.

He frequently travels across the continents lecturing to academic audiences in the United States, Europe, Australia, Russia, some of the Asian countries and as well in India. He has been in action at various national and international seminars, workshops and conferences. He has held Visiting Professorship at Hampshire, Amherst and Smith Colleges in the USA and at the University of Tasmania in Australia.

In virtue of his sagacity and wisdom, Professor Samten has been on numerous academic bodies of Universities and expert committees of the Ministries of Government of India, and as a member on the boards of several Institutes in USA, Canada, Thailand, France and Austria. He has also served in the Editorial Board of International Association of Tibetan Studies in Harvard. He has been the Vice President of Association of Indian Universities, and has served chairman/member of various expert committees constituted by the University Grant Commission of India.

In 2009, he has been awarded Padma Shri (one of the country’s highest civilian awards) by the President of India for his distinguished services in the field of education and literature.

In 2016, he has been awarded Vesak Samman by the Government of India in recognition of his outstanding lifelong achievement in the fields preservation, development and promotion of Indian philosophy, arts and culture within and outside India, as well as his lifelong services towards dissemination of Buddhist studies and establishment of academic institutions.

He is currently the Vice-Chancellor of Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, Sarnath, Varanasi.

Venerable

Geshe Dorji Damdul

Ven Geshe Dorji Damdul is presently Director at Tibet House, New Delhi, Cultural Centre of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In 1988, Geshe Dorji Damdul joined the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, Dharamsala for formal studies in Buddhist logic, philosophy and epistemology. After 15 years of study in Buddhist philosophy he finished his Geshe Lharampa Degree (Ph.D.) in 2002 from Drepung Loseling Monastic University. He joined Gyudmed Tantric College for a year for Tantric studies.

In 2003, the Office of H.H. the Dalai Lama sent him to Cambridge University, England for Proficiency English studies. He was a visiting fellow at Girton College, Cambridge University.

He was appointed as the official translator to H.H. the Dalai Lama since 2005. He has been serving as the interpreter for H.H. the Dalai Lama for many years and at the same time involved in doing written translations of many texts from Tibetan into English such as Arya Nagarjuna’s “Mulamadyamikakarika” (Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way) and Acharya Shantideva’s “Bodhicaryavatara” (Wisdom Chapter). He was appointed as the Director of Tibet House, Cultural Center of H.H. the Dalai Lama, New Delhi in March 2011.

As assigned by the Office of H.H. the Dalai Lama, he visited the US in 2008 to work with Prof. Paul Ekman, a world renowned Psychologist, one of the pioneers of the science of micro-facial expressions, on H.H. the Dalai Lama’s book “Emotional Awareness” which is co-authored by Dr. Paul Ekman of the University of California Medical School.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama also assigned him with a text book project. He was one of the chief editors for the text book on Buddhist Science and Philosophy. This text book is to be used for Centers and Institutes all over the world to study more thoroughly on Buddhist philosophy, metaphysics, epistemology, and science.

He was also assigned, along with few other scholars to work on H.H. the Dalai Lama’s book “Ethics for the New Millennium – Part II, later came up with the title Beyond Religion,” and the series of “Art of Happiness” book which were jointly written by H.H. the Dalai Lama and Prof. Howard Cutler. Likewise he is actively involved in critical editing works with other books of H.H. the Dalai Lama like “The Graded Path.”

He was affiliated with Drepung Loseling Library where he served as the editor of Dreloma Magazine for eight years from 1994-2001. Prior to that he was the editor and contributor for 5 years for “Lhaksam Tsekpa” – a journal of comparative studies, the theme of which is on Modern Science and philosophy, published by the Institute of Buddhist Studies.

He wrote a number of important papers for National and International Conferences held in Delhi University, and so forth. The papers constitute topics such as “The Paradox of Brain and Mind” and “The Ultimate Reality According to Arya Nagarjuna.”

He is in the process of writing two important books, one on “Journey into the Paradox of Brain and Mind” and the other “What Constitutes the Ultimate Reality: The Effects of Understanding the Ultimate Reality.”

In 2004 – 05, for two years, he was assigned as the Philosophy Lecturer for the Emory University Study Abroad Program which was being held in Dharamsala, India since 2001.

In 2008, he was appointed as a visiting fellow in Delhi University to give lectures in three of the University’s departments – Philosophy, Psychology, and Buddhist Studies.

In 2011, Indira Gandhi National Open University recruited him as one of the chief experts to design the syllabi for B.A. and M.A. course on the Tibetan Studies as a part of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) program.

While assigned with the responsibility of the Directorship of Tibet House, the Cultural Centre of H.H. the Dalai Lama, New Delhi, India, he also gives regular lectures in Tibet House and many other places like Universities and Institutes. He also travels widely within India and abroad, like Mumbai, USA, U.K., and Singapore to teach Buddhist philosophy, psychology, logic and practice.

Mr. Tempa Tsering

Mr Tempa Tsering has dedicated his life to serving in Tibetan Administration, holding key roles until his retirement in 2016.

Deputy secretary at the Department of Information and International Relations of Central Tibetan Administration (1974 - 1980)
Deputy secretary (and later as additional secretary) at the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama (1981 - 1985)
Additional secretary at the Department of Home; as chief coordinator in Bangalore at the Chief Representative's Office for the five settlements in the state of Karnataka (1988 - 1990)
Secretary of the Department of Information and International Relations (1990 - 1991)
Minister (Kalon), Department of Home (2000 - 2001)

In 2006, he was nominated as Minister (Kalon) by Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche and later approved by the Member of Assembly. From there, he served as the Kalon for the Department of Information and International Relations while also serving as Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in New Delhi. After stepping down as Kalon, he continued in the post of Representative in New Delhi until his retirement in 2016.

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