The Long Road Ahead

Finished the new book on Yogacara Buddhism at last, and re-read the last chapters on the long road to Enlightenment. Somehow it reminds me of one of my favorite novels, The Gunslinger, by Stephen King:

(Artwork by artist Michael Whelan)

Roland, the last survivor of the Fall of Gilead, spends countless years beyond civilization crossing deserts and wastelands of a mad and decaying world to seek the Dark Tower, which exists beyond time and space, and is the nexus of reality. He leaves this fallen world behind, his family, friends and his only love all dead, and his home destroyed, to seek the only thing left that matters. Many characters in the series have heard of the Dark Tower only in vague legend, but are trapped in their own dire straits and can only point the way to him, or impede it. Roland’s quest is a very lonely one, and yet it’s the most important one in all the world.

In the same way, when I read of the near-infinitely long path to become a Buddha espoused in Mahayana-Yogacara doctrine, it’s very easy to give up. People will tell you that Enlightenment is actually very easy to attain here and now, and are more than willing to sell you the answer in books, seminars and such, but more and more I feel like they’re just telling me what I want to hear. Then, I ponder something like this statement from the Yogacara book:

To restate the truth taught by Śākyamuni [Buddha], all things are brought into existence based on a wide range of causes and conditions. All things (all dharmas), whether they be psychic or material phenomena, occur because various elements harmonize temporarily in specific conditions. Not being established for more than an instant, they absolutely do not exist as fixed, unchanging substances. Therefore, once the provisional combination disintegrates, all phenomena disappear at once. In this way, all dharmas are in a continual state of flux. (pg. 117)

Regardless of how long the path to Bodhi (Awakening) is, there’s no real alternative. Do we sink back into a mundane life and try to forget the fact that it’s impermanent and unsatisfying? Do we pretend we’re not going to age and then die, and that we won’t be separated from our loved ones inevitably? I’ve tried this a number of times when I get frustrated and I can’t keep up the pretense long. I know it’s a lie.

All that’s left is that “Dark Tower” that exists beyond all mundane reality. There’s no choice but to keep moving forward and just keep taking steps. In Yogacara thought, the period of three eons it takes to attain full Buddhahood is divided up like so:

  • Preparation: engaging in wholesome practices, setting one’s sights on Buddhahood (Bodhi). (first eon)
  • Application: applying the practices to cultivate greater wisdom. (first eon)
  • Insight: the fruits of practice begin to pay off as one begins to break through delusion. (second eon)
  • Cultivation: momentum gains now as one cultivates higher and higher mental states, eliminating mental hindrances once and for all. (second and third eon)
  • Final: wisdom and nirvana arise, leading to awakening. (third eon)

If the classic formula for the three great asaṃkhya kalpas or three great eons to Enlightenment is to be taken literally, the Sun will have died out long, long before completing the first stage. I can’t say one way or another if the three great eons are literal or a figure of speech conveying timelessness, but it doesn’t really matter. It doesn’t really matter how many steps one might have taken up to this point. It doesn’t really matter if one really has Buddha nature, or whether Buddha nature is still latent.1 What matters is that one sees the Dark Tower at the end of the road, resolves to take steps there. The number of steps you take each day to walk to work is many, but the road to Bodhi is far, far greater, and the steps nearly countless, but each step you take is one step closer. As the verse in the second chapter of the Lotus Sutra says:

If there are those who hear the Law,
then not one will fail to attain Buddhahood.

Still, the mind that continually wavers on the Buddha Path is said to still be in the first stages of the path, listed above, so I don’t doubt that I still have a long ways to go. Nevertheless, knowing the existence of the metaphorical Dark Tower, there’s no choice but to keep moving forward, one step at a time.

Namo Shakyamuni Buddha

P.S. Eerily enough, I wrote almost the same thing 7 months ago to the day. This is unintentional, but it’s nice to revisit the subject again, but with a clearer understanding thanks to recent reading and insight. :)

P.P.S. Another good quote from Rev. Tagawa:

And, we must know that within this incredibly long Buddhist life that extends to “no matter how long it takes,” the standard fare of the ordinary person’s life with its love of ready usability, cheapness, shortcuts, and hasty sloppiness will not be countenanced. We should know that only the continued honest accumulation of goodness will push us up into the buddha-realm. (pg. 126)

1 Japanese Buddhist schools based on the Lotus Sutra teachings (Tendai, Zen, Nichiren) teach that all beings are latent Buddhas and have Buddha-nature from the beginning, while Hosso/Yogacara teaches that one has the potential for Buddha-nature, but unless one actively develops it, then as Rev. Tagawa puts it “then realistically speaking, it is the same as if these innate uncontaminated seeds did not exist at all.” (pg. 115) Pure Land Buddhism is a mixed bag, but Shinran had some interesting thoughts on the subject.



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4 Comments on “The Long Road Ahead”

  1. zensquared says:

    Wah, what you have written in this post echoes the thoughts in my own mind from this week. I have been studying The Diamond Sutra and contemplating that same “long road.”

    In my school we are often encouraged to live only “moment by moment.” Be fully present in THIS moment. When that happens, the mind is not concerned with the road ahead. The mind is only … HERE. And yet, we are also aware of the bodhisattva path — a very long road indeed. How can we stay on the path (and not wander to one side, by accident) if we are always only in this moment?

    This is not an impossible puzzle. It is like every koan — difficult, yes. Impossible? No.

    Seriously, I’m not trying to sound clever (just re-read what I wrote, and someone might interpret it that way). No, I’m only saying what the student is studying now (me — the student). My task at this time is to learn to live moment by moment, with my full attention here. Keeping my full attention on that which is before me.

    If I cannot do it, then I will not be able to stay on the path.

  2. Doug says:

    Hi Zen2 (get it?),

    I definitely appreciate your thoughts on the subject. Your conundrum is no doubt a very common one. I do get concerned retreat to the “just sit” answer to any question, but I don’t feel you’re doing that here. Mindfulness and meditation are quite important to the Buddha Path, and are one of the Six Perfections outlined in Mahayana Buddhism (and encouraged in the Yogacara book above), so you’re right to treat them as something important.

    I guess what needs to offset this is your intention. Is your attention to relax and feel good? Then Buddhism is little more than a self-help exercise (I think Rev. Kosho Uchiyama called it utilitarian zen), but if your aim is Bodhi, then you’re practicing mindfulness in the right context.

    Best of luck as you figure out this conundrum. I am still stuck on “what to practice” to reach from here to there. Even the precepts keep me busy these days. :-/

  3. zensquared says:

    The instruction to “just sit” — and keep a clear, empty mind — can be very frustrating. Sometimes I feel angry when a teacher says that. I think: “Come on and TEACH me, damn it!” But the longer I practice, the less often I experience that very uncool reaction.

    It does appear that a lot of Western people take up meditation without beliefs, without Buddhism. I do not know if that is good or bad. What I did was take up a Buddhist practice, so meditation is only part of that. It’s a very large part — but without a vow to liberate all beings, why does a person sit? As you said, is it only to make yourself feel better?

    Well, you could eat ice cream or something if that’s all you want to do.

    Good luck with your practice, Doug! Be well!

  4. Doug says:

    Thanks dude. Much appreciated!

    Buddhism without beliefs does seem kind of silly, when you really stop to think about it. It’s like practicing Christianity so you can enjoy Christmas presents. None of the personal/spiritual growth is entailed, just personal amusement.

    People do enjoy their diversions ever so much. :)

    (Speaking from experience)


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