Break the Chains---Ask Three

Author: Nationalities Publishing House
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1998-12-01
Features: If one sentence could summarize the key points of this book, it would be "to rest the mind in wisdom and act on vows (fulfilling all responsibilities)." This sentence can be said to be a concise, practical, powerful, and beneficial practice summary for those studying Buddhism. The upper half is the mind, and the lower half is the form; the upper half is wisdom, and the lower half is the context; the upper half is the three-dimensional perspective, and the lower half is the manifestation of application; the upper half is to find peace, and the lower half is to take action; the upper half is to seek the path, and the lower half is to practice the path; the upper half is inward, and the lower half is outward; the upper half is based on reason, and the lower half is based on action; the upper half is the meaning of emptiness, and the lower half is the meaning of practice; the upper half is the truth, and the lower half is the conventional truth; the upper half is to open wisdom, and the lower half is to cultivate blessings. The beauty of this summary lies particularly in the "while" () in the middle, with this "while," the mind and form become one, reason and affair are not obstructed, emptiness and existence are not two, truth and convention are integrated, and blessings and wisdom are cultivated together, thus avoiding falling into extremes or being split into two parts. If matched with the Three Perspectives of Tendai, resting the mind in wisdom is the perspective of emptiness, and acting on vows is the perspective of illusion, while the "while" in the middle is the perspective of the middle way. If matched with the Three Sections of True Word, resting the mind in wisdom is the Vajra Section, and acting on vows is the Womb Section, while the "while" in the middle is the Sutra of Completion. In summary, the upper half is wisdom, and the lower half is karma, while the "while" in the middle is the integration of wisdom and karma.