Points for Meditation from Arya Nagarjuna's Ratnavali
Prostrations to the Omniscient One
Prostrations to the Omniscient One
Who is the only benefactor to all sentient beings.
1) There are two goals
a) Higher States
b) Ultimate Goodness
There are two means
a) Faith: it consists
of the practices of virtue in general like cultivating confidence in
the efficacy of law of Karma, Three Jewels and the truth.
b) Wisdom: the wisdom realizing the ultimate truth.
Of the two - faith and wisdom - the latter is the prime. Faith, however should precede the latter.
3) Criteria for one
to be with faith - one who is not under the influence of attachment,
anger, fear, and delusion that one is led towards casting aside virtues.
4) 16 practices to achieve Higher States - 13 practices to abandon negativities and three practices to partake
- abandoning 10 non-virtuous actions, alcohol, wrong livelihood and harmful physical actions
3 practices to partake - respectful generosity, offering service to the deserved and the practice of love (4 immeasurables)
5) The above 16 practices can be summed up in the following three practices - generosity, ethical discipline, and patience.
6) Concomitant results of the 16 negativities in opposition to the above 16 practices a) in terms of habit
b) in terms of experience
7) Dharma for Ultimate goodness
Reflect as thus:
Grasping at self is
folly → contaminated aggregates which arose from this grasping is also
folly → grasping at self will cease → the contaminated aggregates will
cease.
Just as an image is
formed through dependence on many factors like mirror and so forth, the
self also arises by dependence on many factors such as aggregates. The
image though appears as the real object, it is devoid as such. Likewise,
the self though appears, is devoid of its existence the way it appears
to the self-grasping mind.
8) Grasping at the
aggregates (grasping at the self of phenomena) → grasping at self of
person → accumulates contaminated karmas → revolves in samsara.
9) What is nirvana? a) common acceptance: A quality of mind acquired through cessation of grasping at things and non-things.
b) uncommon to Prasangika: The ultimate reality of the mind characterised by the cessation of grasping at things and non-things.
