Living Buddha
Dechan Jueren
Abbot Teacher
Jane Ward
Lineage
The spiritual teachings and practices of ancient India were developed by the Brahmans, and were then evolved and transmitted by the great saint Shakyamuni Buddha over 2400 years ago.
Disciples of the Nepalese guru Nagarjuna Bodhisattva brought the Buddhist teachings from Nalanda monastery in India to Xi’an city in China around 1300 years ago, and combined them with Taoism and Confucianism.
The awakened masters have preserved this knowledge through an unbroken lineage in the Hanmi Chinese Esoteric School of Buddhism. The current lineage bearer is Buddhist Master Dechan Jueren.
Hanmi is Chinese Esoteric Buddhism. The Buddhist masters assimilated the prevailing teaching of Confucianism and Taoism, and evolved the teaching into Hanmi, which was more easily understood by the Chinese people. Chinese Esoteric Buddhism predates the Tibetan Esoteric School, or Lamaism. Hanmi Buddhism, being forced underground for over twelve hundred years, is not as well known as Lamaism.
Hanmi Buddhism was established between 712 to 720 A.D. during the reign of emperor Tang Xuanzong (or Hsuan Tsung) by the Three Great Founders, Subhakarasimha, Vajrabodhi, and Amoghavajra. They came to the Daxing Shansi (Great Propagating Goodness Temple, the predecessor of Temple of the Great Enlightener — MahaVairocana) in today’s Xi’an City and translated many buddhistic sutras and tantras from Sanskrit to Chinese.
Subhakarasimha, an eminent Indian monk, translated the Vairocanabhi-sambodhi-tantra, or the Mahavairocana Sutra from Sanskrit to Chinese.
Vajrabodhi, a graduate of Nalanda Temple, received complete empowerment and transmission from Nagabodhi, who received from Nagarjuna.
Amoghavajra, a Singhalese, was the most famous Yogacharya of his time. He came at the age of 15 to China, where in 718 he became a disciple of Vajrabodhi, and later of Subhakarasimha. The Tang emperor granted dharma instruments to Amoghavajra who set up the first abhiseka-bodhi-mandala at Daxing Temple, thus founding Hanmi.
After Vajrabodhi’s death in 732, and at his wish, Amoghavajra went to India and Ceylon in search of esoteric or tantric writings, and returned in 746, when he baptized the emperor Xuanzong. He was especially noted for rain-making and stilling storms. In 749 he received permission to return home, but was stopped by imperial orders when in the south of China. In 756 under emperor Suzong he was recalled to the capital. His time until 771 was spent translating and editing tantric books in 120 volumes, and the Yogachara rose to its peak of prosperity. He died greatly honored at 70 years of age, in 774, the twelfth year of Taizong, the third emperor under whom he had served. He was given the title of the Thesaurus of Wisdom, Amogha Tripikata and the posthumous rank and title of a Minister of State.
Historically, Chinese Esoteric Buddhism, or the Hanmi Mystery School, was thought to be lost when Emperor Tang Wuzong banned the teaching. Huiguo, the last known disciple of Amoghavajra, had left China and went with Kukai to Japan to establish the Japanese Esoteric school of Buddhism, later known as the Shingon sect. Unknown to history, Amoghavajra had another disciple, Huisu, who received all the religious instruments and dharma transmission. He then became the Dharma Lineage Bearer. Since then, Hanmi has been underground for over twelve centuries.
The Hanmi lineage has been passed on through one master per generation. Master Yu Tian Jian is the highest and only living master of Hanmi, the Honorable Abbot of the 1000-year old LongQuan Temple in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, a doctor of Chinese medicine, and acknowledged as a Buddhist Master in China.
Master Yu, from Chaoyang, Liaoning, at the age of 39, attained realization under the guidance of Grandmaster Huiling, the 48th Maha-Acharya of the Hanmi lineage. He sees the past, the present and the future, and understands his mission as a Hanmi successor. He resigned his position as a plant manager in China, and donated all his personal savings, over 1 million RMB, to the cause of reviving Buddha-dharma. He said,”I want to let people know the truth of Buddhism again.” He experienced all kinds of hardship as he journeyed through great rivers and mountains in order to transmit Dharma and to heal people. He has left indelible impressions everywhere.
In 1989, a discovery was made in the Heaven Chamber of the North Pagoda at Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province. They found sharira, or the bone relic of the Buddha, sutra and tantra engraved in silver plates in Chinese, two Chinese Stupas of the Diamond and the Womb Worlds, and the Stupa of Five-Buddha-Five-Wisdom. Later, a Hanmi mandala was also discovered in the Earth Chamber of Famen Temple (Famensi), or Dharma Doorway Temple at Fufeng County, Shaanxi Province. These discoveries predict the revival of Hanmi Buddhism.
Master Huiling found Master Yu on the 99th days after the discovery. Master Yu received complete empowerment and transmission, and became the Great Enlightener MahaVairocana Dharma King Dechan Jueren, the 49th Great Acharya.
What is Buddhism?
Living Buddha
Dechan Jueren
Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to insight into the true nature of life. Buddhist practices such as meditation are means of changing oneself in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness, and wisdom. The experience developed within the Buddhist tradition over thousands of years has created an incomparable resource for all those who wish to follow a path — a path which ultimately culminates in Enlightenment or Buddhahood.
Because Buddhism does not include the idea of worshipping a creator god, some people do not see it as a religion in the normal, Western sense. The basic tenets of Buddhist teaching are straightforward and practical: nothing is fixed or permanent; actions have consequences; change is possible. Thus Buddhism addresses itself to all people irrespective of race, nationality, or gender. It teaches practical methods (such as meditation) which enable people to realise and utilise its teachings in order to transform their experience, to be fully responsible for their lives and to develop the qualities of Wisdom and Compassion.
There are around 350 million Buddhists and a growing number of them are Westerners. They follow many different forms of Buddhism, but all traditions are characterised by non-violence, lack of dogma, tolerance of differences, and the practice of meditation.
Many of the Buddhist meditations taught at the Brentwood Buddhist Centre are from the School of Hanmi Esoteric Buddhism.
Hanmi esoteric practice involves the use of mantras (empowered syllable sounds), mudras (hand or body gestures), and visualizations, for the purpose of reaching one’s full human potential. These three simple elements form a profoundly effective synergy that can immediately and positively influence one’s daily life. Through the practice of these techniques, one can purify personal karma, calm the body and mind, and thereby attain higher levels of consciousness.
Through the cultivation of raised consciousness, the individual can begin to understand the right way for them to live. Such realisation brings true health, vitality and happiness. It is only from this point of departure that one can genuinely help others.
General breathing and loving kindness practices are also taught at the centre, however the union of the three mysteries is found by most to be the most profound way of entering a deep meditation state. There are hundreds of meditation practices from this tradition, Medicine Buddha Dharma, Four foundations, Prajna Akasagarbha – Movement Meditation and many more.
Who was Buddha?
Buddha’s Birth
The Buddha who is the founder of the Buddhist religion is called Buddha Shakyamuni “Shakya” is the name of the royal family into which he was born, and “Muni” means “Able One.” Buddha Skakyamuni was born as a royal prince in 624 BC in a place called Lumbini, which was originally in northern India but is now part of Nepal. His mother’s name was Queen Mayadevi and his father’s name was King Shuddhodana.
The Queens Dream
One night, Queen Mayadevi dreamed that a white elephant descended from heaven and entered her womb. The white elephant entering her womb indicated that on that very night she had conceived a child who was a pure and powerful being. The elephant’s descending from heaven indicated that her child came from Tushita heaven, the Pure Land of Buddha Maitreya. Later, when she gave birth to the child, instead of experiencing pain the queen experienced a special, pure vision in which she stood holding the branch of a tree with her right hand while the gods Brahma and Indra took the child painlessly from her side. They then proceeded to honor the infant by offering him ritual ablutions.
The Kings Delight
When the king saw the child he felt as if all his wishes had been fulfilled and he named the young prince “Siddhartha.” He invited a Brahmin seer to make predictions about the prince’s future. The seer examined the child with his clairvoyance and told the king, “There are signs that the boy could become either a chakravartin king, a ruler of the entire world, or a fully enlightened Buddha. However, since the time for chakravartin kings is now past it is certain that he will become a Buddha, and that his beneficial influence will pervade the thousand million worlds like the rays of the sun.”
The Young Prince
As the young prince grew up he mastered all the traditional arts and sciences without needing any instruction. He knew sixty-four different languages, each with their own alphabet, and he was also very skilled at mathematics. He once told his father that he could count all the atoms in the world in the time it takes to draw a single breath. Although he did not need to study, he did so to please his father and to benefit others. At his father’s request he joined a school where, in addition to various academic subjects, he became skilled at sports such as martial arts and archery.
The prince would take every opportunity to convey spiritual meanings and to encourage others to follow spiritual paths. At one time, when he was taking part in an archery contest, he declared, “With the bow of meditative concentration I will fire the arrow of wisdom and kill the tiger of ignorance in living beings.” He then released the arrow and it flew straight through five iron tigers and seven trees before disappearing into the earth! By witnessing demonstrations such as this, thousands of people developed faith in the prince.
Witnessing Suffering
Sometimes Prince Siddhartha would go into the capital city of his father’s kingdom to see how the people lived. During these visits he came into contact with many old people and sick people, and on one occasion he saw a corpse. These encounters left a deep impression on his mind and led him to realize that all living beings without exception have to experience the sufferings of birth, sickness, ageing and death. Because he understood the laws of reincarnation he also realized that they experience these sufferings not just once, but again and again, in life after life without cessation. Seeing how all living beings are trapped in this vicious circle of suffering he felt deep compassion for them, and he developed a sincere wish to free all of them from their suffering. Realizing that only a fully enlightened Buddha has the wisdom and the power to help all living beings in this way, he resolved to leave the palace and retire to the solitude of the forest where he would engage in profound meditation until he attained enlightenment.
Siddhartha’s Marriage
When the people of the Shakya kingdom realized that the prince intended to leave the palace they requested the king to arrange a marriage for him in the hope that this would cause him to change his mind. The king agreed and soon found him a suitable bride, the daughter of a respected Shakya family, called Yasodhara. Prince Siddhartha, however, had no attachment to worldly pleasures because he realized that objects of attachment are like poisonous flowers, which initially appear to be attractive but eventually give rise to great pain. His resolve to leave the palace and to attain enlightenment remained unchanged, but to fulfill his father’s wishes and to bring temporary benefit to the Shakya people, he agreed to marry Yasodhara. However, even though he remained in the palace as a royal prince, he devoted all his time and energy to serving the Shakya people in whatever way he could.
Prince Siddhartha’s Request
When he was twenty-nine years old, the prince had a vision in which all the Buddhas of the ten directions appeared to him and spoke in unison saying, Previously you resolved to become a Conqueror Buddha so that you could help all living beings trapped in the cycle of suffering. Now is the time for you to accomplish this.” The prince went immediately to his parents and told them of his intention: “I wish to retire to a peaceful place in the forest where I can engage in deep meditation and quickly attain full enlightenment.
Once I have attained enlightenment I shall be able to repay the kindness of all living beings, and especially the great kindness that you have shown me. Therefore I request your permission to leave the palace.” When his parents heard this they were shocked, and the king refused to grant his permission. Prince Siddhartha said to his father “Father, if you can give me permanent freedom from the sufferings of birth, sickness, ageing and death I shall stay in the palace; but if you cannot I must leave and make my human life meaningful.”
Prince Siddhartha’s Escape
The king tried all means to prevent his son from leaving the palace. In the hope that the prince might change his mind, he surrounded him with a retinue of beautiful women, dancers, singer, and musicians, who day and night used their charms to please him; and in case the prince might attempt a secret escape he posted guards around the palace walls. However, the prince’s determination to leave the palace and enter a life of meditation could not be shaken. One night he used his miracle powers to send the guards and attendants into a deep sleep while he made his escape from the palace with the help of a trusted aide. After they had traveled about six miles, the prince dismounted from his horse and bade farewell to his aide. He then cut off his hair and threw it into the sky, where it was caught by the gods of the Land of the Thirty-three Heavens. One of the gods then offered the prince the saffron robes of a religious mendicant. The prince accepted these and gave his royal garments to the god in exchange. In this way he ordained himself as a monk.
Place for Meditation
Siddhartha then made his way to a place near Bodh Gaya in India, where he found a suitable site for meditation. There he remained, emphasizing a meditation called “space-like concentration on the Dharmakaya” in which he focused single-pointedly on the ultimate nature of all phenomena. After training in this meditation for six years he realized that he was very close to attaining full enlightenment, and so he walked to Bodh Gaya where, on the full moon day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar, he seated himself beneath the Bodhi Tree in the meditation posture and vowed not to rise from meditation until he had attained perfect enlightenment. With this determination he entered the space-like concentration on the Dharmakaya.
Conquering all Distractions
As dusk fell, Devaputra Mara, the chief of all the demons, or maras, in this world, tried to disturb Siddhartha’s concentration by conjuring up many fearful apparitions. He manifested hosts of terrifying demons, some throwing spears, some firing arrows, some trying to burn him with fire, and some hurling boulders and even mountains at him. Through the force of his concentration, the weapons, rocks, and mountains appeared to him as a rain of fragrant flowers, and the raging fires became like offerings of rainbow lights.
Seeing that Siddhartha could not be frightened into abandoning his meditation, Devaputra Mara tried instead to distract him by manifesting countless beautiful women, but Siddhartha responded by developing even deeper concentration. In this way he triumphed over all the demons of this world, which is why he subsequently became known as a “Conqueror Buddha.”
Attaining Enlightenment
Siddhartha then continued with his meditation until dawn, when he attained the vajra-like concentration. With this concentration, which is the very last mind of a limited being, he removed the final veils of ignorance from his mind and in the next moment became a Buddha, a fully enlightened being.