Sublime

The renowned seventh-century Zen master Seng-tsan taught that true freedom is being “without anxiety about imperfection.”

—Toni Packer

the sangha can refer variously to the bodhisattvas on the high bhumis [the ten stages that the bodhisattva must go through to attain buddhahood], to the monastic sangha, and, most broadly, to all those who have dedicated their lives to the liberation of sentient beings (5.9, 5.10).

Wisdom training applies a realistic worldview of reality and wholesome intentions to clarify and counteract distorted or erroneous misperceptions—particularly the self-reifying habit (atmagraha) at the root of all mental afflictions. Meditation training involves joyous effort, accurate mindfulness, and precise concentration that stabilize and

Nirvana Sutra . An account of the final days and final teachings of the Buddha. Although this also exists in Pali, the four Chinese translations are quite different in content and scope. My citations are from the Nan-pen ta-pan nieh-p’an-ching, which was a joint translation by two Chinese monks and a layman, during

The most important discourse ever given by the Buddha on mental development (‘meditation’) is called the Satipaṭṭhāna-sutta ‘The Setting-up of Mindfulness’ (No. 22 of the Dīgha-nikāya, or No. 10 of the Majjhima-nikāyd).

It may not be obvious for quite a while but any state of samādhi is to some degree a state of letting go, of reduced craving. And the deeper the samādhi, the deeper and more comprehensive the letting go that it involves.