Hi, are you aware of this site? Digital Dictionary of Buddhism I thought I would pass it on.
1 Like
From the translation I get the sense that it says (proper, right, good) “meditation only” as the path to Awakening. I could see this as having some influence in Chan’s “secret transmission outside the teachings.” Conduct is obviously a critical factor from a Confucian perspective, with the emphasis on (ritual) propriety, harmony, cultivated civil sense, benevolence, filial piety, etc.
1 Like
In Japanese the stand alone word for 致 is “do” itasu (致す). It’s kind of a humble use of “do” used by a subject in relation to whomever that person is addressing, and can mean “do for you” as in cause or incur on that person’s behalf. どう致しまして (somehow I did it) means you’re welcome. Chinese compounds are always difficult in Japanese, because of the long historical merging of two systems with entirely different syntax, so … However, 一致, which uses this character, means agreement or concordance. It’s used in words like 雅致 artistic, elegant, refined, etc. It also is used in compounds like 致死 fatal.
The Japanese stand alone word for 行 is “go” or “going” even “way of going” verging on “path” or “line” iku/yuku (行く). Normal form. It can mean conduct, particularly ritual conduct. It’s one of those characters of massive use.
1 Like
I believe “merely seen and heard” means that you see & hear through clear eyes, and ears…
Your perception is cleared from mental and emotional distortion from conditioning, trauma & identification with emotion.
What remains?
Truth in its purest form
Yes. That’s one of the better resources that exists in English.
I tend to agree. I feel like the basic meaning is “wisdom comes to those who pay attention.” It’s something that develops from practice rather than being philosophical.
Thanks! I’ve begun to learn a little Japanese these days, mainly because I’ve been using Japanese dictionaries and translations to help with classical Chinese (with the help of Google translate and knowing the Chinese). 行 is one of those words that’s used for all sorts of related meanings, like “get” in English. If you sit down and really think about it a bit, “get” has a dozen different particular uses, but we don’t think about it much. One word does it all. But translating it to another language 1750 years from now might get a little confusing.
With Buddhist translations, there’s the added problem of guessing which of the Indic words it was used to translation. Buddhists added a couple more meanings to it. That’s what I think is a little unclear. But it may well just mean “practice” or “conduct”. It’s the usual reading in Buddhist texts.
2 Likes
Yes, I think what you are doing is very difficult and astounding. Thank you so very much.