The Six Paramitas describe the characteristics of a well-lived Buddhist life, and endeavoring to practice them in everyday situations is a lifelong journey.
Continue reading “Six Paramitas”Virya (Diligence)
Dharma Discussion: Diligence/Vīrya (August 2, 2020)
Click here to read about the Buddhist Virtue of Diligence
Discussion Questions
- What motivates you to study the Buddha’s teachings?
- How have the goals that you are working to achieve in your life shifted as a result of hearing the Dharma and the Nembutsu?
- How has your way of working changed as a result of your encounter with the Nembutsu?
Falling Short
As we welcome the arrival of autumn, we will be observing our Autumn Ohigan Service on Sunday, September 21 at 9:30 a.m. The Japanese Buddhist observance of Ohigan traditionally focuses on study and reflection on the Six Paramitas, a set of Buddhist virtues that, when perfected, lead us to cross over from “this shore” in the deluded world of birth and death to arrive at the “other shore” of liberation in Nirvana.
The literal meaning of the Sanskrit word paramita is “Crossing over to the Other Shore.” In Chinese and Japanese translation, the term paramita is sometimes rendered as tōhigan到彼岸 “arriving at the other shore.” This imagery of crossing over to the other shore is the basis for Japanese Buddhist celebrations of Ohigan observed at the Spring and Autumn Equinoxes. In many Buddhist communities, it is customary to hold seven-day observances of Ohigan, with the middle day dedicated to gratitude towards one’s ancestors and each of the remaining six days dedicated to one of the Six Paramitas.
The Six Paramitas are listed below along with a brief explanation of the meaning of each: