Eastern religions: overview and major traditions

Eastern Religions

Thich Nhat Hanh wrote "The Heart Of Understanding" as a commentary and evaluation of the Heart Sutra in Buddhist philosophy. The book "Heart of Understanding" is a synopsis of Hanh's interpretation of what has been described as the central sutra or philosophical teaching of Zen Buddhism. There has over the centuries been much discussion on the relevance of Buddhist teaching and the meanings held within each of the sutras. A great deal of emphasis has been placed on the heart sutra, or "Prajnaparamita" sutra, as described in great detail in Hanh's work. According to Hanh and other religious scholars, this sutra is "the essence" of Buddhist teaching.

The Heart Sutra is recited daily in Buddhist communities throughout the world (Hanh). The sutra dates back to the beginning of the Christian era, and according to scholars has been studies for over 2000 years in Inda, China, Vietnam, Korea and many other Buddhist countries (Hanh). Thich Nhat Hahn is a Vietnamese Zen master, peace activist and poet who teaches the word of the Heart Sutra according to his editor, Peter Levitt. In his work, "The Heart of Understanding," Hanh claims that the "teaching of Buddhism are many."

The first point that Hanh makes is that "things are empty." Hanh takes a very abstract approach in interpreting the Heart Sutra, as indicated by this first statement. What are things empty of? It seems almost that Hanh's interpretation of the Sutra is completely contradictory. He begins by teaching the meaning of bodhisattva, which translates into "awakened being," a key concept in Buddhist teaching. All Buddhists are striving to be awakened. The term "Avalokita" is the name of the awakened being in the work "Heart of Understanding." Hanh states that the Heart Sutra is a gift to mankind from Avalokita, meant to teach people in part the path to understanding and enlightenment, or full awakening. Hanh argues that the Heart Sutra describes perfect understanding, and claims that in Buddhism, "knowledge and wisdom can block our understanding," which in itself is a difficult concept to swallow. Hanh goes on to say however, that we cling to things that we consider to be knowledge or truth, and we must learn to "transcend our views" and attain greater understanding, in a sense it seems he is arguing that people need to transcend their current knowledge and become more open minded. On the idea that "things are empty," according to Hanh's interpretation of the words of Avalokita, the sheet of paper the reader is looking at while reading a book for example, is "empty" even though it appears to be full of words. This analysis is followed by the following analogy, which Hanh describes:

If I am holding a cup of water and I ask you, Is this cup empty, you will say, No, it is full of water. But if I pour out the water and ask you again, you may say, Yes, it is empty. But, empty of what. Empty means empty of something. The cup cannot be empty of nothing. Empty doesn't mean anything unless you know empty of what" (Hanh, 9).

Hanh is trying to help the reader understand that now the cup is actually full of air, which requires the reader to flip their "knowledge" or matters and look at things in a different perspective.

Hanh also goes on I his work to describe the interdependence of the various organs of the body, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, stomach and blood. He argues that though the blood and lungs are in essence, separate entities, they cannot function without the other. He refers back to Avalokita's teaching on empty then, saying that the sheet of paper is a separate entity like the hear or lungs, that can't be or exist simply by itself. It must exist interdependently with everything else, just as we must as human beings

Hanh continues his discourse by exploring the many ways in which human beings then, are interrelated and interdependent, just as the organs of the body are related and dependent on separate entities, or as a piece of paper is dependent on air, words, and our reading to exist. It is a very difficult concept to grasp as it is somewhat abstract. Another important point that Hanh makes throughout the book is the essential idea that people must penetrate objects and the things they experience in life to gain true understanding of their purpose and meaning. Hanh claims that to attain true freedom, and ultimately reach enlightenment or awakening, one must overcome the obstacles of ideas and preconceived concepts which are taught to society. These ideas and concepts, according to the interpretation of the Heart Sutra by Hanh are concepts concerning "birth and death, defilement, immaculateness, increasing, decreasing, above, below and so on" (Hanh, 47). Hahn says that with eyes of inter-understanding or the relatedness of everything that exists, people will be freed from the ideas of fear, and liberate themselves from the illusion of existence, thereby attaining "Nirvana" or enlightenment (Hahn, 47).

Nirvana, according to the Buddhist scholar, is a state of non-fear that one can reach once they have transcended the ideas of existence and reality as currently perceived (Hanh, 47). Hanh claims that individuals realizing that they are not really what they believe themselves to be, what they cling to as reality, are free from death and no longer subject to birth and death. In Buddhist philosophy, man is caught in a cycle of death and re-birth until they reach the state of Nirvana or enlightenment. Therefore, to reach ultimate peace each person should strive for the state of awakening, as the teacher of the Heart Sutra, Avalotika has reached. Hanh encourages the reader to meditate and argues that focusing on a mantra every day will assist the reader in eventually attaining enlightenment, which is likely to happen after several years of dedicated practice and conviction. Hahn finally leaves the reader with the following recommendation: "At the beginning of each meal, look at your plate and recite, My plate is empty now, but I know that it is going to be filled with delicious food in just a moment. Then think, at this very moment, many, many people around the world are also holding a plate, but their plate is going to be empty for a long time." (Hanh, 54). In this last section of the book, Hanh is encouraging the reader to gain a broader perspective of the world, realizing that not everyone has the same luxuries such as eating a full meal, encouraging the reader to understand that everyone's perspective of a mealtime is different. He claims ultimately, that "Understanding is the fruit of meditation, the basis of everything."