DEPENDENT ORIGINATION & THE ECONOMY OF SPIRIT
Dependent Origination is often presented as the most fundamental teaching of Buddhism. It is what Buddha realised on the night of his enlightenment. We studied this teaching in our student seminars this past weekend. Here are a few notes on the matter.
We live in a material world, but also a spiritual one. These are our two homes . The Greek for house or home is oikos, from which derives oikonomos from which we get economics. Oikonomos refers to the management of the home. We have to manage a material world, but also a spiritual one.
The material world is a zero sum game. Although, as Einstein discovered, matter can be turned into energy (and so, presumably the converse is also true in principle) the total remains the same. In ordinary conditions, matter can change state, but it cannot be destroyed. Energy likewise. You can’t get something out of nothing.
However, in the spiritual world all this is different. If I give a gift to a friend, in material terms, I lose the item and he gains the item so that after the event there are still two people and one item. But in the spiritual domain, both parties have gained. There is an increase of love and goodwill all round. As Dogen puts it, flowers have appeared in the sky. Similarly, if I give somebody a bribe and the person accepts it knowing it has an evil end in view, then we both lose. There is more delusion than there was before. By delusion, we mean a refusal to face reality. This is avidya (resistance, non-seeing).
When we resist more, there can arise more falsity in the mind (samskara). If there are more samskara there can be a worsening of vijñana. As vijñana increases, so dharmas are given labels (nama) and become rupa. Then the sadayatana (the six senses) are confusedly programmed. When they make contact (sparsha) with things there arises a vedana reaction which leads to samnjña in the form of craving (trishña) & grasping (upadana). It is on the basis of this grasping that we try to become (bhava) something and give birth (jati) to all the troubles of jaramarana (decay-and-death-ness).
These are the twelve links of dependent origination: avidya, samskara, vijñana, nama-rupa, sadayatana, sparsha, vedana, trishña, upadana, bhava, jati, jaramarana.
As one becomes more and more submerged in troubles, one is likely to become more inclined to resist and deny and so the whole cycle spirals down.
So in the spiritual world, something does come out of nothing and what comes can be a spiritual disaster in which avidya becomes the foundation from which all other troubles can arise. This is the basic dependent origination twelve link sequence.
However, just as great trouble can arise out of nowhere, similarly, great good is also possible. When a person is awakened to calm clarity (vidya = samatha-vipasyana) delusions dissolve, the clear mind sees with right intention (chanda leading to adhimoksha) and thus perceives dharma as it is. The senses perform naturally, without craving or grasping. Instead of trying to make a self, the person experiences the miracle of every moment. The dharmas come forth as a fresh reawakening, every day is a new wonder and life is fulfilled. Then rather than seeming like a vast machine, life becomes a fathomless and delightful mystery in which new creation manifests with each winsome deed.
Thus, in the economy of spirit, there is a freedom. In every situation or circumstance, there can be creation and there can be loss, the blooming of love and clarity, or, alternatively, the jaramarana of corruption and deceit. These alternatives are omnipresent no matter what the context. In the material realm, there can be no adding or subtracting, but in the spirit there is new creation and real loss.
In other words, there is origination. Something new originates in every moment, for better or worse. It does so in dependence upon what has gone before, but it is not caused nor determined by what went before. The past provides means and tokens, but the spirit remains free.
What is the power that makes the difference? One cannot say that it is a personal power because as soon as the idea of self arises, resistance spring up. Relying on self puts one on the downward spiral. One has to prely upon (takes refuge in) something beyond self. This is the message of the Diamond Sutra, for instance. One cannot awaken oneself, but there is another power always at work that one can call upon. This is the power of spirit. In Pureland Buddhism we call it Amida.
Namo Amida Bu