The Theravada Standpoint

According to the Theravadin Vinaya, during the time of the Buddha, there was a layperson, a village head, who had many hunters working as his subordinates. Before he was enlightened, the hunters used to offer him large amount of meat from their hunt. After receiving some teachings from Shakyamuni Buddha, he eventually attained realization of the Theravada path of seeing and stopped eating meat. However, his subordinates continued to hunt and offer him meat. He would instead offer the meat to the monastics whenever they came begging for alms. Once the monastics ate the offered meat.

Some non-Buddhists then began to attack them by saying, “Laypersons would not eat that meat, but the disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha would. This is outrageous!” On hearing this, some bhikshus, seeking the Buddha’s advice, asked, “What should we do about these comments from others now that we are eating meat?” The Buddha then set the rule of eating only the three kinds of clean flesh of which some special requirements were also laid down. That is, the meat of snake, dog, horse and ox were not to be eaten even if they had met the standards of the three kinds of clean meat. Because Indians, during the time of the Buddha, considered the meat of these animals unclean like human’s. To date, the Southern Buddhist tradition still upholds this rule.

~ Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : Why Vegetarian?

The posture that one takes at time of death is quite important. When dying, one should keep the same lying position as that of Sakyamuni Buddha when he went into parinirvana—head to the north, feet south, lying on the right side of the body, placing right hand under the head, pressing the right nostril with the right little finger and breathing through the left nostril. It is said in the scriptures that when lying on the right side of the body, breathing will naturally go through the left nostril. Nevertheless, it is still important to block the right nostril. Whether being Buddhist or not, by taking the right posture when dying, one can be sure not to take rebirth in the three lower realms for the next one or two lives, even without the help of any other transference ritual.

~ Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : On Death And Rebirth-How to Face Death

All branches of Buddhism fall under Mahayana and Theravada. There is no third vehicle (yana). To be a Theravada practitioner, the first requisite is having unshakable renunciation—complete distaste for worldly fulfillments and whole-hearted pursuit of liberation from samsara. Do we have such resolution? If not, we would not qualify as Theravada practitioners.

Mahayana practitioners, on the other hand, must have undaunted bodhicitta and be willing to serve the needs of others unselfishly and unconditionally. Can we do that? If not, we would not be deemed Mahayana practitioners either.

Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : The Three Supreme Methods

Basically we do not know much about what happens before and after life. Through the Twelve Nidanas, we can understand how we came to and leave this world, which affords us a better idea about the two ends of life. Although we have no clue as to what we were in the previous life, we know there were ignorance and karmic force; neither do we know where we will be in the next life, but there will be birth, old age and death. This much we know for sure.

If we do not wish to continue like this, we will need to stop the chain effect of the Twelve Nidanas. How can we do that? Can burning incense, performing prostrations and reciting mantras stop the interlinking effect? They can perhaps serve as one of the causes and conditions leading to that outcome, but not the key solution. What then is the most effective? Is it to cultivate compassion or to contemplate the impurities of the human body? Unfortunately, neither provides the solution to the task at hand which ultimately can only be dealt with via realization of emptiness. If such realization can be attained, all distant and proximate causes will cease, so will all distant and proximate effects. For example, if the foundation of a high-rise is shaky, the whole building will collapse. Likewise, once ignorance is eradicated, the building of ignorance-based samsara will also collapse.

~ Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : The Right View - The Twelve Nidanas

What does the concept of illusion have to do with our life in this world? How do we make use of it?

Even though we now know the world is an illusion, it is a very real world from the standpoint of our eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body. Because of this relative reality, we have to be responsible to our society, family, and company employees; we need to build a career and provide for our family. We have to abstain from destroying and harming life, from stealing and cheating, etc. Knowing everything to be illusory, we must nonetheless distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil.

~Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : The Significance of Buddhist Philosophy Today

How can a person who has practiced virtue his entire life be reborn in the lower realms?

Well, although the person may have been virtuous throughout this life, we do not know anything about this person’s previous lives. Maybe the person had been virtuous in this as well as the last two lifetimes, but this might not still be the case if we could go back even further. Some negative karma might have been committed many lifetimes ago. From the perspective of the three types of immutable karma, virtuous karma that the person had committed in this life happens to ripen not in the current or the next life, but in yet unknown future lives. That is, it may not come to fruition until perhaps hundreds or even thousands of years later.

According to the Vajrayana teachings, there are ways to bring back the bardo being before rebirth takes place. Bardo being, the deceased who is in the intermediate state, is able to enjoy the offerings only through the blessing of samadhi, one-pointedness of mind or the sadhana of Vajaryana practice. The most important is to guide the deceased to Sukhāvatī by the power of meditative concentration.

The previously mentioned great terton used just this method to see his dead brother. His brother said to him, “I only had little more than thirty years to live, hardly long enough to enjoy the good times in life. I really don’t want to go to Sukhāvatī.” His brother also acknowledged this is karmic obstruction. It shows that when karmic obstructions are so great, even Amitabha’s pure land is made less enticing.

Therefore, it is important to train well while still alive as wrong thoughts may inadvertently turn up at the crucial moment otherwise. Only those who have been trained in these practices over a long period of time can maintain the right view at all times. After death, by praying to Amitabha, they can successfully take rebirth in Sukhāvatī.

~ Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : On Death And Rebirth-How to Take Rebirth

The practice of the Four Noble Truths begins with the cultivation of renunciation and bodhicitta.

Renunciation enables us to transcend samsara while bodhicitta inspires us to remain in samsara without being bound by it. Are they contradictory to each other? No, not at all. If renunciation is not generated, samsara cannot be transcended. We will then end up in the same position as all other beings in the six realms, having no ability to save anyone. In order to transcend samsara, one must resolutely cut off all attachment to it. However, that does not mean one should abandon all those remained in samsara afterwards. To abandon means one should set one’s goal to only seek enlightenment for oneself and upon reaching that goal, one ignores their need for liberation. Sravakas and pratyekabuddhas, abiding in the meditation of cessation. They have transcended samsara and at the same time abandoned those left in samsara. Alas, owing to their limited power of concentration, they neither have the ability nor the aspiration to lead other sentient beings to liberation.

~ Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : The Four Noble Truth

The greater, more extensive compassion encompasses more than just ensuring the basic needs of sentient beings. Those needs should be taken care of, but they are not the focal point. The most important is to make all sentient beings understand the facts of samsara and the ways to be freed from it. This is the Buddha’s greatest compassion—to teach sentient beings the truth first, then the methods for liberation.

Depicted from Luminous Wisdom Book Series : Buddhism -- The Definition