For example, Yogacara is Mahayana Buddhism, which can be divided into early and late stages. Buddhism teaches that becoming a Buddha has different levels, with ten levels. The highest level is the Buddha, which is the tenth level. From the bottom to the Buddha, for example, the six realms, and then through sound perception, bodhisattva, and Buddha, it has ten levels. Therefore, a specific discourse on the "tenth level" is called the "theory", which studies the different levels of this Buddha.
So he thinks this is called pre consciousness learning. He says it affirms sincerity and establishes a system of sincerity. The sincerity system regards the Tathagata as having a pure and pure nature. In consciousness learning, he talks about the eight consciousnesses. He means that all phenomena are realized through this consciousness. The first six consciousnesses are the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind, but there are two things behind them. One is the seventh consciousness called the Mona consciousness, and the other is the eighth consciousness called the Alaya consciousness.
So what is the purpose of the seventh sense?
The seventh is very important. If the seventh is destroyed, we will see that I don't know who I am, and when I see a classmate across from me, I don't know who they are. Our thoughts are constantly changing, and our bodies are also constantly changing. Your body is different in this second from the previous second. So, it's impossible for a person to step into the same river twice. Strictly speaking, people are no longer the same person in the morning and afternoon. However, why do we always have a concept from beginning to end - me? What governs' me '? Your body is also changing, your thinking is also changing. What can be unified is me.
This is the role of the seventh consciousness, the ultimate consciousness. The ultimate consciousness gives us a firm understanding of myself, which is difficult to break. If you break this understanding, you will basically be not far from achieving enlightenment. Zhuangzi also said why one is not carefree, that one cannot be without waiting, nor can one be without oneself. Buddhism also talks about this. In Buddhism, it talks about the Three Dharma Seals (impermanence in all actions, selflessness in all phenomena, and silence in Nirvana) and the Four Noble Truths (suffering, concentration, extinction, and Dao).
So, that consciousness gives us an idea of 'me'. This is a source of pain. Laozi said, 'I have great troubles, and I have a body.' I always remember having me, and then I had great troubles. And this or that consciousness is precisely what gives us the most important thing about me. It always makes us develop an idea of 'me'.
So Alaya consciousness means that everything has its realization. According to this Yogacara school, everything is realized by him, but this realization is not the kind of realization in realism. You can think of it this way, like me. When someone asked, you said 'All Forms of Consciousness'. I think of someone, and if you think of them, you may not be able to come up with them. But didn't you say' All Forms of Consciousness'? Actually, what we mean by 'realization' here is not actual realization. 'All Forms of Consciousness' is a manifestation of a state of mind.
So how do we know this Alaya consciousness?
In the early stage of the Tathagatagarbha, it was believed that the Alaya consciousness was pure in nature and pure in nature, which meant that those impure things were later. So he believes that Xuanzang's Yogacara is a later Yogacara, and he is a delusional mind. The Tathagatagarbha itself is a delusional mind, and in the delusional mind itself, there is a peaceful principle, but there is also a delusional one corresponding to peace. That is to say, such an existence is not inherently good. The one in front is inherently good in nature, which is inherently pure. The one behind is not inherently good, while the one behind is inherently evil and contains the principles of goodness.
In terms of realm, Mr. Mou Zongsan believes that sincerity is higher than delusion, and the early stage is higher than the later stage. This is his viewpoint.
The second point of view is that the Tiantai sect is higher than the Huayan sect, which is used to distinguish the degree of integration in the teachings. That is to say, in Mahayana, there are also alternative teachings and circular teachings. Alternative teachings are special, while circular teachings are more integrated. Therefore, he believes that the Tiantai sect is more integrated than the Huayan sect. This is his viewpoint, and why?
He said that the Lotus Sutra is a fundamental issue of Buddhist meaning, while other scriptures are a special issue rather than a matter of Buddhist meaning. Therefore, at this level, exploring this fundamental Buddhist meaning in the Lotus Sutra and his Tiantai sect is more harmonious. On the contrary, starting from a specific path to explore Buddhist theory is at a lower level, including Huayan. Although Huayan's philosophy is very profound, he said that it is not yet harmonious enough compared to Tiantai, and it belongs to other religions rather than the final round religion. Or, although it is a round religion, it has not yet reached a kind of harmony.
So here he is saying that Huayan Sect divides Buddhism into five categories, why do we need to classify them?
Because when Buddha preached, he taught different teachings at different times, and his answers to different questions asked by students were also different, sometimes leading to contradictions. This is also relatively easy to understand, because Confucius was asked by someone else's family, 'Teacher, I have already thought about this matter, can I do it?'? Confucius said that once you have a plan, go ahead and do it. Another student is also asking, 'Teacher, I have come up with this idea, can I do it?'? Confucius immediately said, how can this be? With your father and brothers around, you have to carefully consider. So, this raises a question. The same question, once I have thought it through, I can do it. Why do you answer differently?
Confucius said it's very simple. This student is very cautious and has delicate thinking. He is very careful, so I encourage him to do what he thinks of; But this student is different. He is very impulsive, so he said he can do it when he has a good idea. I told him not to be so impulsive. You need to consider whether there will be any negative consequences for this matter.
So when Buddha preached, his teachings varied according to different situations and circumstances, so it was necessary to judge the teachings. Therefore, Huayan Buddhism divided Buddhism into Hinayana teachings, Mahayana initiation teachings, Mahayana final teachings, Dun teachings, and Yuan teachings.
So Huayan's own judgment is, don't translate it as Yuanjiao, Tiantai Sect is translated as Yuanjiao from the same sect, so there are two Yuanjiao in this place. According to Mr. Mou Zongsan's viewpoint, he said that Yuanjiao can only be one and not many. If you judge two Yuanjiao, then your judgment is not enough. Therefore, on this issue, he said that your level is insufficient, so he believes that Tiantai is higher than Huayan.
So according to Mr. Mou Zongsan's own opinion, he uses several aspects to make a judgment on Buddhist teachings, such as Zang, Tong, Bie, Yuan, and Gong, to make a judgment on Buddhism. Zang is the Tibetan teachings of Hinayana, Tong is the general teachings of Mahayana, not the separate teachings of Mahayana. Circle teachings, also known as Prajnaparamita teachings, "Zang Tong Bie Yuan" refers to the shared teachings of practical teachings, which is a virtual teachings that can be used in both Hinayana and Mahayana separate teachings. This can be used to summarize the teaching system of Buddhism.
So he believes that the Tiantai Sect is the Circle Sect, but compared to it, he says that the Circle Sect of the Tiantai Sect cannot be called real. His metaphysics is not a true practical situation, but a solution to liberation. So, the Circle Sect of the Great Middle and Righteousness, he says, is Confucianism because he says that Confucianism consciously stands up a moral subject value subject for him. What he affirms is a reality. He says that Buddhism and Taoism are both forms of realm, not reality, while Confucianism is reality. Reality means that it actively establishes something for him subjectively. What is the academic value of Confucianism?
During the turbulent Spring and Autumn period, he consciously stood up as a moral and value subject. He said this is a kind of practice, it is a metaphysics of practice, and Buddhism, including Taoism, has a bit of liberation. He is not speaking from a positive perspective, but from a perspective of liberation. Therefore, he said that this cannot be called 'Da Zhong Zhi Zheng'. He said that the governance of Da Zhong should be Confucianism.
Of course, this is Mr. Mou Zongsan's own opinion. Others can agree or disagree. If you disagree, we can discuss and debate this issue together.
So for the understanding of sociology, he said that Song Ming Neo Confucianism is the study of life, which can also be directly called the study of mind and nature. He is the study of mind and nature, and the characteristic of Song Ming Neo Confucianism is the study of inner sage, which is the teaching of moral cultivation. The highest goal of moral cultivation is to become holy, benevolent, and great. His true meaning lies in achieving an infinite and fulfilling meaning in his limited life.
This is a characteristic of Song Ming Neo Confucianism. Our lives are very flawed. Life is short, less than 100 years, and life is very difficult. There are even many problems in life. We cannot find a meaning in life, so life is often a tragedy. We want to cling to life, but we cannot. We want to achieve something in this society and in life, but we may not be able to achieve it.
So for most people, life is a hardship, but what is the significance of Song Ming Neo Confucianism?
In the limited life of an individual, he wants to achieve an infinitely fulfilling meaning.
He has a kind of transcendence, which is within my limitations. He wants to find an infinite, which is the Neo Confucianism of Song and Ming dynasties, his teachings on inner sage and moral cultivation, and his metaphysics of morality. The metaphysics of morality is different from general metaphysics, which is a tangible form to approach, but he is not. He is pursuing a metaphysics through morality, which is called the metaphysical nature of morality.
So his metaphysics is a bit different. In the vast majority of Chinese culture, this situation is defined by corresponding metaphysics with moral definitions. Metaphysics is an important issue explored in philosophy, and there are many ways to grasp metaphysics. For example, Kant grasped metaphysics from the perspective of epistemology, while some philosophers may grasp metaphysics from the perspective of cosmogenesis. So Song Ming Neo Confucianism is not from an epistemological perspective, nor is it from a scientific or any other angle. It grasps metaphysics from the perspective of morality.
