Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra
The biggest crisis that we are in nowadays is existential, which is the state of not knowing our true natures or our true selves; hence, we suffer from deep anxiety and we fail to find safety and a way to ground ourselves. In this article, we share our practical experiences of encountering and pract...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Religions |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/5/403 |
| _version_ | 1827666907131543552 |
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| author | Jing Lin Yishin Khoo |
| author_facet | Jing Lin Yishin Khoo |
| author_sort | Jing Lin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The biggest crisis that we are in nowadays is existential, which is the state of not knowing our true natures or our true selves; hence, we suffer from deep anxiety and we fail to find safety and a way to ground ourselves. In this article, we share our practical experiences of encountering and practicing the teachings of two important Buddhist scriptures: the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra. We show how both sutras, and especially their teachings on emptiness, allow us to remove our attachment to a sense of a separate self, which deepens our understanding about life, and transforms suffering toward peace and love. We further demonstrate the importance of meditation, contemplative chanting and reading, and experimentation with Buddhist teachings as pathways towards understanding our true natures. In sum, both sutras help us to go beyond the materialistic, capitalistic, narrow vision of who we are and to access the higher dimension of our existence, which allows us to discover our cosmic selves in the ultimate reality. It is through experiencing one’s true self that one gains a greater capacity to seek social transformation in times of crisis. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:59:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-cd964cfe4b514fcbb34ead978db1f973 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:59:13Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-cd964cfe4b514fcbb34ead978db1f9732023-11-23T12:52:26ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442022-04-0113540310.3390/rel13050403Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond SutraJing Lin0Yishin Khoo1Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USAFaculty of Education, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, CanadaThe biggest crisis that we are in nowadays is existential, which is the state of not knowing our true natures or our true selves; hence, we suffer from deep anxiety and we fail to find safety and a way to ground ourselves. In this article, we share our practical experiences of encountering and practicing the teachings of two important Buddhist scriptures: the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra. We show how both sutras, and especially their teachings on emptiness, allow us to remove our attachment to a sense of a separate self, which deepens our understanding about life, and transforms suffering toward peace and love. We further demonstrate the importance of meditation, contemplative chanting and reading, and experimentation with Buddhist teachings as pathways towards understanding our true natures. In sum, both sutras help us to go beyond the materialistic, capitalistic, narrow vision of who we are and to access the higher dimension of our existence, which allows us to discover our cosmic selves in the ultimate reality. It is through experiencing one’s true self that one gains a greater capacity to seek social transformation in times of crisis.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/5/403BuddhismenlightenmentHeart SutraDiamond Sutratrue selfinterbeing |
| spellingShingle | Jing Lin Yishin Khoo Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra Religions Buddhism enlightenment Heart Sutra Diamond Sutra true self interbeing |
| title | Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra |
| title_full | Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra |
| title_fullStr | Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra |
| title_full_unstemmed | Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra |
| title_short | Knowing Our True Self and Transforming Suffering toward Peace and Love: Embodying the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra and the Diamond Sutra |
| title_sort | knowing our true self and transforming suffering toward peace and love embodying the wisdom of the heart sutra and the diamond sutra |
| topic | Buddhism enlightenment Heart Sutra Diamond Sutra true self interbeing |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/5/403 |
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