Read "The Heart Sutra" below. Think on it. Help in understanding it is on the right.

Thanks Bill!

The Heart Sutra in English

Thus have I heard. Once the Blessed One was dwelling in Rajagriha at Vulture Peak mountain, together with a great gathering of the sangha of monks and a great gathering of the sangha of bodhisattvas. At that time the Blessed One entered the samadhi that expresses the dharma called "profound illumination," and at the same time noble Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva mahasattva, while practicing the profound prajnaparamita, saw in this way: he saw the five skandhas to be empty of nature.

Then, through the power of the Buddha, venerable Shariputra said to noble Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva mahasattva, "How should a son or daughter of noble family train, who wishes to practice the profound prajnaparamita?"

Addressed in this way, noble Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva mahasattva, said to venerable Shariputra, "O Shariputra, a son or daughter of noble family who wishes to practice the profound prajnaparamita should see in this way: seeing the five skandhas to be empty of nature. Form is emptiness; emptiness also is form. Emptiness is no other than form; form is no other than emptiness. In the same way, feeling, perception, formation, and consciousness are emptiness. Thus, Shariputra, all dharmas are emptiness. There are no characteristics. There is no birth and no cessation. There is no impurity and no purity. There is no decrease and no increase. Therefore, Shariputra, in emptiness, there is no form, no feeling, no perception, no formation, no consciousness; no eye, no ear, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind; no appearance, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch, no dharmas, no eye dhatu up to no mind dhatu, no dhatu of dharmas, no mind consciousness dhatu; no ignorance, no end of ignorance up to no old age and death, no end of old age and death; no suffering, no origin of suffering, no cessation of suffering, no path, no wisdom, no attainment, and no non-attainment. Therefore, Shariputra, since the bodhisattvas have no attainment, they abide by means of prajnaparamita.

Since there is no obscuration of mind, there is no fear. They transcend falsity and attain complete nirvana. All the buddhas of the three times, by means of prajnaparamita, fully awaken to unsurpassable, true, complete enlightenment. Therefore, the great mantra of prajnaparamita, the mantra of great insight, the unsurpassed mantra, the unequaled mantra, the mantra that calms all suffering, should be known as truth, since there is no deception. The prajnaparamita mantra is said in this way:

OM GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA

Thus, Shariputra, the bodhisattva mahasattva should train in the profound prajnaparamita.

Then the Blessed One arose from that samadhi and praised noble Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva mahasattva, saying, "Good, good, O son of noble family; thus it is, O son of noble family, thus it is. One should practice the profound prajnaparamita just as you have taught and all the tathagatas will rejoice."

When the Blessed One had said this, venerable Shariputra and noble Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva mahasattva, that whole assembly and the world with its gods, humans, asuras, and gandharvas rejoiced and praised the words of the Blessed One.

Lotsawa Bhikshu Rinchen De translated this text into Tibetan with the Indian pandita Vimalamitra. It was edited by the great editor-lotsawas Gelong Namkha and others. This Tibetan text was copied from the fresco in Gegye Chemaling at the glorious Samye vihara. It has been translated into English by the Nalanda Translation Committee, with reference to several Sanskrit editions.

Migs, the Heart Sutra's essence is in para three. om gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svahaa means "gone, gone, gone to the other Shore, Bodhi Svaha!" it is a mantra to help one focus on the impermanence of the objective world...the world we find ourselves in as human beings. IN buddhism, they say that being a human being is a rare and find thing. Because it is only humans who can reasons and ascertain the difference between good behavior and wrong behavior and thus who can discern the esssence of existence (or achieve enlightenment or understand the wisdom of the dharma (the law of the universsei) . the idea of emptiness and nothingness is not related to the fact that if you shoot a man, he will get hurt. that is one reality. another possible reality is that metaphysically (not physically) but metaphysically our views of things, our biases, our hates, desires, loves feelings, sight, sound, taste of the physical world is impermanent. perhaps so too are our great thoughts. when we die, the fact that I am a millionaire will not help me. things are like dew on the morning grass, a puff of smoke, a streak of lightening - passing images like dreams. we should reflect on this, the Diamond Sutra tells us. The heart sutra (accepted by scholars as a teaching of buddha) says "there is nothing to be attained", Migs. Thats the profundity of it, its genius. The wisdom of Buddha. Even though there is nothing to be attained, we must live. Our lives are fuller when we are compassionate (and I take your point about taking care of oneself -- that's right), and when we can develop the wisdom to see things (including our short lives) for what they really are. This takes constant and determined effort. It is hard to attain nothing, Migs. The very concept confounds the mind. Don't worry about the words that you don't know in the sutra. Read it again. Bill

The Dalai lama and Bill