The Vows of Personal Liberation 85 The Definition [b] The vows themselves are defined as the intention (as well as concomitant mental factors) To forsake both injury to others and its basis The vows of personal liberation are defined as the intention (as well as concomitant mental states) to forsake both injury to others and the basis [of injury] [Karma Trinlepa's] Chariot of Karma5 clarifies the above in stating that “injury” refers to the seven unwholesome deeds of body and speech.6 “Basis,” which generally carries five different meanings,7 here means motive, and refers to the three unwholesome states of mind8 that form the impulse [to injure others] “Both” (in the root verses) indicates that the vows include both the forsaking of injury and its basis In brief, all of the seven vows9 of personal liberation are fulfilled in the forsaking of the ten unvirtuous actions.10 “As well as concomitant mental factors” signifies that while the intention is the primary factor, its correlated mental factors are also part of the vows A different explanation states that “injury to others” refers to the seven unwholesome deeds of body and speech, and “basis,” to related or similar deeds.11 Thus, the vows of personal liberation can be concisely defined as the ethics of forsaking unwholesome deeds of body and speech only Accordingly, [Purnavardhana’s] Commentary on the Treasury of Phenomenology states12: As they discipline body and speech, they are known as vows of personal liberation This last interpretation is shared by all experts on the treatises [dealing with this subject] Therefore, it seems reasonable to regard the former view as reflecting, primarily, the [vows of] personal liberation of the Universal Way and the latter as defining the nature of the [vows of] personal liberation of the proclaimers Different Assertions Concerning the Nature of the Vows [c] In the Analysts’ view, these vows have form A sketch of the principal assertions concerning the essence of the vows of personal liberation will be provided first, and then these assertions will be expanded upon According to the Analysts (vaibh›˝ika),13 the vows have form, either perceptible or imperceptible,14 and are connected to the individual 86 Buddhist Ethics by the “rope” of acquisition.15 The Traditionalists (sautr›ntika) hold a different view, stating that [the vows amount to] a complete transformation of the continuum of mind The Idealists (cittam›trin) consider [the vows] to be both the seed and the continuity of the intention to forsake what is unwholesome For the Centrist (m›dhyamika) proponents of intrinsic emptiness (Tib rang stong pa), [the vows] consist in the intention (and concomitant mental factors) to renounce [unwholesome deeds] Stated concisely, the Traditionalists and the higher schools agree that the vows have the nature of consciousness and that they form with an attitude of disengagement [from cyclic existence] serving as their substantial condition, and with the essential elements16 [for assuming the vows], etc., serving as their cooperative conditions [Since the above summary of the main views] is difficult to understand, it will now be explained to some extent [According to the Analysts,] in the very first moment that the vows of personal liberation are assumed, they have the essence both of perceptible and imperceptible form [The vows have the essence of perceptible form in that the aspirant, in order to assume them,] relies on the perceptible form of others (the ordaining preceptor, the ceremonial master, etc.17) From the second moment onward, as long as the vows have not been violated, they remain with the person [only] as the essence of an imperceptible form The same criterion applies to the vows regarding the seven virtuous actions that have form (not to murder, etc.): in their first moment, they possess both perceptible and imperceptible forms Then, from the second moment onward, they exist only as an imperceptible form Therefore, in consideration of the first moment in which they are assumed, [Analysts] say that [the vows have] both [perceptible and imperceptible] forms [Traditionalists] assert that the essence of the vows is simply a transformation from one frame of mind into a new one, for example, the change in the attitude of someone who comes to regard himself as a [Buddhist] lay practitioner, a novice, [or a monk] as a result of undergoing the ceremony in which the respective vows are assumed [The Idealists, or] “Proponents of the Aspect of Consciousness” (vijñ›nav›din), as a consequence of their belief in the existence of a fundamental consciousness, assert that physical actions such as those related to the vows [of personal liberation] are of the nature of the The Vows of Personal Liberation 87 mind stream The Idealists thus maintain [that the essence of the vows is] the continuum of the intention to forsake [unwholesome deeds] and the seed of the propensity [for that intention], which coexists with the fundamental consciousness This is because (they say), if you were to consider the essence of the vows as just an intention, when the person who has assumed them falls under the sway of distraction, unconsciousness, or similar states, their continuity would be broken On the other hand, if you were to consider the essence of the vows as a propensity alone, they would not be lost even when violated Centrist proponents of intrinsic emptiness, who not accept the existence of a fundamental consciousness, assert [that the essence of the vows is] the intention (together with its concomitant mental factors) to forsake [unwholesome deeds] However, Chandrakirti18 in his Analysis of the Five Aggregates,19 a treatise on the Central Way, considers [the vows] to be imperceptible form, and Lord Drigungpa20 and Taktsang the Translator21 stressed the same view with clever arguments In brief, most scholars are of the opinion that the vows at the desire realm level (defined as the ethics of abandoning unwholesome conduct, imbued with an attitude of renunciation) have form Etymology of Personal Liberation and Its Other Names [2] Personal liberation is known as morality, virtue, endeavor, and vow [The discipline of] personal liberation is known as pr›timok˝a [in Sanskrit] since it effects the individual’s (pr›ti) liberation (mok˝a) from cyclic existence.22 It is also referred to as “morality” (Ÿıla) as it gives cool relief from the distressing heat of the emotions and uplifts the nature of body, speech, and mind; “virtue” because it is praised by the wise; “endeavor” since its nature is that of engagement; “vow” by virtue of serving as a dam that blocks moral corruption, and because it restrains body and speech Distinctions of Disciplines [3] This section has two parts: (1) distinctions of disciplines according to the level of existence, and (2) distinctions of personal liberation vows according to the person 88 Buddhist Ethics Distinctions of Disciplines according to the Level of Existence [a] The vows of personal liberation, meditative absorption, and the uncontaminated are found within different levels of existence Three categories of discipline are distinguished according to the level [of existence] where each is found: the vows of personal liberation within the level of the desire realm; those of meditative absorption within the level of the form realm; and the uncontaminated vows within the levels of the exalted ones,23 the last transcending the three realms of existence The first consists in the ethical conduct of forsaking unwholesome conduct, which is followed by Buddhists living in the desire realm The second is the ethics of gods of the form realm, acquired through contemplation The third is the ethics of supramundane beings, which is derived from uncontaminated wisdom.24 According to the Analysts, since the three [ethics] are substantially incompatible, they cannot coexist in a single mental continuum Followers of the Universal Way, however, assert that the three ethics can coexist without contradiction For example, the vows of personal liberation in the mind of an exalted bodhisattva encompass all three ethics: the forsaking of unwholesome conduct, the ethics pertaining to the actual meditative absorption,25 and the [uncontaminated] ethics that are of the nature of the exalted path Distinctions of Personal Liberation Vows according to the Person [b] The eight vows, those of the monk and nun, male and female novices and lay practitioners, Postulant nun, and the purificatory fast, Diversified in nature, are condensed into four types Only seven meet the necessary requirements The vows of personal liberation are of seven categories when distinguished according to the person: (1) the [vows of the] monk (bhik˝u),26 (2) the nun (bhik˝Ònı), (3) the male novice (Ÿr›ma˚era),27 (4) the female novice (Ÿr›ma˚erik›), (5) the layman practitioner (upasaka),28 (6) the laywoman practitioner (upasıka), and (7) the postulant nun (Ÿik˝›man›) Another system separates the vows of the purificatory fast (upav›sa)29 from those of the lay practitioner and thereby lists eight categories of vows These eight categories may be condensed into The Vows of Personal Liberation 89 four types that differ in nature or substance: from among the renunciate vows, those of the monk and the nun form one type, and the vows of [the postulant nun and] the male and female novice form a second type; from among the lay vows, those of the male and female lay practitioner form a third type, and the purificatory fast [vows]30 form a fourth type Only seven [of the eight categories] meet the necessary requirements for the discipline of personal liberation There are two different views [concerning which vows constitute the seven]: one excludes the precepts of the purificatory fast [since they are assumed just for one day]; the other, those of the vows of the postulant nun since this discipline does not last for a lifetime, nor does it last for just one day.31 Conferral of Vows [4] This section has four parts: (1) the various procedures for monastic ordination, (2) the candidate, (3) unfavorable conditions and obstacles, and (4) favorable conditions for the conferral of vows Various Procedures for Monastic Ordination [a] The present-day ceremony of ordination was introduced after the demise of the original one In the original procedure for conferring monastic ordination, the aspirant became a monk without any complex ritual The present-day procedure confers ordination with a considerable amount of ritual Analysts have recorded ten ways persons became instantaneously ordained as monks and nuns in the original way32: (1) Spontaneously; for example, at the moment the Buddha and solitary sages gained knowledge of the final extinction of the emotions, thereby achieving awakening, they became monks (2) By realizing pristine awareness; for example, when the excellent group of five33 achieved the path of seeing, they became monks (3) By being called [by the Buddha], “Come hither, monks!” For example, at the moment [the Buddha called upon] Shariputra34 and others to come before him, they became monks (4) By accepting the teacher; for example, at the moment Mahakashyapa35 accepted the Buddha as his teacher, he become a monk ... found: the vows of personal liberation within the level of the desire realm; those of meditative absorption within the level of the form realm; and the uncontaminated vows within the levels of the. .. among the renunciate vows, those of the monk and the nun form one type, and the vows of [the postulant nun and] the male and female novice form a second type; from among the lay vows, those of the. .. consequence of their belief in the existence of a fundamental consciousness, assert that physical actions such as those related to the vows [of personal liberation] are of the nature of the The Vows of