User:Dorje108/Omniscience research

This subpage was created as a reference-page for the topic Omniscience (Buddhism). It provides quotes from a variety of reliable secondary sources on this topic--these quotes are roughly categorized under the topic headings below.
This page is in userspace, because there is no Wiki-policy on such "appendices". Additions are welcome.

Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism

sarvajnata

sarvajñatā. (P. sabbaññu; T. kun shes/ thams cad mkhyen pa; C. yiqie zhi; J. issaichi; K. ilch’e chi 一切智 ). In Sanskrit, “all-knower,” “all-knowledge,” or “omniscience”; in early versions of the perfection of wisdom (PRAJÑĀPĀRAMITĀ) sūtras, the name for a buddha’s knowledge; later, the term was used for the knowledge of a ŚRĀVAKA or PRATYEKABUDDHA, in contrast to a buddha’s knowledge of all aspects (SARVĀKĀRAJÑATĀ), which is reached by cultivating a bodhisattva’s knowledge of the paths (MĀRGAJÑATĀ). The “all” (sarva) means all the grounds (vastu) of the knowledge of defiled (SAṂKLIṢṬA) and pure (viśuddha, see VIŚUDDHI) dharmas systematized in the FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS. In the ABHISAMAYĀLAṂKĀRA and VIMUKTISENA’s commentary to that text, sarvajñatā has both a positive and a negative meaning. In the opening verses of the Abhisamayālaṃkāra, for example, sarvajñatā is called the mother of the perfection of wisdom. In such cases it is a positive term for the part of a buddha’s knowledge that is shared in common with śrāvakas, and so on. In the third chapter of the same work, sarvajñatā is a negative term used to identify the absence of skillful means (UPĀYA) and the lack of the total absence of subject-object conceptualization (GRĀHYAGRĀHAKAVIKALPA) in śrāvakas, in order to point clearly to the superiority of the BODHISATTVA path.

Buswell Jr., Robert E.; Donald S., Jr. Lopez (2013-11-24). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (Kindle Locations 58966-58972). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.

Buswell Jr., Robert E.; Donald S., Jr. Lopez (2013-11-24). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (Kindle Locations 58953-58966). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.

sarvajñatājñāna

sarvajñatājñāna. (P. sabbaññutāñāṇa; T. thams cad mkhyen pa’i ye shes; C. yiqiezhi zhi; J. issaichichi; K. ilch’eji chi 一切智智 ). In Sanskrit, “omniscient knowledge”; a buddha’s knowledge of all the grounds (vastu) of the knowledge of defiled (SAṂKLIṢṬA) and purified (viśuddha, see VIŚUDDHI) dharmas systematized in the FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS. In the ABHISAMAYĀLAṂKĀRA and its commentarial tradition, sarvajñatājñāna also refers to the knowledge of the four noble truths in the mental continuum of a bodhisattva or buddha. See SARVAJÑATĀ.

Buswell Jr., Robert E.; Donald S., Jr. Lopez (2013-11-24). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (Kindle Locations 58973-58982). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.

sarvakarajnata

sarvākārajñatā. (T. rnam pa thams cad mkhyen pa; C. yiqiezhong zhi; J. issaishuchi; K. ilch’ejong chi 一切種智 ). In Sanskrit, “knowledge of all aspects,” the preferred term in the ABHISAMAYĀLAṂKĀRA and its commentaries for the omniscience of a buddha, which simultaneously perceives all phenomena in the universe and their final nature. When explained from the perspective of the goal that bodhisattvas will reach, the knowledge of all aspects is indicated by ten dharmas, among which are cittotpāda (cf. BODHICITTOTPĀDA), defining all the stages of all the Buddhist paths; AVAVĀDA, defining all the instructions relevant to those stages, the stages leading to the elimination of the subject-object conceptualization (GRĀHYAGRĀHAKAVIKALPA) along the entire range of accomplishments up to and including the state of enlightenment itself (see also NIRVEDHABHĀGĪYA); the substratum (GOTRA), objective supports (ĀLAMBANA) and aims (uddeśa) of the practice; and the practices (PRATIPATTI) incorporating the full range of skillful means (UPĀYAKAUŚALYA) necessary to turn the wheel of the dharma (DHARMACAKRAPRAVARTANA) in all its variety.

Buswell Jr., Robert E.; Donald S., Jr. Lopez (2013-11-24). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (Kindle Locations 58990-58996). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.

Buswell Jr., Robert E.; Donald S., Jr. Lopez (2013-11-24). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (Kindle Locations 58983-58990). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.

Lopez

The term "from form to omniscience" (gzugs nas rnam mkhyen gyi bar) is a stock expression used to describe all phenomena in the universe. It derives from what is considered to be an inclusive list of all phenomena encompassed by 108 categories of the impure and the pure, which begins with form (rūpa, gzugs), the first of the five aggregates, and ends with a buddha's knowledge of all aspects, or omniscience (sarvākarajñātā, rnam pa thams cad mkhyen pa). For an English translation of the 108 categories, see Hopkins: 201-212.

Other references

Paul Griffiths

http://books.google.com/books?id=0T8o_IK5IMgC&pg=PA170&lpg=PA170&dq=rnam+pa+thams+cad+mkhyen+pa&source=bl&ots=PfiCOCFsHb&sig=iLjR9XI_kqwHBjc1pDx-kSHX_ws&hl=en&sa=X&ei=46ImVNfuI86GyASb9IKwAg&ved=0CDAQ6AEwADgK#v=onepage&q=rnam%20pa%20thams%20cad%20mkhyen%20pa&f=false

Hopkins

http://dictionary.buddhistdoor.com/en/word/277081/rnam%20pa%20thams%20cad%20mkhyen%20pa%20nyid

Guide to Words of My Perfect Teacher

6. Omniscience (thams cad mkhyen pa) is a synonym for buddhahood.

Pelzang, Khenpo Ngawang (2012-02-10). A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kindle Locations 5958-5959). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

The ultimate nature of all phenomena is the absolute truth, the absolute expanse, the ultimate perfection, the flawless truth, that in which phenomena dwell. When the realization and meditation of that ultimate nature reach their culmination, it becomes manifest in its entirety, and this is the “primordial wisdom of knowing as it really is” the ultimate nature of all phenomena, absolute truth itself. Because of this realization of emptiness, every single phenomenon whatsoever included in samsara, nirvana, or the path can be known instantaneously, just like a reflection appearing in a mirror or a kyurura held in the palm of the hand; this is the “primordial wisdom of knowing each and every thing.”

The latter can be subdivided into (1) knowledge of everything that can be known and (2) specific knowledge of what is truly important.

1. Knowledge of everything that can be known. To the Buddha, things that were completely obscure to Devadatta were all clearly evident: from dipping a piece of kusha grass in water and brushing it over a mixture of ashes, he could recognize whether the particles of ash adhering to the grass came from grains from a particular city or from trees in the forest on the sunny or shady sides of a valley. [...]

2. Specific knowledge of what is truly important. When one knows the causes and results of both samsara and nirvana—what causes samsara, the truth of the origin of suffering; its results, the truth of suffering; what causes nirvana beyond all suffering, the truth of the path; and what results from that, the truth of cessation—one knows in terms of the four truths exactly what needs to be done and what needs to be avoided.

Pelzang, Khenpo Ngawang (2012-02-10). A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kindle Locations 1691-1694). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

Pelzang, Khenpo Ngawang (2012-02-10). A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kindle Locations 1682-1686). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

Pelzang, Khenpo Ngawang (2012-02-10). A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kindle Locations 1676-1682). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

Five wisdoms

These five wisdoms may be condensed into two: the wisdom that knows the nature of all phenomena, which comprises the wisdom of the absolute space, mirrorlike wisdom, and the wisdom of equality; and the wisdom that knows the multiplicity of phenomena, which comprises discriminating and all-accomplishing wisdom. They can all be condensed into a single wisdom, the wisdom of omniscience.

Pelzang, Khenpo Ngawang (2012-02-10). A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kindle Locations 2300-2301). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

Pelzang, Khenpo Ngawang (2012-02-10). A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kindle Locations 2298-2300). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

Glossary

Omniscience – thams cad mkhyen pa, a synonym for buddhahood.

Pelzang, Khenpo Ngawang (2012-02-10). A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kindle Locations 6674-6675). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

Pabongka Rinpoche

omniscience sarvākārajñāna

Pabongka (2006-07-10). Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand: A Concise Discourse on the Path to Enlightenment (Kindle Location 15079). Wisdom Publications. Kindle Edition.

Nectar of Manjushri's Speech

117. kun shes, or omniscience, the knowledge of all things (i.e., the truth of suffering, the truth of origin, the five skandhas, etc.), refers here to the wisdom that realizes the absence of self in everything.

Pelden, Kunzang (2011-09-06). The Nectar of Manjushri's Speech: A Detailed Commentary on Shantideva's Way of the Bodhisattva . Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.

Kindness, Clarity and Insight

For a Bodhisattva who is seeking to help others, from among the obstructions to liberation and obstructions to omniscience, the obstructions to omniscience are worse; they are what a Bodhisattva wants to get rid of most of all. In fact, there are even cases of Bodhisattvas using afflictive emotions, which are obstructions to liberation, to aid others. Nevertheless, since the obstructions to omniscience are predispositions established by the conception of inherent existence (the chief of the obstructions to liberation), it is necessary first to remove that conception of inherent existence. Hence, for a Bodhisattva to accomplish others’ welfare in a complete way, it is necessary to remove both obstructions, those to liberation and those to omniscience. The complete removal of the afflictive obstructions is called liberation; this is the state of a Foe Destroyer (arhan, dgra bcom pa). The removal, in addition, of the obstructions to omniscience is called Buddhahood, a state of omniscience; this is sought in order to be of full use to others.

H.H. the Dalai Lama (2013-01-08). Kindness, Clarity, and Insight (Kindle Locations 660-663). Snow Lion. Kindle Edition.

H.H. the Dalai Lama (2013-01-08). Kindness, Clarity, and Insight (Kindle Locations 655-660).

Snow Lion. Kindle Edition.

Khunu Lama

6 The “knowledge of all modes of meditation” (tib. rnam pa thams cad mkhyen pa; Skt sarvākārajñatā) is the omniscience, or knowledge of the one hundred and seventy-three aspects of the path, of a fully awakened buddha mentioned in the Perfect Wisdom sūtras.

Khunu (2012-11-11). Vast as the Heavens, Deep as the Sea: Verses in Praise of Bodhicitta (Kindle Locations 1468-1470). Wisdom Publications. Kindle Edition.

Khunu (2012-11-11). Vast as the Heavens, Deep as the Sea: Verses in Praise of Bodhicitta (Kindle Locations 1467-1468). Wisdom Publications. Kindle Edition.

Heart Lamp

Omniscience (rnam mkhyen, thams cad mkhyen pa). Same as complete enlightenment or buddhahood.

Rangdrol, Tsele Natsok (2011-12-13). Heart Lamp: Lamp of Mahamudra and The Heart of the Matter (p. 175). North Atlantic Books. Kindle Edition.

Dzongsar Khyentse

When Siddhartha became enlightened, he became known as the Buddha. Buddha isn’t a person’s name, it is the label for a state of mind. The word buddha is defined as one quality with two aspects: “accomplished one” and “awakened one.” In other words, one who has purified defilements and one who has attained knowledge. Through his realization under the bodhi tree, Buddha awoke from the dualistic state that is mired in concepts such as subject and object. He realized that nothing compounded can permanently exist. He realized that no emotion leads one to bliss if it stems from clinging to ego. He realized that there is no truly existing self and no truly existing phenomena to be perceived. And he realized that even enlightenment is beyond concepts. These realizations are what we call “Buddha’s wisdom,” an awareness of the whole truth. Buddha is referred to as omniscient. That doesn’t mean that Buddha went to every university in the world and memorized every book. Such study does not equate to awakened knowledge, for it is a dualistic knowledge, which is based on objects and subjects and bound by its own limitations, rules, and goals. As we can clearly see, with all the scientific knowledge we have today, the world hasn’t improved; in fact, it may even be worse. To be omniscient doesn’t mean to be learned. Thus to speak of someone who knows everything means someone who has no “not knowing” and no ignorance.

Khyentse, Dzongsar Jamyang (2011-03-11). What Makes You Not a Buddhist (p. 98). Shambhala Publications. Kindle Edition.