1—————————————————————————————– 摩 訶 般 若 波 羅 蜜 多 心 經 ma ha ban ya ba ra mil ta shim gyong great prajna para mita heart sutra2—————————————————————————————– 觀 自 在 菩 薩 行 深 般 若 kwan ja jae bo sal […]
波羅蜜多, Part Two (how to write पारमिता/pāramitā in Chinese characters)
蜜多 is the second part (the third and fourth characters) of 波羅蜜多, which is the Chinese transliteration of पारमिता/pāramitā. 蜜 (pinyin: mì) is the Chinese word for “honey”. It can also be used to refer to the color of honey, or to anything that is sweet. It is made up of three characters stacked one […]
波羅蜜多, Part One (how to write पारमिता/pāramitā in Chinese characters)
So far I’ve done the first four characters in the first line (the title) of the Heart Sutra in Chinese. The next four characters comprise the Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit पारमिता (pāramitā), which is 波羅蜜多. Just to make sure we are all on the same page, here is the first line of the Heart […]
EZPZ black beans and greens beans soup
Saute 1/2 green pepper and 1/2 red onion in 1 tbsp olive oilDump in one can of black beans and one can of diced tomatoesAdd 1/2 tsp cumin 1 tsp basil 1/2 tsp saltchop up and add:1/2 cauliflower1/2 lb green beans4 stalks celery
般若: How to write प्रज्ञा (prajñā) in Chinese characters
The first two characters in the Heart Sutra are 摩訶, which is the Chinese transliteration of महा (mahā́), which in English means “great”. The third and fourth characters are 般若, which is the Chinese transliteration of प्रज्ञा (prajñā), which in English means, more or less, “wisdom”. But actually it’s best not to assume that prajñā […]
The amazing adventures of Zen Master Moheyan in Tibet, Part One
Once upon a time Zen was very popular in Tibet. That is to say, it was popular in the way that Country Music is popular. Some people really liked it, but others weren’t so sure. The early history of Zen in Tibet is actually a lot like the early history of Zen in China. In […]
寫經 (Sutra Copying)
寫經 (pinyin: xiě-jīng) literally means “copy sutra”. Koreans pronounce it as sagyeong (사경). In Japanese Buddhism it is pronounced shakyo. And to keep us on our toes, the Japanese use two different Chinese characters: 写経 (don’t ask me why – but the first character, 写, is the cursive form of 寫, and the second character, […]
南無阿彌陀佛 (Homage to Amita Buddha in Chinese Characters)
Transliterating Sanskrit with Chinese characters is pretty interesting. Here I’ll look at one significant example: how to write “Homage to Amita Buddha” in Traditional Chinese characters. First up is “homage”, which can also be translated as “bow to” or “take refuge in”. The Sanskrit for this is नमः (namaḥ) or नमो (namo). This is transliterated […]
An inside joke
Once upon a time, Shakyamuni Buddha stood before a large group of people who had gathered at Vulture Peak to hear him teach. But the Buddha remained silent. Instead of saying anything, he only held up a single flower. At this, the Buddha’s disciple Mahakasyapa broke into a smile. When the Buddha saw Mahakasyapa’s smile, […]