actually word can explain thing n meaning but thing n meaning is not inside word ...
even u read back those old scripture text, actually u also dont understand it ...
so if someone understand the old scripture text meaning and explain it with modern way ...
then obviously it will look like the same way how science explain it ...
or u prefer they explain in a non serious way like cartoon ? then u will say those text is so fake
same for the scientist to explain the big bang theory, look exactly the same like Christian explain god create the universe ...

If nobody fully understood the old texts at the time it was spoken or everyone misunderstood the old texts, then I pity all these people, they have been deceived for 2000 years until science came along. Imagine you have really a funny situation, Buddha was explaining to his disciples but he knew nobody could understand it for 2000 years. Maybe 3000 years ... what if everything Buddha said was for 3000 years later, aha!

It seems rational discourse doesn't work on you, nor concepts of darkness or silence, they seem so cool I guess.

they are not cool, is just to show that darkness n silence happen in our daily life but science also cannot measure it ....
actually im very rational guy, how do i know the science today is 100% correct .....
if i know 1000 years from now, science is far more advance than today ....
maybe 500 years later they found out actually is wrong ......

Yes you are very rational person, remind me of this, always never fails to bring out a few laughs

Ananda’s Dreams 阿難七夢經

Ananda, one of the ten major disciples and the Buddha’s close attendant, had some strange dreams one night, so the following day he went to the Buddha, “Venerable One, I had strange dreams last night and I hope that you can explain them for me.

"I first dreamed that all the rivers and oceans were burned up by great fire.

"In my second dream, the sun had descended and the world was in total darkness. My head was supporting Mount Sumeru, but I didn’t feel its weight.

"In the third dream, I saw the sangha putting on Buddhist robes, but not following your teachings.

"In the fourth dream, the sangha did not wear Buddhist robes, and they faltered among the thorns and difficulties of the world.

In the fifth dream, there were a lot of wild pigs rooting in the earth at the base of a huge, lush candana tree.

In the sixth dream, young elephants trampled green grass and polluted the river while ignoring warnings from the older elephants. The older elephants could only go away to another place with clear water and green grass. The young elephants later starved to death because there was no grass to eat and they could not drink the water from the river.

"In the seventh dream, a lion died, but other carnivorous animals did not dare to approach to eat its flesh. Instead, worms came out of the lion’s body and ate its flesh.

"Why would I have these strange dreams?”

There was concern in the Buddha’s eyes. “Ananda, let me explain them to you. In the first dream, you saw fire burning up the rivers and the oceans. This indicates that in the future, monks and nuns will betray my teachings and start disagreement with the sangha.

"In the second dream, your head supported Mount Sumeru. This means in ninety days I will pass away. All the monks, heavenly beings and human beings will need your help to remember and pass on my teachings.

In the third dream, you saw monks and nuns putting on the robes but not following my teachings. This means that after I pass away, the sangha will give lectures on my teachings to large gatherings of people, but the sangha itself will not follow my teachings.

"You saw monks not wearing the robes, lingering among thorns. This shows that there will be monks who do not wear the robes, but commoners’ clothes. They will abandon the precepts and live as common people. They will also have wives and children.

"You saw wild pigs rooting in the earth under the candana tree. The sangha in the future will not promote my teachings, but will only look after their own livelihood by selling statues of Buddhas and holding ceremonies for laypeople.

"Sixth, you saw young elephants not listening to the adult elephants and later dying from starvation. This means that in the future, new monks and nuns will not listen to the teachings of the elder monks and they will fell into hell after death.

"Seventh, you saw worms eating the lion’s flesh. This indicates that no other religion will destroy my teachings, but the monastic order itself will be destroyed from within.

"Ananda,” the Buddha said sadly, “what you dreamt last night is the future of Buddhism.”

Would you mind putting the source?

This post has been edited by Chrono-Trigger: Mar 28 2019, 10:33 AM

Apocalypse Soon...be prepared:

Wheel of Samsara
There is NO "Apocalypse" in Buddhism dictionary.

This post has been edited by sportivo: Mar 28 2019, 11:20 PM

If I am not mistaken, there are mini-cycles and world cycles.

Mini-cycles are the cycles of human morality , along with their lifespan - from 100,000 years to 10 years.

Major cycles - periodic destruction and becoming of the world system.

and also the appearance of Cakkavatti (Universal Monarch) who will setup an utopia-like Kingdom on earth and ruled according to the Dhamma.

In other culture/religion they called him Messiah/Savior/Jesus 2nd Coming who will setup the utopia-like Kingdom of Heaven and ruled according to God will.

The Hopi Tribe (American Indian) prophecized the coming of "The Great Purification"...many people will die and then a new era/world appeared.

There seem to be a common and overlapping theme.

The destruction is caused mainly by the humans themselves, due to very low point of sense of morality.

Universal Monarch appears when human morality is near its peak, not at this period of time.

This post has been edited by Chrono-Trigger: Mar 29 2019, 09:31 AM

shaolin temple

http://www.shaolin.org.cn/templates/EN_T_n...&contentid=4248

in Theravada school no mention this ?

If not mistaken , the decline would be the loss of the attainment in stages, from highest to lowest. Finally only texts remain, and then it will disappear too.

This post has been edited by Chrono-Trigger: Apr 17 2019, 04:21 PM

even now is the beginning of the dharma ending period, there will be many wrong teaching n wrong perception about Buddhism ...
deswai there is many self claimed living buddha n so on ...

I love the kids singing version:

May I suggest you chant some 往生咒. If you read this.

Doing good deeds does help but not always enough. Nothing is easy. Thats y we have to enjoy what we do w our heart. Chant some 心经 to open up your wisdom!

i have a question.

most of these Buddhist chants in chinese, are replication of sounds of actual text in Pali and Sanskrit.
it always occur to me, what is the reason that these chinese Buddhist chants were not translated to Chinese in terms of literal meaning from Pali instead?

For example, (correct me if im wrong) Namo Amitabha Buddha means "Entrust to the Infinite Light who is the awaken one" and the most common expression is a replication of sound, Amituofuo 阿弥陀佛. one can hardly guess the actual meaning from this expression.

if one wants to know the meaning of 'How Are You?' in chinese, it is only helpful to explain that it actually means 'Ni Hao Ma?' in chinese. If i do not speak any English at all, replicating the sound in chinese to as close as it can sound in English tells me nothing. This is my analogy to replicating the sound of Buddhist text originated from Pali/Sanskrit to chinese, rather than translating it in a literal sense. how helpful is chanting these mantra in gaining additional insights/understanding?



.
.
.
.
.
.
.


To further illustrate my point, below is the entire Da Bei Zhou in Sanskrit with its English translation in meaning. By chanting the chinese version of Da Bei Zhou, its impossible to figure the actual meaning:

Namo ratna trayāya | namo āryĀvalokiteśvarāya bodhisattvāya mahāsattvāya mahākaruṇikāya |
Oṃ sarva-bhayeṣu trāṇa-karāya tasya namaskṛtvā imaṃ āryĀvalokiteśvara-stavanaṃ Nīlakaṇṭha-nāma |
Hṛdayaṃ vartayiṣyāmi sarv-ārtha-sādhanaṃ śubhaṃ |
ajeyaṃ sarva-bhutānāṃ bhava-mārga -viśodhakam ||
TADYATHĀ | Oṃ apaloka lokātikrānta ehi Hare mahābodhisattva sarpa-sarpa | smara smara mama hṛdayam | kuru-kuru karma | dhuru-dhuru vijayate mahāvijayate | dhara-dhara dharāṇi-rāja | cala-cala mama vimala-mūṛtte re | ehy-ehi kṛṣṇa-sarp-opavīta | viṣa-viṣaṃ praṇāśaya | hulu-hulu malla | hulu-hulu Hare | sara-sara siri-siri suru-suru | bodhiya-bodhiya bodhaya-bodhaya maitriya Nīlakaṇṭha | darśanena prahlādaya manaḥ svāhā |
siddhāya svāhā | mahāsiddhāya svāhā | siddha-yogeśvarāya svāhā | Nīlakaṇṭhāya svāhā | Vāraha-mukhāya svāhā | Narasiṃha-mukhāya svāhā | padma-hastāya svāhā | cakra-hastāya svāhā | padma-hastāya? svāhā | Nīlakaṇṭha-vyāghrāya svāhā | Mahābali-Śankarāya svāhā ||
Namo ratna-trayāya | namo āryĀvalokiteśvarāya svāhā ||

Adoration to Avalokiteśvara the Bodhisattva-Mahāsattva who is the great compassionate one!
Om, to the one who performs a leap beyond all fears!
Having adored him, may I enter into the heart of the blue-necked one known as the noble adorable Avalokiteśvara! It means the completing of all meaning, it is pure, it is that which makes all beings victorious and cleanses the path of existence.
Thus:
Om, the seer, the world-transcending one!
O Hari the Mahābodhisattva!
All, all!
Defilement, defilement!
The earth, the earth!
It is the heart.
Do, do the work!
Hold fast, hold fast! O great victor!
Hold on, hold on! I hold on.
To Indra the creator!
Move, move, my defilement-free seal!
Come, come!
Hear, hear!
A joy springs up in me!
Speak, speak! Directing!
Hulu, hulu, mala, hulu, hulu, hile!
Sara, sara! siri, siri! suru, suru!
Be awakened, be awakened!
Have awakened, have awakened!
O merciful one, blue-necked one!
Of daring ones, to the joyous, hail!
To the successful one, hail!
To the great successful one, hail!
To the one who has attained master in the discipline, hail!
To the blue-necked one, hail!
To the boar-faced one, hail!
To the one with a lion's head and face, hail!
To the one who holds a weapon in his hand, hail!
To the one who holds a wheel in his hand, hail!
To the one who holds a lotus in his hand, hail!
To the blue-necked far-causing one, hail!
To the beneficient one referred to in this Dhāraṇī beginning with "Namaḥ," hail!
Adoration to the Triple Treasure!
Adoration to Avalokiteśvara!
Hail!
May these [prayers] be successful!
To this magical formula, hail!
(Oṃ siddhyantu mantra-padāni svāhā ||)

Mantras contain Buddhas’ n Bodhisatvas’ sacred words, great vows, wisdoms n so on. These 真言 were made into symbolic sentences n sounds to make it easier for people to feel, follow n spread. It resonates deep down internally for the chanters n connects intimately w the Buddhas n Bodhisatvas; have psychological, biological n mystical effects on life forms.

So ‘Om’ in Om Mane Padme Hom isnt just saying the word Om. ‘Ommm’ in its correct form elicits deeps feelings n vibrations inside the chanter. A chanter can enter a trance state leading to higher level of feelings, awareness, wisdom, enlightenment... etc.

The Great Compassion Mantra Da Bei Zhou (大悲咒）is Avalokitesvara’s mantra. We connect w the Bodhisatvabthis way. And learn, feel its wisdoms this way. We become the Bodhisatva.

The Heart Sutra (心经）is translated brilliantly by Tang Sanzamg; for example AvalokiTESvara mean guanzhizai not guanshiyin which would b AvalokiTASvara. Its the short version. Even so, many of the original meaning, wisdom n intention r difficult b correctly represented in Hanzi. For example ‘sunya’ is represented as ‘kong’ in Chinese but it’s not emptiness but ‘constant change’