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The readiness assessment tests are given every two weeks to assess your readiness for the more complex thinking required during team assignments. These tests measure recognition & basic comprehension of (1) essential terms and (2) primary sources.
NOTE: each RAT takes place after an in-class study session, but before in-depth processing of the reading material in class. Therefore, doing well on RPTs requires more than attending the in-class lecture/study sessions. Most students find themselves needing to allow more time than they are used to for reading assigned materials.
Reading Summaries & Extra Credit
At the end of each unit, you must submit a summary of one of the readings listed on syllabus schedule, below the last class for that unit. These readings are mostly drawn from the books available on reserve and/or available for purchase at the bookstore, but also include a few on-line options. One word of CAUTION: the shortest readings are often more difficult to summarize.
To complete the reading summary, choose a reading and highlight important passages that seem most clearly related to its overall point. Then download and complete the form provided (MS Word/PDF), which asks you to (1) give a synopsis of the whole, (2) select passages from three parts of the source and relate them to the synopsis, and (c) compare and contrast the reading to one of the assigned readings (i.e., those used for team assignments) for the same unit. Keep in mind that:
Students may also raise their RAT scores for a given unit by completing additional reading summaries for EXTRA CREDIT. Each summary may add up to ten (10) points to your RAT score, for a maximum of twenty (20) points for two summaries per unit.
for RAT #0 (Trial)
[based on
EBT, 1-10, 11-12, 53-56, 62 & 65; "Buddhism" (p.1) in EB, & Essential Elements of Religious Culture]
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Terms: |
objectivity |
Excerpts:
"...we all sat in silence for a while. Then he began speaking slowly and clearly above the low sawing of the crickets outside. 'Imagine a white, eight-petaled lotus. On it sits the Buddha, golden, his right hand touching the earth in front of him, his left hand in his lap. A brilliant light issues from his forehead, and it touches your forehead, eliminating all defilements of speech, that we may speak only words of compassion. Light from his heart touches your heart, eliminating all defilements of mind. The Buddha dissolves in pure light. That light suffuses your whole body...'"
"I heard a woman's voice on the loudspeaker...'Two thousand five hundred years ago the Buddha was born in the Lumbini Garden in present-day Nepal. The Buddha is like a lamp in this world of suffering, shining the way for us. Today we have a special ceremony in which we symbolically bathe the image...we also purify defilements such as greed and anger that are within ourselves.' As she spoke, people began to rise and line up for this simple ceremony. I fell in line with the mother and her ponytailed daughter....It was...her first time at the temple."
"...the daily routine consists of sessions of sitting meditation, walking meditation, work-practice in the kitchen or dining room, silent meals, and a daily evening Dharma talk. The only speech during the entire three-month period is during the periodic instruction interviews each participant has with one of the resident teachers. Even reading and keeping a journal are discouraged, as these tend to provide a diversion from the primary focus on moment-to-moment awareness. These three months are a time-out, constructed in such a way as to intervene in the rush of activity, thinking, planning, grasping, self-aggrandizement, and self-recrimination that dominates most of our lives."
[TOP]
for RAT #1
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Terms: |
nirvana |
Excerpts:
"When going forward and returning, he acts with alertness. When looking toward and looking away...when bending and extending his limbs...when carrying his outer cloak, his upper robe, and his bowl...when eating, drinking, chewing, and tasting...when urinating and defecating...when walking, standing, sitting, falling asleep, waking up, talking, and remaining silent, he acts with alterness. This is how a monk is possessed of mindful ness and alertness...Just as a bird, wherever it goes, flies with its wings as its only burden; so too is he content with a set of robes to provide for his body and almsfood to provide for his hunger. Wherever he goes, he takes only his barest necessities along."
"...if he were to see a corpse cast away in a charnel ground--one day, two days, three days dead--bloated, livid, and festering, he applies it to this very body, 'This body, too: such is its nature, such is its future, such is its unavoidable fate.'...Or again, as if he were to see a corpse cast away in a charnel ground, picked at by crows, vultures, & hawks, by dogs, hyenas, and various kinds of other creatures...a skeleton smeared with flesh and blood, connected with tendons...a fleshless skeleton smeared with blood, connected with tendons...a skeleton without flesh or blood, connected with tendons...bones detached from their tendons, scattered in all directions...the bones whitened, somewhat like the color of shells...piled up more than a year old...decomposed into a powder: He applies is to this very body, 'This body, too: such is its nature, such is its future, such is its unavoidable fate.'"
"When the mind was thus concentrated, ...I directed it to the knowledge of the passing away and reappreance of all beings. I saw--by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human--beings passing away and re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their kamma: 'These beings--who were endowed with bad conduct of body, speech, and mind, who reviled the noble ones, held wrong views and undertook actions under the influence of wrong views--with the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. But these beings--who were endowed with good conduct...have reappeared in the good destinations, in the heavenly world.'...Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose--as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, and resolute."
"Ananda, there are these four places that merit being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merit his feelings of urgency and dismay (samvega). Which four? 'Here the Tathagata was born' is a place that merits being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merits his feelings of urgency and dismay. 'Here the Tathagata awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening'... 'Here the Tathagata set rolling the unexcelled wheel of Dhamma'...'Here the Tathagata was totally unbound in the remainderless property of unbinding" is a place that merits being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merits his feelings of urgency and dismay. These are the four places that merit being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merits his feelings of urgency and dismay. They will come out of conviction, Ananda--monks and nuns, male layfollowers and female lay-followers--to the spots where 'Here the Tathagata was born,' 'Here the Tathagata awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening'... And anyone who dies while making the pilgrimage to these memorials with a bright, confident mind will--on the break-up of the body after death--reappear in a good destination, a heavenly world."
"Meanwhile, the bodhisattva, who was practicing bodily austerities, thought: 'no one engaged in the discipline of great ascetic striving has ever transcended suffering; therefore this path as well is not adequate for knowledge, not adequate for seeing, not adequate for unsurpassed total enlightenment.' And he began to relax his strenuousness; and his body, which had been supressed, became calm,...and his mind, which had been repressed, became one-pointed. And he reflected: 'what is the way that is adequate for knowledge, for seeing, for unsurpassed total enlightenment?' Then it occurred to him: 'I remember when, as a boy, I sat down in the shade of the jambu tree while attending a festival at the place of my father...: at that time, I attained a trance state that was free from sensual desires, free from sinful and demeritorious things, thoughtful, reflective, arising from discrimination, and blissful. That must be the way, that must be the path that is adequate for knowledge, for seeing, for unsurpassed total enlightenment....'"
[TOP]
for RAT #2
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Terms: |
mainstream Buddhism |
Excerpts:
"I do not look for a Bodhisattva who goes on the difficult pilgrimage. In any case, one who courses in the perception of difficulties is not a Bodhisattva. Because one who has generated a perception of difficulties is unable to work the weal of countless beings. On the contrary, he forms the notion of ease, he forms the notion that all beings, whether men or women, are his parents and children, and thus he goes on the pilgrimage of a Bodhisattva. A Bodhisattva should therefore identify all beings with his parents or children, yes, even with his own self, like this: 'As I myself want to be quite free from all sufferings, just so all beings want to be quite free from all sufferings.' In addition, with regard to all beings one should form the notion: 'I ought not to desert all these beings. I ought to set them free from the quite measureless heap of sufferings! And I should not produce towards them a thought of hate, even thought I might be dismembered a hundred times!'"
"When he had arrived there and had honored with his head the feet of the Blessed One, he sat down to one side. Seated to one side he said this to the Blessed One: "Reverend, when a great multitude of men who were deeply devoted to the venerable Shariputra came to my house carrying the requisites of honor I, on account of some business, had locked the doors and gone elsewhere. They became derisive, abusive, and critical, saying, 'in that the householder...has locked the door and gone away, he has created an obstacle to our merit.' On that account, if the Blessed One would permit it, I would build a stupa for the boble Shariputra in a suitable available place. There the great multitudes of men would be allowed to do honor as they wish."
"Now, when a disciple of the noble ones discerns feeling, the origination of feeling, the cessation of feeling, and the way of practice leading to the cessation of feeling, then he is a person of right view...who has arrived at this true Dhamma. And what is feeling, what is the origination of feeling, the cessation of feeling, and the way of practice leading to the cessation of feeling? There are these six feelings: feeling born from eye-contact, feeling born from ear-contact, feeling born from nose-contact, feeling born from tongue-contact, feeling born from body-contact, feeling born from intellect-contact. This is called feeling. From the origination of contact comes the origination of feeling. From the cessation of contact comes the cessation of feeling."
"In the perfumed bathing halls, beautified by columns that shine with encrusted pearls, with awnings that shine with garlanded pearls, with floors of shining pure crystal, full of urns inlaid with fine gems, full of delicate flowers and perfumed waters, there shall I prepare a bath for the tathagatas and their sons, accompanied by music and song. With incomparable and pure graments, impregrnated with the smell of incense, I wipe clean their bodies, and then give them select, perfumed tunics, dyed in exquisite colors. With delicate heavenly clothing, soft to the touch, of many colors, and with fine ornaments, I cover...the...bodhisattvas. With the best perfumes that fill a billion worlds with their scent I anoint these [bodhisattvas, who are] monarchs among the sages, whose bodies shine with the brightness of well purified, burnished and polished gold."
[TOP]
for RAT #3
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Terms: |
Lotus Sutra |
Excerpts:
"One night in a dream my mother came and presented me with a purple robe made of silk. When I lifted it, both sleeves seemed very heavy, and on examining them I found an old mirror, five or six inches in diameter, in each sleeve. The reflection from the mirror in my right sleeve penetrated to my heart and vital organs. My own mind, mountains and rivers, the great earth seemed serene and bottomless. The mirror in the left sleeve, however, gave off no reflection whatsoever. It's surface was like that of a new pan that had yet to be touched by flames. But suddenly I became aware that the luster of the mirror in the left sleeve was innumerable times brighter than the other. After this, when I looked at all things, it was as though I was seeing my own face. For the first time I understood the meaning of the saying, 'The Tathagata sees the Buddha nature within his eye.'"
"I have heard that practice in the midst of activities surpasses practice in inactivity a hundred-, a thousand-, ten thousand-fold, so when going and coming from reading scripture at paritioners' houses, I purposely took the long way around. I also chose quiet places to practice such as while weeding, sweeping the garden, caring for the Buddha altar, and so on. I tried hard to practice in the midst of all these activities. I struggled to keep this up, but I just couldn't do it. How my mind wandered! I was thoroughly disgusted with it. Just as a monkey leaps from branch to branch, my mind grasped at the branches of desire for sense experience. It was pathetic. In the face of this unconscious and unknown bad karma which I had created in former lives, I could do nothing but press my palms together and bow my head."
"For three years running he kept up his practice, until one day, just as the light of dawn was beginning to break at the fifth watch, there came a loud pounding at the door of the Buddha hall, and someone called out for it to be opened. At first Kan was reluctant, thinking, "Certainly this must be a criminal. Why else would he want a door to be opened when it is already locked tight?" But the person continuied to call without letting up, so Kan finally gave in. When he opnened the door he saw an old man. His beard and temples were a hoary white, and in his hands he clutched a wooden staff."
"Buddhas throughout the ten directions are ever-present in this world of ours. The sound of their dharma never ceases. Their marvelous rare fragrance is all-pervading; the flavor of their dharma fills the void. Their pure radiance shines over and enfolds everything. The eternally abiding and wondrous principle [of enlightenment] fills all of space. Yet, because my six senses are internally blinded and the three activities [of body, speech, and mind] benighted, I am unable to see, hear, smell, feel, or know their presence. Because of these influences I revolve endlessly in cyclic birth and death, passing through all manner of evil destinies, for incalculable eaons never to know a moment of release."
[TOP]
for RAT #4
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Terms in EBT: |
Theravada |
| Terms in CP: | Pagan Dynasty Ari |
| Terms in EB: | Nyingma Heruka |
Excerpts:
"Once, long ago, there was a white female crow who had laid five eggs. One day, a storm destroyed her next and the eggs fell into the water. The crow searched for them in vain, and then died of grief and was reborn in one of the Brahma heavens. Her eggs were found by five different animals: a hen, a nagi, a trutle, a cow, and a lionness (or tigress). In time the eggs hatched, and five sons were born: a wild rooster, a nagaraja, a tortoise, a great bull, and a lion. These five were actually bodhisattvas who were destined to become the five Buddhas of the present aeon....Though brought up separately, the five brothers all became hermits and happened to meet in the forest."
"The Buddha, the Enlightened One, predicted: 'Upagutta the
Arhat will, in time to come, subjugate Mara and his army.'
The Buddha, the Enlightened One, predicted: 'Upagutta the Arhat will subdue
Mara and his impediments.'
May the great saint dispel all calamities, all without exception.
May the great saint be here, poised on my head, and may he repel all misfortunes
let loose by Mara.
I now pay my respects to the powerful Reverend Upagutta with my head bowed
down. May he grant us protection and repel all maladies."
"The vowels and consonants issue forth from my right nostril, with five-colored beams of light, and on the tips of these beams of light there radiate forth the deities of the mandala: they purify the entire Triple World and render it into the essence of their divine body and speech and mind. And the Whole world is made equal to these gods and goddesses whose deity is forever innate, and the world is gathered back into me with the vowels and consonants; they enter thorough my left nostril and reach the level of my navel. And the vowels and consonants transform into a moon of red and white radiance: the gods and goddesses transform into a white and red syllable HUM."
"The august woman is known throughout Tibet as Dorje-P'ag-mo, or "the diamond sow"; the abbesses of Samding being held to be successive appearances in mortal form of the Indian goddess, Vajravarahi. The present incarnation of this goddess is thirty-three years old...and is described as being a clever and capable woman, with some claim to good looks, and of noble birth. She bears the name of Nag-dban Rin-ch'en Kun-bzan-mo dbAn-mo, signifying, "The most precious power of speech, the female energy of all good." Under this lady the reputation which Samding has long enjoyed for good morals of both monks and nuns nas been well maintained."
Team Assignment Preparation
To prepare for each team assignments, in additional to reviewing the primary source reading in depth, you must bring a page of notes to class which addresses the focus of that team assignment, as specified below. Your page of notes should have that focus copied at the top, followed by 3-5 points or passages from the source, each marked with a page number. Students with no notes will receive only half credit for the team assignment.
Unit 3 TAs
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Team Assignment 3a:
"Look for scenes (characters, events, words, settings) from the Hongzan Fahua Zhuan (CP, 153-64) that show the way that those who honor, recite, and copy the Lotus Sutra text purportedly gain supernatural power, even without detailed study of the scripture's content."
Team Assignment 3b:
"The three sources excerpted in "Pure Land Worship & Meditation in China (CP, 170-75) include statements (found within a sequence of points) about the purpose and logic of Pure Land practices, as well as instructions and chants (associated with key images, actions, and settings). In your notes about these, look for those that clarify the distinction between (i) mindful awareness of the Buddha and (ii) recitation of the Buddha's name; note that these sources for the most part use the term "Buddha" to refer Amitabha rather than Shakyamuni."
Team Assignment 3c:
"Look for scenes (people, words, events, settings) from the personal accounts of Hakuin (CP, 36-41) and the two contemporary Japanese women featured in "Awakening Stories" (CP, 179-83) that help you understand the relationship between the mind and the state of awakening promised to Zen practitioners."
Unit 4 TAs
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Team Assignment 4a:
"Look for scenes (characters, events, words, settings) from the Lokapaññati selections & related ritual events presented by Strong (CP, 212-21) that show the way that Upagupta's personality and supernatural powers make him uniquely suited to assist both monks and laypeople."
Team Assignment 4b:
"Pema Karpo provides explicit instructions for the ideal Vajrayana practitioner imagining himself (or herself?) as the deity Heruka/Cakrasamvara engaged in sexual union with his consort, Vajravarahi (CP, 114-15) . Look for moments in this meditative ritual (actions, objects, words/sounds, use of the body) that show the way that practitioner uses visualization, recitation and symbolic actions to enhance his (or her?) self-identification with Heruka."
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