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YI JING OR ZICHOU
ONE INDIVIDUAL'S [ MIS - ] [ ? ] UNDERSTANDING
A Daoist Glossary: Letters D - E:

Da-cheng-qi-xin-lun
Romanov-Pinyin transliteration.
CF: Awakening of Faith Shastra.
Dan
First of the six paramitas; almsgiving, charity, whether of goods or doctrine.
CF: Tan-na.
Danapati
An almsgiver, a patron who supports a monk or a monastery.
Dao

The following is a Chan Buddhist viewpoint of Dao.

This term means the way, path, truth, etc. Originally coined in ancient Chines books like the Yi Jing or Lao-Zi's Dao De Jing and Daoist doctrines anteceding Lao-Zi, this term was borrowed by Chinese Buddhists as a convenient way to convey the essentially inexpressible nature of ultimate reality, In Chinese thought, it is inseperable from the 'de' or 'hidden virtue' traditionally associated with it, appropriate because to 'attain the Dao' and its virtue is not so much 'do-gooding' as it is a silent accordance with the inner nature of things.

The following is a Daoist viewpoint. Do note that some Daoists will disagree with it.

The Way of an individual --- the only possible Way for an Individual to live. This implies living in harmony with the multiverse, practicing that which is best for the individual. It is the way that each individual has to follow if she wishes to accord with the great cosmic principles that govern life, instead of putting up a futile resistance to them at the cost of needless pain, stress and frustration. It is the Right Way for a given individual to live --- the only possible Way for the individual to live. Furthermore, it is thus not impossible to speak of the Dao of a fish, or of a soldier, or any other object.

The following is a Confucian viewpoint of Dao.

The Path of Virtue which is a public duty rather than one of inner fullfillment.

Daoism
The philosophy/theology/whatever that claimss the Dao De Jing as its inspiration. Divided into 2 main groups --- The Black Hats and the Red Hats, these groups differ by practices, not sect. Furthermore there are numerous sects, each of which have ideas that are totally antithetical to other sects, and ideas which are totally congruent with other sects. Sects range from the Boxers, who started the Boxer Revolution in China, to the 'Perfect Realization School', which avoided anything that pleased the eye, to the 'Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove', who indulged in every impulse they had.

DaoZheng: [ The Daoist Canon ]

This first compilation of the DaoZheng occured during the Sung Dynasty, when it was catalog and printed in 1019. Kublha Khan decided in 1281 that he had enough of thes impetuos Daoists, and ordered all of their sacred texts to be burned. This conflagration peaked in 1289. The net effect of this was the reduction of the Daoist Cannon from 4565 volumes of teh Sung Edition to 1120 volumes of the Ming Edition.

Known printings:

Dasabala:
The ten powers of a Buddha to know:
  1. the right and wrong in every situation;
  2. the retributive effects of the past, present and future karma of every being;
  3. all stages of liberation by means of dhyana-samadhi;
  4. the superior and inferior potentialities of all beings;
  5. the ability to know every being's knowledge and understanding;
  6. the different wordly conditions of all beings;
  7. the ends of all different paths trodden by all beings;
  8. all causes of birth and death and all good and evil karmas unobstructedly perceptible to the deva eye;
  9. the past lives of all beings and the final nirvana;
  10. the permanent destruction of all worldly habits.
Dasabhumi:
Sanskrit:
The ten stages of Bodhisattva development into a Buddhia:
  1. Pramudita, joy at having overcome all hinderances for entering the Buddha path;
  2. Vimala, freedom from all impurities of klesa;
  3. Prabhakari, appearance of the light of wisdom;
  4. Arcismati, radiation of full wisdom;
  5. Sudurjaya, conquest of final hinderances;
  6. Abhimukhi, appearance of self-nature in its purity;
  7. Duramgama, the inconceivable beyond the comprehension of men of Hinayana;
  8. Acala, Imperturbability;
  9. Sadhumati, unhindered correct interpretation and expounding of Dharma everywhere;
  10. Dharmamegha, Dharma clouds raining necter to liberate living beings.
Dasatathagatabala:
CF Dasabala:
De
The functioning of the Dao within the mind opf an individual. associated with virtue, it implies that, from within both a moral sense, and a sense of specific power
de Mailla » 1669 - 1738 «
Jesuit priest who studied the Yi Jing
Dengya Daishi:
A Japanese disciple of Tao Sui, the Tenth Patriarch of the T'ien T'ai School, introduced Tendau in Japan in the ninth century.
Deva:
Sanskrit.
CF: Ti-Wa.
The highest incarnations in the six realms of existence, Variously regarded as gods, nature spirits, etc.
Devadatta:
Brother of Ananda and cousin of the Buddha of whom he was an enemy and rival.
Dharani:
CF: Mantra
Dharanumdhara:
'Ruler of the Earth", a Bodhisattva who realized bodhi by means of meditation on the element earth.
Dharma:
Sanskrit.
CF: Fa.
» Plural is Dharmas. «

  1. Law, doctrine, ultimate truth, the Dharmata or Sharma nature itself.
  2. Anything Buddhist.
  3. Any discrete or particular thing.

It has second place in the Tritna, or Triple Gem.

Dharmadhatu
Sanskrit:.
CF: Fa-jie.

  1. A term for things in general as they constitute the phenomenal universe;
  2. A name for things in general, noumenal or phenomenal; for the physical universe.
  3. The unifying underlying spiritual reality regarded as the ground, or cause of all things, the absolute from which all proceeds.
  4. The unifying or underlying spiritual reality regarded as the ground of all thing.
  5. The Mahayana also accounts for them as "The Ten Dharma Realms" viz:
    1. Buddhas;
    2. Bodhisattvas;
    3. Pratyeka Buddhas;
    4. Sravakas;
    5. Devas;
    6. Humans;
    7. Asuras;
    8. Demons
    9. Animals
    10. Hades, or the hells.
  6. The Four Dharmadhatus are:
    1. The phenomenal realms, with differentiation
    2. The noumenal realm, with unity,
    3. The realm of both the noumenal and phenomenal which are interdependent,
    4. The realm of phenomena which are also interdependent.
  7. The Three Dharmadhatus are:
    1. The noumenal realm, with unity,
    2. The realm of both the noumenal and phenomenal which are interdependent,
    3. The realm of phenomena which are also interdependent.
  8. The Five Dharmadhatus are:
    1. The worldly or the above 'phenomenal' realm,
    2. The transcendental, or the above 'noumenal',
    3. The realm of both the worldy and the transcendental, or the above 'noumenal and phenomenal which are interdependent.'
    4. Neither the worldly nor the transcendental, or the above 'noumenal and phenomenal which are interdependent.'
    5. The unhindered real, or the above 'phenomena which are also interdependent.

    9. Also interpretated in terms of the 'eighteen realms of sense' ( 3 x 6 ) or six sense-organs, six sense objects and six sense-data. The Mahayan view is summed up in the saying: "The Ten Dharma Realms are not beyond a single thought."

Dharmakara:
A bhiksu noted for his fourty eight great vows, who became Amitabha Buddha.
Dharmakaya:
Sanskrit.
CF: Fa-Shen.
The Buddha-body or essential nature as such, It is immaterial and only Buddhas can see it, in contrast to the Nirmanakaya ( transformation body ), which is perceptable to men.
Dharmamegha:
The last of the ten stages of Mahayana Bodhisattva development, that of Dharma clouds raining nectar to save living beings.
Dharmaraja:
Sanskrit:
The King of the Law, The Buddha.
Dhatu, The Eighteen:
Sanskrit:
Realms of sense, ie: the six organs, their object and their perceptions.
Dhuta:
Sanskrit.
An ascetic, a monk engaged in austerities.
CF: Tou-ta.
Dhyana:
Sanskrit.
CF: Chan-na.
CF: Chan.
Otherwise it means abstract contemplation, or rather, the stillness resulting therefrom. Hui-neng said that the dhyana is like a lamp and that prajna or wisdom is like its light. In Chan, these two must be perfectly balanced. Dhyana does not mean 'trance' as some of the old dictionaries suggested, but a state of spiritual equilibrium which remains unhindered amid the rrise and fall of phenomena.
Dhyani-Buddhas, The Five:
Divisions of One vitality, The Two:
The positive yang and negative yin as represented by the sun and the moon.
Dragon, Cavity of the:
The lower tan t'ien cavity.
CF: tan t'ien
Dragon and Stork:
Emblem of longevity.
Dragon and Tiger:
Dragon stands for negative vitality and Tiger for positive vitality. Their copulation beings into manifestation the original spirit in its bright light.
CF: Vitality, Positive and Negative.
Dragon and Tiger Cavities:
The negative and positive cavities in the centers of the left and right palms, respectively.
Dragon's hum:
Reveals the fullness of vitality in the generative force, When vitality fills the tiny channels of the nervous and psychic systems, it produces indistinct sounds.
Driving the three vehicles uphill:
A technique which helps the macrocosmic alchemical agent to rise first slowly through the coccyx, the first gate at the base of the backbone, like a goat slowly drawing a cart up hill; then thrust thought the second gate between the kidneys, like a deer speedily drawing a cart up hill; and finally to force through the occiput or third gate at the back of the head, like an ox drawing a cart up a hill.
Duhka:
Sanskrit.
Suffering, misery born of conditioned existence. First of the Four Noble Truths.
CF: Ku.
Earth:
The lower abdomen.
Also, in the Yi Jing refers to the trigram Kun.
CF: Kun.
East:
Direction in which one faces, whilst meditating. Note: One faces north to consult with the Yi Jing
Elixer:
Substance that allegedly promotes the well being of an individual.
Eating and sleeping:
When the immortal seed matures the practioner does not want to sleep and when prenatal vitality is full he does not want to eat.
Eight Immortals
Group of humans who achieved immortality through their devotion and persuit of the Dao.
Elements, The five:

The union of the five elements produces the elixir of immortality.

Elements, The three basic:
Elements, The Three Precious:
CF: The Three Basic Elements
Elixir of Immortality:
Also called the Golden Elixir;
It is produced by the union of generative force, vitality and spirit.
Emei Shan:
One of the nine sacred mountains of China.
This is a Buddhist mountain in the Sichuan Province.
Emission, Involuntary:
Wu Hsien or risks at night.
Entry into the cavity within a cavity:
Entry into the lower tan t'ien cavity within the lower abdomen ( the house of water ).
CF: Cold Storage Technique.
Eyes, Turning round the:
There are three methods of turning round the eyes which have different purposes:
  1. Macrocosmic sublimation of the generative force.
  2. Microcosmic purification of vitality
  3. Gathering prana

The basic vitality to invigorate spirit to produce the macrocosmic alchemical agent which develops when the light of vitality appears.

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