The 5 Qualities Of Buddha Nature

Buddha Nature is the most precious spiritual concept I have ever learned. Within Tibetan Buddhism, all the different schools have a threefold classification of Buddha’s teachings; they call these the three teachings or turnings of the wheel of Dharma. Buddha nature is what the third turning or teaching is about. The first time is about karma, the second about emptiness and the third is all about Buddha nature.

This is where the Buddhist teachings tie in eternal philosophy

, a term coined by Aldous Huxley, in which he explains the similarity between all ancient mystical teachings. A common ground that shares the idea of ​​a universal spiritual essence as the source of all existence.

It is known by many names, I like the term Buddha as a symbol for awakeness or pure consciousness or enlightenment. The Buddha nature is simply your true Self, a nature that simultaneously transcends but also encompasses human nature. Your higher Self as the ground of your being. That ancient primordial essence within you that is at the core of all experiences.

Like many meditation masters from Tibet, Japan, Thailand, China and elsewhere, I regard Buddha Nature as the radiant pearl of inner refuge and the goal of spiritual practice as a virtual hidden gem within our own being.

In Tibetan Buddhism, Vajrayana is the spiritual path of the indestructible diamond within which lies the Buddha nature. Vajrayana uses an immanent enlightened essence as its spiritual path and goal. This is where I get my inspiration for the following teachings on the five aspects or facets of Buddha nature. Although these facets apparently describe different things, they refer to the one nature.

This is the first point to be made about Buddha nature. I can’t tell you why it’s hidden. That is actually a bit of a paradox, because the Buddha nature is complete and utterly conscious and yet there is a manifestation of not knowing its own identity. It’s a paradoxical journey back to where you started, where you never really left. A journey of growth, maturation and development. Heroically shedding old skins and becoming a new person, only to finally realize what you grew up in was always complete here.

If I’m already basically perfect, why should I practice anything? The best answer is because you have not realized or seen for yourself what you really are.

It is also hidden because Buddha nature is an extremely subtle phenomenon, which would be an illusion to say that it is not obvious. The reason for this is that it cannot be understood by the intellectual mind or even perceived through the five senses. It is the Buddha-nature itself that becomes Self-conscious in you, or that awakens through you to become Self-illuminating.

Just as space cannot be held or seen, but encompasses the entire universe, Buddha Nature has a space-like quality that is intangible. Often experienced as nothingness or emptiness, it can better be described as openness or limitlessness. Infinite nature is another clear way of expressing this. Without Borders.

This limitless nature is impossible to understand with the thinking mind, no matter how hard we try. Even if you think you understand infinity, it is still only a mental concept and far removed from the direct non-conceptual connection with an infinite nature.

Scientific research into physical things has still not found solid physical things. As we look deeply into any object, we discover space and fluctuating energy patterns that pop in and out of existence. This inconvenient truth of physics conveniently points to the eternal wisdom of mystics. The universe is made of an invisible intelligent substance/field, which is what Buddha nature is, and from it physical forms bubble up.

Buddha nature is not only empty like space, but also conscious. This is an important point and meditation traditions tend to emphasize one or the other, either the blank aspect or the conscious aspect, but the truth is that it is a combination of both. Two sides of the same coin. Empty and conscious.

Self-inquiry is an ancient and powerful meditation method to come ‘face to face’ with your true nature, your Buddha nature. Now watch and see if you can turn your attention and experience consciousness for yourself. What do you think? Where is consciousness? What shape is it? It is these types of investigations that lead to Consciousness being completely untraceable and empty.

Again it has been known by many different names in various mystical teachings throughout history. I like the term clarity or knowing. Others call it the light or luminous nature. Whether you call it consciousness or the witness, it points to the same thing that is so close to us and yet so often overlooked. It is at the core of our true identity. I am that consciousness is the only thing that is always true, everything else passes, comes and goes.

We are not talking about some dry, passive screen behind existence, as some teachers seem to suggest; we are talking about a universal intelligence, the creative patterns, the harmony and the flow of life. A common mystical experience in all traditions is the deep feeling of love for all existence, which is often accompanied by intense bliss. This is a natural experience because it is intertwined with the existence of reality and is often experienced naturally as a sense of awe and wonder or the appreciation of a beautiful sunset.

Buddha Nature has a certain kind of love, rooted in the direct experience of limitlessness or openness where you see yourself in others, in fact, you see yourself in everything. This is not a romantic or sentimental form of love, it is literally the fabric of the universe. Often spiritual traditions emphasize this Love and Joy aspect of the Buddha nature and it becomes a gateway to this divine essence.

When you recognize the Buddha nature in others, it is called love. If you recognize it in yourself, it is called wisdom.

Incredible bliss has also been taught as an entry point to the divine. Tantric schools emphasize this facet of the Buddha nature, which seems to become blocked due to ignorance and energetic patterns that close off access to the natural bliss of the Buddha nature until it is awakened through spiritual practice or sometimes even by accident. After all, joy and bliss are your essence and completely natural.

Buddha nature expresses itself endlessly. This is a non-dual way of saying that Buddha nature is all that exists. This may sound a bit grandiose, but what else would you call everything? Buddha nature reveals itself as a complete paradigm. A way of viewing ourselves and the world that is spiritual in nature.

As I began to say, this is a universal principle. It is a paradigm that prevails in all major religious worlds and a vision that could unite humanity. Somewhat pantheistic in its interpretation of reality, many scientists are even beginning to be seduced by the idea that everything is consciousness.

What we call form is really just vibrations of energy that hold certain patterns that we call atoms that make up the entire universe. These energy forms radiate from the Buddha nature in the same way that heat radiates from the sun. Making a mysterious journey from the absolute formlessness of the essence to the expression as form.

To be clear, all of these things are not separate, they are just explained separately so that we can understand them and begin to approximate the enormity of what the universe really is. Becoming aware of the Buddha nature is the goal of all spiritual practice, whether you access it by meditating on emptiness, loving unconditionally or resting in consciousness, they all ultimately lead to the totality of the Buddha- nature.

Chad Foreman is the founder of The Way of Meditation and has been teaching meditation since 2003, determined to bring authentic meditation practices into the lives of millions of people in the modern world. Chad is a former Buddhist monk who lived in a retreat hut for six years and studied and practiced meditation full-time. He now has over twenty years of experience teaching meditation. Chad likes regularly
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