Chapters 1-2: Verses 25-34
Countering the distortion of permanence by reflecting on death. Chapters 1-8 of Aryadeva’s Four Hundred Stanzas on the Middle Way explain the stages of the path dependent on conventional truths.
- Seeing the body for what it is, objectively, without exaggeration
- How the mistaken view of the body as a source of pleasure leads to negative actions and dukkha
- Seeing the body as source of pain and discomfort will give impetus to work for liberation from cyclic existence
- Beginning verses of Chapter 2
05 Aryadeva’s 400 Stanzas: Verses 25-34 (download)
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.