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2023 Cambridge Workshop on Meditative Visual Experiences in Buddhist Traditions

Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge

(April 28th -29th, 2023)

Organised by the Faculty of Asian and Middle Studies (FAMES) and Faculty of Divinity,
University of Cambridge

Sponsored by the Glorisun Global Network for Buddhist Studies, the Dhammachai
International Research Institute (DIRI), and the 60th Dhammachai Education Foundation.

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Contents
3 Introduction
4–5 Schedule
6–9 Abstracts for Friday April 28th
10–11 Abstracts for Saturday April 29th
12 Further Information

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 Introduction

The study of meditative visual experience in Buddhist traditions is a rich and complex field
encompassing a wide range of practices and perspectives. It is a significant area of study for
both scholars and practitioners of Buddhism, very worthy of scholarly attention.

We are proud to bring together experts and scholars from around the world to share their
research on meditative visual experiences in various Buddhist traditions, including Theravāda,
Mahāyāna, and Vajrayāna perspectives. The workshop will also include a special session on
the Yogalehrbuch, a meditation manual from Central Asia. This event will be available for a
global audience to attend either in person or virtually through Zoom.

Our goal is to provide valuable insights for scholars, practitioners, and anyone interested in the
theory and practice of mindfulness and meditation in ancient and modern contexts. We hope
to foster peaceful interactions between individuals, societies, and the world through this
workshop.

This event is supported by the Glorisun Global Network for Buddhist Studies, the Dhammachai
International Research Institute (DIRI), and the 60th Dhammachai Education Foundation. It is
co-organized by the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (FAMES) and the Faculty of
Divinity at the University of Cambridge.

Ven Phra Kiattisak Ponampon

On behalf of the workshop committee

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 Schedule
All times in BST (London; GMT+1)

Friday April 28th: Runcie Room, Faculty of Divinity

0900 – 0915: Arrival and registration

0915 – 0930: Opening address (Prof Imre Galambos, University of Cambridge)

Chair for morning session: Dr Andrew Skilton, University of Oxford
0930 – 1015: Visual experience and the body in pre-modern meditation manuals from Sri Lanka
(Prof Kate Crosby, University of Oxford)
1015 – 1100: Peeling Lotus Pedals: Meditative Visual Experiences in Theinngu Tradition of
Myanmar (Dr Pyi Phyo Kyaw, Shan State Buddhist University)
1100 – 1130: Refreshments – served on site

1130 – 1215: Visualising the Buddha in Pre-modern Thai Meditation

(Dr Phibul Choompolpaisal, Mahidol University)

1215 – 1300: Unthinkable Visions: Meditative Visual Experiences in the Dhammakaya

Tradition (Dr Chanida Jantasrisalai, Dhammachai International Research
Institute)
1300 – 1415: Lunch – at Selwyn College

Chair for afternoon session: Prof Imre Galambos, University of Cambridge

1415 – 1500: Dunhuang Manuscript S.2585: The Meditative Visual Experience of ‘Buddhas
Within’ in Foshuo Guan Jing (Phra Kiattisak Ponampon, University of
Cambridge)

1500 – 1545: Visualisation, Meditation and Ritual Practice in Dunhuang's Esoteric Buddhism
(Prof Henrik Sørensen, Ruhr University Bochum, ERC sponsored BuddhistRoad
Project - Presenting Remotely)

1545 – 1615: Refreshments – served on site

1615 – 1700: Visualisation and its Absence as a Factor of Demarcation Between Mahāyoga and
Dzogchen (Dr Dylan Esler, 84000 Translation Project)
1700 – 1745: Visualising the Buddha/Brahmā in Early Buddhism: A Case Study
(Dr Andrew Skilton, University of Oxford)

1745 – 1815: Discussion

1900 – 2100: Welcome dinner – Harrison Room, Selwyn College (for contributors)

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Saturday April 29th: Runcie Room, Faculty of Divinity
0900 – 0915: Arrival, registration and light snack, coffee/tea served on site

0915 – 0925: Brief Welcome (Dr Chris Jones, University of Cambridge)

Chair for the Yogalehrbuch session: Chris Jones, University of Cambridge

0925 – 1010: Comparison between the Buddha Visualization of Early Mahāyāna Buddhism and
the Buddhānusmṛti in the Yogalehrbuch (Dr Wen Zhao, Nankai University -
Presenting Remotely)
1010 – 1055: Five Formulae in the Buddhist Yoga Manual and *Abhidharmamahāvibhāṣā
Concerning the Immeasurable Meditations (Dr Henry Albery, Ghent University)
1055 – 1145: Refreshments – coffee/tea/sandwiches served on site

1145 – 1230: The Scheme of Yoga in the 'Buddhist Yoga Manual' vis-à-vis Sarvāstivāda
Meditation Traditions (Dr Constanze Pabst von Ohain, Ludwig-Maximilians-
Universität München)

1230 – 1315: The Yogalehrbuch, Chapter 8, Karuṇā: Sarvāstivāda System and Visionary
Images (Prof Yamabe Nobuyoshi, Waseda University)

1315 – 1345: Discussion

1345 – 1400: Workshop ends

1400–1630: (For those remaining), virtual participation in memorial event for Stefano Zacchetti,
with Peking University and Oxford University

1900: Closing dinner for contributors (venue TBC)

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 Abstracts for Friday April 28th
Morning Session

April 28th, 0930 – 1015: Prof Kate Crosby, University of Oxford

Visual Experience and the Body in Pre-modern Meditation Manuals from Sri Lanka

The visual phenomena experienced in meditation have received scant attention in Buddhist
studies and related fields. This talk begins with a brief consideration of this gap in the field and
highlights some recent contributions that have begun to alter this picture. We then turn to the
function of visual experience in a family of Theravada meditation practices that were found in
mainland Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka in the pre-modern period. Firstly, the talk provides an
overview, summarising how the reporting of visual experience functions as the basis of
diagnostic and didactic engagement between teacher and pupil, and also how it forms the basis
for interactions with non-human and no-longer-human beings. Secondly, the talk focuses on
the function of visual experience in incorporating meditative attainments in these practices, so
that the practitioner cumulatively embodies the qualities of enlightenment. Instructions for
these practices of embodiment are found in meditation manuals from Sri Lanka that belong to
the teaching lineage introduced from Siam in the mid-18th century. We conclude with assessing
how these manuals relate visual experience to a detailed breakdown of the different stages of
the path following the structure of Theravada Abhidhamma.

April 28th, 1015 – 1100: Dr Pyi Phyo Kyaw, Shan State Buddhist University
Peeling Lotus Pedals: Meditative Visual Experiences in Theinngu Tradition of
Myanmar

This paper explores the visual experiences described by practitioners in Theinngu meditation
tradition of Myanmar. The founder, Theinngu Sayadaw Venerable U Ukkaṭṭha (1913-1973),
led a lay life until in his mid-40s and only then took up meditation, going on to become a
respected meditation teacher. Rapid, strong, and rhythmic breathing, along with the
contemplation of the intense, usually unpleasant, bodily sensations, have become emblematic
meditation techniques and experiences of Theinngu tradition. Beyond these aspects, teachers
and practitioners also describe a variety of visual experiences encountered in their practice.
Visual images—such as the sign of ugliness or decomposing body (asubhanimitta), the idea or
perception of skeleton (aṭṭhikasaññā), and the signs related to the passive mind (bhavaṅga-
citta)—are some of the most common meditative visual experiences discussed among the
practitioners. I document these visual experiences and discuss how some meditators experience
them as spontaneously arisen experiences while for other practitioners they are actively
visualised experiences. I also show how such visual images may become more subtle as the
practice continues. This paper draws on a diverse range of sources including the dhamma talks
and guided meditations given by Theinngu meditation teachers, the works written by
practitioners, and my own experiences and observations made over the past 15 years.

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April 28th, 1130 – 1215: Dr Phibul Choompolpaisal, Mahidol University
Visualising the Buddha in Pre-modern Thai Meditation

This paper explores the practices of visualising the Buddha in pre-modern Thai meditation. It
presents the visualization of the Buddha as part of, and in the broader context of, the re-
collection of the Buddha (buddhānussati), through pre-modern practices that have existed in
Siam since at least the 16th century. To present a diversity of meditation using visualization of
the Buddha, this paper looks at the evidence of meditation texts, including: that of the Supreme
Patriarch Suk of Wat Ratchasittaram, of the northern Thai/Lanna tradition, of King Taksin of
Thonburi and other miscellaneous texts. This paper also offers an interpretation of such
evidence from the experiential views of both a lineage holder and local practitioners of these
meditation traditions. Overall, this study highlights the significance and popularity of practices
of visualizing the Buddha in several regions of Siam and at different periods of time. Moreover,
research findings suggest that available meditation litanies and other meditation texts function
to guide practitioners how to visualize several types of nimitta (sign form), including the
Buddha. These texts also indicate examples of the possible experiences, especially of the
Buddha actually seen emerging during meditation.

April 28th, 1215 – 1300: Dr Chanida Jantasrisalai, Dhammachai International Research

Institute
Unthinkable Visions: Meditative Visual Experiences in Dhammakaya Tradition

This presentation focuses on meditative visual experiences found within the Dhammakaya
meditation (Vijjā Dhammakāya), as taught by Phramonkolthepmuni (Sod Candasaro) and
technically explained by Phra Dhammachayo of Wat Phra Dhammakaya. The Dhammakaya
tradition broadly classifies meditative visual experiences into two categories: those that occur
in the mind that still contains volitional formations, and those that arise in a mind completely
free from thoughts, known as "unthought" or "unthinkable" visions. While the two types of
visions may appear similar, only the latter is considered “true dharmas” and is part of the path
to enlightenment. Mental cessation, or the state of a mind free from volitional formations, is
highly regarded in the Dhammakaya tradition as the key to successful meditation, from the
initial state of balance to the attainment of nibbāna/nirvāṇa. The tradition recognizes various
degrees of mental cessation, each corresponding to a particular vision, leading to a set of
successive visions that mirror those mentioned in some Buddhist texts. The tradition suggests
that cessations occur within the body's centre, with "cessation in cessation" related to the
"centre of the centre." Buddhist texts also imply the importance of mental cessation and the
centre of the body, which will be referred to in this presentation.

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 Afternoon Session

April 28th, 1415 – 1500: Ven Phra Kiattisak Ponampon, University of Cambridge
Dunhuang Manuscript S.2585:
The Meditative Visual Experience of ‘Buddhas Within’ in Foshuo Guan Jing

Dunhuang Manuscript S.2585, titled Foshuo Guan Jing, is a valuable source of Buddhist
meditation practices that originated from Central Asia and India, and later developed in China.
This presentation thoroughly explores and analyses the meditative visual experience resulting
from a specific practice described in S.2585, which involves observing one's own navel with
single-minded concentration (yixin guanqi 一心觀齊) around the centre of the body. This
practice allows practitioners to experience the presence of the Buddhas within oneself, a
concept central to many Buddhist traditions, including buddha-nature and tathāgatagarbha.
Moreover, we examine the historical and cultural significance of navel gazing as a vital aspect
of Buddhist meditation practice during the fifth century CE in Chinese Buddhism and other
traditions, shedding light on the significance and relevance of this ancient technique in
contemporary Buddhist practice.

April 28th, 1500 – 1545: Prof Henrik Sørensen, Ruhr University Bochum, ERC sponsored
BuddhistRoad Project
Visualisation, Meditation and Ritual Practice in Dunhuang's Esoteric Buddhism

This presentation discusses a variety of visualisation texts associated with Sinitic Esoteric
Buddhism as practiced in Dunhuang during the late medieval period. Its aim is to show the
variety of practices set forth in the primary sources, including who the practitioners might have
been. Moreover, the different types of visualisation texts encountered reveal that while they do
have a markedly localised quality—something which becomes clear when comparing them
with the printed canonical texts—they all have a more or less direct connection to the
mainstream Esoteric Buddhist dispensation of Amoghavajra (705–774). The paper examines a
series of visualisation practices which all appear in ritual context, indicating that there was little
in the way of formal, conceptual demarcation between ritual practice, meditation and
visualisation in the related Esoteric Buddhist material. As part of this a longer ritual text for
the Distribution of Food will be discussed at some length.

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April 28th, 1615 – 1700: Dr Dylan Esler, 84000 Translation Project
Visualisation and its Absence as a Factor of Demarcation
Between Mahāyoga and Dzogchen

In the process whereby the Tibetan contemplative approach of Dzogchen emerged as a distinct
vehicle, a number of standard tantric practices of Mahāyoga – including visualization,
repetition of mantras, etc. – came to be rejected in favour of a more effortlessly styled form of
meditation. This contribution will explore the role played by visualization practices – and their
absence – in the doxographical demarcation of Dzogchen from Mahāyoga. It will draw on
research on several foundational texts by the 10-century meditation master Nubchen Sangye
Yeshe, who was instrumental in distinguishing both traditions from each other.

April 28th, 1700 – 1745: Dr Andrew Skilton, University of Oxford

Visualising the Buddha/Brahmā in Early Buddhism: A Case Study

This presentation will explore an early Buddhist sutta as evidence for a model of Buddha
visualisation. We will examine the story of Govinda, 'the herdsman' but better here, 'the
Steward' or 'Chancellor', who meditates and 'sees' Brahmā, and from whom he receives the
teaching of the Buddha(s). We will also reflect on methods for the taxonomy of visual
experience. The primary text examined will be the Mahāgovinda Suttanta of the Dīgha Nikāya,
i.e. the Pali recension of the Tipiṭaka, but translations of this popular text into Chinese will also
be considered, as will some other Pali Tipiṭaka texts such as the Pārāyanavagga. It will also
reference patterns of visualisation in later Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna sādhana, i.e., instructions
for visualisation meditation, from the Sādhanamālā collection.

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 Abstracts for Saturday April 29th
Yogalehrbuch Session

April 29th, 0925 – 1010: Dr Wen Zhao, Nankai University - Presenting Remotely
Comparison between the Early Mahāyāna Buddha-Visualization and the
Buddhānusmṛti in the Yogalehrbuch

The creation of Buddha statues promoted the transformation of buddhānusmṛti from

recollecting the ten epithets of Buddha to the Buddha-visualization. The process of Buddha-
visualization recorded in the Pratyutpanna-buddha-saṃmukhāvasthita-samādhi (hearing the
name - concentrating - vision of the Buddha - vision of the Buddhas of the ten directions)
reflects a type of popular practice of buddhānusmṛti among Early Mahāyāna Buddhist
communities at latest in the second century CE. Meanwhile, the Abhidharma texts developed
another type of buddhānusmṛti, which can be also associated with the thriving of the biography
of Buddha. The buddhānusmṛti in Yogalehrbuch and in the relevant Chinese meditation texts
structruely follows that in the Sarvāstivāda Abhidharma, but the abstract concepts from
Abhidharma are handled as the concrete visual objects.

April 29th, 1010 – 1055: Dr Henry Albery, Ghent University

Five Formulae in the Buddhist Yoga Manual and *Abhidharmamahāvibhāṣā
Concerning the Immeasurable Meditations

To briefly elaborate, this will present certain parallels from the two named texts and consider
how the former seeks to instantiate the doctrinal principles described in the latter within the
visualised practice of the immeasurable meditations. More specifically it will consider, on the
basis of the *Abhidharmamahāvibhāṣā, the ontological and epistemological dimensions of the
practice, examining the relation between the ontological statuses of the immeasurables, the
physical and mental stage of the meditator, and the object upon which they meditation apropos
the cosmological schema, and how these factors are then visualised in the Buddhist Yoga
Manual.

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April 29th, 1145 – 1230: Dr Constanze Pabst von Ohain, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität
München
The Scheme of yoga
in the Buddhist Yoga Manual vis-à-vis Sarvāstivāda Meditation Traditions

This talk examines the process of meditative practice in the Buddhist Yoga Manual as a whole
and attempts to situate it within other Sarvāstivāda textual traditions. In particular, the precise
techniques of visualisation or imagination will be compared to those most clearly presented in
the earlier sections of the Yogācārabhūmiśāstra. In addition, after a closer look at the style of
the Buddhist Yoga Manual, the paper also addresses the question of the nature of the text and
discusses possible implications for the pragmatics of its practice.

April 29th, 1230 – 1315: Prof Yamabe Nobuyoshi, Waseda University

The Yogalehrbuch, Chapter 8, Karuṇā: Sarvāstivāda System and Visionary Images

The so-called Yogalehrbuch is an anonymous Sanskrit meditation manual the manuscripts of

which were found in Qizil and elsewhere in Chinese Central Asia. An edition with a German
translation of this text was published by Dieter Schlingloff in 1964. I used this text as one of
the important materials in my study of Chinese visualization texts. Though the Yogalehrbuch
is not a well-known Buddhist text, recently it has been attracting renewed scholarly attention.
In my former research, I focused on the visionary elements of this text and pointed out
that similar elements are also found in Chinese meditation texts. However, though the
manuscripts are fragmentary, in the chapters that have an extant introductory portion, the
discussion starts with a doctrinal definition of the chapter topic. After a few paragraphs of
standard abhidharma-type discussion, the atmosphere suddenly changes, and an inscrutable
visionary world unfolds.
In my presentation this time, I would like to reexamine the textual nature of Chapter 8
on karuṇā. The first doctrinal portion displays close similarities to the Abhidharma-
mahāvibhāṣā and reconfirms its Sarvāstivāda affiliation, already noted by Schlingloff. I will
attempt to determine the exact doctrinal meaning of this first portion and discuss how this
portion is tied to the visionary portion that follows.

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 Further Information

Committee
Prof Imre Galambos FAMES, Cambridge University
Dr Chris V. Jones Faculty of Divinity, Cambridge University
Ven Phra Kiattisak Ponampon FAMES, Cambridge University

IT Coordinator
Junfu Wong FAMES, Cambridge University

Assistants
Ven Wanyu Zhang
Chontoda Poonpipat
Issara Treesahakiat
Jatumet Thueanmuenwai
Anuchit Treerattanajutawat
FAMES, Oxford University
FAMES, Oxford University
FAMES, Oxford University
King’s College London
Independent

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For all enquiries, please contact Ven Phra Kiattisak Ponampon (pkp24@cam.ac.uk).

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