What are the 108 Defilements (Bonno)

[Tai Do]

With the New Year approaching, I will again do my small practice of ringing the bell 108 times (though this time the bell will ring in my mind only, as we already packed the butsudan kit for moving to our new house next month). I always do this practice, but now I realized I never read any list of these 108 defilements (bonno) that we try to remove... I want to be more mindful of what defilement each ring of the bell is supposed to stand for... does anyone have a list of these 108 defilements? How is the Soto Zen approach to them?
Gassho,
Mateus
Satlah

[Kokuu]

Hi Mateus

They appear to be made up of a calculation based on feelings, sense doors, time and attachment.

Six senses (five conventional + mind) x Three feelings (pleasant, neutral and unpleasant) x Attachment to or detachment from pleasure (2) x Past, present or future (3) = 108

https://4enlightenment.com/2019/11/15/108-defilements-or-poisons-of-the-mind/

Gasho
Kokuu
-sattoday-

[Tai Do]

Thank you very much, Kokuu.
I will ring them all in my mind, being mindful of each defilement as a reminder that I should eliminate them by practicing Shikantaza Zazen and the Precepts
Gassho,
Mateus
Satlah

[aprapti]

hi, every explanation is as good as the next one Buddhism of course has its roots in the vedic religions where 108 was a holy number. See for instance https://www.indiadivine.org/signific...-108-hinduism/




aprapti


sat

[Kokuu]

I will ring them all in my mind, being mindful of each defilement as a reminder that I should eliminate them by practicing Shikantaza Zazen and the Precepts

And each ring denotes the empty nature of all things that goes beyond notions of good and bad, pure and impure, and your own buddha nature.

Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday-

[Tai Do]

And each ring denotes the empty nature of all things that goes beyond notions of good and bad, pure and impure, and your own buddha nature.

Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday-

Mateus
Satlah

[Jundo]

Lovely response.

In addition to all that, I have seen more detailed lists, specifying all the big and little harmful and unhealthful states of mind that one may fall into. I believe that the original such lists derive from the Abhidharma tradition of list making analysis in early Buddhism.

This is another area in which I do not feel it very helpful or realistic to think that we can truly scrub ourselves of all these negative states of mind thoroughly, turning ourselves into idealized images of perfect "Buddhas" and otherwise saints. However, they are excellent reminders of states which we can do our best to recognize, moderate and avoid as best we can. A soft and pliant heart as developed in Zazen and Zen practice certainly helps. When we succeed in turning each Bonno to its opposite, even for a moment, then a bit of Buddha is brought to life in our doing so in that moment.

I don't think that the following is the definitive list, as there is some variation in how things are categorized and translated. Of course, the following is alphabetized into English as well:

108 Defilements of Buddhism
(Hyakku no bonnou)
百八の煩悩

In the New Year's there is a custom of Buddhist temples ringing their bells 108 times. Usually this is a process that takes place at midnight. The Chion-in Temple in Kyoto has the largest bell in Japan and has a special ceremony around 8:30pm [JUNDO NOTE: I will post such a scene on New Years Day], this is because their famous neighbor, Gion Yasaka Shrine, attracts huge crowds at midnight. Some temples have special ceremonies in which regular people can line up and have a turn at ringing the bell, but this can get rather competitive as there are usually far more than 108 volunteers for the honor. The reason that the bells are rung 108 times is due to the recurring value of the number 108 in Buddhist philosophy. Particularly, in relation to the new year, the bells are rung to rid visitors of the 108 vices that are thought to afflict human existence.

In Buddhist philosophy these afflictions are called "klesha" in Japanese the word "bonnou" refer to this problems. In English this concept is translated with different terms; defilements, vices, evils, earthly desires... Below is a list of the vices with a Japanese translation of each. Note that some of the words are redundant (deciept/deception, envy/enviousness...) this is due to the difficulty of translating the original philosophical doctrines into different languages which makes it difficult to express the contextual nuances of this confusing similar words. ...

1. Abuse らんよう
2. Aggression しんりゃく
3. Ambition やしん
4. Anger いかり
5. Arrogance おうへい
6. Baseness ひれつ
7. Blasphemy ぼうとく
8. Calculation ださん
9. Callousness むしんけい
10. Capriciousness うつりぎ
11. Censoriousness けんしき
12. Conceitedness おごり
13. Contempt けいべつ
14. Cruelty ざんこく
15. Profanity ふけい
16. Debasement ふはいだらく
17. Desceipt ひまん
18. Deception きへん
19. Delusion もうしゅう
20. Derision ぐろう
21. Desire for fame めいよしん
22. Dipsomania (alcoholism) かつしゅうへき
23. Discord ふわ
24. Disrespect ふけい
25. Disrespectfulness (flippancy) けいはく
26. Dissatisfaction ふまん
27. Dogmatism どくだんろん
28. Dominance ゆうせ
29. Eagerness わっしん
30. Effrontery そうがん
31. Egoism りこしゅぎ
32. Enviousness みたみ
33. Excessiveness かど
34. Falseness ぎ
35. Faithlessness ふじつ
36. Garrulity たげん
37. Gluttony たいしょく
38. Greed よく
39. Avarice りよく
40. Grudgeうらみ
41. Hard heartedness じゃけん
42. Hatred にくしみ
43. Haughtiness ごうもん
44. High-handedness せんおう
45. Hostility てきい
46. Humiliation くつじよく
47. Hurt いたみ
48. Hypocrisy ぎぜん
49. Ignorance もうまい
50. Imperiousness そんだい
51. Imposture だぎ
52. Impudence てつめんぴ
53. Inattentiveness ふねっしん
54. Indifference ふねっしん
55. Ingratitude ぼうおん
56. Insatiability ぼうsじょく
57. Insidiousness いんきな
58. Intolerance ふかんよう
59. Intransigence がんこ
60. Irresponsibility むできにん
61. Jealousy しっと
62. Furtiveness ひみつ
63. Gambling かけ
64. Know-it-all しったかぶりや
65. Lack of comprehension (stupidity) むち
66. Lecherousness いんらん
67. Lying/dishonesty ふしょうじき
68. Malignancy あくしつ
69. Manipulation あやつ
70. Masochism じぎゃく
71. Mercilessness むざんさ
72. Negativity はんたい
73. Obsession こだわり
74. Obstinancy いじ
75. Oppression あっせい
76. Ostentatiousness きょしょくてき
77. Pessimism ひかん
78. Prejudice へきけん
79. Presumption すいてい
80. Presence しゃこう
81. Pride じまん
82. Prodigality ほうとう
83. Quarrelsomeness けんかすきなこと
84. Rage けきど
85. Rapacity ごうよく
86. Ridicule ぐろう
87. Sadism しきゃく
88. Sarcasm いやみ
89. Seducement ゆうわく
90. Self-denial じこひてい
91. Self-hatred じこけんお
92. Sexual lust あいよく
93. Shamelessness こうがん
94. Stinginess りんしょく
95. Stubbornness いじ
96. Torment くろしめる
97. Tyranny ぼうせい
98. Unkindness ふじんせつ
99. Unruliness ふじゅうじゅん
100. Unyielding きょうこ
101. Vanity きょえいしん
102. Vindictiveness しゅうねんぶかい
103. Violence ぼうりょく
104. Violent temper かんしゃくだま
105. Voluptuousness (seeking things that are full of pleasure) あだっぱさ
106. Wrath どき
107. Obstinancy いじ
108. Envy せんのう

https://mrob.com/pub/epist/buddhism.html

and

https://kansaiculture.blogspot.com/2018/01/the-108-vices-of-buddhism.html

By the way, I found that a popular (and a bit controversial) Japanese painter, Takashi Murakami, released a composition he calls 108 Bonno. Apparently, Each field has 108 flower images, resulting in 11,664 flower images in total. I am not sure of the connection of each image to a particular Bonno however ... They seem almost too happy to be Obstructions. Perhaps they represent the goodness when we turn each Bonno to its opposite.

Gassho, J

stlah

tsuku.jpg

[Jundo]

Another list in English ...

Ostentatiousness, grudge, gambling, ingratitude, dipsomania, ambition, dominance, faithlessness, manipulation, stinginess, pessimism, hostility, abuse, debasement, sexual lust, sarcasm, humiliation, jealousy, gluttony, unruliness, hurt, cruelty, unkindness, obstinacy, envy, indifference, negativity, furtiveness, sadism, enviousness, derision, falseness, high-handedness, know-it-all, rage, aggression, rapacity, effrontery, disrespectfulness, hard-heartedness, power hungriness, lying, insidiousness, self-denial, inattentiveness, contempt, wrath, haughtiness, greed for money, seducement, vindictiveness, insatiability, voluptuousness, excessiveness, censoriousness, dissatisfaction, egoism, ignorance, hatred, greed, impudence, imposture, cursing, imperiousness, lecherousness, callousness, malignancy, torment, intolerance, blasphemy, shamelessness, irresponsibility, obsession, prejudice, arrogance, violent temper, garrulity, dogmatism, presumption, intransigence, oppression, prodigality, lack of comprehension, obstinacy, pride, conceitedness, delusion, quarrelsomeness, self-hatred, violence, vanity, hypocrisy, stubbornness, baseness, pretense, mercilessness, disrespect, ridicule, masochism, tyranny, capriciousness, deceit, anger, discord, calculation, unyielding, desire for fame and deception.

There are many more abstract interpretations as well, as Kokuu mentions, such as this from a Tibetan interpretation

108 kinds of emotional distress: (S. Klesas, J. Bonno) This doctrine is from the Abhidharma; The different kinds of Emotional Distress (S. Klesas or Klistomanas) are the afflictions of mind that stain or defile comprehension of realities (dharmas). Most kinds (darsana-heya klesas) are conceptual errors (false views) and can be eliminated by the path of insight, which is proper knowledge of the four truths. The most intractable (bhavana-heya klesas) must be eliminated through the cultivation of meditation practice because they are habitual and ingrained compulsions. The 108 different kinds are calculated as follows:

There are 36 in the Realm of Desire:

A. 10 eliminated by knowledge of the Truth of Suffering: greed, hatred, ignorance, conceit, doubt & the five false views (disbelief in cause & effect, clinging to views, belief in the ego, belief in extremes, and belief that rituals will lead to salvation)
B. 7 eliminated by knowledge of the Truth of Origination: The above ten except belief in the ego, belief in extreme views, and belief that rituals will lead to salvation
C. 7 eliminated by knowledge of the Truth of Extinction: The same as above
D. 8 eliminated by knowledge of the Truth of the Path: The same as above except belief in that ascetic practice or rituals will lead to salvation is added.
E. 4 eliminated only through practice of meditation: greed, hatred, ignorance & conceit - To a degree these four can be eliminated by knowledge of the Four Truths as conceptual errors, but there is a habitual and ingrained aspect to these that can only be eliminated by the intensive practice of introspective meditation. Doubt and the Five Views can be entirely eliminated through knowledge.
There are 31 each in the Realms of Form & Formlessness (Total of 62): In these two realms there is no hatred because they are purified from the desire for food or sex. Since the Realm of Desire associated with much suffering, it is easier to eliminate the relatively more crude afflictions. Since the Realms of Form & Formlessness are associated with more subtle kinds of contentment, it is more difficult to eliminate these afflictions.

A. 9 eliminated in each by knowledge of the Truth of Suffering (like above but without hatred)
B. 6 eliminated in each by knowledge of the Truth of Origination (like above but without hatred)
C. 6 eliminated in each by knowledge of the Truth of Extinction (like above but without hatred)
D. 7 eliminated in each by knowledge of the Truth of The Path (like above but without hatred)
E. 3 eliminated in each by greed, ignorance, & conceit
The 10 secondary afflictions (Upaklesas): absence of shame, absence of embarrassment (before others), envy, stinginess, regret, sleepiness, restlessness (distraction), sloth, anger, and the concealment of wrongdoing.

36 + 31+ 31 + 10 = 108

http://tibetanbuddhistencyclopedia.c...sires_(Klesas)

Hmmm. Master Dogen advised that we should do our best to be good, avoid harmful acts. Maybe that is enough to understand.


Gassho, J

stlah

[Tai Do]

Thanks, Jundo.
It appears many of the defilements are just specific variations of greed, anger and ignorance. Anyways, I don’t think it is practical to work with each of the 108 defilements individually; I prefer the wisdom and compassion will work for them all approach.
Gassho,
Mateus
Satlah

[Jundo]

It appears many of the defilements are just specific variations of greed, anger and ignorance. Anyways, I don’t think it is practical to work with each of the 108 defilements individually; I prefer the wisdom and compassion will work for them all approach.

Yes, that sounds very wise.

And I could add many sub-categories too ... like my gluttony for a very specific chocolate cookie that I have developed in recent weeks, and I need to be careful about (I am sneaking a few too many from the cookie jar).

Gassho, J

stlah