On The Importance Of Understanding The Three Vehicles

In the tech age, the problem we face is not access to information, but how to organize it. There is so much information available – claims made by psychologists, doctors, yogis, “spiritual teachers” – and while some may be in line with truth, we don’t really have the full context of this information. In general, we haven’t been given a way to organize or analyze the legitimacy of the teachings. In some sense, we consider interacting with teachings like shopping for kale or eggplant – that we can pick and choose this or that and fully digest a teaching even when taken radically out of context. Therefore, using the three vehicles of the Buddhist tradition to categorize different teachings can be very helpful. 

These three paths – the individual, universal, and secret vehicles – are basically characterized by three distinct motivations: to enhance myself, to serve others, and to teach or “radiate”. When we are discussing or thinking about the three vehicles, it is important to keep in mind that no single one of these vehicles is “more correct”. Actually, they nest within each other and build upon each other. For instance, most of the ways in which Yoga and psychological studies are currently utilized in the West fall within the domain of the “individual vehicle”. This is not good or bad, but it is important to remember that the “individual vehicle” is not the ultimate teaching. By developing an understanding of the distinctions between these three vehicles, we increase our ability to discern the subtleties and relevance of particular teachings, as well as enhancing our ability to properly organize, contextualize, and practice the teachings of each path.

The individual vehicle, while the fundamental starting point for all sincere practice, is, at best, a very sturdy scaffold. That is, it isn’t meant to be a permanent structure. The individual vehicle serves to catalyze true scientific investigation into the nature of self. That spark begins with a very specific set of realizations. 

First, we realize that, through effort, we can change. Second, we realize that in order to affect change we must make adjustments at the level of causes and conditions. In doing so, we also realize that the quality of output or the experience of our lives depends on the quality of input or the consideration or foresight with which we decide to carry out actions. If we look at our lives, we can see that experience itself is continuous – even the state of deep sleep is itself an action. 

Therefore, since output or experience is ongoing, there must also be an ongoing “input allowance process”. That is, once we can see that experiences are ongoing, and we recognize that experiences are produced by causes and conditions, we can also recognize that there is an ongoing opportunity to deliberately shape the causes and conditions that are producing the quality of the events of our lives.

Third, we also realize that causes and conditions themselves are produced by other causes and conditions – and that the quality of causes and conditions depends on the quality of other causes and conditions.

Fourth, as we begin to realize our own dependence upon an inconceivable network of causes and conditions, we gradually become more willing to accept responsibility for assisting in the constructive evolution of all causes and conditions for the benefit of all beings, who are also inextricably linked to the shared network of influence. Such willingness marks entry into the universal vehicle.

The universal vehicle, then, becomes the permanent foundation of practice. Stated simply, the universal vehicle is authentic scientific inquiry. That inquiry begins with “timeless ideas” such as “The 3 Lamps” and “The Symphony of 7”, both of which can be found in More Human, More Diamond. 

Without inquiry and study, there is no foundation. Without a foundation, it doesn’t make sense to speak of building a house that we can actually live in – much less to build a penthouse that we can comfortably enjoy. When our foundation is sound, we can build our house – and only then can we live in it. For those who think that taking the fastest path to enlightenment will actually work, sadly, no one has yet to report the ability to build a penthouse before a foundation.

With respect to “graduating” from individual vehicle to universal vehicle, as it dawned on me once that suffering isn’t unique to me, it also dawned that my “sense of me” isn’t unique to me either. In class, I sometimes joke and ask, “Who is sitting on the mat?” The response is always in the first person – “I am.” Then I say, “So I guess I’m the only one who came to class today.” 

We share a sense of “I”. Were we to know this directly, we would be Buddhas, and compassionate activity would flow naturally through us. Were we to know this directly, we would also know exactly what actions to take in order to benefit the infinitely diverse but shared “I”. 

For a Buddha, compassion is fundamentally different than empathy. Compassion is not emotional or mental. Spontaneously, without deliberation, we remove our hands from hot stoves, because we identify with our hands. When a visceral connection is established, actions that remove “parts of ourselves” from suffering emerge spontaneously.  

The fact of shared identity doesn’t negate or diminish the fact of individual identity. “Enlightenment” doesn’t mean “eating” or “absorbing” all phenomena into my own “superego” – and then claiming ownership of everything. Nor does it mean that “I” disappear or stop existing.  Enlightenment means realizing that my “sense of self” is a dependently-originating and relational self, a self that depends on other selves and all phenomena for its existence, and upon which other selves and all phenomena depend. Enlightenment means realizing that I am responsible for the health and integrity of every other relational self – and that everything I do influences and contributes to the state of health of every other thing. This is a very difficult philosophical pill for students to swallow. But once digested, it provides a much needed “practical compass”.

The real problem is that we haven’t created the habit of either thoroughly investigating the causes of suffering or thoroughly investigating the “sense of self” we carry with us into the world. This is why ample study, reflection, and meditation are necessary prerequisites before the attempt to perform compassionate action in the world as a mentor.

It is important to remember that, like steps of a pyramid, the Buddha Body is built upon the Bodhisattva Body, and that the Bodhisattva Body is built upon the “Baby” Body. As a practitioner progresses, the previous “body” or “vehicle” is not cast off, but is integrated into the next step.

Please reference this very brief but concentrated outline of the three vehicles.

Levels of Being.

“Baby” Body = Body, Speech & Mind.

Bodhisattva Body = Motivation. 

Buddha Body = Reality.

Associated Paths.

“Baby” Body = Individual Vehicle.

Bodhisattva Body = Universal Vehicle (first) & Secret Vehicle (second).

Buddha Body = Path of “No More Learning”.

Associated Activities.

“Baby” Body = Diet, Fitness, Breathing, Peace Meditation (study). 

Bodhisattva Body = Inclusivity Meditation, Identity Reformation & Teaching (study).

Buddha Body = Inconceivable (Teaching & Radiating).

Associated Revelations.

“Baby” Body = The Direct Taste of Peace of Mind.

Bodhisattva Body = The Direct Taste of Inclusivity.

Buddha Body = The Full Consummation of Enlightenment.