Episode 593 – Seek Liberation Upon Hearing True Dharma
>> “Sadly, sentient beings are deluded by ignorance, so they are lacking in wisdom and awareness. Because they are not alert and afraid, they have no sense of renunciation, nor do they seek liberation or recognize suffering.”
>> “The Tathagata then had this thought, ‘If I simply used my spiritual powers and my powers of wisdom but set aside skillful means, and for the sake of sentient beings praised the Tathagata’s understanding and views, powers and fearlessness, sentient beings would not be able to attain liberation through this.'”
>> “Why is this so? Sentient beings are not yet able to avoid birth, aging, illness, death worry, sadness, suffering and afflictions and are scorched in the burning house of the Three Realms. How could they understand the Buddha’s wisdom?”
>> Sentient beings are not able to be transformed because they do not listen to the teachings. With severe obstacles from the Five Turbidities, they cannot avoid being scorched by the fires of birth, aging and so on. Thus they cannot understand, realize and enter the wondrous Dharma of the Great Vehicle.
>> Sentient beings dally in the burning house, so they cannot be transformed. With the darkness of ignorance obscuring their Six Sense Organs, their bodies, minds and all matters are not under their control, and they cannot faithfully accept the Right Dharma.
>> “This house has only one door. Moreover, it is narrow and small. His sons are young and immature and have no understanding. They are attached to the place where they play. So, they may fall and be burned in the fire.”
>> “In this way, though sentient beings all possess the flawless seeds of world-transcending wisdom, they will still be scorched by the flames of affliction of the Three Realms.”
“Sadly, sentient beings are deluded by ignorance,
so they are lacking in wisdom and awareness.
Because they are not alert and afraid,
they have no sense of renunciation,
nor do they seek liberation
or recognize suffering.”
Sentient beings! Sentient beings are truly pitiable. There is so much suffering in the world; we see and experience it, yet we do not think about how we can understand the origin of suffering. This is the delusion of sentient beings.
Why is there suffering? Because we “are lacking in wisdom.” Wisdom is inherent in everyone, but because of greed, our minds go astray, which causes us to commit various wrongs. Although we know this, we very quickly forget. Many people become temporarily alert right after they do something wrong, but they soon revert to making the same mistake. This is because our awareness is not high enough. Thus we are not alert or afraid; we do not know to be afraid, and do not know to be fearful.
If we had enough awareness, we would see that there are many disasters. In ourselves and in our families there are many illnesses of the mind and body along with a lack of harmony. We suffer from parting with those we love and meeting those we hate, and there are manmade calamities and imbalances of the four elements. On top of all this, life is [impermanent]. If we were constantly aware of all these things, how could we be so attached to this life? How could we be so greedy for objects of desire in this world? But because we are neither alert nor afraid, we constantly make mistakes. Even though we should not do something, we do it over and over again. This is the way we live.
Living this way is so sad! This happens because we do not seek liberation, because we “[do not] recognize suffering.” We sentient beings perceive suffering as joy. We may understand the principles, and upon hearing them they make sense, but after a while, our habitual tendencies resurface. These habitual tendencies are the source of our suffering in life.
Isn’t this what the Buddha referred to in His lifetime with the analogy of the burning house? Aren’t we the beings that the Buddha told His disciples about as a reminder to heighten their vigilance? Although we live in modern times, if we can take the teachings He gave in that era and apply them right now, then aren’t they suitable for our times?
We constantly say that we should. “Hold nature in awe and gather good affinities.” We should respect the heavens, love the earth and accumulate good affinities in our relationships. This also teaches us that we cannot do whatever we please. The four elements of this world must be in balance in order for people on earth to live in safety. In relationships with others, we should show mutual gratitude and respect and constantly form good affinities. We must encourage everyone to do good deeds and create good affinities. This is what we must always find a way to teach. When we follow the Middle Way, we must not deny the law of karma. [The Middle Way applies to] cause and effect, to teaching a sense of reverence and to proper behavior in our relationships. All of this needs to be taught.
So, we must understand the virtues of nature. However advanced our technology may be, no matter how developed it is, it is in fact inseparable from nature. Scientists constantly use their worldly knowledge to investigate all the natural resources in this world. They constantly use resources in their environment for research, to make innovations and for further study etc. Technology is not possible without the resources inherently contained in the world around us. This is the hidden virtue of nature. These resources have always been there, stored within the earth. We humans then apply our knowledge to look for them, extract them and assemble them. This process of extraction and manufacturing causes extensive destruction of the earth and extensive pollution of our air. Air pollution results in the imbalance of the four elements, which then also damages the earth.
To satisfy our desires and gain advantages, we have shaped the world we live in today. With our planet and our air the way they are, disasters frequently occur. If we think about it, this is because we see this world as merely holding these objects of desire, which we extract out of insatiable greed. We do not see nature’s virtue of nourishing humans. We have no sense of the earth’s grace and virtue in providing that which we need to survive. Humans do not know to be grateful; we are only interested in greedily grasping. “As long as it makes me happy, why not do it?”
If we talk about “impermanence,” [people say,] “In any case, today I’m healthy. In any case, today I still have everything. In any case, today….” They are always so short-sighted, only seeing what is in front of them. They never think of the hazards concealed in what is in front of them. This is how we are unknowing, unaware and not alert or afraid. This is the delusion of sentient beings.
Everyone, don’t we Buddhist practitioners need to transform consciousness into wisdom? Since we already have so much knowledge, we should be seeking wisdom. Part of wisdom is discerning wisdom. We must be able to discern right from wrong. When something is right, we must promptly work hard to seek the “principles of what is right.” Here, “right” means according to the principles. The right thing to do is the correct course to follow. We must immediately choose to go in the right direction.
Every day, when chanting the Three Refuges, we say, “May sentient beings comprehend the great path and form the supreme aspiration.” Since we know the course of the great path, how could we allow even a slight deviation, or simply take it slow? We must move promptly. “May all sentient beings delve deeply into the Sutra Treasury.” We cannot take it slow. We must follow the principles and
“delve deeply into the Sutra Treasury.” Our tempers and our negative habitual tendencies must all be corrected right away. If we do this, we will have the wisdom to know what we should and should not do; then we will never deviate from this road.
We also chant, “May all sentient beings harmoniously lead the people.” We need to “harmoniously lead the people.” Does “harmoniously lead the people” mean we should become an army general? Or should we become a president to lead them? Right now, the title is not important. In our day and age, how should we harmoniously lead the people? With the path, our virtue and our example.
We must follow the virtue of this path to cultivate inwardly and practice outwardly. Internal cultivation brings merit, and external practice brings virtue. After we “comprehend the great path” in our minds, we must “form the supreme aspiration.” With this constant motivation to seek the Dharma, we “delve deeply into the sutra treasury.” Only by doing this can we awaken “wisdom as vast as the ocean.” When we find the direction of this path and cultivate inwardly, our virtue will manifest outwardly. “The fragrance of virtue permeates everything.”
This is the fragrance of the Dharma, the fragrance of the path and of virtue. After earnestly listening to the Dharma, our minds will find the direction of the path. By going down this path, naturally people will see that we are spiritually refined and are virtuous and that our words can be trusted. Then we will be role models. As role models we can “harmoniously lead the people.”
To be role models for other people, we must nurture our own character. We must change our temper and habitual tendencies. Otherwise people will see our character as lacking. So, we must earnestly cultivate our ability to be role models for the world.
Wisdom, as we said yesterday, comes from always “seeking the path to Buddhahood” and from “transforming sentient beings.” Wisdom comes from seeking the path to Buddhahood. Only with wisdom can we awaken the compassion in our hearts. Only when we have compassion can we put the teachings into practice, achieve the wondrous uses of spiritual powers and attain the power of fearlessness.
“Fearlessness” and “having no fear” are different. “Having no fear” is when we say, “So what? As long as it makes me happy, why not do it?” Not knowing to be afraid is very dangerous. But the power of “fearlessness” comes from the stability of character. Then the things we do will be right,
and when it is the right thing, we will do it. This comes from [understanding] the principles. Yesterday we discussed not being afraid when we enter dangerous places for the sake of transforming sentient beings. When we carefully consider everything, we will not be scared. When the Buddha came to this world, He was not scared because. He came for the sake of one great cause. To save and transform sentient beings, He repeatedly returned to this world.
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas never stop returning to this world. In the process of their practice, they feared transmigration in the Six Realms, so they engaged in spiritual cultivation. They feared continuing to transmigrate in the Six Realms, so they engaged in practice. After engaging in spiritual practice for countless kalpas, they have already awakened. After they awaken, they are no longer scared, so they return to this world. When they return, they are not scared because their character has been perfected and their wisdom is complete. They understand all the principles of the universe so they return to this world for the sake of this one great cause, to transform sentient beings. They go among people and are not contaminated by them. This is the power of great fearlessness. It is not to say they have no fear, but that they already have spiritual powers of being at ease. This is something we should learn.
The previous sutra passage states,
“The Tathagata then had this thought, ‘If I simply used my spiritual powers and my powers of wisdom but set aside skillful means, and for the sake of sentient beings praised the Tathagata’s understanding and views, powers and fearlessness, sentient beings would not be able to attain liberation through this.'”
The Buddha already completely understood the truths of all things in the universe, not to mention people’s states of mind. He knew everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature. He could have said this directly, but it would have been of no use, because sentient beings would not be able to understand. No matter how. He might praise the enlightened state of mind, we would still not be able to understand. So, sentient beings could not take the Buddha’s teachings to heart. With a few words He could have revealed the suffering of cyclic existence in the Six Realms so that sentient beings would quickly return to the right path, but we were far from ready. Sentient beings’ capabilities were greatly lacking. The Buddha could not just use a few simple words to explain, so He had to use many methods and establish the Three Vehicles to guide us. This was in the previous passage.
It continues with,
“Why is this so? Sentient beings are not yet able to avoid birth, aging, illness, death worry, sadness, suffering and afflictions and are scorched in the burning house of the Three Realms. How could they understand the Buddha’s wisdom?”
If sentient beings have not yet experienced suffering, they have no way to recognize it. So, I constantly talk about “experiencing.” If we have never really experienced illness, we may think, “I will be healthy forever.”
So it says, “Why is this so? Sentient beings are not yet able to avoid birth, aging, illness, death worry, sadness, suffering and afflictions.” If sentient beings have not yet truly and personally experienced suffering, they lack awareness and understanding. Everyone is like this. “Sentient beings are not able to be transformed” because they still cannot understand; though facing suffering they do not experience it, so “they do not listen to the teachings.”
Sentient beings are not able to be transformed because they do not listen to the teachings. With severe obstacles from the Five Turbidities, they cannot avoid being scorched by the fires of birth, aging and so on. Thus they cannot understand, realize and enter the wondrous Dharma of the Great Vehicle.
If we say, “Come listen to the Dharma,” they reply, “It’s too early; I can’t get up. It’s too cold; I can’t make it. I’m too busy; I can’t make it.” Many truly have “no Dharma to transform them.” That is because they do not listen to teachings. If they do not listen to or accept the Dharma, how can they be transformed by it? So, many have “no Dharma to transform them.”
This is due to “severe obstacles from the Five Turbidities.” The Five Turbidities include the turbidities of views, sentient beings and life. There is so much turbidity around us. This is an era of afflictions; so many afflictions arise in sentient beings, resulting in afflictions of “views.” When these afflictions of all kinds are in one place, they are known as the Five Turbidities. The Five Turbidities and all the impurities in this world have covered our intrinsic nature. Thus they are obstacles for us.
In families there are familial obstacles. In society there are societal obstacles. In businesses there are business obstacles. Greed for fame and fortune etc. are obstacles. There are indeed many of these. Once we experience this, we are already being burned by the fire. It is already too late.
“They cannot understand, realize or enter the wondrous Dharma of the Great Vehicle.” If it is already too late, how can they possibly understand? How can they become awakened? In life, if we do not seize every moment, that will be very lamentable and sad.
The next line states, “[They] are scorched in the burning house of the Three Realms.” This is a consequence of being unaware. If we are unwilling to learn, we will not be able to understand that we are already in the Three Realms, and the fire is closing in. Sentient beings still “dally in the burning house, so they cannot be transformed.” They are still dallying there, so they cannot be transformed.
Sentient beings dally in the burning house, so they cannot be transformed. With the darkness of ignorance obscuring their Six Sense Organs, their bodies, minds and all matters are not under their control, and they cannot faithfully accept the Right Dharma.
“The darkness of ignorance obscures their Six Sense Organs.” We unenlightened beings are still affected by the Six Sense Organs, Six Sense Objects and Six Consciousnesses. The Six Sense Organs connect with the Six Sense Objects around us, giving rise to consciousness and knowledge. It is through the Six Consciousnesses that those impediments, those obstacles of turbidity, accumulate in our minds. When our senses connect with sense objects, we are led to greedily grasp at the objects of our desire. So, the workings of our body, mind and all matters are beyond our control.
This is because we do not normally make the effort to faithfully accept Right Dharma. If we regularly make the effort to do this, Right Dharma will constantly permeate our hearts. The Dharma is like water; it can cleanse our minds of impurities. If we do not accept the Dharma, we cannot wash away the impurities. Thus we continue to be deluded. So, “How could they understand the Buddha’s wisdom?”
As stated in a previous passage that we had discussed some time ago, in the parable about the burning house we find,
“This house has only one door. Moreover, it is narrow and small. His sons are young and immature and have no understanding. They are attached to the place where they play. So, they may fall and be burned in the fire.”
The people inside the burning house are just like young and immature children; we lack an understanding of the matters of this world and of the workings of our body and mind. If there is no one to teach us, if we do not accept the teachings, it would be easy for us to fall and “be burned in the fire.” That means we do not have the capabilities and conditions for accepting the Dharma.
“In this way, though sentient beings all possess the flawless seeds of world-transcending wisdom, they will still be scorched by the flames of affliction of the Three Realms.”
We all have this; we are all replete with these flawless seeds. These flawless seeds are the Three Flawless Studies, precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. Actually, as long as we are willing to be mindful, is there anyone who cannot uphold the precepts? As long as we are willing to be mindful, who cannot attain a state of Samadhi? As long as we are willing to learn, who cannot awaken wisdom? Everyone intrinsically has the same nature as the Buddha, but unfortunately we remain in the Three Realms. “Sadly, sentient beings are deluded by ignorance so they are lacking in wisdom and awareness.” Because we are not scared, we do not understand that we are in a very dangerous place. Thus, we do not seek liberation. That is why we say we will take it slow in listening to teachings and take it slow in improving our temper. Isn’t this the case? So, we must be cautious and always be mindful.