Author: Scott Ogata

Episode 960 – Serving All Buddhas in the Causal Ground

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>> In the causal ground, we have distinctive practices, such as diligently sweeping the grounds of the Sangharama. On attaining Buddhahood we will have magnificent circumstantial and direct retributions, refined and pure and superior to gold. Having completely eliminated delusions and deeply realized the discourses of the Dharmakaya is like having extracted pure gold from ore; this radiance never changes.

>> “At that time, the World-Honored One again told all bhiksus, ‘Today, I say to you that this man Mahakatyayana, in his future lifetimes, with all kinds of devotional items, will make offerings to and serve 800 billion Buddhas with reverence and respect’.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “After all these Buddhas enter Parinirvana, he will build stupas and temples for each, with heights of 1000 yojanas and lengths and widths precisely equal, 500 yojanas. Gold, silver, crystal, mother-of-pearl, chalcedony, pearl and rose stone, the Seven Treasures, will be used to build them.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> Stupas and temples: Those with sariras inside are called stupas. Those with only pictures and statues for making offerings are called temples.

>> Yojana is a Sanskrit word. It is a measure of distance. The Great [Perfection of Wisdom] Treatise says there are three definitions of one yojana, the longest is 80 li, the middle is 60 li and the shortest is 40 li.

>> [With] lengths and widths precisely equal, 500 yojanas: Their length and width have precisely equal measurements of 500 yojanas. This signifies the Fivefold Dharmakaya.

>> The Fivefold Dharmakaya is the Buddha-body attained by the fulfillment of five kinds of virtuous Dharma.

>> The Fivefold Dharmakaya 1. Dharmakaya of Precepts: This means the Tathagata’s Threefold Karma is free from all faults.

>> The Fivefold Dharmakaya 2. Dharmakaya of Samadhi: This means the Tathagata’s true mind has reached tranquil extinction and is free from all delusions.

>> The Fivefold Dharmakaya 3. Dharmakaya of Wisdom: This means the Tathagata’s true wisdom is perfect and radiant and can completely understand the nature and appearance of all phenomena.

>> The Fivefold Dharmakaya 4. Dharmakaya of Liberation: This means the Tathagata’s body and mind are liberated from all entanglements.

>> The Fivefold Dharmakaya 5. Dharmakaya of Liberation’s Understanding and Views: This means the Tathagata possesses the wisdom of understanding His true achievement of liberation.

>> Gold, silver, crystal: Crystals were produced in Varanasi. Their form is translucent and pure.

>> Mother-of-pearl: In the ocean there are great shellfish. They look like a cart’s wheels. They are the great sea snails or conches. Chalcedony: Among the rocks, these are elegant and their color is rosy, like the brain of a horse.

>> Pearls: Clams and similar creatures take in the moonlight and form pearls. Rose stone: This refers to a stone that is unusually beautiful and perfectly pure.

>> The Seven Treasures will be used to build them. These are treasures. The Seven Treasures are gold, silver, crystal, mother-of-pearl, chalcedony, pearl and rose [stone].

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“In the causal ground, we have distinctive practices, such as diligently sweeping the grounds of the Sangharama.
On attaining Buddhahood we will have magnificent circumstantial and direct retributions, refined and pure and superior to gold. Having completely eliminated delusions and deeply realized the discourses of the Dharmakaya
is like having extracted pure gold from ore; this radiance never changes.”

The Chapter on Bestowing Predictions says that the Buddha wanted to bestow on His disciples predictions of attaining Buddhahood in the future. The process of attaining Buddhahood is a very long one. It requires a long time of spiritual practice. For many lifetimes, we must, “in the causal ground, have distinctive practices.” In the process, the seeds we plant must all be pure good seeds. As we engage in long-term practice over innumerable kalpas, we face discursive thoughts and external information. No matter how the external world entices us, our minds must be without greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. This means among the seeds in our consciousness there are absolutely no seeds of greed and absolutely no seeds of anger. So, the seeds of greed, anger, ignorance, etc. have all been eliminated.

What does “distinctive practices” mean? For example, in asking for alms, Venerable Kasyapa and Subhuti were very different. One’s distinctive practice was, “I will only beg for alms from the poor, so that the poor also have an opportunity to sow seeds of blessings. I want to deliver poor sentient beings and give them blessed conditions.” This was Venerable Kasyapa’s distinctive practice. Subhuti’s was, “I will only go to those who are wealthy because I cannot bear to ask the poor for alms and thus reduce the amount of food they have to eat. I will ask for alms from the wealthy.” They all had their different methods and ideas about daily living. These are their distinctive practices. Also, each one specialized in his own practice. One [specialized] in understanding emptiness, the other, in Brahma-conduct. This was what they had cultivated

in their daily lives. So, “In the causal ground, we have distinctive practices.” The ways that all of us practice are each different, but we all equally listen to the Dharma and engage in spiritual practice. Each person follows the rules in listening to teachings and engaging in practice.

“In the causal ground, we have distinctive practices, such as diligently sweeping the grounds of the Sangharama.” The places where spiritual practitioners live, whether temples or abodes, can all be called Sangharama. For spiritual practitioners, whether in a past life, the present life or a future lifetime, everyone must cherish the Sangharama. The areas surrounding the Sangharama have to be swept clean. These are lifestyle habits. These are also “distinctive practices.” These are also methods of spiritual practice.

If we are able to keep our environment clean, such that everything around us is pure, this expresses that our mind is pure. I often say that our behavior shows the state of our minds. Our behavior is dictated by the mind. So it says, “[We] diligently sweep the grounds of the Sangharama.” This is related to our spiritual practice. This is because whatever is in our mind is what is expressed in our external conduct.

“On attaining Buddhahood we will have magnificent circumstantial and direct retributions,” If we want to attain Buddhahood in the future, our future circumstantial and direct retributions will depend on our conduct in our daily living. The behavior we demonstrate in this life is a result of the causes that we continuously accumulated in past lives. There are positive causes, earnest and diligent causes, primary causes and differing causes; all are accumulated through our spiritual practice. “On attaining Buddhahood we will have magnificent circumstantial and direct retributions”

that are “refined and pure and superior to gold.” Gold must be extracted from a gold mine and must undergo a continuous, long period of refinement. There are other substances in the mine, such as rocks, sand and dirt. Among the sand, rocks and dirt, we can continually refine and extract gold. So, if we want to attain Buddhahood, we must undergo a long period of refinement. The circumstantial and direct retributions of attaining Buddhahood are as magnificent as gold. They have great worth and are magnificent so they require a long period of accumulation.

What are we accumulating over a long time? “Completely eliminating delusions and deeply realizing the discourses of the Dharmakaya.” Delusions refer to ignorance and confusion. In this present lifetime, there are many things we cannot understand, many things over which we are still deluded. We still have ignorance confusing us. Now, we must rely on our current causes and conditions and listen to the Buddha-Dharma. Since we have layer after layer of delusions, we must eliminate our ignorance layer by layer. So, to have “completely eliminated delusions” will take a very long time, and it requires deep roots of faith. The path of spiritual practice is a long one. If we can walk it without deviating, in this way we are deeply realizing.

We understand many principles, so we no longer create afflictions and ignorance. When we speak, we share about the path we have walked and the teachings we have listened to. After listening, we changed. We no longer make mistakes, and we can share our realizations with everyone. With discourses like this, we can naturally return to the Dharmakaya.

So, the Dharmakaya is the Dharma that has become our own. When we take the Dharma into our hearts, it becomes marrow. This “marrow” has the function of making “blood.” This is our Dharma-marrow. This is the positive potential of our experience. This is called the Dharmakaya. When we encounter people, matters and things, we will thoroughly understand the principles. We understand, do not make mistakes and can speak about it. This is the “discourse of the Dharmakaya.”

It is “like having extracted pure gold from ore.” This is like rocks and dirt pulled from a mine. They are refined to get gold; this reveals their true essence. We are refined to get the nature of True Suchness and realize the principles. The principles of absolute truth and our nature of True Suchness resonate with each other. This is “having extracted pure gold from ore; this radiance never changes.” It never ever changes. When our nature of True Suchness is awakened, in our daily living, we will be very clear on the principles and will be able to then pass them on.

Spiritual practice is this simple. In our daily lives, in our dealings with people, matters and our surrounding environment, the way we express ourselves with body and mind is called engaging in spiritual practice. So, the Buddha observed the daily living of His disciples and bestowed predictions of Buddhahood on them.

The previous sutra passage said, “At that time, the World-Honored One again told all bhiksus, ‘Today, I say to you that this man Mahakatyayana, in his future lifetimes, with all kinds of devotional items, will make offerings to and serve 800 billion Buddhas with reverence and respect’.”
In reading this sutra passage, we know that this will require a long time [Katyayana’s] spiritual practice begins with “[using] all kinds of devotional items to make offerings to and serve [Buddhas].”

The next sutra passage says, “After all these Buddhas enter Parinirvana, he will build stupas and temples for each, with heights of 1000 yojanas and lengths and widths precisely equal, 500 yojanas. Gold, silver, crystal, mother-of-pearl, chalcedony, pearl and rose stone, the Seven Treasures, will be used to build them.”

“After all these Buddhas enter Parinirvana” refers to the 800 billion Buddhas he makes offerings to. After each Buddha enters Parinirvana, “He will build stupas and temples for each,” making the stupas and temples as tall as possible, “with heights of 1000 yojanas.”

Stupas and temples: Those with sariras inside are called stupas. Those with only pictures and statues for making offerings are called temples.

Stupas and temples are there to display virtue. The greater the virtue and spiritual practice, the higher the stupa will be. The stupas have sariras inside them. They have the Buddha’s sariras. So, “He will build stupas and temples for each.” After each Buddha enters Parinirvana, in the end His sariras will be enshrined in a stupa.

“Those with only pictures and statues for making offerings are called temples.” If there are sariras, that means after a Buddha enters Perfect Rest, His bones and ashes are enshrined in the stupa. As for temples, there are golden statues of Him or pictures that were drawn. It has been like this since ancient times

Yojana is a Sanskrit word. It is a measure of distance. The Great [Perfection of Wisdom] Treatise says there are three definitions of one yojana, the longest is 80 li, the middle is 60 li and the shortest is 40 li.

[Next is] “heights of 1000 yojanas.” Yojana is a Sanskrit word which is a measure of length. There are three measurements called yojanas. The longest yojana is 80 li. The middle yojana is 60 li. Following that is the small yojana, which is only 40 li;

they are all measures of length. This is known as a yojana. This word often appears in the sutras. Today we use kilometers, but at that time, they [measured] using yojanas

[With] lengths and widths precisely equal, 500 yojanas: Their length and width have precisely equal measurements of 500 yojanas. This signifies the Fivefold Dharmakaya.

“[With] lengths and widths precisely equal, 500 yojanas. Lengths and widths” are distances straight through and across. Straight through is the “length,” and across is the “width.” So, whether the length or width, the measurement is the same. They were 500 yojanas long and 500 yojanas wide. This signifies the Fivefold Dharmakaya. This means that regardless of the height or the width, “[the base had] precisely equal measurements.” So, when constructing stupas and temples, this is how things should be done. “Their length and width have”

The Fivefold Dharmakaya is the Buddha-body attained by the fulfillment of five kinds of virtuous Dharma.

“precisely equal measurements of 500 yojanas, which signifies the Fivefold Dharmakaya.” What is the Fivefold Dharmakaya? ․”The Fivefold Dharmakaya is the Buddha-body attained by the fulfillment of five kinds of virtuous Dharma.”

First is the Dharmakaya of precepts. “The Tathagata’s Threefold Karma is free from all faults.”

The Fivefold Dharmakaya 1. Dharmakaya of Precepts: This means the Tathagata’s Threefold Karma is free from all faults.

If we want to engage in spiritual practice, we must uphold the precepts. If we do not uphold the precepts, how can we eliminate afflictions? How can we eliminate negative karma? The past afflictions we had created are our wrongdoings; since we committed them, we have accumulated many karmic forces. But, “The Tathagata’s Threefold Karma is free from all faults.” What is the Threefold Karma? It refers to [the karma of] body, speech and mind. Indeed! The Tathagata’s body, speech and mind were all completely without fault. He did not speak improperly, nor did He give rise to false thoughts, nor did He commit wrongdoings. These were the precepts that the Buddha cultivated over many kalpas

Second is the Dharmakaya of Samadhi, which is to say, “The Tathagata’s true mind has reached tranquil extinction and is free from all delusions.”

The Fivefold Dharmakaya 2. Dharmakaya of Samadhi: This means the Tathagata’s true mind has reached tranquil extinction and is free from all delusions.

The Tathagata’s mind is always tranquil and clear, for it returned to the emptiness of the universe. It is without any defilement at all. So, His true mind is without deluded thoughts. He is undefiled by turbidities

Third is the Dharmakaya of wisdom [When speaking of] wisdom, “This means the Tathagata’s true wisdom is perfect and radiant and can completely understand the nature and appearance of all phenomena.”

The Fivefold Dharmakaya 3. Dharmakaya of Wisdom: This means the Tathagata’s true wisdom is perfect and radiant and can completely understand the nature and appearance of all phenomena.

The Buddha’s wisdom, this Dharmakaya, is already perfect and radiant. There are no matters or appearances in this world that the Buddha does not understand. So, all things are thoroughly understood by Him [He had] the Six Powers and Three Insights; everything was clear to Him

The Fivefold Dharmakaya 4. Dharmakaya of Liberation: This means the Tathagata’s body and mind are liberated from all entanglements.

Fourth is the Dharmakaya of liberation, meaning the Tathagata’s body and mind are liberated from all entanglements. In His body and mind, there are no worldly afflictions entangling His mind. He is completely liberated. Since He is clear on the principles, what would be able to influence His mind? Everything He did was completely without error. This is how the Tathagata has been liberated from all delusions in the world. This is the Dharmakaya of complete liberation and freedom.

The Fivefold Dharmakaya 5. Dharmakaya of Liberation’s Understanding and Views: This means the Tathagata possesses the wisdom of understanding His true achievement of liberation.

Fifth is the “Dharmakaya of liberation’s understanding and views.” Liberation’s Understanding and Views means He is not simply liberated. “This means the Tathagata possesses the wisdom of understanding His true achievement of liberation.”

“Only after I understand the Dharma myself can I share it with everyone else.” So, it is not to say, “I heard people say this and I understand it this way. I am unable to do it myself, but I will tell you to do it.” It is not like this. The Buddha has already walked this path Himself and is Himself already liberated. It is this kind of wisdom. In the sutra we often recite, the Sutra of Infinite Meanings, don’t we often chant “precepts, Samadhi, wisdom, liberation and liberation’s understanding and views”? This is the Fivefold Dharmakaya. This is the Dharmakaya. By expounding the Dharma, the Dharmakaya *will always be passed down. It still remains with us today.

Gold, silver, crystal: Crystals were produced in Varanasi. Their form is translucent and pure.

So, there is “gold, silver, crystal, mother-of-pearl, chalcedony, pearl and rose stone.” All this “gold, silver and crystal” is from the kingdom of Varanasi. In India, these things were very valuable. Of “mother-of-pearl and chalcedony,” mother-of-pearl is found in the ocean. Mother-of-pearl is found on sea snails or conches. Inside stones, chalcedony is that most elegant essence, which is then extracted.

Mother-of-pearl: In the ocean there are great shellfish. They look like a cart’s wheels. They are the great sea snails or conches. Chalcedony: Among the rocks, these are elegant and their color is rosy, like the brain of a horse.

So, all of these things, whether from the ocean or the mountains, are all things of great value. Pearls are all taken from the ocean. Everyone knows this. “Rose stone” is excavated from mines

Pearls: Clams and similar creatures take in the moonlight and form pearls. Rose stone: This refers to a stone that is unusually beautiful and perfectly pure.

This shows that the mountains and oceans are both filled with precious things. Many of these treasures are used for analogies. Actually, our Saha World is full of treasures, but we have not yet refined them. These things are all hidden in the world we now live in. The Saha World is replete in the Seven Treasures. The tangible things are the Seven Treasures; the intangible [treasures] are the true principles. This is [the world] that we live in; it has always been like this, yet we have not recognized it.

So, “These Seven Treasures will be used to build them.” In Katyayana’s future, in his future circumstantial retributions, his land will have these things. Why will he attain this? He will make the same offerings to all Buddhas, the 800 billion Buddhas. With so many Buddhas, he will show his sincerity. The ignorance in his mind will be eliminated. His mind will hold utmost reverence and respect. The Seven Treasures will be used to build [stupas]. This is how he will make offerings to the Buddhas ․”The Seven Treasures will be used to build them.” These are treasures. The Seven Treasures are gold, silver, crystal, mother-of-pearl, chalcedony, pearl and rose [stone]. These are called the Seven Treasures.

The Seven Treasures will be used to build them. These are treasures. The Seven Treasures are gold, silver, crystal, mother-of-pearl, chalcedony, pearl and rose [stone].

In learning the Buddha’s Way, it is most important to begin cultivating in the causal ground. If we do not earnestly and diligently advance in our lives, how can we say we engage in spiritual practice? Spiritual practice requires an environment. This environment comes from the causes that have been accumulated in our past time, space and relationships over a long time. Virtuous causes and actions are accumulated like this.

So, we must truly listen to the Dharma and purify our minds by making effort to listen. After taking the principles to heart, we must share the realizations we gained. This is the Dharmakaya. So, we Buddhist practitioners must truly make vows and take the Dharma deeply to heart. Only then are we able to attain the Dharmakaya and spread these discourses among people. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 959 – Making Respectful Offerings to All

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>> We will make offerings to so many countless numbers of Buddhas and construct so many stupas and temples to display Their virtues. We will make offerings to all Dharma, to conditions and to truth. We actualize the Six Paramitas in all actions with the Four Practices and Great Vows to be replete with infinite great awakening.

>> “That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas. Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “At that time, the World-Honored One again told all bhiksus, ‘Today, I say to you that this man Mahakatyayana, in his future lifetimes, with all kinds of devotional items, will make offerings to and serve 800 billion Buddhas with reverence and respect’.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> This passage explains the prediction for Katyayana. The Buddha bestowed this prediction that he will attain Buddhahood in a future lifetime. In the times when a Buddha is in the world, Katyayana will make offerings to and serve Him. After these Buddhas enter Parinirvana, he will make offerings of stupas and temples. Afterwards he will again encounter a Buddha, again meet and serve Him, make offerings and undertake His mission. Then he can start to fulfill the Bodhisattva-path of actualizing the Six Paramitas in all actions.

>> At that time, the World-Honored One again told all bhiksus, Today, I say to you…: The Buddha, in His compassion and wisdom, taught so listeners could realize the principles. Those who heard it before could listen again; those who had not heard it could listen now. Thus it says He again told all bhiksus.

>> This Mahakatyayana: Wanting to distinguish him from people in the Sangha with the same name, The Buddha specified by saying “Maha”. Katyayana: One of the Buddha’s ten great disciples.

>> Mahakatyayana: This means Adorned with Language. Born in a Brahmin clan in a southern kingdom, he was foremost in discussion of doctrine. His prose was vibrant, his words and thoughts flowed, he was naturally adorned with language.

>> In his future lifetimes, with all kinds of devotional items: These are things to be used as offerings. They are also called offerings for the Way. These are the things with which we can make offerings of material objects, reverence and conduct to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Flowers, fragrant oils, incense, food, lamps and so forth can be respectfully offered.

>> He will further practice giving, upholding precepts, patience, diligence, Samadhi and wisdom, the Six Paramitas, as his devotional items of practice.

>> [Katyayana] will make offerings to and serve 800 billion Buddhas: The state in which he makes offerings is that of Bodhisattvas who, to cultivate roots of goodness, merits and virtues, undertake the mission and make offerings to all Buddhas, enabling all those around to be lacking in nothing.

>> With reverence and respect: He can give rise to reverence to make offerings and serve Buddhas. This is sincere respect. The preceding is referring to what he will do when a Tathagata is in this world. Next it says that after a Buddha’s Parinirvana, he makes offerings of pagodas and temples.

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“We will make offerings to so many countless numbers of Buddhas
and construct so many stupas and temples to display Their virtues. We will make offerings to all Dharma, to conditions and to truth. We actualize the Six Paramitas in all actions
with the Four Practices and Great Vows to be replete with infinite great awakening.”

The process of spiritual practice requires a very long period of time. How long does it take? Many, many lifetimes. How much time? Countless kalpas. It will take a very long time for us to cultivate our mind. An unenlightened mind constantly fluctuates and has many afflictions and so much ignorance. So, we need a long time to absorb the Dharma, to take the Dharma to heart. Where does the Dharma come from? We must seek it from the Great Enlightened Ones, from the Buddhas and the Bodhisattvas.

The Buddha was one who reached great enlightenment. Bodhisattvas are those who enact that realization. So, it is from the Buddhas and the Bodhisattvas that we must seek the Dharma. Therefore, we must put the teachings into practice. “We will make offerings to so many countless numbers of Buddhas.” We have been constantly talking about both Venerable Kasyapa and Subhuti, how in their process of attaining Buddhahood, they will make offerings to 300 trillion Buddhas. This means that it will take a very long time. They must interact with countless people and must return time after time to the world while always seeking the Dharma in spiritual practice. They must “make offerings to so many.” They must give, must make offerings to countless Buddhas.

There are many ways of making offerings. They can “construct so many stupas and temples to display Their virtues.” Pagodas and temples are a way to display virtue. After Buddhas and Bodhisattvas enter Parinirvana, the relics collected from them are stored in stupas and temples. These relics represent their virtue.

“We will make offerings to all Dharma, to conditions and to truth.” Besides these tangible offerings that are used to praise their virtuous actions after their Perfect Rest, we also ordinarily make offerings through [the actions of] our bodies. We know we must demonstrate the virtues of the Buddhas and the Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattvas are our role models. Buddhas are our guiding teachers. So, we should try to emulate them and put their teachings into practice. Putting the teachings into practice is another way of making offerings.

“All Dharma, conditions and truth” is talking about how we spread the Buddha-Dharma throughout the world so that everyone can apply it. We must be mindful to recognize the Dharma and must understand the causes and conditions and the true principles within the Dharma. Where does the world’s suffering come from? Why is there so much suffering in the world? There are natural disasters and manmade calamities. The afflictions in people’s minds are the causes and conditions for these. Their families cause worries and hindrances. Where do these afflictive emotions come from? With causes and conditions come effects and retributions; thus they experience much torment and suffering. So, we must put our efforts into understanding the causes and conditions taught by the Dharma as well as people’s ignorance and afflictions and the ways people are tormented by suffering. We can deal with these worldly [situations] by applying the Buddha’s teachings to them. This is also a way for us to make offerings.

We must have a more thorough understanding of the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence and make great efforts to analyze the law of karma. We should also observe suffering in the world and its causation; what is the reason so much suffering has accumulated? When we understand this, we can bring it together with the Buddha-Dharma, connect it with the Buddha-Dharma. There is so much suffering in the world, but when we apply the Buddha-Dharma to that suffering, we understand that this is how it is. So, how can we eliminate all these various afflictions? Our minds must be clear about this. We must quickly engage in spiritual practice, which is to actualize the Six Paramitas in all of our actions. Actualizing the Six Paramitas in all actions is what we should quickly implement.

We also need “the Four Practices and Great Vows.” Actualizing the Six Paramitas in all actions requires the Four Practices, remember? Practice with nothing further, uninterrupted practice, extended practice and practice with reverence, these Four Practices, must be continual. They must be practiced without interruption. We must make the Four Great Vows. The Four Great Vows are. “I vow to deliver countless sentient beings, I vow to eliminate endless afflictions, I vow to learn infinite Dharma-doors” and. “I vow to attain unsurpassed Buddhahood.” To become “replete with infinite great awakening” takes a very long time, so we must be truly determined in our resolve.

The previous passage says, “That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas. Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas.”

Do we know which Buddha “that Buddha” refers to? Name and Appearance Tathagata. Who was this Buddha during the Buddha’s lifetime? It was Subhuti. This is saying that it will take him a long time of meeting countless sentient beings. He must walk the Bodhisattva-path life after life and seek the Dharma while transforming others. This is being repeated for us. After the prose passages finished, verses were used to help us better remember.

The next sutra passage says, “At that time, the World-Honored One again told all bhiksus, ‘Today, I say to you that this man Mahakatyayana, in his future lifetimes, with all kinds of devotional items, will make offerings to and serve 800 billion Buddhas with reverence and respect’.”

In this sutra passage, the Buddha had now begun to bestow a prediction of Buddhahood upon Katyayana, which means Katyayana will attain Buddhahood in a future lifetime. He bestowed this prediction on him. Katyayana must serve 800 billion Buddhas. Over a very long period of time, he must make offerings and serve [those Buddhas]; this will take him a very long time

This passage explains the prediction for Katyayana. The Buddha bestowed this prediction that he will attain Buddhahood in a future lifetime. In the times when a Buddha is in the world, Katyayana will make offerings to and serve Him. After these Buddhas enter Parinirvana, he will make offerings of stupas and temples. Afterwards he will again encounter a Buddha, again meet and serve Him, make offerings and undertake His mission. Then he can start to fulfill the Bodhisattva-path of actualizing the Six Paramitas in all actions.

Whenever there is a Buddha in the world, he will make offerings like this. Whenever any Buddha enters Parinirvana, he will make offerings of stupas. He will construct stupas and temples. This is how that future Buddha, before he attains Buddhahood, will personally serve and make offerings to every Buddha. After any Buddha enters Parinirvana, he will build a stupa, or make an offering of a temple. This is his process with every Buddha.

So, “Afterwards he will again encounter a Buddha.” After one Buddha enters Parinirvana, he will again encounter another Buddha and similarly “meet and serve Him, make offerings and undertake His mission.” He will again encounter another Buddha and make offerings to Him in the same way. “Then he can start to fulfill the Bodhisattva-path of actualizing the Six Paramitas in all actions.” This is how he will earnestly make offerings to and express respect for each Buddha. Whether a Buddha is still in the world, or has already entered Parinirvana, lifetime after lifetime, he will continually cultivate [reverence with] the Three Treasures and engage in spiritual practice with the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha.

So, “At that time, the World-Honored One again told all bhiksus, ‘Today, I say to you…'”

At that time, the World-Honored One again told all bhiksus, “Today, I say to you…”: The Buddha, in His compassion and wisdom, taught so listeners could realize the principles. Those who heard it before could listen again; those who had not heard it could listen now. Thus it says He “again told all bhiksus.”

“Now, I will tell you something.” This was the Buddha’s compassion and wisdom as He “taught so listeners could realize the principles.” The Buddha taught according to capabilities. Those sentient beings listening to the Dharma, his disciples, needed to mindfully take the Dharma to heart to connect with the principles the Buddha taught. So, He “taught so listeners could realize the principles.”

Those who heard it before could hear it again. After having heard it, they could continue to hear it again, for only then would they remember it deeply. By memorizing the Dharma, it becomes our own. This was the Buddha’s compassion; He hoped His disciples would listen to the Dharma, so He tirelessly repeated it over and over, until the disciples took the Dharma to heart and it became their own.

“Those who had not heard it could listen now.” He repeated it again in verse for those who had not yet heard it, so those coming later could hear it again. The Buddha repeatedly taught the Dharma like this. “Those who heard it before could listen again; those who had not heard it could listen now.” This is how the Buddha taught the Dharma. After teaching something once, He again taught it in verse; He used verses to teach it again. This was the Buddha’s mindfulness.

Now it says, “Today, I say to you.” Now the Buddha was going to teach them again, saying, “All of you bhiksus, everyone, you must listen mindfully.”

This Mahakatyayana: Wanting to distinguish him from people in the Sangha with the same name, The Buddha specified by saying “Maha”. Katyayana: One of the Buddha’s ten great disciples.

“This man Mahakatyayana….” He would next tell them about Mahakatyayana. Since there were many in the Sangha who had the same name, He added “maha” (great) in front of it to distinguish him from any others. It was not anyone else; it was this Katyayana who was one of the great disciples.

Mahakatyayana: This means Adorned with Language. Born in a Brahmin clan in a southern kingdom, he was foremost in discussion of doctrine. His prose was vibrant, his words and thoughts flowed, he was naturally adorned with language.

“Mahakatyayana” means “adorned with language.” Born to a Brahmin clan in a southern kingdom, among all of the disciples of the Buddha, he was “foremost in discussion of doctrine. His prose was vibrant, his words and thoughts flowed; he was naturally adorned with language.” Everyone reading this will be clear that everything he said was very elegant. No matter how he debated with others, he was always very graceful in his language. When he spoke with others, he was very talented and knowledgeable.

Once a non-Buddhist came to question Katyayana, “You all say that those who commit evil deeds will in the future remain in cyclic existence or descend into hell and so on, experience many sufferings. But those who have experienced suffering have never come back to tell us, ‘I’ve received punishment and have suffered I’ve been reborn in a place of great suffering. No one has ever come back and told us this, so how do we know there are future lifetimes? How can you explain this?”

Katyayana explained, “It is like someone who transgresses in the world. He has already committed a crime and has been caught and imprisoned. Think about it; can they return to tell you what their suffering was like in prison? This is not to mention that one day in hell lasts as long as a kalpa in this world. When people suffer in hell, Unremitting Hell is constant suffering. How can they return to the world to tell you of the sufferings which they experienced there? There is absolutely no way to escape hell, so how could they possibly return?”

The non-Buddhist then asked, “And the good people? Those who do good deeds are reborn in heaven. Why don’t they return to the world and tell everyone of the pleasures that they have experienced in heaven?” Katyayana replied by saying, “It is like someone falling into a latrine. Having gone to such lengths to finally get out, once they have gotten free and have cleaned their bodies and are furthermore living in a dignified place, do you really think they would wish “to jump back into the latrine again? The latrine is so foul and filthy. Do you think they would return? They would not. This world is full of turbidities. One reborn in heaven would not wish to return to this world.”

When [questions] like these regarding heaven and hell were asked by non-Buddhist practitioners, Katyayana was very graceful in the way he debated with them. They were all ultimately convinced by him. So, “He was foremost in discussion of doctrine.” This was Katyayana.

“In his future lifetimes, with all kinds of devotional items….” These were things used as offerings

In his future lifetimes, with all kinds of devotional items: These are things to be used as offerings. They are also called offerings for the Way. These are the things with which we can make offerings of material objects, reverence and conduct to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Flowers, fragrant oils, incense, food, lamps and so forth can be respectfully offered.

Thus, he is able to make offerings. He must make offerings to many Buddhas. These are things used to make sufficient offerings to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of material objects, reverence and conduct. These are offerings. Material offerings are things we often used to speak of.

Things used as material offerings include flowers and incense, or food, or oil for lamps. These are all materials used for making offerings. Paying respect with a heart of reverence is called making offerings of respect. Then there is conduct, making offerings through practicing the Dharma. How is this done? Through giving, upholding precepts, patience, diligence, Samadhi and wisdom, the practice of the Six Paramitas. Using these Six Paramitas, actualizing the Six Paramitas in all actions, is making offerings of conduct.

He will further practice giving, upholding precepts, patience, diligence, Samadhi and wisdom, the Six Paramitas, as his devotional items of practice.

The Six Paramitas, the Four Practices, the Four Great Vows, the Four Infinite Minds, etc. are all ways to make offerings of conduct. This way “[He] will make offerings to and serve 800 billion Buddhas.” He will use these kinds of material objects, a reverent attitude and putting teachings into action, going among people, transforming sentient beings and other similar conduct, to make offerings. This is “the state in which he makes offerings,” the state of mind he uses to make offerings to the Buddha

[Katyayana] will make offerings to and serve 800 billion Buddhas: The state in which he makes offerings is that of Bodhisattvas who, to cultivate roots of goodness, merits and virtues, undertake the mission and make offerings to all Buddhas, enabling all those around to be lacking in nothing

“[He is like] Bodhisattvas who, to cultivate roots of goodness, merits and virtues, undertake the mission and make offerings for all Buddhas.” Bodhisattvas who actualize the Six Paramitas in all actions use this kind of spiritual practice, these roots of goodness, these merits and virtues, in order to “undertake the mission and make offerings to all Buddhas.” So, Buddhas do not want your offerings of incense and flowers. Those merely express what is in your heart. It is not that Buddhas and Bodhisattvas actually want these things from you. No, these just show what is in your heart. Most important is our respect and our putting the Dharma into action. These are the best kind of offerings

“[They] enable all those around to be lacking in nothing.” This is how he will make offerings. This is the state of mind. Katyayana will use in the future to make offerings.

With reverence and respect: He can give rise to reverence to make offerings and serve Buddhas. This is sincere respect. The preceding is referring to what he will do when a Tathagata is in this world. Next it says that after a Buddha’s Parinirvana, he makes offerings of pagodas and temples.

“With reverence and respect” means “He can give rise to reverence to make offerings to and serve Buddhas.” This is expressing sincere respect, respect for the Buddha’s teachings. Putting them into practice like this, forming great aspirations, making great vows, is the best kind of offering. The previous [passage] is about “[what he does] when a Tathagata is in this world.” Next it says that after a Buddha’s Parinirvana, “He makes offerings of stupas and temples.”

So, lifetime after lifetime, when there is a Buddha in the world, we should make offerings with our bodies and minds. After the Buddha enters Parinirvana, the Dharma will remain in our minds, and we will still put it into practice. When we see temples and stupas, we should always give rise to reverence. This is how we learn the Buddha’s Way. When learning the Buddha’s Way, we should always be mindful and use it in our daily living. We must find ways to eliminate afflictions and take the Dharma to heart in our daily living. So, let us always be mindful.

Episode 958 – Spreading the Right Dharma

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>> The Buddha-land is dignified by Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattvas teach the Dharma to transform countless beings. The land is harmonious and peaceful because the Right Dharma is propagated. The people diligently cultivate the magnificence of blessings and wisdom.

>> “The number of Hearers is beyond calculation. They have all attained the Three Insights, possess the Six Spiritual Powers, abide in the Eight Liberations and have great might and virtue.”      [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “That Buddha will expound the Dharma and manifest the infinite spiritual powers and transformations, which are all inconceivable. All the heavenly beings and humans, numbering as many as the sands of the Ganges, will put their palms together, listen to and accept the Buddha’s words.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> That Buddha will expound the Dharma: While that Buddha, the World-Honored One, expounds the Dharma, if there are people who take joy in learning the Right Dharma, He will, according to their capabilities, teach with skillful means. This enables them to listen to the Dharma, understand and accept it and cultivate the causes to realize the effects.

>> Because Name and Appearance Tathagata uses His spiritual powers to expound the Dharma in empty space, the sentient beings in His land are all devout in their faith and take joy in goodness and uphold the Right Dharma of the Great Vehicle.

>> [He will] manifest infinite spiritual powers and transformations: For those who have faith, He only has to expound the Dharma. For those without faith, He must manifest spiritual powers to help them give rise to respect and faith; then He will expound the Dharma to them.

>> [These] are all inconceivable: One mind gives rise to myriad actions; the Two Truths are in perfect harmony, without obstructions in principles and matters. He can manifest infinite spiritual powers and transformations. This is the effortless and wondrous ability of Name and Appearance Buddha. How can this be comprehended by thinking and discussing?

>> All the heavenly beings and humans, numbering as many as the sands of the Ganges, all put their palms together, listen to and accept the Buddha’s words: There are many people in this Dharma-assembly. They all put their palms together to listen as they faithfully accept the Buddha’s words.

>> Those who listen to the Dharma all put their palms together. This expresses reverence and respect through their Threefold Karma. It also indicates that with the true principles of the Middle Way, unbiased toward emptiness, they listen to and accept the Buddha’s words and practice according to the Dharma.

>> “That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas. Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> This is predicting the fruits he will attain regarding his lifespan and turning of the Dharma. They are same as those of Kasyapa.

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“The Buddha-land is dignified by Bodhisattvas.
Bodhisattvas teach the Dharma to transform countless beings.
The land is harmonious and peaceful because the Right Dharma is propagated.
The people diligently cultivate the magnificence of blessings and wisdom.”

During the last few days we have heard about Subhuti’s prediction from the Buddha. His land will be full of treasures, and everyone there will form great aspirations and cultivate Bodhisattva practices. All the people there are so advanced in spiritual cultivation. We can see that when the people in a country engage in spiritual practice, treasures will definitely accumulate there. The country will certainly become very dignified, since everyone acts according to principles. So, as we walk this path, everywhere we look the surroundings will be beautiful, with rows of precious trees and a ground strewn with precious flowers. If our minds are beautiful, the surroundings we see will be very beautiful. When our minds are in harmony, every place becomes a dignified place. So, “This Buddha-land is dignified by Bodhisattvas.”

Look at how there is now a group of doctors in Nepal. These doctors, these Living Bodhisattvas, are there because there was a disaster in Nepal. Thus they all went together to Nepal. It has already been more than a month now. Just the teams of doctors from Taiwan have gone through many rotations; this is now already the seventh shift in that place. There is also a group of doctors from Malaysia who are there now.

They came across an elderly woman. She was constantly coughing among the crowd and was gasping for breath. There was a Malaysian doctor, a Dr. Chen, who quickly went and supported her. She saw her gasping like that, unable to stop coughing; what could be done? While there, the doctor understood she had chronic asthma and that she urgently needed an inhaler. They had the medication, but no inhaler. Inspired, Dr. Chen picked up a plastic beverage bottle. She took the plastic bottle, cleaned it thoroughly, then cut it so that she could place it over the old woman’s nose and mouth. With her nose and mouth covered like this, she then poured the medication through the mouth of the bottle, so the fumes from the medication could reach this old woman’s airways through her mouth and nose. Though she was gasping, she was able to inhale and exhale. After a while, the old woman said, “Oh, now I feel more comfortable.” She was no longer gasping for breath.

There was another case as well. She looked as if she was seriously ill. Her facial color did not look good, and she was thin and weak. It turned out to be kidney disease. She told them that each dialysis treatment costs 3000 rupees. She had to have dialysis twice a week. She told them that her husband’s retirement money had almost run out because of her dialysis, so she was not able to be treated for her disease. She had no way to receive dialysis. Our doctors felt this was unbearable. Everyone tried to find a way to have her evaluated so she could be provided with long term help and quickly sent her to get dialysis. That woman seemed to find precious benefactors in her life who hoped she would quickly regain her health. The second time they saw this woman, the color of her face had already changed. She was glowing and radiant. She was very joyful and also very grateful.

They also saw a disheveled youth who was filthy from head to toe. His hair was very long, and his body was dirty and unkempt. After receiving guidance from Tzu Chi volunteers, when people saw him next, no one recognized him. He introduced himself, “When I was here several days ago, that was how I looked. But an auntie from Taiwan gradually convinced me, to get my hair cut right away. After my haircut, I immediately went to bathe, and now here I am. Wow, you look so different!” His mind has been transformed, and thus his life changed.

Isn’t this how. “Bodhisattvas teach the Dharma to transform countless beings”? Bodhisattvas listen to the Dharma, teach the Dharma and practice the Dharma. The Dharma is spread by putting it into practice.

The Buddha’s birthplace, Nepal, the kingdom of Kapilavastu, is currently affected by disaster, and Bodhisattvas from the eight directions have come to provide assistance. They came from eight countries, from different places, all very far away, thousands of kilometers away, and assembled in that place. This shows how. “The land is harmonious and peaceful because the Right Dharma is propagated.” In that country, many people have crossed borders to get there to advance Right Dharma.

Look at that youth who, when the disaster happened, gave up on himself. Once his heart was washed clean by the Dharma and his thoughts transformed, he began to take care of his appearance, and was changed into a brand new person. He was changed into someone ready to help rebuild his country, someone willing to dedicate himself to others, a person who is able to go and help others. This is “people diligently cultivating the magnificence of blessings and wisdom.”

As long as everyone has the will, they diligently go among the people to serve. They not only give without expectations; by putting the Buddha’s teachings into practice, they can also turn people’s lives around and help everyone develop their good thoughts. So, the Dharma must be spread by people. Wherever the Dharma is, that is the Buddha’s country. Everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature, and when everyone exercises their nature of True Suchness, that is when the Dharma is spread among the people. So, let us always be mindful.

The previous sutra passage says, “The number of Hearers is beyond calculation. They have all attained the Three Insights, possess the Six Spiritual Powers, abide in the Eight Liberations and have great might and virtue.”

We have already explained the Three Insights and Six Spiritual Powers, and at the same time the Eight Liberations, which are the Eight Abandonments. We are already quite clear on these. “Abandonment” refers to abandoning evil and turning toward the good, abandoning coarse and heavy ignorance and afflictions and moving toward the fine, subtle and exquisite Buddha-Dharma, constantly advancing forward. There are eight methods for this. We have already explained them, so let us be mindful.

The next sutra passage says, “That Buddha will expound the Dharma and manifest the infinite spiritual powers and transformations, which are all inconceivable. All the heavenly beings and humans, numbering as many as the sands of the Ganges, will put their palms together, listen to and accept the Buddha’s words.”

We can clearly understand this. “That Buddha will expound the Dharma and manifest the infinite.” Which Buddha is “that Buddha”? Do you remember? Subhuti. When Subhuti attains Buddhahood in the future, his epithet will be Name and Appearance. “That Buddha will expound the Dharma.” This refers to this Buddha, Name and Appearance Tathagata. The time during which He will expound the Dharma will be a very long period of time

That Buddha will expound the Dharma: While that Buddha, the World-Honored One, expounds the Dharma, if there are people who take joy in learning the Right Dharma, He will, according to their capabilities, teach with skillful means. This enables them to listen to the Dharma, understand and accept it and cultivate the causes to realize the effects.

“If there are people who take joy in learning the Right Dharma.” When that Buddha expounds the Dharma, during the era when. Name and Appearance Tathagata expounds the Dharma, there will be people who will delight in listening to it. What they will listen to joyfully will be the Right Dharma. What that Buddha will expound, during His lifetime of 12 small kalpas, will be the Right Dharma. Because they can listen to the Dharma for a very long period of time, they will be joyful; this is all Right Dharma. “He will, according to their capabilities….” During that era of Right Dharma, the Buddha will expound the Dharma according to the capabilities of those sentient beings. Everyone will likewise be able to learn from the Buddha’s skillful means and thus experience joy and apply the Dharma. When that Buddha expounds the Dharma, those countless sentient beings, according to their capacities, will all take joy in listening to the Dharma.

So, “This enables them to listen to the Dharma and understand and accept it.” They are joyful because they can take the Dharma to heart. So, everyone can “cultivate the causes to realize the effects.” The causes are [created in] the processes of putting the Dharma into practice. Every day is a cause. Interacting with people and dealing with matters is the process by which we create causes. When brought to fruition, they yield effects. This is cultivating the causes to realize the effects. Working hard in listening to the Dharma, achieving understanding, serving others and attaining realizations are all seeds. These are the causes.

“Because Name and Appearance Tathagata uses His spiritual powers to expound the Dharma in empty space, the sentient beings in His land are all devout in their faith and take joy in goodness and uphold the Right Dharma of the Great Vehicle.”

Because Subhuti was foremost in understanding emptiness, when he attains Buddhahood in the future, this will be his cause. The cause of his practice continually is the understanding of emptiness. By completely understanding the principles, he could take things that exist and analyze them until reaching that completely pure and undefiled state. This was his understanding of emptiness. So, He “uses His spiritual powers to expound the Dharma in empty space.” He expounds the Dharma in empty space.

“The sentient beings in His land are all devout [and] take joy in goodness.” Everyone in His land is very reverent. Being “devout” means being reverent. They are exceedingly certain and focused, and they cultivate their contemplation. They are already firm in their resolve. This kind of power of Samadhi is what is meant by being devout in faith. They are very firm in their faith. So, they take joy in goodness; all do good deeds, so their good causes and their good seeds continuously accumulate. Thus, they are “all devout in their faith and take joy in goodness and uphold the Right Dharma of the Great Vehicle.” Everyone upholds the Right Dharma of the Great Vehicle

[He will] manifest infinite spiritual powers and transformations: For those who have faith, He only has to expound the Dharma. For those without faith, He must manifest spiritual powers to help them give rise to respect and faith; then He will expound the Dharma to them.

“[He will] manifest infinite spiritual powers and transformations.” There are some with such faith that. “He only has to expound the Dharma.” Since faith has arisen in them, their root of faith is deep, so they just need the Buddha’s teachings to continually be passed down to them. Then they can continually accept them. “For those without faith, He must manifest spiritual powers.” This Buddha expounds the Dharma in empty space. By using these spiritual powers, He can subdue and captivate those unbelievers so that faith and respect will also arise in them. When they have developed their faith, He can again begin to expound the Dharma.

In that land, He is truly expounding the Dharma; He uses many different methods to captivate sentient beings there. These methods are inconceivable! So, “One mind gives rise to myriad actions; the Two Truths are in perfect harmony”

[These] are all inconceivable: One mind gives rise to myriad actions; the Two Truths are in perfect harmony, without obstructions in principles and matters. He can manifest infinite spiritual powers and transformations. This is the effortless and wondrous ability of Name and Appearance Buddha. How can this be comprehended by thinking and discussing?

The sentient beings there, when they listen to the Buddha’s teachings, can all focus their minds single-mindedly. So, they wholeheartedly listen to the Buddha. Because they single-mindedly [listen], upon understanding the Dharma, they can accomplish myriad practices. See, [volunteers] travel thousands of kilometers and are able to cross over countries [and borders] to go to [Nepal] in order to save and transform sentient beings. In that place, “The Two Truths are in perfect harmony.” The Two Truths are the “truth of emptiness” and “truth of existence,” or “absolute truth” [and “worldly truth”]. These are the Two Truths. In emptiness, there is perfect harmony. This is “wondrous existence in emptiness.”

In that place, they are spreading the Dharma. They can save sentient beings without being attached, yet always respectful. This is perfect harmony in matters and principles. We are not attached to the role of being a savior, nor do we consider ourselves superior to others. This is not how we are. With all people and matters, we respect all. When others are suffering, we mindfully help them. Mindfully helping others is the principle. This kind of loving consolation is the manifestations of matters people can see. These are the people and matters. Dealing with matters like this, we handle them in perfect harmony. So, “The Two Truths are in perfect harmony.” Without obstructions in principles or matters, we can handle things very well.

So, “He can manifest infinite spiritual powers and transformations.” This is how we want to be. Everyone, please remember and understand this. It is like the young man who gave up on himself. Now he has been changed into a person who is able to help others. His life was transformed after just a few words. So, “This is the effortless and wondrous ability of Name and Appearance Buddha.” This is how He is; His actions are effortless. His methods are wondrously profound, giving without seeking anything in return and

transforming sentient beings by applying many different methods. This is “effortless and wondrous ability,” giving without seeking anything in return. “How can this be comprehended by thinking and discussing?” [It is not to say], “Let me think this over again. Is it possible that the Buddha taught like this?” Actually, if we mindfully consider this, it is not very difficult. Even a few words can transform a life, so we need not say, “That is inconceivable; that is impossible.” It is possible!

All the heavenly beings and humans, numbering as many as the sands of the Ganges, all put their palms together, listen to and accept the Buddha’s words: There are many people in this Dharma-assembly. They all put their palms together to listen as they faithfully accept the Buddha’s words.

Thus, “All the heavenly beings and humans, numbering as many as the sands of the Ganges, will put their palms together, listen to and accept the Buddha’s words.” There are so many. “There are many people in this Dharma-assembly.” Everyone in the assembly put their palms together as they listened to the Buddha expound the Dharma. As the Buddha gave the teachings, everyone faithfully accepted them and put them into practice.

So, “Those who listen to the Dharma all put their palms together.” This expresses “reverence and respect through their Threefold Karma.” The Threefold Karma is the karma of the body, speech and mind. Putting palms together respectfully with our body, verbally giving praise and [expressing] respect from the mind is what is meant by “expressing reverence and respect through their Threefold Karma”

Those who listen to the Dharma all put their palms together. This expresses reverence and respect through their Threefold Karma. It also indicates that with the true principles of the Middle Way, unbiased toward emptiness, they listen to and accept the Buddha’s words and practice according to the Dharma.

“It also indicates [the] true principles of the Middle Way, unbiased toward emptiness.” Through this Middle Way, which has no bias, no [attachment to] emptiness, through the true principles of the Middle Way, we express our respect. The Eight Liberations we spoke of yesterday also contain this meaning. So, “They listen to and accept the Buddha’s words and practice according to the Dharma.” This is how they listen and how they practice

“That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas. Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas.”

This will be the length of that Buddha’s lifespan, the length of Right Dharma, and the length of Dharma-semblance. This is the prediction of Subhuti’s fruitions when he attains Buddhahood. The Buddha gave this prediction to Subhuti to help him have even firmer faith in the future. So, his lifespan and his turning [of the Dharma-wheel] in that land will be the same as Kasyapa’s.

This is predicting the fruits he will attain regarding his lifespan and turning of the Dharma. They are same as those of Kasyapa.

The predictions for Venerable Kasyapa were the same. What Subhuti will attain in the future is the same. So, let us put our efforts into being mindful. If we are mindful, when reborn in the future, I trust that in our circumstantial retributions we will find ourselves together with Bodhisattvas, in a very dignified land. So for now, let us make the best use of our time, space and relationships to resonate with the Buddha-mind and dedicate ourselves to helping others. Then the time we spend in spiritual practice will naturally make us even sturdier, so we can diligently advance step by step. Let us always be mindful!

Episode 957 – Abiding in the Eight Liberations

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>> Whether in the past, present or future, we can have insight into our own or others’ past lives. We can know our own and others’ lives and see into future appearances of birth and death. We can end all Leaks, all afflictions, and clearly eliminate the ignorance of delusions of views. With the Eight Liberations, we can practice to enter the Samadhi of boundless space.

>> “In that land, that Buddha will transform countless sentient beings. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas, and all have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel. That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas.”      [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “The number of Hearers is beyond calculation. They have all attained the Three Insights, possess the Six Spiritual Powers, abide in the Eight Liberations and have great might and virtue.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> The number of Hearers is beyond calculation. They have all attained the Three Insights and possess the Six Spiritual Powers: The number of Hearers is also numerous. The Three Insights and Six Spiritual Powers are the fruits of the Hearers.

>> [They] abide in the Eight Liberations and have great might and virtue: The Eight Liberations are also called the Eight Abandonments. This is to abandon evil and turn toward good, abandon the crude and turn toward the fine and abandon the afflictions of the Three Realms to be liberated from them.

>> The Eight Liberations: 1. Contemplating external appearances when material desires arise 2. Contemplating external appearances when no material desires arise 3. Liberation of purity confirmed by the body 4. Liberation of the Samadhi of boundless space 5. Liberation of the Samadhi of [boundless] consciousness 6. Liberation of the Samadhi of absolute nothingness 7. Liberation of the Samadhi of neither thought nor absence of thought 8. Liberation of the cessation of feeling and perception.

>> The first of the Eight Liberations is contemplating external appearances when material desires arise: This means that spiritual practitioners should first examine their material body’s degeneration, decay and impurity. It is not something to love or take joy in. Thus they single-mindedly enter tranquil Samadhi.

>> The second of the Eight Liberations is contemplating external appearances when no material desires arise: Since in the desire realm, greed and desire are difficult to eliminate, we must contemplate the impurity of external appearances, give rise to renunciation and disgust and seek to eliminate them. That is why it says to contemplate appearances.

>> The third of the Eight Liberations is liberation of purity confirmed by the body: Purity comes from a pure appearance. It means to abandon the impure appearances of external form, so as to be clean, pure, and bright just like a wondrous treasure chamber. Thus one’s mind is clear and pure and joy will gradually increase.

>> The fourth of the Eight Liberations is the liberation of the Samadhi of boundless space: We abandon the impure form of our own body and abandon all the impure forms outside of us and abandon all the impure forms outside of us. When our mind abandons form, we can single-mindedly connect to emptiness and resonate with emptiness. Thus we enter the Samadhi of boundless space.

>> The fifth of the Eight Liberations is the the Samadhi of [boundless] consciousness: We single-mindedly connect to consciousness, which depends on the Five Skandhas and so on, all of which are impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self. As these things are false, deceitful and untrue, we give rise to renunciation and do not love or become attached to them. Thus, this is the liberation of [boundless] consciousness.

>> The sixth of the Eight Liberations is the Samadhi of absolute nothingness: We depend on the Five Skandhas and so on, which are all impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self. As these things are false, deceitful and untrue, we must abandon them and not love or be attached to them. Thus this is the liberation of the Samadhi of absolute nothingness.

>> The seventh of the Eight Liberations is the Samadhi of neither thought nor absence of thought: When one single-mindedly connects to neither thought nor absence of thought, then one observes the true principles. As all things depends on the Five Skandhas and are all impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self, they are false, deceitful and untrue. Thus, this is the liberation of [the Samadhi] of neither thought nor absence of thought.

>> The eighth of the Eight Liberations is the cessation of feeling and perception: Feeling refers to our sensations. Perception refers to our thinking. These refer to the thinking mind of thinking and perception in the skandhas. These will lead practitioners to be troubled and have scattered minds. Therefore, one must abandon and cease all feeling and perception. This is the cessation of feeling and perception.

>> Relying on flawless wisdom, we can eliminate the first six consciousnesses, those of the mind king and mental objects. When we completely eradicate the delusions of views and thinking, the Samadhi of complete cessation we attain is the Nirvana of the Two Vehicles. [They] have great might and virtue: Goodness can subdue all maras of hatred, whether internal or external. One with might is to be feared. One with virtue is to be respected.

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>> “Whether in the past, present or future, we can have insight into our own or others’ past lives.
We can know our own and others’ lives and see into future appearances of birth and death.
We can end all Leaks, all afflictions, and clearly eliminate the ignorance of delusions of views.
With the Eight Liberations, we can practice to enter the Samadhi of boundless space.”

This describes a mental state. As we engage in spiritual practice, has all the ignorance in our mental state actually been eliminated? If we have eliminated our afflictions, then our thinking should be very clear. So, we must regularly cultivate contemplation to enter a tranquil and clear state of mind.

This is something we must earnestly work on. “He develops the Three Insights, Six Spiritual Powers and [37] Practices to Enlightenment.” In the past, we spoke about the Three Insights. The Three Insights are insight into previous lives, insight of the heavenly eye and insight into ending all Leaks. “Insight into previous lives” is knowing what causes and conditions we created in the past that led to the effects and retributions we face in our present and future lifetimes. We will understand all of this very clearly. This is called an insight, an “insight into previous lives.” With insight we can understand our past as well as others’ past. We have such causes and conditions with them, so this life we face such effects and retributions. This is having insight into previous lives; it is insight into our past and present lives. So, whether “our own or others’ past lives,” we know them all very clearly.

Next, “We can know our own and others’ lives and see into future appearances of birth and death.” This is “insight of the heavenly eye.” We know we must practice earnestly in this life. We must let go of things that happened in the past and not continue to provoke further entanglements in future lifetimes. What we are creating in this lifetime will become our retributions in our future lifetimes. Only with the insight of the heavenly eye can we understand clearly in our future births and deaths what kind of land, family and followers, era, society and people we will live with.

So, we must engage in spiritual practice and be earnestly mindful of the Dharma. The power of knowing past lives and the power of the heavenly eye are both found within our calm contemplation. Our minds must be calm, and we must cultivate contemplation. In our daily living, in all our actions and as we interact with people and deal with things, we must constantly heighten our vigilance. How can we get rid of afflictions and ignorance? This requires us to implement the. Buddha-Dharma in our daily living. We must eliminate all Leaks of ignorance and afflictions. Only when we have eliminated afflictions can we take the Dharma to heart.

This way we can “clearly eliminate the ignorance of delusions of views.” We will then be able to have clear understanding. When we escape our afflictions, our mind and our wisdom will be clear and bright. When we eradicate delusions of views and thinking, our perspectives, our thinking and our ignorance will no longer confuse our minds. If we can do this, we will gradually attain the Three Insights and the Six Spiritual Powers and begin to enter the state of liberation. “With the Eight Liberations, we can practice to enter the Samadhi of boundless space.” We can then gradually develop the Three Insights and the Six Spiritual Powers and attain the Eight Liberations. These will be explained broadly later.

The previous sutra passage states, “In that land, that Buddha will transform countless sentient beings. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas, and all have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel. That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas.”

Do you still remember that when Subhuti attains Buddhahood, His epithet will be Name and Appearance? His kalpa will be called Bearing Treasures, and His land will be called Treasure Born. The Buddha-Dharma will flourish there. Moreover, there will be many. Bodhisattvas of great capabilities, and there will also be many Hearers.

The next sutra passage says, “The number of Hearers is beyond calculation. They have all attained the Three Insights, possess the Six Spiritual Powers, abide in the Eight Liberations and have great might and virtue.”

The number of Hearers is beyond calculation. They have all attained the Three Insights and possess the Six Spiritual Powers: The number of Hearers is also numerous. The Three Insights and Six Spiritual Powers are the fruits of the Hearers.

Their numbers will be great. There will be many Hearers. After these Hearers listen to the Dharma, all attain the Three Insights and are replete with the Six Spiritual Powers. There will be a great number of them.

The Three Insights and Six Spiritual Powers are the fruits attained by Hearers. In their spiritual practice, although they are Hearers, they have taken the Dharma to heart and have already eliminated their afflictions; they have completely eliminated them. They have attained the Three Insights and the Six Spiritual Powers. These are the fruits of the Hearers’ spiritual practice;

[They] abide in the Eight Liberations and have great might and virtue: The Eight Liberations are also called the Eight Abandonments. This is to abandon evil and turn toward good, abandon the crude and turn toward the fine and abandon the afflictions of the Three Realms to be liberated from them.

They “develop the Three Insights, Six Spiritual Powers and [37] Practices to Enlightenment.” We have read this before “[They] abide in the Eight Liberations and have great might and virtue.” The Eight Liberations are much more profound. They are also called the Eight Abandonments. All of these refer to our mental state. The term abandonment means to “abandon evil and turn toward good; abandon the crude and turn toward the fine; abandon the afflictions of the Three Realms.” All of these must be abandoned. Deep inside ourselves, we must forever abandon evil and turn toward good. We must move toward a path of brightness.

“Abandon the crude and turn toward the fine” means in spiritual practice, we must not merely work on the surface. We must not think that simply doing the Ten Good Deeds is enough. The Ten Good Deeds are relatively crude because when we practice the Ten Good Deeds, we still have afflictions within us. We still have a sense of self and other, etc. This is still just a crude practice of goodness. We must penetrate down to a very subtle level, to goodness that comes naturally from deep inside, that love that is very fine and subtle. That kind of mental state is not merely about letting go of our afflictions. We do not even have the appearance of afflictions. We not even have the thought of letting go. This is fundamentally how things are. We have trained ourselves to the point where our mind and our thinking are one with the universe. This is extremely fine and subtle. At this point, the capacity of our mind has opened. We no longer have any other obstacles. This is the meaning of “fine.”

“Abandon the afflictions of the Three Realms”; all of these must be abandoned. This is liberation. If we can do this, we are liberated. Liberation is also called “abandonment.” Its principles are generally divided into eight kinds

The Eight Liberations: 1. Contemplating external appearances when material desires arise 2. Contemplating external appearances when no material desires arise 3. Liberation of purity confirmed by the body 4. Liberation of the Samadhi of boundless space 5. Liberation of the Samadhi of [boundless] consciousness 6. Liberation of the Samadhi of absolute nothingness 7. Liberation of the Samadhi of neither thought nor absence of thought 8. Liberation of the cessation of feeling and perception.
The first is “contemplating external appearances when material desires arise.” When material desires arise, it means that we still have a “sense of self.” We must earnestly contemplate; “Spiritual practitioners should [first] examine their material body’s degeneration, decay and impurity”

The first of the Eight Liberations is contemplating external appearances when material desires arise: This means that spiritual practitioners should first examine their material body’s degeneration, decay and impurity. It is not something to love or take joy in. Thus they single-mindedly enter tranquil Samadhi.
In our spiritual practice, we should earnestly contemplate ourselves. What kind of thing is our body, really? We eat things daily; what becomes of them after they are digested? What are the things that we excrete? We must earnestly contemplate these things. Once things enter our stomach, don’t they all rot and become impure? This is something we must reflect on. In fact, if we carefully think about this process, it is not something to love or take joy in.

The second is to contemplate external appearances when no material desires arise. Look around you. The greedy desires of the desire realm are hard to eliminate. We live in the desire realm, so everywhere there are afflictions. Thus, desire is difficult to eliminate. If we can earnestly “contemplate the impurity” “of external appearances,” we will “give rise to renunciation and disgust and seek to eliminate them. That is why it says to contemplate appearances.”

The second of the Eight Liberations is contemplating external appearances when no material desires arise: Since in the desire realm, greed and desire are difficult to eliminate, we must contemplate the impurity of external appearances, give rise to renunciation and disgust and seek to eliminate them. That is why it says to contemplate appearances.

We often hear about how, after people have died, we can see just how impure the body is. This is “the impurity of external appearances”; they are all impure, so what more is there to take issue over? What more is there to crave? So, we “give rise to renunciation and disgust.” Why harbor these sexual desires? Both partners’ bodies are impure. Isn’t this very repulsing?

So, spiritual practitioners “give rise to renunciation and disgust and seek to eliminate them. That is why it says to contemplate appearances.” If we want to eliminate them, this is how to do it.

The third of the Eight Liberations is liberation of purity confirmed by the body: Purity comes from a pure appearance. It means to abandon the impure appearances of external form, so as to be clean, pure, and bright just like a wondrous treasure chamber. Thus one’s mind is clear and pure and joy will gradually increase.

Third is liberation of purity confirmed by the body. We now know that both the inside and the outside of our bodies are unclean. So, “Purity comes from a pure appearance.” In order to have this pure appearance, we must “abandon the impure appearances of external form so as to be clean, pure and bright, just like a wondrous treasure chamber. Thus one’s mind is clear and pure, and joy will gradually increase.”

Since we understand that external and internal appearances are all impure, we should relinquish them. We must not continue to cling to our desires. Then naturally, in our minds there will be no internal or external sensual desires, no thoughts of greed for the inner or outer. We naturally will be able to maintain this purity of mind. When our minds are pure, naturally we will attain Dharma-joy.

The fourth of the Eight Liberations is the liberation of the Samadhi of boundless space: We abandon the impure form of our own body and abandon all the impure forms outside of us and abandon all the impure forms outside of us. When our mind abandons form, we can single-mindedly connect to emptiness and resonate with emptiness. Thus we enter the Samadhi of boundless space.

Next is “the liberation of the Samadhi of boundless space.” This is reaching the level of the Samadhi of boundless space. This boundless space is very clean. To attain this, it is necessary to “abandon the impure form of our own body,” and “abandon all the impure forms outside of us.” If our minds can “abandon appearance,” we can “single-mindedly connect to emptiness and resonate with emptiness. Thus we enter the Samadhi of boundless space.”

We must clearly understand our own body. When we see external forms and appearances, we should not give rise to thoughts of craving. This kind of sexual desire, or desire for fame, wealth and so on, must be eliminated. if we can relinquish all desire from our minds, and not give rise to craving and desire, we can “single-mindedly connect to emptiness.” Then naturally our minds will become very pure. Our minds will be totally empty “[We] resonate with emptiness. Thus we enter the Samadhi of boundless space.” At this time, our minds converge with emptiness.

Fifth is the liberation of the Samadhi of [boundless] consciousness:

The fifth of the Eight Liberations is the the Samadhi of [boundless] consciousness: We single-mindedly connect to consciousness, which depends on the Five Skandhas and so on, all of which are impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self. As these things are false, deceitful and untrue, we give rise to renunciation and do not love or become attached to them. Thus, this is the liberation of [boundless] consciousness.

We “single-mindedly connect to consciousness.” We should earnestly consider the way the. Six Roots connect with the external Six Dusts. When we give rise to thoughts and take actions, the consciousness of good and evil, those seeds of fruition, will be taken into our minds. All of these things, this consciousness, depends on the Five Skandhas and so on. External form and sense objects are taken in by our Roots and Consciousnesses, by form, feeling, perception, action, consciousness. When we have a feeling and then take action, the result will be stored in our consciousness. This consciousness is what we must earnestly seek to comprehend.

If we understand that all things are impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self, that they are all illusory, deceitful and untrue, if we can understand this, then we will naturally give rise to a sense of renunciation and abandonment. Naturally, we will no longer create karma out of greed and attachment. Thus we do not love or become attached to [things]. This is the Samadhi of [boundless] consciousness.

The fifth of the Eight Liberations is the the Samadhi of [boundless] consciousness: We single-mindedly connect to consciousness, which depends on the Five Skandhas and so on, all of which are impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self. As these things are false, deceitful and untrue, we give rise to renunciation and do not love or become attached to them. Thus, this is the liberation of [boundless] consciousness.

The sixth of the Eight Liberations is the Samadhi of absolute nothingness: We depend on the Five Skandhas and so on, which are all impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self. As these things are false, deceitful and untrue, we must abandon them and not love or be attached to them. Thus this is the liberation of the Samadhi of absolute nothingness.

Sixth is the Samadhi of absolute nothingness. We depend on these Five Skandhas, which are all likewise impermanent, empty, full of suffering and without self, false, deceitful and untrue. In such a state, our minds must give rise to abandonment. We want to get rid of evil, so, “We must abandon [these things], and not love or be attached to them. Thus this is called the liberation of the Samadhi of absolute nothingness.” This is entering “the liberation of the Samadhi of absolute nothingness,” where there is nothing at all.

Seventh is “the Samadhi of neither thought nor absence of thought”

The seventh of the Eight Liberations is the Samadhi of neither thought nor absence of thought: When one single-mindedly connects to neither thought nor absence of thought, then one observes the true principles. As all things depends on the Five Skandhas and are all impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self, they are false, deceitful and untrue. Thus, this is the liberation of [the Samadhi] of neither thought nor absence of thought.

“The Samadhi of neither thought nor absence of thought” means that there is no thought, because what are we doing if we are always getting lost in our thoughts? And there is no absence of thought, because we cannot fail to think mindfully. This is neither thought nor the absence of thought. Letting our thoughts carry us away is of no use, yet we cannot abandon cultivating contemplation. So, we must remain in the Middle Way to understand that the Dharma is like this, and the turbidity of the human world is like this. Therefore, how must we engage in practice? We must understand this very clearly. If we are attached to these two extremes, if we cling to either extreme, that is incorrect, so we must also abandon these.

Thus, “One single-mindedly connects to neither thought nor absence of thought.” Our mind must have neither one nor the other. We must be very clear on this. This is “observing the true principles.” We must mindfully observe the true principles and understand that all things “depend on the Five Skandhas and are all impermanent, full of suffering, empty and without self.” They are all “false, deceitful and untrue.” We must thoroughly understand all this. This depends on our cultivation of contemplation. Only when we contemplate the truth can we avoid being biased toward thought or non-thought and thus thoroughly understand the principles.

Eighth is “the liberation of the cessation of feeling and perception”

The eighth of the Eight Liberations is the cessation of feeling and perception: Feeling refers to our sensations. Perception refers to our thinking. These refer to the thinking mind of thinking and perception in the skandhas. These will lead practitioners to be troubled and have scattered minds. Therefore, one must abandon and cease all feeling and perception. This is the cessation of feeling and perception.

We eliminate everything; feeling, perception, action and consciousness. We abandon all of these. Feeling is what we take in, all that we take in [through our senses]. Perception is our thinking. Among the Five Skandhas, this is the thinking mind of feeling and perception. We take in appearances in our minds and constantly turn them over in our thoughts. This is called the thinking mind of feeling and perception.

As human beings, we should know that we must not let what we have done in the past, all of our past mistakes, pile up on top of each other. When we do good deeds, it is also not necessary to keep them in our minds after we have done them. In summary, we should choose what is correct and practice very fine and subtle good deeds. This is the correct thing to do. It is not necessary to think so much. These things will lead us to be more troubled and cause us to have scattered minds. To continually think of the past or be attached to the present or so on can easily cause us to have scattered minds. So, we definitely must abandon this and cease such feeling and perception.

In our spiritual practice, we must seize the clear and pure mind of the present moment and continually sustain it. This means that we must not be attached. This is the eighth [liberation], the cessation of feeling and perception. If we can practice accordingly, then we have flawless wisdom. At that point, our wisdom will have no more Leaks. We have eliminated the first six consciousnesses, those of the mind king and mental objects. Having eradicated delusions of views and thinking, what we attain is “Samadhi of complete cessation.” This is “the Nirvana of the Two Vehicles.” If we can do this, ․we will “have great might and virtue. Goodness can subdue all maras of hatred, whether internal or external. One with might is to be feared. One with virtue is to be respected.”

Relying on flawless wisdom, we can eliminate the first six consciousnesses, those of the mind king and mental objects. When we completely eradicate the delusions of views and thinking, the Samadhi of complete cessation we attain is the Nirvana of the Two Vehicles. [They] have great might and virtue: Goodness can subdue all maras of hatred, whether internal or external. One with might is to be feared. One with virtue is to be respected.

Aren’t these teachings a bit more profound? This is all talking about the mind. So, let us be very mindful of profound Dharma. We must abandon the crude for the fine; we must get rid of our crude afflictions and be very meticulous to reach a level so subtle it is like we are returning to emptiness. So, we must have no attachments. We must always be mindful!

Episode 956 – Bodhisattvas Bring Dignity and Purity to the Land

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>> The circumstantial retributions of that Buddha will be magnificent and pure, and everyone will love and take joy in them. Those whom that Buddha teaches are a spiritual family with sharp capabilities and are replete with great might and virtue. In that world, its lands and all houses, the clothing, food, shelter, etc. are like this. The unenlightened sentient beings remain in the Five Skandhas as their direct retribution.

>>  “In his final incarnation, he will attain the 32 Marks and will be upright, proper, pleasing and wondrous, like a treasure mountain. His Buddha-land will be foremost in purity and magnificence. All sentient beings who see it will love and take joy in it.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “In that land, that Buddha will transform countless sentient beings. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas, and all have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel. That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> In that land, that Buddha will transform countless sentient beings. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas: He will transform countless people in this land. Among those He teaches, there are many great Bodhisattvas.

>> All have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel: They all have formed great aspirations and have sharp capabilities. They are able to turn the non-retreating Dharma-wheel of all Buddhas.

>> All have sharp capabilities: They are all Bodhisattvas of superior wisdom.

>> [They] turn the non-retreating wheel: It means that they turn the Dharma-wheel of the ultimate truth of the One Mind. This is also called the Dharma-wheel of the One Vehicle of the Middle Way. This means they promote the Lotus Sutra. All who hear it will attain Buddhahood. Thus, it is called the non-retreating wheel.

>> That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas. His land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, all are a spiritual family with sharp capabilities, and each is replete with might and virtue. ․His land is given its dignity by Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattvas teach the Dharma there to transform sentient beings. They influence the culture and customs so the land is harmonious and peaceful. If this is not dignifying, what is?

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“The circumstantial retributions of that Buddha will be magnificent and pure, and everyone will love and take joy in them.
Those whom that Buddha teaches are a spiritual family with sharp capabilities and are replete with great might and virtue.
In that world, its lands and all houses, the clothing, food, shelter, etc. are like this.
The unenlightened sentient beings remain in the Five Skandhas as their direct retribution.”

We must all be mindful to understand more deeply. What we need to understand now is Subhuti. The Buddha bestowed a prediction of Buddhahood upon Subhuti. This prediction describes what Subhuti will attain in a future lifetime. His circumstantial retributions will be “magnificent and pure, and everyone will love and take joy in them.” When people see them, they will be joyful.

In his circumstantial retributions, in his land, the Buddha-Dharma will be prevalent. The Buddha-Dharma will flourish there, and everyone will practice according to the teachings. Those whom the Buddha teaches, His spiritual family, will all possess sharp capabilities. Everyone will practice according to the Dharma. So, naturally in their appearance as spiritual practitioners and in their way of life, they all appear to be of great might and virtue.

Earlier Kasyapa received a prediction that all people in his land would be people of wisdom. Now, in the land Subhuti would attain, his followers would all be of sharp capabilities, of great might and virtue, and all would be spiritual practitioners. The land would be entirely pure and undefiled. Everything there will be treasures such as gold, silver, crystal, mother-of-pearl, chalcedony. There will be many treasures there, with precious flowers covering the ground and so on. What a beautiful state that will be! This is the result of their long period of spiritual practice.

As for Sakyamuni Buddha, He also engaged in spiritual practice for a very long time. However, Sakyamuni Buddha’s vow was [to remain] in this turbid world. This is like Earth Treasury Bodhisattva’s vow to remain in hell to transform the sentient beings who suffer most. With the power of Sakyamuni’s vow, He remains in the place where the Five Destinies co-exist. It is in such a world full of ignorance and afflictions where the Buddha-Dharma is truly needed. He cherishes sentient beings with great compassion and looks upon all of them as His only child. If not for the power of Sakyamuni Buddha’s vow, this world of endurance that we live in would be even more unbearable, because there would be no Buddha-Dharma, and the principles could not be used to uphold ethics and morality in the world. So, this is why the Buddha-Dharma is needed in the world.

In Thailand, there is a woman, Grandma Jinhua. Her name, Jinhua (Gold Flower), is a very good name, but this old woman has led a life of suffering. Her eyes were so bad she could barely see. Because of a stroke, she could no longer move her right arm. Furthermore, her left foot had been amputated. Under these conditions, the old woman lived lived next to a temple, in an old and broken down kitchen. Much garbage had accumulated there. It was impossible for her to clean up. She only had one usable arm and leg; how could she clean up such a big pile? When Tzu Chi volunteers found out about this [they thought], “How can she live there? This old woman is so pitiable!” They started mobilizing over 100 volunteers and began making appeals [for help]. People’s hearts went out when they saw this. “Come on! Everyone, let’s go help her clean up.”

They cleaned up the room, and laid out a bed, a quilt and a mosquito net. When the room was cleaned, the kitchen became an open and spacious room. As for this old woman, her body was also very dirty, having not bathed for who knows how many years. Tzu Chi volunteers wanted to help her bathe. She felt embarrassed and did not dare let anyone bathe her. She kept refusing. A Tzu Chi volunteer, a young person, knelt down and said, “Grandma, let us bathe you. After you bathe, we’ll take you to the doctor.”

These Tzu Chi volunteers were not afraid that her body was dirty. They were not afraid of her dirty body or smell and continued to implore her. She finally allowed the Tzu Chi volunteers to bathe her. When her hair, face and body were totally cleaned, she turned out to be such an adorable woman. As for her physical condition, her foot was blistered and festering. Overall, her physical condition was not good, so they took her to a hospital.

At the hospital, volunteers took turns, two at a time, accompanying her day and night as she stayed at the hospital for a period of time. That elderly woman’s life has now been transformed. In the past, she lived in a kitchen full of dirty garbage, surviving on garbage. Then Tzu Chi volunteers exercised their love. This is the Buddha-Dharma. They have taken the Dharma into their hearts and then let their love emanate. Everyone’s love is united with a common resolve. In that dirty and unclean place, with a person who smelled and was festering, they were able to endure her stench, endure the filthiness. They were able to do so. So many people were willing to extend their hands to do this, thus they could completely clean that space.

These are the principles of Sakyamuni Buddha. More than 2000 years ago, He taught about “suffering” with the Four Noble Truths. He taught the law of karmic cause and effect, of practicing the Six Perfections and the Four Practices, actualizing the Six Perfections in all actions. He taught all of these principles. Those who form aspirations for spiritual practice have seen all kinds of suffering in the world. Seeing suffering, they recognize their blessings, and [they] understand that all suffering is the result of karmic cause and effect. Having understood this clearly, they begin walking the Bodhisattva-path in the world. So, they were able to patiently endure that kind of dirty environment, and they demonstrated their great love, the love in their hearts. Doesn’t this fully demonstrate the Buddha-Dharma, manifesting it in this world of endurance where the Five Destinies co-exist, which is so full of suffering? It is in a place like this that the Buddha-Dharma is needed to rescue suffering sentient beings and to inspire love in everyone’s hearts so they can give of themselves in this way.

This was Sakyamuni Buddha’s vow. So, we must not be doubtful and ask, “Was it Sakyamuni Buddha in the past did not practice enough that He had to come to such an evil world of Five Turbidities? Why would the future Buddha-lands of those disciples upon whom He bestowed predictions of. Buddhahood be so magnificent?” Their “circumstantial retributions” [are] “so magnificent and pure,” and people there will all live so well.

This was the Buddha’s way of teaching us! If not for Sakyamuni Buddha appearing lifetime after lifetime in the Saha World and teaching them lifetime after lifetime, they would not have come into contact with the Buddha-Dharma for such a very long time. If not for this, how could those disciples engage in spiritual practice? So, in their spiritual cultivation they must practice under 300 trillion Buddhas. He confirmed for the disciples that their lands upon attaining Buddhahood will be like that.

When they attain Buddhahood in the future, besides their lands being magnificent and pure, the Buddha-Dharma will flourish there. Each of them will have family and followers who all engage in spiritual practice. In terms of the houses in those lands, no matter what, in that land, everyone’s houses, clothing, food, shelter and so on will all be so magnificent and pure. The towers and terraces will all be decorated with precious treasures. This is the land Subhuti will have in the future when he attains Buddhahood.

The place that we unenlightened sentient beings live in is this world that must be endured, the Saha World. As unenlightened beings, it is not just the external world that we must endure, but also the internal Five Skandhas. The Five Skandhas, as you all know, are the Five Aggregates, form, feeling, perception, action, consciousness. In our daily lives, all the shapes and forms we see and all that we experience and feel lead us to be filled with afflictions. Think about it, everything in the external world, whether joys or afflictions, brews in our minds and leads our ignorance and afflictions to continuously multiply. This is such suffering! Unenlightened sentient beings abide in the Five Skandhas. These are our circumstantial and direct retributions.

We often speak of “controlling our fate” or “being controlled by fate.” Are we being controlled by our fate or are we controlling our fate? Coming to this world was outside of our control. If we want to go from being unenlightened beings to entering the noble path, the only way is through the Buddha-Dharma. We must mindfully accept the teachings and earnestly put them into practice; we must mindfully listen to the Buddha-Dharma,

Previously we discussed how. Subhuti, at the end of his spiritual practice, after meeting 300 trillion Buddhas, will be able to attain Buddhahood. His physical appearance upon attaining Buddhahood will be such that,

“In his final incarnation he will attain the 32 Marks and will be upright, proper, pleasing and wondrous, like a treasure mountain. His Buddha-land will be foremost in purity and magnificence. All sentient beings who see it will love and take joy in it.”

All those who see it will be happy. Those living in that Buddha’s era, every one of them, will form aspirations to accept the Buddha-Dharma. These are the future Name and Appearance Buddha’s circumstantial and direct retributions.

Next, the sutra says, “In that land, that Buddha will transform countless sentient beings. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas, and all have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel. That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas.”

“In that land, that Buddha will transform countless sentient beings. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas, and all have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel. That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas.”

Only good people will live in that land, and all will be spiritual practitioners replete with wisdom. They will all be Bodhisattvas. This is saying that in that land, that Buddha will transform countless people.

“Of those whom that Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas.” Name and Appearance Buddha, in His land, will transform many, many people. At the same time, everyone there will have great capabilities. Moreover, they will form great aspirations to practice the Bodhisattva-path.

All have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel: They all have formed great aspirations and have sharp capabilities. They are able to turn the non-retreating Dharma-wheel of all Buddhas.

“All have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel.” People there will all form great aspirations and have sharp capabilities. The Dharma taught there will be accepted by everyone. They will listen to the Dharma, teach it and spread the Dharma there as well. This Dharma-wheel will never retreat. What a blessed land it will be! So, “All have sharp capabilities.” It is so blessed! Everyone there will be a person of wisdom. “They are all Bodhisattvas of superior wisdom.”

All have sharp capabilities: They are all Bodhisattvas of superior wisdom.

Everyone there will be virtuous spiritual friends.

Many people of superior virtue will gather there in one place. There they will “turn the non-retreating Dharma-wheel”

[They] turn the non-retreating wheel: It means that they turn the Dharma-wheel of the ultimate truth of the One Mind. This is also called the Dharma-wheel of the One Vehicle of the Middle Way. This means they promote the Lotus Sutra. All who hear it will attain Buddhahood. Thus, it is called the non-retreating wheel.

“They can turn the non-retreating Dharma-wheel. It means that they turn the Dharma-wheel of the ultimate truth of the One Mind.” The Dharma-wheel they turn is the Great Vehicle Dharma, not the Small Vehicle Dharma. Everyone there will be able to accept this Dharma-wheel of the ultimate truth. This type of Dharma-wheel, the True Dharma, turns incessantly and repeatedly. It is called the Dharma-wheel of the One Vehicle of the Middle Way. This is the Middle Way. It does not just teach “emptiness,” but also analyzes “wondrous existence.” Therefore, it is called the Middle Way, neither attached to emptiness nor existence.

We understand that this world is illusory and impermanent; therefore we must engage in spiritual practice. We must also use these causes and conditions to cultivate blessed affinities and go among people to experience the principle of impermanence in the world. We understand this, so we know we must practice the Bodhisattva-path. This is what we must practice, for without practicing the Bodhisattva-path, we will never attain Buddhahood. We must truly put our hearts into giving and keep our minds undefiled by worldly appearances. This is called “the Dharma of the One Vehicle of the Middle Way,” and this is “promoting the Lotus Sutra.” The Lotus Sutra also will be prevalent there in that land. The Lotus Sutra is the Bodhisattva-path. In that land, the Bodhisattva-path of the Lotus Sutra will continually be advanced.

“All who hear it will attain Buddhahood.” Those who hear the Lotus Sutra, once they understand it, will practice according to the teachings and continually walk along the great, direct Bodhi-path to naturally arrive at the state of Buddhahood. So, “All who hear it will attain Buddhahood. Thus it is called the non-retreating wheel.” If we walk straight ahead along the path, we will never again regress or retreat.

That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas. His land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, all are a spiritual family with sharp capabilities, and each is replete with might and virtue. ․His land is given its dignity by Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattvas teach the Dharma there to transform sentient beings. They influence the culture and customs so the land is harmonious and peaceful. If this is not dignifying, what is?

“That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas.” In that land, not only is everything in that land a treasure, the people there make that land even more magnificent. If we want a good environment, it is not only by building splendid houses that we can make a good environment, nor is it only creating a beautiful landscape that makes us happy. When we interact with people, if we do not like each other, we will feel that in this place, there is really nothing to keep us here. What is needed is for people in their interactions to have the mind of Bodhisattvas and uphold the Six Points of Reverent Harmony. In this way, it is the most dignified environment.

The Buddha teaches us that in a place of spiritual practice, we must uphold the Six Points of Reverent Harmony in order to dignify our spiritual training ground. So, in that land, ․”That land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas. His land is constantly dignified by Bodhisattvas. Of those whom that Buddha teaches, all are a spiritual family with sharp capabilities, and each is replete with might and virtue.” Everyone will engage in spiritual practice there, and everyone will have might and virtue “His land is given its dignity by Bodhisattvas.” Bodhisattvas teach the Dharma there to transform sentient beings. “They influence the culture and customs so the land is harmonious and peaceful. If this is not dignifying, what is?” In that land, the Bodhisattvas there are truly dignified. People interact with each other as virtuous friends. They all benefit one another. As they benefit others, others also benefit them. They give other people joy, and other people also make them happy. This is what the dignified Bodhisattvas in that land will be like.

So, Bodhisattvas teach the Dharma there to transform sentient beings, and everyone shares the Dharma with one another.

“They influence the culture and customs so the land is harmonious and peaceful. If this is not dignifying, what is?” Indeed! Everyone shares with each other, “This is my understanding. This is my understanding of the teachings that I heard today. What is your understanding? What I have gotten from it is this.” Everyone helps each other in their understanding, and everyone comes together to make the Dharma-assembly more perfect and complete. They help each other to turn the Great Dharma-wheel among themselves, to make up for what others are missing, to use the Dharma in their lives so as to eliminate their bad habitual tendencies.

“They influence the culture and customs.” In the past our habitual tendencies were like this, but now after listening to the Dharma, we must get rid of these bad habitual tendencies and apply the good teachings in our actions. If we can do this, every state we will be in will be harmonious, will they not? Is this not dignified? This is called dignifying the land.

To make the land dignified, magnificent and pure is up to us. We should influence the culture and customs by putting effort into changing our spiritual state and getting rid of bad habitual tendencies to live together joyfully with others. By applying the Six Points of Reverent Harmony, we can dignify our spiritual training ground. This is not impossible to accomplish. We only need to always be mindful.

Episode 955 – Attaining Buddhahood in One’s Final Incarnation

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>> He constantly cultivated the virtuous fruits of Brahma-conduct, so he will meet and serve trillions of Buddhas. He upheld the practice of the Small Vehicle, contemplating emptiness and stillness, but did not cultivate the Great Vehicle practice. Though many kalpas have passed, he has not attained the great fruit of universal, perfect enlightenment. He must form great aspirations and fulfill the great path. Then he will attain Buddhahood.

>> “My great disciple Subhuti will attain Buddhahood. His epithet will be Name and Appearance. He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas, and following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “In his final incarnation, he will attain the 32 Marks and will be upright, proper, pleasing and wondrous, like a treasure mountain. His Buddha-land will be foremost in purity and magnificence. All sentient beings who see it will love and take joy in it.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> In his final incarnation, he will attain the 32 marks: In his final incarnation of equal enlightenment, he will become a Sambhogakaya Buddha, a pleasing and wondrous Buddha of the ten bodies replete with all Marks and Characteristics.

>> As the Avatamsaka Sutra states, the Buddha’s ten bodies that harmonize with the Three Periods are the sentient-being-body, Buddha-land-body, karmic-retribution-body, Hearer-body, Solitary-Realizer-Body, Bodhisattva-body, Tathagata-body, wisdom-body, Dharma-body and emptiness-body.

>> Upright, proper, pleasing and wondrous, like a treasure mountain: He will be upright and dignified, proper and righteous, greatly pleasing and wondrously good, like the king of a treasure mountain.

>> His Buddha-land will be foremost in purity and magnificence. All sentient beings who see it will love and take joy in it: Compared with other Buddha-lands, this one is the most supreme. Because of his wondrous circumstantial and direct retributions, all those who see it will take joy in it.

>> He will bring to fulfillment a pure and magnificent Buddha-land and transform countless sentient beings. Of the people that this Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas. All of them have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel.

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“He constantly cultivated the virtuous fruits of Brahma-conduct, so he will meet and serve trillions of Buddhas.
He upheld the practice of the Small Vehicle, contemplating emptiness and stillness, but did not cultivate the Great Vehicle practice.
Though many kalpas have passed, he has not attained the great fruit of universal, perfect enlightenment.
He must form great aspirations and fulfill the great path. Then he will attain Buddhahood.”

In our spiritual practice, we must form great aspirations. The Buddha bestowed predictions of Buddhahood, and for each disciple to receive one, he had to have the causes and conditions. The causes are from their practice in the past. This continued up until this life when. Sakyamuni Buddha attained Buddhahood. After meeting Sakyamuni Buddha, these disciples practiced in the Sangha.

In their spiritual practice, each person had their own different methods of spiritual practice. For example, Sariputra was known for being foremost in wisdom. After the Buddha said one thing, he could apply that principle to everything else. When the Buddha told him one method, he could understand the entire direction the Buddha was indicating. Sariputra was foremost in wisdom. As for Venerable Kasyapa, he upheld a perseverant resolve; he remained determined as he engaged in purifying Brahma-conduct. As for Subhuti, the Buddha was now about to bestow a prediction on him. Subhuti was foremost in understanding emptiness. These were the different practices they each had followed in the past and now upheld within the Buddha’s Sangha.

They each had different ways of spiritual practice. However, they all shared a common trait, which was practicing only for their own benefit. They single-mindedly engaged in practice in order to eliminate afflictions. So, because of this, they stuck to merely benefiting themselves and wanted to avoid forming more affinities with sentient beings. So, they “constantly cultivated the virtuous fruits of Brahma-conduct.” These were their causes in the past. They eagerly pursued the Buddha-Dharma in order to eliminate afflictions. For a long time this had been their direction in spiritual practice.

Now, these causes and conditions had matured, and. Sakyamuni Buddha manifested to attain Buddhahood. They could live at the same time as a Buddha and practice together in the Sangha. Yet they still remained in the state of Hearers and Arhats. They did not want to go among people. They did not dare to form great aspirations. Nonetheless, in their spiritual practice, they had constantly cultivated Brahma-conduct and were already replete with the virtuous fruits. Now the Buddha merely needed to inspire them, encourage them to form great aspirations. This was precisely the moment that they needed the Buddha to inspire them, so the Buddha bestowed predictions on them.

Now it was Subhuti’s turn. “He will meet and serve trillions of Buddhas.” In the process of bestowing the prediction, the Buddha told him that before he attains Buddhahood in the future, he will meet and serve 300 trillion Buddhas. But in the past, “He had upheld the practice of the Small Vehicle, contemplating emptiness and stillness.” Subhuti was foremost in understanding emptiness, so he understood completely the principles of all people, matters and objects in the world, that everything is empty. No matter how much fame, wealth or status one has, in the end nothing but emptiness remains. Subhuti understood this very well, so he did not want to go among people and thus did not practice the Great Vehicle. He only practiced the Small Vehicle.

Therefore, “Though many kalpas have passed, he has not attained the great fruit of universal, perfect enlightenment.” He had not attained universal and perfect enlightenment. He was not able to attain it. Supreme, universal and perfect enlightenment is the attainment of Buddhahood. No matter how much he practiced to benefit himself, if he did not form great aspirations or go among people to transform them, then he would never, even after many kalpas, after a very long time, be able to attain universal, perfect enlightenment. He would never attain the great fruit, never attain great awakening and reach Buddhahood. He could not do it.

So, we want to attain Buddhahood. As Buddhist practitioners, we wish to attain Buddhahood. As Buddhist practitioners, if we do not want to attain Buddhahood, why do we bother to learn the Buddha’s Way? However, to attain Buddhahood, we cannot do without spiritual practice. The goal of spiritual practice is to eliminate all afflictions. We must cultivate purifying Brahma-conduct. Cultivating purifying Brahma-conduct is a path we must walk to attain the fruit of Buddhahood. However, Small Vehicle practitioners only seek to benefit themselves. They must first purify themselves.

After they purify themselves and their minds are undefiled, they can then uphold their resolve on the path, with the Four Great Vows and Four Infinite Minds. They must remain steadfast as they go among people so they can create great blessed affinities with sentient beings. Only by going among people can they attain great wisdom and develop their wisdom-life. So, “He must form great aspirations and fulfill the great path. Then he will attain Buddhahood.” We must not stay stuck in the Small Vehicle. If we still practice the Small Vehicle, no matter how we practice, we are still only focused on ourselves. We must understand that if we only purify ourselves and everything else remains impure, then we alone will be pure while our surroundings are all defiled. If we are awakened and have understanding but others are still covered by ignorance, will we be able to continue to bear it? We will not be able to bear it! So, we must form great aspirations and go among people to bring purity to everyone. Then, they can realize principles like us and walk on this great, direct path with us, on the Bodhisattva-path. This is how we benefit both ourselves and others. Benefiting both ourselves and others is the goal of spiritual practice.

The previous sutra passage we explained says, “My great disciple Subhuti will attain Buddhahood. His epithet will be Name and Appearance. He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas, and following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path.”
The Buddha called on Subhuti, adding “my great disciple.” That means he was a very close disciple. All the principles the Buddha taught were understood by Subhuti.

“He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas.” He will have to train for such a long time. Furthermore, he will need the experience of going among countless sentient beings to explore many principles of life. Then he will be able to attain Buddhahood. So, he needs to meet trillions of Buddhas.

In the past, I have discussed this with everyone. If we treat every person as a Buddha, then everyone is a Buddha. Everyone is a person who can receive our offerings, respect and service. As we face suffering sentient beings, we can think of each sentient being as a future Buddha with intrinsic Buddha-nature. Then aren’t we making offerings to the Buddha and serving future Buddhas? So, it speaks of “300 trillion Buddhas.” In this place, he will make offerings to countless Buddhas. “Following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path.” According to the Buddha’s teachings, the Buddha came to the world life after life, always going among people for the sake of suffering sentient beings. Now, we have formed great aspirations, so we must also come to the world life after life before we are able to attain Bodhi.

Next, the sutra passage states, “In his final incarnation, he will attain the 32 Marks and will be upright, proper, pleasing and wondrous, like a treasure mountain. His Buddha-land will be foremost in purity and magnificence. All sentient beings who see it will love and take joy in it.”

“In his final incarnation” means he must constantly practice in this way, in the presence of 300 trillion Buddhas. After undergoing this spiritual practice, the final incarnation he will attain in the end comes from practicing until reaching perfection. That will be his “final incarnation.” By attaining Buddhahood, he will have the 32 Marks. When he is replete with the 32 Marks, he has attained the final incarnation of universal, perfect enlightenment. This is when he attains perfect enlightenment, the moment when he attains Buddhahood

In his final incarnation, he will attain the 32 marks: In his final incarnation of equal enlightenment, he will become a Sambhogakaya Buddha, a pleasing and wondrous Buddha of the ten bodies replete with all Marks and Characteristics.
“He will become a Sambhogakaya Buddha,” meaning he will manifest as a Buddha in this world. Sakyamuni Buddha was such an example. More than 2000 years ago, in what is presently Nepal, He was born in the kingdom of Kapilavastu. He manifested in the world to engage in spiritual practice. With His attainment of perfect enlightenment, He manifests in the world. This is a Sambhogakaya Buddha. A Sambhogakaya Buddha’s body has the 32 Marks. He is replete with the ten epithets, such that everyone has great respect for Him. So, He is known as the “World-Honored One,”

“a pleasing and wondrous Buddha of the ten bodies replete with all Marks and Characteristics.” The Buddha’s ten bodies are mentioned in the Avatamsaka Sutra. “The Buddha’s ten bodies harmonize with the Three Periods.” The Three Periods are the past, present and future

As the Avatamsaka Sutra states, the Buddha’s ten bodies that harmonize with the Three Periods are the sentient-being-body, Buddha-land-body, karmic-retribution-body, Hearer-body, Solitary-Realizer-Body, Bodhisattva-body, Tathagata-body, wisdom-body, Dharma-body and emptiness-body.
The ten bodies of the Buddha start with “the sentient-being-body.” When we look at sentient beings, we must regard them as Buddhas. The Buddha constantly comes to the world. In the past, present and future, the Buddha constantly manifests in the world. So, this is “the sentient-being-body.”

The “Buddha-land-body” [refers to how] when a Buddha attains Buddhahood, He has a name for His Buddha-land. At present, our land is called the Saha World. Sakyamuni Buddha manifested in this land, in the Saha World, to transform others, so it is called the “Buddha-land-body.”

With “the karmic-retribution-body,” the Buddha, in this world filled with karma, manifested among sentient beings [affected by] karmic forces and retributions. He manifested a body in such a place, so it is called the “karmic-retribution-body.”

“The Hearer-body” refers to the same process of spiritual practice. Those who engage in practice as monastics must mindfully listen to teachings. Hearers receive the teachings through their ears. This is the “Hearer-body.”

“The Solitary-Realizer-Body” is also to teach everyone that after hearing the Dharma, we must understand principles. The world is impermanent. The principles of the Dharma do not only exist when there is a Buddha in the world. When there is no Buddha in the world, the world is still filled with principles. It is just that ordinary people do not know them. As a Solitary Realizer in His past lives, He was constantly nourished and tempered by the Buddha-Dharma. So, when He was born in the world, although there was no Buddha present, He could still understand. He saw the phenomena of the four seasons, spring, summer, autumn and winter. In this way He experienced and awakened to the principles of all things. However, He was still a Solitary Realizer. He knew there were these [principles], yet there were still contradictions He could not break through. He still had delusions and ignorance, so He was called a Solitary Realizer. A “Realizer of Conditions” lives in a Buddha’s era. When there is no Buddha present, the same person is called a “Solitary Realizer.”

Next is the “Bodhisattva-body.” Though the Buddha manifested among Hearers and Realizers of Conditions, though He manifested as a [monastic] practicing in the Sangha, He was actually in His Bodhisattva-body. He went among people to transform sentient beings. This was the “Bodhisattva-body.” He became a monastic as an enlightened great Bodhisattva, a great enlightened sentient being. So, this is called the “Bodhisattva-body.”

The “Tathagata-body” means. He came to this world journeying on the Dharma of True Suchness. This is called the “Tathagata-body.”

A “wisdom-body” has the Four Unobstructed Wisdoms, all-encompassing wisdom, wisdom of enlightenment, etc. All kinds of wisdom exist in the Buddha’s ocean of enlightened wisdom. So, this is called the “wisdom-body.”

The Buddha’s “Dharma-body” is everlasting. The Dharma the Buddha taught over 2000 years ago still exists in the world today. It not only still exists in the world, it is everlasting. In time, space and interpersonal relationships, the Dharma exists everywhere. This is the absolute truth. The principles are everlasting.

“The emptiness-body” permeates the entire universe. The Buddha attained great enlightenment, which is [realizing] everything in the universe, and permeates the Dharma completely. So, this is the “emptiness-body.”

As the Avatamsaka Sutra states, “The Buddha’s ten bodies harmonize with the Three Periods.” They go from the past, from countless past lifetimes, to the present and then over many kalpas into the future. These periods are all filled with these ten bodies. He must constantly go among people and be born in these bodies in the world.

This is expressing that we must go among people. In whichever universe or world, we must return and go among people by taking the same form as them. Through this process, we must in the end become monastics and concentrate on spiritual practice, form great aspirations and go among people. This cycle of goodness is the process of spiritual practice.

Upright, proper, pleasing and wondrous, like a treasure mountain: He will be upright and dignified, proper and righteous, greatly pleasing and wondrously good, like the king of a treasure mountain.

“In his final incarnation, he will attain the 32 Marks and will be upright, proper, pleasing and wondrous, like a treasure mountain.” He will be very magnificent. “He will be upright and dignified, proper and righteous, greatly pleasing and wondrously good.” He will have an excellent body, like the king of a treasure mountain.

Everyone takes joy in a treasure mountain. Inside a treasure mountain, everything is a treasure. The Buddha’s body and mind are both treasures. This is “greatly pleasing and wondrously good.”

His Buddha-land will be foremost in purity and magnificence. All sentient beings who see it will love and take joy in it: Compared with other Buddha-lands, this one is the most supreme. Because of his wondrous circumstantial and direct retributions, all those who see it will take joy in it.

“His Buddha-land will be foremost in purity and magnificence. All sentient beings who see it will love and take joy in it.” All sentient beings who see it will take joy in it. Because “compared with other Buddha-lands, this one is the most supreme. Because of his wondrous circumstantial and direct retributions, all those who see it will take joy in it.”

Compared with other Buddha-lands, this one is the most supreme. So many treasures are gathered in this place. The things that people admire the most and love the most will all be in this land.

“Because of his wondrous circumstantial and direct retributions,” all people who see it will be happy. “All those who see it will take joy in it.” All people will look at it and will take joy in it. This was the principle that Subhuti cultivated. He completely understood that emptiness is purity, and purity is the most thorough and true principle.

He will bring to fulfillment a pure and magnificent Buddha-land and transform countless sentient beings. Of the people that this Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas. All of them have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel.

So, “He will bring to fulfillment a pure and magnificent Buddha-land.” This is the land where Subhuti in the future will attain Buddhahood and where he will “transform countless sentient beings. Of the people that this Buddha teaches, most are Bodhisattvas. All of them have sharp capabilities and can turn the non-retreating wheel.”

For this Buddha, in this place, in this land, everything is very pure and magnificent. It is a very pure and magnificent land. The sentient beings He transforms there are countless in number. For this Buddha, all the people [He teaches] are all Bodhisattvas who have affinities with this Buddha. They and the Buddha are born in the same land; this is the result of their collective good karma. They gather together and practice together there.

All in all, we must form great aspirations and make great vows. Then in our future land, “All good people will gather together.” They are all great Bodhisattvas who will come to the same place and practice together. This depends on the causes that we cultivate now, which will result in retributions in our future land. So, we must always be mindful!

Episode 954 – Following the Buddhas in Their Practice

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>> If we practice the Small Vehicle and constantly seek the noble teachings only for our own benefit, though many kalpas may pass, we still cannot achieve perfect enlightenment. The Buddha recorded the causes and predicted the effects of meeting and serving hundreds of millions of Buddhas. We must aspire to seek the great, direct path; only then can we attain Buddhahood.

>> “That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas, and Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas. That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly. He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “At that time, the World-Honored One, wishing to restate His meaning, spoke this verse ‘Today I tell all of you bhiksus, all of you must listen with a single mind to what I teach’.”

>> At that time, the World-Honored One, wishing to restate His meaning, spoke this verse: This follows the previous long-form prose. The World-Honored One, wishing to state His meaning again, proclaimed this repeated verse.

>> Today I tell all of you bhiksus: The Buddha, for the sake of the bhiksus before Him at the assembly, said, “Today I tell all of you” He admonished all to accept and understand.

>> All of you must listen with a single mind to what I teach: You must cease your discursive thoughts, and all with a single mind, concentrate your ears to listen carefully to what I teach.

>> “My great disciple Subhuti will attain Buddhahood. His epithet will be Name and Appearance. He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas, and following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> My great disciple Subhuti: He realized the principles of emptiness. Among the Buddha’s disciples, he was known as the foremost in understanding emptiness. The Buddha said “my great disciple” simply to distinguish him from other Small Vehicle family members and disciples.

>> Emptiness refers to the universe, to the infinitesimal changes of empty space: Amidst earth, water, fire, air and the great Dharma-realm of space, all matters and things arise because of causes and conditions and cease because of causes and conditions.

>> [He] will attain Buddhahood His epithet will be Name and Appearance: Subhuti understood the emptiness of all phenomena and that therefore all names and appearances are empty and still [in nature]. All things that can be expressed by language have no true meaning.

>> Because he fully understood that all phenomena are empty and still [in nature], nothing but names and appearances, his virtuous epithet upon attaining Buddhahood will be Name and Appearance.

>> He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas, and following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path: By following the practices of all Buddhas, he will gradually fulfill the Great Bodhisattva-path.

>> Due to his ethic, virtue and practices, Born of Emptiness was renowned as sage-like. The Buddha predicted he will attain fruition after making offerings to [trillions] of Buddhas. As a Small Vehicle practitioner, he was only mindful of non-appearance and never cultivated the Great Vehicle practice. Though many kalpas had passed, he had not yet attained perfect enlightenment. He must form great aspirations and fulfill the great path. Then he will attain Buddhahood.

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“If we practice the Small Vehicle and constantly seek the noble teachings only for our own benefit,
though many kalpas may pass, we still cannot achieve perfect enlightenment.
The Buddha recorded the causes and predicted the effects of meeting and serving hundreds of millions of Buddhas.
We must aspire to seek the great, direct path; only then can we attain Buddhahood.”

Spiritual practice takes a very long time. If we remain attached to Small Vehicle practices, we only seek our own benefit, even if we spend a very long time constantly seeking the noble teachings and constantly listening to the Dharma that the Buddha taught. When the Buddha was teaching the whole assembly, these [Small Vehicle] disciples were also there listening, but all they heard was to seek their own benefit. The disciples continually thought that by leaving their families and loved ones, they would no longer create the entanglements of karmic causes and conditions; they needed to concentrate on spiritual practice so as to never again return to this world. They thought this was their only direction. However, they had not fully understood the Buddha’s teaching that in order to get rid of afflictions, they must again return to the Saha World to widely transform sentient beings. Never had they formed this kind of aspiration. Still, they were earnest in listening to Dharma. So, they constantly sought the noble teachings.

“Though many kalpas may pass, we still cannot achieve perfect enlightenment.” Although a very long time may pass, “we still cannot achieve perfect enlightenment,” since we still have not formed great aspirations. If we do not form great aspirations to go among people, we may pass through many kalpas, which is a very long period of time, and still never achieve perfect enlightenment. This is because we do not maintain a pure mind to go among the people and create pure blessed affinities. If we lack these affinities, we will be unable to achieve perfect enlightenment.

So, it took them a very long time. This continued until they had the causes and conditions to draw near to a Buddha. Once the Buddha had manifested in the world and they had the causes and conditions to be near Him, they could directly receive His teachings. So in that lifetime, they practiced earnestly and formed great aspirations. Now, since they had seen the Buddha, based on what they practiced during that lifetime, their attitudes in life, the Buddha-Dharma they accepted in that lifetime and their outstanding qualities in their spiritual practice among the Sangha, the Buddha “recorded the causes and predicted the effects.” In addition to their [practice] in this life, the Buddha saw their process of spiritual practice.

Thus, He “recorded the causes.” How had they practiced in the past and what were the causes and conditions that had brought them into their present lives? By looking at the present, He could infer their causes from the past. So, this was how He “predicted the effects,” their future effects of attaining Buddhahood. At this time it was Subhuti; the Buddha began observing Subhuti and began bestowing predictions on him. He predicted how, in the future, he will “meet and serve hundreds of millions of Buddhas.” He will serve and make offerings to Them. This will take him a very long time.

What must come next is that he “must aspire to seek the great, direct path.” This means he must directly walk the Bodhisattva-path. He must seek the Buddha’s Way and transform sentient beings. He must reverently respect the Three Treasures, respect the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha, and practice the Six Perfections for a long time. Then he will attain Buddhahood.

This is the process of spiritual practice. In the past, he practiced the Small Vehicle for many lives. Since he received predictions for the future, in the future, according to the predictions, he will certainly form great aspirations and practice the Great Dharma by going among people on the great, direct path. This is turning from the Small towards the Great. This was the Buddha’s goal in giving His disciples predictions.

“That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas, and Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas. That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly. He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers.”     

When Subhuti attains Buddhahood in the future, his epithet will be Name and Appearance. “That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas.” In the future, his lifespan will be 12 kalpas, a very long lifespan. In addition, “Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas. Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas. That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly. He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers.”

We discussed this previously. That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Dharma-semblance and Right Dharma will both last for 20 small kalpas. This is a very long time. Over such a long time, that Buddha will constantly abide in emptiness and teach the Dharma to the assembly.

Next it states, “At that time, the World-Honored One, wishing to restate His meaning, spoke this verse ‘Today I tell all of you bhiksus, all of you must listen with a single mind to what I teach’.”

At that time, the Buddha continued. He was worried that after we listened to the prose passages that were spoken, we might forget. Perhaps there were some who had not yet arrived, who had not yet heard it, so the Buddha repeated it again, repeating it in verse

At that time, the World-Honored One, wishing to restate His meaning, spoke this verse: This follows the previous long-form prose. The World-Honored One, wishing to state His meaning again, proclaimed this repeated verse.

Subhuti would, in the future, attain Buddhahood. He had to repeat this again. So, it says, He “stated His meaning again,” and “proclaimed this repeated verse.” This was the Buddha’s compassion.

Today I tell all of you bhiksus: The Buddha, for the sake of the bhiksus before Him at the assembly, said, “Today I tell all of you” He admonished all to accept and understand.

“Today I tell all of you bhiksus.” The Buddha was reminding the assembly again, all of His disciples at the assembly. “Today I tell all of you bhiksus.” Now he wanted to tell them all something. This was cautioning them all that they should earnestly and mindfully accept the Dharma they were listening to.

Since they had heard others receive predictions, they too wanted to achieve realizations. They took the successes of others as examples for themselves.

All of you must listen with a single mind to what I teach: You must cease your discursive thoughts, and all with a single mind, concentrate your ears to listen carefully to what I teach.

So, the Buddha again wanted to remind everyone to concentrate, be mindful and listen carefully. “All of you must listen with a single mind to what I teach. Everyone must concentrate, be mindful and put effort into listening to what I have to say.” This means they must not have discursive thoughts and listen “with a single mind.” Thus, “Concentrate your ears to listen carefully to what I teach.” They must be mindful, sharpen their ears a little and listen earnestly to the Dharma.

The next sutra passage states, “My great disciple Subhuti will attain Buddhahood. His epithet will be Name and Appearance. He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas, and following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path.”

The Buddha repeated this again out of compassion. As He said, “My great disciple Subhuti,” He was specifically pointing out that. Subhuti was one of His great disciples, that they were teacher and disciple. He did this because His disciple had resonated with the Buddha-mind. Subhuti was able to realize the principles that the Buddha had taught, to realize the essence of the principles. But the principles are without substance. True principles have no substance or appearance. Subhuti had deeply accepted this truth. Not only did he deeply accept it, he was able to awaken to it. He had achieved realization of all true principles.

These cannot be explained with form and appearance. Nothing is the result of any one thing. All principles [explain] how causes and conditions come together. Only when causes and conditions come together are forms and appearances then born. People, matters, objects, all the sounds we hear and all the appearances we see, are completely due to causes and conditions coming together.

For instance, when I was talking, a plane was flying above us in the sky. We heard its sound. It was because a plane was flying in the sky, and the body of the airplane emitted a sound. These were the causes and conditions. At this particular time, these were the causes and conditions. Early in the morning, we are holding our. Wisdom at Dawn lecture, and they are holding flight training. This is causes and conditions coming together. Following the same principle, everything that happens in our lives is formed in a truly complicated way like this. Subhuti, in that era, over 2000 years ago, was able to awaken to what the Buddha taught. Matters and objects come together to produce many afflictions, and this cycle of afflictions continues, resulting in karmic causes and effects. This was what Subhuti had realized. This was why the Buddha praised him so.

My great disciple Subhuti: He realized the principles of emptiness. Among the Buddha’s disciples, he was known as the foremost in understanding emptiness. The Buddha said “my great disciple” simply to distinguish him from other Small Vehicle family members and disciples.

So, [He said] “my great disciple.” When He taught the Dharma, Subhuti was the one who understood the most, so He called him His great disciple. “My great disciple Subhuti realized the principle of emptiness. Among the Buddha’s disciples, he was known as the foremost in understanding emptiness.” He had analyzed all of the principles until realizing everything was completely empty. He comprehended the principles the Buddha taught. So, the Buddha called him “my great disciple.” This was also simply to distinguish him from family and followers practicing the Small Vehicle. Any place of spiritual practice is just like a large family, so we talk about “family and followers.”

Subhuti differed from others in how he listened to the Dharma. When others listened, they thought matters were matters and objects were objects. However, because Subhuti had a thorough understanding of the principles that underlie those matters and objects, he understood they were all empty. He understood the principles of emptiness. What is emptiness? It “refers to the universe, to the infinitesimal changes of empty space”

Emptiness refers to the universe, to the infinitesimal changes of empty space: Amidst earth, water, fire, air and the great Dharma-realm of space, all matters and things arise because of causes and conditions and cease because of causes and conditions.

This is the empty Dharma-realm. It is empty space, and in this empty space, in this great empty space, there is earth, water, fire and air. Space contains earth, water, fire and air. This is the great Dharma-realm. It is the great empty space of the universe.

In this great empty space, the planets all continue to revolve, undergoing “formation, existence, decay and disappearance.” So, in empty space, the aggregate of action is truly intricate and complicated; [its changes] all happen within the five elements, among the four elements contained in empty space [The four] along with space are the five elements. “All matters and things arise because of causes and conditions and cease because of causes and conditions.” This is the cycle which occurs within the five elements and the aggregate of action. When the cycle is well-regulated, humankind can live at peace. If not…. If the four elements are not in harmony, humankind will suffer many disasters.

[He] will attain Buddhahood His epithet will be Name and Appearance: Subhuti understood the emptiness of all phenomena and that therefore all names and appearances are empty and still [in nature]. All things that can be expressed by language have no true meaning.

“My great disciple Subhuti will attain Buddhahood.” Because “my great disciple, Subhuti,” in the future “will attain Buddhahood, his epithet will be Name and Appearance.” We already know that. Subhuti understood the emptiness of all phenomena “and that therefore all names and appearances are empty and still [in nature]. All things that can be expressed by language have no true meaning.”

So, upon attaining Buddhahood in the future, his epithet will be Name and Appearance. “Name and Appearance” refers to thoroughly understanding that even names are actually empty as well. What does a name look like? Take it out and let me see it! You can write it, but I am not talking about the characters; I want to see the appearance of your name. Do names have appearances? They have no appearance; they are empty. So, he had thoroughly understood the principle of the emptiness of names and appearances, that these are inherently empty in nature. Having already thoroughly understood the principles of names and appearances, his name upon attaining Buddhahood in the future will be Name and Appearance Tathagata.

“All things that can be expressed by language have no true meaning.” He had thoroughly understood that all these things are simply language, so [the words] “have no true meaning.” They have no real meaning. But the principles are true and real.

“He fully understood that all phenomena are empty and still [in nature]”

Because he fully understood that all phenomena are empty and still [in nature], nothing but names and appearances, his virtuous epithet upon attaining Buddhahood will be Name and Appearance.

After an event has passed, [we see] it is empty. When an event occurs, it may be something that makes us joyful or something that causes us afflictions. If we encounter a joyous occasion, once it passes it too is empty. If something causes afflictions, once it passes it too is empty. Everything returns to emptiness and stillness. This is [the nature of] phenomena. In this world, there are things that come together and cause afflictions and many things that come together and cause joy. These are all worldly phenomena. They are “nothing but names and appearances.” They are merely a convergence of our habitual tendencies with names and appearances.

So, this is his “virtuous epithet upon attaining Buddhahood.” When we thoroughly understand these principles, that everything is an illusion and that all returns to emptiness, then we can remain free of attachments. These were all realizations Subhuti had accumulated during past lifetimes. Now in his present lifetime, during the Buddha’s lifetime, causes and conditions had matured. He followed the Buddha to become a monastic and listened to the teachings of the Buddha. In this way he achieved realization. This required a long time of being permeated. Now, listening to the Buddha teach the Dharma, he was able to realize why spiritual practice requires a very long time.

He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas, and following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path: By following the practices of all Buddhas, he will gradually fulfill the Great Bodhisattva-path.

Next, it states, “He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas.” There will be so many he will make offerings to; there will be countless “trillions of Buddhas. Following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path. By following the practices of all Buddhas, he will gradually fulfill the great Bodhisattva-path.”

In the future, Subhuti “will attain Buddhahood and be called Name and Appearance Tathagata.” But during the process, he will still have to make offerings to trillions of Buddhas. How many trillions did it say in the prose? It was 300 trillion. In the verse here, it is more succinct. So, “He will make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas.” He will follow them, and “Following these Buddhas in Their practice, he will gradually fulfill the great path.” He will follow the practices of all Buddhas.

So, we must truly put our hearts into our spiritual practice, mindfully get rid of afflictions and help other people while never allowing others to contaminate us. We must cultivate both blessings and wisdom. Let us actualize the Six Paramitas in all actions. We should practice the Six Perfections and the Fourfold Practice in parallel. Only by doing so will we not have to wait so long in the future. Everyone is a Buddha. With reverence in our hearts, I believe we can draw even closer to the Buddha’s teachings and have a greater ability to experience the Dharma. So, let us always be mindful.

Episode 953 – The Perfect Blessings and Virtues of the Wise

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>> Those with the circumstantial retributions to practice together are wise people who have perfect blessings and virtues. They all dwell on precious platforms and rare and wondrous towers adorned with many treasures. Bodhisattvas actualize the. Six Perfections in all actions through extended practice and practice with reverence, accumulating provisions of blessings, virtues and wisdom through practice with no remainder and uninterrupted practice.

 >> “His kalpa will be named Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born. The land will be level, the ground made of crystal and trees of treasure will make it magnificent. There will be no hills or pits of any kind, no dirt and rocks or thorns, nor the filth of excrement. Precious flowers will cover the ground, and everything around will be clear and pure.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

 >> “The people of that land will all dwell on precious platforms and rare and wondrous towers. The number of Hearer disciples will be countless and limitless, unknowable through calculation or analogy. The assembly of Bodhisattvas is innumerable, in the millions and billions of nayutas.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

 >> The people of that land will all dwell on precious platforms: In his land Treasure Born, the places where the people live are many precious platforms and towers. These all indicate the fruits of virtue accumulated over many kalpas through their causal practice.

 >> There will be rare and wondrous towers there. There are all kinds of rare and wonderful towers. These terraces and towers are built in layers by grade. the 37 Practices to Enlightenment.

 >> Through inner cultivation, he attained the treasure of the principle of emptiness. Thus externally, there will be the response of the precious platforms’ and towers’ magnificence. Having already accumulated the Great Vehicle’s provisions of blessings and wisdom, he will in response naturally have the circumstantial retributions of rare and wondrous towers and platforms.

>> Blessings: These are virtues and blessings. This refers to the practice of the Six Paramitas. Wisdom: This is all wisdom. Blessings and wisdom are like eyes and feet; neither can go without the other.

 >> The number of Hearer disciples will be countless and limitless, unknowable through calculation or analogy: There are so many Small Vehicle practitioners that their limit and quantity are unknown. Their number is impossible to calculate, and likening it to objects also cannot convey it.

>> The assembly of Bodhisattvas is innumerable in the millions and billions of nayutas: There are so many Bodhisattvas of the Great Vehicle that their numbers are impossible to count. Thus it says [the number] is in the millions and billions of nayutas.

>> “That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas, and Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas. That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly. He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas. Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas: In the material world, one increasing and one decreasing kalpa is called one small kalpa.

>> That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly: He has realized emptiness and entered the Path, thus He abides in the emptiness of phenomena to teach profound prajna wisdom. He sees penetratingly that the Five Aggregates and self-nature are all empty and has entered the principle of the emptiness of phenomena.

>> From this, he can abide in emptiness. All worlds of the great trichiliocosm are also ultimately empty. This means that the essence and nature of all conditioned phenomena are ultimately empty. For this reason, Name and Appearance Tathagata, who realized the supreme meaning of emptiness, teaches the Dharma to the assembly by also constantly abiding in emptiness.

>> He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers. With the great, still teachings of emptiness, He will deliver all Bodhisattvas. Through teachings biased towards emptiness, He will deliver the assembly of Hearers.

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“Those with the circumstantial retributions to practice together are wise people who have perfect blessings and virtues.
They all dwell on precious platforms and rare and wondrous towers adorned with many treasures.
Bodhisattvas actualize the. Six Perfections in all actions through extended practice and practice with reverence,
accumulating provisions of blessings, virtues and wisdom through practice with no remainder and uninterrupted practice.”

As we engage in spiritual practice, are we truly putting the Dharma into practice by doing the things we should? Or, are we unwilling to give to others, only seeking our own gain? Without giving, we will not get what we seek. When we give, even without seeking, we are sure to attain. We should not be attached to the teachings; if it is something we should do, then we simply do it every day.

So, we speak of circumstantial retributions. To attain these circumstantial retributions, we must constantly engage in spiritual practice. We can live in such peace and stability, among people who all mutually support each other, so every day we should give rise to a sense of joy while mutually encouraging one another. This is our circumstantial retribution. Without these affinities from past lives, if we had not created these blessings, then how could we live in such an environment, in such a time, such a space and with such people, and thus be able to practice together under such conditions?

Being able to practice together is due to the past. The affinities we cultivated have been perfected. So, every day we are with these wise people of blessings and virtues.

Worldly blessings are found in the joy we take in giving. We have the heart to give, so whatever people need, we are willing to give to help them. This is giving. Take Mr. U Thein Tun in Myanmar, for example. Every day before he begins cooking, he puts aside a handful of rice. There are four people his family, and they save a handful of rice. As this saved rice accumulates, before long they can fill a plastic container. This way they are able to help others even poorer than they are. Even in their poverty, by each family member eating a little less, they are able to help others get a full meal.

This is the idea he follows. This year, in May [2015], he moved [back] into his house. The house he moved into was completely remodeled it so it was like new. Actually, the house is quite simple, with a thatched roof and adobe walls. Nevertheless, he was jubilant, for it is very well-organized, and inside it is relatively spacious. He invited everyone over for a tea party, to come to his house for tea. This was his housewarming gathering. Everyone went to his house to drink tea. He began telling everyone his story of finding peace in poverty and spiritual abundance. He hopes to lead others in his village to cultivate the fields of blessings together by living frugally and saving so they can thus be able to help others. This is how U Thein Tun transforms others, by using methods like these.

He said, “Every day now, I wear my gray and white [Tzu Chi] uniform.” He said, “I must be very mindful not to get these clothes dirty. My mind now is also just like this uniform I wear. Since joining Tzu Chi, I need to be very careful in my behavior, just like looking after this uniform.”

Indeed! This is a wise person. So, “Those with the circumstantial retributions to practice together are wise people who have perfect blessings and virtues.” Although he is not financially wealthy, every day he nevertheless enjoys the riches of his happiness. He not only practices this himself, but also continually shares his experiences, his accomplishments and what he has learned, thus practicing together with others. He gives everyone in his village a chance to similarly cultivate the fields of blessings, to cultivate blessings, virtue and wisdom.

Look at U Thein Tun. He renovated his house and then very proudly said, “I live in a mansion. I like it so much!” Isn’t this like how “They all dwell on precious platforms and rare and wondrous towers adorned with many treasures”? All kinds of treasures are used as decorations. From his joyful point of view, the entire house is so clean. When the space inside is so clean, anything he displays there looks like a treasure. A contented mind is always happy. This will always be true.

“Bodhisattvas actualize the Six Perfections in all actions” through extended practice and practice with reverence. In the Bodhisattva-practice, besides the Six Perfections, there are also the Four Practices, which all must be practiced extensively. While Bodhisattvas practice, they are always joyful and filled with respect.

These are the Six Perfections and the Four Practices of the Bodhisattva. They also “accumulate provisions of blessings, virtues and wisdom.” In accumulating provisions of blessings, virtues and wisdom, they must “practice with no remainder.” When it comes to good deeds, big or small, they are always willing to give. Thus, there is no “remainder” that slips away. This is “practice with no remainder. Uninterrupted practice” means there are no breaks. We just carry on our practice continuously. This is the Six Perfections and Four Practices. This is how we are able to attain provisions of blessings, virtues and wisdom. We must continually accumulate these.

The preceding sutra passage says, “His kalpa will be named Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born. The land will be level, the ground made of crystal and trees of treasure will make it magnificent. There will be no hills or pits of any kind, no dirt and rocks or thorns, nor the filth of excrement. Precious flowers will cover the ground, and everything around will be clear and pure.”
We have spoken before of what Name and Appearance Tathagata attains, of what His circumstantial retributions are, and what his land is like.

Next it says, “The people of that land will all dwell on precious platforms and rare and wondrous towers. The number of Hearer disciples will be countless and limitless, unknowable through calculation or analogy. The assembly of Bodhisattvas is innumerable, in the millions and billions of nayutas.”
This is starting to to tell us about. Name and Appearance Tathagata’s land, how His people all live on precious platforms. They “all dwell on precious platforms”

The people of that land will all dwell on precious platforms: In his land Treasure Born, the places where the people live are many precious platforms and towers. These all indicate the fruits of virtue accumulated over many kalpas through their causal practice.
“In his land of Treasure Born” means that [Subhuti’s] circumstantial retribution will be to have this land called Treasure Born. All the people in this land will live upon many precious platforms, towers and terraces. “Platforms” are places built higher up. They are called “platforms.”

These “many precious platforms and towers all indicate the [fruits of virtue].” They reveal his causal practices over many kalpas, the causes and practices he cultivated and indicate the fruits that accumulated. This is his land of circumstantial retribution

There will be “rare and wondrous towers” there. “There are all kinds of rare and wonderful towers.” These “terraces and towers are built in layers by grade.” This is an analogy for the 37 Practices to Enlightenment.
In our spiritual practice, it is as if we are climbing a staircase. When ascending a tower, we climb level by level, until we reach the top of the platform, or the top of the tower.

It is the same with spiritual practice. “Built in layers by grade” means level by level we continually climb upward. This is like spiritual practice. The Four Noble Truths, suffering, causation, cessation and the Path, or the Fourfold Mindfulness or the Four Right Efforts and so forth are different levels [we must climb]. With the Dharma, the more we listen, the more we understand. From the Small Vehicle Dharma, we move diligently toward the Great Vehicle. So, terraces and towers are all analogies for the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. We must earnestly practice these.

“Through inner cultivation he attained the treasure of the principles of emptiness. Treasure” is an analogy

Through inner cultivation, he attained the treasure of the principle of emptiness. Thus externally, there will be the response of the precious platforms’ and towers’ magnificence. Having already accumulated the Great Vehicle’s provisions of blessings and wisdom, he will in response naturally have the circumstantial retributions of rare and wondrous towers and platforms.

We have already understood and have taken the Dharma to heart. In the world, human life is impermanent, and all is illusory. What need is there to take issue over things? There is no need! When we sweep away afflictions and absorb the principles of the Buddha-Dharma, these are treasures which enable us to see things clearly.

“Thus externally, there will be the response of the precious platforms’ and towers’ magnificence.” By cultivating ourselves internally, these appearances will manifest externally. We will feel very comfortable in the places we live. We will by very satisfied and very grateful. These are the places we will live in, so we will feel very grateful. For anyone who feels satisfied, listening to the Dharma is a treasure.

So, “having already accumulated provisions of. Great Vehicle blessings and wisdom,” we can begin. We do not necessarily need lots of money to be able to do good deeds. If we are willing to give to help others and cultivate the Six Perfections and Four Practices, we complete our provisions of blessings and wisdom.

So, “In response he will naturally have the circumstantial retributions of rare and wondrous towers and platforms.” If we can achieve this, it is a result of blessings and wisdom. We must regularly cultivate blessings and have wisdom. When it comes to blessings and virtues, how do we cultivate them? We need to practice the Six Perfections [We also need] wisdom.

Blessings: These are virtues and blessings. This refers to the practice of the Six Paramitas. Wisdom: This is all wisdom. Blessings and wisdom are like eyes and feet; neither can go without the other.

Blessings and wisdom are just like our eyes, like our feet. Our feet walk upon the road while our eyes watch the road. Only then will we not fall. So, this is like blessings and wisdom; they must be cultivated in parallel. Neither can be lacking. We cannot cultivate wisdom without cultivating blessings. We cannot cultivate blessings without cultivating wisdom. So, only when we cultivate blessings and wisdom together can we be called Two-Footed Honored Ones. In learning the Buddha’s teachings, these are things we must have.

The number of Hearer disciples will be countless and limitless, unknowable through calculation or analogy: There are so many Small Vehicle practitioners that their limit and quantity are unknown. Their number is impossible to calculate, and likening it to objects also cannot convey it.

“The number of Hearer disciples will be countless and limitless, unknowable through calculation or analogy. There are so many Small Vehicle practitioners” ․The number of Hearer disciples will be countless and limitless, unknowable through calculation or analogy: There are so many Small Vehicle practitioners that their limit and quantity are unknown. Their number is impossible to calculate, and likening it to objects also cannot convey it.

The assembly of Bodhisattvas is innumerable in the millions and billions of nayutas: There are so many Bodhisattvas of the Great Vehicle that their numbers are impossible to count. Thus it says [the number] is in the millions and billions of nayutas.

In that land, the land of Treasure Born, there will be so many Small Vehicle practitioners that it will be impossible to count them all. So, “Their limit and quantity are unknown.” There will be so many forming initial aspirations to engage in spiritual practice. The numbers are limitless, impossible to calculate. Their numbers will be such that they cannot even be alluded to by analogy. This “cannot convey it.” One can never count them all. Next, there will be an “assembly of Bodhisattvas.” There will not just be. Small Vehicle practitioners who form initial aspirations there. There will be many Small Vehicle practitioners, but the Great Vehicle Bodhisattvas are the same, “innumerable, in the millions and billions of nayutas.” There will be many Bodhisattvas in the assembly there as well. Practitioners of the Great Vehicle and of the Six Perfections and Four Practices there will also be numerous. So, “Their numbers are impossible to count. Thus it says [the number] is in the millions and billions of nayutas.”

“Nayuta” is a very large number, a number which is impossible to calculate. This is because we continually accumulate provisions of blessings and wisdom.

The next passage states, “That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas, and Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas. That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly. He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers.”

“That Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas. Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas, and Dharma-semblance will also abide for 20 small kalpas. That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly. He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers.”  

This passage states that that Buddha’s lifespan will be 12 small kalpas, Right Dharma will abide for 20 small kalpas and His [era] of Dharma-semblance will also last for 20 small kalpas. In the material world, one increasing and decreasing kalpa is called “one small kalpa” 20 increasing and decreasing kalpas is already more than we can possibly calculate. We would never finish; it is such a long time.

“That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness” to teach the Dharma to the assembly

That Buddha constantly abides in emptiness to teach the Dharma to the assembly: He has realized emptiness and entered the Path, thus He abides in the emptiness of phenomena to teach profound prajna wisdom. He sees penetratingly that the Five Aggregates and self-nature are all empty and has entered the principle of the emptiness of phenomena.

Subhuti was “foremost in understanding emptiness.” The causes he cultivated in the past began with realizing the principle of emptiness. Thus he entered the path of spiritual practice.

So, he “abides in the emptiness of phenomena.” Because he had the realization of emptiness as his cause, in his spiritual practice he was always without attachments and without hindrances. But with uninterrupted and extended practice the result was his abiding in the emptiness of phenomena “to teach profound prajna wisdom.” The Dharma he will teach is profound, for “He sees penetratingly that the. Five Aggregates and self-nature are all empty.”

“The Five Aggregates and self-nature are empty.” Form, feeling, perception, action, consciousness, none of these principles can actually be held on to. We must make an effort to realize this ourselves. If we do not earnestly try to realize this, we may easily take issue over people, matters and objects. If form, feeling and perception give rise to consciousness, consciousness entangles us and binds us, resulting in much ignorance and afflictions covering us. So, in our spiritual practice, we must “see penetratingly that the Five Aggregates and self-nature are all empty” and “enter the principle of the emptiness of phenomena.” This was what Subhuti realized.

From this, he can abide in emptiness. All worlds of the great trichiliocosm are also ultimately empty. This means that the essence and nature of all conditioned phenomena are ultimately empty. For this reason, Name and Appearance Tathagata, who realized the supreme meaning of emptiness, teaches the Dharma to the assembly by also constantly abiding in emptiness.

Moreover, “From this, he can abide in emptiness. All worlds of the great trichiliocosm are also ultimately empty.” The worlds of the great trichiliocosm, all material things, no matter how long-lasting, are all subject to “formation, existence, decay and disappearance.” We must understand this principle well. This is “ultimate emptiness.”

“This means that the essence and nature of all conditioned phenomena are ultimately empty.” Anything that you have created, any manmade thing and so on, will eventually decay and disappear. “For this reason, Name and Appearance Tathagata, who realized the supreme meaning of emptiness, teaches the Dharma to the assembly by also constantly abiding in emptiness.”

Through the teachings of those 300 trillion Tathagatas, he will earnestly engage in spiritual practice, practice the “emptiness of supreme meaning” and attain Buddhahood in the future. He will be called Name and Appearance Tathagata.

When teaching the Dharma to sentient beings, he will constantly abide in emptiness. When teaching the Dharma to sentient beings in the future, he will similarly use the principle of emptiness to transform sentient beings

He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers. With the great, still teachings of emptiness, He will deliver all Bodhisattvas. Through teachings biased towards emptiness, He will deliver the assembly of Hearers.

“He liberates countless Bodhisattvas as well as the assembly of Hearers. With the great, still teachings of emptiness, He will deliver all Bodhisattvas. Through teachings biased towards emptiness, He will deliver the assembly of Hearers.” He, too, will teach according to capabilities. Those with great capabilities will be able to accept the Great Dharma. He will use the great and still teachings of emptiness to deliver the Bodhisattvas.

When He sees those beginning their practice, He will use the Four Noble Truths, the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence and the 37 Practices to Enlightenment, all kinds of teachings, to help them diligently advance level by level. These will used be [to transform] the Hearers.

As Buddhist practitioners, we must mindfully [engage] with the world to achieve realizations. To attain Buddhahood, we cannot think, “With what I practice today, by putting my heart into it in this lifetime, in my next lifetime I will attain Buddhahood.” It is not like this. We must have a great deal of patience.

Episode 951 – Engaging in Purifying Practices

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 >> Practice with nothing further means the Buddha’s virtue is perfect and complete, as are His provisions of blessings and virtues. Extended practice means over the course of three great asankya kalpas, He never gets tired. Uninterrupted practice means. He is focused, diligent and courageous, never lax in His practice even for one instant. Practice with reverence means. He respectfully learned the practices that are the Tathagata’s karmic causes

>> “At that time, the World-Honored One knew the thoughts in the minds of all His great disciples and told the bhiksus, ‘This man, Subhuti, in his future lifetimes, will meet and serve 300 trillion, nayutas of Buddhas’.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

 >> “He will make offerings to, show reverence to, pay respect to and praise Them. He will constantly cultivate Brahma-conduct and fulfill the Bodhisattva-path. In his final incarnation, he will attain Buddhahood.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> He will make offerings to, show reverence to, pay respect to and praise Them: This is widely planting blessings and virtues. Making offerings and so on is to be sincere and reverent through our Threefold Karma such that we cultivate blessings. Cultivating Brahma-conduct is to renounce lay life and free ourselves of desires such that we cultivate wisdom. The perfect cultivation of blessings and wisdom is called the Bodhisattva-path.

>> He will constantly cultivate Brahma-conduct and fulfill the Bodhisattva-path: This is the deep cultivation of wisdom. Brahma-conduct means pure and undefiled conduct. In general, this is called Brahma-conduct. He will cultivate until realizing perfection, thus it says he fulfills the Bodhisattva-path.

 >> Purifying means clean and pure. The Bodhisattva-practice of benefiting others can treat all unwholesome things. It is pure and free from transgressions, hence it is called Brahma-conduct.

>> [Final incarnation] has two meanings; one is For Hearers, when this life ends, they will not be subject to future incarnations. This is called the final incarnation.

>> Final incarnation has two meanings: The mind after reaching universal enlightenment, which has diamond-like Samadhi. With ignorance totally eliminated and the consciousness of ripened differences emptied, that is called the final incarnation. Here it is the latter meaning.

>> His epithet will be. Name and Appearance Tathagata: Subhuti fully understood all phenomena are empty, therefore all names and appearances are empty. All that can be expressed by words has no true meaning. Because he fully understood that all phenomena are nothing but names and appearances, his virtuous epithet upon attaining Buddhahood will be Name and Appearance Tathagata.

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“Practice with nothing further means the Buddha’s virtue is perfect and complete, as are His provisions of blessings and virtues.
Extended practice means over the course of three great asankya kalpas, He never gets tired.
Uninterrupted practice means. He is focused, diligent and courageous, never lax in His practice even for one instant.
Practice with reverence means. He respectfully learned the practices that are the Tathagata’s karmic causes.”

These are the four methods [we use as] we engage in spiritual practice

[First is] “practice with nothing further.” We have such reverence for the Buddha. Why do we hold this reverence for Him? The Buddha has already attained enlightenment and has perfect wisdom, blessings and virtues. So, we must understand that the Buddha is replete with blessings and virtues because over a long period of time He accumulated these spiritual provisions. “With nothing further” means no time was wasted; there was no time left over. For a long time, over many lifetimes, in all His time life after life, He was always engaged in spiritual practice and cultivated blessings and wisdom. So, He was replete with blessings and wisdom and was thus able to attain Buddhahood. This is the Buddha’s virtue; He is already replete with the provisions of blessings and virtues.

The Buddha taught us with His own example that our time should not be wasted. He went among people with impartial love for all sentient beings, not forgetting or abandoning anyone. This is how He cultivated provisions of blessings and virtues. So, He had to engage in “extended practice”; He engaged in spiritual practice for a long time. For how long did He do so? He had to do this for three great asankya kalpas, without tiring. This is how long it takes.

How long is three asankya kalpas? As I often explain to everyone, starting with a ten year average human lifespan, one year is added after 100 years pass. After another 100 years, another year is added. As we count along like this, adding on the years, when we reach an average lifespan of 84,000 years, the total time is equal to one increasing kalpa. Then, beginning with an average of 84,000 years, we subtract one year after 100 years and continue to decrease by one year per 100 years. It continually decreases like this until the lifespan once again averages 10 years. This is called one decreasing kalpa. One increasing and one decreasing kalpa together are called one small kalpa 20 small kalpas makes one medium kalpa, and four medium kalpas make one great kalpa. So, how long is three great asankya kalpas? It is a very long time. To remain tireless for such a long time requires continuous diligence.

We must practice the Six Perfections; we must practice giving and upholding the precepts. We must also have patience and diligence. We must also cultivate contemplation, which is Samadhi, and continue to develop our wisdom-life. Everything that we cultivate all comes back to developing our wisdom-life. This will surely require us to remain untiring over a long period of time. We must be diligent and able to endure patiently, able to cultivate contemplation. In this world, everyone loves to criticize, and everyone faces all kinds of tangible and intangible difficulties. We must be able to endure them; this is called patience. We must be diligent and patient in order to be able to make it through three great asankya kalpas without getting tired. This can only be achieved by spending a long time engaging in spiritual practice.

We must also engage in “uninterrupted practice.” This means that as we practice diligently, we must also be courageous, so that not an instant of our practice is wasted. With this kind of diligence, not a second goes to waste. This is what we call uninterrupted practice.

We must furthermore “practice with reverence.” We must be reverent, which is to “respectfully learn the practices that are the Tathagata’s karmic causes.” We must be reverent and respectful. When we have sincerity in [examining] the Buddha’s past spiritual cultivation, we follow the Buddha in our spiritual practice and use our lives to emulate the example He set for us. He sought the path to Buddhahood and transformed sentient beings. This was how He accumulated provisions. Learning the Buddha’s Way takes a long time, so we cannot be indolent. We cannot allow our minds to remain amidst afflictions and ignorance that will lead us to waste our lives. So, being earnest and diligent is the attitude we must have in spiritual practice.

The previous sutra passage states, “At that time, the World-Honored One knew the thoughts in the minds of all His great disciples and told the bhiksus, ‘This man, Subhuti, in his future lifetimes, will meet and serve 300 trillion, nayutas of Buddhas’.”
These great disciples were. Kasyapa, Subhuti, Katyayana and Maudgalyayana. The four of them had gone before the Buddha to express what what was in their hearts, to express that before, they had been mistaken and thus remained in the Small Vehicle, seeking only their own awakening. Now, they had understood that they had a treasure trove equal to the Buddha’s; this was the Dharma-treasure. Their wisdom was equal to the Buddha’s.

So, “The minds of all His great disciples” were of course clearly understood by the Buddha. Thus, “He told the bhiksus.” The Buddha announced to everyone that. “This man, Subhuti, in his future lifetimes, will meet and serve 300 trillion, nayutas of Buddhas. Nayutas” refers to a countless amount, 300 trillion, a countless number of Buddhas. Venerable Kasyapa also needed to meet and serve 300 trillion Buddhas. Now, Venerable Subhuti had received a prediction of Buddhahood from the Buddha. The Buddha called his name and bestowed a prediction on him, indicating that it would also take a long time.

The next sutra passage states, “He will make offerings to, show reverence to, pay respect to and praise Them. He will constantly cultivate Brahma-conduct and fulfill the Bodhisattva-path. In his final incarnation, he will attain Buddhahood.”
When a Buddha is in the world, he will need to make offerings. He must exercise utmost reverence to do this and be very respectful. We must constantly praise the Buddha’s virtues. We praise the Buddha’s virtues because we want to emulate them. If we look down on them, that means we have no desire to learn it. We must place great importance and value on [the Buddha’s virtues]. To place importance on them is to praise them.

Then we can learn the Buddha’s virtues and accumulate our own provisions. Therefore, we must be reverent and praise them. We must also “constantly cultivate Brahma-conduct.” Brahma-conduct means purifying practices. To “fulfill the Bodhisattva-path,” we have to walk the Bodhisattva-path. The goal is attaining Buddhahood, for everyone to walk the Bodhisattva-path all the way until everyone’s final incarnation. After meeting and serving 300 trillion, “nayutas of Buddhas,” reverently making offerings to them, after such a long time, [Subhuti’s] causes and conditions will mature, and naturally, he “will attain Buddhahood.” This is what Subhuti [will undergo].

So, to “make offerings to, show reverence to, pay respect to and praise Them” has the meaning of “widely planting blessings and virtues”

He will make offerings to, show reverence to, pay respect to and praise Them: This is widely planting blessings and virtues. Making offerings and so on is to be sincere and reverent through our Threefold Karma such that we cultivate blessings. Cultivating Brahma-conduct is to renounce lay life and free ourselves of desires such that we cultivate wisdom. The perfect cultivation of blessings and wisdom is called the Bodhisattva-path.
We must constantly plant the seeds of blessings, constantly create blessings for others. Planting blessings means spreading seeds of goodness and forming good affinities with others. This is “widely planting blessings and virtues.”

Making reverent offerings and so on is to be “sincere and reverent through our Threefold Karma.” Of the Threefold Karma, our karma of speech must be to praise. We praise the Buddha’s virtues, praise the Buddha-Dharma and praise the Sangha. We praise the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. Furthermore, when we are among people, we must constantly speak good words and always do good deeds. With our minds, we must continually cultivate wisdom, blessings and virtues. Thus we are “sincere and reverent in our Threefold Karma.” This is cultivating blessings with reverence. With reverence for the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha and respect for people, matters and things, we are cultivating blessings.

Not only must we cultivate blessings, we must also cultivate Brahma-conduct. Brahma-conduct is monastic spiritual practice. “Renouncing lay life, abandoning desires” and eliminating our ignorance is the only way for us develop pure wisdom. This is perfectly cultivating wisdom and blessings. This is called the Bodhisattva-path. The true Bodhisattva-path means eliminating all afflictions and ignorance. “Brahma-conduct” means engaging in purifying practices. Only in this way can we truly reach fulfillment of the Bodhisattva-path and truly cultivate the causes to attain the fruit.

He will constantly cultivate Brahma-conduct and fulfill the Bodhisattva-path: This is the deep cultivation of wisdom. Brahma-conduct means pure and undefiled conduct. In general, this is called Brahma-conduct. He will cultivate until realizing perfection, thus it says he fulfills the Bodhisattva-path.

We are cultivating the cause to attain Buddhahood. To do so, we must always remain pure so that our bodies will not be contaminated. “He will constantly cultivate Brahma-conduct.” When one’s mind and body are both pure, one can “fulfill the Bodhisattva-path.”

“This is the deep cultivation of wisdom.” This karma of wisdom will be very profound. Brahma-conduct is pure and free from contamination. These kinds of practices are called Brahma-conduct. “He will cultivate until realizing perfection” means practicing like this, his mind and body will both be perfectly pure. This is to “fulfill the Bodhisattva-path.” This way, the Bodhisattva-path is truly complete.

Purifying means clean and pure. The Bodhisattva-practice of benefiting others can treat all unwholesome things. It is pure and free from transgressions, hence it is called Brahma-conduct.

So, the word “Brahma” means clean and pure. Bodhisattvas, in order to benefit others, “can treat all unwholesome things.” When we are free from transgressions, our body and mind will be forever pure. “Hence it is called Brahma-conduct.” We must first purify ourselves. We cannot practice any unwholesomeness. Our body and mind must be completely free of those thoughts. When our mind and body are pure, we can deal with unwholesome things and are able to avoid mistakes. When we avoid making mistakes, our body and mind will always remain pure; hence it is called Brahma-conduct.

“In his final incarnation, he will attain Buddhahood” ․[Final incarnation] has two meanings; one is “For Hearers, when this life ends, they will not be subject to future incarnations.” This is called the “final incarnation.”

[Final incarnation] has two meanings; one is For Hearers, when this life ends, they will not be subject to future incarnations. This is called the final incarnation.

They will no longer be dragged around by causes and conditions of future existences. Starting now, in life after life, they will engage in spiritual practice as monastics, and with undefiled bodies, will meet and serve 300 trillion Buddhas. They must become monastics and [serve] 300 trillion Buddhas. Life after life, they cultivate pure practices. This is their final [incarnation]. The Buddha already told us that. “For Hearers, when this life ends,” as announced to the assembly by the Buddha, “they will not be subject to future incarnations.”

The second meaning is “[the mind after] reaching universal enlightenment.” They go from the state of Hearers to the attainment of universal enlightenment, and with the Dharma reach the highest state. Our minds in this final stage are in a firm state of Samadhi that can be compared with a diamond. “With ignorance totally eliminated and the consciousness of ripened differences emptied,” that is called the “final incarnation.”

Final incarnation has two meanings: The mind after reaching universal enlightenment, which has diamond-like Samadhi. With ignorance totally eliminated and the consciousness of ripened differences emptied, that is called the final incarnation. Here it is the latter meaning.

This means our eighth consciousness has already been emptied. The conditions we ordinarily create and attach ourselves to have all been emptied out. The eighth consciousness is the “consciousness of ripened differences.” The good and bad karma we have created is all stored in our eighth consciousness. If we earnestly engage in spiritual practice and no longer commit evil deeds, if we eliminate all evil deeds one by one, only good deeds will be left in this consciousness. As for these good deeds, even they must be emptied out. We cultivate good conditions among sentient beings without any attachments, transform them without expectations. When we reach this natural state, we return to this world for the sake of all sentient beings, without any sense of self and other. Our “consciousness of ripened differences is empty.” We give without expectations; this is called the “final incarnation.”

This is the meaning of the term “final.”

As we learn the Buddha’s Way, we must be mindful. We must always try to comprehend this. So, we must always keep in mind that our final goal in spiritual practice is attaining Buddhahood. Then, “In his final incarnation, he will attain Buddhahood.”

This Buddha’s epithet will be Name and Appearance Tathagata. Name and Appearance Tathagata is endowed with the ten epithets, “One Worthy of Offerings, Completely Awakened One, One Perfect in Wisdom and Action, Well-Gone One, Knower of the World, Unsurpassed Guide, Tamer, Teacher of Heavenly Beings and Humans and Buddha, the World-Honored One.” When Subhuti has attained Buddhahood, his epithet will be Name and Appearance Tathagata.

Do you all still remember? When Sariputra has attained Buddhahood, what will his epithet be? Flower Light Tathagata. What about Kasyapa? Radiant Light Tathagata. Now we know that Subhuti will become. Name and Appearance Tathagata

His epithet will be. Name and Appearance Tathagata: Subhuti fully understood all phenomena are empty, therefore all names and appearances are empty. All that can be expressed by words has no true meaning. Because he fully understood that all phenomena are nothing but names and appearances, his virtuous epithet upon attaining Buddhahood will be Name and Appearance Tathagata.
“Subhuti fully understood all phenomena are empty.” We have mentioned before that when Subhuti was born, the wealth in his family’s storehouse disappeared. After a period of time, the treasures reappeared. When he was born, he brought with him [the truth] that all phenomena in the world are empty, that all phenomena are a convergence of [causes and conditions]. This was the auspicious sign of his birth.

So, “All names and appearances are empty. All that can be expressed by words has no true meaning.” Through the practices he cultivated, the Dharma that he has now understood is that all names and appearances are empty. Everything that can be expressed by words has no true meaning. We often say that true principles have no substance or appearance. We always say the principles have no appearance. If we try to speak of them, words fail us; what Dharma is there to talk about? Can we take the Dharma out to look at it? So, the Buddha had no choice but to use different analogies to explain all appearances. He analyzed all appearances and [explained that] they all return to emptiness. So, [we need to] understand this principle. Subhuti completely understood it.

“Because he fully understood that all phenomena are nothing but names and appearances, his virtuous epithet upon attaining Buddhahood will be Name and Appearance Tathagata.” This is because he completely understood through his spiritual cultivation that all names, substances and appearances are, in the end, empty. Thus, his epithet will be. Name and Appearance Tathagata. This is the future epithet of Subhuti. When he attains Buddhahood this will be his epithet. Now that we know this, what will the land [he lives in] be like? We will speak more about this later.

We must understand that when learning the Buddha’s Way, we should “practice with nothing further.” We do not have much more time left. We need to always recognize that time is running out. So, there is not a moment to spare. We should also understand that the things we want to do we must do to completion. We have to seize all the time we have and take every opportunity to transform others. We must never cause anyone’s roots of goodness to be severed. So, we “practice with nothing further.” We must spend a long time engaging in practice without ever tiring. We need to engage in “uninterrupted practice, practice with reverence” and so on. We should have this mindset and engage in spiritual practice without interruption. This will require a very long time; we must walk the Bodhisattva-path for a long time before we reach the state of the Buddha. So, we must always be mindful.

Episode 952 – Bestowing Predictions on Born of Emptiness

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>> In the causal ground, his mind was unhindered, and he always thought of purifying practices. His mind was tranquil and clear because he practiced vows as vast as the universe. His epithet will be Name and Appearance because he understood all phenomena are empty. This seed gave rise to an ocean of fruits of pure virtues, thus Born of Emptiness received a prediction.

>> “His epithets will be. Name and Appearance Tathagata, One Worthy of Offerings, Completely Awakened One. One Perfect in Wisdom and Action, Well-Gone One, Knower of the World, Tamer, Unsurpassed Guide, Teacher of Heavenly Beings and Humans and. Buddha, the World-Honored One.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> “His kalpa will be named Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born. The land will be level, the ground made of crystal and trees of treasure will make it magnificent. There will be no hills or pits of any kind, no dirt and rocks or thorns nor the filth of excrement. Precious flowers will cover the ground, and everything around will be clear and pure.”      [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 6 – On Bestowing Predictions]

>> His kalpa will be named Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born: This predicts that when he attains the fruit, his land will be magnificent and pure, with the Dharma of emptiness and stillness. The name of his kalpa will be Bearing Treasure because his land will be pure and will constantly bear treasures.

>> In the causal ground, Kasyapa was replete with a purple-golden radiance. In the causal ground, Subhuti was able to skillfully understand the principle of emptiness. Therefore, one had the virtue of radiance, and the other the treasure of emptiness.

>> On the day Good Manifestation was born, his household appeared to be empty, but later, again manifested the appearance of many treasures. Thus the Buddha-land of his circumstantial retributions will be called Treasure Born, and the kalpa which will appear in response will be called Bearing Treasures.

>> The land will be level, the ground made of crystal: Since the ground of its people’s minds is level, the ground of that realm. Crystal: This is also called water jade, and it represents a clarity inside and out.

>> Trees of treasure will make it magnificent. There will be no hills or pits of any kind: The Bodhi-trees there are magnificent with myriad virtues. Hills and pits represent a mind that is not steady.

>> No dirt and rocks or thorns, nor the filth of excrement: Dirt and rocks hurt people’s feet, and thorns prick people. These represent vicious thoughts of killing and harming others. Defiled places of excrement and vicious thoughts of harming others do not exist in this land.

>> Precious flowers will cover the ground, and everything around will be clear and pure: The Buddha-lands are dignified with myriad causes of goodness like many precious flowers covering the ground. The land where Subhuti attains Buddhahood in the future has five magnificent purities.

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“In the causal ground, his mind was unhindered, and he always thought of purifying practices.
His mind was tranquil and clear because he practiced vows as vast as the universe.
His epithet will be Name and Appearance because he understood all phenomena are empty.
This seed gave rise to an ocean of fruits of pure virtues, thus Born of Emptiness received a prediction.”

Previously, we were constantly saying that as spiritual practitioners, we must begin with the cause. Causes are like seeds. They are the source of all principles. The source of the principles is what we always talk about, the nature of True Suchness. We all intrinsically have the nature of True Suchness. In the true principles of all things, purity is found at the source. Principles fundamentally have no substance or appearance. However, everything that happens has a cause. This is the principle that we need to understand. “In the causal ground, his mind was unhindered.”

As humans, there are many hindrances in our minds. If we can understand the true principles, we will not have any hindrances. So, we must start from the causal ground; only then will our minds truly be unhindered.

We need to always think of purifying practices. This refers to engaging in spiritual practice so our minds can be focused and in Samadhi. “Carrying firewood and water is also meditation.” Every action can be a practice of cultivating contemplation. This is “always thinking of.” In any place, dealing with any matters or objects, we must always think of purifying practices. Only by practicing this way can our minds be tranquil and clear.

A state of tranquility and clarity is what is most desired by spiritual practitioners. To attain a state of tranquility and clarity, we need to engage in spiritual practice. We need to return to the source and cultivate contemplation as we practice vows as vast as the universe. Our bodies and minds must constantly be at ease, at ease with vows as vast as the universe. Then our spiritual state will not be disturbed by any matter or object. We need to attain the state in which. “The mind is without hindrances; there are no hindrances.” This is having vows as vast as the universe.

So, from the sutra passage we read yesterday, we know that Subhuti had been bestowed with a prediction of Buddhahood by the Buddha. Subhuti will also attain Buddhahood in the future. His epithet will be. Name and Appearance Tathagata. He will be called Name and Appearance “because he understood all phenomena are empty.” This is because Subhuti is foremost in understanding emptiness. The practice he engaged in was realizing the principles of emptiness. This seed also gives rise to an ocean of fruits. I often liken a cause to a seed, bringing it back to something very subtle. We can return to the most subtle; however, if we keep dissecting this cause, in fact it is the principle. This is why it can bear fruit, as long as the seed converges with conditions like soil, water, air and sunlight. When [these conditions] converge, naturally one can give rise to infinity; infinite seeds arise from one seed. This is how a seed gives rise to an ocean of fruits.

A fruit tree can produce abundant fruits every year that can be harvested and picked. The fruit tree comes from a single seed but can yield abundant fruits for a long time. So, a seed can give rise to an ocean of fruits. As long as we thoroughly understand our nature of True Suchness, naturally we will be clear about the principles.

So, we must cultivate pure virtues. After understanding the principles, we need to spend a long time purifying our minds. Ignorance, delusions and so on must be eliminated. If we can always think of purifying practices and no longer be defiled by ignorance and afflictions, then eventually our pure virtues will manifest. So, “Born of Emptiness received a prediction.” Who is Born of Emptiness? That is Subhuti.

He was able to obtain the clear understanding that all things in the universe arise and cease because of causes and conditions. He clearly knew the law of arising and ceasing. Now as we engage in spiritual practice, we are returning to the source of our nature of True Suchness. We must cultivate until our minds have no hindrances. We also need to constantly think of purifying practice. If we can achieve this, [we fulfill] the aim of our spiritual practice.

The previous sutra passage states that. Subhuti will attain Buddhahood in the future “His epithets will be. Name and Appearance Tathagata, One Worthy of Offerings, Completely Awakened One. One Perfect in Wisdom and Action, Well-Gone One, Knower of the World, Tamer, Unsurpassed Guide, Teacher of Heavenly Beings and Humans and. Buddha, the World-Honored One.”
We have often explained this before. When each Buddha attains Buddhahood, they must be replete with the ten epithets. These ten epithets are ten virtues. Only when they are replete with these ten virtues can they be called Great Enlightened Ones.

Next, the sutra continues on to state, “His kalpa will be named Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born. The land will be level, the ground made of crystal and trees of treasure will make it magnificent. There will be no hills or pits of any kind, no dirt and rocks or thorns nor the filth of excrement. Precious flowers will cover the ground, and everything around will be clear and pure.”
This sutra passage describes how after Subhuti attains Buddhahood in the future, the name of his kalpa will be Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born

His kalpa will be named Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born: This predicts that when he attains the fruit, his land will be magnificent and pure, with the Dharma of emptiness and stillness. The name of his kalpa will be Bearing Treasure because his land will be pure and will constantly bear treasures.
“His kalpa will be named Bearing Treasures. His land will be called Treasure Born.” This is the prediction bestowed on Subhuti, the fruitions that he will attain in the future. Subhuti’s era in the future will be clear and pure. His land will be magnificent and pure.

“The Dharma of emptiness and stillness” is a state of tranquility and clarity. There, everyone will be able to comprehend the principle of emptiness.

“The name of his kalpa will be Bearing Treasure because his land will be pure and will constantly bear treasures.” That land will be very open and spacious. In this open, spacious and pure land, everywhere one looks is filled with treasure. Moreover, it will be pure and free of dust. Treasures will appear constantly. This is how Subhuti’s land will be in the future.

In the causal ground, Kasyapa was replete with a purple-golden radiance. In the causal ground, Subhuti was able to skillfully understand the principle of emptiness. Therefore, one had the virtue of radiance, and the other the treasure of emptiness.

Kasyapa was given a prediction of Buddhahood because of his spiriutal practice. “In the causal ground, he was replete with a purple-gold radiance.” Thus, his land will be full of radiance. For Subhuti, in his causal ground, he “was able to skillfully understand the principle of emptiness. Therefore, one had the virtue of radiance, and the other, the treasure of emptiness.” So, there are two [distinguishing features]. One is radiance, the other is the understanding of emptiness.

His land will abide in emptiness and tranquility. It will be open, spacious and magnificent. Its space will be full of treasures. So, with emptiness as its treasure, the space of his land will be filled with treasure. All it yields is treasure. On the day when Subhuti was born, the storehouses in his home were suddenly emptied. After he was born, all of a sudden, these treasures reappeared. These were the phenomena at his birth, so he was called Born of Emptiness. He was also called Good Manifestation

On the day Good Manifestation was born, his household appeared to be empty, but later, again manifested the appearance of many treasures. Thus the Buddha-land of his circumstantial retributions will be called Treasure Born, and the kalpa which will appear in response will be called Bearing Treasures.

This describes the time when Subhuti was born, when there were such unusual phenomena. This is how the legend goes. So, it says “the appearance of many treasures.” Thus, “the Buddha-land of his circumstantial retributions will be called Treasure Born.” The Buddha bestowed on him the prediction that his land in the future will be called “Treasure Born.”

“And the kalpa which will appear in response,” the future era that will come in response to him, will be called “Bearing Treasures.” There, everything will be treasure-born. Everything will be a treasure.

The land will be level, the ground made of crystal: Since the ground of its people’s minds is level, the ground of that realm. Crystal: This is also called water jade, and it represents a clarity inside and out.

So, “The land will be level, the ground made of crystal.” In that land, the ground will be smooth and level, “the ground made of crystal. Since the ground of its people’s minds is level, the ground of that realm is naturally smooth and level.”

Crystal is also called “water jade. It represents a clarity inside and out.” If we earnestly cultivate our minds so that we are always peaceful in our disposition, our world will naturally be very calm. When the ground of our minds is peaceful, the ground of that realm will be naturally smooth and level. So, in that land, “The ground is made of crystal.” Crystal is a precious object; it is also called water jade, jade that resembles water. This kind of jade is radiant, clear and sparkling. It is called crystal; “It represents a clarity inside and out.” It is clear and pure both inside and out. Subhuti’s world will be completely clear and pure like crystal. Like crystal it is clear both inside and out.

So, “Trees of treasure will make it magnificent. There will be no hills or pits of any kind”

Trees of treasure will make it magnificent. There will be no hills or pits of any kind: The Bodhi-trees there are magnificent with myriad virtues. Hills and pits represent a mind that is not steady.

The land will be like this. “Trees of treasure will make it magnificent.” There will be no hills or pits. The ground there will be level, and the trees will be orderly. They are called trees of treasure. These are Bodhi-trees, the trees of enlightenment. This is just like us sentient beings. If everyone has an awakened mind, we will naturally be orderly. When our minds are orderly, our land will be too. The sights in such a place will also be orderly and will inspire joy in people seeing it. So, it says, “Trees of treasure will make it magnificent.”

“Hills and pits” represent a mind that is not balanced. In that place, there will be no such things. There will be no hills and pits, nor highs and lows. Everything will be level and orderly. This means that everybody will have a level mind, a mind without imbalance.

Moreover, “no dirt and rocks or thorns, nor the filth of excrement” will be there. There will not be dirty and filthy things. There will be no dirt and rocks, nothing of the kind. There will be no rocks, stones, mud, sand pits, none at all. There will be no thorny plants such as screw pines or pricking bamboo there

No dirt and rocks or thorns, nor the filth of excrement: Dirt and rocks hurt people’s feet, and thorns prick people. These represent vicious thoughts of killing and harming others. Defiled places of excrement and vicious thoughts of harming others do not exist in this land.
So, “Dirt and rocks hurt people’s feet, and thorns prick people.” Dirt and rocks can hurt people’s feet, and thorns can prick people’s bodies. Such things will not exist in this land. Those things only exist as a result of evil thoughts in people’s minds.

There are no “dirt and rocks or thorns, defiled places of excrement.” Don’t some people today wear piercings all over their body? Some people will hurt others for no reason. This kind of mindset, these poisonous thoughts, are just like thorns that prick people or like dirt and rocks which hurt people. This kind of intangible mindset is constantly filled with thoughts of hurting others. This is truly the evil world of Five Turbidities.

“Defiled places of excrement” refers to “vicious thoughts of killing and harming others.” These “do not exist in this land.” In the future when Subhuti attains Buddhahood, his land will be very magnificent. Everything will be a treasure. There will be no such phenomena as “dirt and rocks or thorns,” nor “defiled places of excrement.” None of these will exist there.

So, what will exist there? “Precious flowers will cover the ground, and everything around will be clear and pure”

Precious flowers will cover the ground, and everything around will be clear and pure: The Buddha-lands are dignified with myriad causes of goodness like many precious flowers covering the ground. The land where Subhuti attains Buddhahood in the future has five magnificent purities.
All that can be seen there is myriad causes of goodness. This land is so magnificent. Being able to be born in that land requires the convergence of many virtuous causes and conditions. Only people who have engaged in spiritual practice will be born in that land as their circumstantial retribution. Those who have blessings, who have engaged in spiritual practice and thoroughly understood the principles, will, as their circumstantial and direct retribution, be born in that land. So, “The Buddha-lands are dignified with myriad causes of goodness like many precious flowers covering the ground.” It is just like this, so pure. In addition, the land is adorned with flowers.

In the land where. Subhuti attains Buddhahood in the future, there will be five kinds of magnificence. With these five kinds of magnificence, whether being radiant or open and spacious, all that is seen will be treasures. Furthermore, the land keeps producing more treasures. All of these come from the cultivation of virtues, which make that land magnificent and pure. In that land, everyone has accumulated the causes of goodness through practicing good deeds in this world.

If we practice many good deeds in this world and continue doing this in the future, we will keep accumulating blessings and wisdom, lifetime after lifetime. Our afflictions will be constantly reduced, lifetime after lifetime. As our blessed conditions increase, naturally our circumstantial and direct retributions will lead us to be born in blessed lands. When our minds are free of afflictions, we will certainly be born in a pure land. This depends on whether or not we can engage in spiritual practice with a true and sincere mind. Do we all have this aspiration, to go among people without being contaminated by them? We need to give to others without expectations and to constantly be grateful. “The mind is without hindrances; there are no hindrances.” Have we prepared ourselves for this state of mind? We need to constantly make preparations for attaining Buddhahood. Therefore, we must pave the great and direct Bodhi-path. We must always be mindful.