Author: Scott Ogata

Become a person more actively involved in aiding their community.

Ch02-ep0321

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
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Chapter 2

Episode 321 – How to Encounter the Buddha and be Transformed

>> When delusions of views and thinking and dust-like delusions cover their minds, people conceal their shortcoming and proclaim their virtues without self-reflection. Having Leaks, they lack discipline and remorse. When their turbidities are purified, they manifest their great potential.

>> “[After] the Buddha has crossed into extinction, [there] is no Buddha present.” So. “After the Buddha crosses into extinction, those who accept, uphold, read, recite and understand the meaning of sutras such as this are very rare.”

>> “Encounter other Buddhas, they will then obtain thorough understanding of this Dharma.”

>> If they encounter other Buddhas: When the Tathagata encounter beings of the other nine Dharma-realms, in worlds as numerous as dust, He always teaches this Dharma to tame sentient beings and to enable them to return to the ocean of pure nature.

When delusions of views and thinking and dust-like delusions cover their minds,
people conceal their shortcoming and proclaim their virtues without self-reflection.
Having Leaks, they lack discipline and remorse.
When their turbidities are purified, they manifest their great potential.

“When delusions of views and thinking and dust-like delusions cover their minds….” I often think about how we clearly understand that afflictions arise from our views and understanding. So why is it still so difficult to treat just the afflictions that arise from our views and thinking? If we cannot treat and tame these delusions of views and thinking, we will never eliminate our habitual tendencies. Our habitual tendencies are the reason we influence and entangle each other. Those with bad habitual tendencies will be scorned by others, In this way, they hinder themselves and others because their minds are covered by afflicted views and thinking and dust-like [delusions]. This causes the most pain and is also the source of suffering.

So, “we conceal our shortcomings and proclaim our virtues without self-reflection.” We cannot reflect on ourselves, so our minds constantly cover things up. We conceal our faults, we conceal the violations we have committed and the ones we have yet to commit. All these wrongdoings, past, present and future, are covered up by our minds. We just keep talking about our positive aspects. People who are like this refuse to reflect on themselves.

So, this comes out of “having Leaks. Having Leaks, we lack discipline and remorse.” We have allowed our pure intrinsic nature to leak out. We have allowed the rules we must uphold to leak out. We have allowed methods of practice like listening, contemplating, practicing and cultivating precepts, Samadhi and wisdom to leak out. We hear these teachings, but after hearing them, we do not contemplate them carefully. Even if we do contemplate them, we cannot put them into action. All this is due to our Leaks.

We let all these things leak away. The Dharma that we should be retaining is not retained in our minds. [Yet], our habitual tendencies and our dust-like delusions of views and thinking remain in our minds while the pure Dharma has completely leaked out. For this reason, we lack discipline.

So, we all have to remember, in our daily living, if we are self-disciplined people will see our demeanor and feel, “This is a spiritual practitioner!” So, spiritual cultivation is worthwhile because after we engage in this practice, our attitudes and demeanor will be different from those of most people. This is a virtue that is cultivated internally and manifested externally.

We must transform turbidity to purity, and no longer “have Leaks” or “lack discipline and remorse.” We must be remorseful right away and openly repent, so that our minds will be truly be purified. “When our turbidities are purified, we manifest our great potential.” If we can eliminate our turbidities, dust-like delusions of views and thinking, if we can eliminate all of these, our intrinsic nature will naturally manifest its great potential.

Sakyamuni Buddha actualized His potential because He attained enlightenment. He penetrated all truths of the universe, so His nature of True Suchness manifested its potential, and He repeatedly returns to this world. How can sentient beings’ ignorance be eliminated? With His love and compassion. He could not bear to let sentient beings suffer, so He returns to teach the Dharma. How can He stabilize sentient beings’ minds? How can He transform sentient beings and help them transcend this world full of turbidities? How can He help [their minds] be pure again?

As I walk outside every day, when I see the clear sky, my mind opens up as if it has been completely cleared. Yet, sometimes when I see that the clouds are thick and gray, or black, my heart feels heavy. This is how we ordinary people are [affected by] our external conditions. As for the Great Enlightened One, everything is clear and bright to Him. Even if there are clouds covering the sky, the sky’s nature is to be clear and bright. The universe itself is forever pure and clean, non-arising and non-ceasing, very free, much like the Buddha’s enlightened state.

Because of sentient beings’ afflictions and this world’s turbidities, the Buddha [comes here] out of compassion, but His intrinsic nature remains undefiled. Following the same principle, when we engage in spiritual practice we must practice this way; we must have compassion while among people, but not be polluted by their habitual tendencies.

As for wisdom, by learning to be understanding, we will not be polluted by other people’s habitual tendencies. We need to abide by precepts and rules to develop discipline and a dignified demeanor. We must work to [change] our habitual tendencies, so we do not act in ways that force other people to be understanding. “You need to be understanding of me!” If we all eliminate our habitual tendencies, naturally we do not need other people to be understanding of us. This is our fundamental discipline; this is our fundamental spiritual practice. If we can achieve all of this, “when our turbidities are purified, we manifest our great potential.”

In learning the Buddha’s teachings, we must learn to develop a mindset equal to His. If we cannot achieve the same mindset as Him, then we will always be ordinary people, always have delusions of views and thinking and dust-like delusions, hinder ourselves and others, and thus develop many afflictions. So, we must immediately seize the moment to reflect on ourselves, openly repent and quickly change our ways. We must manifest a dignified demeanor to be considered spiritual practitioners.

We often listen to our Commissioners and Faith Corp members share their personal stories with everyone. “In the past, I had these habitual tendencies, I was so bad. When people saw me, they felt strong resentment, hatred and aversion. Now everyone says I have changed a lot; everyone says I am more approachable. Everyone is happy to see me.” Other people will also testify, “He was such a bully in the past. When we saw him, we didn’t even want to come in contact with him. We would take a detour. People didn’t want to even walk where he had walked.” He was so terrible, [but] what about now? “Now he is different, he is very compassionate, always helping people. Now he looks younger and more approachable.” There is proof of this because many Tzu Chi volunteers say the same.

So, appearances arise from our minds. How can we help people get close to us? That depends on whether we can be someone we would not despise. We must not feel an aversion toward ourselves. Sometimes when we are wrong and we know it, [we think], “I hate that I did something wrong again. I really despise myself.” But then we just cover it up. We do not want this to be known and we do not reflect on it. If self-reflection leads to self-loathing, then why don’t we openly repent?

“I’m sorry, in the past, I was like this; I made this kind of error. I have done unforgiveable things toward you. Can you please forgive me?” By openly repenting in this way, we are broadening our own hearts as well. By forgiving ourselves, other people will be able to forgive us. If we are the kind of people we despise, then other people will definitely despise us. Thus, we have to be people who are truly and mindfully accepting of the Dharma and putting it into practice.

As we mentioned earlier, we must learn the Buddha’s teachings. The Buddha-Dharma is still in this world, and we must apply it. These days I keep saying that we must apply the Dharma in this world. After we apply it, we must share the good things we learn.

For example, years ago when we built the hospital, many people put in a lot of work. It was very tiring. People, who themselves were not rich, who earned a living through manual labor, found more work in order to support the hospital. Someone even donated his beginning-of-the-year payment from physically doing hard labor. Kind people moved by these acts said, “To help fulfill your goal, I’ll lend you. NT

300,000 right away. I believe you will pay it off through your work. I believe in you. Not only do I believe in you, I will also do the same thing.” This is a mission that benefits others. People who do this beneficial work are Bodhisattvas. In this world, they actively apply the Dharma.

The Buddha teaches us to have loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity and understand how to transform sentient beings. This Dharma is so simple; how can we apply it to help others? Do we help one person or two people? Will this be a short-term or long-term project? This is what we must contemplate. To help one person, only a few people are needed. To save many people, many people are needed. If it will be a short-term project, [we can] simply tell them, “Here is how I will help resolve your problem.” Just doing that makes us happy. This is for the short-term. If we want to help them long-term, then we need to consider the rest of their lives and their future generations.

When a place experiences a disaster, after providing disaster relief, we help them construct shelters and [reestablish] their livelihood. In this way, the suffering of this generation will be relieved. Then, future generations will also benefit. Generation after generation, they will continue to lead safe and secure lives.

So, we must apply the Buddha’s words to ourselves, so we can continue to pass it on in many ways. The Dharma is infinite; from one arises infinity. One single teaching, one phrase of the Dharma, can be applied in various, infinite ways, so it remains in this world and teaches people. When people collectively apply the Dharma, it is living Dharma.

Yesterday we talked about how,

“[After] the Buddha has crossed into extinction, [there] is no Buddha present.” So. “After the Buddha crosses into extinction, those who accept, uphold, read, recite and understand the meaning of sutras such as this are very rare.”

People like this, who, after the Buddha is no longer in the world, after [He] crosses into extinction, can accept and uphold, read and recite, and understand [this sutra’s] meaning, are truly hard to find.

I constantly discuss how we read the sutras and [chant them] during morning recitations and so on. As we chant the sutras, do we think that by doing so the sutra will protect us? It will not. We chant a sutra in the hope that this sutra will not disappear. If we all continue to accept and uphold, read and recite it, this sutra will remain in this world.

By reading and reciting the text aloud, we strengthen our understanding. The mouth chants, the mind understands. We have to read it until we have memorized it to consider ourselves familiar with it. Once we can recite it from memory, then we can say that we have read and recited it. We must do both. As we read it, we need to recite it, repeating [the text] over and over again.

Sometimes, I see some people reading the sutras, but their lips do not move. Many people just look at the sutras without really reading them. “I do not hear anything. But I am reciting the sutra! How come I do not hear anything? I am reading it.” This is just reading, not reciting. To recite the sutras, we need our eyes to read them and we use our mouths to chant them. Otherwise we are only reading. Looking with our eyes is reading, chanting with our mouths is reciting. We must both read and recite at the same time.

Remembering teachings by just looking at them with our eyes is difficult. If we read until [recitation] becomes natural, that is because after we read it, we recited it, and thus we have memorized it.

So, we must [also] accept and uphold it. To accept and uphold, we need to read and recite. Only then can we accept and uphold. If we accept the Dharma, then we need to apply it to ourselves. This is known as accepting and upholding. If we only read, but do not recite, we are only reading the sutra, we are not accepting and upholding it. If we want to accept and uphold, besides reading and reciting, we also need to understand the meaning within. Yet, are there many people who understand? Probably not that many, so “they are very rare” and are very precious.

Those who truly accept, uphold, read and recite, and truly understand the meaning are hard to find, so they are very precious. When these people.

“Encounter other Buddhas, they will then obtain thorough understanding of this Dharma.”

If we can accept, uphold, read, recite and understand the meaning, even in times without Buddhas, we have sutras to read and recite, and can continuously realize their meaning. There is an old saying, “[He is] well-read from previous lives.” Indeed, many young children only need to read or be told something once to know it right away. We frequently [hear of] such child prodigies.

In summary, we really must believe that we read sutras not to ward off disasters or to protect ourselves, but to take [the principles] into our hearts to reach our nature.

To take them into our hearts and our nature is to accept and uphold them. If we can do this, even if we did not encounter the Buddha this time, “encountering other Buddhas” means we will encounter other Buddhas in future lifetimes, not Sakyamuni Buddha. Other Buddhas will come to this world and if we live at the same time as one of Them, if we can do this, we will “obtain thorough understanding of this Dharma.” We will be able to understand all of it.

Look at how, as Sakyamuni Buddha began to give the Lotus Teachings, 5000 people left the assembly. Many of the remaining people still could not really understand [the Dharma]. That requires having read, recited, accepted, upheld and understood its meaning. Though they had sutras to listen to and read, they were not mindful. So, we must know this and understand as much as we can in this life. Then if we encounter a Buddha in a future life, we will be transformed.

“If they encounter other Buddhas,” refers to how the Tathagata appears in the nine realms, not counting the Buddha-realm. Two days ago, I told everyone that including. Buddhas and sentient beings there are ten realms.

If they encounter other Buddhas: When the Tathagata encounter beings of the other nine Dharma-realms, in worlds as numerous as dust, He always teaches this Dharma to tame sentient beings and to enable them to return to the ocean of pure nature.

Aside from the Buddha realm, there are nine other realms. When He is in the other nine Dharma-realms, He uses His perspective as a Buddha to view these sentient beings. They live in worlds as numerous as dust, so there are myriad sentient beings. For these sentient beings, the Buddha “always teaches this Dharma to tame sentient beings to enable them to return to the ocean of pure nature.”

We all have the nature of ordinary people; dust-like delusions, ignorance and afflictions cover our minds. When the Buddha manifested in this world, sentient beings of the other nine Dharma-realms were in worlds as numerous as dust. Each speck of dust is like an entire world. [Worlds include land and oceans;] on our planet, the ocean is larger than the land mass. It is 60 percent ocean and 40 percent land. That is what I have heard. In summary, there are worlds as numerous as dust. You see, for these many sentient beings, the Buddha constantly comes to teach various Dharma, especially this Dharma. “This” refers to the great Dharma. What was this great Dharma? The One Vehicle Dharma, which teaches the Bodhisattva Way. It is just that simple.

So, [He came to] tame sentient beings. Because they are stubborn and hard to tame, He had to find ways for the Dharma to penetrate their minds, ways to train them. This enables people as numerous as dust to return to their intrinsic purity. We talk of the world of the Avatamsaka-assembly. The Avatamsaka state is already the state of the Buddha.

So, I hope we are all mindful as we learn the Buddha’s teachings. We must not be attached to the text; we must put it into practice in daily living. By understanding old teachings with new insight, everything is Dharma. The Dharma comes from very simple things and very simple teachings can be expanded to transform sentient beings. It can expand from a small to a very big scope. The Dharma can be pervasive in worlds as numerous as dust,

So, we must truly value the Buddha-Dharma and apply it in present times. We must encourage each other. Most importantly, we must eliminate our own delusions of views and thinking so we do not hinder ourselves or others. We must help one another perfect our practice. In the present time, in this era, we must promptly and always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0320

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
>
Chapter 2

Episode 320 – Read and Recite for Understanding

>> Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas do not understand the Buddha’s intent. Their blessings and virtues are few, so they cannot accept great teachings. In times without Buddhas, one must diligently read and recite [sutras] and focus on understanding the meaning to extend one’s wisdom-life.

>> “Unless it is after the Buddha has crossed into cessation, when there is no Buddha present. Why is this? After the Buddha crosses into cessation, those who accept and uphold, read and recite, understand the meaning of sutras such as this are very rare.”

>> To read and recite: To read is to look at the text. To recite is to memorize the text. Reading and reciting while cultivating an internal state of still contemplation is like adding wood into the fire. It increases the illumination of the mind.

>> To understand the meaning: To truly understand what the Tathagata taught and the profound meaning of the Dharma in the sutras. From understanding, we establish practices. By engaging in spiritual practice that correspond with principles, we can promote great teachings. This is how we can attain Bodhi and really understand the principles in the sutras.

For our unenlightened minds to understand the Buddha’s mind, understanding and views, we still have a ways to go. However, the Buddha said that if we can turn our minds around, we can very quickly draw near the Buddha-mind. Even Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas can transform [their minds] and understand the Buddha-Dharma they encounter. However, after shortening the distance between themselves and the Buddha, they stopped at that point and just stood there, looking at the Buddha in the distance. Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas thought that the capacity of His mind, His understanding and views, His understanding are unique to and can only be attained by Buddhas like Sakyamuni. They thought they could only be recipients of His teachings, so they put a stop to their progress.

Thus in the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha used the analogy of a conjured city. Although these disciples had the karmic conditions to receive the Buddha-Dharma, they got tired easily and would stop. So, He gave them a conjured city [to rest in]. However, the conjured city was not real. There was still a farther place that was the real and ultimate destination, a place of True Suchness where everything is clear and empty. We can reach that place from the state of unenlightened beings; as long as we are diligent, by transforming our minds, we can surpass Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas.

Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas do not understand the Buddha’s intent. Their blessings and virtues are few, so they cannot accept great teachings. In times without Buddhas, one must diligently read and recite [sutras] and focus on understanding the meaning to extend one’s wisdom-life.

Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas tend to limit themselves, so they are unable to move forward. Pratyekabuddhas do not understand the Buddha’s intent, thus they limit themselves to that position.

To engage in spiritual practice, we must cultivate both blessings and wisdom. By comprehending the Buddha’s understanding and views, [we attain] wisdom, which we must put into practice. By cultivating both blessings and wisdom, we can transform sentient beings.

Pratyekabuddhas and Arhats only seek to awaken themselves, so “their blessings and virtues are few. Virtue” is attained through interacting with and helping sentient beings without being influenced by them. These are the true merits and virtues cultivated by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas who go among the people;

this requires “internal cultivation and external practice.” With internal cultivation, the mind can remain unaffected by external conditions. But our goal is to dedicate ourselves to [working in] those conditions. This will depend on the firmness of our resolve to engage in spiritual practice. The magnitude of the vow we make determines the strength of our aspirations. So, only with firm aspirations and great vows can we protect our minds. When our minds are well-protected, it will be safe to go among people.

So, Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas do not feel secure. They limit themselves and do not progress further. Thus, “their blessings and virtues are few, so they cannot accept great teachings.”

So, when the Buddha came to this world, He used the course of His life as an example for us to show that ordinary people can become Buddhas. We just need to follow His methods, form aspirations, maintain our resolve, engage in spiritual practice and so on. Each stage of His process is very clear, so we can follow in His footsteps.

The Buddha’s enlightenment encompasses the infinite things of the universe. He understands all the inconceivable people, matters and objects. So, we ought to learn the Buddha’s teachings and cultivate great blessings, great merits and great wisdom. Naturally, this is called great Dharma. Cultivating great blessings, merits and wisdom is [cultivating] great Dharma. We need to surpass the self-imposed boundaries of Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas. We must surpass this state by leaving the conjured city and diligently progressing toward ultimate reality.

If the Buddha is not in the world, like now, where can we find Him? Over 2000 years ago, the Buddha lived and entered Parinirvana in India. Though His Sambhogakaya and Nirmanakaya are no longer in the world, His Dharmakaya is still here. Yesterday, I mentioned that if we are earnest and diligent, the Buddha-Dharma will remain in the world. We must diligently read and recite [sutras] and focus on meticulously understanding the meaning of the sutra’s text. Extending our wisdom-life in this way is our mission as the Buddha’s disciples. If the Dharma is applicable to our times, then there is hope it can continue to be passed on.

The Buddha-Dharma can be constantly adapted to suit the needs of the times. If we mindfully take in the Dharma, it will be alive in our hearts, and we can apply it to the present time.

The Buddha often [referred to] experiences of. His spiritual practice in ancient times and applied them to the time in which He was teaching. For example, during the Buddha’s lifetime, in the Kingdom of Sravasti, there was a man whom we would call a thug, He was disobedient and unfilial. He loafed about, just eating, never holding down a job. He committed all kinds of crimes. So one day, the authorities arrested him. The king sentenced him to be executed.

As he was being taken to his death, causes and conditions came together and the Buddha happened to be leading a group of bhiksus into the city to beg for alms. They saw a group leading the criminal toward execution. When this evil young man saw the group of bhiksus from afar, he yelled loudly, “Oh, Buddha! Buddha, please save me!”

This evil person was named As-Wished. As-Wished saw the Buddha and yelled again, “Oh, Buddha! Save me! If I can be spared from death, I am willing to follow You as a monastic. I will diligently engage in spiritual practice. Oh Buddha, help me!”

The Buddha turned around and told Ananda, “Ananda, tell King [Bimbisara]. I request that he pardon this man and hand him over to me.” Ananda went to the king and explained the Buddha’s intention and His hope that he would pardon this man and let him live.

The king was a very devout Buddhist practitioner, willing to make offerings to the Buddha. Since the Buddha has asked him to spare this man’s life, turning the man over to Him was just like making an offering. [The king] was happy to pardon him. Thus, he could minimize his own killing while also making a respectful offering to the Buddha. If the Buddha could teach him and the world gain another spiritual practitioner, he would be glad to make this happen. Because of His deep devotion, he gave orders to pardon As-Wished.

Thus, As-Wished was set free. He was actually saved as he had wished. The gratitude he felt at that moment was very strong. In this new life, he was definitely going to form great aspirations, make great vows and diligently practice.

So, he followed the Buddha’s Sangha back to the abode and became ordained as a monastic. From then on, he did not waste a single second and diligently listened to the Dharma and earnestly practiced. Whether he was among others or with the Sangha, no matter how other people looked at him, or how they criticized him, he felt profound joy. “This dispels my karma! Thank you for teaching me!” With such humility and gratitude, he accepted the teachings. Within a short period of time, he attained the fruits of realization. Indeed, he eliminated all his afflictions.

Whether he was among others or with the Sangha, whenever people saw him, admiration arose in them, and they sincerely respected him. People intently discussed this. If As-Wished was such a terrible person, how could he aspire to spiritual practice? After changing his ways, initially he was despised by everyone who saw him. But now he was respected by all who saw him. Evidently, his mindset had changed, and he had attained fruits [of realization].

Ananda was among the bhiksus discussing this. So they asked Ananda to ask the Buddha about the kind of practice He had engaged in that allowed His words to be so powerful that a person was who about to be executed could be [pardoned] by the king; with one phrase from the Buddha, he was saved. Then this evil person was able to accept the Buddha’s teachings and change so much so quickly. What practice had the Buddha engaged in that could make this happen?

Ananda really went to ask the Buddha, who told His disciples the following story about how these blessings and virtues came from countless lifetimes ago. When Indradhvaja Buddha was in this world, He traveled and gave teachings. There was also a brahmacarin, who engaged in purifying practices. Although he was not yet a monastic, he engaged in another kind of spiritual practice, which was still a purifying practice. But when he saw Indradhvaja Buddha, he was filled with joy. Thus, he reverently made offerings to Him. He paid his respects with body and mind and made offerings with his body like offering flowers and fruits.

Indradhvaja Buddha saw that the brahmacarin reverently made offerings his with body and mind. Indradhvaja Buddha was joyful and asked him, “You have made offerings so wholeheartedly, do you have any requests?” The brahmacarin then said, “No, I do not. If I have any wish, it is to cultivate purifying practices forever. Pure body, speech and mind are what I hope to perfect in my future spiritual practice. I hope my speech will be virtuous and the Dharma I teach will be helpful to all beings. Transforming people with virtuous speech is what I seek to do. With pure body and mind and virtuous and perfect speech, everyone will happily listen to me and respect [my teaching]. If they respect it, they will diligently apply it to cultivate their body and mind. This is my only wish, to transform people with virtue of speech.”

The Buddha then said to everyone, “Do you know that brahmacarin is now me?” So, when Sakyamuni Buddha spoke, everyone who heard His Dharma-voice, even the king, naturally felt joy, respect and faith. Even such an evil person could also faithfully accept and practice the Dharma. For countless, incalculable lifetimes, life after life the Buddha cultivated virtuous speech by reading and reciting sutras, then putting them into practice. After reading and reciting teachings, putting them into practice is very important.

So, as previously stated in the sutras, the Buddha said,

“Unless it is after the Buddha has crossed into cessation, when there is no Buddha present. Why is this? After the Buddha crosses into cessation, those who accept and uphold, read and recite, understand the meaning of sutras such as this are very rare.”

In eras without Buddhas, people who accept and uphold, read and recite and understand the meaning of [sutras], those who are so mindful, are very rare. When the Buddha is not in the world, we must have faith in and apply the Dharma. We must have great respect for it. Similarly, when I enter the Great Hall, if I hear everyone reciting together, harmoniously and in unison, as if with one voice, that shows that everyone is diligently practicing. When we recite the sutra aloud, our minds are in a state of still contemplation.

To read and recite is to look at the sutra text. We ought to read it out loud. We have to do this repeatedly to take it to heart.

To read and recite: To read is to look at the text. To recite is to memorize the text. Reading and reciting while cultivating an internal state of still contemplation is like adding wood into the fire. It increases the illumination of the mind.

We must repeatedly read a text until we do not need to look at the words to know it. When we memorize something, we take it to heart. So, the benefit of reciting sutras is that they will be imprinted in our minds. Reciting sutras will not eliminate our problems, but it can imprint [teachings] in our minds. If we memorize [the text], we will not commit wrongdoings. When we memorize sutra texts, naturally we will have good character. We do not recite sutras to eliminate our problems, but to enhance our memory and develop our wisdom.

So, looking at and memorizing sutras is called reading and reciting. Meanwhile, we are in a state of still contemplation. When we recite sutras, our minds cannot wander. Our minds need to follow the text and contemplate the Dharma. So, we “cultivate internal still contemplation.” After we finish reciting sutras, we commit them to memory and imprint them in our hearts. This is internal cultivation.

As our minds become still, we recite sutra texts. We use internal stillness and external recitation. Reading and reciting [brings] internal stillness; internal stillness [aids] reading and reciting. This is like boiling water. Before the water boils, we need to add firewood. After adding firewood, the water can boil quickly. This is similar to chanting sutras out loud, so they enter our hearts. “It increases illumination of the mind.”

In a state of stillness, we must recite the sutra loudly. Reciting loudly allows other people to join in, so we can harmonize our voices to theirs. Then we will be of one mind and chant in one voice to show that our minds are focused. With a still mind, I will listen to your chanting, and you will listen to my chanting, so our voices can blend together, and our minds can become more illuminated. As you recite and I recite, our clear voices will resonate in the air to evoke joy in others. With internal cultivation and external practice, we can benefit each other. When our voices are clear, we are truly reading and reciting the sutra. When reading a sutra, we must understand it.

Understanding its meaning is to really understand the Tathagata’s teaching. We must understand the extremely profound meaning of the Dharma; we cannot just read, recite and memorize it. If the Dharma is not in our minds, we cannot put it into practice. Then we do not [really know] the Dharma.

To understand the meaning: To truly understand what the Tathagata taught and the profound meaning of the Dharma in the sutras. From understanding, we establish practices. By engaging in spiritual practice that correspond with principles, we can promote great teachings. This is how we can attain Bodhi and really understand the principles in the sutras.

In learning the Dharma, we also hope to cultivate virtuous speech so that after we comprehend it, when we share it with others, they will faithfully accept and practice it. Dear Bodhisattvas, to learn the Bodhisattva-path, we must not remain in the state of. Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas or have their self-imposed limitations. We must surpass this state and move toward the state of Buddhahood, a state that is non-arising and non-ceasing, tranquil and clear. This is what we must truly seek. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0319

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
>
Chapter 2

Episode 319 – Eliminating Delusions and Crossing Samsara

>> Once awakened, we begin to practice, to cultivate Bodhi. Our spiritual practice takes place in a straightforward mind, leading to the ultimate. With faith, understanding and practice, we realize the Bodhisattva-path.

>> [They] claim to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies before achieving ultimate Nirvana. They do not further resolve to seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. You should know that they are the ones with overbearing arrogance. Why is this so? If a bhiksu has actually attained Arhatship but does not believe in this Dharma, he has not attained that state.

>> “Unless it is after the Buddha has crossed into cessation, when there no Buddha is present. Why is this?”

>> After the Buddha crosses into cessation, there is no longer a Buddha in the world. Thus, there are no Buddhas in the world to expound the wondrous Dharma.

>> “It means Nirvana, cessation of delusions of views and thinking, dust-like delusions and delusions of ignorance.”

>> Crossing into cessation [refers to] “crossing the two kinds of samsara, fragmentary and transformational.”

Once awakened, we begin to practice, to cultivate Bodhi.
Our spiritual practice takes place in a straightforward mind, leading to the ultimate.
With faith, understanding and practice, we realize the Bodhisattva-path.

I am always thinking about the Dharma and daily living, about how we can integrate the Dharma into our daily living and manifest it in our actions. This is something we. Buddhist practitioners must do. But, as we learn the Dharma and engage in spiritual practice, will we naturally integrate the teachings into our daily living? Of course, I hope everybody can do this.

Therefore, “once awakened,” we realize that life is impermanent. When we understand the truth of the Dharma and can take it to heart, we can return to our pure intrinsic nature, as long as we have faith. “Faith is the source of the Way, mother of merits.” With faith, we can begin to gradually realize that everything in life happens in a state of impermanence.

With faith and realizations, we will naturally “begin to practice.” We begin to believe the Buddha’s teachings and understand how life can change in an instant. Once we realize this, naturally we can cultivate a deep faith. As we deepen our faith, naturally we will attain deeper realizations. When we have faith and realizations, then we “begin to practice.” We move from faith to realization, from realization to practice. To put the teachings into practice, we cultivate the Bodhi.

We internally cultivate and externally practice. Our minds cannot deviate from this path. The Dharma we hear today can be integrated with our external conditions, but isn’t this impermanent? When we integrate it with external conditions, isn’t there still a lot that we do not understand? By interacting with other people, we hear them share their experiences of integrating the Dharma under various conditions.

Take our [media staff] as an example. They came back to report on how they have witnessed that each country has its unique culture and way of life. This is what the Buddha described as the variety and diversity of the world. Based on the law of karma, we are born with circumstantial retribution and direct retribution into different environments and we encounter different causes and conditions. These all vary greatly. Indeed, this is life, which is full of suffering.

We see many places filled with suffering and many suffering people. Who can extend love and care to those suffering and assist them in their recovery? This cannot be achieved by only a few people; it must be done by the majority of people.

Therefore, in our hearts, we must believe that in the world there are all kinds of conditions, not all of which we can see. But in this world, as Tzu Chi staff and volunteers can go to various locations and collect [different stories], we can clearly verify this teaching of the Buddha. So, we move from faith to realization, from realization to practice. This requires external practices and internal cultivation, and faith in the Buddha’s teachings.

With positive affinities, we gather people’s love for the suffering, so they can be saved. On the Bodhi-path, we must cultivate both blessings and wisdom. In doing good deeds, we must cultivate wisdom. As we cultivate wisdom, we must also create blessings. This is the only way to unite so many people.

How can we practice on this Bodhi-path? It should be very easy. Thus, “Our spiritual practice takes place in a straightforward mind.” We must have a “straightforward mind.” Whatever the Buddha says, whatever Dharma [He teaches,] is what we must believe and put in into practice. This is having “a straightforward mind.” We must believe that “our spiritual practice takes place in a straightforward mind.” If we have a straightforward mind, we can be single-mindedly focused on our mission to walk the great, straight Bodhi-path until we reach the ultimate state. The ultimate state is the state of Buddhahood.

Indeed, I always say the Buddha is in our minds. However, this Bodhi-path is also in our minds. If the path to enlightenment exists in our minds, then Bodhi is in us. Most importantly, we must [take good care of] every thought that arises. Whenever we give rise to the slightest thought, it should not deviate from this awakened path.

We ordinary people constantly give rise to greed, anger, ignorance and interpersonal conflict. If we can turn our minds around, we can always think of suffering sentient beings and ways we can relieve their suffering. This requires us to engage in spiritual practice. With spiritual practice comes karmic conditions,

so with “faith, understanding and practice, we realize the Bodhi-path.” If we have faith, we will truly understand that our every thought must remain on the Bodhi-path. Every step we take must be on this straight path. Only with this kind of “faith” can we walk this Bodhi-path, see the beautiful scenery around it and realize the Buddha’s teachings.

[We move through] faith, understanding, practice and realization. “Realization” means as we walk the Bodhi-path, we can really experience the state of the Dharma. The Buddha’s teachings are perfectly applicable to all people, matters and objects in the universe. When we understand how the Dharma relates to people, matters and objects, our state of mind will be peaceful and free. Thus, we will naturally, diligently and earnestly walk the Bodhisattva-path.

On the Bodhisattva-path, we not only know the suffering of the world, we also understand the workings of the law of karma. Thus we must diligently practice the Six Paramitas. If we are mindful of what we hear, we will understand the truth of suffering. Then we are [at the level of] Hearers. If we transcend the state of Hearers, we understand the law of karma and the impermanence of the world. Then we are [at the level of] Solitary Realizers. If we transcend the state of Solitary Realizers and practice the Six Paramitas, we are on the Bodhisattva-path. Immersed in the Buddha-Dharma, we must diligently walk the path without stopping. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

The previous sutra passage discusses this point. Some spiritual practitioners “claim to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies before achieving ultimate Nirvana.” If we think we have attained [the ultimate,] we will not want to move forward. Earlier the sutra mentioned that we must understand that the Buddha comes to the world for one cause, to teach the Bodhisattva Way. He comes to do one thing, to teach us to be Bodhisattvas, not just to be Hearers and Solitary Realizers. Most importantly, His ultimate goal is to teach us to walk the Bodhisattva-path. However, many people stop [before this]. They feel, “This is enough. I am already dwelling in my final body.”

[They] claim to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies before achieving ultimate Nirvana. They do not further resolve to seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. You should know that they are the ones with overbearing arrogance. Why is this so? If a bhiksu has actually attained Arhatship but does not believe in this Dharma, he has not attained that state.

We already know about the “final body.” If we believe that after this life, we will not cycle through the Six Realms again, that we have not created more affinities, and that our hearts are already pure, then we are assuming that we are in our “final body,” that we have already attained ultimate Nirvana. If so, we “do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.” We are unwilling to walk to the highest place, to the end of the path. We are very content in this conjured city, unaware that it is illusory and that we should keep moving forward to reach the ultimate state of truth. But we have stopped. “They do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.” We must all put our hearts into realizing this.

We must recognize “those with overbearing arrogance. Why is this so? If a bhiksu has actually attained Arhatship” but does not believe in this Dharma…. “This Dharma” is the Bodhisattva Way. If we do not faithfully accept that the Buddha comes to the world to teach us that we can all become Bodhisattvas and to teach us to walk the Bodhisattva-path to ultimately attain Buddhahood, if we do not believe this, “[we] have not attained that state.” In this way, we cannot reach that state. We will not reach the ultimate state of Buddhahood because we have stopped at a conjured city, which is not the ultimate place.

Then this sutra passage states,

“Unless it is after the Buddha has crossed into cessation, when there no Buddha is present. Why is this?”

After the Buddha crosses into cessation, there is no longer a Buddha in the world. What happens then? If the Buddha crosses into cessation; there is no Buddha in the world. Didn’t Sakyamuni Buddha also cross into cessation? Over 2000 years ago, He entered Parinirvana. However, the Dharma still remains in this world. If we truly have faith, the Dharmakaya (Dharma-body) will remain here. This depends on our faith. If we have faith in this Dharma, the Dharma continues to live. Left here by the spirit of the Buddha, the Dharma is alive.

After the Buddha crosses into cessation, there is no longer a Buddha in the world. Thus, there are no Buddhas in the world to expound the wondrous Dharma.

If people do not believe the Dharma, [we only have] words on a page, just those things described by “Such I have heard.” Thus, “such was said, such was heard.” Is just knowing what was said and heard effective?

When the Buddha was in this world, everybody listened to Him. After listening, if they did not advance further, He said, “They are not disciples of the Buddha.” Even when the Buddha taught in person, people with “overbearing arrogance” refused to believe Him and faithfully accept and practice the Dharma. So, the Buddha said those with “overbearing arrogance” were not His disciples.

Before the Buddha crossed into cessation over 2000 years ago, He said that when He leaves, “There will be no Buddhas in the world to expound the wondrous Dharma.” With this, He cautioned everyone, “If, at this moment, you do not faithfully accept and practice” and still have overbearing arrogance, once He crosses into Parinirvana, no one will come to explain this wondrous Dharma. If they did not believe in [this Dharma] now, in the future no one would be teaching it.

What does “crossing into cessation” mean? For those who hear this term every day,

“It means Nirvana, cessation of delusions of views and thinking, dust-like delusions and delusions of ignorance.”

These Three Delusions are very subtle. Delusions of views refers to people’s perspectives.

Changing a person’s views and understanding is not easy. We all know the truth of this principle. Indeed, just speaking of ourselves, is it easy for other people to change our views and understanding? Changing another person’s views and understanding is even more difficult.

Therefore, [the delusion of] “view” is the turbidity of view in the Five Turbidities. This is the turbidity of view; the turbidity of afflictions is [the delusion of thinking]. The turbidity of afflictions is in our understanding and thinking. When we deviate in our perspective, our minds will rise to greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. These all come from our “views” and “thinking.”

“Dust-like” means there are countless subtle afflictions. They are truly subtle, fine and pervasive. I often hear people say, “I just cleaned this morning. I just mopped the floor and wiped the table; why do they feel dusty to the touch again? I shut the windows very tightly; how did dust get in?” Indeed, dust and sand can get into everything. We can see how subtle and fine they are. Very subtle afflictions are dust-like delusions.

These three types of delusions make our spiritual practice very difficult, and they make it hard for the Buddha to transform people in this world. Sentient beings are replete with the difficulties of delusions of views and thinking, dust-like delusions and delusions of ignorance. These delusions obstruct sentient beings’ minds.

From other people’s perspective, our methods are clearly incorrect. But we stubbornly insist that everything we do is completely correct. This is self-obstruction, or delusion. Other people can see the things we do wrong, but we insist we are not wrong. Therefore, our understandings are different. “I am clearly right; how can you say I am wrong? My method is correct. How can you say I am incorrect?” Thus a conflict arises. “You say my understanding is erroneous. I say your thinking is erroneous.” In this way, we obstruct one another. We obstruct ourselves as well as others. This mutual obstruction comes from delusions of views and thinking, dust-like delusions and delusions of ignorance. These are three subtle kinds of delusions. Delusions are obstructions. To cross into cessation, we must extinguish delusions of views and thinking, dust-like delusions and delusions of ignorance. We must eliminate them. This is the meaning of “cessation;” our afflictions are thoroughly eliminated. Ignorance deludes sentient beings, so we must quickly eliminate it.

Crossing into cessation [refers to] “crossing the two kinds of samsara, fragmentary and transformational.”

Ordinary people go through “fragmentary samsara.” After our karmic conditions in this life end, we still have conditions that lead to future lives. Then, without any control, we will be led by the law of karmic cause and effect. Each lifetime is a fragment. If spiritual practitioners have not eliminated their afflictions, they will be led by their karmic causes and conditions. This is “fragmentary samsara.”

There is also “transformational samsara. [They] claim to have attain Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies.” These people have ended their “fragmentary samsara” but they still experience “transformational samsara.” These people only care about themselves, do not want to open up their minds and do not want to thoroughly understand the principles of all things in the universe. They just close themselves off in their own bodies, saying, “I don’t want to form bad affinities.” Thus, they are unwilling to interact with people, to broaden their hearts and comprehend further worldly and world-transcending teachings.

Though they no longer experience “fragmentary samsara” and do not create negative causes and conditions, they still go through “transformational samsara,” and their viewpoint is still selfish. They still only care about themselves, without any regard for sentient beings. If this is the case, this is not the ultimate;

they have not really crossed into cessation. Attaining that state is called crossing into cessation. The crossing of the Buddha into cessation is Parinirvana. But His Parinirvana ends “transformational samsara,” so He can freely come and go. With a spacious heart, He freely comes and goes. So, He is still the founder of [Buddhism], the kind father of the Four Forms of Birth and the guiding teacher of sentient beings. He is still here because His Dharma is still in the world. As long as we all put the Dharma into practice, the Buddha’s Dharmakaya will still be here.

As for the Dharma, if we only have “such have I said, such have I heard” and after hearing it, we do not apply it, then the Dharma is not alive. If we do not have faith and if we do not truly understand the Dharma, no matter how much of it we read or chant, it will not be helpful to us at all. Therefore, when we listen to the Dharma, we must take it to heart and integrate it into our daily living. Only by doing this are we faithfully accepting the Dharma. So as we are on this Bodhi-path, we must advance diligently, and we must always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0318

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
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Chapter 2

Episode 318 – Faith Gives Rise to Practice

>> Those with limited capabilities are lost and confused. The obstruction of delusions of ignorance is their mind’s hidden flaw. They proclaim their own virtues without reflecting on themselves. Thus, they lack remorse and shame.>> “[They] are not disciples of the Buddha, nor are they Arhats, nor are they Pratyekabuddhas.”

>> As for bhiksus, “those bhiksus and bhiksunis who claim to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies before achieving ultimate Nirvana….”

>> They do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. You should know that they are the ones with overbearing arrogance.

>> “Why is this? If a bhiksu has actually attained Arhatship but does not believe in this Dharma, he has not attained that state.”

>> If a bhiksu had actually attained Arhatship: Regarding the Buddha Vehicle, whether they have turned from the Small [Vehicle] to the Great, or have not yet begun to do so, they must strongly believe in the meaning of the Great Vehicle.

>> “[If he] does not believe in this Dharma, he has not attained that state.” This means “he did not truly attain the fruits of the Two Vehicles and is a person with overbearing arrogance.”

>> Here, it is said that the Buddha gives teachings based on principles and capabilities. Presently, those with overbearing arrogance do not believe in or listen to the Right Dharma. They are lacking karmic conditions, so they cannot be transformed by the Buddha. Yet, the World-Honored One still tirelessly adapts teachings according to conditions.

I often think of how a human’s four limbs and five senses work in a very simple way, yet the mind is always very complicated. Some people are straightforward; their minds are calm and still. Some people’s minds waver frequently; their thoughts surge like waves in the sea. Things are clearly so simple; how can people have such complicated thoughts? We are all human, but some of us have complicated [thoughts], and some have simple [thoughts].

So, the Buddha said that sentient beings with limited capabilities are lost and confused. Our minds have been covered and obscured. Our originally pure and bright Buddha-nature has been covered by delusion. Take our eyes for example. We can naturally see very clearly, but if we tie a piece of cloth around our eyes with a rope, we cannot see the world around us. If we cannot see our surroundings, walking will be very dangerous. Thus, [those with] limited capabilities are lost and confused. Their minds are covered by ignorance and delusions.

Those with limited capabilities are lost and confused. The obstruction of delusions of ignorance is their mind’s hidden flaw. They proclaim their own virtues without reflecting on themselves. Thus, they lack remorse and shame.

“The obstruction of delusions of ignorance is their mind’s hidden flaw.” We all have faults, which are our habitual tendencies. These habitual tendencies are influenced by our delusions of ignorance, which obstruct our nature of True Suchness. It is precisely this slight obstruction of delusion, this flaw in our minds, that prevents us from seeing clearly. We often “proclaim [our] own virtues without reflecting on ourselves.”

We all want to tell other people about our strong points and demonstrate that we are talented. We all have this fault. If we do something wrong, we cover it up to prevent people from knowing about it. Clearly, we have done something wrong, but we are unwilling to admit it. We make illogical arguments to prove that we did not do anything wrong. “I am very capable, and I want everyone to know that.” Meanwhile, we are always trying to cover up our shortcomings. This is our problem of “[not] reflecting on ourselves.”

As ordinary people, who among us has never committed wrongs? Who has never deviated in their thinking? We have all held erroneous views; we have all committed wrongs. Wrongdoings are commonplace; the only difference is whether they were major or minor wrongs, large or small deviations. But all of us have this problem of “proclaiming our own virtues without reflecting on ourselves.” Those with more severe [faults] are people who lack remorse and shame. If we are without remorse, then we will never be able to change.

[Those with] limited capabilities [think], “I am fine the way I am. I already know a lot. This is just how I am.” They are unwilling to advance [in their practice]. These sentient beings with limited capabilities are lost and confused. They are still obstructed by ignorance; their minds are still closed.

We are all the same, all obstructed by the delusions of ignorance. We always obstruct ourselves. Yesterday, I said that we are obstructing ourselves. Who is obstructing us? It is ourselves; we are obstructing ourselves.

We may know someone who is very talented, but sadly the person has a very [bad] temperament and is very stubborn and attached. Though they are talented, this is a pity. It is a pity that in their minds, they still have mental ailments and have not changed their habitual tendencies. Though they are talented and others admire them, their habitual tendencies keep others away. No one dares to bare their hearts and speak truthfully to them.

If we have great talent and are very arrogant and proud, we may often marginalize others and say only we are correct. Because of this flaw in our hearts, no one will be willing to trust or work with us. This is also a problem. To “proclaim our own virtues without reflecting on ourselves” is very problematic. Talented? Yes we are! But if we focus too much on that, we will always think less of others. If we are unwilling to reflect on ourselves, then we will never be successful. When we have a talent, we want to everyone to know about it. But though everyone may know about our talents, we still have a shortcoming, which is our lack of virtue. Because we have not reflected on ourselves, we do not detect [this shortcoming]. Indeed, we [promote ourselves] shamelessly.

I hope that we spiritual practitioners will be even more diligent in our practice, simplify our thoughts and move forward. Since we know what the Buddha-Dharma is, we must quickly simplify things. A simplified mind is like a crystal, truly clear and free of flaws. We must not retain defilements in our minds. Our minds must be pure so that we do not obstruct ourselves and others. We must earnestly, constantly reflect on ourselves so that we do not harm ourselves. Harming ourselves will also not benefit others.

We must always be remorseful and repentant. Being remorseful, we will correct our faults. Being repentant, we can work well with others. If we are not remorseful or repentant, we will forever be lonely and find it hard to interact with other people.

So, the previous sutra passage stated,

“[They] are not disciples of the Buddha, nor are they Arhats, nor are they Pratyekabuddhas.” The Buddha then reasserted in particular that,

As for bhiksus, “those bhiksus and bhiksunis who claim to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies before achieving ultimate Nirvana….”

They believed that they were “dwelling in their final bodies” and had understood the Buddha-Dharma clearly. They thought once they left that body, they would enter Great Nirvana. Great Nirvana meant that they would not go through cyclic existence again, that their current body was their final one.

Indeed, when our current bodies grow old, we will pass away, and that is the end of this life. Are we actually confident that we will not return to cyclic existence in the Six Realms? If so, we are claiming to have attained and realized what we have not. We may believe we are “in our final bodies.” We may believe we have reached ultimate Nirvana. [We think] we understand everything clearly and that our minds are at peace, but is that so?

Earlier, I mentioned that many afflictions and problems are still hidden in and obscuring our minds. If we have not reflected on ourselves, nor earnestly contemplated our nature, if we have not even done this, we cannot say we have attained Arhatship or have become Pratyekabuddhas. We have not yet attained that purity.

So, “they do not resolve to further seek.” If we are so arrogant as to think we have attained it all, we will not want to move ahead and will stop at the conjured city because we think we have found the treasure. The Lotus Sutra addresses this later.

They do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. You should know that they are the ones with overbearing arrogance.

“They do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.” Only now are we starting to walk on the path to supreme, perfect and universal enlightenment, because only now has the Buddha begun to “set aside the provisional for the true teachings.” He announced that the Small Vehicle, the provisional teachings, were skillful means, and He was only now about to teach the true path.

This tells us that we must now work hard to eliminate the obstructions that have been covering our minds. As for the problems hidden in our minds, we must always reflect on ourselves to promptly be aware of them. We must not think that we have attained and understood everything. We must not think this way. We are just beginning [our practice]. We must not [be the ones who] “do not resolve to further seek.” We now must “resolve to seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.”

The Buddha said that those who “do not resolve to further seek” are unwilling to advance further and want to stop at their current location, which is only a conjured city. The Buddha has begun to reveal that we are in a conjured city and must keep walking to reach the true treasure. So, we ourselves must earnestly reflect on ourselves. Do we want to simply stop here and no longer advance diligently?

Supreme, perfect and universal enlightenment is Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. I have discussed this before. The Buddha said that those who think they are in their final bodies and have reached ultimate Nirvana, are people with “overbearing arrogance. Why is this?” The next passage in the sutra states,

“Why is this? If a bhiksu has actually attained Arhatship but does not believe in this Dharma, he has not attained that state.”

If we say, “I have already attained [Arhatship],” we believe we have really attained it. “If a bhiksu” refers to bhiksus who have truly attained Arhatship. But some of them did not believe in “this Dharma,” the true One Vehicle Dharma that was about to be taught. The Buddha had already spent a long time praising all Buddhas’ understanding and views and the One Vehicle Dharma. If a person is unwilling to believe it, “he has not attained that state.” He is not a real Arhat.

A real Arhat would certainly have faith, would believe in provisional teachings of the past and true teachings of the future. As this is now being taught, people must believe in this True Dharma. If they refuse to believe it, they are conceited and overbearingly arrogant, stopping at the stage they are in. Thus, they are not disciples of the Buddha.

․If a bhiksu had actually attained Arhatship: Regarding the Buddha Vehicle, whether they have turned from the Small [Vehicle] to the Great, or have not yet begun to do so, they must strongly believe in the meaning of the Great Vehicle.

“If a bhiksu had actually attained Arhatship….” These lines of the sutra have to do with teaching the Buddha Vehicle. Now [these practitioners] had to turn from the Small [Vehicle] to the Great. Originally, they practiced the Small Vehicle, seeking only to awaken themselves. After the Buddha gave the Great Vehicle teachings, they believed in it, so they turned around to head toward the Great Vehicle. [They may have] “turned from the Small [Vehicle] to the Great.”

“[Some] had not yet begun to do so.” Some knew of the Great Vehicle Dharma but had not yet begun to practice, had not yet put the teachings into practice. But now “they must strongly believe in the meaning of the Great Vehicle.” They had to believe it. They must go beyond, “I know, I understand” and carefully consider it; they must seriously contemplate it. They must realize that before stepping out and taking action, their direction must be correct. So, their faith must be deep and correct, and they must put themselves on the right course to put the teachings into practice.

“[If he] does not believe in this Dharma, he has not attained that state.” This means “he did not truly attain the fruits of the Two Vehicles and is a person with overbearing arrogance.”

If people do not believe in this Dharma, they have not truly attained the fruits of the Two Vehicles,

Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas. Arhats, those who have truly attained the fruit of Arhatship, have already purified themselves and eliminated all afflictions. After they eliminated afflictions and focused on their own awakening, their minds were very pure, so surely they would believe the Buddha’s teachings. But if they gave rise to self-arrogance or overbearing arrogance, which are afflictions, would such Arhats have pure minds? They still have overbearing arrogance, so they do not believe. How could they be true Arhats? True Arhats have eliminated afflictions, have no obstructions. So, how can they have “overbearing arrogance”? The aforementioned ones who “did not believe in this Dharma” are all overbearingly arrogant people.

Next, we discuss Pratyekabuddhas, who have surpassed Arhats. Arhats are Hearers. When the Buddha speaks, they listen, believe and practice. This is what Arhats do. But when Pratyekabuddhas observe the world, they can naturally realize the impermanence of all things and how things go through infinitesimal changes. They can even clearly understand the law of karma. If they had not eliminated afflictions, how could they have such a clear understanding? Since they had eliminated afflictions, how could they be “overbearingly arrogant”?

Therefore, if someone claims to be a real Arhat, but does not believe in this Dharma, whether he says he is an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha “he has not attained that state.” He is still “overbearingly arrogant” and has not attained the fruits of the Two Vehicles. The Buddha disavowed people like them,

saying, “These are not disciples of the Buddha.” They were not His disciples because they had not really eliminated the ignorance and afflictions in their hearts. Those who claim to be Arhats, Pratyekabuddhas, those overbearingly arrogant people, were not taught by Him and were not His disciples.

The Buddha has spoken so seriously, how can we not awaken? So, we must have deep faith in [this Dharma].

Here, it is said that the Buddha gives teachings based on principles and capabilities. Presently, those with overbearing arrogance do not believe in or listen to the Right Dharma. They are lacking karmic conditions, so they cannot be transformed by the Buddha. Yet, the World-Honored One still tirelessly adapts teachings according to conditions.

“The Buddha gives teachings based on principles and capabilities.” We must have faith in the Buddha’s teachings, for they are “based on principles.” Indeed, they are true! People, matters and objects all contain principles. The Buddha’s teachings, whether about people or objects, are all based on true principles. When He teaches based on capabilities to people of various and limited capacities, the Buddha gives simple teachings to [illustrate these principles]. Thus, He established skillful means. But teachings based on capabilities do not deviate from principles; they are based on principles and capabilities.

Those with “overbearing arrogance” do not hear and have faith in Right Dharma. The Buddha cannot transform those who lack karmic conditions, those who have weak karmic connections with Him. They clearly encountered the Buddha-Dharma, heard the Buddha-Dharma themselves, but their conditions were insufficient, so they held on to their attachments. Sentient beings are stubborn, and they obstruct themselves. People who do not believe in or do not hear. Right Dharma and are lacking karmic conditions cannot be taught or transformed by the Buddha.

But the World-Honored One is patient and earnest. He does not abandon any sentient beings. Anyone can make mistakes, so He is forgiving of everyone. He still wants to guide and transform them. He awaits the opportune time to come and transform people; he has to teach in accord with the changing causes and conditions.

Sometimes I think about how hard the Buddha had to work. Though He was enlightened, He was still concerned because sentient beings still had afflictions. Afflictions come from ignorance, but concern [is different]. So, when beings are ignorant and afflicted, the Buddha is concerned about them. So, He constantly comes to the world to find opportunities to transform them according to the time and to their problems. The Buddha frequently comes and works hard. Thus we, His disciples, must vow to seek supreme, perfect, universal enlightenment and not stop at our current stage. Nor can we be conceited or arrogant.

We cannot lack faith; we must believe. Without faith in the Great Vehicle Dharma, we will not believe that we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature and will not believe that walking the Bodhisattva-path to transform sentient beings is the way to attain Buddhahood. If we do not believe [in this Dharma,] we have not thoroughly understood these principles. So, we must always be mindful to completely comprehend these principles. Everyone, please always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0317

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
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Chapter 2

Episode 317 – Our Final Incarnation in Samsara

>> Among the fourfold assembly are those with overbearing arrogance and without faith. Monastics who are cultivating the path may believe they attained something they have not. Thus, they give rise to overbearing arrogance.

>> “Sariputra, it should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis who claim to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies before attaining ultimate Nirvana, and thus do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, are those with overbearing arrogance.”

>> Dwelling in their final bodies: The final incarnation in samsara. Arhats and Bodhisattvas of the highest level are in their final bodies, which is the final incarnation before attaining Buddhahood.

>> Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi used to be translated as: unsurpassed and perfect omniscience, unsurpassed, perfect and omniscient awakening, true and perfect omniscience, the unsurpassed wisdom of all true principles. New translation: Unsurpassed, perfect and universal enlightenment. True, universal, perfect enlightened knowledge is unsurpassed wisdom of all true principles.

>> “They claimed to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies.” This body is their final incarnation in samsara thus it is called their “final body.”

From sunrise to sunset, day becomes night. We rest at night, but soon it is day again. For those of us who wake up early, if we pay close attention, we will know the times of sunrise and sunset, and we can understand the workings of the universe.

I was standing outside, and as I turned around slowly, before I walked through the door, I saw the bamboo-shaped custom windows of the staircase and through them. I saw out onto the long corridor. As I looked to the end of the corridor, I thought, “No matter how much time we have, compared to the universe, it is nothing.” As I look down the corridor, no matter how far it extends, there is still an end to it. Our life is so insignificant, especially since we can only see things on the surface, things close to us. We cannot see very far. How can we not take advantage of waking up early the morning to practice diligently?

We must cherish the time we have. Compared to the universe, indeed, our lives are quite short, When we think of this, we should always promptly subdue our minds, because our minds can easily give rise to overbearing arrogance. Overbearing arrogance is an obstruction for us spiritual practitioners. If we have overbearing arrogance, we cannot move forward.

Among the fourfold assembly are those with overbearing arrogance and without faith. Monastics who are cultivating the path may believe they attained something they have not. Thus, they give rise to overbearing arrogance.

Ordinary people also have overbearing arrogance. And spiritual practitioners have overbearing arrogance and lack of faith. They do not thoroughly apply Right Dharma. We are fortunate enough to encounter the subtle and wondrous Dharma, which is “difficult to encounter in millions of kalpas.” So, once we have encountered the Right Dharma, we must have faith in it. Yet instead we have overbearing arrogance, so we obstruct ourselves. We do not continue to progress, and we are not mindful to faithfully accept and practice [Dharma]. This is where we fall short; it is our biggest obstacle and arose from overbearing arrogance and lack of faith.

This is prevalent “among the fourfold assembly.” The fourfold assembly of Buddhist practitioners include the two groups of lay people and two groups of monastics. Most of them have overbearing arrogance and lack of faith. This kind of self-obstructing mindset is found to some degree in the entire assembly.

Monastics are those “cultivating the path.” What path are they cultivating? The Bodhi-path. Since we aspire to engage in spiritual practice, we must step onto the Bodhi-path. Those who continue to learn the Buddha-Dharma must continue to walk this path. But with their first step, they begin to feel self-important, and overbearing arrogance arises; then they “believe they attained something they have not.” They have the false belief that they have already attained everything, so they give rise to overbearing arrogance. We must always guard against this feeling and be vigilant.

We may listen to similar teachings every day, but after we listen to them, do we commit them to memory? Do we inscribe them on our hearts? Do our hearts and minds remember what we have heard? Do we understand and remember every sentence of every teaching we hear? Just yesterday and today, how much have we heard? And how much have we retained? Furthermore, how much have we understood? And how much of that have we practiced?

If we can reflect upon ourselves, how much of the teachings remain and have not leaked out of our minds? How much have we actually retained? If we constantly reflect on ourselves and carefully contemplate, although the Bodhi-path we walk on stretches into the distance and seems to be endless, as long as we move forward step by step without stopping, eventually we will reach its end.

As long as we take care of our minds, despite the Leaks and our forgetfulness, we will remain on the right path, and we will not easily develop overbearing arrogance,

Overbearing arrogance is the greatest obstacle to our progress. As the Buddha said, “they are not disciples of the Buddha.” If spiritual practitioners obstruct themselves and “claim to have attained something they have not,” then the Buddha would say that they are “not disciples of the Buddha.” We should take these words very seriously and

truly feel the weight of these words. When I read this sutra text, I felt remorseful and repentant. Am I really qualified to be the Buddha’s disciple? Have I reach the state of Arhats or Pratyekabuddhas? And, am I still willing to continue forward? If not, I am not a disciple of the Buddha, let alone an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha.

We in the fourfold assembly must be cautious because “among the fourfold assembly are those with overbearing arrogance and without faith.” Therefore, we must guard our minds well and prevent overbearing arrogance from arising in our minds. We must not allow it to enter our views and understanding either. We must quickly eliminate any of it that is already in our views and understanding.

So the Buddha said,

“Sariputra, it should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis who claim to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies before attaining ultimate Nirvana, and thus do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, are those with overbearing arrogance.”

These people were not disciples of the Buddha. These so-called bhiksus and bhiksunis claimed to have attained. Arhatship or to have become Pratyekabuddhas. They believed that they were dwelling in their “final bodies.”

The “final body” is the end of our spiritual cultivation. They believed that they had reached the state of ultimate Nirvana through their spiritual practice in that lifetime, “So, they do not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.” They believed that they had attained everything, so they did not need to go any further. Actually, going forward, Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi is the state we must really seek to attain, the state we must realize. But these bhiksus and bhiksunis believed that they had gone far enough, so they did not further aspire to attain Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.

We should know that “they are those with overbearing arrogance.” These kinds of people are those with “overbearing arrogance.” We must reflect on ourselves and contemplate whether we have truly aspired to and are willing to continue going forward. Have we ever thought that we already understand so much? That we no longer need to listen or learn? Or, that we do not need to know any more because we already know everything we need to? Have we asked ourselves if these thoughts ever crossed our minds?

If people ask, “Why didn’t you listen to teachings this morning? Why weren’t you at morning recitation?” You may say, “I did not sleep last night.” Why didn’t you sleep last night? Because your mind was filled with afflictions. This is also a form of self-obstruction. If they ask, “Why didn’t you listen to teachings?” You may say, “I pretty much understand it all. I understood this passage as soon as I read it.” If you say this, you will affect others too. “If you understood it when you read it, I can also just read it and understand it. So, if you can stop going, so can I.” Thus, you obstruct yourself and others. If we [think] in this way, aren’t we overbearingly arrogant?

So, what is the “final body”? It is “the final incarnation in samsara.” Samsara is transmigration within the Six Realms, even the Nine or Ten Realms. The Nine Realms are the Hearer, Solitary Realizer and Bodhisattva realms, the heaven, asura, human, hell, hungry ghost and animal realms. These combine to make a total of nine realms but including the realm of Buddhas, there are Ten Realms. Only by attaining the stage of Buddhahood, and can we reach the state of ultimate Nirvana.

Dwelling in their final bodies: The final incarnation in samsara. Arhats and Bodhisattvas of the highest level are in their final bodies, which is the final incarnation before attaining Buddhahood.

In the process of our spiritual practice, if all we do is listen, like those who listened to the Buddha for over 40 years, can we be liberated? In samsara, can this body really be our final incarnation? Our final bodies will still go through birth, aging, illness and death. When this body reaches the end of its cycle, we will die. For Buddhist practitioners, death may bring the state of Nirvana. When we attain Nirvana, we are actually in a pure and undefiled state. This tranquil and clear state is “the land of calm illumination” because it is pure and undefiled.

As we engage in spiritual practice, we may think we will complete it in this lifetime and will leave behind this body to enter the state of Nirvana. Is it really that easy? We still do not have control over this. After we leave this body behind, where will our karmic connections lead us? We still do not know. During the Buddha’s lifetime, those with overbearing arrogance “claimed to have attained what they had not.” Those who believed they had attained Arhatship and were in their “final bodies” probably still did not know where they would go in their future lives. But they already had that mindset, which was one of “overbearing arrogance.”

“Arhats and Bodhisattvas of the highest level.” Although Arhats had transcended samsara, their Nirvana remained incomplete. Great Nirvana is the state of Buddhahood. Only the Buddha can comprehend all things in the universe and know when He will come back to the world according to the timing, place, people and capabilities. Arhats practiced to benefit only themselves. They did not aspire to come to this world in response to timing and capabilities. Rather, they held on to their imperfect Nirvana. “Bodhisattvas of the highest level” have not reached the perfect state either.

Those who have not attained Buddhahood, have not realized the highest level, cannot claim to have attained their “final body.” The final body is the one they will cast off when they have attained perfect enlightenment. It is their last body before attaining Buddhahood. After this, they become Buddhas.

In Sakyamuni Buddha’s previous life, He had a “final body,” then when He returned to this world again, He had already attained Buddhahood, so He could come and go at will. So, if we believe that we have attained the “final body,” we will not resolve to further seek. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi.

What is Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi? This is an old Sanskrit term. Its meaning is very profound and hard to translate so its pronunciation was transliterated. Its actual meaning is “unsurpassed and perfect omniscience. Unsurpassed” means there is no higher state of awakening than this; it is the Buddha’s enlightened state. There is no higher state than His enlightenment. He also has “perfect omniscience,” which is correct and ubiquitous because. He knows all things and is always right. So, “true and perfect omniscience” is. Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, “unsurpassed, perfect, universal enlightenment” the “unsurpassed wisdom of all true principles.” Of all true principles, there is no wisdom more penetrating. This is the old translation.

Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi used to be translated as: unsurpassed and perfect omniscience, unsurpassed, perfect and omniscient awakening, true and perfect omniscience, the unsurpassed wisdom of all true principles. New translation: Unsurpassed, perfect and universal enlightenment. True, universal, perfect enlightened knowledge is unsurpassed wisdom of all true principles.

The new explanation is similar to the old one. As we have frequently said, it is “unsurpassed, perfect, universal enlightenment” and means “true and universal enlightened knowledge” or “unsurpassed wisdom of all true principles.” It means that “unsurpassed, perfect, universal enlightenment” is always right and impartial. This definition has a sense of equality, which has been added to the new explanation.

Sentient beings are equal in that “all living beings have Buddha-nature.” Not just humans, but all life-forms, even animals, have this universal quality. Thus, the Buddha said that all sentient beings intrinsically have Buddha-nature. The new explanation includes this idea. The mind, Buddha and sentient beings have the same nature. So, the new explanation states that “true and universal enlightened knowledge” is “unsurpassed wisdom of all true principles.” This is “unsurpassed, perfect, universal enlightenment.” This is what all of us must seek.

So, we now know of those with overbearing arrogance. Why does this term keep appearing in the sutra? Those with overbearing arrogance have not attained the One Vehicle Dharma. Although they have not attained it, they believe they have attained and realized it.

“They claimed to have attained Arhatship, to be dwelling in their final bodies.” This body is their final incarnation in samsara thus it is called their “final body.”

Have we attained this? No, we have not.

This does not only apply right now. We cannot say, “I have already attained it. This body is my final incarnation.” There are still countless future lives to come. How can we know which one of future bodies will be our final body? “Once lost, it takes eons to regain human form.” Is this body the final body? If we lose our human form, where will we end up?

The human realm is just one of the Six Realms. If we are heavenly beings, there is no Buddha-Dharma for us to practice. If we are born in the asura realm, we have heavenly blessings but not heavenly virtues. If we are born in hell, we suffer unbearably. If we are hungry ghosts, we will not want to live. What if we are born in the animal realm? What will be our “final body”? After we lose this body, do we want to end up in a realm other than the human realm? We do not.

Thus, we must carefully protect our body and always return to this world in human form to walk the Bodhisattva-path, life after life. Only in the human realm can we hear the Dharma. Only in the human realm can we walk the path to Buddhahood. So, we must aspire to protect our human form. But most importantly, we must protect our minds. Even if we come to this world with human bodies, if we do not hear Right Dharma or walk the right path, then we will lose our bodies and transmigrate to suffer in other realms.

So, all of us must constantly take good care of our minds and cherish the bodies and minds we have in this life. Thus, we must always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0316

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
>
Chapter 2

Episode 316 – Faithful Acceptance and Thorough Contemplation

>> Unsurpassed, wondrous principles can illuminate and reveal True Dharma. By earnestly intensifying our contemplation, we can attain understanding and views. But we just lack the opportunity and the right moment of faith and understanding. Thus, we must not overlook [the truths] before us by even a little bit.

>> “Sariputra, if a disciple of mine calls himself an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha but does not want to hear or know the fact that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path….”

>> “Are not the disciples of the Buddha, nor are they Arhats, nor are they Pratyekabuddhas.”

>> So, “furthermore, Sariputra, it should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis who claim to have attained Arhatship….”

>> “It should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis who have claimed to have attained Arhatship do not further seek to learn unsurpassed Bodhi.” They are “overbearingly arrogant” people.

Every day as I walk out of my study and down this corridor, I feel a sense of immense gratitude. I always say, “The key to the whole day is the morning.” Before the day dawns, everything is quiet, in a state of tranquility and clarity. As I walk along the corridor and look at the distant sky, I have this feeling [of tranquility]. Yesterday and today are different,

It was much brighter yesterday. The day has not dawned yet today even though. I walked out at the same time yesterday. This is the law of nature; as the seasons change, the fall will be different than summer.

I always feel so much gratitude. I am grateful to be born into this world, where the earth nurtures all things. All of the countless, infinite varieties of material things in the physical universe are carried and given life by the earth. When we see how the seasons are in harmony, how heaven and earth give life, how can we not be grateful? These are the underlying true principles of nature. If our minds can comprehend these truths, then what Dharma can we not comprehend?

Unsurpassed, wondrous principles can illuminate and reveal True Dharma. By earnestly intensifying our contemplation, we can attain understanding and views. But we just lack the opportunity and the right moment of faith and understanding. Thus, we must not overlook [the truths] before us by even a little bit.

There is so much that the Buddha wants to tell us, especially the many principles about people and all things in this world. Wondrous principles are infinite, limitless and countless and difficult to express in words. But the Buddha exercised His wisdom to help all of us reach self-understanding and self-realization, so we can thoroughly understand these principles. He wanted us to realize and see our true nature and understand this intrinsic True Suchness.

Therefore, “unsurpassed, wondrous principles can illuminate and reveal the True Dharma.” This is what the Buddha wanted to convey. But these “unsurpassed, wondrous principles” are truly fine and wondrous. When I walk along the corridor every morning, many thoughts come to mind. With all these countless, limitless principles, for the Buddha to teach us so that our minds can resonate with the principles of all things is indeed very difficult. But in talking about it, it is actually very simple. These principles are intrinsic to all of us; we can all comprehend them.

For instance, I looked up at the sky earlier and saw a very pale blue sky in the east, a blue sky that is still obscured by dark clouds. In that moment I realized that our intrinsic nature is like that pale blue sky. As nature dictates, the seasons change from spring, summer, fall to winter, but this pale blue is everlasting. Only the dark clouds floating in front of it are constantly changing. As I stood there for a while, my eyes did not move yet without realizing it, the clouds continued to change. However, behind the clouds, that pure blue sky was still “illuminating and revealing the True Dharma.” Amidst movement, it remained still and unmoving; only the natural world changed around it.

So, if we can mindfully listen to the Dharma and faithfully accept and diligently practice it, we will “earnestly intensify our contemplation.” By being more earnest, we can intensify this contemplation even more. We can contemplate how, as we all sit here and as I speak to you, the color of the sky I see now is different from what I saw before I walked in here. Not much time has passed. You are sitting there; I am sitting here. You are looking this way; I am looking that way. What we see is different. However, as natural phenomena change, within them is a truly wondrous state that is non-arising, non-ceasing and unmoving.

If we contemplate this more deeply, we realize these principles also apply to us. So, as long as we can be more earnest, be more mindful and intensify our contemplation, we will “attain understanding and views.” We will be able to comprehend the Buddha’s understanding and views.

We must understand all the Dharma that the Buddha understood. This is our goal. We follow in the Buddha’s footsteps to realize the truths of all things in the universe. When we engage in spiritual practice, we must remain unaffected by our own emotional ups and downs.

One day, I met a child who had been tormented by illness since he was young. His illness turned out to be a very rare kind of cancer. But this child’s mind and his view of the world was very different from that of ordinary people. Whenever he spoke, he truly inspired the adults around him. Ever since he was young, doctors said he probably would not live past the age of five or seven. They said he could pass away at any time. However, his karmic conditions had not ended, so he could not leave. Among these groups of people, I saw him again and again.

When he was calm, he was able to control his emotions and had clear understanding of principles. At these times, his mother really cherished him; mother and son seemed very closely connected. But when he got emotional, his mother would feel very tormented. When many people were around, his mother was forgiving and lenient, but when the child became emotional, the mother also became emotional. This entanglement of karmic affinities looks like a lot of suffering to us.

His emotions grew stronger as he got older; he would become emotional more often. Sometimes when he talked to people, he would hurt them with his words. This is how our nature is originally clear, but as we spend time with people, we gradually accumulate habitual tendencies. When I saw him, I felt very sad. If he could maintain his innocent intrinsic nature, avoid accumulating worldly habitual tendencies, then end his karmic causes and conditions in this life, wouldn’t that be a very good thing? However, that is very difficult. In our relationships, we must try to completely eliminate our negative karmic causes and conditions in this lifetime, without creating any more for the next. This is not an easy task.

In summary, this a very subtle and wondrous principle; it is the law of karma. So, engaging in spiritual practice is very difficult because we are Tathagatas in Bonds. We are bound by ignorance, which entangles our [nature of] True Suchness. This is indeed the case for mother and son, and for fellow practitioners as well.

We do not know what method to use to get straight to the point. We do not know what method to use to help everyone understand the differences between “enlightened” and “deluded” beings so everyone can be completely clear about them. Clearly understanding them is indeed difficult,

because we lack the earnestness and diligence to intensify our contemplation and not let [the teachings] leak out. We constantly say that we must cultivate “flawless wisdom.” After we understand the teachings, we need to carefully prevent our elementary comprehension of the Dharma from disappearing, or else we will always just barely understand it. Once we understand something, it seems so clear and obvious. But we cannot fully understand things because we are still entangled by emotions. This is very sad and worrisome. This is what ordinary people are like.

With even a slight trace of ignorance or Leaks, we will lack the opportunity and the right moment of faith and understanding. When the Buddha was in this world, He gave many teachings. In later years, after His time, the collected sutras spread to China. In China, many esteemed monastics and sages contemplated and realized His principles, then they carefully compiled them. But, we still do not thoroughly understand them. The Dharma is always around us, but we lack faith and understanding. Because our faith is not deep-rooted, we constantly overlook it by just a little bit.

Indeed, the Dharma is always around us. All things in the world are constantly expounding the Dharma to us, but we constantly overlook these teachings. And when we overlook them just by a little bit, we will end up far off course and be very far away. Therefore, we overlook many teachings by just a little bit.

Everyone, I hope you thoroughly understand that the “unsurpassed, wondrous principles” can “illuminate and reveal the True Dharma.” Indeed, they are right in front of us. As long as we can “earnestly intensify our contemplation, we will attain understanding and views. We just lack the opportunity and the right moment of faith and understanding.” If we always have pure faith and understanding, we will constantly heighten our vigilance. “We must not overlook [the truths] before us by even a little bit.” This is telling us that our minds should never stray even a little. That slight deviation will cause us to overlook the True Dharma. So, we have to be meticulous and mindful.

I have said so many things, but do you understand them? These wondrous principles are truly very profound. We say it is simple because it suits our abilities. We say it is profound because it is as expansive as the universe, but ultimately it can be captured in our minds. It is that simple if we are mindful.

So, the Buddha said to Sariputra,

“Sariputra, if a disciple of mine calls himself an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha but does not want to hear or know the fact that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path….”

“Only” means there is just one. The Buddha gave so many teachings, but He only wanted to teach us to walk the Bodhisattva-path.

As I have told all of you, the Bodhi-path leads to the state of the Tathagata, back to our Tathagata-nature, our intrinsic nature of True Suchness. We must walk this Bodhi-path, which is the path of enlightened sentient beings called Bodhisattvas. We must care for many people, but not be defiled by their delusional affections. This is the Bodhisattva-path. This is the way we can go among people and not allow anyone to influence our hearts.

Two people alone, like the mother and son we spoke of, can endlessly entangle each other in suffering. Furthermore, as we walk the Bodhisattva-path, we must face myriads of sentient beings. Since we are engaging in spiritual practice, aren’t we supposed to deal with sentient beings without allowing their emotions to influence us? This is how we learn the Bodhisattva-path. The Buddha [only] teaches the Bodhisattva-path.

So, He said that. Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas may think they have already attained [enlightenment] and thus are unwilling to learn anything more or to “earnestly intensify their contemplation.” They were unwilling to do just a little more, to intensify their contemplation. They were not willing. Thus, they did not understand the Buddha’s intent, so how could He speak His understanding and views? If they could not realize the Buddha’s understanding and views, how could they truly develop an understanding equal to the Buddha’s?

So, the next section of the sutra discusses how they did not “want to hear or know.” The Buddha came to teach the Bodhisattva-path. Those that do not want to listen or realize this.

“Are not the disciples of the Buddha, nor are they Arhats, nor are they Pratyekabuddhas.”

These were not the disciples He wanted to teach. The disciples He wanted to teach must have open and broad minds and go among people without being defiled by them. Only those with pure minds can thoroughly understand the true principles of all things in the universe. Otherwise, they were not His disciples. The Buddha made this very stern statement, “Nor are they Arhats, nor are they Pratyekabuddhas.”

So, “furthermore, Sariputra, it should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis who claim to have attained Arhatship….”

If these disciples all believed they had already attained Arhatship, as the following texts states, they were those with “overbearing arrogance.”

Let us understand [this passage].

“It should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis who have claimed to have attained Arhatship do not further seek to learn unsurpassed Bodhi.” They are “overbearingly arrogant” people.

These people “have not attained Arhatship,” and. These people have not attained Arhatship, and

“do not further seek to learn unsurpassed Bodhi.” They were not willing to keep learning. They just stopped at this point. “I have heard and learned the Buddha-Dharma. I understand and have been practicing it.” They had reached this point but were unwilling to continue and “did not further seek to learn unsurpassed Bodhi.” They were not willing to progress further because they had overbearing arrogance. They surely must not have attained Arhatship because they still did not understand the Buddha’s intent. Although they knew they had to end samsara and that their suffering was caused by cyclic existence in the Six Realms, they only wanted to attain the benefits of ending samsara for themselves. So, these people were not really Arhats yet,

because although they were learning the Dharma, they “listened but did not faithfully accept.” They were just listening. “You are all listening; do you understand it? Yes. Can you do it? Eventually.” This response shows that they “listen but do not faithfully accept.” When we listen and understand, we should seize the opportunity to practice immediately in order to sustain [this resolve] forever.

Every sutra [ends with] “after listening to the Buddha’s teachings, everyone joyfully and faithfully accepted and practiced.” Have we really listened, then faithfully accepted and practiced? If not, how could we truly understand the Buddha’s understanding and views? We must have faith, we must accept [the Dharma], and we must put it into action. If we have not attained this state, no matter how much we hear, we will not comprehend. If we have attained this state, we can hear one thing and know ten things; if we have not reached this state, we can hear 1000 things but know nothing and end up wasting this time.

Thus when we “listen but do not faithfully accept” we cannot attain the Buddha’s understand nor comprehend His original intent. Thus, we are “not the disciples of the Buddha, nor Arhats, nor Pratyekabuddhas.”

Everyone, I really hope that all of us can truly comprehend these many principles. In reality, this begins with a single thought. Unsurpassed, wondrous principles in that instant are “illuminating and revealing True Dharma.” In our daily living, people, matters and objects are all inseparable from principles. As long as we are earnest, intensifying our contemplation every day, we will be able to comprehend the Buddha’s understanding and views.

We only lack a small thing, “the opportunity and the right moment of faith and understanding.” All of us have this problem. We hear what was said, and in that instant, we understand, so we have a tiny bit of faith and understanding. However, with just this tiny bit of faith and understanding, “we must not overlook [the truths] before us by even a little bit.” This was what [the Buddha] wanted to tell us with great sincerity. I hope all of us can mindfully comprehend these teachings and always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0315

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
>
Chapter 2

Episode 315 – The Buddha’s Disciples Must Know His Mind

>> With deep-rooted faith, we believe in the truth without doubts. Arhats have the power of wisdom and ending. Pratyekabuddhas have the wisdom to awaken.

>> “Sariputra, if a disciple of mine calls himself an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha but does not want to hear or know of the fact that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path….”

>> “They were not disciples of the Buddha, nor were they Arhats, nor were they Pratyekabuddhas.”

>> “Furthermore, Sariputra, it should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis claimed to have attained Arhatship.”

>> These are not disciples of the Buddha: The conjured city is not where the treasure is. Those who are biased toward and attached to provisional teachings and do not have faith in the perfect Dharma claim to have realized what they have not. So, these are not disciples of the Buddha but are people with overbearing arrogance.

As Buddhist practitioners, we must make vows every day, and we must remain unwavering in upholding our vows and following the path. No matter what external conditions we face, our faith must be deep-rooted. The deeper the roots, the more unwavering our faith is. If we wholeheartedly and deeply believe in the teachings and true principles, we will have no doubts. To understand principles, we must have faith. If the roots of our faith can extend deep and wide, we will have no doubts.

With deep-rooted faith, we believe in the truth without doubts. Arhats have the power of wisdom and ending. Pratyekabuddhas have the wisdom to awaken.

We must realize that the reason we cannot focus is that we have doubts. When we have doubts, we think too much, so our faith cannot remain unwavering. Thus our minds are easily tempted to think about other things. So, faith is very important.

When engaging in spiritual practice, we must know what to practice at each stage of spiritual cultivation. As beginners, we consider the karmic conditions that enabled us to encounter the Buddha-Dharma and the timing that enabled us to encounter the Buddha. We can give rise to faith due to our karmic conditions and timing.

At the beginning of the Buddha’s lifetime, there was no Buddha-Dharma. He diligently engaged in spiritual practice and then finally unlocked the profound mystery and principles behind the ignorance of the world. Once He awakened, He established the Buddha-Dharma.

For the Buddha to teach the Buddha-Dharma, the conditions had to be right. Who had the best conditions to receive it? The five bhiksus, Ajnata-Kaundinya and the rest, were the best recipients of teachings and had the best karmic conditions.

These five had engaged in spiritual practice with the prince, but because of a misunderstanding, they lost their confidence in Siddhartha, and parted ways. When these five saw that. He had attained Buddhahood, they shifted from doubting to having faith. With faith, they listened to the Dharma, and according to their capabilities, the Buddha began to teach them the truth of suffering, its causation, its cessation and the path.

These five heard the Buddha’s analyses of the different afflictions of the world and the forms of life’s suffering. They listened to this teaching at the same time, but not all of them awakened at the same time. So for these five people, the Buddha had to give the same teaching three times.

The first time, only one of them could thoroughly understand that life is indeed suffering, which is caused by greed, anger and ignorance that arise from the workings of people’s minds. This causes us to create much suffering and accumulate many sources of hardship. After we realize this, we must resolve to eliminate our suffering at its source, that initial thought of ignorance in our minds. “I understand now, so I resolve to cultivate according to the path of spiritual practice the Buddha taught.” This is what Ajnata Kaundinya realized.

Upon the first teaching of the Four Noble Truths, Ajnata Kaundinya was the only one to awaken. What about the other four? After the Buddha’s teaching, they seemed to understand that life in this world is suffering, but what is the source of suffering? They still did not understand clearly how it all began with the mind. The Buddha said, “Do not worry,” I will say it again.” Then He taught the same Dharma a second time. Afterward, two of them said, “I understand now that the source of suffering is in our minds. If we want to eliminate all suffering, we must subdue our mindset of greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt.”

So, did all of them achieve this understanding? There were still two who did not fully understand. So, the Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths a third time. Then the remaining two people understood. The Buddha was relieved that they had stepped onto the path. This will take them forward, and it is a very broad and direct path. So, the Buddha allowed these five to take refuge and urged them to focus on their monastic practice. At this time, the Three Treasures were complete.

After the Buddha began to expound the Dharma, the Sangha was formed in the world. Thus, when we have the karmic conditions and aspiration to engage in spiritual practice, we must first understand suffering in the world and seek liberation. Those who saught to be liberated from suffering will join the Sangha.

In the Sangha, those who attain Arhatship are replete with wisdom and have the ability to eliminate afflictions. This is why we engage in spiritual practice. Arhats are not only seeking to benefit themselves. They first understand that the suffering in life comes from afflictions. To eliminate those afflictions, they must have enough wisdom to penetrate all suffering in the world. Thus, they understand that as they walk this path, they must be cautious of

their surroundings and of the course they take. What about Pratyekabuddhas? Pratyekabuddhas have the wisdom to awaken. Their wisdom is one level higher than Arhats because the teachings they have listened to life after life have permeated them. This process of permeation comes from learning.

Haven’t we come across some children who were born very smart? We observed this particularly in our Musical Sutra Adaptations, in which the profound Dharma was expressed through music, lyrics and sign language. There were young, adorable children ranging from two to five years old who watched adults perform the sign language and listened to them sing, and they learned [the performance] even faster than adults. In northern, central and southern Taiwan there were children like this.

Can we say that small children do not really understand things? They actually see things very clearly. When his grandma was not home, one child would secretly turn on the computer. This four- or five-year-old child would follow the video and learn the hand motions. Eventually, the adults had to learn from the child. This is because the child had learned in the past. Thus, in this lifetime, that memory was still deeply imprinted, undefiled by external conditions.

So, we often say that those who left and came back again may have clear understanding. There was a saying in the old days, “Well-read from a previous life.” In Buddhism, we say that his karmic conditions brought him back. When the karmic conditions in his past life ended, the ones for this life manifested. As he was not sidetracked by other defilements, his karmic conditions quickly brought him from his past life to this current one. In this way, his memory was still very fresh.

Thus, Pratyekabuddhas must have listened to and faithfully accepted the Dharma life after life. But they still had not eliminated all afflictions; some ignorance remained, so they had not achieved thorough understanding. However, their potential for awakening was high, so when they came to the world again, they could build on what they learned in the past about the impermanence of life. Therefore, in this life, when they encountered everything from the cycle of day and night to the changes of the four seasons, their minds were led to have a sense of the principle of impermanence. They were Pratyekabuddhas, or Solitary Realizers. When there were no Buddhas in the world, they still realized this state [of impermanence] in people, matters and objects because of their awakened nature. Thus, those with a clear, awakened nature are called Pratyekabuddhas.

“Pratyekabuddhas have the wisdom to awaken.” They can awaken and understand more easily. However, they still have a bit of ignorance, so they still have a ways to go before attaining the state of Buddhahood.

So in this passage, the Buddha said,

“Sariputra, if a disciple of mine calls himself an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha but does not want to hear or know of the fact that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path….”

Arhats already have the wisdom and ability to eliminate afflictions, and Pratyekabuddhas can understand the origins of all things in the world. Even though they know this, do they have a direct and thorough understanding of the underlying principles?

Did all of these people actually attain Arhatship? Or, did they just claim to be Arhats? They arrogantly said, “I already know everything. I thoroughly understand everything.” Did all these people simply claim to be Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas? These people “do not want to hear or know of the fact all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path.” They believed they attained everything, but they did not know that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, come to the world for one great cause.

If they did not want to hear, know and understand that all Buddhas come to the world to teach the Bodhisattva-path, if they were not willing to hear and know,

“They were not disciples of the Buddha, nor were they Arhats, nor were they Pratyekabuddhas.”

If they believed that they understood everything and have attained the fruit of Arhatship and have attained the fruit of Pratyekabuddhas, have attained the fruit of Pratyekabuddhas, but still did not understand the Buddha’s intent for coming and teaching in this world, they “were not disciples of the Buddha.” If they did not understand Him, how could they claim to be His disciples? At this time, the Buddha began to speak sternly.

Clearly, the Buddha spent over 40 years gradually guiding and patiently teaching according to capabilities. This was all because He wanted to help everyone come in contact with the Dharma and faithfully accept and practice it. But at this point, the Buddha began to say, “If you do not understand that all Buddhas come to the world for one cause, to teach the Bodhisattva-path, if you still cannot understand this, how can you be my disciples? Not only are you not my disciples, are you even Arhats? You have been by my side and worked so hard on your spiritual practice, yet you still do not understand my original intent nor my purpose in coming to the world. So how can you really be Arhats? or Pratyekabuddhas? You are not!”

The Buddha spoke sternly solely because. He wanted them to wake up and not be complacent with their current state. Instead, they should continue to move forward.

We have been saying that in this era in which sentient beings are heavily defiled, they have much turbidity in their views and understanding. So between sentient beings, between people, there is no understanding, respect or love. Therefore, they oppose each other, which creates many disasters that threaten living beings in the world. This is a “time” filled with “difficulty.” A kalpa of turbidity and confusion is “a time of great difficulty.”

Because sentient beings are severely defiled, natural and manmade disasters continuously arise. In this time of great disasters, we must have great compassion. Beyond understanding right and wrong, we must develop great compassion. In addition to great compassion, in times of ignorance and turbidity, we must develop great wisdom. This is the state we sentient beings must move toward, step by step. Only saying, “I know, I know” is not enough. After we “know,” we must put it into practice. When we put the teachings into practice, we can then break through our ignorance. “Without experience, we cannot grow in wisdom.” So, we must go among people to truly learn that “infinite Dharma-doors readily appear before us.” We can unlock our wisdom because “infinite Dharma-doors” are right in front of us. Thus, we can “thoroughly understand all Dharma and attain great wisdom.”

So everyone, we must repent at all times. In this passage, the Buddha taught us that we must be remorseful and repent. We must not be arrogant and “claim to have attained what we had not,” thinking we have already attained Arhatship or the fruit of Pratyekabuddhas, so we already know everything. We absolutely cannot think this way. If we do, the Buddha would say of us, “They are not my disciples, nor are they Arhats, nor are they Pratyekabuddhas.”

Then the Buddha said,

“Furthermore, Sariputra, it should be known that those bhiksus and bhiksunis claimed to have attained Arhatship.”

If these bhiksus and bhiksunis thought that they had attained the fruit of Arhatship and already had the ability to eliminate their ignorance and afflictions, they were not disciples of the Buddha. How could they claim to be bhiksus and bhiksunis? If they were not the Buddha’s disciples, they were not true bhiksus and bhiksunis.

To be a monastic and engage in spiritual practice, we must diligently learn what the Buddha learned, act the way the Buddha acted and realize what the Buddha realized. Only by doing this are we truly learning the Buddha’s teachings. We must adopt the Buddha’s demeanor and awaken to the Buddha’s state of mind.

The Buddha carefully and gradually guides us. In the Chapter on the Parable of the Conjured City in the Lotus Sutra, He saw that everyone was tired, so when they reached a stopping point, He said, “We have arrived.” This was a conjured city. After everyone was well-rested, He then said, “This is a place to rest; it is not our ultimate destination. We need to start walking again.” So, “the conjured city is not where the treasure is.” It is not our true destination, so we must keep moving forward diligently.

However, those who are biased toward and attached to provisional teachings cannot understand the perfect Great Vehicle. The Buddha’s One Vehicle, with perfect and complete true principles, is something they still cannot understand. This is because of their biases and attachments. They stubbornly believe that they had attained enlightenment, so they do not feel the need to move forward. These who “claim to realize what they have not” are not the Buddha’s disciples. They are people with overbearing arrogance.

These are not disciples of the Buddha: The conjured city is not where the treasure is. Those who are biased toward and attached to provisional teachings and do not have faith in the perfect Dharma claim to have realized what they have not. So, these are not disciples of the Buddha but are people with overbearing arrogance.

We had talked for some time earlier about “those with overbearing arrogance.” When the Buddha began to teach [the true Dharma], they paid their respect and left. Some of these people were very arrogant, and some still could not faithfully accept it, so their course deviated.

Everyone, our road ahead is still long. It will take a long time to finish the Lotus Sutra. But every day, if we can understand [a little bit], the Dharma is actually very simple. By focusing on the path right beneath our feet, we diligently move forward with every step. Therefore everyone, please always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0314

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Wisdom at Dawn
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Chapter 2

Episode 314 – By Listening, We Learn the Buddha’s Intent

>> As the Buddha’s disciples, we should faithfully accept the Buddha’s teachings. We must believe in our [nature of] True Suchness, that we intrinsically have a Bodhi-mind. Only by walking the Bodhisattva-path can we return to the state of the Tathagata.

>> “Sariputra, if a disciple of mine calls himself an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha, but does not want to hear or know of the fact that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path….”

>> Arhats: They have the power of wisdom and ending. Understanding the ultimate truth is the virtue of wisdom. Eliminating all afflictions is the virtue of ending. This is the true Bodhi-path. Those who truly attained the fruit of Arhatship, upon hearing the teachings today, can immediately and faithfully accept it and seek the Bodhi[-path]. Those who do not want to hear and know this but claim to be Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas are nothing more than overbearingly arrogant people.

>> Pratyekabuddhas: They have the wisdom to awaken. Once they listen, they immediately understand. They seek the wisdom of nature and joyfully awaken themselves to attain Nirvana. They deeply understand the causes and conditions of all things. This is the Pratyekabuddha Vehicle.

>> They do not want to hear or know that [the Buddha] teaches the Bodhisattva-path, the One Buddha Vehicle. Thus they do not understand the Buddha’s intent, and hear it without faithfully accepting it. So, they give rise to overbearing arrogance.

Every day, our lives grow shorter as we undergo continuous infinitesimal changes. So, “like a fish in a dwindling pond, what joy have we?” However, we must consider that, as the Buddha’s disciples, we must faithfully practice the teachings. The teachings of the Buddha are nothing but great wisdom. If we are mindful, [then we can]. “See one corner and know the other three.” This means that when I tell you how to make a table, how to cut and shape the corners to be square, I do not need to teach you four methods, I only need to teach you one. From shaping one corner you will know how to shape the other three corners. This is how teachers in this world instruct pupils.

But the Buddha works very hard. Even if there are only four corners, He uses eight or twelve different methods to patiently and repeatedly teach us. Regardless of people’s capabilities, He tirelessly finds suitable teachings. This is the patience He has for sentient beings. The teachers of this world can only teach us for a period of time, not for lifetimes. The Buddha teaches us, lifetime after lifetime. We must always be grateful for His grace and therefore love and respect ourselves. Only when we respect ourselves

will we earnestly cherish and seize each day to develop our wisdom-life. So, we must have self-respect. I always say, “Having self-respect is a way to repay grace.” We need to repay the grace of the Buddha, our parents and all sentient beings. All Buddhist practitioners, whether lay or monastic, must cherish their wisdom-life, have self-respect and repay grace. We are all Buddha-children and “as the Buddha’s disciples, we should faithfully accept the Buddha’s teachings.”

As the Buddha’s disciples, we should faithfully accept the Buddha’s teachings. We must believe in our [nature of] True Suchness, that we intrinsically have a Bodhi-mind. Only by walking the Bodhisattva-path can we return to the state of the Tathagata.

The Buddha teaches us to have more faith in ourselves. “We must believe in our nature of True Suchness, that we intrinsically have a Bodhi-mind.” We must believe that we are intrinsically endowed with a nature of True Suchness. To return to our true nature, we must walk from the path of ordinary people toward the path of enlightenment, which is the Bodhi-path. The Bodhi-path is a path in our minds. As long as we are willing to return to our nature of True Suchness, The Buddha teaches us to earnestly walk this path.

In this world there are tens of thousands of paths. We must not take the wrong one. If we deviate from it even slightly, we will end up on an evil path. Evil path, evil understanding and views will give rise to countless afflictions, karma and wrongdoings, and so on. So, we must take good care of this Bodhi-path. The Bodhi-path in our minds comes from the same source as our nature of True Suchness. Therefore, we definitely must find the Bodhi-path

in order to return to our nature of True Suchness. To follow the Bodhi-path, we must practice the Bodhisattva-path. So, only by walking the Bodhisattva-path can we return to the state of the Tathagata. We must clearly understand this.

Time continues to pass in infinitesimal increments. We must not waste time. We should know that if we have a lapse in our spiritual practice, we may become indolent.

In the Buddha’s time, one day while He was with the Sangha at Jeta Grove, four bhiksus sat outside of the abode and chatted under a tree. Each person named the thing they wanted to pursue most. One of them said, “What I am most interested in and most want to pursue is the colorful state of spring. When all the flowers and trees bloom wildly, nature looks beautiful. I really enjoy traveling through this kind of environment.” In his life, that was the state he loved most, that made him the most happy.

The second bhiksu said, “What I enjoy most is being with my very close friends or spending all day with loved ones. This is what makes me happiest. Having a good time together, either singing or dancing, is the way I want to spend my days.”

The third bhiksu said, “What I envy most are fame and fortune. I want to have a lot of money and many treasures so that I can enjoy pleasures whenever I want. A pleasurable life is what I desire most.” The fourth bhiksu said, “I keep thinking of the past. Having my beautiful wife and concubines by my side at all times would be the most enjoyable thing in life.” Having spoken so much about pleasures, they were all entranced by those states.

At that moment, the Buddha looked outside and saw these four bhiksus. He said, “Ask them to come inside.” The Buddha sighed, “In your pasts, you pursued and were mesmerized by things because of your delusion. After you became monastics, your minds dwelled and lingered on the past or went in pursuit of the future. This world is impermanent and time continuously passes. In this world, life is painfully short. Furthermore, fame and fortune are temporary and pursing them will create a lot of karma. As for beautiful wives and concubines, we will all [eventually age, grow ill and die] and our bodies are unclean. Sadly, even after becoming monastics, you are idling away your time, not learning teachings and not trying to find your nature of True Suchness. The paths ahead of you are all evil branches. You have not even formed aspirations, so you can no longer see pure intrinsic nature.”

As the Buddha rebuked them, those nearby benefitted immensely. As He taught these four bhiksus, of the bystanders who heard what He said, many were also awakened.

Indeed, life is very short. Why are we still fixated on the past? Why are we still in pursuit of a future? This is a deluded life. So, are we living in this state of confusion? The Buddha already said, “In the era of chaos and the kalpa of turbidity, sentient beings are heavily defiled.” From this short story, we know that even during the Buddha’s time, people’s minds were already turbid. This was true even within the Buddha’s Sangha, let alone for the lay people at that time.

So, in the kalpa of turbidity, sentient beings are heavily defiled. In the kalpa of turbidity, all is in chaos and people’s minds are confused. So, sentient beings continue to give rise to a defiled state of mind, one of greed, jealousy and so on. So, they develop roots of unwholesomeness.

Because sentient beings lack roots of goodness, the Buddha has to give Three Vehicles teachings. Based on the One Vehicle, He taught the Three Vehicles. Not only that, He gave 84,000 teachings to address sentient beings’ 84,000 turbidities. To treat them, He had to come up with all of these teachings, not to mention the Three Vehicles. But actually, the Three Vehicles are only for certain spiritual practitioners. Those spiritual practitioners include the Hearers and Solitary Realizers in the Sangha. Hearers were taught the Four Noble Truths, Solitary Realizers were taught the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence, and Bodhisattvas received the Six Paramitas. The Three Vehicles teachings actually all lead to the Bodhisattva Way, which is the only way to return to the Bodhi-path, which enables us to return to our Tathagata-minds. This is what the Buddha worked hard to teach us.

Presently, the sutra also states that the Buddha said,

“Sariputra, if a disciple of mine calls himself an Arhat or Pratyekabuddha, but does not want to hear or know of the fact that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path….”

This makes things always very clear. The Buddha once again reminded Sariputra, which was reminding everyone to listen attentively. Some of His disciples might believe, “I am already an Arhat. I thoroughly understand the Four Noble Truths, the truth of suffering, its causation, its cessation and the Path.” Because they attained the fruits of Arhatship, they thought [highly of themselves]. Or they might think, “Not only do I understand the Four Noble Truths, but the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence are as familiar to me as the palm of my hand. I also clearly understand the karmic conditions for coming to and leaving this world. Fragmentary and transformational samsara are also very familiar to me.” They believed they were Pratyekabuddhas.

Those who thought they had understood were “those who do not want to hear or know of the fact that all Buddhas, the Tathagatas, only teach the Bodhisattva-path….” These people did not know that all Buddhas, not just Sakyamuni Buddha, but other Buddhas as well, shared the same path. They come to this evil world of the Five Turbidities, and begin to teach the Dharma to sentient beings all for one purpose, to teach the Bodhisattva-path. Teaching the Bodhisattva-path is their one great cause. They teach everyone to walk the Bodhisattva-path, the road back to our nature of True Suchness. After we transform ourselves and others, we can achieve perfect transformative practice.

If we all think that we have attained the fruit of Arhatship or become Pratyekabuddhas, but do not want to hear or know why all Buddhas come to this world, if we do not listen attentively and learn this, then we will be at a loss.

So, we must know the qualities of an Arhat. An Arhat has “the power of wisdom and ending.” He has the wisdom to end all afflictions. This is the virtue of ending. If we have truly attained the fruit of Arhatship, we must first achieve the state where we eliminate all afflictions after learning the truth. Then we achieve this virtue. We go among others but are not defiled by people and matters. Only then do we have virtue of wisdom. Only then are we Arhats. The true Bodhi-path also allows us to eliminate all afflictions. Only by experiencing the true Bodhi-path and by walking it can we truly be Arhats.

Arhats: They have the power of wisdom and ending. Understanding the ultimate truth is the virtue of wisdom. Eliminating all afflictions is the virtue of ending. This is the true Bodhi-path. Those who truly attained the fruit of Arhatship, upon hearing the teachings today, can immediately and faithfully accept it and seek the Bodhi[-path]. Those who do not want to hear and know this but claim to be Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas are nothing more than overbearingly arrogant people.

If we have truly attained Arhatship, as we listen to this teaching, we realize that the Buddha is opening the provisional to reveal the true. The Buddha clearly said that in the past He only gave provisional teachings, and now He was going to teach the true path. Those who have attained the fruit of Arhatship, the moment they hear this teaching, should faithfully accept it. They will certainly be able to earnestly listen and faithfully accept it. If we think, “I know everything,” then we will not listen carefully. If we do not learn this, but claim to be Arhats, thinking we have already attained. Arhatship or become Pratyekabuddhas, then don’t we have overbearing arrogance? Those people do not know the Buddha’s goal in coming to this world. Can a person who does not want to learn be called an Arhat?

What are the qualities of a Pratyekabuddha? A Pratyekabuddha has “the wisdom to awaken.”

Pratyekabuddhas: They have the wisdom to awaken. Once they listen, they immediately understand. They seek the wisdom of nature and joyfully awaken themselves to attain Nirvana. They deeply understand the causes and conditions of all things. This is the Pratyekabuddha Vehicle.

Pratyekabuddhas also go by another name. They are called Solitary Realizers. In times when there are no Buddhas present, they can, through their pure intrinsic nature, still realize the principle of impermanence. But what is the origin of these principles? And how do they connect to their wisdom-life? They still did not understand, so they remained in the state of. Solitary Realizers and Pratyekabuddhas.

When the Buddha manifested in this world, some accepted His teachings and understood that the world is impermanent. How does realizing impermanence resonate with their wisdom-life? After comprehending impermanence, how do they purify themselves and develop their wisdom-life? The answer was even clearer in the Buddha’s era. “Once they listen, they immediately understand.” After listening to the Buddha’s teachings, they should understand.

The Buddha gave teachings so that people could realize the world is impermanent and that we should promptly return to our pure intrinsic nature. So, He created many means to teach us. This is the Buddha’s compassion. Pratyekabuddhas can understand, so they “seek the wisdom of nature.” Thus Pratyekabuddhas

can naturally attain great wisdom from nature. Natural wisdom, teacherless wisdom, all-encompassing wisdom, etc., are all natural to us. But true Pratyekabuddhas were progressing, they sought “the wisdom of nature and joyfully awakened themselves to attain Nirvana.” But they still only wanted to awaken themselves and were in the state of Solitary Realizers. They knew about the many causes and conditions, so they did not dare to create more causes or form more conditions. Thus they only sought to purify and liberate themselves

“did not want to hear or know” [that Buddhas] “only teach the Bodhisattva-path.” They did not realize the Buddha only wanted to teach the One Buddha Vehicle. He did not just teach them to become Arhats or Pratyekabuddhas. These are not the only teachings, so everyone must keep progressing forward. Those who remain in the same state, unwilling to make progress, are those who “do not want to hear or know.” They do not understand the Buddha’s intent.

They do not want to hear or know that [the Buddha] teaches the Bodhisattva-path, the One Buddha Vehicle. Thus they do not understand the Buddha’s intent, and hear it without faithfully accepting it. So, they give rise to overbearing arrogance.

Dear Bodhisattvas, there were overbearingly arrogant people in the Buddha’s time. The Buddha put a lot of work into guiding them and gave so many teachings. He personally taught them at the Lotus Dharma-assembly, and yet there were still people who left. Among those who remained and listened, there were those who heard but did not believe and who did not feel the joy of faith. Think about this, it is so sad!

So everyone, we must learn the Buddha’s teachings. The Buddha compassionately inspired us and opened our minds to help us all return to the Bodhi-path and enter the state of the Tathagata. How can we not have self-respect? How can we not earnestly safeguard our spiritual aspirations? Thus, we must always love and awaken ourselves. We must always be mindful.

Ch02-ep0313

Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
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Chapter 2

Episode 313 – Suitable Teachings of the One Buddha Vehicle

>> In accord with the original nature possessed by sentient beings the Buddha taught His understanding and views. In True Suchness is just the One Buddha Vehicle; there is no Two or Three Vehicles.

>> “In the era of chaos and kalpa of turbidity, sentient beings are heavily defiled with stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy. Thus, they develop all roots of unwholesomeness.”

>> Now let us look at how “all Buddhas, with the power of skillful means, taught the One Buddha Vehicle as divided in three.”

>> All Buddhas, at these times, manifest as world-transcending beings to transform all sentient beings with roots of goodness and karmic affinities and help them aspire to transcend the world.

>> The Buddha taught the One Buddha Vehicle as divided in three. Because of the Five Turbidities, He could not instantly teach [the One Vehicle]. Therefore, He gave provisional teachings of the Three Vehicles. The true teaching is still the One Buddha Vehicle, which is the ultimate.

In accord with the original nature possessed by sentient beings
the Buddha taught His understanding and views.
In True Suchness is just the One Buddha Vehicle;
there is no Two or Three Vehicles.

Sentient beings intrinsically have Buddha-nature. The belief that Buddha-nature is intrinsic to us is the Dharma, so which method do we use to open up our Buddha-nature and eliminate our ignorance? It is for this reason that the Buddha comes to “open and reveal” His understanding and views for sentient beings to “realize and enter.”

The moment we realize Buddha’s understanding and views is when our Buddha-nature will manifest. Similarly, people with healthy eyes can see their external conditions very clearly. But for people with eye ailments, everything looks blurry, Is it the environment which is blurry, or is the problem with people’s eyes? The answer should be very obvious. People with eyes that are diseased cannot see the environment clearly.

If they want to see their surroundings as clearly as people with healthy eyes, they need to cure their eye disease. After their eyes are healed, they will naturally see as well as people with healthy eyes. This is called “understanding and views.”

Ordinary people are like people with eye disease. Thus the pure and radiant. Buddha-nature within us has become hazy to us. The Buddha is here to tell us that that state still exists, the Buddha-nature is still intrinsic to all of us. “As long as you can cure our eye disease,” naturally, the state that you see and the state that I see will be the same.”

The Buddha’s understanding and views should lead us to the same goal as the Buddha, to this state [of mind] that exists, which is known as True Suchness. The Buddha teaches us many methods to help us attain the same views and understanding as Him, To help us to understand our minds and realize our true nature,

the Buddha keeps teaching with various causes and conditions, with various analogies and expressions. He utilizes various methods to make analogies to help us understand that all beings possess the Buddha’s nature of wisdom. This leads us to awaken our compassion. Then we will respect ourselves and respect everyone else. If we can all respect one another, if I respect you for having Buddha-nature and you respect that I have pure nature of True Suchness, we can mutually respect and love one another. In this way, we will always be grateful toward one another.

Don’t all Tzu Chi volunteers say, “Having self-respect is a way to repay grace; practicing giving is a way to show gratitude?” We all try to love and respect ourselves. Since the Buddha comes to teach us, in order to repay the Buddha’s grace, we must be respectful. We must respect His teachings that have been passed on to the present for us to accept and practice. Accepting teachings is how we respect ourselves. If we have self-respect, and earnestly practice, then we respect the Buddha’s teachings. Thus, if we disciples respect ourselves, we are repaying the grace of the Buddha, our parents and sentient beings. Those who respect themselves know to repay others.

If we know to be giving, we are showing gratitude. We are grateful for the ability to give, and for having the right views and understanding. By helping sentient beings and benefiting them, we are actually benefiting ourselves. Thus when we help others, we must be grateful that we have right understanding, right views and right thinking. Being able to help the world’s sentient beings is something we should be grateful for. It is because we have this Dharma that we give to help others. Having the ability to give is something we are grateful for. This comes from realizing we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature.

The Buddha utilizes various methods to help us fully believe that we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature. By believing in this, we will apply the Buddha’s teachings in hope of breaking through our layers of ignorance so our Buddha-nature may be revealed. Though the Buddha utilizes countless methods, they all lead back to the One Buddha Vehicle. He teaches according to capabilities, [but there is] just the One Buddha Vehicle, “there is no Two or Three Vehicles.” We discussed this two days ago.

The sutra text tells us that the Buddha manifests in this evil world of the Five Turbidities because this is when sentient beings need teachings. Without these teachings, without the Dharma, the turbidity would become heavier and denser. The Buddha came to bring purity to sentient beings’ minds so He continually manifested in the evil world of the Five Turbidities.

When we chant repentance verses and make vows, we say. “The universe has bounds; our vows are boundless.” This vow comes from our intrinsic nature of True Suchness. Our compassion has awakened this vow. “Though the universe has bounds; our vows are boundless”, Clearly, the vow made from our Buddha-nature is very powerful.

So we say “the Buddha always abides in this world” in a state of “non-arising and non-ceasing.” As it appears to the Buddha, His state is truly non-arising and non-ceasing, As it appears to us sentient beings, He was here over 2000 years ago. The Buddha was born over 2000 years ago, and He entered Parinirvana over 2000 years ago. But actually, how long is 2000-plus years to Him? It is not a very long time, so how would He experience any arising or ceasing? He only manifested those appearances for the sake of transforming sentient beings.

Thus the Lotus Sutra states that the. Buddha and all Buddhas manifested in the world, in the world of turbidity. All Buddhas of the ten directions, not just Sakyamuni, have manifested in this turbid world, always during the kalpa of turbidity. Sentient beings are heavily afflicted and defiled, so all Buddhas had to come to this world.

They all come to teach sentient beings, because “in the era of chaos and kalpa of turbidity, sentient beings are heavily defiled.” We have severe afflictions and turbidities, like “stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy,” etc., and develop all roots of unwholesomeness. We bring about the creation of many unwholesome things.

All sentient beings suffer in this world. [Because we develop] these unwholesome roots as we live in this world, the Buddha comes to this world. So, the previous sutra passage spoke of how the Buddha,

“In the era of chaos and kalpa of turbidity, sentient beings are heavily defiled with stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy. Thus, they develop all roots of unwholesomeness.”

This is from the previous sutra passage.

Now let us look at how “all Buddhas, with the power of skillful means, taught the One Buddha Vehicle as divided in three.”

This is also a passage that has appeared often recently.

The Buddha [sees that] sentient beings have varying capabilities because of their afflictions. Some have more severe turbidity and afflictions, thus they have more layers of ignorance. If their turbidity is milder and weaker, then their capabilities will be sharper, just as those with relatively minor eye disorders can see their environment more clearly. The thicker and heavier the turbidity within us, the more ignorant views and understandings we have. Then our perspectives, views and understanding become evil and deviant. Our deviation leads us to create more bad karma. Stinginess, greed, envy, jealousy and so on are all within our minds, giving rise to severe turbidity. To deal with this, the Buddha used various methods.

Actually, all His methods are a part of the One Buddha Vehicle teachings. From the One Buddha Vehicle, He separately taught the Three Vehicles. Some say “You cannot see from so far away, so come closer; can you see it now? I cannot see it clearly. Come closer and look again.” If we go to an optometrist, sometimes the doctor may say, “Let’s use this dark [paddle] to cover this eye. Use your other eye to look at the missing section of this circle. Can you see that opening? so come closer; can you see it now?” At first, it is very big, [so we say,] “Yes, I see it.” Then it becomes smaller and smaller. Then we have to see if the opening is on this side or that side.

If our vision is better, as the testing continues, we can still see it when it is very small. If our vision is poor, even with a big opening, [we think], “How come it looks different? Even the roundness of the circle is changing. It is not round enough. It doesn’t even seem round anymore, so how I can see the opening? I cannot see it. Why is there such a big difference?” Indeed, the same circles of various sizes are used. The circles that are used do not change. But the worse our eyesight is, the more blurry the circles are.

After we begin treatment, we look again, “It is rounder now. I see it clearer now.” We can correctly indicate where the opening is. We sentient beings are just like this. So, the Buddha teaches according to capabilities, like prescribing medicine according to the illness. We must go through such a treatment so that we will eventually recover our health.

Now, let us put our hearts into understanding why the Buddha manifested in this era of the kalpa of turbidity. It was to transform all sentient beings who had roots of goodness.

All Buddhas, at these times, manifest as world-transcending beings to transform all sentient beings with roots of goodness and karmic affinities and help them aspire to transcend the world.

Indeed, the Buddha said that we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature, and of course we all have roots of goodness. But, as I have just said, some people have very heavy turbidities and no affinity with the Buddha. We constantly talk about the poor woman who had no affinity with the Buddha. Why did she lack a good affinity with the Buddha? Because during His spiritual practice, the Buddha had neglected a certain sentient being.

This happened [in one of His past lives]. This woman’s family was struck with misfortune, so she was sad and crying. A spiritual practitioner passed by and asked, “Ma’am, why are you crying?” She told him what had happened to her family, how her husband and child suddenly passed away, how poor her family was, and so on. Her many afflictions caused her sadness and caused her to experience the suffering of life. The spiritual practitioner said, “The life of sentient beings is always like this. What is there to cry about? Just accept it.” After making this statement, he left. Then, another spiritual practitioner walked by. “Ma’am, what’s wrong?” His words were gentle as was his manner. Then, He took out a handkerchief and said, “Accept it, this is the way life is. No matter how long one lives, inevitably, [death] will come. You must take good care of yourself now, and do not harm your body. Please wipe away your tears.” Then he handed her the handkerchief. The woman took the handkerchief, wiped her tears away, and expressed her gratitude to him. Then she walked away.

The Buddha told His disciples, “Do you know why. I could not transform this poor woman? That first spiritual practitioner is now. I, Sakyamuni Buddha. The second spiritual practitioner is now the one by my side, Ananda.” Ananda was able to form many good affinities, because his mind is very meticulous and he is skillful and gentle. So, Ananda was the disciple that had 30 Marks of the Buddha. The Buddha had 32 Marks. Ananda’s magnificent appearance was similar to that of the Buddha’s because in his past lives he had created many good affinities with sentient beings. Many people who saw Ananda became joyful.

The Buddha said that all Buddhas manifested in the evil world of the Five Turbidities. So, all Buddhas manifest in this evil, turbid world because this is the moment teachings are needed. They do this to transform all beings who have roots of goodness, those They have affinities with. “Having roots of goodness” refers to sentient beings They have [good] affinities with.

Sentient beings with good karmic conditions have, over many lifetimes, planted seeds that have been nourished by the Dharma-water and have extended their roots deeply and widely. These are sentient beings with good affinities. The goal of all Buddhas in coming into this world is to lead them to develop Bodhicitta and engage in world-transcending practices.

These sentient beings must be continuously guided, life after life. Didn’t we just talk about how the Buddha is in the world [at all times and in all places]? He is beyond birth and death. We go through successive lifetimes, but the Buddha is forever in this world. After listening to a lesson, [the teacher asks,] “Do you understand?” Those who enjoyed the class will come back for the next lesson, and the teacher will remain the same. In summary, this is a very long lesson. After you learn about this class, you may come back for the next lesson, and then the next one, and so on.

“Do you understand?” After understanding this lesson, go on to the next one. We do this until we achieve the goal of the class. [The Buddha’s goal] in teaching this class is for sentient beings to develop Bodhicitta, to use an awakened mind to cultivate world-transcending practices.

In this evil world of the Five Turbidities, how can we enable our minds to transcend the turbidities of the world? The lotus flower grows in the mud, and though it never leaves the mud, it is not defiled by it. This is developing Bodhicitta and cultivating world-transcending practices. With Bodhicitta, we are Bodhisattvas. To walk the Bodhisattva-path, clearly we must go among the people. How then can we transcend this world? By keeping our minds undefiled amidst the mud. Our minds can remain in this turbid world, yet transcend it. It is our minds that transcend it, that transcend afflictions. When our minds can transcend afflictions, we return to our pure Tathagata-nature, our nature of True Suchness.

This is why, “He taught the One Buddha Vehicle as divided in three.” The Buddha gave this teaching so we can all be liberated from this evil world of the Five Turbidities.

․The Buddha taught the One Buddha Vehicle as divided in three. Because of the Five Turbidities, He could not instantly teach [the One Vehicle]. Therefore, He gave provisional teachings of the Three Vehicles. The true teaching is still the One Buddha Vehicle, which is the ultimate.

The Five Turbidities in this evil world are the kalpa of turbidity, turbidity of affliction, of views, of sentient beings and of life. These are the Five Turbidities. If we can transcend these Five Turbidities, we have returned to our intrinsic nature. This is also the One Buddha Vehicle. Whatever teaching the Buddha gives, He hopes we can return to the One Buddha Vehicle. He teaches the One Buddha Vehicle as divided in three

because in the evil world of the Five Turbidities, He could not instantly teach [the One Vehicle]. He could not just teach one lesson that everyone would understand completely. He had to continuously approach those beings with good roots, those He had good affinities with. So, He gave provisional teachings of the Three Vehicles. Because sentient beings have varying capabilities, these Three Vehicles were established. They could not instantly realize the One Vehicle, so He had to spend all this time teaching them. Actually, the One Buddha Vehicle is the ultimate teaching.

Dear Bodhisattvas, we really must be mindful. From the teachings given earlier, we must all understand that we intrinsically have Buddha-nature. The Buddha was teaching us that we can have views and understanding equal to the Buddha. Only the One Vehicle leads to this realization; there is no Two or Three Vehicles. In the Lotus Sutra, this is the most important concept and the truest Dharma. So, we must always be mindful.

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Posted on by Scott Ogata
Wisdom at Dawn
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Chapter 2

Episode 312 – Afflictions Give Rise to Turbidities

>> The obstructions of the Five Turbidities are very strong at this time. People with shallow wisdom and inferior roots act against their conscience. They have utmost foolishness, utmost ignorance and do not abide by principles. From the turbidity of kalpa, one can also see the other four turbidities.

>> “Sentient beings are heavily defiled with stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy. Thus, they develop all roots of unwholesomeness.”

>> Sentient beings are heavily defiled: Sentient beings with these countless afflictions make up the group of evil sentient beings. They cannot see or accept those who do good.

>> Stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy: These evil sentient beings are jealous and greedy. They are unwilling to help and benefit each other and only know to fight and harm each other.

>> Among these Five Turbidities, the turbidity of kalpa, turbidity of affliction and turbidity of view are the causes. The turbidity of sentient beings and the turbidity of life are the effects.

When I walked outside and looked up at the sky, I saw how beautiful it was. In the distant part of the sky, there were shades of pink and orange. When I looked straight up, the sky was clear and cloudless. I saw only the dazzling and bright stars and moon. The crescent moon was waning and, and there was a distinct star some distance from it. The moon at dawn was very beautiful, and the star beside it was also very bright. Indeed, they brought out each other’s brilliance.

Aside from the pink hues in the distance, the rest of the sky was free of blemishes, like the clear surface of a mirror. This clear, blue mirror is indeed beautiful. Seeing it can really bring a sense of having complete clarity in our minds, so we can realize how the Buddha felt when He saw the morning star, became enlightened and saw His true nature. He was likely in this kind of environment.

The mundane world around us can also influence our minds. This world can lead us to give rise to a complex cacophony of voices. The world around us can bring about complicated views and understandings. Our external conditions can drive us to give rise to limitless afflictions. This is the world we ordinary people live in.

We are currently living in an unenlightened state. In this era, the obstructions of the Five Turbidities are very strong. They have been in this world for a very long time.

During the Buddha’s lifetime over 2000 years ago, India at that time was indeed a complicated society. Not only did these complications involve nations invading one another, there were also religious complications. I often say that during the Buddha’s era, there were 96 non-Buddhist religions. Why were there so many religions? During that era, people’s minds were burdened by afflictions. In that environment, human interactions gave rise to many manmade disasters. So, some people decided to engage in spiritual practice. After becoming a bit more aware, they looked for ways to spiritually cultivate. However, none of them were on the right course, so many religions were established.

At that time, the Buddha was born into the palace. From a young age, he learned about the religions of that era. He also saw that, at that time, people of different castes were not treated equally. So, this prince formed the desire to seek the right path. Thus, the Buddha manifested in this world at that time, as tTurbidities began to arise in that era. Tas turbidities began to arise in that era. As we previously discussed, “All Buddhas appear in the evil world of the Five Turbidities.” Looking back, we should know that the turbidities have been in this world for a very long time.

The obstructions of the Five Turbidities are very strong at this time. People with shallow wisdom and inferior roots act against their conscience. They have utmost foolishness, utmost ignorance and do not abide by principles. From the turbidity of kalpa, one can also see the other four turbidities.

The turbidities grow stronger as the population grows in size. As times change, people’s thoughts are no longer simple and pure but instead become overcomplicated. In the world around us, the obstructions of the Five Turbidities are indeed very strong. This is true for our present era.

So “at this time,” in this era, what are the people like? They have “shallow wisdom and inferior roots.” People are shortsighted; they see only immediate benefits and do not think about the future.

Looking around the world, we see large corporations everywhere. Because they all want to expand their business, they destroy the mountains, rivers and land, and then begin polluting the air. These many [effects] are very complicated and arise from the “shallow wisdom” of people today. Shallow wisdom means that one is clever, but not wise. Thus it is shallow. Such worldly cleverness and intelligence is directed toward competing with others. People with inferior roots lack roots of goodness, so they are selfish and only look after themselves. They strive for their own benefits and do not think about the many people who live with unbearable suffering.

We see so many victims of natural disasters as well as manmade calamities. Recently, I have seen many victims of natural disasters as well as manmade calamities. Aside from them,Furthermore, there are many people who are that are poor and starving. We see this all around the world. But Still there are others who keep fighting for power. They have “shallow wisdom and inferior roots.” Ignorance has covered their conscience. This is “utmost foolishness and utmost ignorance.” These foolish and ignorant people do not act in line with principles.

If we could all abide by the morals and intrinsic principles of [being good people,] wouldn’t that be great? However, people today are foolish and ignorant. Their desires and ignorance have covered their conscience, so they do not abide by principles in anything that they do. This is the era when the evil world of the Five Turbidities flourish. In the “turbidity of kalpa,” we can also “see the other four turbidities.”

Haven’t we talked about this before? So, in “the evil world of the Five Turbidities,”

“Sentient beings are heavily defiled with stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy. Thus, they develop all roots of unwholesomeness.”

The Buddha was sad. As He spoke of “the era of chaos and turbidity of kalpa,” He began by talking about the “turbidity of kalpa.” The “turbidity of kalpa” is happening right now. ․This world, all the people around us and all. This world, all the people around us and all sentient beings are in the “turbidity of kalpa.” This world, all the people around us and all sentient beings are in the “turbidity of kalpa.” This is a time of disorder. The natural order of the world is disrupted, and the four elements have become imbalanced. Morals have also become unclear, so people do not fulfill their familial roles. This is something that is happening to families.

In this era of chaos and turbidity of kalpa, “sentient beings are heavily defiled.” Because sentient beings are heavily defiled with “stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy,” they cause confusion and disorder in this era. So, disorder arises from confusion caused by afflictions and [lack of] understanding, the turbidity of views and turbidity of affliction. These two turbidities have shaped this era. Afflictions give rise to turbidities. Incorrect understandings give rise to turbidities. So, this creates the turbidity of kalpa. Because of this, “they develop all roots of unwholesomeness.”

As for “unwholesome roots,” we should know this story from the Buddha’s lifetime. In that era, there were monastics who were very experienced, and those who were very inexperienced. Those with deep wisdom were the elders, and the young ones were novices.

But one day, as the Buddha taught, surrounded by His disciples, there was an elder in the front. He sat with poor posture and his legs outstretched. He was not sitting properly. Meanwhile, an eight-year-old novice was also seated in the front, right by the Buddha. He sat very properly as he mindfully listened to the Dharma. The Buddha saw that this experienced elder was not sitting upright or paying attention. He could tell that he was not mindfully listening to the Dharma.

When He saw this, He felt very sad and taught according to this situation. He said, “In spiritual practice, those who started earlier are called elders.” Then He said, “Actually, in our daily living, we need to be diligent and mindful. Living in this environment, as we receive all things, receive many material goods, we must begin to analyze all thingseverything around us with loving and pure minds.”

Everything around us is teaching us the Dharma. Every place our eyes make contact with can teach us the Dharma. Everything helps us train our minds. Our spiritual aspiration is inseparable from loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity. Only by diligently developing these qualities, upholding precepts and respecting our teachers can we truly become spiritual practitioners with roots of goodness.

After the Buddha said this, He told everyone, “Behold this elder who is seated before me. Do you see him?” Everyone focused their gaze on this slouching person in front of the Buddha. He was not sitting properly at all. They said, “Yes, we see him.” Then the Buddha said, “Now, do you see this person? This novice in front of me is dignified and earnestly listens to teachings. Do you see him?” Then everyone focused their gaze on this young novice. They said, “Yes, I see him.”

They saw the novice’s diligence and the elder’s indolence. The Buddha continued, “Indeed, spiritual practice is about paying attention to your surroundings and heightening your vigilance to nourish your roots of goodness by developing loving-kindness, compassion, joy, equanimity, and being diligent and upholding precepts. Everyone should be vigilant of themselves.”

Thus, this section of the sutra states, “Sentient beings are heavily defiled with stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy.” Indeed, in our daily living, these emotions often arise in our minds.

Sentient beings are heavily defiled: Sentient beings with these countless afflictions make up the group of evil sentient beings. They cannot see or accept those who do good.

Let us look at “sentient beings are heavily defiled. Sentient beings with these countless afflictions.” These are what are heavy defilementsare “heavily defiled.” They do not simply have mild afflictions; they have very serious ones too. Thus they are “evil sentient beings.”

These evil sentient beings “cannot see or accept those who do good.” When others are doing good deeds, not only do they not praise them, they do everything they can to slander them. These are evil sentient beings. They refuse to do good, and when they see people do good, not only do they not admire them, they find all kinds of ways to undermine their efforts and slander them. These are sentient beings of great evil. They are heavily defiled and cannot resolve these serious afflictions, so not only do they refuse to do good themselves, they undermine people who do and slander them. Thus, they are exceedingly evil. People with such serious obstructions are heavily defiled.

There is also “stinginess, greed, envy, jealousy.” [With these afflictions] iWhen interacting with othersn our relationships, not only do we they not take joy in others’ merits, we they also do not respect or help capable subordinates to succeed. They do not know how to promote the talented; instead, they are jealous of and slander them. They are envious of the successful and talented.

Stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy: These evil sentient beings are jealous and greedy. They are unwilling to help and benefit each other and only know to fight and harm each other.

When they see exceptional people who are more talented, they begin to develop afflictions out of jealousy. If they see others with many skills, they will try to suppress them so they cannot demonstrate their abilities. They suppress the talented as they are envious of the successful and talented. They are also greedy. Those who are jealous of others desire recognition and benefits for themselves. They fear losing their own prestige and wealth, so they envy the successful and talented. This is “stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy.” When they obtain good Dharma, they refuse to share it with others. When they do good deeds, they do not encourage others to come along. They suppress the talented because they are [ultimately] afraid of loss. This comes from greed. They are greedy for recognition, for their own wealth and advantage, so they suppress the talented and are unwilling to benefit others.

As for good deeds, we often mention the Four All-Embracing Virtues, which are charitable giving, beneficial conduct, loving speech and collaborative working together. We should practice charitable giving and generously share good Dharma with others. We should engage in beneficial conduct because it is advantageous to our practice. We should mutually encourage one another by training ourselves to use loving speech. We all need encouragement. To encourage others, we must use “loving speech” and transform people through collaborative work.

By working together on a task, we share with, benefit and support each other. This is transformation through collaborative work. But the stingy, greedy, envious and jealous will not do this. “They only know how to fight and harm each other.” When others are better than them, they find ways to bring them down and suppress them because of “stinginess, greed, envy and jealousy.”

These Five Turbidities, such as turbidity of kalpa, turbidity of affliction and turbidity of view, are all causes. Indeed, as I have just said, the turbidity of kalpa comes from the turbidity of affliction and views. These are the causes. Indeed, as I have just said, the turbidity of kalpa comes from the turbidity of affliction. Along with the turbidity of views, these They caused the turbidities in our present kalpa these caused the turbidities in our present kalpa. In this era, the concept of morality is diminishing. As it fades, “the turbidity of sentient beings” is created. People do not know how to purify themselves. Not only can they not purify themselves, they actually defile themselves. Not only do they defile themselves, they also defile others. So, we frequently say that we must bring purity to purify people’s mindshearts. This is the reason for it. We In order to bring purity to people’s hearts,must purify people’s minds. In order to bring purity to people’s hearts,To purify others, we must first purify ourselves.

If the turbidity of sentient beings cannot be controlled, it leads to the turbidity of life. The turbidities of sentient beings and life are effects.

Right now, we face more and more psychological pressures and afflictions from our environment, as well as manmade and natural disasters. These events are threatening our lives. This is the turbidity of life.

We live only as long as we can breathe. Now there are natural and manmade disasters, as well as more diseases. Rare diseases keep appearing. Human and animal germs are intermixing and are causing epidemics. This is all related to the way we live. So, the turbidity of sentient beings and turbidity of life are the effects.

The turbidity of affliction and turbidity of views, leading to the turbidity of kalpa, are the causes. The results are the turbidity of sentient beings and turbidity of life. These are the Five Turbidities. This evil world of the Five Turbidities is truly filled with unbearable suffering.

Among these Five Turbidities, the turbidity of kalpa, turbidity of affliction and turbidity of view are the causes. The turbidity of sentient beings and the turbidity of life are the effects.

Everyone, we are all very fortunate to encounter the Buddha-Dharma. Although the Buddha lived over 2000 years ago, the Dharma has remained in the world. Let us wholeheartedly accept the Buddha-Dharma, the same True Dharma He taught in His lifetime. If we become lax and indulgent, even if the Right Dharma is before us, it will degenerate. It will disappear from us. Therefore, we must always be mindful.