Author: Scott Ogata

Episode 38 – Consider Virtues and Benefiting Others

>> Ordinary people’s thoughts are tied to afflictions. They are entangled by karmic forces.

>>They transmigrate through cyclic existence with no rest. Afflictions give rise to karma and thus are called the Leak of Existence.

>> “Attained benefits for themselves.” This phrase praises the attainment of virtues that make them worthy of offerings. It means that they have realized the purpose of cultivating virtues. With the merit of using wisdom to eliminate afflictions, they realized the truth of non-contrivance.

>> Contrivance refers to “something made.” Something not made has no causes and conditions and is called uncontrived. Something that does not go through the Four States of Existence, arising, abiding, changing and ceasing, is uncontrived. This is another name for Ultimate Truth.

>> When one has already attained benefits for oneself, one is then worthy of offerings.

>> Consider one’s virtuous actions. Consider benefiting others. By cultivating one’s mind, enduring suffering, bearing hard labor and one becomes worthy of offerings.

>> Eat and live simply, kneel and pay respects, diligently practice to improve. If one only seeks one’s own benefit and virtues without benefiting others, one will have the regret of not being virtuous.

“Thoughts are tied to afflictions;” thus, ordinary people are “entangled by karmic forces.” This is the mind of unenlightened beings. In their daily living, when ordinary people face afflictions, “their minds rise and fall,” and they transmigrate through cyclic existence with no rest. This causes them to be afflicted and create karma, so [these afflictions] are Leaks of Existence. I have said before that Leaks are afflictions; afflictions originate from Leaks. Each day, we are thinking like unenlightened beings. Then, naturally, we give rise to more delusions and create karma. This is how we allow the Dharma we hear every day to leak out. Think about how time passes so quickly. How much more time do we have left to lose? So, we must seize the day.

Ordinary people’s thoughts are tied to afflictions. They are entangled by karmic forces. As their minds rise and fall, ․they transmigrate through cyclic existence with no rest. Afflictions give rise to karma and thus are called the Leak of Existence.

Previously, we talked about “eliminating all Leaks” so that there are no further afflictions, thus, “attaining benefits for ourselves.” To “attain,” in this phrase, refers to a virtuous state that makes us worthy of receiving offerings. To “attain” refers to [when] we have ended all afflictions, eliminated all Leaks, have no further afflictions. Only then are we close to attaining virtues. We may attain the virtue worthy of offerings, the virtue worthy of reverence [or] the virtue to lead sentient beings. To have those virtues, we need to have eliminated all Leaks and ended all afflictions. That is being virtuous. So, we “attained benefits for ourselves” and “realized the purpose of cultivating virtues.” This is why we need to cultivate virtues.

Remember that I have previously said that to cultivate virtue we need self-discipline. Even though every day we discuss the virtuous actions we want to practice, have we then taken them to heart? After we have taken them to heart, are we disciplined in dealing with our own mistakes? I often talk about precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. Precepts prevent wrongs and stop evil. In our living, do we act according to precepts? Do our minds prevent thoughts from arising? Do we keep ourselves from having deviant thoughts? Are we constantly vigilant of our own behavior? We cannot deviate even even slightly in the wrong direction. Are we self-disciplined in this way?

So, when we speak of cultivating virtue, we are talking about disciplining our minds. If we do so, then we are “attaining benefits for ourselves.” [So], it is a great joy to have already attained what is beneficial to us. [Thus], to have attained fruits [of realization] means we have eliminated afflictions. With every bit of affliction we eliminate, we can realize a bit of wisdom. So, if all afflictions are eliminated, all wisdom will be revealed. Thus, we “use wisdom to eliminate attachments.” Only when we have wisdom can we eliminate our self-grasping.

Ordinary people are attached to the self. When we are attached to the self, naturally all afflictions in this world, greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt, will quickly cover our minds. This happens because of attachments. We can accept the virtuous Dharma, but our attachments give rise to arrogance and doubt. Even if the virtuous Dharma is right before us, we may cut ourselves off from it and refuse to accept it. All this is because of attachments,

so we must use wisdom to eliminate our attachments. When it comes to our own mental states, we know ourselves best. We like this person and detest that person. All our interpersonal conflicts with others are related to “attachments.” So, we must use wisdom to eliminate attachments and cultivate our minds in this way so we can act with virtue toward others. Then, we [will] have already attained the merits of “using wisdom to eliminate attachments.” By using wisdom to end all afflictions from attachments, we attain virtue and can then “realize the truth of non-contrivance.”

“Attained benefits for themselves.” This phrase praises the attainment of virtues that make them worthy of offerings. It means that they have realized the purpose of cultivating virtues. With the merit of using wisdom to eliminate afflictions, they realized the truth of non-contrivance.

What is the truth of non-contrivance? “Contrivance” is something artificial, made up. “Non-contrivance” means not creating things, not forcing connections. “Without causes and conditions to create karma” means that as we have eliminated all attachments, we clearly comprehend matters and principles and will no longer force affinities. So, we no longer transmigrate in the Six Realms,

“do not undergo the creation of the Four States of Existence.” This also means non-contrived. Arising, abiding, changing and ceasing are the Four States of Existence of the mind. In our daily living, the external circumstances we see, the external sounds we hear and the surrounding interpersonal conflicts all arise from our minds. Whether good or bad arises, these things all arise from our minds.

This is like a story that I have told before. One day, while a spiritual practitioner was taking a walk, he saw a lotus flower blooming very beautifully in a pond, and a sense of happiness arose in him. He stopped by the lotus pond to admire the flower and its surroundings. In that moment, a farmer arrived there; with his shovel, he dug out the lotus. The spiritual practitioner said to him, “The lotus was sitting so prettily in the pond, why did you have to uproot it?” The farmer said, “You are engaging in spiritual practice with a quiet and peaceful heart. Why must you be attracted to this lotus flower?”

See? Even a spiritual practitioner, when faced with external circumstances, can see something beautiful and feel attracted. This is called “arising.” Staying there to admire is “abiding.” Suddenly, when the farmer uprooted the lotus, that was “changing.” When the pond no longer had a lotus, and the water became murky, [this was] “ceasing” and the water became murky; [this was] “ceasing.” Don’t we all [experience] these mental states? We cannot eliminate this kind of arising, abiding, changing and ceasing. In this way, we are still contriving and our minds are still attached to a state of contrivance. Through practice, we can attain a state of non-contrivance, which is a state without thoughts of gain and loss or attachment. When afflictions no longer reside in our minds, this is called non-contrivance. This is called Ultimate Truth. Ultimate Truth is another name for Unconditioned Dharma.

Contrivance refers to “something made.” Something not made has no causes and conditions and is called uncontrived. Something that does not go through the Four States of Existence, arising, abiding, changing and ceasing, is uncontrived. This is another name for Ultimate Truth.

What we commonly call Ultimate Truth is something we fundamentally cannot see. By allowing our minds to be discerning, we have already attained benefits for ourselves. So, if our minds can use wisdom to eliminate all [afflictions], then we can attain Unconditioned Dharma.

“One has achieved benefits; thus, one receives offerings from the heaven and human realms.” This is the meaning of being worthy of offerings. Before, we mentioned that to be worthy of offerings, we must first eliminate all afflictions from our minds. Then we can receive offerings. This means we must have this type of virtue in order to receive offerings from others. When we deserve their offerings, we have eliminated all afflictions.

When one has already attained benefits for oneself, one is then worthy of offerings.

Let’s consider our virtuous actions. We must constantly self-reflect and consider our own virtues. Benefits for ourselves are things for our own advantage. Don’t we engage in spiritual practice to eliminate afflictions and attain wisdom? Isn’t eradicating the Three Obstructions and attaining wisdom and true understanding what we all vow to do every day when we dedicate merits? “I vow to eradicate the Three Obstructions and all afflictions. I vow to attain wisdom and true understanding.” Whether or not we have attained wisdom and true understanding, only we ourselves know the answer.

As we cultivate our minds, if we only speak of what we have gained, is that enough? Next, we examine “cultivating one’s mind, enduring suffering [and] bearing hard labor.” In our spiritual practice, we must cultivate our minds and be willing to endure the suffering that surrounds us. We must be willing to put in the hard work, for we did not come here to enjoy ourselves. Spiritual practice is not about enjoyment; when it is done willingly, then it is genuine practice.

Consider one’s virtuous actions. Consider benefiting others. By cultivating one’s mind, enduring suffering, bearing hard labor and eating and living simply, ․one becomes worthy of offerings.

So, in our daily living, we must first be able to bear life’s challenges. Not only do we cultivate the mind and endure suffering, we must also bear hard labor. To “eat and live simply” means whether it comes to eating or living, all must be simple. The material goods for living must be very simple. For example, aside from eating and living humbly, we must also continue to diligently practice. Morning and night, we chant and prostrate. We cannot be lazy. We must “kneel and pay respects.” We must constantly pay respect to the Buddha with great sincerity and “diligently practice to improve.” Everything mentioned above is for ourselves.

We are truly willing to remove ourselves from a wealthy life and leave worldly desires behind. We willingly enter the Buddhist path to practice. We must withstand the trials of body and mind, the difficult labors and simplicities of life. We must bear them and constantly improve and challenge ourselves. “Only seeking one’s own benefit and virtues” means that we only benefit ourselves; we do not practice on behalf of others. When we improve ourselves, we are also not doing it for other people. When we train the body and mind, we attain the benefits of our practice.

There is a common saying, “If the husband practices, he attains. If the wife practices, she attains. If each practices, each attains. If each eats, each becomes full.” What we are discussing is all for ourselves. If we truly do not want to transmigrate in the Six Realms, we must seek the Ultimate Truth of non-contrivance. So, we must eliminate the attachments in our living and thus benefit ourselves. But, “without benefiting others,” we will “have the regret of not being virtuous.”

Eat and live simply,

Eat and live simply, kneel and pay respects, diligently practice to improve. If one only seeks one’s own benefit and virtues without benefiting others, one will have the regret of not being virtuous.

The Buddha expounded the Dharma for 49 years. In the first 42 years, [He expounded] skillful means; when the 42nd year began, He set aside the skillful for the direct, saying to everyone, “In the past, we practiced only to benefit ourselves. That was not right; we must also benefit others.” When we benefit others, we are following the Bodhisattva-path. So, what is now most important is not only to benefit ourselves, but also to remember to benefit others.

As part of the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism, we must draw closer to the Buddha-mind and accept the Buddha’s teachings. In our actions, we must work with others. This is what we should practice. So, to enter the Abode is to enter the Jing Si Dharma-lineage and to diligently walk the path. Before, we mentioned diligently walking the path bearing the challenges to the body and mind and persevering in living a simple life. This is the path we diligently walk.

But, the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism is our path in this world. We developed this path to benefit ourselves and also others. To benefit ourselves means to diligently cultivate our minds, to cultivate our virtues and discipline our minds. We must cultivate our own virtue; we must discipline our minds. We must be tranquil and clear so that we can make vows as vast as the universe and attain the truth of non-contrivance. Non-contrivance is no longer creating interpersonal disputes and forced affinities. Only by eliminating all these can we truly realize our own virtue and

“attain benefits for ourselves.” This means we have attained our own virtues. Then, we can accept the offerings of others. As for offerings of wealth, we already support ourselves. But as for offerings of reverence, if we do not cultivate virtues, how can we accept people’s offerings of respect? How can we guide the actions of others? So, we must have attained benefits for ourselves to be capable of guiding others to move forward.

Everyone, the Buddha is the guiding teacher of the. Three Realms, venerable elder of the great house. Have we really drawn closer [to Him]? So, the Dharma is what we must draw near to. If we can enter the Dharma, then we can attain an abundance of wisdom. So, we practice Buddhism to learn how to eliminate afflictions and [bad] thoughts and how to allow the Buddha-Dharma to enter our hearts. Therefore, we must eliminate all attachments. So, please always be mindful.

Episode 37 – Do Not Allow Ignorance to Cause Leaks

>> Thus have I heard. At one time, the Buddha dwelt on Vulture Peak, near the City of the House of Kings, together with the assembly of great bhiksus, 12,000 in all. All were Arhats. They had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions. Having attained benefits for themselves, they had severed all bonds of existence; their minds had attained a state of freedom.

>> Ignorant people create karma, open the door to all Leaks and fall into cyclic existence. They forget the Dharma-body, lose wisdom-life and lose great treasures, This harms and disturbs practitioners. This is all caused by ignorance leaking through. These afflictions manifest and cause the mind to drift without end.

We learn the Buddha’s teachings to attain Buddhahood. In this process of attaining Buddhahood, people must transform their ordinary thoughts to draw closer to the Buddha’s state. So, the Buddha-mind is filled with great compassion; the Buddha-mind is pure, like a clear mirror. Everyone, do our hearts feel great compassion at all times, see all sentient beings as our own children and everyone in the world as our family? Do we have that sense of love and care?

Do we often wipe clean the mirror of our minds? Do we have any subtle, dust-like afflictions that have yet to be cleared away? We must constantly clean the mirror of our minds as we learn the Buddha’s teachings. Intrinsically, we have a mirror in our minds, but small particles of dust have been continuously covering it, layer after layer. This has caused the mirror of our minds to become cloudy. Spiritual practice is [how we] clean this mirror and return to our intrinsic nature, which is equal to the Buddha’s.

In the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha opened and revealed [this path] for us to realize and enter so we could let go of the skillful means of. Small Vehicle teachings and turn our minds to the Great Vehicle’s true path. This is why He began to teach the Lotus Sutra.

Thus have I heard. At one time, the Buddha dwelt on Vulture Peak, near the City of the House of Kings, together with the assembly of great bhiksus, 12,000 in all. All were Arhats. They had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions. Having attained benefits for themselves, they had severed all bonds of existence; their minds had attained a state of freedom.

In the Lotus Sutra, it begins with a description of the number of people who came to hear the Sutra. So, it starts with “Thus have I heard” and continues on to describe those who came, an assembly of 12,000 great bhiksus who all gathered at that place. Every one of them was an Arhat who had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions. These people had firmly resolved to engage in spiritual practice. They listened to the Buddha expound the Dharma, and every word entered their hearts. Not only did the Dharma enter their hearts, they practiced it and put it to use in their lives. Therefore, they had eliminated all Leaks, and they had no further afflictions. Because they had no afflictions, they dedicated themselves single-mindedly.

Indeed, afflictions are most bothersome. Worldly matters are fundamentally very simple. Humans are originally pure in heart. But once we [develop] afflictions, the world becomes complicated. Once this happens, pain and suffering begin to occur in the minds of individuals, then spread to families. The discord in families then spreads to other people and society as a whole. When people’s minds are unsettled and impure, they create man-made disasters. People may have interpersonal conflicts and disputes. Perhaps the desires in each person’s mind, the greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt, start to swell and stir in this world. Thus, afflictions become thousand-foot high waves creating layers upon layers of disasters.

Of greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt, the word “ignorance” is in the middle. Ignorance also means “without clarity.” Ignorance is not clearly understanding principles. To be ignorant is to be totally hazy and confused. So, ignorance causes the mind to be totally confused, so we cannot discern matters or principles, nor understand them. Then naturally we are misled by the many things in this world and become hazy and confused. This begins with desire. Greed is extreme and insatiable.

There is a common saying, “When you obtain one [thing] you still [complain] about the other nine” you do not yet have.” That kind of pursuit is nonstop, starting small and growing increasingly bigger. This greed is exhausting and causes unspeakable suffering in our daily living. Even worse, we may lose what we have gained. Afflictions arise from this sense of gain and loss. What comes after losing? Anger. If we do not obtain what we seek, we get angry. If we obtain something and then lose it, we will also get angry. Greed and anger both arise from ignorance.

Therefore, “those who are ignorant create karma and open the doors to all Leaks.” When an ignorant thought arises, those who are foolish and ignorant start creating karma. The door to our minds then starts to open slowly. This “open” is not the same as the one in “open, reveal, realize and enter.” This means that the door to the treasures stored [within our] minds is opened.

We ordinary people each have what are called the Eight Consciousnesses. The first six are the eye-, ear-, nose-, tongue-, body- and mind-consciousness. These are the first six consciousnesses. The mind, the mind-consciousness, follows the first five [and can be] confused by what the eyes see, afflicted by what the ears hear, etc. This all begins with the mind-consciousness. This consciousness is only fleeting, however. It is followed by one that is more poisonous, which is the seventh consciousness. After the mind finishes perceiving and discerning our present conditions, the seventh consciousness begins to endlessly scheme and plan. “How do I get what I want? What tricks should I use? What methods should I adopt?” The seventh consciousness is the initiator.

The Six Consciousnesses face outward and give rise to fleeting thoughts. Without the seventh consciousness’ contriving, our thoughts would actually pass through quickly, without necessarily creating much karma. But since the Six Consciousnesses are open, the seventh consciousness cannot help itself and starts planning. The source of this karma is the combining of the seventh consciousness with the sixth and the prior Five Consciousnesses. [This] creates a great deal of karma.

Once there is a lot negative karma, it turns into seeds, which we call “causes.” We create causes, which are seeds, and these seeds are then stored. Where are they stored? In the eighth consciousness. All the seeds of karma are stored in the eighth consciousness. This is all negative karma. The first seven keep creating them and the eighth consciousness stores them. So, negative causes are stored there.

What if they are good, positive causes? These are rare. With them we can meet wise people and can listen to the Buddha’s teachings. We hear with our ears and see with our eyes; the Dharma comes through the Six Roots, the same way [as negative karma]. But the seventh consciousness is very stubborn. In the past, it was planning things that are not good. It was only concerned with how to get things and how not to lose things. This originates from negative thoughts. Because we could not guard the door to the Six Roots, after the Dharma enters, doubts and suspicions arise. Isn’t that the case? When we see something we are interested in, and we do not fight for it or seize it, we may lose it. We do not believe in [the notion of] “not taking ill-gotten gains.” If that is not [our principle], we will constantly think only about our interests.

After hearing the Buddha’s teachings, we know that we should give [others] this Dharma. If the Dharma does indeed enter our minds, then naturally the seventh consciousness will plan ways to help transform other people’s minds. This is gives us the good intention to influence others people’s minds. We then give tangible material goods to others or intangible Dharma. If we only focus on our own interests, we only use these methods to transform our own ignorance. If our understanding of Dharma is insufficient, that means our faith is insufficient. If our faith is lacking, that means we have doubts. The existence of doubts arises from ignorance, from just one ignorant thought.

Indeed, we were originally pure in heart. If we take in the virtuous Dharma and store it in our eighth consciousness, we can come and go freely. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? This is all a matter of our “thinking.” As I have explained before, the mind is what thinks. It takes in all the external phenomena and makes discernments. Blue, red, white or black [are all appearances]. In Chinese characters, “mind” is placed under “appearance” to construct the character for “thinking.” Our Six Consciousnesses [take in] external forms, and the seventh “thinks” [about them]. This character is made of “mind” and “field.” If we are not diligent, if we are lazy, then the field of the mind will be overgrown with weeds and become barren. Similarly, because of ignorance, we cannot properly tend to the field in our minds and many unwholesome things fall into it. In other words, even if the Buddha-Dharma enters our minds, if we do not store it in the eighth consciousness, then it [will] leak away, and

the field of our mind will not be well-cultivated. That is why I tell everyone to quietly contemplate. The mind should remain very still, so we can cultivate that field. If the state of the mind is pure, then we can cultivate its field. We are ignorant if we do not properly tend to the field of our minds. We do not accept virtuous Dharma into our hearts, [and instead,] we perform many negative deeds. We take nothing with us when we die except karma.

Everyone, this is how our karma causes Leaks. We have many Leaks, which are [our] many afflictions. The pure water leaks away and the filth gets stuck. So, “Leaks cause us to fall into cyclic existence.” Thus we transmigrate in the Six Realms. If this happens, our afflictions will be endless, and our habitual tendencies will accumulate. So, we forget; “We forget the Dharma-body [and] lose wisdom-life.”

Everyone’s Dharma-body is equal to the Buddha’s. This pure and undefiled perfect mirror has become hazy, so wisdom-life cannot function. We have forgotten that our intrinsic nature is the same as the Buddha’s, so our wisdom-life cannot function properly. So, “we forget the Dharma-body, lose wisdom-life, lose great treasures.” This also “harms and disturbs practitioners.” It is as if our treasure has been stolen by a thief of our own making, and thus, we “lose [our] great treasures.” [These] real treasures, which are in our minds, are completely gone. This “harms and disturbs practitioners.” Since we want to engage in spiritual practice, it is with these ignorant thoughts that we harm ourselves. This is all the doing of our own minds. When we want to practice, no one else is hindering us; we are hindering ourselves. We “harm and disturb” [ourselves] as we reap [what we have sown].

“With each passing day, we draw closer to death.” We need to diligently cultivate our minds because all afflictions and delusions originate from one ignorant thought. “This is caused when ignorance leaks through and these afflictions manifest.” Every day our afflictions keep manifesting. We need to truly learn the Dharma. As I often tell all of you, the Buddha-Dharma must enter our minds. If it has entered our minds, then we must have Dharma in our actions. However, we do not. [Our] afflictions always manifest in our daily living and

“cause the mind to drift without end.” [Thus], our minds cannot settle down, so they continue to drift away. If our minds are like stones, water will not be absorbed and will leak away altogether. This is really quite a pity. This is what “Leaks” are. Leaks are the same as delusions. Delusions are ignorant thoughts. Therefore, ignorance is like a leak. Take a leak in a house for example. If a house is damaged, if the inside the house is not well-maintained, then the damage will allow water to leak in. Imagine, wouldn’t things inside become dampened, soiled, and rotten? These are all called afflictions.

Arhats have eliminated all Leaks and have no further afflictions. Arhats no longer have afflictions because “both causes and effects are eliminated.” They are very clear about causes and effects. Without creating any causes, naturally there will not be any effects. Therefore, we need to be very mindful. Not clinging to negative causes and conditions [means] negative effects will not manifest. So, we need to take good care of our minds at every moment.

Ignorant people create karma, open the door to all Leaks and fall into cyclic existence. They forget the Dharma-body, lose wisdom-life and lose great treasures, This harms and disturbs practitioners. This is all caused by ignorance leaking through. These afflictions manifest and cause the mind to drift without end.

All afflictions arise from our minds. When the appearances of external conditions converge with our minds, our thoughts often stir. So, we should let the Dharma penetrate our minds and cultivate [the field of our minds] diligently. Let us plant the seeds of our Jing Si [Dharma-lineage] and cultivate them in our own minds. So, we must always be mindful.

Episode 36 – Discipline Your Mind to Eliminate Ignorance

>> Use the mind to encompass and cultivate virtues. Diligently discipline and stabilize thoughts. Delusions in views and thinking create afflictions. Destroy thieves and end evil, frighten the army of demons and completely wash away afflictions of desire and ignorance. Precepts protect the mind, give rise to clarity, Samadhi and wisdom.

>> “The assembly of great bhiksus, 12,000 in all, were all Arhats, who had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions.”

>> All were Arhats, who have already achieved the state of not producing afflictions and not experiencing future incarnations. Not to be reborn is the effect of frightening demons.

>> “All Leaks have been eliminated” is praising the virtues of those who have destroyed thieves, etc. All Leaks are the Leaks of Desire, of Existence, of Ignorance.

In this peaceful environment, let us all contemplate how we are all disciples of the Three Treasures. Our minds take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. So, at all times, we must practice self-vigilance and self-reflection. We often talk about spiritual practice. What is the good of engaging in “practice”? It is all about our mind. As the Buddha told us, “All things are created by the mind.” One thought can create the seed for Buddhahood or the seed for transmigration within the Six Realms. It is rare to attain human form and even rarer to hear the Buddha-Dharma. We should follow and practice the teachings. In accordance with the Buddha’s teachings, we engage in spiritual practice. We must allow the Dharma to enter our minds and focus on eliminating our habitual tendencies.

Where do habitual tendencies exist? [They are] also in our minds. If these tendencies are not eliminated, how can we follow the Buddha’s footsteps and walk onto the path of enlightenment? So, our spiritual practice must focus on our habitual tendencies. Cultivating virtues is a way to realize our radiant virtues. We must find a way to understand and comprehend these principles. Ultimately, these principles will help us find the original nature of our minds. The original nature of our minds is virtuous. Radiant virtue is our intrinsic nature. That pure and undefiled nature

is indeed equal to the Buddha’s. [So], why don’t we just talk about nature? Why talk about virtue? “The virtuous attain.” Without practice there is no attainment, so we need to cultivate virtues to correct erroneous behavior and return to the right spiritual practices. So, virtue is something we attain, what we cultivate and gain. Some say, “habitual tendencies are hard to change.” Habitual tendencies seep into us. Once they are absorbed, they become habits. We typically call them habitual tendencies. If we can be influenced by

bad habitual tendencies, why can’t we change and be influenced by good habits? Since we are disciples of the Three Treasures, we must absorb the Buddha’s awakened nature and earnestly practice and uphold the Buddha-Dharma. We must be aware of the Three Treasures of our self-nature at all times. This is not simply three tangible treasures; we must strengthen the Three Treasures of our self-nature. Cultivating virtues begins with our moral character. People see us and think, “They have character.”

That means we have been influenced by our practice. We are absorbing the ways of the Three Treasures. “Diligently discipline and stabilize thoughts.” Our minds are often out of balance. Sometimes we see people’s mental states constantly rise and fall. They may be deeply moved [by a situation], but that is temporary. Once they leave that environment, they return to their original habitual tendencies and become imbalanced once again. They may be short-tempered, arrogant and egotistic. They may not get along with others, may not accommodate them, may not be understanding. If we are such a person, who can help us? No one else can ever help us.

We all practice the Buddha’s way of enlightenment. We all listen to the Buddha’s teachings. We all have the Three Treasures of self-nature. If we refuse to govern our habitual tendencies, if we do not practice and if we refuse to be more diligent, can we call ourselves Buddhist practitioners? We cannot. That would just be using the name “Buddhism” to describe what we are doing. That would be only learning Buddhism in name, not learning it with our self-nature. So, we must trust the Three Treasures of our self-nature. We need to strengthen the Three Treasures of our self-nature. To deal with past habitual tendencies, we must have self-discipline and cultivate virtues.

We must be diligent, be self-reflective and be aware of our self-nature at all times. Then our original habitual tendencies will manifest less often. We must not give others reason to say that our minds are imbalanced. After learning the Buddha’s teachings, our minds must be truly balanced. What do we use to stay balanced? Compassion and wisdom. Both need to be practiced in this world so we must treat others with kindness and compassion and let wisdom enter our hearts. So compassion and wisdom are practiced in parallel. This is how we discipline ourselves and treat

the source of our afflictions. We need to know that afflictions start from delusions in views and thinking. “A deluded thought gives rise to Three Subtleties. External states lead to the Six Coarse Marks.” If these Six Coarse Marks are gathered, [we see] that they are all delusions in views and thinking. The source of afflictions is delusions in views and thinking. So, we must be a thief-destroyer. This requires us to enter the state of Arhats and destroy thieves. We often receive the Buddha’s teachings. Once we have heard them, we must take them to heart. The eighth consciousness is a storehouse. We learn the Dharma by listening with our ears, seeing with our eyes and having physical contact. Then we need to absorb it into our hearts, into our Storehouse Consciousness. But we if we have afflictions, they are like thieves. These thieves will break into our storehouse and carry away our treasures.

The Three Treasures bestow upon us an unlimited storage of wisdom. But if there are afflictions in our storehouse, then they are [like] thieves. So, we must destroy these thieves. Spiritual practice is the work of a great person. We need perseverance; we need courage. If we do not strengthen our courage, we will never eliminate all our afflictions. So, we use the analogy that we must have the courage to destroy thieves and end evil. We must destroy all kinds of evils thoughts. This requires perseverance. A great person must have an upright heart, upright thoughts, conduct, etc. Then we will naturally scare demons. We can then destroy the entire demon army of afflictions and evil. This is also how we discipline our minds.

So, we must “completely wash away the afflictions of desire and ignorance.” Desire is greed. If we have no desires, all afflictions can be eliminated. There are many desires in life, so we must carefully guard the door to our minds. We must stop evil thieves from invading our hearts. Then we can naturally “wash away the afflictions of desire and ignorance” and destroy the thieves. Afflictions are Leaks. We must guard our minds carefully. If we can safeguard our minds with precepts, then naturally we will give rise to clarity, Samadhi and wisdom. If our minds are illuminated, they will be in Samadhi, and wisdom will arise.

Use the mind to encompass and cultivate virtues. Diligently discipline and stabilize thoughts. Delusions in views and thinking create afflictions. Destroy thieves and end evil, frighten the army of demons and completely wash away afflictions of desire and ignorance. Precepts protect the mind, give rise to clarity, Samadhi and wisdom.

Indeed, spiritual practice depends on the mind. So, when we join the Sangha, we must begin by heading towards pure and undefiled Arhatship. So at the beginning of the Lotus Sutra, it says that when the Buddha began teaching,

“The assembly of great bhiksus, 12,000 in all, were all Arhats, who had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions.”

So, the hearts of Arhats must be pure. As I said previously, they all had to completely eliminate afflictions in their hearts so they could eliminate all Leaks. These Arhats had already attained fruition. If afflictions and discursive thoughts still exist in our hearts, we cannot realize the Buddha’s teachings, [nor] can our hearts advance to a state of tranquility and clarity. So, an Arhat’s state of mind has already attained “tranquility and clarity.” This is an Arhat’s state of mind. If we can attain that state of mind, there will be no arising. This means no arising of afflictions and no complications from causes and conditions.

But life is beyond our control, we are caught up in this cyclic existence of the Six Realms and constantly force affinities. We are constantly forcing connections, so we cannot escape the Six Realms. If we attain the fruit of Arhatship, then there will be no arising and no more complications from causes and conditions. Then, we will owe no one enmity or affection. Without sowing evil seeds, there will be no evil fruits. So then we will “not to be reborn” and will “not experience future incarnations.” We will not transmigrate within the Six Realms. If we return, we choose to do so out of compassion. We will be very clear. “I formed aspirations and made great vows to return because of suffering sentient beings,” We are not drawn by karma, causes or conditions. Not at all. All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas return out of compassion to save sentient beings, not because they were led here by karma.

So, we practice to cultivate a pure mind. As Arhats do not give rise [to afflictions], they also do not experience future incarnations and are not reborn. This is the effect of scaring demons. As I have just mentioned, delusions of views and thinking are [like] armies of demons, as well as the source of our afflictions. If we cut off the source of our afflictions, they will no longer arise. Naturally, we will not be tempted or threatened by these demon armies.

Many people are very fearful and anxious. This is the influence of demon armies. They tempt us so we cannot control our minds. They cause us to break our precepts and to stop observing the rules we should uphold. So we must reach the Arhat’s state of mind, where there is no arising or ceasing, and so no worries of gains and losses will vex us. Naturally, demon armies will not haunt us.

All were Arhats, who have already achieved the state of not producing afflictions and not experiencing future incarnations. Not to be reborn is the effect of frightening demons.

So we must be very mindful, very careful. It is all about our minds. So, what [stage] do we need to attain? [A stage where] “all Leaks have been eliminated.” Those Arhats had already advanced to a state where “all Leaks have been eliminated.” At the Lotus Dharma-assembly, all monastic practitioners wanted to hear the Buddha expound the Dharma. Everyone’s state of mind and everyone’s stage of attainment had reached the state of Arhats, which is where all Leaks have been eliminated; this is a very advanced state.

So, “all Leaks have been eliminated” is used to praise these Arhats. They have already destroyed the thieves, eliminated all afflictions and purified everything. Thus, “all Leaks [had] been eliminated. Leaks” refers to something leaking out. After the Buddha-Dharma enters our hearts, we allow it to leak out. No one is tempting us; it happens because our habitual tendencies have not been eliminated. This is like [pouring] clean water into a bucket. If this bucket has a leak, the clean water will flow out because of the leak. What remains in the bucket are filthy things.

In summary, to learn the Buddha’s Way, we must learn how to purify our hearts. Some people often lament, “I do not know why the Dharma does not enter my heart. I have been listening [to these teachings] but when I need to apply them there is nothing left to use.” This is a Leak. Everything has leaked out. The Dharma did not truly enter their hearts. They heard it but did not retain it. Everyone, I often say that we must remember not to allow Dharma to leak out after it has entered our hearts.

“All Leaks have been eliminated” is praising the virtues of those who have destroyed thieves, etc. All Leaks are the Leaks of Desire, of Existence, of Ignorance.

We should always maintain a Buddha-mind. We are disciples of the Three Treasures. The Buddha left us over 2000 years ago. Luckily, the Buddha-Dharma is still in the world. It is even more fortunate that we have already accepted the Buddha-Dharma, [and] we can apply it to purify our hearts and return to our Buddha-nature. We must quickly make aspirations and vows to eliminate our habitual tendencies. We must go among people with love. With a balanced heart, we exercise both compassion and wisdom. Our hearts must be pure. Our behavior must be proper. This is called cultivating virtues. This is self-discipline. We need to accept the Three Treasures of self-nature into our hearts. We must be always vigilant and eliminate the afflictions in our unenlightened hearts. Then, the Buddha-mind can become our mind so we can follow the Bodhisattva-path among people. Thus, we exercise compassion and wisdom; we cultivate blessings and wisdom among others.

Everyone, learning the Buddha’s Way is the work of a great person. We must have perseverance to destroy thieves and end evil. We must eliminate the demon armies and frighten demons. We must have the right heart, thoughts, conduct, etc. The Eightfold Path and Seven Factors of Bodhi must be applied in our daily living. So, everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 35 – Destroy Delusions with Precepts, Samadhi, Wisdom

>> When Hearers receive these teachings, the teachings penetrate deep into their hearts. They follow these teachings and develop the power of wisdom to destroy thieves, which are afflictions. By distancing themselves from ignorance, they eliminate their own cyclic existence.
>> Once the fruit of spiritual practice is realized, the delusions of views and thinking are eliminated. Once thieves are destroyed, wisdom-life is stabilized. Destroying thieves is destroying fruits of evil. When one begins to make great aspirations, the king of demons becomes scared.

Let the Dharma you hear deeply enter your hearts. When we begin our spiritual practice, we start in a state of ignorance. So, once we aspire to enter the Buddha’s path, how can we make progress with each step? We use our ear-root to hear the Dharma, for only by understanding it can we advance. Only through sound can we receive the Dharma. We can say that Hearers receive the teachings, or that teachings are received by those who hear.

The Dharma is heard through our ears. After our ears hear the Dharma, do we clearly understand what we heard? When we listen to another speak but are not sure what the person is saying, [we may say,] “It seems very meaningful, but I still do not quite understand. Can you please repeat it?” After the speaker says it again, we reply, “I hear it. I understand now, but is this what you really mean? I will repeat it, tell me if I am correct.” Then, the speaker hears us and confirms, “Correct, you understood what I said.” We verify that we understand what we heard by repeating it once more and asking the speaker to confirm that we heard correctly. Thus, [it can] deeply penetrate our hearts.

After we hear and comprehend the teachings, they enter our hearts, so we must practice the teachings accordingly. Then our minds can exercise the power of wisdom. From where does the power of our wisdom arise? After we understand a [teaching], we practice it accordingly. Thus, the Dharma enters our hearts, and when we practice it, others can see that it is the Way. The Way [appears] by following the teachings. When we follow and practice the teachings, we are exercising the power of our wisdom. Then, the strength that we gain by absorbing the teachings will not be lost. “Then, there is the correct path.” The path we are walking on is the correct path, and we can prove to everyone that this is how to walk this road and how to cultivate this path. “Follow the teachings to develop power of wisdom.” Then we can “destroy thieves, which are afflictions.”

When Hearers receive these teachings, the teachings penetrate deep into their hearts. They follow these teachings and develop the power of wisdom to destroy thieves, which are afflictions. By distancing themselves from ignorance, they eliminate their own cyclic existence.

I have also said before that the bhiksu is the seed, and the Arhat, the fruit. So, when bhiksus embark on the Buddha’s path, they have to follow the teachings. Which teachings must they follow? They must end evil, scare demons and be almsmen. They have to continuously correct themselves and eliminate past afflictions. That is ending evil. We scare demons by correcting our own thinking. We have to accept [our duty] to seek the Buddha’s Way and transform sentient beings. This is how we beg for the Dharma. Being a bhiksu is the seed of becoming an Arhat, and being an Arhat is the fruit of being a bhiksu. They have already attained this result. Through making an aspiration and engaging in spiritual practice

they have already attained the fruit of Arhatship. At first, one also has to destroy the thieves, which are afflictions. The subtlest thieves one must destroy are the 98 Tempters. These are the “thieves” we must destroy. When the afflictions of the 98 Tempters are all eliminated, there will be no rebirth. After we escape the demon king’s Three Realms, there will be no arising or ceasing. Then it is possible to be worthy of offerings,

to be respected by others and to receive offerings of wealth. Before, I have talked about being a monastic, an almsman and worthy of offerings. Almsmen discipline their minds internally and externally create connections; eventually they become worthy of offerings and will guide others. As we take refuge in the Three Treasures, we say, “I take refuge in the Sangha, May I and all living beings lead the great assembly, without obstruction.” Blessed-field Sangha are worthy of heavenly and earthly offerings.

We have talked about offerings. We must guide lay practitioners; they have the duty of making offerings. This means they must vow to render offerings. There are three types of offerings. One is the offering of wealth. However, the Buddha said that these offerings of wealth are illusory. If the heart has not received the Dharma, these material offerings are useless. Indeed, how can the impoverished make offerings? In the past, the Buddha praised a poor woman. Do you remember the story of the poor woman?

The offerings of kings, ministers and rich men were not particularly praised by the Buddha. But numerous stories were told of the Buddha receiving offerings from the poor; the poorer those making offerings, the higher the praise they received. What can the impoverished offer? They offer their hearts, their joy and respectful practice. When they hear the Dharma, joy arises within, so they willingly obey and practice the teachings. This is called the offering of reverence. It is not necessary to make offerings of wealth. When one acts according to the Buddha’s teachings, these are offerings of reverence, of right conduct.

How do we guide the assembly and others in reverence and [right] conduct? Of course, we must ourselves be virtuous. We must end evil in ourselves, in our own conduct, our karma of speech and body. If we do not make an effort to carefully monitor our voice and expressions, then we are no different from ordinary people. Then is our practice worthy of offerings? So, the first stage is to end evil.

After ending evil, we can destroy thieves. If we can harmonize our bodies, speech and minds, we will respect and love one another, and achieve the six points of reverent harmony in a monastery. I have often spoken to everyone about these [kinds of] appearances. If we want to know how our organization is doing, we only have to observe our interactions, our movements, voices, expressions and daily behavior. Do we really get along? Are we consistent in interpersonal interactions? These are all signs of the degree to which we have ended evil and destroyed thieves.

The ending of evil is more evident, for it shows in our voices and expressions. But when destroying thieves, we do so in our thinking. From the deepest parts of our minds, from our habitual tendencies, afflictions often arise. We often lose our tempers and give rise to unwholesome thoughts. Even though unwholesome thoughts may not be evident in our actions, they are hidden in the 98 Tempters. They have not yet been eliminated. So, we must destroy thieves. To destroy is to completely drive away and prevent from arising again. Then afflictions and unwholesome thoughts will not have a chance to rise again in our minds. Thus, we are called thief-destroyers.

If we can destroy thieves, we can avoid rebirth. When our minds are not covered with afflictions, When our minds are not covered with afflictions unwholesome thoughts will not abide in our hearts to prevent us from becoming pure and tranquil. So, we must end evil [and] destroy thieves. Ending evil is the seed of spiritual practice. If this seed did not exist from the start, then attaining the fruit of Arhatship, the stage of attainment, would be impossible to achieve. So, the Arhat is the fruition of the bhiksu; ending evil is the cause of destroying thieves, destroying thieves is the effect of ending evil. The result is that all the evil thoughts in our minds are eliminated.

We must know the virtues of wisdom and of ending to reach the stage of Arhatship. When we can comprehend everything, this is called the virtue of wisdom. When we can eliminate all afflictions this is called the virtue of ending. This must be something we hear through sounds. We must accept the Dharma, allow it to deeply penetrate our will to practice. We must rely on the teachings and power of wisdom to destroy these thief-like afflictions, for only then can we greatly distance ourselves from ignorance. Then we can eliminate our cycle of birth and death so we no longer transmigrate in the Six Realms. And if we do transmigrate, it is out of our resolve to return out of compassion; this is the vow of all Bodhisattvas.

The Earth Treasury Bodhisattva’s vow is to not attain Buddhahood until Hell is empty. That is also a Bodhisattva’s great resolve. So now, we understand that once we realize the fruit of practice, we can receive offerings. We must all remember that [we should] be worthy of offerings; being a monastic does not mean one receives offerings as a given. What I keep telling you is that when we receive offerings, we ourselves must be virtuous.

Thus, we must also be aware that we are continually receiving offerings. Jing Si disciples are disciples of the Three Treasures of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. Tzu Chi commissioners and Faith Corps members practice the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism by dedicating their bodies and minds. They do not make offerings of wealth to us, but they make offerings of reverence and right conduct. Do we give them teachings for their reverence and conduct? Because we offer them teachings, they then [know] how to show respect and how to conduct themselves. When the Dharma enters their hearts, they then know how to interact with people.

The Buddha came to this world for one great cause, to open and reveal [so we can] realize and enter. To open and reveal means He came to give teachings and to share what He realized with all sentient beings. He wants to widely spread His teachings to save the wisdom-life of sentient beings. The Buddha said that this world goes through the four states of formation, existence, decay and disappearance. And as for us humans? [We go through] birth, aging, illness and death. The length of our lives depends on our past, how many connections we have made, how many good deeds we have done and how many evil deeds we have done. This all depends on our past [karma]. So, we humans do not know the length of our lives, but we know we are not free from the karmic law of cause and effect.

So, where do karmic retributions originate? [They originate] in our minds, as our thoughts arise, abide, change and cease. Our minds were [once] very sincere and gave rise to a will to practice, but demonic conditions appeared. Once afflictions arose, our will to practice became confused and caused us to go astray. This is what we call the workings of the mind. [Thoughts] arise, abide, change and cease, so at all times we must be mindful and take good care of our minds.

Therefore, we need to have precepts, Samadhi and wisdom to first end evil, then scare demons and to give rise to the virtues of wisdom and of ending. Then we can lead others. If we want to lead them, they have to respect us. So, [we must first consider whether] we love and respect ourselves. Our character is that of a spiritual practitioner, [so] we must be role models for other people. So first, we must examine ourselves, reflect on ourselves and ponder our virtues and actions. We must carefully consider how virtuous we are so we can consider if we are worthy of offerings.

Right now, the offering we speak of is our hope that people will love and revere each other. If we can first respect others, that is an offering of reverence. We make mutual offerings and practice together. “How can I use reverence and conduct to help you? You are working so hard, I want to join in to lighten your load. By offering a bit of my strength, this reduces the effort you have to give.” We use our actions to make

offerings of right conduct. We must respect each other. This is gratitude, respect and love. First, we must focus on doing this with those around us. Precepts help organize us. By showing mutual respect and reverence, we are making an offering to each other. To be respected and receive offerings, we must first respect ourselves and others. Then it will be mutual.

To be worthy of offerings is the effect of being an almsman. We begin by cultivating the Three Studies, which are precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. We must all remember to start by cultivating precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. We start by ending evil so we can scare demons. By destroying thieves, we may avoid rebirth. This requires precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. So, only when we [can apply them can we] eliminate delusions in views and thinking. In this way, we can eliminate afflictions and ignorance. Thus, we can stabilize our wisdom-life. Otherwise, can our wisdom-life grow and be very stable? So, after we destroy thieves, our wisdom-life can be safe.

Destroying thieves is destroying fruits of evil. We need to completely eliminate fruits of evil to truly destroy thieves. We start with great aspirations, and once we do so, we must not waver. Otherwise, once we make great aspirations, the king of demons will start to stir. Therefore, we must solidify our resolve, so we will not be vanquished by the king of demons.

Once the fruit of spiritual practice is realized, the delusions of views and thinking are eliminated. Once thieves are destroyed, wisdom-life is stabilized. Destroying thieves is destroying fruits of evil. When one begins to make great aspirations, the king of demons becomes scared.

We practice to vanquish the king of demons, so we will not be entangled by demons and afflictions. Everyone, what I say should be very clear. So, because we live together, we must be respectful of one another. This is my greatest hope for everyone. Even though every day, I open and reveal teachings, each of you must realize and enter. To open and reveal are the duties of a teacher. But, to realize and enter depends on us, on whether we have accepted [teachings], whether we have applied them to our practice, and whether our heart has entered the path or not. This is up to us. So, everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 34 – Realization of the Lotus Sutra Leads to Pure Bodhi

>> “Completely eliminate all afflictions, all Leaks. Then the mind will be bright and pure and you will attain a great field of blessings for the heaven and human realms. This enables the mind to encounter the Way, so your thoughts will be pure and clear.”

>> “Thus have I heard. At one time, the Buddha dwelt on Vulture Peak, together with the assembly of great bhiksus, 12,000 in all.”

>> Confirming authenticity–. All the wondrous Dharma compiled here was heard at the same time by people of great virtue. This proves that this wondrous Dharma is true and trustworthy.

>> “All were Arhats who had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions. Having attained benefits for themselves, they severed all bonds of existence. Their minds have attained a state of freedom.”

>> First is one who destroy thieves. Second is one who is not to be reborn. Third is one who is worthy of offerings.

>> Not to be reborn means after the defilements of views and thinking are shed, one is no longer entangled by life, death or karmic retribution.

>> One who is worthy of offerings has attained both virtue of wisdom and virtue of ending afflictions and deserves to be called a field of blessings for the heaven and human realms.es here]

“Completely eliminate all afflictions, all Leaks.
Then the mind will be bright and pure and
you will attain a great field of blessings
for the heaven and human realms.
This enables the mind to encounter the Way,
so your thoughts will be pure and clear.”

This is also saying that, as we have mentioned, a great bhiksu is an evil-ender, demon-scarer and almsman. An evil-ender eliminates all unwholesome habits. A demon-scarer overcomes the state of demons. An almsman adjusts his mind and makes connections with sentient beings. [To be great bhiksus], we must end all afflictions. When afflictions and ignorance are eliminated, our minds will be in a state of clarity and purity. When the mind can be bright and pure, it is worthy to be called a field of blessings for the human and heaven realms.

When we learn and practice Buddhism, we are cultivating this great field of blessings. We often talk about the blessed-field Sangha. Monastic practice is the work of a great person. Monastic practitioners eliminate afflictions by working hard at cultivating the field of the mind. If the field of the mind is cultivated well, once seeds are sown, from each one can spring an infinite number. Infinity arises from one. Good Dharma and the Buddha’s teachings are all found when one pure thought gives rise to infinite teachings that can transform sentient beings. Therefore, this is the field of blessings for the heaven and human realms.

Next, “This enables the mind to encounter the Way.” Our minds need to encounter the Way. As we learn Buddhism, aren’t we supposed to walk the Buddha’s Way? If the way we walk takes us far away from this path, then our minds cannot be pure and we cannot encounter the Way. The mind cannot encounter the Way because it is covered by afflictions. Then, “this enables the mind to encounter the Way, so the thoughts will be pure and clear.” Then naturally our thoughts will be very pure. We Buddhist practitioners must attain this state.

Earlier we said,

“Thus have I heard. At one time, the Buddha dwelt on Vulture Peak, together with the assembly of great bhiksus, 12,000 in all.”

“Thus” confirms authenticity. Next, “have I heard” means that it was heard from the Buddha, at one time, at such-and-such place. It was heard by a group of great bhiksus who were very accomplished in spiritual practice. Their virtue was great, many and superior. How many people were there? 12,000 in all.

Everyone, in the Buddha’s latter years, at the Lotus Dharma-assembly, there were 12,000 people. These many people can verify the wondrous Dharma that the Buddha expounded at that time. This is how its authenticity was proved. [With such proof,] we can have trust; they verified the compiled wondrous Dharma.

“Confirming authenticity–. All the wondrous Dharma compiled here was heard at the same time by people of great virtue. This proves that this wondrous Dharma is true and trustworthy.”

This is why in the beginning we talked about 12,000 great bhiksus. This is very fundamental because the Buddha expounded the Lotus Sutra for eight years. At His side, from beginning to end, this many people heard His Dharma at that place 12,000 great bhiksus came at the same time, proving that this wondrous Dharma is the truth, and that we can trust it. There were so many people who stayed with the Buddha to listen to His teachings.

So, when Ananda compiled the sutras, [he said], “Everyone should trust these. At that time you were listening and I was listening. So many people were listening.” Therefore this is trustworthy; its authenticity has been proven. They can prove that this sutra is the wondrous Dharma the Buddha taught because 12,000 in all were assembled at that place.

Next is,

“All were Arhats who had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions. Having attained benefits for themselves, they severed all bonds of existence. Their minds have attained a state of freedom.”

This is the state of Arhats. They have realized the fruit of Arhatship. At what stage can one realize the fruit of Arhatship? When one has eliminated all Leaks, one has become an Arhat.

The meaning of Arhats is three-fold.

“First is one who destroy thieves. Second is one who is not to be reborn. Third is one who is worthy of offerings.”

To destroy thieves means to destroy the 98 Tempters, afflictions that act like thieves. To destroy the 98 Tempters is to destroy 98 kinds of afflictions.

This is very subtle. So I tell you every day that we should take good care of our minds. We must not let external afflictions pollute our minds. So, we need to always take good care of our minds. This is why I always say, “Be mindful!” If we are not mindful, afflictions will easily return. [To] destroy thieves [means] we must get rid of afflictions and defilements. When our minds can attain true purity, then the Dharma can be taken to heart. If our minds are not pure, when the Dharma enters, it will quickly be expelled by afflictions. So, we must eradicate afflictions from our minds, the Dharma can enter and abide in our hearts. So, we must all remember to destroy thieves with our thoughts.

There is a saying in Zen Buddhism, “See a demon, kill a demon; see a Buddha, kill a Buddha.” The first part means that, sometimes when our minds are very afflicted, we find many things displeasing. We call that “seeing demons.” When things make us very happy, when we find them pleasing, we call that “seeing Buddhas.” Whether something is pleasing or not, we must immediately eradicate it from our minds. This prevents our minds from being defiled by external conditions. We cannot have attachments. Without attachments, there will be no defilements. Then our minds can be pure. This is called thief-destroyer.

Next is “not to be reborn,” which is to shed defilements of views and thinking. When all delusions of views and thinking are eliminated, we will no longer be entangled by life, death or karmic retribution.

“Not to be reborn means after the defilements of views and thinking are shed, one is no longer entangled by life, death or karmic retribution.”

Because of ignorance, most of us are transmigrating in the Six Realms, in an endless cycle of birth and death with no way out. Therefore, we must train our minds so we can come and go freely. We learn about living and dying from Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas return to this Saha World to transform all living beings; they sail back on the ship of compassion. But we ordinary people are led by karmic forces [to face] karmic retributions. We cannot take anything with us, except for karma, as we come and go. Ordinary people cannot transcend karmic retributions because of entanglements of ignorance. So, we face retributions life after life and are entangled by them.

Do you remember this? Not long ago I mentioned that everyone innately possesses Tathagata-nature, the intrinsic nature of the Buddha. So, we must eliminate all afflictions. We must resolve not to be reborn and to have nothing arise or cease in our minds. Because we originally had a pure Buddha-nature, since we already possessed it, how could we let it disappear? So, intrinsically we have a pure Buddha-nature, but it has been defiled by ignorance. Therefore, we must allow this pure Buddha-nature to surface so we can come and go freely. Then we will no longer be entangled by afflictions.

Next is “worthy of offerings,” which means one has attained both the virtue of wisdom and virtue of ending afflictions. We must have both. Once both virtues are complete, one can be called a field of blessings for the heaven and human realms.

“One who is worthy of offerings has attained both virtue of wisdom and virtue of ending afflictions and deserves to be called a field of blessings for the heaven and human realms.“

Previously, we discussed evil-ender, demon-scarer and almsman. Actually, what we are discussing now, one who destroys thieves, is not to be reborn and is worthy of offerings mean the same thing. All of them mean we must eliminate afflictions and quell the demon armies, so that we can come and go freely. If we can do this, we will attain both virtues, which are the virtue of wisdom and the virtue of ending all afflictions.

Becoming a bhiksu is the seed, and then Arhatship is the fruit. Bhiksus made the aspiration to leave their homes; they shaved their heads and put on monastic robes. But have they cultivated virtues? Not yet. They already have the appearance of bhiksus. Pertaining to what was previously mentioned, have they already ended evil, have they already scared demons, have they already begged for alms? As an almsman, [in the Buddha’s era] bhiksus had to beg for alms. Were their minds trained? Not necessarily. To be an Arhat, one must be complete in all of this. [Becoming an Arhat] is the fruit. When one has attained virtue of wisdom and ending, when all is complete, one deserves to be called a field of blessings for the heaven and human realms.

Only when we are replete in virtues can we accept offerings from people. The offerings are of wealth, of reverence and of conduct. Previously, I talked to you about offerings. Offerings of wealth include material goods, clothing, food, housing and transportation. When lay practitioners make material offerings to monastics, it is called offerings of wealth. Offerings of reverence are to pay respect and prostrate to monastics. Offerings of conduct comes after [relate to the teachings]. They give us offerings of wealth and reverence, but do we give them the Dharma? If we give them the Dharma and they practice accordingly, that is their offering of conduct.

As I have mentioned, offerings of wealth are not necessary. “Reverence” is customary. But if we are not virtuous yet allow others to make offerings to us, that is meaningless. Are we worthy of reverence? As we practice, we should know that if we have no virtues yet we receive people’s offerings, that is very wrong. If we are lacking in virtue yet still tell people to respect us, that is also wrong. But we still hope for offerings of conduct.

Consider our organization, Tzu Chi. Commissioners and Faith Corps Bodhisattvas contribute both their efforts and money, even their wholehearted devotion. They change in mindset and behavior. They are different from before they encountered the Buddha-Dharma and Tzu Chi. After coming in contact [with Tzu Chi], they abide by [Tzu Chi’s] Ten Precepts. They need to go through an apprenticeship, internship, and then a certification. They gradually, continuously change their old habitual tendencies, even up until the present. Now with body and mind, they make offerings of harmony, reverence and conduct. As we can see, these are the offerings contributed by lay practitioners. This is very precious.

Consider those who make offerings of conduct with kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity. Typhoon Morakot was a major catastrophe in Taiwan. All Tzu Chi volunteers in Taiwan mobilized to help. They contributed not just their efforts and money, they provided long-term support because they could not bear to leave beings to suffer. Aren’t they Living Bodhisattvas? This did not just happen in Taiwan. Wherever there were Tzu Chi volunteers, even if they lived in very poor countries, they did their best to help others. Even if an office had only a few commissioners, they still went out and held donation boxes to conduct street fundraising. Everyone, this is the offering of conduct, to give without asking anything in return.

Both lay and monastic practitioners should pass down our Dharma-lineage and open up our Dharma-door. During this process, we need to “destroy thieves,” which is to eliminate afflictions. “Not to be reborn” means we are not confused because we have quelled the demon armies so no afflictions will enter our minds. Then we start to be “worthy of offerings,” and can accept what people offer with their efforts and their love. We need to have this kind of wisdom to lead. We need to have this kind of discernment so

that when we are doing something wrong, we will stop doing it right away. If we keep doing it, that is foolishness. When we proceed with what we must do, that is called wisdom. Thus, we can deserve being called the field of blessings of the heaven and human realms. As fields of blessings, we can give rise to the Dharma. Then that Dharma can become a seed. “One gives rise to infinity, infinity arises from one.” If we can do this, we can truly be one who “destroys thieves, is not to be reborn and is worthy of offerings.” Thus, to beg for alms is to benefit all beings. We are begging for teachings because we want to benefit sentient beings.

As for the two virtues, understanding the Ultimate Truth is the virtue of wisdom and to eliminate all afflictions is the virtue of ending eliminating all afflictions is virtue of ending. This is synonymous with Bodhi and Nirvana.

So, the virtue of wisdom and virtue of ending are Bodhi. Bodhi is enlightenment. Nirvana is without arising or ceasing. When our minds can reach the state of not arising or ceasing, we will be great Arhats.

Everyone, bhikshus and Arhats both started by eliminating all afflictions from their minds. We must nurture our will to practice and engage in spiritual cultivation. So everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 10 – Five Periods of Teachings Based on Capabilities

>> All Buddhas, the World Honored Ones, appeared in the world for one great cause. It is to help all sentient beings realize and enter the Buddha’s wisdom and views
>> Such wisdom and views are possessed by all sentient beings. But they are lost and unaware, and thus fall into cyclic existence.
>> The Buddha realized this cause and. He resolved to attain Buddhahood so to reveal all [teachings] to sentient beings.
>> He taught in five periods. Though He taught using the provisional and the true and manifested the slow and the quick methods, His intent with this was always solely this one great cause.

All Buddhas, the World Honored Ones,
appeared in the world
for one great cause.
It is to help all sentient beings realize
and enter the Buddha’s wisdom and views

and enter the Buddhas wisdom and views. This is the cause of the Buddha appearing in this world. Let us think about why the Buddha came to the human realm. From the sutras, we can learn that the Buddha has been enlightened since. Beginningless Time. Beginningless Time is the limitless past. He has been the Buddha since Beginningless Time, so why would He descend once again from Tusita Heaven into that earthly palace? This shows us that before becoming a Buddha, we each have to go through this spiritual training ground, which is the world of Bodhisattvas. Due to everything He saw and experienced in the human realm, including humans states of being, He decided to become a monastic, to study and to thoroughly understand the principles of the human realm to teach them to sentient beings. Did He need to study them? He had already attained Buddhahood. He already had a clear enlightened nature. This is another one of His manifested forms. If we want to become enlightened, we must go through this type of cleansing. After experiencing the delusions of the material world, we must then work hard and attain realizations. This passage teaches all of us that if we walk the same path as the Buddha, we can have the same spiritual state and also attain enlightenment. This is how the Buddha leads by example. He does not only use words to teach; rather, He teaches by example. So this is the great cause for which. He came to the human realm. How could He teach sentient beings? He must demonstrate that His life and their lives are no different, no matter the time period, no matter how people think, no matter how complex the mind. He must accommodate each time period so as to break through the contradictions of that era. So, this why He comes. That type of contradiction is actually passed from generation to generation in the human realm. During the time of the Buddha, people were divided into four castes. Do these no longer exist? Today we still have divisions in class and wealth. These are the unresolved afflictions that prevent the mind from being liberated. So the Buddha manifests Himself according to the sentient beings and afflictions of the time. His methods were to open, reveal, realize and enter. The doors to sentient beings hearts are closed and [their minds are] darkened, so clear, bright wisdom cannot penetrate them. In each of our minds, there is Buddha-nature. That is why He first opens; the Buddha wants to open the door to our minds so we can all recognize that we each have an intrinsic Buddha-nature. Then we can realize the principles of the world and enter the Buddhas spiritual state. So, the Buddha opens and reveals, and sentient beings realize and enter. This refers to all sentient beings. Every single one of us has Buddha-nature. We are deluded so we do not realize or know it. The Buddha wants to help people realize that all sentient beings possess the Buddhas wisdom and views, that everyone inherently has such wisdom and views, they just do not realize or know it.

Such wisdom and views are possessed by all sentient beings. But they are lost and unaware, and thus fall into cyclic existence.

Such wisdom and views are what the Buddha wants to open and reveal so we can realize and enter them, so we know that this is common to all sentient beings. Sentient beings does not only refer to humans. Any being that is alive, no matter its size, shape or form, as long as it is alive, it has Buddha-nature. All sentient beings have Buddha-nature. Dont I often say, All beings, no matter how small, have Buddha-nature, even ants, mosquitoes, bees. I have also said that in one life, the Buddha appeared in the form of a queen bee. Even in that form, He possessed Buddha-nature. Whether ant or insect, what being does not have it? So, as long as a creature has awareness, it knows, This is pain. I need to quickly flee for my life. There is a human disturbing me. This is bad for me. I need to run away! Look at an ant hill. Thousands of ants live inside it, but if you disturb it just a little, the ants disperse in all directions. They also know to run for their lives, just like people. As soon as there is unrest in a country, there will be a wave of refugees because they also want to flee immediately. Even the smallest animals are just like humans. They are living beings, just like us. So sentient beings, humans and other beings, are all living creatures, and all have a nature equal to that of the Buddha. However, sentient beings are born into different physical realms based on their karma and according to their circumstantial retribution. Humans are more blessed than other beings, Therefore we must uphold precepts and create blessings. Because we have slightly more blessed retributions than other living beings, we were reborn as humans. No matter how painful things are, as long as we are in the human realm we will have a chance to repent, a chance to repay the debts we owe, a chance to see the human realms good and evil. Those with limited capabilities and poor causes and conditions will be influenced and tempted by evil. If they practice doing small good deeds, and have a small amount of merits, a benefactor will naturally appear. So even after a lifetime of wrongdoings and evil, they may still meet a benefactor and experience blessed conditions. Naturally, no matter the circumstance, because of this karmic connection, they can be guided onto the right path.

At Tzu Chi, don’t we often hear of cases in which a person who has done a lot of evil in the past had to first experience a period of hardship to before eventually encountering the good causes and conditions that brought him here? These conditions allowed him to transform his heart and behavior, and guided him toward blessings and doing good deeds. So to attain enlightenment, we need to be in the human realm. In this world, there is good and evil, blessed and negative retributions. Negative retribution is pain and suffering; such suffering is unbearably painful and continues lifetime after lifetime. To be reborn as a human does not mean that we will necessarily have the chance to repent. Without the right conditions and opportunity, we will continue to do evil. Then according to circumstantial retribution, we may be reborn as other living beings. If a person has a tiny bit of goodness, he has a chance to be reborn as a human and may attain deliverance. Therefore, we sentient beings all have Buddha-nature, but we are deluded and do not know it. Because we are all lost, we do not know this. We have already heard the Dharma. We know and believe that everyone has Buddha-nature, including ourselves, including every person we encounter. We know that that everyone has Buddha-nature. But despite this knowledge, we still have not rid ourselves of habitual tendencies. Each of us know we have Buddha-nature, but we have not eliminated our habitual tendencies. When we listen to the teachings, we understand the principles. But, people are lost and unaware. Not only do they not have faith in others, they also slander them. So, because they do this, they fall into cyclic existence. Where does this transmigration take place? Is it only transmigration through human lives? Not necessarily. In this world, people must repay evil karma, evil affinities. To repay them in this world, they return to this world and have to suffer much pain and torment. They may even have to face other types of circumstantial retribution. Falling into cyclic existence is being immersed in the Six Realms, where the suffering is unbearable. This was the cause that led the Buddha to His realizations and His resolve to attain Buddhahood. He became enlightened among people by manifesting a form in this world. His Buddha-nature is intrinsic and has existed since Beginningless Time, but the Buddha manifested among people to show that.

The Buddha realized this cause and. He resolved to attain Buddhahood so to reveal all [teachings] to sentient beings.

The cause is that multitudes of sentient beings are deluded by suffering and remain unenlightened. So the Buddha continues to return to this world to teach us how to become awakened, and how to transform other sentient beings after we are awakened. It is said, He resolved to attain Buddhahood so to reveal all [teachings] to sentient beings. The Buddha manifests in this world to teach sentient beings with many kinds of methods. Because sentient beings have limited capabilities, the Buddha gave his teachings in five periods. During these five periods, He taught both the provisional and the true. The provisional refers to skillful means. The true refers to the ultimate truth, the true Dharma of Buddhas original intent. The Buddha expounds the same Dharma [to all], but sentient beings encounter the Dharma with varying capabilities. Thus, it is called the Five Periods of Teachings.

He taught in five periods. Though He taught using the provisional and the true and manifested the slow and the quick methods, His intent with this was always solely this one great cause.

There are Five Periods of teachings. When the Buddha began expounding the Dharma, He taught the true teachings, the Avatamsaka. The Avatamsaka teachings were expounded for only 21 days because they were only understood by Bodhisattvas with superior capabilities and wisdom. Heavenly beings, humans etc., did not understand. Therefore the Buddha spent 21 days to transform those with great capabilities and wisdom, the Bodhisattvas who already had clear and great capabilities and wisdom. But because He saw that sentient beings could not understand this, after 21 days, He began to expound the Agama teachings. He expounded the Agama teachings for 12 years. And after that, He expounded the Vaipulya for eight years. After, it was the Prajna teachings for 22 years following by the Lotus teachings. The Buddha spent 8 years on the Lotus Sutra. These are the Five Periods of Teachings. Indeed, we sentient beings are incapable of comprehending the Buddhas compassion and great effort to teach different kinds of teachings according to different capabilities. He did this out of compassion. In conclusion, though we are all human, the same Dharma expounded by the Buddha may be understood quickly by certain people. Not only do they resonate with the Buddhas heart and His original intentions, they can also put [His Dharma] into practice. This process happens quickly, very fast, showing their very high capability. After they believe in them, they can put the teachings into action. Some have average capabilities. They believe but their habitual tendencies are hard to eliminate. Consider disciples such as Sariputra; though he knew what the Buddha said was good, he was worried that sentient beings were too stubborn and obstinate so he did not dare approach them. He focused only on his own self-enlightenment. If a being of limited capability hears the Buddhas teaching and gives rise to doubts, he may wonder, Is that right or wrong? Not only does he have doubts in his heart, he has no trust or faith. When doubt exists, there is no faith. In addition, he will commit evil deeds. This is how one with low capability behaves. Sometimes he will fluctuate. He has already encountered the Buddha-Dharma, but he is still unstable and fluctuates between belief and doubt. Someone like this has dull, limited capabilities, The Buddha says that because sentient beings have great, average, and limited capabilities, the Buddha had to use Five Periods of Teachings. So it was very taxing to come to this world for the sake of this great cause. The Buddha expounds teachings for sentient beings to realize. But because they are lost, He has no choice but to use both skillful and true means, the Small and Great Vehicles, adapting to sentient beings varying capabilities, from great to average to limited. So, this was the Buddhas one great cause. Let us all hope that we all have great capabilities. We should at least strive to be average. Otherwise, if our capabilities are any more limited, we may fluctuate for a very long time. Do we really have time to wait in this life? The human realm is impermanent and fast-changing so let us not be people of limited capabilities. I hope we can be like Never-Slighting Bodhisattva, have wisdom and become awakened, protect our intrinsic nature and respect others. If we can do this, this process will be faster. Everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 9 – Dharma-nature is Everlasting and Endless

There is no end to time and space.
The Dharma-nature of all things
is inherent and lasting, and has always been so.
There is essentially no Dharma to speak of;
this is true emptiness and wondrous existence

This is true emptiness and wondrous existence. The universe is endless and boundless. When it comes to all things in the world, where there are objects, the Dharma exists. The number of things that exist equals the amount of Dharma, which is encompassed within them. So when we speak of Dharma, we can find the Dharma in everything and this has been true from Beginningless Time until now, so this is truly profound and truly understanding its source is impossible. In the Buddha-Dharma, we speak of. Beginningless Time because no starting point can be found. As for the future, there is no ending for the future, either. That is the vastness and boundlessness of it. So we need to know. There is no end to time and space the Dharma-nature of all things is inherent and lasting. The nature of all things has always existed and will last continuously. [This is true] even in our daily living, in the foods we cannot live without. It is this simple. Take a grain like rice, which came from the seedling, that turned to unmilled rice, to rice. Rice is what people eat. In fact, this grain of rice is derived from endless generations of rice; its Dharma-nature has been passed down month by month, year by year, and its life will continue, everlasting. This is the Dharma-nature of the grains. As long as there is still a seed, then one gives rise to infinite seeds and infinite seeds arise from one. That is its everlasting nature. The nature of all species is to extend continuously. So this has always been the case. As the Dharma is passed down, its intrinsic nature is inherent and lasting. The Dharma is beyond description. What more is there to say about the Dharma? Is there actually Dharma in a seed? Yes, there is. We all know this seed provides humankind [with food]. Without grains, can humankind survive? No, we cannot survive. The land provides humans with all things. To increase the number of things, how do we make the seed sprout? How do we help it bear fruit? There has to be causes and conditions for there to be fruit, enough to supply us all. This is all wondrous Dharma. So it is said, There is essentially no Dharma to speak of. In our daily living, everything encompasses profound Dharma-seeds. We do not treat them as the Dharma, we just use them in our living. So what is there to discuss? When we do not feel lacking, when we feel abundant, we are not aware of them because we have been using these things continuously. This is like a cycle. These constant cycles provide a constant supply and a source of constant wealth for men. So when we are rich in resources, we never pay attention and we never discuss them. So what Dharma is there to speak of? But we are Buddhist practitioners, we must exhaustively explore cause and effect, explore how these karmic retributions came about. We need to know the origin of all things, especially of humankind. Humans come to this world and all things support our living, so why do we suffer from afflictions? We create conflicts over all things, then conflicts create more causes, which then bring about more conditions. So causes bring effects, effects create causes. This is an endless cycle. This makes the world very complicated. Complications arise when sentient beings become deluded and create karma. Unenlightened thoughts give rise to karma. If we are unenlightened and become deluded, then we are ignorant. Because ignorance arises from those delusions, the principles are unclear and therefore we antagonize each other. Then what can be done? So over 2000 years ago, Prince Siddhartha was born in India. His birth and life were similar to ours, for the Dharma-nature of all things. He had parents, too. He was born in the palace. There were slaves in the palace, who were untouchables. Between the nobles and the untouchables, there was a distinction in status and wealth. That is the reason a thought occurred to the prince to seek the answer to why such differences exist between people in this world. He also wondered about inevitable sufferings, such as birth, aging, illness and death. Would worldly pleasures last forever? Even if an object could last forever, humans still experience birth, aging, illness and death, therefore everything is constantly changing. Moreover, material objects are also temporary and impermanent. Therefore, with all these contradictions, he wanted to explore and penetrate their intrinsic nature. Will all things last continuously or do they have a limited existence? Why do their visible forms change constantly? Consider a flower or a blade of grass. Has the flower always existed? Before it blossomed, it existed as a bud. Before it was a bud, it was only a seedling. But before the seedling existed, it was only a seed. This seed existed because a flower blossomed and then bore this seed. Did the seed come first or did the flower come first? How did this things inherent cycle come about? So we need to explore the inherent nature of all things in the world, the Dharma of all things and the cycle of the Dharma. The Dharma has its embodiment and its uses. When the Dharma-embodiment is put into use, it takes on a form. So from the beginning, Manifested Forms are impermanent; they will arise and cease. Anything with form will arise and cease. The source of the Dharma will not arise or cease. It is ultimately limitless and endless. This is called nature. Because there is a nature, there is an embodiment. Where there is an embodiment, there is a form. So when a form begins to exist, it will arise and cease. This is the form of arising and ceasing. Indeed, all the stages of arising and ceasing express their inherent Dharma-nature. Consider humans birth, aging, illness and death. How did we come to be born? We often say that we have an affinity with our parents. Once we created these conditions, there was naturally this effect. When this karmic fruit ripened, our affinity with our parents led us to be born into this family. This is circumstantial retribution. Based on the causes and conditions of our parents, we were born into our family as retribution. This is circumstantial retribution. But we also experience direct retribution. Though we may have been born into a poor family, if we created blessings in the past, perhaps other karmic connections will guide us out of those conditions. In our lifetime we experience many changes, so nothing is definite. Even if we are born into a rich family, we may not remain wealthy forever. I remember many years ago, there was a pair of sisters from the Philippines. They were born to a very poor family. These two girls were conjoined. Because of their affinities, benefactors appeared in their lives. Those were Tzu Chi volunteers. This case was reported to Tzu Chi volunteers, so they went to meet the family. Then they brought the sisters to Taiwan. Tzu Chi has hospitals in Taiwan. Everything from the equipment in the hospital to our doctors was brought together by this karmic connection to help physically separate these sisters. Their livers were linked, but luckily they had two hearts. So we used a lot of manpower, attention, wisdom, materials, hospital facilities and devices; many causes and conditions converged so the twins could be surgically separated. We took care of them for a long time. After several months, these sisters started leading separate lives. After physical rehabilitation here, they could each walk on their own, eat their own meals, and play with their own toys. When they left the hospital, they were carried out separately back to the Philippines. Since this karmic connection was created, Tzu Chi volunteers moved them from the mountains to a city in the Philippines. They lived close to the Tzu Chi volunteers, who treated them like family. Volunteers helped their father find a job, and their mother eventually joined Tzu Chi. These two children grew up in the Tzu Chi environment. Who would have ever imagined this? There is no history of conjoined twins in the family. These causes and conditions changed their familys lives, affected their parents jobs, and changed the fate of these conjoined twins. This was truly inconceivable. So this kind of Dharma-nature is indeed everlasting. Now that these conjoined sisters have been separated, what will their lives be like in the future? Though causes and conditions brought them here, though they were born on the same day, will their futures be the same? It is unknown. What is unknown? What scripts they wrote in their past lives. I often say that though they were born conjoined, they will go their separate ways and may not share the same fate. Since we separated them physically, that meant they had the conditions to come here so we could help them. But as for their future, that depends on their past, the karma they created respectively. So there is circumstantial retribution, which they shared. They will face direct retribution. This is known as karmic retribution and this is the Dharma. This kind of intangible Dharma is therefore everlasting. You and I created a karmic connection in the past, so now we live together every day. Our common course is. Jing Si, a path of diligent practice. Every morning we meditate and clear our minds. In this place, we all nurture a wondrous lotus in our heart, a wondrous lotus flower. In the evil world of the Five Turbidities, Tzu Chi is the Bodhisattva-path in the world. We need to join Tzu Chi and go into the world to walk the Bodhisattva-path. Because we have this past karmic connection, we can make the same vows and develop this aspiration. Without these karmic connections, today we would not have this opportunity here to purify each other, to interact with each other, and create infinite Dharma. If you were not here to hear the Dharma, why would I be teaching it today? So we mutually motivate each other. And after hearing this, we need to motivate ourselves. We need to listen, contemplate, and practice. Reflect on what I said today. What is the origin of this flower? Did the seed come first, or did the flower come first? Or did the bud come first? Perhaps we need to explore the blade of grass or the flower. When we work in the vegetables garden, we sow seeds. If a vegetable seed did not have soil and water, if it was isolated from these conditions, what can it produce? Nothing. It remains a seed. So the Dharma-nature is wondrous, it requires the convergence of many causes and conditions. This nature is continuous and everlasting. So essentially, there is no Dharma to speak of. We must be very clear on all Dharma and the concept of causes, conditions, effects and retributions, which are all part of Dharma-nature. We are all born with an intrinsic nature, one equal to the Buddhas. Why have we not attained Buddhahood after [the Buddha] explained so much? Because karmic retributions prevent our minds from eliminating afflictions. Our mind is not yet clear, so the lotus flower has not manifested. So everyone, there is essentially no Dharma to speak of and this is true emptiness and wondrous existence. True emptiness and wondrous existence are embedded in Dharma-nature. Before a certain cause and condition manifest, the Dharma-nature already exists. It was waiting for causes and conditions to ripen, then its Dharma-form will appear then its form will appear. Once this form begins to exist, its appearance will arise and cease, which is the continuous cycle of all things. Everyone, as we learn Buddhism, we see how profound the Dharma is. If we want to understand, we must always be mindful.