Author: Scott Ogata

Episode 8 – The Universe is Endless, the Dharma Ever-present

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>> The universe is endless. as long as heaven and earth have existed. All Dharma originated in the distant past. From Beginningless Time until now, the broad and profound source is incalculable.

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To get to the Dharma-essence, I have always wished to concisely expound the Lotus Sutra and capture it in the words, Jing Si is like the wondrous lotus, pure and clear and Tzu Chi is the Bodhisattva-path in the world. This is what I really hope to see. In the Buddha-Dharma, we see that the Buddha taught us to walk on the Bodhisattva-path. So, in our spiritual training ground every day, I hope all our minds can attain a state of purity and clarity like the lotus by practicing the teachings of the Jing Si Dharma-lineage. Moreover, we must make great aspirations and vows. Tzu Chi is the Bodhisattva-path in the world. This is internal and external practice. We hope to be able to combine the Dharma, our thoughts of spiritual cultivation and the practice of these teachings in working with others. We wish to manifest the spirit of the Lotus Sutra. Indeed,

The universe is endless. as long as heaven and earth have existed. All Dharma originated in the distant past. From Beginningless Time until now, the broad and profound source is incalculable.

This is what I want to share with you. Indeed the universe is big and endless. The Earth exists in that vast space. Consider a solar eclipse. The Earth spins along its orbit and when it is aligned with the Moon and the Sun in their orbits, from our angle, our line of sight, it looks like the Sun has disappeared. At the beginning, only a tiny part is missing. Then very gradually, that missing part grows bigger and bigger. When half of the Sun is missing, it seems the Moon is lighting up the sky. Then the event progresses quickly. Soon, the Sun becomes just a halo, a ring of light, and we do not see the Sun. I also saw a news report about. Greater Shanghai. Suddenly during the day, while the Sun lit up the sky, the Moon began covering up the Sun and it became dark as night in Greater Shanghai. There was an absence of sunlight. Look at the vast universe and its sights. Look at how it changes all the time. Every planet has its own orbit and is continuously spinning along. Each planet, at any point, whether it is revolving or rotating, stays in its same orbit. Here on Earth, when we look up from this perspective, if the Moon and Sun line up exactly, we see that the entire Sun is covered completely by the Moon. This is a total solar eclipse. What a marvelous sight in this universe! The vast and boundless universe shows us the aggregate of action that the Buddha spoke of. Imperceptible to us, the Earth is turning. It rotates and revolves. So does the Moon. It is constantly revolving and rotating. The Sun does this too. In this entire universe, galaxies also each have their own orbits, their own positions. They are immense. It was only a few decades ago that astronauts first landed on the Moon. When we looked up from Earth, we saw the Moon. But when the astronauts on the Moon looked up, they saw the Earth. So was the Earth or the Moon hanging in space? What do we see when we look up? This teaches us to view the world with a scientific perspective. Things are constantly changing. So this is the wonder of the universe. This wonder is part of wondrous existence in emptiness, true emptiness in wondrous existence. When the American astronauts went to that place and proved that the Moon is its own world, what they found there was a vast, endless stretch of dry land. They did not see water, or grass, trees etc. They did not discover any life forms. So up till now, that world is a place without living things, yet it is still constantly spinning. It truly has a wondrous existence. It is in the sky. When we humans look at the moon, it is a round object hanging in emptiness. In ancient times, if a child pointed at the [crescent] moon, an adult would say, Hurry up. Bow to it and pay respect, or the crescent will slice your ear. The Moon seemed auspicious and very mysterious, as if it, from high above the sky, was watching the good and evil of humankind, which was fascinating. Now when we study it scientifically, it is still an object, a world with its own land. But to peoples minds, in the past, it was a mysterious thing. But now we can perceive it with scientific instruments and take pictures of it. After the pictures are shot, the images are transmitted to people on Earth. Technology can display it right in front of us. Think about it, we can all look at the image and feel like we are right there. But in fact, it is still far away. It is still out of our reach. So to us, is it still empty? But when it is displayed in front of us, is that considered wondrous existence? This image of wondrous existence is actually empty. For example, I am now sitting here and looking at the screen ahead. If the screen is shut off, if the power source is cut off, there will be nothing in front of me. But I see something right now. I do! It is there. This is wondrous existence. Something that exists can quickly vanish, and there will be an empty screen. Once we use technology to display something in that empty space, something will exist again. Isnt this wondrous existence? Within wondrous existence is actually true emptiness. By applying modern technology, we can perceive true emptiness and wondrous existence everywhere. Only true emptiness can show that there are ever-changing, unstable things. Only ever-changing, unstable things can reveal that there is true emptiness, which is pure, without any defilement. The intrinsic nature of our mind is one of true emptiness and wondrous existence. Our wondrous existence, that enlightened nature equal to the Buddhas, has existed all this time. But we were defiled by ignorance, so, many things manifested. Because the Dharma is boundless, and because of wondrous existence, we possess all this ignorance. All these ignorant thoughts are actually a manifestation of wondrous existence. What is the essence of wondrous existence? It is our intrinsic nature, our original pure, undefiled nature that can illuminate all kinds of things in this world. Our mind is like a mirror that is not clean. I often tell everyone that there exists a mirror in our minds called the great perfect mirror wisdom. It is very big, very perfect so it can reflect many images. I often tell everyone, if you bring a mirror here and just look into it, it can reflect a great deal of our surroundings. The mirror is actually very small. But when we look into the mirror, we see that it can reflect mountains and oceans. Any and all sights in the world can be captured by this mirror. Consider a video camera. Its lens is very small. But this small lens can capture all of our surroundings. Isnt it wondrous? Truly wondrous! Our true nature, our mind, is just like this mirror. But if you put a fuzzy screen in front of the video camera lens, [the images] will be blurry. If you cover it with a piece of black cloth, everything will be blacked out. So I use physical objects as analogies for you. Take a look at that video camera. It performs lots of functions. But however functional it is, it cannot compare to the human mind. Our great perfect mirror wisdom can create all things. Because it perceives all things in the universe, this mirror can reflect the wisdom that is hidden deep within. But if we do not purify that wisdom, it will become knowledge, then our minds will know a lot and understand a lot. But once our minds know and understand a lot, we will begin to have desires and then greedy thoughts will arise. When true and clear wisdom has been deluded by external conditions, it acts as knowledge and intellect. Such knowledge and intellect will unleash that greed, that boundless greed. Our greedy thoughts will be as numerous as all the things in the world. Though our Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom, our mind, this mirror, can reflect all the things in the world, we need to guard it with precepts so that no external sights will be able to entice the wisdom of our minds and defile it. This is [the function] of precepts. Precepts can prevent wrongs and stop evil, and safeguard the purity of our minds. We all innately possess this great and perfect mirror. This wisdom is called great perfect mirror wisdom. I am talking about mirror-like wisdom, the existence of a great perfect mirror wisdom. Sadly, we ordinary people are blinded and covered by external conditions. Therefore, the universe is endless and the Dharma is also boundless. However vast the surroundings are, the Dharma will permeate throughout all of it. Didnt I say this a few days ago? The Great Enlightened One of the universe expresses to us that in the universe, above the heaven and earth, everything is part of our treasury of teachings. Every place is a treasury of sutras. With this phrase, I am also saying, The Dharma is boundless. Because every place is a treasury of sutras. Wherever something exists, the Dharma exists. So The Dharma is boundless and has lasted as long as heaven and earth have existed. All Dharma originated in the distant past. Did the Dharma come into existence 2000 years ago when Sakyamuni Buddha began expounding it? No. The Buddha continuously said, especially in the Lotus Sutra, in the Chapter on the Tathagata’s Lifespan, that there is no beginning to the Dharma, no specific time which is Beginningless Time. Therefore, from Beginningless Time until now the broad and profound source is incalculable, is beyond the existence of heaven and earth. The source of the Dharma is from the distant past, from Beginningless Time until now. The broad and profound source is incalculable, and cannot be measured. So in the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha could only compare it to His lifespan, which is incalculable. What we need to know is that. Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have existed in this world for a very long, unknown, period of time. In the Chapter on the Tathagata’s Lifespan, He has expressed that it is very long. So for us ordinary people to understand this Dharma, I need to talk about the present, about modern times. I used solar eclipse to let everyone understand that although our modern technology is very advanced, it is still inseparable from True emptiness and wondrous existence was originally taught by the Buddha. So the wisdom of the Buddha from the past is being proved by advanced technology. So every one of us in this vast, endless universe, on this Earth, must seek the Dharma. So shouldnt we be mindful? The Dharma exists in our daily living. In our daily living, if we can realize wondrous existence and true emptiness, then what is there to take issue over? Everyone, Jing Si, like the wondrous lotus, pure and clear is about taking good care of our minds. Even though we live in a defiled world, we must care for our wondrous lotus. Our minds must remain pure and clear. So everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 7 – Jing Si Is Like the Wondrous Lotus, Pure and Clear

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Time flies; it passes very quickly, so I often tell everyone that we need to seize every minute and second. Now we will discuss teachings from the Lotus Sutra. The Lotus Sutra is a Great Vehicle sutra. During the Buddhas lifetime, He had to spend seven years explaining it. Moreover, one sentence from the Buddha can encompass principles of all things in the world. For us ordinary people to explain even one of. His sentences may take a very long time. So we need to seize the moment and absorb the Dharma-essence of the Lotus Sutra so everyone can realize the spirit of it as taught by the Buddha. The Jing Si Dharma-lineage is a path of diligent practice. The Tzu Chi School is a road of working with others. What is the spirit imbued in the Jing Si Dharma-lineage? Jing Si is like the wondrous lotus, pure and clear. The Jing Si Abode is our place of practice. We start by inwardly cultivate sincerity, integrity, faith and steadfastness and externally practice loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity. First we purify our minds by cultivating sincerity, integrity, faith and steadfastness. Purify to what state? Until they are tranquil and clear. And we do not just practice in solitude to benefit ourselves; we do much more than that. In 1966, we established the Buddhist Tzu Chi Merit Association, because we hoped to bring the Buddhas spirit into the world. Though we want to transform and save sentient beings, there are so many sentient beings, with so many different types of suffering. Not only do humans all suffer in different ways right now, we have to consider the future, the far-off future. Because in future generations, human minds and their environments will continuously change. So the Dharma that the Buddha expounded more than 2000 years ago was devised for that era and for all future eras to come. In this boundless universe, foreseeing the changes of human behavior and the increased suffering the future would bring, the Buddha first started by proclaiming His original intent. Starting with the Avatamsaka [Sutra], He shared His spiritual understanding with everyone. But ordinary people could never truly understand. Even heavenly beings do not understand, how could ordinary people? Thus, the Buddha then decided to expound the. Dharma that sentient beings can understand, the Agama [Sutra]. The Buddha started teaching the Agama [Sutra] so everyone could understand karmic retribution. The Buddha spent a long time expounding the Agama Sutra. But did all sentient beings understand completely? It did not happen that easily. But time waits for no one, so the Buddha transitioned into the Vaipulya to slowly guide those with higher capabilities to realize that life is impermanent. After they learned that life is impermanent, [the Buddha] then transitioned into Prajna. He opened everyones door to wisdom and freed their minds from materialistic obstacles and emotional attachments. All passions, cravings or desires, need to be completely eliminated. Thus, the principles found in the Prajna [Sutra] can help free our minds from the attachments of passions, cravings and material goods. But does this lead to a state of true emptiness? No. Because to be truly free from attachments, we need to fully understand the law of karma. Starting from the Avatamsaka, the pure, undefiled, tranquil and clear state of the Buddha has been difficult for sentient beings to grasp right away. In the state of Avatamsaka, the Dharma is broad and boundless. How is it possible for unenlightened beings to embrace such a broad, boundless, tranquil and clear state? It is not possible. We need to first understand the law of karma. But as sentient beings, we will continue to be attached to things like creating merits. We have learned about karma and karmic causes. Sentient beings suffer because they have created karmic causes. That is why they suffer bitter retributions. We know that everyone suffers, but we do not know from which karmic cause. As we experience suffering, we seek to prevent disasters and difficulties. So we seek to create merits to prevent disasters and difficulties. Is this really possible? To put an end to disasters and eliminate suffering, we must return to the source and understand how we have attracted so much suffering. So if people only learn the Prajna [teachings], some will become attached to emptiness, and thus they will deny the law of cause and effect. This is wrong. The Buddha quickly said that in this emptiness, there is wondrous existence. Wondrous existence is a karmic seed. So, the Lotus Sutra is called the perfect teaching. It is not attached to existence nor emptiness. In emptiness there is wondrous existence. Therefore, our minds need to return to that state of being tranquil and clear. So we must calmly self-reflect, quietly reflect on why our spiritual state has become so complicated. Just one saying from the Buddha can help us thoroughly understand why our daily living is still filled with afflictions and obstructions. Thus, in our spiritual practice, we must enter the perfect, wondrous state of true emptiness, which is complete tranquility and clarity. This is by no means easy. The Buddha then used the Lotus as a metaphor. We are in the evil world of the Five Turbidities. So in the perfect teachings of true emptiness and wondrous existence, what metaphor did He use? A lotus flower. A lotus flower grows out of mud but is undefiled. Because the current era we live in is one of the evil world of the Five Turbidities, as Buddhist practitioners, we must be like the lotus, which remain undefiled in the turbid environment. This is what we need to practice. Although the Buddha told us that we intrinsically possess the same pure nature as all Buddhas, since Beginningless Time we have lived through life after life of cyclic existence in the Six Realms. Throughout these continuous cycles we have continuously formed habitual tendencies. Thus, we were all born with those afflictions and habitual tendencies. Therefore in this world, even if we say we want to practice, and we make a vow, develop an aspiration, our habitual tendencies still have not left us whether we are lay or monastic practitioners. So the Buddha told us that we need to thoroughly eliminate the turbidity in our minds. Starting from the time of the Buddha, up till now and into the future, for lifetime after lifetime, we have continuously transmigrated in the Six Realms and have developed more and more habitual tendencies. What should we do? We now know that maybe in the past, we did not have the opportunity to hear the Buddha-Dharma. Even once we have learned about it, we have not eliminated our habitual tendencies, and we are still defiled by the turbid world. So we have a lot of habitual tendencies. Now we have the affinity to be in the same community for spiritual practice. This place is called Jing Si, and the state we all aspire to reach is that of tranquility and clarity. At our Jing Si training ground, we need to pass down our Dharma-lineage. Though we are in the evil world of the Five Turbidities, we still need to be like the lotus flower that rises out of the mud. This means that our minds should not be defiled by the state of the evil world of the Five Turbidities. Knowing we have intrinsic habitual tendencies, we can no longer wait. How much more time is there for us to enter the perfect teaching? So starting from now, in our daily living and lifestyle, we need to seize the moment to eliminate our remaining habitual tendencies. Right now, Jing Si is like the wondrous lotus, pure and clear. Tzu Chi is the Bodhisattva-path in the world. We do not practice to benefit ourselves. We need to invite everyone, far and wide, to join us, so that one more person can walk from this turbid world through the Tzu Chi door to develop loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity. The Bodhisattva Way taught by the Buddha showed us that to enter the Bodhisattva-path, we need loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity. Inwardly, we practice sincerity, integrity, faith and steadfastness. Externally, we practice loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity as they are the Bodhisattva-path. In our spiritual practice, we also need to walk the Bodhisattva-path. Besides eliminating our own habitual tendencies, we also have the aspiration to benefit everyone. The current world population has increased a lot compared to the Buddhas time. During the time of the Buddha, there were a little over 200 million people. Now there are nearly 7 billion. Just think about the effect of breathing; what happens when nearly 7 billion people exhale? Think of how that affects the climate and the air. Moreover, human desires are endless. The industrial world continues to advance the pursuit of our desires. In this kind of world, think about the polluted land, polluted air, and polluted minds. This is very serious. So we must develop great aspirations and go among all people. We need to widely transform sentient beings so they can all understand that the Buddha came to this world to let everyone encounter Buddha-Dharma and learn these teachings. Therefore we must go among people and walk the Bodhisattva-path. Everyone, The Jing Si Dharma-lineage is a path of diligent practice. The Tzu Chi School is a road of working with people in the world. This is the common direction of everyone here. This is our common goal. With this thought, we need to constantly be self-vigilant. Our minds should always remain in a pure and clear state like a wondrous lotus and we must also walk on the Bodhisattva-path with others. Everyone, I hope you are Bodhisattva-practitioners who go among all people. We must create a straight and broad Bodhisattva-path for others, which is also a great Bodhi-path. We all have this responsibility. We need to take the task upon ourselves. We hope that lay practitioners may extensively invite people in and help them all recognize this. The Lotus Sutra is very lengthy but we need to adapt it to modern times, modern places and modern interpersonal relationships. Compare the world population of 200 million people more than 2000 years ago to todays almost 7 billion people; the levels of complications are exponentially different. But if more people can learn about the wondrous Lotus Sutra, everyones minds may remain undefiled in the evil world of the Five Turbidities. If this can happen, I believe that this world, society and peoples minds can definitely be purified. Purifying peoples’ minds is the best way to put an end to disasters. So fellow Bodhisattvas, we must have no disputes with the world at large, and no discord over any matters and definitely no conflicts with other people. We need to follow these principles and walk the Bodhisattva-path. Starting today, we must renew our vows to eliminate our discursive thoughts and tendencies. Remember, our minds need to be pure and clear like the lotus and we must walk the Bodhisattva-path in this world. This is what we mean by following the Jing Si path and the Tzu Chi road. This aims to pave the way for the Lotus Sutra, for us to learn how to penetrate the essence of the Lotus Sutra. Everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 6 – Lotus Sutra Preface (5)

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>> Our bodies and minds will be pure our delusions and obstacles eliminated?

>> Our bodies and minds will be pure our delusions and obstacles eliminated. We will be dignified by blessings and wisdom, and our pure causes will grow.

>> Ours and others vows and practices will be quickly perfected and fulfilled. May all Tathagatas always abide to expound the Dharma. We will rejoice in all merits and dedicate them towards the path enlightenment, so as to realize the fruits of nirvana

>> On the day we die, Right Mindfulness will arise. We will face Amitahba and all of the noble assembly. In that instant, we will be born into the lotus flower. May all sentient beings also attain Buddhahood.

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Without expectations, we have no thoughts of gain or loss. Without thoughts of gain or loss, we have no afflictions. Without afflictions, we feel at ease. Isnt this the state we seek as spiritual practitioners? Ordinary people harbor expectations every day. They expect something in return every time they do something or give to others. Such people are unenlightened beings. In our spiritual practice we need to achieve the state of having no expectations. Does this mean that we do nothing? Not so. We have to do things. Furthermore, we have to do them earnestly, even carefully, reverently, and with commitment. Since we have come into this world, we need to be earnest about everything we do. Do not spend your life in a daze or a state of confusion. Consider Sakyamuni Buddha. When He lived in the palace as the crown prince, He enjoyed great luxuries. Yet He was not influenced by desires. When He was very young, He wondered why there were relationships and cravings, why some people were rich and some were poor, why all these phenomena existed in this world. Ever since His youth, He had been constantly, silently contemplating the reason the phenomena existed. This was His earnestness. In our spiritual practice, we should be like the Buddha and earnestly contemplate in silence. We should consider why people come to this world to lead hectic lives, to quarrel, to create enmity and hatred, to oppose each other. Why go through so much suffering? For what? It is all because of expectations and desires. The mind harbors desires. Fame, wealth, property and sensual enjoyment are all things that people desire. In pursuit of these things, thoughts of gain and loss arise. So we have to contemplate this. After we understand it, our minds need to be free of expectations. This is conscientiousness. After we have thought things through and gained clarity, we will have no expectations. No matter how hard we may have to work, we will do so without expectations. We are very reverent. We do not seek anything for ourselves, but for all sentient beings in the world. So we need to be self-disciplined and reverent. We need to have aspirations, make great vows, spread great love and extend our compassion. All this is done unconditionally. This is the highest state of spiritual attainment. However, having no expectations does not mean being lazy, but to be reverent, self-disciplined and committed. As we give to others, we should harbor no expectations. Then we will have no thoughts of gain and loss. If we are free from any sense of gain or loss, we will have no afflictions and may truly be at ease and free. When we are in this state, our bodies and minds will be pure, then naturally, our pure causes will grow.

Earlier, didn’t I say:
Our bodies and minds will be pure our delusions and obstacles eliminated?
This is what we are working toward. We need to repent for the past. We need to be reverent in the present. We reverently repent the countless grave transgressions created in the past, present and future with our Threefold Karma. We also hope to eliminate them, one by one. So after we repent, we will not commit more transgressions. This is how we can eradicate them, by not committing any more evils after repenting. If we have already eliminated all afflictions, we have cleansed ourselves. Once our bodies and minds are purified, we can furnish ourselves with the Buddha-Dharma, wisdom and good affinities. Our bodies and minds are like a house in which the colors have faded. Once we are able to clean its rooms and redecorate it, those surroundings will be very beautiful. Then we can live there with peace and ease. What can we use to furnish this house? We can use blessings and wisdom. We need to create blessings in our daily living. We must always feel gratitude, respect and love. This state of mind creates blessings. If we create blessings without expectations, if we give without expectations, we will have wisdom. When we use wisdom to furnish our spiritual mind, we adorn ourselves with blessings and wisdom. Naturally, pure causes will grow. Since we have created blessings, cultivated wisdom and created many good karmic connections, our continuous giving to others is without expectations or any sense of gain or loss. These are all causes and conditions of purity. In this world there are conflicts and disputes filled with craving, hatred, passion, enmity etc. You may have been born into a great family that you adore. But in the future, in your next life, or the life after, or the one after that, your parents in this lifetime may become your son or daughter. In the life after that, you may become husband and wife. But in the life after that, you may become sworn enemies. This happens because ordinary people create impure karmic affinities. Impure affinities result in entanglements. All this is inescapable. We transmigrate in the Six Realms precisely because of impure affinities. Even those who do the Ten Good Deeds and are born in heaven cannot escape defiled affinities. We say we must practice in the human realm to attain Buddhahood, because we can witness so much in this world. We can also hear the Buddhas teachings and learn to purify the body and mind. When we cleanse the body and the mind, our bodies will become very pure, our minds can also become very pure. If we create blessings to benefit people and do not create further impure affinities, we will attain Buddhahood more quickly. Therefore, affinities are very important. When the body and mind are pure, pure causes grow. This is what we need to understand. To purify our body and mind, we must have no expectations or any sense of gain or loss. Without afflictions, we are naturally at ease. Then the body and mind can be clear and pure, and can develop pure causes. Therefore, we must earnestly take the words of these sutras to heart. We need to sincerely contemplate them. Be self-disciplined, reverent and committed. We must always be mindful. The Chant of Dedicating Merits in the Lotus Sutra Preface states,

Our bodies and minds will be pure our delusions and obstacles eliminated. We will be dignified by blessings and wisdom, and our pure causes will grow.
Then it states,
Ours and others vows and practices will be quickly perfected and fulfilled. May all Tathagatas always abide to expound the Dharma. We will rejoice in all merits and dedicate them towards the path enlightenment, so as to realize the fruits of nirvana.

May all Tathagatas always abide to expound the Dharma. We will rejoice in all merits and dedicate them towards the path enlightenment, so as to realize the fruits of nirvana. This verse is about making vows. Whether we make vows ourselves, or whether others make them, we are all practicing together on the same path. I have such a vow and others probably have the same vow. It is not just a vow or a wish. We are already putting it into practice. This is called acting on a vow. Since we are learning the Buddhas teachings, we aspire to be closer to the state of the Buddha. Earlier I mentioned that as we prostrate to the sutra, word by word, we are moving a step closer to the Buddha and the Vulture Peak Assembly. If we can do things in our daily living with the same reverent mindset, then we are also creating pure affinities and growing pure causes. To give without expectations, we give with the same reverence as practicing the path, acting on a vow or prostrating. Acts of reverence are not limited to engaging in ceremonies at temples. Actually, our daily behavior can already bring us closer to our vows. Thus, we act out our vows. In our daily living, every day, the thoughts that stir and the actions we take are the means of acting out our vows. We change our habitual tendencies by engaging with people and matters. These interactions urge us forward. These are ways of acting out our vows will be quickly perfected and fulfilled. We hope that every day, every moment, the vows we put into action with body and mind will get closer and closer [to being achieved]. Working together in harmony like a perfect crystal sphere is the Tzu Chi practice. As we carry out our vows together, we should be as pure and clear as a crystal. I hope everyone has this mindset. May all Tathagatas always abide to expound the Dharma. We hope to always encounter the Buddha, or enlightened beings who come to this world so we can always be together with them. Therefore here it states, May all. Tathagatas always abide to expound the Dharma. We need to be respectful at all times. Respect the Dharma, and the Dharma will be there. Respect the Buddha, and the Buddha will be in our heart. We will rejoice in all merits and dedicate them towards the path of enlightenment so as to realize the fruits of nirvana. With respect, our vows connect to Buddhas, Bohisattvas and the Dharma at all times. This creates merits and virtues. If we do not cultivate our minds, how can our outward actions and words captivate the minds of others? How can we be respectful when others speak? If we do not exert our efforts, other people will not respect us, nor will we respect others. So let us humble ourselves, be courteous to others. To humble ourselves is a merit, to be courteous to others is a virtue. We should rejoice in all merits and virtues. No matter who created them, we will praise those who have achieved them. We should not hinder others spiritual aspirations. Not only do we not obstruct them, we rejoice in and praise others at all times. We dedicate [the merits] toward the path of enlightenment, from ourselves to others. We need to work very hard ourselves and be respectful of others. In this way, we are dedicating merits to Bodhi, which is enlightenment. We need to enlighten ourselves, and we need to enlighten others. Enlightening ourselves and others is also called dedicating all merits. To realize the fruits of nirvana refers to permanence, joy, self, and purity. Seize the moment and maintain your resolve. To us, this thought of joy, this thought of purity, is everlasting, not temporary. I hope we can seize the moment and perpetuate this happiness, this Dharma-joy. This is called permanence and joy, or happiness. When we do not have a sense of gain or loss we will naturally be free and at ease. Without expectations or any sense of gain or loss, naturally we will feel free and realize the fruits of nirvana because with pure causes we have pure effects.

On the day we die, Right Mindfulness will arise. We will face Amitahba and all of the noble assembly. In that instant, we will be born into the lotus flower. May all sentient beings also attain Buddhahood.
May all sentient beings also attain Buddhahood. Of course, since we are all unenlightened beings, when we pray, we still have expectations. What do we seek? That On the day we die, we can remain in that wonderful state, that our mindset will be very upright and not be distracted by external conditions. In our daily living, when cravings and desires invade our mind-consciousness, what kind of karma do we create? As we are about to die, a certain kind of state will manifest and entice us. If we follow it, we may fall into hell or fall into the animal realm. We do not know. That is why we hope that on the day we die, Right Mindfulness will manifest. We need to uphold this thought of goodness, so we know where we are heading. Ordinary people lack the ability to determine in which realm they will be reborn. It is all unknown. With the advanced technology of today, we can see that many who are on this same Earth are suffering. Think about it. Once we leave this physical body, will we come back to this spiritual community, will we come back to a world with a harmonious climate and a peaceful society? We do not know. This is why we need to take good care of our minds right now. We need to correct our habitual tendencies, and purify our thoughts. Then we will be very clear about what we want to do when we come back again. We still want to create the same pure causes and blessed conditions, so we can continue on this same path in our future, a path of pure causes and blessed conditions. This happens when Right Mindfulness will arise. I really hope that we will truly practice Right Mindfulness. So in the instant we die, it will arise and we will have the freedom to determine where we want to go. May all sentient beings also attain Buddhahood. All sentient beings, including us, can attain Buddhahood at the same time. The only way to do so is to bring purity to everyone’s hearts so each may attain enlightenment. If we are reborn in the Western Pure Land, we are not there to enjoy it. After we finish learning we still need to return to the Saha World. Therefore, if we repent with reverence, refrain from creating negative affinities, and develop pure causes, then naturally things will go according to our wishes. So after we have made our vows, we will take refuge with and pay respect to the Three Treasures. We need [to find our innate] reverent mindset. Being truly reverent, self-disciplined and committed are all very important qualities. Once we reach that state, the mind harbors no more expectations or thoughts of gain, is without afflictions and is naturally at ease. With a pure body and mind, naturally the pure causes will grow. Growing our pure causes is extremely crucial. All the sutras and treatises point the way to Buddhahood. We must purify body and mind and develop pure causes to be able to achieve Buddhahood. Therefore, we must constantly take good care of our mind so it will not be defiled by afflictions. This requires us to always be mindful.

Episode 5 – Lotus Sutra Preface (4)

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>> A slight discrepancy determines whether we go in the right or wrong direction. Boundless desires originate from insatiability. Time passes as we remain indecisive on which course to take. When our true nature is lost, we transmigrate through cyclic existence.

>> We vow to repent. We disciples and all sentient beings, since Beginningless Time, have lost our true nature and transmigrated through cyclic existence.

>> The transgressions and obstacles of the Six Roots are infinite and boundless. We cannot penetrate and understand the perfect and wondrous Buddha Vehicle. None of our aspirations can be realized

>> We now pay respect to the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra. With this root of goodness, we openly repent our wrongdoings. The boundless grave transgressions created in the past, present and future with the Threefold Karma will all be eliminated.

>> Our bodies and mind will be pure, our delusions and obstacles eliminated. We will be dignified by blessings and wisdom, and our pure causes will grow.

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Every day we talk about repenting and making vows. Indeed, to repent is to constantly self-reflect. After we have acted, do we sincerely confess all that we have done in the past? After confessing everything, have we reformed our mental and physical behavior? If we can correct everything, in addition to our physical behavior, wont our minds then often give rise to good thoughts without any deviant, evil thoughts? Have we reached this level of repentance and purification? After we have repented and purified ourselves, we can then make vows. As we make vows, we need to understand that a slight discrepancy makes the difference between going in the right or wrong direction. We make endless vows. We may pray that if a certain good thing happens to a family member, we will then vow to be vegetarian on his behalf, or vow to do good deeds, or we will vow to…. These are conditional vows, vows for desires, vows for something in return. These kinds of vows are misguided. We have to give unconditionally for it to be a vow. We need to be selective in the vows we make. We have many wants, so we have endless expectations and will never be satisfied. The suffering in our lives comes from wanting something more, wanting something better. These kinds of pursuits can be described by an old saying, Mountains are not as tall as our list of wishes. This is like asking, Is this enough? Not yet. Heres more, is this enough? Not yet. This goes on and on. Our minds never feel that anything high is ever high enough, or anything deep is ever deep enough. Therefore, this mind is a bottomless pit of greed, and thus we live in indecision. Which direction should we take in our lives? How do we walk the path we have vowed to take? We are at a loss. Is this the correct path for me to choose? Is it beneficial for me? We keep standing there indecisively. However, time keeps passing by. Isnt this a waste of time? Before the Buddha expounded this Dharma, He had already realized the true principles of the universe. So He began by speaking the True Dharma, the Avatamasaka Sutra, which described the Buddhas spiritual state. But sentient beings did not have the capacity to understand it. Why is that? Their minds were full of greed, afflictions and discursive thoughts, so they were unable to realize this state. Thus, the Buddha had to guide them gently and patiently for 40 years. Consider this span of 40-plus years. Can every person last for 40-plus years? Time keeps passing by. When we come in contact with the Buddha, can we reach Him directly and comprehend the Buddha-mind? If so, then seeing the Buddha and hearing the Dharma is not in vain, because we immediately comprehend it. However, we ordinary beings are such that we have to go through these skillful means. Yet can such skillful means really allow us realize the Dharma? How much time must be wasted in this way? So, during this time, the Buddha began to speak the Lotus Sutra, which is beyond speech. To expound the Lotus Sutra without speech, He sat down and entered the state of the Samadhi of Infinite Meanings and returned to His Buddha-mind. At that moment, He wanted to eliminate the provisional, the skillful. He wanted to take back these skillful means and replace them with the true path, so in that place, He radiated light. Because the Lotus Sutra was beyond speech, it was not expressed in words, but through a spiritual state. [At the assembly], everyone stared at each other, not knowing what was going on. Then, As the Buddha began speaking the True Dharma, 5000 people left their seats. This happened while Buddha was still there. He saw these people leave. As He began speaking about the True Path, 5000 people left. The Buddha felt very sad. However, it was good that they left because their capacities were not yet mature, so they were not ready to accept this teaching. So, it was good that they left, and those who remained could accept these teachings. But could they really? Consider what the Buddha saw after all these people heard His Dharma, how many people were willing to walk the Bodhisattva-path in this world and be responsible for saving others? No one dared to stand out and say, I will bravely take on this burden. This indecisiveness is not limited to people of the present time. Even when the Buddha was alive, when He expounded the Dharma Himself, was He able to truly awaken peoples minds, lead them to realize the Buddha-mind, and go among people to serve? Indeed, it is not very easy. Now, let us speak of modern people and their indecisiveness. If one wants to learn Buddhism, one must choose between Small Vehicle and Great Vehicle. Does one practice to solely benefit oneself or does one seek to benefit others? People also feel indecisive about methods of spiritual practice. This is how we lose our true nature and transmigrate through cyclic existence in the Six Realms.

A slight discrepancy determines whether we go in the right or wrong direction. Boundless desires originate from insatiability. Time passes as we remain indecisive on which course to take. When our true nature is lost, we transmigrate through cyclic existence.

This [indecision] is what we need to repent. Actually, it is not that difficult to nurture a loving heart. We do not need to make vows in a specific way; we just need to have a loving heart, which is by itself a vow to purify our minds. We did not know we were wrong. We were wrong in the past, but now we will begin to cleanse and reform ourselves and quickly change our attitude toward living. This is the right way. This is how we make a great vow. In our daily living, if we can nourish a loving heart, then we will make no mistakes. In Master Lian Chis Essays on Not Killing, there is a story called. Receive Blessings after Rebirth. He wrote that in Suzhou City, there was a man named Wang Da-lin. He was very charitable, especially in releasing captured creatures [as an act of merit]. He greatly cherished living creatures. Sometimes, he saw children playing at capturing crickets or catching bugs… so many kinds [of games]. If Wang Da-lin saw children playing with these tiny living creatures, he would kindly gather the children and explain his beliefs to them because he wanted the children to treasure all beings. He would even use money, candies etc. to create good relationships with them so he could persuade them to not hurt other living creatures. This is like applied education. All the children in the village liked him. All the parents and the elders were grateful to him because he was teaching their children for them. When children feel compassion and love, they naturally know to be filial. Everyone respected him. When he was 61 years old, he suddenly became gravely ill. The doctors had already told him to make his funeral preparations. At this time, he suddenly heard a voice. This very clear voice said, Because you often released captured creatures and cherished all living beings with great loving-kindness and compassion, because you constantly persuaded others to release living creatures, the intangible merits you have accumulated will now extend your lifespan and blessings. So Wang Da-lin lived to be 97 years old, with five generations of his lineage in the same household. He passed away peacefully. Remember, he was not seeking any reward. He just had those thoughts, those loving and compassionate thoughts to cherish living beings. Furthermore, he did not only do it himself, he taught everyone, from the children to the whole village. So his blessings and lifespan were prolonged. Always consider the importance of your mindset. Therefore, we say we need to make vows and dedicate merits. We mentioned previously,

We vow to repent. We disciples and all sentient beings, since Beginningless Time, have lost our true nature and transmigrated through cyclic existence.

We have all lost our true nature and are only willing to make vows in return for things. But our mind was originally loving. Our mind was originally filled with unlimited and tremendous vows. It was filled with kindness and great love, which are great vows. But we have lost that state of mind, so we now transmigrate through cyclic existence.

The transgressions and obstacles of the Six Roots are infinite and boundless. We cannot penetrate and understand the perfect and wondrous Buddha Vehicle. None of our aspirations can be realized.

The transgressions of the Six Roots arise when greedy thoughts come in contact with the Six Dusts. Our Six Roots give rise to the Six Consciousnesses. This leads to many greedy thoughts. These greedy desires are infinite and boundless. We cannot penetrate and understand the perfect and wondrous Buddha Vehicle. This vehicle points the mind to its true nature. With this perfect and wondrous Dharma, we could return to our true nature, but we are hindered from understanding and. None of our aspirations can be realized. We only know to seek things, and not all of these pursuits will be successful. There is an old saying, Of 10 things, 8 or 9 will be unsatisfactory. This is because we are lost, we really ask for too much. Therefore, None of our aspirations can be realized.

We now pay respect to the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra. With this root of goodness, we openly repent our wrongdoings. The boundless grave transgressions created in the past, present and future with the Threefold Karma will all be eliminated

We now pay respect to the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra. With this root of goodness, we openly repent our wrongdoings. The boundless grave transgressions created in the past, present and future with the Threefold Karma will all be eliminated. We now pay respect to the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra. Now we have begun to receive the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra. The Buddha has pointed out the true path to seeing our true nature. This true path is the Bodhisattva-path, so we must cherish it. When we are chanting the Lotus Sutra Preface, we prostrate to every word. Every word is a treasure, so we must sincerely and mindfully understand the. Buddhas mindset. We cannot just recite the Sutras, we need to realize whether or not we have applied it. Have we attained the state of the Buddha-mind? Therefore, whether we prostrate and chant the Sutra of Infinite Meanings or the Lotus Sutra, with this root of goodness, we openly repent our wrongdoings. If we really study the sutras, we will gradually nourish our roots of goodness. As the roots of goodness grow, our wisdom-life will grow. As the roots of goodness continuously grow, we will openly repent our wrongdoings. This is repentance. Out of ignorance, we constantly make mistakes. These mistakes are what we need to openly repent. Once we make a mistake, we need to quickly correct it. Once we have corrected it, we do not need to be afraid of other people knowing our mistakes. This is how we can be cleansed. This is open repentance. We dare not make the same mistakes. This is repenting what was created in the past, present and future by the Threefold Karma. This refers to the past, to what we have done, or to the incorrect, deviant or evil thoughts that arise now because we are not taking good care of our minds. Once a thought arises in the mind, we must quickly repent. So past, present means that the past has already happened, so whatever mistakes we make now, must be quickly terminated. As for the future, we need to quickly change the direction of our Threefold Karma. We must always speak good words with our mouths, do good deeds with our bodies, and think good thoughts with our minds. The past has already happened, so now we cannot allow our Threefold Karma to create more evil. If we commit evils again, we commit boundless grave transgressions. Those transgressions will be very severe. If we have reformed, then boundless. If we have reformed, then boundless grave transgressions will all be eliminated. Our bodies and mind will be pure, our delusions and obstacles eliminated.

Our bodies and mind will be pure, our delusions and obstacles eliminated. We will be dignified by blessings and wisdom, and our pure causes will grow 

Our bodies and mind will be pure, our delusions and obstacles eliminated. Our minds will be free. Even though we have committed wrongdoings, we have admitted them all. Then no matter what others say, we will still be very free and at ease. We are not afraid of being criticized because we have admitted our mistakes. We have now corrected them all, so Our bodies and mind will be pure. Defilements and ignorance will never return, so the mind is purified and our delusions and obstacles eliminated. When we have completely eliminated ignorance, we are naturally dignified by blessings and wisdom and our pure causes will grow. Good causes and conditions will keep appearing. Good people are drawn together and will help each other succeed. Therefore, pure causes will grow. What we see will not defile our minds. Everything we hear will be good words. All the people we are with will be good people. Even if someone wants to harm or tempt us, we will be surrounded by virtuous friends. Perhaps with this greater strength we can transform those without right views and bring them in to join us. So, in our daily living, we vow to thoroughly nourish all good thoughts and actions and purify our minds. Once we purify our minds, we can attain even what we do not seek. This natural way of living benefits people and can also be used to educate others. This is a natural and uncontrived vow which is a great vow. Everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 4 – Lotus Sutra Preface (3)

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>> A journey of 1000 miles begins with one step. A slight discrepancy makes the difference between going in the right or wrong direction. Form an aspiration, make a great vow. Commit to maintaining self-discipline, reverently maintain resolve.

>> We vow to repent. We disciples and all sentient beings from Beginningless Time until now.

>> [We] have lost our true nature and transmigrated through cyclic existence. The transgressions of the Six Roots are boundless and hinder us from understanding the perfect and wondrous Buddha Vehicle.

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A journey of 1000 miles begins with one step.
A slight discrepancy makes the difference
between going in the right or wrong direction.
Form an aspiration, make a great vow.
Commit to maintaining self-discipline,
reverently maintain resolve.

Everyone, if every day we hold these words in our hearts, we will not go astray in our daily living; our direction will not be mistaken. A journey of 1000 miles begins with one step. If we want to walk a journey of 1000 miles we must take the first step. If we only hear about the world that exists 1000 miles away rather than going there on our own, it will be impossible to experience that world. No matter how much you listen, the first-hand experience will still be absent. This is like not carefully listening to the Dharma and being unwilling to make an effort. The real wonders of the Dharma are quite profound, yet we do not fully understand them. Real Buddhist practitioners must surely begin with the first step. So it is said, A journey of 1000 miles begins with one step. Spiritual cultivation is practicing the path, and the path is a road to be walked on. So, we must take the first step on this road, and moreover we must seize each moment. Taking the first step requires orienting ourselves accurately. When we are solving a trigonometric equation, if we start drawing with even with a slight bit of deviation, then the x and y axes will be askew. Whether or not our direction is correct varies by just a tiny fraction. What starts as a slight deviation will grow exponentially over a long distance. After 1000 miles, the difference grows 1000-fold. So the first step is very important, as is the direction. Forming aspirations and making vows is the start. If we do not take the first step and refuse to walk, we will always be standing at the starting point. We just need to point our first step in the right direction and not stray from it. We start by developing aspirations and making great vows with commitment. Life is short, lasting only some decades. I have often cautioned everyone that one day in Heavens of the Four Heavenly Kings equals 50 years in this world. One day in Trayastrimsa Heaven equals 100 years in this world. A lifetime of a few decades is very short, so no matter what we would like to do, once we are pointed in the right direction we must be committed. Do not say, It’s not possible today; it’ll have to be tomorrow! It’s not in the plans for this year; it will happen next year. I’m still young, and now is the time for earning money; volunteering is a waste of time. I’ll wait until I’m retired. This exemplifies a lack of commitment, a lack of recognizing the impermanence of life, a lack of recognizing that we should seize every moment to do good. Once an opportunity is missed it will not be offered again. Each lifetime happens only one time. Saying one time refers to each person’s one-time journey. What is one time? In the time of Ancient Greece, there was a philosopher, Socrates. This philosopher had many students. One time, a group of students went to seek advice from their teacher, hoping for guidance. How can a teacher help his students comprehend true principles? So one day, Socrates told his students, Come, I will help you to understand through experience. He took them to an orchard and said to these students, start from the entrance of the orchard and walk all the way to the end. From within the orchard, carefully choose the most beautiful fruit, the best fruit, the one that is your favorite, and pick it. You can only choose one fruit. You have one chance only; you cannot walk back. These students then began to walk into the fruit-filled orchard. Which was the most beautiful, the best fruit? From the entrance, the students walked all the way to the end, where they saw their teacher standing. The teacher asked, so have each of you picked the most beautiful, the best fruit? One of the students said, my teacher, please give me another chance. Socrates then said, No. There are no more chances. Why is it that you did not pick a single fruit? The student said, as soon as I entered, I saw a beautiful, big fruit. But, I thought that farther inside, there must be bigger, more beautiful, better fruit. I was afraid that if I picked the first, it would not be as good as another later on. Since I could only pick one fruit, I decided not to pick that one. Some students then said, Yes, exactly. Can’t you give us another chance? Socrates said, No more chances. We only have once chance to live this life. We only live through our youth once. Our life at 20 years old is something we will only experience once. We can never go back. The principle is the same. People say, If I had known it would come to this, I would have acted differently. So we must live earnestly. If we do not seize the opportunity to do good now, we will have no way to carry it through. Just look at the history of Tzu Chi. Although it has been 40-plus years, if it had not been for that initial thought, which we seized without deviating in direction, who knows whether. Tzu Chi would exist today, 40 years later? If, on the 8th day of the 2nd lunar month, before daybreak, Sakyamuni Buddha had not formed that aspiration, if He had not taken action to leave home and the secular world to become a monk, where would Buddhism be, 2000 years later? So, a journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step. We must walk, no matter how far or for how long. But our direction must be correct. Let us develop aspirations and make great vows and be committed to them. We cannot say, If I cannot do it today, I will do it tomorrow. This is a life lacking in commitment. We must not only be committed, but also self-disciplined. When we believe in and study Buddhas teachings, upholding the precepts is very important. In the practice of precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, just think, without precepts, how could there be Samadhi? Without precepts and Samadhi, developing wisdom is impossible. We must live according to the rules so that we can establish a state of Samadhi, commit to maintaining self-discipline, and be reverent. Reverence is a state of mind where we can maintain resolve uphold our mission and follow the path then our path will be great. Haven’t I shared that with everyone before? So, if we can truly uphold our mission and make great vows, without any deviation, we can take the first step and walk diligently. If we can do this, be diligent, avoid going astray, have great vows, and uphold our mission, isn’t this when we are at our most reverent? In our spiritual state, things are just that simple. We have been talking about the Lotus Sutra Dharma-assembly. It was held on Vulture Peak. Where is Vulture Peak? Actually, we have already spoken about this. In each person there is a stupa on Vulture Peak. We can each practice at the foot of that stupa. This tells us that we all have Three Treasures in our self-nature, in our pure intrinsic nature that has not and will not grow nor disappear in the past, present, or future. It has only been shrouded by ignorance. The mirror of our heart was originally pure and clear. Then at some unknown point in time, it was covered by dust. We have been lazy and have not carefully cleaned it daily. Look at a glass mirror. If, after a while, it has not been wiped, it will be covered by dust and become hazy. You will not be able to see through it. This is a similar concept. Therefore, we must diligently polish the mirror of our heart by wiping it regularly. So, our reverence helps ensure that the mirror of our heart is clear, that the Three Treasures of our self-nature is revealed. To manifest the Three Treasures of our self-nature, we must maintain self-discipline and reverence. In the past, when I lectured on Dharma as Water, I kept talking to everyone about repentance. After repenting, we must correct all our past wrongdoings and erroneous perceptions. Our habitual tendencies and direction all need to be correct. I have shared this with everyone in the past. Right now, we are beginning to walk in the right direction. This is dependent on our reverence. With reverence, we can begin to make vows. When we make vows, we must dedicate merits. Today, let us consider dedicating merits and making vows. Making vows requires dedicating merits. So, we must vow to repent. This vow encompasses what we said about being committed, self-disciplined, reverent, and maintaining resolve. This is our vow. To develop aspirations and make great vows, we must be very committed, have no other thoughts, be of one mind, one mission, and abide by our great vows. So, we must repent. Some people think that after speaking about Dharma as Water every day, now that we have finished talking about repentance it is the time to make vows. How could there be repentance still? We cannot just talk about it or listen to it, we must sincerely repent. So I constantly tell everyone, the sutra is a path, it is a road to walk on. I have already finished lecturing on that text. You now know the course of the road. Whether or not you walk it depends on you. So, to make vows is to no longer deviate. Let us not deviate. Let us constantly be vigilant. If even the subtlest thoughts arise, though we do not act on them, as soon as these thoughts stir, we must quickly repent them. We should not have these thoughts. Even if we do not act on them, it is not right to even have them. So no matter what, we must quickly repent those thoughts that arise. We should not have them. Since we have already formed aspirations and made vows, we must repent. We should not have these thoughts. So we should vow to repent. Repentance should always be on our mind. Then in our daily living, we will not make mistakes. So the passage says,

We vow to repent. We disciples and all sentient beings from Beginningless Time until now.

from Beginningless Time until now. Everyone is clear about this part. I keep telling everyone that we have to repent, and not just on our own. We must also guide others to repent with us. Hence, we disciples. Each morning when we pay respect to the Buddha, there is not just one person, but hundreds gathered in our prayer hall, in our Guan-Yin Hall. This is we disciples. Is this enough? It is not. In our normal, everyday living, we must endlessly recruit Living Bodhisattvas, be able to share what we have learned at any time and guide others to vow to repent. So all sentient beings include ourselves. From Beginningless Time until now refers not only to the now, but to our unknown number of past lifetimes, up till now and on into future lifetimes. Previously I shared with everyone that the Buddha often said His spiritual practice had been going on for countless kalpas. Countless kalpas is a very long time. That is why we often say from Beginningless Time until now. From the past, and continuously until now,

[We] have lost our true nature and transmigrated through cyclic existence. The transgressions of the Six Roots are boundless and hinder us from understanding the perfect and wondrous Buddha Vehicle.

Every day, we recite these words. But each day, are we really taking them to heart? Have we realized, we have lost our true nature and transmigrated through cyclic existence? Our minds were originally Buddha-minds. Why is it that now we have ordinary minds, minds focused on gain and loss? Only a person with a mind focused on gain and loss would enter an orchard where the first thing he sees is a very beautiful, big fruit, yet still wonder if there might be another that is even bigger and more beautiful. This is the mindset of ordinary beings, of comparing, of focusing on gains and losses. So even though we began with a pure nature, in this way it was lost. So, if we are like this, we can walk through an entire tangerine orchard without obtaining anything. Where did our true nature go? It transmigrated through cyclic existence. This cycling through life and death is due to the transgressions of the Six Roots. Our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body engage with the Six Dusts of our external conditions. This rouses the Six Consciousnesses of eye, ear, nose, tongue-consciousness etc. The Six Roots are attracted by external conditions. This confuses our mind-consciousness, so we make many mistakes. So the transgressions of the Six Roots are boundless. They are truly many and hinder us from understanding the perfect and wondrous Buddha Vehicle. This vehicle is wonderful, but we have strayed from the Buddhas teachings and from his directions. We are unable to really comprehend them. We often talk about a perfect translucent sphere of crystal. Actually, something this perfect, a principle as harmonious as this, is often missed by us. So, we are unable to understand it. Even though every day, I sit here and talk to you all, will you all remember? Will you all understand? I do not know. You alone know the answer for yourselves. So, we must always be mindful.

Episode 3 – Wholeheartedly Seek and Pass on the Dharma

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>> Prostrating to the sutra is like making a pilgrimage to Vulture Peak. Reverently obtain the sutras, diligently seek the Dharma. Each word of Dharma-essence nourishes wisdom-life. Every prostration is like taking a step forward. Visualize that you are approaching the Dharma-assembly.

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The eighth day of the second lunar month is the day Sakyamuni Buddha left home and became a monastic. We are very grateful for this day. We are thankful that Prince Siddhartha gave rise to that thought of not wanting to let sentient beings suffer. The suffering of sentient beings is found in their minds and in the reality of their lives. At that time people lived in four distinct castes. They suffered from these unfair circumstances. [The Buddha] saw the profound mystery of life, that all humans go through the cycle of birth, aging, illness and death. So, why are humans born into such inequality? Then He saw and understood that sufferings are deeply-embedded. Whether one is wealthy or poor, even if one is as wealthy and noble as a king, one will still experience birth, aging, illness and death. The Buddha had been a prince Himself and His father was a king. As He grew from childhood to adulthood, He also saw His fathers gradual aging. He saw how people outside of the palace, who lived in poverty and suffering, looked old and decrepit. They were poor, sick, and old. In the end, don’t they eventually die? This is the path for the poor. But isn’t the path the same for the rich too? True, His father was wealthy and noble but he still would get old and sick, and would die one day, too. Since everyone goes through the same cycle of aging, illness and death, why were there caste distinctions? These are spiritual afflictions; everyone has them. The Buddha hoped to break through the profound mystery of these afflictions and discover the principles behind them. Therefore, He left the palace and became a monastic. He searched for a belief system that would bring true liberation from the cycle of life and death, bring true equality to people’s lives and be the most profound. How can one even begin to understand the causes of birth, aging, illness, and death? Because of this question, the Buddha left the palace on that day and never returned to secular life. He was able to transcend the secular world because His will was extremely firm. And because of this, we can all sit here today, learn together and help each other succeed. Every time a sutra is spoken, the Six Fulfillments are required. The Six Fulfillments refers to the fulfillment of time and place, and of those who speak and listen etc. There are six in total. Here today, we have the fulfillment of time. This time every day is the most appropriate time [to speak], because right now no one is looking for me nor interrupting me. So the time I have right now is the perfect time. This is also our time together. This is the time for us to fulfill our duty and be diligent, hardworking and reverent. So, this moment is the fulfillment of time. Your timing is perfect. My timing is perfect. Along with this perfect timing, our location is also perfect. This is called the fulfillment of place. I am at the Abode in Hualien. Because we have this location, the Abode, we are able to have this period of time for me to speak to you today. So there is this place, and you, and me, and this time. There needs to be a speaker and listeners etc. to complete this fulfillment. And this fulfillment is possible because, over 2000 years ago, the Buddha left the palace in the middle of the night, before dawn. So the Buddha-Dharma can now spread throughout the world. As ordinary beings who came to this world, we should really cherish the opportunity we have to come in contact with the Buddhas teachings. Now that we are in this training ground for spiritual practice, we must sincerely and reverently visualize that all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas from the trichiliocosm have gathered here. What is our training ground like? We can visualize it as Vulture Peak. Isn’t there a verse saying, there is no need to go far to seek the Buddha on Vulture Peak. Vulture Peak is already in our own minds. In each person there is a stupa on Vulture Peak. We can practice at the foot of that stupa. Isn’t that just so? There is a stupa on the Vulture Peak within each of our minds. How far away is Vulture Peak? It exists in this very time and place. So, we must practice with the utmost reverence. As we prostrate, we visualize Buddhas and Bodhisattvas descending to the assembly on Vulture Peak. Of course, we also need to practice diligently and with utmost reverence. As we prostrate to the text of the Lotus Sutra Preface, every word is a treasure, so we prostrate to every word. I remember when I was young, living in the small wooden cabin, I prostrated to the entire Lotus Sutra, word by word. Because the sutra is a path, and this path is a road to walk on, we must pay respect and prostrate to the sutra with utmost reverence. It is as if with each word we recite and each word we prostrate to we are taking one step forward. We must be diligent every step of the way. Every character is imbued with meaning, and each one has the ability to enter our hearts. Every prostration we do is like taking another step forward, as if we are walking to the assembly on Vulture Peak. As we prostrate to the sutra, with every prostration we take one step closer toward the assembly at Vulture Peak. We need to visualize it in that way.

Prostrating to the sutra is like making a pilgrimage to Vulture Peak. Reverently obtain the sutras, diligently seek the Dharma. Each word of Dharma-essence nourishes wisdom-life. Every prostration is like taking a step forward. Visualize that you are approaching the Dharma-assembly.

This is like making a pilgrimage to obtain sutras. Consider Dharma Master Xuan Zangs pilgrimage to the West. India is west of China, so it is called the West, or the western heavens. The Buddha was born to the west of China. That place was very far away; going there was as difficult as ascending to the heavens. It was extremely difficult. Back then, he relied on his own two legs and a horse. Traveling like this was very arduous. Only with utmost reverence and resolve could he bring the Buddhas teachings from India back to China. This is the reverence and diligence required to obtain the sutras and seek the Dharma. See, had it not been for Dharma Master Xuan Zangs reverence and diligence in seeking the Dharma, today we would not have so many Sutras to discuss and to study. Actually, the Lotus Sutra was translated by Venerable Master Kumarajiva. Master Kumarajiva came to China from Kucha to pass on and translate the sutras. This is also something we need to be grateful for. This was possible because of their reverence. Whether they brought the sutras to China or traveled from China to acquire the sutras, they were always reverent. Seeking the Dharma and spreading the Dharma require a diligent mindset. Every day that we prostrate to the sutra, we are moving forward step by step. Our minds continue to get closer to being at the Vulture Peak Assembly. We want to participate in the Buddhas Dharma-assembly. We want to acquire the sutras. Therefore, we must be reverent. Sutras are tapestries of words woven into Dharma. Words are woven together and sentences combined to make up the Dharma. That is why we need to cherish every single word. Every word is a treasure. Every word is the Dharma. Thus, every word is the essence of the Dharma that can nurture our wisdom-life. So we should cherish and treasure every single word because each is the essence, the marrow of the Dharma that will nurture our wisdom-life. If we do not take every word and every sentence to heart, how can our wisdom-life grow? Therefore, if our wisdom-life is to grow, we need to treat every word as the marrow of the Dharma. For our physical body, the function of bone marrow is to make blood. Similarly, our wisdom-life helps us give rise to the infinite wisdom of the Dharma. As I just mentioned, the Buddha wanted to investigate the mysteries of life and the key to Truth. But if we do not have sufficient wisdom it is difficult for us to comprehend His teachings. During His life, the Buddha spent 42 years trying to help people understand the true essence of the Dharma. So, He used various analogies and discussed many limited teachings to suit the needs of those of limited capabilities. That way, people with limited capabilities would be willing to accept His teachings. Bringing people closer so that they could accept the teachings was just the first step. But it took 42 years just to initiate these preliminary steps. Did the Buddha come in contact with everyone in India? Not yet. We must know that although 42 years seems long, it is still relatively a short time 42 years does not even amount to one day in the Heavens of the Four Heavenly Kings. So it is considered short. Even though the Buddha was born on Earth, into the Saha World, He was only one person, born in India. Do you know how big India is? It is huge. It is a big piece of land, very big. But how much land can one person cover? Can one person even cover just the places along the two banks of the Ganges River? No. At that time, India consisted of many nations. Each city was a state, was its own kingdom, so there were many places to cover. Once, the Buddha arrived at a certain country. In that country’s capital, there were 90,000 people in total. Out of those 90,000 people, only one-third had the opportunity to see the Buddha in person and hear His teachings. The other one-third had heard the Buddhas name but did not see Him in person. The remaining third did not even have the chance to hear His name. It was a small city, with only a population of 90,000. Based on this, how many people could have been be reached by the Buddha-Dharma in those 40-plus years? The number was limited. So in a sense we should count ourselves as blessed to receive the Dharma-essence. It is already over 2000 years since the Buddhas time 2000-plus years seem long in our world. But let me tell you, it is still quite short, not even equivalent to a month in Trayastrimsa Heaven. One day there is 100 years for us 1000 years here is merely 10 days there. It has been merely 2000-plus years since the Buddha came to this world. Is this time long or short? This period is very short in the heavens, especially because there are many heavens above the Heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings and Trayastrimsa Heaven. In other words, our lives in the world are short and fleeting. Nevertheless, only in this world can we hear the Buddhas teachings, so this life is essential and important. So even though this life is temporary, we can encounter the Buddha-Dharma, we can receive His teachings. So we must take very good care of our wisdom-life. For our wisdom-life to grow, we must grow in wisdom. Once we have wisdom, we can truly be nourished by the teachings. Only when we are nourished by the Buddha-Dharma can our wisdom-life grow. Therefore, we must treat every single word as the marrow of our Dharma. Each word is very essential. Each word nourishes our wisdom-life. Therefore, we need to cherish the Dharma. Each word is a treasure and is the Dharma, thus we prostrate and pay respect to every word. With every prostration we are getting closer to the Dharma-assembly at Vulture Peak. We must have this mindset. So, as we come across such auspicious opportunities today, we really should cherish them. As we make prostrations to the sutra, every prostration takes us one step closer. Every word is a drop of Dharma-essence. With utmost reverence we need to work to understand its content and realize the magnificence of the Vulture Peak Assembly. We each have a stupa within. There is no need to seek Buddha-Dharma far away. Indeed, our minds are training grounds, so it is best to practice at this inner stupa. So, we should be respectful and grateful at all times. We especially should be reverent and seek the Dharma diligently. When we treat every word as a jewel, we can advance step by step. Every drop of Dharma-essence will then nurture our wisdom-life. So everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 2 – Lotus Sutra Preface (2)

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>> A sincere thought can pervade the trichiliocosm and reach all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. May all Dharma-protectors forever safeguard us. May we reverently invite them, with their compassion, to guard this. Tzu Chi training ground, where the teachings of the Jing-Si Dharma-lineage are practiced.

>> Today we vow to take refuge. May we transcend the sea of life and death.

>> We wholeheartedly prostrate to our fundamental teacher, Sakyamuni Buddha. We wholeheartedly prostrate to. Many Treasures Buddha of the past. We wholeheartedly prostrate to the emanations of. Sakyamuni Buddha in all ten directions. We wholeheartedly prostrate to all Buddhas of the Lotus Sutra and of the ten directions and Three Periods.

>> We wholeheartedly prostrate to the Buddhas and. Bodhisattvas at the Lotus Dharma-assembly for the Lotus Sutra and to the wondrous treasure of yi (one, whole).

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Every day, with utmost sincerity we enter this place of spiritual practice. From across the entire universe, we invite the assembly of all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to gather. This sincere thought can pervade the trichiliocosm and reach all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas so they will hear the voice of our heart. You may remember a story I have told before. There was an honest county magistrate who was uncorrupted and upright, who treated all the people in the county like his own children. He truly cared for them like a parent, so he was loved and respected by all. When he grew old, he retired and returned to the countryside. But as he had been honest all his life, his family had no savings, and were very poor. He also brought his daughter back to the village with him. A few years later, this aging magistrate got sick. What could they do once he got sick? They had no money to see a doctor and they lived in a very rural area; what could they do? His daughter thought of praying to the Buddha, but she had to look after her father and could not go to the temple to pay respect. What could she do? A Dharma master told her, If you are sincere, no matter how far away you are, your reverent thoughts can be heard by all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. So every day at home, set up an incense table by the door that faces the temple. Pay your respects there every day, and pray sincerely. That will do. Because she was mindful, after she heard the Dharma masters words, on her way home, she counted her footsteps and kept track of the time. So she knew that going from her home to the temple took this many steps, this much time. Every morning by the incense table, she sincerely [paid respect] in this way: The number of steps to the temple was the number of times she prostrated. Each prostration equaled one step. Moreover, after prostrating, she even circumambulated the Buddha. She was very devout. Perhaps her devotion was felt; her father got better day by day. After he recovered, this young lady kept up this ritual every day, in the hopes that her father would be happy and healthy. In that same year, a young scholar placed first in the National Exams and then returned home to pay respect to his ancestors. The scholars mother felt that her son had been blessed by the Buddha. Since he had fared so well, when he returned home, she felt he should first pay respect at the temple. So, the scholars mother sent someone to the temple with this message, My son, the scholar, will light the first censer of incense. So that morning, nobody else went to light the incense. The scholar arrived very early. But when he showed up, there was already incense in the censer; three sticks of incense were burning. He thought, My mother clearly said that I will light the first censer of incense. How could this happen? Thats ok, I will come earlier tomorrow. He arrived earlier the next day, but again three sticks of incense were already lit. The scholar was very unhappy. The abbot said, That is odd. We did not! Truly, none of us lit that first censer of incense. Why are there 3 sticks of incense every day? The scholar thought it was strange. Since monastics do not lie, it was impossible [that they had done it]. Thus he said, Ok, I will stay here tonight. Tomorrow morning, I will see who lights the incense. So that night he stayed in the temple. In the morning, before dawn, he was watchful. Indeed, there was clearly a girl. He clearly saw the figure of a girl. The temple door was not yet open, but she was already inside. She prostrated sincerely and then circumambulated the Buddha. He told this to the abbot. Then it occurred to the abbot, The girl you mentioned actually exists. She is the daughter of a former county magistrate. When he retired, he returned here. Not long ago, the county magistrate fell sick. His daughter was very devoted and watched over him, day and night. She sincerely wanted to pray here, but could not come. Once I told her to set up an incense table by her door and prostrate towards the temple. Perhaps her piety is the reason that at this time every day, as she is praying, the power of her sincerity brings her presence here. The scholar heard this story and thought it was inconceivable such a thing could happen. So he went to visit the former county magistrate. When he saw the daughter serve tea, he was startled. Undoubtedly, she was the girl who lit incense and prayed early in the temple. The scholar was very moved, and greatly admired the girls beauty. So, he went home and told his mother, Quickly, send someone to propose marriage. Thus, this wonderful union came to be. The county magistrate had a scholar as his son-in-law and this became a story that people in the village loved to tell. They all enjoyed recounting this tale. So, from this we know that if we reverently pay respect to the Buddha, if we are sincere, miraculous things will happen. This is a form of devotion. If we are devout, the thoughts arising from our sincerity can be heard by all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and pervade the trichiliocosm. Depending on the strength of our piety, even heavenly Dharma-protectors will surely come and always watch over us. So in our spiritual training ground, every day we practice with great sincerity. For the Dharma-protectors who guard this place, we feel a sense of gratitude and respect. Let us give rise to a sense of veneration and reverently invite them to guard us.

A sincere thought can pervade the trichiliocosm and reach all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. May all Dharma-protectors forever safeguard us. May we reverently invite them, with their compassion, to guard this. Tzu Chi training ground, where the teachings of the Jing-Si Dharma-lineage are practiced.

This is the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism, the Jing Si Dharma-lineage. In Tzu Chi, the method we use for group practice is to prostrate to and chant the Lotus Sutra. In Jing Si Halls across Taiwan, and in all our offices, when we practice together, arent we bowing to and chanting the Lotus Sutra? So, we revere and treasure every word in the Lotus Sutra Preface. Thus, we prostrate and chant sincerely. This is a characteristic practice of Tzu Chi. This spiritual training ground is also called the Jing Si Dharma-lineage, the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism. Usually when we are engaged in group practice, we bow to and chant the Preface of the Lotus Sutra. I hope that when we practice together, when we bow to and chant the Lotus Sutra, we do so with a mindset of utmost sincerity. As I mentioned yesterday, in addition to our sincere contemplation of all Buddhas, Bodhisattvas across the universe, our offerings of incense and flowers likewise pervade all Dharma-realms. That is an expression of our piety, and it dignifies our place of practice. In every moment, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas grace us with their presence and surround this place, so we must be very sincere in the way we prostrate. We hope to thoroughly understand this Great Vehicle Sutra and the principles of the doors of the intrinsic and the manifest, and to thoroughly comprehend the Dharma, the analogies etc. Whether one aspires to practice the Great Vehicle or only to follow the Small Vehicle, everyone can understand this Great Vehicle Dharma, and turn from the Small to the Great Vehicle. I hope we can all awaken and realize the Buddha-Dharma from deep within our hearts. Thus, the Preface states that we need to take refuge. We need to sincerely take refuge and dedicate our body and life to spiritual practice because we hope we will be able to transcend the sea of life and death.

Today we vow to take refuge. May we transcend the sea of life and death.

In life, life and death is a state of mind. Does everyone die only once in a lifetime? No, our thoughts are constantly arising and ceasing. So let us turn thoughts that arise and cease into something ever-lasting and, with vows as vast as the universe, we remain unwavering. Thus we can transcend the sea of life and death. So, we are not simply speaking of a lifespan of several decades, or of a century. Definitely not. We are now speaking of the arising and ceasing of every thought. I often tell everybody about the four states of the mind, arising, abiding, changing and ceasing. These all take place in our minds. Good thoughts arise and cease. A good thought arises, but then quickly ceases. So, when we make a vow, we cannot persevere to the end because we cannot maintain our will and tend to quickly change our minds. This is a form of laziness and this is how evil thoughts arise. Evil thoughts also arise and cease. We should remember to first turn our present thoughts into everlasting ones. We can transcend arising and ceasing thoughts. This is what we must thoroughly understand and then practice with perseverance. So, let us sincerely prostrate.

We wholeheartedly prostrate to our fundamental teacher, Sakyamuni Buddha. We wholeheartedly prostrate to. Many Treasures Buddha of the past. We wholeheartedly prostrate to the emanations of. Sakyamuni Buddha in all ten directions. We wholeheartedly prostrate to all Buddhas of the Lotus Sutra and of the ten directions and Three Periods.

”Prostrate to our fundamental teacher,” Sakyamuni Buddha is the founder of our religion, the Great Enlightened One of the universe. So, we must prostrate very sincerely and prostrate to Many Treasures Buddha of the past. This Buddha came to this world as a witness, to testify at the Lotus Dharma-Assembly so that we would more strongly believe that Buddhas of the past, present and future share the same path. Many Treasures Buddha of the past verified the Dharma expounded by the present Buddha. So, we must be grateful and prostrate to all Buddhas in the Lotus Sutra and of the ten directions and Three Periods. We need to be aware that there are many Buddhas in the Lotus Sutra. In the process of chanting the Lotus Sutra, we need to keep in mind that many, countless worlds exist. How many are there above and below? They cover the universe of the ten directions and Three Periods of Time. There are Buddhas all across the universe. At the Lotus Dharma-Assembly, there are many Buddhas from all the ten directions.

We wholeheartedly prostrate to the Buddhas and. Bodhisattvas at the Lotus Dharma-assembly for the Lotus Sutra and to the wondrous treasure of yi (one, whole).

Aside from all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the Dharma-realms of the universe, there are some who were listening to the Buddha teach the Dharma at the Lotus Dharma-Assembly. When we pay respect, we must prostrate and visualize this image, that we are surrounded by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. We must have this devout mindset when we prostrate. In the past, alone in my small wooden cabin, I prostrated until I was filled with Dharma-joy. One time, as I prostrated, I suddenly felt my surroundings filled with a luminous light, very gentle, like the moon at the Mid-Autumn Festival, so perfectly round and radiant. It was a very gentle and tender light. With great reverence, I felt that that state was filled with a beautiful, perfect and soft light. At the Lotus Dharma-Assembly, this kind of state emerged constantly. Though I was not doing it for a long time, I prostrated and chanted with great sincerity, so that state manifested. You know, such Dharma-joy is indescribable. Every time I prostrate, when my head touches the ground, I think of that state. Everyone, this sincere state of mind is absolutely not illusory or unreal, not a visual or auditory hallucination. Absolutely not. We must all train our minds so that when we face any person, matter or condition, we will use a selfless and pure mind to deal with everything. As we chant the Buddhas name and prostrate with a pure and selfless mindset, that is called sincerity. So everyone, if every morning we treat this training ground as the assembly at Vulture Peak, at that moment we will have instantly pervaded the trichiliocosm. Presently, we are also at Vulture Peak during the time when the Buddha taught. So, as long as we are very sincere, a distance of over 2000 years means nothing. With a heart of sincerity, we have already returned to the Buddhas. Lotus Dharma-Assembly at Vulture Peak. Sincerity in prayer is very crucial, especially when prostrating to and chanting the Lotus Sutra. Every word in it is precious, so we must chant every word sincerely. Everyone, please always be mindful.