Category: TLS Chapter 1

Episode 54 – Practice and Perfect Precepts, Samadhi, Wisdom

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>> “Such are the Great Arhats, and others, whom the assembly knew and recognized. Moreover, 2000 people were at or beyond the stage of learning.”

>>We have many acquaintances in the world but only a few people truly know us. Out of those 12,000 people, only 21 were known and recognized. Such were the great Arhats, and others, whom the assembly knew and recognized.

>> “Those who were known and recognized were called teachers and friends. Once we learn their name they are known, once we meet them we recognize them. To know means to understand. To recognize means to clearly understand.”

>> They were called great Arhats. All present were Arhats but not all had attained the ultimate state of Arhatship, such as those like Ananda 2000 people were at or beyond the stage of learning, among them inner protectors, Hearers and bhiksus, virtuous ones of the assembly who were not named.

>> Hearers and others practice precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. Those who have not perfected their studies are still at the stage of learning.

>> Those who have advanced toward perfection have already attained the fruit of Arhat. They are beyond the stage of learning and have no further need to study.

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“Such are the Great Arhats, and others, whom the assembly knew and recognized. Moreover, 2000 people were at or beyond the stage of learning.”

Earlier in the Lotus Sutra, it was mentioned that in this assembly, there were 12,000 bhiksus and bhiksunis. The great Arhats were introduced first, starting from Kaundinya and ending with Ananda and Rahula. In total, there were 21. Among the many in the assembly, only 21 were introduced. So, it is said that.

We have many acquaintances in the world but only a few people truly know us. Out of those 12,000 people, only 21 were known and recognized. Such were the great Arhats, and others, whom the assembly knew and recognized.

This tells us all that though this was a huge assembly with many people, only a few were able to be recognized. These 21 people could be said to be the representatives, because they had both talent and virtue. They were replete in talents and virtues so they were well-respected and looked up to. Therefore they represented those who were “known and recognized.” To be known means when someone asks, “Do you know who he is?” the answer is “Yes, I have heard of him.” Knowing someone implies recognition. To be known and recognized means they were around the Buddha and He could call out their names.

In addition, they could spread His teachings on. His behalf to those outside the Sangha. They were known and recognized as teachers, as well as friends by their fellow spiritual practitioners. Besides the Buddha’s four groups of disciples and the bhiksus and bhiksunis, everyone else knew these 21 people as well. Surely, whether they practiced within the group or outside, they were recognized by everyone.

But did the more than ten thousand people mentioned earlier all know each other? That was probably impossible. So when it came to these 21 people, besides the people who knew them as teachers and friends, many others knew them well, too. This is why they are called teachers and friends.

Once we learn people’s name, they are known to us. Once we have met them, we recognize them. A person who is known is someone people have heard of but have not met. Once they meet the person, he or she is recognized. For example, Maudgalyayana and Sariputra are names we have heard. But without meeting them, there is no way to know that this is Sariputra and that is Maudgalyayana. After meeting them face to face and being introduced, then we know who is who. Then we can recognize them. That [goes beyond only] knowing. To know means to understand. To recognize means to clearly understand.

“Those who were known and recognized were called teachers and friends. Once we learn their name they are known, once we meet them we recognize them. To know means to understand. To recognize means to clearly understand.”

These 21 people were understood and recognized by everyone in the Sangha. They were respected and praised by all. They could understand the Buddha-Dharma and perceive the truth.

They clearly understood the Buddha’s 42 years of teachings, which spanned the Agama, Vaipulya and Prajna periods. They could clearly identify the Small and Great Vehicle teachings. They knew which methods they should teach to resonate with each person’s capability and knew who could be taught according their circumstances. So, these few people spread the Buddha’s teachings on His behalf and also stayed by His side. Therefore, they are called the great Arhats.

In addition, the words “and others” means that these 21 were not the only Arhats. Rather, a majority of those 12,000 people had already attained Arhatship. Some of them, but not all, had attained the ultimate stage of Arhatship. Ananda is a well-known example of that. You may all remember that after the Buddha entered Parinirvana, in order to compile the sutras, Venerable Kasyapa criticized Ananda. Because he had not eliminated all his afflictions, he was sent away from the place where they were to compile the sutras. This showed everyone that even among the Arhats, not everyone had attained Arhatship. There were many people like Ananda.

“Moreover, 2000 people were at or beyond the stage of learning.” Those at or beyond the stage of learning were “inner protectors and Hearers.” The Buddha had four groups of disciples. I am talking about the two groups of inner protectors, the two groups of monastics called bhiksus and bhiksunis. Most of their names were not listed, but they were all virtuous. Their names were simply not listed.

They were called great Arhats. All present were Arhats but not all had attained the ultimate state of Arhatship, such as those like Ananda 2000 people were at or beyond the stage of learning, among them inner protectors, Hearers and bhiksus, virtuous ones of the assembly who were not named.

Among the monastic practitioners, all who were Hearers cultivated precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. Some of them had not perfected their studies. They were “at the stage of learning.” Does everyone understand this? This means that their studies were incomplete. Let us use college as an analogy. This is like going through the first, second and third year but not yet entering the fourth. Perhaps after college graduation, we are still studying for a master’s degree. After finishing the master’s program, we are still pursuing a doctorate. This indicates that we have not yet reached the peak of our studies, we have not completed our doctoral degree. This means that the ones who are incomplete in their practice of precepts, Samadhi and wisdom are known as “those who are at the stage of learning.”

Precepts, Samadhi and wisdom are important methods of practice for us spiritual practitioners. When we practice without precepts, we cannot still our minds. If our minds cannot be stilled, that is because we have many afflictions. Why are there afflictions? Because we did not guard against wrongs and stop evils. We did not abide by the disciplines of our path. Therefore, our minds cannot be still, calm or peaceful. So firstly, we must uphold precepts. Once we uphold them, our hearts can be still.

Only when our hearts are still can we clearly understand things with our wisdom. So, cultivating and learning the Buddha-Dharma requires precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. They are called the Three Flawless Studies. We must remember that a Leak, or flaw, is an affliction. If we have precepts, Samadhi and wisdom our minds can be free of afflictions. If we have not perfected the Flawless Studies, then we still have more to learn.

Hearers and others practice precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. Those who have not perfected their studies are still at the stage of learning.

Everyone, we may still have much to learn, so we must be proactive and diligent. Life passes easily and time flies by quickly. “With each passing day, we draw closer to death.” Our body is a vessel for spiritual cultivation. Only by having a body can we be present in the human realm. We can learn from all things in this world and all sentient beings. Without our fellow sentient beings, we would not have the opportunity to practice and learn.

The Buddha’s teachings are all designed for sentient beings. If we cannot apply them, it is as if we are just reading about them, rather than really analyzing them. Without analysis, we cannot confirm the concepts we read. To learn the Buddha’s teachings, we must truly put it into action. Among the multitudes of sentient beings, we learn to understand what their afflictions are and what their spiritual illnesses are. How do we relieve those illnesses? And how can we eliminate their afflictions? That is the most important goal for the Buddha in coming to the human realm. Since we are Buddhist practitioners, we must be like the Buddha.

Aside from practicing His principles, we must apply His teachings. We must take concrete actions to seek the path to Buddhahood and transform sentient beings. So as we interact with many people, we have a lot to learn until we can reach a level of spiritual cultivation where we will not be tempted by external conditions and where our minds cannot be stirred by various kinds of desires. If we can reach that level, our cultivation of precepts is sufficient.

Among the multitudes of sentient beings, each has different habitual tendencies, and each has different afflictions. In particular, there are many traps of desire in this world. We must tread very gingerly, as if we are walking on thin ice. Then our minds will not be tempted by external conditions. Then the different habitual tendencies among sentient beings will not trigger our afflictions. Having no anger or ignorance shows that our minds are already peaceful and still. It means we are calmly abiding in Buddha-Dharma. This refers to precepts and Samadhi.

If we are easily affected by people, and become enraged or afflicted, this indicates that our level of practice is inadequate. So, we should be more proactive in being mindful and training ourselves. When we have afflictions, the problem lies in ourselves, not in others. When our state of Samadhi is insufficient, we need to be more diligent. If our Samadhi is sufficient, naturally, our wisdom will grow. Then when we face a myriad of sentient beings, we can teach according to their capabilities and not be bothered by the challenges they pose. When we have clarity of wisdom, nothing in the world will be difficult.

So, we must make an effort to practice precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. We still have so much room for growth; this means we have not reached a sufficient level of practice and still need to learn. Those who have not perfected their practice are “those who are at the stage of learning.” There is still room to learn.

Those who have attained the fruits of Arhat are beyond the stage of learning and have completely eliminated all afflictions. They can then realize the fruits, from the initial fruit to the second, third and fourth. Based on their skills in the Three Flawless Studies, if they can thoroughly comprehend these teachings, they will have no conflicts in this world, over matters or with others. Then they can let go of all afflictions and surpass the stage of learning.

Sometimes we should self-reflect. Do we still have any issues with others over whether things are right or wrong, long or short? Do we still argue over such things with others? When we encounter complicated matters, do we have clarity or not? If we are clear, if we understand the truth, matters can be resolved quickly. We clearly understand that right is right, and wrong is wrong. But right or wrong depends on people’s perspective. So, if we can understand the principles of interpersonal conflicts, we will have no disputes or expectations. Then we can be beyond the stage of learning and “have no further need to learn.”

Those who have advanced toward perfection have already attained the fruit of Arhat. They are beyond the stage of learning and have no further need to study.

Everyone, have we reached this level? Learning the Buddha’s teachings sounds easy, but to have true mastery of it is quite difficult. These difficulties come about because even a slight deviation in our thoughts will lead us far astray. Thus, practicing the Buddha’s teachings is about taking good care of our hearts. If we are always mindful in practicing precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, we will not deviate in the slightest from the truths in life.

So, the Buddha expounded the Lotus Sutra with the hope that these disciples, the monastic and Small Vehicle practitioners, could turn from Small to Great [Vehicle]. There were 12,000 people in the assembly, and many of them had advanced from the stage of learning to beyond the stage of learning. We can imagine what a grand scene it was. All the monastics assembled to hear the Buddha expound the Lotus Sutra.

Truly, “we have many acquaintances in the world but only a few people truly know us.” Though there are many people in the world, only a few have right thoughts and right faith. This was the case even when the Buddha was alive, let alone now in the era of Dharma-degeneration. So, it is not easy to encounter Buddha-Dharma and walk on the Bodhisattva-path. Once we enter the Buddha doors, we have started walking the Bodhisattva-path. We ought to be very grateful.

People of different times have different capabilities, This sutra is most suitable for people right now. The time is for us to turn to the Great [Vehicle] and benefit both ourselves and others. Life is full of suffering, so this world needs Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattvas arise because of suffering beings. Everyone, we should form Bodhisattva-aspirations and enter the Bodhi-path. The journey is still long. Everyone, please be always mindful.

Episode 53 – Rahula, Son of the Buddha

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>> Be vigilant, cause and effect cannot be avoided. In our every action, we must firmly believe that with one mistaken thought, we will hinder ourselves and give rise to karma.

>>Rahula means Repeated-Obstructions. Because he blocked up a rat’s nest for six days, he remained in the womb for six years. Therefore, he is called Repeated-Obstructions.

>> Such are those the assembly knew and recognized. There were 21 people in all. They had talents and virtues, so they were respected and admired.

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We must always be careful.

Be vigilant, cause and effect cannot be avoided. In our every action, we must firmly believe that with one mistaken thought, we will hinder ourselves and give rise to karma.

In our daily living all the things that we do are inseparable from the karmic law of cause and effect. With one wrong move, we create a karmic cause. With one facial expression or one mistaken word, we create a negative affinity. If we have negative causes and affinities, when we die, though we take nothing, our karma will follow us. Each cause is like a seed; one can give rise to infinity. So we should not say, “This is just a minor mistake, just let it be. There is nothing to worry about.” But there is. A huge tree is grown from a little seed. So, with every seed, with every cause, we must be very careful and vigilant.

We must remember that the law of cause and effect cannot be averted, so we must be vigilant in our daily living. If we want to do something, first we must carefully consider it. Is it the right or wrong thing to do? We absolutely cannot do the wrong thing. If we made an unintentional mistake, it happened because of our habitual tendencies. We always have these habitual tendencies. We do not intentionally offend others, but when we speak we may unintentionally say something that harms someone’s spiritual aspiration. A careless remark may cause people to hold grudges.

So, we must change our habitual tendencies so that we can speak good and kind words whenever we see people. If we see something displeasing, however, we must also be understanding. If something causes us great unhappiness, we must still be accommodating. We must be understanding, accommodating, and open-minded. Even if someone intentionally bothers us, if we can be understanding and accommodating, we can transform bad affinities into good ones. So, we must be open-minded, understanding and accommodating. If we can gradually correct our mistakes in this way, we can transform our arrogance into openness and understanding. We can turn a habitual tendency of abusive speech into one of encouragement and kind words. If we can do so, we can certainly transform negative affinities into positive ones.

So in our daily living, we must be vigilant. We need to pay attention to how we interact with people and things. We should know that with one mistaken thought, we will hinder ourselves and give rise to karma. When we hinder ourselves, karmic forces will arise. No one else hindered us; we did it ourselves. We created the cause that resulted in the karmic retributions we face.

Take a look at Rahula. Rahula means Repeated-Obstructions. He obstructed himself and obstructed others as well. These layers of obstructions are called repeated obstructions.

Rahula means Repeated-Obstructions. Because he blocked up a rat’s nest for six days, he remained in the womb for six years. Therefore, he is called Repeated-Obstructions.

The Buddha once spoke of this in a sutra. Rahula’s mother, Yasodhara, gave birth to him after six years of pregnancy. Basically in those six years, he was in a womb-prison and received no exposure to daylight. This was a case of self-obstruction. The same thing happened to his mother. His mother was pregnant for six years. We know usually a woman’s pregnancy lasts around ten months, but for her it was six years. In those six years, everyone was suspicious, especially because the Buddha’s wife, Yasodhara announced her pregnancy after He became a monk.

We must know that, for Indian women, chastity is very important. So during that time, not only were people in the palace suspicious, all the citizens of the country were as well. They even felt resentful and offended. As a king’s daughter-in-law and crown princess, even if the crown prince left home to be a monk, she should still be faithful to him. So, the whole nation misunderstood her. When her belly began to swell, everyone knew she was pregnant. But after six years, she had not yet given birth. These suspicions accumulated over six years.

We may have chanted, “Yasodhara avoided calamities; flames were transformed into a red lotus,” a verse of praise from. “The True Fragrance of Precepts and Samadhi.” This describes Yasodhara, who experienced all kinds of suffering at that time. When others gave birth, everyone was happy. But when she gave birth, everyone was angry, even the people in the palace. Not only were people suspicious of her, they censured her. Therefore, the king could not forgive her.

The tradition in that land was to burn a woman if she was unfaithful. So, a fire basin was set up and a big fire was lit. Yasodhara carried her child in her arms. With her little baby, she stood by the fire. She prayed to the heavens, “This child of mine is truly the son of Crown Prince Siddhartha. I did not do anything wrong. If I have done something wrong, I am willing to jump into the pit of fire with my child and die in the flames. If I did not do anything wrong, may the heavens bless me and be my witness!”

After she said this, she held her child in her arms and jumped into the pit of fire. Suddenly a giant lotus bloomed and floated above the fire and caught her. Mother and son stood on top of the lotus, safe and sound. When the people saw this, they thought it was inconceivable. Since this happened, he must be the son of Crown Prince Siddhartha. So, the whole nation began to believe it and jubilation filled the country.

Over ten years later, the Buddha attained enlightenment, transformed sentient beings, assembled the Sangha, and returned to the palace. Yasodhara called to her son, who was still very young, to bring Joy-buns, or sweet dumplings, as an offering to his father. The adorable Rahula was truly innocent and pure. He did not know who his father was. Since the men there were all monastics, this was another test to see whom his father was. This child was so young. He walked among the monks with the Joy-buns and ended up in front of the Buddha. He offered him the Joy-buns. The Buddha smiled and accepted them. Everyone was very delighted. Father and son naturally shared a bond.

So in any case, this was the legend of Rahula. He was born after six years of pregnancy. This was acknowledged and accepted by everyone.

Why did Rahula remain in his mother’s womb for six years before his birth? The Buddha explained Rahula’s karmic conditions. A very long time ago, there was a naughty child who saw a running rat. This rat darted into a hole. The boy was very naughty so he took a rock and blocked the entrance. He then packed in the edges with soil because he was a mischievous boy. After six days passed, he finally thought of the rat in the hole. Was it still alive? He went back and dug into the soil and removed the stone. The rat came out and was barely alive.

The Buddha said, “This boy was Rahula in a past life.” Though it was a childish game, an unintentional mistake of a child’s playfulness, the rat spent six days in the hole. The rat starved and did not see the sunlight, so it felt hatred in its heart. When it was released, it was barely alive. That was the cause Rahula had created, so for several lifetimes, he faced this kind of retribution.

And there was also another story. Once, a spiritual practitioner embarked a journey on foot and suddenly felt very thirsty. He spotted a lotus pond and bent down to scoop up water to drink. After drinking it, he realized, “This pond must belong to someone. I did not get the approval of the owner before scooping up and drinking the water. I should hurry and repent.” But who was the owner? Nobody knew, so he came to the king and told him, “I have transgressed. I was very thirsty just now so. I scooped up and drank some water from a pond. I don’t know who owns the pond, but you are the ruler of the city, so I should repent to you.”

At that time, the king thought, “It is not a big deal. Any passerby can drink water. You have not transgressed.” The man then said, “I did not get the permission of the owner before drinking the water, so I have transgressed. You have to punish me. I am busy,” said the king. As the crown prince passed by, he told him, “Please take this man to the garden in the back. Show him around. When I am available, I will talk to him again.” This crown prince, a young man, brought him to the garden. Then he said, “Please wait here for now.” The young man felt he had other things to do. He wanted to have fun, so he left.

This practitioner stood there for six days, he dared not sit or move. He had nothing to eat, nothing to drink. Six days later, the king wondered, “What happened to that spiritual practitioner?” So, he asked his son. He replied, “You said to take him to the garden, so I did.” They hurriedly went to look. The man was still standing there. The king quickly called him over and apologized to him. He said, “These six days were your punishment.” The Buddha continued the story by saying, “The prince’s unintentional mistake caused a practitioner to starve for six days. In this way, he created this cause. This was also one of Rahula’s past lives.”

You see, Rahula once blocked the rat’s hole and once made a practitioner suffer for six days. These unintentional mistakes, one after another, led to his imprisonment in the womb for six years. He also created obstructions for his mother. Therefore He was called Repeated-Obstructions because they happened again and again.

The Buddha felt that since the child had been born in the palace, he needed to promptly become a monastic and engage in spiritual practice. But the Buddha’s father was unwilling. And the boy’s mother also refused. When Yasodhara heard about this, she was stunned and quickly grabbed her son’s hand. She hurriedly led him upstairs, but Venerable Maudgalyayana leapt into the air to retrieve the child. The Buddha made a great effort to guide him to become a monastic.

Such a young child needed to be taught, so he selected Sariputra to be Rahula’s teacher. Rahula became Sariputra’s disciple. But when Rahula was a young boy in the Sangha, he was still very mischievous. But in terms of the Buddha-Dharma, he was foremost in secret practice. Though he appeared mischievous, in his mind, he was silently engaging in spiritual practice.

In conclusion, among the Buddha’s disciples, we have brought up 21 people, each with his own past, his own strengths, and his own causes and conditions.

Such are those the assembly knew and recognized. There were 21 people in all. They had talents and virtues, so they were respected and admired.

We must believe in the law of karma; cause and effect cannot be avoided. So, we must be vigilant and very careful all the time. We must know that in everything we do and say and how we treat people, we should be mindful and avoid any deluded thoughts or missteps. Even if there is only one deluded thought or one wrong step, we still cannot avoid cause and effect. So everyone, please always mindful.

Episode 52 – Subhuti and the Venerable Ananda

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>> “All conditioned things are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow, are like a dew drop or a flash of lightning. They should be contemplated as such.”

>> The day he was born, the treasures of his family vanished completely. His parents were shocked. Thus he was also named Empty-born. His nature was kind and good, he did not create conflicts over objects. After he became a monastic, he realized emptiness and attained the path. Subhuti was foremost in grasping the truth of emptiness.

>> Ananda’s name means Celebrating-Joy. He was the Buddha’s cousin, son of Dronodana, and younger brother of Devadatta. The Agama Sutra states: He was so knowledgeable about time and matters that he had no doubts. So Ananda was foremost in all that he heard and understood.

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In life, what is real? What is illusory? We learn the Buddha’s teachings to recognize the truth and to see through illusions. This is what we need to understand. The Buddha-Dharma is perfect and complete. It tells us what is true and helps us understand emptiness. That is the essence of Buddha-Dharma. There is this phrase in the Diamond Sutra,

“All conditioned things are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow, are like a dew drop or a flash of lightning. They should be contemplated as such.”

Is this world real? Unreal? “All conditioned things are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow. Conditioned things” are contrived. These are the things we can see. For example, this house has not always existed. To protect ourselves from wind and rain, we want a house to live in. To build a house, we need to use sand, cement, rebar, bricks and many other things. We carefully build and assemble them so that they become a house. The materials come from the earth and then through manual labor, these things are created. In the past, they did not exist; now they do. But what about in the future? Will they exist forever?

We often hear about archaeologists continually digging and excavating in the desert. Several meters below the surface, they uncover cities from thousands of years ago. They also dig up palaces and historic relics of communal living from those time periods. Sometimes we get a sense that at some point in time, these sites must have been prosperous and well-populated places. The architecture was also magnificent. Why was it covered by sand? And not just by a thin layer, but buried several meters deep? How could this have happened? Over thousands of years, great changes take place. Even high mountains and deep valleys may erode into flat plains. These are all conditioned material objects, and “all conditioned things are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow.”

Consider the events of yesterday and your dreams from last night’s sleep, are the things we may have dreamed real? Or are the people and matters we encountered yesterday real? If you want to say yesterday’s events are real, then show them to me. They have passed, they cannot be seen, just like what we dreamed last night. The dreams may seem distinct and clear, but if we want to bring them up and look at them, they are gone. The people, matters and objects we encountered yesterday are as real as the things we dreamt of. They are like dreams, illusions, bubbles and shadows. They are truly fragile and temporary. All things in this world are fragile. For example, bubbles

on the surface of water. When a wave is cresting, the bubbles form for just a brief moment. Then another wave arrives, and the bubbles are destroyed. Birth and death, arising and ceasing, are also like shadows. When we see a person’s shadow and step on it, he or she does not feel anything. It is just the image of the person; nothing happens when we step on it. But this shadow follows the person’s movement; it is not always in the same place. When a person walks by, we see a shadow. When that person leaves, the shadow is gone. The shadow does not obstruct the ground, and people do not obstruct the shadow, so this shadow is also an illusion. Isn’t life this way?

For example, when we walk, our feet do not take the road along with us. Living this human life is like walking. The soles of our feet are not glued to the road, and the road is not stuck to our feet. So, we simply leave traces in places where we have walked, but the traces disappear quickly,

“like a dew drop and a flash of lightning.” Actually, all living things need dew, need water. Living in this world, we truly receive the grace of all things. So we often say, we must be grateful for the grace of parents, of heaven and earth, of teachers [and of all sentient beings]. For our entire lifetime, we have received this grace and kindness. This is like how the grass and trees on earth also need the grace and kindness of the rain. Our lives are the same. We have to be grateful for all the grace and kindness that we have received, and repay them.

It is like the dew, which is moisture in the air that collects into dewdrops and returns to the earth. This is a cycle, and the cycle of life is similar to that of dew. Dew quickly dries up and evaporates but then also quickly returns. Life is similar to this phenomenon.

It is also like a flash of light. Shortly before dawn, we see faint sunlight appear. This is the result of the Earth’s rotation, When this side of the Earth faces the Sun, the Sun’s light hits this surface. Life is made up of a similar aggregate of actions. We are unaware that things keep moving very quickly in a continuity of single moments, like lightning or a flash of light, or like rain and dew. In our lives things are endlessly moving, endlessly cycling. We cannot see this, but this principle exists. We should understand these underlying principles.

Normally, we are not aware of this [movement], but the days keep passing by. We experience this endless cycle of birth, aging, illness and death, but we do not make an effort to be vigilant of this. Living in this world, how much of its truths and principles do we really understand? Are we being mindful? There is wondrous existence in true emptiness, and indeed, true emptiness in wondrous existence. If we can fully comprehend this, then we can truly transform ourselves and others. We must learn to be free of attachments and hindrances and to eliminate all afflictions.

Now let us talk about emptiness and the true principles behind it. Among the Buddha’s disciples, the one foremost in understanding emptiness was Subhuti. Subhuti, translated into Chinese, means good and auspicious. He was also called Empty-born.

Why was he called Empty-born? It is said that on the day this venerable one was born, all the treasures in his family’s home disappeared suddenly. Everyone in his family panicked. Why did all the precious jewels disappear at the time this child was born? What kind of omen was this? So, his parents quickly went to find a seer. In ancient India, when a child was born to a wealthy family, they sought a fortune-teller. The seer used the child’s birth date and time to forecast his fate.

When the fortune-teller arrived, he saw the child and learned what had happened so suddenly to his family. He told the child’s parents, “Congratulations! When your child was born, all the family treasures suddenly disappeared. Actually, this is an auspicious sign for him. He will be able to fully comprehend the truth. This is a very honorable sign.” Because of that, he was called good and auspicious. He was also named Empty-born because at his birth all the treasures disappeared.

Ever since he was a child, he was very pure in nature. He was also clever and hard-working. No matter what principles his tutors taught him, whether they were Brahmin teachings or other kinds of principles of the world, he instantly understood them. Not only that, he also realized the principle that all things can be broken down until nothing exists, just emptiness. So, he cherished all things but was not attached to them. He had no desire to own anything and saw through everything in this world. So after he became a monk, his heart was very pure. He did not seek to own anything. When there was conflict, he would take a step back. Therefore, his relationships were harmonious. So, he realized emptiness and attained the path, and abided in the Samadhi of no strife. He did not create conflicts with people or over matters. This is his perfect, harmonious intrinsic nature. So Subhuti was foremost in grasping the truth of emptiness.

The day he was born, the treasures of his family vanished completely. His parents were shocked. Thus he was also named Empty-born. His nature was kind and good, he did not create conflicts over objects. After he became a monastic, he realized emptiness and attained the path. Subhuti was foremost in grasping the truth of emptiness.

In the Diamond Sutra, the Buddha did not lecture Subhuti on the Dharma but rather interacted with him according to his abilities. When He explained the true principles of the world, only Subhuti could comprehend them and converse with Him about them. This conversation validated the principles of people, matters and objects. This was in the Diamond Sutra.

Next [we will discuss] Ananda; Ananda means Celebrating-Joy. We all know that the day Ananda was born was the day the Buddha attained enlightenment. When Ananda was born, the news came that the Buddha had attained enlightenment, so everyone in the palace was very joyous. Therefore, he was called Celebrating-Joy. In particular, Ananda was the Buddha’s cousin and also the younger brother of Devadatta. He was the son of King Suddhodhana’s younger brother, so he was royalty. He became a monastic when he was 20 and followed the Buddha. Everyone recommended that. Ananda become the Buddha’s attendant.

He inherently excelled at listening and memorizing. After he became a monastic, he not only listened to the Buddha teach, he felt that his heart was at ease and free. It was not defiled by the desires of this world. So, his heart was always very pure and he wholeheartedly listened to the Buddha. Therefore, the Buddha-Dharma was like an ocean that flowed into Ananda’s heart. He did not have discursive thoughts. So when he first became a monk, he attained the first fruit, but he did not realize the fourth fruit until the time of compiling [the Buddha’s teachings]. Why?

Does everyone remember? After the Buddha entered Parinirvana, the scriptures were to be compiled. Venerable Kasyapa pulled Ananda out of the assembly and said, “You still have not eliminated all afflictions. You have not attained the fourth fruit. So, you must quickly self-reflect and work hard.” Ananda said, “It is not that I can’t attain it. Because I was the Buddha’s attendant, I had to keep some traces of afflictions.” It was not that Ananda could not attain this, but that he had to deal with worldly matters and serve the Buddha. So when it came time to compile the scriptures, Venerable Kasyapa lent him a helping hand and gave him a period of time to review all the teachings of the Buddha. Then Ananda was able to eliminate all afflictions and attained the fourth fruit of Arhatship.

So the Agama Sutra also states that he was “so knowledgeable about time and objects that he had no doubts.” Ananda knew the Buddha’s routine very well and managed things very precisely. Also, when working with people, Ananda had an acute sense for what to do and when. No matter where the Buddha wanted to go, Ananda was very good at making the arrangements. He arranged their itinerary and clearly knew what needed to be done and when. In the Buddha’s lifetime, Ananda arranged things perfectly without a single misstep. When the Buddha spoke with people, [Ananda] never forgot a word He said. The Dharma entered his heart and he never forgot. Ananda was foremost in hearing everything, understanding and upholding all that he heard. Ananda was foremost in hearing all.

Ananda’s name means Celebrating-Joy. He was the Buddha’s cousin, son of Dronodana, and younger brother of Devadatta. The Agama Sutra states: He was so knowledgeable about time and matters that he had no doubts. So Ananda was foremost in never forgetting anything and reverently upholding all that he heard and understood.

Everyone, learning the Buddha’s teachings requires constant accumulation. We must not let the Dharma we hear leak away. If it leaks away after we hear it, then that is the same as not hearing it. So after hearing it, the Dharma must be applied to our daily living. So, we must always be mindful!

Episode 51 – Purna Maitrayaniputra

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>> One who comprehends true emptiness realizes wondrous existence. Seek tranquility and stillness to understand the wondrous principles of emptiness.

>> “Deeply plant the root of wisdom over lifetimes.”

>> Purna Maitrayaniputra means “Fulfilled, Son of Loving-Kindness.” He was named after his parents. Including the Seven Ancient Buddhas, he was best at expounding the Dharma. He had Four Unobstructed Abilities of Eloquence.

>> Purna Maitrayaniputra was foremost. Purna Maitrayaniputra was foremost in explaining and discerning principles.

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One who comprehends true emptiness realizes wondrous existence. Seek tranquility and stillness to understand the wondrous principles of emptiness.

In our everyday living, we should constantly seek to comprehend whether all things are truly empty. Is there really wondrous existence in emptiness? The Buddha-Dharma explains that according to the truths the Buddha realized, all things and phenomena are empty. But clearly in our living, all things and phenomena exist. We cannot live without material goods. For example, when it is cold in the winter, what do we need? Clothing and blankets. If we do not have warm blankets, then it will be difficult to fall asleep. If we do not have warm clothing, the bitter cold weather will also be difficult to endure.

Actually, in this world, in our daily living, there is the principle of wondrous existence. “Emptiness” is when all things are reduced to nothing, when their embodiment is broken down. What forms their embodiment? The temporary union of the four elements. Just now, I mentioned blankets. As we may know, in the recent past, blankets were made out of cotton. To have cotton, we need seeds. The seeds are planted in the ground and the farmer cultivates them. For cotton plants to grow, one must wait for the right season. There is a season for planting and a season for harvest. When the harvest season arrives, after the plants have blossomed, it is time for us to pick cotton.

Now, in China, cotton is still planted. When cotton fields blossom, it is said that the vast expanse of whiteness is very beautiful. Then the cotton boll is picked and the seeds have to be removed from the boll. After the seeds are taken out, we have what is sold as cotton. After it goes through the manufacturing process, it is turned into blankets. In the past, a process called fluffing cotton was used to make one blanket after another. A person would slowly fluff the cotton so the cotton fibers wove together. After the fibers are slowly teased out, is it finished? We still need cloth [to make the cover].

A comforter cover then has to be manufactured. This piece of cloth also has to be produced through the labor of many people. This cloth is sometimes made out of cotton too, but sometimes silk or hemp; each type is made from a different plant. After harvesting and much weaving, there is cloth. Then that cloth is stuffed with layers of cotton that have already been fluffed. Then this blanket is considered complete.

Everyone, when the blanket covers our body, we are very warm. Do we think about all this? [To make] the blanket that covers us requires so much time and labor. Even if now we do not need to use cotton, and can use some type of nylon instead, the process is the same. So, a very labor intensive process and many different materials are required to form the “embodiment” of a blanket.

What happens when it is disassembled? We may need to remove the comforter cover after long-term use; it will get worn down. If we only use the inner layer, after long-term use the material will loosen. When we visit the impoverished, we often see that their blankets have become tattered pieces. Can those still be called blankets? Not anymore.

So when a material object is taken apart and returned to its elements, that is emptiness. What existed before no longer exists. When many different parts, time, the Four Elements, and labor, etc., come together, then all of a sudden, something exists; that is truly wondrous.

Just talking about how it began with a seed is already very amazing; not only can it grow into a plant, it can also blossom. Truly, all things in the world did not originally exist. But through a subtle and wondrous process, elements come together to form existence. The process takes different amounts of time and produces things with different names. Truly, all things are wondrous. So I also often contemplate this, what is emptiness? I really want to understand what true emptiness is. So, I think about how all things in the world are inherently empty. Even if they exist, they are just names. Something that did not originally exist was formed by combining parts, one by one. That is making something out of nothing. After some time passes, that something becomes nothing again.

Take humans for example. Before our parents gave birth to us, where were we? When we were born, we were so small. There was someone in our [Tzu Chi] hospital who was on her way from Yilan to her mother’s home. As she passed through Hualien, she suddenly had abdominal pains. After less than six months of pregnancy, she gave birth prematurely. When the baby was born in our hospital, she was dark and small and weighed only little more than 17 oz. She was so tiny.

The doctor rushed to save her; how was he to save this child who was not even six months old? How could he ensure that her blood would circulate around her entire body? How could he help her breathe smoothly? He had to give her some shots. I heard that the doctor had to give injections into her tiny blood vessels. Because her veins were hair-thin, the doctor worked hard to find one he needed so he could finally give her that shot.

We must know that sustaining a life requires a doctor who is patient, loving and respectful of life. Since she came into this world, she should be cherished and loved. After she was given supplemental nutrition, she could begin breathing. [Her weight] finally reached 21 oz, but it suddenly dropped to 17 oz and she once again needed urgent care. How many medical personnel were needed? It was really not easy. This is how it is with premature children; their lives are very fragile. But as long as someone cares for them well, even though they are born this way, they will be walking when we see them again in a year. After 10 years, she will probably be in school. After 20 years, she will probably be in college. After 30 years, she will probably be a wife, a mother. See, isn’t life so wondrous? The process of birth, aging, illness and death never stops. This subtle aggregation of actions has kept us going.

This applies to humans; this applies to all things in the world. By the time we are old, where do we return to? Where does this body of ours return to? Later on, when we leave this body, what is our course? Where are we heading? We do not know. Where were we before we were born? Where are we headed after we die? This is the cycle of ordinary people, from emptiness to existence, nothing becoming something. When we age and die, then this something becomes nothing, and we no longer exist in this world. See, isn’t this truly subtle and wondrous?

But how did this principle come about? We are not very clear; this is why we live in a state of confusion. We do not know to cherish what we use. Being able to live healthy lives is not easy, yet we do not know to cherish it. We do not have permanent ownership of this life, yet we do not make the most of our right to use it. We should take advantage of this lifetime, of the convergence of these many good causes and conditions. We have this chance to contemplate the wondrous principles of emptiness, yet we insist on just letting time go by. When we let time pass in vain, we are wasting it. This is our loss as ordinary people. With every bit we lose each day, we are just “like fish in a dwindling pond; what joy is there?” But sentient beings are deluded and see happiness in suffering. Isn’t it pitiful?

So to understand this principle, we must “seek tranquility and stillness to understand the wondrous principles of emptiness.” If we cannot still our mind, then no matter what helpful words we hear, they will enter one ear and go out the other. Perhaps we will hear that person’s voice, but the meaning of the sounds will not be clear to us. Because our mind was not focused, we have to go back and ask again, “What did you say?” This means our mind was not still. So, our mind must be tranquil and still.

People says, “If I need to be tranquil and still, then I have to go into seclusion.” This is not true mastery. When no one bothers us, of course we are tranquil and still. We must also be able to still our mind when we are among others. We must clearly understand the principles of the world around us. Of course, it takes hard work in our daily living to immediately recognize each thing that manifests before us. To know that this piece of cloth is pure cotton, we must have learned about it and how it was produced. Then, when people do not recognize it and ask us about it, we can hold it up, look at it, and know that it is pure cotton. Or we may say, “This is nylon.”

So to understand many things, we should routinely try to learn about the things before us. So we must “seek tranquility and stillness to understand wondrous principles of emptiness.” For even the most complex principles, we can begin this way and accumulate knowledge bit by bit. So, we must understand what the principles [of things] are and even continually cultivate our root of wisdom.

“Deeply plant the root of wisdom over lifetimes.”

We must uphold precepts and Samadhi and keep them in our heart.

This is not saying that in spiritual practice, we are to let go of it all. We must have awakened love; we must spread our love far and wide. But, we must do so with wisdom so not to be confused by material objects.

Whatever we see in this world, whether people, matters or objects, we must have a non-discriminating mind. Because our wisdom is impartial wisdom, we should have open minds and pure intentions toward all people and matters. We must regularly uphold and maintain precepts and Samadhi. Our mind must constantly uphold precepts and our actions must embody Samadhi. Though there is movement around us, our mind will remain very stable. This happens because our mind upholds precepts. Precepts allow us, while among sentient beings, to guard against wrongs and stop evil. The power of the precepts allows our mind to be tranquil. When we have exhausted all Leaks, naturally the Dharma cannot leak away.

Remember Purna Maitrayaniputra? He followed the Buddha to hear the Buddha-Dharma. He realized 1000 things from one lesson; by hearing one thing, he could understand many. He had this wisdom, so he was very eloquent in debates. No matter what kind of non-Buddhists challenged him to a debate, he could, one by one, refute their false doctrines with the Buddha’s teachings.

Purna Maitrayaniputra means “Fulfilled, Son of Loving-Kindness.” He was named after his parents. Including the Seven Ancient Buddhas, he was best at expounding the Dharma. He had Four Unobstructed Abilities of Eloquence.

Also, you should remember that. Maitrayaniputra asked the Buddha to let him go to the most brutal places to transform sentient beings. The Buddha said, “That place is so brutal, do you have the courage to go? I do. What happens if you go expound the Dharma for them and they insult you? I would be very grateful because they use only words, and not actions. If they insult me but do not hit me, I would be grateful. What if they hit you? I would still be grateful that they are only using fists to hit me, and not knives and spears to kill me.”

“What if they use knives and spears to kill you? I would also still be very grateful, because in a past life, I had created this type of affinity with them. So, in this life. I have this karmic connection with this group of people. If we can resolve that [karma] in this life, I would also be grateful to them.” That was how eagerly Purna Maitrayaniputra wanted to spread the Buddha-Dharma. Because he fully comprehended the Buddha’s true principles, the Agama Sutra states the following:

Purna Maitrayaniputra was foremost. Purna Maitrayaniputra was foremost in explaining and discerning principles.

Among the many disciples of the Buddha, he was best at explaining the Dharma. Everyone, in life we truly must be mindful. It is rare to be able to hear the Buddha-Dharma; moreover, we have the conditions to understand it. We must not let a single second pass by in vain. Let us use our heart to gain insight, and always be mindful.

Episode 50 – Cow-Herder Nanda and Sundarananda

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>> We must completely abandon all afflictions and defilements. When we eliminate desires, the mind will not be disturbed. We must uphold and practice the teachings to give rise to precepts, Samadhi, wisdom. When we are nourished with Dharma-essence, wisdom-life will grow.

>> Nanda was also called Cow-herder Nanda and Wholesome-Bliss. He was the son of a cow-herder.

>> The first three syllables of Sundarananda mean loving and can also mean refined. [Sundari] was also the name of Nanda’s wife.

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There are many afflictions in life. How do we engage in spiritual practice? We must start over every day. Every day when I speak, don’t I always start by reminding everyone to “eliminate all afflictions”? When I finish [speaking], I always tell everyone, “Always be mindful.” Every day, from beginning to end and in the middle, everything has to do with our minds.

Therefore, we must completely abandon “all afflictions and defilements.” We must be able to reach the state of eliminating all afflictions. Why can’t all afflictions be eliminated? It is due to our habitual tendencies, and in particular, those of desire. If we can thoroughly “eliminate desires,” then naturally “the mind will not be disturbed.” With this habitual tendency of desiring things, it is not that we are truly lacking, nor is it that we truly need something. Nor do we grasp at things because we are intentionally greedy. Not at all. It is only a habitual tendency that has not yet been eliminated, so it easily confuses our mind. Thus, this habitual tendency manifests.

You may think, “As much as I try, I cannot think of any desires that I have.” Actually, desires can be weak or strong. Subtle desires can be very minor and weak. An example is love for ourselves. Caring for the self is also a type of desire. I often say that we must love ourselves. As people who love ourselves, we must constantly heighten our vigilance toward bad habits. Then naturally, we can come to develop a habit of self-discipline.

This shows that we all have habitual tendencies. When these habitual tendencies manifest unintentionally, we must quickly subdue them. If in that instant, we do not subdue them and act on them, we must immediately self-reflect. This principle is clear. So, if we go against this principle, our afflictions will constantly multiply. Though we have regrets after the fact, if we do not quickly eliminate [these habits], our minds will be disturbed.

Therefore, desires are very coarse [and obvious afflictions]. Because of desires, we create much evil karma. Greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt all arise from desires. Such coarse ways of creating karma are [noticeable] so we can constantly control and eliminate them. But, when it comes to the self, there are still subtle afflictions. This type of desire still has not been eliminated, so these subtle habitual tendencies still exist.

Therefore, what worries us most are these slight habitual tendencies. Eliminating them is more difficult. So, we must always be highly vigilant. “Eliminate desires, and the mind will not be disturbed.” We must eliminate them all. The love that we have for ourselves must be something we can control so that no habitual tendencies will manifest. Then that is true self-love.

We must “uphold and practice teachings to give rise to precepts, Samadhi, wisdom.” We must uphold and practice the teachings of the Buddha. We must make an effort to uphold these precepts. So, if we can do this, naturally precepts, Samadhi and wisdom will protect us and nourish our wisdom-life. Then our principles will not be in disarray. We must have the true Dharma-essence to nourish us so that our wisdom-life will continually grow.

We must completely abandon all afflictions and defilements. When we eliminate desires, the mind will not be disturbed. We must uphold and practice the teachings to give rise to precepts, Samadhi, wisdom. When we are nourished with Dharma-essence, wisdom-life will grow.

These days I have been introducing those whom everyone knew and recognized as Arhats. Arhats also had their own habitual tendencies, as well as their own strengths and weaknesses. I mention this to everyone so we can be more vigilant, and reflect on whether we ourselves have those [weaknesses]. If so, then we must quickly change. As for [strengths] we are lacking, we must learn from them and apply this to ourselves. Thus, as humans, we must [learn to] measure ourselves against good examples and learn to be vigilant from the bad. “Among a group of three, I will find my teacher.”

Next is Nanda, which translates into happiness and felicity. He was very joyful. Actually, he was the son of a cow-herder. Within India’s four-caste system, how could one go from herding cows to becoming a monastic? It must have happened when the Buddha returned to the Kingdom of Kapilavastu to transform His relatives and His father. As soon as He arrived, the whole kingdom rejoiced, and all the people of the kingdom were happy. The king saw that his son had become the Great Enlightened One, respected by everyone. When people saw the Buddha manifest the appearance of a monastic, [they were very touched]. Even his father, the king, led his relatives and ministers to take refuge and pay respect to Him.

At that time, the king wondered how he could make his son’s Sangha even more impressive. So, he issued a decree to his entire kingdom that if a family had two or more sons, one could become a monastic. Besides his citizens, this also applied to those in the royal family. I have shared this part with everyone before. So, it was hoped that this Sangha could grow to have 100,000 monastics.

Nanda herded cows. His father was a cow-herder, and he was also a cow-herder. They were both herdsmen. Because the king issued this decree, he could then leave home and become a monastic. He had a very dignified appearance, and people found him pleasing. He was kind by nature, so he was also called Wholesome-Bliss. He made others happy when they saw him.

When he herded cows, he would begin by playing the flute, or he would play an instrument. Also, he sang very well; he had a great voice. So, he was very smart, pure in heart and kind, and an expert vocalist pure in heart and kind, and an expert in vocals. He not only studied musical instruments, he even developed a very good singing voice. Everyone who heard it felt blissful, so he was called Wholesome-Bliss.

After he became a monastic and entered the path, he was very earnest and diligent. So, he wholeheartedly accepted and upheld the Dharma and the Buddha’s teachings. Thus, he was also one of the bhiksus known and recognized by the assembly. He was very kind and worked hard in practicing the Buddha-Dharma.

Nanda was also called Cow-herder Nanda and Wholesome-Bliss. He was the son of a cow-herder.

There was also another Nanda. This Nanda was known as Sundarananda, who was not the same as the aforementioned cow-herder Nanda. Sundari was the name of his wife, the crown princess he married. She was very beautiful. The husband and wife were very loving. This Nanda had the same father as the Buddha but a different mother.

The first three syllables of Sundarananda mean loving and can also mean refined. [Sundari] was also the name of Nanda’s wife.

One time, Nanda and his wife were in their residential quarters observing the happenings on the street. They looked down on the area surrounding their palace. The area around their building was very beautiful. When he looked a little farther into the distance, Nanda could see the lively city streets. In the middle of it all, he saw members of the Sangha, including Ananda, accompanying the Buddha. The Sangha came out and split up; they went down every street and every alley. They went begging for alms.

The Buddha and Ananda walked together. So, as he saw them approach his residential quarters, Sundarananda could not control himself. He told his wife, “That is my older brother. Through His spiritual practice, He has become the Great Enlightened One and is respected by everyone. Now, He has come out to beg for alms. I will collect His alms bowl to make an offering.” His wife refused to let him go, but he said, “I will go down and collect the alms bowl. After I fill the bowl and make my offering, I will hurry back up.” His wife then said, “I will wait for you to come home before I eat.” So, he agreed that after making his offering to the Buddha, he would return to eat with his wife.

He hurried downstairs to meet the Buddha and collected His alms bowl. But the Buddha kept walking forward without waiting. Nanda took the alms bowl, hurried inside and put the best food they had into the bowl. Holding this bowl of offering, he chased after the Buddha. The Buddha returned to His abode, and Nanda followed Him there to make his offering. When the Buddha took back His alms bowl, almost everyone else had also returned. The Buddha then said to everyone, “There is something very important. When we can help another become a monastic, we create boundless merits. Come, Nanda, since you have already entered the abode, prepare to shave your head.”

At that time, Nanda was very startled. He absolutely could not become a monk. “My princess is waiting for me at home to eat. Who dares to get close to me and shave my head!” The Buddha then said, “No matter what your status was, in this Sangha, we are all equal. So, shave your head.” Just like that, everyone grabbed him and forcibly shaved his head.

The next day, as the day was dawning, he said to the Buddha, “You are all going out again to ask for alms; let me sit quietly and look after the abode.” The Buddha knew what was on his mind. “Fine. You can look after the abode. Close all the surrounding gates and thoroughly sweep and clean the inside.” Everyone left. Nanda saw that the Buddha had left and was very happy. He quickly snuck out. Halfway home, amidst a grove of trees, he saw the Buddha, who had turned back, The Buddha asked, “Nanda, where are you going? I wanted to go for a walk. Sure, I will take you on a walk.” This is when the Buddha took him to visit heaven.

He saw heaven [and wondered], “Why is there major construction?” So, he asked the Buddha. The Buddha said, “You can go ask them.” So, he asked someone, “You are building a magnificent house; who does it belong to?” [The person] said, “In the human realm, a disciple of the Buddha named Nanda just left home and became a monastic. He will be able to create blessings. If he resolves to create blessings, he can return to heaven when he dies.” That made him very happy, and he thought, “Even though I was forced to become a monastic, by forming aspirations, I can diligently practice and go to heaven. I’m so happy.”

The Buddha led him to begin walking again. “I want to take you to another place.” But as they were walking, the image of his wife appeared [in Nanda’s mind]. “Did she eat at all yesterday? I’ll just enjoy the blessings of the human realm.” As the Buddha walked with him, a very frightening scene appeared. [Nanda saw] hell, hot cauldrons of oil and pillars of fire, and many people being tortured. [He heard] the sounds of unspeakable suffering.

In the midst of this, a cauldron of oil was being heated to a boil. He asked, “Why is it that each cauldron contains people, but this cauldron is only now being heated?” A minion then said, “There is a spiritual practitioner named Nanda. His heart is unsettled and riddled with desire. So, it is very possible he will return to the lay life for pleasure, to indulge in worldly desires. So, Nanda will come here in the future, into this boiling cauldron.” Frightened, [Nanda said], “Venerable Buddha, let’s hurry [and leave]! I’m very scared.” The Buddha said, “If you are scared, you have to make a decision.” Then they returned. He steadied his heart and resolved to engage in spiritual practice and eliminate all his desires. He followed the Buddha and listened to Him expound the Dharma. This is the story of how Nanda became a monastic.

In life, we must constantly be vigilant. With one resolve, we can rise to heaven. When we lose our resolve, we can fall to hell. Moreover, we are not practicing to go to heaven, nor do we want to fall into hell. We are willing to return to this world to save sentient beings. Therefore, we must be replete with precepts, Samadhi and wisdom so that we can nourish our wisdom-life. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 49 – Vakkula and Mahakausthila

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>> Good causes and conditions bring good karmic retributions. By providing medical care, medicine and aid, we gain the blessings of extending our lifespan, and transform the world’s misfortunes into blessings.

>>Vakkula means Kind-looking. He looked dignified in appearance. It also means Double-Surname. The Sutra of Handing Down Dharma states that in the time of Vipasyin Buddha’s teachings, by giving fruit to an ailing monk, for 91 Kalpas he received blessings in the heaven and human realms. He was born in a Brahmin family in this life.

>>”With a very long lifespan and no untimely death, he was dignified and meticulous.” Vakkula was foremost in enjoying a long life.

>>Mahakausthila means Big-Knees. He was Sariputra’s uncle. He always beat his older sister in debates, but after she became pregnant, he could not win. So, he knew she was pregnant with a wise being.

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Buddhist practitioners must believe in the karmic law of cause and effect. Our everyday living is inseparable from causes, conditions, effects and retributions. If we are meeting with a certain person and are pleased when we hear of his or her arrival, there must be a cause and condition for that. But sometimes, when we hear that a certain person is coming, we ask, “Why is that person coming?” Even when we feel a sense of displeasure, there is a cause and a condition for that, too.

Causes and conditions affect not only the present. Right now we are creating future conditions and dealing with [the effects of] past causes. So, we have to always heighten our vigilance. With each person, we should create good causes and conditions. Then naturally, when we meet again in the future, we will all be happy. By planting good causes and conditions, we will naturally face good karmic retributions.

I often say, “When others hurt, I ache; when others suffer, I grieve.” So, when something happens to other people, whether it is sickness or poverty, we should all feel a sense of compassion. When we see people who are ill, we should quickly help them see a doctor. What if they do not have money for medicine? We should help them. What about their family? If their family life is difficult, what do we do? We must quickly think of a way to support that family. We provide medical care, medicine and aid. By doing so, we can “attain the blessing of extending our lifespan.”

During the Japanese occupation [of Taiwan], there was a story that was taught in elementary schools. There was a pigeon hunter who saw a bird on the tree and pulled out his rifle to shoot it. As the hunter was about to fire, an ant bit into his foot. He was startled and lost his aim. The bird flew away quickly and was saved. Indeed, there were causes and conditions for this;

the circumstance was that a nest of ants had somehow fallen into the water and floated along the currents. Ants are afraid of water, so many ants came out of the nest but the nest was still floating on the river. That bird saw this from the tree, and bit off and tossed a leaf into the water. Many ants quickly climbed onto the leaf, and the leaf eventually floated to shore. The ants were saved. These were the causes and conditions. This ant was one of the ants saved by this bird.

During the time of Japanese Occupation, starting in elementary school, children were taught to cherish life and take care of animals. Even if it is an animal as small as an ant, we must save it. Even if it is a bird, resting in a tree, carefree, we must not harm it. The Buddha-Dharma emphasizes cause and effect. So, if we want to extend our blessings and lifespans, then we should constantly save living beings, set living creatures free and respect life.

Since this is so, regardless of what karma we created in the past to suffer so much in this lifetime, we must willingly accept all of it. Then in this lifetime, we must quickly recognize cause and effect, help others and constantly heighten our vigilance. If we can give willingly in every moment, help provide medical care, medicine and aid, we will not need to ask for much in our lives. Then naturally we will “transform the world’s misfortunes into blessings.”

Good causes and conditions bring good karmic retributions. By providing medical care, medicine and aid, we gain the blessings of extending our lifespan, and transform the world’s misfortunes into blessings.

I say this also to begin discussing Vakkula, an Arhat whom the assembly knew and recognized, Vakkula’s other name was Kind-looking. This means he had a dignified and solemn appearance. Everyone was pleased to see him. Also, he was called Double-Surname, which meant he had two family names.

Why did he have two family names? During the time of Vipasyin Buddha, there was an ailing monk in the Sangha who was constantly sick. With only three garments and an alms bowl, monastics were poor. So, while he was sick, a very devout [lay] Buddhist practitioner not only gave him medicine, but also offered him fruits. He gave medicine and fruits as offerings, and he served this monk and provided for him for a long time.

Because of this karmic affinity, because he cared for and provided for this ailing monk, he had a blessed karmic retribution. For 91 kalpas, he received blessings in the heaven and human realms. In the human realm, he lived in wealthy families. When life ended in the human realm, he would then be born in the heaven realm. When life ended in the heaven realm, he would return to the human realm. He went to and from in this way for 91 kalpas. He went to-and-from in this way for 91 kalpas. During the time of Sakyamuni Buddha, he was born into a Brahmin family.

Vakkula means Kind-looking. He looked dignified in appearance. It also means Double-Surname. The Sutra of Handing Down Dharma states that in the time of Vipasyin Buddha’s teachings, by giving fruit to an ailing monk, for 91 Kalpas he received blessings in the heaven and human realms. He was born in a Brahmin family in this life.

In this lifetime, he was born to a Brahmin family. He suffered some hardships because his mother passed away soon after he was born. His father remarried. His stepmother not only did not care for him; she was malicious and, on several occasions, tried to kill him. Once, she deliberately threw him into the furnace, but he did not die. Another time, she tossed him into boiling soup; still he did not die. Yet another time, she took him to a large river and pushed him into the water. Again, he did not die from this.

A fish, a very large fish, swallowed him, but he did not die. A fisherman cast his net and caught the fish. After he pulled the net up, this fisherman slit open the fish’s stomach, and the child was still alive. This was how the fisherman found him. He loved and treasured him and treated him as his own child.

When his birth father heard this rumor, he went to see him. The fisherman had raised him to be a lovable child. The birth father thought, “I want to get this child back.” At the same time, the fisherman believed, “You did not want him; that is why you tossed him into the river to feed the fish. I found him and cared for him. My love for him has filled my heart; how could I return him to you?” But the birth father said, “Clearly, he could have died many times but he did not, because our karmic affinity still binds us. Because we have this connection, of course I must take him back.” They argued with each other, fighting for the child.

Then some bystanders interrupted to suggest what they thought would be fair. “We recommend that he be both your son and your son. He will be a son for both of you and belong to both [families]. He should take both your family names. This way, both of you are a part of him.” Because of these causes and conditions, he is called Double-Surname.

He did not die from these five perils because he cared for an ailing monk in a past lifetime, on top of giving medicine, food and comfort. These causes and conditions were felt through 91 kalpas as blessings in the human and heaven realms. Though he had hardships in this life, he still lived a long lifespan of 160 years. That is indeed a very long life.

The Agama Sutra states,

“With a very long lifespan and no untimely death, he was dignified and meticulous.” Vakkula was foremost in enjoying a long life.

He truly was a person of deep spiritual practice. He experienced much suffering in childhood but received the karmic blessing of longevity and was still very devout and diligent.

Next is Mahakausthila, who was also called Big-Knees. He was Sariputra’s uncle. He always liked to debate with his older sister, and he always won. However, from the time she became pregnant with Sariputra, whenever [Mahakausthila] debated with her, not once could he outdebate her. So, he thought that, because she was pregnant, the wisdom of the child must be speaking through her. That was why he could not win any debate with her.

Mahakausthila means Big-Knees. He was Sariputra’s uncle. He always beat his older sister in debates, but after she became pregnant, he could not win. So, he knew she was pregnant with a wise being.

“Now, even in the womb, he already has such wisdom. When he is born into this world, it is almost certain that I, the uncle, will lose to my own nephew.” Thus, he began to study hard. He traveled across southern India to study, and read roughly 18 kinds of religious texts. But, even though he read these texts, when he read the next part, he would forget the previous. So, many people teased him by saying, “No matter how many lifetimes you read, you won’t be able to remember all these texts.”

At that time, he refused to accept this or his being ridiculed by others. Therefore, he started studying so much that he even forgot to eat; he never wasted a second. Even when his nails grew long, he did not cut them. That shows how hard he worked. After 18 years, he finally felt he had learned enough. So, he returned and wanted to find his nephew to debate him.

At age eight, his nephew had already debated many masters of debate; his name was already renowned among the five regions of India. What would his wisdom be like now? But, by the time he returned home, Sariputra had already became a monastic. [Mahakausthila] could not accept this. “Just who used some kind of sorcery to lure my nephew away?” So, he could not accept this and wanted to go argue with [that person]. Everyone told him, “You cannot. He is the Great Enlightened One, Sakyamuni Buddha.” Then he said, “He is nothing extraordinary.” He strutted into the abode, saw the Buddha, and the first thing he said was, “All things are not to be accepted.” Then the Buddha asked him, “What about your own views? Have you accepted them?” He heard this and stopped in his tracks, then turned around and left.

As he walked, he kept thinking, “I could have responded, ‘no.’ Yet obviously I had come with the intent to debate him [with my own views], so how could I say that? I had to find my own views acceptable in order to debate him. But, I said upon entering, ‘All things are not to be accepted.’ In this case, if I had answered his question with [yes], then I would have lost too.”

So, he lost from the very beginning. When the Buddha responded with a question, he could not answer it. So, he greatly admired the Buddha’s wisdom, and returned to ask Him to be his teacher. He took refuge with the Buddha and shared the same teacher as Sariputra.

He was very diligent. The Agama Sutra stated [he had] “the Four Unobstructed Abilities of Eloquence and could answer all difficult questions.” He was very eloquent. He had only lost to the Buddha; otherwise, he was quite eloquent. So, he “could answer all difficult questions.” No matter who asked the difficult questions, his answers flowed without hesitation. So, Mahakausthila was foremost in the Four Unobstructed Abilities of Eloquence and in answering all difficult questions.

Fellow Bodhisattvas, as practitioners, we must form aspirations. In the beginning, we must constantly take good care of our minds, not form attachments to people and matters, and create good causes and conditions. We must always be mindful.

Episode 48 – Revata and Pilindavatsa

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>> We must eliminate afflictions with a proper mind and proper thoughts. A slight deviation in thought can take us far off course. When evil thoughts stir, we enter Mara’s traps. To save and transform ourselves, we need to realize the wondrous Dharma.

>>Revata means Temporary-Union. He was told that the body is someone else’s remains; it was not his. Thus, he realized that his body exists because of a temporary union. So, he eliminated Leaks and attained enlightenment.

>>”By sitting in meditation and entering Samadhi, the mind will not be confused or scattered.” So, this is the story of Revata.

>>Pilindavatsa means. Remnants-of-Habitual-Tendencies. The river goddess complained to the Buddha, who commanded Pilindavatsa to repent. So, he put his palms together and said, “Servant girl, please do not get angry.” The assembly laughed. The Buddha said, “This is not arrogance, but habitual tendency.”

>>Bhiksu Pilindavatsa is foremost in ascetic meditation under a tree, not avoiding the wind and rain.

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Spiritual practice is all about the mind.

We must eliminate afflictions with a proper mind and proper thoughts. A slight deviation in thought can take us far off course. When evil thoughts stir, we enter Mara’s traps. To save and transform ourselves, we need to realize the wondrous Dharma.

Everyone, are we constantly and carefully safeguarding our minds? Spiritual practice is dealing with afflictions that lead us to develop countless habitual tendencies. When we have habitual tendencies, they do not help at all with others’ views of us, nor our views of ourselves. So, we must constantly eliminate habitual tendencies. In particular, our minds always need to maintain Right Mindfulness. If our minds are proper, so are our thoughts, and naturally we will have no more afflictions. Therefore, our thoughts cannot deviate at all.

I often tell everyone that a slight deviation causes a great divergence. So, our minds are who we are. Our moral characters and mental processes are all encompassed within our minds. When a thought goes astray, if we want to steer it back on the right path, it may be very troublesome. So, even though a single thought is something very tiny, we still need to take good care of it. Once evil thoughts stir, we fall into Mara’s traps.

We need to know that if our thoughts stir during our spiritual practice, many armies of Mara of afflictions will manifest regardless of the external conditions. Once certain people find out that someone is going to engage in spiritual practice, they will create conflicts and obstacles in that person’s surroundings. These are tangible ways people obstruct each other. Some [obstruct] themselves in their own minds when the aspiration for spiritual practice arises. Some are struggling to free themselves from the deviant way to return to the right path. Once this thought arises, potentially many self-created afflictions and ignorant thoughts may manifest in the mind. They may never be eliminated.

Only by exercising wisdom can we stabilize our minds. So, we say, “To avoid the suffering of reincarnation, one must sincerely chant Amitabha. Amitabha” means infinite lifespan and infinite wisdom. An infinite lifespan lasts a long time. Infinite wisdom is a wisdom that can destroy much of our spiritual turbulence. We must all carefully stabilize our minds so we can be at ease.

“[They] had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions. They had severed all bonds of existence. Their minds had attained a state of freedom.” Mental freedom is very important, so “to save and transform ourselves, we need to realize the wondrous Dharma.” No one can save us. Our minds have already sunk under the turbulent waves. Who can save us? Only we can save ourselves,

just as [the Arhat] we are discussing today, did. Venerable Revata is also called Temporary-Union. Before this venerable one became the Buddha’s disciple, he was out one day and it started to get dark. He saw there was no village ahead of or behind him. He felt that he had been walking a long time and was very tired. With that, he chose a gazebo as his resting place that night. He spread out some hay and prepared to sleep.

As he began to doze off, his surroundings became unfocused. Suddenly, he saw a ghost quickly carrying a corpse to this gazebo. He was followed by another ghost. This second ghost, Ghost B, quickly ran over, and the two fought over the corpse. As that was happening, the ghost who brought the corpse said, “I carried this corpse here.” The ghost that came later said, “I got to this corpse first.” Ghost B ignored Ghost A and broke off the arm and leg of the corpse and started eating them. Ghost A was very contentious. He said, “That person there saw the order of our arrival. Let’s ask him to be the judge.”

This man came to the gazebo to rest and just happened to see these two ghosts fighting over a corpse. Now they wanted him to be the judge. How could he judge this? If he said this one was right, he would offend the other. If he said the other one was wrong, he would then offend this one. What should he say? Revata thought, “I should just answer honestly.” He said, “I saw Ghost A carry this corpse here, and then Ghost B chased after him here. That is all I saw. I don’t know about anything else.”

But Ghost B was very angry. He exclaimed, “If this was the case, then you are saying that I am wrong.” He got very angry and broke off Revata’s arm and leg. Ghost A, who was judged to be correct by Revata, saw Ghost B broke off Revata’s arm and leg. So, he broke off the other arm and leg of the corpse and attached them to Revata. Suddenly, Revata awoke from the dream. He woke up to an empty gazebo. Where was the corpse? Where were the two ghosts? There was nothing.

“Look at my body. One arm and one leg were broken. But now I can stand up. I can still take a step and walk. My two arms can still move, and they are both intact. Exactly who does this arm, leg and this body belong to?” He could not understand what he had seen and encountered in his dream. What did it mean? “What is this body of mine? Are these limbs on my body the original ones? Or are they parts of other people that were attached to my body?”

Because of this, he became very confused and overwhelmed. His state of mind could not be stabilized, so whenever he saw people he asked them, “Are the limbs of my body mine? Or do they belong to others?” He asked everyone he encountered. During this time, a group of bhiksus happened to walk past. He saw this group of spiritual practitioners and quickly went to them. He grabbed them, one by one, and asked, “Do you see my body? Yes, your body is fine. How do you think I look? Are my limbs, my legs and arms, all mine?” This group of bhiksus asked him, “What did you encounter in your mind?” He then described his dream to this group of bhiksus.

The monastics then felt that this person could be transformed, so they started to teach him the Dharma. They said, “Your body is actually someone else’s remains. You do not own it. We need to understand that our parents gave birth to each of us with their sperm and egg. This is the body they gave us. We all go through the process of birth, aging, illness and death. This body will not last forever.” After they said this, Revata suddenly realized that this body exists only because of a temporary union. It is temporary.

A temporary union of the four elements creates what we call our head, our leg, our arm and our body. These are all superficial names and appearances. All these names and appearances combine to form this “self”, this body. This is what he realized. Because of this instant realization, all his past afflictions and doubts completely disappeared.

Revata means Temporary-Union. He was told that the body is someone else’s remains; it was not his. Thus, he realized that his body exists because of a temporary union. So, he eliminated Leaks and attained enlightenment.

From then on, he completely realized that his body was temporary and there was no need for attachment. Then he followed these bhiksus to see the Buddha and took refuge with Him. He began to engage in spiritual practice, so his mind was very tranquil. After what he had experienced at the gazebo, now when he meditated, no matter what state manifested, his mind would not waver. Therefore, the Buddha said,

“By sitting in meditation and entering Samadhi, the mind will not be confused or scattered.” So, this is the story of Revata.

Next was Pilindavatsa, which means Remnants-of-Habitual-Tendencies. He had yet to eliminate all habitual tendencies. He had been a Brahmin for the past 500 lifetimes. Brahmins were typically arrogant because among the four castes, Brahmins were considered the most respected. After 500 lifetimes, this formed the habitual tendency of arrogance. After he encountered the Buddha and became one of His disciples, he was very diligent in his spiritual practice. So, he indeed eliminated afflictions but “remnants of habitual tendencies have not been eliminated.” He had not eliminated his habitual tendencies.

Every time he wanted to go across the Ganges River, he would call out, “Servant girl, stop the flow and let me cross.” The Ganges River had a river goddess. Every time this venerable one wanted to cross, she was insulted by him. Whether he was leaving or returning, she often heard him call her “servant girl,” which was a term that slighted her. The river goddess felt constantly belittled by him, and she could not take it anymore. So, she complained to the Buddha, “Your disciple, Pilindavatsa, is arrogant and egotistic. Every time he crosses my river he speaks to me with scorn and calls me a servant girl.”

Therefore, the Buddha asked Pilindavatsa to come in front of Him and the river goddess and said, “You were wrong to do this. The river goddess safeguards this river and protects the people. How could you insult her like that when you want to cross the river?” He said, “That was unintentional. Even if that was unintentional, it is your habitual tendency. Your habitual tendencies hurt others.” So, he said, “Very well, I will repent to her.” He put his palms together and said, “Servant girl, please do not get angry. Don’t be angry. That was unintentional.” He still called her servant girl. This kind of habitual tendency was very difficult to eliminate.

So, the moment he said those words, even when he was trying to apologize he still called her servant girl, and everyone there laughed. He was told to change, and he knew he was wrong. But when he apologized, he started by belittling her and then asked her not to be angry. He just could not help it. So, he realized that habitual tendencies were very hard to change. For example, when we are talking to others, we also have stock phrases and habitual tendencies. Therefore, to change our habitual tendencies is very difficult.

Pilindavatsa means. Remnants-of-Habitual-Tendencies. The river goddess complained to the Buddha, who commanded Pilindavatsa to repent. So, he put his palms together and said, “Servant girl, please do not get angry.” The assembly laughed. The Buddha said, “This is not arrogance, but habitual tendency.

This kind of habitual tendency unintentionally causes people to be unhappy. If people are not happy, that does not benefit us. Why aren’t we changing these commonplace habitual tendencies? We tend to say, “It’s not that I don’t want to change. I don’t even know why such words come out of my mouth so easily.” We really have no control over this. This is simply because of our habitual tendencies, yet it is so difficult to change. Because this is difficult, it requires spiritual practice. So, spiritual practice is not difficult, but habitual tendencies are hard to eliminate. Therefore, when we make an effort to correct our habitual tendencies, that is very helpful to our spiritual practice.

The Agama Sutra states,

Bhiksu Pilindavatsa is foremost in ascetic meditation under a tree, not avoiding the wind and rain.

You see, he spent much effort on ascetic meditation under a tree. He worked very hard. Regardless of wind or rain, he remained very diligent. Why couldn’t such a diligent person change his habitual tendencies? Indeed, eliminating them is painful and difficult. So, everyone, please take good care of your minds. Our speech and actions all arise from the mind. Therefore, please always be mindful.

Episode 47 – Kapphina and Gavampati

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>> When we treat others with a Buddha-mind, we are humble and respectful. We must see all people as Buddhas, as Never-Slighting Bodhisattva does.

>>Habitual tendencies accumulated over lifetimes are difficult to eliminate. A moment of disparagement and disrespect, of using humor to make a fool out of others, will result in karmic retributions. So, we must be disciplined, reverent, and create good affinities.

>>Kapphina means the Room [Constellation], because he was born after his parents prayed to that constellation and because he became a monastic after he stayed in the same dwelling as the Buddha.

>>Kapphina means the Room [Constellation], because he was born after his parents prayed to that constellation and because he became a monastic after he stayed in the same dwelling as the Buddha.

>>Gavampati means Cow-rumination Illness. When he was a novice monk, he made fun of an old monk for snorting like a cow. From then on, he was a cow for 500 lifetimes. Even when he was born human, for 500 lifetimes, he had Cow-rumination Illness.

>> When the Buddha entered Parinirvana, Venerable Gavampati heard [the news]. It was said that. Gavampati, the most virtuous monk of the wondrous assembly, bowed his head to the ground and said, “The Buddha entered Parinirvana. I will follow, the way elephants follow the elephant king.”

>> “Bhiksu Gavampati was foremost in receiving offerings in the heaven realm but not in the human realm.”

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When we learn the Buddha’s teachings, our goal must be to attain the Buddha-mind. We should treat everyone with respect. Regardless of gender, age, wealth or social status, we treat them all equally. That is a form of respect. Thus, when we see people through a Buddha-mind, everyone is a Buddha. Let us recall Never-Slighting Bodhisattva as an example of this. No matter who insulted him, reviled him or beat him, he always responded by dodging, prostrating and showing them respect. “I do not dare slight you because you may someday become a Buddha too.” See, this method is also a form of spiritual practice. What we are learning now is to return to our intrinsic Buddha-nature. Therefore, the people we interact with may be Buddhas and. Bodhisattvas who continue to return on the ship of compassion.

When we treat others with a Buddha-mind, we are humble and respectful. We must see all people as Buddhas, as Never-Slighting Bodhisattva does.

In addition, we should be more vigilant of our habitual tendencies and eliminate them. Sometimes unintentional mistakes will also bring causes and effects that last life after life. So, I often tell you all that spiritual practice is about changing our habitual tendencies. We cannot allow negative habitual tendencies to manifest in our daily living. We must always heighten our vigilance and eliminate negative habitual tendencies. We should know that.

Habitual tendencies accumulated over lifetimes are difficult to eliminate. A moment of disparagement and disrespect, of using humor to make a fool out of others, will result in karmic retributions. So, we must be disciplined, reverent, and create good affinities.

We should always be vigilant and treat others carefully. We cannot simply say “just joking.” We cannot just treat people casually. Sometimes we may see frustrating habitual tendencies in others. Those are their habitual tendencies; we should not unintentionally adopt their displeasing habitual tendencies. We cannot do that either. So, the Buddha has also warned us by saying, “Even if we do not do so intentionally, if we mock someone accomplished in spiritual practice by making a fool of him or mimicking his manners so others will not respect him, we will face lifetimes of karmic retributions.”

So, even when afflictions are eliminated, habitual tendencies may still remain. Let us consider the next two great Arhats, BhiksuGavampati and BhiksuKapphina.

The name “Kapphina” means the Room (the Scorpio Constellation). Because he was conceived after his parents prayed to the stars for a son, they named him Kapphina after the constellation they prayed to. When Kapphina first became a monastic, he wanted to follow the Buddha and stay by His side. When he was on his way from his home to the Buddha’s abode, it suddenly rained heavily. At that time, he saw a house that belonged to a master craftsman who specialized in making ceramics. So, this young, aspiring monk asked if he could stay overnight.

The master potter saw that this young person was so determined and willing to practice that he was seeking the Great Enlightened One. This really pleased him, so he offered a very small room for his stay. However, that house was completely empty so the potter piled up dried straws to make a bed. Then he said, “Young man, I only have this space, nothing else. But I laid some straw on the ground, so you can take shelter from the rain here.”

Meanwhile, the skies had darkened. As he sat down and started to calm his mind, it continued to rain very hard outside. Suddenly, another practitioner came in. When this young man saw a spiritual practitioner come in, he was very happy. He quickly gave up his spot on the straw bedding and asked the practitioner to sit there. Then he sat across from the man. Suddenly, he [realized] this practitioner had a dignified appearance, so a sense of respect arose in him and he prostrated.

This practitioner was actually the Buddha. When the Buddha saw this young man’s reverence and determination to practice, He sat down and began to teach the Dharma to him. As this was happening, Kapphina’s mind filled with joy. These were his causes and conditions. Because he had this intention, when he saw a monastic, he treated him with great reverence. Indeed, the one he had bowed, paid respects and given up his seat to was the Buddha, the Great Enlightened One whom he wanted to follow.

Kapphina means the Room [Constellation], because he was born after his parents prayed to that constellation and because he became a monastic after he stayed in the same dwelling as the Buddha.

The Agama Sutra states,

“Of those practicing my teachings, Kapphina is foremost in knowledge of astronomy.”

Besides having the name of a constellation, Kapphina was accomplished in astronomy. So, the Buddha praised him by saying, “Kapphina is foremost in knowledge of astronomy.” BhiksuKapphina treated others with a Buddha-mind, so everyone was a Buddha [to him]. He treated others with humbleness and reverence, like Never-Slighting Bodhisattva.

Next is Gavampati. He was highly accomplished in his spiritual practice, but his name means Cow-rumination. This means that though this monk was already highly accomplished in his spiritual practice, he still had a habitual tendency that was carried over from past lifetimes.

What was this matter? Many, many lifetimes ago, he became a monastic at a young age. In that Sangha, there was an old bhiksu. He was very old, so he had no teeth. But he also had a habitual tendency where his mouth constantly made a chewing motion. This novice monk saw this and thought it was funny, so he often imitated the way his mouth constantly moved in that chewing motion.

Sometimes the old bhiksu would also snort like a cow. So, this little novice monk followed him around and always poked fun at him. This was how he began to develop this chewing habit. The old bhiksu was accomplished in his spiritual practice, so he excused this as actions of a child and did not feel afflicted. However, people around him told the boy, “Little novice monk, you have to respect your elders. Don’t be so naughty.” Still, he continued to mimic the old bhiksu’s quirk to the other monastics. We can imagine how naughty this little novice monk was.

This was how he developed this habit. Starting then, he was born as a cow for 500 lifetimes and had the behavior and habitual tendencies of a cow. Then, after 500 lifetimes, he was born human again, and still brought his bovine habitual tendencies from those 500 lifetimes to his life as a human. He then lived with those peculiar behaviors for another 500 human lifetimes. This is truly taxing 500 lifetimes on top of another 500 lifetimes is 1000 lifetimes

1000 lifetimes ago, the little novice monk did not intend any harm with his actions; he was just mischievous and poked fun at a spiritual practitioner. But this cause and effect led to his retribution. After 500 lifetimes of being a cow, he spent 500 lifetimes as a human, but the bovine habitual tendencies remained even until the Buddha’s lifetime. Though he had the causes and conditions to meet the Buddha and follow him as a monastic, some of those tendencies remained. His tendency to ruminate like a cow was not fully eliminated.

Gavampati means Cow-rumination Illness. When he was a novice monk, he made fun of an old monk for snorting like a cow. From then on, he was a cow for 500 lifetimes. Even when he was born human, for 500 lifetimes, he had Cow-rumination Illness.

The Buddha saw that he was well-cultivated, took the Buddha-Dharma to heart and “had attained benefits for himself.” His afflictions and ignorant thoughts had all been eliminated. He “had eliminated all Leaks” and “had severed all bonds of existence,” but his habitual tendencies were the one thing he was unable [to eliminate]. The Buddha was concerned that if the people who were alive at this time disrespected or slighted Gavampati, they would create similar karma. To lead everyone to have respect for. Venerable Gavampati, the Buddha began to tell them, “Do you know that his mouth keeps moving because he is actually reciting the name of the Buddha?” He gave him a string of beads to hold as he recited the name of the Buddha.

This is just like the seniors we see now holding rosaries. They rotate it one by one as they chant, and we can see that their mouths are constantly moving. Perhaps back in that era, the Buddha started this in order to prevent others from creating more negative speech karma and slighting Venerable Gavampati. In His wisdom and compassion, the Buddha told everyone that. Gavampati was using the beads to count the number of times he chanted the Buddha’s name, and he chanted the Buddha’s name to eliminate afflictions and help him take the Dharma to heart. He hoped that everyone would respect. Venerable Gavampati.

Even so, He was worried that when he begged for alms in other places, people would inevitably and unintentionally say or do something by mistake. So, the Buddha said to him, “Receive offerings from heavenly beings. Do not beg for alms in the human realm.” Then, while the Buddha lived among people until He entered Parinirvana, Venerable Gavampati continued receiving offerings in the heaven realm. But when he heard that Buddha entered Parinirvana, he was very sad. In the midst of receiving offerings, he quickly prostrated with his head touching the ground and said, “The Buddha entered Parinirvana. I will follow.” This is like the intimate bond between a baby elephant and its mother. So, after he heard that the Buddha had entered Parinirvana, he followed as well.

When the Buddha entered Parinirvana, Venerable Gavampati heard [the news]. It was said that. Gavampati, the most virtuous monk of the wondrous assembly, bowed his head to the ground and said, “The Buddha entered Parinirvana. I will follow, the way elephants follow the elephant king.”

This venerable one [faced consequences from] making unintentional mistakes in this world. Therefore, the Buddha was very worried when he went among people. Everyone, we should think about this. Don’t unintentional mistakes also bring us karmic retributions lifetime after lifetime? So, when we deal with people and matters, we need to exercise great reverence.

The Buddha said in the Agama Sutra,

“Bhiksu Gavampati was foremost in receiving offerings in the heaven realm, but not in the human realm.”

It means he received offerings happily in heaven but in this world he had some troubles. So, he was foremost in receiving offerings from those in the heaven realm but not the human realm. This was the unique feature of Gavampati.

Everyone, although he was in heaven and rarely in the human realm, after the Buddha entered Parinirvana, he followed, just like the way elephants follow the [elephant king]. Obviously, he respected the Buddha greatly. This is also a warning to us to always be mindful. We cannot form habitual tendencies that bring us suffering in future lifetimes. In conclusion, we have to be mindful in our daily interactions with people and matters. We must eliminate habitual tendencies immediately, remain vigilant and reverent and form good affinities. This is very important. Everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 46 – Mahakatyayana and Aniruddha

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>> Being kind and loving gives us a most pleasing appearance. Demeanors and appearances can captivate people’s hearts. We must practice and maintain good habits over many lifetimes. By giving unconditionally, the mind will be free.

>>Mahakatyayana means the family that cuts and shaves. In ancient times many mystics lived in the mountains, and no one helped them shave. One of the mystics had two sons who came to visit him. The younger son cut and shaved all the mystics. Thus, they gave his family this name.

>> “Venerable Mahakatyayana was foremost in discerning meanings and explaining the teachings of the path.”

>> Aniruddha was also called Anuruddha. His name means No-Poverty, it also means Always-Fulfilling. He was the son of King Suklodana-raja.

>> “Of those practicing my teachings, Aniruddha is foremost in [developing] the heavenly eye that sees clearly.”

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Learning the Buddha’s teachings is all about [training] the mind. We should maintain pure and good thoughts at all times. In every day, every second, we cannot allow this goodness to leak away.

Being kind and loving gives us a most pleasing appearance. Demeanors and appearances can captivate people’s hearts. We must practice and maintain good habits over many lifetimes. By giving unconditionally, the mind will be free.

This tells us that we all have a nature equal to the Buddha’s and the same infinite loving-kindness. But an ignorant thought in the mind gave rise to many more unwholesome thoughts. Since negative thoughts arise from ignorance, when a bit of evil arises, a bit of good disappears. We must take good care of our goodness.

In particular, good affinities between individuals are very important. When we help others with love, naturally people will respect us. So, what kind of people are the most likable? What kind of people receive the most respect? Others find likable people pleasing and feel love and respect toward them. There is no standard pleasing appearance. That sense comes from seeing that when they are with others, others feel a connection with them. No matter how you look at them, they are pleasing. This is a pleasing appearance.

Besides taking good care of our minds and always treating others with love and respect, we must also take good care of our physical appearance. Our appearance is inextricably tied to the Four Demeanors of walking, standing, sitting, lying down. Every move we make and everything we say, as long as it can be seen, is a demeanor. When our actions can inspire happiness in those who see us, we can influence people’s hearts.

We often talk about leading people harmoniously without obstructions. How do we lead others? We are not just leading the people, but more importantly, leading their hearts. If we can influence all sentient beings’ hearts, whenever we want to do anything, there will be no obstructions. This happens because of our demeanors and our daily actions. This is how the mind works.

If, since we were born, we have given others the impression of having a good demeanor, that means we have nurtured such habits in our past lives as well. In this life, if we inspire happiness in others, if we have good habits in behavior because of our past habitual tendencies, we should cherish them and not act inappropriately. So, once we are behaving appropriately, we should work to maintain it. If we are not, we need to quickly learn [to change that]. This is accumulated life after life.

So, “life after life” refers to the past, present and future and the good habits we have cultivated. In the past, we cultivated them. Now we need to continue to nurture them. Then in the future, we will still have them. So, we should not overlook any thought or any action in our daily living, no matter how subtle. Everything will affect our future, so now we have to watch what we do.

Among the group of Arhats who are known and recognized by all was [a bhiksu named] Mahakatyayana. He was part of the “family that cuts and shaves.” Long, long ago there were many mystics in India who went into the mountains for spiritual practice. We are all familiar with. Brahmanism, which has been passed down in India since ancient times. Brahmins highly valued spiritual practice and felt that it was important to do that before they reach the end of their lives. So, in the forests and mountains, there lived many mystics who left home for their spiritual practice. At that time, when people engaged in spiritual cultivation, their hair and beard were left very long. Because no one helped them trim their hair or shave their beards, they all had long hair and long beards.

One of the mystics had two sons. One day they visited their father in the mountain and saw that all the spiritual practitioners there had disheveled hair and tangled beards. One of the sons felt bad for them, so he resolved to help these mystics cut their hair and shave their beards.

We all know that the climate in India is hot. Though they were in the forests, if they did not groom themselves, they would feel very uncomfortable. Now that this young man was willing to cut their hair and shave their beards, they were very happy. They greatly cherished and respected him. So, they gave his family a special name, “the family that cuts and shaves.” This is the origin of. Venerable Mahakatyayana’s name.

Mahakatyayana means the family that cuts and shaves. In ancient times many mystics lived in the mountains, and no one helped them shave. One of the mystics had two sons who came to visit him. The younger son cut and shaved all the mystics. Thus, they gave his family this name.

For this reason, the Agama Sutra states,

“Venerable Mahakatyayana was foremost in discerning meanings and explaining the teachings of the path.”

This means that this venerable elder was respected by all for his contributions and his contributions and had nurtured his ability to discern teachings and meanings. With his spiritual practice, he achieved the unobstructed abilities of eloquence. Wherever he went, he spread the Buddha’s teachings among people and was always respected by them as they upheld and practiced the teachings. So, his talent was in

explaining the teachings and the path. Therefore, the Buddha praised him as the foremost in explaining the teachings of the path. This was his talent. To trace it back, many people appreciated his teachings because in past lifetimes he had created good affinities with them. That was why so many people loved to listen to his words.

Next is Aniruddha, who is also called Anuruddha. Aniruddha is someone we should also be familiar with. Do you remember this story? When the Buddha was about to enter Parinirvana, Venerable Ananda still had afflictions in his mind. The Buddha was surrounded by many bhiksus who were very at ease. Only Ananda was unable to control his emotions and ran outside to cry.

The Buddha was about to relinquish His body and enter Parinirvana. At that moment, this elder arrived and saw Ananda wailing and crying loudly. He then reminded Ananda, “Ananda, this is not the time for you to cry here. There is something else you need to do now.” With Aniruddha’s advice, Ananda quickly came back to the Buddha and asked Him how to tame [the unruly] among the Sangha, what they shall use as an introduction when they expound the sutras in the future, and so on. At the time when. Ananda could not control his emotions, Aniruddha gave him this reminder.

Actually, Aniruddha was also one of the nobles in the Sakyamuni tribe. Not only was he a noble, he was also Sakyamuni Buddha’s younger cousin and Ananda’s elder cousin, so he was the child of King Suddhodana’s brother.

Aniruddha was also called Anuruddha. His name means No-Poverty, it also means Always-Fulfilling. He was the son of King Suklodana-raja.

Speaking of Aniruddha’s past, he was very diligent and kind. He felt much sympathy for the poor, so he constantly gave things to others. Not only was he charitable, he was very respectful to spiritual practitioners. Because of his karma, he was never born into poverty and was always born into wealthy families; in that lifetime he was born to nobility.

Later he became a monastic. After becoming a monastic, he also wanted to be very diligent. But each time the Buddha started to expound His teachings, he dozed off. When he sat down and the Buddha started talking, he began dozing off. If the Buddha saw this, He got frustrated. So, one day He said, “Since you love sleeping so much, you can be reborn as a clam. With two shells covering you, you can sleep in peace.” In that moment, he felt such a strong motivation from the Buddha that from then on, his eyes never closed, and he was very diligent. Whether it was day or night, if his eyes began to close, he would use straw to prop them open so he could train himself to not be sleepy. But he was still a human being. Because he did not allow his eyes to close, he lost his sight.

One day, he wanted to mend his clothes. He tried to thread a needle, but he failed. His eyes could not see, but he had to thread a needle to mend his clothes. So, he yelled, “Which virtuous and compassionate person can help me thread a needle?” The Buddha happened to walk by and heard his voice. So, He approached him, took the needle and helped him thread it. The Buddha did not make a sound, but Aniruddha could feel that the person who approached and helped thread the needle was the Buddha. He quickly prostrated.

The Buddha asked him, “Why can’t you see?” He replied, “I am repenting. I would doze off when I listened to the Dharma. At your urging, I began making vows. I have been working so hard I forget to eat. Not only have I reduced what I eat, I have also reduced how much I sleep. On top of reducing my appetite and sleep, I do not even allow my eyes to close.” The Buddha sighed, “This is your ignorance. We should know that spiritual practice requires a healthy body. Food replenishes our body and keeps us healthy. We need sleep the way we need food when we get hungry; we need to eat. Resting our eyes after heavy use is just like absorbing nutrients. Your extreme practice has caused your blindness.”

Aniruddha answered, “I have no regrets. My mind is at ease. Although I cannot see with my physical eyes, I can see in my mind’s eye.” Then the Buddha smiled, “Indeed, you can see in your mind’s eye. When I drew close, you knew it was me. You could tell. I believe you have attained the heavenly eye. From now on, you can cultivate your sight without your physical eyes so you can see the world, people and everything in the universe very clearly. To make good use of your heavenly eye, you should take [the teachings] to heart.”

Even though the Buddha and Aniruddha were cousins in their lay life, they became teacher and disciple after becoming monastics. The Buddha cherished him and did not want him to be lazy, so when He saw him dozing off, the Buddha had compassion for him. He wanted to awaken his wisdom-life, so He fiercely berated him. It was at that moment that Aniruddha fully woke up. But he did not know how to practice in moderation and protect his body, so he damaged his eyes. But the Buddha was very compassionate and encouraged him by saying, “Even though your physical eyes are damaged, your mind’s eye can be nurtured. You can develop the power of the heavenly eye.”

So, Aniruddha is also called the Heavenly Eye Practitioner. So, it is stated in the Agama Sutra,

“Of those practicing my teachings, Aniruddha is foremost in [developing] the heavenly eye that sees clearly.”

He practiced with diligence and attained the Heavenly Eye. We say that the mind’s eye is developed from the mind with dedication and hard work. So, naturally he could see all things in the world.

In this world right now, there are also many people who cannot see, but when they are working, they can be more nimble and do better than others. So, everyone, we should take good care of our mind’s eye; it is more important than our physical eyes. Moreover, in our daily living, if our mind’s eye is clear, we will be kind-hearted. If our mind’s eye is clear and we respect each other, naturally we will eliminate afflictions and our minds will be at ease. So, everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 45 – Sariputra and Maudgalyayana

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>>”Two pure spiritual practitioners, one with spiritual powers and one with wisdom, accompanied each other and shared the resolve to seek absolute truth and the Enlightened One. With precepts, Samadhi and wisdom they realized reality.”

>>Sariputra was also called Sariputta. This meant Son-of-Body. His mother had lovely physical form, and he came from that body. So, he was called Son-of-Body.

>> “All things arise due to conditions and then cease because of conditions. My teacher, the great Sramana, always teaches such.”

>> “Of those practicing my teachings, one has infinite wisdom and has resolved all doubts. Sariputra is foremost in wisdom. Among my disciples, Great Maudgalyayana is foremost in spiritual powers.”

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When our spirit is tranquil, we feel like we are in a pure land. Wisdom and spiritual powers seem remote to us average Buddhist practitioners. Actually, to have spiritual powers, we simply need a focused and tranquil mind. If we are tranquil in spirit, naturally we can comprehend everything.

So, out of the 12,000 bhiksus and Arhats at the Lotus Dharma-assembly, those whom the people knew and recognized show us that everyone has a specialty and strength. “They had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions. Having attained benefits for themselves, all their bonds of existence were gone.” We should always remember these simple phrases. During the Buddha’s lifetime, those who followed Him into monastic life sought to reach this state. We should eradicate all afflictions in our minds so we can be free and at ease.

Now let us examine how,

>>Two pure spiritual practitioners, one with spiritual powers and one with wisdom, accompanied each other and shared the resolve to seek absolute truth and the Enlightened One. With precepts, Samadhi and wisdom they realized reality.”

This is introducing the two great Arhats, Maudgalyayana and Sariputra.

The name “Sariputra” meant Son-of-Sari. Sari was a kind of bird with very bright eyes. Sariputra’s mother was very beautiful, especially her eyes. Therefore, people called Sariputra’s mother Sari. Since the mother was named Sari, her son was called Son-of-Sari. Besides Son-of-Sari, he had another name, Son-of-Body, because his mother had a beautiful figure. So, this name was also given due to his mother. This was Sariputra.

Sariputra was also called Sariputta. This meant Son-of-Body. His mother had lovely physical form, and he came from that body. So, he was called Son-of-Body.

Sariputra lived in Rajagrha. Every year, all scholars in the country gathered with the king, prince and ministers to have a discourse. They set up three stages for the discourse, one for the king and the prince, one for the ministers, one for the religious scholars. In total there were three stages and three seats.

Sariputra was only eight years old at the time. He was very curious about the set up when he walked by, so he asked, “What are these stages and these three seats for?” People told him, “One for the king and prince, one for ministers, and then one for our local scholars to hold their discourse to discuss intellectual matters.” After he heard that, despite being only eight, Sariputra strutted over to the seat for the masters of discourse, sat and prepared himself for others to ask him questions.

Some scholars thought, “This child is so young. If I beat him in debate, I will gain no glory. If I tell him to get down, people will think that I have no manners.” One of them told his students, “Go up there [to debate him]. You have been listening to my discussions with other people, my discussions with other people. He is only a child, so go and debate him.” So, his students went up, one at a time to pose difficult questions to this child. Sariputra refuted them one by one with logical answers. So, even the smartest students were defeated by. Sariputra, Son-of-Body, one by one.

Eventually, no one else dared to go up. Everything he said made sense, so these masters of discourse dared not go against him. Because of this incident, citizens all over the country rejoiced. They felt that Rajagrha had produced an exceptional and outstanding youth, a very wise person. By the time Sariputra was 16, he had read extensively. He had read all the books of every collection in the entire country. He understood all of them.

People came to consult him, especially regarding national affairs. When someone did not believe he was wise and decide to debate him, no matter how much that person prepared, he could not out-debate him. He was unmatched. He was truly very wise. Aside from Rajagrha, his renown spread to the five regions of India. Nearly all of India knew about this eminent young master of discourse in Rajagrha.

As this was happening, he felt that the world was full of troubling things. So, he was determined to further investigate the truths of life. Therefore, he focused on spiritual practice. At that time Brahmanism was thriving, so he chose a religious teacher. This religious teacher was named. Saran Brahmacarin and was an ascetic practitioner. He formally acknowledged him as his teacher. This teacher practiced special mystical arts, and not long after following him, Sariputra was able to learn all of them.

In the end, as his teacher Saran was approaching the end of his life, Saran suddenly laughed very loudly. Why was he laughing while facing death? The laugh was loud and clear. So, Sariputra asked his teacher, “Teacher, you keep saying that your life is about to end. Why are you still laughing happily?” Although Saran Brahmacarin was laughing, he now sighed with regret and said, “I think life is truly laughable. Sentient beings are so confused and deluded. I find that laughable. I realized that people are deluded by human affections. Their minds are entangled and bound by human affections, so their minds have lost the ability to see and are in complete darkness. Because of human affections, sentient beings have confused their clear minds.”

Sariputra then asked, “Teacher, you say that human affections will mesmerize the mind; what makes you say this?” He replied, “I saw that when King Suvarnabhumi passed away, his wife could not let go of him because of human affections. As he was being cremated, she could not let go and threw herself into the fire to die with him.”

Sariputra then asked, “Teacher, you have not gone anywhere in a while. How do you know that?” He replied, “I can see things without leaving this place.” Sariputra thought it was inconceivable. How could such a thing happen? But that was what his teacher said. After these final words, his teacher shook his head and sighed. That was his last breath. He had passed away.

Sometime after Sariputra settled his teacher’s affairs, a merchant came from Suvarnabhumi to do business. He asked, “You are from Suvarnabhumi, how is your king?” He replied, “He passed away not long ago. How about his wife?” The merchant said, “His wife loved him so deeply that she could not let him go. So, as the king was being cremated, she was so utterly heartbroken that she jumped into the fire.” When Sariputra heard this, he was very shocked. “My teacher really had spiritual powers, but why did he not teach it to me?” He became very depressed and dispirited. He thought, “I should seek another teacher.”

With that thought, he immediately began searching for famous teachers. As he traveled and learned, [he met] the Great Maudgalyayana. Their interests were compatible, so they joyfully became friends. They shared the dream of finding a famous teacher so they could advance their understanding of worldly matters. So, the two promised each other, “If you meet the right teacher, you will tell me. If I meet one, I will tell you. We can have the same teacher and focus on our spiritual practice.”

And then one day, Sariputra met another spiritual practitioner. As soon as they met, Sariputra felt that this person’s every move was captivating and so dignified. So, Sariputra could not help but approach this spiritual practitioner. He respectfully asked him, “Who is your teacher? What teachings did he give you? You look different from ordinary people and other spiritual practitioners. I can sense that you have realized many profound truths.” This practitioner was Asvajit. Bhiksu Asvajit was the Buddha’s disciple. After he heard Sariputra’s remarks, Asvajit respectfully said,

“All things arise due to conditions and then cease because of conditions. My teacher, the great Sramana, always teaches such.”

“Who is your teacher?” He answered, “People call him the Great Enlightened One, Sakyamuni Buddha. He was the prince of Kapilavastu, and He has attained Buddhahood through spiritual practice. Right now He is at Rajagrha.” Hearing this, Sariputra was filled with a joy he had never experienced before; he felt peaceful and at ease. Sariputra found Maudgalyayana right away and said, “I found him. I have found a great teacher.” Then he repeated his conversation with. Bhiksu Asvajit. Indeed, the Buddha’s teachings were profound and subtle. Causes and conditions apply to all things, down to the subtlest details. So, they told each other, “We should quickly visit this. Great Enlightened One.” They rushed to see Him.

When they arrived and witnessed the dignified appearance of the Buddha, they did not even need to hear any of His Dharma. They also saw the orderly manner of the Sangha. Thus, they resolved to follow the Buddha and become monastics. They also led their disciples to do the same. Within seven days of becoming a monastic, [Sariputra] thoroughly understood His teachings. Sariputra, the “foremost in wisdom,” was able to thoroughly understand the Buddha-Dharma within seven days. After 15 days, he attained the state that is beyond the stage of learning. That is the stage where he completely understands the Buddha’s teachings. Wisdom enters the ears and abides in the mind, and he does not allow it to leak away.

So, in the Agama Sutra, the Buddha said,

“Of those practicing my teachings, one has infinite wisdom and has resolved all doubts. Sariputra is foremost in wisdom. Among my disciples, Great Maudgalyayana is foremost in spiritual powers.”

Everyone, wisdom and spiritual powers should be connected. Only people with wisdom can eliminate all afflictions. Only people with wisdom can have a pure mind that is free from afflictions. “[They] had eliminated all Leaks and had no further afflictions.” By finding an enlightened teacher, all their Leaks and afflictions were eliminated, and all their bonds were undone. “With precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, they realized reality.” This was the spiritual journey of the two venerable ones, Sariputra and Maudgalyayana.

Everyone, please be mindful. In the past, when the Buddha was alive, practicing and learning the Buddha-Dharma was about eradicating afflictions from the mind. It is the same for us in learning the Buddha’s teachings now. We were once equal to the Buddha; we must learn to achieve His enlightened nature. So, there cannot be Leaks. Once our Leaks are eliminated, we can be at ease with the Dharma. So everyone, please always be mindful.