Category: TLS Chapter 3

Episode 492 – The Tathagatas are Worthy of Offerings

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>> “By taking the Dharma to heart, we will have faith, vows and practice. With deeply rooted faith, our resolve will be firm. With an understanding of True Suchness, that subtle and wondrous Dharma, we realize our part in the Buddha-Dharma and can turn the Dharma-wheel.”

>> “Sariputra, you, in a future lifetime, after a countless, boundless, inconceivable number of kalpas has passed, having made offerings to several” “trillions of Buddhas and upheld the Right Dharma, will fulfill all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path.”

>> “You shall become a Buddha by the name of Flower Light Tathagata, One Worthy of Offerings, One Who Is Completely Awakened. One Who Is Perfect in Wisdom and Action, the Well-Gone One,” “Knower of the World, Unsurpassed Guide, the Tamer, Teacher of Heavenly Beings and Humans, Buddha, the World-Honored One.”

>> So, “a Buddha walks the path of True Suchness, from cause to fruition, therefore, He attains perfect enlightenment.”

>> “One Worthy of Offerings” is one who is a field of blessings. As a pure field of blessings, [a Buddha] deserves to receive material offerings. Thus, He is “One Worthy of Offerings.”

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“By taking the Dharma to heart, we will have faith, vows and practice.
With deeply rooted faith, our resolve will be firm.
With an understanding of True Suchness, that subtle and wondrous Dharma,
we realize our part in the Buddha-Dharma and can turn the Dharma-wheel.”

Everyone, as we learn the Buddha’s teachings and listen to the Dharma, we must mindfully engage in self-reflection. Have we truly taken the Dharma to heart? If we have, did we establish our faith? If we have firmly established our faith, did we form aspirations and make vows? If we have made vows, did we actually put them into practice? This is very important. If we learn the Dharma but never take it to heart, what are we actually learning? So, we must take the Dharma to heart.

Faith is very important. Our faith must be deeply rooted. If the root of our faith does not grow deeply and extensively, then the Bodhi-tree will not grow tall. Even if the tree does grow, if its roots do not extend outward, it will be very worrisome, for when the wind blows, the tree may topple over. So, the Root of Faith is very important.

If our faith is deeply planted, and our resolve is unwavering, we will not be tempted by various external phenomena. That is because our minds have already gained “an understanding of True Suchness.” The subtle and wondrous Dharma of True Suchness is what we have finally realized. We believe in this subtle and wondrous Dharma. Since we believe in it, we can “realize our part in the Buddha-Dharma and can turn the Dharma-wheel.”

If we “realize our part in the Buddha-Dharma,” the subtle and wondrous principles of the Buddha have truly penetrated our heart. Whether worldly teachings or world-transcending, they can show us how to view worldly matters, objects and principles. All matters have their truth; all objects have their principles. This also applies to people’s minds. With wisdom, we can understand the subtle and wondrous; we understand both tangible and intangible things. This is “realizing our part in the Buddha-Dharma.”

The awakened principles are already in our minds; once the principles enter our hearts, in the future we can turn the Dharma-wheel. When we share the helpful methods and principles we understand with other people, we are also “turning the Dharma-wheel.” When we learn the Dharma, we must take it deeply into our hearts.

The sutra passage we discussed previously states,

“Sariputra, you, in a future lifetime, after a countless, boundless, inconceivable number of kalpas has passed, having made offerings to several” “trillions of Buddhas and upheld the Right Dharma, will fulfill all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path.”

This was the previous sutra passage.

Sariputra had put his mind at ease and could accept the Dharma. Therefore, the Buddha felt confident in passing on the Dharma to Sariputra. The Buddha approached Sariputra and said, “You, in a future lifetime, after a countless, boundless [kalpas].” This will take a long time, so he must be patient. Transmitting this Dharma and Dharma-lineage takes patience.

In “Having made offerings to several trillions of Buddhas, several” is used to mean there is no limit and “trillions” means that this is a very big number. We all intrinsically have Buddha-nature. If we can always be grateful towards everything in life, always respectful and always serving sentient beings out of genuine love, then everyone is a Buddha to us. We must form many connections with sentient beings. This is how we “uphold the Right Dharma”

and fulfill all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path. Everyone we now interact with is someone we should make offerings to and an opportunity for us to turn the Dharma-wheel to deliver the Right Dharma into everyone’s mind. This is something we can all do immediately. This kind of practice is not difficult. Forming good connections with sentient beings and giving for the sake of sentient beings are things we are able to do right now. This is also how we engage in spiritual practice.

The next sutra passage states,

“You shall become a Buddha by the name of Flower Light Tathagata, One Worthy of Offerings, One Who Is Completely Awakened. One Who Is Perfect in Wisdom and Action, the Well-Gone One,” “Knower of the World, Unsurpassed Guide, the Tamer, Teacher of Heavenly Beings and Humans, Buddha, the World-Honored One.”

Sariputra will attain Buddhahood in the future after passing through countless kalpas, a very long time, He will form perfect karmic connections with all beings. At that time, he will attain Buddhahood. When he becomes a Buddha, his epithet will be “Flower Light Tathagata.” Flower Light Tathagata will be endowed with the ten epithets.

In the past, Sariputra was biased toward emptiness. So, the Dharma he followed was not very perfect; this was the Small Vehicle Dharma. Now, Sariputra had begun to turn from the Small to the Great and was determined to move toward the Great Vehicle, so he will certainly attain Buddhahood. At that time, the Buddha bestowed a prediction of Buddhahood on Sariputra and even told him what his epithet will be. He will be called “Flower Light Tathagata.”

Tathagatas [embody] True Suchness, one who comes on the vehicle of True Suchness is called the “Thus Come One.” We all intrinsically have the Buddha-nature; we are all endowed with it. If we can take the principles of True Suchness to heart and then put them into practice, we will interact with sentient beings with the truths of the Tathagata. Tathagatas embody True Suchness, true principles. When a Buddha unites His intrinsic Buddha-nature with all things in the universe, all true principles will be clear, and then He can return to the Saha World with that perspective. Then He will be the “Thus Come One,” [one who realizes] the principles of True Suchness.

So, “a Buddha walks the path of True Suchness, from cause to fruition, therefore, He attains perfect enlightenment.”

The “cause” is our intrinsic nature of True Suchness. Over this process, we must engage in spiritual practice; for only then can we perfect [it]. That is how we attain Buddhahood, how we “attain perfect enlightenment.” To realize the true state of the Tathagata, we must start with the cause and move to attainment; this is how to attain perfect enlightenment.

Although the cause, the cause or seed for Buddhahood, is the True Suchness we all intrinsically have, it has to go through a process to achieve fruition. This depends on whether our ignorance is mild or severe, whether our karma is mild or severe. If we have mild karma and a little ignorance, this will not take very long. We must still have faith, vows and practice. If our faith, vows and practice accumulate over many lifetimes, we can [attain Buddhahood] relatively quickly. But, if we repeatedly create serious afflictions and much karma, even when we listen to the Dharma, we will hear it, let it leak out and have to listen to it again. If we form aspirations and vows but allow external conditions to affect us, then we will lose our will to practice. In addition, when ignorance emerges again, we will create more karma. If this happens repeatedly, [attaining Buddhahood] will take a very long time. So, the time it takes to go from cause to fruition depends on whether, after taking the Dharma into our hearts, we form firm spiritual aspirations and diligently advance with faith, vows and practice. Everyone is different,

so we attain Buddhahood at different times. Even if we form aspirations to engage in spiritual practice at the same time, we will attain Buddhahood at different times. You have all heard that. Sakyamuni Buddha and Maitreya Bodhisattva engaged in spiritual practice at the same time. Now, at this time, Sakyamuni has already attained Buddhahood in the human realm, but Maitreya Bodhisattva still has to wait a very long time. This was because Sakyamuni perfected His karmic connections with sentient beings first. This is why He attained Buddhahood earlier.

We can understand what the cause behind spiritual practice is. When our intrinsic nature of True Suchness is awakened, we feel that we must go among people to create good karmic connections with people, relieve their suffering and teach them true principles. We help all people eliminate their afflictions and manifest their intrinsic Buddha-nature and wisdom. This is their spiritual wealth; it is inexhaustible. This is wisdom. When we help resolve people’s afflictions and help everyone be freed from suffering, we are creating connections with sentient beings. This is “True Suchness.”

Next, we talk about “One Worthy of Offerings.”

“One Worthy of Offerings” is one who is a field of blessings. As a pure field of blessings, [a Buddha] deserves to receive material offerings. Thus, He is “One Worthy of Offerings.”

Actually, during the Buddha’s lifetime, in order to help the Sangha to eliminate the pride, arrogance and habitual tendencies from their lay lives, the Buddha guided all of them to beg for alms and create karmic connections. He did this solely to tame their afflictions.

In the Buddha’s Sangha, there were people from all four castes. Some were once nobles, others were once servants. Some also came from other religions, such as the brahmacarins and so on. They all took refuge in the Buddha-Dharma. There were people from all four castes. He wanted everyone to move away from their old spiritual practices that only focused on themselves or eliminate the sense of inferiority which they might have felt as a former servant. The former nobles had to tame their desire for pleasures and their arrogance. People from other religions had to tame their past improper thinking and views. For those of the lowest status, those who were considered slaves and were outcasts, they had to eliminate their feelings of inferiority.

By having impartial compassion, the Buddha nurtured our heart of compassion. Everyone in the Sangha was equal; they all had to purify their minds so they were free of inferiority, free of deviant thinking, free of doubts and arrogance and free of pride and suspicion. Then their minds would be completely pure. This is a field of blessings. In everyone’s mind, there is a field. By engaging in spiritual practice, we each make an effort to cultivate the field in our mind so it will be free of weeds and debris. If we cultivate the field very well, every seed that is sown in this field will yield a harvest. So, monastics are “Blessed-field Sangha.” Over those few decades, the Buddha continuously led everyone to to go among people to beg for alms. People who beg for alms must have pure minds, so they were called “Blessed-field Sangha.”

Those who were well-cultivated were worthy of receiving offerings from others. The ones who made the offerings, seeing the spiritual practice of the monastics, gave rise to happiness and faith. The monastics, or even the Buddha Himself, taught them the Dharma. Thus, the ones who made offerings were blessed. So, monastics were called “Blessed-field Sangha.” People must have a very clear understanding and truly purify their minds to be considered “Blessed-field Sangha.” If our minds are filled with discursive thoughts, which are like weeds in a field, we will be like ordinary people, full of greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. If our minds are not on the right course, how can we be “Blessed-field Sangha”? Therefore, we must always increase our diligence in spiritual cultivation.

If we want to go among people or bring them into our spiritual practice center, then the place we engage in spiritual cultivation must have an air of spiritual refinement. When people feel this sense of spiritual refinement from us, they will be happy, have faith and accept the teachings. This is also cultivating a field of blessings. The monastery is also a field of blessings. It can inspire happiness and faith in people so they will engage in spiritual practice. This also inspires respect from people, so they make offerings of reverence.

There are three types of offerings. One type is material offering. One type is the offering of reverence. One type is the offering of conduct. Among these three types of offerings, material offerings are what were given during the Buddha’s lifetime as monastics begged for alms from door to door. These were tangible, material objects. Even in the Lotus Sutra, as we have discussed before, people built stupas and temples to preserve the images of the Buddha-Dharma. This was part of the planning for the future; when the Buddha was no longer in this world, people could see these images and feel a sense of respect. This was the “offering of reverence.” When we enter temples and feel a sense of respect, that is also an offering of reverence.

Most important are “offerings of conduct.” This means that after taking the Dharma to heart, we must manifest it in our actions. When our conduct follows the rules of the Dharma, and we go into the world to turn the Dharma-wheel, it is the “offering of conduct.” This is how we help the Buddha-Dharma, the Right Dharma, to abide in world.

To practice as Blessed-field Sangha, the fields of our minds must be very pure. We must not be tempted by material desires. We do not advance the Buddha-Dharma in order to receive people’s material offerings nor to receive their offerings of reverence. These are not the reasons. Most importantly, we hope sentient beings make offerings of conduct by putting the Dharma into practice. We must take the Right Dharma into our hearts and then deliver it to sentient beings. As they turn the wheels of their minds, if the Right Dharma is in their hearts, it will spread throughout the world.

Monastics are not the only ones who propagate the Dharma, lay practitioners who take the Right Dharma to heart can also transform sentient beings. Vimalakirti had great wisdom; when the Buddha said one thing, he realized ten. Therefore, he could accept the principles taught by the Buddha, and from 1 thing realize 100, and then 1000. Thus His wisdom-life continued to grow. With these principles, “by grasping one truth, he understood all truths.” He was able to understand all of them. Vimalakirti was respected by people for his thorough understanding of the Buddha-Dharma.

However, when we engage in spiritual practice and become monastics, we cannot become arrogant just because we hear and understand the Dharma. Being “worthy of offerings” means these thoughts of pride and egotism, greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt, must all be cleared away. Then we are worthy of offerings. Then we can be Blessed-field Sangha. So, “As a pure field of blessings, we are worthy of receiving material offerings. This is being worthy of offerings.”

I had just discussed “material offerings.” That means, to purify everyone’s minds, the Sangha asked for alms door to door to create karmic connections as part of their daily routine. These material offerings helped sustain their daily living. One worthy of offerings should receive offerings. To be worthy of offerings, our minds must be pure. Otherwise, “If the three minds still exist…”? (We are not worthy of a drop of water). Indeed! So, we must understand that the three minds of greed, anger and ignorance must be completely eliminated. Only then are we worthy of people’s offerings.

There are three types of offerings. At present, the more important offering for this Sangha is for the monastics to help the people that come to this monastery to feel a sense of respect. This is the offering of reverence. We also need to teach the Dharma in a way that people can accept so that they will make offerings of conduct. This is how we can truly provide a worthy place of spiritual cultivation. So, everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 491 – The Path to Buddhahood is Long and Far

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>> “Causes and conditions have been aggregating for as long as the heavens and earth have existed. Accumulating in our storehouse consciousness, they now manifest as karmic retributions. Through the Four Noble Truths, we plant seeds of goodness. With the Four Great Vows, we walk the Bodhisattva-path.”

>> “Now, again, I wish for you to recall the path you have practiced according to your original vows. I, for the sake of the Hearers, expound this Great Vehicle sutra by the name of the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower and teach the Bodhisattva Way that is guarded by Buddhas.”

>> “Sariputra, you, in the future, after a countless, boundless, inconceivable number of kalpas has passed, having made offerings to several trillions of Buddhas and upheld Right Dharma, will fulfill all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path.”

>> “The Dharma-lineage must be passed on. Inheriting the wondrous Dharma of the Great Vehicle, the true Dharma of the path to One Reality,”

>> Fulfilling all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path: Making offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas is actualizing the Bodhisattvas.’ Six Perfections in myriad actions. He will fulfill this completely.

>> The path to Buddhahood is long and far. This is like the vast sea, which cannot be emptied by a single ladle, or like a building of nine ren (216m), which cannot be built in a day.

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“Causes and conditions have been aggregating for as long as the heavens and earth have existed.
Accumulating in our storehouse consciousness, they now manifest as karmic retributions.
Through the Four Noble Truths, we plant seeds of goodness.
With the Four Great Vows, we walk the Bodhisattva-path.”

We live between the heavens and the earth. The universe is endless and the earth is vast and boundless. Humans and sentient beings have, for who knows how many trillions of lifetimes returned to this world, over and over. As we come and go, we bring our causes and conditions with us and are led by karmic connections to transmigrate in the Six Realms. If the karma in our storehouse consciousness that we created in the past over many lifetimes is not exhausted in this lifetime, the causes we have accumulated in this lifetime will be added to our storehouse consciousness and brought into our future lifetimes. In this way, the debts we have not fully repaid will be carried over into our future lifetimes and thus continue to accumulate. Think about it; when will we be able to repay all of our mutual debts to one another? Because of this, our karmic retributions constantly manifest. From the karmic seeds contained [in our minds], our karmic consequences keep manifesting, and the seeds [they produce cause us] to form [new] karmic conditions. Thus, our [karma] continues to accumulate lifetime after lifetime, keeping us entangled. This is truly unbearable suffering.

The Buddha comes to this world for one great cause. He teaches sentient beings the true principles of suffering, the Four Noble Truths of suffering, causation, cessation and the Path. Once we understand the Four Noble Truths, we can accept, comprehend, awaken to and practice these principles. We can gradually change ourselves. As we slowly eliminate unwholesome causes, we begin to sow new and wholesome seeds and cultivate the field in our minds. As we sow and cultivate these seeds, we create good causes and form good conditions. This is how we gradually begin to engage in spiritual practice.

In the process of our spiritual practice, we must make the [Four] Great Vows. We vow to deliver countless sentient beings. Sentient beings experience so much suffering. Therefore, we must nurture our love and kindness so we can be benefactors to each other. Then these seeds will gradually accumulate. By understanding the Dharma, we can encourage each other as we share a common goal and walk the same path. To head toward the path to Buddhahood, we need to walk the Bodhisattva-path.

As we walk the Bodhi-path, for each bit of delusion we eliminate, we attain a bit of awakening.

We are truly grateful to the Buddha for never abandoning sentient beings and for teaching sentient beings how to create blessings while in the midst of suffering. Right now, when we look at Living Bodhisattvas, we can see how enthusiastic they are. In every suffering nation, we see them enthusiastically devoting themselves to help those who are suffering. They also apply the Buddha-Dharma; practicing the Three Spheres of Emptiness, they give unconditionally, and at the same time, they feel grateful. They do their volunteer work very happily. The volunteers in South Africa and Mozambique are truly benefactors for each other.

These places have always been very poor, These places have always been very poor; these are their causes and conditions. Yet the configuration of these inconceivable causes and conditions [led] a young Taiwanese woman to marry a man from Mozambique and move there. When she heard about Tzu Chi, she really wanted to learn more. Because of this karmic connection, Tzu Chi volunteers in South Africa reached out to her. When we held relief distributions and so on, she joined our efforts.

However, because [Taiwan] does not have diplomatic relationships with [Mozambique], [importing resources] was not a simple matter. Denise Tsai went to the presidential palace and visited the first lady’s office. When she told them about all the work that Tzu Chi has done globally, her stories really touched the first lady’s chief of staff, a man named Delfim [Joao]. So, he was willing to offer his help, and through his efforts and communication, within a very tight timeframe, we were able to begin our distributions.

At that time, we had to quickly mobilize people. We already had 100 local volunteers in Mozambique. These volunteers were people who received our help before. At the beginning of 2013, there was a big flood [in Mozambique]. Volunteers from South Africa went to Mozambique and met with Denise to survey the damage and distribute goods, forming a very good karmic connection with them. Through many earlier trips, Bodhisattvas from. South Africa had already sown the seeds of Tzu Chi in these impoverished communities. Now, our volunteers emerged from these communities. There were 100 of these volunteers. These volunteers quickly mobilized and unloaded everything from the shipping container.

Mr. Michael Pan and Bodhisattvas from South Africa went to Mozambique together to show them how to unload the rice and how to set everything up in an organized way. With just one day before the distribution at the elementary school, they did trainings and held rehearsals to teach them how to distribute goods and how deeply they needed to bow. They also shared the Dharma with them and talked about the principles of unconditional giving.

At the distribution, there was a city official named Celina. As she watched, she felt very moved. The distribution that day was very successful. The recipients were each handed a 20 kilogram bag of rice. They held this 20 kilogram bag in their arms. This was something they had never received before in their lives.

[The volunteers] smiled at them, spoke softly and bowed deeply when they gave them the rice, so the recipients felt very happy and all wore grateful smiles. Everyone there had experienced suffering. To see the genuine smiles and happiness being brought out from their hearts is very rare.

This is the best reward. This strengthens [the volunteers’] goodness and their wisdom-life. So, the people who received the goods received material assistance. The people who gave the goods developed their kind thoughts and wisdom-life and strengthened their willingness to give. They were truly mutual benefactors. This is what makes them Living Bodhisattvas. In such an impoverished area, once the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism has opened, the Jing Si Dharma-lineage can spread in the world. Everyone applied virtuous Dharma and exercised great willingness and love. No matter how hard the work was or how tight and stressful the schedule was, they were still able to, in a very short period of time, organize everything and hold rehearsals. Then the following day’s distribution could happen in a very orderly matter.

They held seven distributions and helped 2000 families. The volunteers gave of themselves with joy. After they distributed goods to the poor, they then visited them. They went to each family to see whether the rice had been brought home. Then they assessed the condition of these families. If they found that they faced other difficulties, they would find other ways to help them.

For example, they saw a family of nine. There were nine people in that family. Among them was a girl with an unknown illness which made her unable to walk. After seeing this, Tzu Chi volunteers quickly provided a wheelchair to the family. There were many similar stories. Indeed, in places with suffering, when people can help each other, this creates a very heartwarming atmosphere.

Mozambique was fortunate enough to receive this kind of love and care. This warmth has continued to be transmitted to the poorest and the most desolate areas, where it is needed most. This is the practice of the Four Great Vows, which is the Bodhisattva-path. Because this world is full of suffering, we should know the principle that suffering comes from the accumulation of karmic retributions that arise through people’s interactions. Take Denise Tsai, for example. She originally enjoyed a good life in Taiwan. Why did she marry someone from far away? These imperceptible karmic conditions caused her to end up there.

So, we say, “One gives rise to infinity.” First, the seed must be sown in the ground. After it is sown, if it converges with good karmic conditions, naturally it will be able to grow. Thus, “One gives rise to infinity.” So, the workings of karma are truly inconceivable.

Theirs is such a long story. Let us go back to the Lotus Sutra. In the previous passage, Sakyamuni Buddha said,

“Now, again, I wish for you to recall the path you have practiced according to your original vows. I, for the sake of the Hearers, expound this Great Vehicle sutra by the name of the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower and teach the Bodhisattva Way that is guarded by Buddhas.”

This Dharma had been concealed in the Buddha’s mind for more than 40 years. Now, He began to freely carry out His intent, which was to teach the Bodhisattva-path.

The following sutra passage states,

“Sariputra, you, in the future, after a countless, boundless, inconceivable number of kalpas has passed, having made offerings to several trillions of Buddhas and upheld Right Dharma, will fulfill all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path.”

Think about this. Sariputra, during the Buddha’s lifetime, was foremost in wisdom among His Sangha. At this point in time, he received the Buddha’s prediction that, in the distant future, he would also attain Buddhahood.

Therefore, for a seed to be sown in the ground and then nurtured is not a simple matter. This is because people always have periods of advancing and periods of retreating. If our Root of Faith is not strong enough, we may advance only to retreat, ending up in the same place. We follow cycles of karmic cause and effect over so many lifetimes, so we may advance and retreat many times. Thus it takes a long time to attain Buddhahood.

So, at this time, the Buddha bestowed this prediction upon him, hoping that this seed would grow under the [right] karmic conditions and that he would make an effort to protect this seed. Although it would take a long time for Sariputra to attain Buddhahood, the Buddha still [gave His prediction].

“The Dharma-lineage must be passed on. Inheriting the wondrous Dharma of the Great Vehicle, the true Dharma of the path to One Reality,”

is likewise inseparable from the provisional teachings of the Great Vehicle.

Though there was still a long way to go, He was now making the effort to pass on the Dharma-lineage. This Dharma-lineage is the wondrous Dharma of the Great Vehicle. With the seed of the Great Vehicle, and the causes and conditions of the wondrous Dharma, the principles had to be passed on at this time. This is inseparable from the wondrous, provisional Dharma of the Great Vehicle. In Sariputra’s future lifetimes, he must form connections with many people. It takes a very long time to form so many karmic connections. It takes many lifetimes of practicing the true principles of One Reality, this wondrous Dharma. Sentient beings have varying capabilities, so when [Sariputra] inherits this Dharma, he must likewise retain the Great Dharma, the wondrous Dharma, in his mind. When he teaches sentient beings, he must also make use of wondrous, provisional Dharma. These are the methods he must use to form karmic connections with sentient beings over a long period of time. This is how [the Dharma-lineage] is passed on.

As stated in the previous sutra passage, over the lifetimes of two trillion Buddhas, the Buddha unceasingly formed karmic connections with others. That was how He was able to attain Buddhahood in this world. The Buddha’s Dharma goes through the eras of Right Dharma, Dharma-semblance and Dharma-decay. As of the present time, it has already gone through the era of Dharma-semblance. The footprints left by the Buddha in His lifetime, those traces, flourished in that era. People built stupas and temples, or they carved His image in mountain grottoes, like those in the Dunhuang Caves on the Silk Road. When Master Xuan Zang went [to India] for sutras, all along the entire Silk Road he heard so many stories about the Buddha and how He transformed sentient beings and gave various teachings in this world.

Some of these images were painted with brushes, some were made from clay or stone, and so on. Others were carved in mountain caves. The entire Jataka Sutra was carved in a mountain cave. This happened after the era of the Right Dharma, in the era of the Dharma-semblance. People showed their respect to the Buddha-Dharma with their imaginations by preserving its images. Though people practiced the Dharma, the semblance of the Dharma gradually deviated. There were many stories and many storytellers, so even the slightest of differences led people far off course.

For instance, the seventh lunar month became a tradition [called “Ghost Month”]. This is a tremendous deviation [from the Dharma]. At this time, we must quickly bring back the proper teachings of the Buddha-Dharma and help everyone understand them. The true Buddha-Dharma explains the principles of this world and helps people understand why there is suffering, why people have relationships that create love, hate, affection, animosity and so on that lead them to create various kinds of karma. Once they clearly understand principles, they can untangle the knots in their minds and eliminate ignorance little by little. Thus, we must put our hearts into comprehending these principles.

It will take Sariputra a very long time to attain Buddhahood. The Buddha passed on His principles to him, hoping he will spend that very long amount of time teaching sentient beings. He must also “[make] offerings to several trillions of Buddhas.” He has to make offerings to this many Buddhas. Actually, the Buddha told us that everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature. As Never-Slighting Bodhisattva said, “I dare not look down on you because you will attain Buddhahood in the future.” Treating people with this kind of mindset is equivalent to making offerings.

We cannot look down on anyone; we must be grateful to everyone. The best offering is to adjust to sentient beings’ [desires] and go among them to give. With this perspective, practicing the Bodhisattva-path and making offerings to countless Buddhas over countless lifetimes will not be a difficult matter. Nor is it simply a metaphor; these are true principles.

We must “fulfill all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path.” This is what Bodhisattvas do. We seek the Dharma and transform sentient beings.

Fulfilling all aspects of the Bodhisattva-path: Making offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas is actualizing the Bodhisattvas.’ Six Perfections in myriad actions. He will fulfill this completely.

We need to “make offerings to countless trillions of Buddhas.” If we consider everyone a Buddha, we will be grateful to them and love them. Then we are practicing the Six Paramitas, giving, upholding precepts, patience, diligence, [Samadhi and wisdom]. We start by giving to these sentient beings. Then in the end, we will fulfill this completely and receive the Buddha’s predictions of Buddhahood.

The path to Buddhahood is very far and long, but it is also like a vast ocean. It cannot be emptied by a single ladle. We must have patience, love and perseverance, from the time we form our initial aspirations to a time very far into the future. This is the only way we can gradually and diligently advance toward the path to awakening.

The path to Buddhahood is long and far. This is like the vast sea, which cannot be emptied by a single ladle, or like a building of nine ren (216m), which cannot be built in a day.

Think about how long it took Sariputra to receive the Buddha’s prediction of Buddhahood. So, we must not waste even a second. We must constantly form good connections with all other sentient beings. As we meet these countless beings who can attain Buddhahood in the future, we must form good karmic connections with them and make offerings to them. We must let everyone feel joyful and content. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 490 – Recalling Initial Aspiration of the Great Vows

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>> “The Buddha ardently and deeply hoped that. His disciples would work hard and be diligent, recall their initial aspiration of the Great Vows transmit the Buddha-mind and carry out His original intent.”

>> “Sariputra, in the past, I taught you to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. But you have completely forgotten this, And then you say that you have already attained Nirvana.”

>> “Now, again, I wish for you to recall the path you have practiced according to your original vows. For the sake of the Hearers, I expound this Great Vehicle sutra by the name of Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower and teach the Bodhisattva Way that has been guarded and retained by Buddhas.”

>> Now the Buddha wanted to enable His disciples to recall their original vows. Because of the Great Vows they made in the causal ground, today they have attained these fruits. Now that we are seeing these fruits, we must recall our original vows.

>> Hearers: They are the disciples of the Buddha who practice the Small Vehicle Dharma. By hearing the Buddha’s verbal teachings, they realize the principles of the Four Noble Truths and put an end to their delusions of views and thinking. This puts them on the path to Buddhahood. It is for the sake of Hearers that He now expounds the Great Vehicle teachings.

>> So, this Dharma is “the one great cause that all Buddhas have safeguarded and recalled.”

>> To protect it from being invaded by external evils and to allow internal goodness to arise

>> The Buddha taught the Great Vehicle in the hopes that Hearers and people with great capabilities and wisdom would quickly recall their original vows of walking the Great Vehicle Path.

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“The Buddha ardently and deeply hoped that.
His disciples would work hard and be diligent,
recall their initial aspiration of the Great Vows
transmit the Buddha-mind and carry out His original intent.”

In the Buddha’s heart, He ardently and deeply hopes that all sentient beings in the world will be able to realize their intrinsic Buddha-nature, to return to their nature of True Suchness. The Buddha hopes that everyone, from the moment they form that initial aspiration, will very earnestly and diligently practice. We must always, with every thought, recall our initial aspiration. What was that initial aspiration? The [Four] Great Vows.

This is what the Buddha earnestly taught us. What are the [Four] Great Vows? They are vows to deliver sentient beings and attain Buddhahood. Without delivering sentient beings, we cannot attain Buddhahood. This is the insight that I have recently shared with you repeatedly. This is also the Buddha’s original [teaching].

The first time the Buddha turned the Dharma-wheel, He wanted everyone to recognize that the world is [full of] suffering. Because of the afflictions that cause suffering, we have created various kinds of karma and, as a result, face various kinds of retributions. Thus we cannot escape suffering. Ever since teaching the truths of suffering, causation, cessation and the Path, the Buddha has hoped that everyone will walk the Path and take this road back to the intrinsic Buddha-nature we all have. To take this road back, we must turn from delusion to awakening. We must further understand the many causes of suffering.

We ordinary people have, since Beginningless Time, gone through billions of lifetimes. Since we have been deluded for such a long time, how many afflictions have we given rise to in this world? Throughout all of our lifetimes, there has been a “veil of darkness.” So, what were the external conditions of our previous life? What kind of karma did we create? Were we good people who created blessings? Were we evil people who created [bad] karma? We have forgotten about all of this. We are deluded, so we suffer.

As for all the sufferings accumulated in the past, we do not know what they are; we have already forgotten them. Since we are now engaging in spiritual practice, we must return from our delusion back to the path of awakening. First, we must understand the cause of suffering. Among the multitudes of sentient beings, don’t we find portraits of our past lives? They are in front of us, talking to us right now. Their habitual tendencies may have been our tendencies in our past lives. We see them enduring all kinds of suffering, yet without recognizing that they are suffering, they continue to create karma.

Perhaps we were just like these people in our past lives. So, the karma we have accumulated is of all different forms and varieties. Sentient beings are countless, as are the kinds of suffering [they endure] and their appearances. Despite the countless kinds of suffering and countless different appearances, there are also countless awakened ones. Thus, among the multitudes of sentient beings, we can attain realizations, which continuously accumulate. From the deluded state of ordinary beings, when we go among the people, we can gradually awaken and advance. This is how we walk the Bodhisattva-path. If we do not interact with people, we cannot awaken and understand. There is no other way to attain Buddhahood. There is only this road, this Dharma-door; we must walk the Bodhisattva-path.

Therefore, we must “recall our initial aspiration of the Great Vows.” We need to recall and constantly contemplate this. With our initial aspiration, we made the Four Great Vows.

Everyone knows these; we must deliver sentient beings. We must eliminate our afflictions. We must earnestly, mindfully learn. We must never give up on attaining Buddhahood. These are our initial aspirations. We must transmit the Buddha-mind and carry out His original intent. In His mind, His original intent was an ardent and deep hope that everyone can be delivered, eliminate their afflictions and return to the path to enlightenment. Everyone must share the responsibility for doing this.

Actually, spiritual practitioners often lose their spiritual aspirations. However, if we uphold precepts as we engage in spiritual practice, naturally, there will always be Dharma-protectors by our side who remind us to be vigilant.

During the Buddha’s lifetime, there was a bhiksu who lived in the tranquil woods. He strictly upheld the precepts. All of his time was spent in the woods; he rarely went among people. He regarded upholding percepts as his goal.

This went on until one day, he thought to himself, “My mind is already free of hindrances and free of entanglements. I have successfully upheld precepts, I’m very satisfied with this. In my spiritual practice in this life, this state of mind, this level [of attainment] is the state I am most satisfied with.”

However, in the forest, the Dharma-protector who guarded those who upheld precepts could read his mind. For a spiritual practitioner to have this mindset was wrong and improper. So, this heavenly being appeared before the bhiksu and said, “Bhiksu, I respect you for vigilantly upholding precepts. That is why I became your Dharma-protector. But your thoughts have gone astray; you have made a mistake. You must not be content with this tranquil state. This is improper and not correct.”

“Because you have these thoughts, it means you are greedily clinging to your own personal pure state while disregarding the sentient beings of the world. The Buddha’s intent was to transform sentient beings far and wide. He hoped everyone could return to their pure intrinsic Tathagata-nature. Transforming sentient beings is a road and you are just marching in place. Though you understand that life is illusory, you still do not understand that the karma sentient beings create ‘exists’ and leads to existent suffering and hardship.”

At that moment, this spiritual practitioner suddenly awakened. “Of course! Doesn’t the Buddha hope for. His disciples to awaken themselves and transform others?” If we are in Samadhi because we uphold precepts but still lack wisdom, we will not experience and become awakened by the suffering of sentient beings around us. Indeed, we cannot return to our intrinsic Tathagata-nature and will only remain marching in the same place. If we do not form affinities with sentient beings, how can we attain both blessings and wisdom? Therefore, when we engage in spiritual practice, we must make the Great Vows.

The previous sutra passage states,

“Sariputra, in the past, I taught you to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. But you have completely forgotten this, And then you say that you have already attained Nirvana.”

Doesn’t the story I just told illustrate what the Buddha says in this passage? The Buddha earnestly taught sentient beings to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. But although sentient beings are willing to engage in spiritual practice, they may still forget their vows in the process.

We might also think, “I have already eliminated my afflictions. I am already engaging in spiritual practice. That is good enough for me. I have already transcended my afflictions, so I have attained Nirvana. I have already transcended my afflictions by practicing the Dharma.” Actually, transcending afflictions is not the same thing as truly awakening. We must return to our intrinsic Tathagata-nature and connect with that awakened nature in order to attain true awakening.

The next sutra passage states,

“Now, again, I wish for you to recall the path you have practiced according to your original vows. For the sake of the Hearers, I expound this Great Vehicle sutra by the name of Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower and teach the Bodhisattva Way that has been guarded and retained by Buddhas.”

Finally, this passage has come up. The Buddha said at this time, “In the past, this is what I have taught you. I hope everybody will vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. However, you have forgotten [what I taught], so now I will teach it again. I hope each of you can recall the past and remember your state of mind when you first aspired to engage in spiritual practice.”

Of course, we began as Hearers. When the Buddha taught the Dharma, with our ears we accepted what we heard; we accepted the words He spoke. With our ears, we heard and accepted the Dharma. So at this assembly, the Buddha began to expound the Great Vehicle sutra by the name of. “Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower.” Now, He would “teach the Bodhisattva Way.” The Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra was the best path to awakening and Buddhahood that the Buddha had been wanting to teach. The Buddha had looked forward to this day; the day when He could turn the Dharma-wheel and deliver the Dharma He realized into people’s minds. This is what the Buddha had guarded and retained. So, this sutra passage expresses the Buddha’s hope that we would be very mindful.

Now the Buddha wanted to enable His disciples to recall their original vows. Because of the Great Vows they made in the causal ground, today they have attained these fruits. Now that we are seeing these fruits, we must recall our original vows.

The original intent of the Buddha was for. His disciples to constantly recollect the. “Great Vows they made in the causal ground.” Causal refers to the first seed in our minds, that very first, initial seed. We made the Great Vows at that moment. That initial aspiration is to engage in spiritual practice to deliver sentient beings and eliminate afflictions by attaining realizations among people. If we can take good care of that “seed, today [we will] have attained these fruits.” Without taking care of the “cause,” how can we achieve the “effects”?

I always say that a thick-trunked tree grows from a tiny seed. We should all know that this giant tree came from that “cause,” which is a seed. As this tree grew, it also bore many fruits. These fruits will turn into “causes.” As for the Bodhi-seed, as long as we take good care of it, it will eventually become a Bodhi-tree and will always bear Bodhi-fruits. The Bodhi-fruits will become seeds, and those seeds will then become Bodhi-trees. In this way, this cycle of causes and conditions will continue as long as we take good care of the seeds.

So, “Today they have attained these fruits.” Today, we are able to understand the origins of the cause of Buddhahood. The Buddha means the Enlightened One. The cause of His enlightenment began in this way, with an initial aspiration. Since we have this beginning to our awakening, we must turn back from delusion to awakening. To go from delusion to awakening, we must walk this road through the world. Then we can connect with the Bodhi-path.

So, “Now that we are seeing the fruits, we must recall our original vows.” The Buddha expounded the Lotus Sutra for our sakes. So, we must be like Hearers and listen to the teachings with our ears. The Dharma comes out of the Buddha’s mouth and those teachings must enter our hearts. We must make an effort to listen to the Buddha expound this Great Vehicle sutra.

Hearers: They are the disciples of the Buddha who practice the Small Vehicle Dharma. By hearing the Buddha’s verbal teachings, they realize the principles of the Four Noble Truths and put an end to their delusions of views and thinking. This puts them on the path to Buddhahood. It is for the sake of Hearers that He now expounds the Great Vehicle teachings.

Hearers are those who have not thoroughly understood or realized the Dharma. They are Small Vehicle practitioners. So, this is what a Hearer is. The Buddha now taught the Great Vehicle Dharma for the sake of the disciples who were Hearers; this was the Dharma for those who practiced the Small or Middle Vehicles. At that time, many Bodhisattvas were also at the assembly. Guanyin, Manjusri, Maitreya and so on were all at that Dharma assembly. But the Buddha specifically targeted Hearers and other Small Vehicle practitioners so they could witness how the Bodhisattvas who practiced the Great Vehicle Dharma were still going among people to seek the Buddha’s teachings and transform sentient beings.

So, “Hearers” are spiritual practitioners who practiced the Small Vehicle Dharma; they are practitioners of the Dharma. They heard the Buddha give teachings and realized the principles of the Four Noble Truths. After realizing the Four Noble Truths they put an end to the afflictions of views and thinking, to those delusions.

After we end the delusions of views and thinking, we begin to move toward the path to Buddhahood. The ignorance, perspectives and thinking of the multitudes of sentient beings will not disturb our minds. If we can practice diligently among people, we have achieved true mastery. This is the path to Buddhahood, which was being taught for Hearers.

Since these disciples were [at the assembly], the Buddha expounded “the Great Vehicle sutra by the name of Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower and taught the Bodhisattva Way.” The name of the sutra is the Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra. The Buddha even told us the name of the sutra. This was the Dharma He had guarded and retained. It was very valued and cherished by the Buddha. For more than 40 years, He had earnestly and carefully safeguarded it within His mind.

So, this Dharma is “the one great cause that all Buddhas have safeguarded and recalled.”

All Buddhas are of the same mind. They guarded and retained the wondrous Dharma, which teaches the Great Vehicle Dharma, “teaching the Bodhisattva Way.” The Great Dharma that the Buddha guarded and retained can “benefit sentient beings.”

Benefiting sentient beings is the one great cause of the Buddha for coming to this world. Therefore, He had to teach sentient beings how to reach the state of Buddhahood. The Buddha worked very hard, very earnestly and very diligently. He deeply hoped that all sentient beings could accept and take the Dharma to heart. So, the meaning behind guarding and retaining was To protect it from being invaded by external evils and to allow internal goodness to arise.

When we encounter external disturbances, they must not be allowed to enter our minds. We must protect our initial aspiration and continue to grow our roots of goodness so that they will grow stronger with every single thought. This is the way to protect our wholesome minds and our initial aspiration to engage in practice, which was to achieve self-awakening and to awaken others. We must protect [our minds] so that wholesome thoughts will arise with every thought. This is the only way for us to diligently advance.

We cannot just say, “I have formed aspirations. I do have that resolve. It is in my heart and mind.” Simply protecting it is not useful. We must unceasingly give rise to wholesome thoughts. This is how we guard and retain. Just protecting our aspirations is not enough, we also must also retain them to allow them to grow with every thought.

The Buddha taught the Great Vehicle in the hopes that Hearers and people with great capabilities and wisdom would quickly recall their original vows of walking the Great Vehicle Path.

This took place at the beginning of the Buddha’s expounding of the Lotus Sutra. At the beginning of this sutra, the Buddha had already given a name to this Great Vehicle sutra, “Wondrous Dharma Lotus Flower.” He hoped everyone would recall their initial aspiration. This was very important. So, the Buddha ardently and deeply hoped that His disciples would diligently advance. We must return to and recall our initial aspiration in making the Great Vows, transmitting the Buddha-mind and carrying out His original intent. The Buddha freely expressed His original intent, so we must mindfully accept [this responsibility]. This is how we, as the Buddha’s disciples, repay His grace. We must be grateful for the Buddha’s [compassion] towards sentient beings. If we are grateful, we must diligently practice. So, diligence begins with our initial aspiration, which we must guard and retain. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 489 – We Must Never Forget Our Original Vows

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>> “The Buddha described His past teachings, which had now been forgotten. Now He spoke to the assembly again to clarify that in the past, He had taught the Bodhisattva Way, but because of their Leaks, they had forgotten their original vows.”

>> “You, throughout the long night, have followed me and received my instruction. I have used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings.”

>> “Sariputra, in the past, I taught you to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. But you have completely forgotten this. And then you say that you have already attained Nirvana.”

>> Because your vows were not deeply rooted, in the course of your spiritual practice you set aside the Great to learn the Small. Halfway there, you completely forgot. So, now you claim to have already attained Nirvana. In the past, I taught you to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. Yet now you have completely forgotten it and set aside the Great to learn the Small, causing you worries and regrets.

>> And now, He proclaimed to the assembly, You who have made the Great Vows must not forget your initial aspiration. The Buddha, for a very long time, has always delivered sentient beings with the Great Vehicle of One Reality.

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“The Buddha described His past teachings, which had now been forgotten.
Now He spoke to the assembly again to clarify
that in the past, He had taught the Bodhisattva Way,
but because of their Leaks, they had forgotten their original vows.”

This explains that, in the past the Buddha was always teaching mindfully. But some people, the majority of people, quickly forgot the teachings after hearing them. This was what “the Buddha described.” In the previous sutra passage, the Buddha again described the past; He was constantly reminding us.

For instance, He spoke of His “past teachings” and how, in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, He had engaged in spiritual practice and guided people to understand the deeply profound principles of the Buddha-Dharma. He did not only do this for one lifetime, but for an incalculable number of past lives. He did all this for the sake of one thing, to help us develop the clarity of mind to see our intrinsic nature.

This Dharma is so simple, but He had to spend such a long time to unceasingly teach it. This kind of description tells everyone that this has happened over a very long time, over many lifetimes. After He taught it, it was quickly forgotten.

In the [sutra], Sariputra was representative [of the assembly]. When he described his own mindset, he was expressing what many other people all wanted to say. They had karmic conditions to follow the Buddha for who knows how long. In the past, the Buddha taught them unceasingly, yet in this lifetime they still remained in the state of the Small Vehicle. This was what Sariputra and the others felt. So, the Buddha began proclaiming the following at this assembly. He wanted everyone to clearly understand that, “In the past, He had taught the Bodhisattva Way.” Over many past lifetimes, He had been in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, Over this long time, what He was constantly taught was the Bodhisattva Way. He wanted everyone to value the Bodhisattva-path.

But we humans [cannot], “because of [our] Leaks.” Because of our ignorance and afflictions, greed, anger, delusion, arrogance and doubt, etc., we cycle back, one lifetime after another. For an unknown number of lifetimes, we have endlessly given rise to afflictions. These afflictions arise from habitual tendencies; thus we have Leaks. Though we have had the karmic conditions to encounter the Buddha-Dharma life after life, we retain the characteristics of ordinary people so we reproduce thoughts of afflictions more often [than thoughts of the Dharma].

For example, laypeople do things for the sake of their family or for their careers, and so on. They are so busy they do not have much time. After they hear the Dharma, [they think], “It makes sense and makes me happy. I should change my habitual tendencies. I should diligently [practice] the Dharma.” But the time they spend listening to the Dharma in comparison to the time they spend being busy is quite small, and of course, the time they spend reproducing afflictions is greater. This is why sentient beings have many Leaks and much ignorance, and why so little pure Dharma has been able to penetrate their minds.

This is true even for monastic practitioners. Their morning routine is to listen to the Dharma, but the time they listen is less than an hour. The rest of their day is very busy, [addressing] people and matters, along with afflictions from their environment in their minds. So, we can also make this comparison. As we go about our work, inevitably one person will say, “This plant will look better here.” And then someone else will say, “No, it won’t. It will look better if we put some bamboo here.” In the fields, [one person might say], “Today we will plant amaranth seeds.” But another will say, “No, we should plant water spinach.” A small matter such as this may even turn into a dispute.

What difference does it make whether we plant amaranth or water spinach? To grow either, we need to sow seeds. The field has already been plowed, so all we need to do is plant the seeds. Why argue over things that are so similar? This is unnecessary. “If you think this is good, that is fine.” When things are pretty much the same, if neither is wrong or will take us astray and the results will be the same, then both parties should give a little. Then there will be harmony, and we will not need to engage in disputes.

I have heard some of our lay Bodhisattva-volunteers share about their short-term retreat at the Abode. In the fields, they realized that the monastics teach according to capabilities. When they hit rocks while hoeing the fields, [the volunteers say,] “There are so many rocks!” [The monastics would say,]. “Indeed! This is what our minds are like. When we find a rock in this field, we must quickly pick it up and set it aside. Then the vegetables can grow beautifully.”

Hearing this, the volunteers thought, “This makes a lot of sense. This is just like my daily living. Sometimes, if I encounter difficulties, I feel very annoyed. I am annoyed with the things around me, but I do not reflect on myself to examine the field of my own mind. These afflictions were already inside of me and not caused by external things.” Teachers who excel at guiding people will bring the Dharma into these farming methods. Volunteers are happy to be guided like this.

This is why I say that our daily living cannot deviate from the Dharma. If our minds deviate from the Dharma,

we will experience Leaks. We will give rise to afflictions again and then fall back into the ways of ordinary people. We will give rise to more ignorance. This is because after accepting the teachings, we quickly lose them; we forget them.

During this period of time, the Buddha constantly described and explained how He had taught people in the past. Over such a long period of time, He formed connections with everyone by devising teachings for them over many lifetimes. But every single teaching was all about encouraging everyone to walk the Bodhisattva-path. Only by doing that would they have the chance to return to their pure intrinsic nature. Lifetime after lifetime He did the same thing. His disciples had had the karmic conditions to accept these teachings life after life, but they quickly forgot them. So, when we hear the Dharma right now, we must clearly understand the essential points.

We need to remember that we already have an affinity with the Buddha. That is why we continue to learn and review the teachings of Sakyamuni Buddha. In the past we already had the affinity to engage in spiritual practice with Him. ․So, in this lifetime, we must seize every moment. Since we can hear the Dharma, we must take it to heart and abide in the Buddha’s wisdom. We cannot allow external conditions to disturb our spiritual aspirations.

So, the previous sutra passage states,

“You, throughout the long night, have followed me and received my instruction. I have used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings.”

The Buddha had already spent a long time engaging in spiritual practice. At the same time, He taught everyone unceasingly. However, while He engaged in practice and at the same time taught everyone, we still remained lost in the long night, the long night of ignorance.

When we ordinary people hear the Dharma although we seem to understand, we really do not. What we do understand, we feel that we cannot put it into practice; it seems very difficult. This is the long and dark night of our minds, like the darkness at night, before dawn. We bring our ignorant and ordinary mind with us when we receive teachings. This is why the Buddha said, “I have used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings.” Everyone is still asleep, unable to awaken, or they are still lost in that long night, because they have not eliminated their afflictions. This means that the first glimmers of dawn have not yet appeared in our minds. This is what we call the long night. This is the state of mind in which we have not eliminated our ignorance; in this state we receive the Buddha’s teachings.

And so the following passage states,

“Sariputra, in the past, I taught you to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. But you have completely forgotten this. And then you say that you have already attained Nirvana.”

The Buddha again reminded Sariputra that, after such a long time, the glimmers of dawn had not yet surfaced in his mind. “Sariputra in the past, I taught you to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood.” During the time of the two trillion Buddhas, the Buddha was engaged in spiritual practice. At that time, the Buddha created many affinities with people. In the presence of those two trillion Buddhas, He always did the same thing; He sought the Buddha’s teachings and transformed sentient beings. The sentient beings transformed by Him then followed Him, lifetime after lifetime. At this assembly, He began to teach everyone that they must “vow to follow the path to Buddhahood.”

As they engage in spiritual practice, they must make great vows to do great things. “Great vows” are the vows to transform sentient beings and to attain Buddhahood. We can do this because we have followed the Buddha in spiritual practice. You and I, in our past lifetimes, formed karmic connections with the Buddha. We have been on that road right up to the present.

But over this long period of time, as the Buddha said, “You have completely forgotten this.” He continued to lead everyone, hoping that they would make this kind of vow, but everyone had forgotten again. “And then you say that you have already attained Nirvana.” Up until that lifetime, they had the karmic affinity to be together and continue to learn from the Buddha. But, they still clung to “emptiness and existence,” so they had not achieved a perfect [awakening]. They only sought self-awakening and had not yet aspired to awaken others.

Forming aspirations is easy; persevering is hard. We quickly forget this resolve. The reason people quickly forget is, “if your vows are not deeply rooted, you set aside the Great to learn the Small.”

Because your vows were not deeply rooted, in the course of your spiritual practice you set aside the Great to learn the Small. Halfway there, you completely forgot. So, now you claim to have already attained Nirvana. In the past, I taught you to vow to follow the path to Buddhahood. Yet now you have completely forgotten it and set aside the Great to learn the Small, causing you worries and regrets.

If our root of faith is not deeply and firmly anchored, we may learn easily, but after we learn we quickly forget. Thus we lose that original aspiration. Over the course [of our spiritual practice], when any kind of afflictions or ignorance in our surroundings influence us, our minds waver and go astray. This is why we “set aside the Great.” We form a great aspiration, then lose it and go back to cultivating ourselves for our own awakening and our own benefit. This happens when the period of time is long but our vows are not deeply rooted.

Recently I have been sharing with everyone that we must never forget our initial aspiration. We must not forget our state of mind when we made those vows. This is very important. Small children can understand this, let alone us older spiritual practitioners. Everyone, we must mindfully protect this [resolve]. We must not forget it again as we practice.

“Now you claim to have already attained Nirvana.” We cannot assume that by practicing that way, we will achieve this result. The Buddha never stopped telling us that. He taught us to vow to walk the path to Buddhahood. However, we have forgotten, and so we have worries. We are worried about our method of spiritual practice, about whether in the future, we will be able to eliminate our afflictions. We still have not clearly understood. This was what the Buddha, amidst the assembly, openly told everyone.

And now, He proclaimed to the assembly, You who have made the Great Vows must not forget your initial aspiration. The Buddha, for a very long time, has always delivered sentient beings with the Great Vehicle of One Reality.

In the past, this was how He guided us and this was how He taught us. He taught us to form great aspirations and vows. We must go among people to develop this state of mind. For example, [in Tzu Chi] if Bodhisattva-volunteers are dedicated, if they are enthusiastic about world affairs and helping humanity, they will not be afraid of hard work and will wholeheartedly contribute. Lay Bodhisattva-volunteers can do this, so can monastic practitioners. The greater their aspirations are, the more dedicated they will be to other people and the more they will understand worldly matters. “The Buddha-Dharma is inseparable from the workings of the world.” We can verify the workings of the world, along with the Buddha-Dharma.

Based on this, though practicing the Great Vehicle seems to be very hard work, internally, we must safeguard a pure state of mind, while externally, we must go among the people to teach them. We must sow the seeds of the Buddha-Dharma while remaining unaffected by our surroundings. Whether wind, rain or blazing sun, we must not let these conditions cause us to lose our aspiration to help other people. The greater our aspirations, the less we are afraid to work hard. The more we tirelessly give, the greater the harvest we reap from our work. This is a kind of realization.

So, the Buddha told Sariputra that for a long period of time in the past, His original intent had been to teach the Bodhisattva Way. This was what He said to Sariputra. He hoped that Sariputra, as well as everyone else, would be able to seize the opportunities, over the course of their spiritual practice, to also benefit other people and not lose their aspirations again halfway through. He was saying that, this was what He taught in the past, but they had forgotten it. So, now He was going to remind them again, and they must not forget it in the future. Ordinary people often form aspirations then give up, then form aspirations, then give up. They are constantly forming aspirations and constantly giving up. When this is the case, no matter how long we take, we find it hard to truly realize the Dharma.

Everyone, as we learn the Buddha’s teachings, we must make an effort to learn it mindfully. Otherwise, every day we will listen, form aspirations and then forget again every day. We will go through this cycle every day. In this lifetime we form aspirations, then in the next we are tempted by phenomena to fall back into the characteristics of ordinary people so that ignorance and afflictions cover our minds once again. Then we allow the pure resolve to engage in spiritual practice to leak away again. This is the cycle we keep repeating, lifetime after lifetime. Now in this current lifetime, we do this day after day, year after year. We keep listening to the Dharma, keep allowing it to leak away and keep giving rise to more afflictions. Consider, how long must we wait to become one with the ocean of the Buddha’s enlightenment?

Bodhisattvas, in learning the Buddha’s teachings we must remember that the Buddha has already taught us the Bodhisattva Way. This teaching must always remain in our hearts. All the countless scriptures are ultimately about teaching us to walk the Bodhisattva-path. We must not allow this to leak away, nor can we forget our original vows. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 488 – Abiding in True Wisdom

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>> “When we abide in true wisdom, we can understand all Dharma. When we realize the great path, we will go among the people. We will forever remain on the path of the One Vehicle for the one great cause of the unconditioned Dharma.”

>> “At that time, the Buddha told Sariputra, ‘I, now amidst the great assembly of heavenly beings, humans, sramanas, Brahmins and others, declare that in the distant past, I have been in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, and for the sake of the unsurpassed path, I have constantly taught and transformed you.'”

>> “You, throughout the long night, have followed me and received my instruction. I have used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings.”

>> You, throughout the long night, have followed me and received my instruction: The “long night” refers to a state of ignorance and darkness. Sariputra had been immersed in the afflictions of cyclic existence when he followed the Buddha and received His instruction.

>> I have used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings. The Buddha used the provisional Dharma of the Two Vehicles to guide Sariputra. This is how Sariputra gradually entered the Path.

>> His Dharma-children’s wisdom-life grows. They are born from the Buddha’s mouth and transformed by the Dharma. Even if [Sariputra] had not yet eliminated his delusions of views and thinking, the Dharma he heard became seeds and causes, which were planted in his consciousness and will never deteriorate. Moreover, today he truly realizes that he is truly a child of the Buddha. This is real and not illusory or false.

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“When we abide in true wisdom, we can understand all Dharma.
When we realize the great path, we will go among the people.
We will forever remain on the path of the One Vehicle
for the one great cause of the unconditioned Dharma.”

Everyone, as we learn the Buddha’s teachings, we must be mindful. Our minds must abide in true wisdom. If we can calm our minds and abide in true wisdom, then naturally we can understand all Dharma.

We have talked about abiding in true wisdom before. We must sever the web of doubts to abide in true wisdom. True wisdom is the Buddha’s wisdom. If we can attain the Buddha’s wisdom, then we can understand all Dharma. Aren’t we learning the Buddha’s teachings? so that our path may be unobstructed?

Ordinary people are lost and confused. When it comes to knowing what we are doing and what the outcome will be, we are completely lost, unaware and [always] worrying about gain and loss. This makes us ordinary people. Is what we are doing now right or wrong? We still have many questions; so, this is the web of doubts.

Similarly, when we engage in spiritual practice, we have already made up our minds to do so. Yet as we walk this road, we might wonder, “How can the road be so long? By walking this road can we truly reach our destination?” This is what ordinary people [think]. Though we have chosen the correct path, as we walk on it, we feel tired, and question how far we have to go. This is because we do not yet understand. We do not just [question] how far, but also whether we will reach the destination. This is the web of doubts.

This is why it is easy for indolence to arise. Not only do doubts obstruct us, we also become indolent; we feel that the road is long, so when it comes to making progress, we feel like we do not have enough energy. This indolence arises in our minds. This is because our minds are not truly abiding in the Buddha’s true wisdom. If we can eliminate the web of doubts, we will leave indolence behind and our minds will be the Buddha-mind. If we eliminate our confusion, our pure nature of True Suchness will manifest. Then how can the road be long? The [destination] is right in front of us.

For example, (in 2013) a group of people made a special trip here from Malaysia. They were all very happy; after their training [camp], they came to the Abode. They knew that they could not speak with me individually, so each family composed a letter to me. They wrote these letters to me, which then filled two big boxes. When they delivered these boxes, I opened them and pulled out one letter from among all of them.

I asked them, “Who wrote this letter? Is this person here?” The lay practitioner who wrote the letter was present, so everyone told him, “Why don’t you read this letter out loud?” He said that this letter was written by his wife. So, he would read it for her. This is the man who, several years ago, when he was certified [as a Faith Corps member], cried a tear that dropped onto my hand. He is a very diligent volunteer. He had shared in the past that when he first joined Tzu Chi, he watched everything on the Da Ai Channel, be it “Life Wisdom” or “Wisdom at Dawn,” and also read the Jing Si Aphorisms. Whether he read or heard something, he would be moved and could not help but cry.

When he came here to be certified, at the training camp, he heard everyone share about their various experiences in Tzu Chi and about how Bodhisattva[-volunteers] went among the suffering. When he heard this, he was very moved and he cried. On the day he was certified, there was already an air of sadness about parting ways after the ceremony. As someone who had always been close to my heart and was very earnest about his Tzu Chi work, [that day] he aspired and vowed to be diligent. At that time, his compassion and wisdom came together in his heart. As he was being certified, as I [pinned the badge on him] and handed him the red envelope, one of his tears happened to fall onto my hand.

After the ceremony that day, I shared, “There is a lay practitioner whose tear fell onto my hand during certification. When such a reverent teardrop fell onto my hand, I could not bear to wipe it away.” This time he told me, “I was even more moved after [I was certified].” He had also shared this story before. Everyone said, “It is such a coincidence that. Master picked out your wife’s letter.” I asked, “Is your wife here?” He said, “Yes, but not in this room. Come, read this letter on her behalf.” Before he could begin, his wife suddenly walked in. So I said, “The two of you are of the same heart. Your compassion has resonated with mine. That is why, among all these letters, I happened to pick this particular one.”

This is all about the heart. Among those many people [who were] here, he had very special circumstances. As his tears fell, one landed on my hand; this happened a few years ago. This year (2013), when the letters were written, his wife wrote one on their behalf, and it was chosen to be read. This was the same person. Their compassion resonated with mine, so incredibly, [I picked out their letter]. Yesterday morning at the Jing Si Hall, he had also gone on stage to share his firm faith in Tzu Chi and in my teachings.

So in summary, the power of the mind is inconceivable. We should “abide in true wisdom to understand all Dharma.” If our minds can abide peacefully, we will understand everything. Among those many people who were here, it was their letter that I picked. Our compassionate hearts resonated with each other. This is also inconceivable. In this way, when our minds can connect, we can comprehend the great path. Everyone, we should learn the Dharma. Only when our minds abide peacefully can we understand the Dharma. Only when we understand the Dharma can we can realize the great path.

The Buddha’s teachings, His wisdom, are the true principles of all things in the universe. So, we must not only understand all the matters and things in our daily living, we must understand all the principles as well. After we understand, we must go among people. We cannot just know and understand, cannot have so many great teachings and not share them with others. We must realize the Buddha’s mind. The thought He had safeguarded in His mind was to deliver the Dharma into the minds of sentient beings. This is transmitting the Dharma. The Buddha transmitted it to His disciples; He transmitted it into their minds. Then His disciples had to continue to transmit it into the minds of all sentient beings. This is why we must realize the great path and go among the people.

At the same time, the Dharma we want to learn is also found among people. This must be the scenery of our state of mind. What is the scenery of the spiritual path of the Bodhisattvas? The Bodhisattva-path is very broad. If there were no grasses, flowers, trees or woods on the side, if none of these phenomena existed, wouldn’t this road be like an endless desert? Therefore, to walk the Bodhisattva-path, we must go among people.

This is because, in everyone’s life, we have experienced the Dharma and its principles, including the principle of the truth of suffering. There are the very obvious afflictions that have accumulated because of people’s habitual tendencies. The suffering of others is what. Bodhisattvas encounter on their spiritual path. This is why we know to move forward by putting one foot forward and lifting the other. The only way to eliminate our past delusions is to keep walking forward. This is how Bodhisattvas abide purely in true wisdom and give of themselves to all people. This is “realizing the great path.”

“We will forever remain” means they will always be this way. The Buddha comes to this world and “forever remains on the path of the One Vehicle.” As He interacted with sentient beings, there was only one teaching that. He safeguarded in His mind, that everyone can attain Buddhahood, that everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature, that everyone has a crystal-pure intrinsic nature. This is the path of the One Vehicle; this is the wisdom of One Reality. This is something we all intrinsically have. “We will forever remain on the path of the One Vehicle.”

As we listen to the Dharma, we must put it into practice as well. [We must act for] “the one great cause of the unconditioned Dharma.” The one great cause is to help all sentient beings. We want to help them understand the unconditioned Dharma. We cannot see this Dharma, but principles exist in this intangible state. Many of these hidden principles are inconceivable and indescribable; there are so many of them.

The previous passage states,

“At that time, the Buddha told Sariputra, ‘I, now amidst the great assembly of heavenly beings, humans, sramanas, Brahmins and others, declare that in the distant past, I have been in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, and for the sake of the unsurpassed path, I have constantly taught and transformed you.'”

The Buddha proclaimed to everyone that throughout the lifetimes of two trillion Buddhas, He had spent this long period of time building affinities with everyone by [teaching] them the Dharma.

When He was one of the 16 princes, He did the same thing. During His time with these many Buddhas, as each of Them entered into Samadhi, He went out and taught sentient beings. This was how He was able to attain Buddhahood; it took such a long period of [spiritual practice]. At the Lotus Dharma-assembly, this was what the Buddha openly told people. He had engaged in spiritual practice for so long. In those lifetimes, Sakyamuni had been one of 16 princes. Now, after attaining enlightenment, He is called Sakyamuni Buddha. In the era of the 16 princes, He had formed good affinities with His disciples-to-be. So, in this era, they could be born of Sakyamuni’s teachings, and the Buddha could continue to teach them.

The next passage begins with the Buddha saying,

“You, throughout the long night, have followed me and received my instruction. I have used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings.”

“You” refers to Sariputra and everyone else. These disciples had already formed good affinities with Him in the time of the 16 princes, and these affinities extended to the present day. At that time, everyone was [abiding] within this Dharma while at the same time living through the long night. The “long night” refers to a state of ignorance and darkness.

You, throughout the long night, have followed me and received my instruction: The “long night” refers to a state of ignorance and darkness. Sariputra had been immersed in the afflictions of cyclic existence when he followed the Buddha and received His instruction.

At night, before the sky brightens, we cannot see the roads outside clearly, nor can we make out the things in our external surroundings. We call this state the “long night.” When ordinary people are walking outside at night if they do not have lamps lighting their way, it is very dangerous. The long night we speak of right now is an analogy for ignorance. It is a dark state of mind. When ordinary people are in a state of ignorance, this is how dark their minds are.

The Buddha told Sariputra that this was just like how Sariputra had been during the time of those two trillion Buddhas. Sakyamuni Buddha was still engaging in spiritual practice, until His spiritual cultivation led Him to be one of the 16 princes of. Supreme Penetration and Wisdom Buddha. After that Buddha entered Samadhi, each of the 16 princes went out to teach and transmit the Dharma. Those who had karmic affinities with them would listen to their teachings. Therefore, at that time, Sariputra, and all of us in the present day, had an affinity with Sakyamuni Buddha. We have followed Him and received His teachings, lifetime after lifetime.

The following passage states, “I used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings.” He used various skillful means to guide us to be born of His teachings. The skillful means He guided us with were the provisional Dharma of the Two Vehicles. He used the Two Vehicles, the Hearer and Pratyekabuddha [vehicles]. These were the various provisional teachings. He used to guide sentient beings. Through this we know that. Sariputra had followed the Buddha for lifetime after lifetime and could never bear to be apart from Him, while the Buddha continued to patiently guide him. Clearly, the road to Buddhahood is very long. If we do not change our mind or awaken, then our minds will forever remain in the long night.

I have used skillful means to guide you so that you could be born of my teachings. The Buddha used the provisional Dharma of the Two Vehicles to guide Sariputra. This is how Sariputra gradually entered the Path.

This is an analogy for how Dharma-children’s wisdom-life grows. “Dharma-children are born of the Buddha’s mouth.” Have we all taken the teachings the Buddha spoke into our hearts?

Who knows how many lifetimes it has been? Over 2000 years ago, we were born in His lifetime. We have listened to Him teach and followed Him, lifetime after lifetime. Now we still have that affinity. Though we are 2000 years removed from that time, our roots of goodness and [Bodhi-]seeds are still with us. So, His Dharma-children’s wisdom-life grows. They are born from the Buddha’s mouth and transformed by the Dharma. Thus they realize their part in the Dharma. This was mentioned in a previous passage.

His Dharma-children’s wisdom-life grows. They are born from the Buddha’s mouth and transformed by the Dharma. Even if [Sariputra] had not yet eliminated his delusions of views and thinking, the Dharma he heard became seeds and causes, which were planted in his consciousness and will never deteriorate. Moreover, today he truly realizes that he is truly a child of the Buddha. This is real and not illusory or false.

The same principle applies here. The Buddha spent so much time using skillful means and provisional teachings to guide us, but it was all in the hopes that after passing through the long night, the rays of daylight would appear. At this moment, the first light of the morning has already gradually begun to appear. Seeing the glimmer of dawn, we know it is morning. The sky is becoming bright. This Dharma was gradually manifesting. The outside world can now be seen more clearly. Sariputra had followed the Buddha for a long time. Though he had not yet eliminated his delusional views and thinking, he was always listening to His teachings. That seed still remained within him, just as it still remains within us. That seed is in our consciousness. They are in our storehouse consciousness and will never deteriorate.

Sariputra had now truly awakened. He felt that “he was truly a child of the Buddha. This is real and not illusory or false.” Because his wisdom-life had grown, the Dharma spoken from the Buddha’s mouth had been taken into his heart; he experienced it and transformed it into wisdom-life. Because in his life, he had taken the Dharma to heart, even as his physical life grew shorter over time, his wisdom-life grew within the Buddha-Dharma. So, “he is truly a child of the Buddha. This is real and not illusory or false.”

Dear Bodhisattvas, when we engage in spiritual practice, we must form Bodhisattva-aspirations. The Bodhisattva state of mind can only be attained among people. Therefore, we must not forget the Buddha’s teachings. As we receive the Dharma among people, we must always be mindful.

Episode 487 – Diligently Transform All Beings with Compassion

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>> “The Buddha taught the Dharma to humans and heavenly beings. Sramanas cultivate for their own awakening. The World-Honored One, forever kind, is teaching constantly. Bodhisattvas accept the teachings to transform sentient beings.”

>> “I am certain to become a Buddha, revered by heavenly beings and humans. I shall turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel to teach and transform Bodhisattvas.”

>> “At that time, the Buddha told Sariputra, ‘I, now, amidst the great assembly of heavenly beings, humans, sramanas, Brahmins and others, declare that in the distant past, I have been in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, and for the sake of the unsurpassed Path, have constantly taught and transformed you.'”

>> Here the Tathagata described how, in the past He gave provisional teachings and was now revealing true teachings, teaching the Bodhisattva-practice. Amidst the great assembly: The Buddha taught the heavenly beings, humans, sramanas, Brahmins and others in this great assembly. Clearly, He did not only teach this to a few.

>> “In the past, I have been in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, ‘and for the sake of the unsurpassed Path, have constantly taught and transformed you.'”

>> Never Slighting [Bodhisattva], during the lifetimes of the two trillion. Mighty Voice King Buddhas and Supreme Penetration and Wisdom Buddha, was a prince. To seek the unsurpassed path, he diligently advanced in his practice. Then in this lifetime, I attained supreme, universal and perfect enlightenment. During that lengthy period of time, I also constantly taught you and the others.

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“The Buddha taught the Dharma to humans and heavenly beings.
Sramanas cultivate for their own awakening.
The World-Honored One, forever kind, is teaching constantly.
Bodhisattvas accept the teachings to transform sentient beings.”

I want to share this with everyone. The Buddha comes to the world to teach the Dharma to humans and heavenly beings. He does not just teach the Dharma to humans, but He also exercises His wisdom [to teach] the eight classes of Dharma-protectors. The teachings He gives are not only useful for humans, but for the eight classes of Dharma-protectors as well. So, when the Buddha teaches the Dharma, every word pervades the Three Realms.

We often say that the Buddha realized the truths of the universe. In the universe, though we may not see them, in addition to humans, “there are always spiritual beings above us.” I often tell everyone, we must be self-disciplined and reverent. The thoughts we give rise to are like words spoken by our bodies and minds. If we are reverent in our prayers, wouldn’t we then be able to connect with heavenly beings and other people? This is called reverence. A reverent thought can reach all Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and Dharma-protectors.

So, our thoughts, the words of our hearts and minds, can pervade the Three Realms, just like the Buddha’s teachings. They reach all heavenly beings and humans. Not only do humans hear them, the Dharma-protectors can also hear them. This shows the [depths of] the Buddha’s reverence. A reverent mind is like the mind we have when we pray sincerely. It is deeply genuine and true. The Buddha teaches the Dharma to humans and heavenly beings.

What do humans do? “Sramanas cultivate for their own awakening.” The monastics led by the Buddha are called “sramanas,” which is another name for a group of bhiksus. To these groups of spiritual practitioners, the Buddha expounded the Dharma. However, from what these practitioners heard, they only understood the truths of impermanence, suffering, emptiness and no-self. After understanding these principles that the Buddha taught, they began seeking their own liberation. “I will take care of myself. I won’t contrive karmic connections with people. I will focus on my own spiritual practice, and disregard worldly matters.” This is how “sramanas cultivate for their own awakening.”

So, the Buddha had to exercise loving-kindness. “The World Honored One [is] forever kind.” Being “forever kind” means that He never abandons sentient beings. He is like all parents, who patiently wait for their children to someday set great goals, accomplish great things. This is all parents’ hope for their children. The Buddha has similar hopes for His disciples. He hopes that all His disciples can understand His heart and mind and understand the Dharma that He taught. In addition to awakening themselves, they should also help others awaken. They must awaken themselves, awaken others and exhibit perfect awakened conduct.

The only thing on the Buddha’s mind is His one great cause, to relieve the suffering of all sentient beings. Sentient beings do not only suffer from poverty and [physical] disasters. Worst of all, they suffer from spiritual poverty.

The Chinese characters for “poverty” and “greed” [look very similar]. Sometimes, as we are typing into the computer, when we want to write “poverty, greed” appears, or we want to write “greed”, and “poverty” appears. This because these two words look very similar. The only difference is a tiny brushstroke. Being just a little off, “poverty” can become “greed,” just as a greedy person can become poor. “Poverty” and “greed” are often intertwined.

Then, when it comes to wealth, [just because] a person is wealthy does not mean they have spiritual wealth. They may appear to be wealthy, but their hearts are filled with greed. Because of their greed, they feel poor; they are never content with what they have, for their possessions are never enough. So, they always feel poor; they always feel they are lacking something and that they are unable to share their material possessions with other people. Because their minds are always in that intangible state of poverty, in a state of lacking, how can they have enough to help others? This is a state of poverty. Poverty leads to greed, and greed causes [spiritual] poverty. This is very painful; it is truly suffering.

So, the Buddha came to the human realm to teach the wealthy to help the poor. For those without money, He helps them recognize their spiritual wealth and that they can also help people.

Although South Africa’s Zulu Bodhisattvas are lacking in material resources, they are full of love, so they are spiritually wealthy. They often travel across national boundaries to Mozambique and Swaziland. They go to those places to inspire the people to open their loving hearts and to guide them to care for their community. Caring for their community made them very happy, so they are happy and spiritually wealthy.

The first Tzu Chi seed in Zimbabwe is also very diligent. He turns the Dharma-wheel every day. During our morning recitation, where he is, he can watch Da Ai TV and follow along with the morning recitation. All alone, he chants and engages in walking meditation. He is very reverent. Every day he pays respect to the Three Treasures and to me, as if I were there. He has my photo there and every day he shares the experiences of his [volunteer] work with me. Before going out, he also tells me, “Today, I am going here and there. I will be doing this and that.” He shows me respect as if I were there. This disciple of mine is very far away, on the other side of the Earth.

All by himself, he has motivated people who live in poverty and hardship. Now (2013), in [Zimbabwe], there are several thousand Tzu Chi volunteers. We have seen their volunteer training classes. They do not have a large [building] for this. The biggest space they have is out under the open sky and on the bare earth. That big piece of land is very uneven, covered in sandy soil and small and big rocks. People simply sit on the ground. They do not have evenly laid out floorboards like ours. We also have kneeling cushions; they do not. The ground is their kneeling cushion. The earth is their classroom. The sun shining bright is their brightest lamp. Everyone in these open-air classes is very mindful.

As the lessons are written on the white board, they all face the lecturer, who teaches them Tzu Chi’s Ten Precepts. Of course, this lecturer is Mr. Chu [the first seed]. As Mr. Chu speaks, a local volunteer translates. Even under such difficult circumstances, the students take the Dharma to heart. Think about this; in Africa they are now turning the Dharma-wheel. This Dharma-wheel began turning over 2000 years ago because. Sakyamuni Buddha could not bear to abandon sentient beings. [That is] the Dharma He taught at that time.

So, we talk about how the Buddha is “forever kind.” His loving-kindness is everlasting. In the human realm, over 2000 years ago, the Buddha taught us to walk the Bodhisattva-path. He did this out of compassion, because “Bodhisattvas arise because of suffering sentient beings.”

The Buddha knew that in His future, which is our present day, life would be filled with suffering and both tangible and intangible impoverishment, because greed leads to poverty, which causes great suffering. In the Buddha’s compassion, He “taught the rich to help the poor” and “helped the poor to realize their riches.” As people interact with each other, they can turn the Dharma-wheel to “teach constantly.” In the Buddha’s compassion. His one great cause in this world is to turn the wheel of His mind to [deliver the Dharma] into the minds of sentient beings. This is how “the World-Honored One, forever kind, is teaching constantly.”

“Bodhisattvas accept the teachings to transform sentient beings.” If we can all realize the Buddha-mind, we will respect our teacher as if He were here and we can take the Dharma deeply to heart. Sakyamuni Buddha is our great guiding teacher. If we respect the Buddha, although we are removed from Him by over 2000 years, we respect Him as if He were still here. So, we must reverently make an effort to accept the Buddha’s teachings and take on the responsibility for all sentient beings. Therefore, we “transform sentient beings.” Bodhisattvas recruit more Living Bodhisattvas. They turn the afflictive habitual tendencies of people in this world back into something pure. With pure minds, people can accept the Buddha’s teachings. In this way, people can open up their minds and go into the world to transform sentient beings. This is very important, so we must be mindful.

The previous sutra passage states,

“I am certain to become a Buddha, revered by heavenly beings and humans. I shall turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel to teach and transform Bodhisattvas.”

“I can become a Buddha. And when I become a Buddha, I will be revered by heavenly beings and humans. Then, I shall turn the Dharma-wheel, and I will teach and transform all Bodhisattvas.” Sariputra began to have this confidence in himself. He believed he would become a Buddha in the future and be able to transform sentient beings and teach them the Bodhisattva Way.

So, with this,

“At that time, the Buddha told Sariputra, ‘I, now, amidst the great assembly of heavenly beings, humans, sramanas, Brahmins and others, declare that in the distant past, I have been in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, and for the sake of the unsurpassed Path, have constantly taught and transformed you.'”

This passage says “‘constantly taught and transformed you.’ I have constantly taught and transformed you.” This is Sakyamuni Buddha reminding Sariputra of this once again. At this time, the Buddha was talking to him among many people. Not only were there people, there were heavenly beings; the eight classes of Dharma-protectors and so on were all there. There were also sramanas and bhiksus, as well as the country’s elders, ministers, etc. In this assembly, they all listened to the Dharma. At this point, the Buddha said this; He said it amidst the whole assembly.

The Tathagata repeated again how, “in the past He gave provisional teachings.” In the past, He used skillful means. He taught with skillful means in order to adapt to sentient beings’ capacities. So, “In the past He gave provisional teachings and was now revealing true teachings.” This was the Buddha repeating Himself again. In the past, He had taught with skillful means. Now, He was revealing true teachings; the Dharma-door of One Reality was now being taught. He had begun teaching everyone that they must carry out the work of Bodhisattvas.

Here the Tathagata described how, in the past He gave provisional teachings and was now revealing true teachings, teaching the Bodhisattva-practice. Amidst the great assembly: The Buddha taught the heavenly beings, humans, sramanas, Brahmins and others in this great assembly. Clearly, He did not only teach this to a few.

He was now about to teach everyone the principles of how to be a Bodhisattva. He was about to begin. So, among this assembly, though the Buddha addressed Sariputra, He was actually telling this to everyone.

“In the past, I have been in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, ‘and for the sake of the unsurpassed Path, have constantly taught and transformed you.'”

“Two trillion Buddhas” signifies a very long time, a great expanse of time. How long? It stretches back further than the era of Never Slighting Bodhisattva,

because in the Lotus Sutra, there is the. Chapter on Never Slighting Bodhisattva. His spiritual practice took him through learning from two trillion Buddhas. In fact, Never Slighting Bodhisattva is the present Buddha, Sakyamuni. This means Sakyamuni Buddha was in the presence of two trillion Buddhas, engaging in spiritual practice. As He engaged spiritual practice, He unceasingly remained among the people to teach them.

See, Never Slighting Bodhisattva went among the people, and when people saw this spiritual practitioner being so humble, they bullied him, cursed at him, and beat him. Yet he always felt joyful and expressed his gratitude and respect toward everyone. As he prostrated to everyone, he also told them, “I dare not slight you because every one of you will be a Buddha in the future.” Never Slighting Bodhisattva treated everyone as a future Buddha and continued to teach them. With this method of practice,

after engaging in this spiritual cultivation, he became the present Buddha, Sakyamuni. So, Sakyamuni was once. Never Slighting Bodhisattva. Of course, I will discuss this more later on in the Lotus Sutra in [the Chapter on Never Slighting Bodhisattva]. I will talk more about what he did in the lifetimes of those two trillion Buddhas.

Never Slighting [Bodhisattva], during the lifetimes of the two trillion. Mighty Voice King Buddhas and Supreme Penetration and Wisdom Buddha, was a prince. To seek the unsurpassed path, he diligently advanced in his practice. Then in this lifetime, I attained supreme, universal and perfect enlightenment. During that lengthy period of time, I also constantly taught you and the others.

Do we still remember the previous [passages]? When Sakyamuni Buddha entered Samadhi in the Introductory Chapter, He remained in that state for a very long time. So, Maitreya Bodhisattva questioned Manjusri Bodhisattva. “You must know the causes and conditions behind the Buddha acting so differently today, entering Samadhi and radiating light. What are the causes and conditions for this?” Manjusri Bodhisattva began his answer by describing Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddhas.

Then there is. Supreme Penetration and Wisdom Buddha, who had 16 sons. These 16 princes also left the lay life. After renouncing the secular life, they constantly listened to this Buddha’s teachings.

After this Buddha finished teaching, He likewise entered Samadhi. While He was in Samadhi, these sixteen princes taught the Dharma to everyone. They formed karmic connections with sentient beings and turned the Dharma-wheel. This created the causes and conditions for them to attain Buddhahood in the future, and also for the present Buddha, Sakyamuni, to attain enlightenment.

Sakyamuni Buddha [engaged in spiritual practice] over countless, infinite kalpas, not just the time of two trillion Buddhas. This means that for such a long expanse of time, He unceasingly engaged in spiritual practice for the sake of this world.

The goal of spiritual practice is to attain Buddhahood. The goal of attaining Buddhahood is to turn the Dharma-wheel and use the teachings contained in the Buddha’s wisdom to completely transform the world so that everyone can experience the truths of all things in the universe. This must start in the human realm. Only by eliminating afflictions and purifying ourselves in the human realm can we understand our minds, realize our true nature and attain Buddhahood.

So, dear Bodhisattvas, to learn the Buddha’s teachings we must learn the Bodhisattva-path. We cannot be Bodhisattvas in name only; we must become actual Bodhisattvas. Starting now, we must go among the people. There is no one we will not transform, and no place we will not go. Only by forming this kind of aspiration will we truly be “forever kind.” To reach the Buddha’s state of forever teaching with loving-kindness and compassion, we must walk the Bodhisattva-path and not only seek to awaken ourselves. So, everyone, please always be mindful.

Episode 486 – Virtuous Dharma Turns the Great Dharma-wheel

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>> “The Buddha engaged in spiritual practice to attain Buddhahood for the one great cause of transforming sentient beings. The virtuous Dharma is like the cycle of water. The teaching of the Great Dharma is like the turning of a wheel.”

>> “Hearing the Buddha’s soft and gentle voice, profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous, widely proclaiming the pure Dharma, I feel great joy within my heart. My doubts and regrets are forever ended, so I can abide in true wisdom.”

>> “I am certain to become a Buddha, revered by heavenly beings and humans. I shall turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel to teach and transform Bodhisattvas.” I am certain to become a Buddha, revered by heavenly beings and humans: Sariputra had faith in himself that he would receive the Buddha’s blessing and prediction for attaining Buddhahood in the future. The Dharma comes from the Buddha’s mouth.

>> I shall turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel to teach and transform Bodhisattvas: Wisdom-life grows from the nourishment of Dharma. Those who are true Buddha-children realize their part in the Dharma and turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel so that everyone in the world can attain the Dharma without hindrance.

>> When spiritual practitioners encounter the Buddha’s turning of the Dharma-wheel, if they have deviant views and doubts and regrets, those will be completely eliminated. The Buddha, by turning the wheel of Right Dharma, pacifies the entire world with morality and virtuous Dharma.

>> The Buddha engaged in spiritual practice and attained Buddhahood for the sake of teaching sentient beings. He guided sentient beings to follow the virtuous Dharma and return to their nature of True Suchness. Once on the path to Buddhahood, they will immediately shoulder the responsibility of turning the Great Dharma-wheel.

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“The Buddha engaged in spiritual practice to attain Buddhahood
for the one great cause of transforming sentient beings.
The virtuous Dharma is like the cycle of water.
The teaching of the Great Dharma is like the turning of a wheel.”

We learn and practice the Buddha’s teachings in order to attain Buddhahood, but how much hope do we have for ourselves of actually attaining it? We listen to the Buddha’s principles, but how many of them can we put into practice? If we can hear, understand and then put the Dharma into practice, one step at a time we are drawing closer to the state of Buddhahood.

Although we are progressing step by step, just how big is each “step”? How far is the distance [we have to go]? Based on what we read in Buddhist sutras, it will obviously take us a very long time. Over this period of time, the distance in space is lengthened accordingly. This space between heaven and earth is so vast, can we really expect to cover it step by step? This is an analogy of something tangible. Actually, the most important part of spiritual practice involves our intangible mindset. We must follow the Buddha’s reasons for engaging in spiritual practice. To engage in spiritual practice we must trace the steps the Buddha took during His lifetime. What were His motivations for engaging in spiritual cultivation? We must understand this intangible state of mind.

Why did Sakyamuni Buddha engage in spiritual practice more than 2000 years ago? He was a crown prince and. He could have ruled a kingdom and been its king. Why didn’t He want this? Because having wisdom and knowledge are different. We, the people of this world, try to understand life by using knowledge. What we learn about the world through “discerning wisdom” is knowledge. To have knowledge is to discern and understand. Discernment can be profound or simple. Each day, we are applying our discerning minds. We discern whether this is the right thing to do, or whether that is the wrong thing to do. We must contemplate everything carefully; this takes “discerning wisdom.”

If we discern based on the Path, then we can walk this road correctly. If we discern based on material desires, then our course will deviate. If wealth, sensual pleasure, fame, food and the desire for enjoyment are the thoughts that arise in our minds, then the things that our “discerning wisdom” is being used to recognize are all things of the world. If worldly desires and pleasures, material things, fame, wealth and status are what we discern and understand, then we truly cannot walk on the right course.

Indeed, “knowledge” and “wisdom” are not the same thing. Intellectuals only “know.” What we are discussing here is “wisdom.” If we apply “wisdom” to understanding principles, they we can gradually grow in wisdom. If we apply “knowledge,” then we are only learning about various kinds of things in the world. Worldly things [include] material desires, fame and status. So, at the time, Prince Siddhartha saw the suffering of sentient beings and wondered, “How can I liberate them from their suffering?” Would ruling his kingdom and relieving only the suffering of his own people be enough? It would not be enough. He wanted to eliminate the suffering of all sentient beings.

How do afflictions actually arise? Where could he find the source of the thoughts that arise and lead us to create karma? There are so many intangible inconsistencies. To resolve these intangible inconsistencies, Prince Siddhartha had to leave the palace to engage in spiritual practice. So, the Buddha engaged in spiritual practice to attain Buddhahood. He wanted to attain Buddhahood for the sake of His one great cause, for the sake of all sentient beings. In order to transform them, He manifested the attainment of Buddhahood. He went through this process so people could follow in His footsteps and learn how to walk this road. This was the Buddha’s state of mind.

“The virtuous Dharma is like the cycle of water.” He left footprints for everyone to follow. This is like water; water flows from high places to low places. It flows down mountain streams to reach the rivers in the lowlands. Then it flows from the rivers into the ocean. This is the cycle of water. We humans are similar in terms of our methods of spiritual practice. Why do we engage in spiritual practice? How do we engage in spiritual practice? The Buddha has already laid this road out for us, so we follow this road the way waters follows a course in its cycle. The Dharma is like this and also like the wheel of a cart. Only if the wheel begins to turn can that cart move forward. The underlying principle here is the same.

This is like the way that we try to expand the reach of this virtuous Dharma. Nowadays, there are many suffering sentient beings. In impoverished places, we help out by providing tangible, material goods. Thus, we develop closer connections and karmic affinities with those people to turn the wheels of their minds with the Dharma.

Tzu Chi volunteers have begun their winter relief distributions. In Swaziland and Mozambique, they are using these tangible, material goods to help impoverished people who are starving. When these impoverished people received the material goods, they felt this sense of love. This has gradually opened up [the door] to their spiritual wealth, which is the love in their hearts. This is happening in these two countries. In these two countries we have already nurtured volunteers with Bodhisattva-aspirations.

They give without any expectations. Although they themselves are poor, they can use their strength to help [transport] supplies sent from Taiwan to South Africa and then, from there to Swaziland and to Mozambique. These volunteers used their own strength, their loving hearts, their knowledge of the local language and their love for their fellow citizens in order to go help others. Seeing these impoverished people receive help, they were happy and willing [to continue], hoping there would be more opportunities to be able to help people. So, after concluding their winter relief distributions there, they accompanied Tzu Chi volunteers to visit some of the poorest and most impoverished families there.

Many in South Africa are affected by violence; people are killed in robberies, by mortars or guns which causes [great]. So, they felt, “We recognize our blessings, and we are content.” This was how they felt after giving. After feeling this way, they continued to dig deeper until they found a sense of gratitude [deep] in their hearts. Although they were poor, they were still able to live peaceful lives.

So, in this way, they felt very grateful. This was what happened in South Africa. Of course, they are still carrying this out. The [understanding] of suffering begins with the truths of suffering, causation cessation and the Path. They are now walking the Path and want to further understand the Dharma. So, “We vow to deliver countless sentient beings. We vow to eliminate endless afflictions. We vow to learn infinite Dharma-doors. We vow to attain unsurpassed Buddhahood.” They have now begun to approach the Buddha-path.

So, in spiritual practice, “the virtuous Dharma is like the cycle of water.” The Dharma must be like the cycle of water, like the circulation of blood in our bodies. The Dharma is like this. So, the Buddha-Dharma from over 2000 years ago has been passed down to the present. The Buddha patiently guided us, hoping this Dharma will directly enter our hearts.

Therefore, the previous passage states,

“Hearing the Buddha’s soft and gentle voice, profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous, widely proclaiming the pure Dharma, I feel great joy within my heart. My doubts and regrets are forever ended, so I can abide in true wisdom.”

After Sariputra heard the Buddha teach the Dharma, he gradually began to understand and his mind was now at peace. Now at peace, he wanted to move forward until he attained the state of Buddhahood. His heart was already abiding in true wisdom.

Next, he continued on to say,

“I am certain to become a Buddha, revered by heavenly beings and humans. I shall turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel to teach and transform Bodhisattvas.” I am certain to become a Buddha, revered by heavenly beings and humans: Sariputra had faith in himself that he would receive the Buddha’s blessing and prediction for attaining Buddhahood in the future. The Dharma comes from the Buddha’s mouth.

Sariputra began to have faith in himself, “I will surely become a Buddha in the future. After becoming a Buddha in the future, I will also be revered by heavenly beings and humans.” He will turn the Dharma-wheel in heaven and on earth and teach and transform Bodhisattvas. He did not just want to attain Buddhahood, he also wanted to teach Bodhisattvas.

Of course, if one wants to teach Bodhisattvas, one must first become a Bodhisattva. But right now, the Buddha was still teaching the Dharma, and the Dharma was nourishing his wisdom-life. Therefore, he needed the Buddha to turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel and teach the Bodhisattva Way.

I shall turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel to teach and transform Bodhisattvas: Wisdom-life grows from the nourishment of Dharma. Those who are true Buddha-children realize their part in the Dharma and turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel so that everyone in the world can attain the Dharma without hindrance.

We can use the Dharma taught by the Buddha to nourish our minds. Our minds are like fields. We must cultivate these fields ourselves. As we farm our own fields, we must find water to irrigate them so that the crops can grow. Thus wisdom-life grows from the nourishment of the Dharma. The Dharma from the Buddha’s mouth is what nourishes our minds, the fields in our minds. Then seeds will gradually sprout and develop and mature. This is what makes us true Buddha-children.

Seeds from an external source are planted in the field of our minds. If we are skilled farmers, these seeds will mature and grow. Thus we are called Buddha-children. Our physical life comes from our parents, but our wisdom-life comes from the Buddha. The Buddha taught the Dharma to help our minds develop wisdom-life. Thus we are called Dharma-children, who “realize their part in the Dharma.” If we can attain the Dharma taught by the Buddha and take it to heart, then we have a part in this Dharma. Whether this happens depends on whether we are plowing our fields mindfully so that we can go among people in this world and turn the Dharma-wheel.

If we can attain the Dharma, we can pass this Dharma along. Then, among other people, we can spread the seeds of goodness and share the Dharma [with them]. When we take the Buddha-Dharma to heart, naturally when we share it with others, we will not face any obstacles. We just need to follow the Buddha’s teachings. So, we spiritual practitioners can attain the Dharma that [the Buddha taught]. Then the Dharma-wheel turned by the Buddha will turn unceasingly.

Now the Buddha was turning the great Dharma-wheel. The Dharma He had safeguarded in His heart for many decades was being shared with everyone. He had already started doing this. In the past, we might have had doubts. But now that the Buddha is turning the Great Dharma-wheel, it is time to put an end to doubts. We must now act quickly to eliminate all of our doubts and regrets. Without doubts and regrets, we can accept and be guided by the Buddha-Dharma, then naturally we can resolve all our questions.

In the dedications of merits [we chant], “I vow to eradicate the Three Obstructions and all afflictions. I vow to attain wisdom and true understanding.” Isn’t this the case? Our vow is to be able to eradicate various kinds of karmic obstacles of afflictions. Only when afflictions and karmic obstacles are eradicated can we achieve wisdom and true understanding. So, once we eliminate our doubts and regrets, the Three Obstructions and all afflictions will naturally be eradicated. When afflictions are eradicated, there will be no more obstacles, then wisdom will naturally grow. So, “the Buddha, by turning the wheel of Right Dharma, pacifies the entire world with morality and virtuous Dharma.”

When spiritual practitioners encounter the Buddha’s turning of the Dharma-wheel, if they have deviant views and doubts and regrets, those will be completely eliminated. The Buddha, by turning the wheel of Right Dharma, pacifies the entire world with morality and virtuous Dharma.

In this world, we want everyone to travel smoothly down the path and follow the principles. Only then will this world be tranquil, only then will this world be peaceful. Harmonious families lead to a peaceful society. This all depends on people’s ethics and morals. So, Buddha turns the Dharma-wheel in this world in the hopes that every person will follow the ethical path. Only when we first learn to be [good] people will we know to walk the Bodhisattva-path, and only by walking the Bodhisattva-path can we attain Buddhahood. This was the Buddha’s one great cause for coming to this world.

The Buddha engaged in spiritual practice for the sake of teaching sentient beings. He manifested the attainment of Buddhahood in this world to guide sentient beings to follow the virtuous Dharma and return to our nature of True Suchness.

We sentient beings must aspire to be like the Buddha in this world. Our thinking and wisdom must be applied [to benefit] people in this world. Why does this suffering exist in the world? In order to eliminate people’s suffering, it was necessary to find a path. Thus, the Buddha was born into this world where He began to search for this path. So, the path that He walked has already been openly shared for everyone to understand. If we truly want to be awakened like the Buddha, we must find and follow this road. Only in this way can we “return to [our] nature of True Suchness.”

The Buddha engaged in spiritual practice and attained Buddhahood for the sake of teaching sentient beings. He guided sentient beings to follow the virtuous Dharma and return to their nature of True Suchness. Once on the path to Buddhahood, they will immediately shoulder the responsibility of turning the Great Dharma-wheel.

“Returning to [our] nature of True Suchness” is the path to attaining Buddhahood. We must certainly walk on this road, then “we will immediately shoulder the responsibility of turning the Great Dharma-wheel.”

What Sariputra said was, “I believe in myself. I can attain Buddhahood. I will certainly attain Buddhahood in the future and be revered by heavenly beings and humans. I will turn the unsurpassed Dharma-wheel. I will teach and transform Bodhisattvas.” Because he wanted to do this, he vowed to take on this responsibility. “Now, I must learn diligently. In the future, I will teach earnestly. All those I teach will walk the Bodhisattva-path.” This was Sariputra’s vow. Actually, Sariputra’s vow represented

the vow of all spiritual practitioners. Sariputra was foremost in wisdom, yet he also had doubts and regrets. Now all his doubts had been eliminated, so he abided in true wisdom with solid faith. Thus, he believed he would attain Buddhahood. To attain Buddhahood, one must walk the Bodhisattva-path. The end of the Bodhisattva-path is the state of Buddhahood. After attaining Buddhahood, one circles back to teach the Bodhisattva Way.

Dear Bodhisattvas, the first step of our spiritual practice must be in the right direction. After we understand the Dharma, we must follow in the Buddha’s footsteps. Then we will not go wrong. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 485 – Enter True Suchness with Virtuous Dharma

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>> “The sounds we hear enter through our ears. The Dharma-essence enters our hearts and develops our wisdom-life. The Buddha’s teaching of the Dharma is pure and elegant. The soft and gentle virtuous Dharma helps us enter our nature of True Suchness.”

>> The World-Honored One preaches the true path. Papiyas would not do this. Therefore I know for certain that this is not Mara posing as the Buddha. But I had fallen into a web of doubts, so I said it was the doings of Mara.

>> “Hearing the Buddha’s soft and gentle voice profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous, widely proclaiming the pure Dharma, I feel great joy within my heart. My doubts and regrets are forever ended, so I can abide in true wisdom.”

>> Sentient beings are unyielding, difficult to train. But the soft and gentle voice of the Buddha immerses their hearts like the morning dew. It is inconceivable, tranquil and still, profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous and thus allows them to abide in true wisdom.

>> The Buddha freely expressed His intent and proclaimed the Great Vehicle Dharma. The subtle and wondrous. Great Dharma of the One Vehicle resolved my delusions of views and thinking and severed my web of doubts, so I feel great joy within my heart.

>> Now that we have heard the Buddha teach this pure, subtle and wondrous Dharma, we know that intrinsic to our nature is the wondrous Great Vehicle Dharma of True Suchness. All who heard the Dharma became jubilant. So I said, “I feel great joy within my heart.”

>> “Those who seek the Three Vehicle teachings, should they have doubts or regrets, will have them resolved completely by the Buddha so that none remain.”

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“The sounds we hear enter through our ears.
The Dharma-essence enters our hearts and develops our wisdom-life.
The Buddha’s teaching of the Dharma is pure and elegant.
The soft and gentle virtuous Dharma helps us enter our nature of True Suchness.”

I want to share this with everyone. Where does the Dharma we listen to come from? Our ears listen, so we hear sounds. External sounds are heard with our ears. The sounds we hear can make us happy, or they can make us unhappy. All kinds of sounds from our surroundings enter through our ears. If we do not become distracted and just focus on listening to what is in front of us, we may be happy or not, but we will not think about how, in the environment in which we live, there are so many complex principles.

We do not pay attention to them. The Buddha-Dharma is what the Buddha, when He comes to this world, uses to remind all of us that besides what we are presently focused on when it comes to matters and objects around us, we must try to keenly understand, comprehend and differentiate them. This takes wisdom, which we call “discerning wisdom.” We apply discerning wisdom to external conditions and then internalize what we learned. Then after we contemplate this, we will devote ourselves to helping people and see all sentient beings as equals. We will exercise the love of the Bodhisattvas among the people.

Take South Africa for example. Right now (2013), they are conducting winter relief distributions. Mozambique, Swaziland and Lesotho are far away from South Africa, so they distributed there first. After completing the distributions, these volunteers from Swaziland and Mozambique then continued on to South Africa. Their goal was to meet with South African Tzu Chi volunteers and learn from them. The Tzu Chi volunteers in Durban, these South African Bodhisattvas, held distributions in the countryside while at the same time conducting home visits. They began to split into groups; volunteers brought other volunteers to visit families suffering from poverty and illness. They went to see how they could care for those who were poor and sick, elderly and disabled, or who suffered from psychological illnesses, etc. So, each group went a different way.

One volunteer led a group to visit an elderly woman. Her home was rundown and filthy. This old woman was old and sick. She laid in bed with no one to care for her, among a pile of garbage. There was so much clutter around her and she was mixed in with all that filth and garbage. The volunteers came and could not bear to see this. So, they arranged to give her a bath and clean up her house.

It turned out that she had a mentally challenged granddaughter. Not only was she mentally disabled, her body was covered in sores which were rotten and odorous. These volunteers found her outside. They also felt pity for her so they meticulously cleaned her up, prepared a change of clothes for her, and so on. This is what Bodhisattvas do. They went to visit many families. The houses they saw were extremely dilapidated. The people they saw were severely ill; they suffered tremendously, hovering on the edge of life and death. Indeed, this is truly saddening to see.

So, [Tzu Chi volunteer] Michael Pan took this opportunity to teach them. He said, “This family is suffering. In Mozambique and Swaziland, of course you have seen families like this too. But at that time, you had not yet encountered Tzu Chi. If this person had no connection to you, [you might] think, ‘She is poor, but so am I Her illness is her problem I am healthy, so I don’t have a problem.’ She may be poor, but so are you. You are healthy, but she is ill. Without any pre-existing relationship with her, you would just walk away.”

Joining Tzu Chi inspired them [to help]. Because they encountered the Buddha-Dharma, they became Bodhisattvas who benefit others. Being a benefactor to other people is such a noble thing. When they help people, not only do those being helped feel happy, those who help others are also joyful when they see those they help become happy. This happiness is long-lasting. This is the Dharma. Because we have taken the. Buddha-Dharma to heart, we know this is the Bodhisattva-path and so we walk this Bodhisattva-path in the world. Bodhisattvas are not people on a pedestal for us to worship. There is actually a Bodhisattva in every one of us that can help others.

If someone is sick and lives in a filthy environment, [we can say,]. “Though we are poor, we are not sick. We can help those who are poor and sick to clean up their surroundings.” When their surroundings are clean, people who are sick feel much more relaxed, the way this poor and ill elderly woman felt very comforted.

“Does coming here to help this person make you happy? Yes. Seeing this grandma, how poor she is, are we as poor as she is?” One person said, “I’m not much better off.” He was also poor. “But she’s sick and we’re healthy, so how do you feel about that? I am more blessed than she is. Indeed, those who are blessed must quickly help those who are suffering and in difficulty. After we cleaned up her house, we feel happy and she feels relaxed. Will this feeling remain with you? I will remember this forever. Exactly. This is how we become someone who helps others.”

Thus, they continued visiting different families. Aside from seeing the suffering of poverty and illness, they also listened to the various life stories of these care recipients. One of the Mozambican volunteers said, “Originally, I always felt that. I lived in such poverty and with such suffering. But then I came here and saw that in South Africa there were those who were injured by accidents, shot by guns or cut by knives, resulting in a lifetime of physical disability.”

Mr. Pan summarized everything by saying, “This is the Dharma the Buddha taught. Life is suffering.” He talked about the truth of suffering and how the families they visited each had a different story, but all of them resulted in suffering. He told them, “This is the causation of suffering. This is the truth of causation. Life is simply filled with suffering. Do you all want to be liberated from this suffering?” Everyone said, “Yes. I am afraid of this world and I have so many afflictions.” Mr. Pan said, “Do you want to come back here in the next life? No. Then what should you do? You must create [good] karmic conditions. To eliminate suffering, you must engage in spiritual practice. You must walk the path of spiritual cultivation.” I can go on and on about this story. After meeting all these families, this is the lesson they must learn.

This came from the sounds they heard with their ears. Seeing suffering, they recognized their blessings; they understood that this was the law of karma and that they could not control where they were born, so they had to engage in spiritual practice, which meant they had to take care of each other. As “un-summoned teachers” who help others, happiness arises in us, as well as in the person we help; with happiness, we will not suffer. After these principles enter their ears, they walk the great Bodhisattva-path. When this Dharma-essence enters their minds, it develops their wisdom-life. This is how worldly teachings can converge with the Buddha-Dharma.

So, the sutras say that in the Buddha’s lifetime, He gave teachings with a pure and elegant voice and everything He taught was virtuous Dharma. He wanted to help people understand the true principles of the Great and Small Vehicles. The Small Vehicle uses the provisional to entice. The Great Vehicle directly points to their minds so they can return to their intrinsic nature. If the Dharma can flow into their hearts and help them understand their minds, they can instantly attain Buddhahood.

So, in the previous sutra passage, which we discussed yesterday, it states, “The World-Honored One preaches the true path. Papiyas would not do this.”

The World-Honored One preaches the true path. Papiyas would not do this. Therefore I know for certain that this is not Mara posing as the Buddha. But I had fallen into a web of doubts, so I said it was the doings of Mara.

“The World-Honored One preaches the true path. Papiyas would not do this.” This means that when we abide in the Dharma, there is no evil that can disturb our minds. Our minds are disturbed when something in our external environment leads us astray. Then the Dharma leaks out and our minds waver. This is how the maras in our minds disturb the Right Dharma within us. If we can understand this, we know “Papiyas would not [teach the true path].” Then nothing can disturb our minds.

So, “Therefore I know for certain that this is not Mara posing as the Buddha.” Indeed, this Dharma is true and real; it is definitely not an illusion. So, we must believe in it. Let us read the next sutra passage, “Hearing the Buddha’s soft and gentle voice.” Because he completely eliminated his doubts, he believed everyone can attain Buddhahood. Sariputra was certain of this teaching.

Now [the sutra] states,

“Hearing the Buddha’s soft and gentle voice profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous, widely proclaiming the pure Dharma, I feel great joy within my heart. My doubts and regrets are forever ended, so I can abide in true wisdom.”

This addresses sentient beings’ stubbornness. We sentient beings are unyielding and difficult to train. Because of the Buddha’s compassion, He did not abandon sentient beings. He continued to teach with love and patience, just like a kind father in this world. No matter how naughty and disobedient a child is, a kind father still will not abandon his child. For the sake of sentient beings, the Buddha constantly returns to this world. As long as there are still unenlightened beings, the Buddha will never give up. For kalpas, He has adapted to sentient beings in this world and devised causes and conditions to transform them. So, He used various kinds of methods solely to remind sentient beings of their awakened nature of True Suchness.

When causes and conditions are mature, as they listen to the Buddha’s teachings happiness will arise in their hearts. That is because the door to their minds has opened. “Hearing the Buddha’s soft and gentle voice,” Sariputra already understood the Buddha-Dharma and knew that every word was true, was real and not a lie. So, the more he listened, the more gentle the Buddha sounded. Not only was His voice gentle, it was particularly “profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous.”

Sentient beings are unyielding, difficult to train. But the soft and gentle voice of the Buddha immerses their hearts like the morning dew. It is inconceivable, tranquil and still, profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous and thus allows them to abide in true wisdom.

This is when sentient beings’ unyielding minds have begun to accept the teachings. Their mind is like a land with sand covered by dew overnight. So, the sand on the ground is immersed by dew, which moistens the land. As the wind gently blows, the air is very cool and clean. If the sun dries out the sand, the blowing wind would cause a sand storm. This describes a state of mind. So, when the dew immerses the land, the feeling is really incredible. A refreshing and happy state of mind is

“tranquil and still, profound, far-reaching, subtle and wondrous.” This tranquil state enables principles to sink deeply into the mind. How do we express this? It seems so subtle and wondrous; it cannot be expressed in words. What we can express through words is very simple and superficial. As for profound principles, we have to realize them ourselves; this is the only way to truly understand them.

Then, “[Hearing the Buddha] widely proclaiming the pure Dharma, I feel great joy within my heart.” The Buddha’s voice and the Dharma He taught help people to feel the subtlety and wonder of the principles as they penetrate the mind. This is the sound of the Dharma. So, the Buddha had begun to freely express His intent.

The Buddha freely expressed His intent and proclaimed the Great Vehicle Dharma. The subtle and wondrous. Great Dharma of the One Vehicle resolved my delusions of views and thinking and severed my web of doubts, so I feel great joy within my heart.

The Dharma the Buddha was now teaching brought Him the greatest joy. So, He spoke with great joy and. His voice sounded very special. He really wanted to share this. So, He taught the wondrous Great Vehicle Dharma. [For Sariputra,] this Great Dharma “resolved [his] delusions of views and thinking and severed [his] web of doubts.”

When Sariputra listened to what the Buddha was sharing now, the Dharma he accepted into his heart was truly very joyful, very subtle and wondrous. No words can describe that state of mind. His state of mind was one of gratitude. He was grateful to the Buddha for analyzing and explaining this Dharma.

Sariputra spoke of “my delusions of views and thinking.” Originally, Sariputra still had the slightest afflictions and delusions of views and thinking. Because the Buddha’s Dharma-essence entered his wisdom-life drop by drop, his web of doubts, his delusions of views and thinking and even his slightest afflictions were eliminated. Having severed his web of doubts,

Sariputra said, “I feel great joy within my heart. Now we have heard the Buddha teach this pure, subtle and wondrous Dharma.” Everyone has an intrinsic nature of True Suchness. The One [Vehicle] is the Dharma of True Suchness, which all of us inherently possess. Its principles are the most profound, supreme and great which will return us to our intrinsic nature. This is the Tathagata’s wondrous Great Vehicle Dharma.

Now that we have heard the Buddha teach this pure, subtle and wondrous Dharma, we know that intrinsic to our nature is the wondrous Great Vehicle Dharma of True Suchness. All who heard the Dharma became jubilant. So I said, “I feel great joy within my heart.”

So, “All who heard the Dharma became jubilant.” When everyone heard it, they all felt joy within their hearts. They were so joyful they wanted to leap in the air. “I feel great joy within my heart.” So, what Sariputra expressed was the joy in his heart. He also thought, “My doubts and regrets are forever ended, and I will abide in true wisdom.” He was very joyful. He was so happy, his mind was peacefully abiding. Thus his mind was definitely free of doubts.

So, the Introductory Chapter of the Lotus Sutra states,

“Those who seek the Three Vehicle teachings, should they have doubts or regrets, will have them resolved completely by the Buddha so that none remain.”

This sutra passage is what the Buddha said in the Introductory Chapter. He was now going to teach the True Dharma. If they had doubts, the Buddha would definitely help each of those seeking the Three Vehicles to completely eliminate their doubts. This also applied to Sariputra at this time. His doubts had been eliminated, so he abided in true wisdom. He knew that he has the chance to attain Buddhahood in the future. Therefore, he felt very joyful.

So, with “the sounds we hear through our ears, the Dharma-essence enters our hearts and develops our wisdom-life.” If we allow the Dharma-essence to enter our hearts and accept the Buddha-Dharma with joy, the Buddha’s voice and teachings will clearly enter our ears and become engraved on our hearts. When our minds are as pure as a crystal, then virtuous Dharma will naturally help us enter our nature of True Suchness.

Dear Bodhisattvas, we must be very mindful to establish our faith so we can realize true principles. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 484 – Mara Cannot Teach the True Path

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>> “We establish faith to sustain our initial aspirations. With great vows, we bring Samadhi to our nature. We guide people to the right course by going among them. This is how we walk the Bodhi-path to perfect enlightenment.”

>> “Establish faith to sustain our initial aspirations. With Great Vows, we bring Samadhi to our nature. We guide people to the right course by going among them. This is how we walk the Bodhi-path to perfect enlightenment.”

>> “Similarly, at this time the World-Honored One, from His birth to leaving the lay life, attaining the Way and turning the Dharma-wheel, has always taught by using skillful means.”

>> “The World-Honored One preaches the true path; Papiyas would not do this. Therefore I know for certain this is not Mara posing as the Buddha. But I had fallen into a web of doubts, so I said it was the doings of Mara.”

>> “In accordance with His own intent, He Taught the true path of the One Vehicle that He had safeguarded in His mind.”

>> Doesn’t the Diamond Sutra say the following? The Tathagata “speaks the truth, what is real. He does not speak falsehoods or what is not so.”

>> “Papiyas” is King Mara. He represents evil. He is one who kills, who constantly tries to end people’s wisdom-life. With evil intent, he fosters evil ways. So, “Those who kill and harm virtuous Dharma are without virtuous Dharma.”

>> From this I know that the Buddha taught with the Dharma of the true path. Therefore I know for certain this is not Mara posing as the Buddha. With solid faith in profound and wondrous True Dharma, wisdom-life will develop.

>> In the past I did not understand that with compassion and wisdom, the Buddha gave provisional teachings, which did not deviate from the path of the wondrous Dharma of One Reality. Therefore I had doubts and delusions, as if I had fallen into a web of doubts. Thus, I said it was the doings of Mara.

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“We establish faith to sustain our initial aspirations.
With great vows, we bring Samadhi to our nature.
We guide people to the right course by going among them.
This is how we walk the Bodhi-path to perfect enlightenment.”

For us to believe in the Buddha, we must establish Right Faith. It is easy to have faith, but very difficult to sustain it. So, as we learn the Buddha’s teachings, we must sustain our aspirations. We must have that perseverance to sustain even our initial aspiration. Why do we want to be Buddhist practitioners? The main goal in being Buddhist is to learn the Buddha’s teachings. And what is our goal learning the Buddha’s teachings? We hope to attain Buddhahood.

Whilst among unenlightened beings, we must “turn from the dust toward awakening.” Ordinary people have severe afflictions. Once a thought stirs in our minds, bringing our minds back to a peaceful state is not easy at all. Every day we face interpersonal conflicts as well as our own greed, anger, delusion, arrogance and doubt. Think about this, aren’t they like dust?

After we learn the Buddha’s teachings, we must turn away from the “dust.” Then what we are seeing will be pure, pure and undefiled, like the blue sky and white clouds, like a vast sea and spacious sky. This state of tranquility and clarity is a mind [turned] “toward awakening.” We turn around to face the pure Dharma. Then we not only awaken ourselves, we can also share our experiences with other people. “My past afflictions were unnecessary. My past afflictions were not beneficial to me at all.” According to the Buddha-Dharma, all conditioned phenomena are impermanent.

In life, all living beings are suffering. Because we want to understand suffering, we seek out the origin of suffering, or its “causation,” which comes from our afflictions. The better we understand these principles, like how the Five Aggregates are empty in nature, what will there be for us to take issue over? There is no “I”; there is nothing that belongs to us forever. Our lifetime lasts for several decades and we come and go with empty hands. So, what is there for us to be attached to, for us to take issue over? Once we understand all these things, naturally our minds “have no hindrances; there are no hindrances.” Thus, there are no afflictions; “there is no fear.” This is why we must learn the Buddha’s teachings and “turn from the dust toward awakening” to awaken ourselves as well as others. This pure and undefiled mind comes from learning the Buddha’s teachings.

And as we learn the Buddha’s teachings, we must sustain our initial aspirations; we must safeguard the first aspirations we formed. We must recall this aspiration in our daily living. Everything we do, we do willingly, with the goal of understanding that all conditioned phenomena are impermanent, so there is nothing to take issue over. To seize the impermanent, the time that is constantly passing by, we must take advantage of the present and not let any second or minute slip by. So, we must seize each moment.

In this space, we must be grateful that we can be focused [on our practice], without the afflictions or hindrances of family. Having established this resolve, formed great aspirations and made great vows, we must act for the sake of all beings. However, for us to guide other people, we must also take the Dharma to heart. We must use our own lives as an example to guide people. This is part of our great vows.

“Bringing Samadhi to our nature” means that in our nature, we must be calm. When we interact with people, we must not be influenced by worldly matters and various interpersonal conflicts or be tempted to enjoy [empty] pleasure. Our minds must be unwavering. Not only must we “bring Samadhi to our nature,” we must also take good care of other people’s spiritual aspirations. Then, we must help the multitudes who only pursue pleasure and are afraid of hardship to understand how they can, in their daily living, conserve [resources] and engage in spiritual practice. Lay Bodhisattva-practitioners can also make society their place for spiritual cultivation. Family and society are where lay Bodhisattvas engage in spiritual practice. “With great vows, we bring Samadhi to our nature, We guide people to the right course by going among them.” To guide people onto the right course, in the right direction, we must engage in spiritual practice among people.

I often tell you that every person is a sutra. However, people in the past said, “Bystanders can see clearly.” So, when we are by people’s sides, we can guide them to read this “sutra” and understand it. By being understanding of their life’s sutra, we can counsel them. We can counsel them so when they face serious difficulties in life, they know how they can resolve them. Then we guide them to go among people again. Think about it, isn’t this “guiding people to the right course by going among them?”

So, “this is how we walk the Bodhi-path to perfect enlightenment.” We walk on the Bodhi-path. “Bodhi” is enlightenment. We seek and learn the Buddha’s teachings so that we can draw closer to the Buddha’s wisdom. This is learning the Buddha’s teachings. So, we Buddhist practitioners [must recall] our initial aspiration. Why did we become Buddhist practitioners? Why are we learning the Buddha’s teachings? We [do this in order to] attain Buddhahood. Learning a skill is about mastering it. It is not that we cannot learn it, we simply must be focused on learning it. If we can master it precisely, then we can teach others.

So, we must.

“Establish faith to sustain our initial aspirations. With Great Vows, we bring Samadhi to our nature. We guide people to the right course by going among them. This is how we walk the Bodhi-path to perfect enlightenment.”

This is so simple, we all should be able to do it. So, the Buddha constantly gave simple teachings, but He always taught true principles.

In the previous sutra passage, Sariputra was saying,

“Similarly, at this time the World-Honored One, from His birth to leaving the lay life, attaining the Way and turning the Dharma-wheel, has always taught by using skillful means.”

This is the earlier sutra passage. The World-Honored One, Sakyamuni Buddha, was also born to parents. Like other humans, he experienced childhood and adolescence. When he was young, he saw suffering in the world, and made a great vow to save the world from its delusion and confusion. We face the suffering of afflictions, of cyclic existence, of parting with those we love, not getting what we want, meeting those we hate and so forth. Our bodies go through birth, aging, illness and death. Where do we go after we die? Where were we before we were born? When he was very young, Prince Siddhartha was already thinking of these things. Because of this, he made great vows and left the lay life.

He went through an arduous period of practice. He was not intimidated by hard work, so he underwent five years of traveling and six years of ascetic practice. He absorbed over 90 different kinds of teachings to understand others and himself. What was it that he wanted? After learning those other spiritual practices, he knew they were not the Dharma that he wanted. “I need to find a teaching that truly comes from my own realizations.” Finally, He attained enlightenment, and all things in the universe were instantly clear within His mind. The Great Dharma of the universe became one with His enlightened state of mind. Thus, among the principles underlying all things, there were none He did not fully understand.

Hence, “from His birth to leaving the lay life, attaining the Way and turning the Dharma-wheel…” When the Buddha observed the capacities of these sentient beings, He knew they would not immediately understand, so He had to teach with skillful means. With skillful means and simple principles, He earnestly guided sentient beings. He wanted us to first understand the suffering in the world, so the Buddha began by revealing to people the principles of the truth of suffering and the methods of spiritual practice to go

from the causation of suffering to delight of attaining the Path. So, we must eliminate afflictions in order to enter the path to enlightenment. ․This was [the path of] all Buddhas in the past, the present Buddha, Sakyamuni, and an infinite number of Buddhas in the future; all Buddhas share the same path. They go through the same process of being born into this world, engaging in spiritual practice in this world, awakening and teaching the Dharma in this world. This is known as leaving the lay life. “From [Their] birth to leaving the lay life,” all Buddhas share the same path. The way They expound the Dharma goes from the simple to the profound. Simple Dharma is skillful means. Profound Dharma is the True Dharma, which helps us return to the Buddha-nature that we all intrinsically have.

So, in the next passage, Sariputra said,

“The World-Honored One preaches the true path; Papiyas would not do this. Therefore I know for certain this is not Mara posing as the Buddha. But I had fallen into a web of doubts, so I said it was the doings of Mara.”

Sariputra was still saying that the World-Honored One taught True Dharma from the very beginning.

“Papiyas” was King Mara. Actually, Mara is generated by our minds; he is the illusory thinking and perceptions that our minds generate. There is no Mara in the outside world. This means Mara is our afflictions. Our afflictions contain many unreal and illusory thoughts. So, “Papiyas would not [teach the true path].”

When Sakyamuni Buddha taught the Dharma, everything that He taught was the principles of the one ultimate reality. This was in accordance with His own intent. The Buddha was beginning to share the the Dharma He had awakened to and directly turn the Dharma-wheel to deliver it to every sentient being and every disciple. He delivered the Dharma from His mind into the minds of sentient beings.

“In accordance with His own intent, He Taught the true path of the One Vehicle that He had safeguarded in His mind.”

This was the true path.

Doesn’t the Diamond Sutra say the following? The Tathagata “speaks the truth, what is real. He does not speak falsehoods or what is not so.”

This is the Dharma taught by the World-Honored One. Even when adapting the teachings to others, the principles came from His heart. This was how He patiently guided people. During the Lotus Dharma-assembly, the World-Honored One, Sakyamuni Buddha, further revealed what He had been safeguarding in His mind, the state of mind He had when He first attained enlightenment over 40 years ago. So, “the World-Honored One preached the true path.”

“Papiyas” is King Mara. He represents evil. He is one who kills, who constantly tries to end people’s wisdom-life. With evil intent, he fosters evil ways. So, “Those who kill and harm virtuous Dharma are without virtuous Dharma.”

Are maras the people around us who treat us [badly]? Oftentimes, because we are not in Samadhi, because our minds and nature, cannot remain unwavering, we give rise to doubts and do not accept the True Dharma. Instead, we pursue erroneous teachings and walk a deviant path. This is all because of our minds. So, Papiyas, maras and evil ones do not refer to other people; they are within us.

If we can have Samadhi in our nature and calm our minds, we will have proper faith. If our minds are unwavering, even if external things are tempting us, we will not be enticed. So, Mara, this evil demon, tries to end people’s wisdom-life. If we give rise to the slightest thought, or if we follow those who tempt us, we may end our wisdom-life. If our minds are in Samadhi, then we will have no illusions or hallucinations. Our minds will not deviate. We must prevent ourselves [from deviating].

So, I have always taught everyone the. Three Flawless Studies, precepts, Samadhi, wisdom. Precepts guard against wrongs and stop evil. We must abide by them in order to protect our wisdom-life. If people with evil intentions tempt us, our minds must remain unmoving.

“One who kills and harms virtuous Dharma is without virtuous Dharma.” He is called “Papiyas.” At present, our minds are already free from discursive thoughts. So, “Papiyas would not [teach the true path].”

“Therefore I know for certain.” Now Sariputra understood that once he calmed his mind, external phenomena would no longer cause it to waver. His faith was also firm. So he said, “Therefore I know for certain that this is not Mara pretending to be the Buddha.”

From this I know that the Buddha taught with the Dharma of the true path. Therefore I know for certain this is not Mara posing as the Buddha. With solid faith in profound and wondrous True Dharma, wisdom-life will develop.

Sariputra clearly understood that the Buddha speaks the truth, what is real; He does not speak what is not so. So, he always believes in what the Buddha says. In his heart he believed this was the Buddha teaching True Dharma and that he was not hallucinating this Dharma. Sariputra was certain of this. From this point on, he understood that the way the Buddha taught, the process, was to first teach simple Dharma, limited teachings to suit people’s capabilities. But within these limited teachings are true and wondrous principles. Now, He was opening up the provisional and setting aside skillful means for the direct to teach the True Dharma. So, Sariputra should believe in it even more now. Thus he said, “Therefore I know for certain that this is not Mara pretending to be the Buddha.”

With a solid faith comes great certainty in this profound and wondrous True Dharma. We should believe in this profound and wondrous True Dharma. This is wisdom-life. If our faith is firm and and we wholeheartedly penetrate these subtle and wondrous true principles, then we can help our wisdom-life grow.

Sariputra himself then said, “But I had fallen into a web of doubts, so I said it was the doings of Mara.” In the past, he had fallen into a web of doubts and could not calm his mind. He thought everything was empty [in nature], so what else was there to cultivate? When he heard about attaining Buddhahood, he did not think that he could attain Buddhahood. He had no faith in himself. He thought this Dharma was illusory and not real. “So, I said it was the doings of Mara.” He thought this Dharma was illusory. Because he clung to his bias toward emptiness, he had this kind of mindset.

In the past I did not understand that with compassion and wisdom, the Buddha gave provisional teachings, which did not deviate from the path of the wondrous Dharma of One Reality. Therefore I had doubts and delusions, as if I had fallen into a web of doubts. Thus, I said it was the doings of Mara.

In the past, he did not clearly understand the Buddha’s wisdom and how the provisional teachings He gave did not deviate from the principles of the Dharma of One Reality. In the past, he did not understand this, so he said he “had fallen into a web of doubts.” At the time, he was still in a web of doubts and clung to his bias toward emptiness. He did not know about the principles of true and wondrous existence. So, he said about himself, “My mind seemed to have been obstructed by Mara.” At that time, he lacked confidence in himself.

Everyone, we must all have confidence in ourselves and believe in what the Buddha taught us, the genuine Dharma of True Suchness. Everyone intrinsically has True Suchness, and everyone can attain Buddhahood. In the past, there were countless Buddhas, and there will be countless Buddhas in the future, so why can’t we believe that we may also become one of the countless Buddhas in the future? We have now attained a little bit of awakening. We have already begun to see the Buddha’s mind, so we must have confidence in ourselves.

Everyone, as we learn the Buddha’s teachings, we must take very good care of our minds and our pure intrinsic nature. We must not allow our mind to become scattered. Even Sariputra, who was foremost in wisdom, was trapped in a web of doubts for several decades. Only now was he beginning to break through it and truly connect with the [Buddha’s Path] to begin to develop wisdom-life. So, we must always be mindful.

Episode 483 – Realize True Suchness with Impartial Compassion

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>> “With wisdom of suchness, we realize the essence of ultimate reality. Once in a state of agreement, we will realize the nature of True Suchness. Turning from the dust toward awakening, we can turn the Dharma-wheel.”

>> “The Buddhas of the present and future, whose numbers are beyond calculation, also use skillful means to expound Dharma such as this.”

>> “Similarly at this time, the World-Honored One….”

>> “From His birth to leaving the lay life, attaining the Way and turning the Dharma-wheel, [He] also teaches by using skillful means.”

>> So, the Buddha, for the sake of one great cause, manifested leaving the lay life and engaging in spiritual practice to realize the Path and verify Absolute Truth.

>> Transform the minds of sentient beings. This was turning the Dharma-wheel.

>> The Buddha’s teaching of the Dharma is like the turning of the wheel of a cart. It can turn ordinary people into noble beings, enabling them to transcend all afflictions and attain the Dharma of the Noble Path. This is turning the Dharma-wheel.

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“With wisdom of suchness,
we realize the essence of ultimate reality.
Once in a state of agreement,
we will realize the nature of True Suchness.
Turning from the dust toward awakening,
we can turn the Dharma-wheel.”

The wisdom of suchness is our nature of True Suchness. We ordinary people intrinsically have the nature of True Suchness, but because we transmigrate in the Six Realms, our intrinsic nature continues to be covered by the dust of the afflictions in our environment. Layer upon layer of ignorance cover [our minds], so our wisdom of suchness cannot break through our afflictions.

Right now, the teachings we are listening to [seem to] repeat continuously, over and over. After the [Buddha] taught the Dharma, to make things clearer,

He would teach it repeatedly with various methods, such as parables and expressions. Take Sariputra, who was foremost in wisdom. Once he understood the empty nature of things, he realized there was nothing to be attached to. There was no need to cling to any appearances. This is true emptiness. External appearances and forms no longer disturbed his mind. Once he eliminated his desires, there were no more problems. However, he still did not understand the nature of True Suchness. This wondrous existence was not clear to him.

Then at the Lotus Dharma-assembly, through the Buddha’s repeated and lengthy explanations, Sariputra finally began to understand that within true emptiness, there is a very subtle and wondrous existence. This wondrous existence is “wisdom of suchness.” Sariputra had now realized the “wisdom of suchness.” To realize is to verify, to understand. What did he understand? The essence of ultimate reality. The essence of True Suchness was what he had realized.

As I have said before, the mind of the Buddha, the Great Enlightened One, was in a tranquil state when it suddenly converged with the true essence of the universe. So, [the truths of] all things in the universe were verified by the Buddha’s mind. Thus He experienced this and awakened. This is the essence of ultimate reality, or the “wisdom of suchness,” which is True Suchness.

“Once we in a state of agreement….” If we are able to reach agreement, that is a form of verification. When our minds and these principles verify each other, then we have comprehended them. So, “We will realize the nature of True Suchness” because we have already reached agreement; our minds and the principles have converged. Therefore, “Once in a state of agreement, we will realize the nature of True Suchness.”

“Turning from the dust toward awakening” means “we can turn the Dharma-wheel.” In the past, while among all ordinary beings, we were bothered and troubled. When we are in the Six Realms, among the multitudes of people, we become mixed up in interpersonal conflicts, which [causes us to become] unclear. This is like being caught in a dust [storm]. Dust, as everyone should know, can be blown up into the air. When the wind blows, flying dust can fill the sky. When the land is very arid and dry, it becomes very dusty, and once the wind blows, it will all blow in the same direction and create what looks like a layer of fog. This is dust. So, our minds are also covered by a dusty haze but this dust pollutes our hearts, so we cannot clearly see the world around us. Now that we are learning the Buddha’s teachings, we are “turning from the dust toward awakening.”

I often talk about “taking refuge,” which is to turn from black to white. The underlying idea is the same. Our past ignorance and afflictions are what we have turned away from so we can face the clean and pure Dharma. This is “turning from the dust toward awakening.” If we can achieve this, then “we can turn the Dharma-wheel.” We learn the Buddha’s teachings in the hope that we can learn to see clearly. If we cannot see clearly, then even if Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are right in front of us, we would still treat them as ordinary people. Ordinary people judge others by their appearances.

In the sutras, there is a story about this. There was a kulapati, a very respected elder, who was very reverent and had read many Buddhist sutras. He often went to temples to pay his respects, and also studied the sutras very earnestly.

The sutras state that. Manjusri is dignified and wise. He was once the teacher of seven Buddhas. Among his students, seven of them had already attained Buddhahood. So, this elder always felt that seeing Manjusri Bodhisattva was his greatest wish as a spiritual practitioner. So at his home, he often made offerings to monastics. Whenever he made offerings, he always left an empty seat. This seat was on a dais, elevated above others, because he hoped Manjusri Bodhisattva would respond and come to receive offerings.

This elder often made these offerings. One day, the offerings were very abundant, so many bhiksus came and sat in the order of their arrival. Yet, the elevated seat remained empty. Then, a very filthy person arrived. His face was as soiled as could be, with filth stuck to his eyes and flowing from his nose. His entire body was very dirty and unclean, and his clothes were very tattered. He hobbled in, one step at a time, meaning that he was crippled and limping. Just like that, he limped in on a cane and without reservation sat in the elevated seat.

When the elder saw this, he was very displeased. So, he guided him down off the elevated seat, saying, “This seat is not for you, please come down.” After he pulled him down, he coaxed him toward the side to sit in a corner and gave him something to eat. Yet, it kept happening like this, that during those several days, this person kept appearing there.

One day, this elder went to a temple to pay respects to the Buddha. He prostrated to the statue of the Buddha, recited sutras, prayed and made vows as he always did. “I only have one wish; there is only one thing I ask for. I want to see the magnificent Manjusri Bodhisattva, who possesses both blessings and wisdom. Why does this Bodhisattva, who must surely be very dignified-looking, leave the elevated seat empty?”

After he prayed to the Buddha, he was very tired, so he went home and fell asleep. In his dream, someone seemed to be talking to him. The voice said, “Your wish to see the Bodhisattva has been fulfilled. Manjusri sat in that elevated seat seven times, but you pulled him down seven times. This happened seven times in a row. The Bodhisattva sat in that elevated seat, but you did not see his true face; you looked at him with your unenlightened mind.”

At that moment, he suddenly realized that. Manjusri Bodhisattva had manifested this kind of appearance to accept offerings, but he had judged him based on appearance. He felt deeply regretful. The voice spoke again, “When you learn the Buddha’s teachings, you must learn the wisdom of suchness and set aside appearances. As you engage in spiritual practice, you must have a compassionate and impartial mind. When you make offerings, you must do so out of great love, selflessness and deep sincerity. This shows reverence and compassion. A reverent and compassionate mind must be impartial. This is having impartial compassion for all. However, your mind still discriminates.” So, the elder suddenly had a great realization; truly this is how things are.

Often, when we are reading the sutras, our minds will often be limited by the text. We must liberate ourselves from this attachment. This is “turning from the dust toward awakening.” That type of ignorance, that unenlightened attachment to appearances, is something we must avoid. Is there any difference between men and women? Is there any difference between rich and poor? Is there any difference between noble and lowly? Actually, the principles have no [set] form or appearance. This is something we should be able to realize.

So, “with wisdom of suchness, we realize the essence of ultimate reality.” The essence of ultimate reality is like our five facial features and four limbs. A complete human body has these four limbs and five features. This is our appearance. And our essence? We all have the Six Roots and the Six Consciousnesses. By nature, we have a seventh and an eighth consciousness. Our seventh consciousness is our thinking. We see appearances in our surroundings and then contemplate them in our minds. When we read sutras, the text enters our minds, and we contemplate it. If we have taken the Dharma to heart, the seeds of the Dharma will be in our minds. If we are attached to something, we cannot fully eliminate our habitual tendencies. Things are filtered through the alaya (eighth) consciousness before reaching the amala consciousness, the ninth consciousness. What reaches the ninth consciousness is filtered through the eighth consciousness, so it is completely clean.

This is our essence, our true wisdom, which can comprehend the true principles. So, if we can do this, we will be in agreement with True Suchness. In this way, we are “turning from the dust toward awakening,” and can “turn the Dharma-wheel.” Then, we can go among people to teach the. Great Dharma and turn the great Dharma-wheel.

The earlier sutra passage [states],

“The Buddhas of the present and future, whose numbers are beyond calculation, also use skillful means to expound Dharma such as this.”

The present Buddha is Sakyamuni Buddha, the future Buddha is Maitreya Buddha, and there are other countless Buddhas in the long expanse of the future. So, Their “numbers are beyond calculation,” and all “also use skillful means to expound Dharma such as this.” Countless Buddhas have appeared in the world. Their one purpose is to transform all beings and turn the Dharma-wheel, turning deluded minds toward their awakened nature. This is the path shared by all Buddhas; past, present and future, they are all the same.

So, in the next passage, it states,

“Similarly at this time, the World-Honored One….”

The past and future Buddhas were just like the present Buddha, Sakyamuni.

“From His birth to leaving the lay life, attaining the Way and turning the Dharma-wheel, [He] also teaches by using skillful means.”

Every Buddha does the same. They appear in this world, so according to the workings of the world, They must have parents. This is “from birth to leaving the lay life.” Although They are also born from parents, They come to the world with Buddha-wisdom, born of Their affinities with Their parents. Though born in this world, the way these Buddhas interact with people and deal with matters and objects lead Them to achieve different realizations. The aspirations They form and the great vows They make are also different from other people’s. They have to leave Their lay life to attain Buddhahood. This process of spiritual cultivation is the same.

After becoming enlightened, They attain the Way and turn the Dharma-wheel. Only by realizing the principles of all things in the universe and thoroughly and clearly analyzing conditioned phenomena and unconditioned Dharma can They turn the Dharma-wheel. Though They turn the Dharma-wheel in this way, the Dharma-wheel has to be turned on Earth. This is like a kind of skillful means.

So, the Buddha, for the sake of one great cause, manifested leaving the lay life and engaging in spiritual practice to realize the Path and verify Absolute Truth.

This was how the Buddha was able to turn the Dharma-wheel and

teach the Dharma He had safeguarded in His mind. After the Buddha attained enlightenment, with that state of mind, He could thoroughly understand the ultimate reality of all things in the universe. Things arise according to their principles. Only when many [causes and conditions] converge will an appearance manifest. Haven’t I often given examples of this? Each kind of appearance has its own name. A table has the appearance of a table. The floor, window and ceiling are all made of wood. There are different types of wood, each with its own texture and quality. Certain kinds of wood can be turned into certain kinds of objects. Certain kinds of wood are not suitable for making tables, chairs, doors or windows.

So, different kinds of material objects are formed by different causes and conditions. Each different kind of seed matures under [different] causes and conditions and grows from the land. Their nature and essence are different, so their names are different. Things with the same name, put to different uses, may then be given different names. So, to the Buddha, we are all humans. We have the same limbs and facial features, but our essence and nature differ. Although we have different [habitual] natures, we all have the essence of True Suchness, the same intrinsic nature of True Suchness.

All in all, the Buddha has already realized this. Now, He was turning the great Dharma-wheel, which is turning the wheel of Great Dharma. This was different from the limited teachings of the past. Now He was teaching the Great Dharma. He was transmitting the Dharma He safeguarded. The True Dharma that He had safeguarded in His mind was now being fully shared in order to.

Transform the minds of sentient beings. This was turning the Dharma-wheel.

The Dharma-wheel is like the wheel of a cart. A cart needs wheels so that it can transport its cargo from one place to another. By the same principle, the Buddha transported the Dharma from His mind into the minds of sentient beings, in hopes that we can accept the Buddha-Dharma. This is how we receive the Dharma.

The Buddha’s teaching of the Dharma is like the turning of the wheel of a cart. It can turn ordinary people into noble beings, enabling them to transcend all afflictions and attain the Dharma of the Noble Path. This is turning the Dharma-wheel.

So, [the Dharma-wheel] is like the wheel of a cart. Only when the wheels turn can the cart move. By transporting the Dharma into sentient beings’ minds, He hopes they can develop their wisdom-life and turn from ordinary people into noble beings, thus transforming ordinary minds into noble minds. This helps all beings transcend all afflictions.

If sentient beings do not eliminate afflictions from their minds, they will always remain ordinary people. We must use the Dharma to break down our afflictions. Similarly, as wheels roll over the ground, they will grind and break down filthy things so those can be swept away. This is also a way of turning afflictions into True Dharma. This can enable ordinary people to transcend all afflictions and and attain the Dharma of the Noble Path.

If we accept the Buddha-Dharma into our hearts with a pure mind, then all Dharma converges into one entity, which can then be applied in the world.

Everyone, as we learn the Buddha’s teachings, I only hope that we can all attain the “wisdom of suchness” so we can realize the essence of ultimate reality, our nature of True Suchness. So, we must apply our wisdom in self-observation and self-reflection to awaken our nature of True Suchness. Therefore, we must always be mindful.