Category: TLS Chapter 4

Episode 788 – Coming and Going without Difficulty

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>> The Buddha concealed the true and gave the provisional and shed His honored status for a humble one. The four disciples confessed that they feared the Great and delighted in the Small. Confused about the true, they remained mired in the provisional unable to accept the Great Vehicle. The Buddha compassionately gave great teachings according to sentient beings’ capabilities.

>> “At that time, though the poor son was pleased at the situation, he still thought of himself as an outsider and a lowly worker. Therefore, for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing manure.”    [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> “By the time that period was over, the appearance of his mind came to embody faith, and he came and went without difficulty. But he still remained in the same place as before.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> By the time that period was over, the appearance of his mind came to embody faith: After the period when the Buddha taught the Agama sutras was over, He saw that those listening to the Dharma had gained resolve and faith. Thus He saw that their capacities were now capable of accepting [the teachings]. Therefore, He taught the Great and Small Vehicles together in the Vaipulya.

>> As He was teaching according to capabilities, He belittled the Small Vehicle while praising the Great, spurring those of lesser capabilities to feel shame for the Small and admire the Great, urging them to advance toward the Great Dharma. Now, He teaches the Great Vehicle Dharma for the sake of the Bodhisattvas. This is certainly not false, so, “The appearance of his mind came to embody faith”.

>> Before, in Deer Park, He concealed this, teaching the Small Vehicle Dharma. Practitioners of the Two Vehicles were satisfied with attaining only a little, so they called it the ultimate. Thus, by having the lay disciple Vimalakirti teach through scolding them, He made them feel shame for the Small and admire the Great. This was known as the Vaipulya period.

>> The appearance of his mind came to embody faith: This is an analogy for realizing the emptiness inherent in all arising. This is one of the two kinds of emptiness, also called the emptiness of self, or the emptiness of ego. Sentient beings are temporary unions of the Five Aggregates and are lacking any true essence. This is “emptiness inherent in all arising”. By realizing this, one attains liberation.

>> He came and went without difficulty: An analogy for benefiting both oneself and others. Having already received a day’s wages, he knew it to be true and not false. Coming represents benefiting oneself, going represents benefiting others, and both are without doubts or difficulties. Thus it says, “He came and went without difficulty”.

>> But he still remained there in the same place as before: Abiding in the principle of the emptiness inherent in all arising, they had no aspiration to deliver sentient beings and did not wish to seek great fruits. Thus it says, “He still remained there in the same place as before”.

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“The Buddha concealed the true and gave the provisional and shed His honored status for a humble one.
The four disciples confessed that they feared the Great and delighted in the Small.
Confused about the true, they remained mired in the provisional unable to accept the Great Vehicle.
The Buddha compassionately gave great teachings according to sentient beings’ capabilities.”

The Buddha was so compassionate; in order to teach sentient beings, He maintained such a patient and loving mindset. He concealed the true and gave the provisional. He hid the state that He had awakened to, the great principles that He had realized; He temporarily concealed them in accordance with sentient beings’ capacities. This was how He taught us. He shed His honored status for a humble one. He loved and cared for sentient beings as if they were His only son. With each disciple, he used equal and impartial methods, with teachings that were in accordance with the capabilities of each individual.

We can see from the beginning of the Chapter on Faith and Understanding how four leaders of the Sangha, four great Venerable Ones, with Subhuti as their leader, came before the Buddha to repent and express what was in their hearts, the mindset they had from what they had heard and understood of the Dharma in the past. They thought they understood the Four Noble Truths, that life is filled with unbearable suffering, that afflictive emotions in our relationships entangle us, lifetime after lifetime. And on top of that, there is birth, aging, illness and death. This is so much suffering! So, they did not want to return to the human realm. They continually held these principles close to their hearts. Every day they practiced for their own benefit. They delighted only in the Small Vehicle Dharma, because they feared the Great.

However, when the disciples saw Sariputra, who was foremost in wisdom, receive the Buddha’s prediction of Buddhahood, they then understood the Buddha’s intent. They understood what the Buddha taught was all about forming great aspirations, making great vows and practicing the Bodhisattva-path. So, these four also began to explain themselves and confess that they were “confused about the true [and had] remained mired in the provisional.” They had remained ignorant of the True Dharma of the One Vehicle. They had concealed it from themselves, thinking, “This way is already good enough.” Thus, they stopped with the provisional and were “unable to accept the Great Vehicle.” They were not willing to accept the True Dharma of the One Vehicle; they did not accept it.

Fortunately, the Buddha had great patience. He always adapted to sentient beings’ capacities. For those with great roots and capabilities, He used the Great Vehicle Dharma. For those with average capabilities, the Buddha would give them the Dharma that they were capable of accepting. These were Solitary Realizers and Pratyekabuddhas. For those who had just entered through the door, who had more limited capabilities, the Buddha would use His speech, and depending on their capabilities, would give them Dharma they could understand. So, “He gave great teachings according to sentient beings’ capabilities.” The most important thing was that everyone would be able to accept the Dharma. Thus, He taught “according to sentient beings’ capabilities.”

The Buddha’s love was for all sentient beings in the world. He wished that everyone could serve humanity and the earth. Indeed! Looking most recently at the news from Australia, it turns out that not only do the people there love others, everyone also loves the land. Our collegiate volunteers, as well as adult volunteers, more than 40 people in total, rode in a tour bus to travel to a place more than 300km away, where there was a huge ranch. What were the volunteers doing there? Originally, in the past, this area was a forest of towering trees. But due to the greed of humans, for the past 100 years, the land was used for pasture, to raise sheep and cattle. In recent years there has been drought lasting more than a decade. So, on that stretch of land, no new grass would grow. The sheep kept eating the grass, until there was no more grass to eat. They even nibbled away the roots, so even the roots of the grass were gone.

Once previously, we had provided emergency aid for the farmers. They had come to Tzu Chi volunteers, saying, “Besides going hungry ourselves, our livelihood depends on our sheep being able to provide milk. Our ranch raises these sheep for their milk. We will only be able to make a living if we can keep the sheep alive.”

I remember at the time, Tzu Chi volunteers provided them with hay. We could see them hauling hay by truck and spreading the hay out over that vast expanse of land. The entire herd of sheep followed the truck, fighting to get some of the hay. I told them that this was not a solution. With a continual drought, merely continuing to provide those sheep with dry hay would not be a long-term solution. How could we guide them to stop raising sheep and instead begin planting trees to restore the great [forest] that grew there more than 100 years ago? They could even grow fruit trees!

Thus, beginning five or six years ago, Tzu Chi volunteers would go every year in April to help them plant trees. In this way, they planted more than 2000 trees hoping that in several years it will again become an expanse of green forest. This too is done by humans; “All things are created by the mind.” It was humans who destroyed the earth, so when it comes to caring for the earth and replenishing the great trees of the earth so they may flourish, this also must be done by humans. This is what the Buddha taught.

So, the Buddha taught us that whether in our treatment of others, of the earth or in dealing with matters and things, we should open up our loving hearts and not only seek to benefit ourselves.

The Buddha [is likened to] the elder who drew near to the poor son. He used various means to approach him, to guide him and to teach him how to work.

“At that time, though the poor son was pleased at the situation, he still thought of himself as an outsider and a lowly worker. Therefore, for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing excrement.”

As we mentioned previously, he had still not formed any great vows. Therefore, “for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing excrement.” For 20 years he continued working the same job.

These 20 years, as everyone should remember, are the Agama period of twelve years and the Vaipulya period lasting eight years. The two of these taken together amount to 20 years. This was where they remained stuck. This is what the parable refers to; this was how Subhuti expressed that they had spent 20 years this way in the past.

After that time, the Buddha began teaching the Prajna sutras. Over the next 22 years of Prajna teachings, Subhuti gained deep realizations; [he realized,] “All things were empty in nature.” Subhuti was “foremost in understanding emptiness.” He understood the principle of emptiness. He knew all things to be [temporary] unions that come into existence through the law of karma. Once the causes and conditions are separated, all things return to nothing. These positive and negative [conditions] are things that we brought about ourselves; thus we are [taught about] suffering and causation. We accumulate all types of causes and conditions that create the many appearances of suffering in life. Subhuti could truly concur with this; he understood [these teachings]. Thus, he was “foremost in understanding emptiness.”

Then, the next passage says, “By the time that period was over, the appearance of his mind came to embody faith, and he came and went without difficulty. But he still remained in the same place as before.”

This was how Subhuti expressed himself. After 20 years had passed, “The appearance of his mind came to embody faith.” This means he delved deeply into the Prajna sutras and teachings and understood that all principles are empty. True principles have no substance or appearance. They abide only in the minds of people. When we come in contact with external factors, the mind gives rise to greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. Thus we stir up many thoughts of desire. There is no end to our greed.

Subhuti understood all of these principles, but he was still unable to form great aspirations. That was his past. Now, let us explain the following sutra passage, “By the time that period was over, the appearance of his mind came to embody faith.”

By the time that period was over, the appearance of his mind came to embody faith: After the period when the Buddha taught the Agama sutras was over, He saw that those listening to the Dharma had gained resolve and faith. Thus He saw that their capacities were now capable of accepting [the teachings]. Therefore, He taught the Great and Small Vehicles together in the Vaipulya.

This speaks of the time after the Buddha had taught the Agama Sutra. At that time He had seen that those under His guidance in the Sangha had already “gained resolve and faith” through listening to the teachings. So, “He saw that their capabilities” had ripened to the point where they were “capable of accepting”; they were capable of accepting the Vaipulya. When the Buddha taught the Vaipulya, He began teaching experimentally. “Let me try teaching the Great Vehicle to these people with limited capabilities.” He did this for eight years. So, in the Vaipulya, He taught the Great and Small Vehicles together.

As He was teaching according to capabilities, He belittled the Small Vehicle while praising the Great, spurring those of lesser capabilities to feel shame for the Small and admire the Great, urging them to advance toward the Great Dharma. Now, He teaches the Great Vehicle Dharma for the sake of the Bodhisattvas. This is certainly not false, so, “The appearance of his mind came to embody faith”.

He taught according to their capabilities. While teaching to capabilities, the Buddha began disparaging the Small Vehicle. He praised, acclaimed the Great Vehicle Dharma to goad the [disciples] to “feel shame for the Small and admire the Great.” As He was teaching according to capabilities, He belittled the Small Vehicle while praising the Great, to lead those of dull capabilities to feel shame for the Small and admire the Great and urge them to advance toward the Great Dharma. Now, He teaches the Great Vehicle Dharma for the sake of the Bodhisattvas. This is certainly not false, hence, “The appearance of his mind came to embody faith. Why was I like this before, concerned only with practice for my own benefit?” So, beginning from that time, “They felt shame for the Small and admired the Great. I was wrong. Before I only sought to benefit myself. I now would like to learn how to benefit others at the same time.”

“Urging them to advance toward the Great Dharma,” the Buddha began to teach and encourage them to abandon their concept of the Small Vehicle and to earnestly accept the Great Dharma. “Now, He teaches the Great Vehicle Dharma for the sake of the Bodhisattvas.” Now it was time to teach the Lotus Sutra, the time to teach the Great Vehicle Dharma for the sake of the Bodhisattvas. This is true and [certainly] not false, hence, “The appearance of his mind came to embody faith.” The Buddha helped everyone to deeply and thoroughly attain faith and understanding.

Before, in Deer Park, He concealed this, teaching the Small Vehicle Dharma. Practitioners of the Two Vehicles were satisfied with attaining only a little, so they called it the ultimate. Thus, by having the lay disciple Vimalakirti teach through scolding them, He made them feel shame for the Small and admire the Great. This was known as the Vaipulya period.

What is being said here is that previously, while at Deer Park, after the Buddha first attained Buddhahood, He concealed the Great. Concealing the true, He shed his honored status for a humble one. He concealed the true and began to give the provisional.

The giving of provisional teachings began at Deer Park. This was the Small Vehicle Dharma. The practitioners of the Two Vehicles, the Hearers and Solitary Realizers, “were satisfied with attaining only a little.” They were happy to hear these teachings. They were quite satisfied with them. “I will eliminate afflictions. I will not be born again into cyclic existence.” These were the practitioners of the Small Vehicle Dharma who “were satisfied with attaining only a little. So they called it the ultimate.” They thought the Small Vehicle was the ultimate,

“Thus, by having the lay disciple Vimalakirti….” Vimalakirti had [already] accepted the Great Vehicle Dharma, the Dharma taught by the Buddha. He had completely accepted the Great Vehicle Dharma, so his perspectives were different from those of the Sangha. Vimalakirti would certainly goad the Small Vehicle [practitioners] and criticize the Small Vehicle Dharma. This would help everyone understand that practicing only to benefit oneself is too selfish. So, “He made them feel shame for the Small and admire the Great.” These were the kind of teachings that were given during the Vaipulya period. In the Vimalakirti Sutra, He goaded the Small Vehicle [practitioners] and praised the Great Vehicle Dharma.

The appearance of his mind came to embody faith: This is an analogy for realizing the emptiness inherent in all arising. This is one of the two kinds of emptiness, also called the emptiness of self, or the emptiness of ego. Sentient beings are temporary unions of the Five Aggregates and are lacking any true essence. This is “emptiness inherent in all arising”. By realizing this, one attains liberation.

This is what is meant by, “The appearance of his mind came to embody faith.” The appearance of his mind came to embody faith: This is an analogy for realizing the emptiness inherent in all arising, one of the two kinds of emptiness, also called the emptiness of self, or the emptiness of ego. Sentient beings are temporary unions of the Five Aggregates and are lacking any true essence. This is “emptiness inherent in all arising.” By realizing this, one attains liberation. “The appearance of his mind came to embody faith.” This is an analogy for “realizing the emptiness inherent in all arising, one of the two kinds.” In the Vaipulya period and continuing throughout the Prajna period, He began teaching the principle of emptiness. “Emptiness of self” or “emptiness of ego” [talks about how] this body of mine, this “I,” is empty. The “I” of yesterday and the “I” of today, the “I” that just entered this room and the “I” that I will leave soon, which of these “I”s is ultimately me? Inside us, our bodies constantly metabolizes; our bodies [change] with time. “With each passing day, our lives become shorter.” Which period of my life is the “real me”? All sentient beings are the same; we all exist through aggregation, as a temporary union of the Five Aggregates. There is no being that has any true essence. This is the “emptiness inherent in all arising.”

We are born in this world, but is there anything that is truly “you”? Is there anything that is truly “me”? There is nothing that is truly real. “With each passing day, our lives become shorter.” If we understand this principle, then we can come and go without difficulty. When we understand this, then we can accept that this is just what the world is like, so there is nothing to take issue over;

He came and went without difficulty: An analogy for benefiting both oneself and others. Having already received a day’s wages, he knew it to be true and not false. Coming represents benefiting oneself, going represents benefiting others, and both are without doubts or difficulties. Thus it says, “He came and went without difficulty”.

this is “to come and go without difficulty.” This is an analogy for “benefiting both oneself and others.” He came and went without difficulty: An analogy for benefiting both oneself and others. Having already received a day’s wages, he knew it to be true and not false. Coming represents benefiting oneself, going represents benefiting others, and both are without doubts or difficulties. Thus it says, “He came and went without difficulty.”

I am able to cultivate myself and teach others how to cultivate themselves. “Having already received a day’s wages….” Today, I have practiced like this. Today, I have listened to the teachings like this. I have understood everything and have taken the Dharma to heart. This Dharma is true and not false. So, “Coming represents benefiting oneself.” I have listened to the Dharma, understood and awakened to it. “Going represents benefiting others.” After having understood this, having understood this principle completely, I will then go and tell it to others. This is “coming and going without difficulty.”

But he still remained there in the same place as before: Abiding in the principle of the emptiness inherent in all arising, they had no aspiration to deliver sentient beings and did not wish to seek great fruits. Thus it says, “He still remained there in the same place as before”.

“But he still remained there in the same place as before.” But he still remained there in the same place as before: Abiding in the principle of the emptiness inherent in all arising, they had no aspiration to deliver sentient beings and did not wish to seek great fruits. Thus it says, “He still remained there in the same place as before.” However, those who remained stuck in the Small Vehicle Dharma, despite knowing all this, still would not take action themselves. So, they “abided in the principle of the emptiness inherent in all arising.” They completely understood this principle, but “They had no aspiration to deliver sentient beings, and did not wish to seek great fruits.” They continued to practice for their own benefit, to remain Solitary Realizers. They “still remained there. I am still here, and I know all of this. But if you want me to go among people, I still have hesitations about doing that. I still do not have the confidence.” So, when it comes to the Great and Small Vehicles, we come and go in the Dharma with no trouble, but we still remain stuck in this place.

Having formed great aspirations and having made great vows, having taken the Dharma to heart, we must take action. I often tell everyone that after we understand, the Dharma must become a part of our actions. So, we take the Buddha’s mind as our own mind. When we take the Dharma to heart and put the Bodhisattva-Path into practice, then we truly [practice] the Buddha’s teachings and are true spiritual practitioners. So, please always be mindful.

Episode 787 – Wash Away Desires To Purify Defilements

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>> Awakened beings wash away desires to purify their defilements. Their minds return to the unconditioned; with minds quiet, they reach the fundamental. Sramanas diligently cultivate the great fields of blessings. They can then end sentient beings’ anger, ignorance and hunger.

>> “At that time, though the poor son was pleased at the situation, he still thought of himself as an outsider and lowly worker. Therefore, for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing manure.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> He still thought of himself as an outsider and lowly worker: This is an analogy for practicing the teachings of the Path, yet still not knowing to shoulder and carry on the great responsibility.

>> Therefore, for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing manure: Unable to relinquish limited aspirations, they have yet to develop great capabilities. So, from the Agama through the Vaipulya period, they spent 20 years engaging in the practice of the Small Vehicle teachings, realizing the fruit of Arhatship. Thus it says, “He kept him clearing manure”.

>> The 20 years, when speaking of time, can be explained as after attaining Buddhahood, the first 21 days when He taught the Avatamsaka, the following 12 years when He continued by teaching the Agama, and then eight years when He taught the Vaipulya, and then eight years when He taught the Vaipulya, gradually moving into the Great Vehicle teachings.

>> The ancient sages spoke the following verse: The Agama for 12, the Vaipulya for 8, the Prajna for 22 years and the Lotus-Nirvana for 8 years in sum. But first the Avatamsaka for 21 days.

>> When speaking of spiritual practice: [20 years] is the stage of seeing the truth, achieving realization of the true principles. These are Hearers who attained the noble stages of srotaapanna and above through eager and diligent uninterrupted practice

>> In the Agama Sutra, it states: They relinquish grace and affection, renounce the lay life and practice the Path, nurture and control all Roots and remain undefiled by external desires; With loving-kindness for all, they cause harm to no one. Encountering happiness, they are not joyous. Encountering suffering, they are not sad. They are firm in patience like the earth. Thus, they are called sramanas.

>> Replete with the ten flawless methods of practice: The ten methods to practice and uphold[the sutras] are: Copying the text, making offerings, giving to others, listening, reading, accepting and retaining, giving discourses, chanting, contemplating and practicing the teachings.

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“Awakened beings wash away desires to purify their defilements. Their minds return to the unconditioned; with minds quiet, they reach the fundamental.
Sramanas diligently cultivate the great fields of blessings.
They can then end sentient beings’ anger, ignorance and hunger.”

We must be mindful! As spiritual practitioners, we are learning the Buddha’s Way. “Awakened beings” is a name for practitioners who have formed great aspirations. It means that we ordinary people are troubled, unclear about right and wrong and very confused. We blindly follow what we hear, thus producing afflictions. This makes us unenlightened beings. After we begin to accept the Buddha-Dharma, its principles will slowly wash away the ignorance and defilements in our minds. After we cleanse our minds of ignorance and afflictions, we will naturally return to our nature of True Suchness. Our minds will return to an unconditioned state. Unconditioned means “of the true principles.”

As Buddhist practitioners, the most important thing is to awaken. When we are awakened, we are Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattva [is a Sanskrit word]. “Bodhi” means “awakened, sattva” means being. It means “awakened being.” Though we have awakened, we will not give up on this world. Thus, we are willing to go among people. By going among people, we can create blessings. We are able to comprehend why people experience so many conflicts, suffering, manmade tragedies, famines, etc. Thus, we “wash away desires to purify [our] defilements.”

We have seen the impermanence in this world. We have seen misfortune and blessings follow one another in this world. Happiness is [often] followed by misfortune. The Buddhist sutras depict a man who constantly prayed to the god of wealth. He prayed with great reverence. After praying so reverently, a very beautiful woman approached him. “Who are you? I am the one you invited. I am delivering wealth and treasures to you. I am the god of wealth.” After her came another woman, but she was very unattractive, filthy and untidy.

The man then said, “I invited the first woman, I do not want this one who came after. Who is she? The second woman is ‘ruin’. Why is she here? I only invited wealth and treasure into my life. I do not want ‘ruin’.” But the [first] woman said, “We two are sisters. We go everywhere together. Things may exist now, but this state will not last forever. So, my little sister is responsible for the ruin that follows.”

This is the principle that the Buddha spoke of, the workings of formation, existence, decay and disappearance. While they exist, all things are gradually formed over time. Then there is abundance in the world, with all kinds of different things. Then as time passes, the karmic forces created by sentient beings will gradually harm and destroy things. In the [macrocosm of the world], these are the principles at work. What about the microcosm of individuals?

We must not focus on how much we want to do, on how much we want to earn or how big we want our accomplishments to be. Often, we want to be able to do everything. This depends on our blessings. So, our minds must still return to true principles. We must be one with true principles and quiet our minds. Our desires must not be so great. We must be able to live simply. “With minds quiet, [we] reach the fundamental.”

“Sramanas diligently cultivate.” Sramanas are monastics; they must diligently cultivate and understand the principles. Unconditioned Dharma is the source of principles. Once we are clear on this source, we can then delve into the suffering and joy that sentient beings experience. We must understand the source of suffering; where does it come from? So, we must quickly cultivate great fields of blessings among people. The more people there are, the more people we can bring blessings to. This is called a great field of blessings. But we must do more than create blessings. As we interact with people, we must also meticulously and carefully consider why there are these ups and downs in our lives. Why are there so many who are successful? Why are there so many who are disappointed? This is what we can learn among people.

How do we relieve the grief of sentient beings? Learning the Buddha’s Way teaches us. After accepting the Buddha-Dharma, we discover the underlying principles of the world. If sentient beings are receptive, we can turn their mindsets around; with a change of thought, suffering can turn into happiness. This is turning afflictions into Bodhi. As we experience suffering, we are learning. People talk about “working oneself to the bone.” Indeed, to create a statue of a Buddha, we need different kinds of axes, then knives and chisels. With all kinds of tools, we carve, cut and etch. We must be patient! In life, this is what we must do in order to develop a great field of blessings. If we do not, the macrocosm of the world is already so out of balance, and people’s minds are so deluded and lost that this will be very worrisome.

We must earnestly find a way to benefit people and teach them how to earnestly benefit others. Otherwise, if we do not put an end to sentient beings’ anger and delusions, famine will follow closely behind. Because of greed, anger and ignorance, sentient beings create karma without restraint. Without discipline, they will create much karma. Currently, in the macrocosm of the world, the three major and minor calamities have already begun to appear.

In addition, [look at] the earth and the climate. The earth has been damaged, and the climate is in a state of imbalance. This is how the elements of nature, earth, water, fire and air, retaliate against the human world. Added to these are manmade calamities. If society is not harmonious, it results in human tragedies. Manmade calamities include the ravages of war. World War I and World War II are not the only situations considered “wars.” Think about the Syrian refugees. More than a million of them are in Turkey, and they face unbearable suffering!

When Mr. Faisal Hu came back to Taiwan, he described the suffering in that place. He hoped we could do the same as in Jordan and help them overcome this hurdle. Recently, he sent information back to us. They held a distribution in coordination with local people. Professors and religious leaders went to make assessments. When they saw those who suffered most, the most impoverished, those who could not sustain a living, they gave them food. A household of six would receive two portions. Each portion is more than 15 kilograms, so two portions is more than 30 kilograms.

Why are they starving? Because of manmade calamities. They were once part of happy families and had an abundance of assets, but manmade tragedies caused by the discord between people created unrest throughout their country. Many lives and families were ruined as the people fled in all directions. At the same time, they starved because they had nothing to eat. They had lost everything they owned and wandered about in foreign lands. This is truly unbearable suffering. So, we must earnestly create great fields of blessings. We must diligently practice and help everyone understand these principles. Then we can “end sentient beings’ anger, ignorance and hunger.”

“At that time, though the poor son was pleased at the situation, he still thought of himself as an outsider and lowly worker. Therefore, for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing manure.”

The previous sutra passage explains that the poor son had come to work in this household to do cleaning. The father had set aside his magnificent clothing to approach him and have a heart-to-heart talk. He comforted him, saying, “If you earnestly do your job well, you can rise in the ranks so you will be even more blessed.” Even though the son felt comfortable there, very happy and safe, the following sutra text states, “He still thought of himself as an outsider and lowly worker” [He felt,] “Even though I can live here forever, this place is not mine.”

“Therefore, for the next 20 years, the elder kept him clearing excrement.” Even after entering this place, he still had to work for 20 years. During these 20 years, he specialized in clearing away excrement and waste. There were reasons behind this as well. “Thinking of himself as an outsider and lowly worker” is an analogy for “practicing the teachings of the Path yet still not knowing to shoulder and carry on the great responsibility.”

He still thought of himself as an outsider and lowly worker: This is an analogy for practicing the teachings of the Path, yet still not knowing to shoulder and carry on the great responsibility.

Some people engage in spiritual practice like this. These principles, the Dharma of emptiness, suffering and impermanence, are known to them. They understand the Four Noble Truths. They also follow the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. The Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence are clear to them. However, they feel their responsibility is eliminating afflictions; that is all. They earnestly work on doing that, but still do not know to say, “I will take responsibility because I am one of the masters of this house.” They still do not know this; they do not know to “shoulder” the responsibility. They already have the strength to take on the responsibility for this household; they should be able to carry this burden. However, they still do not know their own strength. So, “He still thought of himself “as an outsider and lowly worker.”

Therefore, for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing manure: Unable to relinquish limited aspirations, they have yet to develop great capabilities. So, from the Agama through the Vaipulya period, they spent 20 years engaging in the practice of the Small Vehicle teachings, realizing the fruit of Arhatship. Thus it says, “He kept him clearing manure”.

“Therefore, for the next 20 years, [the elder] kept him clearing excrement.” Because he still did not want to shoulder a big responsibility, the elder had to let him continue doing the cleaning in that place. Actually, this is also an analogy; it is like how we spiritual practitioners are “unable to relinquish limited aspirations and have yet to develop great capabilities.”

Because our resolve to benefit ourselves is still in our minds, we focus on taking care of ourselves and ignore what is happening to other people. We have not yet set aside this mindset. The Great Vehicle mindset is focused on benefiting others. We have not yet developed that state of mind, so we “have yet to develop great capabilities.” With great capabilities, we will willingly form aspirations and make vows. Since we have not yet achieved these capabilities, we have yet to form aspirations.

After the Buddha was awakened, His mind was in the Avatamsaka state. For 21 days, He taught the Avatamsaka Sutra. This was the state of the Buddha. In this state, He expressed His original intent. For Dharmakaya Bodhisattvas and heavenly beings, He taught this kind of Dharma. But after 21 days had passed, He contemplated how to go back into the world. Sentient beings would be unable to accept great [teachings] like this. So, He had to remove His magnificent clothing. He formed the Sangha, and in the Sangha He began to promote the Dharma. This was the Agama period, during which He taught the Four Noble Truths, Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence, the 37 Practices to Enlightenment, etc. These were easier to understand as. He used people, matters, and objects to form analogies. He spent 12 years doing this.

Then, the Buddha felt that in these 12 years, people had slowly begun to comprehend the Dharma. After comprehending this Dharma, understanding the fundamental teachings, they should be able to advance and step up to the next level. Thus, He then spent 8 years expounding the Vaipulya teachings, the Vaipulya sutras. So, out of these 20 years, the Agama period lasted 12 years, followed by the Vaipulya period of 8 years. During the Vaipulya period, He gave both great and limited teachings. Thus, those who clung to the Small Vehicle still practiced according to limited teachings and could only attain Arhatship. They were still at the beginning stages of comprehending the Buddha-Dharma; they stopped at that stage.

The 20 years, when speaking of time, can be explained as after attaining Buddhahood, the first 21 days when He taught the Avatamsaka, the following 12 years when He continued by teaching the Agama, and then 8 years when He taught the Vaipulya, and then the 8 years when He taught the Vaipulya, gradually moving into the Great Vehicle teachings.

These 20 years speak of time spent in spiritual practice. Patriarchs in the past used the following verse to help us easily comprehend. “The Agama for 12, the Vaipulya for 8, the Prajna for 22 years and the Lotus-Nirvana for 8 years in sum. But first the Avatamsaka for 21 days.”

The ancient sages spoke the following verse: The Agama for 12, the Vaipulya for 8, the Prajna for 22 years and the Lotus-Nirvana for 8 years in sum. But first the Avatamsaka for 21 days.
When speaking of spiritual practice: [20 years] is the stage of seeing the truth, achieving realization of the true principles. These are Hearers who attained the noble stages of srotaapanna and above through eager and diligent uninterrupted practice.

“Seeing the truth” means we must know that in spiritual practice, we are able to realize these principles. That is how we “achieve realization.”

In the Agama Sutra, it states: They relinquish grace and affection, renounce the lay life and practice the Path, nurture and control all Roots and remain undefiled by external desires. With loving-kindness for all, they cause harm to no one. Encountering happiness, they are not joyous. Encountering suffering, they are not sad. They are firm in patience like the earth. Thus, they are called sramanas.

This passage from the Agama Sutra tells us that we must leave our loved ones, renounce the lay life, practice the Path and control our Roots so they do not run wild all over the place. If we can do this, with loving-kindness we cause harm to no one, “Encountering happiness, [we] are not joyous” and “Encountering suffering, [we] are not sad.” We must be patient, be firm in patience like the earth. This is true mastery of spiritual practice. Only then have we attained realizations; we have practiced and realized. The principles are in our minds, and we can resonate with them. So, we must be truly mindful and nurture our loving hearts. We must continue to engage in spiritual practice with “the ten flawless methods of practice.”

Replete with the ten flawless methods of practice: The ten methods of practicing and upholding [sutras] are copying the text, making offerings, giving to others, listening, reading, accepting and retaining, giving discourses, chanting, contemplating and practicing the teachings.

In monasteries of the past, practitioners always upheld these ten methods. First is “copying the text.” People want to read sutras, but printing presses were not prevalent. They had to rely on people copying them by hand. Copying them enabled everyone to read the sutras. As they copied the sutras, they could cultivate their minds, calm their minds; this is copying the text. At the same time, they must form aspirations and constantly make offerings. “Making offerings” includes offerings of respect. There are also offerings of conduct and offerings of wealth. So, we must give of ourselves.

“Giving to others” is not about wanting to acquire things for ourselves. We should give of ourselves to help everyone; this is charitable giving. We must also mindfully listen to the Dharma; this is “listening.” When we listen to the Dharma, we must be mindful. Not only must we mindfully listen, afterwards we must recite the teachings. We must continuously recite them in order to commit them to our hearts so that we will not forget them. Next, we must “accept and retain.” We must go beyond memorizing; we must earnestly accept and retain them. By accepting and retaining, we understand. Then we can expound on and transmit the Dharma. After we hear the Dharma clearly and take it to heart, when people do not understand it, we can transmit it to them. We do this by “giving discourses.”

As for “chanting,” we must chant the sutras morning and night so the sound of teachings will pervade the universe. We must also earnestly contemplate them. If, while earnestly chanting the sutras, we constantly take the teachings to heart, we are “practicing the teachings.” These are the “ten flawless method of practice.”

Dear Bodhisattvas, we must mindfully engage in spiritual practice; only then can we truly become awakened beings. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 786 – With Loving-kindness for All, Cause Harm to None

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>> When we have put an end to and exhausted all evil and eliminated the bondage of afflictions, our nature of True Suchness resonates with the universe, and our innate enlightenment harmonizes with its vastness. When the Buddha first turned the Dharma-wheel in Deer Park, all those who took joy in the Small were transformed by the Dharma, like children born from the Buddha’s speech.

>> “When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful nor resentful in speech. I do not see these faults in you like I see in other workers. From today forward, you will be like my own son. The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man his son.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> “At that time, though the poor son was pleased at the situation, he still thought of himself as an outsider and lowly worker.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> This symbolizes realizing the initial fruit, the fruit of srotaapanna. For all sramanas, this is the fruit of initial attainment, the stage of entrance to the practice of the Path. Though he was pleased at the situation: Though one has eliminated delusions of views, delusions of thinking still remain.

>> The Agama Sutra explains: They relinquish loving affection, renounce the lay life and practice the Path, control and restrain all Roots and remain undefiled by external desires. With loving-kindness for all, they cause harm to no one. Encountering happiness, they are not joyous. Encountering suffering, they are not sad. They are firm in patience like the earth. Thus, they are called sramanas.

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“When we have put an end to and exhausted all evil and eliminated the bondage of afflictions,
our nature of True Suchness resonates with the universe, and our innate enlightenment harmonizes with its vastness.
When the Buddha first turned the Dharma-wheel in Deer Park, all those who took joy in the Small
were transformed by the Dharma, like children born from the Buddha’s speech.”

I believe the state of enlightenment is wonderful, but before becoming enlightened, we must first put an end to all evils. Having exhausted all evils, we must eliminate all bondage of affliction. This is the only way for our nature of True Suchness to be one with the universe.

We all intrinsically have this nature of True Suchness, so we should not look down on ourselves. We can also resonate with the universe someday. As long as we earnestly put an end to and exhaust all evil and all afflictions, the delusions of ignorance will no longer be able to disrupt our minds. We will achieve a tranquil and calm state. Eventually, there will come a day when, in an instant, we become one with the universe. At that time, our innate enlightenment will be in harmony with everything. That state is so vast! When I speak of this, I feel very happy. That state is indescribable.

In this kind of environment, the Buddha realized [the truths of] all things in the universe. The workings of life, the mind and material things were all encompassed in. His ocean of enlightened wisdom. There is nothing He does not know, no Dharma He does not understand. Everything is encompassed by His mind. His enlightened state of mind was what He wanted to help everyone understand. However, we were unable to. That was why. He first turned the Dharma-wheel in Deer Park. He began to scale down His understanding of the true principles of all things in this universe and re-collect it. Then He went back among the people and turned the Dharma-wheel at Deer Park. This completed the Three Treasures; Buddha, Dharma and Sangha were now all present. The Sangha then went out into the world to spread the Buddha’s teachings, all starting from this place.

Aside from explaining the suffering in the world, the impermanence of the universe and the kinds of impermanence humans experience, He also explained the workings of material things, the way things in the universe go through formation, existence, decay and disappearance. He also explained that [we do not know] whether we will live out the day or whether impermanence will strike first. Will we be able to make it to tomorrow or will impermanence strike before tomorrow arrives? We do not know; things happen in an instant. Helping us better understand impermanence shows the wisdom of the Buddha.

In the world, we often hear and see [impermanence]. But do we have this awareness? We are not yet aware, so we are still in the bondage of afflictions. When we blindly act on everything we hear, we will cause unrest in society and become entangled in cycles of enmity with others. With these kinds of conflicts and ups and downs, we truly give rise to many afflictions. This is the way life is, but as spiritual practitioners, we understand this. The Buddha continuously advised us and continuously explained this, so we know. Thus, we renounce cyclic existence. We do not want to return to birth and death here because there is much suffering in the world. So, we “take joy in the Small”; we just focus on avoiding rebirth in the world. That is why we eliminate afflictions; we take the Dharma to heart in order to use it to eliminate our afflictions.

The Dharma is like water; it can wash away the defilements of the mind. Those able to hear the Buddha-Dharma and take the principles to heart will not have afflictions flying around their minds like dust. This is what the Buddha taught us. Those who come in contact with the Dharma, though they may “take joy in the Small” and may not form great aspirations to benefit others, they live peacefully and are content. They can see the world very clearly and are free of ignorance; they put an end to all of their ignorance. They “put an end to and exhaust all evil.” They have also eliminated the bondage of afflictions, so they are free of afflictions. However, they only seek to benefit themselves. Even so, this is already remarkable.

So, they were “transformed by the Dharma.” Which Dharma was that? Beginning at Deer Park, the Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths. Then, it was the 37 Practices to Enlightenment and the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence. Having taken all of this Dharma to heart, they were transformed by it. What was born out of this transformation? Wisdom-life was born. We transform our regular life into wisdom-life.

As life is short and the world impermanent, we do not know if impermanence will strike before tomorrow arrives. But if we take the Dharma to heart, it will follow us when we leave this life for the next. Our wisdom-life will continue to exist. What we bring is our wisdom-life, our wisdom. Then in our future life, we will create blessings rather than commit evils. Thus, in our future life, based on the wisdom-life we have developed and the fact we have now encountered the Dharma, we will understand the principles and be able to clearly discern right and wrong. Therefore, life after life, we will no longer be in a deep state of confusion.

As for our wisdom-life, how does it come into being? “Like children born from the Buddha’s speech.” When we listen to the Dharma with our ears and take it to heart, we engrave it on our minds. Thus, we understand many principles. This is how our wisdom-life comes into being from the speech of the Buddha. The Great Enlightened One, in accord with our capabilities, speaks in a way we can understand and teaches Dharma that we can accept. This nourishes our wisdom-life. So, we are “like children born from the Buddha’s speech”

[After discussing] many sutras, we have reached the parable of the poor son. This analogy of the poor son came from the Buddha’s disciple Subhuti, when he expressed his repentance after his realization. “In the past, I focused only on awakening myself. When the Buddha taught the Great Dharma, I was not interested. We were very afraid to go among people. So, though the Buddha has taught True Dharma for more than 40 years, we remained outside the door and never entered it.” This was what Subhuti and three fellow disciples said in front of the Buddha.

Next, let us look at the previous sutra passage. “When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful nor resentful in speech. I do not see these faults in you like I see in other workers. From today forward, you will be like my own son. The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man his son.”

[The poor son] was already well-mannered. The elder had changed out of his magnificent clothing so he could approach the poor son. They got along so well that they could have a heart to heart talk. By observing his behavior, the elder could tell that he did things earnestly and had good moral character. He did not see any negative character trait in him.

This is a simple summary, as we discussed all this yesterday. This poor son was different from other people. In this passage, “other” refers to those who have strayed in their spiritual cultivation. People who mindfully engage in spiritual practice and those with deviant understanding and views have very different spiritual practices. The son did not have the evils “like [he saw] in other workers,” so his moral character stood out.

“From today forward, you will be like my own son.” His moral character was so wonderful, and he was very well-behaved, so the elder wanted to acknowledge him as his son. At that time, “The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man his son.” Thus, they will call each other “father” and “son.”

This is what we discussed yesterday, briefly summarized. The next sutra passage states, “At that time, though the poor son was pleased at the situation, he still thought of himself as an outsider and lowly worker.”

From this passage, we can see that though this man, the poor son, was cherished by the elder, highly praised and even acknowledged by him as a godson, though this made him happy and “pleased with the situation,” though he was very happy, he was still a bit worried. See, this symbolizes “realizing the initial fruit,” which is a fruit of spiritual practice

This symbolizes realizing the initial fruit, the fruit of srotaapanna. For all sramanas, this is the fruit of initial attainment, the stage of entrance to the practice of the Path. Though he was pleased at the situation: Though one has eliminated delusions of views, delusions of thinking still remain.

When the Buddha was at Deer Park, He turned the Dharma-wheel of the Four Noble Truths three times. The first time, Ajnata Kaundinya comprehended them. Upon comprehending them, he had realized the initial fruit. After the second and third turns, all five of them had realized the initial fruit. The initial fruit is also called “the fruit of srotaapanna.” It means we have accepted this Dharma and can continue to advance in our practice. This is “the fruit of srotaapanna.”

“Sramana” means spiritual practitioner. Those who leave the lay life can be called “sramanas.” Bhiksus and bhiksunis can all be called “sramanas.” This refers to how, after they became monastics, they began to take the Dharma to heart and have begun to attain the fruits of practice ․The Agama Sutra explains, “They relinquish loving affection, renounce the lay life and practice the Path, control and restrain all Roots and remain undefiled by external desires.”

The Agama Sutra explains: They relinquish loving affection, renounce the lay life and practice the Path, control and restrain all Roots and remain undefiled by external desires. With loving-kindness for all, they cause harm to no one. Encountering happiness, they are not joyous. Encountering suffering, they are not sad. They are firm in patience like the earth. Thus, they are called sramanas.

When we engage in spiritual practice and renounce the lay life, we must relinquish loving affection. We must first sever familial relationships. We go beyond limited love in order to embrace great love. We are no longer entangled by our immediate family. Our aspiration is to work for the sake of the greater family of this world. So, [the Chinese characters] [for “everyone” are “greater” and “family”]. Thus, “greater family” is everyone in the world. Everyone is part of this “greater family.” If we do not relinquish our “small family,” how do we do things for our “greater family”? It is for the sake of all beings in this world that we engage in spiritual practice.

As I have said, the Buddha engaged in spiritual practice and attained Buddhahood for the sake of all beings. To manifest the attainment of enlightenment, He also set aside His family, left behind loving affection, renounced the lay life and practiced the Path. This was the only way He could “control and restrain all Roots.” These Roots are eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind. We connect with external conditions through form, sound, smell, taste, touch and thoughts. When our inner Roots connect with outer states, all of those phenomena, whether sound, form or color, will lead our minds [to follow].

Some people seem to be blind, just acting on whatever they hear. Out of anger, they cannot discern right from wrong. Out of anger, they start to hurl abuse at people, whether or not they are in the right. The people they yell at are confused and then yell back in response. Ignorance in sentient beings come from their Roots. When we go along with external conditions and cannot discern right from wrong, we give rise to desire, so we lack clarity. Then we start to lust after all kinds of things. We want this, we want that and this too, etc. In summary, we should earnestly rein in our Roots and very clearly distinguish between things. Should we do this? Should we get that? Should we say that? Should we yell? We must have wisdom, must apply wisdom.

The Buddha wanted to teach practitioners to pass down the Path. The Dharma must be transmitted. We must find a way to spread the Dharma, so we must earnestly focus on our spiritual cultivation so the Dharma-lineage can passed down. Only by helping everyone understand principles can they eliminate their ignorance and afflictions and turn their ignorance into Bodhi, turn their ignorance into awakening. If people do not awaken, society will be in chaos

“[They] remain undefiled by external desires.” Truly, we must rein in our Roots so we do not just connect with [everything we see]. “With loving-kindness for all, [we] cause harm to no one.” We must exercise compassion, otherwise, with people and things in this world, when we give rise to an ignorant thought, they will be harmed. This is a lack of wisdom, which is ignorance


We must know that, to be able to continue to live well, we must have sufficient resources. If we have sufficient resources, we should be grateful to all things in the world. Thus, we are grateful for the grace of sentient beings. Sentient beings painstakingly work to cultivate the fields. The crops they harvest provide us with food. When we have things to eat, we should make an effort to cherish this blessing; we must not waste it carelessly. The ancients said, “There must be favorable weather in the world in order to have a successful harvest.” And many people must contribute their labor to bring the food to market for everyone in this society to eat. So, we must always be grateful.

It is out of compassion that we cherish things. All the food we eat, all the objects we use are things we must cherish. We must not throw things out for no reason. That is wrong. We should have “loving-kindness for all, cause harm to no one.”

“Encountering happiness, they are not joyous.” If we ordinarily guard our minds so that we do not have strong desires, the objects of desire around us will not affect our minds. “Encountering suffering, they are not sad.” If we are the ones who encounters suffering, we should not become sorrowful, saying, “Right now, everyone is treating me [poorly], so I feel depressed, and things are very hard on me.” When we start to give rise to these afflictions, ignorance will cover our minds. The more we fail to see through things, the more suffering we will experience. When we are sorrowful, that really makes things hard on us. So, the Buddha taught us to be “firm in patience like the earth.” We must earnestly nurture our minds to have patience like the earth.

The earth can endure all the ways we exploit it. It can endure all the ways humans extract resources from it. As you can see, people are continuously damaging the mountains and rivers, but the earth is still patient. What else can it do? The earth is the home we all share, so it must be able to patiently endure what all living beings do to it. We want to live in this place; we want to destroy things in this place. However, the earth remains patient. If the earth fights back, as I have mentioned, that will be the end of this world. That the land is stable and can securely accommodate the way we live is something we must deeply cherish.

As spiritual practitioners, or sramanas, to engage in spiritual cultivation, we should follow this section of the Agama Sutra. We should relinquish limited love for great love. Our love should not be defiled by external desires. We should have “loving-kindness for all, cause harm to no one.” We should not hurt people, objects or matters but instead be patient like the earth, because this is [our] world. Then we will be called “sramanas.” If we are capable of achieving this, then we have attained the initial fruit, “the stage of entrance to the practice of the Path.” Then we must keep advancing, step by step.

“Though pleased with the situation,” though we have “eliminated delusions of views,” though we attained the initial fruit and cut off delusions of views, we still have “delusions of thinking.” Our power of thinking is still insufficient, so we must keep going forward. There is still much Buddha-Dharma, and we must delve deeply into it. Thus, we must always be mindful.

Episode 785 – Practicing with Faith and Sincerity

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>> With faith and understanding, practice and uphold faith, diligence, thought, Samadhi and wisdom. With sincere hearts, there will be no deceit, idleness, anger, resentment or hateful speech. By committing the Five Transgressions and breaking the precepts, we give ourselves a negative reputation. At the end of our lives we will have regrets; this is related to the. Five Transgressions based on speech.

>> “When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful, nor resentful in speech. I do not see these faults in you like I see in other workers.”       [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> “From today forward, you will be like my own son. The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man, ‘Son’.”    [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]  

>> Not deceitful, idle and so on: Internally, he does not have the fault of self-deception. Externally, he is never seen to be idle. In his speech, he is never angry or resentful.

>> I do not see these faults in you: From afar, this refers to heretical practitioners seeking truth with mistaken views. From nearby, this refers to [cultivating] the 37 Practices to Enlightenment and so on so that the Five Hindrances cannot be seen.

>> The Five Hindrances cannot be seen: There is no deceit, idleness, anger, hate or resentment.

>> Like I see in other workers: This refers to followers of heretical teachings who practice and cultivate blindly. With slight deviations, they harm their body and mind.

>> From today forward, you will be like my own son: This is a metaphor for the Five Powers and entering [the stage of] Foremost in the World. Having already drawn near noble beings, he had not yet seen the truth, and so he still could not be called a true son. Thus it says, like my own son.

>> The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man his son: This is a metaphor for the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Noble Path, which enable a spiritual practitioner to awaken to, enter and realize the Path

>> With single-minded and incessant practice of the Path, we can realize the truth. This is why it says “promptly”.

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“With faith and understanding, practice and uphold faith, diligence, thought, Samadhi and wisdom.
With sincere hearts, there will be no deceit, idleness, anger, resentment or hateful speech.
By committing the Five Transgressions and breaking the precepts, we give ourselves a negative reputation.
At the end of our lives we will have regrets; this is related to the. Five Transgressions based on speech.”

As Buddhist practitioners, practicing and upholding [the Dharma] with faith and understanding ought to be our duty. Since we are engaging in spiritual practice, how can we not have faith? It is because of faith that we have aspired and vowed to engage in spiritual practice. So, spiritual cultivation requires faith. Since we are firm in our faith, when we enter the Buddha’s door we must earnestly listen to the Dharma. As we listen, we must understand. If we listen but do not understand, we have not taken the Dharma to heart. If we take the Dharma to heart, we must faithfully accept and earnestly practice it. We must practice according to the Dharma we hear. Spiritual practice is never-ending. We should not engage in spiritual practice today and then take a spiritual break tomorrow. We must know to practice and uphold [the Dharma]. We must persevere in our spiritual cultivation. We must not practice one day then stop the next. We must earnestly persevere.

What do we persevere in? In faith, in having and cultivating faith. “Faith is the source of the Way, mother of merits. It nurtures all roots of goodness.” So, we must be firm in our faith, and we must also be diligent. With our every thought, we must be diligent; we must keep every thought [on the Path]. We must persevere in practicing precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, the Three Flawless Studies; this is the only way to develop our wisdom. This is how we engage in spiritual practice.

Engaging in spiritual practice not only takes faith and understanding, it also requires us to be sincere, not deceitful. We must never think of deceiving others. This is what we call sincerity. As we interact with people, we must maintain a sense of broad-mindedness. With our every thought we engage in spiritual practice. With our every thought, our minds must remain open and pure. When we encounter people, if hearing their “sounds” or seeing their “form” makes us unhappy, our minds will give rise to anger and hate. This is why, with our every thought, we have to continue to engage in spiritual practice. We must be understanding. When we hear something, we must not immediately give rise to anger

and react blindly to what we hear. We must find a way to exercise wisdom and apply proper thinking, Right Understanding, Right Views, Right Thinking and Right Mindfulness, to how we look at the world today. In our dealings with people and things, we should never just react to appearances, or our minds will give rise to anger, hate and resentment, and we will vocalize our negativity. If this is the case, it means our minds are not well-grounded.

So, our minds must be grounded and sincere. Aren’t faith, steadfastness, sincerity and integrity what we must always have in our minds as we interact with people and things? So, we must treat all people, matters and things with utmost sincerity. We must also uphold precepts. If our faith and sincerity are insufficient, if we lack faith, understanding and sincerity, naturally we will commit many transgressions. Then we will be filled with deceit, idleness, anger, resentment, hate, etc. In this way, all our thoughts of. Right Faith, Right Understanding and Right Views will be completely eradicated. This is breaking the precepts.

By breaking the precepts, we are committing the Five Transgressions. These five kinds of wrongdoings will result in five kinds of hindrances. In the future, due to karmic cause and effect, if there is any deceit, idleness, anger, hate and resentment in us, it will result in many future karmic retributions. This means we will develop a negative reputation and a bad name. So, if we want to avoid others’ criticism and to engender a sense of trust, we must abide by the precepts and follow the rules. In everything we do, there must not be the slightest hint of deceit. This is all part of our spiritual practice. If we make mistakes, “At the end of our lives we will have regrets.” So, spiritual practice requires sincerity; we need faith, understanding and a sincere heart. Otherwise, at the end we will still have regrets. This refers to our karma of body, speech and mind. Our karma of speech is created when we give rise to discursive thoughts, then act on them or give voice to them. This leads us to commit the Five Transgressions.

Indeed, when we engage in spiritual practice, we must be very mindful. If we forget that we are spiritual practitioners and want a tooth for a tooth, responding to harsh words with harsh words, then wouldn’t we be mutually disturbing each other’s bodies and minds? Wouldn’t this disrupt our surroundings? Wouldn’t this disrupt our entire society? So, as Buddhist practitioners, we must earnestly engage in spiritual practice. This requires sincerity. We must not destroy the sincerity of our aspiration to practice. Only then can we always remain broad-minded. This is what the Buddha taught us and what we must earnestly accept and uphold.

The previous sutra passage was saying that as his child had already begun to feel comfortable with working there, the elder became more emphatic [in his praise]. “You are doing so well! You are always so earnest in your work, so well-tempered, and you have good character”

“When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful, nor resentful in speech. I do not see these faults in you like I see in other workers.”

“When you work” means that as the son was working, the elder saw he was without deceit and very honest. He was not idle either. He had a good relationship with everyone. No one had ever seen him lose his temper or start conflicts with others. He had also never been heard voicing any hatred or resentment. He was never heard criticizing others or saying anything negative. “I do not see these faults in you.” He was not deceitful, idle or quick to anger, nor did he voice any hate or resentment. He did not have any of the faults which “[the elder saw] in other workers.” He was different from the others

“From today forward, you will be like my own son. The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man, ‘Son’.”   

“From today forward, you will be like my own son. The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man, ‘Son’.” His character and behavior were wonderful. He was different from the others. The elder said, “I really appreciate you, so I think of you like my son, and I am like your father.” From then on, he called this man “son.” This shows the son’s good affinities; this is why someone was willing to treat him like his own child.

Not deceitful, idle and so on: Internally, he does not have the fault of self-deception. Externally, he is never seen to be idle. In his speech, he is never angry or resentful.

He was “not deceitful or idle.” We discussed this yesterday. “Internally, he has no fault of self-deception.” If we do not listen to our conscience and deceive ourselves, naturally we will not be honest with other people. A person like this has poor character. However, the son did not have this problem. His mind was already open. “Internally, he has no fault of self-deception. Externally, he is never seen to be idle.” The son was never seen to be indolent. It was apparent that he was very diligent, and he had never been heard getting angry. Not only had people never seen him angry, they never heard him speak in anger. They had never seen him look resentful or speak resentfully, not at all. So, he was not deceitful. Thus naturally, he is free of the five kinds of hindrances.

Do you all remember these five kinds? His mind was not deceitful, so he did not face obstacles created by deceit. Moreover, he never appeared to be indolent. He was never idle or indolent. He did not speak words of hate or resentment. There are five kinds of hindrances in all. If we can correct them all, naturally we will be free of transgressions. If we are free of transgressions, we will be free of hindrances. There will be no hindrances in this or in future lifetimes.

I do not see these faults in you: From afar, this refers to heretical practitioners seeking truth with mistaken views. From nearby, this refers to [cultivating] the 37 Practices to Enlightenment and so on so that the Five Hindrances cannot be seen.

The next line is, “I do not see these faults in you.” He did not have any of these five.  When it says “from the outside” or “from afar,” it is referring to “heretical practitioners seeking truth with mistaken views.” Heretical practitioners do not follow the Right Path. They have a deviant understanding, deviant views and deviant beliefs, so what they are pursuing is improper. If they persist in their deluded beliefs, if they become obsessed, that will cause a big problem. So, “from afar” is an analogy for how, externally, “I do not see these faults in you.” He did not have any of these faults, which is very heartening. As spiritual practitioners, we should be steadfast and sincere. Then we will not walk a deviant path.

This is what is “nearby.” This refers to our place of spiritual practice, the place we learn the Buddha-Dharma, a place of Right Understanding and Right Views. If we are engaging in spiritual practice, we cannot stray from the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. They form our foundation. The three Fours, the two Fives, the Seven and the Eight are what we must keep on our minds. We must remain stable; with each step, we must steadily walk this path.

The Five Hindrances cannot be seen: There is no deceit, idleness, anger, hate or resentment.

“The Five Hindrances cannot be seen” is saying that as we walk, we can walk smoothly, for the road will be without obstacles. There are no hindrances on this road because our minds are upright and without deceit, idleness, anger, hate or resentful words, without these five things. This all comes from being mindful in having faith and understanding.

Like I see in other workers: This refers to followers of heretical teachings who practice and cultivate blindly. With slight deviations, they harm their body and mind.

“Like I see in other workers” refers to followers of heretical teachings who practice and cultivate blindly. With the slightest deviation, we may harm our body and mind. This is “like what [he] sees in other workers.” We must be earnest and straightforward as we engage in spiritual practice. We must not be like other people. Though they say they are also engaging in spiritual practice, they have gone astray. Like us, they are working hard. For some, working hard means they are very mindful and straightforward. But when some people work hard, they are doing it just for show. Really, they are mistaken in their behavior. It may seem as though they are working hard and that they are putting in so much effort, but they are doing the wrong things.

People who do the right things also work very hard as they practice giving, but what they are doing is right. From the bottom of our hearts, we must find a way to work on our minds. As we interact with people and matters, we must be broad-minded and yielding. No matter how people treat us, we must be humble and repentant. Our minds must be so open and spacious that we can accommodate everything. We must always be repentant when people say negative things to us or give us unpleasant expressions. We must have a broad mind to accommodate everyone. We must have formed causes and conditions with them in the past, formed negative affinities, so that now we hear negative words from them and see their unpleasant attitude. We must do more than be accommodating and broad-minded; we must also repent to that person. “Repentance is purifying. Repentance eliminates disasters.” This is what we must be mindful of. It is best that we earnestly and steadfastly engage in spiritual practice.

From today forward, you will be like my own son: This is a metaphor for the Five Powers and entering [the stage of] Foremost in the World. Having already drawn near noble beings, he had not yet seen the truth, and so he still could not be called a true son. Thus it says, like my own son.  

“From today forward, you will be like my own son.” From now on, the elder would treat him as his own son. “I am like your father.” The elder had already been able to approach his child, and having done so, he observed his behavior. He saw how honest his son was and how he was free of shortcomings. Indeed, he earnestly worked hard. So, the father began to feel at ease and gradually began to extend his sincere affections. He wanted to let his son know that his interactions with him were deeply sincere, and he was working with him out of sincerity as well. He did this so that his son might grow closer to him

From today forward, you will be like my own son: This is a metaphor for the Five Powers and entering [the stage of] Foremost in the World. Having already drawn near noble beings, he had not yet seen the truth, and so he still could not be called a true son. Thus it says, “like my own son. I am like your father, and you are like my son. I will treat you like my own son.” This is an analogy for the Five Powers. With the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, he had already entered [the stage of]. Foremost in the World. Where are the Five Spiritual Roots and the Five Powers categorized? Do you know? They are within the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. The three Fours, the two Fives, the Seven and the Eight. This is an analogy for having taken the Path to heart. In the world, this is the first stage of our spiritual practice.

Furthermore, whether we are practicing the. Small, Middle or Great Vehicles, we must not deviate from the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. As spiritual practitioners, if we stray from the 37 Practices to Enlightenment, we are not actually engaging in spiritual practice. We would not have sincerity, integrity, faith and steadfastness in our thoughts and deeds. Sincerity, integrity, faith and steadfastness, loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity, are all the paths we need to walk. So, we must practice the Five Spiritual Roots and the Five Powers, as well as the Fourfold Mindfulness, the Four Right Efforts, the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power, the Seven Factors of Bodhi and the Eightfold Noble Path, along with the first teachings, the Four Noble Truths and others. When we have thoroughly understood these principles, we will be Foremost in the World; we will have drawn near the state of noble beings. Yet, we still “have not yet seen the truth.” We have not become “true Buddha-children.”

This is an analogy for how, though we are engaging in spiritual practice, when it comes to our nature of True Suchness, we are still unable to realize it. Right now, we are just close to it. We must continuously advance on the path to the state of noble beings. The Four Noble Truths, the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence and the 37 Practices of Enlightenment are the path we must diligently advance on to draw near the state of noble beings. This is the path we are walking, but we have not yet seen the absolute truth. We have not yet connected with our nature of True Suchness, so we are still not His true children. We still have not yet acknowledged each other,

not yet been acknowledged as His true children, because the father makes use of skillful means; as we spoke about in previous passages, to avoid scaring his son, he approached him gradually and gradually claimed him as a godson. If this could continue on in the same way, the two could truly draw closer. That is the only way for father and son to acknowledge each other.

The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man his son: This is a metaphor for the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Noble Path, which enable a spiritual practitioner to awaken to, enter and realize the Path

“The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man, ‘Son’.” This is an analogy for the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Noble Path, which enable spiritual practitioners to awaken to, enter and realize the Path.

In addition to the Four Right Efforts, the Four Bases of Mind Fulfilling Power, the Fourfold Mindfulness, the Five Spiritual Roots and the Five Powers, there are the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Noble Path. They help us to gradually awaken to, enter and realize the Path. If we can apply them, our practice will gradually become more complete.

With single-minded and incessant practice of the Path, we can realize the truth. This is why it says “promptly”.

This is “single-minded and incessant practice of the Path.” If we earnestly engage in spiritual practice, naturally we can realize and verify our nature of True Suchness.

This is doing things “promptly,” at this time. We start with the Fourfold Mindfulness, then exercise the Five Spiritual Roots and the Five Powers until we reach the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Noble Path. This brings us closer and closer. We must continuously do this without pause. “Incessant” means to continue without interruption. This is the only way to see true principles. So, as we engage in spiritual practice, we must always be mindful.

Episode 784 – The Five Spiritual Roots and the Five Powers Reverently Upholding Faith and Understanding

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>> Fathers in this world pass the family business down to their sons. The Tathagata, who transcends the world, passes on His mission to His Dharma-children. As there are infinite sentient beings, there are infinite teachings to suit their capacities. He first taught the Three Vehicle Dharma, then later brought all back to the one true path.

>> “I am like your father, so you need not worry anymore. Why do I say this? I am well along in years, while you are young and strong.”      [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> ‘When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful nor resentful in speech I do not see these faults in you like I see in other workers From today forward, you will be like my own son’. The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man his son.     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful, nor resentful in speech: With the power of faith, one is not deceitful with the power of diligence, one is not idle. With the power of thought, one is not angry. With the power of Samadhi, one is not hateful with the power of wisdom, one is not resentful.

>> The Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers: 1: The root and power of faith. 2: The root and power of diligence. 3: The root and power of thought. 4: The root and power of Samadhi. 5: The root and power of wisdom.

>> Internally, he has no fault of self-deception. Externally, he is never seen to be idle. In his speech, he is never angry or resentful.

>> Not deceitful, idle and so on: Internally, he has no fault of self-deception. Externally, he is never seen to be idle. In his speech, he is never angry or resentful.

>> The Five Hindrances: Deceit hinders faith. Idleness hinders diligence. Anger hinders thought. Hate hinders Samadhi. Resentment hinders wisdom.

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“Fathers in this world pass the family business down to their sons.
The Tathagata, who transcends the world, passes on His mission to His Dharma-children.
As there are infinite sentient beings, there are infinite teachings to suit their capacities.
He first taught the Three Vehicle Dharma, then later brought all back to the one true path.”

We can all understand how fathers in this world, regarding their family and their business, share the same expectation. They hope that, from one generation to the next their family lineage and their business will be passed down continuously. This is common practice in the world. It is the same for us with the Buddha-Dharma. We must place great importance on the transmission of the Dharma-lineage. Our Dharma-lineage needs to be passed on. So, “The World-Transcending Tathagata passes on His mission to His Dharma-children.” When a father in this world passes on the family business, it is his son who will take over. The same principle applies here; worldly practices and world-transcending teachings follow the same principle. The only difference is that humans are born out of the lustful union

of their parents, while world-transcending teachings are the pure and undefiled Dharma. This Dharma comes from forming aspirations.

Thus we need to form aspirations. I truly hope that we can all be sincere in transmitting the world-transcending mission of the Tathagata; it does not matter if we are lay or monastic. In particular, the Sangha is essential to the transmission of the Buddha-Dharma. This is why, after becoming enlightened, the Buddha came to Deer Park. There, the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha, the Three Treasures, became complete. From then on, the Buddha started widely transforming sentient beings, teaching the Dharma on both banks of the Ganges.

Actually, with India being so large, could the Buddha really visit the entire country? How wide of an area could He possibly cover in a little over 40 years? How many people were actually able to hear these teachings? During the Buddha’s lifetime, the population was not concentrated in cities. Actually, back then it was not that large at all. In particular, during that era, during the Buddha’s lifetime, there were 96 types of religious teachings. What could He do to reach more people? How would He convince people from more than 90 different kinds of teachings? This would be quite difficult indeed. How would He transmit the Buddha-Dharma to both lay people and monastics so everyone could take the Dharma deeply to heart?

Now, the human population is very large, so in this era, spreading the Buddha-Dharma widely depends on all of us promptly transmitting it. We are now in the evil world of Five Turbidities, so the need to purify people’s minds is even more urgent than during the Buddha’s lifetime. Therefore, being born in this era, we should form great aspirations and make great vows. We need to truly and thoroughly understand this Dharma-lineage and put in effort to grasp the spirit and principles of this Dharma-lineage

and build up this school of Buddhism. This school was established so that we can go among people and invite everyone to [join us] in practicing according to the teachings. We go among people to transform them; whether we are lay practitioners or monastics, we all share this same mission. But it is the mission of monastics to help the Buddha-Dharma flourish and spread; this is our responsibility. We must teach lay practitioners so that they can mindfully accept [the teachings]. People from different walks of life have different capacities [for accepting the Dharma]. They take the living, applicable teachings that they can accept and bring them into their lives. Understanding the Dharma benefits everyone; it lets people transform their minds, turns evil into goodness and so on. This is what the Buddha-Dharma can do.

So, “As there are infinite sentient beings, there are infinite teachings to suit their capacities.” These teachings must be developed and expressed in society, among people, among all these sentient beings. Besides the world-transcending Dharma, we also need to spread worldly Dharma. To make use of the worldly Dharma, we must see much, hear much, understand much and do much. Only then can we utilize the worldly Dharma to teach according to capacities. So, “As there are infinite sentient beings, there are infinite teachings to suit their capacities.” We must use all kinds of methods to spread the Dharma.

During the Buddha’s lifetime, He “first taught the Three Vehicle Dharma, then later brought all back to the one true path.” He initially used means of transforming people, of bringing them in. He taught them to do this first, to have an understanding of the law of karma and how the suffering of the world is a result of the workings of the law of karma. We must first understand this and thoroughly accept this Dharma. We must earnestly seek to understand the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. It is only when we have completely taken these teachings to heart that we are able to go further and understand how to put them into practice and eliminate our afflictions, practice the Right Path and teach the Right Dharma. Then, our bodies will manifest all kinds of dignified demeanors. Moreover, as we interact with people and matters, we will not make any mistakes; we can be very tactful and well-rounded. Being tactful and well-rounded is called being harmonious; this is also a way of transforming others.

To speak in a way we could understand, the Buddha used the Dharma of the Three Vehicles as He patiently taught us and guided us. If He had taught directly, we would not have understood. So He used people, matters and objects as analogies for the purpose of teaching. He repeated [these teaching] again and again; something is said once in the prose and is then repeated again in the verse. One teaching is repeated again and again, to help the Dharma penetrate everyone’s mind and help us remember. Hearing a lot of Dharma is of no use if we cannot remember it; we would get nothing from it. This is the same as not hearing the Dharma. Therefore, we must be very mindful; we must listen patiently to the Dharma, mindfully accept it and put it into practice.

For a long time, we have been teaching the Chapter on Faith and Understanding, but the story is not yet over. The poor son left and had been wandering about; it was not easy for the elder to bring him back. Once he was back, he gave him work to do. To ease his mind, he worked together with him, and others around worked with him as well. Already, he had drawn close enough that he could speak his heart, for now his son trusted him.

We already spoke about this previous passage; “I am like your father, so you need not worry anymore.” He said, “Do not wander outside anymore; just settle down here. In this place, I am like your father, so you need not worry. You can work here, and I will teach you, so you can be at ease living here. You have nothing to worry about. Why do I say this? I am well along in years, while you are young and strong.”

This is the wisdom of the elder [At this stage] of mutual recognition, in this kind of environment he could say this. He still refrained from directly saying to him, “You are my son, and I am your father.” He only said “I am like your father; you are like my son. Because I am older, you can look upon me as your father. You are younger, and I wish to pass my skills down to you.” This is the method he used. So, transforming sentient beings is really not all that easy. He put much thought into how to bring his child home.

The following passage begins like this, “When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful nor resentful in speech I do not see these faults in you like I see in other workers From today forward, you will be like my own son. The elder then promptly gave him a name, calling this man his son.”

This part of the passage begins with. “When you work,” He was older, like a father, so he could speak to his child like this, saying, “I am often with you, and you are hard-working. I never see you engage in conflict with others. You are earnest and do not have any bad habits. You are neither deceitful nor indolent. You are very earnest in your efforts, always honest and sincere. You are also even-tempered and do not get upset over little things. You have a good temper; no matter how others treat you, you never are hateful and never speak any words of resentment. You are truly a person of good character.” So it was in this way that the father began praising and complimenting him.

When you work, you are not deceitful, idle, angry, hateful, nor resentful in speech: With the power of faith, one is not deceitful with the power of diligence, one is not idle. With the power of thought, one is not angry. With the power of Samadhi, one is not hateful with the power of wisdom, one is not resentful.

What this means is that he had “the power of faith.” The power of faith had already arisen. The first thing the elder praised him for was his root of faith. He already had the power of the root of faith, so he was not deceitful

Having faith, he is not deceitful. Not only is he trusted by others, he also trusts others. Since he is without deceit and does not deceive others, people trust him. So, “[faith and lack of] deceit,” is an antidote for those who are untrustworthy, for those who cannot be trusted. If people have no faith in us, if we are not trustworthy, then we have poor character.

I often tell everyone that we should treat people with sincerity, integrity, faith and steadfastness. This is an important foundation for our spiritual practice. So, this is being without “deceit.” We furthermore need the power of diligence. Not only should we not deceive others, if we already have the power of faith, we need the power of diligence at the same time, so that we are never indolent. “Not being idle” means that we are not indolent. Since we have the power of faith, we will be able to be diligent. Being diligent means that we are not indolent.

Then, “with the power of thought,” if we are without indolence, all of our thoughts will be in line with the Path. The Dharma we hear is a road. When we take the Dharma to heart, we are quickly able to pave our road. When we are diligent, our thoughts are always diligent. This is the power of thought. With the power of thought, we never get angry. Our thoughts of faith are continuous. In dealing with people, matters and things, regardless of how others treat us, we are already very diligent; we have accepted the Buddha-Dharma so we already understand that we must be open-minded, with pure thoughts. When we experience interpersonal conflicts, we heighten our vigilance so we are not influenced by the environment nor the tone of voice or expressions of others. We absolutely do not allow these to influence us, so we do not become angry.

“With the power of Samadhi, one is not hateful.” If we do not allow our minds to be influenced by the outside world, that means that we have the power of Samadhi. Having decided to engage in spiritual practice, with our every thought we must never forget that we are spiritual practitioners. We must not take issue with others. Then, our minds must be in Samadhi, so that we will not be disrupted by other people.

Thus we must be very mindful. We must be diligent and never indolent, and we must never lose our temper or harbor hatred or resentment inside of us. If we can do this, if we have the power of faith, power of diligence, power of thought and power of Samadhi, then naturally. “With the power of wisdom, one is not resentful.” We already have the power of wisdom, so what is there to be resentful of? If, in our interpersonal relationships, there is mutual resentment like this, it means that our spiritual practice is lacking. If we created negative affinities in the past, then we must put an end to them right now and create no further negative affinities through our actions and thoughts. Thus, we will be without resentment.

If we want to be without deceit, idleness, anger, hate or resentment, then in our spiritual practice we must have the powers of faith, diligence, thought, Samadhi and wisdom. We must earnestly cultivate the Five Spiritual Roots and the Five Powers, because only by doing so can we be without deceit and idleness.

The Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers: 1: The root and power of faith. 2: The root and power of diligence. 3: The root and power of thought. 4: The root and power of Samadhi. 5: The root and power of wisdom.

“Internally, he has no fault of self-deception.” I will explain this for you again. We must be without deceit or idleness. We must be without deceit, for if we are not honest in our speech, people will doubt our character. We should not be deceitful; even in trivial matters, we need to be truthful and without deceit

Not deceitful, idle and so on: Internally, he has no fault of self-deception. Externally, he is never seen to be idle. In his speech, he is never angry or resentful.

So, inside the mind, “Internally, he has no fault of self-deception.” We know clearly that something is a certain way, but in covering up the truth, we are first deceiving ourselves; we are fooling ourselves. Then, when we say it out loud, we are deceiving others. This is called the “fault of self-deception.” You clearly know the truth, but what you are saying is something different. This is not right.

This is how we normally speak, how we converse. Of course, we also must keep things in perspective. Sometimes, in order for things to be harmonious, we refrain from disclosing some facts. This is not deception; it is preventing conflicts. Some people feel that for the sake of honesty, they must disclose who said what about whom. To demonstrate how upfront they are, they say, “People are talking about you; I won’t hide it. When I hear something, I tell you right away who says what about you.” Is this right? Isn’t it? Isn’t this “not being deceitful”? Isn’t this right? No, it absolutely is not. These conflicts between people in the world are the result of gossip,

people talking about others [behind their backs]. Of course people have faults, but to help others address their faults, we need methods that are based on love. If someone is like that, we need to figure out how to help him. What is the cause of this incident? If someone has caused this incident, how can we deal with it? If someone is talking about something, we need to focus on the matter itself and figure out how to resolve it harmoniously. If we just hear something that we only half understand and begin to spread rumors about it, that is certainly not the right thing to do. It may just be a small thing, but once it is spread about, there will never be a day of peace. This is truly frightening. When people talk, they speak without thinking,

so, in our minds we must not “have the fault of self-deception,” and we must remember, “Externally, [we should] never be seen to be idle. In speech, we [must] never be angry or resentful.” If these behaviors appear in our actions, then we really need to work hard on our minds. We must not speak without thinking first and not deceive others. We should work hard on our actions; we must never speak words of anger or start yelling at people for no reason. We should not be resentful, hateful or filled with complaints, for this reveals resentment and hatred within. We cannot allow any of that.

Now, because he was older in years, he was an elder after all. He drew near to his child and was able to observe him; he saw that he had none of these faults but was already a person of good character, for he had taken the Dharma to heart.

The Five Hindrances: Deceit hinders faith. Idleness hinders diligence. Anger hinders thought. Hate hinders Samadhi. Resentment hinders wisdom.

So, when speaking of deceit, if we have deceit, idleness or any of these five things, we will bring down upon ourselves the Five Transgressions or the Five Hindrances. When it comes to these five kinds of obstacles, if we are careless and commit the acts mentioned before, the things like deceit, idleness, anger, hate, or resentment, if these things are in our minds and then manifest in our actions, they will create karma that will hinder us. Then, we will face many hindrances in the future.

Every morning, don’t we always “vow to eliminate the Three Obstructions and all afflictions”? There are not only Three Obstructions, there are also the Five Hindrances. Where do the Five Hindrances come from? They come from deceit, idleness, anger, enmity and resentment. These five create karma we will carry with us and result in our constantly encountering hindrances. So we must be very mindful [We need] faith; “Faith is the source of the Way, the mother of merits.” We must believe in the teachings of the Buddha that have been passed down to the present and put our hearts into accepting them. Therefore, we must always be mindful.

Episode 783 – Settling the Mind in the 37 Practices

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>> To help us settle our minds firmly, [we rely on] the truths of the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. Through this path we can cultivate our nature and thus be at ease, as it suits our capacities. When we settle our minds on this path, we can realize the truth of cessation.

>> The 37 Practices of Enlightenment: The Fourfold Mindfulness, the Four Right Efforts, the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power, the Five Spiritual Roots, the Five Powers, the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Right Path.

>> “There are also the old messengers who will help you when you need it. You may put your mind at ease.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> “I am like your father, so you need not worry anymore. Why do I say this? I am well along in years, while you are young and strong.”      [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> For I am like your father: You can rely on me as if you were my own son. Likewise, with the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, one attains foremost worldly teaching.

>> Through the foremost worldly teaching, the practice of the Four Noble Truths, the 12 Links of Cyclic Existence, the 37 Practices to Enlightenment and so on, we will gradually be able to see the Dharma-nature. Though we have not yet attained the noble path, within the mundane world, we will be at the stage of foremost in the world.

>> So you need not worry anymore: If we attain the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, we will never again retreat or fall.

>> Why do I say this?: This describes the passing on of the Dharma-lineage as similar to the relationship of father to son.

>> The Buddha’s path in life was near the end and. He already had [the virtues of] wisdom and ending. Thus, it says, I am well along in years. But [the disciples] were at the beginning of their path and did not yet have [the virtues of] wisdom and ending. Thus it says, You are young and strong.

>> The [the virtues of] wisdom and ending: This is referring to the virtue of wisdom and the virtue of ending. Understanding truth is the virtue of wisdom; the eradication of afflictions is the virtue of ending. This is Bodhi.

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“To help us settle our minds firmly,
[we rely on] the truths of the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. Through this path we can cultivate our nature
and thus be at ease, as it suits our capacities.
When we settle our minds on this path,
we can realize the truth of cessation.”

Recently I have constantly been sharing with everyone that the most fundamental part of spiritual practice is knowing how to settle our minds. This is a very fundamental way of learning the Path. First, we must be able to settle our minds. If our minds are not at peace, we will not be at peace in our practice. Learning and practicing the Buddha-Dharma is like paving a road. How can we pave the road so that it is smooth and solid? We must use our minds to pave this road. What method should we use to pave this road?

The truths of the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. These are the principles we need. Recently, I have constantly reminded you of the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. Aside from the Four Truths and the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence, there are the Fourfold Mindfulness, the Four Right Efforts, the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power, the Five Spiritual Roots, the Five Powers, the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Noble Path. Together, these are called the 37 Practices to Enlightenment.

The 37 Practices of Enlightenment: The Fourfold Mindfulness, the Four Right Efforts, the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power, the Five Spiritual Roots, the Five Powers, the Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Right Path.

These are very important [practices] for our spiritual cultivation. We need to settle our minds so they peacefully abide in the Four Noble Truths and the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence. We must really put in effort with the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. If we can do this, these teachings will always be in our minds. “Through this path we can cultivate our nature.” This path, for one who wants to engage in spiritual practice, is something that absolutely must be cultivated. Through this path, we can use the outside world to continually cultivate our inner nature. Only then can we return to our nature of True Suchness. “Through this path we can cultivate our nature.” We can cultivate our minds, refine our character.

We have so many methods for spiritual practice “[We will] be at ease, as it suits our capacities.” By walking this road, we can be at ease. It really suits our capacities, so we can practice by following this path. What methods are suitable for our capacities? With great wisdom, the Buddha has already been teaching according to capacities and has devised this Dharma for us to follow. This is the path for us to practice. This helps us feel steady and at ease. When we walk this path, we do not need to worry. Thus, “We will be at ease.” As this path perfectly suits our capabilities, it is a practice we can cultivate without giving us cause for worry.

“When we settle our minds on this path,” we should feel at ease. When we practice, our minds should be settled. As we walk this path, we must not be afraid or let our minds become unsettled. Before us is the Tathagata’s home, which we have lost sight of for a long time. The Buddha’s home has always been there; we just need to continue walking this path. Bodhisattvas come from the Buddha’s home. Going home is returning to our nature of True Suchness. Walking the Bodhisattva-path comes from a sense deep within our hearts of being willing to give and walk the Bodhi-path through life. So, we must settle our minds. “When we settle our minds on this path,” we are using the 37 Practices to Enlightenment to pave the way. When we take this great, direct Bodhi-path to go among the people, our minds must be settled.

Then, “We can realize the truth of cessation.” We have so many afflictions. As long as we follow this path and practice according to this method, then naturally our afflictions will be eliminated one by one. This goes beyond ignorance and afflictions; this includes dust-like delusions as well. We can eliminate them one by one. With every bit of affliction we eliminate, we gain a bit of wisdom; then the road before us will be ever clearer and brighter. Thus we must put effort into being mindful. In our spiritual practice, we must settle our minds. Then our thoughts as we walk this path will absolutely be peaceful and at ease.

The previous sutra passage states, “There are also the old messengers who will help you when you need it. You may put your mind at ease.”

We must all be very mindful. We are not the only ones doing this work. See, there are people working alongside us. This work is not only being done by one person. There are many people who can accompany us. We must earnestly settle our minds and focus on our work. We have everything we need. We have all the tools and utensils we must use, as well as ample rice, grains, oil, sugar and vinegar. This allows us to have balanced nutrition.

It is the same with the Dharma. The Buddha has given us so many teachings. We have all these tools; we just need to make use of this Dharma, of these tools, to be able to give of ourselves. In this way, as long as we are mindful and work hard to give to others, we will have an endless source of nourishment to sustain us. This represents our wisdom and potential. All this happens very naturally. As long as we understand the Dharma, “By grasping one truth, we understand all truths.” We will thoroughly understand all principles. This spiritual nourishment for our wisdom-life nurtures not only us but everyone in the world. This is the Dharma in this sutra passage. We must be mindful of it, not treat it as a story that we hear and forget. There is meaning behind every word.

The following sutra passage says, “I am like your father, so you need not worry anymore. Why do I say this? I am well along in years, while you are young and strong.”

As the father drew closer to his son, he taught his son how to do his work and then provided the proper tools as well as nourishment for him. This way of approaching him brought them even closer. The elder said, “I am like your father,” meaning that they were like father and son. “I am like your father, and you are like my son.” Why? “Because I am quite old, while you are still young; I am old enough to be your father.” This is how people in this world convey a sense of closeness.

The Buddha also did the same. “I am like your father, You can rely on me as if you were my own son.” This is the relationship between the Buddha and sentient beings. The Buddha cares for sentient beings the same way He cared for [His son,] Rahula. As the “kind father of the four kinds of beings,” He treats all sentient beings like His son. So, they were like His own son, and He treated them the way people in this world treated their [sons]. To continue their lineage, people insist on having a son. If they give birth to a daughter instead, they do not feel at ease because they do not have a son who can carry on the family lineage. These are the attachments and distorted views of people in this world.

The Buddha-Dharma is also passed on through a lineage. Everyone is equal in the Dharma-lineage; all are viewed with impartial compassion. Whether we are old or young, male or female, we can likewise pass on the Dharma-lineage, because everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature.

For I am like your father: You can rely on me as if you were my own son. Likewise, with the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, one attains foremost worldly teaching.

“With the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, one attains the [stage] of Foremost in the World”  As for the “Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers,” the Five Spiritual Roots bring maturity and growth. This applies no matter what is being grown; a big tree has big roots, and a small tree has small roots. Seeds must sprout and grow roots before they can blossom and bear fruit. Then year after year more fruits are produced; thus, one gives rise to infinity. When the roots are sturdy and healthy, they can extend widely and plant themselves deeply. A large tree can blossom and bear fruit every year. This is like the Five Spiritual Roots. “Power” means the tree’s roots must be sturdy, and the branches must extend widely; therefore we must have the Five Powers. After the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, there is the Eightfold Noble Path and also the Seven Factors of Enlightenment. Before these there were the Four Right Efforts, the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power and the Fourfold Mindfulness. All of them come together to produce the method for spiritual practice that is. Foremost in the World. These are our foundation,

so [roots] bring maturity and growth. When our minds can accept this Dharma, “By grasping one truth, we understand all truths”; if we can take the Dharma to heart, we can eliminate many afflictions and develop our wisdom. This is what is meant by “as my own son.” From a father, the blood lineage is passed on; that is how a family lineage is carried on. As for the Dharma, we have a Dharma-lineage, so we can pass on this Dharma for countless generations to come. This is the Dharma. The 37 Practices to Enlightenment constitute the first stage in spiritual practice, like a father starting to pass on his lineage.

Through the foremost worldly teaching, the practice of the Four Noble Truths, the 12 Links of Cyclic Existence, the 37 Practices to Enlightenment and so on, we will gradually be able to see the Dharma-nature. Though we have not yet attained the noble path, within the mundane world, we will be at the stage of foremost in the world.

The meaning of “Foremost in the World” is that we must practice the Four Noble Truths,v the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence, and the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. If we can do so completely and thoroughly understand all these, then naturally, “We will gradually be able to see the Dharma-nature. Though we have not yet attained the noble path, within the mundane world we will be at the stage of Foremost in the World.” When we understand all this Dharma, we will gradually see the Dharma-nature and be on the road to return to the Tathagata’s home, to our nature of True Suchness.

Though we are now just beginning to learn, just now starting to understand, though we have not yet attained the noble path, we already understand this Dharma. We are like the son, peering in from outside the door but not daring to enter. We have not entered, but we already know that inside there is a lot of work we can do so we can settle our minds and not worry about sustaining our living. Likewise, when we engage in spiritual practice, when we find the right path and cultivate it, our wisdom-life will develop. “Though we have not yet attained the noble path, within the mundane world we will be at the stage of Foremost in the World.” We have already attained the Dharma the Buddha taught. This Dharma is the Foremost in the World.

Think about how large the world population is. How many are able to hear the Dharma and accept the Buddha’s teachings? So at this time, we need to make great vows. We must widely spread the Buddha-Dharma and transform sentient beings so everyone has a chance to enter the Dharma-door. When people can enter through this main gate, they can accept the Dharma to nourish their wisdom-life. If they can do this, that is the “[stage] of Foremost in the World.”

Next it says, “So you need not worry anymore.” There is no need to worry or be afraid. Everyone should feel at ease. When it comes to doing the right thing, we should just do it here. There is no need to go elsewhere. In this place, we can work and practice together. In this place, we are encouraged and comforted.

So you need not worry anymore: If we attain the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, we will never again retreat or fall.

“If we attain the Five Roots [and Powers], we will never again retreat or fall.” There are the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers. With the 37 Practices to Enlightenment, how do we become at ease and firm in our practice? With the spiritual roots and powers. We must have spiritual roots and powers. If our roots and powers are not strong, our minds will [waver]. “Contemplate the mind as impermanent.” Our thoughts “arise, abide, change and cease,” so we may quickly retreat from our spiritual aspirations. Thus, we must give rise to the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers before we attain the Seven Factors of Bodhi and the Eightfold Noble Path. This is the only way to walk the Right Path until the end. So, the Five Spiritual Roots and Powers are very important. With these, “We will never again retreat or fall.”

“Why do I say this?” This is “the passing on of the Dharma-lineage.” The Dharma is passed on through this lineage. If we do not accept this Dharma-lineage, we will be unable to develop our wisdom-life. If we do not develop our wisdom-life, how can we pass down the Dharma? Thus, we must have ample nourishment for our wisdom-life. That nourishment comes from taking in the Dharma. When we have ample Dharma, we will be able to share it with others. This is the ability we have in life, the pure potential of our wisdom-life. We must see the importance of the Dharma.

Why do I say this?: This describes the passing on of the Dharma-lineage as similar to the relationship of father to son.

This is explained here by talking about “the relationship of father to son”. When it comes to the Dharma, we take it in from the outside and internalize it so it becomes ours. Once it is our own, we use it to help our wisdom-life grow. When we spread this Dharma throughout the world, that is passing on the Dharma; this is like a father passing on [his lineage] to his son.

Next, we discuss, “I am well along in years, You are young and strong”

The Buddha’s path in life was near the end and. He already had [the virtues of] wisdom and ending. Thus, it says, “I am well along in years.” But [the disciples] were at the beginning of their path and did not yet have [the virtues of] wisdom and ending. Thus it says, “You are young and strong.”

“I am already advanced in age. You are still young.” This is like when. “The Buddha’s path in life was near the end.” The Buddha manifested in this world and lived a life like that of other people, likewise going through birth, aging, illness and death. He had worked for His mission His whole life and was now already in His old age; He was getting close to the end of His life. Thus, the Buddha’s time in this world and. His time for passing on the path was near its end. So, “The Buddha’s path in life was near the end.”

“He already had [the virtues of] wisdom and ending.” He had gone among people and benefited them. By interacting with people, He had eliminated many afflictions until. He was free of afflictions. After His enlightenment, He had no afflictions, so He had the virtues of wisdom and ending.

The [the virtues of] wisdom and ending: This is referring to the virtue of wisdom and the virtue of ending. Understanding truth is the virtue of wisdom; the eradication of afflictions is the virtue of ending. This is Bodhi.

“Wisdom and ending” means one has eliminated afflictions so one’s virtues manifest. These are the virtues of wisdom and ending. Understanding true principles is the virtue of wisdom. Eliminating afflictions is the virtue of ending. The virtue of wisdom and virtue of ending are called “wisdom and ending” in short. We must be very mindful.

So, the Buddha told us, “I am well along in years, while you are young and strong.” This means He was advanced in age, and His time was nearing an end. “I am already quite old and you are at the beginning of your path. Now, all of you have accepted the Buddha-Dharma in this world. This is the beginning because you are all still young and strong.” This means when we encounter the Buddha-Dharma and the true principles, [we can gain] the virtue of wisdom. We must eliminate afflictions; this takes mastery. The Buddha had already achieved all of this.

Next, it it saying that with the Four Noble Truths, the Twelve Links, and the 37 Practices to Enlightenment, we can walk steadily. After that, we must accept the Six Paramitas. Now we are all just beginning to walk the Bodhisattva-path, starting to walk the great, direct path. So, “We do not yet have wisdom and ending.” As we are just starting to go among people, we will find out whether we have truly eliminated our afflictions.

Practitioners of the Small Vehicle think they have eliminated all their afflictions. “I seek to awaken myself.” But have they actually done that? We must go among people and practice until we will not be tainted by them. Only then has the virtue of wisdom truly manifested. We are all still young and are just starting to walk the true path. We are just beginning to walk the true path of the True Dharma of the One Vehicle. Because we have not yet achieved the virtues of wisdom and ending, we have not fully eliminated our afflictions and have not completed the necessary practices. Because we are young, we should learn mindfully.

Dear Bodhisattvas, “to help us settle our minds firmly,” we need to earnestly make use of the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. It is like we are paving a road; how do we pave it? When we engage in spiritual practice, we must always be mindful.

Episode 782 – Practicing the 37 Practices to Enlightenment

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>> At the spiritual training ground of Deer Park, the Buddha thrice turned the Dharma-wheel of the Four Noble Truths. He taught all spiritual practitioners to diligently practice the three Fours and two Fives, the teachings praised by the sages. To gain liberation, to transcend life and death and become a practitioner free and unbound, one must diligently cultivate these.

>> “Do not go elsewhere. I will increase your wages, and you will no longer need to worry about utensils, rice and grains, salt, vinegar and the like, all the things you need.”    [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> “There are also the old messengers who will help you when you need it. You may put your mind at ease.”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> There are also the old messengers: These were those secretly sent after him to practice and attain realizations together.

>> [They] will help you when you need it: While practicing right practices to enlightenment, if something is not clear we must not give rise to doubts and troubles, but instead ask our senior fellow practitioners. They will instruct us step by step; thus, if we have a question we should ask.

>> You may put your mind at ease: This refers to the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers. When we attain the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, our mind is at ease and our intention is firm.

>> Root refers to giving rise to something. These roots give rise to all virtuous Dharma. >> When the Five Spiritual Roots are firm, the strengths that arise are called the Five Powers.

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“At the spiritual training ground of Deer Park, the Buddha thrice turned the Dharma-wheel of the Four Noble Truths.
He taught all spiritual practitioners to diligently practice the three Fours and two Fives,
the teachings praised by the sages. To gain liberation, to transcend life and death
and become a practitioner free and unbound, one must diligently cultivate these.”

Everyone should realize that recently we have been continuously reviewing methods for engaging in spiritual cultivation. This part of the Lotus Sutra thoroughly describes how we should have “faith” and “understanding.” We must have deep faith in the Buddha-Dharma and understand the process of how the Buddha gave teachings. When we listen to and take the Dharma to heart, our understanding must manifest in our actions. Listening to teachings goes beyond just hearing. If that is all we do, they will just leak away. If after we hear them, we do not understand them, the reason we do not understand is that we have not yet put them into practice. Thus, I always emphasize that we must have faith. We must believe the Buddha was very mindful in giving these teachings. After the Buddha’s enlightenment, how was He to approach sentient beings? With sentient beings’ [limited] capabilities to accept the Dharma, He had to put in a lot of effort.

So, for more than 40 years He expounded the Dharma. In the moment of the Buddha’s enlightenment, He became one with the universe. His ocean of enlightened wisdom is so vast; how much of it can we actually comprehend? The Buddha had to teach with [skillful] means. When He came to Deer Park, where He taught for the first time, that became a place of spiritual practice. He expounded the principles there to transform the five bhiksus, so this was where the Sangha came into being. The Three Treasures, Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, were completed at Deer Park. There was a Buddha to teach the Dharma and a Sangha to listen to the Dharma, so the Three Treasures were complete. What was the Dharma that the Buddha taught? “The Dharma-wheel of the Four Noble Truths.” He had to teach the Four Noble Truths three times for the five of them to understand. Indeed, life is suffering, and suffering arises from causation, from the accumulation of all kinds of things in the world that bring about suffering. Thus, when we listen to and accept the Buddha’s teachings, we hear, “He taught all spiritual practitioners to diligently practice the three Fours and two Fives.”

We can all recite the three Fours. First? The Fourfold Mindfulness. Second? The Four Right Efforts. Third? The Four Bases of Fulfilling Power. Everyone must always remember these teachings. This is the Dharma the Buddha came to teach. “He taught all spiritual practitioners to diligently practice the three Fours and two Fives.” What are the “two Fives”? The Five Spiritual Roots and the Five Powers. Right! We must be mindful. This is the foundation of the Buddha-Dharma, which was praised by the sages.

All Buddhas know that for the Dharma to remain in this world, They cannot teach it from the perspective of an enlightened one, but must explain it according to the capacities of sentient beings. This is why They must turn the Dharma-wheel of the Four Noble Truths. With the Four Noble Truths, They begin to turn the wheel in our minds. Then they can start to teach the concept of karmic conditions and then help us understand that it all begins with having this body. We must first “contemplate the body as impure” so we will not have desires and boundless greed. This is the sequence of the Buddha’s teachings.

The 37 Practices to Enlightenment are the foundation for Buddha’s teachings. In addition to the “three Fours and two Fives,” there are “the Seven and the Eight.” Together, they form the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. These were the teachings that the Buddha gave and that all the sages praised. This is a true education because it can help us eliminate afflictions and transcend life and death. We are all [trapped] in cyclic existence, facing afflictions and unbearable suffering. We must find a way to liberate our minds so that we do not cling to life nor are we troubled by death. For our minds to be liberated, the only way is to take the Dharma to heart. “To become a practitioner free and unbound, one must diligently cultivate these.” If we can apply these teachings to our minds, naturally we will feel peaceful and at ease. “The mind has no hindrances; there are no hindrances.” If we practice in this way, we can be liberated from afflictions and can transcend life and death. Therefore, we must practice diligently. This is the Dharma. I hope everyone will be mindful in listening to and understanding it.

The analogy the Buddha used to describe His relationship with sentient beings was that of a father and his children. He teaches us with the same earnestness! The previous sutra passage states, “Do not go elsewhere. I will increase your wages, and you will no longer need to worry about utensils, rice and grains, salt, vinegar and the like, all the things you need.”

This seems to be something we would hear often. “Do your work earnestly and do not leave; I can give you even more benefits. If you do your job earnestly, I will double your wages. The value in staying here to work will increase.”

Hence, “I will increase your wages.” If you work harder and give more of yourself, the value of what you are paid will increase. The more important question is, what are you working so hard for? In ancient times, people would say, “For a meal; so I can eat my fill.” In the past, they focused on upholding their duty. Sustaining their life and eating their fill were their reasons for working hard. Eating their fill is not enough for people now. They desire more and more things, so their greed is bottomless. Because of their insatiable greed, no matter how much they have, it is never enough. In conclusion, people cannot clearly distinguish between a life of blessings and one of suffering.

In the Buddha’s analogy, we are clearly like the son of a wealthy family. We could have stayed at home and enjoyed riches and prosperity. Yet instead, a discursive thought arose, and we wandered away. Over a long period of time, we have passed through the Five Realms, including the human, hell, hungry ghost and animal realms. We have transmigrated between them. The four forms of birth are transformation-born, moisture-born, womb-born and egg-born. We have transmigrated between them. This is all brings much suffering. We sentient beings are in this state of delusion,

so it lasted “ten, twenty, and even fifty [years].” The poor son had been wandering about for more than 50 years. This is an analogy. It is actually describing how we sentient beings, in a state of confusion and delusion, have fallen into the Five Realms and become [spiritually] impoverished. The Dharma, our inherent wisdom and the abundance of teachings we had have all leaked away. Thus we are like the poor son who had no property and had no money on him. Every day, he had to work so he could eat. He had reached that state of impoverishment in his wanderings.

When the father discovered his son, he used various methods to painstakingly approach him. Once his son was close by, he also took off his magnificent clothing in order to approach him. The Buddha lived the same way as regular bhiksus. He wore “clothes for cleaning excrement,” what we call “blessed-field robes.” He lived the same way as the rest of the Sangha. This is just like how the elder took off his necklace and magnificent garments to dress like an ordinary person.

With His wisdom, the Buddha used such a simple story to convey wondrously profound principles. Can we listen to the Dharma like any other story? Absolutely not. Our time in this world is very short. If thousands of years pass as if in a second, our lives of a few decades can be thought of in terms of [milliseconds], or microseconds, such a short time. So, how can we waste any time? We must not!

“We may not encounter [the Dharma] for billions of kalpas.” There is no telling how much time it has taken for us to encounter the Buddha-Dharma at this time. So, [He told us,] “Do not go elsewhere, and I will increase your wages.” If we engage in spiritual practice this way, we can be filled with Dharma-joy every day. “Yes, though I have to wake up very early, this means that I will not become lax today, and I will be free of hindrances. I am just like you. I am also very earnest and diligent. I am very happy today, because I heard the Dharma and “my mind has no hindrances.” So, this is already worth it. If we keep listening, there is more value. Thus, “I will increase your wages.”

“You will no longer need to worry about utensils, rice and grains.” No matter what we need to use or what we need to eat, we will have it all. But eating plain rice and grains is flavorless and does not taste good. Thus, we still need “salt, vinegar and the like.” This is a parable for how the Buddha used all kinds of methods. The teachings He gave included the Four Noble Truths and the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. Are these the complete teachings? These teachings are only there to guide people to develop an interest in the Dharma. In fact, what the Buddha wanted to do was to give us a foundation for the Buddha-Dharma, so we can advance to the higher levels. To climb a tall building, we need to start from the bottom. As we climb up each floor, our perspective becomes different. The higher we go, the more open and spacious our perspective is.

This is what the Buddha-Dharma is like. The Buddha hoped that our state of mind could be the same as His when He attained enlightenment, that tranquil and clear Avatamsaka state. When we return to our nature of True Suchness, our minds are undefiled, free of afflictions and can encompass the universe. This begins from the way we are as people, from the way we interact with others. As we interact with others, we must not be contaminated by their afflictions. As we do our work, we must not be hindered by other people’s habitual tendencies. This is having true resolve and great vows. With this kind of resolve and great vows, our minds will not be disturbed. “Do not go elsewhere.” When it is the right thing, we should just do it; we must not be indecisive and uncertain. This [section] is using this analogy for teaching with all kinds of methods. Whatever utensils we need, or rice, grains, salt and vinegar, we will have it all. “You will no longer need to worry.” We must not give rise to discursive thoughts again. We must be thoroughly mindful.

The next sutra passage states, “There are also the old messengers who will help you when you need it. You may put your mind at ease.”

This is telling everyone again that in this place, there is not only work that can sustain a stable living, there are also “the old messengers who will help you when you need it.” When we need it, there are many people like us who will work together with us, who will practice and work together. This can help put everyone’s minds at ease.

There are also the old messengers: These were those secretly sent after him to practice and attain realizations together.

“There are also the old messengers.” What does this mean? Remember in the previous sutra passage, the elder saw the poor son at the door. The son quickly turned and ran away, but having seen his figure, the elder quickly dispatched two people to invite him to come back. This was when he “secretly dispatched” two people. Do you still remember? These two people are analogies for. Bodhisattvas and skillful means. They had to quickly go after him ․There are also the old messengers: These were those secretly sent after him to practice and attain realizations together. “To practice and attain realizations together,” they went to where he was to bring him back.

But, if they tried to bring him back forcibly, that is like using Dharma that is too strong; sentient beings will be afraid. “You want me to benefit others? I cannot even benefit myself; how can I benefit others?” So, they have no interest in this. They are like the son who is unwilling to return. When he was being pulled forcibly, he fainted. He struggled mightily. He was frightened, so he struggled. Thus he fainted and lost consciousness. The elder said, “Do not drag him back. Wash his face with some clean water to wake him up and then let him go. We will think of another method.”

“There are also the old messengers.” These are the people sent after the son. Once these people came back, the elder thought of how they could take off their necklaces and magnificent garments, so they could work alongside the son. So, “[They] will help you when you need it.” He would have companions, so many people who would accompany him when he needed them.

[They] will help you when you need it: While practicing right practices to enlightenment, if something is not clear we must not give rise to doubts and troubles, but instead ask our senior fellow practitioners. They will instruct us step by step; thus, if we have a question we should ask.

This is like “practicing right practices” ․[They] will help you when you need it: While practicing right practices to enlightenment, if something is not clear we must not give rise to doubts and troubles, but instead ask our senior fellow practitioners. They will instruct us step by step; thus, if we have a question we should ask. We practice the proper teachings of the Path, the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. We begin with the “three Fours,” then “the two Fives, the Seven and the Eight.” This Dharma helps us gradually understand. Practicing together is not just copying what other people do. When we practice and attain realization together, there is nothing we do not understand. This is how work should be done. This is how we should engage in spiritual practice. The underlying principle is the same. This is how work was done at the elder’s place. This is how we practitioners should engage in spiritual cultivation. If we do not understand something, we must not let that question remain on our minds, “but instead ask our senior fellow practitioners.” People who are new here do not know anything about how things work. We must always ask people. Instead of being arrogant and proud, we must frequently ask questions.

“They will instruct us step by step.” Those people will teach us. When spiritual practitioners like. Hearers and Solitary Realizers draw near Bodhisattvas, Bodhisattvas will guide them step by step. This is very important. This is how to engage in spiritual practice. We practice together with companions, so when we do not understand, we should ask. When we have questions, we should raise them. In this way, when “old messengers” accompany us, we can earnestly do our work without worries.

“You may put your mind at ease.” This refers to the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers.

You may put your mind at ease: This refers to the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers. When we attain the Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, our mind is at ease and our intention is firm.

With the “two Fives,” when we “attain the Five Spiritual Roots and. Five Powers, our mind is at ease and our intention is firm.” If we have these roots and powers, we can be at ease, and our spiritual practice will be very stable.

Root refers to giving rise to something. These roots give rise to all virtuous Dharma.

Roots refers to “what can give rise to something. These roots give rise to all virtuous Dharma.” If tree roots are planted firmly, there will always be new seedlings in the grove. For there to be an abundance of leaves, for a tree to blossom and bear fruit, its roots must be very strong. This is how it produces an abundance of fruit. This is the meaning of “can give rise to.” In the same way, “The Five Spiritual Roots give rise to all virtuous Dharma.”

When the Five Spiritual Roots are firm, the strengths that arise are called the Five Powers.

When the Five Spiritual Roots are firm, they produce strength. The Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers support and strengthen each other. Thus they are called the Five Powers. Starting with the roots, after we plant a seed, the roots will grow. Tree roots are very powerful. For example, after a banyan tree is planted, its roots can break through the thickest of walls. This is strength; with roots come power.

Thus, we must be mindful in our daily living. To learn the Buddha’s Way, we must understand the process of engaging in spiritual practice. We absolutely must not become lax. At Deer Park, the Dharma-wheel of Four Noble Truths was turned three times. We must not overlook this Dharma, as it is our foundation. If a house is built on an unstable foundation, that is very dangerous. So, we must build a very stable foundation. All Buddhas share the same path, the Dharma which is “praised by the sages.” We must always be mindful of this.

Episode 781 – Teaching and Admonishing like a Kind Father

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>> Like a kind worldly father calling on his child, the Buddha encourages with love and comfort. Great love is like a place for us to draw near, so He spoke these loving words. Unable to bear our minds being scattered, He exhorts us to forever practice the Dharma of Samadhi. He then teaches and admonishes us to practice all teachings of the right path.

>> “Later he said, You! Young man! Stay on working here permanently; do not go elsewhere!  Do not go elsewhere. I will increase your wages, and you will no longer need to worry about utensils, rice and grains, salt, vinegar and the like, all the things you need.”      [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> Do not go elsewhere: When Samadhi and wisdom are in balance, one is never again confused or distracted, and all practices will be achieved. He also admonished them not to go elsewhere to study deviant teachings. Thus it says, Do not go elsewhere.

>> I will increase your wages: With the contemplation of fulfilling powers, we can give rise to Flawless [Studies]. It is like constant practice of Samadhi and wisdom which allows us to cut off deluded karma. Stages of attainment thus accumulate; from the stage of learning, we attain the stage beyond learning.

>> Next is, You will no longer need to worry about utensils, rice and grains, salt, vinegar and the like, all the things you need. This sutra passage tells us that. All flawed and flawless [teachings] assisting practices and the right path stem from the three Fours, the two Fives, the Seven and the Eight. What are these? These are the 37 Practices to Enlightenment.

>> Utensils: This is a general metaphor for the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. Rice and grains: This is a specific metaphor for the nourishment of the Three Flawless Studies and other Dharma.

>> Salt and vinegar: These adjust flavors The Six Points of Reverent Harmony are about mutual love and respect and about being balanced and well-suited to all practices. This is considered part of the right path.

>> Reverent harmony: Harmony with love and respect. Working well with others is called harmony. Having humility is called respect. Today, a Sangha is defined by having Six Points of Reverent Harmony.

>> First, harmony in action living together: This is the harmony of physically living together peacefully.

Second, harmony in speech without discord: Their words do not give rise to disputes.

Third, harmony in intention with shared joy: The joy of sharing the same intentions.

>> Salt and vinegar and the like: These refer to assisting practices. Rice and grains are difficult to eat without the flavor of salt and vinegar: This is an analogy for the difficulty of manifesting the right path without the help of assisting practices.

>> These and other things are needed for one to engage in spiritual practice and reach the stage of seeing the truth. Thus it says, You will no longer need to worry.

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“Like a kind worldly father calling on his child, the Buddha encourages with love and comfort. Great love is like a place for us to draw near, so He spoke these loving words. Unable to bear our minds being scattered, He exhorts us to forever practice the Dharma of Samadhi. He then teaches and admonishes us to practice all teachings of the right path.”

Kind fathers in this world unceasingly call on their children in this way. When their children are still young, they even encourage them with love, comfort, etc. This is what worldly fathers do, to say nothing of the Buddha, who sees all sentient beings as His only son. He sees all sentient beings this way, not just humans. The Buddha treats all beings, including animals, as if they were His children, as if they were His son Rahula. That is how much He cares for them. This great love is inherent in His nature.

This is “like a place for us to draw near.” Only great love will lead sentient beings to draw close [to Him]. This is like our planet; we are all born into this world. Can anyone live apart from this planet? The same applies to all the principles of the world; who can live apart from the principles? We ourselves must uphold the virtuous Dharma and not deviate toward unwholesome teachings. As we all live together in this world, selfless great love is what we sentient beings must truly draw near to. Of course, as we interact with each other, we need to mutually influence and encourage each other, mutually teach, guide and care for each other. People who understand the principles must approach those who do not understand them. We must mindfully counsel and teach them.

This is the same thing that the Buddha does. He comes to exhort and guide sentient beings. He continuously speaks kindly and lovingly and devises all kinds of methods, hoping to guide us onto the right path. He never abandons us. Even if He cannot transform us in one lifetime, He will still sow a seed. This cause remains in this world as He comes and goes. No matter what, He draws near to sentient beings to be a source of support for them and mindfully teaches them many methods. He transforms them with “loving speech.” Why is that? He cannot bear it. He cannot bear for them to have scattered minds. If sentient beings can wholeheartedly listen to the Dharma, and focus on practicing it, then naturally they can take the Dharma to heart. Sadly, sentient beings have scattered minds.

“With each passing day, we draw closer to death.” How much time do we still have to live like this, without discipline? If we become undisciplined, we will regress. The Buddha cannot bear for that to happen. We sentient beings must love ourselves and raise our spirits to practice diligently. By going among people, we create good affinities and gain more experience by seeing and hearing more. Every family and every life is a treasury of teachings. Why don’t we go out and interact with people to obtain wisdom? Why don’t we go out and interact with people to create blessed karma? Since we have the causes and conditions to listen the Buddha-Dharma, why don’t we earnestly absorb the principles and the Right Dharma?

The Buddha, with His great love and compassion, continuously returns to this world for one great cause. He cannot bear for sentient beings to have scattered minds. So, He exhorts them to forever practice the Dharma of Samadhi. He cannot bear for our minds to continue to be scattered or for us to constantly create karma out of ignorance. The Buddha cannot bear this, so He exhorts and guides us. After hearing the Dharma, we need to earnestly seize it. “Forever” means we must always do this, must safeguard this earnest and diligent mindset. Precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, the Three Flawless Studies, are what we must earnestly practice.

“He then teaches and admonishes us to practice.” The Buddha wants us to earnestly practice, so He returns to exhort and admonish us. “Admonishing” is a reminder to be vigilant, to show us how to walk this path, to warn us about the things we should not do. He also patiently guides us, exhorting us to practice diligently, to “practice all teachings of the right path.” We must not go astray. What worries Him most is that we will deviate, so He constantly teaches and admonishes us.

Life is filled with suffering. There are many ways that we experience suffering. Falling into great difficulties is very easy. We have finally been able to be born human and to listen to the Buddha-Dharma, so we must earnestly seize this [opportunity] and cherish the Buddha-Dharma; we must earnestly and diligently practice.

The previous sutra passage discusses how the elder had already approached his son. He had reminded everyone to be earnest. “Everyone, you need to be earnest. This place is peaceful and stable, and there is work for you to do here. We must all strengthen our resolve”

Later he said, “You! Young man! Stay on working here permanently; do not go elsewhere! You! Young man!” [Yesterday we explained] the meaning behind this. “Stay on working here permanently” means the Buddha had established skillful means, the 37 Practices to Enlightenment, the Four Noble Truths and the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence. The Buddha also wanted to teach us the Six Paramitas and Four All-Embracing Virtues. We have earnestly absorb all of these.

We also need to broaden and open up our minds. We need to establish our resolve, form great aspirations, make great vows and walk the Bodhisattva-path. At that time, the elder had told him, “Stay on working here permanently.” This place is very safe and stable, and we will not get lost. This is where we must earnestly do our work and our homework, which is the Dharma we must cultivate

Next it says, “Do not go elsewhere. I will increase your wages, and you will no longer need to worry about utensils, rice and grains, salt, vinegar and the like, all the things you need.” In this place, in the future [the son] would receive plenty to use and eat; he would have abundant resources. “Do not go elsewhere” means that our Samadhi and wisdom need to be in balance [With Samadhi,] wisdom will naturally arise. If we have Samadhi and wisdom, we will not be confused or distracted again. The early morning is a very precious time for spiritual practice. Are we still in bed? That is being confused or distracted. It is the same if we go about our daily living without wisdom; we see things with a mindset of ignorance. This means we are not being earnest and diligent. We see only matters, not principles. This is also being confused or distracted, which results from a lack of Samadhi and wisdom. Right now, we have accepted the Buddha-Dharma. If we can put in effort to earnestly do our homework, we will “never again [be] confused or distracted, and all practices will be achieved”

Do not go elsewhere: When Samadhi and wisdom are in balance, one is never again confused or distracted, and all practices will be achieved. He also admonished them not to go elsewhere to study deviant teachings. Thus it says, “Do not go elsewhere.”

When we listen to the Dharma, we must be mindful. Then, naturally, the longer we listen, the more the Dharma will be engraved in our minds. This can also prevent the ignorance around us from contaminating our minds. Thus we can achieve Samadhi and wisdom. With both Samadhi and wisdom in our minds, our minds will not be scattered. We will take every word of Dharma we practice to heart and do everything in accord with the Dharma.

The Buddha, in addition to teaching us this, also admonished and reminded us to be vigilant. He warned us “not to go elsewhere to study deviant teachings.” We need to adhere to the Right Dharma and have. Right Understanding, Right Views, Right Thinking, as well as Right Mindfulness and Right Conduct. We should not [stray from] the teachings of the right path and accidentally end up on a deviant path. So, we need to thoroughly and mindfully safeguard Right Dharma. Thus it says, “Do not go elsewhere.” We must not end up going elsewhere.

“I will increase your wages.” This is the “contemplation of fulfilling powers,” also known as “the bases of fulfilling powers.” If we can focus on our spiritual practice and not be affected by other influences, we can naturally gain understanding and be very clear about the Dharma. When we are very satisfied and happy with our practice, naturally we can give rise to Flawless [Studies]. Then the Dharma we practice will not leak away

I will increase your wages: With the contemplation of fulfilling powers, we can give rise to Flawless [Studies]. It is like constant practice of Samadhi and wisdom which allows us to cut off deluded karma. Stages of attainment thus accumulate; from the stage of learning, we attain the stage beyond learning.

If we do not earnestly use our body to engage in spiritual practice, with this impure body we will be living our lives in a daze. If we are not earnest and diligent, [our practice] will “be flawed”; it is not flawless. While others are listening to the Dharma we are sleeping. While others are practicing diligently, we are indolent and in a daze. In this way the Dharma will leak away over time.

The analogy here is for “constant practice of. Samadhi and wisdom, which allows us to cut off deluded karma.” If we always practice Samadhi and wisdom, whenever external delusions and afflictions appear before us, we will be able to eradicate and eliminate them and will not allow confusion into our minds. These very subtle afflictions, perspectives and thought patterns will not enter our minds. When afflicted perspectives have been completely eliminated, naturally we will accumulate stages of attainment. For Hearers, there are four stages of attainment. These stages reflect our understanding, from simple to profound. When it comes to the Buddha-Dharma, as our understanding becomes clearer, the “stages of attainment thus accumulate.”

“From the stage of learning, we attain the stage beyond learning.” For those of us at the stage of learning, we still have to learn more Dharma. Those beyond the stage of learning have completely understood everything. Take the Buddha for example; He is beyond the stage of learning. Being “beyond the stage of learning” means. His enlightened mind is already one with the universe. Once the mind is united with the universe, what else is there to cultivate? This is the state of “being without self,” what we seek to achieve in our spiritual practice

Next is, “You will no longer need to worry about utensils, rice and grains, salt, vinegar and the like, all the things you need.” This sutra passage tells us that. “All flawed and flawless [teachings] assisting practices and the right path stem from the three Fours, the two Fives, the Seven and the Eight.” What are these? These are the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. These things are analogies. All this Dharma is nourishment for our wisdom-life. How do we develop our wisdom-life? It needs nutrients. Just rice, grains, salt and vinegar is not enough. We also need utensils, dishes, woks, stoves, bowls, chopsticks and so forth.

“Utensils” are like methods. “Utensils” are a metaphor for the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. These are methods. “Rice and grains” are metaphors for the nourishment of the Three Flawless Studies, precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. Wisdom-life needs precepts, Samadhi and wisdom;

precepts, Samadhi and wisdom can nourish our wisdom-life. If we cannot abide by precepts, if we cannot practice as part of a group with the Six Points of Reverent Harmony, how can we truly engage in spiritual practice? We need rules and precepts for our minds to be in Samadhi. Only if we get along harmoniously can our minds be in a state of Samadhi. Only when we practice and work together can we develop wisdom. Thus, the Three Flawless Studies are spiritual nourishment for our wisdom-life.

We also need “salt and vinegar,” which is like harmony, the Six Points of Reverent Harmony. These are six ways of being in harmony. Harmony means mutual love and respect. Mutual love and respect are very important. Moreover, all things need to be in balance and suitable. This is being on the Right Path.

What are the Six Points of Reverent Harmony? We learned them in the past. They bring harmony with love and respect Reverent harmony: Harmony with love and respect. Working well with others is called harmony. Having humility is called respect. Today, a Sangha is defined by having Six Points of Reverent Harmony. “Harmony with love and respect” means that we must be harmonious in relationships. We must be unified and harmonious, must love and respect each other.

“Working well with others” is what we must do, because when we are in a spiritual community, there is more than just one person here; there are other members. So, we need to be in harmony with those around us. We need to be in harmony and in unison, practicing and working together; this is “harmony.”

By being humble, we show respect. The Six Points of Reverent Harmony require us to externally practice with others and to internally stay humble. This is the only way to be respectful to others.

Among the Six Points of Reverent Harmony, first is harmony in actions when living together. This is the harmony of physically living together peacefully. Second is “harmony in speech without discord.” Our words must not give rise to disputes. Third is “harmony in intention with shared joy” [With this harmony], everyone is very happy. “You are diligently practicing, and I am also diligently practicing.” We encourage each other to diligently practice.

This is “harmony in intention with shared joy.” Fourth is “harmony in common practice of precepts.” We respect and uphold the same precepts. We are a very large organization. If we do not all follow the precepts, this organization will be in turmoil. Therefore, we must earnestly be mindful and abide by the precepts. This is how we engage in spiritual practice. Fifth is “harmony in views for common understanding.” We share the same opinions; our perspectives are in complete accord. Our opinions must be in harmony. When we do something, we discuss the right way to do it. Then if it is right, we do it together. Thus there is truly harmony in the Sangha. Sixth is “harmony in sharing benefits equally.” Benefits are shared by all; everyone enjoys them equally. Isn’t this how we engage in spiritual practice? Within this large organization, we need the Six Points of Reverent Harmony so that our group can display its beauty.

“Salt and vinegar and the like” are like assisting practices. When we eat rice and grains, we need to complement them with salt and vinegar. Rice and grains are the staple foods. Salt and vinegar add to the flavor. This is an analogy for the “difficulty of manifesting the right path”; we need the help of assisting practices.

If we only have rice or grain, it will not enjoyable to eat; it needs some assistance. We need to complement them with different dishes and flavors and so on, so people will be willing to eat them. This is like how the True Dharma could not be [directly accepted], so the Buddha had to use the 37 Practices to Enlightenment or the Four Noble Truths, etc. to teach it to us. These are needed so we can practice and reach the stage of seeing the truth. These are basic teachings

These and other things are needed for one to engage in spiritual practice and reach the stage of seeing the truth. Thus it says, “You will no longer need to worry.”

I constantly remind everyone that to learn the Buddha’s Way, we must be mindful. Like a kind worldly father, He calls to us and cherishes us. With great love, He admonishes us and teaches us in order to help us know what we should do. With this kind of great love, with loving speech, He teaches us with great care. He cannot bear to let us remain scattered, in a state of indolence. He wants us to forever practice precepts, Samadhi and wisdom so that we can walk on the right path. Therefore, we should be grateful and always be mindful.

Episode 780 – Love Deeply and Teach Earnestly

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>> The deeper and more sincere the love, the more earnest the teaching. The greatest love is serving others without expecting anything in return. Protect and motivate with the power of gentleness and go among people for one great cause.

>> He said to all the laborers, “Work diligently; do not be lazy!”. He used this as skillful means with which to approach his son.      [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> Later he said, “You! Young man! Stay and work here permanently; do not go elsewhere!”     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> You!: An expression of warning to help us relinquish our scattered thoughts and assume a mind of tranquility.  

>> Young man!: The Fourfold Mindfulness and Four Right Efforts are practices of wisdom. Thus [the elder] called, “Young Man!”.

>> You! Young man!: Wanting to reveal the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha called out sternly; He advised them strictly to bring out their talent. This Dharma is like an indestructible sword which warns us to give rise to the resolve of a great person; it cuts off all entanglements. Thus, He first yelled You!

>> Most men are outwardly focused. This is like using discerning contemplation in grasping the external environment, to understand it cannot be called permanent. Hence, Stay and work here permanently.

>> The Four Bases of Fulfilling Power are a practice of Samadhi, which allows one to be settled and unwavering, thus they are called the bases of fulfilling power. It also means that all the Dharma one cultivates will be fulfilled as one wishes.

>> The first of the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power is the power of aspiration, the hope that the Dharma we cultivate will be fulfilled as we wish.

The second of the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power is the Power of Diligence. With the mind completely focused on the Dharma we cultivate, it can be fulfilled as we wish.

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“The deeper and more sincere the love, the more earnest the teaching. The greatest love is serving others without expecting anything in return. Protect and motivate with the power of gentleness
and go among people for one great cause.”

When the love is deep and sincere, the teaching will be earnest. It is rare to be born human and rare to hear the Buddha-Dharma. The Buddha came to the world for one great cause, the hope that sentient beings will experience and discover that they inherently have the Tathagata-nature and wisdom equal to the Buddha’s. Sadly, they are unaware of this, so the Buddha continuously returns to the world, tireless in His patience. This is because of His love, His pure and great love. This love is very deep, very sincere. It comes out of this deep and sincere love, this earnest state of mind. How many people can truly comprehend His original intent?

As part of our daily recitations, we chant, “I take refuge with the Buddha. I take refuge with the Dharma.” Have we actually delved deeply into the sutra treasury? If we have not delved deeply, how can we realize our intrinsic nature of True Suchness? How will we develop wisdom like the ocean? We must listen to the Dharma! After listening, we must take it to heart, so we can form great aspirations and make great vows to go among people and “harmoniously lead the people without obstructions.”

Right now, we are discussing the Chapter on Faith and Understanding. We must have faith in ourselves and believe in the teachings the Buddha gave us, that everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature. Only by rousing our awakened nature will we have the chance to enter the ocean of wisdom and be able to enter the sutra treasury. Only by entering the sutra treasury do we have the Dharma for transforming ourselves and others. We go among people to invite them to join us, thus transforming them by working alongside them. This means that we must sustain this resolve every day.

The Buddha’s love is deep and sincere; why can’t ours be the same? Everyone should be able to develop this same deep and sincere resolve. All things are created by the mind; in going among people, we must teach in earnest. With the correct understanding we have, after taking in the Dharma, we must not go astray. Then we can transform sentient beings, can transform ourselves and others. We transform others the same way we transform ourselves, with the same earnestness. So, “The deeper and more sincere the love, the more earnest the teaching.”

How do we accomplish this? By giving. “The greatest love is serving others without expecting anything in return” charitable giving, beneficial conduct, loving speech and collaborative work are ways we give without expectations. This is deep and sincere love.

When we are among people, we must “protect and motivate with the power of gentleness.” If we love our children, we will teach them. How do we teach them? Do we have to be very strict? To motivate them we must be very sincere; this sense of encouragement comes from the bottom of our hearts. When we wholeheartedly encourage and protect them, on the surface we may seem a little strict. But in our hearts we are genuine and sincere. So, [the desire to] “protect and motivate” comes from our hearts. With the power of gentleness we love them and cherish them, but we do not spoil them. We must also appear “gentle but strict, majestic but not aggressive.” This is the power of gentleness.

When the Buddha taught sentient beings, this was the method He used. For one great cause, He repeatedly comes back to go among the people. The Buddha’s compassion and the power of his love and sincerity are what we should genuinely have faith in. To understand the Buddha’s intent, we must be earnest and diligent.

He said to all the laborers, “Work diligently; do not be lazy!”. He used this as skillful means with which to approach his son.

So, in the sutra, the previous passage started with “[The elder] said to all the laborers.” After dispatching people to bring his son back, the father took off his magnificent clothing and changed into ordinary clothing, clothes for working in. He also picked up tools for clearing manure to approach [the laborers], encouraging everyone he passed by. So it says, “He said to all the laborers, ‘Work diligently; do not be lazy!’.” Everyone must be earnest and not become lazy. These were the skillful means “with which [he] approached his son.”

From the beginning he wanted to share his original intent to help everyone draw close and share this intent. But he needed a method for doing that. So, “He used this as skillful means with which to approach his son.” The Buddha interacted with people with gentleness. With a sincere sense of mission and a firm resolve, He came to transform sentient beings, helping each one experience [the teachings]. This is using skillful means to approach the son.

The next passage states, “Later he said.” After the elder approached his son, he said, “You! Young man! Stay and work here permanently; do not go elsewhere!”

“Later” means that some time had passed after he approached his son. This is what is meant by “later.” They could talk to each other and got along well. So in this passage, “You!” conveys a more forceful tone. “Young man! “Stay and work here permanently; do not go elsewhere!” This is an analogy for a method that is used, the method of the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power.

Saying “You!” in this way is “an expression of warning.” This is like watching someone going the wrong way and telling them, “Hey! That’s not right. You’re going the wrong way!” It is necessary to yell this loudly, otherwise, the other person will have already made a slight deviation that will take him far off course.

You!: An expression of warning to help us relinquish our scattered thoughts and assume a mind of tranquility.    

So, “You!” is calling to people with a more aggressive tone to help them be on the alert. “That’s wrong! That place is treacherous!” By loudly yelling, “That’s wrong!” naturally when they hear it they will be alarmed. Whether they realize, “This is the wrong way,” or “This road is dangerous,” they will immediately stop and correct their course

“An expression of warning [helps] us relinquish our scattered thoughts.” How do the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power help us eliminate our scattered thoughts?

We have said the Four Right Efforts are about “refraining from all evil, doing all that is good. Quickly eliminate any evil that has arisen. Prevent from arising evil that has not arisen. Quickly give rise to goodness not yet arisen. Nurture any goodness that has already arisen.” These are the Four Right Efforts. Then we practice the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power. This helps everyone to settle their minds. The Buddha has given us these methods, so we must earnestly accept and follow them. With the Fourfold Mindfulness and Four Right Efforts, we settle our minds. We must no longer deviate in the slightest and develop mistaken thoughts. This is what He calls on us to do.

Thus, “You!” is said in a more intense tone so that we can hear it. Once we hear it, we realize what we are doing. We must quickly stop doing the wrong things and diligently advance to do what is right. This helps us develop a state of tranquility. If we give rise to discursive thoughts, we must immediately use these methods to quiet our scattered thoughts so our minds can calm down.

Young man!: The Fourfold Mindfulness and Four Right Efforts are practices of wisdom. Thus [the elder] called, “Young Man!”.

“Young man! Young man” refers to a male person. Men are more outwardly focused. In the past, it was the men who tended to go out and work. So, “young man” is used as an analogy. Spiritual practice is the work of a great person, whether male or female. Since we are engaging in spiritual practice, we are doing the work of a great person. Since we all engage in spiritual practice, the Buddha refers to us collectively with. “You!Young Man!” meaning, “Hey, you spiritual practitioners!” He loudly reminds us that we are spiritual practitioners, so we have to constantly exercise the wisdom of the Fourfold Mindfulness and Four Right Efforts.

This is wisdom. The Fourfold Mindfulness and Four Right Efforts are used to train and strengthen our wisdom. If we frequently experience and contemplate the body as impure, this inspires wisdom in us.

Every day we are living in this world in a state of delusion. How much karma have we created for the sake of our body? This body has always been impure. With the passage of time, it grows old, falls ill and dies. After we die, all that is left is a pile of rotten, smelly and unclean things. In the end, there is just a pile of bones. We must make an effort to mindfully contemplate just what, exactly, our physical body is in the end. There is no need, for the sake of this body, to create conflict or karma. For the sake of this body, we have attracted so much ignorance, afflictions, dust-like delusions, etc. We do not need to do these things for the sake of this body.

Thus, the Buddha mindfully developed these skillful means. In addition to the Four Noble Truths, the 37 Practices to Enlightenment was something He constantly taught. “The three Fours, the two Fives, the Seven and Eight” comprise the 37 Practices to Enlightenment. We must earnestly practice them. “The Fourfold Mindfulness and Four Right Efforts are practices of wisdom.” Wisdom is something spiritual practitioners must have.

“You! Young man!” also conveys the Four Noble Truths to us

“You! Young man!”: Wanting to reveal the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha called out sternly; He advised them strictly to bring out their talent. This Dharma is like an indestructible sword which warns us to give rise to the resolve of a great person; it cuts off all entanglements. Thus, He first yelled “You!”

Suffering, causation, cessation and the Path are the Four Noble Truths. Life is truly filled with suffering; there are many kinds of endless suffering. Each of them is apparent to us, and we can see their underlying principles. With the Buddha’s analysis of them, we recognize suffering, causation, cessation and the Path. This is how humans live; we are in opposition with each other, provoke conflicts and create bad karma. These appearances of the Four Noble Truths are what we have already seen. So, we know that. “The Buddha called out sternly.” Because He understands us, He is fierce in pointing out to us, “Why are you still in a state of delusion? Life is filled with so much suffering. How can you continue to be deluded?” He helps us to see the obvious. We can see that everyone is suffering.

Yesterday, I met another elderly Bodhisattva. She is very fortunate. Among her four children there is a doctor, a lawyer and a teacher. Her whole life, she has had everything she wanted, but she was addicted to gambling. She said that gambling is filled with suffering, especially when she lost. She had nothing to do, so she would go to have fun. No matter where she went to have fun, it felt the same to her; she felt she was suffering. There were people who said to her, “Your life is so good; why are you complaining? Every day you look like you’re filled with worry. What is causing you to suffer? “You are so fortunate; your children are so filial. Why are you suffering? Gambling and losing is painful. Traveling for fun is also painful. Doing nothing is boring and painful.” So, someone told her, “Why don’t you go see what Tzu Chi is like? Perhaps when someone like you goes to Tzu Chi, you will become happy.”

Sure enough, after she came to Tzu Chi and joined in doing recycling work, every day she was happy with what she was doing. It has made her so happy that she now listens to the teachings every day. Originally, she was truly suffering. She had so much money and her children were so filial, but having too much free time was suffering, traveling for fun was suffering, gambling was suffering; she suffered a lot. What made her most happy? Tzu Chi. Now that she has been doing Tzu Chi work, she has become happy.

This is using all kinds of suffering in the world to motivate everyone. “He advised them strictly to bring out their talent. Everyone must diligently practice. You recognize suffering, so you must be diligent.” So, “This Dharma is like an indestructible sword.” Like an indestructible sword, it can sever the roots of our afflictions. Only by being diligent can we avoid giving rise to more afflictions.

So, “[He] warns us to give rise to the resolve of a great person.” He yelled loudly to help us know that we are wrong. Then we will quickly rein in our minds. After focusing our minds, naturally we will come in contact with and understand the Dharma and give rise to the resolve of a great person. As I have said, “Spiritual practice is the work of a great person.” We must strengthen this great resolve, so we first cut off all kinds of entanglements. When we cut through those knotted ropes, we are cutting off afflictions. So, “You! Young man!” is like loudly yelling, “You spiritual practitioners, wake up!”
Most men are outwardly focused. This is like using discerning contemplation in grasping the external environment, to understand it cannot be called permanent. Hence, Stay and work here permanently.

“Most men are outwardly focused.” This is an analogy ․Most men are outwardly focused. This is like using discerning contemplation in grasping the external environment, to understand it cannot be called permanent. Hence, “Stay and work here permanently.” If a man corrects his faults, he will have the potential to achieve great things. “Using discerning contemplation in grasping the external environment” means we must use discerning contemplation to contemplate external states and to grasp the external environment in order to understand how external phenomena are impermanent. Think about Hearers and Solitary Realizers. Hearers listen to the Dharma. Solitary Realizers observe the four seasons. By looking at their surroundings, they recognize impermanence. This is wisdom. “Man” is used to represent using wisdom in grasping the external environment. The more we see, the more we understand.

We “understand it cannot be called permanent.” This because the external environment changes with the seasons. All things are impermanent. If we can experience this, we will understand impermanence, that in this world, whether people, matters or objects, nothing can abide forever. Aside from our nature of True Suchness, nothing else is forever. So, we must “stay on working here permanently.” We must often reaffirm what we are doing, that we engage in spiritual practice to return to our pure nature of True Suchness.

The Four Bases of Fulfilling Power are a practice of Samadhi, which allows one to be settled and unwavering, thus they are called the bases of fulfilling power. It also means that all the Dharma one cultivates will be fulfilled as one wishes.

The Four Noble Truths are something we must thoroughly understand. The 37 Practices to Enlightenment are what we must diligently practice. The Four Bases of Fulfilling Power are a practice of Samadhi. The Fourfold Mindfulness and the Four Right Efforts are practices of wisdom. The Four Bases of Fulfilling Power lead to Samadhi. They “allow [us] to be settled and unwavering” in our spiritual aspirations. Those are the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power. This also means, “All the Dharma one cultivates will be fulfilled as one wishes.”

If we do not waver in our resolve, we can be earnest and diligent. We will not allow indolence to hinder our spiritual aspirations. These are the [Four] Bases of Fulfilling Power.

The first of the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power is the power of aspiration, the hope that the Dharma we cultivate will be fulfilled as we wish.

The second of the Four Bases of Fulfilling Power is the Power of Diligence. With the mind completely focused on the Dharma we cultivate, it can be fulfilled as we wish.

　第四、思惟如意足，謂心思所修之法，不令忘失，如願滿足。
The first is the “power of aspiration.” Since we want to engage in spiritual practice, we hope that the Dharma we cultivate will be fulfilled as we wish. Taking the Dharma to heart and being filled with Dharma-joy is the power of aspiration. Second is the “power of diligence.” This is when, with the mind completely focused on the Dharma we cultivate, with no scattered thoughts, [this Dharma] can be fulfilled as we wish. The third is the “power of thought.” This is keeping our thoughts on what we are doing. The practices we engage in and the Dharma we cultivate are never forgotten. They are always on our minds. After we listen to the Dharma every day, we then apply it in our daily living, so it will also be fulfilled as we wish. The fourth is the “power of contemplation.” What we contemplate is our minds. Everything we think of and practice will not be forgotten. Nor will we have habitual tendencies. If we take the Dharma to heart without any of it leaking away, it will be fulfilled as we wish. If we can do this, we will always abide in the Dharma.

Everyone, with the power of love, we must be mindful and earnestly take the teachings to heart. If we resolve to seek the Path, [the Buddha] teaches us so many methods for the sole purpose of helping our minds remain unwavering in the face of external conditions. So, we must always be mindful.

Episode 779 – Diligently Practicing the Teachings of the Path

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>> Karmic causes and effects never fail; they follow us as a shadow follows a shape. Causes and conditions succeed one another through the endless cycle of births and deaths. Through spiritual practice we attain fruition; thus it is called a virtuous cause. The Six Perfections, Four All-Embracing Virtues bring the fruits of blessings and virtues.

>> The Nine Ordeals: 1) Six years of ascetic practice 2) Slander by Sundari 3) The wooden spear 4) Horse fodder 5) King Virudhaka’s massacre of the Sakya clan 6) The empty bowl after begging 7) Slander by Cincamanavika 8) Devadatta’s boulder injuring His foot 9) Searching for robes to block the cold wind. ․[The elder] said to all the laborers, ‘Work diligently;’ ‘do not be lazy!’. He used this as skillful means with which to approach his son.    

>> The Nine Ordeals are also called the Nine Difficulties. When the Buddha came to the world after attaining enlightenment, these were the nine misfortunes He encountered.

>> [The elder] said to all the laborers, “Work diligently; do not be lazy!”. He used this as skillful means with which to approach his son.     [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 4 – Faith And Understanding]

>> [The elder] said to all the laborers: This is an analogy for the Buddha telling all of His disciples that they must first use the Fourfold Mindfulness as the sharp hatchet that severs afflictions.

>> The Fourfold Mindfulness are four methods of contemplation which all have wisdom as their essence. With the power of wise contemplation, the mind abides securely in the teachings of the Path, so that it remains upright and does not deviate.

>> The Four Right Efforts: Eliminate any evil that has already arisen. Prevent from arising any evil that has not arisen. Quickly give rise to goodness not yet arisen. Nurture any goodness that has already arisen.

>> The Four Right Efforts are a practice of diligence. Diligence and hard work in the practice of these four kinds of teachings spurs us to eradicate evil and give rise to goodness with our body, speech and mind.

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“Karmic causes and effects never fail; they follow us as a shadow follows a shape.
Causes and conditions succeed one another through the endless cycle of births and deaths.
Through spiritual practice we attain fruition; thus it is called a virtuous cause.
The Six Perfections, Four All-Embracing Virtues bring the fruits of blessings and virtues.”

As are the causes and conditions, so are the effects and retributions. We all deeply understand the law of karma. “Karmic causes and effects never fail.” Likewise, whatever kind of seed we plant, the yield will be that kind of fruit. If we create positive conditions, we attain positive effects. If we create negative conditions, we will certainly attain negative effects.

In fact, out of everyone living in this world, who is without causes and conditions? Who is not entangled by their karmic affinities, even on into their future lifetimes? These future lifetimes are limitless in number, so we remain in an endless cycle of births and deaths. We all encounter other people every day, each day’s causes and conditions are a continuation of those from the previous day. With good affinities from yesterday, we are happy to see each other again today. Every day we are happy to see each other, yet there will come a day [when we part]; we remain trapped in the cycle of birth and death. In future lifetimes, causes and conditions will continue to follow each other in succession. If there are causes, there will be conditions. Positive and negative conditions will endlessly accumulate life after life.

People who are blessed will encounter and accept the Buddha-Dharma, knowing they must create positives causes. We are all here together and have formed aspirations and made vows. We have planted this seed, this cause, so “Through spiritual practice we attain fruition.” Whether this cause is created now or was created in the past, we must continuously nurture this cause. It takes time; we cannot plant a seed today and expect it to sprout today. We must wait until tomorrow, or the next day, or the day after that. This is like our present and future lives; the underlying principle is the same. In summary, this cause has already converged with the [right] conditions, so naturally we have encountered the Dharma.

When it comes to good seeds, we must continuously take good care of them. We must irrigate and water them. The Dharma is like water. This seed, this cause, must be continuously nourished with Dharma-water; this is engaging in spiritual practice. Our spiritual cultivation relies on causes and conditions. After this seed finally sprouts, the “cause” will turn into an “effect.” Then it can produce infinite fruits. “Through spiritual practice we attain fruition.” In this way, “One gives rise to infinity.” Thus, “It is called a virtuous cause.” One single seed in fact contains an infinite number of seeds [Whether they reach fruition] depends on how we engage in spiritual practice.

“The Six Perfections, Four All-Embracing Virtues bring the fruits,” which are blessings and virtues. As we engage in spiritual practice, exactly what practices are we cultivating? Small Vehicle practices? Then we would only benefit ourselves! What about Great Vehicle practices? We have to go among the people. To go among people, we need proper methods, so we must practice the Six Perfections and the Four All-Embracing Virtues. When among people, we must practice giving, upholding precepts, patience, diligence, Samadhi and wisdom. These six practices are all ways of benefiting others.

The Four All-Embracing Virtues help us get along with people. We must constantly form good affinities. We must always help people and work together. “You must be very tired. Here, let me take your place for a while. You don’t have enough strength; let me lend you some of mine.” This is also considered charitable giving, the giving of our strength. Perhaps people are feeling depressed, so we comfort them with words. This is also charitable giving. So, [after] this is beneficial conduct. It means taking care of each other and mutually helping, loving and caring for each other. “Loving speech” is comforting; it helps people to open up their hearts. It helps their minds be free of afflictions. Working together in this way is “collaborative work.” These are the Four All-Embracing Virtues.

If we can all practice the Six Perfections and the Four All-Embracing Virtues, this will bear fruits. When we are replete with these fruits, we have blessings and virtues. When things come to fruition, we have blessings and virtues.

As we have said before, the Buddha had likewise accumulated karmic retributions. Over countless kalpas, He had committed both serious and slight evils. Once He began to engage in spiritual practice, He unceasingly cultivated causes for enlightenment. But in the past He had created negative causes. By creating negative causes, no matter in which lifetime, He would have to patiently endure and accept the negative effects and retributions brought about by those negative causes. So, for many successive lifetimes, He was engaged in ascetic practice. If you read the Buddha’s Jataka Sutra, He spent many lifetimes repaying [karmic debts], making repayment for negative causes and exhausting their effects. This required spiritual practice. So, the Buddha wanted us to practice patience. When among people, we must patiently endure.

In the past, when we interacted with people, we might have taken advantage of them in many ways or taken from them or harmed them. Now, when we encounter them in this life, we know, “This is because of causes and conditions. Perhaps in this life. I have not yet fully repaid my karmic debts. They haven’t forgiven me yet.” This means we have not fully repaid our debts. If we do not settle our debts, we have to continue repaying them in future lives until they are paid in full. “This is enough; you have repaid me. You have paid off everything you owed me.” So, this is to say, repaying these debts is not that easy. We may not repay them all in one lifetime.

There are also negative causes that do not come to fruition in this lifetime. If we do not encounter them, they have not come to collect what we owe them. So, we must wait until the next lifetime. When we encounter them again we must repay them. This is because our lifetimes endlessly follow one after the other; we physically experience fragmentary samsara, one distinct lifetime after another. Yet, in truth our life should be everlasting. This is why we must always be vigilant.

Yesterday we mentioned that the Buddha faced the Nine Ordeals, nine kinds of karmic retributions.

The Nine Ordeals: 1) Six years of ascetic practice 2) Slander by Sundari 3) The wooden spear 4) Horse fodder 5) King Virudhaka’s massacre of the Sakya clan 6) The empty bowl after begging 7) Slander by Cincamanavika 8) Devadatta’s boulder injuring His foot 9) Searching for robes to block the cold wind.

The first had to do with His spiritual practice. He spent six years in ascetic practice. Those six years of ascetic practice, when He faced much torment and suffering, came from that single thought; just harsh speech and disrespect alone led to six years of ascetic practice.

The second was being slandered by Sundari. Of course there is a story behind this. In the Sangha, there were many trials and hardships like this one, as well as many obstacles. The Buddha Himself experienced an injured foot; there are causes and conditions behind that too. There was also [the ordeal of] “horse fodder.” One time, when He asked for alms, He was given horse fodder to eat. Another ordeal was King Virudhaka’s massacre of the Sakya clan. All these were due to the law of cause and effect. There was also “the empty bowl after begging.” When He and members of His Sangha begged for alms, everyone closed their doors to them, unwilling to make offerings. He experienced this kind of ordeal, too.

The seventh is slander by Cincamanavika; she slandered the Sangha. There were also ordeals caused by Devadatta, who tried to sabotage Sakyamuni in many ways. The Buddha also experienced freezing cold. He did not have [warm] clothes to wear, so He had to ask people for clothes. There is a story behind each ordeal. These stories came about due to negative conditions created over countless kalpas. Because there were negative causes, even after He attained Buddhahood. He faced these negative retributions.

The Nine Ordeals are also called the Nine Difficulties. When the Buddha came to the world after attaining enlightenment, these were the nine misfortunes He encountered.

This is what brought about the Buddha experiencing these nine kinds of afflictions in His lifetime. So, these are called the Nine Ordeals; they are nine misfortunes He encountered in this world after attaining enlightenment. This means that even one who attained Buddhahood had not completely exhausted His retributions, to say nothing of we ordinary people.

Sometimes when I hear different kinds of comments, whether slander or other kinds of hindrances, the way I think about it is, “In the past, I might have hindered those people. I might have carelessly harmed them. So, I should willingly accept the obstacles I face now.” If we know the karmic law of cause and effect, our minds will be more open and expansive. When we willingly face everything, there will be no afflictions. We can transform bitterness into sweetness.

The next passage of the sutra states, “[The elder] said to all the laborers, ‘Work diligently; do not be lazy!’. He used this as skillful means with which to approach his son.”

Everyone must work hard. Everyone must be earnest and not indolent. In order to skillfully approach his son, the elder removed his expensive clothing and smeared dirt and filth all over his body. He also held tools for clearing manure so that he looked just like everyone else. He approached and encouraged them, “Everyone, we must work earnestly. We cannot be lazy. We must make an effort to work hard.” This is “beneficial conduct” and using “loving speech” to transform them by “working together.” These are the Buddha’s skillful means, which He can use to approach people

“[The elder] said to all the laborers” is an analogy for the Buddha speaking to everyone, “to all of His disciples. All of you, my disciples, must first practice the Fourfold Mindfulness.” This is the best tool for eliminating afflictions.

[The elder] said to all the laborers: This is an analogy for the Buddha telling all of His disciples that they must first use the Fourfold Mindfulness as the sharp hatchet that severs afflictions.

If we want to cut through thicker tree roots, then we must use a hatchet to hack away at them. For thinner roots, we can use a knife to cut them or dig them up with a hoe. So, we make use of different kinds of tools. In the same way, we engage in spiritual practice [to clear away] our afflictions and ignorance. We know that life is filled with suffering; the Four Noble Truths tell us that because we have these bodies, they will connect with external conditions. When they connect with external conditions, thoughts arise in our minds. When these thoughts arise in us, we begin to behave in certain ways. This happens because of our body. What is the method we should use to observe the body and eliminate the afflictions it brings? The Buddha said to use the Fourfold Mindfulness.

“Contemplate the body as impure.” Our bodies are truly impure. If we go to the hospital, when people pass away, sometimes no one will notice. “Where is this terrible smell coming from?” It travels far; everyone can smell it.

Actually, even before we die, every day we must “contemplate the body as impure.” We must know that. “The nine orifices constantly discharge impurities.” Isn’t this just how our bodies are? In society, we often see how, when people cannot obtain the object of their desire, murderous thoughts arise and they do all kinds of shocking things. All this is because of the body. After we take action with our bodies, what is the feeling we experience? Can we say we are actually very happy? The happiness we create lasts for only a short period of time. But once we create that karma, we will face suffering for a long time. Thus, we “contemplate all feelings as suffering.”

Life is impermanent. As it is impermanent, can’t we see through things? If we truly cannot see through things, we will be unable to realize that. “All things are without self.” Having truly understood the Dharma, what am “I”? “I” is how people refer to their “self.” Each of us refers to ourselves as “me.” But when I start talking about you, “Clearly, you said this thing. No! You said it!” This is because of [attachment] to “you” and “me. This is what I said. No, that’s not what you said.” Just between “you” and “me”, even one sentence can provoke a dispute. The same principle applies here. If we cannot see through this and still cling to our idea of “self,” this will produce tremendous afflictions. So, to apply the Fourfold Mindfulness, we must be very mindful.

Exercising the Fourfold Mindfulness takes wisdom. We must apply wisdom. If we apply the Fourfold Mindfulness, naturally, by contemplating them in detail, we will develop wisdom; our wisdom will manifest. If we remain unenlightened and cling to “me, me, me” and the feelings of the “self,” afflictions will constantly arise. In our spiritual practice, the Buddha taught us to practice the Fourfold Mindfulness. This has “discerning wisdom as the essence” and uses “impartial contemplation as the power.” Because there is both discerning wisdom as well as impartial wisdom, we have “discerning wisdom as the essence” and “impartial contemplation as the power.” Only in this way will we be able to break through our afflictions so that the mind abides securely in the teachings of the Path. Then we “remain upright and do not deviate.”

The Fourfold Mindfulness are four methods of contemplation which all have wisdom as their essence. With the power of wise contemplation, the mind abides securely in the teachings of the Path, so that it remains upright and does not deviate.

If we have the Dharma of the Fourfold Mindfulness in our minds and mindfully contemplate it in detail, naturally the only thought that will arise is to diligently practice.

So, we need to use “the tools for clearing manure.” This means applying the Dharma and taking it to heart. This refers to “all those who have yet to reach the stage of the wisdom of listening.”

Right outside, there are people who are not [monastic] practitioners. However, they are “white-robed Bodhisattvas,” meaning they are lay practitioners. They have also decided, “I want to take in the fragrance of the Dharma.” They leave their house before dawn. Though they are lay practitioners, they still mindfully listen to the Dharma. Regular people are listening to the Dharma, not to mention those of us who are monastic practitioners. So, “‘Work diligently;’ ‘do not be lazy!’. He used this as skillful means with which to approach his son.” The Buddha used all kinds of methods to entice and guide us. He gradually guided us along and led us to apply the Four Noble Truths, the Fourfold Mindfulness and also the Four Right Efforts

The Four Right Efforts: Eliminate any evil that has already arisen. Prevent from arising any evil that has not arisen. Quickly give rise to goodness not yet arisen. Nurture any goodness that has already arisen.

The Four Right Efforts include “eliminating any evil that has already arisen.” We must quickly eliminate [evil] and eradicate it. “Prevent from arising evil that has not arisen.” We are already diligently advancing, so we must not allow evil to arise. As for evil that has already arisen, those of us who are being indolent must quickly cut this off. When it comes to unwholesome habitual tendencies we already have, we must quickly eliminate them. As for negative tendencies we do not have, we must not be influenced by others to develop them.

“Quickly give rise to goodness not yet arisen.” If we do not have good habitual tendencies, if we have not taken wholesome actions, we must promptly learn to “quickly give rise to goodness not yet arisen.” If we have not yet done good things, we must promptly do them. As for “nurturing any goodness that has already arisen,” since we are being diligent and we are giving rise to goodness, we must move more quickly and simply keep advancing in the proper direction. When it comes to doing the right thing, we should just do it. These are the Four Right Efforts.

The Four Right Efforts are a practice of diligence. Diligence and hard work in the practice of these four kinds of teachings spurs us to eradicate evil and give rise to goodness with our body, speech and mind.

The Fourfold Mindfulness and Four Right Efforts are both practices of diligence. We must be diligent and earnest in the practice of these four kinds of teachings, so they are called the Four Right Efforts, which spur us to eradicate all evil and give rise to goodness in body, speech and mind. The means we must truly always be mindful.