Episode 57 – Great Vows Extend in All Ten Directions
>> An enlightened sentient being seeks the path to Buddhahood and transforms sentient beings because he cannot bear to let sentient beings suffer. He puts the teachings into practice and works to deliver others. Thus, he has a mind of great enlightenment and is a great enlightened being.
>> A Bodhisattva’s great vows extend to all the ten directions for asankyakalpas. Because he courageously and diligently transforms himself and other sentient beings, a Bodhisattva also deserves to be called Mahasattva.
I said previously that the Lotus Dharma-Assembly was also attended by 80,000 Bodhisattvas. They were all great Bodhisattvas; they were “enlightened sentient beings.” Moreover, they were great enlightened beings. They sought the path to Buddhahood and transformed sentient beings because they could not bear to let sentient beings suffer.” So, they put the teachings into action and went among people to save and transform them. A mind that can make such an aspiration is a “mind of great enlightenment.” Thus, they are great enlightened beings.
An enlightened sentient being seeks the path to Buddhahood and transforms sentient beings because he cannot bear to let sentient beings suffer. He puts the teachings into practice and works to deliver others. Thus, he has a mind of great enlightenment and is a great enlightened being.
So, a Bodhisattva makes great vows. The Four Great Vows and the Four Infinite Minds are all requirements for being a Bodhisattva. So, the great vows of a Bodhisattva extend to all ten directions. They are not just in this one place, in this one country and within these boundaries. No. A Bodhisattva’s great vows must extend in ten directions because. Bodhisattvas come to this world to go among people. Wherever there are people, Bodhisattvas will appear.
The Buddha has told us, “In the Saha World, sentient beings share collective karma.” The karma created by sentient beings grows as it is accumulated and becomes more serious as more is created. Thus, our negative karma is very severe. This collective karma will cause imbalances in minds and climates across the world. If people’s minds are not in harmony, this easily results in manmade calamities. Examples of manmade calamities are war, political unrest, civil strife and confrontations with other countries. These are major manmade calamities. Minor manmade calamities are instabilities in society or bad economies. If an entire country’s economy cannot return to prosperity, then its people will suffer from poverty. So for the citizens of a country to be blessed, its society must be peaceful and its people’s minds must be in harmony. Then the economy of the country will be stable, and its citizens can live in peace.
But everyone’s minds being in harmony and society being at peace is easier said than done. Consider South America, Africa, etc. There are many impoverished countries. Let us consider South America alone. We keep hearing about Chile right now. The economy of Chile is a bit better, but the four elements there are not in balance. One day, there was a magnitude 8.8 earthquake. That truly turned their world upside down. The entire society fell into chaos because in one moment, everything seemed to disappear. Everything vanished into thin air like illusions, bubbles or shadows. Everything was gone, destroyed. Just think, even their roads were cut off and emergency relief could not reach them from the outside. The government also could not reach the disaster area right away to deliver food and material goods or to comfort and provide for the people. So during that period, some people’s hearts went astray and they committed robberies.
Some of these people did not loot out of hunger. The things they stole were high-tech equipment such as computers and refrigerators. They looted valuable things. Of course, some people were also very poor, and robbed others because they were hungry. Luckily, after a period of rioting and looting, the government quickly took control and mobilized to calm things down. After several days, one by one, these items were returned to the police. This was also very extraordinary. How could this possibly happen? When compared with the rest of South America, this country is one of the wealthier ones 100 percent of the people have access to education.
But in contrast, why can’t a close-by place like Haiti recover from its earthquake after such a long time? They experienced suffering on top of suffering. I have explained this. It was already a poor country. More importantly, it was rare for people to receive education there. Only 30-40 percent of the people could read. This society was in a constant state of civil unrest, so the economy was unstable, society was not at peace and people’s minds could not be in harmony. So, as soon as this country faced a disaster, in this case, a natural disaster, recovery required dealing with thousands of loose ends. Tying them up seemed impossible. This is something that is truly worrisome.
So, Tzu Chi volunteers from neighboring countries crossed borders to help the people there. Right now the help for Chile comes from Argentina. We know that later, Tzu Chi volunteers from. Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil, these three countries, will meet in Chile and work together. After we did a thorough assessment, we decided to help them.
In particular, we received support from the country’s leaders, from their president and governors to local public figures. When we asked for tax exemptions, the government agreed. We also asked the military to help us transport supplies. If expediency was needed, we requested military planes for air transport so we would not be affected by road conditions. Of course, we were very grateful to them. The government was very sensible in recognizing this foreign organization. Because the government understood and affirmed us, believed in our organization, they fully cooperated with and supported us. They did not give us any difficulties at all. Things went smoothly. The road to providing emergency aid was wide open.
Furthermore, the local Chinese residents and the Taiwanese businesspeople were all very eager to help. These immigrants had already put down roots in that country. There, their finances and businesses were stable, and they wanted to give back to the country. Now the causes and conditions were mature, so many Taiwanese immigrants and businesspeople there held Tzu Chi gatherings every night. By day, Tzu Chi volunteers from Argentina assessed the damage and managed the procurement of supplies, etc. At night they talked with everyone about Tzu Chi. So it seemed that in Chile, every step we took was solid and steady. The communication channels were smooth. This country already had a good foundation. Everyone was educated and financially stable. So even though there was a disaster, the recovery happened quickly. For those born in Chile, even when there is a disaster, they can still be counted among the fortunate.
Compared to Chile, Haiti was very different. Every step we took there was arduous, especially because the people were impoverished and many of them were uneducated. Though they were pure in heart, they were also easily provoked. When people went to provide relief, those who were more greedy could, with a single act, easily incite an entire group of people to riot. So when we provided relief in Haiti, we needed bodyguards every day. We needed UN Peacekeeping Forces and military personnel to protect us.
Tzu Chi volunteers had a very hard time, each step was difficult and very arduous. But they truly kept to the universal vows; they could not bear to let others suffer and wanted to eliminate those difficult situations. They had to exercise both compassion and wisdom as well as the Four Infinite Minds of kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity. At the same time, they vowed to save all sentient beings, however numerous. The Four Great Vows must be applied in conjunction with the Four Infinite Minds. That is a Bodhisattva.
A Bodhisattva’s great vows extend to all the ten directions for asankyakalpas. Because he courageously and diligently transforms himself and other sentient beings, a Bodhisattva also deserves to be called Mahasattva.
One day, after the volunteer assembly, we had a video conference with six countries at once. When it was Haiti’s turn, a volunteer, Ji-min, introduced two local volunteers. They wished to see me. “But now, the rain is coming down hard. The internet is cutting out, so they cannot see you.” I said, “I cannot see you either; I can only hear your voices. I cannot see your image.” I just listened to their voices. This pair of brothers were both drivers. They had great affinities with us, so they were our chauffeurs and bodyguards. Every day, they spent time with Tzu Chi volunteers. They went from being strangers to friends, from not knowing us to knowing us, and then from knowing to understanding Tzu Chi.
About half a month earlier, I had said to [the volunteers], “We were not sent by God. We decided to volunteer ourselves. You are all Bodhisattvas. You must respect the religions of others, but do not forget your own duty. You must bring the spirit of Buddhism there and explain the Bodhisattva ideal to them. You are a group of Living Bodhisattvas; you went there on your own initiative, you set aside your families and jobs and paid your own way to get there. You are helping them out of great love, giving unconditionally, selflessly and without regrets. You must explain this to them.”
From that day on, the meanings contained in the word “Bodhisattva” and the spirit and principles of Buddhism, were shared with everyone each time volunteers distributed aid. They also led people in prayer. Already, they have nurtured a peaceful and harmonious group of local volunteers, so every step felt solid and stable. These two [brothers] were with the Tzu Chi volunteers every day, so they were very touched. Also, they learned about Bodhisattvas and saw that these Tzu Chi volunteers, ever since stepping onto Haiti’s soil, were educating people with their every action. Everything they did was to care for Haiti’s people out of love. The two brothers were deeply touched, so they became our translators. They translated English to French, and then from French to local dialects since most of the people were uneducated.
From chauffeur and bodyguard, they became translators. The more they translated, the more joy they felt. So, they asked to become Bodhisattvas along with Tzu Chi volunteers. During the videoconference, the older brother spoke first. The older brother was Pierre. He began by saying, “Ni hao” [Hello]. He was also learning Chinese and could also say, “Shang Ren” [Master]. Then, he began to speak in French. When I heard the translation, I learned that he was very touched by. Tzu Chi volunteers. He comprehended the Bodhisattva spirit and also said, “Master, you are very good. Tzu Chi volunteers have also done so much for Haiti. I hope you can pray for us and give us your blessings so that Haiti will become more peaceful. I also vow to be a good Bodhisattva, to be like Tzu Chi volunteers. I’m grateful!”
Then, the younger brother also began to speak. He said, “Tzu Chi volunteers are big-hearted. My heart is not that big yet. But starting from now, I will learn to be more open. I want to be a Bodhisattva like these Tzu Chi volunteers. I’m very grateful and also hope that Master and all Tzu Chi volunteers will pray for blessings for Haiti. I hope that things in Haiti can keep improving.” See, they kept expressing their gratitude, using Mandarin to say, “Gan-en” [with gratitude]. See, the seeds we have planted locally are already coming into fruition. They already vowed to join Tzu Chi. In particular, these two brothers could lead the way. They knew which places had churches, which places had nuns and which places had not yet been reached by emergency relief organizations, so they could guide us.
See, a Bodhisattva’s great vows are not [limited to] one place. She can cross national boundaries to bring more seeds to fruition and help others complete their spiritual practice. So [vows] “extend to all the ten directions for asankyakalpas. He courageously and diligently transforms himself and other sentient beings,” This is a Bodhisattva. Bodhisattvas do not just stay in one spot, but travel to many places. They do so over a very long period of time, not just for one lifetime but over many lifetimes. They transform themselves and also others. Bodhisattvas enlightens themselves and have perfect enlightened conduct. Those with great aspirations are called great Bodhisattvas.
Everyone, to truly learn the Buddha’s teachings, we are to learn the Bodhisattva-path and make great aspirations and vows. Whether the Four Great Vows or the Four Infinite Minds, a Bodhisattva cannot lack any of these. So everyone, please always be mindful.