Episode 129 – Achievement of the Samadhi Demeanor
>> “First, drops of dew fall to immerse the dust of desire. Opening the gate of Nirvana and fanning the wind of liberation, they eliminate the fiery afflictions of the world with the refreshing Dharma.”
>> First, drops of dew fall to immerse the dust of desire. Opening the gate of Nirvana and fanning the wind of liberation, they eliminate the fiery afflictions of the world with the refreshing Dharma – Chapter on Virtues, Sutra of Infinite Meanings.
>> “At that time, Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha expounded a Great Vehicle sutra named Infinite Meanings. This sutra taught the Bodhisattva Way, which was guarded and retained by all Buddhas.”
>> This situation was the same as how the present Buddha had to wait for the opportunity to freely carry out. His original intent, which is the Fulfillment of Time.
>> “When He had finished expounding that sutra, He then, in the midst of the assembly, sat in full lotus and entered the Samadhi of Infinite Meanings; His body and mind were unmoving.”
>> “When He finished expounding that sutra, He then, in the midst of the assembly, sat in full lotus.” This condition was the same as the present Buddha and the demeanor He achieved. “His body and mind were unmoving” shows the achievement of the demeanor of Samadhi.
Learning the Buddha’s teachings is about taking good care of our minds. Even when the most subtle thought arises, we must uphold that fundamental responsibility. This especially applies to spiritual practitioners. Therefore,
“First, drops of dew fall to immerse the dust of desire. Opening the gate of Nirvana and fanning the wind of liberation, they eliminate the fiery afflictions of the world with the refreshing Dharma.”
“First, drops of dew fall” tells us to take care of our minds so we will always retain (the Dharma) like the earth retains moisture. For the earth to remain moist, it requires a balanced climate. If the climate is balanced, there is sunshine during the daytime and moonlight during the evening. There is moisture in the surrounding atmosphere. [Dew occurs when] the heat from the daytime sun draws moisture from the earth, which then condenses when the (temperature) falls again. It is so subtle, miniscule and unnoticeable. First thing in the morning, before the sun comes out, if we carefully examine the grass and leaves, do we not see the dew? When we look carefully at the ground, the ground seems more moist. This is like the minds of spiritual practitioners. Every day, we must take good care of our minds to avoid accumulating fiery afflictions.
Fiery afflictions come from greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. These afflictions create countless “Consequent afflictions.” As we allow these five kinds [of afflictions] to arise in our minds continuously, we feel suffocated, feverish and afflicted. Having anxiety and distress does not create a good mindset. So what can we do? The Dharma is like water and can penetrate and protect our minds. If there is always Dharma-water, then the dust from the parched fields will not fly up whenever the wind blows. Therefore, we must protect our minds well and retain this pure mindset.
The Dharma is [embedded] within every tiny drop. From every matter, person and object, we can gain wisdom. So, our minds must always have such dewdrops [of Dharma]. The Dharma we seek in the world does not only come from sutras or listening to teachings. In our daily living, everything is Dharma. So “first, drops of dew fall.” Everything is like dew, like Dharma-water, which “immerses the dust of desire.” Our afflictions originate from desires. If we constantly use Dharma-water to nurture our minds, then naturally the land will be moist. Then when the wind blows, dust will not stir up into the air.
So, this is “opening the gate of Nirvana and fanning the wind of liberation.” The gate of Nirvana leads to purity and tranquility. That stillness is called Nirvana. Only when our minds are free from contrivances and desires can we truly be tranquil and at peace. This is the kind of mindset that spiritual practitioners and learners of the Buddha’s teachings should have. Developing this state of mind is similar to a breeze coming when it is muggy, or like waving a fan when it is hot. As spiritual practitioners, we have our own wind of liberation in our minds to [cool] ourselves. When we are feeling very hot, we must fully wave the fan in our minds so our feverish, afflicted minds can cool down a little.
We need to self-reflect and feel remorse. We must be remorseful and reflective. This is like waving the fan in our minds to dissipate the heat so things become cooler. So, “they eliminate the fiery afflictions of the world with the refreshing Dharma.” This tells us to take good care of our minds.
First, drops of dew fall to immerse the dust of desire. Opening the gate of Nirvana and fanning the wind of liberation, they eliminate the fiery afflictions of the world with the refreshing Dharma – Chapter on Virtues, Sutra of Infinite Meanings.
The next section in the Lotus Sutra states,
“At that time, Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha expounded a Great Vehicle sutra named Infinite Meanings. This sutra taught the Bodhisattva Way, which was guarded and retained by all Buddhas.”
What the Buddha guarded and retained was the Great Vehicle sutra. It was the Bodhisattva Way of infinite meanings. Infinite Meanings is the Dharma that we derive from our daily living and then exercise and teach to people in our interactions. These are called Great Vehicle teachings, [which are taught in] a Great Vehicle sutra.
“A sutra is a path; this path is a road to walk on,” to be followed in our everyday actions. We have just mentioned that the Buddha’s teachings are very subtle. As we are absorbing His Dharma, we are also training our minds and teaching [others]. He also talked about engaging in spiritual practice by living as a monastic as a way to practice Great Vehicle teachings. I hope everyone can understand this principle.
The same happened during the time of. Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha; He taught a Great Vehicle sutra named “Infinite Meanings.” The short passage I was quoting before was also from the Sutra of Infinite Meanings. Indeed, it trains our minds. It is also the teaching of Bodhisattvas.
Some people may think that. Bodhisattvas are those who help and give to others. That is not all. As part of our Bodhisattva-practice, we must be very aware of the subtleties in our minds, “the perfection of precepts, Samadhi, wisdom, liberation and liberated views and knowledge.” Isn’t that right? This is also a way to walk the Bodhisattva-path. We must also be very meticulous in training our minds so we can go among people to be a role model.
This is what the Buddha wanted to protect, so this is “guarded and retained by all Buddhas.” When the Buddha taught His disciples, He hoped everyone would start by developing Great Vehicle aspirations and go among people. This shows that the past Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha was the same as the present Sakyamuni Buddha. Both wanted to freely carry out their original intent, what was guarded and retained by Buddhas. The Buddha’s first thought after attaining enlightenment was to share that [mental state] with everyone down to the smallest, finest [details]. He wanted everyone to know the true principles of all things of the universe. He wanted to share this profound and vast state. But the time was not right, so His original intent had to be kept in His mind.
He hopes the Dharma will become widespread, that all people will understand it, that their minds can be that meticulous, clear, expansive and embrace everything in the world. This was the Buddha’s original intent. So, the past Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha and the present Sakyamuni Buddha did the same. They waited for the [right] opportunity to teach. This was the moment; the time was probably right.
Manjusri made this comparison between the past Buddha’s mind and the present Sakyamuni Buddha’s original intent. Because Sakyamuni Buddha was still in Samadhi and had not yet emerged, Manjusri Bodhisattva [referenced the past] to explain that the present Sakyamuni Buddha was preparing to carry out His original intent. He was going to expound the Dharma He had retained and guarded for the past 40-plus years. This subtle and wondrous Great Vehicle teaching did not only exist at that time, but had since the time of Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha and up through the present.
We must remember that Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant [actually refers to] the over 20,000 Buddhas who share the same path and have the same mindset. The true great Dharma has to be freely proclaimed to all sentient beings. But He had to wait for the right opportunity. This is how all Buddhas share the same path. Every single Buddha, facing sentient beings with various capabilities, has to wait for the opportunity to give teachings.
This situation was the same as how the present Buddha had to wait for the opportunity to freely carry out. His original intent, which is the Fulfillment of Time.
So, next it says,
“When He had finished expounding that sutra, He then, in the midst of the assembly, sat in full lotus and entered the Samadhi of Infinite Meanings; His body and mind were unmoving.”
The Buddha expounded that sutra. Does everyone know what “that sutra” was? “The Sutra of Infinite Meanings,” just like Sakyamuni Buddha. Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha also radiated light when. He was in a state of Samadhi. “The Lotus Sutra without words” is the Samadhi of Infinite Meanings, which awakens everyone’s minds. He hoped this Great Vehicle sutra would speak to all three capabilities. Among sentient beings, there are people with limited, average and great capabilities. As I previously mentioned, the Four Noble Truths, the Twelve Links of Cyclic Existence and the Six Paramitas were taught according to three different capabilities.
The “Lotus Sutra without words,” is a subtle and wondrous Great Vehicle teaching, and the conditions were ripe for all three capabilities to absorb it. So after teaching the Sutra of Infinite Meanings, He sat in full lotus among the assembly. Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha, after expounding these Great Vehicle teachings, had to then observe the conditions, and note whether or not everyone understood “the Lotus Sutra without words.” Therefore, He sat in full lotus to observe them and enter the Samadhi of Infinite Meanings. This Samadhi of Infinite Meanings is the state of right Samadhi. Then He waited. Since He had entered Samadhi, of course His body and mind were unmoving. This is the state of Samadhi.
“When He had finished expounding that sutra,” refers to the period of time after. He had expounded the Great Vehicle teachings and sat in full lotus in the midst of the assembly. This shows that the rituals for. Buddhas to expound [this] sutra are the same. Past Buddhas did this and so did the present one. They usually [taught] Lotus Sutra without words, as well as the Sutra of Infinite Meanings. Then They would enter Samadhi to observe everyone’s capabilities. His body and mind were unmoving which is achieving the demeanor of Samadhi.
Every single Buddha, when walking, standing, sitting or lying down, has a demeanor of being in Samadhi because each is endowed with the 32 Marks and has perfected their demeanor. So I often remind everyone that, as we go about our daily living, as we walk, stand, sit or lie down, we have a dignified demeanor, which is [a form of] Dharma. We also must take care of the way we speak and move. All must be carried out in a dignified demeanor. Even when we sit, we must have the correct form. These are all demeanors.
“When He finished expounding that sutra, He then, in the midst of the assembly, sat in full lotus.” This condition was the same as the present Buddha and the demeanor He achieved. “His body and mind were unmoving” shows the achievement of the demeanor of Samadhi.
Everyone, learning the Buddha’s teachings start from our minds. If we cannot control our minds in our daily living, it is very possible that our motivation will dry up. Then our minds cannot be calm, and we may easily seem crude in the way we speak or act toward other people. Sometimes we instruct others, “Carefully place this item here.” In the beginning, we may remember to gently say, “Please put it away.” Then we say, “I told you to put it away.” [If the response] is “I’ll do it later.” [Then we say] “Put it away right now!” You see, if we cannot control our minds in our daily living, thoughts will arise and stir.
This is because we did not listen to the Dharma, did not follow the teachings. This is a very common occurrence. It happens again and again, forever and ever, and thus we cannot quickly perfect [our spiritual cultivation]. This is due to our human habitual tendencies. If we do not change them, how can the “drops of dews first fall”? If the Dharma has not entered our hearts, how can we do things properly every day?
So, “first, drops of dew fall to immerse the dust of desire.” In our living, we must be meticulous and take good care of our minds. The Dharma is applied to the intangible. If the Dharma is always in our hearts, there will naturally be Dharma in our actions. Thus, we must retain the Dharma in our hearts so we can absorb even the most subtle teachings and practice them in our living. Then the way we live will never run counter to the Buddha-Dharma. Everyone, please always be mindful.