Episode 3 – Eliminate Defilements to Achieve Purity
>> “The world was not originally evil, but turbidities caused it to become evil. Turbidity occurs when dirt falls into water. When water loses its purity, it is turbid. Gushing spring water brings purity; defilements are eliminated and purity remains.”
>> “Sariputra, in the worlds of the ten directions, there are not even two vehicles, much less three.”
>> “Sariputra, in the worlds of the ten directions, all Buddhas appear in the evil world of the Five Turbidities, that is, the turbidity of kalpa, the turbidity of afflictions, the turbidity of sentient beings, the turbidity of views and the turbidity of life.”
>> Sakyamuni Buddha entered the turbid world to teach the One Vehicle Dharma.
>> “Turbidity” means filthy and clouded
>> Kalpa is a Sanskrit word that means “a long time.” It is an era of certain phenomena and states of being. There are increasing and decreasing kalpas, split into good, evil, mild and serious.
“The world was not originally evil,
but turbidities caused it to become evil.
Turbidity occurs when dirt falls into water.
When water loses its purity, it is turbid.
Gushing spring water brings purity;
defilements are eliminated and purity remains.”
Indeed, the world was not originally evil, but turbidities caused it to become so. We often say this is an “evil world of Five Turbidities.” Those who do not understand the Buddha-Dharma may say, “the world is very evil.” Is that the case? “The world” is only another label for time and space. How can time be evil? How can space be evil? Within time and space, there is no evil at all, so nothing can be considered good either. Things are fundamentally this way. But turbidity defiles the world, so it becomes evil.
Similarly, people are very good and kind. Yet, we tend to be guarded. We describe others as good or bad, which labels them as good or evil. Actually, we all originally have the same nature. But “turbidities caused it to become evil.” Turbidity is a form of pollution. The convergence of many causes and conditions ended up defiling us. Thus, our minds became defiled, developed habitual tendencies and created ignorance and many afflictions. Ignorance and afflictions are the foundation of habitual tendencies, so I often talk about how afflictions continuously reproduce, causing continuous convergences [of conditions].
“Turbidity occurs when dirt falls into water.” Why is the water turbid? It was clean and clear. So, how did this clean water become dirty? Because some dirt has been mixed with the water, so the water became turbid.
We all need to use water every day, and the water we drink has to be very clean. In the past, when people drank water before their [scientific] knowledge was advanced, they thought any clear water was drinkable. The ancients, [limited in] understanding, drank from ditches in places without running water. Actually, at the upstream source of ditch water, people washed very filthy things. Every morning, the dirty and filthy things were washed at the ditch. Then, faraway downstream, other people began scooping up water for drinking and eating.
This is the way water continuously flowed. At the source, people washed filthy things but as it flowed on, people downstream continued to use the water. So, by applying their wisdom, people in the past retrieved water at night. They put potassium alum in big water tanks in order to let the filth sink. When they saw the clear water on the surface, they used it for drinking, eating, and for cooking rice and boiling water. This was how they lived in the past.
However, “the Buddha saw 84,000 bugs in a bowl of water.” Ananda had scooped up some flowing water. When the Buddha took the bowl of water, He said, “Ananda, this bowl of water has 84,000 bugs.” Ananda looked at the water closely with his eyes, “No, Venerable Buddha, the water is very clear.” The Buddha said, “In this bowl of water are infinite living beings. They are moving, living things. There are living beings in there, 84,000 of them” 84,000 signifies a very large quantity.
So, Ananda asked the Buddha, “Then what should we do? There are many living beings in the water. What should we do?” The Buddha said, “Use a cloth water filter.” Nowadays we know the water needs to be filtered. This was probably invented by the Buddha. When we went [back then], the monastery would give us a bowl, a pouch, a piece of cloth and a brush. We would use the brush to wash the bowl. If we wanted to drink water, we would scoop water from the stream, then filter it with the white cloth. After being used as a filter, the cloth needed to be rinsed in the water. This was the case during the Buddha’s era.
People in the past used potassium alum, and the Buddha invented the water filter. Nowadays, we constantly say that water has to be filtered, and [talk about] how to filter it. This was the wisdom of the Buddha, and now we consider it science. Modern-day science, utilizing instruments such as high-powered microscopes, can examine [the water] and see many bacteria, which are all moving. Can’t we find bacteria in our bodies too? There are illness-inducing bacteria as well as those that protect our bodies and help us develop immunity.
Therefore, everything happens because of imbalances, or as the result of balances and imbalances; these are all causes and conditions.
Then, “Gushing spring water brings clarity.” If water gushes from a spring, then it will continuously flow. Water gushing from underground springs is clear. If there is stagnant water that becomes turbid, the spring water that continuously gushes forth can gradually dilute it until it becomes clear.
If we scoop turbid water out of a tank and keep pouring clear water into it, with enough clear water, there will be less and less turbid water. So, the turbid water is diluted until it becomes clear water. So, we say, “Gushing spring water brings clarity.” As long as we keep adding clear water, the turbid water will naturally be diluted. So, “Defilements are eliminated and purity remains.” If we keep adding clean [water] to dirty water and continuously pour in more, the more clarity there is, the less turbidity there will be. After the turbidity is eliminated, clarity will remain. Thus, what remains is pure.
We all want to engage in spiritual practice, but we each have our own habitual tendencies. Habitual tendencies are acquired; we have not always had them. Due to our habitual tendencies we cannot attain thorough understanding and are not clear on the principles of the world. Principles, time and space are everlasting; they always exist. [But how long things last in the world] depends on the convergence of causes and conditions. The natural state of things is good.
Good people are those who are spiritually refined. These people willingly vow to engage in spiritual practice, to thoroughly understand the principles, and then teach and promote them. They may also put them into practice so they can motivate others. So, spiritual practitioners are like a pure stream. The more of them there are, the more people will gradually understand the truth and eliminate their delusions. Thus, we constantly say that to eliminate delusion, we must eliminate superstition and guide people onto the right path.
So, if people are willing to engage in spiritual practice and put their heart into understanding the truths of all things in the universe, they can be a seed that gives rise to many others. Then, there will be many springs [bringing forth purity], and naturally turbidity will be eliminated. Thus, “Defilements are eliminated and purity remains.” There will no longer be so much turbidity in the world.
You may not yet clearly understand the teachings you have recently heard, but as long as your mind remains pure as you observe the weather or take in the world, you may understand [why there are] all these many colors, appearances and natures. Because natures and appearances vary, things of different shapes and appearances have different natures. Fire is hot by nature; water is wet by nature. I have talked about this before.
So, when we see water flowing in the stream, do we understand what its nature is? Water is wet by nature. We all know this. Sometimes, we put a machine in the room. What is it? It is a dehumidifier. You may think the room is not humid. But after a while, if you open the machine’s lid, you will see water. This atmosphere cannot be lacking in moisture, but excess moisture causes terrible humidity. So, we need to achieve a harmonious balance to have a healthy atmosphere.
Actually, moisture is water vapor. When the air is hot, it can absorb moisture. Then it condenses into water vapor until it precipitates as rain. This is the [water] cycle. The Buddha always tells us the underlying principle of all things is the same.
The earlier sutra passage states,
“Sariputra, in the worlds of the ten directions, there are not even two vehicles, much less three.”
Indeed, we should all know there is really only one principle. Others are only given because we lack understanding. So, the Buddha has to continuously explain things. In this passage, the Buddha began to say,
“Sariputra, in the worlds of the ten directions, all Buddhas appear in the evil world of the Five Turbidities, that is, the turbidity of kalpa, the turbidity of afflictions, the turbidity of sentient beings, the turbidity of views and the turbidity of life.”
We understand that the Buddha manifests in this turbid world. Indeed, we constantly make this correlation; sentient beings’ afflictions are the reason the Buddha manifests in this world. Think about how, when Sakyamuni Buddha appeared over 2000 years ago, the world was already turbid. Actually, the turbidity of the world is the reason the Buddha awakened His compassion. Because He saw suffering, He exercised compassion with wisdom. Because of this wisdom, His compassion was awakened. So, He could not bear to simply stay in the palace and enjoy himself.
Because He viewed the world with wisdom, He saw its impermanence, suffering and many contradictions. This inspired His [spiritual] aspirations. Enjoyment is temporary, but suffering and impermanence are long-lasting. Thus, He did not want to indulge in pleasures in His brief life. He wanted to seek an everlasting principle that He could teach people. This was the greatness of the Buddha.
In terms of worldly phenomena, this happened over 2000 years ago. In terms of ultimate reality, He [attained Buddhahood] countless kalpas ago. We all intrinsically have Buddha-nature, and so did the Buddha.
Yet, this sutra passage states that the Buddha was born into the evil world of the Five Turbidities. So, what are the Five Turbidities? And why was the Buddha born among these Five Turbidities? In particular, it was because this was the perfect time to teach the One Vehicle Dharma.
Sakyamuni Buddha entered the turbid world to teach the One Vehicle Dharma.
Previously, I told all of you that the Buddha taught for over 40 years. Though His disciples remained by His side, not all of them necessarily realized His understanding and views, because before giving the Lotus teachings. He had not yet told each of them, “You can also attain Buddhahood. As your goal of spiritual practice, I want you to discover your intrinsic nature of True Suchness. Thus, you are all Buddhas.”
So, [hearing] the Two or Three Vehicle teachings, some were afraid. “Through my spiritual practice, I have already eliminated afflictions. I have no conflicts with this world, I understand everything now. How could I go among people again?” Some people were afraid of this Dharma, so 5000 people left the assembly.
Even during the Buddha’s lifetime, His disciples still did not understand the causes and conditions that. He constantly spoke of. They believed, but how could they change their karmic conditions? Previously, I spoke of the five bhiksus. Why were they so blessed that they received the first teachings the Buddha gave upon attaining enlightenment? How could they be so blessed? Where did their causes and conditions come from? People wanted to find out the root cause.
They had followed the Buddha for over 40 years and believed in the law of karma, but they still could not thoroughly understand it. So, the Buddha had to continuously teach with various analogies. In our times, in this evil world of the Five Turbidities, we especially need the Buddha’s teachings.
In this evil world of the Five Turbidities, the One Vehicle Dharma needs to be taught. It is like a gushing spring. Clearly, the stagnant water on this land is turbid. To clear up the turbidity, we need a continuous stream of gushing spring water, or we must continuously pour in clear water. Then the turbid water will naturally become clear. So, we must constantly promote the Dharma. As long as a teaching is beneficial, we must continuously pass it along verbally to eliminate delusions and break through superstitions. Ignorance stems from delusion, so we must first eliminate deluded beliefs to return to the Right Dharma.
Therefore, the Buddha comes to the world solely for this matter. Thus, in this turbid world, the more polluted a place is, the greater its need for the Buddha-Dharma. Wasn’t this the work of Purna Maitrayani Putra? He was unafraid to go to places where people might be wicked and evil. Even if they cursed and beat him, and so on, he would always feel gratitude toward them. The Buddha taught that no matter what adverse conditions arise, we must always be grateful.
We must have gratitude for people with different habitual tendencies. People’s turbidities and habitual tendencies combine to fill the world with polluted understandings. For spiritual practitioners, it is very important to give unconditionally and then feel gratitude. With this unwavering spirit, we will not yield to our harsh environment. This requires us to apply [different] methods which suit our environment. What is our goal?
Over 2000 years ago, the Buddha manifested in the evil world of the Five Turbidities. Actually, turbidity gradually increased as average lifespans shortened during the decreasing kalpa. So, the evil world of the Five Turbidities is a turbidity of kalpa.
“Turbidity” means filthy and clouded. This turbidity was already very strong, very severe.
“Kalpa” is a Sanskrit word.
Kalpa is a Sanskrit word that means “a long time.” It is an era of certain phenomena and states of being. There are increasing and decreasing kalpas, split into good, evil, mild and serious.
“Kalpa,” in modern terms, is time, yet it is an incalculably long period of time. So, in the Buddhist sutras [we see] “countless kalpas in the past,” or “countless kalpas ago,” which means a very long time.
One kalpa, made up of one increasing and decreasing kalpa, is very long. How can it be calculated? I have told everyone that [a decreasing kalpa] is the time of an average human lifespan, starting at 84,000 years and decreasing by one year every century, reaching an average of ten years. Then the average lifespan of ten years increases by one year every 100 years until it reaches 84,000 years. This is “one increasing and decreasing kalpa,” which is only one small kalpa. Everyone, calculating how many years this takes is very hard. Thus, what we usually call “a long time,” Buddhist sutras call “countless kalpas.”
Everyone, in this time and space, how have we let things become defiled? We must ask ourselves this question. As we learn the Dharma, we should put it into practice, and we must always be mindful.