Episode 334 – The Role Model Rarely Seen in the World
>> Take the Buddha’s work as your work, then mind and matter will be one. As you practice the Bodhisattva-path, the sutra, the path and the road are the same. Set an example that is rarely seen in this world.
>> With all conditions, analogies, expressions and skillful means. I enable all to rejoice. Perhaps I may speak of sutras, gathas, previous lives of disciples, previous lives of Buddhas or things that have never been.
>> “Previous lives of disciples?” This is when the Buddha talks about His disciples, Bodhisattvas and Hearers and so on, and the way they diligently cultivate themselves and transform others in their current and previous lifetimes. Life after life, they have made the great vow to practice the teachings of the path.
>> [He spoke of] things that have never been: These are rare and extraordinary things. Something that has never been is extraordinary. Like spiritual powers, they are hard to fathom and are inconceivable.
Take the Buddha’s work as your work,
then mind and matter will be one.
As you practice the Bodhisattva-path,
the sutra, the path and the road are the same.
Set an example that is rarely seen in this world.
“Take the Buddha’s work as your work, then mind and matter will be one.” We often say that the Buddha comes to the world for one great cause, to open and reveal the Buddha’s [understanding and views] to sentient beings, because they are unyielding and difficult to tame. What part of them is so difficult to tame?
Their minds. Because they continuously reproduce afflictions and ignorance, they are very stubborn. But the Buddha has great compassion. He affirmed for sentient beings that the mind, the Buddha and sentient beings are no different [in their nature]. He taught them they can all attain Buddhahood, as long as they transform their minds from delusion into awakening and from evil into good. So, “the mind and matter will be one.” If we can transform our minds and matters from evil to good, won’t it be easy to accomplish the Buddha’s one great cause?
But sentient beings’ minds are hard to transform because their minds are full of afflictions and discursive thoughts. So, the Buddha utilized various methods to teach us the road back [to our hearts,] which is to help others. This is practicing the Bodhisattva-path.
He teaches us how to walk the Bodhisattva-path. So, we must not deviate from the sutra, the path and the road. So, “As you practice the Bodhisattva-path, the sutra, the path and the road are the same.” For something to be considered a sutra, indeed it must contain the principles of all things in the world, of good and evil.
If we do not know what is evil, how do we know to do good deeds? If we do not know suffering, how do we know to seek blessings? To be a good person, we must choose the right road and not deviate from it. Only then will we truly be in line with principles and penetrate the profound, wondrous and subtle Dharma. So, we must be mindful to walk this road correctly.
“Set an example rarely seen in this world.” If we understand the principles of the path, we will aspire to engage in spiritual practice and to transform sentient beings in the Six Realms. The Buddha had walked such a path, so He is an example for us.
Next, He spoke of “previous lives of Buddhas or things that have never been.”
With all conditions, analogies, expressions and skillful means. I enable all to rejoice. Perhaps I may speak of sutras, gathas, previous lives of disciples, previous lives of Buddhas or things that have never been.
“[He spoke of] previous lives of Buddhas.” These are all real-life examples, which are rarely seen in this world.
Out of compassion, the Buddha drew on various karmic connections as analogies to give us teachings. He also utilized various expressions, each containing principles. Although these were skillful means, they were still very powerful and beneficial for the world and for spiritual practitioners. So when we hear “expressions and skillful means,” we become very happy. Thus, we must feel a constant sense of gratitude.
Previously, we said that “sutras” contain and pass on true principles of all good and evil things in the world. This describes a sutra. The teachings contained in sutras, no matter how long ago they were given, are long-lasting and very extensive. Regardless of the space or location, it is all encompassed in the sutras. The principles are all contained within. These are sutras.
As for “gathas and previous lives of disciples,” we discussed “gathas” yesterday. These hymns are easier to memorize and chant; they easily roll off our tongues.
Moreover, when we read sutras, we recite them. When we are by ourselves, we read sutras quietly. When we gather together to recite the verses, we chant them in unison. Actually, we can also read them aloud on our own. But when there are many people, we can all chant in unison. I hear what you chant, you hear what I chant. The sound of our recitation can pervade all space, so demons, monsters, spirits and Dharma-protectors can all hear it. They will hear our sincerity as well as the principles explained by the Buddha, so they will [come and listen] in this world. Those throughout the universe can all hear it, hear the Buddha’s teachings, the true principles of our world. In doing this, we create merits.
Why does chanting create merits? Because out of reverence, we continuously proclaim and recite the teachings so that everyone can hear them. [The sound] even pervades the universe, so others can also repeatedly chant the truths in the sutras.
“Gathas, previous lives of disciples, previous lives of Buddhas or things that have never been.” Earlier we spoke of “gathas,” hymns with short verses that we can recite directly. From these short texts, we can deduce broad truths.
So, if “gathas” are hymns, what about.
“Previous lives of disciples?” This is when the Buddha talks about His disciples, Bodhisattvas and Hearers and so on, and the way they diligently cultivate themselves and transform others in their current and previous lifetimes. Life after life, they have made the great vow to practice the teachings of the path.
In Buddhist sutras, we often read about why certain disciples had the excellent causes and conditions to meet the Buddha, hear His teachings and quickly attain realizations. They had all the necessary conditions to draw near the Buddha, listen to Him teach and quickly awaken. The Buddha would then explain, “The causes and conditions in their past lives were just like this.” I often speak of this. The Buddha’s Jataka Sutra and other teachings about His previous lives all contain “previous lives of disciples.”
All of the Buddha’s disciples, whether they were Bodhisattvas, Hearers, Arhats or those who were recently inspired, could meet the Buddha, listen to teachings and attain realizations in this life because of certain karmic conditions. These causes and conditions are found in the previous lives of these disciples. The Buddha always used stories of His disciples, the karmic conditions formed in previous lives, as teachings for everyone.
So in this life, they could hear the Buddha-Dharma and attain realization so quickly because they had practiced diligently in their past lives and created many good karmic connections. Thus, “They diligently cultivated themselves and transformed others.” Life after life, they made this great vow. This was something these disciples had all done. So, they “practiced the teachings of the path.” These disciples, in their past lives, had made this kind of great vow, had engaged in spiritual practice life after life. The path they took and the things they experienced became stories of how their past led them to be here. These are the “previous lives of disciples.”
If you hear me describing how the Buddha spoke of a past life of one of His disciples and the things that person went through, that would fall under the category of “previous lives of disciples.”
So, “gathas” illustrate the methods we practice today. “Previous lives of disciples” are stories of the past and present about these disciples.
“[He spoke of] previous lives of Buddhas or things that have never been.” The Buddha would refer to His own previous lives. What kinds of karmic conditions did the Buddha create? He spoke of how the karmic connections between Him and His disciples were formed in past lives. For example, in the Buddha’s Jataka Sutra, there is a story I have told before.
In one lifetime, the Buddha was an elder who realized that life was impermanent and saw that the majority of people were suffering. He had money and power, so he aspired to help all those who were suffering. He wanted to make sure that those who were hungry had food to eat, those who were cold had clothes to wear, those who were ill had medicine and doctors to treat them. Out of his love for human beings, he put his heart into constantly helping the suffering and constantly advising and guiding the wealthy to benefit society and benefit others.
Sovereign Sakra, in the heaven realm, worried that this man would do so many good deeds that the man would be reborn in heaven [to take his place]. Would this man become the leader of all heavenly beings? Therefore, he thought of a plan to stop him from doing more good deeds in the world. The heavenly lord ordered one of his people to come to the world to talk to this man. “Sir, please do not keep doing so many good deeds; this will not benefit you. You will fall into hell.”
“If doing good deeds will cause me to fall into hell and suffer, what will happen to those I helped? They will be born in heaven and escape suffering. If so, then only one person will fall into hell. If I do good deeds, I will go to hell, but I am only one person. Meanwhile, those I helped will go to heaven. Isn’t that a very good thing? I am willing to do this.”
The heavenly lord was observing all this. He had sent a heavenly being to disrupt this elder’s practice of good deeds, but this elder was so at ease. So, the heavenly lord appeared and asked, “Why are you doing these good deeds? Don’t you want to go to heaven? Why are you willing to fall into hell?”
The elder answered, “What is the big deal about the heaven realm? Although living in heaven may be enjoyable and the lifespan there is very long, that kind of life will still come to an end. What I want are truths that are non-arising and non-ceasing. What I need is purity in my mind and everlasting True Suchness. That is the goal of my spiritual practice. Awakening to the truths of the world and the Six Realms is my goal.”
At this point of the story, the Buddha said, “That elder was me, the present Sakyamuni Buddha. For lifetimes, I did not practice for myself, but with all my actions worked for sentient beings. If there is anything I seek in return, it is for everyone to return to the truth, to the non-arising and non-ceasing truth. I hope everyone can thoroughly understand this kind of truth. Throughout my past lives and up to this moment, this is something that has never changed. This is true for all my lifetimes.”
This is a “previous life.” This is how the Buddha spoke of Himself and the principles He followed for lifetimes. So, “previous lives of Buddhas” are when the Tathagata talks about His past lives, the various causes and conditions that. He created while He was teaching sentient beings as a Bodhisattva, as well as the karma He created through actions, the paths He walked, and so on.
Karma is something created. In His past lives, He continuously engaged in diligent practice and definitely never stopped. For the sake of transforming sentient beings, He came to this world. That is His goal. The sutra texts where the Buddha speaks of the causes and conditions of His past lives are categorized under “previous lives of Buddhas.”
“Things that have never been” refer to very extraordinary things or things that have not yet happened. These are things that no one had ever heard of or seen. We have never known of these things, so when they suddenly happen or when we hear about these principles, we see them as rare and extraordinary things.
[He spoke of] things that have never been: These are rare and extraordinary things. Something that has never been is extraordinary. Like spiritual powers, they are hard to fathom and are inconceivable.
For example, the Buddha said that everyone can manifest the Six Spiritual Powers, but that is by no means easy. One is the power of the heavenly eye. What our eyes can see is limited to a defined area. When there is a wall in front of us, that is where our vision stops. We cannot see through it to the other side. But with the power of the heavenly eye, not only can we see the other side of the wall, we can even see heaven and hell from Earth. This kind of vision can see everything. This is the power of the heavenly eye. When our sight is not limited by distance or material objects, we have the power of the heavenly eye.
Can we achieve this? After we are born, we go from childhood, to middle age to old age, and our physical eyes deteriorate over time. In accordance with the laws of nature, all Six Roots will also decline over time. This happens to all things in the world; how could the Six Roots be an exception? So “the Six Spiritual Powers” the Buddha mentioned are really inconceivable.
Let us talk about Maudgalyayana. In the time it takes to eat a meal, he could go from one mountain peak to another in one step. This kind of spiritual power was recorded in the Buddhist sutras. But we have never had this power, and we have never seen it.
However, in this modern time, we can match the Six Spiritual Powers to things we see right now. [For example,] while I am speaking here, those in the [original] Jing Si Abode prayer hall are also diligently listening to me through the TV. They can see me speaking here. Although there are several walls between us, they can still see me.
The flow of information is so smooth, not only can they [see me,] they can hear me as well. This is like the modern-day power of the heavenly eye and heavenly ear. As for the power of transporting oneself, am I going there, or are they coming here? We can see each other even from afar, thanks to modern technology.
However, we have not yet attained the power of knowing past lives. But the Buddha had. He spoke of everything from the past lives of His disciples to. His own aspirations from countless kalpas ago. With the power of knowing past lives, the Buddha knew all this. As for us, we have never known about it.
So, this is really difficult for us to understand. However, we must have faith in the Buddha’s teachings, whether He is speaking of the previous lives of. His disciples or of other Buddhas. All these are related to karmic conditions. We must believe in
these spiritual powers that are hard to fathom and inconceivable. These are “things that have never been.” Perhaps something suddenly comes up. We may not have heard of it before, but we know about it now. As we learn from the Buddha, we must try to learn more about His life. So, we must not give rise to doubts. We must even develop the wisdom of relating things. So, the path is a road to walk on. The road, the path, is the sutra. The principles transmitted by all sutras are very expansive. Therefore, when we learn the sutras, we must always be mindful.