Episode 376 – Have Faith in True Teachings
>> First the provisional was revealed, then the true. He gave skillful teachings that were particularly suited to the Five Turbidities. [The Buddha’s] honest words are not false. We must believe in and not doubt these true teachings.
>> “When Buddha-children have walked the path in a future lifetime they will become Buddhas. I who possess the power of skillful means teach the Dharma of the Three Vehicles.”
>> All the World-Honored Ones teach the One Vehicle Dharma. Now all those assembled here should resolve all their questions. The teachings of all Buddhas are the same; there is only One Vehicle, not two.
First the provisional was revealed, then the true.
He gave skillful teachings
that were particularly suited to the Five Turbidities.
[The Buddha’s] honest words are not false.
We must believe in and not doubt these true teachings.
We must be grateful. The Buddha patiently and gradually guided sentient beings and taught them according to their capabilities. So, “First the provisional was revealed, then the true” until their capabilities were pretty much mature and He could not wait any longer. Then the Buddha began to “reveal the true” by teaching the Dharma of the One Reality. The Two and Three Vehicles taught in the past are provisional teachings. Now, there is only ultimate reality, the truths of the one reality. For over 40 years, the Buddha “gave skillful teachings.” What He taught over those 40-plus years was what sentient beings needed. He gave teachings based on their capabilities that
“were particularly suited to the Five Turbidities.” This is because over 2000 years ago, the Buddha began to use “skillful means” to teach sentient beings, all so that He could explain suffering to them. Suffering can take countless, innumerable forms. It was not only 2000 years ago that sentient beings suffered. Suffering unceasingly accumulates so [over time], the world experiences even more suffering.
This evil world of the Five Turbidities grows worse and worse. Human morals and ethics are increasingly stretched thin. This is the era of Dharma-degeneration. [The Dharma] is gradually disappearing and human morality is gradually weakening. So, starting more than 2000 years ago, the Buddha gave these teachings and reminded us to acknowledge what will happen in the future. “At this time, you must promptly self-reflect. At this time, you must make preparations for the future by heightening your vigilance.” He hoped we could all form aspirations; this is why He gave teachings.
Just as teachings take us from elementary school, to intermediate school, to university, He hoped we can all eventually become a teaching assistant or a professor in the future. At that time, He hoped everyone could accept the Dharma to prepare for the world in the future when they would give teachings. This is why, at that moment, the Buddha began to teach the Bodhisattva Way. He set aside the Small Vehicle Dharma and began to help people become Bodhisattvas.
Bodhisattvas aspire and vow to engage in spiritual practice, not just for one lifetime, but for countless lifetimes. They practice until they can appear in the evil world of Five Turbidities to save suffering sentient beings. This was what the Buddha hoped for. So, more than 2000 years ago, He began to teach with great care. We already know that this era is truly different [from the past]. What people think about their families and society has already changed a lot. Therefore, we need to believe in the Buddha. “[The Buddha’s] honest words are not false.” He speaks honestly and sincerely.
He wants to teach sentient beings the wondrous Dharma in His mind. He hopes He can teach this wondrous Dharma in time. But the karmic conditions were not yet ripe. We must know that. He often spoke of “conditioned phenomena,” which is inseparable from “unconditioned Dharma.” What we call “the Dharma” is the principles. However, since sentient beings are attached to appearances, [the Buddha] had to give [examples] using external appearances and conditioned phenomena. This was the way. He gave teachings that were suitable for their needs. Actually, since we are discussing “the Dharma,” or “the principles,” we are talking about “unconditioned Dharma.” These are the true principles.
So, the provisional teachings of the past still contained true teachings. The provisional and the true were taught simultaneously. But at the very end, the Buddha seized the opportunity to tell everyone they must promptly return to their pure intrinsic nature. We must no longer be influenced by “conditioned phenomena” and greedily cling to them. So, the Buddha had to “set aside the skillful for direct means.” The “conditioned phenomena” of the past, fame, fortune and all kinds of conditioned things, are what the Buddha hoped we can set aside to return to true principles. Only then can we truly move forward wholeheartedly.
I hope all of you now understand that all things result from the convergence of causes and conditions. This is a principle that is true and not false or illusory. So, “we must believe in” and “not doubt these true teachings.” We must believe in the Buddha’s teachings and not have any doubts about them. To achieve this, we must be mindful.
In the previous passage in the sutra, the Buddha said,
“When Buddha-children have walked the path in a future lifetime they will become Buddhas. I who possess the power of skillful means teach the Dharma of the Three Vehicles.”
Anyone who follows the Buddha to become a monastic and engages in spiritual practice according to [the Dharma] is walking the path and drawing near the Buddha. People who accept His teachings and abide by His precepts are all called “Buddha-children.”
Bodhisattvas, in particular, are truly Buddha-children. Because Bodhisattvas have deep faith and no doubts, they put [the Dharma] into practice and help Buddha-seeds flourish so that the Buddha-Dharma will thrive. They bring the Dharma among the people so everyone can accept it. They present these teachings to the world so everyone who sees or hears it can benefit. They can see the magnificence of the Dharma. Hearing it can teach sentient beings to enter this path [to living properly]. They are true Buddha-children. In this way, true Buddha-children follow the Dharma so “in a future lifetime they will become Buddhas.” They will certainly become Buddhas in the future.
This is as the Buddha said, “I who possess the power of skillful means.” These true Buddha-children are those He has been teaching, with care, with the Dharma and with love, for lifetime after lifetime. So, for many lifetimes in this world, the Buddha has unceasingly taught skillful means so we can renounce evil and give rise to goodness. His karmic connections [with them] are formed unconsciously through these successive lifetimes.
He used various methods until He manifested in this world [as Sakyamuni]. Upon attaining Buddhahood, He then “taught the Dharma of the Three Vehicles.” These were teachings for Hearers, Solitary Realizers and Bodhisattvas. Now, at this time, He wanted to consolidate the teachings for Hearers and Solitary Realizers into the One Vehicle, which is the true Bodhisattva Way of transforming oneself and others, awakening oneself and others and cultivating perfect awakened conduct. This was how the Buddha “taught the Dharma of the Three Vehicles.”
“All the World-Honored Ones,” the next passage in the sutra states, “All the World-Honored Ones teach the One Vehicle Dharma.”
All the World-Honored Ones teach the One Vehicle Dharma. Now all those assembled here should resolve all their questions. The teachings of all Buddhas are the same; there is only One Vehicle, not two.
“All the World-Honored Ones” refers to the. Buddhas who have appeared in this world for countless numbers of past kalpas. They “all taught the One Vehicle Dharma.” This was everything that they taught. The One Vehicle Dharma is the true principles. As we previously learned, “All Buddhas share the same path.” In this world, They all use analogies, expressions and causes and conditions. The ways They teach the Dharma are the same. In the end, They still must return to the One Vehicle Dharma.
Next, we will discuss, “Now all those assembled here should resolve all their questions.” Teaching the Great Vehicle Dharma is all about resolving everyone’s questions. “The teachings of all Buddhas are the same; there is only One Vehicle, not two.” After all this, we ordinary people need to continuously eliminate our doubts. Though we learn the Dharma, we still have questions about birth, aging, illness and death and so on.
Most of the people who listen to the Dharma go through this process. “In the past, I was not willing. I did not know why I.” ․”had to give so much in this lifetime.” They did not know why. After listening to the Dharma teaching that things we did in the past led to our present life where in our relationships we are filled with mutual indebtedness, resentment, hate and enmity. They say, “I see! Now I know. I have opened up my mind.” But as for their future, who knows what it will be like. After this life passes, what will their next life be like? They still have many questions [like this].
So, we need to listen to more [teachings]. Regardless of what our futures will be like, we need to learn more. There is an old saying, “well-read from a previous life.” Take the three- or four-year-old child. I mentioned yesterday as an example. A child of only four had such sincere compassion. She knew Malaysia is very far away from America. Her teacher told her that the disaster victims were in a sad state. Does a four-year-old know what that means? Yes, she does, but she knows more than that.
For adults like us, we just say, “Yes, we know [this is happening], but they are really far away from us.” But this small child did not make distinctions based on distance. She did not think, “This is happening far away.” She just heard her teacher say, “They have no food to eat and no shelter. In this cold weather, they have no [warm] clothes; this is very sad.” She simply felt empathy for them, deep in her heart. How could a four-year-old child really know what things are like there? As she sang the song, “Prayer,” her tears kept falling.
Over these past two days, I have been thinking. She is so young and innocent, but, with a little information, she realized many things. She understood the sadness of people who lived so far away. If, right now, I tell all of you about how sad things are there, how much they suffer, I cannot fully explain it in a way that you can take it to heart and experience that suffering. But at her school, after her teacher briefly explained what happened, her compassion was easily evoked. Don’t you think, in a previous life, she already cultivated this sense of compassion?
Another child said, “I want to sing loudly for the disaster victims in America, so they can all hear me praying for them.” See, isn’t this wisdom? We can witness how these two children are exercising compassion and wisdom. Can you imagine how, at just four, five years old, they have such faith that they are free of doubts? We must believe in the Buddha’s principles and not allow [our faith] to constantly waver, believing sometimes and constantly doubting at other times. We understand the past, so we must have faith in the future,
As I just told everyone, perhaps in our past lives, we were present during the Buddha’s lifetime. However, our spiritual aspirations were not firm, so we still transmigrate within the Six Realms. Right now, we are very fortunate that we can review these teachings to [apply them] in the future. The more we review, the clearer our understanding will be. We can learn terms very quickly, but we must really take them to heart for them to stay with us.
If we casually do something unwholesome, have an unwholesome thought or do an unwholesome deed, then those seeds will enter [our minds]. If we have wholesome thoughts and do good deeds, these good seeds will also enter [our minds]. So, these young children had probably given rise to good thoughts and done good deeds. If they have already done this, they are familiar with doing it among people. So, as soon as they hear about disasters and victims of disaster, they have an impression of their tremendous suffering, Thus, that sense of compassion arises in them.
There is a saying, “After we die, we cannot take anything with us except for karma.” These karmic forces follow us. So, we must mindfully review [the teachings] now and hope that in the past, we have already heard the Dharma and practiced the Great Vehicle. Even if we did not do this continuously, we have still sown the seeds and created this karmic condition. We must further understand that, in this era, we live in an evil world of Five Turbidities. This is very obvious. The weather, and the four elements, are not in balance. As for people’s minds, they are not in harmony. If neither minds nor the weather are in harmony, there will be many disasters in the world.
Thus, we must now understand the Buddha’s mindfulness in [teaching] in this evil world of the Five Turbidities. For countless eons, what He taught was “suitable for the Five Turbidities,” using skillful means to patiently guiding people. He wants us to recognize that life is filled with suffering, so we must constantly heighten our vigilance. We must not indulge ourselves and ceaselessly create more karma. This is why we must believe in the Buddha’s teachings.
“The teachings of all Buddhas are the same.” As for Sakyamuni Buddha and all Buddhas of the past and in the future, these past, present and future Buddhas all appeared in the world and gave the same teachings. We must “resolve our questions.” We should no longer have doubts. All of our afflictions arise from delusions of views and thinking, dust-like delusions and delusions of ignorance. These three kinds of fundamental afflictions give rise to doubts and questions that prevent us from accepting the proper teachings. Thus, we must be very mindful.
“The teachings of all Buddhas are the same.” It is not just Sakyamuni Buddha or past Buddhas. Perhaps, all around us, there are many Buddhas from the past. All Buddhas come to the world out of compassion; they steer the ship of compassion back here. We must, at all times, accept good teachings with gratitude. “In a group of three, I will find my teacher.” When others show us the wrong way of behaving, we must be grateful to them for reminding us not to walk that path. When others show us the proper course, we must be grateful to them and follow the right path without deviation. We must seize the moment and immediately engage in diligent practice.
This must be done through interacting with people. The Buddha has told us that we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature. Moreover, Buddhist sutras constantly talks about “returning on the ship of compassion.” Guan Yin Bodhisattva returns out of compassion. Maitreya Buddha returns out of compassion. Manjusri Bodhisattva returns out of compassion. Earth Treasury Bodhisattva and many others also return out of compassion. All past Buddhas and Bodhisattvas repeatedly come to this world to teach by example.
We cannot say, “This person looks dumb.” Actually, those with great wisdom may appear foolish. Each person has his or her own causes, conditions and affinities with sentient beings. How can we help sentient beings be more aware? How can we teach and guide sentient beings? Toward everyone around us, we must feel a sense of gratitude and respect. So, if we can see how “the teachings of all Buddhas are the same” and “there is only One Vehicle, not two,” we will be grateful to every person.
Think about how Sakyamuni Buddha lived more than 2000 years ago. Although He said there were. Buddhas throughout countless past eons, that past is actually neither long nor short. All Buddhas are past, present and future Buddhas. As I often tell all of you, the moment I walked in just now is the past.
As I am talking, this is the present. But actually, the words I have just spoken are now in the past. If we want to know how to explain time, we should not overthink it. The past is a moment, the present is a moment and the future is moment. Past, present and future are unceasing. Time continuously changes. The past is actually a very short period of time. We always think of the past as very long, but actually, the past is very short. We should seize the present and be mindful of this moment. This is most important.
So, I hope we can all realize “first the provisional, then the true.” The provisional teachings that come first help us understand the workings of the Buddha-Dharma. We must practice diligently. To engage in spiritual practice not for ourselves, but for the sake of all sentient beings. This is the appearance and vehicle of one reality. It is also the wondrous Dharma of one reality. This is our most important goal in learning the Buddha’s teachings. Therefore, we must always be mindful.