Episode 395 – Creating Images That Inspire and Guide
>> “The Tathagata-nature is naturally [within us]. We inherently have childlike simplicity and innocence. The law of karma, a principle of nature, has remained the same since Beginningless Time.”
>> “Even children at play, with straws, sticks or reeds, or even with their fingernails, may draw images of the Buddha.”
>> Through the sequence of using skillful means and guiding people according to capabilities, [He used] skillful means, conditioned phenomena to teach sentient beings to be sincere, to erect images, to make offerings and to nurture their faith.
“The Tathagata-nature is naturally [within us].
We inherently have childlike simplicity and innocence.
The law of karma, a principle of nature,
has remained the same since Beginningless Time.”
This is telling everyone that we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature. This nature is an inherent part of us. We were born with it, and not just in this lifetime; since Beginningless Time, in life after life we have had this intrinsic nature. This is what the Buddha repeatedly conveyed to us. We all intrinsically have Buddha-nature, so we must respect ourselves for having the same nature as the Buddha. So, “the Tathagata-nature is naturally within us.”
This is a natural fact. So, “We inherently have childlike simplicity and innocence. Human nature is inherently good.” At the beginning of our lives, we were simple and innocent as children. But our environment unceasingly influenced us, so our pure childlike nature became obscured by mundane habitual tendencies. Also, each of us has different habitual tendencies.
In our daily living, if we live in a vegetarian environment, then we understand how to adopt a vegetarian diet and lifestyle and stay healthy. We may be vegetarians because we cannot bear to eat the flesh of sentient beings or to viciously take the life of a living being. We become vegetarians out of this compassion. After adopting a vegetarian diet, we live in that kind of environment and with that kind of [mindset]. This is healthy for our bodies as well. This is one kind of environment we can live in. In a different environment, where we eat all kinds of meat, we may believe that all living beings exist to be eaten by humans, that this is the way things should be. If we believe that animals are meant to be food for people, that becomes a habitual [way of thinking].
This is another kind of environment. It is said, “We inherently have childlike simplicity and innocence.” Some say we are neither good nor evil, that it is during the time we are children that we are permeated by good and evil in this world. However, when we are born into this world we are following the law of karma. Our lifestyle is one thing; the environment we are born into affects the way we live. But our karmic retributions are also a factor. In our childlike simplicity, we may be neither good nor evil. Young children cannot discern good from evil; they are innocent.
But according to the law of karma, the causes and conditions we created in the past will bear fruit in this lifetime. The kinds of karmic affinities we have created determine the kind of people we will follow. If we follow wholesome people, we will naturally do the Ten Good Deeds and we will be permeated by goodness. If we created negative causes, when we are born in the world this time, we will encounter unwholesome people, who will lead us to evil. This is a result of being influenced by an evil environment. This is the karmic law of cause and effect.
Aside from circumstantial retribution, there is also direct retribution. Circumstantial retribution leads us to be born into this environment and our development will be influenced by the causes and conditions in our surroundings. Whether we are born into wealth or poverty, whether we live in a country at peace or one full of man-made calamities, depends on our causes and conditions. Where we are born depends on our karmic causes and conditions.
Born in a place with many man-made calamities, the people in those countries may flee in all directions and become refugees, or may constantly face disasters and hardships, unable to find peace in their lives. Why are they born in these places? Because of their circumstantial retributions. The causes they created in the past led them to face these retributions, to be born in this kind of country. They have no control over this at all. Some may be born in wealthy countries, but to poor families as a result of their karmic retributions. Or perhaps they may be born to wealthy families. This is all circumstantial retribution. But there is also direct retribution, which means that though some people are born into poor, harsh countries with many manmade calamities, they may still be blessed. Through direct retribution, they have the causes and conditions to shape their lives.
I remember, around Chinese New Year (of 2013), a mayor from the United States [came to visit us]. This mayor was originally from Haiti, which is a historically poor nation. This was his circumstantial retribution. Being born as part of that ethnic group and in that country was circumstantial retribution. But he himself had the karmic conditions to change his life. That enabled him to go to the United States to study and develop a career. He eventually become the mayor of a city.
Then causes and conditions converged when Hurricane Sandy struck the East Coast of the United States. Because of this flooding, [the mayor] was able to form a karmic connection with us, with Taiwan. So, he came to Taiwan from the United States to better understand Tzu Chi and then to bring the seeds of Tzu Chi back to the United States. After this, in the future, this mayor will embark on a different path by becoming a Tzu Chi volunteer, a Living Bodhisattva. Thus, the changes in life are inconceivable, but they are inseparable from the law of karma.
Everyone faces circumstantial retribution and direct retribution. The karmic affinity we have with our parents leads us to [face] their circumstantial retribution. No matter where our parents are, or whether they are rich or poor, we are born into their circumstances. Then based on our direct retribution, we have the potential to grow and change. This is our direct retribution. Therefore, we must believe in the karmic law of cause and effect, which
“has remained the same since Beginningless Time.” No matter how far back in time we go, for each of us, “the Tathagata-nature is naturally [within us].” This has been the case since Beginningless Time, from the past to the present, and then into the future. This is beginningless and endless. Our Buddha-nature will always be around. Thus, “if we do not transform ourselves in this life, when will we do so?” We must try to mindfully comprehend that the Buddha came to this world for one great cause. Right before He entered Parinirvana, for the sake of future sentient beings, He worked hard to make sure the Dharma would be unceasingly transmitted. Before the Buddha entered Parinirvana, He encouraged His disciples to build stupas, erect shrines or sculpt Buddha statues. To encourage them, He said that creating statues and building stupas and temples is a way of transmitting the Buddha-Dharma.
There is a legend that takes place in the ancient kingdom of Koryo, presently called Korea. In the ancient kingdom of Koryo, legend tells us there was a king. This king was very benevolent. He treated his people as his own children, so he often ventured outside the city to assess how they were doing. One day, not far from the city, he saw from afar a tuft of rainbow-colored cloud, and this tuft was fully covering the land. He saw this strange phenomenon and thought, “Clouds are supposed to be in the sky; why is that cloud covering the land?” Curious, he walked closer. He headed toward this rainbow cloud. Once he got close, he saw an elderly monastic standing in the middle of the cloud. This elderly practitioner held a tin staff in his hand.
He felt happy upon seeing this person, so he wanted to approach him. But then he could no longer see this monastic; he had disappeared. Then he saw a mound of grass on the ground. He brushed aside the grass and asked his people to dig in the ground there. At about ten feet down, they uncovered a tin staff and a pair of monastic shoes. Then they kept digging deeper, and uncovered a stone slab with foreign writing. They could not read those characters, so he called one of his officials to translate these words. That official translated the words as “stupa temple.”
“What exactly is a stupa?” [The king asked]. The minister said, “Another translation for it is caitya.” The king asked, “What is a caitya?” The minister kept translating the writing. “That is the Buddha’s teachings. After the Buddha entered Parinirvana, there were sutra texts directing people to build stupas, temples and Buddha statues.”
From then on, the king kept studying the Buddha-Dharma and developed faith in it. So, on this land, he built a seven-story wooden stupa. This is the legend of this stupa. Because this king developed faith [in the Dharma], the Buddha-Dharma spread to Koryo. This is how the Buddha-Dharma reached Korea.
As we can see, before the Buddha entered Parinirvana, He had already created the causes and conditions for people to spread the Buddha-Dharma. Thus, in this recent passage from the sutra, the Buddha reminded us that if we aspire to build stupas, shrines or statues, then we can “all realize the path to Buddhahood.”
This is the sutra text we have recently discussed. Next, we will look at,
“Even children at play, with straws, sticks or reeds, or even with their fingernails, may draw images of the Buddha.”
As we mentioned before, various kinds of materials can be used. Things may be built out of wood, out of stone, out of bricks, out of copper and so on. These different materials can be used to build stupas, temples or even sculpt Buddha statues. The type of material [does not matter]. As long as we have reverence in our hearts, we can create these causes and conditions for spreading the Buddha-Dharma. We can even paint the Buddha’s image with brush and paper. That will also work. As we have been saying over these past few days, these things are created solely to transmit the Dharma to future generations so these images can inspire faith in those people.
This kind of faith can arise in both adults and children, as long as we are in the [right] environment. These [teachings] are learned by future generations from previous ones. Since the Buddha had spoken these words, people have been passing them on. This applies to both adults and children. Even building stupas as part of playing can bring merits. As we build stupas, our faith is strengthened. As our faith is strengthened, we build shrines. Because we have built temples and shrines, we carve Buddha statues. This is how we develop faith. Even children know they must pay respect to the Buddha and have faith in Him, so they too want to build stupas and shrines. This is passed down from one generation to next and is a form of spiritual teaching for people of this era.
So, we talked about “children at play.” Remember in King Ashoka’s past life, he built a city out of sand. In the city, there were stupas, temples and large storehouses. When he saw the Buddha, he grabbed a handful of sand from a storehouse [to offer to the Buddha]. In fact, this was just a child playing on the ground. But even though he was just playing, as he grabbed a handful of sand, he saw the Buddha and respectfully placed it in His bowl. This young child said, “This is how I make an offering to the Buddha. This is the finest flour and the finest rice”
and thus offered it to the Buddha. The Buddha gladly accepted this bowl and gave this child His blessing. After He returned to His abode, He poured the sand onto a sand pile, and gave the child another blessing. “When he builds actual stupas in the future, this child will create boundless merits 100 years from now, he will be reborn as a wheel-turning sage king” 100 years after the Buddha entered Parinirvana, King Ashoka built 84,000 stupas to honor Him. Even today, stupas from his time continue to be discovered. Of course these are not big stupas, but they are still memorials.
Thus, “even children at play, with straws, sticks or reeds….” Children do not only use sand. They can also create bundles of straws or sticks and say, “I am making this offering to the Buddha. This is the Buddha right here.” A piece of wood or a piece of rock can be seen by children as a shrine, a stupa or the Buddha. This is childlike simplicity. This is another way that they can express their utmost reverence. “The Tathagata-nature is naturally [within us]. We inherently have childlike simplicity and innocence.” Since [the child] reverently made his offering, the Buddha joyfully accepted his offering and praised him.
Through the sequence of using skillful means and guiding people according to capabilities, [He used] skillful means, conditioned phenomena to teach sentient beings to be sincere, to erect images, to make offerings and to nurture their faith.
Thus, we can use straws, sticks or reeds. A reed can be placed either vertically or horizontally and then surrounded by straws or sticks, and this can be called a Buddha temple. This also brings merits. “Or even with their fingernails.” People can use their fingers or fingernails to create the same effect. After drawing on the wall or on the ground, they may say, “This is the image of the Buddha,” or, “This is a stupa,” or, “This is a temple.” This brings the Buddha happiness. This also brings the children happiness, so they can become Buddhas in the future. This comes from erecting the Buddha’s image.
What the Buddha wanted to remind us is that all of us should have the Buddha in our hearts, the Dharma in our minds and and Dharma in our actions. He hoped that all tangible physical materials can be transformed into objects that can spread the Buddha-Dharma. Guiding people from conditioned phenomena to unconditioned Dharma is the sequence of the Buddha’s skillful means. Moreover, He “guides people according to capabilities.” He looked at people’s capabilities to decide which method can guide them to spread the Buddha-Dharma, then used skillful means and [conditioned] phenomena. So, He reminded all of us that the most important thing is to be reverent as we erect images, make offerings and nurture our faith. Therefore, everyone, our reverence in making offerings is very important. Please always be mindful.