Episode 398 – Use Wondrous Sounds to Make Offerings
>> “All things with form contain unconditioned truth. Always have reverence in your heart so that each action can create blessings. Express utmost respect with a pure undefiled mind.”
>> “They could cause others to make music with drums, horns or conches, pan-pipes, flutes, lutes or bamboo lyres, guitars, cymbals or brass gongs.”
>> “With many wondrous sounds such as these, they wholeheartedly made offerings. Perhaps, with happy hearts, they praised the Buddha’s virtues in song and chant. With even just one small sound, they have realized the path to Buddhahood.”
>> With many wondrous sounds such as these: If we use wondrous sounds to mindfully chant and recite as an offering, and with wonderful sounds and utmost sincerity praise the Buddha’s virtues, we are planting the cause for gradually attaining Buddhahood.
>> They wholeheartedly made offerings: Bodhisattvas vow to always respectfully make offerings to all Buddhas. With deep faith, love and joy they cultivate all merits and virtues without becoming tired. Thus they are born into the Tathagata-family.
>> Perhaps, with happy hearts, they praised the Buddha’s virtues in song and chant: The virtues that the Tathagata is replete with are Buddha-virtues. People with wisdom contemplate the Tathagata’s three kinds of perfect virtues and have deep love and respect for them. First is the perfect virtue of causes. Second is the perfect virtue of effects. Third is the perfect virtue of grace.
>> There are three kinds of paths: First, the path attained by Hearers. Second, the path attained by Solitary Realizers. Third, the path attained by Buddhas. The unsurpassed Bodhi-path attained by Buddhas is called the path to Buddhahood.
“All things with form contain unconditioned truth.
Always have reverence in your heart
so that each action can create blessings.
Express utmost respect with a pure undefiled mind.”
We must always maintain this mindset and have this realization and understanding. All things with form, whether they can be seen, heard or touched, any tangible thing, the appearances of all conditioned phenomena, are all replete with unconditioned true principles. Thus, we must always feel a sense of reverence.
Whether we are doing good deeds or facilitating the creation of something, we use our two hands and two feet to make it happen. Of course, the principles of all things and appearances all exist in our minds. As long as our minds initiate an action, all kinds of things and appearances can manifest. So, with our two hands, we can do things in a way that benefits other people. Some things that people create can bring harm to living beings.
For example, these days there are many young people taking drugs. These drugs that they take are produced by people out of a combination of many kinds of [chemicals]. By doing this, they can make a lot of money. But their product has harmed so many people! The drug makers profit greatly, at least based on the amount of money they make. However, the karma they create is endless. The karmic force generated by this kind of very serious transgressions cannot be [exhausted] entirely in one lifetime. They will have to face retributions in future lifetimes, even after being punished by law in this one! This is not a good thing at all.
Thus, our every action has to benefit others, and we must do so with pure and undefiled minds. A pure and undefiled mind comes from a sense of respect in our hearts. No matter what we do, we must do it with gratitude and respect. When we create a material object, we must also do so with joy and gratitude. Then when it is complete, it will be beautiful. We will feel so grateful! To be in an environment that allows us to give, we must be very grateful. There are many things that we can express with our pure and undefiled minds, from our deep sense of respect. This is very important.
Yesterday, didn’t we discuss making offerings with sounds?
“They could cause others to make music with drums, horns or conches, pan-pipes, flutes, lutes or bamboo lyres, guitars, cymbals or brass gongs.”
All these objects make sounds. They can generate very melodious sounds. People can pair these sounds and rhythms, with verses from the sutra to bring joy to others when they hear it. This is a way to bring purity to people’s minds.
Whether we are making music or singing a chant, we must instill our reverence into the melody so those who are listening will become joyful. With wholeheartedly reverence, we bow and physically pay our respects. Or perhaps we may recite loudly with our voices, to give praise and so forth. Or we may simply put our palms together out of respect. This utmost respect creates a wonderful atmosphere where everything we do demonstrates our reverence.
This is like an offering. It is also a kind of offering. Tangible objects can be offered to help this place become a practice center that inspires respect in people when they see it. Then as people pay their respects, they are inspired to feel reverence for and take delight in the Buddha-Dharma. They will seek the Dharma and listen to it. This is a tangible [offering]. Even if they feel troubled by many things, when they hear this chanting, their minds will become peaceful. They will be happy and their minds will open. This is also a way of transforming people. Tidying and clearing up the surroundings with reverence is also a way to show respect.
A long time ago, during the Buddha’s lifetime, when He came to Jeta Grove, people from other parts of society, including kings and ministers, would come and listen. Wherever these people might go, the surroundings had to be very clean. So, every day, the monastics had to clean their surroundings. There was a woman who lived in the nearby village. She came from a poor family. She thought, “I own nothing with which. I can express my respect to the Buddha, I have only my strength. So, I should be able to spend some time cleaning the grove. I can clean the area of Jeta Grove.”
Starting from that day, every day, she brought a broom and swept [the surroundings]. She started from the outer parts of the grounds and worked her way to the perimeter of the grove. This allowed the spiritual practitioners to spend a lot less of their time cleaning, so they could concentrate on listening to and practicing the Dharma.
In this same village, there was also a wealthy elder who regularly went to listen to the teachings. He believed in and respected the Buddha-Dharma, and felt great reverence for it. One day, as he walked out of his door, he suddenly saw something in a distant part of the village. Where had this magnificent building come from? Although it had not been there before, it had now, somehow appeared. The elder was very curious, so he started walking toward it. The more he walked, the happier he became, but he wondered all the more, “Who built this?”
He saw a person’s shadow inside, so he loudly asked again, “Who built this house?” He heard a voice coming from the inside, “There is a very blessed person here. Every day, a good woman, with utmost reverence cleans up the area where the Buddha and His Sangha lived. Every day, she respectfully gives of herself. That aspiration is very precious, so it led to great and blessed retributions. This house was built for her.”
The more this elder heard, the happier he became and the more remarkable he found all of this. So, he continued walking forward [to the house]. When he was nearly upon it, he was suddenly no longer able to see it! It had been a very old and shabby house all along. From inside, the poor woman walked out. She was ready to start cleaning again. The elder said to her, “You’re so reverent, I admire you greatly. Agree to do something for me; just say yes, and I will give you 500 taels of gold.”
This woman thought to herself, “What can I agree to? I have nothing if he wants me to agree, then I….” So, she said, “As long as I can do it, I agree.” The elder said, “Good, you just have to agree to accept these 500 taels of gold from me. That’s all I need to do?” [she asked]. The elder gave her 500 taels of gold and then said, “When I see such reverence in you, I feel very happy. That is why I want to give you these 500 taels of gold for you to use however you like.”
This woman was very grateful. She opened the heavy package and there really were 500 taels of gold inside. “I wonder what I should do with it?” So, she used it to make an offering to the Buddha. She gave all of it to Jeta Grove for its needs and did not spend any of the money on herself. She just offered it to Jeta Grove, to the Buddha and the Sangha.
Finally, one day as she stood among others, listening to the Dharma, the Buddha-Dharma suddenly penetrated her mind and she became fully awakened to the truth of suffering, its causation, cessation and the Path. She realized that she had created so much karma in her past life that she had had to face much poverty and hardship in this lifetime. With this opportunity to draw near the Dharma, she understood this and thus felt no resentment. [She felt,]. “I must transform myself in this lifetime. In this lifetime, with this body, I have encountered the Buddha-Dharma, so I must practice it more diligently. I must use this body to make offerings to the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. I will make offerings with physical labor.”
This is a beautiful story. In our interpersonal relationships, when we are reverent, we can naturally move other people, not to mention all the Dharma-protectors in the world. Because of her utmost reverence, this manifestation [of a fine house] appeared. So, through various appearances we can serve, and demonstrate our reverence.
The next passage in the sutra states,
“With many wondrous sounds such as these, they wholeheartedly made offerings. Perhaps, with happy hearts, they praised the Buddha’s virtues in song and chant. With even just one small sound, they have realized the path to Buddhahood.”
As we said earlier, the sounds formed by all the musical instruments coming together, along with the sounds of our chanting and praise, join together to form the “many wondrous sounds.” Some are formed by the combination of objects, such as flutes, lutes and so on. The sounds formed by the combination of objects, along with the sounds generated by spiritual practitioners filled with reverence, when they are all combined, are considered wondrous sounds.
So, “they wholeheartedly made offerings.” By combining the tangible and intangible, we can make offerings out of reverence. “Perhaps, with happy hearts, they praised the Buddha’s virtues in song and chant.” In addition to making offerings with material objects, we must always joyfully recite and praise the Buddha’s virtues.
So, “with even just one small sound, they have realized the path to Buddhahood.” This is possible even if we only make one sound, even if it is only a small sound. It is best if accompanied by a melody and so loud that it can reach faraway places, so that all in the universe can hear it just as they can hear the Buddha teaching the Dharma. If we transmit and chant the Dharma, even if we only do it faintly, we can still “realize the path to Buddhahood.”
With many wondrous sounds such as these: If we use wondrous sounds to mindfully chant and recite as an offering, and with wonderful sounds and utmost sincerity praise the Buddha’s virtues, we are planting the cause for gradually attaining Buddhahood.
All these wondrous sounds, all these offerings, arise from utmost reverence. If we express utmost reverence in praising the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha and praising the Dharma taught by the Buddha, we can take in the Dharma taught by the Buddha, and then transmit and recite it [for others]. This also plants many causes and conditions for attaining Buddhahood. So, “they wholeheartedly made offerings.” We need to mindfully make offerings.
They wholeheartedly made offerings: Bodhisattvas vow to always respectfully make offerings to all Buddhas. With deep faith, love and joy they cultivate all merits and virtues without becoming tired. Thus they are born into the Tathagata-family.
Bodhisattvas always vow to respectfully make offerings to all Buddhas. By reverently accepting and practicing the Buddha-Dharma, they are making an offering of conduct. Bodhisattvas make offerings with their actions. Their faith brings love for and joy in the Buddha-Dharma. So, they put the Dharma into practice and cultivate various virtues; this is what Bodhisattvas do.
So, they never tire of doing this. They are like that woman who swept the grounds for many decades out of a sense of reverence. Doing this “without becoming tired” means we feel that we have not done enough, that we need to do more and more. No matter how much they practice, they never become tired. No matter what they do, they never become annoyed. So, they do these things without becoming tired. “Thus they are born into the Tathagata-family.” After leaving this body behind, they will definitely be born into a family that has faith in the Buddha-Dharma so starting in their childhood they will be close to the Dharma. This is why we must learn from the Buddha with great reverence.
“With happy hearts, they praise the Buddha’s virtues in song and chant.” You are all entering the sutra treasury by chanting sutras, being mindful of and practicing the Dharma. These are all ways to spread it across the world. If we take the Dharma to heart, we can manifest it in our practice. This can come from praising the Buddha’s virtues with songs and chants. This how we can transmit the Buddha-Dharma.
This is one of the Buddha’s various virtues.
Perhaps, with happy hearts, they praised the Buddha’s virtues in song and chant: The virtues that the Tathagata is replete with are Buddha-virtues. People with wisdom contemplate the Tathagata’s three kinds of perfect virtues and have deep love and respect for them. First is the perfect virtue of causes. Second is the perfect virtue of effects. Third is the perfect virtue of grace.
People with wisdom contemplate the Tathagata’s three kinds of perfect virtues and have deep respect for them. First is the perfect virtue of causes. The seeds of our causes can be perfect. Second is the perfect virtue of effects. With causes come effects, so if the cause of our goodness is solid, then the effect that manifests will be perfect. Third is the perfect virtue of grace. The Chinese word “Grace” is written as a “cause” planted in our “minds.” The Chinese created Chinese characters in very clever ways. We truly must place virtuous causes in our minds. This leads to perfect grace.
I always say we must have gratitude, respect and love. As long as we always remain grateful, naturally we will be respectful to other people, and everything will happen perfectly. This comes from the seed, the cause planted in our minds. The seed of this cause helps us return to our pure intrinsic nature. Even by making only a faint sound, we can realize the path to Buddhahood.
There are three kinds of paths: First, the path attained by Hearers. Second, the path attained by Solitary Realizers. Third, the path attained by Buddhas. The unsurpassed Bodhi-path attained by Buddhas is called the path to Buddhahood.
There are three kinds of paths. The first is attained by Hearers. After hearing sounds, [they say,]. “I understand that these are the principles.” The second is attained by Solitary Realizers. “After understanding the principles, I don’t need to listen anymore. I already know it.” This is just knowing the impermanence of life, the cycle of good and evil and the law of karma. Solitary Realizers know all these things, but they have not fully realized them. The third is attained by Buddhas. This is the path of enlightening oneself as well as others. By enlightening themselves and others, they have perfect enlightened conduct, which is the path attained by Buddhas. It is called the path of unsurpassed Bodhi. The unsurpassed Bodhi-path is the path to Buddhahood.
As long as we all mindfully engage in spiritual practice and take the Dharma to heart, then the Dharma will manifest in our actions, and our actions will be focused on the Dharma. Therefore, we must always be mindful.