Episode 450 – The True Dharma of the One Vehicle
>> “Faith is the source of the Path. The Buddha is the foremost guiding teacher. He taught the True Dharma of the world, which is so subtle and wondrous it can enter our minds.”
>> “Those who hear this Dharma and give joyful praise are, by uttering just a single word, making offerings to all Buddhas of the Three Periods. People like this are extremely rare, more rare than the udumbara flower.”
>> “All of you should have no doubts, for I am the Dharma King. I declare to the assembly, ‘I use only the path of the One Vehicle to teach and transform Bodhisattvas I have no disciples who are Hearers.'”
>> All of you should have no doubts, for I am the Dharma King: The sincere resolve to enter the Path begins with faith. We must not have doubts about trustworthy people. Without faith, one cannot establish oneself. One who is king among people must be truthful in what one says. The Buddha is the Dharma King, thus He will not say anything false.
>> In the past He gave provisional teachings and taught skillful means. The Three Vehicles for different capabilities ultimately lead to the One Vehicle. They are true but the path of the One Vehicle is the way to spread the Great Dharma. When we listen to the Dharma King teach the Great Dharma, we must not give rise to doubts. In the past He gave provisional teachings, [yet] “the Three Vehicles for different capabilities ultimately lead to the One Vehicle.”
>> For more than 40 years before the Lotus Dharma-assembly, the Dharma was concealed in the Buddha’s mind. This was the direct path of the One Vehicle, which encompasses tens of thousands of roads. So, the Buddha said, “[I] teach the Bodhisattva Way. I have no disciples who are Hearers.”
>> I have no disciples who are Hearers: Everything considered the Buddha-Dharma is part of the One Vehicle, which is the teaching of the Bodhisattva Way. He did not give teachings specific to Hearers, so He does not have disciples who would be called Hearers.
“Faith is the source of the Path.
The Buddha is the foremost guiding teacher.
He taught the True Dharma of the world,
which is so subtle and wondrous it can enter our minds.”
To accept the Buddha’s teachings, having “faith” is very important. When we have faith in our hearts, it will awaken our wisdom, and the true principles of all things in the universe will manifest in our minds, and the awakened nature within us will be aroused. This is our nature of True Suchness.
The Buddha comes to this world to arouse our awakened nature so we can realize that everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature. However, the Dharma is very profound and difficult to comprehend. Its transcendent principles are too profound. So, He teaches according to our capabilities by giving us teachings that we can understand. This is how. “He teaches the True Dharma of the world.”
Everything has to do with the way people live. As they go about their daily living, they may continue to give rise to afflictions. Afflictions arise from greed and greed arises from ignorance. Thus, we create such causes, such conditions and such effects. People become indolent and degenerate and cycle among these karmic causes of suffering. So, the Buddha exercised His wisdom to teach us how to change our lives, our perspectives and our direction. Thus, He is the guiding teacher for this world who gave subtle and intricate teachings which will penetrate each of our minds.
Indeed, there is unbearable suffering in life. This is what we heard during our board meeting. One of the participants told me, “Master, I must repent to you.” For years he has heard me constantly praise how well volunteers in Indonesia are doing, how harmoniously they work together, how humble and how successful they are. He said, “To be honest, for many years, I couldn’t fully accept this. I felt [our own volunteers] had also done well and worked together harmoniously, so why were you constantly praising Indonesia?”
He said, “After this trip, I am fully convinced. I was very moved by them.” He said, “With my own eyes, I saw this big group of wealthy businesspeople working together so harmoniously, with great unity and strength. During the many days they have been here, they have acted so humbly and have never requested any special treatment. They were always very harmonious and quietly accepted everything for so many days. They are so agreeable. All of them are successful businesspeople in their own country. Some even took their own private jets to Hualien. But at the Abode, they are doing what everyone else is doing and following the same way of living. They are so earnest and diligent.”
He said, “Now I have witnessed this. After seeing it with my own eyes, I understand. So, from the depths of my heart, I am repentant. I have been deeply touched and have come to admire [the Indonesian volunteers].”
This came up during our review after the board meeting. From their hearts, people shared what they had heard and seen and witnessed. From what they saw and heard, they verified that there are. Living Bodhisattvas among us. In the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism, everyone faithfully accepts and practices the teachings of the Jing Si Dharma-lineage. With these spiritual ideals, this stream of purity, we first purify ourselves, then form great aspirations. The Tzu Chi School of Buddhism is a road of working with others in this world while training our minds to be in unity and harmony with others. So, recently (at the board meeting), this is what people observed in each other and realized. What they witnessed and were moved by has inspired them to keep improving.
A board member from another country told me, “I saw how diligently other people worked. I thought we were doing quite well, but then I saw how other people carried out the Mission of Charity and how meticulous and mindful they are in contributing their efforts.” He said, “I feel like there is a place where we have not mindfully engaged with our work.” Then he told me about a town [in his country] with population of more than 300,000. There is a historical background to all this. People in this town have been oppressed by the government. They live in such poverty and have remained poor for generations. They cannot leave to work elsewhere either.
How poor are they? For example, one day, one of the volunteers went there to assess the situation to see if there were people in need that we could help. Walking into one of the houses, he said, “I heard that your child has trouble going to school so I’d like to meet him.” The mother replied, “He is still sleeping.” It was already past 10 in the morning. So, he asked, “It’s so late, why is he still asleep?” The mother answered, “Let’s not wake him. If he wakes up, he will say he’s hungry, then I have to give him food. If I let him sleep, he won’t need to eat. The earlier I wake him, the earlier he gets hungry.”
What did this signify? One word, “poverty.” They are so poor that they let the child sleep so that he would not be hungry. He said that this was just one of the households that they visited. In a town of over 300,000 people, every household was equally poor. This was a great field of blessings that had not been cultivated. It has not been cultivated at all. So, he vowed to me that they want to go into this area immediately, to understand the situation and to care for them.
Then he also mentioned the vocational training program in the Philippines that has been very successful. They have taught women how to be seamstresses and this really transformed their lives. He was very moved by it. So I immediately offered my encouragement, “Absolutely, if you offer this kind of vocational training program there, they will be able to develop a skill that can help them make a living in this society.” So, he decided, “Yes, this will be my course of action this year.”
Each country has its own unique characteristics. Most often, when people have an idea about how to improve something in the country or benefit the society somehow, the government will not do whatever they want. No. They need a method in order to do this. There must be people who will accept the Dharma, make great vows and be willing to give to sentient beings in the world without asking for anything in return. So, they practice the Bodhisattva-path.
This is the worldly Dharma [we practice]; it is the True Dharma of the world. There are many kinds of suffering people. This all comes from a single [ignorant] thought that multiplied into countless afflictions, causing problems for the society and the country and creating conditions of poverty and hardship. For people living this kind of life, the True Dharma of the world is needed to show them how to help and guide others. This is very important.
So, we must have faith in the Buddha’s teaching that all of us intrinsically have Buddha-nature and that we each have our own karmic conditions. [Living] Bodhisattvas arise in this world in response to the world’s suffering. So, we are able to follow the path that has been paved for us. This begins with “faith [as] the source of the Path and the mother of merits and virtues.” If we can take this Dharma to heart, it will give rise to infinite merits and virtues. So, when we listen to the Dharma, we must accept it joyfully.
The previous sutra passage states,
“Those who hear this Dharma and give joyful praise are, by uttering just a single word, making offerings to all Buddhas of the Three Periods. People like this are extremely rare, more rare than the udumbara flower.”
Everyone can hear the Dharma and become very happy. They can listen with joy and utmost reverence, then take it to heart and walk the Bodhisattva-path. This is how they make offerings to the Buddha. But the people who do this are very rare. So I keep telling everyone, we must keep recruiting Living Bodhisattvas; we need more. So, there is still a lot of work to do; we must be diligent and encourage each other.
In the following passage of the sutra, the Buddha says,
“All of you should have no doubts, for I am the Dharma King. I declare to the assembly, ‘I use only the path of the One Vehicle to teach and transform Bodhisattvas I have no disciples who are Hearers.'”
This passage tells how the Buddha taught the Dharma impartially. He told everyone once again that they should not have any doubts about the Dharma. If they have doubts, they will not have faith. “For I am the Dharma King” is. Sakyamuni Buddha verifying that. He had already realized the true principles of all things in the world and the universe. So, the Buddha understood not just world-transcending truths but also worldly Dharma very clearly. So, no one should have doubts.
All of you should have no doubts, for I am the Dharma King: The sincere resolve to enter the Path begins with faith. We must not have doubts about trustworthy people. Without faith, one cannot establish oneself. One who is king among people must be truthful in what one says. The Buddha is the Dharma King, thus He will not say anything false.
So, “The sincere resolve to enter the Path begins with faith.” We need to truly make aspirations to walk on this path. Only when we are sincere can we give rise to faith. Once we have faith, the Buddha then reminds us, “We must not have doubts about trustworthy people.” We must not doubt the Dharma. We must also not doubt people. If we have faith in the Dharma, we must also have faith in other people. “There is no one in the world I cannot trust.”
As we just mentioned, the CEO from one country said, “Master, I must repent. You always praise Indonesia, but I was not convinced, and I had doubts. Could they possibly be that humble?” This is doubting other people. Now I want to tell everyone, “We must not doubt trustworthy people.” We must have faith in every person. “There is no one in the world I cannot trust.”
“Without faith, one cannot establish oneself.” As a human being, each of us must first establish faith. We must have faith in ourselves and have faith in Right Dharma. As other people also practice the Right Dharma, we must also have faith in them. When we have faith in ourselves and others, we must work to be someone whom people will have faith in. Thus, having faith in ourselves and others and being trustworthy are all very important.
“One who is king among people must be truthful in what he says.” Here, “king” does not [just] refer to the leader of a country. It refers to ordinary people like us who are willing to give and to lead others. Near the end of the board meeting, we had a question and answer session and people asked, “In Africa, how do you train the local volunteers?” Mr. Michael Pan stood up and said, “I only accompany them, I do not train. I only know how to keep them company, how to give them love and care. I never lecture or instruct.”
You see, what they gave to the volunteers was spiritual abundance. This is worldly Dharma. Because they accompanied the local volunteers with love, those people were moved and inspired, and felt great respect for them. So, they are also kings among people. Those who can lead others are [truthful in what they say]. This establishes faith. We should not say one thing to this person and say something different to another person. We must treat everyone equally. With the Dharma, with the One Vehicle Dharma, with this truth, we can lead people.
In this world, those who lead and are respected must be truthful in what they say, let alone the Buddha, the Dharma King. Thus we must firmly believe the Buddha-Dharma, and that the Buddha never says anything false. He would never say something and then not take responsibility for it or not fulfill it. He would never do this. He takes responsibility for the things He says so we can be confident in applying those teachings. This makes Him the Dharma King.
So [He said], “I declare to the assembly, ‘I use only the path of the One Vehicle.'” Sakyamuni Buddha was the Dharma King who taught the true Dharma to all sentient beings. He said, “I use only the path of the One Vehicle.” What He taught was actually the path of the One Vehicle, which enables everyone to attain Buddhahood.
In the past He gave provisional teachings and taught skillful means. The Three Vehicles for different capabilities ultimately lead to the One Vehicle. They are true but the path of the One Vehicle is the way to spread the Great Dharma. When we listen to the Dharma King teach the Great Dharma, we must not give rise to doubts. In the past He gave provisional teachings, [yet] “the Three Vehicles for different capabilities ultimately lead to the One Vehicle.”
The Three Vehicles were for gradually guiding people of different capacities to have faith in the Buddha and not doubt the Buddha-Dharma. This was the way that they “ultimately led to the One Vehicle.” Indeed, in the past He also taught true principles. What He taught now was the everyone must believe that they can attain Buddhahood. This is the One Vehicle. “The path of the One Vehicle is the way to spread the Great Dharma.” The One Vehicle is an extensive teaching that can pervade the world and encompass all things. So, “when we listen to the Dharma King teach the Great Dharma,” we must not be suspicious because
“[the Buddha] teaches Bodhisattvas. [He has] no disciples who are Hearers.” Indeed, we must believe the Dharma He taught was all for one reason, “to teach Bodhisattvas.” He hoped everyone would attain Buddhahood and return to their intrinsic nature of True Suchness. There is only one way to do this, but in the past, their capabilities were immature, and they did not have faith in themselves. Once they developed this faith, He taught the Bodhisattva Way. He has no disciples who are Hearers; there is only the Bodhisattva Vehicle.
For more than 40 years before the Lotus Dharma-assembly, the Dharma was concealed in the Buddha’s mind. This was the direct path of the One Vehicle, which encompasses tens of thousands of roads. So, the Buddha said, “[I] teach the Bodhisattva Way. I have no disciples who are Hearers.”
Before the Lotus Sutra, for over 40 years, the Dharma that could teach everyone to walk the Bodhisattva-path and return to their nature of True Suchness was hidden in His mind, for over 40 years. Thus, this True Dharma was now being expounded. He shared His original intent and extensively taught the True Dharma so everyone could understand that they could all attain Buddhahood. But they had to put it into practice, and cultivate the Bodhisattva Way for the sake of suffering sentient beings. “This was the direct path of the One Vehicle.” There is only one great Bodhi-path, “which encompasses tens of thousands of roads.” All teachings can be summarized as one teaching, the One Vehicle. When it is taught, the One Vehicle can cover the capabilities of all sentient beings. So the Buddha said, “[I] teach the Bodhisattva Way. I have no disciples who are Hearers.”
I have no disciples who are Hearers: Everything considered the Buddha-Dharma is part of the One Vehicle, which is the teaching of the Bodhisattva Way. He did not give teachings specific to Hearers, so He does not have disciples who would be called Hearers.
The Bodhisattva-path alone include the disciples of the Three Vehicles. The great, average and limited capabilities are all covered by this one vehicle, which is the Bodhisattva Way.
Everyone, the Bodhisattva-path is the True Dharma. We keep hearing about how [volunteers] all over the world help those who are suffering. This is all because their sincerity helps them resonate with the Buddha-mind and walk the Bodhisattva-path. With only this Dharma, they can give suitable teachings in different countries to transform sentient beings and relieve their suffering. All they need is the Bodhisattva-path.
Everyone, learning to practice the teachings means practicing the One Vehicle Dharma and returnign to our intrinsic nature of True Suchness. So, we must always be reverent, have faith and be mindful.