Episode [number] – Realizing the Buddha’s Understanding and Views
>> “As the guiding teacher of the Three Realms and the kind father of the Four Kinds of Beings, the Buddha steers a ship of compassion in the churning sea of desires to deliver those who are sinking and bring them onto the other shore.”
>> “At that time, Sariputra was jubilant and delighted.” Thus he respectfully put his palms together and gazed reverently upon the Buddha and said to Him, “Now, having heard this Dharma from the World-Honored One,” having heard the Buddha’s teachings, he was “jubilant at having attained what I never had before.”
>> “Why is this so?”
>> Because, “In the past, I heard this Dharma from the Buddha and saw all Bodhisattvas receive predictions of attaining Buddhahood. But I and the others felt that we were not included, so we were sad about not having the. Tathagata’s limitless understanding and views.”
>> Why is this so? In the past, I heard this Dharma from the Buddha: What he had heard were provisional teachings of the Small Vehicle Dharma. Because this was what Sariputra heard, he practiced these provisional teachings.
>> At this time, they saw the Buddha bestowing predictions of attaining Buddhahood to all Bodhisattvas. Yet they were still at the state of the Small Vehicle, so they felt sad.
>> Feeling they did not have the. Tathagata’s limitless understanding and views: Understanding comes from the mind-consciousness. Views come from seeing with the eye-consciousness. Or, when we deduce something, that is a view. When we awaken to it, that is an understanding.
>> Not only did Sariputra feel very sad, he was constantly remorseful because he and the others had listened to the Buddha-Dharma alongside those who formed Bodhisattva-aspirations, yet he could not understand the Buddha’s understanding and views. Therefore he felt sad.
“As the guiding teacher of the Three Realms
and the kind father of the Four Kinds of Beings,
the Buddha steers a ship of compassion
in the churning sea of desires
to deliver those who are sinking
and bring them onto the other shore.”
“The guiding teacher of the Three Realms and the kind father of the Four Kinds of Beings,” this refers to the founder of Buddhism, Sakyamuni Buddha. It is not only the Saha World; He is the guiding teacher of the Three Realms. The Three Realms are the desire, form and formless realms. The Saha World, this evil world of the Five Turbidities, fills our minds with “desire.” We must find a way to transcend “desire” so that when we come in contact with “form,” material objects of various shapes and colors, we can view these forms without being tempted. They will simply be shapes and colors to us and our minds will not be defiled by them. This helps to eliminate our desires. From the form realm, we can move on to a realm without forms and desires. Then we see things for their usefulness. We do not make distinctions of [monetary] value, only out of utility.
Normally when we see things, we will compare them to see which is more valuable and which is cheaper. In truth, anything with a use must be treasured. But when we ordinary people have already eaten a full meal and are dressed warmly, we still choose to pursue expensive and precious things. So, our desires continue to grow. Don’t manmade disasters and family discord arise because we hold these kinds of values? When our values are in conflict, once desires arise, families will not be in harmony, society will not be peaceful and humankind will be in great chaos. This is all due to “desire.”
So, the Three Realms are the desire, form and formless realms. When we surpass the formless realm, we see everything as equal and know that whatever they are, they are unrelated to us. The Three Realms are part of our daily living. If we completely understand these principles, we will no longer be controlled by our desire for things. We will be carefree, at ease and free of desires. Unhindered by [afflictions of] the form realm, we will be content with what we have. This was what the Buddha taught. Only after we thoroughly understand principles will we be able to experience this.
The Buddha is also the kind father of the Four Kinds of Beings. These beings are womb-, egg-, transformation- or moisture-born. All living beings arise from one of these four kinds of birth. Humans are womb-born. Cows, goats and pigs are also womb-born. Chickens, ducks and other birds are egg-born. Most insects are moisture-born. Different forms of birth lead to different forms. Although all beings have different ways of living, because they were born, they are all living beings. The Buddha wanted to help us understand that we must work together to lovingly care for all these living beings.
Sadly, in the way we humans live, we have been continually polluted by the churning sea of desires. Sentient beings are already drowning in this sea, sinking in the churning sea of desires. But the kind father of the Four Kinds of Beings will not abandon us, so He steers a ship of compassion through the churning sea of desires to transform sentient beings, one by one.
I have previously shared with everyone about a little boy from Brazil. When he was just three years old, this little boy was about to eat, so he sat at the dining table. His mother had already finished cooking and she placed octopus and potatoes on his plate. The child felt that there was something odd about the octopus on his plate. He stared at it, then he asked his mother, “Mom, the octopus can’t talk, right?” His mother said, “It doesn’t have a head, how can it talk?” The child asked, “How come it doesn’t have a head? Is its head in the ocean?” His mother said, “It’s not in the ocean; it’s at the market.” [He asked,] “Why is it at the market?”
His mother said, “Because its head was cut off. We just buy the part of it we can eat. Animals like pigs, cows, chickens and fish must all be killed and chopped into pieces so they can be sold. This is so that we can eat them.” This child then said, “Fish are animals. Pigs and cows are also animals. Fish and chickens are animals. If people want to eat an animal, it will be killed, right? Yes, that’s the only way we can eat it.”
The boy said, “I don’t want to eat it. I want to see it moving around alive. I want to see it alive; I don’t want it to die. Mom, you should take care of it instead.” His mother laughed, “In that case, you will just have potatoes to eat. Sure!” His mother said, “I’m touched by you.” This child immediately asked her, “Mom, did I do something beautiful?” His mother said, “Yes, yes, eat quickly. Let’s eat the potatoes and not eat the octopus.” The child became very happy because he did not have to eat the octopus, just the potatoes.
His mindset, in which he did not have the heart eat the flesh of a living being, isn’t this human nature? This is our intrinsic nature of True Suchness. “Human nature is inherently good.” This story confirms that in our nature is the virtue of loving and respecting all life. If we have this virtue, that means we have already returned to our pure and undefiled intrinsic nature. With our pure and undefiled nature, in the formless realm we cannot be tempted by lust and objects of desire.
This is what the Buddha has taught us, solely to help us all realize these profound and wondrous principles. But for how many people do the Buddha’s teachings actually resonate? Still, out of His kindness, He did not abandon us. He taught with many kinds of analogies. As we continue reading the Lotus Sutra, we will see many kinds of parables. He used the parent-child bond as a parable for the bond between master and disciple.
So, “the kind father of the Four Kinds of Beings” is used as an analogy [for the Buddha]. We say He is like a kind father, because He nourished our wisdom-life with the Dharma. Our wisdom-life develops from learning the Buddha-Dharma. We all intrinsically have Buddha-nature, but we have buried it [under ignorance]. The Buddha put His heart into inspiring us, but ignorance is something we must eliminate ourselves. We must immediately change our bad habits. Wrong must be made right. We must quickly change what is wrong into what is right. We must turn evil into good. We ourselves have to change our direction. So, only we ourselves can change our habitual tendencies and ignorance. The Buddha cannot change them for us. He can only teach us the principles to helps us develop our wisdom-life.
So, the previous sutra passage states,
“At that time, Sariputra was jubilant and delighted.” Thus he respectfully put his palms together and gazed reverently upon the Buddha and said to Him, “Now, having heard this Dharma from the World-Honored One,” having heard the Buddha’s teachings, he was “jubilant at having attained what I never had before.”
He had never been this happy. The next sutra passage starts with,
“Why is this so?”
Why was Sariputra so delighted?
Because, “In the past, I heard this Dharma from the Buddha and saw all Bodhisattvas receive predictions of attaining Buddhahood. But I and the others felt that we were not included, so we were sad about not having the. Tathagata’s limitless understanding and views.”
This means he had heard the. Buddha give teachings and seen Him make predictions of Buddhahood for those who had formed great aspirations. Why were certain people considered Bodhisattvas? Why would they attain Buddhahood in the future? Especially as others would attain Buddhahood, why were people like Sariputra still in the state of Hearers and Arhats? So, they were saddened and upset by this, because they thought they “did not have the Tathagata’s limitless understanding and views.” The Tathagata had unsurpassed understanding and views, but it seemed they could not realize them.
So, this tells us that what Sariputra had heard and what the Buddha had taught in the past were the Three Vehicles, taught for people based on their capabilities. From this sutra passage, we know that those with sharp capabilities, hearing the same Dharma, the Three Vehicles, could form great aspirations and vows. They became Bodhisattvas because they put this Dharma into practice. They cared for and safeguarded sentient beings, just like that three-year-old child who could not bear to [eat the octopus]. He told his mother, “You should take care of them.” He controlled his own temptation to eat them and even said to his mother, “You should take care of these animals.” Even at such a young age, he understood this principle and could form great aspirations.
This is the same principle. Many people heard the teachings, but some people remained at the level where they heard the Buddha’s voice and understood what He said, such as “refrain from all evil and do all good deeds.” But they did not actively “do all good deeds.” They only faithfully accepted and practiced “refraining from all evil.” They focused on awakening themselves. From the law of karma, they learned not to create unwholesome causes. They stopped at the knowledge of these principles. They lacked the practice of doing all good deeds. Forming great aspirations and making great vows was not something they could achieve. So, their understanding remained at the level of the Small Vehicle Dharma.
Why is this so? In the past, I heard this Dharma from the Buddha: What he had heard were provisional teachings of the Small Vehicle Dharma. Because this was what Sariputra heard, he practiced these provisional teachings.
Because Sariputra had stopped at the state of Arhatship, when he saw the Buddha praising other people, even making predictions of Buddhahood for them, he and the Small Vehicle practitioners were very envious. They were upset by this. “Why hasn’t the Buddha praised me like this? Why hasn’t He made this prediction for me?” They were all upset. In this sutra passage, [Sariputra], “saw all Bodhisattvas receive predictions of attaining Buddhahood. But I and the others felt that we were not included.” They felt they could not [attain Buddhahood]. It seemed to them that they were not a part of it, that they did not [meet expectations] and that they had not realized [the Dharma]. So, we must mindfully seek to comprehend this sutra passage.
At this time, they saw the Buddha bestowing predictions of attaining Buddhahood to all Bodhisattvas. Yet they were still at the state of the Small Vehicle, so they felt sad.
At this time, they saw the Buddha bestow predictions for Bodhisattvas to attain Buddhahood, while they had stopped at the state of Arhatship. “[They were sad] at not having the. Tathagata’s limitless understanding and views.” Did this mean that they could not take part in realizing His understanding and views? So, they felt very dejected because they did not have the Tathagata’s limitless understanding and views. They felt left out. The Tathagata had a path that was very broad and profound and a Dharma that could not be fathomed. Even though Sariputra was foremost in wisdom, he still could not understand.
Feeling they did not have the. Tathagata’s limitless understanding and views: Understanding comes from the mind-consciousness. Views come from seeing with the eye-consciousness. Or, when we deduce something, that is a view. When we awaken to it, that is an understanding.
Breaking down “understanding and views” tells us that when our mind-consciousness comprehends something, we have an “understanding. How did you understand that? Based on my perception, based on what I heard.” We heard it, but did our ears do the hearing? Our ears heard something, but our mind-consciousness discerned it. This leads to “understanding.” Whether we see something black, something onscreen with a black background and white lettering or with various shapes and colors, we see with our eyes and discern with our mind-consciousness. We understand that this is a television. On its screen, the background is black and the words are white or yellow. This is an “understanding. I understand this, but I still need to see it with my eyes.” When our mind-consciousness comes into contact with our external conditions, we develop an understanding. “Views come from seeing with the eye-consciousness.” When we see something with our eyes, the mind-consciousness discerns it. This leads to understanding and views.
This is how we ordinary people develop our understanding and views. We can also understand things by deduction. Why was this kind of television developed? Can televisions display more than [just black and white]? Why does the lettering onscreen change so much? How can there be images and so on? How is this thing assembled? This can be deduced from principles. Modern technology is all about assembling different electronic components to form many kinds of different products. To come up with these new objects, we need reasoning; these are “views.”
Views can lead to awakening. Once we understand everything, when we look at something, it is not only the thing that we see. When we look at something, we should be able to deduce its workings. We can analyze and deduce what there was before this object was formed. We can deduce, study and comprehend this, step by step. However, with one glance, the Buddha can already see the workings of all things in the universe. He knows their underlying principles.
“Not only did Sariputra feel very sad, he was constantly remorseful.” He was very remorseful and sad, as well as regretful. “Why did I stop at the state of the Small Vehicle? Why can I not form great aspirations and make great vows?” He felt quite remorseful.
Not only did Sariputra feel very sad, he was constantly remorseful because he and the others had listened to the Buddha-Dharma alongside those who formed Bodhisattva-aspirations, yet he could not understand the Buddha’s understanding and views. Therefore he felt sad.
Time had passed; it is constantly passing. Only now did he start to listen and understand, and envy those who would attain Buddhahood. To attain Buddhahood, one has to start by walking the Bodhisattva-path. Though he had followed the Buddha for decades, only at that moment did he understand the importance of walking the Bodhisattva-path. He could not just refrain from all evil; he had to also proactively do all good deeds. Only then would he form Bodhisattva-aspirations. Some other people had also heard the Buddha-Dharma along with him, but they had been able to form these great aspirations and vows while he had stopped at the state of the Small Vehicle. So, this was what Sariputra thoroughly realized at this time.
Sometimes I feel that among the Buddha’s disciples, Sariputra was a very wise person. But as we have discussed, Sariputra still had habitual tendencies, ones that he clung to. All of us are the same. Our habitual tendencies hinder us. Those with serious habitual tendencies are very stubborn. They will stubbornly hold on to what is good. They say, “This is a good thing, I will hold on to it.” But all they do is hold on to it. They do not put it into practice; this is a form of stubbornness. Some people are stubborn in their affections, in love, hate and so on. There are so many kinds of stubbornness.
In everyone’s minds, there are 84,000 afflictions. Of these 84,000 afflictions, how many have we eliminated? So, we must seize every moment. When we hear “refrain from all evil,” we must eliminate the unwholesome things in us. Not only that, we must avoid doing bad things. We must proactively and promptly begin to do all good deeds. Only then are we exercising both compassion and wisdom. This is the true Bodhisattva-path. This is also what the Buddha taught us. The kind father of the Four Kinds of Beings came to save us from the sea of suffering. I hope that our wisdom-life will continue to grow, otherwise, we will fail to live up to all that Sakyamuni Buddha has done for us out of His compassion and wisdom. Therefore, we must always be mindful.