Episode 869 – All Buddhas Have Boundless Merits and Virtues
>>The long river of time flows from a distant source, from incalculable trillions of years in the past. As the eras replace one another, Buddhas have appeared in the world from ancient times until today. Over many kalpas and accumulated lifetimes they cultivated and upheld precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, the path of diligent practice. Through vast and boundless space, they accumulated incalculable merits and virtues which can never be completely described.
>>”At that time, the World-Honored One told Mahakasyapa and all the great disciples, ‘Excellent! Excellent! Kasyapa, you have skillfully spoken of the Tathagata’s true merits and virtues They are indeed as you say’.” [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 5 – The Parable of the Medicinal Herbs]>>”The Tathagata further possesses infinite and boundless merits and virtues accrued over asankya kalpas. Even if you spent countless billions of kalpas, you would still never finish describing them.” [Lotus Sutra, Chapter 5 – The Parable of the Medicinal Herbs]
>>The Tathagata further has an inexhaustible treasury of merits and virtues. If you used countless kalpas to describe them, you would still never finish.
>>This further explains the meaning of the True Dharma in order to widely transform sentient beings. It also clarifies the. Buddha’s unsurpassed merits and virtues of benefiting oneself as well as others. Words can never fully describe these
>>All Tathagatas are replete in merit and virtue, having gathered the merits and virtues of magnificent pure wisdom. Pure wisdom is undefiled wisdom. With this wisdom, They illuminate the emptiness of all phenomena, thus attaining inner tranquility and stillness. Because of this tranquility and stillness, They see the true principles. This is what is called pure wisdom
>>This is what is realized through faith and understanding. But for the sake of Hearers or others in the assembly who had not reached this point, it thus says, [The Tathagata] further has…. Asankya kalpas: This refers to a countless number of kalpas, an extremely long period of time
>>He has the three bodies and Four Wisdoms. The number of beings benefiting from the Dharma taught by the Buddha are boundless. It is not limited to the nine Dharma-realms of sentient beings.
>>The three bodies of the Buddha: 1. The Dharmakaya (Dharma-body) 2. The Sambhogakaya (reward-body) 3. The Nirmankaya (transformation-body)
>>The first of the three bodies of the Buddha is the Dharmakaya (Dharma-body). When one has reached wondrous enlightenment with the principles gathered together in a state of perfect pervasiveness, this is what is known as the Dharmakaya.
>>The second of the three bodies of the Buddha is the Sambhogakaya (reward-body) Ultimately attaining wondrous enlightenment, one’s wisdom is gathered together in perfect pervasiveness. As this wisdom is in accord with the principles, this is known as the Sambhogakaya.
>>The third of the three bodies of the Buddha is the Nirmankaya (transformation-body) Ultimately attaining wondrous enlightenment, one’s merits and virtues are gathered perfectly. One can manifest in response to capabilities in order to transform sentient beings. This is known as the Nirmankaya.
>>The Four Wisdoms of the Buddha: First, great perfect mirror wisdom. Second, universal equality wisdom. Third, profound discerning wisdom. Fourth, all-accomplishing wisdom. These wisdoms are accomplished in sequence and correspond to the Buddha-mind.
>>great perfect mirror wisdom is undefiled. It is the intrinsic nature of the Tathagata’s pure wisdom. Free of dust, defilements and perfectly clear, there is no place inside or out that is not illuminated by it. The clarity of its reflection is like that of a great perfect mirror. It makes all things clear.
>>Then, That which could be described is not what Kasyapa and the others were able to know or say. Now, the Buddha again specifically used parables to explain further.
>>Even if you spent countless billions of kalpas, you would still never finish describing them: Using a Two Vehicle practitioner’s wisdom to describe the Buddha’s merits and virtues, even after kalpas as numerous as dust particles, you would still not be able to finish. The Buddha’s virtue of wisdom is boundless. Its manifestation and application is like space. Clouds and rain, the earth, plants and trees, and all things depend on empty space to attain the conditions they need to mature, abide peacefully and manifest their application.
“The long river of time flows from a distant source, from incalculable trillions of years in the past.
As the eras replace one another, Buddhas have appeared in the world from ancient times until today.
Over many kalpas and accumulated lifetimes they cultivated and upheld precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, the path of diligent practice. Through vast and boundless space, they accumulated incalculable merits and virtues which can never be completely described.”
The river of time is long and its source is distant, flowing forth since ancient times; so many kalpas have passed that they are impossible to calculate. “Incalculable trillions of years in the past,” this length of time, is expressed in billions and trillions of years. It is impossible to calculate. However, “Buddhas have appeared in the world from ancient times until today.” No matter which era or what kind of world it is, They are always here to deliver and transform others. They teach the principles so that all may be clear. By putting them into practice, They demonstrate them in Their actions. With this inner cultivation and outward practice, They teach and guide sentient beings. This is why They must constantly come back.
So, all Buddhas, over many kalpas and many lifetimes, uphold their practice like this. Regardless of which lifetime They are in, They always engage in the practice of precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. They carefully uphold the precepts and have focused minds settled in Samadhi; spiritual practitioners cannot lack this. Thus [Buddhas] give rise to wisdom. They see all of the turbidity of life, the states of people’s minds, the difficulty people have in changing their habitual tendencies and so on, the way their actions have gone astray. After seeing all of this, They analyze the way humans live, increasing Their own wisdom.
So, we often say that what the Buddha wanted to teach us was to go among the people. On the one hand, we create blessings by spreading the Buddha’s teachings, planting the Buddha’s pure and undefiled seeds of Bodhi, great enlightenment, in the fields of people’s minds. We must also put the teachings into practice while not letting the turbidity of the world contaminate us. Of course, this requires practicing and upholding precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, as well as diligently practicing the Path. We must be diligent! We cannot become the least bit indolent. This is what we, as spiritual practitioners, must persevere in.
This is how Buddhas in the past practiced, how Buddhas in the future will practice. Maitreya will attain Buddhahood in the future; He too still comes to this world. Buddhas from even further in the past, like Manjusri Bodhisattva, similarly came to assist Sakyamuni Buddha at. His Dharma-assemblies. Guanyin Bodhisattva is the same. So, “As the eras replace one another, Buddhas have appeared in the world from ancient times until today.” Following the same principles, They continually go among the people. Because humans cannot yet comprehend the way enlightened beings work to deliver them, using words, actions and so on, there is still so much we are unclear on, so much we still do not understand. This is why it takes such a long time and such vast and boundless amounts of space.
In fact, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have already given so much to the world, across such vast and boundless amounts of space. They have continued to seek the Dharma while transforming others. They attain Buddhahood and transform all beings. After attaining Buddhahood, They leave the Dharma for the world, then come again sailing the ship of compassion. Thus, “Through vast and boundless space, They accumulated incalculable merits and virtues that can never be completely described.”
So, in the previous sutra passage, at the start of the Parable on Medicinal Plants, the sutra says, “At that time, the World-Honored One told Mahakasyapa and all the great disciples, ‘Excellent! Excellent! Kasyapa, you have skillfully spoken of the Tathagata’s true merits and virtues They are indeed as you say’.”
This is the Buddha praising Kasyapa, Katyayana, Maudgalyayana and Subhuti, the four great disciples, for having understood His intent. Though they had understood it, they had not penetrated it completely. So, the Buddha continued with the Parable on Medicinal Plants, using a different method, a different parable, to teach them.
The next sutra passage says, “The Tathagata further possesses infinite and boundless merits and virtues accrued over asankya kalpas. Even if you spent countless billions of kalpas, you would still never finish describing them.”
This is like saying, “Do you think the wealth of the elder as you described in your parable is just that much? There is still much more. It is not only what you have seen in the storehouse. There is still much more.”
So, “The Tathagata further has an inexhaustible treasury of merits and virtues.” He still has so many merits and virtues that. “Even using countless kalpas to describe them, you would still never finish.”
This expresses that the Buddha knew that they had not yet penetrated this nor completely comprehended. So, He again further explained the meaning of the True Dharma to widely transform sentient beings.
This further explains the meaning of the True Dharma in order to widely transform sentient beings. It also clarifies the. Buddha’s unsurpassed merits and virtues of benefiting oneself as well as others. Words can never fully describe these
Actually, the Buddha-Dharma is everlasting. It is infinite and unlimited. It flows from the distant past, from incalculable billions of years ago. There are still so many teachings, too many to be described. No matter how much time we spend, it is impossible [to speak of them all]. So, now He was about to further expound teachings He had not taught in the past. There were still so many teachings left to teach ․”This further explains the meaning of the True Dharma in order to widely transform sentient beings. It also clarifies the. Buddha’s unsurpassed merits and virtues of benefiting oneself as well as others.” This was to let everyone further understand how many merits and virtues the Buddha had accumulated through benefiting Himself and others. This was not something that could be fully described with words.
All Tathagatas are replete in merit and virtue, having gathered the merits and virtues of magnificent pure wisdom. Pure wisdom is undefiled wisdom. With this wisdom, They illuminate the emptiness of all phenomena, thus attaining inner tranquility and stillness. Because of this tranquility and stillness, They see the true principles. This is what is called pure wisdom
So, “All Tathagatas are replete in merit and virtue.” How much more is there to be described? All Tathagatas are replete in merits and virtues. To what degree are they replete? They are replete to the degree that with the benefits the Buddha had attained through His own efforts in spiritual practice, He had already reached the state of having the virtues of “magnificent pure wisdom.” He had truly accumulated many merits and virtues. “[They] have gathered the merits and virtues of magnificent pure wisdom.” What is “pure wisdom”? It is undefiled wisdom. His wisdom is completely pure. As for us ordinary people, how much can we ultimately understand? When we deal with people, matters or objects, how much are we able to analyze? Our thoughts are all jumbled up, and there are so many principles we cannot express. Then, if people’s direction deviates, it will create many afflictions and troubles.
So, [ordinary] people lack wisdom, while the Buddha’s wisdom is already pure. It is exceedingly pure. This pure wisdom is like a mirror. This wisdom illuminates the emptiness of all phenomena. Wisdom like this is completely pure and empty. Already, the conflicts of the world cannot contaminate His mind. No matter how turbulent the world was, He remained undefiled by those turbidities. This is His “inner tranquility and stillness. Because of this tranquility and stillness [He] sees the true principles.” This is the Buddha’s wisdom. This is His pure wisdom.
This is what is realized through faith and understanding. But for the sake of Hearers or others in the assembly who had not reached this point, it thus says, [The Tathagata] further has…. Asankya kalpas: This refers to a countless number of kalpas, an extremely long period of time
“This is what is realized through faith and understanding.” How can we attain wisdom like this? We must have faith, for only by having faith will we have the ability to understand. [This is] the Chapter on Faith and Understanding. Starting from the Introductory Chapter, to the Chapter on Skillful Means, down through the Chapter on Parables, all of these were to help us have faith.
They were “for the sake of Hearers or others in the assembly who had not reached this point.” Those with faith and understanding had already achieved realization. But for the Hearers to comprehend, they had to hear it with their ears. When it came to hearing, there were those who still were not even at the level of Hearers. They heard, but still did not understand. So, we previously said He “further possesses,” because “The Tathagata further possesses infinite and boundless merits and virtues accrued over asankya kalpas. Even if you spent countless billions of kalpas, you would still never finish describing them.” There was still so much to teach. There were some with faith and understanding, but there were also many with faith who still had no understanding. There were also many who had not yet heard and who did not understand. This is what the Buddha worried about. This is why it says “asankya kalpas.” This is a very long period of time. He had used a very long time to explain, yet they were still unable to understand.
He has the three bodies and Four Wisdoms. The number of beings benefiting from the Dharma taught by the Buddha are boundless. It is not limited to the nine Dharma-realms of sentient beings.
These were incalculable kalpas. An extremely long time is called “asankya kalpas.” The practices the Buddha cultivated and the merits and virtues He accumulated had already resulted in the Buddha’s wisdom. For the Buddha to attain pure wisdom, He had to accumulate many [kinds] of wisdom such as the Buddha’s three bodies or Four Wisdoms. How many merits and virtues does the Buddha actually have?.” It is not limited to the nine Dharma-realms of sentient beings; it is boundless.
There are “nine Dharma-realms,” and if we include the Buddha realm, there are a total of ten Dharma-realms. There are nine Dharma-realms below the Buddha. The Six Unenlightened and Four Noble Realms are known as the ten Dharma-realms. The Buddha taught and guided not only Bodhisattvas, Solitary Realizers and Hearers, but also the Six Unenlightened Realms. There were still so many who had yet to receive the Buddha-Dharma. There were still more. So, those who benefit are boundless. It is not merely the nine Dharma-realms. It is boundless
The three bodies of the Buddha: 1. The Dharmakaya (Dharma-body) 2. The Sambhogakaya (reward-body) 3. The Nirmankaya (transformation-body)
Among the three bodies, the first is the Dharmakaya (Dharma-body), the second is the Sambhogakaya (reward-body) and the third is the Nirmanakaya (manifestation-body)
The first of the three bodies of the Buddha is the Dharmakaya (Dharma-body). When one has reached wondrous enlightenment with the principles gathered together in a state of perfect pervasiveness, this is what is known as the Dharmakaya.
[To achieve] the Dharmakaya, we begin as an ordinary person at the first ground, where we form aspirations, then continue through infinite lifetimes and incalculable kalpas of time, until we finally reach the level of the perfection of wondrous enlightenment where all the principles converge into a state of “perfect pervasiveness.” This state adapts perfectly to all conditions. The Dharma is [all-pervasive]; there is nowhere the Dharma is not found, no one who cannot be delivered by it. This is the wondrous enlightenment that the Buddha attained. It is a gathering together of all principles. These principles can suit all capabilities; can adapt perfectly to all conditions. This is what is known as the Dharmakaya
The second is the Sambhogakaya. With the Sambhogakaya’s wondrous enlightenment, “wisdom is gathered in perfect pervasiveness. As this wisdom is in accord with the principles,” it is known as the Sambhogakaya.
[It is] “wisdom gathered in perfect pervasiveness.” He used His wisdom such that Bodhisattvas could have something that they could see and hear; He could transform Bodhisattvas in this way, using wisdom that could adapt perfectly. “As this wisdom is in accord with the principles,” it is known as the Sambhogakaya. With wisdom, He began teaching the Dharma anew, enabling everyone to realize the Dharma. This is known as the Sambhogakaya.
The third of the three bodies of the Buddha is the Nirmankaya (transformation-body) Ultimately attaining wondrous enlightenment, one’s merits and virtues are gathered perfectly. One can manifest in response to capabilities in order to transform sentient beings. This is known as the Nirmankaya.
The third is called the Nirmanakaya. The Buddha manifested the attainment of Buddhahood. In this way He was born into the world; He appeared in a body all could see. He also engaged in spiritual practice and continually accumulated [wisdom], until reaching wondrous enlightenment with “merits and virtues gathered perfectly.” His merits and virtues were perfect and complete. He “could manifest in response to capabilities.” He adapted to sentient beings’ capabilities in the nine Dharma-realms “in order to transform sentient beings.” This is known as the Nirmanakaya. Whether in the Five Realms or four forms of birth, He adapts universally to the worlds of sentient beings, coming to transform them in His Nirmanakaya.
Next, there are the Four Wisdoms of the Buddha. The Buddha had Four Wisdoms.
The Four Wisdoms of the Buddha: First, great perfect mirror wisdom. Second, universal equality wisdom. Third, profound discerning wisdom. Fourth, all-accomplishing wisdom. These wisdoms are accomplished in sequence and correspond to the Buddha-mind.
The Four Wisdoms of the Buddha are attained in sequence and are “great perfect mirror wisdom, universal equality wisdom, profound discerning wisdom” and “all-encompassing wisdom.” He has a great, perfect and clear mind, a mind of equality, a mind that discerns very clearly when observing worldly matters as well as a wisdom that can accomplish everything. This is the sequence; this the Buddha’s [wisdom]. The Buddha accomplished all things with the wisdom that corresponds to the Buddha-mind.
Great perfect mirror wisdom is undefiled. It is the intrinsic nature of the Tathagata’s pure wisdom. Free of dust, defilements and perfectly clear, there is no place inside or out that is not illuminated by it. The clarity of its reflection is like that of a great perfect mirror. It makes all things clear.
To help everyone understand better, [it says,] great perfect mirror wisdom is undefiled. It is the “intrinsic nature of the Tathagata’s pure wisdom. Free of dust, defilements and perfectly clear, there is no place inside or out that is not illuminated by it. The clarity of its reflection is like that of a great perfect mirror. It makes all things clear.”
Great perfect mirror wisdom means when you hold up this mirror, mountains, rivers, the land or the sky will all be reflected in this great perfect mirror. “Free of dust, defilements and perfectly clear” means whatever filth there may be outside, this mirror will not be sullied by any of it. So, “There is no place inside or out that is not illuminated by it, like [a] great perfect mirror.” Whether it is light or dark outside has no influence on this mirror. The mirror is still there in the evening. It is just dark, reflecting the darkness outside. If you were to light a candle, in the dim candlelight, what you would see would be faint. According with capabilities and external states, this mirror reflects all impartially. So, “It makes all things clear”
Then, That which could be described is not what Kasyapa and the others were able to know or say. Now, the Buddha again specifically used parables to explain further.
Then, “That which could be described is not what Kasyapa and the others were able to know or say.” Now, the Buddha again specifically used parables to explain further.
So, we can say that there was more to the vastness and infinity of the Buddha’s wisdom than Kasyapa’s analogy of the poor son could convey. Although they had seen and had already attained these treasures, the treasury of the Dharma still contained so much. It was not just what Kasyapa described. There were still even more than this.
Even if you spent countless billions of kalpas, you would still never finish describing them: Using a Two Vehicle practitioner’s wisdom to describe the Buddha’s merits and virtues, even after kalpas as numerous as dust particles, you would still not be able to finish. The Buddha’s virtue of wisdom is boundless. Its manifestation and application is like space. Clouds and rain, the earth, plants and trees, and all things depend on empty space to attain the conditions they need to mature, abide peacefully and manifest their application.
“Even if you spent countless billions of kalpas, you would still never finish describing them.” This is truly “using a Two Vehicle practitioner’s wisdom to describe the Buddha’s merits and virtues.” Even after kalpas as numerous as dust particles, you would still not be able to finish, since the Buddha’s wisdom is vast. They used Two Vehicle practitioner’s [wisdom], the Two Vehicles being the Hearers and the Solitary Realizers, to describe the Buddha’s merits and virtues but there are truly so many. Even over such a long time, one could not finish. This is expressing how. “The Buddha’s virtue of wisdom is boundless.” The Buddha’s virtue of wisdom is truly boundless, so it would take a very long time, great patience and resolve to seek the Dharma in order to realize the Buddha’s wisdom
“Its manifestation and application is like space.” The wisdom used by the Buddha is just like the void of the universe. The empty space, besides containing the universe, also contains the clouds, the rain, the earth, the plants and trees and so on. All things in the world “depend on empty space to attain the conditions they need to mature.” It is only because of empty space that all things can be perfected. By the same principle, the Buddha’s wisdom is just like the void of the universe. It is only because He analyzed the principles for us with this wisdom that we are able to perfect our own wisdom. To return to True Suchness, we must practice according to the teachings. Thus, “abide peacefully and manifest their application” means we must be mindful and let our hearts be open, spacious and undefiled. Then, naturally, wisdom will enter our hearts. Only then will we have Dharma that we can apply.
In summary, As Buddhist practitioners, we must put in effort over a long time to understand. Therefore, we must always be mindful.