BUDDHISM: THE WISDOM OF
COMPASSION AND AWAKENING |
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CONTENTS
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CHAPTER
ONE: INTRODUCTION
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CHAPTER
TWO: WHAT IS BUDDHISM
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CHAPTER
THREE: THE FIVE FORMS OF BUDDHISM TODAY
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CHAPTER
FOUR: THE GOAL OF BUDDHIST EDUCATION
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The
Buddhist Educational System
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The
Objectives of the Buddha's Teachings
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CHAPTER
FIVE: THE ORIGINAL VOW OF EARTH TREASURE BODHISATTVA SUTRA
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The
Great Perfection
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The
Great Perfection of Mahayana Buddhism
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CHAPTER
SIX: THE FIVE GUIDELINES
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The
Three Conditions
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The
First Condition: The Good Fortune Required to be a Human or Heavenly Being
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The
Second Condition: The Good Fortune Required to be a Theravada Sage
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The
Third Condition: The Good Fortune Required to be a Bodhisattva
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The Six
Principles of Harmony
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Sharing
the Same Viewpoints or Goals
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Abiding
by the Same Precepts
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Living
and Practicing Together Harmoniously
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Not
Quarreling
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Experiencing
the Inner Peace and Happiness from Practicing Together Harmoniously
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Sharing
Benefits Harmoniously
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The
Three Learnings
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The Six
Paramitas
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The
Paramita of Giving
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The
Paramita of Abiding by the Precepts
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The
Paramita of Patience
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The
Paramita of Diligence
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The
Paramita of Deep Concentration
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The
Paramita of Wisdom
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The Ten
Great Vows of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva
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The
First Vow: To Pay Respect to all Buddhas
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The
Second Vow: To Praise the "Thus Come One"
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The
Third Vow: To Make Offerings Extensively
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The
Fourth Vow: To Regret Karmic Obstacles
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The
Fifth Vow: To be Joyful over Others Meritorious Deeds
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The
Sixth Vow: To Appeal to the Buddha to Turn the Dharma Wheel
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The
Seventh Vow: To Request the Buddha to Reside in this World
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The
Eighth Vow: To Constantly be a Diligent Follower of the Buddha's Teachings
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The
Ninth Vow: To Accord with all Sentient Beings
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The
Tenth Vow: To Dedicate all Merits
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CHAPTER
SEVEN: THE RIGHT ORDER OF LEARNING Buddhism
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Belief,
Understanding, Practice and Attainment
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Practicing
the Three Learnings Concurrently
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CHAPTER
EIGHT: THE ARTISTIC ASPECTS OF BUDDHIST EDUCATION
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The
Earliest System of Continuing Education
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The Art
of Buddhism
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The
Hall of Heavenly Guardians
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It is necessary for us to a have correct understanding before practicing
Buddhism; otherwise, all the time spent in cultivation will be futile, as the
most superior result will not be attained.
Therefore, I would like to briefly explain the true nature of Buddhism.
Chinese history tells us that about three thousand years ago,
Buddha Shakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism was born in Northern India. He lived seventy-nine years and dedicated
forty-nine of them to teaching. In 67
AD, one thousand years after he entered Nirvana, these teachings were formally
introduced into China.
Prior to acquiring a good knowledge of Buddhism, we need to
understand the terms Buddha, Dharma, Buddhist Dharma and Buddhist teaching, as
they are important to our cultivation.
Buddha is a Sanskrit word, meaning “wisdom and enlightenment”. Why was it transliterated as Buddha and not
translated into wisdom and enlightenment?
The meaning of “Buddha” is so profound and extensive that these two
words were insufficient to cover the original meaning. Therefore, transliteration was used with
further explanations.
In essence, Buddha means wisdom.
In application or function, it means enlightenment. There are three levels of wisdom. First, “General and All Knowledge Wisdom” is
the correct understanding of the noumena, or essence, of the universe. It is the wisdom of knowing the general
aspect of all existences, the wisdom of Theravada sages. Second, “Differentiation Wisdom” is the
wisdom that can correctly comprehend all the infinite phenomena of the
universe, the wisdom of knowing the discriminative aspect of all existences,
the wisdom of Bodhisattvas. How did
these phenomena arise? From where? In what way? What were their results?
Third, “Overall and Perfect Knowledge Wisdom” is the exhaustive and
perfect perception and comprehension of the truth of life and the universe
without the slightest doubt or error, the wisdom of Buddhas. Buddha Shakyamuni, possessing all three of
these kinds of wisdom, completely understood the true reality of life and the
universe.
The function of wisdom is enlightenment. There are three classifications of enlightenment. First is "self-enlightenment", a
state in which one possesses no erroneous thoughts, views, speech or behavior. Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas in Theravada
Buddhism have attained this level of self-enlightenment, but have not yet
generated the Bodhi mind to help others achieve enlightenment. Second, is "enlightenment of self and
others", a state in which one helps others to reach enlightenment after
achieving his or her own. Bodhisattvas
in Mahayana Buddhism have attained this level.
Third is "Perfect Complete Enlightenment", a state in which
one reaches perfection in both enlightenment for self as well as helping others
to reach enlightenment. This is the
state of Buddhas.
The Buddha told us that this perfect wisdom and virtue are innate
to all beings. The sutras, recorded
teachings of the Buddha, tell us that “all sentient beings can attain
Buddhahood.” and “every being possesses the wisdom and virtuous character of
the Buddha”. In other words, all beings
are equal to Buddhas in nature.
However, due to our discriminating and wandering thoughts and attachments,
which are the root cause of all sufferings and disasters, we have temporarily
lost our original Buddha nature. Thus,
we continue being born into the endless cycle of birth and death.
The more we rid ourselves of these wandering thoughts and
attachments, the more we will experience freedom from suffering, and the more
wisdom and enlightenment we will uncover.
Once we completely free ourselves from discriminating and wandering
thoughts and attachments, our fixations to certain ideas or objects, we will
regain our lost Buddhahood; our original perfect enlightened state, our
self-nature Buddha.
Possessing great wisdom and enlightenment enables us to truly know
all that exists and all that is infinite.
This includes matters and objects as tiny as a speck of dust or the
finest hair on the human body, to those as great as the infinite universe. All of these are the objects of our
perception, or wisdom and enlightenment.
The Buddha used the word Dharma to symbolize all these infinite
phenomena. Buddhist Dharma or
Principle, is the infinite wisdom and enlightenment, the perception of all
things and laws in life and the universe.
Chinese people often say that Buddhist Dharma is as infinite as the
object perceived is infinite and the wisdom perceivable is infinite. This wisdom is innate to our self-nature.
The Buddha said, “Our innate perception and the objects in the
universe perceived are ONE not TWO.”
When we think about it logically, if the Buddha’s words are complete and
perfect, then we can believe that this wisdom and enlightenment are ultimate
and perfect. However, if perceived and
perceivable are opposites, then wisdom can hardly be complete and perfect, but
rather it is limited.
The Buddha told us that knowable and known, perceivable and
perceived are ONE not TWO. This is
called the One True Dharma Realm, the most genuine, perfect and highest realm
as explained to us in the Flower Adornment Sutra. The Western Pure Land of the Pure Land
School also belongs to and is not separate from the One True Dharma Realm. This Western Pure Land, was created by
Buddha Amitabha as an ideal place of cultivation as those who are born there
are no longer subject to reincarnation within the six realms.
In 1923, a well-known Buddhist scholar, Mr. Jing-Wu Ou-Yang gave a
speech at Nanjing Normal University in China, entitled “Buddhism is Neither a
Religion Nor a Philosophy, but the Essential for Our Modern Time.” It caused considerable sensation. His well-documented speech gave much conclusive
support to the proper definition and viewpoint of Buddhism.
How can we tell that Buddhism is an education? Today, the terms teacher and student are
only used in school. However, we call Buddha
Shakyamuni, our Original Teacher. We
call ourselves students, as did our predecessors in ancient China. This is unlike religions in which the god
and his or her disciples do not have a teacher-student relationship, but rather
a parent-child relationship. In
Buddhism, however, it is clearly stated that the Buddha is the teacher and we
are the students. Bodhisattvas and we
are classmates; they were the Buddha’s former students while we are his current
ones.
Furthermore, a monk or nun is called He-shang, which is the
transliteration of the Sanskrit word meaning a direct mentor who provides
teachings and acts as our personal guide.
We share a close teacher-student relationship with this individual. Temples, or Way Places, have only one
He-shang. Teachers who teach on behalf
of the He-shang are called Asheli.
Their speech and behavior can be models for us to follow. Others who do not directly teach would be
called Dharma masters or Fashi. They
are like teachers whose lectures we do not attend or those who do not directly
teach us. All these terms are
characteristics of education and are not found in religion.
For further examples of how Buddhism is an education, we can
examine Chinese way places where the activities are held. The way place is an educational institution
combining Buddhist teaching and art, similar to the combination of a modern
school and a museum. Nowadays, people
pursue the arts in everything.
Buddhism, however, practiced artistic teaching as early as three thousand
years ago.
The staff organization of the way place further illustrates the
similarity to modern schools. The
He-shang is equivalent to the principal of the school, deciding policies,
making plans for courses of study and employing the teachers. Reporting to the He-shang are three
associates or program executives, who are in charge of everything directly
related to teaching, advising and disciplining, and general services. In China, a traditional way place was
regarded as a Buddhist University. From
this administrative structure, we can further see that Buddhism truly is an education.
Currently, there are at
least five forms of Buddhism. The first
form is the traditional Buddhism I have just discussed. It is the education of the Buddha’s
teachings. This original form is rarely
seen today. The other four forms are
deviations of this one.
The second form is religious Buddhism. Although originally not a religion, it has become one in the past
few hundred years. Today, it is
difficult to deny this. Why? The external form of Buddhism today is
indeed that of a religion. It is no
longer the education found in a traditional way place where cultivators had up
to sixteen hours a day for both lessons and cultivation. The lessons included listening to lectures
and discussions. The cultivation
session included either Buddha name chanting or sitting meditation. Study and cultivation were used hand in hand
to strive for the right and proper understanding and practice, to purify
practitioner's minds and to eventually attain the state of enlightenment.
Since the monks and nuns
spent sixteen hours a day on study and cultivation, there was little time for
discriminating or wandering thoughts, and so achievement could be attained
relatively quickly. Unfortunately, this
traditional form of Buddhism is seldom seen nowadays in way places for many of
them have become a place to make offerings, to pray for blessings and to
conduct memorial services. It is little
wonder that people regard Buddhism as a religion.
The third form is philosophical or academic Buddhism often found as
a course in college. This is
inappropriate. Why? Buddhist education is a complete university
in itself, including all branches of learning.
But now it is reduced to merely a philosophical discipline. Regarding it as such, we miss the importance
of the fact that the teachings are a necessity for all sentient beings. Why?
Because these teachings can resolve all problems ranging from those in
our current lives to those in the future, including even those of birth and
death. Buddhism's scope is broad and
profound and regarding it as merely an academic field of study is frankly,
another deviation. These two forms
cause no serious harm to society. Religions
try to encourage people to be good.
Philosophy strives to pursue truth and to gain knowledge.
The fourth and most recent deviation is Buddhism as a show. It consists of a few hours of music, singing
and dancing with a short talk in between.
However, the fifth form is a deviation that has gone too far, that of
the distortion of Buddhism into a cult.
This deviated form has appeared in the last thirty to forty years. The exploitation of Buddhism by evil cults
has gone too far. In the name of Buddhism,
they take advantage of the weaknesses of human nature, creating chaos by
cheating, and misleading people, endangering the safety of the public. Some of their propaganda and deeds can sound
extremely enticing and appealing.
However, if we join their activities, which doom us to ruin, by the time
we realize our mistake, the damage will have already been done. It will then be too late to regret. Therefore, we need to choose wisely which
form to practice in order to receive the true benefits.
What is the ultimate goal of the Buddha’s teachings? It is to attain the Perfect, Complete Enlightenment. Transliterated from Sanskrit, it is called
Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. Out of
respect, this phrase was maintained in its original form rather than
translated. There are three stages
within this enlightenment: “Proper Enlightenment”, "Equal and Proper
Enlightenment”, and “Perfect, Complete
Enlightenment”.
The Buddha told us, that although scientists, philosophers and
religious scholars may have reached a good understanding about life and the
universe, this realization is neither complete nor proper. Why?
Although they have obtained some understanding, they are far from having
freedom from worries, from ending their afflictions. They still indulge themselves in the Five Poisons of greed,
anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt.
They remain mired in all the troubles of human relationships and are
swayed by personal feelings. In other
words, they are human.
If a person has severed greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, doubt
and afflictions, it will be acknowledged that this person has attained the
first level, that of Proper Enlightenment.
He or she will be called an Arhat, similar to the initial academic
degree in Buddhism. Arhats differ from
Buddhas in the way that they use their mind.
They use it in the same manner we do.
The difference is that we still have afflictions while Arhats do not.
The next higher level of enlightenment is that of Equal and Proper
Enlightenment, represented by Bodhisattvas.
They resemble Buddhas in motivation but have not yet reached the same
level of enlightenment. The minds of
Bodhisattvas are genuine; they remain forever unchanged and are similar to
those of Buddhas. Buddhas use the full
and perfect true heart. Buddhas
represent the highest level of enlightenment, which is the Perfect Complete
Enlightenment.
In Buddhist classic literature, the perfect, true mind of a Buddha
was symbolized by a full moon. The mind
of a Bodhisattva was symbolized by a crescent moon, which was neither full nor
perfect. And the mind of an Arhat was
symbolized by moonlight reflected from the surface of water, it is not real.
These three levels of enlightenment can be compared to our college
educational system. The level or degree
of Arhat is similar to earning an undergraduate degree. The level of Bodhisattva is similar to
earning a Master’s degree and the level of Buddha is similar to earning a
Doctorate’s degree. The word Buddha is
not exclusive to Buddha Shakyamuni, but a common title for any being who has
attained the perfect complete enlightenment.
Thus, Buddha, Bodhisattva and Arhat are only names or titles to
represent the levels of enlightenment or a degree we receive in Buddhism. And they are most certainly not deities to
be worshiped.
So, a Buddha is one who has fully comprehended the truth of life
and the universe and acquired the ultimate and perfect wisdom. This is also the goal of Buddhist education;
to enable beings to attain this same level of wisdom. Therefore, Buddhism is an education of wisdom.
The principle of Buddhism is to break through all superstitions and
delusions. It is to resolve delusion to
attain happiness and enlightenment, to eliminate suffering to gain serenity and
purity of mind. What is delusion? When we do not thoroughly and properly
understand the phenomenon around us, we tend to be deluded, to have wrong
ideas, which lead us to make mistakes.
Then we suffer ill consequences as a result. However, if we have correct understanding about life and the
universe, we will be free from mistakes in thought, judgement and
behavior. Then our result, or effect,
will be favorable. Thus, resolving
delusion to attain enlightenment is the cause and eliminating suffering to
attain happiness and purity is the effect.
Only through resolving superstition and delusion, can enlightenment
be attained. This is the objective of
the Buddha’s teaching. This wisdom will
enable all beings to differentiate true from false, proper from improper, right
from wrong and good from bad. It can
help us to establish a dynamic and caring attitude toward life and our
surroundings. So, we can clearly see
that Buddhism is neither passive nor obsolete, nor is it retreating from
society. As said in the Buddha
Speaks of the Infinite Life Sutra of Adornment, Purity, Equality and
Enlightenment of the Mahayana School or the Infinite Life Sutra,
Buddhism can perfectly solve all afflictions and problems. It enables us to obtain true and ultimate
benefits by creating fulfilling lives, happy families, harmonious societies,
prosperous nations and a peaceful world.
These are the objectives of the Buddha’s teachings for our world
now. The ultimate objectives of
abandoning all worries thus transcending the six realms are even more incredibly
wonderful. Therefore, we can see that
it is an education that will enable us to attain truth, virtue, beauty, wisdom
and genuine eternal happiness.
After understanding the goals and principles of the Buddha’s
teachings, we need to deepen our understanding of the Dharma. What is the Dharma? It is the true reality of life and the
universe, all the teachings of the Buddhas, which are included in sutras. These ancient textbooks documented all of
the Buddha’s teachings and were recorded by his students. The most basic one of Mahayana Buddhism is
the Original Vow of Earth Treasure Bodhisattva Sutra. It can be regarded as a textbook for first
grade students, within which, the truth was clearly explained, not with spoken
language but with emissions of light.
The sutra, as told by Buddha Shakyamuni, begins with his emitting
infinite bright lights called:
1. Great
Perfection Brightness Cloud,
2. Great
Compassion Brightness Cloud,
3. Great
Wisdom Brightness Cloud,
4. Great
Prajna Brightness Cloud,
5. Great
Samadhi Brightness Cloud,
6. Great
Auspicious Brightness Cloud,
7. Great Good Fortune Brightness Cloud,
8. Great
Merit Brightness Cloud,
9. Great
Refuge Brightness Cloud,
10.
Great Praise Brightness Cloud.
Although ten kinds are given, it does not mean that there are only
ten. The number ten is regarded as a
symbol of perfection, a complete cycle symbolizing infinity.
What is called perfection in the Earth Treasure Sutra is
infinity in the Infinite Life Sutra.
Not only can life be infinite, everything can be infinite! However, of all infinities, that of life is
the most important. We may have
boundless wealth and immeasurable good fortune, but how can we enjoy them if we
do not have sufficient life spans?
Therefore, the Pure Land School uses “infinite life” to symbolize all
infinities. In the Earth Treasure
Sutra, the ten Brightness Clouds represent this concept. “One is all and all is one” clearly explains
the infinite cosmos and life.
Upon what did the Buddha
base his teachings of life and the universe?
First is the Great Perfection Brightness Cloud. The great perfection of Tibetan Buddhism is
the true self-nature in Chinese Buddhism.
The true self-nature is great perfection. The following nine clouds of compassion, wisdom, etc. are
perfect, everything is perfect. This
great perfection is our own innate, true self-nature. It was from this initial point that the Buddha imparted the
infinite teachings to us, thus revealing the true nature of all phenomena in
the universe. Everything that the
Buddha taught is innate to us. It is
the original true self-nature within each of us. The purpose of his forty-nine years of teaching was to help us to
learn how to live happy and fulfilling lives.
This unique and complete education is for all sentient beings and is
much more vast and extensive than our modern educational system.
People work hard everyday.
What drives them to get up early in the morning and work long hours
before coming home? It is the pursuit
of prestige and wealth, especially wealth.
Would people continue to work if they could not receive payment or some
degree of prestige after having worked for a whole day? Of course not. Most would become listless and unwilling to work. Therefore, for most people, the driving
force in our society is wealth, followed by prestige.
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas desire neither wealth nor fame yet they
work harder than we do. What is the
driving force behind this conscientious teaching while expecting nothing in
return? It is the second Brightness
Cloud, the Great Compassion Brightness Cloud.
It is like a mother’s love for her children, especially her newborn
baby, but it is more profound in depth.
A mother does so out of natural love and compassion, asking for nothing
in return. This love is called a heart
of compassion. The compassion of the
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas towards all sentient beings is boundless, unconditional
and universal. It is the eternal
driving force that compels them to help all sentient beings. Therefore, the Great Compassion Brightness
Cloud follows the Great Perfection Brightness Cloud.
In order to teach others, we practice cultivation as well as
encouraging others to do likewise. We
do so to sincerely introduce Buddhism to other people. What is our driving force? Compassion.
But if we do so for wealth or fame, then it is purely business and this
is totally wrong for it violates the very spirit of Buddhism.
In fact, the circulation of the teachings, including sutras and
reference works should be unconditional.
Copyrighted materials do not accord with the true spirit of
Buddhism. Every time I am presented
with a Buddhist book, I first check for the copyright page. If it says “This book is protected by
copyright; any unauthorized printing of this book shall lead to punishment”, I
will not read the book. If asked why I
do not want to read it, my answer is that any true and good knowledge should
benefit others unconditionally and that reprinting should be allowed. It would be a waste of time and energy to
read copyrighted books. Only the
writings of those who are broadminded and kind-hearted and who sincerely
practice what they teach deserve to be read and studied. How can we expect a narrow-minded,
profit-seeking person to write kind things and conclude them with the great
perfection?
Compassion is built on rationale and is free of emotions. To be otherwise, it is delusion and therefore
is wrong. There are two Buddhist
sayings, “Compassion is the essence; convenient means are the way to
accommodate people with different capacities”.
The other seemingly says the complete opposite, “Compassion often incurs
misfortunes and convenience often leads to immorality”. The reason behind this apparent
contradiction is that if we ignore rationality and instead yield to emotion,
compassion then often results in misfortune while doing favors for someone gives
rise to immorality. Hence, this is
followed by the Great Wisdom Brightness Cloud, the third of the ten great
perfections. Perfect wisdom gives rise
to perfect compassion. Wisdom is the
method of convenience. Only by wisely
utilizing various methods of wisdom and compassion, can we help sentient beings
be enlightened and freed from sufferings.
The next brightness cloud is the Great Prajna (Intuitive Wisdom)
Brightness Cloud. What is the
difference between intuitive wisdom and wisdom? The Great Wisdom Sutra states, “Prajna innocence, knowing
everything”. It is intuitive wisdom
without knowing and yet knowing everything.
Without knowing is intuitive wisdom; knowing everything is wisdom. In other words, one is essence and the other
is function. From a different
perspective, wisdom is the knowledge of things and the realization of
truth. Intuitive wisdom, our original
wisdom, is that which can free people from worries and afflictions. Acquired wisdom is that which can interpret
all phenomena in the universe. It
arises from the original wisdom. If we
cannot completely attain the great perfection of the universe, how can we teach
about it to others?
When worries are completely eradicated and ignorance dispelled, we
can attain our own great perfection and restore our original ability. From that point on, we are in a state of
total awareness and capable of doing everything, we are all-knowing with
infinite abilities. The brightness
clouds of wisdom and intuitive wisdom contain profound meanings and are the
perfect complete wisdom.
How do we attain wisdom? It
is innate to our self-nature, but it is now hidden. Where is it? The Buddha told us that it is not
permanently lost just temporarily lost.
When we attain enlightenment, we can uncover this wisdom. Then how can we free ourselves from delusion
and recover our original ability? One
method taught by Buddha Shakyamuni is deep concentration, which is also called
the Great Samadhi Brightness Cloud.
Samadhi is another transliteration from Sanskrit meaning the proper
enjoyment, which has the same meaning as deep concentration.
Buddhism emphasizes cultivation or correcting our thoughts and
behavior. It is to correct everything
that arises from our body, mouth and mind, the three karmas of erroneous
behavior, speech and thoughts. To
correct the three karmas, we start from the mind as the Zen School teaches, “cultivation
should start from the root”. What is
the root? The mind. If our mind is proper then our thoughts,
speech and behavior will likewise be proper.
In Buddhism, there are innumerable methods of practice. All of these methods are ways for concentration
in cultivation. Not only the Zen School
emphasizes concentration in cultivation.
All the schools do, although they may not all use the term concentration.
Pure Land Buddhism calls it One Mind Undisturbed or purity of
mind. Tibetan Buddhism explains it as
Three mystic practices, the three karmas of body, mouth, mind corresponding to
those of the Buddha. Used here corresponding
means concentration. We can see that
various schools emphasize the same principles.
They simply use different terms to describe it. Therefore, since all lead to the same goal
and all methods are equal, no one method is better than another.
We can choose whichever method best fits our manner of living and
level of achievement and understanding.
The most important point is to concentrate on just one method. The more methods we try to follow, the more
confused we will become. The more
confused we are, the more difficult it is to succeed. This is very important, as Samadhi or deep concentration, is the
key to success in our learning and cultivation. We explain these as the Three Learnings of precepts or
self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom. Self-discipline leads to deep concentration. From deep concentration arises wisdom. Therefore, intuitive wisdom arises from deep
concentration. This deep concentration
in our self-nature is called the Great Samadhi Brightness Cloud.
Of the ten brightness clouds, the first five explain fundamental
principles and the latter five explain the methods. The fundamental principles are the basis of Buddha Shakyamuni’s
teachings. The following are the five
methods.
First is the Great Auspicious Brightness Cloud. What does auspicious mean? For most of us, auspicious means to get what
we deserve. If we obtain what we do not
deserve, then it is not auspicious. The
meaning of auspicious in Buddhism is much more profound: throughout the
universal existence, nothing is beyond our knowledge and experience. This is great auspiciousness. For example, when we are mindful of Buddha
Amitabha and vow to be born into the Western Pure Land, we will attain birth
into the Western Pure Land. If we vow
to be born into the Flower Adornment World, we will attain the stage of
awakening of Buddha Vairocana. This is
the original meaning of auspicious.
In our world, Buddha Shakyamuni taught different methods for
different levels of understanding and this is the utmost auspiciousness. First, the Buddha’s teachings never
contradict the true reality of life and the universe. Second, the Buddha always adapted his teachings to fit the
audience’s level of comprehension. His
teachings would be a failure if they proved to be incomprehensible for the
listeners or if they were too simple and boring. Neither of these would be auspicious. Therefore, the appropriate teaching is most auspicious. The Buddha conveys all that he wishes to: we
hear all that we can understand and absorb.
This is the utmost, the greatest and perfect auspiciousness.
Nowadays, people pursue wealth, knowledge, health and long
life. This is called good fortune. If the Buddha asks us to learn and practice
Buddhism but we do not receive what he said we would, then we will reject the
teachings. Why? If we cannot get what we wish for now, how
can we believe we will receive what is promised to us for the next life? It is all too distant and uncertain. When will we get to enjoy the promised great
reward? However, if we can receive
benefits now, we will be much more likely to believe in the promise of even
greater rewards in the future. By truly
practicing Buddhism, we will attain all that we wish for.
This is similar to a tree blossoming and bearing fruits. Only when we see the beautiful blossoms,
will we believe there will be good fruits.
If the flower does not bloom, how can we believe there will be fruit? Therefore, we have the Great Good Fortune
Brightness Cloud following the Great Auspicious Brightness Cloud. We must cultivate the cause before we can
attain the effect.
The next guiding principle is represented by the Great Merit
Brightness Cloud. All Buddhas spent a
long time, one hundred eons, cultivating good fortune after attaining
Buddhahood. Why? A Buddha cannot help sentient beings if he
himself does not have good fortune.
People will not believe in a teacher who talks of it but obviously lacks
it. However, when the teacher has good
fortune and explains that it comes from cultivation, then people will listen
and follow his or her teachings. Therefore,
only if the teacher has good fortune and virtue in addition to wisdom can he or
she help sentient beings. Thus, the
Buddha taught us to cultivate both good fortune and wisdom. However, good fortune is different from
merit in that merit is the one that helps us to transcend the cycle of birth
and death. We accumulate merit by
practicing the Three Learnings of precepts or self-discipline, deep concentration
and wisdom.
In our practice, we need to rely on the next principle of The Great
Refuge Brightness Cloud. This is not
what is usually thought of as taking refuge in the Triple Jewels of the Buddha,
the Dharma and the Sangha. Rather, it
is to return to and rely upon the Triple Jewels, the great perfection of our
self-nature.
The Great Praise Brightness Cloud symbolizes educating others about
Buddhism, praising the perfect and infinite merits and virtue of the
self-nature. What does Buddhism teach
us? To attain our perfect self-nature. Zen Buddhism often says that we should
search for the original state of our perfect self-nature.
In summary, Buddha Shakyamuni emitted light at the beginning of the
Earth Treasure Sutra. This light
has many more infinite, boundless meanings than the ten brightness clouds
discussed. The first five brightness
clouds are the Great Perfection of self-nature and the last five are the function
of the self-nature. These ten comprise
the basis of the Buddha’s teachings and are to be found in many sutras, often
represented by emissions of light. Many
people read of the brightness clouds without any real understanding of the
profound meanings within. Not only this
sutra, but also all sutras start and flow from the Great Perfection. We will benefit much more from reading
sutras once we understand these representations.
The sequence of practice in
Mahayana Buddhism is represented in China by the four Great Bodhisattvas: Di
Tzang (Earth Treasure) of Jiuhua Mountain; Guan Yin (Great Compassion) of Putuo
Mountain; Wen Shu Shi Li (Manjushri) of Wutai Mountain; and Pu Xian (Universal
Worthy) of Emei Mountain.
Earth Treasure means stored treasure of the great mother earth,
which represents our mind. Without the
earth, nothing could survive. So, the
Buddha used the earth as a metaphor for our mind, which is the Great
Perfection. It encompasses infinite
compassion, wisdom, intuitive wisdom, auspiciousness, good fortune, merit and
virtue. Therefore, all that the Buddha
told us in the sutras is infinite, is the Great Perfection. Understanding this will enable us to find
the boundless meanings within.
The Earth Treasure Sutra explains that we begin our learning
and practice by being filial to our parents and respectful to our teachers and
elders. Buddhism is an education of
honoring teachers and revering their teachings, which is based on the
foundation of filial piety. How can we
expect a person who is not filial to his or her parents to respect his or her
teachers? A teacher, regardless of
learning and capabilities, cannot impart knowledge to a student who lacks
respect and does not listen.
Therefore, only when we honor teachers and revere their teachings
can we truly succeed in our learning of Buddhism. The Original Vow of Earth Treasure Bodhisattva Sutra is
the sutra of the filial piety, which is the very heart of the Great
Perfection. All other perfections arise
from it. From here, we extend this
loving and caring for parents to respecting teachers and elders.
We keep expanding from here until we respect and care for all
sentient beings without discrimination or attachment. This is the enhancement and extension of Earth Treasure
Bodhisattva and is the teaching of Guan Yin Bodhisattva. Therefore, without filial piety, there would
be no great compassion. This is similar
to building a house. The second floor
must be built upon the first floor. In
being filial to parents and showing compassion for all other beings, we should
not use emotions. Rather we need to base
this compassion on rationale and wisdom.
Only in this way can we attain positive results.
Next is the third Bodhisattva, Manjushri, who symbolizes wisdom and
Universal Worthy Bodhisattva who symbolizes the practice of filial piety,
respect, compassion and wisdom in our daily lives. If we practice these principles when interacting with others,
matters and objects, then we ourselves are Universal Worthy Bodhisattva.
The teachings of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva are perfect. As the Flower Adornment Sutra tells
us, we cannot attain Buddhahood if we do not follow this teaching. Why?
This Bodhisattva is perfect in every thought, every vow and every
deed. Without true wisdom, the great
vow of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva cannot be fulfilled.
These four great Bodhisattvas exemplify this understanding and
represent the perfection of Mahayana Buddhism.
Therefore, from Earth Treasure Bodhisattva, we learn filial piety and
respect, from Guan Yin Bodhisattva, we learn great compassion, from Manjushri
Bodhisattva we learn great wisdom and from Universal Worthy Bodhisattva we
learn the great vows and conduct.
Buddha Shakyamuni used innumerable methods to correspond with the
level of attainment of his listeners.
However, regardless of the particular method, he never deviated from the
Great Perfection. In other words, all
his teachings arose from the self-nature.
Consequently, all methods are equal.
It is like the harmony between the leading role and the supporting roles
in the Flower Adornment Sutra.
If Buddha Shakyamuni is the leading role then all the other Buddhas are
the supporting roles. When Buddha
Amitabha is the leading role then Buddha Vairocana will be the supporting
role. Any Buddha can take the leading
role.
Harmonious cooperation between the roles is also found among the
Bodhisattvas. If we regard Guan Yin
Bodhisattva as the leading role in our learning of Buddhism, then the all
Buddhas and other Bodhisattvas take the supporting roles. If Earth Treasure Bodhisattva takes the
leading role then Guan Yin Bodhisattva and the others take the supporting
roles.
This principle applies to sutras as well. When we choose the Infinite Life Sutra as our primary
sutra then all the others become secondary.
If we take the Diamond Sutra as the primary then the Infinite
Life Sutra and the Flower Adornment Sutra become the secondary. All Bodhisattvas and all sutras are equal in
nature. Whichever primary method is
chosen it is praised as number one. However,
saying that a certain method is number one does not mean that the others are
less important or effective. If we
forget this, then we commit a serious offense.
What offense? Praising oneself
and belittling others.
Consider the origin of the Visualization Sutra. When Queen Vaidehi suffered from
overwhelming family misfortune, she bitterly said to Buddha Shakyamuni: “Life
is filled with suffering. Is there not
a place without suffering? I wish to
live in such a world”. Through his
supernatural abilities, Buddha Shakyamuni displayed for the queen all the
worlds of all the Buddhas in the universe.
She vowed to be born into Buddha Amitabha’s Western Pure Land, the world
of Ultimate Bliss and requested that Buddha Shakyamuni teach her how to accomplish
this.
He taught her to practice the Three Conditions explaining that they
were the fundamental causes of attaining Buddhahood for the Buddhas of the
past, present and future. Therefore,
they are a crucial part and foundation of our practice. The Three Conditions are the basis of
Buddhism and crucial in our attainment of Buddhahood.
To be a virtuous person, it is necessary to first follow the Three
Conditions. In sutras, we often see the
phrase “good men and good women”. What
are the requirements for being good?
Meeting each of the eleven principles contained in the three
Conditions. Thus, we will see that the
requirements are stringent. Good men
and good women in the heaven and human realms need only meet the First
Condition. Theravada sutras only
require practitioners to fulfill the First and Second Conditions. But for Mahayana practitioners, good men and
good women must meet all three. As we
see in Mahayana sutras such as the Earth Treasure Sutra and the Infinite
Life Sutra, it is to live our lives in accordance with the eleven principles.
Failure to satisfy any one of the principles would prohibit a
person from being considered good.
Regardless of what the Buddha taught, the methods of learning and
cultivation or the true reality of life and the universe, all accord with the
Great Perfection. The eleven principles
of the Three Conditions are likewise perfect in every word.
The First Condition
includes:
1)
Being filial
to our parents,
2)
Being
respectful to our teachers and elders,
3)
Being
compassionate and not killing any living beings and
4)
Following
the Ten Good Conducts.
Consider the first and
second principles of being filial to our parents and respectful to our teachers
and elders. The Chinese character for
filial piety, “Xiao”, is comprised of two parts. The top part “old” means the previous generations and the bottom
part “children” means the future generations.
This demonstrates that the previous generations and the future
generations are actually one entity.
They are ONE rather than TWO. In
our modern world, the existence of the generation gap has resulted in parents
and children being TWO instead of ONE.
This gap contradicts the principle of filial piety, which has no
generation gap.
The past had its own past;
the future will have its own future.
The past had no beginning and the future will have no end. They are one. Filial Piety reaches beyond time and extends throughout the
universe. In other words, it
encompasses the entire universe. Who
can practice the principle of filial piety to perfection? Only a Buddha can do so. Without having attained Buddhahood, we cannot
achieve the Great Perfection in practicing filial piety.
Filial piety has profound
meanings in Buddhism. It means to take
care of parents physically, mentally and to fulfill their wishes. To further extend and enhance our respect
and care for our parents, we have compassion for all beings in this world. As stated in a precept sutra, “All men are
my father; all women are my mother”.
This is the broadening of our mind of filial piety so that it encompasses
all beings in the universe, in the past, present and future.
Mahayana teachings are based
on the principle of filial piety for without it there would be no principle of
respecting teachers. It is illogical
that we are not filial to our parents, yet respectful to our teachers. We could have ulterior intentions, for
example, flattering the teacher to obtain a better grade. Filial piety and respect go together. At the same time that we are filial to our
parents, we also elevate that filial piety to being respectful to our
teachers. Only when we realize this
truth will we truly appreciate the value of the principle of filial piety. The Earth Treasure Sutra is the
Buddha’s teaching of filial piety for only when we treat our parents with such
respect can we uncover the infinite treasures within our own self-nature.
Being filial toward our
parents is a virtue of our self-nature.
Only virtuous acts can uncover our self-nature. It is the first and most fundamental
principle of the Three Conditions. The
Chinese respect ancestors even though they are distant from them by hundreds,
even thousands of years. They
memorialize them on important festivals.
Why? Their ancestors and they
are all one entity. There is no gap
between them. Sincerely memorializing
our ancestors corresponds with our self-nature. If we remember and respect our ancestors, we will certainly be
filial to our parents. When we are
filial toward our parents, it naturally follows that we will respect our
teachers.
When we disappoint our
parents by not respecting teachers, not following their instructions and not
studying hard, we violate the principle of filial piety. Also, siblings would do well to live in harmony. Not getting along with brothers and sisters
will cause parents to worry thus also violating the principle of filial
piety. By getting along with others at
work, meeting responsibilities and abiding by laws, we will not cause our
parents to worry, thus we accord with the principle of filial piety. These are a true perfection of virtue. Buddha Shakyamuni taught us to begin our
learning from here. He is our original
teacher from three thousand years ago.
If we respect a teacher from this far in the past, how would we not
respect our current teachers?
When we pay respect to an image of the Buddha, we are not
worshipping him. We respect the image
as a representation of our Original Teacher and therefore we pay our debt of
gratitude to him. This is why the
followers of the Buddha respect the Buddha’s images as well as memorial tablets
of ancestors. This practice has a far-reaching
and widespread educational significance, for at the sight of them, we remember
our obligation of caring for and respecting our parents, teachers and
elders.
The Earth Treasure Sutra tells us about compassion after
explaining the Great Perfection. Compassion
is the third principle of the First Condition.
Compassion is also a virtue of self-nature and crucial to our
practice. When the virtue of filial
piety and respect for parents and teachers is expanded, it becomes
compassion. Compassion includes not
killing any living being. This
statement has profound meanings. Without
a thorough comprehension of the Earth Treasure Sutra, we cannot
understand the true meaning behind not killing any living being.
Of all bad karmas, that resulting from killing is most
serious. Why? All living beings have the natural instinct of fearing and
evading death. Although killing is the
direct retribution of the victim who killed the present killer in a previous
lifetime, the current victim does not know this. He or she would not think, “I killed this person so now this
person is killing me”. If only the
victim could understand this, there would be no anger at the retribution. Instead, the present victim will think, ”You
are killing me now. I will kill you
next.” This vengeance will be repeated
in the endless cycle of birth and death and the mutual hatred will grow
stronger and stronger.
This is the most terrible of all the bad offenses and is why we
need so urgently to practice compassion for all beings. There are infinite ways to practice
compassion, but in the Three Conditions, the Buddha particularly stressed not
killing any living being. In other
words, killing is an ultimate act of being unfilial towards our parents and
disrespectful towards our teachers and elders.
The Buddha taught the basic
Five Precepts and the first of these is also the first of the Ten Good
Conducts, do not kill. Continuing to
kill is to completely disregard his teachings and is an ultimate act of
disrespect. This disrespect is
tantamount to being unfilial to our parents.
Consequently, if we ignore these instructions and kill, we are neither
compassionate nor filial.
The fourth principle is “Following the Ten Good Conducts” which are
criteria for good behavior and are to be found in many cultures and religions
throughout the world. Buddha Shakyamuni
told us that if we practice these good conducts, we would not fall into the
three bad realms. Instead, we would
likely to be born into the heaven realms if we practice these good conducts
diligently. If we achieve the deep
concentration along with the four immeasurable minds of loving-kindness, compassion,
joy and letting go, we will rise to an even higher level of the heavens, the
Heaven of Form and the Heaven of Formless.
The Buddha groups the Ten Good Conducts into three major
categories: physical, verbal and mental.
Physically, we are prohibited from killing, stealing and committing
sexual misconduct. Regardless of their
good deeds or their ability in deep concentration, those who have sexual
desires can only rise as far as the Heaven of Desire. This Heaven has six levels; the higher we rise, the lighter these
desires.
A person who sincerely cultivates and has thus attained even the
lowest level of deep concentration would be able to suppress sexual
desires. At this level the Five Desires
of wealth, lust, fame, food or drink and sleep would not arise. Although the desires are not completely
eradicated, they can be suppressed by deep concentration. Only the one, who can resist temptations of
desire, can attain this state and thus be born into the heavens above the First
Level Meditation Heaven. Understanding
this explains why attainment throughout this process is so difficult. When we are attempting to practice, we can
first ask ourselves, “Can I resist the Five Desires of wealth, lust, fame, food
or drink and sleep”? If we yield to
temptation, we will not be able to rise to this level of heaven.
The second good conduct is to not steal. For instance, some people like to evade paying their income
taxes. This is equivalent to stealing
money from the country and the retribution from this is much serious than that
from stealing private property. When we
steal one person’s property, we only have a debt to that one person. But if we steal property of the country, we
will have a hopelessly insurmountable debt because then we will have stolen
from and thus owe every taxpayer. For
example, the United States has a population of well over two hundred
million. Two hundred million
creditors! Just imagine the
consequences! Therefore, a sincere
practitioner is a law-abiding person dedicated to meeting public
responsibilities. One who does not
violate the good deeds of no killing, stealing or sexual misconduct conducts
themselves properly.
There are four verbal good conducts; no lying, abusive language,
bearing tales and seductive words.
First, do not lie. To lie is to
cheat deliberately, it is dishonesty.
Second, do not make rude or abusive remarks. Those who have this bad habit speak with no sense of propriety;
their words can be irritating or very harmful.
Third, do not talk about others behind their back for this sows
discord among people. A person says to
Sam, “Tom has said something bad about you.”
And then this person says to Tom, ”Sam has said something bad about
you.” Whether this person does so
deliberately or unintentionally, he is bearing tales and gossiping. In our society, many people do this
unintentionally. At times, so many
people participate in this that the subject becomes distorted beyond
recognition. A well-meant message or
remark may become just the opposite after everyone who passes it adds or omits
something. This can cause serious
consequences ranging from discord among individuals to war among nations.
Fourth, do not use seductive words. These can sound very sweet and enticing but often conceal bad
intentions. Just look at many of
today’s movies, singers and performers.
They sound beautiful and look good but what are they teaching people to
do? To lie, steal, or kill. Fifth, do not commit sexual misconduct.
Finally, there are three mental good conducts; no greed, anger or
ignorance. Greed includes being stingy,
reluctant to give of our belongings, our knowledge to help others. This can become the greatest obstacle to
overcome in our practice. The Buddha
taught giving as a way to eradicate our greed.
Some practitioners are able to resist any worldly temptations; however,
they cannot resist the desire to learn many methods of practice. So, they have not truly rid themselves of
their greed.
The Buddha has taught us to let go of all desires and greed. He did not ask us to turn to new objects for
our greed. In the past, we sought
worldly joys, now we seek and attach to Buddhist knowledge. The mind of greed is still there. Therefore, whether for worldly life or for
Buddhist knowledge, we would do well not to be greedy. Greed is the source of all misdeeds and wrongdoing.
Greed leads to resentment and anger. Why? We become resentful
and angry when our greed is not satisfied and this brings about immense worries
and afflictions. Greed is the cause of
the karma that results in us being born into the hungry ghost realm. By failing to rid ourselves of the resentment
and anger caused by greed, we can be born into the hell realm. Ignorance, having no wisdom, results in us
being born into the animal realm. In
both worldly teachings and in Buddhism there is truth and falsehood, justice
and injustice, right and wrong, good and bad.
An ignorant person cannot tell the difference between them. Intentional or unintentional, he or she
often confuses false and truth, bad and good.
The Three Poisons are the biggest obstacles to our attainment of
enlightenment. Buddhism, especially the
Zen School, advocates starting our practice from the root, the mind. To start from this root, we need to sever
our greed, anger and ignorance.
These three physical, four verbal and three mental deeds comprise
the Ten Good Conducts. If we are filial
to and care for our parents, respect and serve our teachers and elders, and are
compassionate without any killing and practice the Ten Good Conducts, we will
be regarded as good people by society.
However, we still cannot be called “good men and good women” in the
Buddhist sense because the criterion for this are higher than just these four
principles. Thus, it is not easy for us
to achieve even the basic standards.
The second of the
Three Conditions is:
5)Taking the Three Refuges,
6)Abiding by precepts laws and
customs and
7)Behaving in a proper and
dignified manner.
Mahayana Buddhism is based
on the foundation of Theravada Buddhism, which was introduced into China during
the Sui and Tang Dynasties, thirteen hundred years ago, but soon gave way to Mahayana
Buddhism. Why did the Theravada
teachings decline in China? In ancient
times, people who learned Buddhism had already been nurtured in the Taoist and
Confucian teachings, which were enough to replace the Theravada teachings. Since the Taoist and Confucian teachings were
also similar to those of the Mahayana teachings, it was natural for the Chinese
to accept them. Thus, the Theravada
teachings were not practiced as Taoism and Confucianism served as the
foundation of Mahayana teachings.
Consequently, Theravada
teachings never really developed in China.
Today, people learn and practice Mahayana but ignore Theravada Buddhism,
Taoism and Confucianism. This is
similar to ignoring the foundation and first floor when building a house. Such an attempt would not work because the
house would be “a cabin in the sky”.
This is why we see so few Buddhist successors today.
Theravada Buddhism is
established on the human-heavenly basis, which includes being filial to our
parents, respectful to our teachers and elders, compassionate to others and
diligent in practicing the Ten Good Conducts.
With this base, we can meet the criteria to begin learning and
practicing Buddhism. To be a Buddhist
practitioner, after we have acquired basic understanding, we pay respect to the
teacher and take the Three Refuges of the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha,
the fifth principle of the Three Conditions.
We pay respect to Buddha Shakyamuni and express the wish to follow his
teachings for the rest of our lives.
From this point on we will have the standards for changing our thought,
speech and behavior.
Taking Refuge in the Triple
Jewels is to take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. In ancient times, everyone understood the
meaning of the Triple Jewels. Today however,
many people misunderstand the meaning.
When they hear the word "Buddha", they think of an image. When they hear the word "Dharma",
they think of a sutra. When they hear
the word "Sangha", they think of monks and nuns.
The Sixth Patriarch of Zen,
Master Hui-Neng, foresaw the possibility that people in the future would
misinterpret the meaning of the Triple Jewels.
Therefore, whenever he taught he would not use the words Buddha, Dharma
or Sangha. Instead, he used
enlightenment, proper understanding and purity. These terms are more easily understood and less subject to
misunderstanding. They are called the
Triple Jewels of Self-nature, which are the true principles for us to
follow. If we become misled here and
follow an individual master, we will remain misled from now on. If that happens, how can we achieve any real
attainment?
When we take refuge in the
Triple Jewels, we first return to and rely upon the Buddha. For uncountable aeons, we have been
wandering helplessly and miserably in the six realms. Now we have met a good teacher who shows us that we need to
return from our confusion, delusion and erroneous thinking and to rely upon the
awakening of our self-nature. Our
self-nature was originally awakened.
So, the Buddha that we rely upon is not to be found outside of ourselves
but is innate to our self-nature. The
Pure Land School teaches “Buddha Amitabha and the Pure Land are already within
our self-nature”. Buddha Amitabha,
Buddha Shakyamuni and all Buddhas manifest from our self-nature. Therefore, what we rely upon is the Buddha
or awakening of our self-nature. From
now on we should be awakened and never again be deluded or filled with
attachments, for if we do so then we have not turned back.
Next we return to and rely
upon the Dharma, of which our thoughts and viewpoints of life and the universe
completely accord with true reality.
This treasure is only found within our self-nature. Buddha Shakyamuni taught us to return from
erroneous thoughts and viewpoints and to rely only upon those that are
proper. This is to return and rely upon
the Dharma. The Buddha did not tell us
to blindly follow him but rather to be a dauntless independent individual and
to find the truth by ourselves.
Next we return to and rely
upon the Sangha, which represents purity of the Six Senses of sight, sound,
smell, taste, touch and idea. Most of
us will find that our six senses become polluted when they encounter external
surroundings. When these are pleasing,
we develop a heart of greed, which is pollution. When these are displeasing, we develop a heart of resentment and
anger, which is pollution as well. We
need to remember that the Five Desires of wealth, lust, fame, food or drink and
sleep and the Seven Human Emotions of joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate and desire
are impurities of the heart. The Buddha
told us that originally our self-nature was pure without impurities. We need to eradicate all impurities and rely
upon our pure heart. This is to return
and rely upon the Sangha.
In summary, taking refuge in the Buddha means being awakened and
not deluded. Taking refuge in the
Dharma means having proper viewpoints.
Taking refuge in the Sangha means being pure and not polluted. These are the Triple Jewels of Self-nature
that the Buddha taught us for our practice: awakening, proper viewpoints and
purity. From now on, we need to forget
our past and return to and rely upon these Triple Jewels and use them to
correct our thoughts, speech and behavior.
When we attain one of the Three Refuges, we achieve the other two
as well. Think about it. Will an awakened person have erroneous
viewpoints? Will this person have an
impure heart? Can a person with an
impure heart and erroneous viewpoints attain awakening? The Buddha has shown us three guidelines to
uncover our original self-nature and to attain Buddhahood. This is similar to a way place with three
entrances, we only need to step through one and we are in!
Zen Buddhism uses the sudden enlightenment method to uncover our
self-nature. However, only cultivators
with superior capability and purity of mind can achieve attainment in this
way. For example, the Sixth Patriarch
of Zen, Master Hui-Neng only taught students with superior capabilities.
Other schools such as the Tiantai, Flower Adornment and Three Sastras
(Discourse) Schools use the proper thoughts and viewpoints method by correcting
thoughts and behavior following the guidelines in the sutras. However, this requires endurance and much
practice because achievement takes a long time and we have to study many sutras.
The Pure Land and Tibetan Schools, however, emphasize practice
through purity of mind through cultivation.
It is logical that these two schools are popular today in the Dharma
Ending Age. However, the Pure Land
School does not require unusually superior abilities or a long period of time
for practice. As it stresses the Buddha
Name Recitation Method to attain purity of mind, it is much easier to practice
and to reach attainment in than the Tibetan School. Again, although the doors to the way place are different, each of
them will give us entry. Therefore, all
methods are equal and the three methods of enlightenment, proper thoughts and
viewpoints, and purity are in essence the same.
Thus, we need to acquire a clear understanding of the Triple Jewels
of Self-nature and to know which method to choose as the basis for our
practice. Only in this way will we find
genuine refuge. Otherwise, we will
remain ignorant of where to take refuge and upon what to rely.
Although we may now have more understanding of the Triple Jewels,
we may still be confused as to how to practice them in our daily lives. Each school has its own representations of
the Triple Jewels. For example, in the
Flower Adornment School they are Vairocana Buddha, the Flower Adornment
Sutra, Manjushri Bodhisattva and Universal Worthy Bodhisattva and the
forty-one Great Bodhisattvas, respectively.
They are our role models to emulate.
The Triple Jewels of the Tiantai School are Buddha Shakyamuni, the Lotus
Sutra and the Bodhisattvas named in the sutra, respectively. In the Pure Land School they are Buddha
Amitabha, The Infinite Life Sutra, the other four sutras and one sastra
or commentary; Guan Yin Bodhisattva, Great Strength Bodhisattva, Manjushri
Bodhisattva and Universal Worthy Bodhisattva, respectively.
We learn compassion from Guan Yin Bodhisattva and single-minded
concentration from Great Strength Bodhisattva.
“The Chapter on the Perfect and Complete Realization of Great Strength Bodhisattva”
in the Surangama Sutra tells us how Great Strength Bodhisattva
concentrated on the Buddha Name Chanting Method from the time he took refuge
until the time he attained enlightenment.
He taught us that the proper way to chant is the complementary practice
of concentrating the six sense organs and continuous pure mindfulness of Buddha
Amitabha. Pure mindfulness is to chant
without “doubt, intermingling with other thoughts and methods”, to chant with a
pure mind. Continuous means
uninterrupted with one sentence after another.
This is the key to success in the practice of Buddha Name chanting,
which was taught by Great Strength Bodhisattva.
Mr. Lian-Ju Xia wrote in his book entitled “Essentials for Practice
of the Pure Land School” that Great Strength Bodhisattva was the founding patriarch
of the Dharma realm. Initially, his
comment greatly surprised me because I had never heard this before. Later, I understood what he meant and
greatly admired him for his perception.
Throughout the universe, Great Strength Bodhisattva was the first
Bodhisattva to concentrate solely on the Buddha Name Chanting Method.
When Buddha Shakyamuni manifested in our Saha world, the first
sutra he taught was the Flower Adornment Sutra. In this assembly, the Ten Great Vows of
Universal Worthy Bodhisattva concluded the sutra and guide us to the Western
Pure Land. Thus, Universal Worthy
Bodhisattva is the founding patriarch of our Saha world. Then, after the Infinite Life Sutra
was introduced into China, Master Hui-Yuan of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, which
was sixteen hundred years ago, built a cultivation hall and gathered together
one hundred twenty-three fellow practitioners.
They exclusively studied the Infinite Life Sutra and practiced
the Buddha Name Chanting Method.
Therefore, the three founding patriarchs of the Pure Land School are
Great Strength Bodhisattva of the Dharma realms, Universal Worthy Bodhisattva
of the Saha world and Master Hui-Yuan of China.
Years ago, my late teacher, Mr. Bing-Nan Lee, of Taizhong in
Taiwan, suggested that I should introduce Pure Land Buddhism to the west. I established a Way Place in Dallas, Texas
and called it the “Flower Adornment Society”, the same name I used in
Taiwan. When I brought statues of Buddha
Amitabha, Guan Yin Bodhisattva and Great Strength Bodhisattva from China, they
were too small for the twenty-one foot hall.
I thought that it would be better to have larger paintings with western
features to symbolize the introduction of the Pure Land Buddhism to the
west.
Just one day before my departure for the United States, I received
some paintings with the request that they be taken to Dallas. I still do not know who the donor was. The paintings were of Buddha Amitabha, Guan
Yin Bodhisattva and Great Strength Bodhisattva. What a surprise! Buddha
Amitabha had Indian features, Guan Yin Bodhisattva had Chinese features and
Great Strength Bodhisattva had western features! The donor had the same idea that I had. The western features of the founding patriarch of the Dharma
Realm symbolized the arrival of Pure Land Buddhism in the United States. Thus, the Pure Land Society
was set up in the west. Mr. Lian-Ju Xia had been the first to suggest that a Pure Land
Society be formed. But it was not to be
in China, but rather in Dallas, Texas.
The Triple Jewels are also represented by images of Buddhas, sutras
and monks and nuns. They are to remind
us of the need to return and rely on the Triple Jewels of our self-nature. When we see images of the Buddha, they
remind us to be awakened and not deluded when interacting with people, matters
and objects. Without this daily
reminder we will remain confused and wrapped up in worldly affairs.
The sutras are to be recited daily but not for the benefit of the
Buddha. We recite them as another
reminder of how to cultivate our mind and how to properly interact with people,
matters and objects. For example, our
daily conduct is an expression of the Infinite Life Sutra when we
emulate the qualities found within it.
The image of a monk or nun, whether or not he or she has abided by
the precepts, reminds us to keep our six senses from becoming polluted. We need to understand that we do not take
refuge in individuals who pass on to us the meaning and the cultivation
guidelines of the Triple Jewels of awakening, proper thoughts and viewpoints,
and purity.
Although there is an uncountable number of methods, their
objectives are the same. As is often
said, “all roads lead to Rome” and “all methods are the same”. Pure Land practitioners should never
criticize or slander Zen, Tibetan or any other schools. Why?
Because their objectives are the same as ours, they simply follow
different methods. This is similar to
our taking a bus while others chose to walk.
We cannot say that they are wrong when all roads lead to the same destination. They have the freedom to choose their
way. When I was in Huntsville, Alabama,
a student asked me, “I am confused by
so many methods. Which one do you think
I should choose?” At the time, there happened
to be a ball on the ground. I pointed
to the ball and said, “Look at this ball.
The surface has points countless as the number of methods. The teachings require you to find the center
of the ball. You can reach the center
from any point on the surface as long as you follow a straight line. You need not find a second or a third
point. As an old saying goes, “Follow
the road and you will get home. There
is no need to circle around”. He then
understood that Buddhism pursues the true mind. Once we attain enlightenment, we attain everything. Therefore, no matter which method we choose,
the key to success is concentration on one method. So long as we adhere to our chosen method, we will achieve deep
concentration, attain wisdom and uncover the self-nature of Great Perfection.
From all of this, we can see how important the Triple Jewels are to
us. Monks and nuns are the treasure of
the sangha. We need to respect all of
them. We can learn from the good ones,
as well as from those who do not follow the rules and guidelines. We emulate the former and use the latter to
serve as negative examples.
If we fail to understand that taking refuge in the Triple Jewels
does not mean following a certain person, then there will be the most serious
of consequences, as we will fall into Avici Hell. Why? Throughout the
universe, there is only one sangha, an integral body. The sangha in our present world is just a part of this
whole. If we take refuge in and follow
only one individual monk or nun, and regard that person as our only teacher and
refuse to respect others, we will be committing “Splitting and sowing discord
among the group”. This is the fifth of
the Five Deadly Offenses of murdering our father, murdering our mother, causing
a Buddha to bleed, killing a Bodhisattva or an Arhat and disrupting the unity
among the Sangha. Therefore, it would
be even worse to choose only a certain monk or nun for refuge than not to take
refuge at all.
Furthermore, we only need to take refuge once. It does not accomplish anything to take
refuge from one person this time and then from another the next time. We may think that we can get much more
protection if we follow many monks and nuns.
However, as the saying goes, “A clay idol crossing a river cannot even
protect himself”. Nobody can protect
us. Only when we take Refuge in the
Triple Jewels of our self-nature, can we protect ourselves. Some of those here today, may have gone
through a Taking Refuge Ceremony. If
now, those who have done so, have a clearer understanding then they can
properly take refuge in the Triple Jewels by following the principles of awakening,
proper thoughts and viewpoints, and purity.
The sixth principle of the Three Conditions is abiding by the
precepts, laws and customs. Of all the
precepts the most important are the basic Five Precepts. My late teacher, Living Buddha Master
Zhang-Jia once said, “The Three Refuges and the Five Precepts are so essential
that all Buddhist cultivators need to abide by them every moment”. Then he explained further, “It is like a
train ticket for you to get from northern Taiwan to southern Taiwan. From the moment you board the train until
you reach your destination, you must hold on to that ticket. You must not lose it, because you have to
show it when you depart. Taking Refuge
in the Triple Jewels and the first Five Precepts are as important to you as
that train ticket”. He further
explained that if we part from the Triple Jewels and the precepts, we will lose
the teachings and will no longer be a student of the Buddha.
The Five Precepts are no killing, stealing, committing sexual
misconduct, lying and taking intoxicants.
The first four offenses are physical transgressions of the
self-nature. Whether or not we have
taken the precepts, it is wrong to commit these acts. But for one, who has formally taken the Five Precepts, this will
be considered as committing a double violation.
However, drinking alcohol and taking intoxicants is different. A person who has not taken the precepts is
not guilty when drinking, however, a person who has taken the precepts and then
drinks will have broken this precept.
The purpose of refraining from intoxicants is to prevent us from committing
the first four transgressions while under the influence. Therefore, intoxicants in themselves are not
wrong. This is an example of why we
need to understand the purpose of the Buddha’s precept setting, its function
and benefit.
When deciding whether to formally take the Five Precepts, the
essence of all the precepts, we need to ask the Dharma Master to explain to us
exactly what they mean. Only then we
will know if and how to abide by them.
Merely reading a book of the precepts does not necessarily ensure our
commitment to keeping them.
Some people have complained that there are too many precepts and
that it is too easy to violate them.
Thus, they abandon abiding by the precepts. This is why most people prefer reading or listening to talks
about the sutras while avoiding those on precepts. We need to remember that precepts guide us in our behavior and
are the proper conduct of all Buddhas.
If there were no precepts, there would be no Buddhism. If there were no courtesies, there would be
no Confucianism. Merely reciting the
sutras without practicing the teachings within them will result in our not
receiving any of their benefits. True
learning lies in practice and the precepts represent the practice of
Buddhism. Thus, abiding by the Five
Precepts becomes the standard for our daily lives and the guidelines for us to
attain proper enlightenment.
When the Buddha was in our world, he was joyful and open-minded,
whether taking part in daily life or teaching.
And it was this joy and energy that attracted people and helped them to
accept Buddhism. It is not meant to
bind us, but to benefit all beings by bringing them joy and happiness. The formation of the precepts was to show us
the right path to attain a happy and fulfilling life.
A good illustration is my late teacher, Mr. Bing-Nan Lee, who lived
a simple and frugal yet happy life. For
decades, he only ate one meal a day.
But, whenever he was invited out for dinner, he accepted. On several occasions, he invited me to
accompany him. Since I had been
practicing the precept of not eating dinner for years, I felt very
uncomfortable when being invited. Mr.
Lee simply said to me, “Come with me!
Come with me!” Later he spoke to
me, ”With this attachment, you will not be able to help people. Why?
Because if you intend to help them, you must make them happy. Eating this dinner is not violating the
precepts but rather it is lifting them.
They invited you with good intentions.
If you reject their invitations, they will look upon you as being closed
to reason. Then they will not only
reject Buddhism, but also will also tell others that we practitioners are arrogant
and look down upon others. They may
also urge them to avoid Buddhists. So,
you could ruin the opportunity of an untold number of people to learn of
Buddhism. Furthermore, this will result
in the creation of negative karma for you”.
Therefore, he was not violating the precepts but was instead simply
lifting them for this meant making others happy, helping them to learn of
Buddhism as well as according with conditions.
When we arrived at one dinner, the host apologized, “I am very
sorry that I did not know that my Mr. Lee does not eat after noon”. The host was obviously deeply moved that Mr.
Lee had accepted his invitation. We can
see from this that Buddhism is flexible.
However, it would have been entirely different if Mr. Lee, or one who practices
this precept, wanted to eat something in the evening.
Many years ago when I was young, a friend told me a story about
himself. It occurred during the Chinese
War of Resistance against the Japanese invasion. After the fall of Nanjing, some Japanese soldiers chased the
individual and two of his friends. The
three fled to a temple and were saved by an old monk who shaved their heads,
gave them monks clothing to put on and told them to blend into the large assembly
of monks. When the Japanese soldiers
arrived at the temple, they were unable to find the three and soon left. Thus, they were saved.
When the war was over, the friends returned to Nanjing wishing to
repay their debt of gratitude. They
invited the old monk to a lavish banquet.
He arrived to find the table laden with chicken, duck, pork and
fish. All of a sudden, they remembered
that the monk was a vegetarian! They
were extremely upset over their mistake and did not know what to do. But the monk acted like there was nothing
unusual and picking up his chopsticks invited everyone to sit down. The three friends were greatly moved.
Did the old monk break the precepts? No! His behavior followed
what is said in the sutras, “Compassion and kindness are the basis of Buddhism
and skillful means are the method”. He
had used the first of the Four Beneficial Methods, making others happy. The old monk was moved by their gesture and
did not blame them for their honest mistake.
He had used the same method that the Bodhisattvas use to help people
through the dharma doors. If the monk
had been angry, he could have easily ruined their interest in Buddhism. But he was wise enough to use the
opportunity to help guide three people.
Therefore, we again see that Mahayana Buddhism is highly flexible, as it
accords with the existing circumstances.
Let’s look at strictly abiding by the precepts. The Five Precepts are the heart, the essence
of all the precepts. Expanding further,
we follow all the precepts as set forth by Buddha Shakyamuni, as well as the
social norms, customs, rules and laws in every country. When in China we follow Chinese customs,
rules and laws. When in the United
States we do the same. In other words,
precepts are rules we need to follow in our daily lives. The modern conveniences of transportation
and communication have greatly increased opportunities for travel to different
countries and regions of the world. We
need to follow the advice of “When in Rome do as the Romans do”. This is called strictly abiding by the
precepts.
Many of the precepts taught by Buddha Shakyamuni were appropriate
for that time but are no longer suitable today. Why? Our manner of
living, dressing and eating is totally different from that of India several
thousand years ago. For example, of the
two hundred fifty precepts for monks, ten rules on the etiquette of dressing
are totally unsuitable for today as ancient Indians dressed differently than we
do. Eating is another area that has
changed considerably. Therefore, when
we recite and study the texts on the precepts today, we are learning “the
spirit of the law and not just the letter”.
Likewise, when we practice adhering to the precepts, the most
important point is to follow their fundamental spirit, “Do nothing that is bad:
do everything that is good”. “To do
nothing that is bad” is directed toward us.
This is a Theravada precept to develop self-discipline and is to be
followed conscientiously. It is what
the Chinese call “Attending to one’s own moral wellbeing even while
alone”. When we practice
self-discipline, we need to remain true to the precepts, even when we are
alone. “To do all that is virtuous” is
for the benefit of all beings. This is
a Bodhisattva precept in teaching us how to interact with others. Precepts are the criteria for distinguishing
between good and bad.
Because of the differences in the political system, philosophy and
culture, the precepts needed to be modified when Buddhism was introduced into
China. The rules established by Master
Bai-Zhang, in the Tang Dynasty, were the modified versions adapted for China at
that time, however, the essence remained unchanged. This is similar to a state revising the law from time to
time. As new situations arise, it
becomes necessary to amend some articles, but the principle remains the
same. In China, way places in every
province and regions have their own version of the precepts. They need to mesh with the local conditions
for people to follow them. This is
simply a modification. If this is not
done, then Buddhism will not survive.
Only through this updating and modification will it be vital and constantly
renewed, allowing it to be accepted and practiced around the world.
The Buddha told us that if we can abide by the precepts and laws,
we will have a tranquil body and mind, which will allow us to be free from
worries and fear. Deep concentration
arises from tranquility. Therefore, the
precepts are essential to self-cultivation.
If we break the law or the precepts, then our conscience will be plagued
by guilt even if no punishment is meted out.
Moreover, even if we avoid worldly retributions, there is no way to
avoid our karmic retribution. When our
body and mind are disturbed, we cannot concentrate on our practice. To practice successfully, we need to be
tranquil. It is said, “Precepts or
self-discipline lead to deep concentration, from which wisdom arises”. In summary, the Second Condition, including
abiding by the precepts, is a Theravada act of merit and the basis for practice.
The seventh principle of
behaving in a dignified and proper manner means we act appropriately for the
circumstances we are in. We act from
the heart of sincerity and respect for all beings, animate and inanimate, to
accord with social etiquette.
The
Third Condition is built upon the basis of the Second Condition and includes:
8)Generating
the Bodhi mind,
9)Deeply
believing in the Law of Cause and Effect,
10)
Reciting
and upholding the Mahayana sutras and
11)
Encouraging
others on the path to Enlightenment.
The eighth principle is
generating the Bodhi mind. Chinese
Buddhists primarily practice Mahayana Buddhism and wish to develop the Bodhi
mind, the awakened mind that is genuinely free from delusions. It is the awakened mind that realizes this
world is filled with misery and suffering. It is the compassionate and sincere
mind, with every thought to attain realization for self and others. The Buddha told us that suffering exists
throughout the six realms. Not only is
the human life one of suffering, but heavenly life as well. The sufferings of the human realm are so
numerous that it would take hours to describe them. Simply said, they are the Eight Sufferings of birth, old age,
sickness, death, hardships, the inability to have what we want, being separated
from our loved ones and being in the presence of those we dislike or even hate,
A person who has been born
into the Form Heaven is one who has accomplished deep concentration as well as
having severed the five desires for wealth, lust, fame, food or drink and
sleep. In this realm there is no
suffering arising from external circumstances such as famine, storm, sickness,
etc., but the beings here still suffer the inevitable consequences of time,
deterioration or decay of the body and finally the realization that they will
not remain in this heaven permanently.
With a physical body, we are mortal; we are born, we become old, we fall
ill, we die. With material form, there
is impermanence; there is creation, existence, annihilation and void.
A higher level is the
Formless Heaven. Here, there is no
sensuality, no form of male or female and no material form. The inhabitants have no sufferings arising
from external circumstances or deterioration.
However, here exists the suffering of the realization that nothing is
eternal, nothing lasts forever, that the beings here are not in Nirvana. For example, one is not eternal, or able to
remain in the Formless Heaven forever.
Therefore, the only way to be free and happy is to transcend the three
realms of the Desire Heaven, the Form Heaven and the Formless Heaven of pure
spirit. How? By practicing according to the Buddha’s teachings, for in this
way we will truly generate the Bodhi Mind and be enlightened.
The Bodhi mind is fulfilled
by the Four Great Vows of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas:
Sentient beings are
innumerable,
I vow to help them
all,
Afflictions are
inexhaustible,
I vow to end them
all,
Ways to practice are
boundless,
I vow to master them
all
Enlightenment is
unsurpassable,
I vow to attain it.
Mahayana Bodhisattvas cherish the heart to help all sentient
beings. They not only know their own
suffering and try to help themselves, but they also want to help their
families, relatives, friends; all sentient beings. To equally wish to help all beings, this is the great Bodhi
mind. The Infinite Life Sutra
tells us that Bodhisattvas are the “Unrequested friends of all beings”. Even if you do not seek help from them, they
come to help. They voluntarily
introduce Buddhism to all and this is the pure cause of a Bodhisattva.
To help all beings, we need to first know how to help
ourselves. To do this we first free ourselves
from worries and afflictions. It is
important for us to follow the Four Great Vows in the order listed. However, some practitioners practice the
third vow of various methods before they practice the second vow, to be free
from afflictions. Of the Four Great
Vows, they want to achieve the latter two of learning all methods and attaining
enlightenment, but not the first two of helping all beings and abandoning
afflictions. Their attempts are like
trying to build the third and fourth floors of a house without first building
the first and second floors.
Today, there are many practitioners, but few of them have succeeded. Why?
They did not understand that first they needed to vow to help all
sentient beings, for this great compassion is a critical driving force for us
to truly study and practice. This is
the heart of great kindness and compassion.
Nor did they begin with the prerequisites such as eliminating delusions,
greed, attachments and ignorance, which disturb and distress the mind. There are so many beings waiting for us to
help them break away from their suffering.
If we have no virtue, no knowledge, no ability, how can we help
others? We do not attain Buddhahood for
ourselves. This is the power of great
kindness and compassion.
Years ago, when I first started to study with my late teacher, Mr.
Lee, he placed three restrictions on me:
1) I
was to follow only his lecturing or teaching,
2) I
was to read no books or reference materials without his permission and
3) As
everything I had previously learned was not recognized, I was to restart as a
beginner.
The first blocked my ears, the second covered my eyes and the third
cleared my mind. The requirements
seemed so imperious and unreasonable.
“What an arrogant and autocratic man he is”, I thought. Yet I still accepted his restrictions and
learned from him. I did not realize
that these restrictions were precepts to help me to cut off my
afflictions. My mind became purer with
much less wandering thoughts after following his restrictions for just six
months. His method helped me to practice
the second great vow to end all afflictions.
I became very grateful to him.
Although he had only asked me to follow his restrictions for five years,
I volunteered to extend my study with him for another five. After ten years as his student and abiding
by his rules, I had established a solid foundation in Buddhism. Thus, he lifted the ban and encouraged me to
broaden my field of study. In other
words, I could listen to any teacher, even ones with deviated thoughts. I could read any books. Why?
He told me that all knowledge would be beneficial rather than harmful to
me because I could distinguish between good and bad, right and wrong. I would not be misled by anyone. He likened it to a child who was innocent
and young, needing to have the guidance and protection of parents before having
the ability to judge and to make decisions.
Good teachers are truly compassionate and kind. They are patient in teaching and dedicated
to their duty. They try to protect
their students from contamination of the mind.
It is crucial for us to be close to a good teacher; however, being close
does not mean being next to the teacher but rather to listen to and follow
their teachings. It is usually very
hard to find one. We only meet the
right teacher after many lifetimes.
Some people have said to me that I was most fortunate to have met good teachers,
but where could they find one? This
teacher is to be encountered rather than sought and the chances for this are
rare indeed. It is a matter of affinity
and the right conditions maturing. We
need to nurture the good root and opportunities. If we are unable to meet these rare teachers, then we can learn
from ancient sages.
Mr. Lee modestly told me that he only had the ability to teach me
for five years. He encouraged me to
continue my studies by learning from his teacher, the late Venerable Master
Yin-Guang. He advised me not to emulate
people who were famous Buddhist scholars, who were knowledgeable in Buddhist
studies, but who had not attained achievement in cultivation. Master Yin-Guang was currently the best
teacher. When we cannot find the true
knowledge of goodness in current teachers, we can turn to ancient sages. There have been many people who have
succeeded with this method.
The first person in China to take an ancient master as his teacher
was Mencius. He learned from Confucius,
who had left his writings for later generations to learn from. Mencius only read Confucius’ books and
followed his teachings exclusively. He
is acknowledged as a great sage, second only to Confucius. After Mencius, there were many others who
succeeded in their academic pursuits using the same method. Another example is Master Ou-Yi of the Ming
Dynasty, who was a patriarch of the Pure Land School.
As for finding a good teacher today, do not follow me, I am not
eligible to be a teacher. Mr. Lee once
advised me to learn from Master Yin-Guang.
I recommend that you should select the best teacher, Buddha Amitabha and
the Infinite Life Sutra for your practice. When we succeed in our practice, we will attain Buddhahood. The most important thing in Buddhism is to
concentrate on and delve deeply into one method. Then we will surely reach deep concentration and attain
wisdom.
In times past, people devoted to practice normally spent five years
for this stage of learning and cultivation.
During these five years, they would specialize in a certain method. Afterwards, they were allowed to study
various sutras. At that point, I
believe their understanding would be greatly improved and they will naturally
understand the meanings in sutras. If
we still have wandering and discriminatory thoughts, and have not yet awakened
our wisdom, then even if we were to study for three hundred years, we would
still not understand the meanings of the sutras and their commentaries.
Mr. Lee had set three restrictions for me, which I thought were his
alone. In 1989, when I was lecturing in
Singapore, Master Yan Pei invited me to give a lecture to a group of
practitioners. Seeing that there were
many young people, I told them of my past experiences and advised them to
solely follow Master Yan Pei. I
recommended that “If you follow one teacher and one method, you will surely
succeed”. After the lecture, Master Yan
Pei invited me to have tea with him. He
told me that when he was a young monk, his teacher had set the same three restrictions
on him. Then I realized that the three
restrictions were not the invention of one individual, rather they were the prerequisites
that past masters set for their students.
Only then did I understand what “Inheritance of the tradition from
the master” meant. When the teacher
thinks that we are good students, he will require us to follow the three
restrictions. He will first cover our
eyes and block our ears so that no worries will intrude. When we truly have abandoned all attachments
and gained wisdom, we will be allowed to study other methods. Therefore, extensive learning is conducted
in the second stage rather than at the beginning.
Difficulties can arise if we engage in extensive learning at the
very beginning. It is similar to
hearing instructions from one master and beginning to follow him. Then we hear instructions from a second
master and feel as if we were facing two paths leading in different
directions. With three masters, we
would be caught at a three-way junction and with four, we are stuck at a
crossroads not knowing which way to go.
Therefore, it is important to follow only one master at one time. Reading of ancient sages, monks, nuns and
laypeople, we see that some followed their teacher for twenty to thirty years
until they achieved some awakening.
Only then did they begin to study extensively with other teachers.
Buddhist education is different from modern education in terms of
concepts and methods. For instance, in
a university, we must be very careful and take our time choosing our
major. Buddhism however, is
different. Here we are expected to
awaken to perfect, complete wisdom first and then in the future we will become
knowledgeable in all other departments of the university. Where do we start? From the intensive study of a certain method, just as is said in
“Awakening in one sutra means awakening in all sutras”. What does awakening mean? Awakened means to have attained wisdom.
Modern education is similar to building a pyramid. We read extensively and then narrow the
scope of learning to specialize in one subject. This is a way of progressing from extensive to intensive
learning. But, no matter how tall the
pyramid or how large its base, the pyramid has its zenith. Buddhism is different. It is like a tree with roots, trunk,
branches, leaves and finally fruits. It
is an infinite process, starting from one point, the root, and then developing
into the Great Perfection of the Self-nature.
The result is that we understand everything. Worldly knowledge has its limitations after which there is no
more to learn. Buddhism, however, is
boundless. The wisdom of Buddhism is
beyond the comprehension of average people.
Buddhism may seem ordinary at the beginning, but the achievements we
make later are inconceivable. On the
contrary, worldly studies initially appear extensive and comprehensive but in
the end, they provide no lasting accomplishment.
By following the Four Great Vows, we will eventually uncover our
original self-nature. In the Flower
Adornment Sutra, Sudhana served as a role model for our cultivation. He not only taught us the principles and
methods but also how to apply them in our daily lives. Manjushri Bodhisattva, Sudhana’s first
teacher, instructed him to follow the aforementioned three restrictions and to
sever all afflictions, to accomplish self-discipline, deep concentration and
wisdom. After Sudhana had attained
original wisdom, Manjushri Bodhisattva then allowed him to travel extensively
and to learn other methods by visiting fifty-three spiritual guides who
represented different occupations and levels in society.
His last visit was with Universal Worthy Bodhisattva who taught him
the Ten Great Vows, as well as how to chant “Amituofo” and to be born into the
Western Pure Land, where upon meeting Buddha Amitabha, he attained perfect
complete enlightenment. Without being
born into the Pure Land and meeting Buddha Amitabha, we will only fulfill the
second and third vows of severing all afflictions and mastering all methods but
will find it difficult to attain Buddhahood.
In the Flower Adornment Sutra, both Manjushri and Universal
Worthy Bodhisattvas had reached the level of equal enlightenment and vowed to
be born into the Pure Land. I was
surprisingly pleased to discover this when I gave talks on the Flower
Adornment Sutra. I wondered why
enlightened Bodhisattvas in the Flower Adornment World would want to be born
into the Western Pure Land, considering how wonderful their own world was, it
seemed unnecessary for them to do so.
After thinking about it, I realized that they had vowed to go there to
be able to attain Buddhahood in a short time.
If not for this, there would be no reason to go to the Pure Land of
Buddha Amitabha.
Suddenly, I realized that if we want to attain the perfect complete
enlightenment, we need to go to the Western Pure Land. Only by understanding the “Chapter of
Universal Worthy Bodhisattva’s Conduct and Vows” will we know the proper way to
study and practice Mahayana Buddhism.
And when we truly understand, have awakened and generated the Bodhi
mind, we will finally be free from delusions and attachments.
The ninth principle of the Three Conditions is to deeply believe in
the Law of Cause and Effect. Earlier in
my practice, I was puzzled by this phrase in the Visualization Sutra. Why?
It seemed to imply that a Bodhisattva had no understanding of the Law of
Cause and Effect. If we know that good
causes will result in good effects and that bad causes will result in bad
effects, how could it be that a Bodhisattva was not aware of this? But the sutra urges Bodhisattvas to believe
in cause and effect. I could not
understand it.
Then I read the Flower Adornment Sutra and upon carefully
reading the chapter about the Ten Grounds, I suddenly saw the light. It said that, “from the beginning to the
end, the Ten Ground Bodhisattvas have always practiced the mindfulness of the
Buddha”. I then realized that the Bodhisattvas,
from the first to the tenth ground and the level of equal enlightenment, all
practiced the Buddha Name Chanting method.
And I also came to understand that “Chanting the Buddha’s name is the
cause and attaining Buddhahood is the effect”.
Many Bodhisattvas were not aware of this, which is why Buddha Shakyamuni
explained it in this sutra.
It was their firm belief in the above statement that led Manjushri
Bodhisattva, Universal Worthy Bodhisattva and Sudhana to vow to be born into
the Pure Land. It was after I had
studied and lectured on the Flower Adornment Sutra that I came to
understand this statement. Thus, it
really is difficult to acquire this understanding.
The tenth principle of the Three Conditions is reciting and
upholding Mahayana sutras, which help us to understand the true reality of life
and the universe. With this
understanding, we will know the proper way to think and behave as well as the
appropriate method to use. Only when we
truly accord with the teachings of the sutra, will we benefit. As practitioners, the least we need to do is
to participate in the daily morning and evening sessions. The purpose of the morning session is to
start a new day by reminding ourselves to base our thought and behavior on the
Buddha’s teachings. The purpose of the
evening session is to reflect on whether we have followed the instructions. If not, then we need to earnestly regret and
vow to correct our mistakes.
For the sessions, Pure Land Practitioners used to recite the Amitabha
Sutra, chant the Rebirth Mantra three times and then follow by chanting
“Amituofo”. The more times they recited
“Amituofo”, the better the result. This
practice of single-mindedness was the same for morning and evening. The Amitabha Sutra appears simple but
is actually extremely profound. To
recite and benefit from it, we need a pure and quiet heart. The second time I lectured on the commentary
of the Amitabha Sutra, it took over three hundred sessions, which is an
indication of its level of complexity.
I now recommend the Infinite Life Sutra, which is easier to
understand both in language and meaning.
Since many people lead such busy lives, I suggest reciting Chapter Six
for the morning session, which is comprised of the Forty-eight vows of Buddha
Amitabha. It is the core of Pure Land
Buddhism because true cultivators need to have the same compassion and vows as
those of Buddha Amitabha. For the
evening session, I recommend reading chapters thirty-two to thirty-seven, in
which the Buddha teaches us how to end all wrongdoings, practice good conduct
and how to interact with objects, matters and people in our daily living. If we can follow at least these chapters
then we abide by the precepts.
If we can follow the above practices, be mindful of Buddha Amitabha
and abide by the teachings in these six chapters, we would have the same mind,
vows, understanding and practice of Buddha Amitabha and then we are Buddha
Amitabha. But if we chant or read
indifferently without applying the principles, then all the efforts we put
forth will be pointless. The
combination of morning and evening sessions was designed in ancient times and
proved to be useful, for the people of that time had better understanding of
what they were reciting. These sessions
reminded people to behave in a proper manner and thus helped them to detect
their faults. Today, however, people simply
recite absentmindedly, like small children who sing a song with the right words
to the right tune, but without understanding the meaning. Only when we become aware of the purpose and
method of chanting the sutra can we actually achieve any results.
My late teacher, Mr. Lee, always told his students that when they
listened to lectures, they needed to concentrate on understanding the
principles in the sutra and not the words themselves. These principles are the laws governing the Buddha’s teachings as
well as worldly teachings. One, who
thoroughly understands the principles of one sutra, can then use them to master
all sutras. In other words, the student
must conscientiously follow the methods taught by the teacher and do so
wholeheartedly without being distracted by anything new and different.
To develop the Paramita of Patience, we need to persevere in our
cultivation. People may recommend other
methods or sutras as a better choice.
Do not listen to them; do not pay attention to them until we have
attained wisdom. Delve deeply into just
one method. This is the key to success
in our study and cultivation.
The eleventh principle of the Three Conditions is encouraging
others to advance on the path to enlightenment. To do this, we extensively introduce Buddhism to those who are
willing to learn. While the first ten
principles of the Three Conditions are for self-benefit and cultivation, the
eleventh is to encourage and help others to understand and practice Buddhism. To help others is the act of a Bodhisattva.
By fulfilling all the principles in the Three Conditions, from
practicing filial piety for parents to encouraging others on the path to
enlightenment, we will become the “good man and woman” of the Mahayana
sutras. The Earth Treasure Sutra
tells us that if we chant the name, make offerings to Earth Treasure
Bodhisattva and accord with the teachings, then we can be born into the
thirty-third Heaven one hundred times, without falling into the three bad
realms.
In our world, we are considered a good man or woman after
fulfilling the First Condition. The
criteria in the Theravada teachings require us to meet the First and Second
Conditions. However, in the Mahayana
teachings, we are required to meet all three conditions. Therefore, when reading sutras, we need to
ask ourselves whether or not we are qualified to be "good men or
women". How much have I
achieved? And does my conduct conform
to the standards set forth in the Mahayana teachings?
The Three Conditions are the basis for individual cultivation
whereas the Six Principles of Harmony are the basis for group cultivation. The sangha is a group of four or more people
who properly practice the Buddha’s teachings together, especially the Six
Principles of Harmony. They are:
1. Sharing
the same viewpoints or goals,
2. Abiding
by the same precepts,
3. Living
and practicing together harmoniously,
4. Not
quarrelling,
5. Experiencing
the inner peace and happiness from practicing together harmoniously and
6. Sharing
benefits harmoniously.
This means mutual understanding or agreement. A group needs to share the same viewpoints
of the principles and methods for study and practice. This is the basis for harmonious group cultivation.
If a society is to remain stable, its members need to live in
harmony. Only harmony can draw us
together in terms of opinions, ideas and our way of life. In other words, being harmonious can
minimize the differences in human relations and improve equality. After that, peace and then finally,
happiness can be achieved. To obtain
happiness we must have a peaceful heart and body. Both Buddhist and worldly teachings emphasize the importance of
harmony and respect.
A few years ago I went to Beijing and visited the Forbidden City, where
there are three main palaces, the names of which all contain the word
harmony. This shows that the early
emperors of the Ching Dynasty, the last dynasty, tried to rule the country with
harmony. However, the disharmony, which
plagued the imperial family at the beginning of this century, ended the
dynasty. Therefore, harmony is crucial
for lasting peace and happiness.
Buddha Shakyamuni provided innumerable methods to practice but he
did not intend that we try them all. We
need to find the one most appropriate for us and then remember that the key
lies in exclusive pursuit. In ancient
times, the Pure Land School adopted three sutras and one sastra, now we
emphasize five sutras and one sastra.
As stated in an ancient Chinese textbook, “Of all the teaching
principles, exclusive pursuit is the most important”. Suppose some people like the Infinite Life Sutra while
others prefer the Amitabha Sutra.
Can these two groups of people merge into one? They may merge, but they cannot practice harmoniously together,
for when one half begins to recite the Infinite Life Sutra, the other
half will want to recite the Amitabha Sutra. In order to create group unity, it will be necessary to set up
two separate way places.
This explains why there are so many different way places even
though we are all Pure Land practitioners.
The same principle applies to choosing sutras with multiple
commentaries. Which one will we
use? This will result in a further
setting up of way places. The same
process can even occur when deciding which form of chanting to follow. Some prefer to chant slowly “Namo Amituofo”
while others prefer a very fast “Amituofo, Amituofo, Amituofo”. It would be very difficult for the two
groups to practice harmoniously together.
The people in ancient way places were able to achieve because
everyone shared the same viewpoints and goals and practiced the same method
without intermingling. Their very
atmosphere was conducive to magnificence and peace. Thus, all those who entered naturally gave rise to respect.
Unfortunately, a common situation in modern way places is that the
teachings of various schools are intermingled.
Contradictions and conflicts are unavoidable, and it will be difficult
for practitioners to focus, much less to succeed. So, it becomes evident that “Sharing the same viewpoints or
goals” is crucial in a way place.
If the people in a group share similar ideas and viewpoints as well
as the same interests and objectives, they can remain in harmony and thus form
a sangha. However, they may as well
form a separate sangha if differences arise.
Otherwise, there would be conflicts and no one would succeed. By providing an infinite number of methods
for cultivation, the Buddha meant to ensure that people of different viewpoints
and interests would all be able to succeed in their cultivation. Thus, it is said that all paths lead to the
same goal, as all methods are equal.
This demonstrates the Buddha’s great, compassionate heart, as he never
forces anyone to practice one particular method.
As we have seen from the example in the Visualization Sutra. Madame Vaidehi, being overwhelmed by the
suffering in this world, asked Buddha Shakyamuni to tell her of a place where
suffering did not exist. Instead of
directing her to the Western Pure Land, he displayed all the Buddhalands for
her so that she could choose one for herself.
This is unlike most of us who want others to accept our opinion; “I have been practicing this method. It’s great.
Come and try it.” When others
have different ideas and viewpoints, this will often disrupt the harmony of the
group and is the very thing we should guard against. The best way to introduce Buddhism is to provide a general introduction
to the Mahayana teachings and practices and let others chose whichever method
they prefer.
Those who prefer Buddha Name Chanting can practice together; those
who prefer meditation can practice together.
In this way, everybody has a place to go for cultivation and there is no
need to pressure anyone into using one particular method. All methods are equal and were taught to
meet our different needs, abilities and levels of understanding. Thus, each school should respect and praise
the other. This is the true practice of
the first harmony.
When we live and practice together, we need to have rules and
regulations for without them there will be disorder. Needless to say, the rules need to include the five fundamental
precepts set by the Buddha. Rules vary
for lay sanghas and those at way places.
The former conforms to the five fundamental precepts, the latter to the
monk or nun precepts. In addition,
common rules, regulations and local laws and customs are also to be
observed. These all comprise the
Permanent Resident Agreement of a way place.
One or two members can be designated to draft the rules, which are then
presented to the group for discussion and voting. Each individual living in the way place must abide by the
agreement once it is set up. If every
member respects and abides by the agreement, there will be no discord within
the group, because all are have equal status and no special privileges are
granted to anyone. Thus, the sangha is
truly democratic and law abiding.
The purpose of establishing a way place is to help everyone achieve
in group practice. It is definitely not
to help individuals escape their worldly responsibilities. It is a serious mistake to think this way,
especially in the light of all the offerings way places receive from followers
and the reality that every offering will have to be repaid, if not in this
lifetime then in a future lifetime. The
manner of living together does not mean that each person has his or her own room. If luxurious and comfortable facilities are
available, it will be very difficult to achieve. Why? The Earth
Treasure Sutra tells us that, “Every single movement or stirring of
thoughts on the part of the living beings is karma and an offense”. For uncountable eons we have been deluded and
confused and have thus committed infinite wrongdoings. Consequently, we have developed and
accumulated infinite bad habits. When
with others, we usually try to be civilized and behave ourselves. But, when alone, we tend to indulge
ourselves in doing whatever we feel comfortable with and easily forget proper
conduct.
To counter this, members of the group share sleeping quarters. These quarters in a traditional way place
were comprised of one large platform bed with a space for each person. Quilts were neatly folded as in an army
barracks. Life in a way place was even
more rigorous than that of the army and the monks and nuns were even more
disciplined than the soldiers were.
Only by living in such a disciplined way place, are we able to mold our
temperament and reform ourselves through the Three Learnings of
self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom. This is true cultivation.
However, there are exceptions in way places. For example, the managing monk and the executive
deputy chief, due to their responsibilities, have their own rooms, which are
usually very small, in order for them to plan and take care of daily tasks
without disturbing others. Monks and
nuns, who are aged or ill, also have their own rooms. To accomplish our cultivation, this shared living is necessary,
even in today’s affluent society.
All the members who live together need to do so without
quarrelling. In this way, they can best
concentrate their efforts on cultivation.
When people are together, the most frequent act is that of speech, so
speech karma is the easiest to commit.
We have a proverb, “Illness enters by the mouth. Trouble exits from the mouth”. Another is “More speech, more trouble”. One, who eats too much, easily becomes
sick. One, who talks too much, easily
gets into trouble. Sometimes
misunderstandings arise because the listener is sensitive while the speaker is
careless. Both parties develop resentment
and hatred, which gives rise to endless retaliation in the future. This is why ancient sages advised us to
“Talk less and chant the Buddha’s name more”.
The less we speak, the better it is for the less trouble we will be
in. Ideally, we would only speak when
it was necessary.
When I was in Los Angeles, a friend told me about the three-day Zen
retreat his high-school son had attended.
Once inside, no one was allowed to talk. The daily practice was sitting meditation, from 8 a.m. to 5:30
p.m. and from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Nothing else was done. Keeping
silent for three days in a way place like this will help us to calm down and
relax. The boy was so impressed that he
wanted to go back for the longer winter session. The distinctive feature of such a way place is the harmony of
silence and no quarrelling.
So, at a strict way place where chatting or other irrelevant talk
is forbidden, there is virtually no opportunity for quarrelling. Almost exclusively, all we will find is the
silent or voiced continuous chanting of “Amituofo” in the chanting hall. In a Tibetan way place, the chanting of
mantras is ceaseless. For instance,
during my early stage of Buddhist study, I was under the guidance of Living
Buddha Master Zhang-Jia for three years.
Through my observation, he never stopped silently chanting a mantra
while moving his lips even when he was with visitors. He only paused to talk and as soon as he was finished, would
resume his silent chanting.
This silent chanting while moving our lips is a form of practice
called, “Diamond Holding”. Master
Zhang-Jia was one of the sincerest practitioners I have ever met. His mind was pure without any attachments or
wandering thoughts. His teaching method
was unique. He never spoke a word until
he found the listener attentive and concentrated. He then spoke only a few words while looking directly into your
eyes. Each of his words bore heavy
weight, which his listener would never forget and would adhere to for the rest
of his or her life. The goal of our
practice is to eradicate all afflictions and attain the Buddha Name Chanting Samadhi. If we do not practice this method, it will
be very difficult for us to achieve this goal.
This is to savor the Dharma joy.
Whichever practice method we choose, the basic achievement we have in
our practice is happiness. If we feel
unhappy after beginning our practice, we have definitely encountered a serious
problem. But the problem does not lie
with the Buddha’s teachings. We may
have done something that goes against the principles of these teachings or we
may have chosen the wrong method.
Otherwise, the results would be evident; awakening from confusion and
obsession, leaving sufferings behind and obtaining happiness.
With each passing year, we would have fewer worries while enjoying
greater happiness and freedom. This is
the evidence of success in our practice.
If we are not achieving this, then we need to examine ourselves for the
cause of our lack of success. If we can
correct our mistakes, find the root of our afflictions and sever them, we can
then attain the benefits of our practice.
Practicing Buddhism is to experience life and to train our
minds. Buddhist cultivation arises from
our heart as we participate in daily life.
What kind of heart do we cultivate?
One of purity. When we have
proper viewpoints and understanding and truly dedicate ourselves to Buddhism,
regardless of who we are or what our circumstances are, whether good or bad,
favorable or unfavorable, we will be able to reduce karmic debts and to plant
the seeds of good fortune, wisdom and happiness. How then can we be unhappy?
A feeling of joy naturally arises from our heart, as we savor the Dharma
Joy. If we practice together
harmoniously, everybody will attain this Dharma joy, everybody will attain
achievement.
In ancient times, ordained people led a simple life with one meal a
day. They received food donated by
people in the village, rested under the trees at night and cultivated
constantly. So, the way place was more
like a school to educate the local community on Buddhism. Learned and far-sighted people built them
with the financial support from those who were wealthy and held high status in
the community. Then well-known and
respected monks were invited to cultivate and conduct the teachings.
Way places were Buddhist educational institutions where everyone
shared equally. If this principle were
to be applied to society there would be no psychological imbalance and hence no
social disturbances. At way places,
none of the Six Harmonies can be neglected or else there will not be a true
Sangha. As the Chinese say, “harmony in
the family is the basis for any undertaking”.
Similarly, if a country is united, it will not be easy for another power
to dominate it, because the power of unity is inconceivable. Consequently, if a family, company, social
group or a country can practice three of the six harmonies of sharing the same
viewpoints or goals, observing the same precepts, and sharing benefits harmoniously,
they will become prosperous.
We find an example in the business world. Since the Second World War, Japanese business has developed
dramatically. After only half a
century, these businesses were among the most successful in the world. Why?
They have practiced these three harmonies. By sharing the same viewpoints and goals, the sangha can reach
common understanding. By abiding by the
same precepts, all abide by the laws.
By sharing all benefits equally, everyone is assured that there will be
fairness in all things.
The importance of harmony also holds for the family. As the Chinese say, “Harmony in the family
is the basis for any undertaking”. One
day, a student of mine asked for my opinion about the kind of person he should
marry. I told him, “You should try to
find someone who has the same viewpoints and goals that you do. Then you will help each other and enjoy a
happy family life. You cannot just
emphasize love for love is volatile and unreliable. It may fade after the two of you get married at which point
everything can change”. Therefore, a
happy family life is built upon the basis of the Six Harmonies. If we do not understand this, it will be
difficult for us to have a happy and enjoyable family.
We know that the very
nature of Buddhism is education. It
encompasses a large number of subjects, which cover the perfect knowledge of
life and the universe. The textbooks
for these subjects are sutras. However,
not all of the sutras in India were brought to China. Because of the difficulties in the long journey between China and
India in ancient times, both the Indian monks who visited China and the Chinese
monks who returned after visiting India, had to limit the number of books they
carried. They selected the most
important ones and had to leave the others behind. So, all the books that were introduced into China were considered
the essence of Buddhism.
However, after their
introduction, not all of the books could be translated. Further screening had to be done and only
the best and the most essential were selected for the difficult translation process. The project was financed by the central
government. Experts, who were monks and
laypeople from all over China as well as from foreign countries, were invited
to participate in the mammoth translation effort. According to historical records, Master Kumarajiva’s translation
institute had over four hundred people while Master Xuan-Zhuang’s institute had
more then six hundred people.
The name of the translator
that we see today at the beginning of the sutra is the chief of the institute
and represents all the translators in the group. The Chinese sutras that we have today are fairly complete. However, the Indian Sanskrit versions have
been largely lost with few remaining.
After the Chinese sutras, the second largest collection is that of
Tibet. Part of this collection was
translated directly from the Sanskrit and the rest came from the Chinese versions.
Princess Wen-Cheng of
the Tang Dynasty brought Buddhist sutras to Tibet when she was married to the
Tibetan king. This is why the
introduction of Buddhism to Tibet was some six hundred years later than the
introduction of the teachings to China.
As the Tibetan king built up belief in Buddhism, a new school from India
found its way into Tibet.
An important part of
the teachings are the Three Learnings of abiding by the precepts or
self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom. Accomplishment of these can relieve the suffering of this world. Buddha Shakyamuni told us how long the
teachings would remain on this earth.
The Dharma Perfect Age would last five hundred years. The Dharma Semblance Age would last one
thousand years. The Dharma Ending Age,
that we are now, in will last ten thousand years.
What are the
sufferings of the sentient beings in our current age? The first is committing the wrongdoings of the Ten Bad
Conducts. The Buddha taught us the
First Learning of self-discipline to overcome these. The second suffering is the inability to remain serene and at
peace. The Buddha taught us the Second
Learning of deep concentration to achieve purity of mind and tranquility. The third suffering is ignorance. The Buddha taught us the Third Learning of
wisdom to overcome our current state of ignorance.
Committing
wrongdoings, being confused and remaining in ignorance are three of the major
problems of sentient beings in our contemporary world. The Buddha will teach when these problems
afflict the sentient beings in our world.
However, if the beings are not ill, there will be no need for the Buddha
to teach. The Diamond Sutra says, “in
the end we even have to lay aside the Buddha’s teachings, let alone worldly
teachings”. When beings are well, the
teachings are unnecessary and introducing them might even lead to more
problems. This is similar to a healthy
person taking medicine every day and eventually falling ill.
Self-discipline cures
our body, deep concentration cures our mind and wisdom cures our behavior. Therefore, a person who practices Buddhism
is wise in thought, speech and behavior.
So how could such a person be unhappy?
Now that we understand the
Three Conditions, the Three Learnings and the Six Principles of Harmony, how do
we use them in our daily lives when interacting with people, matters and
objects? To answer this Buddha
Shakyamuni gave us the Six Paramitas of giving, abiding by the precepts, patience,
diligence, deep concentration and wisdom.
If we follow these in everything we do, from brushing our teeth in the
morning until going to bed at night, we will be genuinely practicing.
The
Giving of Wealth. Generally speaking, the majority of people
seek wealth as their foremost pursuit for without it, life can be very
hard. After this, people pursue
intelligence and wisdom, health and long life.
Regardless of whether they are in the east or in the west: whether they
had lived in the past or are living now, these are major pursuits of humankind. If Buddhism is supposed to fulfill our
wishes, can it provide these things for us?
We have heard that “In Buddhism, every sincere plea will receive a
response.” Then why have most people
not received what they wished for? They
are not aware of the true reality of life and universe or the right method to
fulfill their wishes. If we understand
these principles and truths, all our wishes can be fulfilled.
The Buddha taught us that
wealth, wisdom and long life are all karmic results. If we want to obtain the result, we must first nurture and
establish the cause. Good causes result
in good results: bad causes result in bad results or retribution. Where there is a cause, there will be a
result and where there is a result, there was a cause. This is a law that never changes and the law
around which all other laws in the universe revolve.
Consider someone who is very
wealthy. How did this happen? It is not because the person is unusually
clever or has better ideas to make money.
Many other people are cleverer or have better ideas. Why are they not successful? The Buddha taught us that having wealth is
the karmic result of a cause planted in former lifetimes. What was this cause? It was the giving of wealth.
The giving of wealth results
in obtaining wealth, the giving of teaching results in obtaining wisdom, the
giving of fearlessness results in obtaining health and long life. Therefore, if we wish to have wealth, wisdom
and long and healthy lives in our future, we need to nurture and establish
these causes in this lifetime. Only a
small number of people obtain the results from causes they developed in their
early years. Regardless of the time
frame, we must develop the cause to receive the result. This is the Law of Cause and Effect. And this law never changes.
Giving is the most important
requirement for practicing the Bodhisattva way. If we could sum up all the methods in Buddhism, we would find
that all methods accord with the Six Paramitas. When we condense the Six Paramitas, we find that their essence is
giving. One of the types of giving is
that of wealth. When most people hear
this, they often think of donating money to a group, church, temple or way
place. This is wrong because such
thinking is too narrow in meaning and is far from the true Bodhisattva
way.
Selflessly remembering the
welfare of others is the giving of wealth.
Thus, everybody is practicing the giving paramita daily and in this way,
we are emulating Bodhisattvas. We are
just not aware of it. For example, when
we get up in the morning and prepare breakfast for the family, we are practicing
giving and kindness as did Universal Worthy Bodhisattva. By doing so we will be happy. In this way we will have no thought of “Poor
me, my family regards me as a servant.
I have to wait on them every day.”
If we complain like this, all the good fortune we have achieved will
vanish. But once we change our
complaints and problems into the Paramita of Giving, we will immediately enjoy
the benefits of the joy and wisdom of the teachings.
An employee who works very hard
every day to make as much money as possible or to receive a promotion is not
practicing giving. However, if this
employee works hard just to benefit the company and society, and not for the
sake of money or a promotion, he or she is cultivating giving and will never be
tired. I, myself, enjoy traveling
around the world to help people to understand the Buddha’s teachings, and in
this way, am practicing the giving of teaching. I help others to better understand how to change their lives in
the hope that they will be able to reduce their troubles, obtain joy and wisdom
and thus be able to lead a better life.
In 1984, I made my third
trip to Los Angeles. I went straight
from the airport to the site where the speech was being held and began a talk
that lasted nine hours. I delivered the
talk while standing but at the end, it was the listeners who were tired, not
I. The longer I spoke, the more energized
I felt and the stronger my voice became.
Why? Because I was so enthused
about introducing the profound and subtle Buddhism to the listeners. This is the joy of teaching Buddhism and
frankly, the best nutrition. Nowadays,
people talk a great deal about health food.
But it is false nutrition.
Buddhists talk of keeping a pure, quiet and happy heart. Having this heart and obtaining this joy will
enable us to remain healthy and young.
Worry will only make us old and sick.
In the US, some social
practices are actually giving. Most
people pay for medical insurance for protection against catastrophic medical
bills in the event they become ill.
However, we are preparing for a possible illness when we make our
monthly premium payments. In this way,
we are bound to become ill. If we do
not, then we will have wasted our money.
But if we change our way of viewing this to the thought that our money
has been used to help those that are sick, then we will have practiced giving
and will never become ill. Why? Because we have developed the cause of no
illness. If we give to and look after
aged people, we will receive good karmic results in the future. When we ourselves become aged, then others
will come to take care of us.
Today, most people have car
insurance. If we think that we are
making payments just to help those who may encounter accidents, then we will
never encounter misfortune, because we have given of wealth and
compassion. So, our way of thinking
makes the difference in whether we are a Bodhisattva or an ordinary
person. What is this difference? A Bodhisattva is awakened and always does
things to benefit others, whereas ordinary people are always doing things to
benefit themselves. When we do
everything for others, we can get wonderful benefits, too wonderful to imagine. The kinds of giving are boundless and can be
practiced any time, any day, any way.
In Buddhism, the giving of
wealth consists of external and internal wealth. External wealth is comprised of worldly possessions whereas
internal wealth concerns our body. For
example, organ donation is an example of the internal giving of wealth as is
helping others physically. If we volunteer
to help others without expectation of benefit, we are again practicing the
giving of internal wealth. We can
practice this giving of internal wealth all the time.
We see that in the Buddhist
criteria for good and bad, all deeds arising from the wish to help others are
good and all deeds arising from selfishness are bad. This may all be difficult for a beginner to follow. Why should we not benefit ourselves? The reason why ordinary people cannot attain
Buddhahood is due to the two attachments of self and all knowledge. By ridding ourselves of self-attachment, we
attain the level of Arhat. By ridding
ourselves of the knowledge-attachment, we attain Buddhahood. If our every thought is to benefit ourselves,
our self-attachment will grow daily.
Even as we plant some good causes, we will only increase our
attachment. The Buddha told us that if
we wished to transcend the cycle of birth and death, we must rid ourselves of
both self and the knowledge-attachment.
Self-attachments are afflictions that hinder us from attaining purity of
mind. Knowledge-attachment hinders us
from uncovering our all-knowing wisdom, our true wisdom.
The
Giving of Teachings. The second form of giving brings us wisdom,
intelligence and skill. Generally, it
falls into two categories: Buddha’s teachings and worldly teachings. To enthusiastically impart all of our
knowledge to others, who are interested in learning, is the giving of
teachings. It is not limited to the
teachings of Buddhism. It could be
teaching others cooking, engineering, etc.
It is the unconditional and free imparting of knowledge or skills in any
field.
A schoolteacher who
instructs out of the sincere desire to help others is also practicing the
giving of teaching. A teacher who does
so just to earn a living or prestige is not.
A genuine practitioner of the giving of Dharma is very enthusiastic and
is never weary of giving. When we give
for self-benefit, we will become disappointed upon failing to obtain prestige
or other benefits and will thus loose our enthusiasm. On the other hand, a Bodhisattva is always compassionately
working for the benefit of all sentient beings and never attaches any
conditions to what is given.
In the Infinite Life
Sutra, the Buddha told us that of all the kinds of giving, that of the
teachings is foremost. Worldly
teachings do not get to the heart of the matter. Buddhism is a perfect education, which can help us to attain the
boundless wisdom, virtue and skill to enable us to be free of all worries,
leave the cycle of birth and death, put an end to reincarnation and ultimately
to attain Buddhahood. This giving is
perfect and remarkable, and is only found in Mahayana Buddhism. All Buddhas praise this giving. In Buddhism, the most important form of
giving is that of books, audio and videotapes, CDs, as well as that of
accepting other’s invitations to lecture and thus, to create opportunities for
them to learn the Buddha’s teachings.
However, many currently
circulated Buddhist materials are printed with copyright warnings. These are not the giving of Dharma but are
commercial endeavors. Some Dharma
masters, when requested to speak, ask how much they will be paid. These are not the true giving of the
teachings. The act of a Bodhisattva is
to benefit others, not self. If a
person truly wanted to learn of Buddhism, a Bodhisattva would simply go to them
to fulfill their wish. They would never
do anything that would make it difficult for any person willing to learn, as
long as the person could receive the true benefits from Buddhism
The
Giving of Fearlessness. This form of giving has broad implications
as it helps to remove the fears and insecurities of others. For example, if foreign forces were invading
our country, we could join the army to help protect the citizens. If someone was afraid to go home alone at
night, we could offer to go with him or her.
Being a vegetarian is another example, because if we all followed this
practice, then all living creatures would no longer regard us as a threat. Any act that helps sentient beings feel safe
and secure is the giving of fearlessness.
In doing so perfectly, we will definitely gain health and long life.
Emperor Qian Long of the Qing Dynasty, attained wealth, intellect,
wisdom, health and long life.
“Honorable as a great emperor and wealthy as one who possesses the
entire world". He was truthful,
clever, wise and lived a long life. He
was emperor for sixty years and Supreme Emperor, Father of an Emperor, for four
years. He was endowed with these great
virtues because in his previous lifetimes he had practiced the cultivation of
the Giving of Wealth, Dharma and Fearlessness.
The Buddha teaches that Bodhisattvas must practice the Paramita of
Giving. Paramita means perfection. The question is how can we practice giving
to the state of perfection? We do so
simply by turning our thoughts around, by no longer thinking of ourselves but
solely of others. In this way, we will
be practicing “giving” anytime, anywhere.
But, we will not yet have achieved perfect giving. Perfect giving is to let go, to be willing
to give all that we possess and to help all others. Giving and gaining are one.
If we have not practiced giving, we will not gain. When we give less, we gain less. When we give more, we gain more. Do you have fears, worries? Do you have birth and death, reincarnation? Why are you not willing to discard
them? Giving is to part with all of
these to attain great perfection and great freedom. This is the ultimate perfect giving, the Paramita of Giving. We start by parting with our material
possessions and gradually part with everything. If we are able to let go of our afflictions, birth and death,
then we will uncover the purity, wisdom and abilities within our self-nature.
The second Paramita is Precept Observation, which means abiding by
customs, rules, regulations and laws.
Everything, big or small, worldly or beyond, has their own natural
laws. We need to follow these for only
by doing so, can we accomplish an undertaking quickly and perfectly. For example, within the family, we need
domestic etiquette or seniority in human relationships to guide the behavior
between parents and children, husband and wife, brothers and sisters. The manner of how things are accomplished
needs to be followed. This is similar
to cooking rice; we wash it, put it into the pot and then cook it. Without following the proper sequence, the
rice will not be properly cooked.
This is even truer in learning and practicing Buddhism. If we want to achieve, we must follow the
guidelines told to us by the Buddha: the Four Great Vows of Buddhas and
Bodhisattvas. First, we vow to help all
living beings. After that, we discard
all worries, habits and attachments, to end all afflictions. Only then do we master all methods. Finally, we attain Buddhahood. Only when we become Buddhas, will we have
the ability to help all beings and thus perfectly achieve the First Great Vow,
“Sentient beings are innumerable, I vow to help them all”.
Some may ask, “Is it really necessary to attain Buddhahood? Won’t it be enough to become a
Bodhisattva?” Although a Bodhisattva
can help beings, he is unable to help a Bodhisattva who is equal or higher in
attainment. For example, an
Equal-enlightenment Bodhisattva cannot help another Equal-enlightenment
Bodhisattva. However, a Buddha can help
them as well as all others. Therefore,
only when we attain Buddhahood, can we perfectly help all beings in the
universe. With such a vow, we can
generate the great compassion to help others, to be diligent in severing our afflictions
and mastering all methods.
Today, many practitioners have not yet sincerely generated their
vows although they recite them daily.
Why do I say this? Because they
still have the mind of discrimination: ideas of favoring and disfavoring, self
and other, love and hate. Consequently,
they practice discrimination. They help
people they like and ignore those they dislike. Theirs is not a genuine vow, is not a perfect vow. A perfect vow is that of a Bodhisattva and
arises from the non-discriminatory mind.
The Bodhi mind. It is wonderful,
inconceivable and far beyond the minds of ordinary people.
In whatever we do, we need
to exercise patience. As stated in the Diamond
Sutra, “All natural laws of the universe attribute their success to
patience”. Without it, we cannot
succeed in anything. For example, to
complete our college education, we have to be patient for four years. This audience needs to be patient to sit
here for two hours listening to my lecture before you achieve perfection in
this lesson. Without patience, we can
never achieve anything, no matter how good our conditions are. Of the Six Paramitas, Buddha Shakyamuni in
the Diamond Sutra stressed giving and patience in particular. They are the keys to success in cultivation.
It has been said that “It is difficult to handle matters, but it is
even more difficult to interact with people”.
It was not so difficult to interact with people in the past, but now, it
is. Why? Education in the past taught people the proper manner and
behavior in which to conduct themselves.
Today it teaches people how to make a living. It is no wonder that we do not know how to conduct ourselves. We are unable to understand the changing of
our own emotions, much less those of others.
Therefore, it has become increasingly difficult to get along with other
people.
There are three categories of patience. First, tolerate the injuries of physical and verbal abuse. Patience is a virtue. With patience, we will have a quiet and pure
mind; thus, it will be easier to attain deep concentration and
achievement. When we successfully
practice patience, we will gain the greatest good fortune. Second, we would do well to be patient with
variations of the natural elements, hot and cold, summer and winter, hunger and
thirst, as well as natural disasters.
Third, be patient in the arduous course of our practice. Before attaining the joy of cultivation and
before of our cultivation becomes strong, we will encounter many
obstacles. However, once we get through
this phase, we attain happiness. Why? Because we are on the right path. This is like traveling on an
expressway. Before we can get on it, we
keep circling and driving around trying to find the entrance. This is very frustrating because there are
many cars in our way and we cannot drive fast.
We have to remain patient. Once
we get on the expressway, it is much more pleasant because traffic moves
smoother and faster with no hindrances.
Our practice of Buddhism is like this.
In the beginning, we move around, trying different methods and
schools. Which one shall I choose? What shall I learn? Some people are fortunate because they only
spend a few years to find the right method.
Others are not so fortunate, and may take ten to twenty years or even a
lifetime in the attempt to find the right method. Good fortune is the result of our good roots, merits and virtues,
causes and conditions. With these, the
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will surely help us, as they never abandon
anyone. And once we have the mind to
accept their teachings, we will be helped by the Buddha to find awakening. Then our future will be bright.
Why, does the Buddha not simply tell us what we need to know? He did.
But we did not listen. We were
told the method, but instead thought to ourselves, “Well this may not be a good
method. I heard that another one is
better”. We have thus argued with the
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. So, they have
chosen not to come to us. Please
carefully consider this. We need to be
very patient before we can attain achievement.
Without patience, we cannot advance to a higher stage, for patience is
the prerequisite for deep concentration and diligence.
The Chinese word for diligence is comprised of two characters
meaning perseverance in a specialized field and progress. The two need to work together. Buddhism is neither conservative nor
backward, but seeks daily improvement.
Some say that Buddhism is no longer relevant. These remarks are erroneous because the people who said them did
not know the Paramita of Diligence.
Progress is good, but more important is progress with diligence. Currently, many great scientists in the west
have made many discoveries. They
persevered. They did research everyday
and never stopped. The same applies to
our learning Buddhism. We are
practicing diligence when we choose one school or method and stay focused on our
selection, studying until we excel in it, before advancing to another
method. It is not effective to
concentrate on different methods at the same time. Once we understand one method, we will understand all of them. This is known as “Once we achieve in one, we
achieve in all”. If we try to practice
many methods before we are enlightened, they will become obstacles. Let me tell you what happened to one monk
who specialized in the Buddha Name Recitation Method.
In the beginning of this century, Master Di-Xian had a student who
became a monk at the age of forty so the student was almost the same age as the
Master. The two had been childhood
friends. Master Di-Xian, who was from a
well to do family, had received a good education. However, his childhood friend was from a poor family and had
received little education. When the
friend grew up, he could only do manual labor and thus had a very difficult
life.
One time, he went to visit Master Di-Xian. After staying at the temple for a few days,
he told the Master that he too wanted to become a monk. “Why?” asked the Master. “Because life is too hard and I want to be a
monk” replied his friend. The Master
initially denied this request because he felt the rigorous training and sutra
memorization would prove too much for someone who was illiterate and much older
than novice monks usually are. The
other monks would look down upon his friend.
Feeling everything would prove too much for his friend, the Master
denied the request.
But the friend persisted and so the master gave in. Master Di-Xian said to him, “I will accept
you as a monk. But I do not think you
need take the vows of abiding by the precepts because you may not stand the
rigor of the fifty-three day training.
There are many deserted temples in the countryside, I will find you one
to stay in.” The Master arranged for
some practitioners to provide meals for the new monk. He then taught his friend to chant “Namo Amituofo”. “Just recite this phrase over and over. When you are tired, take a rest, when
rested, resume your chanting. I am sure
that you will greatly benefit from this”.
And so the new monk isolated himself in the small temple and
concentrated solely on his chanting.
Three years later, he went to visit friends and relatives. He came back and told the woman, who had
been doing the cooking for him, “There is no need to prepare food for me
tomorrow”. The woman thought the monk,
who had not left the temple for three years had decided to re-visit his friends
again the following day.
The next day, she went by the temple to see if he had
returned. She went to the temple and
called. Receiving no reply she went
into the temple and found him standing, with his recitation beads in his
hand. She greeted him but received no
response. When she moved closer to him,
she realized that he was dead but still standing! Never having seen anything like this before in her life, she
rushed off to ask the others who were looking after the monk, what to do. They sent a message to the Master’s temple
informing him of the strange occurrence and asking what to do.
Due to difficulties in traveling, it took Master Di-Xian three days
to arrive at his friend’s temple. He
understood that his old friend had been born into the Western Pure Land. He looked at the still standing dead friend
and said admiringly to him, “You have proved that your decision three years ago
to become a monk was a fruitful one.
Not one of the Dharma masters or abbots at all the famous way places can
match your achievement.” For three
years, the uneducated monk had done nothing but recite “Namo Amituofo”. His single-minded, ceaseless recitation had
resulted in his achievement of being freed from the cycle of birth and death
and of being born into the Western Pure Land.
The practice of diligence is important regardless of what we are
doing. Whether chanting “Amituofo”,
sitting in meditation, chanting mantras, or studying sutras, we need to
practice diligence. In studying sutras,
if we want to help ourselves as well as others, it would be best to specialize
in just one sutra for study and lecturing.
In this way, each time we study and lecture, we will reach a new state
of mind, we will improve each time. A
person who lectures on The Amitabha Sutra for ten years will become Buddha
Amitabha. A person, who lectures on the
"Universal Door Chapter" for ten years, will become Guan Yin
Bodhisattva. A person, who tries to
learn ten sutras in ten years, will become a jack of all trades and a master of
none. Now we can see how important diligence
is!
Years ago, when I was a professor at the Buddha Light Temple, a
Buddhist university in Taiwan, I recommended to the principal that each student
specialize in only one single sutra, “This way in ten to twenty years, your
Buddha Light will shine over the entire world”. However, my idea was not accepted. If it had been, we would now have many experts giving Dharma
talks. What a wonderful accomplishment
that would have been! In this way
people who wanted a talk on the Amitabha Sutra, would have Buddha
Amitabha to speak. People, who wanted a
talk on the Earth Treasure Sutra, would have Earth Treasure Bodhisattva
to speak. Every graduate from the
university would have become an expert!
Only in this way can Buddhism become widely accepted.
So, I hope that all those
who give Dharma talks will become experts instead of general scholars. For while such students appear to be
knowledgeable in many areas, actually they are incapable of mastering
anything. On the contrary, students who
specialize exclusively in one subject will turn out to be versatile
experts. All the Buddhas and
Bodhisattvas are versatile, but they all concentrate on their respective
teaching. To be diligent is to delve
deeply into one method. The virtue and
benefits of practicing the Paramita of Diligence in this way are infinite.
The fifth Paramita is deep concentration, which includes the
concentration levels practiced within the heavenly realms and beyond. The concentration of the heavenly realms is
comprised of eight levels. If we
succeed in our cultivation of them, we will be born into the higher
heavens. Beyond the heavenly realms,
deep concentration is found in the realms of Arhats and Mahayana Bodhisattvas. Finally, the highest level of concentration
is that practiced by all Buddhas. The
key to all methods of practice lies in deep concentration.
It is a mistake to think that only Zen Buddhism practices deep
concentration. Pure Land Buddhism uses
Buddha Name Chanting to concentrate the mind.
Tiantai Buddhism practices tranquility and contemplation, which is
another form of deep concentration.
Tibetan Buddhism uses the Three Mystic Practices, the three karmas of
body, mouth, mind corresponding to those of the Buddha. So, although different schools use different
terms, they all practice deep concentration.
Therefore, in the Six Paramitas, concentration encompasses the above
forms as well as all the phenomena in our daily lives.
What is this concentration?
Being the master of our mind. We
have goals, which will never be changed or influenced by the environment. Scientists succeed in their research because
they do not allow themselves to be distracted by other concerns. So, they attain a scientific
concentration. When we successfully
practice the Buddha Name Chanting Method, we will attain the Buddha Name Chanting
Samadhi, as did Master Di-Xian’s student.
If we are able to endure, we will become patient and thus be able to
persevere and progress and thus attain deep concentration, which is the essence
of our practice.
In the Platform Sutra, the Sixth Patriarch, Master Hui-Neng
explained that deep concentration was more than just sitting in
meditation. He himself reached
awakening upon listening to the Diamond Sutra. Therefore, all of his lectures were based on the principles in
this sutra. He said that meditation is
not being attached to any phenomena.
Concentration is sustaining the mind of tranquility. In the Diamond Sutra, Buddha
Shakyamuni taught the proper attitude to have when encouraging others to
practice Buddhism, “Do not attach to changing form, maintain the mind of stillness,
do not be moved”.
The Flower Adornment Sutra tells us of the fifty-three
visits of Sudhana. When Sudhana went to
visit Yuxiang, a venerable sage who practiced deep concentration, the boy could
not find the old man. Where was
he? The sage was not found to be
sitting in meditation at home or in the way place. He was found roaming around a market. What was he doing there?
Maintaining the mind of tranquility by practicing deep concentration and
the principle of not attaching to phenomena.
He was not sitting cross-legged facing a wall for hours, a position we
often admire and expect of a master. We
often find ourselves looking down on the Master of deep concentration whom we
see bustling around in excitement. We
do not yet realize that such a Master has reached a much higher level of attainment
than many practitioners we see in the lotus position. A higher level of deep concentration or Samadhi can exist in all
acts.
Why is deep concentration so important? Why did the Buddha caution us to stay away from form and to
remain unmoved in our heart? Because
all phenomena are illusory, like dreams, bubbles and shadows. They are unattainable. The Buddha sees through everything and urges
us not to give rise to any discriminatory thoughts and attachments. If we can do so, then we will uncover our
true self-nature and attain the Buddha's understanding of all things in the
universe. This is the Paramita of Wisdom.
The Sixth Paramita is intuitive wisdom. We apply it in our daily lives, as we learn the Bodhisattva
way. We know everything around us but
we do not cling to it as we do our best to help others. Why?
This act of helping others originates from the thought and practice of
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, “Unconditional compassion for all others as we are
all one entity”. This is like a person
naturally using the left hand to brush away a mosquito that is biting the right
hand. Would the left hand ask why it
should help the right hand? Of course
not. They are part of the same body.
Today, we have temporarily lost our self-nature, not knowing that
all beings and we are one entity. So we
discriminate between others and ourselves becoming perplexed and obsessed,
spreading confusion, committing wrongdoings and thus bringing sufferings to
others and ourselves. The Buddha taught
us how to break through delusion so that we would awaken to the truth that
helping others is helping ourselves.
Such a heart of compassion is unconditional because it originates from understanding
of “Unconditional compassion for all others as we are all one entity”.
In conclusion, everything has its own methods and continuity. This is abiding by the precepts. With endurance and perseverance, we will
have patience. To specialize without
slacking is diligence. To be master of
our mind and not to be swayed by external condition is concentration. To thoroughly understand all phenomena is wisdom. Therefore, the Buddha taught us to adopt the
Six Paramitas of giving, abiding by the precepts, patience, diligence, deep
concentration and wisdom into our daily lives.
In this way, we will be practicing the Bodhisattva way. It is a mistake to think that once we have
accepted the Bodhisattva precepts, we will automatically become a
Bodhisattva. If we are ignorant of the
Six Paramitas and thus cannot apply them, then even if we have accepted the
Bodhisattva precepts, we will be no more than clay idols unable to even help
ourselves.
Only when we have applied the first four of the Five Guidelines,
the Three Conditions, the Six Principles of Harmony, the Three Learnings and
the Six Paramitas will we truly be a student of the Buddha and thus be close to
Bodhisattvas. Based on the foundation
of the Six Paramitas, we can progress to the next level of our practice, which
is comprised of the Ten Great Vows of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva. These vows were taught to us by the Buddha
in the Flower Adornment Sutra.
This is the last stage of our cultivation leading to Buddhahood. We cannot practice the Six Paramitas and
advance to the Ten Great Vows until we fulfil the first four guidelines. The main characteristic of Universal Worthy
Bodhisattva is an immeasurably broad and compassionate heart. Every one of his vows is complete and perfect.
Who are Buddhas? We read in
the Flower Adornment Sutra that “Sentient or insentient, all attain
wisdom”. So all beings that have
self-awareness and all things such as plants and minerals are
Buddhas-to-Be. With respect for all
beings and things, not just the present Buddhas, we will foster the heart of
Universal Worthy Bodhisattva. His heart
is different from that of most Bodhisattvas.
Buddhist practitioners are respectful to the Buddha, but this
respect may not be completely sincere.
Why not? If we are listening to
a lecture, but suddenly think of an important appointment or have a call on our
telephone or pager, what will we do? We
will leave the hall immediately go to attend to business or the telephone
call! So, our respect and belief are
not genuine. If we were truly sincere
and respectful, we would regard attendance at the lecture as our prime
concern. But in fact, if we are
listening to a talk on the sutra and someone tells us that there is a business
opportunity that will make us one million US dollars, we will immediately leave
the lecture hall. Our respect and
belief are not genuine enough.
The profound respect of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva is perfectly
genuine, regardless of whether it is for Buddhas, sentient beings or insentient
objects. Why? He understands that they all have a Buddha nature. Therefore, offending a sentient being is
offending a Buddha. Thus, we too should
respect all beings.
Then how do we act towards tables and chairs? They are also to be respected as beings, for
everything is the result of the joint force of all causes. What is the right way to show respect for
all things? Prostrate to them three
times a day? No, that is the way of a
Buddhist idiot. To show respect to
material objects, we just keep them orderly and clean. For example, books go neatly into a bookcase. When doing something, we are earnest and
responsible, trying to do it the best we can.
We treat people, matters and objects with equal respect. This is the virtuous way of Universal Worthy
Bodhisattva. This is the expanded and
perfected way of the Six Paramitas, and therefore the most perfect and
effective way for Buddhist cultivation.
The second vow is to “Praise the ‘Thus Come One’”. Since, the first vow is “To respect all
Buddhas” why do we not rephrase them as one, “Praise and respect all
Buddhas”? There is a profound meaning
within these two vows. “Respect all
Buddhas” applies to behavior. When
considering the form, we are to show respect for everybody, regardless of
whether they are good or bad. Also, we
are to respect all laws whether they are accepted or heretical. “Praise the ‘Thus Come One’” applies to
nature. So, there is a difference. We admire the good but not the bad, although
we respect the latter as well. And
therein lies the difference.
In the Flower Adornment Sutra, Sudhana understood this very
well. He respected and praised nearly
every one of the fifty-three spiritual guides he visited. However, three of them he respected but did
not praise; Fasumiduo, Shengrepoluomen and Ganluhuowang. The first was a prostitute and symbolized
lust or greed. The second was a heretic
and symbolized ignorance. The third was
hot-tempered and symbolized anger, punishing those who caused him the slightest
offense by plunging them into boiling oil or driving them into a hill of
daggers. These three symbolized the
Three Poisons of greed, anger and ignorance.
To Sudhana, the three were to be respected but not praised. So, we see that praise is linked to virtue.
Only good characteristics and accepted laws deserve praise. But we still respect all beings and things
because respect reflects purity of mind and the virtue of respecting others
equally. We respect heretical beliefs
while we praise accepted ones such as Christianity, which helps raise people to
the heaven realms. This is not
achieving the perfect, complete enlightenment, but it is infinitely better than
heretical beliefs that will lead people to fall into the three lower
realms. So, we praise Christianity. However, we never praise cults for they
encourage people to commit wrongdoings.
We can see that there is a big difference between the first and
second vows although both come from a pure and perfect intention.
The primary characteristic of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva is an
immeasurably broad and compassionate mind, which in Mahayana Buddhism is
considered as the perfect function of the self-nature. Ordinary Bodhisattvas have seen to their
self-nature, but it is partial, not perfect.
Only the virtuous character of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva is
perfect. All his vows are directed to
all beings in the universe. Herein lies
the difference between Universal Worthy Bodhisattva and ordinary Bodhisattvas
who practice just the Six Paramitas. An
offering to one Buddha is an offering to all Buddhas. His offerings are not only made to Buddhas but also to sentient
and non-sentient beings. Therefore,
"One is all and all is one".
With this great broad-mindedness, we can attain the non-discriminatory
and boundless perfection.
Universal Worthy Bodhisattva told us that of all the many kinds of
offerings, that of the teachings is supreme.
However, only the Buddha’s teachings can help sentient beings break
through confusion and delusion, to uncover the perfect self-nature, to become
enlightened. No other kind of offering
can do this. As Buddhism is an
education, we are to honor the teacher and revere his or her teachings. Only in this way, can we attain perfect,
complete enlightenment.
In the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni, which sutra is the most
important? In the Sui and Tang
dynasties, over a thousand years ago, great Buddhist scholars studied and
compared all of the sutras from Buddha Shakyamuni’s forty-nine years of
teaching. They agreed that the Flower
Adornment Sutra was the most important.
So, the Flower Adornment Sutra was commonly acknowledged as the
perfect teaching. The scholars then
made comparisons between the Infinite Life Sutra and the Flower
Adornment Sutra and concluded that the Infinite Life Sutra was
higher than the Flower Adornment Sutra.
They explained that the Flower Adornment Sutra and the Lotus
Sutra are the two most important.
In Chinese Buddhism, they are called the “First Vehicle Perfect
Teachings”. Both function as the guide
to the Infinite Life Sutra.
Therefore, the Infinite Life Sutra is really the number one teaching.
When I first read this, I was very pleased because it agreed with
my personal experience. It was the Flower
Adornment Sutra that guided me to Pure Land Buddhism. I lectured on this sutra for seventeen
years. Later, I only lectured on the
“Chapter of Universal Worthy’s Conduct and Vows” from the Flower Adornment
Sutra. During these seventeen
years, I deeply comprehended the meaning of the Ten Great Vows of Universal
Worthy Bodhisattva in guiding beings to the Western Pure Land. This Pure Land is the essence and the final
destination of the Flower Adornment.
From this experience, I realized that the ancient masters were right.
So we know what is the best and most important among all of Buddha
Shakyamuni’s teachings. However, it was
only after Mr. Lian-Ju Xia, a Buddhist layman, edited a compilation of the five
versions of the original translations of the Infinite Life Sutra that we
could enjoy a perfect benefit. The
great project of editing such an extensive literary collection demonstrated
that Mr. Xia was not an ordinary person, but rather the manifestation of a
Great Bodhisattva. This great being
felt compassion for the sentient beings in our world, which revealed that the
opportunity for many beings to attain Buddhahood, had matured. Thus, he manifested in our world to compile
the sutra versions and propagate the Pure Land method during our Dharma Ending
Age.
When I visited Beijing, a student of Mr. Xia
presented me with a photo of his teacher.
Upon returning to Taiwan, I printed an enlarged copy of the photo. Although it is not very clear due to repeated
duplications, an amazing phenomenon is apparent. Behind Mr. Xia’s head the image of a Buddha appears. Light is emitting from this image as well as
from below his shoes. Although the
photo has been reduplicated many times, we can still clearly see that the image
over Mr. Xia’s head is that of a Buddha sitting on his lotus seat. We placed the photo in a prominent position
to express our gratitude to this great Bodhisattva for having given us such a
gift and for guiding us in our cultivation and propagation of Buddhism.
The Infinite Life Sutra is the most important sutra for helping
all beings to attain Buddhahood. It
contains forty-eight chapters. Which
chapter is number one? Of all the
chapters, chapter six is the most important.
It tells us of Buddha Amitabha’s Forty-eight Vows. When we read the Infinite Life Sutra,
we see that Buddha Shakyamuni accorded with these vows when he introduced the
history and background of the Pure Land.
Which of these vows is number one?
The great scholars and monks in ancient China agreed that the eighteenth
vow is number one. It tells us that ten
recitations of Buddha Amitabha’s name will result in birth into the Pure
Land. In my early years of study, I
questioned whether the Buddha had the ability to help a person to immediately
become a Buddha, even if he or she was doomed to birth in the Avici Hell, the
lowest of the hell realms. If the
Buddha was unable to accomplish this, then his wisdom and ability were limited.
To say that he had all virtues, perfect abilities was complimentary rather than
factual. But, if the Buddha were
capable of helping such a person become a Buddha, then I would believe that he
was perfect in wisdom and capabilities, and was thus worthy of our admiration. This question remained unanswered until
after I read the forty-eight vows of Buddha Amitabha in the sutra. Then, I realized that the Buddha’s wisdom
and virtuous character are indeed, perfect and universal.
The Buddha is indeed capable of helping a person who has committed
serious offenses to become a Buddha.
The question lies in whether or not the person believes and
accepts. If not, then the fault lies
with the individual, not the Buddha.
So, after reading the Infinite Life Sutra we know that anyone who
sincerely practices the recitation method will surely succeed.
In the earlier example of Master Di-Xian and the student who so
successfully chanted “Namo Amituofo” for three years, the student knew in
advance when he would be born into the Pure Land. He told the woman who brought his food daily, that she need not
bring it the following day. After he passed
away from this world, he remained in a standing position for three days waiting
for his master to come to make final arrangements. His birth into the Pure Land was into the highest level. His accomplishment is proof of the
eighteenth vow, which explains to us that this birth can be accomplished with
just ten recitations of “Amituofo”.
Anyone who firmly believes in this method surely has good roots,
great merits and virtues. The Infinite
Life Sutra explains that the monk’s rebirth after such a short time of
practice was due to his having made offerings to innumerable Buddhas in
previous lifetimes. As a result, he was
able to believe and practice. Without
his good roots from previous lifetimes, he would not have been able to believe
regardless of what his teacher had said.
The name of Buddha Amitabha contains infinite meanings. It is the name of the universe, so it
includes everything. If we want to know
the meaning of the name, we can read the Infinite Life Sutra, the
explanation of the name. If we want to
understand the Infinite Life Sutra we can read the Flower Adornment
Sutra, for it is a detailed explanation of the Infinite Life Sutra. If we want to understand the Flower
Adornment Sutra we can read the entire Great Canon for it is the detailed explanation
of the Flower Adornment Sutra.
By using this method to understand the sutras, we will know that the
merit and virtue of the name of Buddha Amitabha are truly extraordinary.
This name alone contains all of Buddhism as well as all laws throughout
the universe. Therefore, to chant this
name is to chant all sutras. During the
reign of Emperor Qianlong, there was a famous monk Ciyun Guan-ding. Among his many works is the Directory to
the Visualization Sutra, which tells us that when we seek escape from
disasters we can resort to reciting sutras, chanting mantras or drawing
divination slips. However, if a person
has committed grave wrongdoings then the only thing that will work is to recite
“Namo Amituofo”. From this, we
understand that this is the best method to follow when facing disaster. Many people do not know this so they resort
to other methods. Therefore, a person
who is ill may recite the Medicine Master Sutra and when faced with disaster
may recite the “Universal Door Chapter".
This person does not know that the merits and virtues of Buddha Name
Recitation make it the number one method.
Then why did Buddha Shakyamuni not tell us so directly? Why did he teach us so many sutras and
methods? Because many people do not
believe in the Buddha Name Recitation Method.
So, he kept the finest method for last.
This is similar to what we see in the Taiwan Palace Museum. Most people consider the beautiful jade
collection of the Qing Dynasty, to be more valuable than the bronze ware, which
resembles pieces of metal, not realizing the bronze ware is the most valuable
part of the collection in the museum.
Similarly, most people do not realize the true value of Buddha Name
Recitation. So, the Buddha had to teach
all the sutras to guide sentient beings to the Pure Land.
Master Shan Dao told us that the only purpose for all Buddhas to
manifest in the world is to tell us of the original vows of Buddha
Amitabha. Today, we can truly
understand, cultivate and propagate the Pure Land method. Truthfully, this is due to the support of
the Triple Jewels. Also, the opportunities
today for sentient beings to achieve attainment are very good. In the past five to six years, millions of
copies of the Infinite Life Sutra have been printed and spread throughout
the world. I have traveled around the
world introducing and recommending this sutra.
Many people have liked and accepted it.
Seeing you here working and practicing so earnestly, I am very pleased
and feel that my hard work has been rewarded.
Therefore, if we can practice and widely propagate this method, than I
can say that we have perfectly fulfilled the vow to “Make Offerings Extensively”.
The methods used by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are infinite in
number. They are the display of great
compassion and lead to birth into the Pure Land. For example, Universal Worthy Bodhisattva is the founder of
Tibetan Buddhism. Also, Zhun Ti
Bodhisattva, one of the great patriarchs of Tibetan Buddhism, is a
manifestation of Guan Yin Bodhisattva.
Both Universal Worthy Bodhisattva and Guan Yin Bodhisattva urge us to
seek birth into the Western Pure Land.
We ordinary people discriminate between Chinese and Tibetan Buddhism,
but Buddhas and Bodhisattvas with their perfect freedom and non-discriminatory
minds do not discriminate among the different schools. All eighty-four thousand methods lead to the
same goal. With this understanding, we
will naturally respect all methods and schools.
Everybody has karmic obstacles. Every thought in a person’s mind causes a
karmic act, which in turn will certainly results in an obstacle. What is obstructed? Our true nature, within which there is
infinite wisdom and virtue. There are
two types of obstacles: those caused by afflictions and those caused by
knowledge-attachment. We create these
constantly. The Buddha told us in the Flower
Adornment Sutra, “All beings have the Buddha’s wisdom and virtue but cannot
attain them due to their wandering thoughts and attachments”. Like a doctor, the Buddha pointed out the
root cause of our illness. Attachments
are the root cause of afflictions and wandering thoughts are the root cause of
knowledge-attachment. For all methods,
learning and cultivation is simply a matter of doing away with our wandering
thoughts and attachments. Once we do
this, we will uncover our Buddha nature.
All the methods in Buddhism teach us to regret our karmic obstacles. Thus, to regret karmic obstacles is the key
to our cultivation.
However, it is very
difficult to remove these obstacles. Of
all the methods, that of the Pure Land is unique. For even if we have committed an extremely grave crime such as
one of the Five Deadly Offenses and are thus destined to fall into the Avici
Hell, we can still remove our obstacles and attain Buddhahood. We need to feel remorse, vow to change and
practice Buddha Name Recitation and accord with the Buddha's teachings to
attain birth into the Pure Land. This
is why Master Ciyun said that this recitation method alone is able to dispel
obstacles, for they cannot be dispelled reciting sutras or mantras.
In the past few years there
was a theory being circulated that said a person with remaining karma could not
attain birth into the Pure Land. This
greatly shocked and panicked Pure Land practitioner. When I went to Los Angeles in1984, I was asked if this was really
true. On hearing the question, I smiled
and said, “If it were true that no person with remaining karma could be born
into the Pure Land, then the only person there would be Buddha Amitabha. What then is the use of going there?” The person questioned “Why?” I replied, “Have you ever heard of the four
lands, three kinds and nine grades in the Pure Land?” He replied that he had read of them in the sutras. I told him “If no one with remaining karma
had been born into the Pure Land, why are there four lands, three kinds and
nine levels?” With this, he understood.
The division of lands, kinds
and levels is based on the amount of remaining karma. With heavier karma, we are born into a lower grade: with light
karma, a higher grade. I then
explained, “Guan Yin Bodhisattva, Manjushri Bodhisattva and Universal Worthy
Bodhisattva are all Equal Enlightenment Bodhisattvas. The sutras tell us that even Bodhisattvas of this high level
still possess one degree of remaining ignorance. Isn’t this a karmic act?”
My questioner was relieved at my words.
So even an Equal Enlightenment Bodhisattva goes to the Pure Land with
remaining karma. Buddha Amitabha is the
only one there without any karma. I
then concluded, “Who says that a person with remaining karma cannot be born
into the Pure Land”! My words seemed to
help as the individual laughed merrily for he began to see that all beings in
the Pure Land had gone there with their remaining karma.
Buddhism teaches us not to
be angry or hold grudges against others.
So, I added “It is not wrong to advocate extinguishing karma for it is
good to carry as little karma to the Pure Land as possible. In this way the person can attain birth into
a higher level”.
Later, I went to New
York. As soon as I got off the plane, I
was asked the same question. People did
not know the truth. As soon as I
explained, they understood that it was not wrong to have karma. Extinguishing karma is good for it is
feeling remorse for the obstacle.
Buddha Name Recitation is a
sincere act of feeling remorse and vowing to change. However, when feeling remorse we must be sure that our heart is
the same as Buddha Amitabha’s, our vow is the same as Buddha Amitabha’s and our
behavior corresponds with that of Buddha Amitabha. How do we do this? With
sincerity by not merely reciting with our mouth but with our heart. In this way, we will perfectly fulfill the
teachings in the sutras. Only by doing
so can it be said that we are true cultivators of the recitation method. Be sure that with every thought of
“Amituofo” we have the same thought and vow as the Buddha. We need to turn his forty-eight vows into
our own. Only in this way can we be rid
of karmic transgressions.
This requires us to go
against what seems so natural to us, jealousy.
It is natural for humans to have this emotion. For example, small children appear unhappy when others receive
more candy than they do. This is
jealousy and it is a major obstacle to our self-cultivation. Universal Worthy Bodhisattva largely
attributed this vow to jealousy. He
taught us not to feel envy but rather to regard others meritorious deeds as our
own and to further assist them in their endeavors.
This vow tell us to not only
feel joyful over others meritorious deeds but to help them accomplish even
more. If we are unable to offer
assistance, we can at least express our joy and admiration. However, if we are able to offer assistance
then it will be a true fulfillment of this vow. Remember that helping others is helping ourselves. We would do well to love and tolerate those
who exceed us for in this way we will accomplish the virtue of this vow.
In ancient times, education
in China was such that each succeeding generation was expected to exceed the
current generation in accomplishment.
If not, the education was considered a failure. People today however, are afraid that others
will exceed them. When they teach
others, they may hold back important information. This is called grudging teaching, which will incur the
retribution of ignorance. Grudging
money incurs poverty. These people are
not aware how serious the retribution will be.
We should strive to continuously progress in our cultivation of virtue,
acquisition of knowledge, development of ability and improvement of the
standard of life. Only in this way will
education be successful with the entire society progressing.
It will be our responsibility
in the next era to educate others. If
we fail to attain virtue, knowledge and ability, we will not be able to help
the next generation of sentient beings.
Why? Look at today’s
children. The education they receive is
leaning more and more towards science and technology while society is becoming
increasingly complicated. Therefore,
those who have vowed to help others will need to have a purer heart, greater
wisdom and higher virtue to cope with the new era and opportunities. Jealousy and hatred are extremely harmful to
our self-nature and hence should be extinguished. So, the virtue of being joyful over other’s meritorious deeds
will be even more important.
Since we benefit from the
education we receive from the Buddha, what can we do to repay his
kindness? Nowadays, most people
enshrine and worship him, making daily offerings to his image on an altar. Is this the right way to repay him? No.
These are only rituals to remind us not to forget the Buddha’s
kindness. The Buddha’s wish is for all
sentient beings to hear the truth, practice accordingly and receive the
benefits to attain Buddhahood. The only
way we can repay him is to take his heart as our own. Only in this way can we repay our respected teacher. Therefore, we can request the turning of the
Dharma-wheel, in other words, we invite knowledgeable masters to teach us about
the sutras. This is also the greatest
good deed and virtue. Why? Because it brings the teachings to the
world. But if no one invites Dharma
masters to lecture, they will not have the opportunity to do so. So, people who invite them to give Dharma
talks will obtain great merits.
Many people are willing to
invite masters to chant or recite believing that they will receive inconceivable
good fortune. But actually, they may
not understand the meaning of what they are reciting. Therefore, if they invite the Dharma master to give a talk, then
the good fortune, merits and virtues are even greater. The listeners will acquire a better
understanding of the text and will be more inclined to recite the sutra and
follow its teachings.
Unfortunately, if we want to
invite a master to give a talk on the sutra today, we will find it hard to find
an eligible one since there are so few.
Many times, as I have traveled to give talks, I have been told that it
was very difficult to find masters to speak.
I have smiled and said, “ Having a master to teach is a result. We need to plant the cause before we can
attain this result. You are wishing for
it without having planted the cause!
Where on earth can we find such a deal!” What does “planting the cause” mean in this instance? To help train Dharma masters.
People like to listen to
talks by senior, famous masters.
Younger, unknown masters are normally inexperienced so fewer people
attend their talks. Thus they become
discouraged and thinking that giving talks is too difficult, they return to
conducting ceremonial services. What
should we do to help these less experienced masters? The younger and more inexperienced they are the more we need to
attend their talks. This will encourage
them to continue to practice and to improve.
However, even if we attend
every one of the master's talks, we should not praise them. Unfounded praise is more harmful than
slander. People may become very angry
when slandered but for a person with integrity and enthusiasm the slander will
only serve as a stimulant. The more
embarrassed he or she becomes, the more determined he or she becomes. This person will do their utmost to
achieve. However, if people praise and
eulogize the master, he or she will think that they are so good that further
improvement is unnecessary. This
thinking leads to arrogance. Therefore,
we should neither praise inexperienced masters nor make offerings to them. With too much money and fame, they will soon
become tainted.
A person gives rise to the
Bodhisattva heart and becomes a monk or nun but later becomes corrupt due to
receiving excessive praise and offerings from followers. So, these followers are to blame for ruining
this monk or nun. When the monk or nun
receives the retribution, the followers will share the responsibility. Then whom should we make offerings to? The person with a firm mind for he or she
will neither feel excited when praised, nor troubled when slandered. Only they deserve to receive the praise and
admiration for only they will not be harmed by it. We would do well to strongly recommend this master to others, so
that the master can help more beings.
To accept praise and
offerings is very difficult. Buddhists
say that, “A single grain from the donor is heavier than Mt. Sumeru. I will serve the donor like a bull in my
next life if I do not transcend the six realms of reincarnation at the end of
this one”. So it is not easy to
properly accept offerings. Even Buddhas
and Bodhisattvas do not enjoy the offerings made to them, let alone we ordinary
beings. However, when the donor wishes
to foster good deeds and virtues, the master should accept the offerings and
then pass them on to others.
Earlier in this century,
Master Yin-Guang set a good example for us.
His innumerable followers gave many offerings. He used all the money to print sutras. Following his example, I have also used all the money donated to
print sutras. I then freely distribute
the books to everybody. I had the
thought that if I did not attain achievement in this life and transcend the six
realms, I would at least not become a bull in my next life because everyone who
had received my books would help to pay the debt for me! This is the transference of giving. In this way, everybody would share in the
good fortune. This is the proper way of
accepting offerings from followers.
Using the offerings for personal
use is absolutely wrong and immoral.
Even if the money is used to build a way place, the way place has to be
used to promote Buddhism. Only in this
way can the donor receive the merits and virtues. Otherwise, without propagation and cultivation, the way place
will become a place of competition and conflict. Therefore, we must be very careful if we want to build a way
place. My late teacher, Mr. Lee, once
said, “When building the way place, everybody is a Bodhisattva doing their best
to complete the work. But after the way
place is built, everybody becomes a demon.”
Why? Because they are all trying
to grab power and profit. They have
forgotten their initial genuine intention in building the way place.
We have to be very careful
when making offerings to a Dharma Master.
The Buddha told us that there were four kinds of offerings that could be
made to monks and nuns. The first is
food and drink, without which they cannot survive. The second is clothing.
If it becomes worn, provide new ones if there is not another one
available. The third is medicine to be
provided upon illness. The fourth is
bedding.
Nowadays, followers offer
monks and nuns houses and whatever good things they can afford. Then they live such a comfortable life that
they no longer want to go to the Pure Land!
The present life becomes so satisfactory that the goal to transcend the
cycle of birth and death to attain Buddhahood fades. This is very harmful to their cultivation. They have left their secular home
behind. To present them with a house is
to urge them to return home. Isn’t this
harmful to them? Having received
ownership of a house, they have again acquired property. This is regression of their cultivation.
The follower is then
actually a criminal who will ruin the master.
These people do not understand that this is harming Buddhism and
damaging the spirit of the Triple Jewels.
They think they are doing a good deed and accumulating much merit. When they see the King of the hell realms after
they die, they will feel bewilderment at their punishment. We must have true wisdom to cultivate good
fortune, merits and virtue in Buddhism.
Followers need to be told of this but many masters are reluctant to tell
them so because then they may not receive offerings.
What about me? I am determined to go to the Pure Land. I will not remain in this world to continue
to bear the suffering. Thus, to tell
the truth, I do not care whether you make offerings to me or not. It would be even better for me if you did
not for it would save me a lot of trouble.
Because of this, I started the Corporate Body of the Buddha’s
Educational Foundation, which is devoted to the printing and distribution of
Buddhist books. I told the manager
“Print more if there are more offerings.
Print fewer if there are fewer offerings. There is no need to print any if there are no offerings, which is
best”.
When too many offerings are
received, we have to take the trouble to select among all the Buddhist books to
determine which ones are most suitable to print and then decide how best to
print them. With no offerings, there
would be no worries, no troubles. So we
should not seek offerings, seek a way place or ask for anything. Then we will have a pure mind and a quiet
heart on our path to enlightenment.
Cultivating a pure mind and a quiet heart, helping others to cultivate
the same and staying away from fame and profit is true cultivation.
We need to foster novice
monks and nuns by placing them in hardships.
If we cannot bear to see them experiencing hardship, we are harming
them. When Buddha Shakyamuni was in
this world, all of his students had only one meal a day and spent the night
sitting under trees. Is this not a life
of hardship? If we had been there, felt
sorry for them and helped them out of their hardships, how could they have
attained enlightenment?
The Buddha taught us to
regard hardship as our teacher. Only by
living most simply and frugally can we acquire a true Dharma heart and be
firmly determined to transcend this world.
So, hardships are good for us.
If we are not willing to undergo hardship ourselves then we can at least
respect those who are and not try to extricate them from their
difficulties. Only when we sincerely
help inexperienced monks and nuns to improve will we have good masters
promoting Buddhism.
The main purpose of the
sixth vow is to introduce Buddhism to all people. If we hope to have accomplishment in our cultivation, the vow to
request the turning of the Dharma wheel is not enough. Have you seen anyone attain enlightenment
simply by listening to a talk on the sutra only once or twice in his or her
lifetime? If this could happen, then
enlightenment would be obtainable only when the Buddha was in the world and
unobtainable when he was not. However,
with our limited abilities we cannot do this, so we need to request the Buddha
to reside in this world. In other
words, we need a teacher who is with us every day so that we can be under their
constant guidance and thus be able to reach enlightenment.
Years ago, I was asked by
Professor Lee about my aspirations. I
told him that I wished to travel around the world encouraging others to
practice Buddhism. He nodded and told me
that this was good, that I could achieve but I could not help others to do
so. I asked why. He replied that I could only
propagandize. He said that he had lived
in Taizhong for more than thirty years and therefore many people had attained
achievement. He went on to explain that
if he had not lived in Taizhong but had simply visited to lecture once or twice
a year than nobody would have had any achievement. To be able to help another, there needs to be an existing
affinity. Without this affinity, even a
Buddha cannot help us. By travelling
around the world propagating Buddhism, we meet many people but the affinities
with them are lighter. Staying in one
place to conduct regular teachings needs stronger affinities.
I have benefited greatly
from my travels as I have been freed from the concept of home. Every day I was either on the road or in a
hotel. Where is my home? No home at all. Although I have places to give talks, I usually do not stay there
for longer than a few weeks. The
shattering of the idea of home has proven to be an escape for me.
If we want to reach any
achievement, we need to request the Buddha to remain in this world. The Buddha himself is no longer here but his
followers are, be they monks and nuns or laypeople. Those who are knowledgeable and virtuous can be invited to reside
in our town or city to give teachings.
In this way, we will be constantly under their guidance. It is easy to provide for masters of virtue
and character because they lead simple lives.
However, the Lecture Hall should look magnificent so that the listeners
will like it and will thus develop respect for the way place. However, if the appearance of the hall is
mediocre they might look down on the way place. People often set store by appearance and pay less attention to content. Although a person who knows the true value
of things does not attach much importance to appearance, a splendid and
imposing looking Lecture Hall is necessary for people to see initially.
Although the Lecture and
Cultivation Halls are very impressive, the living quarters of the monks and
nuns are very simple. If we look at the
temples in China, we will understand.
Even the head monk lives in a small room. The luxurious exterior rooms are only for laypeople and
visitors. By carefully observing this
we will know the right manner we need to have and the right methods we need to
adopt. Doing so properly will enable
Buddhism to take root, grow, blossom and bear fruit wherever we live.
From the above, we can see that among the Ten Great Vows of Universal
Worthy Bodhisattva, the first seven are for a Bodhisattvas vows and conduct and
the last three are the ways to dedicate all merits.
Although the Buddha no longer resides in this world, we still have
his sutras to follow and study.
Following the sutras is the highest standard in our learning and
practicing Buddhism.
We need to accord with the wishes of all sentient beings in the
universe. This is extremely difficult
to do and is why the Chinese say that filial piety and according with others go
together. Learning Buddhism is to honor
filial piety and to accord with the being's wishes. While according, we need to look for the right opportunities to
try to encourage people to stop committing wrongdoings. This will help them to break through
delusion and attain enlightenment.
However, to do this perfectly, we need to recognize the right way and
time and for this, we need wisdom, expediency and flexibility.
This means dedicating all of our good deeds and merits to all the
sentient beings in the universe. It
means broadening our hearts so that the entire universe becomes one entity. Only when we have reached this state can we
be said to have attained the Great Perfection.
In our learning and
cultivation of the Pure Land, we use the five sutras and one sastra:
1. The
Buddha Speaks of the Infinite Life Sutra of Adornment, Purity, Equality and
Enlightenment of the Mahayana School,
2. The
Amitabha Sutra,
3. The Visualization
Sutra,
4. “The
Chapter of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva’s Conduct and Vows” from the Flower
Adornment Sutra”,
5. “The
Chapter on the Perfect Complete Realization of Great Strength Bodhisattva
through Buddha Name Recitation” from the Surangama Sutra and
6. Vasubandhu
Bodhisattva’s Report on the Way to Reaching the Pure Land.
We practice the Five Guidelines:
1. The
Three Conditions,
2. The
Six Harmonies,
3. The
Three Learnings,
4. The
Six Paramitas and
5. The
Ten Great Vows of Universal Worthy Bodhisattva.
Very
simple, very clear, not at all complicated.
If we consistently follow these in our learning and cultivation, we are
sure to succeed. In doing so, as an
ancient sage said, “If ten thousand practice, ten thousand will succeed.” Now we have the principles and methods of
learning and cultivation. How do we
interact with people, matters and objects in our daily lives? If we follow the above five guidelines,
single-mindedly chant the name of Buddha Amitabha and seek birth into the Pure
Land, we will definitely succeed.
We have looked at the basis
for learning and cultivation and have had a brief introduction to the main
practice guidelines. Now, let’s look at
the creative teaching methods of Buddhism.
As Master Qingliang explained, in the Flower Adornment Sutra
learning and cultivation can be divided into the four stages of belief,
understanding, practice and realization.
The first stage is
belief. When we are able to believe,
then our conditions have matured. There
is a saying “The Buddha is unable to help those who have no affinity with him”. What is affinity? It is being able to believe.
Even a Buddha cannot help someone whose conditions have not yet matured. However, when they have matured, the person
will have belief. Then the Buddha can
help. Religions are different from
Buddhism in that once the believers have faith, they are saved, whereas, the
belief in Buddhism, means that we believe in the benefits of Buddhism and
accept one of the many methods.
Once we have the belief, we
have to have understanding. Buddhism
explains the truth of life and the universe.
Only after we have acquired a true understanding of it can we begin our
practice. Therefore, practice is based
on understanding. If we do not
understand the principles and methods, how can we practice? True practice is based on the foundation of
principles and correct methods. The
ultimate goal of practice is to achieve attainment, to attain the real
benefit. What is attainment? It is the application of what we believe,
understand and practice in our daily lives, to attain the ultimate enjoyment in
life. For example, what we find in the Infinite
Life Sutra is just what we think and practice. What we think and practice in our daily lives conforms to the
sutra. This is attainment and true
reality and this is what makes Buddhism so valuable.
Thus, we need to know the proper
sequence of cultivation, which is belief, understanding, practice and
attainment. When we speak of belief,
first we believe in ourselves. This is
where Buddhism differs from religion.
In religion, the most important criterion is to believe in God. In Buddhism, the most important criterion is
to believe in ourselves, not something outside of ourselves. We need to believe that we have the same
Buddha nature. Believe that originally
we were Buddhas. Believe that we are no
different from the Buddhas. Believe
that our true nature has become polluted and that once we remove this pollution
we will uncover our true self-nature.
However, if we are always
dwelling on thoughts that we have heavy karmic obstacles and fear that this
will keep us from achieving attainment, then we definitely will not
achieve. Why? If we do not believe that we can achieve, then even the Buddhas
and Bodhisattvas cannot help us.
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas can only help those who help themselves. Therefore, it is crucial that we have this
confidence and belief in ourselves.
In addition, we also need to
believe in the teachings of the Buddhas.
We have been told infinite principles and methods. We will surely succeed as long as we follow
them. After we have belief in ourselves,
we need to have belief in the Buddha’s teachings. Master Ou-Yi described this as believing in principles and in
matter. Where does matter come
from? From the principle, that is the
pure mind of the true nature. All
phenomena in the universe arise from the principle. They are related by the endless cycle of cause and effect. A cause gives rise to an effect, which in
turn becomes the cause of the next effect.
This process continues ceaselessly.
Developing understanding and belief in true reality builds our
confidence enabling us to seek thorough understanding of everything. Only in this way can we be free from
confusion and doubt, which are obstacles in our cultivation and thus obtain
enjoyment and smooth advancement.
In practicing Buddhism, it
is most important to accept the teacher’s instructions and practice according
to the recommended methods. This has
been the right way to learn since ancient times. The first requirement was to follow the five-year learning
restriction, which was set by the teacher.
In so doing, the teacher took full responsibility for whether the
student succeeded or failed. This is
the principle of honoring teachers and revering their teachings. This principle, however, no longer holds
today for teachers are not responsible and students are not earnest. The principles of teaching are declining and
this is the tragedy of our times.
Students no longer respect teachers and teachers no longer sincerely
help students to achieve.
The five-year learning
restriction resulted in the student following just one teacher. It laid the foundation for the Three
Learnings of self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom. It was the responsibility of the teacher to
see that the student learned this.
Consider Zen Buddhism. What did
the teacher ask of the student for the first five years? They were assigned simple manual labor and
asked to perform it earnestly, without change, every day. They were also to memorize the sutra. They were to read after completing their
work and not to be concerned with anything else. The purpose of this labor was not to treat them as servants.
After a while the student
felt bored and would think that he or she had worked very hard for five years
without accomplishing anything. In
actuality, he or she had acquired much without realizing it. What was acquired? Afflictions were greatly reduced and concentration was increased
because of a ban against seeing and listening to many things. If the ban was properly followed, the
students attained both good fortune and wisdom. What is good fortune?
Working every day in the way place was cultivating the practice of
giving. Since monks and nuns had no
money to give away, they could work to cultivate the Paramita of Giving. Through the restrictions on listening and
reading thereby concentrating the six sense organs, the students also acquired
a pure mind and attained deep concentration.
This is wisdom. So, the teacher
taught the students to cultivate good fortune and establish the foundation of
self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom. The teaching was designed to be subtle yet effective. With the five-year learning restriction as a
base, upon listening to one or two years of Dharma lectures, the students could
become enlightened.
In the biographies of well
accomplished monks and nuns we see that through this method many of them become
enlightened in three to five years.
Today, however, practitioners can live in a way place for thirty or
fifty years, even a lifetime without awakening. They may have read numerous sutras but were still not
enlightened. At most, they have
memorized some general knowledge about Buddhism, but have done nothing to sever
their afflictions or attain wisdom. So,
we must try to find a good teacher for guidance. This advice may seem boring at first. But after the initial stage, we will be truly delighted and
joyful in our attainment.
Many of us have made the big
mistake at the beginning of our cultivation, of wanting to learn all different
methods. Ancient learned monks and nuns
started with the second of the Great Vows of Buddhas and Bodhisattva,
“Afflictions are inexhaustible, I vow to end them all”. In ending all afflictions, we will achieve
deep concentration and attain wisdom.
Then, the “Ways to practice are boundless, I vow to master them
all”. This is the correct order for
cultivation. The mistake many people
make is to attempt to study extensively without having severed afflictions. Master Qingliang called this “Understanding
with no practice”. These people concentrate
only on understanding while neglecting the practice. They do not try to end their afflictions to cultivate a pure
mind. As a result, they develop
deviated viewpoints rather than proper views and knowledge.
What is the first step in
learning Buddhism? Start by reciting
one sutra. Do we need to understand
it? No. For when we have not ended afflictions, our understanding will be
erroneous. Then why do we recite only
this sutra? By reciting the sutra, the
Three Learnings of self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom are
accomplished together.
Self-discipline requires
that we “Do nothing that is bad. Do all
that is good”. Reciting a sutra can
prevent us from generating wandering thoughts so we will be prevented from
doing anything that is bad. Sutras are
words that flow from the Buddha’s true nature.
Nothing can surpass these words in virtue. Therefore, reciting a sutra is doing all that is good and results
in the perfection of self-discipline so there is no need to practice the precepts
one-by-one.
When reciting a sutra we
must focus. By focusing, we cultivate
concentration. Clearly enunciating
every word correctly without any omission is the practice of wisdom. Therefore reciting the sutra properly is to
practice the Three Learnings at the same time.
Any attempt to analyze the sutra while reciting is in fact treating the
sutra as a worldly book. This will
result in none of the Three Learnings being accomplished and is not true cultivation. Never belittle the practice of sutra
recitation, as it is the base of cultivation.
Reciting for one hour accomplishes one hour of cultivation, reciting for
two hours accomplishes two hours of cultivation, etc. Needless to say, the longer the better.
Many of my fellow
practitioners in Taiwan and Dallas are reciting the Infinite Life Sutra
ten times a day. So far, some may have
chanted the sutra over two thousand times, thus they are very familiar with the
text and only need thirty to forty-five minutes to finish one sutra. Reciting ten times thus means five or six
hours of practicing self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom. With so many hours devoted to cultivation,
we will naturally develop a serene mind in just a few year’s time.
Sutras flow from the pure
and quiet mind of the Buddha. When we
have developed a mind as pure and quiet, we will understand all we read in the
sutra. The reason why the sutra is so
hard to understand now is that our minds are filled with wandering
thoughts. How can this mind be in harmony
with one that is pure and quiet? This
is why we do not understand the Buddha’s words. So, if we want to learn from a good teacher, we need to trust and
believe that their methods are proper and correct.
Just chose one sutra without
being distracted by any others. If we
chose to follow the Pure Land School, we recite and study the Infinite Life
Sutra. If we choose to follow the
Tiantai School, we recite and study the Lotus Sutra. If we choose to follow the Flower Adornment
School, we recite and study the Flower Adornment Sutra. When choosing a school, follow its
principles and delve deeply into the sutra for five years. In other words sever all afflictions and try
to develop a pure and quiet heart. This
is the first step in learning Buddhism.
Frankly speaking, five years
of learning and cultivating were enough for a practitioner to attain a pure
mind in the past, because their minds were not as polluted as ours now
are. In the past, children would remain
innocent until around ten years of age.
Then they would begin to be aware of differences between right and
wrong, self and others. They would
begin to develop such characteristics as greed, anger, ignorance and
arrogance. Look at today’s
children. They start showing greed,
anger, ignorance and arrogance when they are only a few years old! Where do they learn these things? From television. They are exposed to television every day. They naturally become polluted. They do not have the happy innocent
childhood their parents had. How
unfortunate they are!
I was born and grew up in
the countryside and was neither sensible nor knowing of the world until I was
thirteen. True Happiness is to remain
innocent as long as possible in childhood and to not be aware of any of the
suffering in the world. All I knew was
how to play. Once we loose our childhood
innocence, we are no longer happy. For
then, we have to be constantly aware of others. So, I say that modern people are less fortunate than their
predecessors were.
Once we have developed a
pure and quiet mind and have attained wisdom, then we can begin to broaden our
knowledge. We can see, hear and learn
of anything that we are interested in, for now we have attained wisdom and will
not be affected by our surroundings.
Since we have self-control, the more we see and hear the wiser we will
become and the greater our strength from deep concentration will be. How are deep concentration and wisdom
increased? Remaining unmoved by surroundings
will enhance deep concentration.
Developing a clear and understanding mind will enhance wisdom. Then we can learn from other schools to
further enhance our deep concentration and wisdom. First, we practice self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom
to attain our original wisdom. Then we
can learn extensively to perfect our acquired wisdom. This is the way of learning from ancient times.
The Buddha told us in the Great
Prajna Sutra, “Innocent intuitive wisdom knows all”. So, we must cultivate “innocence”
first. The five-year method of
practicing self-discipline results in our remaining innocent of the happenings
in the world. When we are again in
contact with the world, we will be aware of “Knowing all”. This is the proper sequence and method to
learn and practice Buddhism.
Ancient patriarchs not only
abided by the rules set by Buddha Shakyamuni but also took Confucianism as the
basis for their learning and practice.
Chinese Buddhism has abandoned Theravada Buddhism in place of Confucius
teachings. Chinese Buddhists as the
basis for learning Buddhism adopted the Confucian five virtues of gentleness,
kindness, respectfulness, thriftiness and humility. From this foundation, they developed the Three Conditions, the
Six Principles of Harmony, the Three Learnings, the Six Paramitas and the Ten
Great Vows. All the schools of Mahayana
Buddhism adopted this framework of learning and teaching. In other words, we can accomplish our
learning and cultivation in any school as long as we follow these principles
and methods. So, we can say that the
Five Virtues and Six Harmonies are the basis and a unique characteristic of Chinese
Buddhism.
There was another advanced
method of teaching and learning in Buddhism; continuing education for
teachers. It was not until recently
that this method again came into use.
When he was in this world, the Buddha had many students. Some stayed with him because they had not
finished their study and thus had not yet become independent. But others had reached some
achievement. The latter were Bodhisattvas,
who were responsible for spreading Buddhism.
They went to different locations, set up way places and taught on behalf
of the Buddha. Then they would return
to where the Buddha currently was for a three months summer retreat for
continuing education. This is similar
to today’s summer vacation when the students are out of school but the teachers
cannot rest for they need to receive further training. So, the Bodhisattvas went back to be with
the Buddha for a summer retreat. They
listened to his teaching and thus were able to increase their concentration,
wisdom and virtues. They also discussed
difficulties they had encountered in their teaching and tried to find solutions. They learned from each other in seeking
self-improvement. This system of continuing
education has been infrequently seen in Chinese history.
It is advisable that way
places and Buddhist societies conduct summer and winter retreats of Buddha name
recitation and Zen meditation, seminars, etc. for short-term training. This is very effective and people are able
to accept this idea of short-term continuing education. If we directly tell them that it is for
severing afflictions; cultivating self-discipline, deep concentration and
wisdom; and transcending the cycle of birth and death, only a few people will
be interested and able to accept this concept.
Today, people differ in
their concept of Buddhist education from those in the past. They want to learn more at the beginning of
their study, not knowing that their method will limit their accomplishment
whereas following the traditional method in practicing Buddhism can result in
infinite benefits. In the past, many
people have benefited from this traditional method, achieved in their
cultivation and attained Buddhahood.
However, at best, the present methods can only help us to get a doctorate
of Buddhism, fame and wealth. But
frankly speaking, it will not be easy for us to sever afflictions or transcend
the cycle of birth and death. We should
consider this very carefully.
Buddha Shakyamuni gave
lectures in many places, as did Confucius.
In India, the Buddha and his students were invited by different groups
to give talks. They would lecture in
those areas for a while but did not remain permanently. As most of the Buddha’s one thousand, two
hundred and fifty students would follow him, it would have been very difficult
for one place to support all of them.
Only after Buddhism was introduced into China did Buddhist monks and
nuns take up permanent residence in what was similar to a Buddhist educational
institution. This came about because
the introduction of Buddhism into China was supported and financed by the
emperor. In India, people respected
ascetics who traveled holding an alms bowl and therefore supplied them with
offerings.
In China, however, people
would have regarded this tradition as begging.
Since the emperor, who respected them as teachers, had invited the monks
to China, it would have been unacceptable to have them roaming the streets
begging for food. Therefore, houses
were built for them to live in and people were sent by the imperial court to
assist the monks so they would not have to worry about their livelihood. By the Tang Dynasty, the system of Buddhist
universities had developed. Masters
Baizhang and Mazu were the initiators of these institutions. Master Mazu was the Eighth Patriarch of the
Zen School and the third generation student of Master Hui-Neng, the sixth
Patriarch of the Zen School. There is a
Chinese saying that “Master Mazu built the university and Master Baizhang set
up the rules”.
What is this Buddhist
University? It was the systemization of
Buddhist teaching; the next step after what had been the verbal passing of
teachings from a teacher to private students.
After Master Mazu, the idea of the university continued to grow. This educational system was the special feature
of Chinese Buddhism. The textbooks,
lectures and teaching methods all attained the highest level of artistry as can
be seen in the writing, music, images, architecture, offering implements,
etc. Today, however, many of these
perfect teachings are lost to us.
Today, the quality of
Buddhist music has deteriorated. We are
short of talented people, not only Buddhist artists with creative talents. Therefore, a Buddhist artist has to be
profoundly learned for only then can he or she truly teach others and convey
truth, goodness, beauty and wisdom. Ancient masters with high spiritual achievements composed Buddhist
musical lyrics, but because the minds of today’s people who chant them are not
pure, their expression of them is also not pure. Spiritually, they have yet to achieve a state of awakening and
are thus unable to move us. The
artistic decline is caused by the lack of talented practitioners, it does not
mean that Buddhism lacks artistic substance.
Anyone who has been to China
and visited the Dunhuang murals or the Yungang grottoes, or the stone sutra
texts found in Fangshan County, Beijing, knows how magnificent Chinese Buddhist
artworks can be. The stone sutras were
found in the years after the Cultural Revolution and are more extensive than
the Great Buddhist Canon. Some of the
sutras were translated at a later time than those in the Great Buddhist
Canon. Fortunately, they survived in
the Fangshan site. The stone slabs are
carved on both sides with each beautiful character the size of a thumb. The entire project took four hundred years
to complete, equal in scale to the building of the Great Wall. This recently discovered collection includes
tens of thousands of stone slabs stored in seven caves. At present, only two of the caves are open
to the public. We were filled with awe
and admiration when we saw these stone sutras and could not help but admire our
ancestors for having preserved such a legacy for us.
Today, schools and museums
are separated. However, the system of
Buddhist universities is similar to a combination of school and museum, for the
art forms are educational, not just artistic.
They exhibit inspiration and wisdom not discernable by average
people. For example, when people see
the many images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, they conclude that Buddhists
worship many deities and therefore Buddhism is a religion and one of low
standards at that.
Many people believe that an
advanced religion worships only one god.
They do not understand that Buddhism is not a religion, that we do not
worship the images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas but rather we regard them as
teaching aids, which help us to understand the different methods of cultivation. One single image or method is insufficient
to represent all phenomena in our world, so Buddhism uses many kinds of
artistic works to represent them. Once
we have understood the educational significance of Buddhist artistry, we will
naturally give rise to admiration and appreciation.
All Buddhas symbolize our
virtuous nature. All Bodhisattvas and
Arhats symbolize the virtue of practice. Without the virtue of practice, the innate virtuous nature cannot
be revealed. This complementary
relationship is why the Buddha Table includes both Buddha and Bodhisattva
images. The Buddha represents original
nature and the Bodhisattvas represent the application of this nature. This original nature is empty, as it has no
set form. All creations or form arise
from this original nature and once there is form, there is application. The Buddha represents the original nature
and the Bodhisattvas represent form and application. This is why in the Flower Adornment Sutra, the Buddha does
not comment on the teachings, for the original nature that is empty has nothing
to say. But the Bodhisattvas do have
something to say since they apply the principles. Not only is the original nature unexplained but also no thoughts
arise from it. The saying that
“Whenever I open my mouth I blunder; whenever I have an idea I am wrong” is
said in terms of original nature represented by one Buddha. Why are there two Bodhisattvas to represent
application? The infinite and
innumerable form and application are divided into two categories; wisdom and
practice or understanding and behavior.
Practice corresponds with understanding. Understanding is the principle and practice is the application.
When we see the image of
Buddha Shakyamuni, usually Ananda and Kasyapa, two great Arhats are on either
side of him. Buddha Shakyamuni
represents our original nature. Ananda,
who is foremost in hearing, represents understanding and wisdom. Kasyapa, who is foremost in asceticism, represents
practice. We may also see Buddha
Vairocana, the wisdom body of Buddha Shakyamuni, with Manjushri Bodhisattva and
Universal Worthy Bodhisattva on either side of him. Manjushri Bodhisattva represents understanding. Universal Worthy Bodhisattva represents practice.
Pure Land Buddhism regards
Buddha Amitabha as the original nature with Guan Yin Bodhisattva representing
compassion and practice, and Great Strength Bodhisattva representing wisdom and
understanding. Due to these profound
meanings, there cannot be two or more Buddhas and three or more Bodhisattvas.
Each Buddha represents a
part of the virtuous nature. Every part
of it is perfect so “One is all, all is one”.
Each name illustrates the virtues.
For example, “Shakya” means kindness, teaching us that we need to treat
others with kindness and compassion.
“Muni” means stillness and purity.
The whole meaning of Shakyamuni teaches us to behave toward others with
kindness and compassion, to strive for purity of mind for ourselves. This is the meaning of Shakyamuni and is
innate to our original nature. Amituofo
is a Sanskrit transliteration. “Amituo”
means infinite. “Fo” means Buddha. What is infinite? Everything, infinite wisdom, ability, long life, etc. But of all infinities, infinite life is the
most important for without it all other infinities are useless. With it, we can enjoy all other infinities.
How can we gain these
infinities? Infinity is none other than
our self-nature, our original true nature.
The Sixth Patriarch of Zen, Master Hui-Neng said, “Self-nature is
innate; from self-nature arises all phenomena in the universe”. In other words, it means infinity. What method do we use to obtain this
infinity? We practice the teachings of
Guan Yin Bodhisattva and Great Strength Bodhisattva. The former teaches us to be compassionate; the latter teaches us
the single-minded concentration of Buddha Amitabha. Great Strength Bodhisattva taught us “Concentrate solely on
Buddha Amitabha, without ceasing, without intermingling with other methods, and
in this way we will surely attain wisdom and enlightenment”.
Adding to this is the
compassionate way of Guan Yin Bodhisattva.
Behaving towards others with compassion and chanting only “Namo
Amituofo” will enable us to enjoy infinite life. In this way we will develop our virtuous nature and uncover our
infinite merits and virtues. Thus, when
we pay respect to the images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, we need to understand
that each is representative of a way of cultivation and of the truth of the universe.
Buddhist architecture is also an artistic expression. From the exterior, the main cultivation hall
appears to have two stories, but there is only one story inside. The external two stories represent “absolute
truth” or the true reality of life and the universe, and “relative truth” or
worldly views still clouded with delusion.
The interior single story illustrates that both are the same truth. To the deluded, the two appear distinct and
different; however, to the enlightened, they are one and the same.
Upon entering a way place, we first see the Hall of Heavenly
Guardians. In the center of the hall is
Maitreya Bodhisattva. To his left and
right are the four Heavenly Guardians or Dharma Protectors. Maitreya Bodhisattva, known as the “Happy
Buddha” in the west, is represented by the image of the historical monk Bu-Dai,
a manifestation of Maitreya Bodhisattva.
Maitreya Bodhisattva has a big smile that conveys “Want to learn
Buddhism? Be happy and greet everyone
with a smile. Do not constantly lose
your temper or else you cannot learn Buddhism”. This Bodhisattva also has a huge belly representing great
broad-mindedness and equality of mind, teaching us to treat everything and everyone
with generosity, patience and serenity.
Only by emulating such qualities can we learn and practice
Buddhism. Therefore, Maitreya
Bodhisattva sits facing the door to tell all who enter, “only those who can
accomplish this are eligible to learn Buddhism”.
Standing beside Maitreya Bodhisattva are the four Heavenly
Guardians or Dharma Protectors. They
are symbolic guardians of the practitioners of the Buddhist way. Whom do they protect? They protect us by reminding us to educate
ourselves and to safeguard the proper knowledge, which we should learn. Each guardian portrays a different aspect of
thought or action.
The Eastern Dharma Protector symbolizes responsibility and
safeguards the territory, which means that all of us are responsible for
ourselves, our family, society and the country as a whole. How do we fulfill this responsibility? If each of us performs our duties well,
fulfilling our obligations, we support each other and ourselves as well. In this way, society will be harmonious and
the country will be prosperous and powerful.
The Southern Dharma Protector symbolizes progress and teaches us
diligence. It is not enough to just
meet our responsibilities. We need to
make progress with each passing day for no progress means we regress. He emphasizes the importance of constantly
cultivating and advancing our virtue, conduct, wisdom and ability, and to
improve performance in our duties and our standard of living. From this, we can see that Buddhism is
progressive, always leading the times.
The Western Dharma Protector symbolizes comprehensive vision and
knowledge gained through exposure to the world. He represents the need to open our eyes to observe nature and
humanity, to refine what we see and learn, and to distinguish good from
ill. The Northern Dharma Protector symbolizes
comprehensive study and learning. Both
teach ways of practice and how to achieve the goals in responsibility
fulfillment and self-improvement. As
the ancient Chinese said, “To read ten thousand books and to travel
ten-thousand miles”. Reading is the
means for accomplishing the fundamental knowledge. Traveling ten thousand miles is to learn from observation. Through travel we see advantages of others
and learn from them.
We also see their shortcomings, which can in turn serve as a
warning to us so that we constantly improve ourselves. In this way, we can build a prosperous
society and a safe country. In so
doing, we safeguard the Dharma. So, the
images of the Bodhisattvas and Dharma Protectors remind us to be diligent in
the pursuit of our goals and responsibilities.
So, we can see that Buddhism is neither a religion nor superstition.
The Four Dharma Protectors hold various objects to symbolize
different aspects of the Dharma. The
Eastern Dharma Protector of Managing the Nation holds a lute, which symbolizes
the principle that we need to refrain from acting with undue haste but should
keep to the middle path. It is like
playing a lute, if the strings are too loose, it will not play. If they are too tight, they will break. We need to be responsible in our duties and
do things in a proper, balanced way.
The Southern Dharma Protector of Growth holds the sword of wisdom
that cuts away all troubles and worries.
The Western Dharma Protector holds a dragon or snake that is twining
around him. The dragon or snake
symbolizes change. Today, everything is
constantly changing, only when we can see the truth will we be able to interact
with ease and serenity. The Northern
Dharma Protector holds an umbrella symbolizing protection from all the
pollution that is around us. While
learning, we need to safeguard our pure mind and quiet heart from becoming
polluted. Furthermore, we need to
understand the true reality of life and the universe, to have the wisdom and
ability to properly interact with all people, matters and objects.
All of this can be learned from visiting the Hall of Heavenly
Guardians. If we regard the Protectors
as deities with magical powers who will protect us if we burn incense,
prostrate and offer flowers and fruit praying for protection and safety we will
be sadly mistaken. This is
superstition. All the facilities,
images of Buddha and Bodhisattvas and any offerings made are teaching tools
designed to inspire our mind and wisdom.
They also serve to remind us of the importance of being enlightened
instead of deluded, virtuous instead of deviated, pure instead of
polluted. These are the three principles
of Buddhist teaching and practice.
Therefore, everything in a way place serves as a teaching aid. Even the offerings are educational. A container of water symbolizes the
Dharma. The water is clean symbolizing
that our minds need to be as pure as the water. It is calm without a single ripple, symbolizing the tranquility
in our hearts. It is to have purity and
equality of mind. Flowers symbolize the
“cause” as the blossoming of flowers results in the bearing of fruit. Flowers symbolize the Six Paramitas. Fruits are not offered to the Buddha or
Bodhisattvas to eat. They remind us
that if we want the sweet fruit or the good result, we must cultivate and
accumulate good deeds, the cause. Thus,
everything we see in the way place is a teaching aid. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas neither smell nor eat, they want for
nothing.
We also see lamps, which symbolize wisdom and brightness; incense
sticks, which symbolize self-discipline and deep concentration. You will not see anything in the cultivation
and lecture halls that do not symbolize some teaching. However, it is a sad loss that many
Buddhists are totally ignorant of the educational significance of these
objects. They do not know why they burn
the incense or why they make offerings to the images of Buddhas and
Bodhisattvas. Their belief is actually
superstition. Some people criticize
Buddhists as being superstitious. These
critics are right. Too many Buddhists
are confused about Buddhism.
We need to be clear on what we are learning and explain this to the
skeptics and critics, then I believe they will also want to learn. I have introduced Buddhism to people in
China in this manner. After hearing my
explanation, they said they had been ignorant of such a good thing and wished
to learn more.
In conclusion, it is the genuine wisdom and infinite enlightenment
in Buddhism that helps all sentient beings obtain true benefits and
happiness. The Buddha teaches all
beings with his boundless, compassionate heart. Throughout history Buddhist practitioners, whether they be of the
Esoteric, Zen or any other School, have made great achievements following these
principles and methods. Today, however,
people know very little of the genuine principles and methods, so few have any
real achievements.
In our Dharma-Ending Age, people have overwhelming obstacles from
their accumulated karma. Under these
circumstances, the Buddha Name Recitation Method is most effective due to its
simplicity and expediency. It neither
takes a long time nor requires special rituals. Anyone can practice it any time, any place. This is why so many people have achieved
attainment. Taiwan is neither large in
population nor in size, but in the last forty years, by my most conservative
estimate, at least five hundred people have attained birth into the Pure Land
to become a Buddha in one lifetime.
To succeed, we accord with the teachings in the five Pure Land
sutras and one commentary, generate the Bodhi-mind and concentrate on
mindfulness of Buddha Amitabha. The Awakening
of Faith Sastra stated that, “Enlightenment is innate, delusion is
not”. Therefore, we definitely can uncover
our innate Buddha nature and proper viewpoints. We definitely can discard what is not innate, our delusion,
deviated viewpoints and impurities.
Thus, we recite sincerely “Amituofo” to rid ourselves of our negative
karmas and habits, to live simply and to practice diligently to attain the Buddha
Name Chanting Samadhi. Then, finally we
will attain freedom in body and mind, and understand the true reality.
We are free to go whenever we wish. If we choose to remain here for a longer time, that’s all
right. Since so many have achieved, why
can’t we? We have not sincerely chanted
long enough. How long is long
enough? According to ancient records,
many have achieved after three years. After
that, we no longer have any fears. We
will feel perfectly safe and our minds will be at ease. If the Third World War were to start today
and a nuclear bomb was to explode, we would simply say that it was time to go
to the Pure Land. No pain, no fear,
true freedom. This is what the Infinite
Life Sutra said is “the true benefit given to all sentient beings”.
Adopt
whatever teachings and practices are beneficial and effective. There is only one ultimate goal for us;
benefiting all sentient beings, helping them free themselves from delusions and
sufferings, and enabling them to attain happiness and enlightenment. If badgering or sternness works, use
it. If gentleness works use it. But be aware that falsehoods, attachments,
emotions and delusions have nothing to do with Buddhism or achieving our
goal. I hope everyone will attain the
goal of freedom from delusion, attachment and suffering, to attain happiness,
tranquility and the perfect complete enlightenment.