Sutra:

Further were seen all the present Buddhas in those lands.

Commentary:

The second of the Six Portents is that of seeing the Buddhas.

Within the white hair-mark light emitted by Shakyamuni Buddha appeared the Buddhalands, and within the Buddhalands there were Buddhas teaching and transforming living beings. This passage of text is the portent of seeing the Buddhas. The white hair-mark light represents the Middle Way.

Why did the Buddha emit light? And why did he choose to emit light from the white hair-mark?

The Buddha emitted light in order to illumine those whose potentials had ripened; the living beings who should be taught, the living beings who should be taken across. Those ready to be taught are called “those with potential.” They have the opportunity to be taught. The teaching is dispensed in response to the potentials of living beings. Depending upon an individual’s potential, a certain teaching is given. Thus, the emitting of light represents the dispensing of the teaching in response to potentials.

There’s another way to explain the white hair-mark. It represents the severing of delusions and casting out of doubts. The light which was emitted got rid of all the doubts of living beings. It broke through their deluded thoughts. That is why the light was emitted.

As to the white hair-mark: Amitabha Buddha also has a white hair-mark, and so do other Buddhas. The verse in praise of Amitabha Buddha says:

Amitabha’s body is the color of gold;
The splendor of his hallmarks has no peer.
His white hair-mark light winds ‘round five Mount Sumerus;
Wide as the seas are his azure eyes pure and clear.
Shining in his brilliance by transformation,
Are countless Bodhisattvas and infinite Buddhas.
His forty-eight vows will be our liberation;
In nine lotus stages we reach the further shore.

The brilliance of Amitabha Buddha’s thirty-two marks and eighty minor characteristics is incomparable. The hair-mark, located between his eyebrows, winds around and around like a dragon, not in a straight course but winding and coiling. How big is it? As big as five Mount Sumerus. His azure eyes are deep and clear, and as large as the four great seas. Would you say those are big eyes? Within his light are many, many Buddhas. And the Bodhisattvas are also beyond all count. He has made forty-eight vows to save living beings; every vow contains the wish that living beings might realize Buddhahood.

There are nine grades of lotuses:

Superior-superior;
superior-middle;
superior-inferior;
middle-superior;
middle-middle;
middle-inferior;
inferior-superior;
inferior-middle
inferior-inferior.

All living beings are led to the other shore–to Nirvana–to realize Buddhahood.

Shakyamuni Buddha’s white hair-mark is also as big as five Mount Sumerus. According to The Sutra of the Samadhi of Contemplating the Sea of Buddha, when the Buddha came into the world, his white hair-mark measured five feet. When he cultivated ascetic practices, it was fourteen feet. When he realized Buddhahood, it was fifteen feet.

The white hair-mark is empty in the center, like a glass tube. It represents the Four Virtues of Nirvana:

1. permanence;
2. joy;
3. (true) self;
4. purity.

The emptiness in the center represents the Middle Way and permanence. Its softness represents joy, its whiteness, purity. The ability to extend or contract it at will represents true self. Thus represented are the Four Virtues of Nirvana. The white hair-mark represents the Middle Way, the Real Mark’s precious seal.

Within the light from the white hair-mark could be seen all the Buddhas in other lands. Also could be seen from the time of the Buddha’s birth up to his Nirvana, all the bitter practices he cultivated in all their various aspects, and then, following his Nirvana, all his merit and virtue.

Sutra:

And all the Sutras and Dharma spoken by the Buddhas was heard.

Outline

F3. the portent of hearing the Dharma

Commentary:

This is the third, the portent of hearing the Dharma. The Six Portents in the Other Worlds fall into three pairs. The first two portents, that of seeing the six destinies and seeing the Buddhas make of the pair of the common and sagely. Those in the six destinies are common people and the Buddhas are sages.

Sutra:

Also seen were the Bhikshus, Bhikshunis, Upasakas, Upasikas in those lands who cultivated and attained the Way.

Outline:

F4. the portent of seeing the four-fold multitude attain the Way.

Commentary:

What were the Buddhas in their respective Buddhalands doing? They were speaking the Dharma, lecturing on the Sutras and expounding the Teaching.

What is the use of speaking the Buddhadharma?

It was so that the Bhikshus, Bhikshunis, Upasakas, and Upasikas–the four-fold assembly of disciples–could cultivate in accord with the Dharma and certify to the fruit, perhaps to the fruit of Arahatship, or perhaps become Bodhisattvas or Buddhas.

Within the Buddha’s white hair-mark could be seen the Buddhas speaking the Dharma and the four assemblies who cultivated and attained the fruit. These two portent represent the pair of people and Dharma, the people being the four-fold assembly, and the Dharma being the Way which they certified to.

Sutra:

Moreover were seen the Bodhisattvas Mahasattvas, the various causes and conditions, the various beliefs and understandings, and the various appearances of their practice of the Bodhisattva Way.

Outline:

F5. the portent of seeing the cultivation of the Bodhisattva Way.

Commentary:

Moreover were seen the Bodhisattvas Mahasattvas, the various causes and conditions by which they cultivated the Dharma-doors to teach and transform various kinds of living beings. The various beliefs and understandings: Perhaps they cultivated through belief and understanding of the Four Holy Truths, or perhaps through belief and understanding of the Twelve Causes and Conditions, or perhaps through belief and understanding of the Six Perfections and the Ten Thousand Conducts. The various appearances of their practice of the Bodhisattva Way: This does not refer to the physical appearances of the Bodhisattvas, but to the various practices and Dharmas they cultivated. They practiced the Bodhisattva Way.

What is the Bodhisattva Way?

It is to benefit oneself and benefit others, to enlighten oneself and enlighten others. The Thus Come One’s white hair-mark shines from this land into other Buddhalands and this represents the Dharma-door of enlightening oneself and enlightening others, benefiting oneself and benefiting others. Walking the Bodhisattva Way, you must enlighten yourself and enlighten others, benefit yourself and benefit others. This is the fifth, the portent of seeing the practice of the Bodhisattva conduct.

Sutra:

Further were seen the parinirvana of the Buddhas and, after the parinirvana of the Buddhas, the building of stupas with the seven jewels to hold their sharira.

Outline:

F6. portent of seeing the Buddhas enter Nirvana

Commentary:

Further were seen the parinirvana of the Buddhas within the white hair-mark light the Buddhas could be seen. Nirvana is a Sanskrit word which is interpreted as meaning “perfect stillness”. It is said that the merit is nowhere not perfect and the virtue nowhere not still. Nirvana is also interpreted as meaning “not produced or destroyed”. Birth and death have been brought to an end.

And, after the parinirvana of the Buddhas, the building of stupas with the seven jewels to hold their sharira. Stupas made of the seven jewels were built to honor the sharira of those Buddhas. Sharira is a Sanskrit word which means “efficacious bones”. Stupas are buildings used to house the sharira. After Shakyamuni Buddha entered Nirvana, his body was cremated and in the remains an uncountable number of sharira, bright, gem-like relics, were found. Jeweled stupas were built to contain them, so that people could worship and make offerings to them.

In the Thus Come One’s white hair-mark light one could see how, in other lands, after the Buddhas entered Nirvana, their bodies were cremated and the sharira were obtained. Then stupas were built for them. Stupa, also a Sanskrit word, means “square grave”; it also means a “high and manifest place”, because they are tall structures which can easily be seen.

What are the stupas used for?

They are used to house the Buddhas’ sharira so that people can make offerings to them. Wherever the Buddhas’ sharira are present, the Buddhas’ Dharma-body is also present. This is the sixth, the portent of seeing the Nirvana of the Buddhas.

The fifth and sixth portents make up the pair of the beginning and the end. The Bodhisattvas are at the beginning; they are cultivating the Way. The Buddhas have reached the end, the ultimate state of Buddhahood.

This ends the discussion of the Six Portents in Other Worlds.

I lecture to you coming and going and you pay no attention. You must pay close attention to the Buddhadharma in order to understand it fully. If it goes in one ear and out the other, it’s of no use at all. You could listen for a hundred years; yet it would be just as if you never heard. Why? Because you don’t remember it. You don’t take note of it.

You are now listening to the Sutras and studying the Buddhadharma. If you were to go somewhere else and were invited to speak, you could speak in such a way that it gushed forth unceasingly. Your mouths would be like raging rivers; everyone would be very pleased. But then if some said, “Just one moment, excuse me, but I have a question. How many kinds of Nirvana are there? Please tell me.”

You would gape, “Ohhh? Ahhh… I forgot!”

“Well, who did you study under?”

“I studied with a Dharma Master for several years, but although I heard them, I’ve forgotten now”.

Would you say that was losing face or not? You may not understand any of the profound aspects of the Dharma, but if you don’t even know what the four kinds of Nirvana are, you’d really lose face, wouldn’t you?

There’s not much time left, so I’ll just tell you the names. No doubt when I do, you will all recall them. If I didn’t’ tell you, you wouldn’t be able to remember them. Once I tell you, you’ll pipe up and say, “I didn’t forget. Oh, you mean those four kinds!” If you know ahead of time, that’s okay. If you have to wait until after you’ve been told and then insist you knew it all along, it won’t work. What are they?

1. The Nirvana of the purity of the self-nature.
2. The Nirvana with residue.
3. The Nirvana without residue.
4. The Nirvana of no dwelling place.

Sutra:

Then the Bodhisattva Maitreya had this thought: “Now, the World Honored One manifests signs of spiritual transformations. What is the reason for these portents? The Buddha, the World Honored One, has now entered Samadhi, yet these are inconceivable and rare events. Who should I ask concerning them? Who could answer?”

He further thought: “The Dharma Prince, Manjushri, has in the past drawn near and made offerings to limitless Buddhas. Surely he has seen such rare signs. I shall now ask him.”

Outline:

D3. the doubtful thoughts

E1. doubts of Maitreya

Commentary:

In this passage of text, Maitreya Bodhisattva gives rise to doubts. What are his doubts? He doesn’t understand what the Buddha is about to do. The Buddha has emitted light and the earth shook. Six portents were seen in this world and in other worlds as well. Maitreya Bodhisattva does not understand what the portents mean. For this reason he has some doubts. When Maitreya Bodhisattva gives rise to doubts, the rest of the assembly does so too.

Then the Bodhisattva Maitreya had this thought. Which Bodhisattva is he? He’s the very fat one, the one who is always laughing. He is extremely compassionate. Whether you are a good or an evil person, he likes you all the same. He regards all living beings with equal compassion and doesn’t make discriminations among them.

Now, the World Honored One manifests signs of spiritual transformations. Now, the World Honored One has manifested states of spiritual penetrations transformations and changes. He emitted light from the white hair-mark, and there were the six types of earthquakes–all as a result of the Buddha’s spiritual powers. The Bodhisattva had never seen them before and so he didn’t know what they meant.

The Bodhisattva Maitreya is a “successor-Bodhisattva,” a Buddha-to-be. He is waiting for Shakyamuni Buddha to retire and then he will realize Buddhahood in the Saha world. Although he is basically very wise, he still didn’t know what the Buddha was going to do.

Why didn’t he know?

Those at one level do not understand those on a higher level. The Bodhisattvas on the first ground do not know the state of those on the second. Those on the tenth ground do not know the realm of Equal Enlightenment, and the Equal Enlightenment Bodhisattvas do not understand the Wonderful Enlightenment of the Buddha. It is said, “The common folk don’t know the wise.” Simple common people are incapable of understanding the state of the wise. Why? Because, being simple and common, their thoughts are stupid and dull. Either they don’t go far enough or they go too far. People with scattered thoughts do not understand those with Samadhi. People who are continually flustered, and always glancing nervously about the north, east, south, and west, do not know what the person sitting there in Samadhi is experiencing.

Ordinary people do not understand the sage. Those who have not certified to the fruit can’t know the state of the worthy sages. Sages of lesser wisdom cannot understand the wisdom of Shariputra, “Body-seed,” who is the foremost of the Buddha’s disciples in wisdom. Shariputra is known as the “greatly wise Shariputra” but even he cannot fathom the wisdom of the Bodhisattvas. He is just an Arhat and, compared to the Bodhisattvas, his wisdom is small. Bodhisattvas, that is, Bodhisattvas in general, cannot know the state of the successor-Bodhisattvas and the successor-Bodhisattvas do not understand the state of the Ultimately Venerable Ones, the Buddhas.

The Bodhisattva Maitreya is a successor-Bodhisattva, and he will become a Buddha in the future and succeed Shakyamuni Buddha. But when Shakyamuni Buddha manifested states of spiritual transformations, Maitreya did not understand them, and so he gave rise to false thinking. Yes, even the Bodhisattva Maitreya can have false thinking! He thought, “Shakyamuni Buddha is now revealing these appearances. Why? What is the reason? Why? Why the signs? Usually, Bodhisattvas do not indulge in false thinking, but he gave rise to three doubts:

1. First he thought about the Buddha’s spiritual transformations, wondering, What is the reason for these portents?The Buddha, the World Honored One, has now entered Samadhi, yet these are inconceivable and rare events, which cannot be thought of with the mind or expressed in words. No one knows what they mean. What am I going to do? Such things have simply never happened before.

2. Secondly, he wondered who he should ask. Who should I ask concerning them? Which Bodhisattva? Who could answer?”

3. His third thought was to ask Manjushri Bodhisattva about them. “Who should I ask? The Dharma Prince, Manjushri, has in the past drawn near and made offerings to limitless Buddhas. Surely he has seen such rare signs. I shall now ask him. Since he has surely had the experience already, I will now ask him.” This third thought cancelled out the second thought, for he had found someone to ask.

Sutra:

Thereupon the Bhikshus, Bhikshunis, Upasakas, and Upasikas, as well as the gods, dragons, ghosts, spirits, and others, all had this thought: “Who should now be asked concerning the Buddha’s bright light and signs of spiritual penetrations?”

Outline:

E2. the doubts of the assembly

Commentary:

This passage expresses the doubts of the assembly. Not only did the Bodhisattva Maitreya have doubts, but so did everyone in the Dharma assembly. They wondered what the Buddha was going to do. The gods and dragons and the ghosts and spirits also did not understand. “From the white-hair mark light, the Buddha now emits light and manifests spiritual penetrations. Who should we ask about them? These are the two doubts of the assembly:

1. They wondered about the six portents.
2. They wondered who to ask concerning them

Now, was Maitreya Bodhisattva really perplexed by all of this? Did he really have doubts?

I don’t believe so.

Why not?

Because in the past he had also drawn near to limitless Buddhas. By all rights, he should have had this experience himself. But he pretended that he didn’t know so that he could request the Dharma for the sake of the assembly. The doubts of the assembly were real enough, however, and this passage expresses their confusion.

Sutra:

At that time, the Bodhisattva Maitreya, wishing to resolve his own doubts, and further regarding the thoughts of the four-fold assembly of Bhikshus, Bhikshunis, Upasakas, and Upasikas, as well as the thoughts of the assembled gods, dragons, ghosts, and spirits and others, questioned Manjushri as follows: 

Outline:

D4. the question

E1. the prose section

F1. narration

Commentary:

We have talked about “ghosts” many times, but what are ghosts?

“I know!” you say. “There are hungry ghosts and there are full ghosts!”

Well what are hungry ghosts and what are full ghosts?

In Chinese the word for ghost ( 鬼 ) is pronounced ‘gui’ which sounds the same as the word which means “ to return,”– gui. This means that when people die and become ghosts, they return.

Where did they come from?

They came from the Buddha. Now they return to the hells or to the path of hungry ghosts.

Why must they return there?

Because they took the wrong road. They took for their own territory that which is not their own territory. They took the wrong road and so they must return as ghosts.

After this, when the word “ghost” comes up you should remember that they are ghosts because they took the wrong road. They still must come back, return. In Chinese ghosts are called gui and in English they are ghosts. You could say, “Go! Go! Ghost!”

Go where?

They go off to hell–to hell–to hell! In English a ghost is one who goes. Although I can’t speak English, I can explain this English word.

”Spirits” are called “natural minded”. They have spiritual penetrations and evoke spontaneous responses.

Maitreya Bodhisattva asked Manjushri as follows:

Sutra:

“What are the reasons for these portents, these signs of spiritual penetrations, for the emanation of great light which illumines eighteen thousand lands to the east so that the adornments in all those Buddha worlds are fully seen?”

Outline:

F2. the questions proper

Commentary:

”Great Bodhisattva! Son of the Dharma King! Please be compassionate and tell me, what are the reasons for these portents? What is the principle involved? Why has the Buddha now emitted light which is so great that it illumines eighteen thousand lands to the east? These sighs of spiritual penetrations are truly rate. I have never seen the likes of them before. What is the reason for the emanation of great light. It doesn’t just shine nearby. It shines across eighteen thousand lands.”

We think that going to the moon is so remarkable and a historical first. Shakyamuni Buddha put forth light which shone across eighteen thousand worlds. That’s even farther than eighteen thousand moons or eighteen thousand stars.

So that the adornments in all those Buddha worlds are fully seen. Not just a little bit was seen. They were seen in their entirety. How big the country was, how it was superbly adorned–all this appeared.

Sutra:

Thereupon, Maitreya Bodhisattva, wishing to restate his meaning, spoke verses asking:

“Manjushri, what is the reason
For the guiding master’s emanation
From the white hair between his brows
Of a great light which shines everywhere,
and for the rain of Mandaravas
and of Manjushaka flowers,
the breeze of fragrant Chandana which
delights the hearts of those assembled?

Through these causes and conditions,
the earth is all adorned and pure,
and within this world the earth
trembles in six different ways.
Then the four-fold multitude
rejoices altogether;
in body and in mind enraptured,
they obtain what they had never had.

Outline:

E2. Verse section

F1. restatement f former questions

G1. asking about six portents

Commentary:

The Bodhisattva Maitreya wished to restate his meaning, to speak the doctrine one more time. Why did he want to go to the trouble of saying it all over again?

It was just because he feared that you and I, the living beings of today, would not understand. And you have the nerve to think of it as trouble? Don’t have such thoughts!

He spoke verses asking:

“Manjushri, what is the reasonFor the guiding master’s emanation. What is a Guiding Master? “Guide” means to lead forth, off of the road of darkness onto the road full of bright light. That is what is meant by “Guiding Master.”

Who is the Guiding Master?

Shakyamuni Buddha is the Great Guiding Master. He takes us out of the hells and back to our original home. Now, we should return to our genuine home, to the place where Shakyamuni Buddha lives, the Pure Land of Eternal, Still Light. That’s our true home.

What is the reasonfor the guiding master’s emanation. Why has the World Honored One emitted light from the white hair between his browsThis great light which shines everywhere, illumining the entire universe.

Previously, in the prose text, the light was said to shine across eighteen thousand worlds to the east. Here it says, “Shining everywhere,” and so I explained it saying that the light shines not only to the east, but to the south, north and west, and the four points in between, and up and down as well. It shines in all possible directions.

And for the rain of Mandaravasand of Manjushaka flowers. It rains, not water, but Mandarava Flowers. They are as beautiful as you could possibly imagine. When you see them, your heart is overjoyed. “I have never seen such beautiful flowers before.” They cause your heart to be extremely happy and so they are called the “flowers which go along with your wish.”

Manjushaka flowers are red flowers. They are not only beautiful, but soft as well. They can’t be crushed, however, and if you wish for big blossoms, they are big. If you wish for small blossoms, they are small. They are especially beautiful.

The breeze of fragrant Chandana. Chandana incense can be smelled at a distance of forty miles.

Delights the hearts of those assembled. Seeing the flowers, their hearts rejoice. They are filled with joy. They’ve never been so happy before. Not just one of them was happy; the entire assembly was happy.


Through these causes and conditions,the earth is all adorned and pure.
Because the flowers have cleansed, purified, and adorned the earth, no one needs to sweep it; it’s sparkling clean.

And within this world the earththat is, our world here, trembles in six different ways.The six types of earthquakes have already been discussed. They represent the six sense organs. Those who don’t work hard won’t know about this, but those who do may sometimes find that their eyes blink very fast, like an electric fan. If you haven’t had any experience, you may wonder, “Has a ghost come? Why are my eyes blinking like this?”

It’s not a ghost! It’s a result of your hard work. Sometimes you may hear birds warbling or the sounds of cows or horses. You needn’t be afraid. It’s just the occurrence of one of the six types of earthquakes: shaking, surging, rising, crashing, roaring, and banging.

“Shaking” refers to movement in one place. “Universal shaking” refers to shaking throughout the Four Continents, but you should not think this is a particularly big earthquake. It is not as big as the shaking of the entire three thousand great thousand worlds, which is called a “cosmic shaking.”

Shaking, universal shaking and cosmic shaking represent the eye organ, the object of the eye, and the eye-consciousness; the same also applies to the other five sense fields. The six sense organs, the six sense objects, and the six sense consciousnesses make up the eighteen realms of sense. Each of the six types of earthquakes has three divisions making eighteen which represent the eighteen fields of sense. The light illumining the eighteen thousand worlds to the east also represents the eighteen realms of sense.

Crashing occurs in one world. Universal crashing occurs in Four Continents. Cosmic crashing occurs throughout the entire three thousand great thousand worlds. Each of the six types of earthquakes has these three divisions corresponding to the eighteen realms of sense.

Then, 
when the great earth shakes the four-fold multitude the Bhikshus, Bhikshunis, Upasakas, and Upasikas, rejoices altogether. This is the portent of the rejoicing of the assembly. And body and in mind enraptured,pleased to the extreme as they obtain what they had never had. In the past they had never been as delighted and happy. They obtain what they never had before.

Sutra:

The bright light from between the brows
shines into the eastern quarter,
causing eighteen thousand lands
all to become of golden hue.

And from the Avichi hell,
upwards to the peak of being,
within each of the worlds are seen
the beings within the six paths,
their destinies in birth and death,
their karmic conditions, good or evil,
their retributions, favorable or ill–
all of this is seen, herein.

Outline:

G2. asking about portents in other worlds.

H1. asking about living beings in the six destinies.

Commentary:

The bright light from between the brows, the white hair-mark, located between the Buddhas eye-brows, emits a great light which shines into the eastern quarter, causing eighteen thousand lands all to become of golden hue.

And from the Avichi hell,from the lowest point, upwards to the peak of being.There are three realms of existence: the realm of desire, the realm of form and the formless realm. The peak of being refers to the Heaven of Neither Perception nor non-Perception, which is the fourth station of emptiness. This is located in the form realm and can’t be said to have any particular form.

Nevertheless, the Buddha now emits light which shines all the way up to the top of the of the formless heavens. Within each of the worlds are seen, in all the worlds in the limitless Buddhalands the beings within the six paths; the path of the gods, humans, asuras, and hell-beings, hungry ghosts, as well as the animals. Their destinies in birth and death within the six paths, living beings are

Born and then they die; they
Die and then are born:
Birth, birth, death–
Death, death, birth–
Death, birth,Birth, death–
they spin around in the revolving wheel of the six paths of rebirth.

Although you are a human being in this world, don’t think that you will always be so. If your actions are good, you may be assured of keeping a human body, but if you do evil deeds, you will lose it.

Then what will one become?

Haven’t I already told you? You can go to hell, become a hungry ghost, or turn into an animal.

Their karmic conditions, good or evil. Perhaps your deeds are good or perhaps they are evil. Goodness creates good karmic conditions and evil has evil karmic conditions, but the deeds are done and the conditions created by you alone. It is said,

Good and evil are two diverging roads;
You can cultivate the good, or commit crimes.

“Cultivate” means to practice the Way. “Commit” means to create offenses. There is a good road and a bad road. It’s up to you to choose which one you will walk. If you walk down the good road, you’ll create good karma. If you walk down the evil one, you will create evil karma.

Their retributions, favorable or ill, good or evil refer to conditions on the causal ground. If you plant good causes, you will receive favorable retribution; if you plant evil causes you will receive bad retribution. A favorable retribution means that everything is as you wish it to be. An unfavorable retribution goes against your wishes. Favorable and ill refer to the effect of prior actions. If you plant good seeds you will reap a favorable fruit. If you plant evil seeds, you’ll reap an ill fruit. All of this is seen, herein. The turning wheel of the six paths, the interrelated process of creating karma and undergoing retribution is all seen in the Thus Come One’s white hair-mark light.

Sutra:

Further seen are all the Buddhas,
the lions, the sagely masters,
expounding on the Sutra scriptures,
of foremost subtlety and wonder.

Clear and pure is the sound
of their soft, compliant voices,
teaching all the Bodhisattvas,
numbering in the countless millions.

The Brahma sound, profound and wondrous,
fills those who hear with joy
as, within his world, each one proclaims the proper Dharma.
Through various causes and conditions,
and limitless analogies,
they clarify the Buddhadharma
to enlighten living beings.

Outline:

H2. asking about seeing the Buddhas and hearing the Dharma

Commentary:

Further seen are all the Buddhas. The Buddhas are seen as well. The lions, the sagely masters. They are the masters among the sages expounding on the Sutra scriptures,the Great Vehicle Sutras which are of foremost subtlety and wonder.This is truly rare, #1, wonderful Dharma.

Clear and pure is the sound. The Buddha’s sounds are extremely clear and resonant. Of their soft, compliant voices. Their voices are both resonant and soft, compliant, delicate, and beautiful sounds, which pleases the ear and delight the hearts of the entire assembly. According to whatever kind of sound each person likes to hear, the Buddha’s voice takes on that quality.Teaching all the Bodhisattvas,the Buddhas teach and transform all the Bodhisattvas numbering in the countless millions. Their number in the countless myriads of millions.

The Brahma sound, profound and wondrous, the clear, pure sounds are extremely deep and fine. Fills those who hear with joy. The more people hear it, the more they enjoy hearing it. As, within his world, each one proclaims the proper Dharma. All the Buddhas residing in their own worlds, expound upon the proper Dharma, the genuine Buddhadharma. Through various causes and conditions,people are not the same. They have varying dispositions, and so when teaching the Dharma, the Buddha employs various types of causes and conditions to teach them and cure them of their differing bad habits and faults. And limitless analogies, limitless means that they can’t be counted. The Buddha uses numerous analogies to teach the Dharma, all for the sake of leading living beings to understand the genuine Buddhadharma and cultivate in accord with it.

So the text says they clarify the Buddhadharma. How do they clarify it? They use wisdom to brightly illuminate it. They use the bright light of wisdom to bring about the understanding of all the Buddhadharmas.

To enlighten living beings. They cause all living beings to gain increasing wisdom and Bodhi. It’s like digging a mine. The mine may contain gold, but unless you find a way to dig it out, the gold will not appear. The Buddhanature is inherent within the self-nature of living beings, but unless you explain it to them clearly, they will not understand their inherent Buddhanature and they will be unable to cultivate it.

Sutra:

To those who’ve encountered suffering,
weary of sickness, aging, death,
they speak about Nirvana,
which brings all suffering to an end.

To those possessed of blessings who’ve
made offerings to past Buddhas and
resolved to seek the superior Dharma
they speak of enlightening to conditions.

To those who are the Buddha’s sons,
who cultivate various practices,
seeking wisdom unsurpassed,
they speak of the way of purity.

Outline:

H3. asking about the four-fold multitude

Commentary:

To those who’ve encountered suffering. Although common people suffer, the more they suffer the more they like it, and the more they suffer, the more suffering they encounter. Basically affliction is the cause of the suffering we undergo, but people don’t want to put their afflictions aside. They want to keep the communication link between themselves and their afflictions. They can’t leave them. They can’t separate from the causes of their suffering. The more they suffer, the more they must suffer. When their suffering reaches its extreme point, they fall into the hells, where they suffer eternally, never obtaining happiness. That’s the way it is with common people.

Those of other religions wish to end suffering, but they are unable to find a path which will lead them out. They cultivate and uphold methods of their religions but they are unable to end suffering. They continue to undergo suffering, and although it is not as intense as that in the hells, they may still run off and become hungry ghosts if they are not careful. Those of outside ways cannot ultimately put an end to suffering.

There are also people who are intelligent and clever and have a bit of worldly wisdom. They have a through understanding of mundane dharmas, but they do not understand transcendental dharmas. When they run into causes and conditions of suffering, they have no way to bring them to an end. Wishing to end suffering, they only succeed in running into more suffering. Do you know how they think? They think, “Perhaps I shall rob someone of his money and then I won’t have to suffer.”

Because this kind of person has a small measure of intelligence, he knows how to cheat people. He catches someone off-guard and sneaks off with his wealth or takes it by force. In spite of the fact that he is “wise” other people also have wisdom. He may think he can get away with his clever tricks, but eventually he sets off a burglar alarm. The police get the call and take him to jail. If the crime is minor, his time may not be long; for a heavy offense, he may be in for a long time. He thus receives his retribution in the world of people.

What about the future? People like this cannot end suffering. Where do they go? In the future they may become animals. There are various reasons for falling into the hells or becoming an animal or a hungry ghost. It’s not just a matter of one kind of cause or condition. I’m simply mentioning some of them, but these are not the only ones. There are all manner of causes and conditions which can lead one to fall into the three evil paths and endure the suffering there.

Weary of sickness, aging, death.Fundamentally there are Three Sufferings, Eight Sufferings, and all the limitless sufferings.

The Three Sufferings are:

1. The suffering within suffering.
2. The suffering of decay.
3. The suffering of process.

The suffering within suffering refers to the suffering pf poverty. The suffering of decay occurs when ones happiness starts to wear thin, and ones wealth eventually runs out. It is simply happiness gone bad. The suffering of process refers to the life process itself. One grows from youth to middle age and then to old age. The constant change in every thought is like the action of the waves on the sea. When the first wave disappears, the next one takes its place, and yet another follows it. No one can avoid the suffering of the life process.

The first of the Eight Sufferings is that of birth.

“But when I was born, I didn’t even know what was happening!” you say. “How could that be considered suffering?”

You didn’t know what was happening? It’s just that you don’t know that reveals the intensity of the suffering. It is a trauma you cannot even remember. Later on, just because of the suffering of birth, you will be forced to endure the suffering of old age.

What is the suffering of birth?

When children are born, they cry as if to say, “This world is truly full of suffering, suffering, suffering.” Although they suffer, later they forget. They get caught up in the flow of life and forget to look back. They start thinking, “This world isn’t so bad.” In the beginning they knew it was suffering, but after they are three years old, they forget their suffering.

Forget what suffering?

When a child is still in its mother’s womb, he feels like he’s inside a volcano if she eats something hot. If she eats something cold, he feels like he’s in the hells of ice. But there’s no way he can speak up and object to these problems. As he is born, he feels like he’s being squeezed between two mountains. What is more, while in the womb, the child was never exposed to the air, and the moment the air hits his body, he feels as if he is being slashed with knives. And so he screams and cries.

Having forgotten the suffering of birth, during his prime he doesn’t feel particularly troubled, but once he gets old, his eyes refuse to help him, his ears refuse to work, and so do his teeth, he can’t appreciate the taste of the food he eats. This is the second suffering, that of old age.

Getting old in itself is not all that bad, but once old, he can’t walk anymore and has to lean on a cane to get around. When he walks, his legs don’t listen to his orders. He may think to take a step, but his legs are lazy and refuse to move; it takes a great deal of energy to walk a single step. Would you say that this was suffering or not? Not many years before when he sent down another order, his six senses all obeyed promptly, but now they refuse to obey. But even that cannot be considered real suffering. If you have a bit of skill in being patient, you won’t mind it so much.

The suffering of sickness, however, is definitely frightening. Sickness is most democratic. From an emperor, president, king, or a great official to the lowest beggar, no matter who you are, if you get sick you will feel you have lost your freedom. Forced to stay in a hospital and follow the doctor’s orders, you’ll feel that sickness is terrible suffering. There are many kinds of diseases and many kinds of suffering to go along with them. But even these are not as extreme as the suffering of death. There is no suffering greater than that of death. Birth, old age, sickness, and death are all suffering, and birth and death are the extremes. Death and birth involve the same kind of suffering. Dharma Masters of the past have said that birth is like ripping the shell from a live tortoise and death is like skinning a live cow. Would you call this suffering or not?

Why do we study the Buddhadharma?

Because we wish to end birth and death and escape from the revolving wheel. So the text says, “Weary of sickness, aging, death”. The suffering of birth is included in these lines.

Not only do we face the sufferings of aging, sickness, and death, but there is also the suffering of being separated from what one loves.

“Ah!” you say, “I really love that person.” Maybe you are a man who loves a woman or a woman who loves a man. You love each other and it makes you very happy, but when you have to part, you suffer.

“I can avoid that kind of suffering,” you say. “We will simple never part! Wherever she goes, I will follow. If the one I love runs to the ends of the heavens, I will follow her there. If she runs to the moon, I’ll go to the moon. If she runs off to the sun, I’ll follow her there.”

You will? When she dies, will you go along with her?

“Yes.” You say defiantly.

If you do, then you’ll suffer. But if you don’t, you’ll suffer, too. Either way, you’ll have to suffer. It just doesn’t work out.

Then there is the suffering of being around what one hates. “I just basically can’t stand that person,” you say. Perhaps it’s even your own spouse. You may really be dissatisfied, but she follows you wherever you go. Or perhaps you say, “I can’t stand that friend of mine. I’ve got to get away from him.” But when you move to another city you make another friend who turns out to be exactly like the first. This is called the suffering of being around what you hate. Those with whom you have no affinity you grow to detest. But, the way fate would have it, when you leave that person and go somewhere else, you run into someone exactly like him. The person you left behind was half a pound and this person turns out to be eight ounces–no more, no less–exactly the same.

There is also suffering of not getting what one wants. You may want to get rich, but you’re always poor. You may want to become an official, but you are always a clerk. You may want a good wife, but you can’t find one. You may want a good husband, but you can’t find one. You can’t get what you want and you brood on it morning and night, causing yourself endless affliction. Why? Because you can’t get what you seek. Because you can’t get it, you suffer even more, to the point that insomnia strikes. You toss and turn; you roll over on one side, but you can’t get to sleep; you roll over on the other side, and you still can’t get to sleep. From dusk till dawn, you don’t sleep a wink. The next morning your eyes hurt, your body is tired, and you feel listless. Would you say that was suffering or not?

“I don’t suffer in that way,” you say. “I am not greedy to get rich, to become an official or to find a good wife or husband. I don’t want anything at all. I don’t hate or love anyone. So I don’t endure suffering, do I?”

Your body is still subject to the tricks played on it by the five skandas, form, feeling, thought, activity, and consciousness. They rattle around in your body, hopping back and forth all day long, driving you to the point that you haven’t even the time to take a breath. Form, feeling, thought, activity, and consciousness are the five skandas and no one can avoid the suffering of the raging blaze of the five skandas; it is the most suffering of all They speak about Nirvana, because of all these sufferings, the Buddhas teach the Dharma of Nirvana.

What is Nirvana? “Nir” means not produced. “Vana” means not destroyed. You must not be attached to the false shell of the body, the physical body. Don’t be attached, but seek instead the supreme Way and attain the happiness of Nirvana where there is no birth or death. Without birth and death you will have ended the three sufferings, the eight sufferings, and all the limitless sufferings. You will have attained the Four Virtues of Nirvana: permanence, joy, true self, and purity.

Which brings all suffering to an end. 
If you obtain Nirvana, you will have exhausted the limits of suffering.

To those possessed of blessings, people who have cultivated the Way and made offerings to past Buddhas and who have in the past made offerings to the Triple Jewel. If you would like to avoid suffering, then make offerings to the Triple Jewel. In the presence of the Triple Jewel, perform acts of merit and virtue. However, when you do, don’t say, “I gave money to the temple! What did they spend it on?” You shouldn’t ask. You shouldn’t pay attention to how the offering is used. You plant your own blessings and don’t worry about what is done with your offering. If you make offerings to the Triple Jewel, do everything within your power to seek blessings and wisdom before the Triple Jewel.

How does one seek blessings? To foster merit and virtue is to cultivate blessings.

How does one seek wisdom?

Study the Buddhadharma, listen to the Sutra lectures, and read and recite Sutras. The text says, “To those possessed of blessings”. Why do they have blessings? Because, in the past, they made offerings to the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.

Resolved to seek the superior Dharma. They are determined to go on, to make progress, to seek the superior Dharma. Superior means “special,” a special kind of Buddhadharma.

They speak of enlightening to conditions.
 The Buddhas teach them the Dharma of the Twelve Conditioned Causes:

1. ignorance which conditions
2. action, which conditions
3. consciouness, which conditions
4. name and form, which conditions
5. the six sense organs, which conditions
6. contact, which conditions
7. feeling, which conditions
8. craving, which conditions
9. grasping, which conditions
10. becoming, which conditions
11. birth, which conditions
12. old age and death.

Those of the Vehicle of Conditioned Enlightened Ones, one of the Two Vehicles, cultivate by means of the Twelve Conditioned Causes.

To those who are the Buddha’s sons,who cultivate various practices,seeking wisdom unsurpassed,they speak of the way of purity. The Way of purity is the Six Paramitas.

Sutra:

Manjushri, while dwelling here,
I see and hear such things as these,
reaching to a thousand million things;
such a multitude of them
which I shall now explain in brief.

Outline:

H4. summation of preceding questions and beginning of next questions

Commentary:

Manjushri, while dwelling here,I see and hear such things as these.Like what? Like the things described above! Reaching to a thousand million things;such a multitude of themwhich I shall now explain in brief. All the many things I’ve seen I’ll now describe in general. I ask the Bodhisattva Manjushri to explain them to me in detail, but first I shall talk about them in general.

Sutra:

I see in other lands
Bodhisattvas like Gange’s sands,
through various causes and conditions
seeking the Buddha Way.

Outline:

H5. asking about the cultivation of Bodhisattva practices

I1. general questions

Commentary:

I see in other lands. Maitreya Bodhisattva says, “I can see in other worlds Bodhisattvas like Gange’s sands, as numberless as the grains of sand in the Gange’s River through various causes and conditions, using all manner of causes and conditions seeking the Buddha Way. In seeking the Buddha Way, we must foster merit and virtue. Don’t think you can obtain the Buddha Way cheaply. See, Bodhisattvas in number as many as the grains of sand in the Gange’s River use all kinds of causes and conditions.

What does that mean, “all kinds of causes and conditions.”

It means to foster all kinds of merit and virtue, to cultivate all kinds of blessings and wisdom, and to study all the various Buddhadharmas. It’s not just one kind of cause and condition which is used in seeking for the Buddha Way.

Sutra:


Perhaps they practice giving,
with gifts of silver, gold, and coral
of true pearls, and of mani,
mother-of-pearl, carneilian,
of vajra and of other gems,
of servants and of carriages,
jeweled hand drawn carts and palanquins.

These they offer up with joy,
in dedication to the Buddha Way,
vowing to obtain the vehicle
foremost in the triple realm,
the one which all the Buddhas praise.

There are Bodhisattvas who
give a jeweled coach-and-four,
with rails and flowered canopies,
richly ornamented carriages.

Again are Bodhisattvas seen
who give their flesh, hand, and feet,
who even give their wives and children,
seeking for the utmost Way.

Again are Bodhisattvas seen
whose heads, eyes, and bodies whole
are offered up most joyfully,
seeking the Buddha’s wisdom.

Outline:

I2. questions about the six perfections

J1. giving

Commentary:

Perhaps they practice giving, the first of the Six Perfections. What do they give? With gifts of silver, gold, and coral of true pearls, and of mani. The Mani pearl is also called the As-You-Will Pearl. Mother-of-pearl, carneilian. Mother–of-Pearl is a precious substance, white in color. It appears to have tracks in it, but when you touch it, it’s smooth. Carneilian is a red stone that loos as if it has blood in it.

Of vajra and of other gems. Vajra refers to diamonds. Of servants and of carriages. Perhaps they give their slaves or servants, or their jeweled hand drawn carts and palanquins. Carts refer to hand-drawn carts, such as the Imperial Chariot which the ancient emperors used to ride in. Palanquins are sedan chairs which are carried on the shoulders.

These they offer up with joy. They give with joy and delight. They aren’t like us. We give five, ten, or twenty dollars and think it’s a big thing. The Bodhisattvas gave away the seven jewels–such priceless things–and they did so happily. In dedication to the Buddha Way. They dedicated their gifts to attaining the Buddha Way.

Why did they wish to offer up such valuable things? “I give away these expensive things, those things which are the hardest for me to give. I give them happily in exchange for the realization of Buddhahood, in dedication to seeking the Buddha Way, the road to Buddhahood.” Vowing to obtain the vehicle. I wish to attain the Buddha Vehicle because it is foremost in the triple realm, in the desire realm, the form realm and in the formless realm. The one which all the Buddhas praise. After realizing Buddahood, all the Buddhas of the ten directions praise it in exultation.

Maitreya Bodhisattva addresses Manjushri Bodhisattva saying, “Within the white hair-mark emitted by the Buddha, the World Honored One, I see that there are Bodhisattvas who give a jeweled coach-and-four. They have exquisitely beautiful carriages pulled by four horses. The carriages are adorned with gems, with rails and flowered canopies. In the Land of Ultimate Bliss there are seven tiers of railings, too. The carriage-tops are made of flowers. Richly ornamented carriages adorned with beautiful things.

Again are Bodhisattvas seenwho give their flesh, hand, and feet, who even give their wives and children. Not only do these Bodhisattvas give valuable objects, but they can even give their bodies, their own flesh, their hands or feet, or their wives and children to others. Would you say that such giving was practicing that which is hard to practice? We give a little money or a small gift and feel extremely self-satisfied, even arrogant, and think that we have earned a great deal of merit. And yet here we see Bodhisattvas who can, if someone else needs them, give away their bodies, their flesh and blood, their hands and feet.

“But,” you say, “what use is there in giving away my body? If you give someone a body, they can’t eat it. Why give it?”

When Bodhisattvas practice the Bodhisattva Way, they may encounter someone who has a particular illness and needs, perhaps, a heart transplant such as those present day doctors perform. Or perhaps they need a liver, spleen, lungs, or kidneys. The doctors remove the sick organ and replace it with a healthy one. The Bodhisattva, seeing such living beings, will supply the needed organs.

The Bodhisattva will sacrifice his very life for another living being. Perhaps there is a living being who has injured his hand. Seeing this, the Bodhisattva will give his own hand to him. Te same goes for the feet. Maybe someone was hurt in an auto accident, his bones smashed and his legs crippled. Seeing this, the Bodhisattva will give his own feet to him. This is done in order to teach and transform living beings.

The Bodhisattvas will even give their wives and children. We are not talking about Bodhisattvas who have already attained spiritual penetrations; they are simply those who have brought for the Bodhisattva resolve. They simply have hearts full of giving.

What do they give?

They give that which is most difficult for people to give, their spouses. To say nothing of giving up one’s wife or husband, most people find it extremely painful even to be separated from them for a short period of time. They find this extremely painful. However, these Bodhisattvas, seeing that others need wives, will give their own wives away. There are many causes and conditions surrounding such giving.

In my book, Record of the Water and Mirror Turning Back Heaven, I wrote about the Abbot of the monastery where I cultivated, the Venerable High Elder Master Ch’ang-Ren. When he was cultivating the Way, he gave away his wife. How did that happen?

He had a wife, but when his father and mother died, he resolved to observe the practice of filial piety by sitting beside their graves for a period of three years. While he sat, his wife was at home observing “widowhood” and she didn’t like it one bit. She was a living widow. Her husband hadn’t died, but had gone off to observe filial piety. He did not return home. The living widow finally couldn’t stand it, and she went to the gravesite and insisted that her husband return home with her. She went once, twice, three, four and even five times, but he wouldn’t return home. His heart was sincere; he cultivated the Way with a sincere heart.

Now, those have sincere hearts are bond to encounter demons. It is said,

When the Way grows a foot, the demon grows taller by ten;
When the Way grows ten feet, the demon sits right on your head!

Because he was sincere and refused to return home, his wife thought of an ingenious plan. “So you won’t return home? I’ll just find some other man to spend my days with,” she threatened.

“Take up with some other man if you like,” he said. “I’m through with household affairs. I have renounced everything. I have put everything down! I pay no attention to such matters whatsoever.”

If he hadn’t truly been intent on cultivating the Way, when his wife threatened to find another man, how could he have endured it? But he said, “All right. Fine. If you find a man you like, someone you think you love, then go with him.”

“Go with him?” she said. “Okay, I’m going to go looking,” and she went back and found herself a man. Then she brought him with her to the gravesite and spoke to her husband, saying, “If you do not return home with me now, I’m going to marry this man!”

What do you think? Someone without genuine Samadhi power and a true mind of the Way would have gone home, don’t you think? But he didn’t go. “I’m going with him,” she said, and off she went. He gave his wife away and didn’t ask for so much as a cent in return. This is truly an example of Bodhisattvas giving their wives away seeking for the utmost Way.

Why do they do this? Because they seek the utmost Way. Bodhisattvas who seek the utmost way must be able to renounce that which is difficult to renounce. The harder it is for you to give it up, the more meaningful your act of renunciation becomes. It then truly counts as:

Seeing through it,
Breaking it open,
Giving it up and
Winning your freedom.

You can’t say, “I’m going to hold onto those things I can’t part with. Even if I could become a Buddha by giving them up, I still won’t let go of the things I love, or the people I love.” If you think like this, it’s because you don’t place importance on the Buddha Way. If you saw the Buddha Way as truly important, you would be able to put down absolutely everything. If the Buddhadharma was of primary importance to you, you wouldn’t become influenced by improper external circumstances.

Again are Bodhisattvas seen, whose heads, eyes, and bodies whole. These are other Bodhisattvas who give their heads, eyes and bodies. The Bodhisattvas mentioned above gave outer wealth and inner wealth. The outer wealth refers to wives and children; the inner wealth is their bodily flesh, their hands and feet. But they did not give their entire bodies. They only gave their flesh, or their hands or feet. Now these Bodhisattvas give their very heads and eyes, their entire bodies. Are offered up most joyfully. If any living being at all is in need of a head, they will give up their heads; if they need eyes, they will give up their eyes. In fact, they’ll give their whole bodies, or any part of them.

Someone thinks, “That’s idiotic! How can you give your own body to others?”

You think the Bodhisattvas are stupid, but they think that you are stupid. Why? In being able to give, seeking the utmost Way, they are able to end birth and death. In not giving you may feel that you are intelligent, but you’ll never be able to end birth and death. If you wish to end birth and death, you must imitate the great, fearless spirit of these Bodhisattvas who give up their bodies, hearts, and lives to others, to the world.

They give cheerfully. They don’t give angrily. They don’t say, “So you’re giving? Let’s have a little contest. If you give ten thousand dollars, I’ll give twenty thousand. If you give twenty thousand, I’ll give thirty thousand.” They are not competitive in their giving. On the contrary, they give happily and cheerfully.

Why do they give? They are seeking the Buddha’s wisdom.

Sutra:

Manjushri,
I see royal monarchs who
visiting those Buddhas’ courts
ask about the utmost Way,
and then forsake their pleasant lands,
palaces, ministers, concubines,
and, cutting off their beards and hair,
clothe themselves in Dharma robes.

Outline:

J2. morality

Commentary:

Manjushri! Wonderful Virtue Bodhisattva! I see royal monarchs. I also see kings, not just one king, but many of them, visiting those Buddhas’ courts. What are they doing? They are going off to visit the Buddhas. To ask about the utmost Way. They ask about the supreme Buddha Way. After they ask about it, the Buddha instructs them in the doctrines of suffering, emptiness, impermanence, and non-self. He says, “Everything in this world is bound up in suffering.

Wealth and honor are like a dream before dawn
Power and fame are like a floating cloud.
The bones and flesh of the present Also are unreal.
Devotion turns to hatred…

Wealth and honor are as insubstantial as a dream just before the sum comes up. Power and fame are like floating clouds in space. They do not last. The bones and flesh of the present moment, the relationships of father and son, husband and wife, elder and younger brothers, are also unreal. You may love someone and be very close to them, but in the future, as time goes by, love will turn into contempt and hatred.”

When the kings hear this instruction from the Buddhas, they immediately, without further thought, forsake their pleasant lands, their happy pleasure grounds. They give them away. Palaces, ministers, concubines. Their palaces made of jewels, their halls and pavilions made of aloeswood and sandalwood, their ministers and their concubines. Why do they give them away?

And, cutting off their beards and hair. They become novices, and they clothe themselves in Dharma robes. They put on the clothing worn by those who have left home, the kshaya or five-piece sash worn by novice monk.

The kings leave the home-life seeking the Dharma of the Precepts, and so this section deals with morality.

Sutra:

Seen are Bodhisattvas who
becoming Bhikshus, dwell alone
within the wilds, in quietude,
reciting Sutra texts with joy.

Outline:

J3. patience

Commentary:

Seen are Bodhisattvas wholeave the home-life to become Bhikshus. Becoming Bhikshus, dwell alone. This section deals with the perfection of patience. Perhaps Bodhisattvas are seen who dwell deep in the forests or in mountain caves. Evil people may come upon them. When such people strike or rebuke them they must patiently endure it. When evil beasts bite them, they also must be patient and not become frightened or alarmed. So these four lines discuss patience. They like to read and recite Sutras.

Sutra:

Again are Bodhisattvas seen,
striving with heroic vigor,
entering the mountains deep,
to ponder on the Buddha Way.

Outline:

J4. vigor

Commentary:

Again are Bodhisattvas seen, striving with heroic vigor. How are they vigorous? They go without eating to study the Buddhadharma. They go without sleeping to study the Buddhadharma. They aren’t like some people who go without eating but make up for it by sleeping more, saying, “I haven’t eaten so I can’t cultivate. I’ll sleep a little more instead.” When others are not sleeping they are asleep. That is not heroic vigor. Those with heroic vigor will go without eating because they forget about food altogether. They don’t deliberately refrain from eating in order to put on that they are cultivating. They just forget about eating and sleeping; they forget about everything. What do they think of? They think only to cultivate and to study the Buddhadharma. Entering the mountains deep. They go deep into the mountain valleys to ponder on the Buddha Way. Ponder means that they cultivate the Buddhadharma; they cultivate in accord with the Dharma.

Sutra:

Seen, too, are those who’ve left desire,
who dwell in constant solitude,
deeply cultivating Dhyana Samadhi
and attaining five spiritual penetrations.

Again are Bodhisattvas seen
in the peace of Dhyana, with palms joined,
who, with a thousand ten thousand lines,
sing praises of the Dharma kings.

Outline:

J5. Samadhi

Commentary:

Maitreya Bodhisattva continues, saying, “I also see Arhats and Bodhisattvas who have left desire .” To leave desire means to separate oneself from lust. If you separate from lust you can cultivate the Way. Those who cultivate the Way should not have thoughts of greed. They should not be greedy for wealth. They should not be greedy for sex. They should not be greedy for material possessions. Once rid of all thoughts of greed one may be said to have “left desire.”

Who dwell in constant solitude, they like to live in the wilds, where few people go. Deeply cultivating Dhyana Samadhi. All day they sit in Dhyana. If you wish to develop your wisdom, it is essential that you cultivate Samadhi. Without Samadhi you will have no wisdom. So this passage of verse deals with Dhyana Samadhi. You should deeply cultivate Dhyana Samadhi. This is not to say that you cultivate it today and fail to cultivate it tomorrow. You can’t cultivate for one day and rest on the next, or rest for a day and then cultivate for half a day, or cultivate one day and rest for ten days. You should cultivate every day without resting, not the other way round. If you rest every day and do not cultivate, you’ll not attain Dhyana Samadhi. If you wish to obtain deep Dhyana Samadhi, truly to take the joy of Dhyana as your food, and come to know the true flavor of Dhyana, then you must work hard at your cultivation every single day.

When the time comes to sit in Dhyana, you must go ahead and do so, regardless of how busy you are. You must find time in the midst of all your myriad activities to sit in Dhyana, without missing a single day. Then you can obtain the realm of skill in Dhyana Samadhi.

And attaining five spiritual penetrations. Through deep Dhyana Samadhi they attain five kinds of spiritual penetrations.

And what are they? The penetration of the Heavenly Eye, the penetration of the Heavenly Ear, the penetration of Others’ Thoughts, the penetration of the Knowledge of Past Lives, Penetration of the Complete Spirit. They have not obtained the Penetration of the Extinction of Outflows because this Penetration is only attained at the level of Equal Enlightenment and Wonderful Enlightenment. Because these are Bodhisattvas who have just brought forth the resolve to cultivate, they obtain only five of the Six Spiritual Penetrations.

Where do the Five Spiritual Penetrations come from? They come from the cultivation of Dhyana Samadhi, from the recitation of Sutras, and from holding mantras. If you can sit in Dhyana meditation every day with singleminded concentration, you can obtain them.

You can obtain them from reciting Sutras. For example, the Great Master Chih-Che recited The Dharma Lotus Sutra all day long until he became enlightened. When he came to the “Chapter of the Events of Medicine King Bodhisattva” where it says, “This is true vigor; this is called a true Dharma offering,” as he recited the words he entered the Dharma Flower Samadhi and obtained a most lofty state.

He saw the Dharma assembly at Vulture Peak still in progress; it had not dispersed. He saw that Shakyamuni Buddha was still there speaking the Dharma. So, one can also become enlightened by reciting the Sutras. But you must recite with a sincere heart. You can’t recite on the one hand and strike up false thinking on the other. Don’t recite on the one hand and climb on conditions on the other, thinking, “So and so has a lot of money. I’ve got to think of a way to get some money out of him for my own use.” You can’t open enlightenment reciting Sutras that way because you’re not reciting Sutras, you’re reciting “money.”

You must recite mantras and Sutras singlemindedly in order to become enlightened.

Again are Bodhisattvas seenin the peace of Dhyana, with palms joined. They are sitting in Dhyana with their hands placed together, who, with a thousand ten thousand lines. They make up verse after verse, to sing praises of the Dharma kings. They praise the Buddhas of the ten directions. They do not simply praise Shakyamuni Buddha, but all the Buddhas of the ten directions, because they have been revealed in the light of Shayamuni Buddha’s white hair-mark. But praising the Buddhas of the ten directions is just to praise Shakyamuni Buddha. Why? Because Shakyamuni Buddha himself is one of the Buddhas of the ten directions!

Sutra:

Again are Bodhisattvas seen,
of profound wisdom and solid will,
able to question the Buddhas and
accept and hold all they have heard.

Further seen are Buddha’s disciples,
with wisdom and samadhi perfect,
who, with limitless analogies,
preach Dharma to the multitudes.

Joyfully they preach the Dharma,
transforming all the Bodhisattvas,
defeating thus the troops of Mara,
and beating on the Dharma drum.

Outline:

J6. prajna

Commentary:

Maitreya Bodhisattva says to Manjushri Bodhisattva, again are Bodhisattvas seen.I also see Bodhisattvas of profound wisdom and solid will. Their wisdom is extremely profound, and their determination is extremely firm and solid. Able to question the Buddhas andaccept and hold all they have heard.They are well able to question the Buddha concerning their doubts. They ask about the Dharma, and having received their answers, they can put what they have heard into actual practice in accord with Dharma–that is, they accept, uphold, and cultivate in accord with Dharma.

Further seen are Buddha’s disciples. Also seen are sons of the Dharma King. With wisdom and samadhi perfect. Their Samadhi power and their wisdom power are perfected. Who, with limitless analogies,they use an uncountable number of parables, analogies, and doctrines in order to preach Dharma to the multitudes.They expound the Buddhadharma for the sake of living beings.

Joyfully they preach the Dharma. The more they speak, the more they like to speak. This is known as “unobstructed eloquence.” The Dharma which they speak is extremely profound, subtle, and wonderful. Transforming all the Bodhisattvas. They teach and convert all the Bodhisattvas. Defeating thus the troops of Mara. They smash through the demonic hosts and beating on the Dharma drum. They loudly beat the great drum of the Law. Their Dharma preaching sounds like the beating of the Dharma drum.

Sutra:

Seen too are Bodhisattvas
in silence and tranquility;
though worshipped by the gods and dragons,
they do not find it cause for joy.

Also seen are Bodhisattvas
dwelling in forests, emitting light,
relieving those suffering in the hells,
and leading them to the Buddha Way.

Outline:

I3. miscellaneous questions concerning the Six Perfections

J1. Dhyana Samadhi

Commentary:

Seen too are Bodhisattvas in silence and tranquility. They are silent; they do not speak. They sit in full lotus, meditating. As they meditate, because they have skill in Dhyana Samadhi, various beings come to worship them. Though worshipped by the gods and dragons,they do not find it cause for joy. They don’t think that it’s of any consequence. Why not? Because they have ability, profound skill, in Dhyana Samadhi. Their thoughts do not stir. In cultivation it is most important to be without thought. Do not have thought. Do not have what thought? Do not have false thought.

If you can be without false thought, just that is non-production. If you have no false thought, just that is no extinction. If you have no false thought, just that is no impurity. If you have no false thought, just that is no increase. If you have no false thought, just that is no decrease. If you have no false thought, there will be no “right”. If you have no false thought, there will be no “wrong”. If you have no thoughts, there will be no good, no evil. Why? Because, if you have no thoughts at all, that is purity, the purity of the self-nature, the wonderful nature, True Suchness.

However, being without thought isn’t just a matter of saying, “I don’t have any thought.” If you hold onto the “not having of thought,” that means you still have thought! If you can have no thought, just that is subduing your mind. If you can be without thought, you have defeated the troops of Mara. The absence of thought is most wonderful.

Why do they take no delight when the gods and dragons worship them? Because they have no thought. It is also because they have patience. They have “patience with production.” If you have no thought, then when people make offerings to you and revere you, you will not become arrogant and think, “I’m really an accomplished cultivator. Look at all the people who are making offerings to me.” If you have no thought, then if people rebuke you, beat you, defame you or try to ruin you, you will be able to endure it.

This is no thought. No thought is something which everyone who studies the Buddhadharma should learn. If you are without thought, then you have no affliction. With no affliction, that is Bodhi. Bodhi is just affliction; affliction is just Bodhi. Still, if you can use it, it’s Bodhi; if you can’t use it, it’s affliction.

Before Patriarch Bodhidharma went to China, he sent ahead two of his disciples, Fo-t’o and Ye-she. The two Indian disciples went to China where they taught the Dharma-door of the Dhyana School. Their teachings are not based on language. It is a direct pointing to the mind, to see the nature and realize Buddhahood.

At that time in China there was another Indian monk named Bodhiruchi. The two monks taught the Dhyana School, and Bodhiruchi taught the Madhyamika School. Bodhiruchi persuaded the Chinese Dharma Masters to run Bodhidharma’s two disciples right out of the country. They were driven to Lu Mountain. At Lu Mountain, the Venerable Master Yuan, seeing them, asked, “Why did they expel you? Ultimately, what Dharma-door do you transmit?”

Fo-t’o and Ye-she said, “We teach the doctrine of the Dhyana School. The Chinese Dharma Masters and Bodhiruchi, on one hand are jealous of us, and on the other hand they do not understand the Buddhadharma. Because we were outnumbered, they succeeded in driving us out. The Dharma-door we teach, we will now illustrate with an anology.

Then, sticking their hands up in the air, they opened and closed their fists several times. “Was that fast or not?” they asked.

“Very fast,” replied the Venerable Yuan.

“Bodhi and affliction,” they replied, “are just that fast. With one turn, affliction becomes Bodhi. Change again and Bodhi becomes affliction. It’s as fast as opening and closing your hand. Opening the hand is like Bodhi. The fist is like affliction. The fist and the palm are both the same hand undergoing changes.

The Dhyana School teaches that the mind itself is the Buddha. Understand the mind and see the nature. It is not the case that Bodhi is to be found apart from affliction, nor is there any affliction apart from Bodhi. Affliction is just Bodhi; Bodhi is just affliction. Birth and death is just Nirvana; Nirvana is just birth and death. If you have no thought, that is Nirvana. If you have thought, that is birth and death.

So the Dharma-door of no-thought is the foremost, the most wonderful. If you can not produce a single thought, then the entire substance manifests. If you are without a single thought, that is no thought. Without thought, your inherent Buddha nature manifests. If you have not arrived at the level of no thought, then you have not ended birth and death. If you arrive at the state of no thought, then the ghosts and spirits have no way to disturb you.

So the text says, “though gods and dragons worship them, they do not find it cause for joy.” Why don’t they rejoice? Becaue they have entered deep Dhyana Samadhi and arrived at the state of no thought. At the state of no thought, they have returned to the root and gone back to the source. They have returned to the original face, to the wind and light of their native land. Everything belongs to them; it’s all theirs and so when the gods and dragons pay them reverence, it’s just the way things are. It’s no cause to rejoice. The Bodhisattvas employ the skill of Dhyana Samadhi.

Also seen are Bodhisattvas dwelling in forests, emitting light. They cultivate self-benefit and they benefit others as well. They dwell in the forests where they cultivate Dhyana meditation. After awhile they put forth great light. Why do they do this? They are relieving those suffering in the hells. They use their light to illumine the dark recesses of the hells, and cause the denizens of hell and the hungry ghosts to leave suffering and attain bliss. The Bodhisattvas meditate, benefittig themselves, and then they emit light to benefit others. And leading them to the Buddha Way. They give the hell-beings and the hungry ghosts the chance to seek the Buddha Way.

Sutra:

Also seen are Buddha’s disciples
who have not slept, but walk at ease,
within the forest groves; they seek
with diligence the Buddha Way.

Outline:

J2. vigor

Commentary:

Also seen are Buddha’s discipleswho have not slept, but walk at ease. They don’t ever sleep. If they do sleep, they just sit there and doze off for perhaps a second. What are they doing? They are cultivating the Pratyutpanna Samadhi, the Standing Buddha Samadhi. To cultivate this Dharma, a person stays in a single room and walks continually without sitting or reclining for ninety days. For ninety days they do not sleep. They are allowed to eat and go to the toilet but not to sleep. They battle exclusively with the demon of sleep for three months.

Within the forest groves; they seek with diligence the Buddha Way. They want to find the road to the accomplishment of Buddhahood.

Sutra:

Seen too are those with perfect precepts
intact, with awe-inspiring manner,
their purity like precious pearls,
with which they seek the Buddha Way.

Outline:

J3. Morality

Commentary:

Seen too are those with perfect precepts. Also seen are those Bodhisattvas who observe the moral precepts, guarding them as they would hold a precious pearl. This section of text refers to the Ten Types of Precepts:

1) Intact precepts. The Bodhisattva who has intact precepts has not violated the heavy-grade of the ten evils and five rebellious acts. If these offenses are committed it is as if one had lost one’s life raft. Without the raft, you cannot get across the sea. This means that you will not be able to cross from this shore of birth and death, over the heavy current of afflictions, to the other shore which is Nirvana. So it is most important to have intact precepts, meaning that offenses have not been committed on the heavy-grade.

2) Unbroken precepts. The Bodhisattva who has unbroken precepts has not committed offenses of the ten evils and five rebellious acts on the middle-grade. If these offenses have been committed, it is as if one has torn a hole in the life raft; it is ruined and cannot be used. If you do not observe the precepts, then, carrying such offenses, you will not be able to become a Buddha.

3) Unpunctured precepts. If the precepts are punctured, this is like a life raft which is not ripped, but has a leak the size of a pin-point. It soon become useless. Unpunctured morality means that one does not violate the lesser-grade of the ten evils and five rebellious acts. To commit offenses of the lesser-grade is not so serious, and so it is said to be like a hole. With a hole, the raft won’t float. If you do not hold the precepts purely, you won’t be able to become a Buddha.

4) Unscattered precepts. Scattered means that an evil awareness causes one to give rise to evil thoughts. Although pure in body and mouth, the mind is plagued with afflictions. In cultivation, one must practice precepts which are unscattered. These are also called the Samadhi precepts, for with Samadhi, precepts can be held on this level.

5) Following the Way precepts. When those who have certified to the first fruit of Sagehood walk or plant the fields, the bugs of themselves stay four inches away from their feet. In this way, the Sage avoids harming them. This is a precept power which follows upon your cultivation of the Way.

6) Unattached precepts. This refers to Arhats who have eternally severed their greed and attachment to the six objective sense objects in the Triple Realm. Numbers five and six are also called Way precepts, or the Precepts of the Absolute Truth.

7) Precepts praised by the wise. The person who holds the precepts at this level is well able to “emerge from the false and blend with the common.” Although he does not practice the Middle Way, he is able to use the provisional dharmas within both the common and the false truths as an expedient device. Although he does not cultivate the doctrines of the Middle Way, he uses the common truth and the false truth to benefit living beings. Therefore, because he can use provisional dharmas to benefit living beings, he is lauded by those who have wisdom.

8) Precepts of self-mastery. This is the self-mastery of the Bodhisattva Who Contemplates Self-mastery (Avalokiteshvara). They can use their spiritual penetrations to freely roam at play among human beings, and manifest both in opposition and in accord. Although they may appear to do evil deeds, they break neither the precept-nature nor the precept-covering. To keep the precept-nature means that one doesn’t even bring forth the thought to break the precepts. To have the thought to break a precept is to violate the nature of the precept; this has no outward appearance. The precept-covering has a visible form. When one breaks the precept-covering that means one has committed an outward act of precept violation. At this level, neither the precept-nature nor the precept-covering is violated. It may appear that they are broken, but they are not.

The Shurangama Sutra mentions the smashing of demons’ heads to bits. Someone asked me if this wasn’t a case of violating the precepts. I said it was not. That’s a case of non-violation in a state of opposition.

Another example is Dhyana Master Pao-chih of the Liang Dynasty, about the time when Bodhidharma went to China. He was a meat-eater, not a vegetarian. Everyday, he ate two pigeons. In fact, he ate two pigeons at every meal. The cook gave him two pigeons and he ate every last bit–bones and all! The cook thought, “They’re probably pretty tasty,” and one day he snuck one of the wings to take a taste, thinking it wouldn’t matter, that Dhyana Master Chih-kung would never know. But the moment Dhyana Master Chih-kung saw them he said, “Why did you steal a taste of my pigeons?”

I didn’t eat them!” the cook said.

“Really?” said Master Chih-kung. “Very well, watch this!” and he ate both of the pigeons. Then, he opened his mouth and the two pigeons flew out again. One of them flew away, but the other was missing a wing. “Well, where’s that pigeon’s wing,” he said, “if you didn’t eat it?”

“I cleaned and cooked the two birds myself,” said the cook. “How could he spit them back up alive and well?” From this, he knew that Master Chih-kung was no ordinary person; he truly dwelt in the state of a great Bodhisattva. This was a manifestation of a state in opposition to the precepts. Basically, eating meat is wrong, but he could swallow pigeons and spit them out again whole. A while ago someone asked me if one could eat meat and still become enlightened. I said, “If you can swallow a cow in one gulp and then spit it out again alive and well, then you could. If not you’ll surely fall into the hells; you’ll be obliged to pay your debts. If you eat their meat, in the future they will eat yours. There’s not the slightest bit of courtesy involved.”

So, the eight is the Precepts of self-mastery. This means that whatever you want to do, you can do it and it’s all right.

You say, “I’d like to try it out.”

If you have spiritual penetrations, you can give it a try. If you don’t, then you won’t be able to pull it off.

Numbers seven and eight are also called Common Truth Precepts.

9) Precepts in accord with Samadhi. Whenever you do something, it is as if you were in Samadhi. At all times and in all places it is just like being in Samadhi.

10) Perfect precepts. In what respect are they perfect? With regard to the perfection of morality, everything one does is in accord with it. One maintains the precepts in all one’s actions. Although it may look to you as if such people had violated a precept, they exist in the realm of the Bodhisattvas and so they cannot be judged as one would judge ordinary people. That is the perfection of precepts.

Numbers nine and ten are also called the Precepts of the Absolute Truth of the Middle Way.

Intact, with awe-inspiring manner. Their precepts are not the slightest bit deficient. Their purity like precious pearls. Their clear and lofty purity is as priceless as a jewel. With which they seek the Buddha Way.

Sutra:

Also seen are the Buddha’s disciples
abiding in the strength of patience;
though by those of overweening pride
maliciously rebuked and beaten,
they are able to endure it all,
seeking for the Buddha Way.

Outline:

J4. patience

Commentary:

This section of the verse deals with the cultivation of the perfection of patience. Maitreya Bodhisattva again says to Manjushri Bodhisattva also seen are the Buddha’s disciples. True disciples of the Buddha, abiding in the strength of patience. They cultivate the perfection of patience. Patience requires no thought. Arriving at the level of no thought is just patience with production, patience with dharmas, and also the patience with the non-production of dharmas. These Bodhisattvas exclusively cultivate the practice of patience.

Though by those of overweening pride. What does patience cure? It counteracts hatred. If, in any situation you encounter, you are able to endure it without getting angry, that’s patience.

Cultivation is something you must do yourself. It is not a matter of instructing others to cultivate. Some asked me, “If someone is cultivating patience, it is all right if I test him? Can I try his patience?” You shouldn’t. Don’t test other people; test yourself. “No matter what happens, can I bear it? Can I remain unmoved? Do my thoughts remain unmoved? Whether in accord or in opposition, do I remain at peace, just as if nothing had happened? Can I refrain from getting the least bit perturbed?”

Take care not to test other people. Cultivators of the Way should test themselves, not others. If you test others, you’ll get way off the track. For example if you wanted to go to New York and went directly, you could get there by train, bus or in a car in just a few days. If you didn’t go directly, but first took off to the south or north, took a lot of different roads, you’d waste a lot of time. The meaning here is if you don’t test others but cultivate directly, you can realize Buddhahood very quickly. But if you test others you’ll neglect and waste your own skill. You may have been destined for Buddhahood, say, in three great asankheya kalpas, but if you start testing people, it might take you nine! You forget your own skill in testing others.

When can you test others? When you have reached the level where you have spiritual penetrations and can actually manifest the eighteen transformations in empty space, putting forth water from the top of your body and fire from the lower part or emitting fire from the top of your body and water from the lower part. When fire and water do not obstruct each other, when you have arrived at that state, then you may test others. Until then, I would recommend that you refrain.

So the text says, “though by those of overweening pride” what are such people like? They are arrogant. They look down on everyone they see. They feel that they themselves are Number One. “I am number one in intelligence and number one in wisdom and in learning. I am number one in everything!” They don’t mention that they are number one in stupidity. They don’t feel that they are number one in stupidity, when in fact they are. People of overweening pride are arrogant, you see, and only stupid people are arrogant. Unless one was stupid, one would not be arrogant and look down on others.

Why? Take a look at Shakyamuni Buddha. Is he stupid or wise? Obviously, he is wise. He is the Greatly Enlightened One. He sees that all living beings can become Buddhas. He sees all living beings as his parents from former lives and as the Buddhas of the future. Therefore, he does not dare to slight living beings. Now Shakyamuni Buddha is the Greatly Wise, Greatly Enlightened One, and he is not arrogant. We petty little common people–what do we have to be arrogant about? What do we have to be self-satisfied about? Arrogant people of overweening pride are really number one in stupidity, because they are arrogant towards everyone.

Maliciously rebuked and beaten. In cultivating patience, if someone scolds you, you must bear it. If someone beats you, you must bear it. Why? They are able to endure it all. How can they endure the abuse of others? How can they bear the beatings? Seeking for the Buddha Way. It is because they seek the Buddha Way. If you wish to seek the Buddha Way, you can’t have a temper, you can’t get angry. You must cultivate patience.

Sutra:

Again are Bodhisattvas seen,
apart from all frivolity,
and from stupid followers,drawing near to those with wisdom.
Singlemindedly casting out confusion,
collecting their thoughts in the mountain forests,
for tens of thousands of millions of years
in quest of them Way of the Buddha.

Outline:

J5. dhyana Samadhi

Commentary:

Again are Bodhisattvas seen, apart from all frivolity. I’ve explained the word “all” many times. You can explain it as meaning “a lot,” that is, removing oneself from all, every bit of, frivolity. You can also explain it as “one” that is, from every single type of frivolity. Frivolity means playing around and laughing. Bodhisattvas who cultivate the Way must not laugh all the time. They also should not play all the time. In everything they do they must be upright and proper. This is not to say that you may never laugh. But laugh when it is appropriate. When it is not, don’t laugh.

To be apart from all frivolity is to have removed one of the Five Coverings. The Five Coverings cover the self-nature. To separate from all frivolity is to remove the coverings of inconstancy. When an inconstant person undertakes something, he does it in a haphazard manner, with nothing definite about it. He thinks of doing it one way, and then does it another way. Then he changes his mind back again. He can’t make a firm decision and he keeps changing his mind back and forth.

Cultivators of the Way can’t do as they please and laugh when they feel like it. When it’s time to laugh, laugh. At other times, don’t. You can’t just “Ha, ha, ha!” all day long.

And from stupid followers. Who are the stupidest people? They are those who don’t study the Buddhadharma. Because they do not study it, they get stupider every day. When their stupidity reaches the extreme, they run off to become animals. Therefore, you should leave stupid followers. This sentence of verse implies the removing of the covering of anger. Anger means hatred. Hatred covers your self-nature. If you have no real wisdom, you are covered by inconstancy, as mentioned above. When you separate from stupid followers, you get rid of the covering of anger.

Why do people get angry? Where does anger come from? It comes from ignorance. What is ignorance? Ignorance is just stupidity. So you don’t understand? If that’s not stupidity, what is it? By separating from stupid followers one removes the covering of rage. Why do you hate? Why do you lose your temper? It’s because you are just plain stupid. So remember this. No matter how intelligent people are, once they get angry, their intelligence vanishes, covered by their anger. They can’t do anything. Nothing works out; everything goes wrong. Separating from stupid followers removes the covering of anger.

Drawing near to those with wisdom. Having left stupid followers, they draw near to those who have wisdom. This removes the covering of stupidity. If you draw near to those who have wisdom, you will gradually lose your stupidity. Why?

Those who get near the rouge turn read; those who get near the ink turn black. Those with wisdom like to draw near to those with wisdom. Those without wisdom, if they draw near to the wise, will come to have wisdom. So, you should draw near to those with wisdom, those with learning, those with Way virtue, those with intelligence. If you draw near to those with wisdom, you won’t do stupid things. Take a look at those who are wise. They don’t get angry all day long. If you get near them, you may wish to lose your temper, but you won’t find any occasion to lose it. You may be just on the verge of getting angry, but then you think, “That person doesn’t get angry. I won’t either.” There’s a common saying:

The good flock together;
The evil run in packs.
People seek out their own kind.

Now in the Buddhist Lecture Hall, everyone wishes to study the Buddhadharma. This is drawing near to those with wisdom. In America there are very few places where the genuine Buddhadharma is lectured. Take a look. What other Buddhist organization has lectures on the Dharma every single day? Only the Buddhist Lecture Hall. Attending the daily lectures on Buddhadharma is just drawing near to those with wisdom.

Not just anyone can come to the Buddhist Lecture Hall. Some people come, sit for just a minute, and then run off. They can’t sit comfortably, and they can’t stand comfortably. The moment they get here, their hearts start racing, and they get nervous. Why? Because their karmic obstacles are too heavy.

To draw near to those with wisdom is to remove the covering of stupidity.

Singlemindedly casting out confusion. This removes the covering of greed. Why? If you have no greed, your mind will not become confused. If you have thoughts of greed, your mind will become confused, unclear. When your mind is unclear, you will do muddled things.

Greed: Greed for what?

First of all, there is greed for wealth. At this point, we should each return the light and reverse the illumination. What is meant by “return the light and reverse the illumination?” Each of you ask yourselves: “Do I have thoughts of greed? Am I covered with greed? Am I greedy for other people’s money? Because of greed for money, would I lie? Would I kill? Would I steal? Would I do things I clearly know are wrong simply out of greed? Am I greedy for money even in my dreams? “So and so has a lot of money. How can I get my hands on it?” Obsesses!

You recite the Buddha’s name sincerely, but your greed for money is even more sincere. You recite the Buddha’s name in the morning a few times, and then forget all about it. “I’ve done quite enough recitation. Nobody’s as good as me. No one can compare to me. Nobody recites the Buddha’s name as much as I do.” But what about your avarice? You never forget it, never. “No matter what, I’m going to get my hands on that person’s money.” You exert all your influence, and exhaust your shrewd intellect to cheat other people out of their money.

As you scheme for money, your heart grows confused. Your brains reel with scrambled thoughts, “What, oh, what method can I use…Will that one work? No? Well, then, what about this one? That one? I’ve got to have a plan. They’ll never know what happened.” All their schemes and plans confuse them.

To cast out confusion is to cast off the covering of greed. Greed covers your basic wisdom, your self-nature’s bright light. If you can get rid of your greed, remove the covering of greed, your self-nature’s bright light will manifest.

Collecting their thoughts in the mountain forests. “Thoughts” refers to the thoughts present in our minds. People have great spiritual penetrations when it comes to thought. In one thought they can run as far as eighteen thousand miles. Shakyamuni Buddha emitted the white hair-mark light which shone across eighteen thousand worlds to the east. In a single thought we can think ourselves eighteen thousand worlds to the east.

However, there’s a great deal of difference between our thoughts and the Buddha’s light. The Buddha can emit light that reaches that far, but we can only day-dream; we can’t send forth light. But our thoughts do have that much strength.

In one thought, we’re in heaven.
In one thought, we’re in hell.
In one thought, we are among the human beings.

It all happens in a thought. The heavens and the hells are created in a thought. Even the realization of Buddhahood is accomplished in a single thought. If you become a Bodhisattva, it’s also in a thought. If you become an Arhat, it’s also in a thought. When the thought matures, you can actualize your spiritual penetrations and transformations.

Now, the thoughts are collected. They are not allowed to roam. They are all gathered back to the original self-nature. It’s like using a magnet on your thoughts, so that they can’t run off.

This method is one of using poison to fight poison. When people take poison, another kind of poison may be used to counteract the poison they have taken. Your “collecting of thoughts” is also a kind of poison. The very best thing would be, as I said earlier, to have no thought at all. If you have no thought, you have no production, no extinction. No thought is the most wonderful of states. If you can be without thought as you dwell there in the mountains and forests, your inherent, greatly enlightened Buddha nature will naturally be perfected and will naturally manifest. But now, one is unable to be without thought, and so the thoughts are gathered together. This collecting together also removes the covering of sleep.

Keeping away from frivolity removes the covering of inconstancy. Separating from stupid followers removes the covering of anger. Drawing near to those with wisdom removes the covering of stupidity. Singlemindedly casting out confusion removes the covering of greed. Collecting one’s thoughts in the mountain forests removes the covering of the sleep demon.

When you cultivate, the sleep demon can be very fierce. If you tend to be lazy, the sleep demon loves to encourage you. He says, “It’s all right. Rest a bit. Sleep some more,” and he tells you to sleep. And you think, “Sleep is not bad. Sleep is really fine. There’s nothing better than sleep! Why, it’s the most comfortable state there is because you don’t know anything at all, so you don’t have false thinking, either!”

But when you sleep, you sometimes dream, you may dream a very common dream which causes you not to cultivate. What dream is that? Hah! Very strange. When men who cultivate the Way sleep, they very often dream about women. When women who cultivate the Way sleep, they very often dream about men. Why? Because, although you say, “I keep the precepts. I cultivate. I don’t want to break the precepts,” the demon king wants you to break them. When you sleep he comes and transforms into all kinds of forms to disturb your Samadhi power.

When you are awake, you may have Samadhi power, but when you are asleep, it fails you. You are moved by the state. You have no precept power, and your Samadhi power runs off. You have no idea at all where your wisdom power went. You can’t find any of them. The three powers of precepts, Samadhi and wisdom are non-existent. Your support topples over, and you are turned by the demonic state. This is the covering of sleep. So, sleep can also cover the self-nature’s light.

If you cultivate, you can remove the five coverings gradually. Collecting one’s thoughts in the mountains and forests for tens of thousands of millions of yearsLife after life, Bodhisattvas like to stay in the mountains to cultivate. “If in this life I don’t become enlightened,” they resolve, “then in my next life I will continue to dwell here on the mountain and cultivate here for trillions of years.” In quest of the Way of the Buddha. “Why do I wish to dwell in the mountains? Why do I wish to be pure? Because I seek the Buddha Way.

Sutra:

Bodhisattvas there are seen,
who, with fine food and drink and with
a hundred kinds of broths and herbs
make offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha.

Who, with fine robes and superior garments,
of value in the millions,
or with in valuable robes
make offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha.

Who, with a million different kinds
of dwellings of precious sandalwood
and with much fine bedding
make offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha.

Who, with gardens and groves, clear and pure,
with flowers and fruits in abundance
with flowing springs and bathing ponds,
make offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha.

Offerings such as these,
of many kinds, extremely fine,
do they give with joy untiring,
seeking for the utmost Way.

Outline:

J6. giving

Commentary:

Bodhisattvas there are seen, who, with fine food and drink and with fine vegetarian delicacies. A hundred kinds of broths and herbsmake offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha. The fine food and drink and the broths and herbs make up two of the offerings to the Triple Jewel, those of food and drink. You may make offerings to the Triple Jewel of food and drink or of broths and herbs, making some fine medicines so that when those who have left home get sick, they can use them to cure their illness.

There are four kinds of offerings: food and drink, clothing, bedding and medicine. The clothing given here is no ordinary clothing. They are fine robes and superior garments, very expensive clothing of value in the millions,or with in valuable robes. These clothes are absolutely priceless. Make offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha, they are given to the Buddha and the Sangha

And with a million different kinds of dwellings of precious sandalwood and with much fine bedding, make offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha.

With gardens and groves, clear and pure,with flowers and fruits in abundance, with flowing springs and bathing ponds, make offerings to the Buddha and the Sangha.All these offerings, of many different kinds, are given to the Triple Jewel seeking for the utmost Way, the Buddha Way.

Sutra:

There are Bodhisattvas who
speak of still extinction’s Dharma 
with various instructions teaching
living beings without number.

Seen are Bodhisattvas who
contemplate all Dharmas’ nature
as lacking the mark of duality,
like empty space.

Also seen are Buddha’s disciples
whose minds have no attachments and
who use this wondrous wisdom,
seeking for the utmost Way.

Outline:

J7. Prajna

Commentary:

There are Bodhisattvas who,Maitreya Bodhisattva continues speaking to Manjushri Bodhisattva. Speak of still extinction’s Dharma. The dharma they teach is that of still extinction.

What is the dharma of still extinction?

It is “all dharmas are empty appearances.” It means “the mark of still extinction of all dharmas cannot be expressed in words.” The dharma of still extinction cannot be spoken. It has no appearance and it has no color. It is not green, yellow, red, white, or black. It isn’t long or short, square or round. It is the dharma of still extinction. With various instructions teaching.They use all manner of devices and teaching methods to:

1) cause living beings to turn their backs on the dust and unite with enlightenment.

2) lead living beings to clear understanding and awakening.

3) help beings awaken to the fact that all involvement with the dust of worldly affairs is a form of suffering.

Seen are Bodhisattvas who, contemplate all Dharmas’ nature, they look at the nature of all dharmas as lacking the mark of duality. Not only are they not marked by duality, they don’t even have one mark. If they don’t have even one mark, ultimately what are they like? Like empty space. Take a look at empty space. What is contained in it? There’s nothing in it at all, no forms and no appearances. But all the forms and appearances are not separate from empty space. All the forms and appearances are enclosed within empty space.

Would you say there is empty space in the earth? Dig a foot of earth out of the ground and you’ll have one foot of empty space. If you dig out ten feet, you’ll have ten feet of empty space. Before you dug the hole, was the space there or not? The space was there all the time. So, although forms and shapes are found in space, they cannot envelop empty space; empty space envelops them.

Even when there are material forms, empty space is still there. Empty space is also present in places where there are no material shapes. Well, if it’s present, then grab some and take a look at it! Oh? There’s nothing there. You can’t see it! If you try to taste empty space, it has no flavor. What color would you say empty space was? Empty space has no color. The Real Mark of all dharmas is also that way. It is just like space. So, if you understand the principle of empty space, you will understand the principle of the self-nature. Therefore, it is said,

The self-nature is like empty space.
It contains both the true and the false.
Awaken, fathom the basic substance.
In one understanding, understand all.

The self-nature is just like empty space. It contains both the true and the false. Within the self-nature both True Emptiness and Wonderful Existence are found. True Emptiness is just Wonderful Existence and Wonderful Existence is just True Emptiness. It is most certainly no the case that Wonderful Existence is to be found apart from True Emptiness. Nor is it the case that True Emptiness is to be found apart from Wonderful Existence. The very True Emptiness itself is Wonderful Existence, and Wonderful Existence itself is True Emptiness.

When the truth is not postulated,
The false is basically empty.
When existence and non-existence are both cast out,
What is not empty has been made empty.

The Truth is also non-existent. What is the Truth? To speak about the Truth is just to cheat people. What is the Truth?

What is the false?

The false is also non-existent. If you talk about the false, you are also cheating people. It’s merely the case that within their hearts, living beings, as common worldly creatures, hold to a true and a false. When you arrive at the self-nature, however, it is like empty space.

Empty space would never say, “I am empty space.” It has no ego, no self. If it said, “I am empty space,” then it wouldn’t be empty space. It would turn into an existing entity, so how could it remain empty space?” Emptiness has no “self” at all. Our own self-natures are also like that.

“Oh” you say, “Is there nothing at all? That’s really a shame. Nothing whatever?”

Don’t be afraid. When you have nothing at all, then you truly “have.” All the mountains, rivers, and the great earth, the forests and trees and the myriad objects within the world system of three thousand great thousand world–none of them are not yours! They are all yours. But you must truly have nothing at all. If you have even a hairsbreadth of obstruction, then none of it counts as yours.

Because you have that one little bit of obstruction, you cannot enjoy the possession of all those things. You have attachments and impediments. If you had no attachments or impediments, then you would truly have wealth and honor to the extreme, so that all of empty space and the entire Dharma Realm would be included in your self-nature.

Enlightened, you understand the basic substance of your self-nature; then, in one understanding, you understand all. When you are clear about one thing, then you are clear about everything. There is nothing you do not comprehend, nothing you do not understand. You penetrate the Three Bodies, the Four Wisdoms, the Five Eyes, and the Six Spiritual Penetrations. You don’t have to look for them outside. They are the jewels within your own household.

Hearing this, if you don’t become greatly enlightened, you should at least have a minor enlightenment. Don’t waste your time. Though I might speak for half a day, it’s as if I hadn’t spoken. If you don’t listen, that’s even more wonderful. I haven’t spoken and you haven’t heard. That’s the genuine, miraculous Prajna wisdom!

Also seen are Buddha’s disciples whose minds have no attachments. How’s that? Everything’s quite all right; everything’s okay. This kind of non-attachment, however, is not easy to achieve. You must truly understand the Way, obtaining the bright light of the self-nature in order to be unattached. But how does one obtain wisdom? It’s just by being unattached. The non-attachment itself is wisdom. If you’ve a single bit of attachment you won’t have that wisdom.

What wisdom? Doesn’t it say right here in the text: who use this wondrous wisdom, seeking for the utmost Way. This wondrous wisdom comes simply from your non-attachment. If you have attachments, you will not be able to have this subtle, wondrous wisdom. This wisdom arises from your non-attachment. So, you are wise. You should have no attachment. You should not think, “I can’t put this down and I can’t give that up…” If you can’t put it down, then you won’t have this wondrous wisdom. If you can put it down, your wondrous wisdom and intelligence will manifest.

One of my disciples has said to me a number of time, “Uh, no one’s making offering to the Triple Jewel. So many people and only one of them has made offerings. No one else has given.”

When I heard that, I wanted to cry. Why did I want to cry? Because I was afraid that my three disciples were going to starve to death. What would we do then? So, I wanted to cry. Just as I was about to burst into tears, it occurred to me, “That’s an attachment!” and I didn’t cry. I laughed! Why did I laughed? I thought, “Why, that’s the very best thing that could possibly happen! If no one makes offerings it will reveal whether or not you really want to cultivate the Way. It will draw out and harden your spiritual skill.”

If you have spiritual powers and real Samadhi power, then you can meditate and cultivate. When you can sit for ten days straight do you think there will be no offerings? No doubt they’d come from all over the country to make offerings to you. Why?

“Among westerners, there are sages!” people would cry. “They can sit for ten days, ‘thus, thus unmoving!” Would you still fear that no one would make offerings to the Triple Jewel? There would be nothing to fear.

On the other hand, you could also say that starving to death was the ultimate, the most glorious sacrifice. “I left home for the sake of the Buddha’s teaching. I do not take advantage of circumstances. I am going to sit here and, if no one makes offerings, I’m not going to go out and try to finagle them. If I starve to death, I will certainly get enlightened. It will be just like the Bhikshu who held the precept against killing so purely that he refused to drink water which had bugs in it and consequently died of thirst.

Because he was so sincere, the Buddha used his spiritual power to bring to where the Buddha was and he met the Buddha even before his traveling companion, who drank the water, did. Although the Buddha has already entered Nirvana, you can still hear him speak the Dharma to you. Don’t be nervous. So today it is publically announced that the Shramaneras are not to have money; they may not have money in their hands.

“But,” you say, “what about doing my laundry and buying soap and things? I need money for that, don’t I?”

A small amount, three or five dollars, is all right. But don’t carry more than that. More just leads to trouble. If you take care of money, you won’t be able to cultivate. You’ll have to keep books, if you don’t keep books, the donors will think, “I gave them money, but they have no record of it. What are they doing with it, anyway?” and they will distrust you.

In all the years I have left home, I will tell you, I have never told anyone to make offerings to me so that I could eat. I’ll tell you something else: This Master to whom you bow, is one without ability. What ability does he lack? He is unable to get money from people. I talk to people, and if they give, they give. If they don’t I do not pressure them. Besides, you should all know:

A single grain of the donor’s rice
Is as heavy as Mount Sumeru;
If you eat it and fail to cultivate,
You’ll end up wearing a fur coat and horns.

If you eat and drink the offerings of the faithful but do not cultivate the Way, if you do nothing but chatter all day long, senselessly, with never a time when your mouth is shut, do you think you can cultivate that way? I’m telling you to talk less and work harder. That is the fundamental duty of one who has left home.

When the laypeople look at those who have left home, they think, “They are just like us. We eat, they eat. We talk, they talk. We sleep, they sleep. They are no different from us, are they? Why should we make offerings to them?” I’m included in this myself. That’s why I don’t speak about useless matters. Anyway, I can’t speak English, I don’t like to talk a lot, so I don’t. Besides, I don’t have the time.

If you eat and fail to cultivate the Way, in the future it will be disastrous. Why should people go out and work and then give offerings to you? Only because you cultivate the Way. If you do not cultivate the Way, if you do not work hard, if you do not sit in Dhyana, you are not entitled to receive people’s offerings. This concerns me greatly.

I’ll tell you about something that happened to me. The first year I was in Hong Kong I had no money and I did not beg for any. Later, a layperson took me to Fu-jung Mountain to life in Kuan-yin Cave. The cave was extremely damp. In the cave, to say nothing of tea cups, there was nothing at all–no tables, no chairs, nothing at all; it was totally empty. I sat on a flat rock which jutted out from the wall. I sat there for several days and what do you think happened? My legs refused to move. They were numb and had no feeling in them at all.

At that point I had a false thought. It was, “I don’t want to sit here; I think I’ll leave.” But then I thought, “Someone took me here to cultivate; if I just stay for three days and leave, how could I possibly face anyone? How could I explain my actions? I’d have no way to do so. I don’t care if I die here, I’m not going to leave the cave.” I sat and sat for over half a month until my legs regained their feeling and I could use them once more. They no longer refused to cooperate. The, everyday I went down the mountain, carrying a bowl, to beg for food and brought it back to eat. But my obstacles loomed large.

After a year, because of the dampness inside the cave, I built a tiny hut right outside it. As soon as it was built, the obstacle arose. The neighboring dharma Master grew jealous of me and told the people at the nearby monastery, “Don’t make offerings to him. He’s got money. If he’s got the money to build a hut, hot could he not have money for food? Don’t make offerings to him.”

The Supervisor of the monastery believed him and refused to give me food. At that time I was without offerings altogether. No one made offerings, but I thought, “I have a few scraps of food here. I’ll eat them and then meditate.” I did not tell anyone that I had no food to eat. I did not go out and no one came to see me. I thought, “If I starve to death, I starve to death, so what! To starve to death is even better, even more glorious. To sacrifice one’s life for the Buddhadharma–there could be no greater glory, nothing more wonderful!”

I sat for several days. There was a layperson in his fifties who had been bitten in the leg by a dog. Two or three months had gone by and the wound still hadn’t healed. He had gone to both Chinese and Western doctors, but non had been able to cure him. One night he had a dream. In his dream, Wei-T’ou Bodhisattva appeared and told him, “If you want your leg to heal, you should go make offerings to the Dharma Master in Kuan-yin Cave on the far side of Fu-jung Mountain.”

And then Wei-T’ou Bodhisattva said my name. “Go make offerings to him and the dog bite on your leg will heal; it will be no problem.” He had that dream several times in one night. Wei-T’ou Bodhisattva also told him what the Dharma Master looked like and he saw how I looked. When he awoke from his dream he believed it and took over seventy Hong Kong dollars as well as thirty catties of rice, which he carried on his back, up to Kuan-yin Cave.

When the neighboring Dharma Master saw a food donor, a Dharma protector coming up the path, he ran right out to welcome him and see what he was carrying. The donor asked, “Does a Dharma Master live here?” he asked.

“I am in charge here,” came the reply. “Whatever you wish to give, you may give to me. Don’t go looking for any other Dharma Masters.”

“But I saw a certain Dharma Master in my dream,” the layperson continued. He didn’t look anything like you. Wei-T’ou Bodhisattva told me to give the offerings to him and he wasn’t like you at all. I want to give these things to him!”

“Hah!” the Dharma Master’s temper blazed. “What are you talking about! What kind of talk is that? I am the supervisor here. He most certainly is not. Any offerings you wish to give you should give to me,” and he started to wrangle with the layperson.

I was in the cave and could hear them. When my name came up in the conversation, I went out to take a look at what was going on. When the layperson saw me, he exclaimed, “That’s him! That’s the person I saw in my dream. I have come to make offerings to this Dharma Master!”

The Dharma Master was furious. I asked the layperson what had happened and he told me about his dream. I said, “Good, make your offerings. Making offerings to other people is just the same as making offerings to me. You wish to make offering to me, and this Dharma Master is my neighbor. Although we eat separately, we divide up everything. You should give half the rice and money to him. The Dharma Master was sputtering with rage and he wanted to argue, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. The offerings were divided in half and he said to the layperson, “After this, if you want to give offerings, you must first give them to me.”

At any rate, I didn’t starve to death. The layperson got the name “Dharma Master Homegrown” because he liked to speak the Dharma and he was “homegrown”, that is, not an imported Dharma Master. He wasn’t really a Dharma Master, of course, he was a layperson. People kidded him by using that nickname and everywhere he went he said, “Oh, it’s really strange. In Kuan-yin Cave there is a Dharma Master. In a dream, Wei-T’ou Bodhisattva told me I should go make offerings to him and my leg would heal. I did, and sure enough, as soon as I got back, my leg healed all by itself without the aid of a doctor.” He thought it was very strange.

After that incident, which was really nothing in itself, I did not starve to death. Although no one had made offerings to me, the laypeople in Hong Kong started coming from long distances, and they all made offerings. No matter who gave offerings, I divided them all in half between myself and the Dharma Master next door. Although they were given to me, I gave him half. Later, he used all kinds of methods to try to ruin me. Finally, I had to leave. I couldn’t live there. I went to build the Western Bliss Gardens.

When I was staying at Kuan-yin Cave, there were two pools of water from the mountain in front of the cave. They came from the mountain and provide enough water for the daily use of ten or twenty people. What do you think happened after I moved out? The water stopped flowing down the mountain. There was no water. When I built the Western Bliss Gardens, there was no water there. But then the water came. All the monks said I took the water with me. I didn’t starve to death after all, although I came close to it.

If you are not afraid of starving to death, then don’t worry. There will certainly be offerings. If you are afraid of starving to death, no one will make offerings. If you are not afraid of starving to death, everything will work out fine. You need only have no fear and then spontaneously your Way karma will increase. So don’t worry that you’ll get no offerings. Besides, when it gets right down to the point of having no offerings at all, they will appear of themselves; if you have cultivation you will evoke that response.

Those who have left home should worry about whether or not they have accomplished they Way karma. They should not worry about whether or not there are offerings. If you receive offerings but do not become enlightened or realize your Way karma, then you are still just a common person. If you have accomplished your Way karma, you are still a sage, even if you get no offerings. Those of you who have left home, do you think about the fact that, as the days go by, you have not accomplished your Way karma? Do you consider it a problem? Or do you worry that, as you cultivate and recite Sutras, you are not yet perfect in your recitations?

In the West, this is a beginning, and we all must be pioneering patriarchs. Just what gives you the right to be patriarchs? What merit and virtue, what accomplishment, do you have? Which Sutra do you really understand, can you truly explain? As far as your spiritual skill goes, can you sit for one, two, three, four, five hours and so forth until we come to one day, two days, one month, two months without moving your legs?

If you have that kind of Samadhi, then why are you so worried about not receiving offerings? If you have no Samadhi power, you may look for offerings, but the more you look for them, the farther they will recede. Why? People will see you and think, “Oh, there’s that monk who climbs on conditions. He goes around everywhere telling people to make offerings and exploiting them, but he doesn’t cultivate. He just takes advantage of other people in order to get offerings.” This is an extremely grave mistake. You should now return the light and reverse the illumination.

Ask not whether people have made offerings to you;
Ask what you have done to deserve offerings.

If you were busy cultivating the Way, how would you have time to notice whether or not people have made offerings. If you really cultivate the Way, you won’t know whether they have or not. Why? Because your heart will not be caught up in food and drink. It is said,

Superior people yearn for the Way;
They do not yearn for food.

If someone makes offerings to them, that’s the way they are; if no one makes offerings to them, they are still that way. “I would rather die cultivating the Way than get away with loafing and ask for pity in order to live.” Your determination should be so strong that you understand with the top of your head in the sky and your feet firmly on the ground. “My head can burst its way right up to the highest heaven; it can poke right through the Heaven of Neither Perception nor Non-perception. Such is my resolve!”

It shouldn’t be that you go for a day or two without eating and think, “I can’t stand it.” Don’t be like that; that’s being entirely too spineless, and I don’t want any spineless disciples. So, you should stand firm on your resolve. People in the world all like money. You should not want money; you should pay no attention to money. Cultivate the Way with a true heart and everything will be okay. If you cultivate the Way without a true heart, it will be all muddled, and you will create even more offense karma.

So today I have taken the lecture period to explain a bit of genuine principle. After this, if one has virtue, even if people want to give one money, one shouldn’t want it. They must kneel, make obeisance very respectfully, and then I will accept it. But if they are not respectful, I will not accept it. I will not accept their offering.”

I have something further to say. Those who are at home should protect the Dharma of those who have left home. If you let the left-home people starve to death, then when you want to do acts of merit and virtue, you’ll have nowhere to go to do it. Why? The Triple Jewel will have starved to death! Even if you wanted to foster merit and virtue, you wouldn’t be able to do it.

Those who have left home should know what they are supposed to do and those who are at home should also know what they are supposed to do. Don’t wait until the Triple Jewel has starved to death. If you try to make offerings to them then, you won’t be able to, because there won’t be any Triple Jewel to make offerings to! Everyone should do his job and carry out his responsibilities. Those who have left home must cultivate the Way and those who are at home have the responsibility to make offerings. If those who have left home do not cultivate, then those at home will not make offerings. If those at home do not make offerings, then those who have left home will not be able to cultivate. Those who have left home should cultivate and those at home make offerings. That’s called “working together.”

Sutra:

Manjushri,
Again are Bodhisattvas who,
after the Buddhas cross into extinction,
make offerings to the Sharira.

Again are seen Buddha’s disciples,
building stupas, building temples,
countless as the Ganges sands,
to adorn those realms and lands.

The Jeweled stupas, tall and fine,
are five thousand Yojanas in height,
two thousand Yojanas in breadth.
Each stupa and temple is adorned
with a thousand curtains and banners
circling around and wrought with gems,
and jeweled bells which harmoniously chime.

All the gods, dragons, and spirits,
humans and non-humans,
with incense, flowers, and instrumental music,
constantly make offerings.

Manjushri,
All the Buddhas’ disciples,
adorn the stupas and the shrines
making offerings to the Shariras;
spontaneously, the realms and lands
are superbly fine and exquisite, 
like the king of heavenly trees
when its flowers bloom.

Outline:

H6. asking about offerings to the sharira

Commentary:

In this passage of text, Maitreya Bodhisattva continues his questioning of Manjushri Bodhisattva concerning the various states which the Buddha caused to manifest within the white hair-mark light. The Buddha had revealed six portents, but Maitreya Bodhisattva did not know the causes and conditions which underlay them.

Actually it is certainly the case Maitreya Bodhisattva was not unaware of them. He deliberately requested the Dharma for the sake of living beings. This is called “manifesting a great provisional device.” He said, Manjushri, again are Bodhisattvas who, after the Buddhas cross into extinction, after all the Buddhas have completed the stillness, have entered Nirvana, the Bodhisattvas make offerings to the Sharira. The word sharira means “efficacious bones” and they represent the true body of the Buddha because they remain after the Buddha’s cremation. When people make offerings to the Buddha’s sharira it is the same as making offerings to the Buddha.

Making offerings to the Dharma Jewel is also the same as making offerings to the Buddha and making offerings to the Sangha Jewel is the same as making offerings to the Buddha. All you have to do is bring forth the resolve and be true to the extreme, without the slightest bit of defiled thought. What is meant by “defiled thought”? It is to make offerings to the Triple Jewel in the hope of obtaining something in return. That’s not making offerings with a true heart.

When you make offerings to the Triple Jewel, you should feel, “making offerings is my responsibility.” Why? I have food to eat. The kindness the Buddhas show towards living beings is limitless and boundless. The Dharma’s kindness to living beings is limitless and boundless and so is the Sangha’s kindness. If the Triple Jewel did not dwell in the world, this world would be completely destroyed. Why? Because if the Triple Jewel was not present, the demon kings would come into the world and destroy it.

So, in making offerings to the Triple Jewel, we should think, “I eat everyday. If no one makes offerings to the Triple Jewel, how could I possibly swallow my food? As one of the Buddha’s disciples I should protect and uphold the Triple Jewel and cause it to be free from all difficulties.” Therefore, making offerings to the shariras is just one way of making offerings to the Triple Jewel.

Again are seen Buddha’s disciples, building stupas, building temples. Stupas are places where people may come and make offerings to the Buddha’s sharira which are housed inside them. Temples are used for making offerings to Buddha images. For example, T’ien Hou Temple here (the Buddhist Lecture Hall) is a place where many spirits are worshiped and so it is called a temple. In this case, we are making offerings to many Buddhas. As countless as the Ganges sands,they do not build one stupa or temple and leave it at that, but they build limitless, countless numbers of them, as many as the Gange’s sands to adorn those realms and landsso that they are extremely beautiful.

The Jeweled stupas, tall and fine,are five thousand Yojanas in height. How tall is that? One small yojana is forty miles; a middle-sized yojana is sixty miles; a big yojana is eighty miles. So, how tall would five thousand yojanas be?

Long ago, when the Buddha was in the world, the following incident took place: There was, at that time, a freak. He was wider than he was tall. He was five feet across and only two and a half, not quite three feet, tall. Do you think he was attractive or not? He was probably about two feet nine or so. He looked like a frying pan, but the sound of his voice was extremely resonant and clear. It sounded like a bell. People did not understand what causes and effects where at work with him, and so they asked the Buddha. The Buddha smiled and said, “In the past, limitless kalpas ago, he was also a Buddhist disciple.

At that time someone brought forth the resolve to build a jeweled stupa which was to be extremely tall. The man said, “Why build such a tall stupa? People won’t even be able to see the top of it, for cryin’ out loud. What use is such a tall one? If you build a stupa, build one, and have done with it. Such a big one is really, in my opinion, utterly useless. Well, I’ll contribute a little something, not a whole lot. I’ll contribute the bell to put at the top of the stupa,” and that’s just what he did. Because he said that one sentence, “Why build such a high jeweled stupa? Don’t make it so tall,” in every life he was born as a dwarf, never over three feet tall. Because he had contributed to the bell, his voice was extremely clear and resonant and sounded like the chiming of a copper bell.”

From this we can see that people cannot just talk casually. If someone wants to build a big temple and you go there and say, “Why build such a big temple? If you make is smaller, it will still be a temple,” in the future you may be very small. People with small bodies should bring forth a big resolve. “I am going to build a big temple!” and in the future you will get a big body. That’s the record for your consideration. Don’t just say whatever you please. If people are building a temple or a jeweled stupa, take care not to go there and criticize it saying it is too tall or too short, too big or too small.

Each stupa and temple is adornedwith a thousand curtains and banners circling around and wrought with gems, and jeweled bells which harmoniously chime. Circulate curtains are streamers of netting which are cylindrical in shape and hang from the ceiling. They may be embroidered with flowers or they may have interstices in them. Banners are streamers made of cloth and hung before the Buddhas as an adornment. When the wind blows, the little bells ring, and all the gods, dragons, and spirits, humans and non-humans, with incense, flowers, and instrumental music, constantly make offerings. Incense refers to various types of incense. They use these things to make offerings to the Triple Jewel.

Manjushri Bodhisattva! All the Buddhas’ disciples, adorn the stupas and the shrines, making offerings to the Shariras; spontaneously, the realms and lands are superbly fine and exquisite, like the king of heavenly trees when its flowers bloom. When the flowers on the heavenly king of trees bloom, they are extremely beautiful and wonderful.

Sutra:

The Buddha sends forth this single ray,
and I and those assembled here
view within those realms and lands,
the various special wonders.

The spiritual might of the Buddhas
and their wisdom is most rare,
emitting a single, pure light,
they can illumine limitless lands.

Seeing this, we have all
obtained what we have never had.
Disciple of the Buddha, Manju,
pray resolve the assembly’s doubts.

Outline:

F2. requesting an answer

G1. statement of matters which are not understood and asking for an answer

Commentary:

The Buddha sends forth this single ray, the white hair-mark light and I and those assembled here, I, and the great assembly, view within those realms and lands, see the territories which contain the various special wonders, Ban ineffable number of them.

The spiritual might of the Buddhasand their wisdom is most rare. The spiritual power of the Buddhas, the strength of their spiritual penetrations and their wisdom is rare; there’s nothing in the world that compares with them.

Emitting a single, pure light,they can illumine limitless lands. They illumine limitless lands. Seeing this, we have all, I myself, and all present in the assembly obtained what we have never had. None of us has ever seen anything like them.

Disciple of the Buddha, Manju, 
disciples of the Dharma King, pray resolve the assembly’s doubts. I hope that you will resolve everyone’s questions on these matters, so that we may be free of doubts.

Sutra:

The Four-fold multitude with joy
looks up to you, humane one, and to me.
Why has the World Honored One
emitted such a brilliant light?
Disciple of the Buddha, answer now;
resolve our doubts, so we may rejoice.

What benefit is to be gained
by putting forth this brilliant light?
That wondrous Dharma the Buddha gained
as he sat in the field of the Way —
Does he wish, now, to preach it?
or is he going to give predictions?

The manifesting of the Buddha-lands,
adorned with many jewels, and pure,
as well as the vision of the Buddhas
does not betoken small conditions.

Manju, it should be known,
the four assemblies, dragons and spirits,
look to you, humane one, hopefully;
what is it that is to be said?

Outline:

G2. Statement & avoidance of question

Commentary:

Manjushri is evading the question. But the Bodhisattva Maitreya continues to ask. With each question, Manjushri remains silent, however.

The Four-fold multitude with joy. At this time the Bhikshus Sangha, the Bhikshunis, the Upasakas and Upasikas, the four-fold assembly looks up to you, humane one, and to me. Why are all happy and waiting for your explanation. They look up at you, Humane One, and they look at me, because they want us to answer their questions and resolve their doubts.

Why has the World Honored One emitted such a brilliant light? Disciple of the Buddha, answer now; resolve our doubts, so we may rejoice. Enable us to cast out our doubts and become happy. Why are there doubts? Because no one understands or recognizes these states. When everyone understands them they will certainly be happy.

What benefit is to be gained
 What is it that the Buddha is planning to do in the way of benefiting living beings? By putting forth this brilliant light. He sends out bright light to shine across eighteen thousand worlds to the east, thus making use of the wonderful functioning of his spiritual penetrations.

That wondrous Dharma the Buddha gained as he sat in the field of the Way.
The Buddha sat in the Bodhimanda and obtained the wonderful Dharma. Does he wish, now, to preach it? Does he want to speak the wonderful Dharma the Buddha certified to and obtained? Does he wish to speak about it to everyone? Or is he going to give predictions? Or does he want to confer predictions upon everyone? Of the two alternatives, probably the Buddha has one in mind.

The manifesting of the Buddha-lands, adorned with many jewels, and pure.
Every Buddhaland is adorned with many precious ornaments. As well as the vision of the Buddhas does not betoken small conditions. The causes and conditions, I believe, are most certainly not trivial ones. They are certainly great, but I do not understand them!

Manju, it should be known, the four assemblies, dragons and spirits, the four assemblies, and the eight-fold division of ghosts and spirits and so forth look to you, humane one, hopefully. They stand at attention with their gaze fixed upon you. O Humane One, what is it that is to be said. What Dharma is the Buddha going to speak? Which of the Dharma is he going to speak? Please, Manjushri, be compassionate and instruct us in this matter.

Sutra:

At that time, Manjushri addressed the Bodhisattva Mahasattva Maitreya and all the great lords, saying, “Good men, in my estimation, the Buddha, the World Honored One, now wishes to speak the great Dharma, to let fall the great Dharma rain, to blow the great Dharma conch, to beat the great Dharma drum, and to proclaim the great Dharma doctrine.”

Outline:

D5. the answers

E1. the prose section

F1. answers according to his considered opinion

Commentary:

At that time, right then, when the Bodhisattva Manjushri had heard the Bodhisattva Maitreya request that he explain away the doubts, he addressed the Bodhisattva Mahasattva Maitreya and all the great lords, all the great Bodhisattvas present in the assembly. He said, “Good men, you who cultivate, in my estimation, according to my calculations, the causes and conditions taking place here seem to indicate that the Buddha, the World Honored One, now wishes to speak the great Dharma, which has never been spoken before!

To let fall the great Dharma rain, just like rain from the sky which moistens all the living beings with potential, i.e. all living beings. To blow the great Dharma conch, to alert all living beings; to beat the great Dharma drum, to cause them all to awaken from their dreams; to proclaim the great Dharma doctrine, to expound the greatest Dharma principle.”

Sutra:

“Good men, I have, in the past, in the presence of other Buddhas, seen such portents. Having emitted this light, they immediately spoke the great Dharma. Therefore, it should be known that the manifestation of light by the present Buddha is also thus. Because he wishes to lead all living beings to hear and understand this Dharma which in the whole world is hard to believe, he therefore manifests these portents.”

Outline:

F2. answers referring generally to what he saw in the past

Commentary:

“Good men, all of you good men, I have, in the past, in the presence of other Buddhas, during the time of other Buddhas in the past, seen such portents. Having emitted this light, they immediately spoke the great Dharma.” Previously there was a discussion of making offerings to the Triple Jewel, but I have not yet finished and have something more to add.

“Why should people make offerings to the Triple Jewel,” you may wonder. “Why shouldn’t the Triple Jewel make offerings to me?”

The Triple Jewel does not make offerings to you because you are not one of the Triple Jewel, and so you are not entitled to receive offerings.

Why should one make offerings to the Triple Jewel? It is because the Triple Jewel provides a place for one to plant blessings. If you would like to seek blessings, you must perform acts of merit and virtue before the Triple Jewel. If you do not make offerings to the Triple Jewel, in the future, when you become a Buddha, no one will make offerings to you. To say nothing of becoming a Buddha, if you don’t make offerings to the Triple Jewel now, even when you leave home to become a monk, no one will make offerings to you. Why not? Because when you were at home, you did not make offerings to the Triple Jewel.

I often think, “Why doesn’t anyone make offerings to me? Ah, it’s because before I left home, I didn’t make offerings to the Triple Jewel. That is why now that I have left home, very few people make offerings to me. I constantly bring forth a heart full of repentance. I am extremely ashamed. So, now, I wish to explain this principle to you, so that you won’t have to be like me and have no one make offerings to you.

By making offerings to the Triple Jewel, one cultivates blessings and cultivates wisdom. To cultivate wisdom, one must print Sutras and propagate the Buddhadharma, or do other types of work to spread the Dharma. Didn’t I mention this before? An example is our present preparation for publishing a magazine, which is all part of cultivating wisdom. If you want to cultivate wisdom, you must support the work of propagating the Dharma. If you want to cultivate blessings, you should make offerings to the Triple Jewel. If you don’t make offerings to the Triple Jewel, then in the future, when you are one of the Three Jewels, no one will make offerings to you, as I just said.

So, now, before you are part of the Triple Jewel, you must support it and take care of it. Cultivating both blessings and wisdom. If you cultivate blessings but do not cultivate wisdom, you are like an elephant wearing a necklace of beads. If you cultivate wisdom but not blessings, you are like an Arhat with an empty begging bowl.

What does that mean? If you merely concentrate on cultivating wisdom and do not cultivate blessings, in the future, when you certify to the fruit and realize Arhatship, no one will make offerings to you.

“But yesterday you said that if someone sat for ten days people would certainly make offerings to them,” you think. “How could it be that a certified Arhat would receive no offerings? I find this terrifying. The Buddhadharma is too dangerous! It would probably be better not to study it at all.”

That may be the case, but if you don’t cultivate the Buddhadharma, you won’t ever become a Buddha. If you want to slide down, do as you please. If you want to become a Buddha, if you think, “I understand the Buddhadharma quite clearly and I shall certainly be diligent and seek progress in my study of it,” then you should break through all the various difficulties and go forward in your cultivation. Cultivate blessings and wisdom. If you don’t cultivate blessings, no one will make offerings to you. If you don’t cultivate wisdom, you will be stupid.

The Buddha is complete in both blessings and wisdom. His blessings are perfect and his wisdom is perfect and so he is known as the Doubly-Complete Honored One. In our cultivation, too, we should cultivate blessings and wisdom. In all circumstances we should cultivate wisdom. Don’t be like the Arhat with the empty bowl who cultivated wisdom, but not blessing. No one makes offerings to him.

If you only cultivate blessings, but not wisdom, then you are like an elephant with a necklace. It may look very beautiful but it is still very stupid. Those of you who study the Buddhadharma should cultivate both wisdom and blessings. You must do so actually and in fact, and not just talk about so doing. If you speak it, it’s the Dharma; if you do it, it’s the Way. This is a point which everyone should know.

Therefore, means “because of this reason,” that is, because Manjushri Bodhisatta said that he had in the past seen limitless Buddhas manifest such portents, how, it should be known that the manifestation of light by the present Buddha, Shakyamuni Buddha, is also thus. You should know that Shakyamuni Buddha now manifests the white hair-mark light, and it is also just as when the limitless Buddhas of the past were about to speak the great Dharma, to rain the great Dharma rain, to blow the great Dharma conch, to beat the great Dharma drum, and to proclaim the great Dharma doctrine; the principle is the same.

Because he wishes to lead all living beings to hear and understand… Shakyamuni Buddha wants to cause all living beings to hear the Dharma and to understand it–this Dharma which in the whole world is hard to believe. This kind of Dharma is hard to believe. It is difficult for living beings to have faith in it. Why didn’t the Buddha speak The Dharma Flower Sutra before? Why did he first speak the teachings of the Three Storehouses, and expound the Small Vehicle Sutras? It was just because the Great Vehicle Dharma-door is a Dharma which is hard to believe. That is why, as it states later in the text, as soon as the Buddha began to speak the Sutra, five thousand people got up and walked out.

Why is it hard to believe? Because it is too wonderful and too profound. It is hard for people with their ordinary wisdom, to understand it. It is so wonderful, that it is hard for people with their ordinary thoughts, to understand it. They think about it, and they don’t understand it; they ponder it, but they don’t know what it means. So, the Buddha didn’t speak this profound and wonderful Dharma right away.

He therefore manifests these portents. He displays these auspicious signs.

Sutra:

“Good men, it is just as in the past, limitless, boundless, inconceivable Asankhyeya aeons ago…”

Outline:

F3. answers referring extensively to what was seen in the past

G1. showing Shakyamuni Buddha’s similarity with a single Buddha

H1. the time

Commentary:

“Good men, all of you good men, it is just as in the past, limitless, boundless, inconceivable Asankhyeya aeons ago… I remember, it is just like it was in the past, when limitless, uncountable, boundless, inconceivable, that is, they cannot be thought of with the mind or expressed in words, asankhyeya, a Sanskrit word meaning “uncountable ”, aeons ago…

Sutra:

“…there was at that time a Buddha named Brightness of Sun-Moon-Lamp Thus Come One, One Worthy of Offerings, One of Proper and Universal knowledge, One of Perfect Clarity and Conduct, Well-Gone One, an Unsurpassed Knight who Understands the World, a Hero Who Subdues and Tames, a Teacher of Gods and People, the Buddha, the World Honored One…”

Outline:

H2. the name

Commentary:

“…there was at that time a Buddha named Brightness of Sun-Moon-Lamp who appeared in the world.

How did he get that name?

The name of that Buddha has three meanings. The sun represents the Buddhas wisdom, which is like the sun. The sun dispels all darkness and gives light. The moon represents the Buddha’s Samadhi power. The Buddha’s Samadhi power is like the moon in space. The lamp represents the Buddha’s precept power. Every Buddha has completely perfected precepts, Samadhi and wisdom.

Thus Come One , is one of the Buddha’s ten titles. Every single Buddha has his own particular name. Like the Sutras, the Buddhas have specific and common names. This Buddha’s specific name is Brightness of Sun-Moon-Lamp; it is a name which only this Buddha has. The common name is common to all Buddhas. The ten titles which follow are common to all Buddhas, all Buddhas are known by these ten titles.

In the beginning, every Buddha had one hundred million names. Why did they have so many names? What is the use of that? It was because each of the one hundred million names represented their adornment of the ten thousand virtues, their virtuous practices. Later, because living beings couldn’t remember so many names clearly, they were decreased to one hundred thousand names.

But that was also quite a few and so they were again reduced to ten thousand. Ten thousand names were still too many and so they were reduced to one thousand names. Every Buddha had one thousand names, but that was still too many and so they were reduced to one hundred. One hundred proved to be too many; it took too long just to say a Buddha’s name and so they were reduced to ten and all Buddhas had those ten titles, ten common names.

Some people who don’t understand the Buddhadharma say, “Thus Come One Buddha.” In fact, the Thus Come One is the Buddha and the Buddha is just the Thus Come One. They say, “Thus Come One Buddha,” thinking that only one Buddha has the name “Thus Come One,” and that the other Buddhas are not called Thus Come Ones. Actually, every single Buddha is called “Buddha” and “Thus Come One.” Those who don’t understand the Buddhadharma sometimes say very strange things.

What is meant by “Thus Come One?” The Vajra Sutra says, “Because he comes from nowhere and goes nowhere, he is called the Thus Come One.” He neither comes nor goes, and so he is called Thus Come One. You may also explain this title by saying, “Thus” means that, using the Way which is Thus, they come to realize the right enlightenment.

Further, “Thus” means unchanging and “Come” means to accord with conditions. “Thus” is stillness; “Come” is movement. Movement and stillness are one “thusness.” Movement is stillness, and stillness is movement. Movement does not obstruct stillness, and stillness does not obstruct movement. The meaning of the title Thus Come One could be greatly expanded upon, but we shall now proceed to the second of the ten titles.

One Worthy of Offerings, this means that the Buddha should rightly receive the offerings of people and gods. People in the World should make offerings to the Buddha, and people in the heavens should also make offerings to him. He is one worthy of receiving their offerings.

One of Proper and Universal knowledge, proper and universal knowledge means that one understands that the ten thousand dharmas are produced from the mind and are not apart from the current thought in our minds. Understanding that the one current thought in our minds can produce the ten thousand dharmas is said to be Proper Knowledge. To know that the ten thousand dharmas are only the mind, that all dharmas do not go beyond one current thought of the mind is said to be Universal Knowledge. Proper and Universal Knowledge vertically exhausts the three limits: the past, present and future and horizontally pervades the ten directions.

One of Perfect Clarity and Conduct, clarity refers to wisdom. Conduct refers to blessings and virtues. He is complete with blessings and virtues and with wisdom.

Well-Gone One, He has gone to a good place, to the very best place.

Unsurpassed Knight who Understands the World, the Buddha understands all doctrines, both mundane and transcendental, and so he is the one who understands the world. The Buddha is an Unsurpassed Knight. The Bodhisattvas at the level of Equal Enlightenment still have one small, minute particle of production-mark ignorance which they have not yet destroyed. Because they haven’t broken through that one particle of ignorance, one particle of the Dharmabody remains as yet unmanifested. Therefore, although they are Equal Enlightenment Bodhisattvas, they are called Surpassed Knights, because above them there is still the Buddha. The Buddha has reached the level of Wonderful Enlightenment and so he is called the Unsurpassed Knight.

A Hero Who Subdues and Tames, to subdue means to use compassion to teach and transform living beings. Depending upon the kind of dharma-door a living being likes, the Buddha uses just that dharma-door to cross him over. To tame means that the Buddha uses awesome virtue and dignity to control living beings, to receive all living beings. Living beings who see the Buddha are respectful and stand in awe of him. They revere the Buddha’s awesome virtue and are awed by his majesty. The Hero is a great hero, one who subdues and tames all the living beings in the world and so he is known as the Hero Who Subdues and Tames.

Teacher of Gods and People, the Buddha is the master of the gods in the heavens and the people in the world.

The Buddha, the word Buddha means “the enlightened one.” There are three kinds of enlightenment: self-enlightenment, the enlightenment ot others, and the perfection of enlightenment and practice. What is self enlightenment? How does it differ from other kinds?

Those with self-enlightenment are different from common people. Common people are all unenlightened. They have not awakened. They don’t know that there is no peace in the three realms; they are just like a burning house. They don’t know that this world is just like a raging fire and that it is very easy to be burnt to a crisp in it. There is not a single place in the three realms that is peaceful. It is just as dangerous as being in a flaming building. So the common people are not enlightened. Those with self-enlightenment have awakened themselves. They have certified to the attainment of the fruit of Arhatship.

How do those who enlighten others differ from the self-enlightened? Self-enlightenment is the realm of the Arhat. The enlightenment of others is the realm of the Bodhisattva. The Bodhisattva himself is enlightened, and he thinks that enlightenment is not bad at all; it’s extremely wonderful in fact, and he is very happy. Since he has obtained the subtle and wonderful happiness himself, as well as an understanding of the doctrines of the world, he also causes everyone to obtain this wonder and joy, these advantages. He takes that which he has experienced in his path of cultivation and teaches it to others. He speaks it for them all to hear.

For example, a certain layperson now wishes to be one of self-enlightenment who enlightens others. He is going to the university to lecture on the Buddhadharma. Although he has not claimed to have certified to any particular fruit, he has chosed to bring forth the Bodhisattva resolve: “I know as much as I know, and I am not afraid that people will say I lectured well or poorly. I’m just going to go ahead and lecture.” That is the Bodhisattva heart which, self-enlightened, enlightens others. Besides, I have great faith in what this layperson says. He is very eloquent and takes the principles from Chinese and puts them into English in an inconceivable way. This is just the enlightenment of others. If one can constantly bring forth the Bodhisattva heart and not work for fame or profit and not think, “I’m going to lecture and when I’m done, I’ll be famous,” or, “When I’m done lecturing, I’ll get so much money,” this is self-enlightenment and the enlightenment of others.

Don’t take this matter lightly! Any one of you can become self-enlightened and then enlighten others. I am lecturing the Sutras to you, and although it’s not 100% fine, still, you can expand on what I say. For example, if I lecture one doctrine, you can obtain ten from it and then lecture ten. If I speak about the Thus Come One and say just a little bit, you can investigate the term in the Sutras and find a lot of different ways to explain it, and compare and collate them. I hope that all of you will self-enlighten and enlighten others.

Regardless of whether you are male or female–don’t be afraid! Don’t say, “If I speak, will they laugh?” So what if they laugh! Laughter is just laughter after all. Pay no attention to them! “Let them laugh, but I am going to lecture!” You should bring forth this kind of Bodhisattva heart; this is self-enlightenment and the enlightenment of others. Although it is the resolve of the Bodhisattva, it is still not the same as the third type of enlightenment, the perfection of enlightenment and practice. The Buddha is one who has perfected his own self-enlightenment and his enlightenment of others. He has perfectly finished both of these jobs and so he is called a Buddha.

The World Honored One, what is meant by “the World Honored One?” “Honored” means the most lofty, the most venerable, the most highly esteemed. There is no one higher than the one who is honored. “World” means his world. Is the Buddha merely honored by those in the world? No. He is honored by those in and those beyond the world. The people in the world all pay respect to the Buddha, and the people beyond the world also must respect the Buddha. Because he is honored by those in and beyond the world, he is called the World Honored One. If spoken in detail, the title world Honored One could be explained for several years without finishing. Now, I have explained the meanings of the Buddha’s ten titles in a very general way. If you wish to look into them more deeply, you can do so on your own.

Pages: 1 2 3 4