What are “no outflows?” In China, there is a saying:
Everyday, guard against fire;
Every month, guard against thieves.
You have to watch over your own house. Guard against the fire of ignorance. When ignorance arises, one fears neither heaven nor earth nor spirits nor ghosts. “If a monster comes, I will take it one!” Why does one act like that? Because the fire of ignorance has been lit. We must guard against such fires of ignorance every day.
Every month one must guard against the thieves within one, not those on the outside. It is said, “It is hard to defend yourself from the thieves in your own house.” If a thief comes from the outside, he would not know where you have put your treasures. If you have got a thief inside your house, however, he will know right where to go to steal your valuables.
You must guard yourself from your eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind–the six thieves. These six can turn your mind upside-down, and you get all afflicted. Isn’t this pitiful? The eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind steal the Dharma treasures from your self nature. You let your house get out of control and you have outflows. Once the outflows start, they keep on flowing, and you end up just like everyone else. If you can maintain the non-outflow state, you will certainly realize Buddhahood. Outflows, however, are very quick to start.
If you have no outflows, you are yoked to a white ox cart. If you have outflows, you have not been yoked up to it. When I lectured on The Heart Sutra, one of the verses had a line which said:
The great white ox cart’s rapidly turning sound;
The yellow-faced child jumping and thumping.
Your mind may jump, thump, and race, but since it is yoked to the white ox cart, it does not get very far.
White is the base of all colors, the absence of any stain or defilment. It represents the basic substance of the Dharma which is pure and undefiled. It has not, the least spot of dust on it, and so it is white. It is interactive with the non-outflow wisdom. If there are defilements, there is no attainment. The great white ox cart represents the Four Applications of Mindfulness having been cultivated to the point of perfect accomplishment, to enlightenment.
The white ox also represents the Four Right Efforts:
1. Those good roots which have not come forth are caused to come forth.
2. Those good roots which have come forth are caused to grow.
3. Evil which has not come forth is caused not to come forth.
4. Evil which has already come forth is eradicated.
Plump and white: The two aspects of the good in the Four Right Efforts are represented by “plump.” “White” represents the eradication of evil in the Four Right Efforts.
The Four Bases of Psychic Power are:
1. Zeal,
2. Vigor,
3. Mindfulness, and
4. Consideration
Zeal refers to the accomplishment of whatever you wish, that is, when it concerns the cultivation of the Buddhadharma. For example, if you wish to succeed in your cultivation, you will. Vigor: For example, one disciple wishes to bow to The Dharma Flower Sutra everyday. If he continues to keep his vow by bowing, he will perfect the psychic power of vigor. Thus, he will blaze a trail in Western Buddhism by doing things no one has ever done before.
With the psychic power of mindfulness, things go just as your heart wishes them to go. Consideration means that you just think about them and you get your aim. But the Four Bases of Psychic Power must be based on the non-outflow wisdom. If you have no outflows, this means no sexual desire. Sexual desire is the root of all outflows. If you have no sexual desire, that is the non-outflow wisdom. If you have sexual desire, you have not attained to the non-outflow wisdom.
And of fine appearance: This represents the bringing forth of the Great Vehicle mind. All dharmas are complete in the mind and the mind indicated the total all-inclusive functioning of the Great Vehicle. The one word “mind” includes all dharmas.
Of great muscular strength: The great white ox is powerful. Its muscles are large and strong. The muscles represent the Five Roots, and the strength represents the Five Powers. The Five Roots are five kinds of good roots. Why are they called roots?
When the roots are deep, the trunk is solid;
When the roots are solid, the branches are luxuriant.
If the roots are deep, the branches are lush. When the roots are solid, the brances and leaves are very beautiful. The Five Roots are:
1. Faith,
2. vigor,
3. mindfulness,
4. concentration, and
5. wisdom.
As to faith, the Buddhadharma is as vast as the sea, and only be faith can one enter it. Therefore, faith is the root of studying the Buddhadharma. You must have the root of faith. If you have faith, you can send down deep roots. The greater your faith, the deeper your roots. With no faith, you have no roots. Although I lectured on the Buddhadharma for you everyday, you still must believe it and send down your own roots.
Vigor: You cannot just believe, you have to be vigorous and make progress. If you are not vigorous, and just believe without practicing, it is useless. You must go forward and practice.
Mindfulness: You must have presence of mind and never forget to practice. If you have the root of mindfulness, you will not be moved.
Concentration: You may think, “The Buddhadharma is not bad. I will go save a few living beings and get them to believe in Buddhism.” But as soon as you get near some living being, he says, “Christianity is the very best religion. Catholicism is the very best. Come and study with us.” Since you have no samadhi, you become one of their converts! They transform you. You do not transform them. This happens, because you have no samadhi. If you had samadhi, you would save those you wished to save and would not be “saved” by them.
Wisdom: Out of the root of samadhi comes wisdom. When the root of wisdom is sent down, you are even less moved.
The Five Powers are just the Five Roots which have grown. The roots grow into the powers. Thus the Five Powers are the powers of faith, vigor, mindfulness, samdhi, and wisdom.
With the Five Powers, by means of the non-outflow wisdom, you can accomplish all kinds of good roots, and all kinds of Bodhi seeds and grow to fulfillment.
That walks with even tread: Because the ox has great muscular strength his walk is steady. He never takes a wrong step. This represents the equality of samadhi and wisdom. If one has wisdom one also has samadhi, and if one has samadhi one also has wisdom. Samadhi and wisdom are evenly balanced. As one’s samadhi increases, so does one’s wisdom, and as one’s wisdom increases, so does one’s samadhi. They are balanced. If you have samadhi and no wisdom, you will be a stupid cultivator. If you have wisdom but no samadhi, you will become a frenzied cultivator. You must let wisdom aid samadhi and samadhi aid wisdom. They should support each other.
The even tread also represents the Seven Limbs of Enlightenment, also called the Seven Bodhi Shares, or the Seven Dharma-door for the enlightening to the Way. They are among the Thirty-seven Wings of Enlightenment which the Buddha taught to those of the Two Vehicles. However, the Great Vehicle includes them as well.
The Thirty-seven Wings of Enlightenment are composed of:
1. The Four Applications of Mindfulness.
2. The Four Right Efforts.
3. The Four Bases of Psychic Powers.
4. The Five Roots.
5. The Five Powers.
6. The Seven Limbs of Enlightenment.
7. The Eight Sagely Way Shares (the Eightfold Path).
The Seven Limbs of Enlightenment are:
1. Selecting a dharma. In Selecting a dharma, one chooses between the right and wrong dharmas, the proper and the improper dharmas, true and false dharmas, real and illusory dharmas. How do you select them? You use the non-outflow wisdom and the Selective Dharma-eye to pick the dharma. We must pick out true, proper, real, and good dharmas to cultivate. Improper, false, and deviant dharmas should be avoided.
2. Vigor. Having selected a dharma, one must vigorously cultivate it. You must be vigorous in your cultivation of genuine dharmas, not in cultivating false dharmas. If you are vigorous in cultivating false dharmas, that is just false vigor. You must have the Enlightenment Share of Vigor which just means that you need to understand what road it is you need to walk down in your cultivation.
3. Happiness. There are both proper and improper happiness. If you cultivate correctly, you will gain proper happiness. Some people obtain a kind of insane happiness. When this happens, you follow your insane desires and do insane things; you feel very happy, but you are actually just upside-down. You should take joy in both Dhyana and Dharma, take the joy of Dhyana as your food and be filled with the delight of Dharma. You should be happy to have obtained the Buddhadharma. You should think, “Before, I did not understand the Buddhadharma at all. Now I understand all these principles and they are so lofty and profound! I am truly happy!”
Those are first three of the Seven Limbs of Enlightenment. There are four more:
4. Casting out. You must determine what is true and what is false. Keep the true, but get rid of the false. What is false? Afflictions. Cut off afflictions.
5. Renunciation. You must renounce those things which you should not hold on to. For example, when sitting in Dhyana, you cannot get attached to the advantages gained thereby. Some people sit in Dhyana and get a bit of a state and promptly become attached to it. They cannot put it down and constantly hanker after that happy state. When you have cast it aside, you need…
6. Samadhi. Samadhi refers to Dhyana Samadhi. In cultivation, when one is not attached to anything, one gains accomplishment in the skill of Dhyana Samadhi. Once you have this accomplishment, you have got the Enlightenment Share of Samadhi.
In other, non-Buddhist, religions, they “hold to a quiet darkness.” This means that they suppress the thoughts of the mind-consciousness so that they do not arise. This is a type of samadhi cultivated by external religions and you should avoid it. You must cultivate proper samadhi. What is proper samadhi? It means not being attached to anything. If you have proper knowledge and proper views, you will then have proper samadhi.
The first three of the Limbs of Enlightenment are to be used when you feel depressed or drowsy. The second three are to be used when you are nervous or upset. The ability to use the first six counteract these mental states is called the Enlightenment Share of…
7. Mindfulness. Cultivators should know about the Seven Limbs of Enlightenment. Those who have brought forth the Bodhi heart should cultivate according to them. By means of these seven, one regulates the body and mind so that they are free of all dangers. That is what is meant by “that walks with even tread.” It is a manifestation of his spiritual skill.
As fleet as the wind: The great white ox is pulling the cart as fast as the wind. There are many different kinds of winds. Hurricanes blow people and things right away. Everyone like light breezes, however. This wind is not a light wind or a hurricane. On the other hand, you could say that it is both a light wind and a hurricane. Why? It is a light wind, because it makes you feel refreshed and comfortable. It is a hurricane, because it blows away the deviant knowledge and views of demons and externalists. The light breeze is also an analogy for the Eight Sagely Way Shares (the Eightfold Path). One should cultivate according to these eight:
1. Right views. If you have deviant knowledge and deviant views, you cannot accept the Buddhadharma. You must have right knowledge and right views. Using the non-outflow wisdom, you break through all deviant knowledge and views to cultivate right knowledge and views. Right views means, “If it is not in accord with propriety, do not look at it.”
2. Right thought. This means, “If it is not in accord with propriety, do not listen to it.” Why would you think about it? Because you listened to it.
3. Right speech means, “If it is not in accord with propriety, do not talk about it.” Do not gossip.
Even if you know very clearly that someone is at fault, forgive them. People are just people, after all. If people do not make mistakes, they would all have become Buddhas long ago. People have heavy habits and no one can avoid doing a few things wrong, so do not talk about people’s faults. That is right speech. Do not get together with your friends and sit in judgement on other people. People in this world come together because of affinities. We have met here to study the Buddhadharma together so we should look at people’s good points, not at their mistakes.
“But what if they are wrong and refuse to change, then what will we do?”
Do not worry about whether or not they will change. Just have faith that they will. If you confront them head on with, “You are wrong!” they will resist. “Who are you to tell me what to do?” they will fire back. “I will just boss you around instead, because I can see a few places where you are off” and then the fight is on! Each one says the other is wrong when actually they are both wrong. They both get upset and then retreat from the Bodhi mind. “To heck with it. I am not going to cultivate the Way. I am leaving. I am not going to leave home. I am going back to lay-life!!” How much offense karma have you created, here? So speak properly, and do not just talk about other’s faults.
4. Right action. This means that you do proper things. “If it is not in accord with propriety, do not do it.” Do not do deviant things like going into the gambling business and developing spiritual powers in the number’s racket. That is deviant action.
What is right action? Sitting in Dhyana Meditation without any false thinking. Studying the Buddhadharma. That is the most proper form of action.
“But,” you ask, “if I study the Buddhadharma, where will I get food to eat?”
You should not worry about that. If you study well, you will naturally have food to eat.
5. Right livelihood. During your life, you should do things properly, out in the open. As to deviant forms of earning a living, there are four types:
A). Manifesting a strange style. This means to act eccentrically. For example, a man wearing flowers in his hair walking around on the streets would attract attention. Or perhaps one wears some outlandish costume to attract a lot of attention to oneself.
B). Speaking of one’s own merit and virtue. “I built a temple here. I built a bridge over there. I gave to this and that cause…” No one knows how great their merit and virtue is.
C). Telling fortunes. Perhaps you consult the I Jing for someone and say, “Oh no! You are really in for it. Tomorrow you are going to die! If you do not give me several hundred or several thousand dollars, you are going to lose your life.” The person hears this and thinks, “What use will my money be to me if I am dead? Might as well give it to him and live a little longer.” Thus he has been cheated out of his life savings.
Or you say, “In the future you are going to be the President, but right now you have to do some merit and virtue. Give me five thousand dollars and do something good for me and I will guarantee your future success.” The fellow thinks, “Gee, that is really cheap to be President,” and he gives him the five thousand and waits to become President. By the time he realizes he will be waiting forever, the person he gave the money to has disappeared. He has gone somewhere else, or perhaps he has died. He could predict the other person’s death, but he was unable to predict his own. This is just cheating people.
D). Speaking loudly and acting in an overbearing manner. The person speaks in booming tones so that those who hear him think he is very unusual. They respect him and make offerings to him.
Speaking of one’s own offerings. “Oh, so and so gave me five hundred thousand dollars, and so and so gave me a million. They really believe in me.” But you just talk that way to get someone else to make offerings to you. “They made offerings, you should, too.” This is climbing on conditions, trying to get offerings. All of you should listen carefully. When did I ever say, “So and so made offerings to me…” When I do, you will know that I am guilty of using a method of deviant livelihood and you should not make offerings to me.
6. Right vigor. Some people are vigorous in proper ways and others in deviant ways. What is proper vigor? What is deviant vigor? Deviant dharmas harm other people. Those who cultivate deviant dharmas work very hard in the six periods of the day and night, cultivating all kinds of ascetic practices. These ascetic practices, however, are unbeneficial. They may imitate the behavior of cows or of dogs, and practice being like chickens. They imitate cows and eat grass and say they are being vigorous, because they saw that a cow was born into the heavens. They did not realize it was because of the merit and virtue which the cow had done in previous lives. They thought the cow was born in the heavens, because it ate grass! So they take a cow for their teacher. The cow has no understanding of dharma whatsoever, and if you study with a cow, that is called improper vigor.
As to studying with a dog… Hah! They say that dogs watch over the door for people and that brings merit. Dogs eat excrement and that is a form of ascetic practices, and so they imitate dogs. They also imitate chickens. Chickens go looking for food, pecking on the ground, and so they do this, too. They pretend that their hands are chicken legs, and they peck at the ground. They think this is an ascetic practice, that they can do something no one else can do. Actually, this is just an unbeneficial type of ascetic practice. Although it is unbeneficial, they would not admit it as such. They think it is cultivation. They are not properly vigorous and they have no genuine wisdom. That is why they observe the morality of cows, dogs, and chickens.
Right vigor means to cultivate according to the Buddha’s Four Applications of Mindfulness, Four Right Efforts, Four Bases of Psychic Powers, Five Roots, Five Powers, the Seven Limbs of Enlightenment, the Eightfold Path, the Four Holy Truths, and Twelve Causal Conditions. Cultivating according to the Six Perfections is also right vigor. Right vigor means to cultivate according to the Buddhadharma. One does not cultivate dharmas which the Buddha did not teach. This is called offering up your conduct in accord with the Buddha’s instructions. Right vigor means vigor with the body and vigor with the mind. Mental vigor means recollecting the Triple Jewel, not neglecting it for a second. Vigor with the body means putting the teachings into actual practice. For example, bowing to the Buddha, reading the Sutras, bowing to Sutras, and bowing repentance ceremonies and reciting the Buddha’s name were all manifestations of bodily vigor, actual upholding of the Buddhadharma.
7. Right mindfulness. This means mindfulness of the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Deviant mindfulness means mindfulness of deviant views, prejudiced views, love and emotion. Deviant mindfulness means being selfish–always thinking about yourself first. One can never forget about self or others. Right mindfulness means that whenever we have time we should recollect the Buddha, reciting, “Namo Amitabha Buddha,” or “Namo Medicine Master Buddha,” or “Namo Shakyamuni Buddha.” We should recollect the Dharma–recite the Great Compassion Mantra, the Shurangama Mantra, and Sutras such as the Vajra Sutra, the Dharma Flower Sutra, and the Shurangama Sutra. There are several laywomen here who go to work all day and then skip dinner to come here at night and recite Sutras. That is right mindfulness.
Mindfulness of the Sangha. What Sangha? The worthy sages of the Sangha of the ten directions. Who are they? The great Bodhisattvas, Arhats, and Bhikshus. Now, in the world, all who have left the home-life are members of the Sangha. If you are mindful of the Sangha, you will make offerings to them. If you are mindful of the Dharma, you make offerings to the Dharma. If you are mindful of the Buddha, you make offerings to the Buddha. If you do not want to forget the Triple Jewel, you must make offerings to the Triple Jewel. If you want to make offerings to the Triple Jewel, you must respect the Triple Jewel. By making offerings to the Triple Jewel, you plant blessings. If you want to have fields of blessings, you must plant them by making offerings to the Triple Jewel. There is a saying that goes:
Although one cannot plant blessings with the common Sangha,
If you want blessings, you must seek them from the common Sangha.
Although a clay dragon cannot bring rain,
If you want rain, you must seek it from a clay dragon.
The “common Sangha” refers to ordinary left-home people, those who have not certified to the fruit. Although they cannot bring you blessings, when you seek blessings, you must seek them from the common Sangha. If you seek blessings from them with a sincere heart, then the sagely Sangha of the ten directions will naturally send you blessings. If you do not seek blessings from the common Sangha and go looking for the sagely Sangha, you can look to the ends of the horizon, to the end of the ocean, and you would not find one. If you seek blessings, you must start by seeking them from the common Sangha.
The “clay dragon” cannot make rain. However, if you want rain, you have to seek for rain at the temple of a clay dragon. Westerners probably are not familiar with this method, but in China when people want rain, they seek it by going to a dragon king temple. In the temple there is a clay dragon. If you seek rain there, you will gain a response. It will rain. Now, in the scientific age, they say that people do not have control over the rain. They say rain comes from condensation in the atmosphere. That is correct, but the condensation has no life of its own. It is like a computer. Unless someone operates the computer, it cannot compute. The same principle applies. The rain comes from condensation, but still, imperceptibly, in a way people cannot see, the spirits and dragons are controlling it. But this is not something we common folk with our science can understand through research. Really, the rain is caused by the dragons!
“I have never seen any dragons,” you say. “How can they make it rain?”
Well, if you have not seen any dragons, we will just have to wait until you do and then I will explain to you how it works. Now, you have not seen any so I would not tell you about them. However, I remembered when I was in Manchuria a very strange thing happened. I had a disciple there named Guo Xun. He worked hard at his cultivation and was even more sincere than I am! He was my favorite disciple. One day, he built himself a small hut. Beside it there was the Dragon King Temple. When he had finished building the hut, he asked me to perform the opening ceremonies. On opening day, ten dragons came over from the temple next door and asked to take refuge with the Triple Jewel. Would you say this was strange or not? I had four disciple with me at the time and two of them had the Buddha Eye and the Heavenly Eye. When they meditated, they could observe all kinds of things. After the ten dragons asked to take refuge, I said to them, “It has been several months since there has been any rain. You are dragons. Why don’t you make it rain. Why are you so lazy?”
They wanted to take refuge and so when I scolded them. They did not get angry. They said, “The Jade Emperor, Shakra, gives us orders to make it rain. If he tells us to make it rain then we can do it.”
I said to the dragons, “Tell him that in the world here there is a left-home person by the name of so-and-so who is now asking for rain within a radius of forty miles from where he is. If it rains tomorrow, I will let you take refuge the day after tomorrow. If it does not rain tomorrow, you cannot take refuge, you cannot be my disciples, and you cannot take refuge with the Triple Jewel.”
They went right up into the heavens with my message which turned out to be very efficacious. The next day, in fact, it rained and, what is most strange, it rained right within a forty-mile radius of where I was. There was no rain outside of forty miles. The day after, I let them take refuge. That was my experience with dragons and rain. But this is something that, although I personally experienced it, those who do not believe it far outnumber those who do. Ultimately, why is this? I do not know either! I do not pay any attention to whether or not people believe it. I just bring it up for your information. In the future, when you come to believe in it, you will know that what I told you today was really true.
There was another similar experience I had while in Hong Kong. One year Hong Kong had no rain during the spring and summer. All the temples, Buddha halls, and places of cultivation were praying for rain. They sought for four or five months and did not get any. I originally do not pay attention to such matters, because I have never liked to get involved in things like that. Besides, there were so many people seeking for rain, surely their power would be greater than mine. So I ignored the whole thing. But after five or six months I could not ignore it any longer, because I was living at Xi Le Yuan where the water was almost dried up. I said to one of my disciples, “You have three days in which to recite ‘Namo Amitabha Buddha,’ and seek for rain. If it does not rain in three days, you need not come back and see me ever again.” She very obediently recited and after two days it rained. Then what do you think happened?
All the Buddha Halls in Hong Kong advertised that the rain was a result of their having prayed for it. They all took out ads. Not a single person knew that the rain had come as a result of the recitation of my disciple. She never advertised it. Why did I give her three days to get rain? Because I knew I had ten dragon disciples, and if they were not lazy any one of them could make it rain. I told them to make it rain and sure enough it rained inside of two days. Things like this have happened often. One time we were making offerings to the heavens and the rain clouds gathered. Everyone said, “Call off the ceremony. It is going to rain.” It takes four hours to do the ceremony and right after we were done and had just moved everything inside, it started pouring down rain! Whether you believe or not, if you have experienced these things, you know. In Hong Kong my disciples really believe in me. They know that when I say something it is efficacious.
Tomorrow is the first day of the fifth month, and the fourth month (April) has already passed. I said there would not be an earthquake in the fourth month and sure enough, my words were efficacious. There are a lot of causes and conditions involved in this, but there is not time to go into them now.
Once you have right mindfulness, you need…
8. Right concentration. Right concentration is the opposite of deviant concentration. What is deviant concentration? It is attachment. You cannot put it down. For example, some people like to drink and although you tell them not to, they continue to drink with great concentration because they have this deviant concentration. Or they like to take drugs. The more they take the stupider they get. When you tell them not to, they say, “I can get enlightened taking this stuff. When I take this, things really start happening. I go through changes. I see and hear differently. The world becomes adorned with the seven jewels. Isn’t that a state?” It is deviant concentration, that is what it is! For example, one person came here to listen to the lecture, but not a word could get in because he had his deviant concentration going and he was very attached. “I am right! I cannot listen to you!” That is deviant knowledge, deviant views, and deviant concentration.
Then what is right concentration? Right concentration is the cultivation of the Four Dhyanas, the Eight Samadhis. Do not have a self at all. Cultivate these Dharmas, but forget your “self.” If you have forgotten your “self” how could you still keep on drinking, taking drugs, and indulging yourself? Everyone looks for advantages for themselves, but people who cultivate the Ch’an School forget about advantages. That is right concentration.
Having also many servants who follow and guard it : The servants represent expedient Dharma-doors, the Paramita of Expedients. By means of expedient Dharmas, one arrives at the other shore. What are expedients? What are servants? Expedient Dharmas are those which are indirect and which accord with people’s wishes. How do they do this? Say people do a certain kind of work, and you go help them out. That is being expedient. The heavenly demons and outside religions and those of the Two Vehicles cannot get away from expedients but follow the wisdom of expedients in their cultivation of the Way.
The servants can also be said to represent the spiritual powers gained on the result-ground by the Bodhisattvas. The result-ground Bodhisattvas have already certified to the fruit and attained to the position of the Ten Grounds. That is what is meant by “result” ground. These Bodhisattvas all have spiritual powers and their spiritual powers accord with the wishes in their minds. They can do whatever they wish to do. This spiritual power is as their minds wish it to be and so the text says, “Having many servants who follow and guard it.” This means that the Great Vehicle Dharma requires many expedients to bring it to accomplishment. With these spiritual powers, one can do anything at all. It is like having a lot of servants.
Looked from the point of view of “contemplation of the mind,” in this passage of text, we observe each thought in the mind: Vertically speaking, the thoughts which come from our minds have no former or latter aspect and no beginning or end. Horizontally speaking, our minds have no boundaries. The thoughts present in our minds reveal the truth of emptiness, the truth of the false, and the truth of the middle way. Because they contain all three truths, the cart is said to be broad and high.
The thoughts present in our minds also contain the Ten Dharma Realms. None of the Ten Dharma Realms (the Dharma Realms of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Condition-Enlightened Ones, Hearers, gods, asuras, people, hell-beings, hungry ghosts, and animals) go beyond the thoughts present in the mind. The cart is said to be broad, as are the Ten Dharma Realms. The virtuous qualities within our self-natures are more numerous than the grains of sand in the Ganges River. So the cart is “adorned with a multitude of intertwining jewels.” The many virtuous qualities of the nature are the “multitude.” The basic substance of those virtuous qualities is jewel-like, and so they are like a multitude of intertwining jewels.
As to the mind: Outside of the mind, there are no dharmas. Outside of dharmas there is no mind:
The Buddha spoke all dharmas, for the minds of living beings;
If there were no minds, what use would dharmas be?
The mind is just the dharma and the dharmas are just the mind. What are “outside Ways?” They are those who seek for the dharma outside the mind. Since there are no dharmas outside the mind, the mind includes both worldly and transcendental dharmas. That is what is represented in the text by “surrounded by railings.”
“Hung with bells on its four sides” represents that the mind can universally influence all things. It proclaims the sounds of the teaching. None of them go beyond one thought of the mind.
“Further, it is covered with canopies.” This represents the thoughts present in the mind. The mind is the most wonderful thing among all dharmas. It includes all dharmas within it. There are no dharmas which are not inside the mind. The mind “covers” all dharmas, and so is represented by the canopies.
As to the mind, there are mind-king dharmas, and subsidiary mind dharmas. The eight consciousness, also called the mind-king, sometimes performs an observation. When it does this, the subsidiary mind dharmas all respond to it and follow its orders. This is what is meant by “adorned with various rare and precious jewels.” This is lecturing according to the contemplation of the mind.
As to subsidiary mind dharmas, when the wholesome subsidiary mind dharmas react favorably with the remaining subsidiary mind dharmas in an uninterrupted fashion, this is represented by the phrase “strung with jeweled cords.”
From out of the wholesome subsidiary mind dharmas, limitless wisdom arises and limitless blessings and virtues are realized; this is represented by the phrase, “hung with flowered tassels.”
Further, that thought present in the mind is complete with pliant and light dharmas; not only is it replete with pliant and light dharmas, it is complete with all dharmas. It is complete with all dharmas–multilayered and without end. Layer after layer, you could never speak of them all. It is just that thought present in the mind which has such a versatile functioning. This is represented by the phrase, “heaped with beautiful mats.”
Take another look at the mind. It itself is movement; it is also stillness. It can move and it can be still. Movement does not obstruct stillness and stillness does not obstruct movement. Movement and stillness are one suchness, non-dual. The singularity of the suchness and their non-duality is represented by the phrase “set about with rosy cushions.”
“Yoked to an ox.” If you observe it at a deeper level, the doctrine of the mind is manifest through the wonderful observing wisdom, and this is represented by the phrase “yoked to a white ox.”
“Plump and white.” The merit and virtue of the nature is subtle and inconceivable; this is represented by the word “plump.” If in the mind there is no affliction, then it is “white.” Its color is pure. Why? Because in your mind there is no admixture of ignorance or affliction.
The mind is complete with perfect penetration and comfort; this is represented by the phrase “of fine appearance.”
“Of great muscular strength.” This wisdom of perfect contemplation can produce all good roots. The perfect contemplation can eradicate love and views within the Three Realms. Because love and views are upside-down, it takes great strength to eradicate them.
The perfect contemplation is the non-duality of samadhi and wisdom. Wisdom is samadhi and samadhi is just wisdom. Wisdom and samadhi perfectly interpenetrate; this is represented by the phrase “who walks with even tread.”
The perfect contemplation easily arrives at the other shore; this is represented by the phrase “as fleet as the wind.” This perfect contemplation leads all the subsidiary mind dharmas, controls them all; this is represented by the phrase “having also many servants who follow and guard it.”
Sutra:
“And why is this? That great Elder has limitless wealth and all manner of storehouses full to overflowing.”
Outline:
O2. Explaining the source of the carts.
Commentary:
Having explained that the cart was so high and broad, with little bells hanging from the four sides and covered with canopies and rare treasures, the question is raised, and why is this? That great Elder, the Buddha, has limitless wealth and all manner of storehouses full to overflowing? The wealth refers to Dharma treasures, Dharma-doors taught by the Buddha.
The storehouses refer to all kinds of jewel-treasuries filled with precious things. These treasuries are all the Dharmas. This is an analogy for all the Dharmas. In general, you could say there are Six Perfections and The Conduct of Ten Thousand. The Six Perfections are giving, morality, patience, vigor, Dhyana Samadhi, and wisdom. These six are not just to be recited in order to perfect them. We cannot just learn to rattle off the names and think we understand them. You have to practice them. You have to give. You can give wealth, Dharma, or fearlessness–but you have to do it. “Morality” means to do no evil and to practice all good. Patience…well, that is the hardest. Giving is pretty easy. Morality is not too hard, but patience is the hardest of all. Why? In order to be patient, you have to empty yourself of your concept of “self.” Otherwise, you cannot be patient. Patience means taking hard things easy. If people are not good to you, you must act as if they were being good to you.
“But that is just being stupid!” you may object.
Students of the Buddhadharma should not act too smart. If you are too smart, you have gone overboard. If you have no mark of self, no attachment to self, no view of self, then you can be patient. If you think, “Before I was born, who was I? Now that I have been born, who am I? Where did this ‘me’ come from? It is just an empty name. When I blink my eyes and the dream ends, who will I be? When I die, where will I go? Who will I be, then?” then, you can bear what is hard to bear. If you always look on the “self” as empty, then you can easily bear up.
Although people are bad to you, you would not feel that it is any problem. If you study the Buddhadharma, you cannot just listen to it. In order to understand it, you must actually practice it. If you just eat candy all day long, and it is really sweet, thinking you are being patient with your eating candy, you are fooling yourself. It takes something you do not like, some vexing situation, then you act as if nothing were the matters. It is no problem. It does not phase you, because you really understand you have control over it. That is what patience is all about. But it is not easy to be that way. If you can do it, you have grasped the essential message of The Wonderful Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra. Do not look upon your “self” as so important. That “self” in the future, is going to die. Why scramble to get the best for it? Why compete for fame and profit? You should look on the mark of self as empty. There is no self.
“What if someone slugs me?” you ask. “What do it do then?”
Think of it this way: “In the past, I must have hit that person, and so he is hitting me now. If I did not hit him in this life, I must have hit him or scolded him in a previous life. Last year during the Summer Session, I said that if in this life you scold people, in your next life, you will be beaten. If you beat people in this life, in a future life, you may be murdered. If in this life you pester people, in a future life, they will pester you. Former cause and latter effect are very severe.
You say, “I do not believe it.”
You do not? Do you have troubles? If you do, that was where they came from. You cannot be patient. You cannot put everything down. Whether you believe it or not, that is the way it is!
“But why is it so severe?” you ask.
If you put money in the bank, over a period of time, it will collect interest. If you scold people and give them a lot of trouble, they are going to collect a little interest, too. If, in a former life, you scolded people, they may beat you in this life. If you beat them, they may kill you. If you kill someone, they may end up killing your entire household. The retribution is very servere. That is why cultivators should always refrain from giving others trouble. Watch over yourself. Do not be aggressive and make trouble for no reason.
If someone beats or scolds you, you may try to act as if there were no self, but then you feel: “Well… here I am, I mean… I am in my body right here. I have feelings, you know. How can I have no self? How can I put it down?”
Vigor means not being lazy. One is vigorous in the six periods of the day and night. For example, the Westerners I have taken as disciples are only half vigorous. As Westerners, they can be considered pretty vigorous, but as cultivators, they can only be considered halfway vigorous. Dhyana samadhi is cultivated by sitting in meditation. This was discussed extensively earlier. There is another name for the first five Paramitas–giving, morality, patience, vigor, and Dhyana samadhi: they are known as great blessings. The sixth Paramita, wisdom, is called great Prajna or great wisdom.
The word “overflowing” in the text represents the perfection of both provisional wisdom and actual wisdom.
Now, I would like to return to the topic of patience and say some more. You may find that you cannot practice the contemplation of “no self,” even though you want to. Your body has feelings, so how can there be no self? How can you relinquish the self? There is a wonderful Dharma here and I will tell you what it is: If someone hits you, you can just think, “Oh, gees, I ran into the wall. I was not looking where I was walking…” or “Something fell on me.” If a brick fell on you, you would not want to hit the brick. If you did that, you hand as well as your foot would hurt. If you fight it, it is going to hurt more. If you do not, if you pretend nothing happened, that you ran into a door or whatever, it is all over.
It is hard to listen to someone scold you, but can just pretend you do not understand them. “Oh, he is speaking Japanese or Spanish or something. I have no idea what he is talking about.” Or else you can think, “He is praising me! His scolding is just a song. He is making music!” Think of ways to cope with it, and then you will have no anger or affliction. If you get afflicted, that means you have a karmic obstacle. People without karmic obstacles do not have afflictions. Those with afflictions have karmic obstacles. Since you have karmic obstacles, you should find ways to eradicate them. In this world, there is nothing unbearable, if you really know to how to practice patience. I have often told you about Maitreya Bodhisattva’s verse which, no doubt, all of you have rejected, thinking it too silly; but since you do not want it, I will just give it to you again:
The Old Fool wears ragged robes,
And fills himself with tasteless food,
And mends his clothes to keep out the cold,
Just letting things take their course.Should someone scold the Old Fool,
The Old Fool just says, “Fine.”
Should someone hit the Old Fool,
He just lays down to sleep.Spit right in his face,
He just lets it dry,
Saving his energy
And giving you no affliction.This kind of Paramita
Is the jewel in the wonderful.
Having heard this news,
Why worry about not realizing the Way?
If you cannot perfect patience, it is because you cannot put down your “self.” Your “self” is bigger than Mount Sumeru, and there is no place to put it, because it would not fit anywhere! Wherever you put it, that place is filled up. You must put your “self” down. Then, you can understand the Buddhadharma. Those who understand the Buddhadharma cultivate patience. We who study the Buddhadharma must take care to cultivate it. Otherwise, when something happens, you would not be on top of it, and the fire of ignorance will blaze thirty thousand feet into the air, burning off all your merit and virtue.
Firewood gathered in a thousand days,
Burns up in a single spark’s blaze.
One match can burn it all up. Cultivating patience is very important.
Not to speak of other people, you might think I have no problems in this line, but actually a lot of people berate me. But if you want to scold me or hit me, go right ahead. There was a person who came and bullied me until there was nothing I could do but bow to him! He was one of my disciples! Now that is a first in the history of Buddhism, but I would not mention his name or else you will all start bowing to him and that would not be too good.
Sutra:
“So he reflects thus: ‘My possessions are boundless. I should not give my children small or inferior carts. All of these youngsters are my children whom I love without partiality. Having such great carts made of the seven jewels, infinite in number, I should give them to each one equally. Why? If I gave them to an entire country, they would not run short; how much the less if I gave them to my children!”
Outline:
N3. Explaining the equality of the mind.
Commentary: *
So he reflects thus, the Elder thinks like this, “My possessions are boundless.Nothing is higher or more valuable than my Dharmas. I should not give my children small or inferior carts. I should not use Small Vehicle Dharmas to cross over all living beings, all the thirty children, the Hearers, Conditioned Enlightened Ones and the Bodhisattvas. Now, all of these youngsters: The children represent those of the Three Vehicles who have not been cultivating the Way for very long. They are just beginners, like children without much experience. Even though they do not have a lot of common sese, still they are my children whom I love without partiality. I love all my children. The Buddha has no partiality towards any living being one way or the other. His compassion is impartial.
Having such great carts made of the seven jewels, infinite in number: The Seven Limbs of Enlightenment, the Eightfold Path, the Five Roots, the Five Powers, the Four Bases of Psychic Powers, the Four Right Efforts, and the Four Applications of Mindfulness, the Thirty-seven Wings of Enlightenment adorn the Great Vehicle Buddhadharma. I should give them to each one equally: Every kid should get a great cart. There should be no discrimination. Why? If I gave them to an entire country, they would not run short. The country represents the Land of Eternal Still Light and Purity. “Run short” means that the Buddhadharma never runs out. How much the less if I gave them to my children! If I gave them to everyone in the country, there would still be carts leftover. How much the less would they run short if I gave them to my children with whom I have such a great affinity. So no, I certainly will give each one a Great White Ox Cart.
Everyone should take a look at himself. See whether or not you have afflictions. If you have no afflictions, you have obtained the Buddhadharma. If you still have afflictions, you have to go forward and cultivate reliably. If you keep getting angry all the time, that means you have to look more deeply into the Buddhadharma. With regard to afflictions, you must not allow yourself to be blown by the Eight Winds. But this is no easy feat. If even a breath causes you to lose your temper, not to mention the Eight Winds, then you still have a lot to learn about the Buddhadharma. At whatever time you cease to have afflictions, that will be the time you have the obtained the good points of the Buddhadharma. This is very important.
Sutra:
“Meanwhile, all of the children are riding around on the great carts, having gotten what they never expected to have, beyond their original hopes.”
Outline:
M4. Parable of the children obtainingthe carts and rejoicing.
Commentary:
Meanwhile, that is, when the Elder gave away the great carts. If he had limitless wealth, but they were not his children, he would not have given the great carts away. If they were his children, but he did not have any wealth, he also would not have given them away. But now, the Elder has the wealth, limitless treasuries, and they are overflowing. The children are true disciples of the Buddha, and so the Buddha gives them all a great cart. This is because the children originally had no hopes of getting a great cart. They were hoping for deer carts or sheep carts and they alone would have satisfied them. They would have played in them happily. But now the Elder, because he is so wealthy, gives each of them a great cart. This is using the Great Vehicle Dharma to save living beings.
All of the children had not had such great hopes. Now they have all obtained the great carts, the beautiful and expensive white ox carts, and so all of the children are riding around on the great carts, having gotten what they never expected to have, beyond their original hopes. They had never before seen anything so fine. They had never had such fine toys. This is beyond their wildest dreams. They had just wanted small carts to begin with. Now, they have the great carts. This represents those of the Two Vehicles who originally cultivated Small Vehicle Dharmas and ended share-section birth and death. But now, they do not need to work on anything more, no extra trouble for them, and they obtain the Great Vehicle Buddhadharma. On the basis of their original cultivation and practice, they accomplish the karma of the Great Vehicle. Quite naturally, they also bring change birth and death to an end, and this takes them beyond their original hopes. It is not what they were originally after, but now they have got it, and it surpasses their former aspirations.
Sutra:
“Shariputra, what do you think? When that Elder gives equally to all of his children the great jeweled carriages, is he guilty of falsehood or not?”
Outline:
L4. Parable of no falsehood involved.
M1. The question
Commentary:
Was the Elder lying? Shariputra, what do you think? When that Elder gives equally to all of his children the great jeweled carriages, is he guilty of falsehood or not? Did he lie to them? Did he do wrong?
Sutra:
Shariputra replied, “No, World Honored One. The Elder is not guilty of falsehood, for he has only enabled his children to avoid the calamity of fire, and has thereby saved their lives. Why is this? In saving their lives, he has already given them a fine plaything. How much the more so his setting up of expedients to save them from the burning house.”
Outline:
M2. The answer.
Commentary:
The Buddha asked Shariputra what he thought about the situation. The Elder gave them the great cart. Was he lying? Now, in this passage of text, he is answering the Buddha’s question by saying that the Elder was not lying. Someone may ask, “Why didn’t the Buddha explain this himself? Why did he ask Shariputra? He could have just made the question rhetorical and answered it himself.”
He asked Shariputra, because the Elder is an analogy for the Buddha. If he had explained that he himself had not lied, most people would not have believed him. He had the greatly wise Shariputra answer the question so that everyone could understand that the Buddha does not lie.
Shariputra answered by saying, “No, he does not lie. The Buddha does not lie.” Shariputra replied, “No, World Honored One. The Elder is not guilty of falsehood, for he has only enabled his children to avoid the calamity of fire, and has thereby saved their lives. They did not burn to death. This alone is enough to prove that he was not speaking falsely. Why is this? In saving their lives, he has already given them a fine plaything. You could say that getting out with their lives was getting out with fine playthings. This is because the most important thing to people, after all, are their lives. Since they got out with their lives, you could say they got the toys they wanted, and so the Buddha did not lie. How much the more so his setting up of expedients to save them from the burning house. The Buddha set up many expedients to save living beings from the burning house of the Three Realms.
Sutra:
“World Honored One, if that Elder had not given them even so much as a single small cart, he still would not have been speaking falsely. Why? Because the Elder previously had this thought, ‘I will use expedients to lead my children out.’ For this reason, he is not guilty of falsehood. He is even less guilty since, knowing his own wealth to be limitless and wishing to benefit all his children, he gives to them equally great carts .”
Commentary:
Even if that Elder had not given them even so much as a single small cart, a little sheep cart, he still would not have been speaking falsely. Why? Because the Elder previously had this thought, ‘I will use expedients to lead my children out.’ I will use a clever expedient device to cause all the children to leave the burning house. For this reason, he is not guilty of falsehood. Why not? He had formed the intention of using expedient devices, and they are only provisional, used to save the children. By saving them alone, he was not guilty of lying.
He is even less guilty since, knowing his own wealth to be limitless and wishing to benefit all his children, he gives to them equally greats carts. He wanted to benefit all the children. This passage of text points out that the Buddha, in order to save living beings, does not use the Small Vehicle Dharma. Thus he has already lived up to his word, to say nothing of his giving all beings the Great Vehicle Dharma. Since he saves all beings with the Great Vehicle Buddhadharma, he cannot be considered a liar.
Sutra:
The Buddha told Shariputra, “Good indeed, good indeed! It is just as you say.”
Outline:
M3. Praise.
Commentary:
The Buddha heard Shariputra’s answer and then he told him, “You are exactly right, Shariputra. It is just as you say.
Sutra:
“Shariputra, the Thus Come One is also like this in that he is a father to all in the world. He has forever ended all fear, weakness, worry, ignorance and obscurity. He has completely realized the limitless Knowledge and Vision, Powers, and Fearlessnesses. He has great spiritual might and the power of wisdom. He has perfected the paramitas of expedients and wisdom. He is greatly kind and compassionate. Never tiring, he ever seeks the good, benefiting all. Thus he is born in the Three Realms which are like a burning house…”
Outline:
J2. Correlating the Dharmas with the analogy
K1. Correlation to the general parable.
L1. Elder as the Buddha
Commentary:
Shariputra, the Thus Come One is also like this. The Buddha teaches and transforms living beings in the same way as the Elder saves his children. He is a father to all in the world, compassionate father. He has forever ended all fear, weakness, worry, ignorance, and obscurity. They are gone forever. He has no worries or cares, no afflictions or false thinking. Not a trace remains. He has completely realized the limitless Knowledge and Vision. Since ignorance and obscurity are gone forever, in their place we find limitless wisdom and the limitless knowledge and vision of the Buddha.
Each has his own method by means of which he accomplishes his karma of the Way. Take Shariputra, for example. He opened the Knowledge and Vision of the Buddha through the door of wisdom. Mahamaudgalyayana did so through the door of spiritual powers. Each has his original practice and work. By taking one more step forward in that direction, they were able to open up to the Buddha’s Knowledge and Vision.
Powers, the Ten Powers, and Fearlessnesses, the Four Fearlessnesses. The Ten Powers have been explained extensively before. The Four Fearlessnesses have also been discussed several times, but today I will review them. The fearlessness of all-wisdom. The Buddha is afraid of nothing, because he has wisdom. The fearlessness of speaking Dharma. The Buddha’s exposition of Dharma resembles the roar of the lion who fears nothing. The fearlessness of speaking about dharmas which obstruct the Way. The Buddha fearlessly explains methods for destroying obstructions to the Way. The fearlessness of speaking of the dharmas which lead to the end of the path of suffering.
He has great spiritual might and the power of wisdom. With his great spiritual powers, the Buddha saves living beings, taking them from suffering to bliss. The Buddha’s great wisdom is of four kinds:
1. The wonderful observing wisdom. Why does the Buddha knows everything? Because he has the wonderful observing wisdom.
2. The equality wisdom. The Buddha is equal towards all living beings. He makes no discriminations among them.
3. The perfect wisdom. He succeeds in whatever he does, because he has the perfect wisdom.
4. The great perfect mirror wisdom. The Buddha’s wisdom is like a big mirror. When something comes along, it reflects it; when it goes, the image is gone. It illumines all dharmas as empty marks; it is perfectly fused without obstruction.
He has perfected the paramitas of expedients and wisdom. The Buddha uses whatever methods necessary in order to save any living beings. There are no fixed dharmas. He also has the paramita of wisdom, which goes all the way to the other shore. He is greatly kind and compassionate. Kindness bestows happiness. The Buddha grants their wishes and makes them happy. Compassion relieves living beings of their sufferings.
Never tiring, he ever seeks the good, benefitting all. He never grows weary, lax, or tire. He never gets sick of working or takes a break because he is tired. No matter how tough the job is, the Buddha does not rest. He is not lazy.
What kind of work does the Buddha do? He teaches and transforms living beings, leading them all to Buddhahood. So the Venerable Ananda made this vow:
“If a single living being has not become a Buddha,
I will not enter into Nirvana.”
That is a great vow. Why doesn’t the Buddha ever rest? Because he sees living beings in this world are just too miserable. They are confused and upside down, running east and scurrying west. In pursuit of the false, they forget the truth and they have no thought to escape the burning house. The Buddha is very busy, thinking of ways to pluck his sons and daughters out of the sea of suffering. He uses the power of his great compassion and wisdom, his spiritual powers, and various provisional expedients to save living beings. If one single being has not been saved, he is uneasy. Saving living beings is his job. He has no time to rest, no time to look for happiness for himself. He does not need to benefit himself, because he has already become a Buddha. He just wants to benefit living beings.
And thus he is born in the Three Realms which are like a burning house. The desire, form, and formless realms are like a burning house. The house is already falling apart. It is rotten and very dangerous. Why does the Buddha enter the burning house? To save all the little children. The children are so caught up in their play that they are oblivious to everything. Therefore, the Buddha comes to the Three Realms to teach and transform living beings so that they can quickly wake up.
Sutra:
“…in order to save living beings from the fires of birth, old age, sickness, death, grief, misery, stupidity, dullness, and the three poisons. He teaches and transforms them, leading them to the attainment of Anuttarasamyaksambodhi.”
Outline:
L2. Thirty sons.
Commentary:
Why did Shakyamuni Buddha come into the flaming house of the Three Realms? He came to liberate all living beings. This is because living beings in the burning house do not know enough to be afraid. They do not wake up to the fact that there is no peace in the Three Realms.
The Buddha came in order to save living beings from the fires of birth. When we are born, it is a great suffering. It is as painful as ripping the shell from a live tortoise. Old age is even more painful. You are not free in any respect. Your four limbs, your internal organs, your eyes and ears all refuse to help you out. It is really rough. While you are young, you feel strong and healthy. But when you get old, if you then get sick, it is even worse. You have to lay in bed all day as the sickness wears on and grows more painful.
Then, there is death which is as painful as flaying the skin from a live cow. There is all this grief, misery, stupidity, dullness, and the three poisons; greed, hatred, and stupidity. He teaches and transforms them, leading them to the attainment of Anuttarasamyaksambodhi. He leads living beings to enlightenment. The Buddha came into the Three Realms to teach living beings. Because we living beings have no idea how compassionate the Buddha is, we do not think to escape the Three Realms. The Buddha exhausts himself waiting, waiting for us, and getting nervous on top of it all. We should strike up our spirits to hurry and get out of the Three Realms. Do not hang around in the burning house!
Sutra:
“He sees all living beings are scorched by birth, old age, sickness, death, grief, and misery. They undergo various sufferings, because of the Five Desires, wealth and profit. Further, because of their clinging and grasping, they presently undergo a mass of sufferings and in the future will undergo sufferings in the hells, among the animals, or hungry ghosts. If born in the heavens or among human beings, they will suffer poverty and distress, the suffering of being separated from what one loves, the suffering of being joined together with one hates, and all the various sufferings such as these.
However, living beings sunk in morass, joyfully sport, unaware, unknowing, unalarmed and unafraid. They do not grow satiated nor do they seek liberation. In the burning house of the Three Realms, they run about from east to west. Although they encounter tremendous sufferings, they are not concerned.”
“Shariputra, having seen this, the Buddha further thinks, ‘I am the father of living beings. I should rescue them from these sufferings and difficulties, and give them the limitless and boundless joy of the Buddha-wisdom to play with.’”
Outline:
K2. Correlation of specific parts of the parable.
L1. Correlation of seeing the fire.
Commentary:
He sees all beings are scorched by birth, old age, sickness, death, grief, and misery. These sufferings are like a great fire in which living beings are burned. They are like hot water in which they boiled. They undergo various sufferings, because of the Five Desires, wealth, sex, fame, food, and sleep. The five desires are also explained as forms, sounds, smells, tastes, and tangible objects. They turn people upside-down.
Why do people do evil deeds? It is because they are turned by the five desires. Why do people do good deeds? It is because they look upon the five desires with indifference. They have seen them for what they are and have broken their attachments to them. “So that is what they are all about,” they think. “No matter how much money I get, I cannot take it with me. No matter how lovely the partner, when I die, it is all over. Now matter how good the food, once it hits my stomach, it changes. Once it has turned to excrement, no matter how fine it was to begin with, no one would want to eat it. If you put even the tiniest speck of excrement on a plate of exquisite food, no one would go near it. Once it goes through the machine, it is completely different. So food cannot be all that important.
Now, sleep…the more you sleep, the more you want to sleep. All day long you are in a daze. If you have a good reputation, when it is time to die, it evaporates!” You should see through the five desires. Then, you can do good deeds and foster merit and virtue. The Shurangama Sutra tells us that if you become a Buddha it is through the use of your six senses. If you commit offenses and fall into the hells, it is also because of your six senses. The five desires work in the same way. If you do not understand, you are attached to the five desires, you lust after them and cannot put them down. People with understanding put them down and they use the strength they have to do good deeds. The five desires work that way. Wealth and profit: Because of their greedy pursuit of the five desires, wealth and self-benefit, they use many tricks to get them and when they fail, they suffer in many ways.
Further, because of the clinging and grasping, they presently undergo a mass of sufferings. Because they are greedy for the five desires in this life, they suffer a lot. They suffer from the frustration of their ambitions. They create much offense karma and so in the future will undergo suffering in the hells, among the animals, or hungry ghosts. If born in the heavens or among human beings, they will suffer poverty and distress. They will be poor and utterly wretched. Poor people find it hard to give. Even if they want to do merit and virtue, they do not get a chance. They just keep getting poorer and poorer. Pretty soon, they have no home, no land, nothing at all. Cultivators who practice giving keep increasing their wealth. Why? Because they give it away! The more they give, the more good roots they have and so the more wealth they acquire. Because of this, while we have the strength, we must nourish our good roots. If you wait until the last minute, you would not be able to even if you want to.
The suffering of being separated from what one loves: Circumstances often force people to separate from whatever or whomever they cherish most dearly. When that happens, they experience extreme pain.
The suffering of being joined together with what one hates: Hatred means there is no affinity between people. If you have an affinity with someone, you would not mind it even if they scold you or beat you. You will still feel good about them. If you have no affinity with a person, no matter how you praise them and respect them, there are still no good feelings between you. You may praise them, but they will say you are ridiculing them. You may be speaking well of them, but they will say you are being sarcastic. Lots of misunderstandings occur. No matter how good you are to them, they continue to despise you. There is not a darn thing you can do about it! That is the suffering of beings joined with what you hate. If you hate them, you may even move somewhere else to get away from them, but as soon as you get there, you run into someone exactly like them. They bring you so much grief. This is because you did not create an affinity with them in former lives. You set up antipathy instead.
And all the various sufferings such as these. However, living beings sunk in this morass, joyfully sport, unaware, unknowing, unalarmed, and unafraid.Sunk in this suffering, they do not realize they are suffering. They play happily thinking it is great fun. Like the thirty children in the burning house, they are not afraid of dying, they are not scared in the least.
They do not grow satiated, nor do they seek liberation. Because they do not know suffering leads to affliction, they do not grow satiated. Because they do not seek the Way to certify to extinction, they do not seek liberation. In the burning house of the Three Realms, they run about from east to west. Although they encounter tremendous sufferings, they are not concerned. Everything in this world is a form of suffering. They do not worry, however, because they take suffering as bliss.
Shariputra, having seen this, the Buddha further thinks, ‘I am the father of living beings. I am the guide of the Three Realms, the compassionate father to all beings in the four classes of birth and I should rescue them from these sufferings and difficulties, help them escape it. And give them the limitless, and boundless joy of the Buddha-wisdom to play with. I should save them from their troubles—that is the Buddha’s great compassionate heart. Giving them the joy of the Buddha’s wisdom—that is the heart of great kindness. In this way, all living beings can play safely and happily in the great kindness and compassion of the Great Vehicle Buddhadharma.
We were just talking about the suffering of povery. You may wonder, “What about people who are wealthy?” That, too, is a form of suffering. It is the suffering of happiness.
“But how can happiness be suffering?”
When happiness reaches its extreme, it turns into its opposite. Although it is said that it is hard to give when one is poor, it is also true that it is hard to cultivate the Way when one is rich. Was Shakyamuni Buddha wealthy? He was extremely wealthy. But he was able to cultivate the Way.
When the Buddha was in the world, the following incident took place: At that time, they used to burn oil lamps as a kind of offering to the Buddha. The person in charge of the lamps put them out during the day and lit them at night. One day, a very poor man came to the temple with a gift of about a gallon of oil as an offering to be used for the lamps. The person in charge of the lamps found that no matter how hard he tried, he could not put out the lamp that the poor man had lit. All the Bhikshus came and tried to blow it out, like candles on a birthday cake, but they just could not do it. Even Mahamaudgalyayana, foremost in spiritual powers, could not blow it out. He used his spiritual powers to create a wind, but that did not work either. Then, he rounded up the biggest wind–the Vairambha wind which emerges from behind Mount Sumeru–and even that did not work. So he went and asked the Buddha, “How come the lamp is playing such tricks today? No one can blow it out.”
The Buddha said, “You do not know, but that person who came today with the oil is a poor beggar. The oil he bought took his entire life savings. His lamp will never go out.”
And it never did.
Because he gave everything he had, the light just never went out, no matter what spiritual powers were used. If you are poor but can still give, that is genuine giving, genuine merit and virtue. The less you have, the more your gift counts.
“If you have a lot and give, does that not count?”
It is still giving, but those who are wealthy find it hard to cultivate. Those who are poor, if they can give, that is real giving. When rich people give, it is not that special.
Sutra:
“Shariputra, the Thus Come One further thinks, ‘If I merely use spiritual power and the power of wisdom, and cast aside expedients, praising for all living beings the power of the Thus Come One’s Knowledge and Vision, Powers, and Fearlessnesses, living beings will not be able to saved in this way. Why is this? All of these living beings have not yet escaped birth, old age, sickness, death, grief and misery. They are being scorched in the burning house of the Three Realms. How could they understand the wisdom of the Buddha?’”
Outline:
L2. Correlation of casting aside the table to use carts.
M1. Correlation of casting aside the table.
N1. Correlation of proper of casting aside the table.
Commentary:
The Buddha calls out again, “Shariputra, the Thus Come One further thinks, ‘If I merely use spiritual power and the power of wisdom, All-wisdom, Wisdom of the Way, and the Wisdom of All Modes and cast aside expedients, praising for all living beings the power of the Thus Come One’s Knowledge and Vision, Powers, and Fearlessnesses, the Buddha’s Ten Powers and Four Fearlessnesses, living beings will not be able to be saved. Living beings cannot, by means of these causes and conditions, gain liberation.
Why is this? All these living beings have not yet escaped birth, old age, sickness, death, grief, and misery. They are being scorched in the burning house of the Three Realms. They are like children who have not understood the principles of human life. Therefore, in the flames of the Three Realms–the Desire Realm, the Form Realm, and the Formless Realm–they are being burned.
How could they understand the wisdom of the Buddha. They never knew about the Buddhadharma, so if you tell them about the Buddha’s wisdom, they could not understand it. For example, in the West, many people have never heard the word “Buddha.” Because of their unfamiliarity, many people are afraid of Buddhism, like the student who came today. I asked him, “Why have you stayed away so long?”
He said, “I was afraid.”
I asked him what he was afraid of, and he could not tell me. I said, “This person is afraid of becoming a Buddha, afraid of getting enlightened, afraid of gaining understanding.” Once you understand, you cannot continue to do confused things. Some people clearly know something is wrong, but want to do it anyway. They are quite clear that it is wrong to break precepts, but they are determined to do so. They know that taking drugs is wrong, but they do it anyway.
Before you have studied the Buddhadharma, if you made mistakes, it is not important. But once you understand the Buddhadharma, if you continue to make mistakes this is called “Clearly knowing, and delilberately violating the rules.” If you do this, your offenses are tripled. Say originally you did not know about the law, broke it, and got five years in jail. If you get out and then break it again, you will get twenty years for the second offense.
Those of you who have made mistakes had better hurry and change. Those who have not made mistakes should be even more vigorous in their cultivation. Do not deliberately violate the rules. That is just a mistake on top of a mistake, confusion atop confusion, suffering in suffering. It is very dangerous, dangerous within the dangerous. You are bound to be drawing very close to the hells, the realm of animals, and the realm of the hungry ghosts.
When pepole make mistakes, on the first offense, if they really repent, then there is still hope. When they commit it the second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth time, their offense karma increases to astronomical proportions. The more you do it, the lower you are bound to fall. If you can return from the road of confusion, hurry and get back on the right track, then:
Although the sea of suffering is boundless,
A turn of the head is the other shore.
The sea of pain has no limit whatsoever, but once you change, you have made it across. People who have made mistakes must change. Those who have not should work even harder to do better. Confucius said, “If you have committed offenses, do not be afraid to reform.” If you have made mistakes, do not be afraid to change. If you are afraid to reform, then your offenses will always be with you. But if you can reform, those offenses disappear.
Sutra:
“Shariputra, just as that Elder, although he had a powerful body and arms, did not use them, but merely applied expedients with diligence to save all the children from disaster in the burning house, and afterwards gave to each of them a great cart adorned with precious jewels, in the same way, the Thus Come One, although he has powers and fearlessnesses, does not use them.”
Outline:
N2. Correlation of not using strength.
Commentary:
The Thus Come One’s wisdom is hard to understand and hard to comprehend. That is why the Buddha bestows the provisional for the sake of the real. He sets forth expedient Dharma-doors for the sake of real wisdom.
Shariputra, the Buddha calls out again. Shariputra is foremost among the Hearer Disciples in wisdom. However, when you talk about the wisdom of the Bodhisattvas, he certainly does not rank first there. Manjushri is the first of the Bodhisattvas in wisdom.
Just as that Elder, previously mentioned, although he had a powerful body and arms. This refers to the Buddha’s spiritual powers, inexhaustible in their wonderful function. Did not use them. The Buddha had both spiritual powers and real wisdom. He could use his spiritual powers to teach living beings, but he does not. He could teach living beings with real wisdom, but he does not. What does he keep them back for? Is the Buddha too stingy to use them. Is he afraid he will use them up? No.
But merely applied expedients with diligence: He is very busy and does not rest. He bestows the provisional for the sake of the real. He teaches the Three Vehicles–Hearers, Condition-Enlightened Ones, and Bodhisattvas–for the sake of the One Buddha Vehicle.
To save all the children from disaster in the burning house: He uses clever, expedient Dharma-doors to save living beings. He rescues all the thirty sons, that is, those of the Three Vehicles. He saves the five hundred people, that is, the beings in the five destinies. The thirty children are the true sons of the Buddha. The five hundred people represent living beings in general. The Buddha rescues them all from disaster in the burning house, from the Three Realms in which no peace can be found. The burning house is very dangerous and if you do not find a way to get out, you are going to burn to death.
Burned by what fire? By the fire of the three poisons, greed, hatred, and stupidity. In the Three Realms, one is burn by the three poisons. It is incredibly dangerous.
And afterwards gave to each of the them a great cart adorned with precious jewels. The Buddha used the sheep carts, deer carts, and ox carts, saying they were outside the door. In this way, he “cheated” the children into running out of the house. Then he gave each of them a great white ox cart adorned with the Six Perfections and the Ten Thousand Practices. The great white ox cart is just the Great Vehicle, the Buddha-vehicle, not the Bodhisattva-vehicle.
There is only one vehicle;
There are no other vehicles.
Then why didn’t Shakyamuni Buddha employ the great white ox cart before? Why did he say there were three carts? It was because if he had talked about the great white ox cart, the children would not have been able to formulate any conception of what they were like. Little children like little things. If he had talked about a great cart, they might have gotten scared and dared to think of wanting them.
Likewise, if you do not mention the Three Vehicles, but start right out talking about the Buddha Vehicle, people will be afraid. “How could that be? How could we become Buddhas?” they think. And then, not only do they fail to go forward, they retreat. That is why the Buddha used clever expedients to babysit the kids. A babysitter has to know how to speak the child’s language. Otherwise, he cannot do a good job. The Buddha knows that living beings have no such great wisdom and that is why he speaks of the Three Vehicles. He waited until the Dharma Flower Assembly to let it all out in the open, to proclaim the entire substance of the Buddhadharma to all living beings. When he told them they could become Buddhas, that was like the gift of the great jeweled cart.
In the same way, the Thus Come One, although he has powers and fearlessnesses, does not use them. He does not use the real wisdom of the Ten Powers or the strength of the Four Fearlessnesses. Didn’t I just say that the Buddha did not use his spiritual powers, his real wisdom? If he had used them, living beings would not have understood what he was doing. He spoke the expedients instead. But here, in the Dharma Flower Assembly, he opens the provisional to reveal the real. The entire Buddhadharma is told to living beings so that they can all quickly realize the Buddha Way.
Sutra:
“He merely uses wisdom and expedients to rescue living beings from the burning house of the Three Realms, speaking to them of Three Vehicles: those of Hearer, Pratyeka Buddha, and Buddha.”
Outline:
M2. Correlation of using the carts.
N1. Correlation of suitability of three carts and knowing the children’s former thoughts.
Commentary:
The Buddha’s expedient dharmas are controlled by wisdom. With wise expedients, one observes the conditions and dispenses the teaching, speaking the Dharma appropriate to the person. Like prescribing a drug for a certain illness, one teaches a certain dharma appropriate to that person. Living beings have many illnesses–greed, hatred, and stupidity being the most violent. These three poisons smother the wisdom of our Dharma bodies.
Greed means you can never get enough. The more the better! There is no time of satiation. Would you say this was violent or not? Since one is never satisfied, one lusts day and night, at all times.
When your greed is frustrated, it turns into hatred. “It is not the way I want it!” you shout as you explode with anger. You cannot even sleep at night thinking of ways to get even. Once hatred arises, you manifest an asura face and that is ugly! Your contorted features–eyes, ears, and nose–move to the middle of your face–a big family, all united! They get together to do business. What business? Beating people! Refusing to speak! Scowling with a black face so that everyone runs off with their tails between their legs! “Let us get out of here. This guy is a human bomb! He is an atom bomb looking for a place to explode.” Not only do you hurt yourself, you hurt other people as well. Not only do you hurt other people, you hurt yourself in the process. How is that? Once that ignorance is set ablaze, every bit of self-discipline you had accumulated goes up in a blaze along with your wisdom. I mean, take a look, angry people are incredibly stupid. If they were not stupid, they would not get angry! Which truly wise person has ever had a nasty temper?
When you get angry, your facial features move to the center of your face, ready for battle. Hatred works like that–asura-face. Angry people are all asuras. Now, am I indulging in name-calling here? No. Asuras just like to get angry. They have no other talent. All day long they express themselves by getting angry. Why do they get angry? Because they are greedy. Without greed, one would have no reason to get angry. Why do they get angry? Because they are stupid. Intelligent people do not get angry. Those who habitually get angry can be lumped together in the Dharma Realm of the asuras. Greed, hatred, and stupidity burn off your inherent wisdom, the merit and virtue of your Dharma body. It is the biggest fire there is.
The Buddhas uses wisdom to speak expedient Dharma-doors and know which Dharma to speak when he meets any given person. The Buddha speaks the Dharma with a single sound and living beings understand it according to their kind. The Buddha explains the doctrine of cultivation which leads to the realization of Buddhahood. It wakes people up. When spirits hear it, they also rise to the Bodhi-mind and cultivate. When Bodhisattvas hear it, they also give rise to the Bodhi-mind. When the Arhats hear it, they do, too. The same applies to the Conditoned Enlightened Ones. Living beings in the nine Dharma Realms all produce the Bodhi-mind when they hear the Buddha speak (or expound) the Dharma. The Buddha uses one sound to speak the Dharma; the different kinds of living beings all understand the wonderfulness of it. That is what is meant by expedient wisdom. Using wise expedients, one teaches and transforms living beings.
To rescue living beings from the burning house of the Three Realms: He rescues them just as if extending his hand to living beings sinking in mud, to pull them to safety. Living beings are trapped in the burning house of the Three Realms and are just on the verge of dying in the fire. They have been burned so badly that they cannot move their hands or walk. Along comes the fireman–the Buddha–with fire extinguisher in hand to save living beings. He is not afraid of hurting himself. He runs right into the Three Realms to help us.
Seeing how compassionate the Buddha is towards us, if we have even the slightest trace of conscience we should be weeping bitter tears, “The Buddha is so good to us. If we do not cultivate now…God!..we cannot even be considered human. We are gonna fall into the hells, right in with the hungry ghosts, right into the animal realm.” So how can we cry over some long lost friend or some relative who is in trouble? Here we are ourselves, just about ready to burn to death in the burning house, and the Buddha forsakes his very life to save all living beings. If we do not cultivate now, we are really letting the Buddha down. We are flying in the face of the Buddha’s kindness, compassion, joy, and giving. His kindness bestows joy and his compassion relieves us of our sufferings. He is saving us from our sufferings so we can be happy. We really should bring forth the Bodhi-mind. Do not be lazy like you were before. You should know a little shame and not continue to be as obstinate as you have been. Wake up! The Buddha is waiting for us!
“But Dharma Master,” you say, “you just told us that the Buddha freely parts with his very life in order to save us. Since he has already become a Buddha, does he still have to die?”
The Buddha does not die, right, but living beings do. Although the Buddha has ended birth and death and would not die again, we have not. Also, our lives are just the Buddha’s life. That is why if we do not hurry up and end birth and death by cultivating the Way, we will, in a sense, be dragging the Buddha around to die with us! So you should hurry and bring forth the Bodhi-mind. Be vigorous. The Buddha discriminated and spoke of Three Vehicles in order to teach and transform living beings.
Speaking to them of Three Vehicles: those of Hearer, Pratyeka Buddha(Condition-Enlightened Ones), and Buddha: The Buddha Vehicle is for becoming a Buddha. The three carts are hitched and waiting for us. Whichever cart you want, you pick it out. You cannot just listen to the Sutra. Go and take your share. The Buddha has given us Three Vehicles. We all have a share in it. If you want a great white ox cart, he will give it to you. If you would rather have a deer cart, he has got one in stock. If you want a sheep cart, the compact model, that is okay, too. If you do not want any of them–then the Buddha has no way to save you.
Sutra:
“And he says to them, ‘All of you should take no pleasure in dwelling in the burning house of the Three Realms. Do not lust after vulgar and evil forms, sounds, smells, tastes and tangible objects. If you attach to them greedily and give rise to love for them, you will be burnt. You should quickly escape the Three Realms and attain the Three Vehicles: the Hearer, Pratyeka Buddha, and Buddha Vehicles.’”
Outline:
N2. Correlation of praising the three carts as rare.
O1. Correlation with Demonstrating Turning.
Commentary:
And he says to them, Shakyamuni Buddha says…This phrase was added by the Venerable Ananda when he compiled the Sutra. All of you should take no pleasure in dwelling in the burning house of the Three Realms. He is talking to the thirty children and five hundred people. He is also talking to you and me and all living beings of the present. Do not go thinking that we are being left out. We are included in the phrase, “All of you.”
He says, “Do not think it is such great fun living in the burning house. It is really miserable. In the realm of desire, the form realm, and the formless realm, the sufferings are extreme. It is not fun and games by any means.” Here, the Buddha is talking about the first of the Four Holy Truths, the truth of suffering. Do not delight in it. It is suffering. There are limitless kinds of sufferings, but living beings take suffering as bliss. That which is obviously bliss they take as suffering.
For example, sometimes in the world, if you are competent, you can take bad situations and make them turn out for the better. If you do not know how to do things, then in doing good things, you make a mess of them. Suffering is suffering, but living beings take it as a form of bliss. Basically, something may be blissful, but they take it as a form of suffering. Living beings are characterized by this kind of inverted thinking. Living beings are inverted, and in their confusion they do not know to turn back. They walk down the road of confusion without ever looking back. That is the truth of suffering and so here, all living beings are told not to hang around in the burning house.
Do not lust after vulgar and evil forms, sounds, smells, tastes, and tangible objects. Do not be greedy. Do not lust after the vulgar, the coarse, the vile, the rotten. What is rotten? The suffering! The affliction! It disturbs our minds and natures, and erodes our wisdom, making us stupid. The five sense objects are also called the five desires. “Forms” refer to visible matter, what is in front of us and has material form. Sounds, smells, tastes, and tangible objects also delude our minds. Some beings are deluded by forms. Some like to listen to music. Others like to smell fragrances or taste things. Others like physical contact. People are defiled by these states. They are not clear and pure. The realms of the five sense objects confuse living beings completely. But if you can have no thought with regard to these states, then:
If you see affairs and awaken, you can transcend the world;
If you see affairs and are confused, you fall beneath the wheel.
If, in a situation, you can wake up, that is just transcending the world. But if the situation gets out of hand and gets control over you, you will fall. I always say,
The eyes see forms, but inside there is nothing.
The ears hear defiling sounds, but the mind knows it not.
Facing a situation, to have no thought
Means that you are not turned by the state.
This means that you control the situation and not vice-versa. If you reach this level, then the objects of forms, sounds, smells, tastes, and tangible objects cannot move your mind. If you see them and give rise to greed and love, then you have been confused by the state.
If you attach to them greedily and give rise to love for them, you will be burnt. If you give rise to love and attachment, you will be burnt. Most people think that love is very important. Really, it is the very thing which keeps you from ending birth and death and becoming a Buddha. The nature flows out and becomes emotion. Emotion flows out to become desire. This emotional love is the root of birth and death and the source of outflows. If you can be without thoughts of emotional love, you can attain to the non-outflow state. As long as you have emotional love, you cannot attain to the state of no outflows.
You will be burned by the fire of love. Love is a total burn. This refers to the second of the Four Holy Truths, that of origination. If you have emotional love, you will give rise to afflictions. If you have no emotional love, no thoughts of love and desire, there is no affliction. Why do you have emotional love? It is because you see your body as too important. You want to indulge in physical pleasures and this is the greatest of all mistakes. Shakyamuni Buddha cultivated bitter practices in the Himalayas. Why? Why did he go to realize the Way beneath the Bodhi Tree? It was just because he was able to sever once and for all the thoughts of love and emotion which all worldly people possess. He got rid of them and was thereby able to certify to the fruit and sever all afflictions. He said,
This is suffering, its nature is oppression.
This is origination, its nature is seduction.
This is extinction, its nature is certification.
This is the Way, its nature is cultivation.
This was the first turning of the Wheel of the Four Holy Truths, the Demonstrative Turning in which he pointed the Four Truths out to living beings.
You should quickly escape the Three Realms, and attain the Three Vehicles: the Hearer, Pratyeka Buddha, and Buddha Vehicles. He said, “You, that is you, plural, all of you should quickly escape. Do not linger in the Three Realms. Get out right now. Move! The more you dilly-dally around the farther you will fall. Escape the burning house and attain the Three Vehicles.”
The Hearers cultivated the Dharma of the Four Holy Truths and awakened to the Way when they heard the sound of the Buddha speaking Dharma. Pratyeka Buddhas are also called Conditioned Enlightened Ones. In the spring they watch the white flowers bloom and in the fall they watch the yellow leaves fall. Seeing the natural process of growth and decay, they cultivate the Dharma of the Twelve Conditioned Causes and attain the fruit. When they are born during the time when a Buddha is in the world, they are called Conditioned Enlightened Ones. When they are born at a time when there is no Buddha in the world, they are called Solitarily Enlightened Ones. Pratyeka Buddhas, most of them, live deep in the mountain valleys and have little contact with the outside world. They cultivate on their own to certify to the fruit.
The Buddha Vehicle is the vehicle of perfect enlightenment. Enlightenment is of three kinds: self enlightenment, the enlightenment of others, and the perfection of enlightenment and practice. The Buddha Vehicle surpasses the Hearer, Pratyeka Buddha, and Bodhisattva Vehicles.
The Dharma Flower Sutra says,
There are no other vehicles;
There is only the One Buddha Vehicle.
Previously, the Three Vehicles were provisional Dharmas. Only the Buddha Vehicle is real Dharma. Now, in the Dharma Flower Assembly, the Buddha opens the provisional to manifest the real. He sets expedient Dharmas aside in order to manifest the genuine Buddha Vehicle.
Sutra:
“I now give my Pledge for this and it shall never be proved false. You need only diligently and vigorously cultivate. The Thus Come One using these expedient means leads all living beings.”
Outline:
O2. Certification Turning.
Commentary:
In the second turning of the Three Turnings of the Four Truths, the Buddha testifies to his own attainment of certification. He says,
1. This is suffering, I already know about it. I do not need to know anything more.
2. This is origination. I have already cut it off. I do not need to cut it off anymore.
3. This is extinction. I have already certified to it. I do not need to certify to it anymore.
4. This is the Way. I have already cultivated it. I do not need to cultivate it anymore.
Shakyamuni Buddha says, “I now give my pledge for this. I guarantee this matter.” What matter? The matter of becoming a Buddha. That is, if you cultivate according to the Great Vehicle, I guarantee that you will become a Buddha. I give you my word. And it shall never be proved false. You need only diligently and vigorously cultivate. All you living beings should use your energy to go forward with vigor, practicing the Great Vehicle Dharma. In the Great Vehicle, one opens the provisional to reveal the real. But you must diligently cultivate. If you are not diligent and vigorous in your cultivation, although it is the Great Vehicle, it will not benefit you. It is like speaking about food and not eating it, or like counting someone else’s money. There is a saying,
If all day long you count up other’s wealth,
When you have not got a half a cent yourself–
If you fail to cultivate the Dharma,
You are making the exact same mistake.
The Shurangama Sutra says, “It is like only speaking about food which will never make you full.” If you go to a restaurant and merely read the menu without ordering anything to eat, saying¸“This is really good. And that is even more delicious. And that is a supreme treat!” Your stomach will still be empty. You cannot get full by talking about food.
You cannot get rich by counting up other people’s money. A bank teller counts up several million dollars a day, but none of it belongs to him. When he gets off work, not a dollar is his. This verse is pointing to the fact that if you just have an intellectual understanding of the Buddhadharma, but do not cultivate according to its methods, you might as well be counting someone else’s money. You are making the same mistake. You gain nothing for yourself. If you sit at home sighing over how good Italian bread is or French bread–especially with butter and cheese!–it does nothing for your stomach. You cannot just talk and not do anything. If you want any results, you have to put in the effort. Otherwise, you attain nothing.
You must be vigorous with your mind and your body. This means bowing to the Sutras, reciting the Buddha’s name, reciting the Sutras, meditating or reciting mantras. In general, you have to keep occupied, because if your minds do not have anything to do, they get unreliable and start doing a lot of false thinking. They are like monkeys. Monkeys are always goofing off, running east and west, up and down trees all day long. Our minds are the same way. We have to give them some work to do and then they will settle down. One must not only be vigorous with the body, but with the mind as well. Keep your thoughts to one point. The Buddhadharma has to be actually practiced. It is useless to merely talk about. So I often say,
Spoken wonderful, spoken well,
If you do not walk down it,
It is not the Way.
You have to put in the work, then, you can attain benefit. This requires vigor.
The Thus Come One using these expedients leads all living beings. The Thus Come One uses the expedient Dharmas of the Three Vehicles to lead living beings. You might even say he “cheats” them. How is this? He does not cheat us in a false way, but in a true way. He cheats us right into ending birth and death! If he did not cheat us, we would not know how to end birth and death. How can we prove that the the Buddha cheats living beings? The Buddha is the great Elder. The children in the house are all being burned by the fire and the Elder says, “Hurry and come out! I have sheep carts, deer carts, and ox carts! They are right outside the door!” But in reality, there are no sheep, deer, or ox carts. Children like to play with the carts and when they hear about them, they run out of the house and escape the fire. The Elder thinks, “Well, I have so much wealth, I might as well give them a cart.” He gives them each a great white ox cart.
In the beginning, he was using an expedient device to lead the children out of the burning house. Later he gave them the great carts and he was no longer being expedient. He was opening the provisional to reveal the real. The Buddha set aside expedient to teach the genuine Dharma in the same way. “Lead” in the text carries the meaning of “to entice.” This is like the time the Buddha saved the child with his empty fist. The child,unaware of the danger, went crawling towards a well and was about to fall in.
The Buddha used an expedient method. He said, “Little child, come back. I have here in my hand a piece of candy. Come on, I will give it to you!” Kids love candy and so the child scrambled back. Did the Buddha have a piece of candy in his hand? No. He saved the child with his empty fist. Although he did not have candy in his hand, he eventually went and got a piece for the child and so he did not cheat the child after all. That is what is meant by the phrase “to lead.” He uses expedients, giving living beings what they like, in order to teach and transform them. Living beings play up to each other for selfish reasons, but the Buddha uses their fondnesses to teach and transform them. We are all living beings, do not forget.
“I do not want Shakyamuni Buddha to cheat me,” you say.
Then, keep on being a living being for a while. Hah! If you feel you have not been one long enough, then continue to be one. If you do not want to be a living being, if you think, “Now I want to understand the Buddhadharma and become a Buddha,” you will have to let Shakyamuni Buddha “cheat” you. You cannot avoid it.
Sutra:
“He further says, ‘You should all know that the Dharmas of the Three Vehicles have been praised by the sages. They will make you free, unbound, and self-reliant. Riding on these Three Vehicles, by means of non-outflow roots, powers, enlightenments, ways, dhyanas, concentrations, liberations, samadhis, and so on, you shall amuse yourselves and attain limitless peace and joy.’”
Outline:
O3. Exhortation Turning.
Commentary:
In this, the third of the Three Turnings of the Four Truths, the Buddha exhorts his disciples to do what he has done. He says,
1. This is suffering. You should understand it.
2. This is origination. You should cut it off.
3. This is extinction. You should certify to it.
4. This is the Way. You should cultivate it.
He further says, ‘You should all know that the Dharmas of the Three Vehicles have been praised by the sages.’ The Buddhas of the past have praised them. The Buddhas of the present praise them. The Buddhas of the future will praise them. All the Buddhas throughout the three periods of time and the ten directions have used the Dharma-doors of the Three Vehicles as expedients to entice living beings. So they are praised and lauded by all the Buddhas. They say, “These Dharmas are the most wonderful. They are rare and hard to encounter.”
They will make you free, unbound, and self-reliant. What is freedom? When you attain to natural wisdom, that is freedom. When you have not attained to natural wisdom, you are not free. What is natural wisdom? You might say that it is the wisdom of knowing the minds of others. That brings freedom. Unbound means that one leaves upside-down dream thinking far behind and so one is unbound. This refers to the attainment of the highest wisdom by which one can put everything down. That is being unbound.
Self-reliant means that one relies on nothing and in one’s heart, one seeks nothing. “Not relying” means that when this life is over, one does not undergo further existence, because when one has ended birth and death, one has no future becoming, no future birth. Not to be born again, not to undergo future existence is to be self-reliant, to depend upon nothing. One should not rely on others. Here we speak of two aspects: There is that which relies and that which is relied upon. That which depends is the self-nature. That which is depended upon is birth and death. When there is no more birth and death, the object of reliance is gone, so there is no more reliance.
When one is self-reliant, one seeks nothing. This means that one has done what one has to do. One has established one’s pure conduct. One has succeeded in one’s cultivation. One then seeks nothing, because one has attained all one’s wishes. At the level of self-reliance, one certifies to the fruit, ends birth and death.
Riding on these Three Vehicles, by means of non-outflow roots, powers, enlightenments, ways, dhyanas, concentrations, liberations, samadhis, and so on. This refers to the Five Roots, the Five Powers, the Seven Limbs of Enlightenment, the Eight Sagely Way Shares, the Four Dhyanas, the Eight Concentrations, and the Eight Liberations, and so on.
To explain the Five Roots once again, the first is faith. In studying the Buddhadharma, you must have faith. Otherwise, you will gain no response. Vigor is the second. You have to make vigorous progress. Do not get lazy in the Dharma assembly. Do not follow your own inclimations to be lax. You must be vigorous. The third is mindfulness. You must always be mindful and never forget what you are doing. Also, you need the root of concentration, the fourth, and lastly, the root of wisdom. Those are the Five Roots. “Root” means that they bring forth the growth of our good roots. From the Five Roots, Five Powers grow, the powers of faith, vigor, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom.
“Enlightenments” refers to the Seven Limbs of Enlightenment: Selecting a dharma Vigor, Happiness, Light ease (casting out), Renunciation, Samadhi and Mindfulness These are also known as the Seven Bodhi Shares.
The Eightfold Path (Eight Sagely Way Shares) consists of: Right views, Right speech, Right thought, Right action, Right livelihood, Right vigor, Right mindfulness and Right samadhi. The Eightfold Path has been explained, so listing the names will suffice.
“Dhyanas” refers to the Four Dhyanas. There are three heavens in each of the first three dhyanas and nine heavens in the fourth dhyana. The gods in the heavens of the fourth dhyana cultivate Dhyana Samadhi, but people can also attain the states of the dhyanas.
Although I explained the Four Dhyanas when I lectured on the Earth Store Sutra, I feel people did not gain a clear understanding. Thus, I will go over them once more.
Those who attain the state of the first dhyana have merely attained a state. Not only the gods who dwell in the dhyana heavens, but even people who cultivate the dhyanas can enter the concentration of the first dhyana when they sit in meditation. The first dhyana is called “the joyous ground of leaving production.” They leave afflictions behind and give rise to happiness. This happiness transcends all human happiness. Why don’t they give rise to afflictions? Because they have attained this kind of happiness and take the joy of dhyana as their food. Those who attain the state of the first dhyana feel very satisfied and comfortable all day long. Their bodies have never felt better. The pleasures of sexual intercourse are nothing compared to this feeling. This happiness makes them feel that anything less is quite common place. From the perspective of medicine, there is a quote from the Chinese medical texts:
When the moon wanes at the root of heaven, one comes and goes freely,
Experiencing springtime in the thirty-six palaces.
The human body is divided into thirty-six major portions, and at that time they are all extremely blissful. “Springtime” represents happiness. However, no one in the field of medicine really understands this. Everyone reads it, but few know what it is talking about.
The Ground of Joy of Leaving Production occurs when you sit in meditation, but also continues when you are not sitting. Walking, standing, sitting, and reclining, you are enveloped in this happiness. The more you cultivate this state, the more it increases. Then, as you are sitting, two hours seem like a couple of seconds. Or you can sit for two days and feel like it has only been five minutes. The Venerable Master Xulao sat on Zhungnan Mountain for eighteen days in this kind of state. All you need to attain this state is to meditate sincerely. It is not that hard. It is not hard at all, especially for young people. If you do not meditate or cultivate, then of course, you cannot attain it. But if you work hard and cultivate you will attain this state of the first dhyana.
This is not something just belonging to the gods. You, in your ordinary human body can attain this state provided you cultivate. There is nothing very special about it. It is very common, very ordinary. It is the first step in cultivation, just getting in the door. It does not mean that you are real high or anything. For example, a few days ago I said that there was someone here in our lecture hall who had attained this state. But it is only the first step on the journey. If you wish to attain the real advantages, you have to work extremely hard, and pour on the effort and go forward to certify to the sagely fruit. Just do not stop at where you are.
The second dhyana is called the Ground of the Joy of the Production of Concentration. In this time of happiness, you must not become greedy and attach to it thinking how fine it is. Once that happens, you come to a standstill and this is of no use. Remember you are cultivating concentration! Do not let the state move your mind, but keep you mind always in concentration. They say,
The dragons are always in samadhi.
There is no time they are not in samadhi.
Walking, standing, sitting, and reclining, one should remain in concentration and not let the mind become caught up in external conditions. Do not let the mind run outside to climb on conditions. The mind should be like still water, deep and clear, translucent and still. Then, as you continue to meditate and cultivate, not only will your pulse stop, but your breath will stop as well. You can sit there for any length of time, but it will seem like a very short time. However, you still have thought. In the first dhyana you have not very much concentration going; in the second dhyana you have gotten a bit of concentration and your breath stops, but you have not stopped thinking yet.
You may be sitting there for some time when you suddenly think, “How long have I been sitting?” With that false thought, you come right out of samadhi. Before you had that false thought, you sat for a long time without knowing how long it was–no mark of people, no mark of self, no mark of living beings and no mark of a lifespan. As soon as thought arises, “Hmm…there is something I meant to do. I have got to go to a bank a little later and see how much I have got in my account. Then, I am going to go buy some vegetables. Let us see, what shall I have for lunch today?” As soon as you have these false thoughts, you come out of samadhi and your thought has not stopped.
The third is called the Ground of the Wonderful Bliss of Leaving Joy. In the first dhyana one is happy. In the second dhyana concentration arises, but this concentration is not separate from happiness. The joy of dhyana remains in the state of the second dhyana. In the third dhyana one leaves happiness behind and obtains a wondrous, never-before-experienced, inconceivable, subtle bliss. One leaves behind the state in which one takes dhyana as one’s food and is filled with the joy of Dharma. This happiness is the happiness of the heavens. Is is not something experienced by human beings. If you want to try it out, work hard at your dhyana meditation.
The fourth dhyana is called the Pure Ground of Casting Out Thought. In the third dhyana thought stops. Although one does not give rise to false thinking, thought has not been entirely cast out until one reaches the fourth dhyana. In the fourth dhyana one puts thought somewhere else entirely. In this state, the afflictions of the guest-dusts have been completely purified. However, this does not mean that one has certified to the fruit of sagehood. It is merely the attainment in cultivation of a state of “light peace.”
To the four dhyanas one adds the four formless samadhis to attain the eight concentrations. The four formless samadhis are:
1. The samadhi of the station of boundless emptiness.
2. The samadhi of the station of boundless consciousness.
3. The samadhi of the station of nothing whatsoever.
4. The samadhi of the station of neither perception nor non-perception.
The heavens of these four stations are called the heavens of the formless realm. The gods dwelling in the formless realm have only consciousness; they have no material form. The four are also called the Four Stations of Emptiness, because they are formless.
There are Eight Liberations:
1. The liberation in which inwardly there is the mark of form and outwardly form is contemplated.
2. The liberation in which inwardly there is no mark of form and outwardly form is contemplated.
3. The liberation in which the pure body of wisdom certifies to the complete dwelling.
Add to these the liberations of the four formless samadhis:
4. The liberation of the station of boundless emptiness.
5. The liberation of the station of boundless consciousness.
6. The liberation of the station of nothing whatsoever.
7. The liberation of the station of neither perception nor non-perception.
Then add:
8. The liberation of the samadhi of the extinction of the skandhas of feeling and thought. These are also called “eight castings off the back.” This means that one “gets afflictions off one’s back” and attains liberation.
To explain them in more detail:
1. The liberation in which inwardly there is a the mark of form and outwardly form is contemplated. This means that within you, you still have thought of sexual desire. People are just people after all. When they just begin cultivating, they cannot avoid the problem of sexual desire. You may wish to cut off this desire, but you have previously planted the seeds within you of desire and so you still have these thoughts and feelings. Inwardly, there is the mark of form. One counteracts this desire by the contemplation of outward form. What form?
One uses the contemplation of the nine signs and the contemplation of impurity to look at outward forms. Once you understand the impurity of all forms, you would not be attached to the marks of for, i.e., you would not form sexual attachments. You will thereby attain this first liberation. If you are attached, you cannot be liberated. This means that you have to put everything down in order to be free. As long as you cannot put it down, you would not be free. How do you put it down? You must first see through it, see it for what it really is. Then, you can put it aside. If you cannot see through it, you would not be able to put it down. As long as you cannot put it down, you would nt be free. So, you first cultivate this contemplation.
2. The liberation in which inwardly there is no mark of form and outwardly form is contemplated. Those who apply effor for a time will, without realizing quite how, get rid of thoughts of sexual desire. Is that enough? No. You must continue to contemplate external forms. As you look at the most beautiful woman, you realize that eventually she will get old and die.
There are nine contemplations of a rotting corpse:
a) Tumefaction. When that lovely woman/man dies, her/his body will first swell up.
b) Secondly, it will turn a mottled green color.
c) Then, it will start to rot.
d) It will break open and discharge blood.
e) It will ooze flesh and pus.
f) It will be devoured by birds and beasts and insects.
g) Its remains will be in a dismembered condition.
h) Finally, it will be nothing but a skeleton,
i) Which will fnally turn to ashes.
Thus, the four elements it was originally composed of will each return to where they came from. The element earth will return to the earth. The water will go back to the water. The fire will return to fire, and the wind will go back to the wind. It is all empty once again. You contemplate one person like this, a hundred, a thousand, a million. Once you understand this contemplation of impurity–be they male or female, depending on your preference, you would not lust after them. The absence of lust is liberation.
3. Having broken through these marks of form, you then reach the next level of liberation in which “the pure body of wisdom certifies to the perfect dwelling.” Since you have seen through it and put it down, you obtain the pure wisdom body. You then certify to the perfect dwelling. “Perfect dwelling” is just liberation, that is, dwelling in purity’s original substance.
Next, you become liberated with regard to:
4. Emptiness
5. Consciousness
6. Nothing whatsoever
7. Neither perception nor non-perception, that is, the Four Stations of Emptiness.
8. Finally, you attain the liberation of the samadhi of the skandhas of feeling and thought. At that time, your consciousness is just about to be extinguished, but has not quite yet been extinguished. After eighty-thousand great eons that consciousness will arise again. Therefore, although one obtains the stations of emptiness and so on, one has not yet ended birth and death. The attainment of the samadhi of the extinction of feelings and thought is not the end of birth and death either. In the four dhyanas and the four stations of emptiness plus the samadhi of the extinction of the skandhas of feelings and thought, we have the nine successive samadhis.
The text continues with “samadhis.” There are three kinds of samadhi: the Samadhi of Emptiness, the Samadhi of Signlessness, and the Samadhi of Wishlessness. To explain these three kinds of samadhi in detail would take a great deal of time. For now we shall just give their names.
You shall amuse yourselves and attain limitless peace and joy. By cultivating this skill, you attain the joy of dhyana as your food and are filled with bliss of Dharma. So you are extremely happy. Sporting in Dhyana Samadhi, you attain limitless peace and happiness. This means if you attain the Nirvana of true emptiness, you forever leave all troubles and disasters. With no troubles or disasters, your happiness and peace are unlimited.
Sutra:
“Shariputra, if there are living beings who inwardly posses the wisdom-nature, and hearing the Dharma from the Buddha, the World Honored One, believed and accepted it, diligently making progress, wishing quickly to escape the Three Realms and seeking Nirvana for themselves, they are called those of the Hearer Vehicle. They are like the children who sought the sheep carts and thereby escaped from the burning house.”
“If there are living beings who hearing the Dharma from the Buddha, the World Honored One, believed and accepted it, diligently making progress, and who seek for themselves Spontaneous Wisdom, delighting in solitude and fond of stillness, deeply understanding the causal conditions of all dharmas; they are called those of the Pratyeka Buddha Vehicle. They are like the children who sought the deer carts and so escaped from the burning house.”
“If there are living beings who hearing the Dharma from the Buddha, the World Honored One, believed and accepted it, earnestly cultivating with vigor, seeking All-wisdom, Buddha-wisdom, Spontaneous Wisdom, Untutored Wisdom, the Knowledge and Vision of the Thus Come One, his Powers and Fearlessnesses, pitying and comforting limitless living beings, benefitting gods and humans, saving all, they are called those of the Great Vehicle. Because the Bodhisattvas seek this vehicle, they are called Mahasattvas. They are like the children who sought the ox carts and so escaped from the burning house.”
Outline:
N3. Correlation of granting the children their wishes.
Commentary:
Shariputra, now I will tell you if there are living beings who inwardly possess the wisdom-nature: This means that in past lives they heard the Buddha speak the Dharma, and therefore they have the seeds of wisdom within them. Formerly, they followed the Buddha and studied the Dharma-doors of the Three Vehicles, so now they have the wisdom-nature within them.
And hearing the Dharma from the Buddha, the World Honored One: In former lives they listened to the Buddha teach the Dharma. This represents the first of the three types of wisdom, the wisdom of hearing. If you just hear it but do not believe or accept it, you cannot attain benefit. Once you have heard it, you must deeply believe it without having doubts. So the text says believed and accepted it. You must believe and uphold it. If you can believe and accept and uphold it, you can be assured of diligently making progress. Diligent refers to the second kind of the three wisdoms: the wisdom of consideration. You diligently consider the Dharma and are vigorous. This vigorous progress represents the third of the three types of wisdom, the wisdom of cultivation.
Wishing quickly to escape the Three Realms: If you can be diligent and make progress, you can quickly escape the desire, form, and formless realms.
And seeking Nirvana for themselves: They pay no attention to anyone else. They just want to succeed in their own cultivation and forget it. They are called those of the Hearer Vehicle. Because they only wish to enlighten and benefit themselves, they are called Hearers. They are like the children who sought the sheep carts and thereby escaped from the Burning house. Hearing that there were sheep carts outside the door, they ran from the burning house and were saved.
The Hearers are compared to sheep, because they just care about themselves. They are only interested in their own welfare. They end birth and death for themselves and pay no attention to others. They do not worry about the rest of the flock. They just run right ahead. That is the Hearer Vehicle.
If there are living beings who hearing the Dharma from the Buddha, the World Honored One, believed and accepted it: Someone asked me if the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas could give us faith. Does our faith come from ourselves or do the Buddhas give it to us? There are many ways to look at this question. However, we will say that faith arises from yourself. It definitely is not something given to you from the outside. It is not like those of non-Buddhist religions who say that God gives you faith. Faith arises only from within you. Others cannot give it to you. If others could give you faith, that would be like someone else eating lunch for you and you getting full. It does not work that way. In the same way faith cannot be gotten from the outside. If you have faith, you will get the food of Dharma and be filled with it. If you do not have faith, and others try to give you faith, well, it is not your own faith! You would not get “full.” Principles must be explained clearly. For example, one might ask it others can cultivate on your behalf. No. It is said,
Eat your own food, fill yourself;
End your own birth and death.
Faith works the same way. You have to give rise to it yourself. No one can do it for you.
Diligently making progress, and who seek for themselves Spontaneous Wisdom: This means very spontaneously and naturally giving rise to wisdom. How do they give rise to it? Delighting in solitude and fond of stillness. They cultivate by themselves in solitude; they are fond of stillness and are very pure. They do not like a lot of noise and commotion. Deeply understanding the causal conditions of all dharmas. They have profound understanding of the causes and condtions behind the production and extinction of all dharmas. They cultivate the Twelve Causal-conditions and by means of complete understanding of them, they gain attainment.
They are called those of the Pratyeka Buddha Vehicle. They are like the children who sought the Deer carts and thereby escaped from the burning house. They are like the kids who thought the deer carts the Elder offered were the most fun. Deer are independent. They do not need anyone to help them. Pratyeka Buddhas are independent, too. When a Buddha is in the world, they are called Conditioned-enlightened Ones. When there is no Buddha in the world they are called Solitary-enlightened Ones. They like to be alone. They like things quiet. They profoundly understand the causes and conditions underlying all dharmas. Pratyeka Buddhas cultivate and certify on their own. The Hearers and Pratyeka Buddhas are known as the Two Vehicles.
If there are living beings who hearing the Dharma from the Buddha, the World Honored One, who follow the Buddha and cultivate the Way, believed and accepted it, earnestly cultivating with vigor, seeking All-wisdom. All-wisdom means they want the wisdom regarding all transcendental and worldly dharmas. The Buddha-wisdom, this wisdom of the Buddha which those of the Two Vehicles do not possess.
Spontaneous Wisdom was explained previously as also sought by the Pratyeka Buddhas. Untutored Wisdom. Most people take this as wisdom which is gained without a teacher, but that is wrong. Untutuored Wisdom is something only the Buddha has, because the Buddha is the leader of gods and humans and no one acts as his teacher. Therefore his wisdom is untutored. This is the Buddha-wisdom. All-wisdom, Buddha-wisdom, Spontaneous Wisdom, and Untutored Wisdom are terms used to describe the Buddha’s wisdom. Although four types of wisdom are named, in reality, they are all the great, perfectly enlightened wisdom of the Buddha.
The Knowledge and Vision of the Thus Come One: Seeking the knowledge of the Thus Come One refers to the Wisdom of All Modes, and the vision of the Thus Come One refers to the Buddha-eye. His Powers and Fearlessnesses refers to the Buddha’s Ten Wisdom Powers and Four Fearlessnesses. Pitying and comforting limitless living beings: They have pity on all living beings and make them happy. They bring forth hearts of great compassion pitying and comforting all creatures benefitting gods and humans. They benefit gods in the heavens and humans below.
Saving all: They want to deliver all beings. They are called those of the Great Vehicle, Great Vehicle Bodhisattvas. Because the Bodhisattvas seek this Vehicle, they are called Mahasattvas, Great Bodhisattvas. They are like the children who sought the ox carts and thereby escaped from the burning house. They sought the great ox carts and so got out of the burning house.
Sutra:
“Shariputra, just as that Elder, seeing all his children safely escape the burning house to a place of fearlessness, and considering his own unlimited wealth, give to all of his children great carts.”
Outline:
L3. Correlation of the giving of a great cart.
M1. Correlation of avoiding disaster and giving of a great cart.
Commentary:
Shariputra, just as that Elder, seeing all his children safely escape the burning house to a place of fearlessness: This refers to the thirty sons talked about earlier as well as the five hundred people. And considering his own unlimited wealth, gives to all of his children great carts.
Sutra:
“The Thus Come One, in the same way, is the father of all living beings. When he sees limitless kotis of living beings using the gateway of the Buddha’s teaching to get off the fearsome and dangerous path of the sufferings of the Three Realms and attain the bliss of Nirvana, he has this thought, ‘I have limitless and boundless wisdom, powers, fearlessnesses and so on–the complete storehouse of the Buddhadharma.
All of these living beings are my children. I should give to all of them great carts, not allowing them to gain individual Quiescence, but crossing them over to Quiescence by means of the Thus Come One’s Quiescence. Having escaped the Three Realms, all these living beings are given as playthings the Buddha’s Dhyana Samadhis, Liberations, and so forth, all of one mark and one kind, praised by the sages and productive of pure, wondrous, and foremost bliss.’”
Outline:
M2. Giving of the Great Vehicle.
Commentary:
The Thus Come One, in the same way, is the father of all living beings. When he sees limitless kotis of living beings using the gateway of the Buddha’s teaching to get off the fearsome and dangerous path of the sufferings of the Three Realms and attain the bliss of Nirvana, he has this thought: The Three Realms are the realm of desire, the realm of form, and the formless realm. After you get out of the world of desire, you have no more desire. Once you transcend the world of form, there is no more form. Once you get beyond the formless realm, then there is no thought either.
Everything in the Three Realms is suffering. Here, the text says that it is not only suffering, but it is also very dangerous. Why is it dangerous? It is like a place that is overrun with thieves. The thieves are the Six Senses: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind. These six thieves rob you of the precious treasure of your own original wisdom. But if you can turn them around, the Six Senses can act as Dharma protectors, too. I will give you a simple analogy:
For example, say there were some thieves who got tired of being thieves and decided to join the police force. Because they used to be thieves, they know very well where to go to look for thieves, and they make very good policemen. They know all the sneaky thief tricks and can arrive at the scene of a crime before the criminals even get there! So it is with the Six Senses if they are turned around. The eyes that once ran after beautiful forms no longer are fooled by them. The ears quit running after fine sounds; the nose does not seek fragrances; the tongue does not crave fine flavors; the body does not run after things to touch; and the mind is not preoccupied with dharmas. In this way, they stand guard over the treasure of your original wisdom, and they have become Dharma protectors.
Now, in the Three Realms there are many thieves. They are sneaking up the alleys, coming up the main highways, crawling into the windows, and leaping over the back fence. Would you say this is dangerous or not? The Three Realms are indeed fearful and dangerous, in addition to being places of great suffering and misery. The Buddha sees all the living beings using the teachings of the Buddha to walk right out this suffering, dangerous world. He thinks, ‘I have limitless and boundless wisdom, powers, fearlessnesses, and so on–the complete storehouse of the Buddhadharma. All of these living beings are my children. I should give to all of them great carts, not allowing them to gain individual Quiescence, but crossing them over to Quiescence by means of the Thus Come One’s Quiescence.’
In the Three Realms there is no real happiness; there is nothing but suffering, and it is very dangerous. It is like standing on the edge of a deep abyss or walking on thin ice. What is meant by standing on the edge of a deep abyss? It is like standing on a cliff which hangs a hundred thousand feet right over the ocean. It is very easy to fall over the edge and lose your life. It is also like walking across some very thin ice–easy to fall right through into the water and lose your life. That is what being in the Three Realms is like. It is like being in a burning house.
The Buddha leads us out of danger to the joy of Nirvana, to the happiness of Nirvana–unproduced, undestroyed, not defiled, not pure, permanence, bliss, true self, and purity. Quite an advantage! The Buddha thinks, “Now that I have become a Buddha, my wisdom is limitless and boundless. It is endless for the taking and inexhaustible in its use. I also have Ten Powers, and Four Fearlessnesses.” The phrase, “and so on” refers to the Dharma-treasury of the Buddhas, that is, the Four Truths, the Six Perfections, the Twelve Conditioned Causes, and the Thirty-seven Wings of Enlightenment. Since the Buddha has the complete storehouse of the Dharma, he decides to give to all his children great carts, the Great Vehicle.
“I should not let them gain individual Nirvana,” he thinks. “I should lead them all to attain the Thus Come One’s Nirvana so they can be just like the Thus Come One. I should not allow them to attain simply doctrine of one-sided emptiness. I should make sure that they all attain the perfect, supreme doctrine of true emptiness.
Having escaped the Three Realms, all these living beings are given as playthings the Buddha’s Dhyana Samadhis, Liberations, and so forth, all of one mark and one kind, praised by the sages and productive of pure wondrous and foremost bliss. When all of these living beings get out of the Three Realms, they all get the Dhyana Concentrations of the Buddhas and the Liberations–the very finest toys. You have not attained that happy state of Dhyana Concentration yet, but once you do–ah!–then you will be like children playing with new toys. Lots of fun! Lots of fun!
What is “one mark?” It is the Real Mark. The Real Mark represents the first of the Three Virtues, the Virtue of the Dharma-body. Above, much principle has been discussed–the Thirty-seven Wings, the Six Perfections, the Four Truths, the Twelve Conditioned Causes. Now, the Parable chapter is about to be finished and the Three Virtues are used to cap it off. So the text says, “all of one mark.” They are all the Real Mark. The Real Mark is without a mark. However, there is nothing which it does not mark. All marks arise out of the Real Mark. This is to say that within true emptiness, wonderful existence arises. Wonderful existence–you cannot see it. That is why it is called “wonderful.” You cannot hear it, smell it, taste or touch it, either. Your mind’s thoughts cannot know of it. It is the Real Mark, the Virtue of the Dharma-body.
“One kind” refers to the Wisdom of All Modes, a kind of wisdom, and represents the second of the Three Virtues, the Virtue of Prajna.
“Praised by the sages and productive of pure, wondrous and foremost bliss” refers to the third of the Three Virtues, the Virtue of Liberation. This Dharma is praised by the Buddhas throughout the ten directions. It gives rise to a clear, pure, subtle, fine happiness, which knows no suffering. The absence of suffering is just liberation, the Virtue of Liberation. Such is the inconceivable storehouse of the Three Virtues.
Sutra:
“Shariputra, just as that Elder first having used the three carts to entice his children and then later having given them great carts adorned with jewels and supremely comfortable, is not guilty of falsehood…”
Outline:
L4. Correlation of “no falseness.”
M1. The parable.
Commentary:
The greatly wise Shariputra is told that he should know that the Buddha is just like a great Elder. Shariputra, just as that Elder first having used the three carts to entice his children: At the very beginning, he used expedients saying that outside there were three kinds of carts: sheep carts, deer carts, and ox carts. Basically the children were playing in the hosue and were totally unaware of the situation. They were not frightened or afraid at all. When they heard there were such beautiful toy-carts, they were enticed out. He cheated the children saying there were carts outside the door. The children were just on the verge of being burned in the fire and so even though there were no carts outside the door, the Elder told them there were. Since the toys he promised were more fun than the ones the children were playing with, they ran outside the door to safety.
And then later having given them great carts: The Elder got them safely out of the house and then, because his own wealth was without limit–he could give to the entire country and not diminish his wealth–everyone got a great cart. Adorned with jewels and supremely comfortable. The carts were very comfortable. Is not guilty of falsehood. You cannot rightfully say that the Elder lied to the children. He is without error.
Sutra:
“…just so is the Thus Come One likewise not guilty of falsehood in first speaking of the Three Vehicles to entice living beings and then afterwards delivering them only by means of the Great Vehicle. What is the reason? The Thus Come One has limitless wisdom, powers and fearlessnesses, a storehouse of Dharmas, and is able to give to all living beings the Great Vehicle Dharma. Not all living beings, however, are able to accept it. Shariputra, because of these causes and conditions, you should know that the Buddhas, using the power of expedient devices, in the One Buddha Vehicle, discriminate and speak of three.”
Outline:
M2. The correlation.
Commentary:
The Elder used expedient methods to get the children safely out of the burning house, and he said there were carts when there really was none. Later, he gave all of them great carts and so he was not guilty of telling lies. Just so is the Thus Come One likewise not guilty of falsehood in first speaking of the Three Vehicles to entice living beings. The Buddha, the World Honored One, is just like the Elder. He did not lie. He used clever expedients to help living beings. He first spoke the Hearer Vehicle. Then he spoke the Conditioned Enlightened Vehicle. Then, he spoke the Bodhisattva Vehicle–the Three Vehicles. He did this to entice and lead all living beings. The Hearer Vehicle was taught the Storehouse Teaching. The Conditioned Enlightened Ones were taught the Pervasive Teaching. The Bodhisattvas were taught the Separate Teaching. Then, lastly, he taught the Great Vehicle, the wonderful principle of the Real Mark, the perfect-sudden Dharma-door, the Great Vehicle’s wonderful Dharma found in this Sutra.
And then afterwards delivering them only by means of the Great Vehicle. What is the reason? Why does the Buddha do this? The Thus Come One has limitless wisdom: The Buddha basically has limitless and boundless wisdom. He has All-wisdom, Wisdom in the Way, and the Wisdom of All Modes. With such boundless wisdom, he also has Ten Wisdom Powers, as well as Four Fearlessnesses—a storehouse of Dharmas. He has all the Dharma-doors and is able to give to all living beings the Great Vehicle Dharma. Not all living beings, however, are able to accept it. If you tell them about the Great Vehicle Dharma-door right off, since they have never heard of such a thing, not all will be able to accept it. For example, the Buddha first spoke The Avatamsaka Sutra, and those of the Small Vehicle.
Had eyes, but did not see Nishyanda Buddha;
Had ears, but did not hear the perfect-sudden teaching.
They looked, but did not see, listened but did not hear. They were as if deaf, dumb, and blind. So not only were they unable to accept it, they could not even understand it!
A layperson once asked me, “If those of the Two Vehicles could not even understand The Avatamsaka Sutra, how can we, who are not even as high as those of the Two Vehicles, possibly understand it?”
This is a good question. But right after the Buddha realized Buddhahood, no one at all understood the Buddhadharma. There was no any Buddhadharma. So if you spoke any profound principle to them, they would not be able to understand them. Now, we know about the Buddhadharma and it is possible for us to understand it, and to understand its various levels, the Great and Small Vehicles and the profound and less profound teachings. Although we have not certified to the fruit, and cannot compare ourselves with those of the Two Vehicles, still, our dispositions towards the Great Vehicle have been firmly established, and we have a chance to hear the Great Vehicle Buddhadharma.
The text tells us that living beings are unable to accept the Great Vehicle Dharma and so Shariputra, because of these causes and conditions, you should know that the Buddhas, using the power of expedient devices, in the One Buddha Vehicle, discriminate and speak of three. Originally, there are not Three Vehicles. There is only the Buddha Vehicle. Living beings’ dispositions are such that they cannot accept it completely and so the Buddha teaches the three for the sake of the one. The ultimate aim is for all living beings to become Buddhas through the cultivation of the Buddha Vehicle.