Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Wisdom Guides the Five Paramitas (慧導五度 令至彼岸)
Date: March.29.2019
“When those seeking the Bodhi-path practice the Five Paramitas but cannot attain the paramita of wisdom, they will still be like a group of blind people without a leader, unable to be guided in the right direction to reach perfect Bodhi. Wisdom guides the Five Paramitas and can help people reach sarvajna.”
We must mindfully listen and seek to understand this. “Those seeking the Bodhi-path practice the Five Paramitas”. Listen carefully; “the paramitas” bring us to the other shore. We often speak of how “the paramitas” bring us to the other shore. When it comes to “reaching the other shore,” how many methods of practice must we engage in for us to be able to reach the other shore? Do you all know? We usually speak of “the Six Paramitas”. Do you all recall this? [We must remember] the Six Paramitas. This [passage] here tells us that we want to engage in spiritual practice and seek the path, yet we only practice the Five Paramitas. So, why are we missing one? It is because we lack in contemplation and perspectives; we are still unclear on what direction to choose. When ordinary people practice, they say, “We must do good deeds; we should just do good deeds.” Is there anything wrong with this? There is nothing wrong. Then through doing these correct deeds, have we reached [perfect Bodhi]? We have still yet to reach it. What are we lacking? We lack wisdom.
Indeed! We only [think], “We should just do what is right”. So, we lack wisdom; our wisdom is still insufficient. Our direction is not aimed correctly. It has deviated slightly. We have not yet aimed our direction correctly. Although among the Six Paramitas, we have worked hard on the Five Paramitas of giving, precepts, patience, diligence and Samadhi, we still lack wisdom. Although we have practiced in this way, we have yet to clearly understand wisdom. We have yet to thoroughly understand. That is, we still lack a little bit. This is just “like a group of blind people without a leader, unable to be guided in the right direction.” They lack a leader. The leader is very important! If the leader of the group does not lead the way, then even with the other five people behind, without the leader in front, people will occasionally become lost in that environment.
So, people need a leader, and even more so when they walk with their eyes closed. If we have someone leading us, we can still walk at ease with our eyes closed. Or in the case of those who cannot see, as long as they have someone to lead them well and aim them correctly on the path, they can similarly advance with ease and diligence. Yet what we lack is this leader before us. Even if we have perfected all other [paramitas], if we lack a guide in front of us, we can easily go astray. We lack a direction with which we can reach our most perfect Bodhi, right understanding and perfect enlightenment. We will have no way to reach right understanding and perfect enlightenment. So, our perspective has not reached [this stage]; our faith and understanding are not complete and our direction is still incorrect. There is a slight deviation.
So, most important is wisdom. “Wisdom guides the Five Paramitas and can help people reach sarvajna.” With wisdom, we naturally will be led with ease, moving smoothly from this shore to the other. So, a leader is very important. This leader must be replete in wisdom, because only with wisdom can we lead [others] to walk in the same direction as us. So, among the Six Paramitas, we cannot lack the direction of wisdom. Giving is very important, for at the start of our spiritual practice, we must give rise to a giving heart.
Giving is equanimity. We have discussed this before. Equanimity is a willingness to serve others, whether it is benefiting others through words, helping them with our strength or helping them supplement their deficiencies etc.. Whether it is our physical energy, mental energy or the power of material resources, as long as we have a giving heart and are willing to help others, we will naturally give in a perfect way. However, to have a giving heart is not so easy because we humans [possess] the Three Poisons and the Five Turbidities. These are in our hearts. Greed, anger and delusion cause us great harm. Our ignorance is a poison in our hearts. Our greed is limitless; we want more and more. When we earn and gain a lot, [we feel] we are lacking even more. When [we have] less, there is little that we lack.
Take [the situation in] Haiti for example. James Chen and George Chang have described Haiti’s suffering [in 2018]. There is so much suffering. I have always wanted to understand the degree of suffering in Haiti. As they spoke, they [described] more and more suffering. Such a life can truly be described by the metaphor of “hell on earth.” We really have no way of imagining this. Even those who live a decent life, even people who work in high levels of the government, may get a monthly salary of US$200 or so. However, foreign ambassadors stationed in Haiti have such high monthly salaries that the numbers [reveal] an astronomical difference. It is truly massive difference. At the same time, commodities are so expensive. A head of napa cabbage, I heard, costs US$15. Why is it US$15? Because it has to be imported. Do they have such vegetables grown locally? They do, and of course the price of local produce is cheaper and more appropriate to their [economic] standards, but their produce does not grow well. A napa cabbage [grown there] is tiny. Furthermore, it grows to be dark, not white. Why is this? The soil there is infertile, and when growing crops there, they lack fertilizer and pesticides. Thus, when [growing] on that infertile soil, the color of [the vegetables] does not look pretty, nor do the vegetables grow well. They are also eaten by bugs. So, their price is the local price in Haiti. As for the imported napa cabbages, they are big and beautiful and [sold] in the supermarkets. There are not many supermarkets because these supermarkets are there to meet foreigners’ needs. The local people cannot [afford] to shop at the supermarkets. The supermarkets are, of course, places that only people who lives as if they are in heaven visit and shop at. The products are very expensive. A napa cabbage costs US$15; this is NT$400 to 500. Just think, even people of high status in that place, with their monthly salary of around US$200, how many heads of napa cabbage can they afford? They obviously cannot afford to eat them. However, have foreigners considered this, and are they satisfied? They are still not satisfied. People from wealthy countries are sent to such an impoverished place where life is difficult. Furthermore, there is poor public safety and so on. So, they feel they do not have enough, that they are still underpaid. What do the local people [think]? [The think] that things are already very good. What about those who are impoverished? Have you heard? They wish to donate money. If they have five [Haiti gourdes], they want to donate one gourde. One gourde is equivalent to 40-50 NTD. In Hualien, Taiwan, [after the] 2018 earthquake, they were willing to donate one fifth of what they had. Is this a lot? I consider it to be a lot. Even if it is only 30-50 cents [NTD], this is already great; they have done their best.
After Hurricane Harvey in the US, they similarly contributed eagerly. Although they all donated enthusiastically, it was equivalent to only a few hundred NTD. However, it was 1000 to 2000 Haitian gourdes, which was already a large amount. At that time, Father Zucchi Olibrice and a German physician came to the Abode to tell me [about Haiti]. It was not specifically for that purpose; they came to bring this donated money to me. They took the money out, which was wrapped very well, and laid it out before me. I was about to take it when. [Father Zucchi] said to me, “This money is really dirty, so you ought not touch it”. How could money be dirty? He began to explain why He said, “The people there are very impoverished. Their living environment [is very poor], and many people come into contact with the money. So, it is truly very filthy”. He told me not to touch it. He further said that he has a school with over 10,000 students, and that these students are all impoverished. Most people there are poor; there are many impoverished, poverty-stricken people without access to three meals a day. So, Father Zucchi came to thank Tzu Chi for providing them with rice. The “rice of love” [donated by Taiwan was given to them by Tzu Chi [volunteers] in person. He was very grateful for the Taiwanese rice that was able to resolve the food [shortage] in his school, enabling him to provide one meal a day. So, people have five meals a week. They rest on Saturdays and Sundays, [but] from Monday to Friday they provide a meal each day. Father Zucchi was very thankful for the fact that, for so many years, Tzu Chi has provided for them in this way; he was [truly] thankful.
I ask him, “Are there truly so many impoverished people?” The German physician that sat beside [him] responded in this way. She said, “There are many, many impoverished families. Among them are children who cannot go to school. They have nothing to eat at home and are hungry to the point of tears. For each time meal they want to give their children, the mothers must sell their body. Only then will they be able to provide the meal. The rice that Tzu Chi has provided over these past years, has already been enough to help these impoverished Haitian women maintain their dignity. They no longer have to sell their bodies every time they must feed their child a meal”. At the time, when I heard them talk about this, my heart was truly in pain! So, Father Zucchi was the one who brought the money back to me last time. This time, it was James Chen who brought it, and he brought it so that he could give it to me personally. Really, when the plastic bag was opened, the money was tangibly dirty. It was really dirty. When I picked up the money with my hands, my hands were covered in dust. After wiping my hands a few times, they were still dusty. This money was tangibly dirty, be it bills or coins. Their coins are not round but heptagonal. They are heptagons, a very strangely-shaped coin. They were truly tangibly dirty. However, when he opened [the bag], I told him, “In my eyes, this is a lot, and it is very clean”. They did their best, and it was truly very moving. So, it was not much money, but these people were truly very wise. They were willing to help [others], and this kind of wisdom comes from gratitude. It was the wisdom of giving back with gratitude. In Cite Soleil, Haiti, public safety is very poor. People need bodyguards to get around there. When we went there in the past, we needed UN troops to protect us. This is still the case now. By this time, Tzu Chi volunteers who went there were already very well-respected, but they still did not feel [completely] at ease. However, [the students] there were taught to have very good manners. When we see them receiving supplies, they are in orderly lines and very well-mannered. The volunteers there listen to [the Dharma] and join study groups. They have to join study groups and go through training, attending classes in [Cite Soleil]. I heard that to use the restrooms, they have set times. When that time comes, they will get in line to go to the restroom and line up to come back in and take their seats. They are very orderly. I also heard James Chen talk about another [story] in Haiti. OECC is a Taiwanese [construction company]; they help Tzu Chi out a great deal there. On a piece of land [they bought], they set aside a plot for Tzu Chi to build a service center. In that large space, they hold study groups. They are very well-mannered. They also undergo volunteer training and learn how Tzu Chi [volunteers] pay respect to the Buddha conduct themselves in a dignified manner and so on. They learn all the [etiquette] accordingly. They are punctual, coming and going according to schedule, and they line up to enter and to leave. The local minister of defense and many government officials took part in [the opening ceremony] of our campus. [The minister] saw how disciplined and orderly [our volunteers] were, all standing, their hands in front of their waists in a very orderly manner and walking and lining up in an orderly way. He was surprised [and said], “Wow! Even the troops we train cannot do this. There are so many people here in Tzu Chi, yet Tzu Chi is able to help them become so disciplined!” I personally heard this from James Chen and saw it in photographs. I was very touched. So, I began to hope that we can put in more effort to care for Haiti and Africa. Father Zucchi has taken on Tzu Chi’s [mission] and donned the blue and white uniform. OECC’s general manger has also taken on Tzu Chi’s mission. So, we already have seeds in this place. We saw their thoughtful way of teaching, their Bodhisattva-aspirations [like those of]. Earth Treasury Bodhisattva and Guanyin Bodhisattva. They relieve suffering upon hearing people’s cries and [have a mentality of], “If I don’t enter hell, who will?” Take, for example, general manager Mr. Chang. He was willing to stat there. This priest also the same! He could go to Rome, yet he willingly remained there. This is just like how Earth Treasury Bodhisattva is willing to remain in [hell]. This is wisdom, compassionate wisdom. As for their giving, they give in such a place that really needs it.
This is particularly true of Father Zucchi. Upon returning from here, he began to feel that with everything I am doing, he ought to redouble his efforts and do things that Tzu Chi wants to do. So, he further implemented [a program] to care for handicapped elderly. They show such [great] care and love. We cannot fully describe their giving and wisdom. They are willing to choose the perils of a troubling environment and, in particular, difficulties in daily living. They do not want to leave, [but instead] they safeguard that place. Just think, if they did not have wisdom, they would be unable to overcome [difficulties] with arising patience and patience with phenomena. They overcame [difficulties] with arising patience and exercised patience with phenomena. This is serving with wisdom.
So, in speaking of the Five Paramitas, the first is “giving” and [the one not included] is “wisdom”. There are so many touching stories that we cannot finish telling them all. “Witnessing suffering, we must all recognize our blessings” and create more blessings. we may say that our spiritual practice is very difficult, but Father [Zucchi] is also engaging in spiritual practice! How can we compare our suffering to theirs? We truly must have a respectful heart, for this kind of love is incomparable. The way they serve others truly inspires admiration in us. So, we must be mindful.
The previous sutra passage says, “At that time, the Buddha told Maitreya Bodhisattva-Mahasattva, ‘Ajita, if there are sentient beings who hear that the Buddha’s lifespan is long and extensive like this and are able to give rise to even one thought of faith and understanding, the merits and virtues they attain will be without limits.’”
We must clearly understand [the phrase], “one thought of faith and understanding. Only with faith and understanding will we be willing to serve others in this way. So, faith and understanding are very important. We may be willing to practice the Five Paramitas, but ultimately, we must have wisdom. We must use our wisdom to guide [our practice of] the Five Paramitas. We must use “prajna” to guide the other Five Paramitas.
The following sutra passage continues, “There may be good men and good women who, for the sake of attaining Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, over 80 trillion nayutas of kalpas practice the Five Paramitas.
These are good men and women, many of whom believe in the Buddha, who are lay practitioners and listen to the Buddha-Dharma. They transform evil into goodness. They know they must not commit evil deeds but must earnestly practice good deeds and abide by the rules. Such people are called good men and women.
There may be good men and good women who, for the sake of attaining Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi: There are good men and good women who hear the Buddha-Dharma as lay people and seek the path of universal enlightenment.
What about Bodhisattvas? They truly practice the Six Paramitas. Among lay practitioners, some people [think], “When I pray, I am seeking blessings. When I make offerings, I am seeking blessings. When I give to others, I am seeking blessings.” These are ordinary people who believe in the Buddha, novice lay believers. They are called good men and women. These good men and women have yet to achieve [realizations]. We preciously said that the Bodhisattvas who had already achieved or are in the process of achieving were already so many. In the future, there will still be good men and women. This refers to those who have just begun listening to the Dharma, who have encountered the Buddha-Dharma but have no yet thoroughly understood it. So, they are those who are achieving or have yet to achieve. They have these seeds, but these seeds have not been planted, nor have they sprouted. Such people are “good men and women”. “80 trillion nayutas of kalpas is a very long period of time, a period of “80 trillion [long kalpas]”.
Over 80 trillion nayutas of kalpas, [they] practice the Five Paramitas: The 80 trillion long kalpas can be explained as the eighth consciousness. “The Five Paramitas” excludes prajna. The first five paramitas are used as a standard.
A “kalpa” is a very long period of time. For such a long time, they have all listened to the Dharma, but they were not mindful. They did good deeds but did not understand [the Dharma]. They did not fully believe in nor truly understand [the Dharma] in this way, they only know the Buddha-Dharma and act accordingly. However, they do not yet truly have deep faith and understanding. They have “practiced the Five Paramitas, but they have not yet attained deep faith and understanding. So, they serve others for a long time and say, “I do good deeds and seek human and heavenly blessings. I return to enjoy them without losing my human form. I can also be born into heaven and become a heavenly being. Still, they are unable to have deep faith and thoroughly understand. So, [the time] “can be explained as the eighth consciousness”. The metaphor of this long period of time is a metaphor for our eighth consciousness. We must transform our consciousness into wisdom. This means that at this time, we listen to the Dharma with profound faith, put it into practice and walk upon the Bodhisattva-path in this world. In this way, we have transformed consciousness into wisdom. In this way, we will be able to slowly draw near “the prajna paramita”. We currently have faith and understanding, yet we have not arrived at profound faith and understanding. We have not yet achieved it. So, people are currently “practicing the Five Paramitas” as “lay practitioners”. In the past we were like this, so now we should have faith and understanding. So, regarding our eighth consciousness, a single thought pervades the trichiliocosms. Everyone should be aware of this. As we were discussing Haiti just now, [our minds] traveled to a place that is tens of thousands of kilometers away from us, to Haiti, and then return. This took place in the span of a thought. As I told you what the sutra passage was about, your eighth consciousness that was there in Haiti returned here in an instant. This is our consciousness. In our eighth consciousness, as we listen and receive what we hear, our thoughts stir within it and quickly pass. This is what our eighth consciousness does. There are many ways to explain the eighth consciousness. This is its most important [explanation] that we use. This is the function of our eighth consciousness.
So, ‘“The Five Paramitas’ excludes prajna. The first five paramitas are used as a standard”. Here, “80 trillion long kalpas” [refers to] the eighth consciousness of ordinary beings. All day long, thoughts arise and cease. All day long, in ordinary beings’ time, how many thoughts do we give rise to in a single day? We give rise to countless thoughts. So, every thought rises and falls within the field of the eighth consciousness. As we engage in spiritual practice, our thoughts are more disciplined; they are focused on what we think we ought to do. This is why we must engage in spiritual practice. We ought to recognize the names of the Five Paramitas. These are “the dana paramita, the sila paramita, the ksanti paramita, the virya paramita and the dhyana paramita”.
The last one is “the prajna paramita,” which has yet to emerge. These are the first five paramitas. Giving is the dana paramita. Upholding precepts is the sila paramita. Patience is the ksanti paramita. Diligence is the virya paramita. Then there is the dhyana paramita. These are the Five [Paramitas]. So, we must practice these Five [Paramitas]. They are not useless, so we cannot be lacking in any of them. More importantly, what we cannot lack is the necessary guidance of the prajna paramita. As long as we have “prajna,” or wisdom, we will naturally be replete with these Five Paramitas. If we have wisdom, our minds can be still. “Dhyana” means to be still. As long as we have wisdom, we will naturally be diligent, right? As long as we have wisdom, we will naturally be able to endure all. We can do all these as long as we have wisdom; we can give in a more proper manner. All of these require wisdom. In this way, we will be firm in our spiritual aspirations. If we can do this, we can even listen to the Dharma with clarity.
When they hear that the Buddha’s lifespan is long and extensive, if they give rise to just one thought of faith and understanding, they have the faith and understanding of taking joy in other’s merits, and the merits and virtues that they attain are unmatchable by those who practice the Five Paramitas over long kalpas.
So, “When they hear that the Buddha’s lifespan is long and extensive…” We previously heard about His “long and extensive lifespan”. So, just like this, so long as we give rise to a single thought of faith and understanding, we can share in the joy of the merits and virtues of others. “I understand. You are doing such a good job. I commend you and rejoice for you”. The merits and virtues of this alone are great. Just by sharing in this joy, just by having the faith and understanding to take joy in and praise others and help others succeed, this alone brings great merits and virtues. They are “unmatchable by those who practice the Five Paramitas over long kalpas”. This is because whenever we praise someone, we help them strengthen their resolve to just do what is right. So, we often say that helping others succeed at doing the right thing creates great merits and virtues. Taking joy in other’s merits and virtues is [having] faith and understanding. We use our wisdom to help them figure things out and establish their resolve to do what is right. This creates merits and virtues, and it is more important than us doing any other good deeds. This is because it is not sufficient for us alone to do good deeds. When we do good deeds by ourselves, no matter how great they are, our power is limited. We must help everyone do good deeds. Only when every person does good deeds and brings more people [to do good] will the resulting power be great. This is true wisdom.
Due to the power of a thought of faith in and understanding of the Tathagata’s three bodies, they realize the prajna of the Dharma-nature. Thus this is superior to the merits and virtues of practicing the Five Paramitas. If people exclude practicing the prajna paramita, it will be difficult to reach the other shore.
“Due to the power of a thought of faith in and understanding of the Tathagata’s three bodies…”. They have a single thought of faith in and understanding of the Buddha’s lifespan, the Dharmakaya, the Sambhogakaya and the Nirmanakaya. If we can have faith in the Buddha’s unceasing presence in the world and believe that the Buddha’s lifespan is His wisdom-life, if we can have this kind of faith, we will have great power. We “realize the Dharma-nature”. We understand the Dharma-nature and understand the Buddha’s wisdom-life. We all share the Buddha’s prajna-wisdom. Sentient beings are equal in wisdom to the Buddha. When we have faith, “this is superior to the merits and virtues of practicing the Five Paramitas. If people exclude practicing the prajna paramita, it will be difficult to reach the other shore.” If we lack this wisdom, when we do good deeds, it is all for the creation of worldly blessings, not losing the human form and cultivating heavenly blessings. That is all. We will not be able to reach the other shore and become a Bodhisattva. So, in this world, it is inevitable that there is a mix of the Five Turbidities. This turbidity is very severe. In this way they are often all mixed, so [even when] performing good deeds, our perspectives can still deviate. So, this is all to say that, within the world, we are “transmigrating through cyclic existence according to our negative karma.” Thus, we will have no way of attaining liberation and will always be in this world. If we lack wisdom and only creates blessings, we will always be within the human realm, cultivating heavenly blessings. In term of “cyclic existence over long kalpas,” this amount [of time] is very long, “80 trillion kalpas.” So, “cyclic existence over long kalpas” is a very long time.
According to our negative karma, we transmigrate through cyclic existence over long kalpas. Sentient beings are lost and drowning in the ocean of karma for 80 [trillion] long kalpas. Only by practicing and upholding the Six Paramitas can we see and hear the Dharma to eliminate the darkness of ignorance.
As “sentient beings,” it cannot be guaranteed that we will be reborn in this world life after life. We will also make mistakes and become lost in samsara, sinking and rising. This [time] is likened to 80 [trillion] long [kalpas]. We are always abiding in the Six Realms. So, “Only by practicing and upholding the Six Paramitas can we see and hear the Dharma.” Only by seeing and hearing the Dharma can we find a way to eliminate the darkness of ignorance. Ignorance is truly very dark! Everyone, please be mindful. Let us use wisdom to lead us in the direction of goodness. This way, we will not stray. If we practice goodness blindly, we will still deviate. We will still remain in samsara, floundering, rising, falling and remaining unsafe for a long time. So, we must always be mindful!
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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