Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Four Bonds (四縛)
In our life, do we attach to external conditions? Having attachments is truly suffering beyond words. Life is a temporary composite of the Four Elements. In this world, things we encounter are all temporary combinations of earth, water, fire and wind. Everything is like this, our bodies are the same. Then why are we attached? There’s no need to be attached.
But ordinary people are attached to many things. We are attached to this temporary body and external maternal objects. Besides constant conflicts, there are also the Four Bonds. They prevent us from being liberated, causing us unspeakable suffering.
The four Bonds may cause all wrongdoings. The Four Bonds: Bond of Greed, Bond of Anger, Bond of Precept, Bond of Egoism.
The first of the Four Bonds is Bond of Greed. A Bond is something that binds us. There are four types. The first is greed. Greed is almost inseparable from life. All ignorance and afflictions are likewise inseparable from greed. It is the root of suffering. Because of it, living beings cannot attain liberation.
Some people are greedy because of deprivation, others are greedy due to endless desires. Such desire can never be satisfied, they never cease being greedy. These days, people often say that life is difficult due to the recession. However, eating and entertainment establishments still thrive. People are still interested in fun and games. Despite the economic downturn, these places still attract many people.
Worse yet, there are many using the recession as an excuse to commit crimes. They bring upon themselves a lifetime of regret and stigma. It is all because of greed. Due to the recession, some small and mid-sized companies are forced to close down. But why can’t they manage to continue operating? Can the recession impact them that much? Actually, the largest contributing factor is debt.
Many who lack the capability or resources plan their budget beyond their assets. Being short on capital, they borrow money from different places. Borrowing from banks or individuals requires interests. Borrowing from loan sharks is even more demanding. When businesses are making money fast, for the sake of promotion and generating interest, it is easy to get carried away.
When business is good, they only remember how much they have made, forgetting how much they have borrowed. Also, it’s very easy to pick up habits from excessive socializing. Bad habits like drinking, indulging and gambling are picked up from networking and entertaining. Meanwhile, their motivation & diligence slacken. When the economy hits a downturn, their socializing habits cannot change. Required to pay loan interests, they are forced to declare bankruptcy.
This is also because of greed. I often like to use an analogy: “having one, we lack none”. Having a little, one wants more. For small businesses, if they earn 1,000 they want 9,000 more to make it 10,000. With 10,000, they want 90,000 more. With 100,000, they want 900,000 more. Like this, they continue down the road of greed, always wanting more. Because of greed people continue to toil and suffer in life.
A Faith Corps member came with a commissioner who is also an Honorary Board Member. The Faith Corps member said, “I brought him back today！”
I said, “Is that so? Does he not come back often?”
For decades, he has been a commissioner and an Honorary Board Member. The Faith Corps member said, “Actually, he introduced me to Tzu Chi.”
I said, “The person you mentored is so diligent now, why have your drifted so far away?”
He answered, “Master, I’m like you’ve described, having one, I lack nine. The bigger my business, the busier I became and the farther I drifted away (from Tzu Chi) I often travel between Taiwan and China. I am bound by my business.”
Indeed, he is bound by his career. Even if he stopped working now, his money would last him more than three lifetimes. Yet he feels that he should make money now, not knowing how much time he has left. I asked him, “Do you have any afflictions?”
“There are always afflictions in doing business.”
I said, “Look at your Dharma Brother.”
He answered, “Yes, he is truly my role model. He brought me back, so I came with him. Over the years, he’s been very happy and has no afflictions. He has also contributed much to society.”
Indeed, this is knowing when to let go. They are at similar crossroads of their lives. One is spiritually liberated, although he is very busy contribution to society. He is committed to our missions and busy every day. But he is joyful and at ease, without stress from afflictions, so at ease!
Greed is the source of ignorance, the origin of afflictions. It leads to self-confinement and a descent into the abyss of desires. Lack of attachment to desires will liberate the mind, and life will become peaceful, at ease.
This is all about our mentality. When can we be truly liberated? Spiritual Practice is not waiting until our burden becomes lighter, or seeking liberation in the next life. Liberation is to be attained here and now, not in the next life. Our life is out of our control. The only thing that we can take with us is karma. Our next life is obscure and based on the karma we create in this life.
Where will our karma take us? Karma determines where we will be born. We may be born in Africa, Rwanda, Ethiopia, or some other desolate places. Right now there are many places where people still live primitively. Tzu Chi is active internationally. We have been to countries that are wealthy and well-endowed. There are many Tzu Chi members around the world. We have also been to impoverished places, plagued by disasters. We have been to places with natural and manmade catastrophes. Each time volunteers return from relief trips, they are grateful, knowing how fortunate they are to live in Taiwan. Living in a peaceful and harmonious society is truly a blessing.
We have been to Azerbaijan, Chechnya, Afghanistan and Ethiopia, where people suffered from the aftermath of war. Wars have destroyed families and lives. The severity of damage is shocking. Such manmade disasters are most worrisome. The decisions made by a few result in the suffering of multitudes. Reflecting on human life,
there are many disturbing occurrences.
In the technologically advanced metropolis, we live with abundance we live with abundance. Everything is convenient, like living in heaven. Yet even in this heaven-like setting, there are hidden dangers. The Buddha taught us that when heavenly beings exhaust their blessings, they immediately fall into the Three Evil Paths. Using up their blessings in enjoyment, once karma arises, they will fall once karma arises, they will fall. This is also a type of danger.
Thus, the Buddha told us to not cultivate heavenly blessings. We need to cultivate both blessings and wisdom to the point that we have the wisdom to know where we will be born in our next life. In this life, we can’t even predict how tomorrow will be. So the possibility of knowing if we can be liberated in the next life is even more bleak.
We’ve been to prosperous countries that are like the heavens. We’ve also been to places with extreme poverty, such as one place in the mountains of a small desolate Indonesian island. The Indonesian Tzu Chi volunteers delivered food there by helicopters. They discovered that the locals do not wear clothes. They are not civilized and still live a primitive lifestyle. Each person, regardless of gender, is completely naked. Seeing how they live, one feels much sympathy.
“What do they do in the winter?” I asked curiously. The volunteers replied, “They have long summers. Winter there is equivalent to our autumn.”
“Autumn nights can be chilly, what do they do?”
He said, “They are all hunters. They eat the animals’ flesh, apply a thick coat of animal fat on their bodies and roll in the sand to make thick layer of sand and fat to fight off the cold.”
Everyone, this may sound unfathomable to us. It is like living thousands of years in the past. But this is real. These people are occupying the same space and breathing the same air as you and I. Think about it, when they die, will they be reborn in the same place? Not necessarily. And those of us in Taiwan, will we be born here again? Not necessarily. After this life, there is still karmic force, which is beyond our control. So in this sense, we are all bound. We need to make good use of this very moment? Otherwise, a single thought of greed, whether desire for sexual or romantic affection, food, clothing, housing, etc., even if it’s a small indulgence or daily necessity that becomes excessive, it will still bind us, to say nothing of how business or career binds us. They are all “greed”.
Everyone, we practice to become liberated. Whether we are monastic or not, to gain liberation, we can’t wait till our responsibilities lesson before we practice. We can’t wait to seek liberation in the next life. That’s impossible. Now we know, we should seize the moment. If we cannot quell our afflictions in this life, we will be burdened by them and live beyond our control. Then liberation in our next life will be absolutely impossible.
Desires make one’s life unspeakably miserable. After attaining that realization, one should seize the moment and practice diligently. One who is unbound by desire can be liberated.
So we must mind ourselves in living among people, with worldly affairs. We should use material objects in moderation, have just enough to get by. We need to let go of everything else, so as not to be bound by greed.
The Bond of Greed is truly suffering beyond words. There are Four Bonds. We’ve only discussed one-greed. Greed can bind our body and mind to the 3 Evil Paths, 6 Destinies and 4 Forms of Birth. This is beyond our control. So while we are still clear, we should always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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