Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: Our Mind and True Nature (心與性)
In the past few days, we talked about the mind and true nature. In our daily living, our behavior is inseparable from the mind, which is inseparable from our innate nature. This innate nature is pure and clear.
However, it is influenced by the thoughts of the mind directing our sense organs to connect with external conditions. This triggers our consciousness to differentiate. This differentiation by the mind and consciousness in turn contaminates our true nature. If we are determined to practice, we should eliminate the gathering and connecting between our minds, sense objects, and external conditions.
When our minds, sense objects, and external conditions connect, our innate nature is tainted. Spiritual practice is about eliminating the possibility of combining these three things.
In learning Buddhism, it is most important to let go of the past. If we still think about an event after it has passed and sow this seed into our minds, this is contemplation. This will sometimes become part of our memory. If we are unable to separate these mental formations, our “thinking” will generate continuous thoughts, and our bodies will quickly take action. We must promptly eliminate thoughts. Once we do that, contemplation will quickly disappear, and the two will not interact, thus there will be no action.
Without action, karma will not turn into seeds. It takes just one single thought. Therefore, we would say that ignorance covers our pure innate nature and turns it into Mind-consciousness, which connects to external conditions, and in turn obscures our bright and innate nature. It is just that simple. To cover is to conceal. The Five Hindrances are the coverings.
The Five Hindrances may cause all wrongdoings. The Five Hindrances are: greed, anger, sleep, restlessness and doubt.
Greed is one covering layer of ignorance. The first layer of ignorance is greed. Greed comes from attachment to the Five Desires. What are the Five Desires? Wealth, Sensual Pleasure, Fame, Food and Sleep. Most worldly people crave money. Everyone wants to be richer. “Having one, we lack nine.” People have this view throughout their life, which results in much suffering. This desire for wealth is very agonizing.
Eating is human nature. No one can survive without food. But the diet of people today is the trigger for many illnesses. The healthiest diet comes from nature. Grains, fruits and vegetables are truly beneficial to our bodies. They help keep the body balanced and functioning properly.
The same principle applies to clothing. Clothing used to be made from cotton or silk. But over the past few decades, things have changed. We now have synthetic fabrics such as nylon, etc. After decades of usage, people have realized that although these materials won’t wrinkle and are thin and soft, after a period of use, synthetic materials will cause problems such as skin irritation. So cotton materials are in demand again, but they wrinkle easily. They are harder to maintain and require better care. Modern people are not as careful, so white clothes are worn until they turn gray; and no one hand-washes clothes anymore. Everything is done by the washing machine. As a result, the brilliant colors fade. The fabric becomes blackish, gray and wrinkled.
This is due to modern people adapting to the changes in lifestyle, thereby losing many valuable practices of the old days.
Now we need to return to the old ways. Many things in this world have become obsolete, and we have lost many of our human abilities. When we pursue everything, we sometimes go against nature. By the time we realize our mistakes, we have passed the point of no return. This is truly dangerous. Sometimes if we are too greedy and go astray, by the time we want to turn back, it’s too late. This is greed for money, sensual pleasure, food, clothing and sleep. Truly, sleeping can be a difficult task.
Those who are greedy pursue enjoyment. When they indulge in the pursuit of wealth, sensual pleasure, fame, food and sleep, they will never be satisfied.
Let us continue with the Five Hindrances. Besides greed, there is anger. Losing your temper is another layer of covering. This layer of ignorance has made us act conversely, against proper ways. We need to practice the Bodhisattva-way. But when enlightened sentiments are turned into deluded sentiments, our minds are easily agitated. This will generate all types of delude feelings and emotions. This is another type of ignorance, which can create karma.
An angry person is one whose enlightened sentiments turn into deluded sentiments. Then the mind is easily agitated, giving rise to deluded feelings and emotions. These are the sources of ignorance.
The next Hindrance is sleep. We spoke about the five kinds of desires. One of them is sleep. Sleep is surely a Hindrance. How much time do people waste sleeping their lives away? In addition to sleeping, we are often idle. We are not using our bodies and our time to contribute and to benefit others. Time not properly used is the same as sleeping. Imagine how much time we waste in one lifetime. A life not well used is a life slept away.
During Buddha’s time at Sravasti, there was a monk in the monastic community who loved sleeping. He spent most of his time sleeping. Each morning after receiving alms, he would eat, clean up, and go back to sleep. The Buddha noticed this monk in the monastic community. He thought, “Life is impermanent. In a short while, his life will end. Isn’t it pitiful? Being so indolent, his whole life is spent sleeping!” One day, the compassionate Buddha went to his monk’s quarters and scolded him, “Get up! Why are you still sleeping? The sleeping monk, hearing the Buddha’s voice, got up hastily and prostrated to the Buddha.
The Buddha said, “Do you know that your whole body is already full of sores? Yet you are still covering them up with blankets, and still sleeping!” after being scolded by the Buddha, this monk expressed great remorse. The Buddha continued, “When I said that you’re covering your sores with blankets while sleeping, do you know what I mean? You must know that our body is impermanent. You should contemplate the body as impure, and life as impermanent. This impure body is just a vehicle for us to practice. Since you don’t want to practice with this filthy body, and you often sleep all day with your head and face covered, it is no different from having sores all over.”
The Buddha continued, “You are blessed to lead a life as a monk. If you don’t use time wisely but just eat and sleep, not only are you wasting your life, you’re also wasting the goodwill of those who give you alms. The patrons give you alms so you can nourish your body, and use this vehicle for spiritual practice. Since you are not doing this, you are being ungrateful and cannot return the kindness of others. You are harming yourself.”
After listening, the monk cried in shame and said, “Buddha, I know I am wrong, I will change.” The Buddha continued, “Do you know how you were in your previous lives?” “No.” the Buddha said, “In the past, you were just as lazy as you are now. You were so lazy with your spiritual practice that after your death, for 50,000 years, you were reincarnated as calms, snails and mussels. All these creatures live inside their thick shells. These creatures often go into hibernation, keep themselves in the dark and sleep. After many reincarnations, 50,000 years have passed. In your most recent life you were a tree bug. You lived inside a tree doing harm, and slowly eating the tree away, while hiding in the dark. For the past 50,000 years, you lived in darkness. After exhausting your karma, you were born human.”
The monk was shocked to hear this. “In the past I’ve lived in such darkness. Now I’m blessed to see the light and hear Dharma. I should return to my innate nature. At that moment, the monk was totally awakened, and opened his mind. It was like a heavy blanket was lifted from him. This is called the Hindrance of sleep. Even when the Buddha was alive, He had such disciples. Therefore, we have to be very careful.
A life spent mostly in sleep is not fully used. Life the Hindrance of sleep and practice diligently to make the most of this lifetime.
The fourth is the Hindrance of restlessness and regret. The mind is impetuous and cannot calm down. Even when sitting here, the mind is wandering outside. We start thinking about another event before completing the task at hand. The mind simply cannot calm down and is very impetuous. Some children nowadays are said to be suffering from bipolar disorder. They do not listen and cannot get anything done properly. This is called restlessness.
Restlessness and regret come from a wavering mind. When doing things, sometimes people cannot make up their minds. They worry about whether they are doing the right thing or not. After taking action, they always have regrets. This is the Hindrance of restlessness and regret. In today's terms, it's called restlessness or depression. When the two are combined, it is called the Hindrance of restlessness and regret.
The Hindrance of restlessness and regret. Restlessness: inability to remain calm. Regret: feeling remorse for past actions. Today we call it hyperactivity and depression.
The fifth Hindrance is doubt. "One who is suspicious encounters illusions". Those with doubtful minds constantly doubt times, places, or people. When doubting time, they ask, "Is today a good day to do this? Is it a lucky day? Is it an auspicious time?" How troublesome that is! If we always keep good thoughts, then every moment is auspicious. Having too much doubt is a sign of illness. Some have doubts about locations "Is this a good area? Is my house facing the right direction? Does it have good Feng Shui?" Some often hire Feng Shui masters to check the grave of their ancestors, or the direction their house is facing. If they are constantly in doubt, how can their minds be peaceful? So we should not keep a doubtful mind. This is doubt of places. Next is doubting people, doubting those with whom we interact. “Will he harm me? The words he just said, are they true or false? Is it good to be with him?” There are many different doubts.
People in love question, "Dose he or she really love me?" They are doing well together, but when she sees him talking to others, she is in doubt again. This is truly painful. There are many cases in which doubt leads to hatred or to the committing of wrongdoings. These cases are bountiful in today's society. People often doubt what they have done, or hesitate before doing anything. This is quite cumbersome. This is also a Hindrance that obscures us and brings afflictions.
Doubtful people are suspicious of times, places, and people. They are indecisive, and over-analytical. This kind of distrust easily triggers wrongdoings.
This is a confused and deluded mind. Our innate nature is beautiful and brilliant. But external temptations find their way into our consciousness, triggering our mind to constantly think and contemplate. Thinking is a reflection of external phenomena. Contemplation is the action of the mind after it leaves those phenomena. So it is all about the mind. The Five Hindrances delude our mind and make it act against our innate nature. Our pure innate nature is obscured by the Five Hindrances. So we must take good care of our minds. To take good care of the mind is to correct our behavior along the path that we have chosen for ourselves.
In conclusion, I hope everyone can be mindful at all times. Dharma will never change. This is what I have shared with you today. Please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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