Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: Six Doubts (Part 1) (六疑一)
Spiritual cultivation beings with one word, faith. Faith is the source of the Way, mother of merits, it nurtures all the roots of goodness. Isn’t that what we often say? Indeed, without faith we cannot enter the Buddhist door. We must have unwavering belief. If our belief is not righteous, we will still be confused and misguided.
We have talked about the Six Cravings, now we will discuss the Six Doubts.
Six Doubts:
Doubt is the fundamental evil, it is the wavering nature that results from the karma of distrust.
Doubt is the fundamental evil. When we have doubts, we create all kinds of evil. What is doubt? It is the “wavering nature that results from the karma of distrust.” When a person is distrustful, even if excellent Dharma is before him, he still hesitates and cannot decide. So his belief is not firm. Sometimes when something makes sense, he believes. But when circumstances arise, his mind changes. Having no belief is very taxing.
Yet even with beliefs, if one still hesitates and remains undecided, this brings forth many afflictions. These afflictions “result from karma of distrust.” In our society, we often see people distrusting their own spouse, children, siblings, friends, relatives, etc. They mistrust and doubt one another. This causes tragedies in families and in society.
So when “Six Roots meet the Six Sense Objects, good and evil can be clearly differentiated without doubt.”
Our Six Roots connect to the external Six Sense Objects. If we possess wisdom, we can clearly differentiate good from evil without doubt. If we are unclear and hesitate, the Six Roots and Six Sense Objects are dragged around by doubt. Thus, our consciousness and thoughts easily create karma. This is a negative state. It is a mistake.
There was an example of this in the news. A young couple was deeply in love. Yet since the girl was lively and beautiful, the boy suspected that she had other boyfriends. He wanted the girl to be pure and devoted to him. Although he loved the girl deeply, he was very controlling. At first, they loved each other, yet since they were neither engaged nor married, she was free to talk to and befriend other people.
One day, the girl went for a ride on a motorcycle with another male friend. One of their friends informed the boyfriend that his girlfriend was seen riding with someone. The boy became very angry and argued with her. He accused her of having a change of heart, and having a relationship with another man. The girl denied it. They often argued after that incident, so the girl became disheartened. Since they were neither engaged nor married, why should he control her life? Gradually, she started to distance herself, and the boy became even more suspicious.
So one day, he asked her out and said, “Whether you have betrayed me of not, do you dare to die with me?” The girl said, “Why should I do with you?” “I didn’t do anything, why should I die with you?” The boy saw that she no longer loved him. Out of despair, he strangled and killed her, and then he attempted suicide. He was found in time and rushed to the hospital. His life was saved, but his mind was imprisoned. He was also sentenced to jail. After being in jail for 15 years will he be free? He may be spiritually incarcerated forever. Will his wavering and doubtful nature be eliminated after this incident? We will never know.
In our society, there are many similar cases of doubt and distrust. When others tell someone else what they saw, doubt and distrust arise in the mind. This is called “facing unwholesome conditions.” When our minds attach to external states, then everything we see, hear, touch, etc., is part of our suspicious mind. Thus, much bad karma is created because we lack the Wisdom of Discerning Dharma. If we have the wisdom to discern, we will clearly know, regardless of what others say or what we see.
This applies in society and in learning Buddhism. Since we have chosen to follow Buddha-Dharma, entered the Buddhist door, we must trust the Buddha’s words and follow His actions. We must dedicate ourselves wholeheartedly, without any doubt. We must have complete faith that our belief is proper Dharma.
Since we have entered the Buddhist door, we must trust the Buddha’s teachings and practice. We must dedicate ourselves wholeheartedly with total faith that our belief is proper Dharma.
Take someone who offers incense and has faith in Buddha, and has even taken refuge. They may pray for something, and hope that their prayers will be answered. Only if they get what they want will they vow to do good deeds. This is not right. For some, even after they become Buddhists, their luck does not change. They are still “unlucky” and suffer negative karma. Others may persuade them to seek answers from spirits and fortune-tellers.
You may still remember when a blind woman came to the Abode with her daughter. How did she get to be blind? It all started because of her deviant beliefs. She was originally a Buddhist. When her son was not studious, she would pray for him at temples. Regardless of how hard she prayed, her son did not improve. So someone persuaded her to do something else to change his luck. To dispel bad luck so good fortunes would come, so he would become studious and bright, she was told to light a lamp. She followed this advice because she did not use discerning wisdom to listen to what she was told. She asked what she should do to change her son’s bad luck, and she was told to make certain offerings.
Once she began, she became obsessed. She continued on this deluded path until she became possessed by it. Her son had not changed, yet she was totally possessed as she became more entrapped by the practice. She asked her husband to take her for a drive, and while they were driving along a mountainous road, she suddenly asked him to stop the car. Since he was driving around a curve, he could not stop, so she opened the door and jumped out. Then with her own hands, she took out her eyes. She was rushed to the hospital, but her eyes could not be saved. I asked her what happened, and why she was so compelled to do this? She said a voice told her to quickly stop the car or it would hit a rock wall. Then, the voice told her to dig out her own eyes, so that her son would become studious. She took out her eyes with her own fingers. Now she can no longer see because her sight could not be restored. She lived in darkness, but continued to hear the same voices.
Later, after Tzu Chi volunteers learned of her, they began to counsel her. They brought her to the Abode with her daughter. I spoke with her extensively to calm her mind. She gradually accepted my words, and with the volunteers by her side, she became a recycling volunteer. When she came to Hualien, I asked her, “How should you teach your son?” She said, “I’ve sacrificed so much, but he still doesn’t listen.” I told her, “Children have their own fate and fortunes. The more you entangle him with your karma the more resistant he will become.” How should we interact with our children? “When we catch a bird, we sometimes have to set it free. The bird knows there’ll be food when it returns, so it will want to come back. You should give him space and proper direction. So he will walk a broad path, and know his direction.” “Master, what should I do now?” I answered, “Don’t do anything. First, don’t blame him for what happened to you saying that you did it for him. You should instead tell him that you have tried, now he has to make his own choices. Let him know these volunteers are good people. Without them, he may have lost his mother, and felt even more guilty. You have found a new life and are happier than before.” When her son heard this, he realized that these people accompanying his mother bring her joy. So he gradually changed and learned his lesson.
It was all due to doubt, and not following proper methods. Had she looked to Buddha-Dharma, she might not have obtained results immediately, but she could have learned many wise methods to teacher children. So haste makes waste. Faith is not about praying for something, but having faith in what one needs to do. If you have been lost in the past, you should cherish and abide by proper beliefs. We should understand the karma that we created in the past, and broaden our minds to willingly accept challenging states as they arise. Afterward, face challenges with joy and gratitude. If we can do so, though we have past karma, we can dispel it through enduring these hardships.
Faith is not about praying for something. It is about believing in what needs to be done. Accept challenging states willingly as they arise. After accepting then completely, face them with gratitude and joy. In so doing, even if we have past karma, we can dispel it through enduring these challenging conditions.
Learning Buddhism is to learn patience. Giving, upholding precepts, patience, diligence, meditation and wisdom are all proper Dharma that we must learn as Buddhists. We should not doubt the Dharma. There should be no doubts about right or wrong, good or evil. We can “make clear decisions”, this is the Wisdom of Discerning Dharma. If we lack such wisdom, we will be like the woman who was a Buddhist, but turned to other beliefs. As a result, she was physically and mentally harmed.
The Six Doubts are uncertainties arising from the Six Roots, hence the term Six Doubts. Doubts are like knots. If there is a knot in our heart, doubt keeps arising, making us run in circles.
This is “a deluded mind that goes against truth” and “is hesitant toward proper Dharma.” A deluded mind will violate the principles. So even when proper Dharma appears, one still cannot resolved to relinquish the delusion in his mind. This is a very difficult situation. One cannot develop deep faith in proper Dharma with the Bond of Doubt. A Bond is an affliction. Doubt can cause us to lose our body, mind, Wisdom-life, and physical life. It all hinges on “doubt.”
Everyone, in learning Buddhism, we must have proper faith. Faith is the source of the Way, mother of merits, it nurtures all roots of goodness. Please distinguish clearly between faith and doubt. In this way, when we walk the Bodhisattva-path, we can venture forward without deviation. This is the Wisdom of Discerning Dharma. Everyone, please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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