Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Twenty-Five-Fold Self (二十五我)
Every day we hope to understand more of the Buddha-Dharma. The Buddha-Dharma is like an ocean. How can we nourish all beings with this water? Everyone, when we obtain Dharma-water for our minds, we must pass on this Dharma-water to others.
In that way, we help the world and its people. The Buddha, in his compassion, established the teaching methods. To mindfully apply them, we should understand the various Dharma terms. We have discussed the Eighteen Realms. Next, we will discuss how the “25-Fold Self may cause all wrongdoings.”
The 25-Fold Self: Original Self-nature, Awakening. Awareness, Awareness of “I,” Five Subtleties, Five Elements, Five Roots of Awareness, Five Functioning Faculties, Root of Equality, Spiritual Self.
The 25-Fold Self, how can there be that many? So much time has been spent talking about the self. If there is no “self,” what is there to talk about? If all of you do not have a “self”, who is here to listen? We all possess our own sense of “self”; thus, we have created many illusory selves, become lost, and committed many wrongs.
Therefore, we should always reflect upon ourselves. In the “selfless” state of mind, are we deluded or clear? Did we transform the “self” into a Greater Self or into a delusive self that is egoistic? We should know the difference.
One may ask, if there is no self, how can we discuss the “self”? What we worry most about is the deviation of self. We should transform the self into a Greater Self. Each of us can have All-embracing Compassion by first taking care of our family responsibilities, and then expanding our sense of responsibility from our family to the entire community. A family is safe when the community is peaceful. Then we can expand it further, to society. If society is harmonious and free of calamity, then all of us in this society are blessed and can live in peace.
If we can use our “self” in this fashion, to encompass the world and transform the limited “self” to a Greater Self, then there is “great awakening.” Don’t we practice Buddha-Dharma to learn the Buddha’s great awakening?
We practice Buddha-Dharma to learn the Buddha’s great awakening. Let us transform the limited “self” into a Greater Self; this is “great awakening.”
The same “self” can also be entirely different. If we are delusional, we are truly ordinary beings. In the daily news we see many examples of people with distorted thinking. These misguided people make a lot of headlines. The Buddha wanted us to comprehend thoroughly. If we understand the concepts clearly, our minds will not be tainted. The 25-Fold Self was spoken of and analyzed by heretics. The Buddha was afraid that we might be confused, so He explained the 25-Fold Self in a way that we can understand.
The first self is the Original Self-nature. The heretics thought they knew all the events that occurred within 84,000 kalpas. But they had no knowledge of events prior to 84,000 kalpas ago, and no way to explain them. So they called it the Original Self-nature. What is the Original Self-nature? Actually, heretical scholars might be able to follow the texts and speak conceptually about events that happened 80,000 kalpas ago. But despite posing so many theories of what occurred 80,000 to 84,000 kalpas ago, they do not necessarily know what will happen to them in the next moment.
If I sit here explaining what happened 84,000 kalpas ago according to the texts, I still do not know what will happen to me in the next moment. No one can have total control over this life. We cannot predict what the future will hold for us. How can we know events that happened 80,000 kaplas ago? I always say to just seize this moment. If we want to analyze events that happened 80,000 kaplas ago, it will require a long time and we still cannot fully understand it.
Each of us possesses a true and pure nature. The Buddha spoke of Beginningless Time. Instead of talking about 80,000 kalpas ago, the Buddha said “countless, beginningless kaplas.” When did humans appear in this world? Some people asked the Buddha, “How did humans come to exist? When were they born?” In Beginningless Time. How did it happen? According to karma. So it all depends on us. We want to know events that happened in our past lives. What were we doing three lives ago? If we could, we might ask the Buddha, “What did we do in our past lives?”
In the Sutras the Buddha spoke of what occurred countless eons ago. He could say what happened countless eons ago, or simply what happened in our last lives. The time before all of this is called. Beginningless Time. This all refers to the events of our past lives. He could explain the meaning of the past, but time is countless or beginningless, and without restriction. Therefore, all that we need to know is the meaning of the 25-Fold Self. Let’s do a simple analysis.
The Original Self-nature was what existed before 84,000 kalpas ago, a period unknown to the heretics. We should say that each of us possesses a self-nature. Let’s start from the Original Self-nature in order to discuss the 25-Fold Self. Original Self-nature leads to Awakening Awareness. Awakening Awareness is enlightenment. Original Self-nature leads to awakened nature. From Awakening Awareness a sense of “I” arises. What is the most important? “I” am most important. Because of the Awareness of “I,” the “self” becomes important. From the Awareness of “I” we develop the Five Subtleties. The sense of self id great and aware, Awareness of “I” leads to the Five Subtleties. Five Subtleties are Five Subtle Points, which are tiny and minuscule. We always say that “A deluded thought gives rise to Three Subtleties. External states lead to the Six Coarse marks.” The theory is the same. The five Subtle Points give rise to the three Subtleties. What are the Five Subtleties? Form, sound, smell, taste and touch.
The Five Subtleties: Form, sound, smell, taste and touch.
The Five Subtleties give rise to Five Elements. With form, sound, smell, taste and touch, the Five Elements develop. The Five Elements are earth, water, fire, wind and space. The Five Elements give rise to the Five Roots of Awareness. What are the Five Roots of Awareness? They are eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body. Eyes connect with forms and so on. Those are the Five Roots of Awareness.
The Five Elements: earth, water, fire, wind and space. The Five Roots of Awareness: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body.
The Five Roots of Awareness result in the Five Functional Faculties or the five Roots that create karma. What are the five functions? They are the mouth, hands, feet, and faculties to urinate and defecate. These are the Five Functional Faculties. To be healthy, one must eat. For the sake of taste, many people consume countless lives. To satisfy their egos, many people create bad karma with speech. This is truly a faculty creating karma. Our hands can do many kind deeds. They can help and guide others. That also creates karma. We say “the hands are omnipotent.” Yes, they can create blessings, but they can also create bad karma. The hands can annihilate other beings and destroy many things in this world.
In order for the hands to create karma, the feet must first take them somewhere. Thus, the mouth, hands and feet are the Roots. Then there are those urination and defecation. They are simple functions; why are they considered faculties that create karma? Because they serve our bodies. Although we can eat, we need to excrete waste in order for our bodies to be healthy. These faculties regulate our bodies. Whether we are healthy or not depends on these two functions.
To be able to urinate and defecate daily is important. If we are healthy, these five Roots that create karma can function properly. A healthy mouth will speak kind words. Whether the food we consume turns into nutrients depends on urination and defecation. If we eat but not excrete waste, it will be problematic. It is the same idea. You should understand these examples. Those are the Five Functioning Faculties.
Five Functioning Faculties: mouth, hands, feet, and the faculties to urine and defecate.
Next is the Root of Equality. The Buddha told us that the physical heart needs to stay healthy. If the heart is not healthy, it will be difficult the brain to function and develop right thinking. Thus, one must have a healthy heart and brain. They are also Roots. One’s Roots may become blocked, sometimes one, sometimes three, or sometimes even all five. If this happens, our health will decline.
Next is the Spiritual Self. What are your thoughts and beliefs? Heretics interpret the Spiritual Self through the countless gods in the universe. They worship at temples and bow to all gods. But they do not realize that everything depends on oneself. We have to transform our mindset so as to be in harmony with the universe to be in harmony with the universe.
Yesterday we talked about living in harmony. So when we speak of the 25-Fold self, we should apply it in our daily lives. It is all about the mind. In this way, don’t we possess all 25? Please be mindful. With the Original Self-nature comes Awakening Awareness. Awakening Awareness gives rise to awareness of “I”, then the four “Fives,” and lastly, to Root of Equality and Spiritual Self. These add up to 25.
Everyone, the Dharma is simple if you are mindful. Otherwise, it would take a very long time to analyze each “self.” Everyone, please use a mind of simplicity, purity and clarity to experience this complex Dharma. We should be vigilant our daily life. Whether sound or form, earth, water, fire, wind or space, if they are all in harmony, these is peace. The way we manage the interaction of our eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body with the outside is extremely important. Next is the body. We should be mindful of the mouth, hands, feet, and faculties to excrete waste we must not misuse the Roots, and allow them to deviate or become imbalanced. Only then we can be safe and sound. The most important is to maintain equanimity and not become deluded, for our delusions may last over 80,000 kalpas. So everyone, please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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