Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Ten Paramitas (十波羅蜜)
We have talked about how the mind, the Buddha and living beings are all equal. Though we are ordinary beings, our minds are the same as the Buddha’s mind. But while the Buddha’s mind is enlightened, ordinary being’s minds are still confused. This is what sets them apart. When we shed confusion, we return to our enlightened awareness.
What is this enlightened awareness? It is pure, undefiled, radiant wisdom that we, like the Buddha, inherently possess. But ordinary beings have infinite afflictions. In the teachings, the number usually used to illustrate the quantity of afflictions is 84,000. This is just a figurative number. In reality, the number of afflictions is infinite. With these innumerable afflictions, how can we thoroughly understand them and return to our pure intrinsic nature? For this reason, the compassionate Buddha provided an easy method to help us. If we understand this pure enlightened nature, then we want to return to it. As long as we want to return to it, although along the way we encounter many complicated afflictions, we can use countless teachings to overcome them.
All this Dharma is there to help us return to our innate state of awareness. There are Thirty-seven Practices to Enlightenment, and you should all memorize these 37 Practices. They will help wash away the afflictions of your mind with Dharma-water. That is the meaning of Dharma as Water. It can wash away filth. If we want to let our Wisdom-life grow, we must use Dharma-water to nurture our minds. We not only wash our afflictions away, but afterwards, we also sow the seeds of Dharma, and mindfully cultivate them. To cultivate seeds, we need to water them. The mind’s field needs Dharma-water to grow. So the 37 methods are like the seeds and the Dharma-water. When we practice, we must rely on the 37 methods.
The Thirty-seven Practices to Enlightenment are the Fourfold Mindfulness, Four Right Efforts, Four Bases of Spiritual Power, Five Roots, Five Powers, Seven Factors of Enlightenment and the Eightfold Noble Path.
If we can remember each of these terms, such as the Fourfold Mindfulness, when things happen, the teachings will suddenly appear in our minds. Contemplate the body as impure. Contemplate feelings as suffering. Contemplate the mind as impermanent. Contemplate all things as having no self. There are only a few things to remember. The Dharma teaches us how to think of our body. This is the body with Six Roots; the same six that interact with the external Six Sense Objects. So whatever karma we have is created by the body.
Thus we must truly understand our body. Do you remember when I talked about the impermanence of life? During our lifetime, our external form constantly changes. Through childhood, youth, middle and old age, our appearance keeps changing. So during life, the body changes from birth to old age. Does change stop at old age? Not yet. With old age, there will be illness and death. Actually, one need not be old to get sick and die. That is the impermanence of life.
In addition, there is also the impermanence of form. So in this world, if we pay attention to our body we can find many principles. From thinking of the body, we may think of death. When we die, our body decays as the flesh starts to rot. Nothing is more foul than the smell of decomposing flesh. How much is that body worth at that time? We are constantly pursuing romantic love. That often leads to family disputes and social unrest. Why does it have to happen this way? In our daily lives, the seven orifices of our body discharge impurities. There are actually nine orifices that discharge impurities. You should think about it and count how many orifices there are in our body. We must realize that a lot of filthy things ooze from our body, a lot of disgusting things ooze from our body all the time. We must not ignore any of the truths that we encounter in life.
If we remember every one of 37 methods, we will understand that just from contemplating the body as impure, we can realize a lot of truths. Moreover, we “contemplate the mind as impermanent.” Our mind is impermanent and changes all the time. But if our mind is unwavering, we can be firm and steadfast in our resolve. Our vows will be as vast as the universe. Everyone who practices in this way will succeed. But that is also impermanent. Arising, abiding, changing and ceasing are the four states of mind.
With these 37 methods, if we can study and understand them one by one, they will help us return to the path of enlightenment and provide the resources we need for practice. If we want to enrich our minds, we need the help of these methods. If we diligently cultivate our minds, we will have abundant mental benefits, which will sustain the growth of our Wisdom-life.
The following is from the last paragraph of the first volume of the Water Repentance. After the 37 Practices, there are the Ten Paramitas. When the 37 Practices are constantly present in our minds, the Ten Paramitas always manifest. After repenting and making our resolve, with utmost sincerity and faith, we pay respect to the Ever-abiding Three Treasures.
The 37 practices help our Wisdom-life develop. Then the Ten Paramitas naturally manifest. The Ten Paramitas are not only for transforming oneself, but for helping others as well. We now know that learning Buddhism is for more than just self-cultivation. We must also benefit others. That is why there are the Ten Paramitas.
The Ten Paramitas are Giving, Precepts, Patience, Diligence, Samadhi, Prajna, Skillful Means, Vows, Power, and Knowledge. The Ten Paramitas are the Six Paramitas plus four more Paramitas.
Everyone knows the Six Paramitas are Giving, Precepts, Patience, Diligence, Samadhi and Wisdom [Prajna]. The four additional Paramitas are Skillful Means, Vows, Power, and Wisdom [Knowledge]. Those are the additional four Paramita means “to reach the other shore.” It means “to cross over” or “to deliver.” If we, as ordinary people, want to cross over from the state of delusion to the Buddha’s state of enlightenment, there is a path.
We often say that “1000-foot swells rise in the river of desire and 10,000 waves surge in the sea of suffering.” We use this example to describe that our realm is like a vast sea of suffering. How can we cross the sea of suffering to reach the other shore? We need to use the 37 Practices as provision for our Dharma-practice. We must use the Ten Paramitas to reinforce our Mahayana vows until our minds are fully purified and free of the Six Realms, so that we can come and go freely. That is the state of Buddhahood. The Buddha entered the Six Realms, not because He was pulled in by karmic forces, but because of the power of His vow.
Amitahba Buddha’s world is in the west, Medicine Buddha’s world is in the east, and Sakyamuni Buddha’s world is this Saha world. Each Buddha attained Buddhahood with the strength of their vows. Sakyamuni Buddha, in His compassion, cannot bear to see sentient being suffer, so His transformation realm is the Saha world. In addition to self-cultivation, the Buddha came to transform sentient beings, to educate and guide them. The suffering of sentient beings, in addition to poverty, includes accidents and disasters. There is also spiritual poverty and other kinds of disasters that affect life. The Buddha taught us to practice Giving, not only to deliver ourselves, but to help others transcend.
This is a Paramita, which means to “deliver.” In the Ten Paramitas, delivering ourselves and others is “crossing to the other shore.” We should use charity as a way to transform others, and to transform ourselves as well. Seeing others suffer makes us realize our own good fortune, and so, we give generously. We must also uphold Precepts. If our minds are not properly trained, how can we help transform others? By following rules and precepts. We must not commit transgressions. If we do not abide by the precepts against killing, stealing, sexual misconduct and lying, then how can we do good deeds? To do good, one must first be a good person and personally abide by the precepts. That is the meaning of upholding Precepts. It is not easy to uphold the Precepts. We do not want to let external conditions influence our minds or shake our will and lead us astray. When we encounter something unpleasant, it seems impossible not to let it affect our minds.
So we must practice the skill of Patience. Besides Patience, we must not retreat from our resolve to practice. Rather, as we set resolve and make vows, we must move forward with Diligence. With diligent, our worst fear is the Mara-path, which lures us to evil cults or doctrines. We must remain firmly on the path.
Samadhi means to remain firm. We should remain firm in our minds so that we can nurture our Wisdom [Prajna]. When our Wisdom arises, the practice of the Six Paramitas is complete. With Wisdom we should help deliver other suffering beings. The Buddha used Skillful Means to help us transform. In His 49 years of teaching, he expounded Skillful Means for the first 42 years. We should use our Wisdom effectively, and apply skillful Means to profoundly affect people’s minds. So when you are with others, use words that they can understand and accept. We need to use many Skillful Means.
In Tzu Chi, we use many different means, such as the Four Major Missions and Eight Endeavors. One of these is our recycling program. If you visit the recycling stations, you can see that everyone is happy and cherishes what he or she has. We often hear of ways to improve our temperament, or improve our physical health, etc. Recycling is not only rehab for our mind and body, it also teaches us to give. These are all Skillful Means. Using these Skillful Means, Tzu Chi is able to lead people to be joyful. What is Tzu Chi? It is a path of charity. Everyone enters Tzu Chi through charity. Through the path of charity, one connects with the Buddha-Dharma and follows the Buddha’s path. That is how we help transform sentient beings.
Now we know that protecting the environment is also a transformative process. It not only saves the Earth, it safeguards all sentient beings as well. The Dharma is used to help transform others and to help people. Since Skillful Means are also used to help transform people, protecting the Earth and cherishing other people are naturally part of the Paramita practice. They are means to transform others.
We also need Vows. If people do not have strong determination, then when the work gets tough, they may quit. When they quit, they abandon the field of their heart and no longer cultivate it. A vow needs strength, so in addition to Paramita of vow, there is the Paramita of Power and the Paramita of Wisdom [Knowledge]. These four Paramitas, plus the previous six Paramitas, are called the Ten Paramitas.
Everyone, if we practice all Ten Paramitas, we can help transform ourselves and others crossing from the state of delusion to the Buddha’s pure, open and carefree state, which is enlightenment. We must go through the 37 Practices and complete the Ten Paramitas. If we do not complete the 37 Practices, then we can never get to the Ten Paramitas. If we all understand these practices, we will constantly be repentant. If we repent and make vows, we can understand more Dharma. So with “deep sincerity” everyone should have faith and pay respect to the Ever-abiding Three Treasures.
If we believe in any religious faith, regardless of which one, we need to demonstrate it with our actions. Some may ask, “Isn’t being reverent enough? Why do I have to prostrate?” We prostrate because we have to practice internally and act externally. So I often say to inwardly cultivate sincerity, integrity, faith, steadfastness, and outwardly practice kindness, compassion, joy, equanimity. We must cultivate inwardly and practice outwardly. Since we have religious faith, and are Buddhist practitioners, we must have faith in and respect for the Three Treasures. This must sincere. Our faith must be pious and earnest. We must prostrate with reverence to the Ever-abiding Three Treasures.
Everyone, we have faith in religion because. What is our life’s direction? To be Buddhists we need to behave as Buddhists. So, in our daily life, we must always be earnest and pious. We must be disciplined and courteous. Please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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