Lecturer: Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Right Mind, Right Thoughts, Right Understanding (心正 念正 見解正)
It is rare to be born human and rare to hear the Dharma. So, we must respect Sutras and Buddha-Dharma. The Buddha taught us in hopes that we would walk the Bodhisattva-path, so we must not slander the Mahayana or be attached to skewed and selfish views.
As we discussed previously, spiritual practice requires no special methods. The mind is the most important thing. If our thinking, or our mind, is proper, all our principles will be right. If our thinking is distorted, everything will be distorted. So, we must always take care of our thoughts.
The repentance text continues, “From Beginningless Time until today, we may have created obstacles for the Sangha. We may have killed Arhats or disturbed the harmony of the monastic community.”
From this passage we know that we have not yet eliminated the habitual tendencies we have acquired since Beginningless Time. I often say that our spiritual practice is changing habitual tendencies. So, let us always be more vigilant. Have we corrected our habitual tendencies? If they are still slightly deviant, then we may often face obstacles in the monastic community, or create obstacles for others. Therefore, as we gather here we should all think about whether or not we cherish our bodies.
The body is a vessel for spiritual practice. Since it is so rare to obtain human form, once we have this body, have the same goals, same spiritual practice and the affinity to be in the same training ground, we need to love each other. While we are here, let us encourage and cherish each other.
Actually, we all know how to cherish one another but due to habits we express something different. We often forget about small habitual tendencies, so we naturally feel hindered by others. A simple sight or sound may obstruct our will to practice. Once we lose that will, we may obstruct someone else because our minds have already created afflictions. Once afflictions are produced, ignorance arises, and it is our turn to hinder others. We end up obstructing each other. This all began with something unintentional. But we interpret is as intentional, so we first hinder ourselves, erect our own obstacles. Then we hinder others, so others are obstructed by us and ignorance arises in them. They are ignorant, we are ignorant, thus ignorance obscures the entire monastic community. Then, we cannot have a pure spiritual community. So, in a group of people, everyone needs to have Right Knowledge and Views.
So, as we are in a monastic community, obstacles arise between members of the Sangha. Even worse is “killing Arhats.”
An Arhat is a sage of the fourth fruition.
Attaining the stage of the fourth fruition is really not easy. But we may hurt those who have attained the fourth fruition, the highest stage of fruition. Their minds are pure and undefiled. Their minds remain unmoved by external conditions, but we still create afflictions because of them. What are our afflictions? The poisons of greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt that arise in our minds. Although the Arhat keeps and open heart, he is not influenced by us, and remains peaceful and free.
However, some people who associate with an Arhat who has attained fruition, will become arrogant or jealous and have a desire to harm him. These are serious transgressions.
We talked about looking down on Buddhism, Buddha, and the Sutras. If people become arrogant around the Buddha how can they not become jealous and negative towards Arhats? So, let us always be more vigilant. Some “disturb harmony in a monastic community.” Doing so also creates very bad karma. We need to know the Five Rebellious Offenses.
The Five Offenses are, patricide, matricide, shedding the blood of a Buddha, killing and Arhat, and destroying the harmony of a monastic community.
These are serious transgressions. So, as we learn Buddha-Dharma, we must have a deep understanding of human ethics and morals. We must have respect for everyone. We respect our father as the heavens, respect our mother as the earth. We respect the Buddhas as the parents of our Wisdom-life. We respect Arhats as our role models. We cultivate our Wisdom-life in a monastic community. So, in our practice, we must be very vigilant of these five things. We have to be respectful, not rebellious. Only then can we elevate our wisdom.
Otherwise we will often be obscured by ignorance.
Next the text says, “We may have hurt those who give rise to the unsurpassed Bodhicitta, completely destroyed the seeds of Buddhahood, prevented people from walking the noble path or pulled them away from spiritual practice.”
This means that besides killing Arhats, disrupting monastic communities, “we may have hurt those who give rise to the unsurpassed Budhicitta.”
When people have altruistic intentions, we must nurture and guide them.
Conversely, sometimes when we see people make vows, we become unhappy and find a way to disrupt them. We often have overseas. Tzu Chi volunteers come back to be certified. A local volunteer from one of those countries was an entrepreneur. When he was young, his family was very poor.
He abandoned his education in his teens and started working. He was very attentive and hard-working so he went from being a worker to being the boss. His company is now very successful. As he was striving for success, socializing for business was inevitable. He ate, drank, enjoyed all sorts of entertainment.
But when he encountered Tzu Chi volunteers, he was very moved by and deeply respected. Tzu Chi’s Ten Precepts. Every Tzu Chi volunteer he saw behaved properly. Faith Corps members observed the Ten Precepts. Female commissioners exuded a gentle compassion,
So, in that environment, he transformed himself. Before he realized it, he also abided by all Ten Precepts. So, he provided a large facility for Tzu Chi’s use. Because his business was successful, he brought his brothers into his company. So, this company became a family-run enterprise, with many of his relatives involved.
As his business gradually stabilized, he became more involved in Tzu Chi. He spent most of his time with Tzu Chi volunteers. He also became vegetarian. Whenever he spoke to his brothers, he hoped to get them involved, too. So, inevitably he talked to them about Tzu Chi.
He even installed a satellite at home to watch Da Ai TV programs. Then, whenever he saw others watching violent or indecent films, violent or indecent films, he would change the channel because he hoped they would watch Da Ai TV. So, his family became antagonistic. His brothers did not become part of Tzu Chi, as he had wished. Instead of joining Tzu Chi [they were against it].
Tzu Chi volunteers often went to his house, and they were all vegetarians. So one day, his mother told these Tzu Chi volunteers, “I am very happy that Tzu Chi volunteers are here. I know you are all good people. But does my son want to be vegetarian? Not only does he want to be vegetarian, he wants our entire family to be vegetarian. Then entire family is averse to this. Can’t you find somewhere else to go? Then perhaps my son can get along better with his brothers.”
When Tzu Chi volunteers heard this, they said, “Don’t worry, we will take care of this.” Fortunately, they found another place. Someone generously provided another location. So, they told the mother, “Don’t worry. We have found another place. But you should come over if you have time!” They still supported him, even after moving to another place. They continued to help him preserve his will to engage in spiritual practice. Because he built the family enterprise, this lay practitioner wondered, “How did this happen? I brought my brothers together. Our business is already a success. I let them come here, so why can’t they join me and accept what I love?”
So, he was vexed. Then he thought of what his mother had said, “Why don’t you split up the family’s assets? He said, “Fine, let’s split them.” But I was the one who established this business. So, he told Tzu Chi volunteers about his worries.
They said to him, “Don’t do it. Don’t split up. You already have a successful business. You can be filial to your mother. This is truly what Tzu Chi teaches. The Master wants us to be filial toward parents. Doing good deeds and being filial cannot wait. Do not focus on engaging in good deeds while causing your mother to be troubled. If you spilt up the family while she is alive , she will be worried.”
After he heard this, he thought, “That’s right, if I want to be a part of Tzu Chi, I need to do good deeds and also be filial.”
So, he went home and repented to his mother. He tried to make her happy. So by using these skillful methods, he was able to stay in Tzu Chi, interact harmoniously with his brother sand most importantly bring happiness to his mother. Think about it, being in harmony with everyone is truly not easy. The volunteers no longer go to his house, but this lay practitioner is still very dedicated. His mother also began to practice and volunteers with Tzu Chi. Eventually, the brothers got along again.
So with wisdom, Tzu Chi volunteers, avoided harming his will to practice by finding another location. This way he could still be diligent and maintain his familial relationships. This is how to nurture the will to practice.
So, we must not harm those who, already have altruistic intentions. After he set these intentions, if issues with his family forced him to turn away from his spiritual practice, that would not be good. If so, we would have “hurt those who “give rise to the unsurpassed Bodhicitta.” If we hurt those who arouse the Bodhi-mind, we would “completely destroy seeds of Buddhahood.” If we do something that causes them problems, and their will to practice vanishes the seeds of Buddhahood will be destroyed. The seeds of Buddhahood come from our aspiration, So once we form that aspiration, we enter the Buddha’s door and receive His teachings. As we cultivate our minds, naturally this seed will flourish in the fields of our minds.
One gives rise to infinity, the infinite arises from one. We must not harm even a single seed, only then can we cultivate many seeds. So, do not eliminate the seeds of Buddhahood “or prevent people from walking the noble path.” If we destroy their will to practice or cause problems in their families, they cannot proceed smoothly on this noble path, which is the Buddha-Dharma.
So, we must use wisdom to nurture other’s will to practice and create harmony between people. When people cultivate minds and characters, their families find harmony. Then there can be peace in society. We hope the Dharma spreads from one person to a family, to an entire society. That is what the Buddha-Dharma needs most, and is the mission of Buddhist practitioners. Do not “pull people away from spiritual practice.” If a person wants to practice, but we cause them to leave the path that is wrong, This is called “destroying seeds of Buddhahood.” This is also a serious transgression.
Promoting the Buddha-Dharma is our mission. The Buddha came to the world to open the doors to the Mahayana teachings. He came solely to teach us to walk the correct path and follow human morals and ethics. He came to guide us onto this broad path. Since we are learning Buddhism, and have already stepped onto the Buddha’s path, we must be able to practice the teachings, as well as promote them. We need to promote the Buddha’s path. So, we cannot abandon any sentient being. Let us guide them onto the path of Right Views. This is a Bodhisattva’s heart; it cannot bear
to let sentient beings create karma and suffer. Before we try to take care of other’s hearts, we need to take care of our own first. So, please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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