Lecturer: Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: (大愛無貴賤)
Great Love Does Not Discriminate
Great Love does not discriminate based on status; sentient beings are all equal. Do not discriminate between you, me and him; we all live in this world together.
Let us all respect and love each other. This is having an impartial mind. There is nothing to discriminate over. We see everyone as equals. We encourage one another to adjust our mindsets. With kind hearts there will be harmony. If we are kind and harmonious, if we respect and admire each other, then in our life our hearts will be pure and this land we live on will be clean. So, let us always adjust our minds. In Sri Lanka, ever since the tsunami on December 26, 2004, we have been by their side. Tzu Chi volunteers worldwide worked together to assist them, help with reconstruction and build schools. After the reconstruction, we heard a very touching story. There was an old man by the sea. He was a Muslim. Our colleagues walked over to great him. When this old man saw these visitors, he smiled and politely greeted us. We chatted with him and he was very happy. When we asked him where he lived, he looked back into the distance and pointed, “Over there”. We saw a hut made out of sheet metal and thin wooden boards. It was very simple. We asked, “Have you always lived there?” He said, “Before the tsunami, my family lived here.” By here, he meant the place where he was sitting. Everything by the ocean had been wiped clean. He said a lot of people lived here, but when the tsunami swept through, not only did many people lose their houses, they lost their family members too. We asked, “Did you lose anyone?” He said, “My mother, son, grandchildren. I lost my entire family. I’m the only one left.” Although he told such a tragic story, the sadness that used to cut him to the bone wore away over time. Time passed, and now he has nothing to his name and no worries in his mind. After we heard his story, we asked, “Can we see your houses?” He was very polite and said, “Yes”. Come sit with me in my home.” We talked as we walked. When we arrived at the house, he opened the door. There was nothing inside. It was truly empty. But what shocked our group of young people was that another old man sat inside. This old man sat there alone.
The first old man made introductions.
He said, “This person suffered the same fate as I.”
“He also lost his house and his family.”
“He is a very devout Buddhist.”
“We both had nowhere to go.”
“This house was built with sheet metal and boards provided by a humanitarian group.”
“We built it together and agreed that we will take care of each other until one of us dies.”
“The other will be here until the end.”
When we heard this story, we would surely feel that life is so tragic, miserable, and impermanent.
A single disaster swept away so many lives, homes and families.
This happened in an instant.
Are the ones who survived fortunate or not?
But if they can let go of afflictions, though they belong to different religions and families, because they shared the same experience, they can care for each other.
When we hear this story, our heart goes out to them.
But we still really admire them.
Great Love does not discriminate based on status.
Sentient beings hope for equality.
Whether it is him, me, or you, we should know that since we are all born into this world, we need to cherish and respect each other.
So, I can see the Pure Land in the minds of these old men.
The place where they live is surrounded by inexhaustible treasure.
They have the vast sky and ocean around them.
They possess nothing at all, but the whole world is their home.
When we think about it, they are very wealthy.
They lack nothing.
So why discriminate based on status?
So, the text says, “We may have belittled those with lower status, or demeaned those with less strength.”
“We may have drunk alcohol and fought in front of both family and strangers, We may have been intoxicated all day and did not recognize seniority.”
“For these and other transgressions we repent completely.”
“We may have belittled those with lower status.”
Some rely on their noble lineage, status or power to take advantage of or disparage others.
They see everyone else as inferior, while they are superior.
They feel like they are above others.
They despise the poor and impoverished, or those with less influence.
We have some terms in modern society, like “”disadvantaged groups.
The truly disadvantaged [have no groups].
Their voices are not heard.
They suffer but have no recourse.
If they can make a sound, they will not be disadvantaged.
So we need to know that the truly poor and suffering are those who really need assistance from the strong.
Those who are poor need the rich to offer their love.
This brings balance to life.
If people in the world can get along, that is the world’s fortune.
Some are rich in wealth, possessions and love.
Some people lack possessions, but they are full of strength.
Their strength comes from health.
A healthy body can give a lot.
If we think this way, no one is lacking.
No one really has that much more than others.
In life, we actually need very little.
But the greed in our minds is bottomless.
With just a thought, we begin to discriminate.
If we have a lot, we want even more.
Our desires are limitless.
What good can limitless desires bring? They give people feelings like, “I am wealthy person” “I am a powerful person” With more arrogance they demean others, or take advantage of them They look down on and hurt others.
In this world, can these people be called noble? They are not noble at all .They maybe wealthy, but not noble. They are only rich in material goods. Their status is high, but they are still greedy. Their behavior is still not noble.
They are rude and vulgar. So, these people are not considered noble, even though they think they are. So they “belittle those with lower status”. They ignore the poor and suffering. They “demean those with less strength”. Some people “drink alcohol and fight”.
Some people are idle; they do not have proper jobs. They drink all day and then cause disturbances. They do not care if they are in front of relatives or strangers. We should know that our relatives may be understanding of us.
“He is drunk” “Forgive him” “Just ignore him” “He’ll be fine once he is sober” But some are strangers, with absolutely no relation to us If we drink and disturb other people, annoy them, yell at them, or run around in the streets, and expect others to allow this, we can cause problems
These people may “be intoxicated all day” and not know right from wrong. So they do it “in front of everyone”. They also “do not recognize seniority”. Seniors are our elders, parents, aunts, uncles, etc. They are our elders.
Teachers, friends, and so on, are also our elders. Once we drink, our consciousness is scrambled and even if someone is our elder, our senior, we do not know to respect them. As juniors, of a latter generation, if we do not show respect, our morality is in chaos.
This happens because we lack clear awareness. Why are we unclear? Because we drink .Drinking alcohol truly causes us to lose our wisdom and dim our consciousness. Some people do not drink but their consciousness is still not clear.
They cannot tell right from wrong either. These people are also unclear about ethics and morals. They are like those who are drunk. So, the Buddha taught and guided His disciples, including the lay disciples, with the Five Precepts.
Once of the precepts is not drinking alcohol .
Five Precepts: No Killing, No stealing, No Sexual Misconduct, No Lying, No Alcohol. Some say we really need to avoid killing, stealing and sexual misconduct, but alcohol does not hurt others.
It is also vegetarian. So, why can’t we drink alcohol? Alcohol can cause us to lose control. As I said earlier, not only does it disrupt people’s natures, it also disrupts ethics and morals. This is what happens when people are drunk.
Will people wake up after its effects pass?
This is what happens when people are drunk.
Will people wake up after is effects pass ?
Some people drink for their whole lives ;they are already addicted.
They can never wake up.
Not only can they not wake up in this lifetime ,they will bring that state to a future life.
Even without drinking, they will be unable to tell ,right from wrong , as if they were still hung over ,as if they were still in a drunken stupor.
Even when they are sober its effect lingers.
It is like that.
So , if we want to preserve our wisdom ,we do not drink alcohol.
If we do not drink in this lifetime ,we will not disrupt others or becoming addicted to alcohol.
We also prevent ourselves from being like a drunk in a future lifetime.
If we want to have clear wisdom we do not drink alcohol.
Drinking does not affect only this lifetime but also the next ,because our consciousness remains murky and we cannot tell right from wrong.
Next ,
“We may have been addicted to “
“endless drinking and eating”
“We may have eaten live creatures , “
“or the Five Pungent Roots “
Being addicted to drinking and eating，
means there is no limit to how much，
alcohol we drink or how much food we eat.
Look at the many people who spend so much money on losing weight.
How do they lose it? Through hard work.
After all that trouble , they lose 2-3 kg.
But they cannot control themselves ,so they eat and gain it back.
This is truly painful.
This addiction is limitless and endless.
It does not last only for a day or two.
They have this addiction their whole lifetime.
There is no end to their drinking and eating.
“We may have eaten live creatures “.
Someone people eat creatures that are alive. They already ear limitless cooked [animals].
They also eat live and uncooked creatures.
In the past,
I saw people catch shrimp by the stream.Once caught, the shrimp still jumped around.
People peeled them as they struggled and ate them just like that. People still do this now.
They can actually stomach this and even say it is tasty.
But there are causes and effects.
Things that are alive and raw have bacteria ,
Some of these bacteria may survive ,even after being cooked ,let alone on something that is raw. So ,disasters enter through the mouth. Consuming this food can cause illness.
Some say , “Disasters emerge from the mouth”
Not only do they emerge , they can enter as well.
Eating these things brings illness and pain ,and perhaps something contagious.
Some people love to eat sashimi.
The same thing applies.
Nowadays , the water is polluted. The ocean is polluted; streams are polluted; pools are polluted;
Think , how much bacteria is in the bodies of creatures living in those environments ?
By eating them raw,won’t disaster enter through them mouth ,won’t illness arise in the body ?
Whether we talk about disaster or disease ,It is not only what comes out of the mouth that matters.
By ingesting something ,eating it with the mouth， we can spread pathogens far and wide.
We will not be the only ones who get sick.
The illness will spread widely .
So , be very careful when you eat .
When we learn Buddhism ,we learn to take good care of our mouths,our minds ,and our actions .
If we can take good care of the actions of mind ,body and mouth ,we can realize our Great Love.
We will not discriminate based upon status.
We will cherish all living beings.
How can we bear to eat their flesh ?
How can we bear for them to be killed?
If we cannot bear to kill and cook them ,we definitely cannot eat them live.
That is very cruel.
All creatures in the world are equal .
This is what the Buddha taught us ,
to express our Great Love
So , please always be mindful
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