Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Wondrous Dharma of True Suchness (真如實相的妙法)
Date: April. 16, 2013
We must be grateful at all times, grateful that we can hear the sutras. We are grateful that the Buddha traveled and expounded the Dharma at various places and according to various capabilities. His disciples heard Him so after He entered Parinirvana, they came together to compile these sutras. Thus we now have teaching to listen to. To listen to Buddha’s teachings, many causes and conditions must be attained. The Lotus Sutra contains this following verse:
“The World-Honored One, very rarely encountered, has caused me to recall the past.”
This is Ananda describing his gratitude toward the Buddha, the rare and great Enlightened One, who is unparalleled. The Buddha’s teachings contain the truths of all things in the universe. All principles of existence are in the Buddha’s mind, including those that relate to people and matters, and especially to training people’s minds. The wisdom of the Buddha can explain the principles of everything and can subdue stubborn sentient beings. When it comes to the Dharma the Buddha taught or the methods He used, etc., everything was seen by Ananda’s eyes, heard by Ananda’s ears, and stored in Ananda’s mind. Thus, Ananda was very grateful to Sakyamuni Buddha and praised Him sincerely. For Ananda, the Buddha once again expounded the 20 years of teachings that he missed. Therefore, Ananda was all the more grateful. So he gratefully described Him, “The World-Honored Once, very rarely encountered, has great compassion and great wisdom. So I, Ananda, can recall the past [teachings].”
Ananda already had deep inner wisdom. Why was Ananda so wise? How could he realize 1000 things from one lesson? Frankly, the Buddha often said that we all have a pure, intrinsic nature. Some have high capabilities and bright wisdom, like a mirror. Let me describe that state for you. As you uncover your mirror, you can naturally see those states very clearly. You must continuously wipe away the afflictions you accumulated in past lives, such as the delusions of views and thinking, etc. This means that Ananda had a long and deep connection with the Buddha, so he constantly studied the Dharma. Even if he did not live in the same era as Buddha, he would still engage in spiritual practice to continuously polish the mirror of his mind. Therefore his pure, intrinsic nature was clear. But to return to this world when the Buddha was teaching the Dharma, many such Bodhisattvas hid the truth and manifested the provisional.He somewhat concealed his wisdom to be like everyone else in this world.He took joy in the Buddha-Dharma and in practicing with the Buddha, who constantly taught according to capabilities.Ananda absorbed everything. This shows the Ananda was very sharp by nature, so he understood something as soon as he heard it.These were immediate teachings.Once something was explained, he comprehended it right away.
When we enter the Lotus Sutra, we are studying a sutra with complete, immediate, great teachings.This begins to bring us close to the moment when the truth will be revealed.It states, “There is no self, true self. We are born as part of the same Dharma-body as Buddha.”
The sutra states that those who stayed to listen included all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the ten directions.It is likely every person there had perfect wisdom and perfect virtue, were perfect in all ways, so all aspects were fulfilled.This perfect teaching means that everyone had already comprehended it and almost completely penetrated the Buddha-Dharma.If it is a minor teaching, they have already heard it.If it is an immediate teaching, they have also understood it.
In the past, the Buddha spoke of the law of karma, which applies to worldly “existence”.Then during the Prajna period, He spoke of the emptiness in everything.And then He spoke of the law of karma in “wondrous existence” and “true emptiness” in Prajna teachings.Therefore, within true emptiness, there is wondrous existence.This makes the teaching complete.
So, the Lotus Sutra reveals how wondrous existence can be manifested in true emptiness.This is perfection.What is more, it is an immediate teaching.So everyone who is listening now should know that in this place of spiritual practice, we can readily accept great teachings.We must all realize that there is no self.“No self” is true emptiness.“True self” is wondrous existence.
We all know that our bodies are illusory but designate a term for it.You use the term “I.” He uses the term “I”.I also use the term “I”.This “I” refers to something that is a collection of the Five Aggregates, which encompasses the workings of body and mind.Form, feeling, thinking, action, consciousness come together to form what we call “I”.So the Five Aggregates are illusory and combine to give an appearance of “I”.So, if we separate the Five Aggregates, where is the “I”?
Nowhere.If we analyze all this, there is no form, there is no “I”.If our consciousness does not converge with sense and sense objects, we have no feelings.Without feelings, we would not have any thoughts.
In short, the Five Aggregates result from feelings that arise when consciousness converges with external conditions.Moreover, feelings from among the Five Aggregates follow us through the Six Realms.Thus, we still have an unenlightened being’s sense of self.To turn this self into a greater self, requires eliminating our ignorance and afflictions.This returns us to our true self, which is Buddha-nature.Even though we have Buddha-nature, in the human realm we deal with human matters.So, we adopt illusory names and an illusory self to reveal the ultimate reality of true self.
Even the teachings of our true self and of wisdom rely on these illusory names.So, we must understand that all sentient beings are part of the same Dharma-body as the Buddha. What hears and what is heard, the mind and conditions, are inseparable from ultimate reality.
This is to say, minds, Buddhas, and sentient beings are no different. All are part of one Dharma-body. Since our faith had been awakened, at this moment, we can hear. What hears? Do you know? What can hear? Ears. The ear-root encounters sound-objects.This sound-object is “what is heard”, and the ear-root is “what hears.”Thus, the subject and object are one， the mind and conditions are inseparable from ultimate reality . As for our minds and conditions, the mind is what hears. Our ears may work, but if we are not focused on hearing, that is like listening at all. If the mind is full of discursive thoughts, the Dharma cannot enter it. So we must be mindful.
When the ears are listening, we must mindfully absorb so that sound-objects are true Dharma can enter our minds. If what we hear enters our minds, then it is Dharma. I often say, “Mindfully listen, Dharma enters the mind.” you commit?” Dharma is inseparable from ultimate reality. There is no secondary ultimate reality. What is ultimate reality? Wondrous Dharma of True Suchness, which is the pure Dharma -body. This Dharma, this pure Dharma-body, is the Suchness of ultimate reality.
The sutra has complete, immediate, great teachings. There is no self and there is true self. We are born as part of the same Dharma-body as Buddha. The non-duality between what hears and what is heard, subject and object, is the ultimate reality. This is what “I have heard” mean in the sutra.
When the Lotus Sutra mentions “I have heard”, who was the one who heard? Ananda. He began to state once again the teachings of the Buddha. In “I have heard” and “such”, such refers to True Suchness, ultimate reality. The Buddha described this with His wisdom, so we must believe. With faith we can enter [the teachings].
Ananda wanted everyone to know that he truly heard what the Buddha said. This is the Dharma behind Suchness. “Such I have heard” means that Ananda heard this from the Buddha. This shows that the words he was saying were not fabricated out of his cleverness. This reveals that there was a source and proof for what he said. This is what the Buddha said; there is proof. He, Ananda hears it. And the many people gathered here could all bear witness. “Such I have heard” came about in the way.
Such is the Dharma that I, Ananda, personally heard from the Buddha. There is a source and proof for what was said. Such is what I have heard and attained.
Actually, we should know that the Buddha-Dharma is convincing to everyone because the Buddha spent a long time on His spiritual practice. There is an example of this in the sutras. For time, the Buddha was in the Jeta Grove. He practiced there with His chief disciples. One day, the Sangha followed the Buddha through a village on their way into a city. They saw a group of soldiers. Detain a criminal who was sentenced to death. The criminal was named As-Wished. He saw the dignified appearance of the Buddha walking toward him with a group of bhiksus.From afar, he began to struggle and yell, “Venerable Buddha! You must save me!” The Buddha asked, “What crime did you commit?” He said, “I have been foolish and ignorant; I have committed all evils and transgressions”“Many people resent and hate me. So, when the officials brought my case before the king, he was very angry” “I have committed many wrongdoings in this life, so he sentenced me to death.Please Venerable Buddha, you have to save me. If I can be greed from the death sentence, I will leave home and become a monk.”
The Buddha heard him and saw that this person truly was corrupt and had committed many wrongdoings But the fact that they met and he sincerely begged for help showed that they had a karmic connection. Therefore the Buddha remained silent. As this person was taken away, the Buddha saw him continue to beg, “Please, Buddha, you must save me.”
The Buddha was compassionate, so He told Ananda, “Quickly, go to the king and ask for mercy. Ask the king to grant this person, As-Wished, a pardon so he may have a chance for spiritual practice.” Actually, the king was also the Buddha’s disciple so he faithfully accepted and practiced this.Without another word, he granted a special pardon to this man so he could join the Sangha for spiritual practice. This man, As-Wished, was reborn to a new life. He quickly went to the Buddha’s Sangha to ask the Buddha to allow him to be a monastic.
Before long, because he was serious and diligent, he attained the fruit of Arhat. He was liberated from all his afflictions and became pure in body and mind. Some people said, “This is inconceivable Venerable Buddha, how is it that such a bad person can just see You and attain a new life?When the king heard Your appeal on his behalf, without a word, he granted him a special pardon. Someone as high as a king or low as the most evil person both have faith in the Buddha and will practice and attain liberation.What are the causes and conditions behind this? ”
The Buddha said,“ Of course there are causes and conditions. In the past, when a certain sage saw a Buddha appear in the world, he became joyful. He sincerely entreated this Buddha to grant him what he wished. He only asked for one wish to be granted, that in future lives he will expound Dharma that everyone will believe, accept, and respect.This was his only wish. Do you know that this sage was I, Sakyamuni Buddha. I only prayed that I would speak truthfully so that people will believe and accept.”
Everyone, in our practice, to be believed and accepted, we must always speak true words.
By saying good words, cultivating our speech, naturally the words we speak life after life will be believed by all. As for Ananda, the sutras he related are things we should believe in because he was speaking the Buddha’s Dharma.
We believe that Ananda was stating the Dharma that the Buddha expounded. Everyone, learning and practicing Buddhism requires and honest heart and belief that True Suchness is right Dharma, the one wondrous Dharma of Ultimate Reality. So in faith, we must accept and practice it, and we must always be mindful!
(Source: Da Ai TV - Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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