Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: All Buddhas Teach the Same Path to Enlightenment (佛佛道同 導迷至覺)
Date: August. 15, 2013
This time every day is our most peaceful and quiet moment, a time we share the spiritual state of the Buddha. In this peace and quiet, we can mindfully and sincerely hear and accept [teachings]. As we learn Dharma, engage in spiritual practice, we must be sincere. The Buddha and all Buddhas in the present, past and future go through the same process of spiritual practice and seeking the Dharma, which requires sincerity. So now that we are learning the Buddha’s Way, we also need to do so sincerely. Before, I talked about how Manjusri Bodhisattva recounted that in the past, there was a Buddha named “Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant”. So, like us, Buddhas also have a shared epithet. They are great enlightened ones of the universe. When a Buddha is born in the human realm, He makes a great effort and is sincere and resolute in engaging in spiritual practice. Because of His strong resolve to practice, His mind does not waver on the path toward the truth. He investigates the principles of all things in the universe, and finally experiences the liberation of His mind. We unenlightened beings have the same intrinsic nature as Buddhas. But because we are not sincere enough, because our resolve is not sufficient, because our spirit of seeking is lacking, we are unable to eliminate our attitudes and unenlightened habitual tendencies. Thus, we are still called “humans”. But the Buddha stands out from the rest because He broke free of ignorance and afflictions. Furthermore, He attained Buddhahood countless kalpas ago.
This means that for a very long time, He has maintained a pure, undefiled nature. This time, He came to the world to manifest enlightenment to help everyone understand that Buddhas are also born into this world, have parents, and encounter good and bad environments. Amidst these good and bad environments, He was not tempted by the things before Him. His mind did not become confused. So, this shows that a pure intrinsic nature can be well-protected. He was not tempted by people and worldly matters and could even take the next step to investigate people’s purpose in life. Just what was going on in their minds? Why did they experience so many kinds of suffering in the human realm? He used this time to manifest the state of leaving the lay life in order to guide people in the future. [He showed them that] for people to leave their delusions and become awakened, they had to transcend their immediate familial and worldly defilements. They have to leave that environment so they can focus. He did this simply by manifesting that appearance. I often tell everyone, we write the script of our lives. When a play is written well and enacted on this world’s stage, we leave behind a legacy of success.Each day’s program is a valuable story.
The legacy of Sakyamuni Buddha has been continuously passed down.Now, it has been over 2000 years.His spiritual principles, His Dharma, can remain forever so they were passed down through the generations.They can stand the test of time.These are the true principles.The name of this Buddha is Sakyamuni Buddha.This is His distinctive epithet.
But among Buddhas, there are shared and distinctive epithets.Shared epithets means They had attained the same level of enlightenment.One who realizes the true of all things in the universe is call the Great Enlightened One.Their level of enlightenment must be the same to be called a Buddha.The Buddha is the Great Enlightened One.That is a shared epithet.Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant is a distinctive epithet.So, Manjusri Bodhisattva told everyone that the present Buddha is this way, but there were also Buddhas in the past.The Buddhas he had seen also manifested this same appearance before expounding teachings and also shared an epithet, Buddha.So, this is the Buddha’s extraordinary epithet.
Do not wonder why this needs to be continually explained.We have to first understand how the principles of this world can be related to the Buddha’s state.He had cultivated virtues for countless kalpas.This shows us that it is that easy to attain Buddhahood.It requires long, countless eons.
The sutras talk of asankya kalpas, which means an incalculably long period of time.Such a period of time is called long, countless kalpas, a period of time that cannot be calculated.So, spiritual practice is not short-term.Some people say, I have practiced for a lifetime.Even thought I have listened to the sutras all my life, I am still filled with afflictions.
For example, during the Dharma as Water musical adaptation, many Tzu Chi volunteers practiced great repentance and maintained a vegetarian diet throughout the process of this performance.
They completely changed their living and eliminated unhealthy habitual tendencies.They shared with others how this transformed the tension in their family relationships.They changed their minds, their emotions, and eliminated past stresses in their daily living.Their doubts, arrogance, conceit, etc., are now in the past.They self-reflected and knew they had to change.So, they changed themselves, and at the same time, benefited others.
Hearing these kinds of stories makes me happy and warms my heart.This is how the Buddha-Dharma can be applied in this world; The world is imbalanced.Human minds are imbalanced.These imbalances cause illness, so a wondrous medicine is needed.Where can we obtain this wondrous medicine?From the Dharma expounded by the Buddha.
So, the Buddha-Dharma, for over 2000 years, [was transmitted] by the superior virtue, patience and great efforts of Dharma Masters trekking over the great distance from China to India.The Sanskrit scriptures were brought to China.The translated texts are those that have been passed down. So, we have had these texts for a long time. Is that all we need?
For the Dharma to arise, it had to have been spoken by the Buddha and come from His heart, from the undefiled purity that was attained countless kalpas earlier. So, everyone should know that we cannot attain Buddhahood within one lifetime. Even the Buddha's own spiritual practice, as I have said, lasted a very long time. We ordinary beings “claim to have attained. We say, “I know, I get it. I know all of that. I have heard it all before.” To hear is very easy. But do we understand? “Yes, I understand. I will explain it to you”. We may be able to explain it clearly and logically. But can we practice it? “Oh, practice it?” That would depend on the situation! People do this selectively, not pervasively. They say, “I know. I can do it”. But if it can only be done in certain situations, it is still not pervasive. We must be completely awakened and perfect in wisdom and action.this indicates how long the Buddha has been cultivating His virtues. The principles He has attained through the process of spiritual cultivation reveal His virtue.
So, “Those who attain will have virtue. We must make an effort to engage in spiritual practice. So, during the process of our practice, the things we realize are what we attain. When this attainment truly enters our hearts, our nature naturally becomes virtuous. Our intrinsic nature is pure and radiant. We should always keep this phrase in mind. In the past, things were not clear to us. If our mind's mirror reflects a scene with red flowers and green leaves, we know that this image will appear in our minds. This is like [the minds of ] unenlightened beings. The instant we hear this [description], we know that this image will appear in our minds. We can picture the red and green. The mirror of our minds is showing that scene.But, [what is shown in] the mirror of our minds is quickly replaced by other things. So, the thing from before will be replaced by what comes next. Good, bad are all reflected in it, and they all disappear from it.
As unenlightened beings, our limited wisdom and capabilities resemble a small, single-sided mirror. This small, single-sided mirror will reflect whatever is before it, good or bad, and then quickly forget it. For the Buddha, who attained enlightenment, His mirror of the mind is not limited; it is like a perfect sphere. His intrinsic nature is perfectly round, radiant. It can reflect the universe in all directions. Not only can it reflect, it also clearly discerns right and wrong. The Buddha spent a long time cultivating virtues so the mirror of His mind would naturally become perfect.So, we have to understand that His virtue is vastly different from [the virtues of] ordinary people who have limited capabilities.
He was already “endowed with the ten virtues and Wondrous Existence”. The ten virtues are shared epithets for Buddhas.
The ten epithets are Tathagata, Worthy of Offerings, Perfect in Wisdom and Action, etc.
They describe the deeply profound and wondrous virtues [of the Buddha]. So, to be endowed with the ten virtues is wondrous and extraordinary. These are Buddhas' shared epithets.
The Buddhas' epithets are extraordinary because They cultivated virtue for long, countless kalpas. It is wondrous and extraordinary to be endowed with the ten virtues.
It is wondrous and extraordinary to have the shared and distinctive epithets, to have the supreme and profound Dharma.
In the previous passages, [ these terms] have appeared. Manjusri Bodhisattva was the one who explained that this Buddha from the past was the same as this present Buddha. They both have supreme and profound Dharma that is wondrous and extraordinary. What Dharma is this? The great Dharma Ordinary people cannot comprehend it. This is because we are unenlightened beings. Even if we are wise, we still have Leaks. Previously, I have emphasized that indeed we all have wisdom, but it all leaks out.
Today we say, “I know, I understand.” But soon, after, our habitual tendencies replace what we know. So, the teachings that we know will disappear because we have afflictions, which are Leaks. When we have afflictions, true Dharma will leak out. So, the Buddha had no leaks; He had flawless wisdom, a state free of Leaks.So, the true principles of all things in the universe are definitely in His mind and have not leaked away. This is great Dharma, the supreme and most profound Dharma. So, “the supreme and profound Dharma” is wondrous and extraordinary. Thus, past, present and future Buddha share the same path.
Therefore, [Buddha] is their shared epithet. Now everyone understands that this was the previous Buddha are all called Buddha and are all endowed with this wondrous Dharma. Those with this virtuous nature have these shares epithets.
His distinctive epithet was Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiance.
The sun has two abilities: to guide with illumination, to bring to fruition.
The moon has two abilities: to eliminate heat, to refresh.
The lamp has two abilities:to dispel the darkness, to pass on illumination.
This shows how this Buddha guided the deluded toward enlightenment.
The sun has two kinds of abilities. One is to illuminate. If it is daytime, everything in the four directions is lit clearly, so we can see which paths we can safely travel. This is how illumination guides us onto the correct path.The sun can do more than guide with its illumination.As I mentioned the other day, it can also ripen the crops of the land. Their development depends on thermal energy, on the illumination of the sun.
The moon also has two kinds of abilities. It can eliminate heat. In the daytime, when the sun is strong, it is difficult for us to stand outside. When night falls, it is dark. But with the brightness of a full moon, it is refreshing to be outside. When we look up and see beautiful moon, it refreshes our bodies and minds.
Next, the moon can also dispel the darkness. When the moon cannot be seen, the night is filled with darkness. When it appears again in its orbit, the darkness is dispelled. On a refreshing, moonlit night, the surroundings are well-illuminated.
What we have to understand is that this Buddha [represents] wisdom. His wisdom can guide the deluded toward enlightenment.We sentient beings are deluded, so we need illumination besides the sun and moon. This perfect, clear and natural world requires the sun and the moon.
Thus, Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha came here to eliminate sentient beings’ burning afflictions. The moon can help sentient beings refresh, so their minds can be tranquil and clear. This helps us to make vows as cast as the void and guide us to establish our resolve and develop aspirations. This is “guiding the deluded toward enlightenment.”
Bodhisattvas, naturally we must great effort into learning the wisdom of the Buddha. Do not fear the length of this journey. As long as we take that first step, the distance will not be a problem. So, everyone please always be mindful!
(Source: Da Ai TV - Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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