Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Diligently Cultivate Virtuous Dharma (精勤修善法)
Date: November.14. 2013
A person’s life is inseparable from birth, aging, illness and death. This is called “fragmentary samsara”. We do not know how much time we have. Life is impermanent. Therefore, none of us has a way of knowing how long our life on earth will be. This is the impermanence of life. However, at the end of their lives, some people are interred in the ground. Interment is very troublesome [in some cultures] because regardless of the quality of the casket, [relatives] must open it afterwards and gather the bones [to re-inter them]. These days, people are more open to cremation. The fire turns [their bodies] into ashes.
[We go through] birth, aging, illness and death. Fire transforms things into ashes. When oil is burned up, the lamp is extinguished. When wood is consumed, the flame dies.
In this lifetime, because we have this body, we are attached to this physical existence. But, at the end of existence is non-existence. For example, when our body is cremated, it turns into a pile of ashes.
The Buddha described this as “when wood is consumed and the flame dies”. Before Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha manifested extinction, the sutra passages prior to that part stated: After firewood is burned, it turns into ashes. Are our bodies any different from plants? They are the same. At the end of their existence, they both become non-existent. As for a lamp, when the oil is burned up, the light will be extinguished and also no longer exist. Our life goes from existent to non-existent, so we must always remind ourselves that there will be nothing left in the end. Over this lifetime, the karma we create will continuously accumulate. Thoughts that arise in our minds, whether acted on or not, will continuously accumulate as afflictions and ignorance. Moreover, we carry them into future lifetimes. This is never-ending. Therefore, we must take care of our minds. First we eliminate delusions of views and thinking. Then we must end fragmentary samsara. We must transform ourselves. We know we must really work on practicing the Buddha’s teachings and transforming ourselves in this lifetime. We must understand that we all experience birth, aging, illness and death. We do not know when impermanence (death) will occur. When impermanence comes, this body will be cremated within a few days and become a pile of ashes.This is like how [a lamp] dies when oil is used up and [a flame] dies when wood is consumed.Since this is the case, why should we take issue over anything?
As our issues with others accumulate, we become afflicted, and we face retributions in the next lifetime.This is unbearable suffering.As the previous passage has stated, after Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha enters Parinirvana a future Buddha will succeed Him.His disciples were all worried and distressed, “Why must the Buddha enter extinction so soon?”
So, Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha assured them, “Such is life, so do not feel grief.”
A future Buddha, Pure Body, will return to this Saha World, so everyone need not worry.
After Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha entered Parinirvana, His sariras were divided up.To memorialize the Buddha they divided His sariras among various locations as mementoes.
So, it is said, “the sariras were divided up, and countless stupas were built.”
“Sariras” are crystallized ashes.When Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, esteemed monks enter extinction, their ashes crystallize during cremation.Those crystals are called “sariras”.
We think of them as their crystallized essence.When we are experienced spiritual practitioners, our minds are pure and our spirits are focused.When we describe people as “outstanding” we mean their essence is brilliant and their mind is not scattered.When that [essence] is solidified and becomes sariras, its hardness enables it to be found among the ashes.Legend has it that sariras cannot beg shattered by even hard objects; they are truly very strong.
So when Buddhas, Bodhisattvas esteemed monks are cremated after they pass away, these solidified objects are found in the ashes.These are called “sariras”.People built towers for sariras, some towers are called stupas or thupas.[People build] “stupas” to “display virtues”.[At the time,] burial sites were generally marked with a pile of dirt or stones.But Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and esteemed monks.had great virtues and prestige.Therefore, people built stupas for them.These stupas may be five, seven, nine or eleven stories tall to display the greatness of that person’s virtue.
When the Japanese build towers, they hang bells not eh corners of [the roof].when the wind blows, the bells ring to tell everyone that this tower contains a person with great virtue.This shows that we can all attain Buddhahood, but we need people with great virtue and prestige to be our role models.So, we “display virtues,” indicating that [the remains of] someone with great virtue and prestige reside in the tower.This is called a “stupa”.
There are Buddhist legends about King Ashoka, who was said to have built 84,000 stupas. Originally, King Ashoka believed in Brahmanism. For a period of time, his policies were cruel and devoid of benevolence and virtue. Then he had the causes and conditions to develop faith in the Buddha. He came to understand the Buddha's teachings and felt that the Dharma must be widely promoted. So, he trained several government officials who dedicated themselves to studying the Buddha-Dharma. After these government officials were trained, they traveled around to expound sutras and talk about the Buddha's teachings. He called them “teaching officials”. These government officials traveled widely to promote the principles of the Buddha's teachings. So, he built 84,000 towers in many places to let people know that Sakyamuni Buddha was once in this world, and after He entered Parinirvana, His teachings still abide in the world. He wanted his citizens to all believe in the Buddha-Dharma.So he not only built stupas, he also widely spread the Buddha-Dharma. King Ashoka was a great supporter of Dharma and contributed greatly to Buddhism.
We just mentioned “the sariras were divided up”. After Buddha entered Parinirvana, King Ashoka collected His sariras and then divided them up. Then those who admired the Buddha could request to have them for veneration. Looking at sariras is like looking at the Buddha. Then, “countless stupas were built”. For [the sariras] to be divided, many stupas had to be built. When Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha entered Parinirvana, His sariras were also gathered and countless stupas were also built.
All Buddhas share the same path. This applies to past ancient Buddhas as well as the present Sakyamuni Buddha. When They entered Parinirvana, crossed into extinction, Their bodies were cremated, Their sariras were gathered and stupas were built for people to make offerings. This also happened during the time of Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha.
“The bhiksus and bhiksunis, numbering as many as the Ganges' sands, redoubled their diligence in their quest for the unsurpassed path”.
This means that after Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha entered Parinirvana, there were “The bhiksus and bhiksunis, numbering as many as the Ganges' sands”. There were a lot of people who “redoubles their diligence in their quest for the unsurpassed path”. They numbered as many as the Ganges' sands. We do not know the size of the world's population during Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha's time, which, of course, was countless kalpas ago. As for when the Buddha came to the world, the population then was not large. So, the description of “like the Ganges' sands” is an analogy that time a great number. If [their number] was like the Ganges' sands, this means there were so many it was incalculable.
The beginning of the Sutra of Infinite Meanings mentions 12,000 and 6000 monastics, bhiksus and bhiksunis. But during Sun-Moon-Lamp Radiant Buddha's time, “The bhiksus and bhiksunis, numbered as many as the Ganges' sands”. We take this to mean a number that us boundless and countless, a very large number. So in the past, many have aspired to spiritual practice, and they “redoubled their diligence after the Buddha entered Parinirvana. In this world, there is arising and ceasing. Even the Buddha had to enter extinction. It is rare to hear the Buddha-Dharma. Since the Buddha had entered Parinirvana, spiritual practitioners had to become more diligent and take the Buddha-Dharma even more deeply into their hearts.
So, they had to think about how they themselves also experience birth, aging, illness and death. They did not know when impermanence would fall upon them, but it was bound to happen one day. So, when they saw the Buddha enter Parinirvana, they “redoubled their diligence.” Countless people and spiritual practitioners redoubled their diligence.
So, to focus and advance, they must practice all virtuous Dharma diligently, without becoming lax. They need to uphold this mindset without becoming indulgent.
How do we advance diligently? We need to practice all virtuous Dharma. How do we practice them? We need to put them into action.We must practice all good deeds. So, “to practice all virtuous Dharma” means since we have this Path, we must walk upon it. We must practice every good principle and focus and advance on the virtuous road.
We must be diligent and not lax to advance.
So at that time, people “redoubled their diligence.” We must be very diligent to pursue the unsurpassed path, to attain Buddhahood. Then we can have the most supreme, perfect, universal enlightenment. Isn’t Annutara-sambodhi the most supreme, perfect, universal enlightenment? We must uphold this mindset of practice without becoming indulgent. This is how we focus and advance.
As I said, sariras are the concentration of our purest essence that is accumulated, so we call them “outstanding.” This essence is a strong as rocks. When our essence is this focused, we are outstanding. It solidifies into something hard called sariras.
Thus, sariras originate from diligence, attentiveness and focus. So, we must practice all virtuous Dharma, put it into action and advance diligently. Our spirits must be focused, and our actions cannot become lax.This is “to uphold this mindset without becoming indulgent.” We cannot become indulgent or relax. That is the goal of our spiritual practice.
Fellow bodhisattvas, to learn the Buddha’s Way, we must walk the Bodhisattva Path. Although spiritual practice is not for our own benefit, to become Bodhisattvas, bhiksus, or bhiksunes, we must have the mindset to practice in peace and purity. Pure practitioners are also Bodhisattvas. So Bodhisattvas are ones who have practiced all good deeds, cut off all evils and put (the Dharma) into action. Therefore, we must always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV - Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
首頁 
