Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: The Dharma is Profound and Wondrous (解悟無常是法深妙)
Date: March.09. 2015
“Learn the Four Noble Truths of the world and the arising and ceasing of the Five Skandhas to realize the impermanence in the world and the extremely profound, subtle and wondrous Dharma.”
We must realize that the Four Noble Truths are a very important part of the Buddha-Dharma. They are the foundation of the Buddha-Dharma. When we learn the Buddha’s Way, if we do not comprehend the Four Nobel Truths, we will not even know where to begin learning, why we should listen to the Dharma or why we would become Buddhists. So, we must all cherish the Four Noble Truths because this is how we begin learning the Buddha-Dharma. There are so many things in life that we do not understand. Thus we face suffering, irritability, panic, unease, and our minds cannot be at peace. We experience all kinds of difficult emotions and it is very difficult to overcome them; much of our lives are consumed by these emotions. If we also suffer from physical illness, both our minds and bodies [are afflicted]. We will be afraid that we may not get better. Once we take our last breath, where will we go? Life is hazy and unclear. What will our future life be like? Where will we be reborn? We may feel panicked. In our minds we may also feel greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, doubt and jealousy. These emotions can constantly [arise] in our minds to torment us. When other people’s success makes us unhappy, that is due to jealousy. When we hear teachings and feel, “This teaching is nothing special; I have a deeper understanding than this person,” this is our arrogance and doubt arising in response to the Dharma. These are deviant views and ways of thinking.
As people interact with each other, they may fight for recognition and gain, openly or in secret. What is it all for? This is how many people live. It is impossible to describe all of this. A lifetime is only a few short decades, yet we have to endure so much unease in our bodies and minds; this is unbearable suffering. This world is full of suffering because we put ourselves first, because everything revolves around our “self”. When we are embroiled in interpersonal conflicts, it is as if we are in a pot of boiling water. Clearly the state we are in is scalding hot, with suffering and hardship crushing us. This all comes from our attachment to “self”. Why do we put ourselves through this? We cannot let go. If we could let go, we would understand that there is no self. When did this “I” come to be?
Several decades ago, when I was still a child, was that “me”? That “I” is in the past; I cannot go back to it. Several days ago, when I was still in good health, was that “me”? I am sick right now, so my good health is in the past. I am now experiencing illness and pain, and when I look into the mirror, I see that I am old. When I look at my old photographs and recall my younger days, was that really “me”? And what kind of “I” am I now?
Through the Buddha-Dharma we can realize that everything arises from the temporary union of the four elements.Admidst this world’s suffering, emptiness and impermanence, there is fundamentally no self.
In particular, because of impermanence, everything changes with the passage of time.Every day we talk about minutes and seconds.Once a second passes, we cannot get it back, not to mention a whole day.So, the present second is the only second that each one of us has.Each day is the only day that we have in our lives.If all of us can truly realize that once time passes we cannot get it back, we will realize that the whole course of our lives is the passage of once-in-a-lifetime moments.
Since this is the only time we have, how can we not take advantage of every moment?When wholesome thoughts arise in our minds, we must quickly seize them.As for good deeds, we must do good deeds every day and create blessings for the world at all times.Every moment is a chance for us to form good affinities with everyone.This is why we must understand the Dharma.
The principles of the Dharma are in this world.If we want to enter the door to the Dharma, we must start with the Four Noble Truths.
Suffering!Only when we recognize suffering will we seek to understand where suffering comes from.It is because sentient beings create karma that we share collective karma.
If we do not quickly awaken, we will remain lost in the state of ordinary people and continue to give rise to more afflictions.Thus the suffering we will endure in future lives will become more severe.
By learning the Buddha’s Way we recognize that the source of suffering is “causation,” the accumulation of desires, cravings and [afflictive emotions] that arise during our interactions with people every day.
We can see this everywhere in the world.Once people’s thinking deviates, it can cause great disturbances in society, plunging it into darkness.For people who hold great power, a careless or offhand remark, or an intentional action, can create disturbances in society and the country.A world like this is one of unbearable suffering.
If we make an effort to understand “causation, ” we can find a way to extinguish it.To extinguish the source of suffering, we must cultivate our mind, refine our character and correct our behavior.Only by focusing our minds can we clearly understand interpersonal conflicts.Those who thoroughly understand the principles will not do the wrong things and will not speak the wrong words.The only thing they think of is how to benefit others.After listening to teachings every day, [we chant,].“I vow to eliminate the Three Obstructions and all afflictions. I vow to obtain wisdom and true clarity.”And next?“I vow to eliminate all karmic obstacles.”And then? “I will follow the Bodhisattva-path, life after life.“
Can these four vows be achieved in a single lifetime of spiritual cultivation?Are we applying these four verses in our daily living and in our interactions with other people?In this world, we need a clear understanding to protect ourselves.Only then can we eliminate the Three Obstructions and all afflictions.
The Three Obstructions, greed, anger, ignorance, and so on, all create afflictions, which are the source of all human suffering.
This is “carnation,” the ignorance and afflictions of sentient beings.So, from the Four Noble Truths, we can experience the truth of the Five Skandhas, the suffering of the raging Five Skandhas.Form, feeling, perception, action, consciousness come together to cause us to create [karma].They are like the burning fire under a pot.When the water inside the pot is boiling, we may fall into the boiling water.With that raging fire, all kinds of emotions will be boiling and churning.This is the Five Skandhas.
When we connect with form, greed arises.When we attain what we desire, we feel I happy, but when we cannot, we suffer; we worry over gain and loss.This applies to everything from material objects to fame, gain, wealth, sensual pleasure and so on. All this has to do with our feelings.
Then our imagination runs wild with our perceptions. This troubles our minds and creates suffering. So, after form, feeling, and perception is action. We begin to create karma. We were already suffering, yet we take action [which create more karma]. Our actions will have long-lasting effects. Life after life in the Six Realms, we cannot escape from the aggregate of action. The afflictions in our minds come from these incredibly minute and subtle changes. Similarly, metabolism is occurring in our bodies, as [cells] continue to arise and cease. But we do not even understand our own bodies, so even though the infinitesimal changes of the aggregate of action are happening in our body, we are unaware of them. When did my fingernails grown long? Often, when I took at my hands, [I think,] “I just clipped them. When did they grown long again?”
Our bodies require constant grooming. When did these get so long? We do not know. As for the grass, when did it turn green again? We just recently cut the grass. There are many things we are unaware of. This is how subtle the aggregate of action is; it is an endless series of infinitesimal changes. So, both inside and outside of our bodies, we continue to create karma of it.
So, the Five Skandhas take us from form, feeling and perception to action. In the end, the karma we create will be stored in our “consciousness”. Thus we are unable to come and go freely in life. This is arising and ceasing. We must become awakened so we can “realize the impermanence in the world”. We must thoroughly “comprehend the great path”. This is the principle [behind] walking the great broad and direct Bodhi-path. Only by going among people can we understand the suffering in life. When we see other people’s suffering, we awaken to our won blessings. We must promptly walk the direct Bodhi-path so we can clearly understand the scenery along it.
This is “extremely profound, wondrous Dharma”. The workings of the world are very profound. Apart from this world, we will be unable to find the Buddha-Dharma. Actually, the Buddha attained enlightenment by seeking principles among the people. We liberate ourselves from what brings suffering so that we can devote ourselves to what makes us happy. How can we take joy in doing good deeds? We must remain in this virtuous cycle.
The world will not always be full of suffering. Amidst suffering, we can find liberation. We can be happy and do good deeds; this is not impossible. Isn’t this the case in Mozambique? The environment there has not changed, but people’s mindset have. When the mindset of those who are poor and suffering suddenly changed, they found their spiritual wealth; their hearts were filled with love. This kind of happiness [arises] when the wheel in people’s minds turn; this is the Dharma-wheel turning. The Dharma can turn the wheels in people’s minds and give them a way of helping others who are suffering. This is very subtle and wondrous Dharma.
So, when we are among people, we apply the Dharma for the world. Everything is suffering. How do we apply the Buddha-Dharma to transcend that pain and suffering? This is an important essence of the Lotus Sutra. The Buddha encouraged us to walk the Bodhisattva-path. He hoped that, by doing this, we could all immediately attain the “extremely profound”, and be filled with Dharma-joy from the Great Dharma. This gives us the strength to help others. The previous passage states,
“Long ago in Varanasi, You turned the Dharma-wheel of the Four Noble Truths, distinctly teaching various Dharma such as the arising and ceasing of the five groups.”
In Deer Park, the Buddha began to teach suffering, causation, cessation and the Path, the Four Noble Truths. With these four truths, He taught the Dharma. Of course, the five bhiksus were ordinary people, so they had to hear it three times before they understood the Buddha’s teachings. This is to say nothing of the multitudes of others with varying capabilities. He had to repeatedly and He had to repeatedly and “distinctly teach various Dharma”.
So, [He taught] “the arising ad ceasing of the five groups”. Yesterday we explained the “five groups” as five groups of humans, five groups of spiritual practitioners, or, as we transmigrate in the Six Realms, the five realms, heaven, human, hell, hungry ghost and animal. These are the five realms. But when we look at them another way, in the Dharma, the “five groups” are form, feeling, perception, action, consciousness. When these Five Skandhas come together, they create suffering in people’s lives, and this is where arising and ceasing takes place. This is what we must mindfully comprehend. The next passage states,
“Now, again, you turn the most wondrous unsurpassed, great Dharma-wheel. This Dharma is very profound and mysterious. These are few who can believe it.”
Everything from the Four Noble Truths to the Five Skandhas are distinct teachings of the Dharma. They were taught according to the capabilities of sentient beings. “Now, again, You turn the most wondrous [Dharma-wheel].” Now, the Dharma-wheel that the Buddha had begun to turn was the most wondrous Dharma-wheel, the unsurpassed and great Dharma-wheel. The Buddha spoke to countless people and those who had affinities with Him also listened to the Dharma over and over. So, “They repeatedly listened to the supreme, wondrous Dharma.”
They repeatedly listened to the supreme, wondrous Dharma and made the great vow to turn the Dharma-wheel. With deep faith, they rejoiced in others and followed the Buddha’s teachings to turn the Dharma-wheel of the Buddha’s wondrous Dharma. “Now, again, You turn that most wondrous, unsurpassed, great Dharma-wheel.”
We engage in practice and listen to the Dharma at the same time, but we may not truly comprehend it at the same time. So, we must listen over and over to the supreme, wondrous Dharma. When people hear the Dharma, they eventually say, “I understand it; I want to make the Great Vows. I am willing to turn the Dharma-wheel and pass on the Buddha’s teachings to others.” People accept the Dharma at different times, understand it and pass it on at different times. Then “with deep faith, they rejoice for others.”
“You understand it, but even though I do not, I am happy that you do.” This is how we can encourage each other and rejoice with each other. Only those with very deep faith are able to see others achieve success and rejoice for then without giving up themselves. We must continue to advance forward; we must have this state of mind.
We should “follow the Buddha’s teachings to turn the Dharma-wheel of the wondrous Dharma. For example, [volunteers in] South Africa passed it on to those in Mozambique. This is how we continue to pass it on. How many people can we benefit it? How many doors to spiritual wealth can we open? How many suffering sentient beings can we save?
As we continue to pass on teachings, we are turning this wondrous Dharma-wheel. “Now, again, You turn the most wondrous [Dharma-wheel]. This Dharma is very profound and mysterious. There are few who can believe it.”
To truly understand this Dharma, we must listen over and over. To attain a deep realization of this Dharma is truly not easy. “This Dharma is extremely subtle and wondrous.”
It is extremely profound and mysterious. What makes it profound? When we analyze things until there is “no-self,” we realize “everything is empty [in nature].” “The mind is without hindrances; there are no hindrances, therefore there is no fear.” To really understand the Dharma of true emptiness, we must not have any attachments. Then we must comprehend
wondrous existence.” Then our hearts will be filled with the Dharma which we being with us among suffering people. We will not be influenced by them at all, so this Dharma is very profound.
This Dharma is extremely profound, subtle and wondrous: It is very wondrously profound. Its meaning is true emptiness. As for such extremely, wondrously profound. True Dharma of [wondrous] existence, very few can believe it.
“As for such wondrously profound [Dharma]…” Only a very small number of people can attain a deep realization of the True Dharma of [wondrous] existence. So, dear Bodhisattvas, although these are just a few sentences, they actually contain very profound principles. Everyone, we must take the Dharma very seriously. “[Learn] the Four Noble Truths of the world and the arising and ceasing of the Five Skandhas to realize the impermanence in the world and the extremely profound, subtle and wondrous Dharma.” This is all extremely profound, subtle and wondrous Dharma. But is it difficult [to understand]? Let me tell you, it is not difficult, as long as we are always mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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