Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Teaching the One Vehicle with Eloquence (一乘實法樂說無礙)
Date: May.18. 2015
“The Buddha has equal compassion for all and adapts to sentient beings’ capabilities. Though He gave wondrous provisional teachings, in the end He taught the Dharma of the One Reality.”
The Buddha treats all sentient beings equally because all sentient beings have Buddha-nature. Having Buddha-nature, they all have the potential to attain Buddhahood. Sadly, sentient beings [are hindered by] ignorance; ignorance has covered our intrinsic Buddha-nature.
During the Buddha’s lifetime, He often traveled around to teach sentient beings. One time, He came to the kingdom of Gautami to teach the Dharma to the fourfold assembly and transform sentient beings. At this time, there was a man who had heard the Dharma, but was very full of himself. He thought, “When I listen to the Dharma, I understand so much, but I see many people who, though they have listened to the Dharma, cannot understand the principles.” This man was a Brahmacarin. He believed he had learned so much, understood so much, but he thought everyone else was foolish and was unable to understand the principles.
So, during the day, under the blazing sun, he lit a torch and carried it around. As he walked down the road, he held up this torch. He said, “Everyone in this world is foolish and unable to understand the principles.” At that moment, the Buddha had drawn close to where this man was. Hearing everyone talking, the Buddha came over. When the Brahmacarin saw the Buddha, he lifted his head and puffed out his chest and continued yelling, “People in this world cannot see. Even during the daytime, they still cannot see the road. So, I am holding up this torch to light the way for everyone.”
The Buddha stopped in front of him and said, “Since you understand the principles so well, let me ask you, have you heard of the Four Understandings?” When the Brahmacarin was asked about the Four Understandings, he instead asked the Buddha in return, “What are the Four Understandings? I have never heard of them.”
The Buddha said, “First, let me ask you, do you understand astronomy and geology? Do you understand the workings of the heavens and of the earth?” “No, I do not.”
“Second, let me ask you about the sun, moon and stars. Why are there so many stars in the sky? Do you understand the different kinds of stars?” “No, I do not.”
“Third, let me ask you, do you understand how to govern a country?” “I do not know that either.”
This man who held the torch during the daytime, this Brahmacarin, hung his head low. He put down the torch and reverently prostrated to the Buddha. He told the Buddha, “I admit that I am ignorant. There are still many things I do not know. Please, Buddha, have compassion and forgive me and teach me.” The Buddha told him, “You only understand a small bit of the Dharma. It is wrong to think, ‘I know so much already.’ “That is too egotistic. ” “If you do not understand but think you do, though you are holding the torch, you are the one who cannot see. The torch you hold only illuminates others. You cannot see yourself; you are blind.” The more this Brahmacarin heard, the more he felt remorseful and repentant. So, he decided to follow the Buddha and become a monastic to accept the Buddha’s teachings. This is how the Buddha would train sentient beings.
The Buddha taught according to the capabilities of sentient beings, so He gave various teachings such as the Five Vehicles and the Three Vehicles.For the first 42 years, He taught with various skillful means.After 42 years, He began to teach the Great Vehicle Dharma.
So, [before that,] the Buddha had “given wondrous provisional teachings”. “wondrous” means that all the principles the Buddha taught contained the True Dharma, even when He was just teaching us how to be good people.In fact, if we can succeed at being a good person, that we can attain Buddhahood.Even the teachings of the Human Vehicle contain subtle and wondrous principles.
The Heavenly Being Vehicle is also about developing a love that is complete, selfless and unconditional.This is not just a way to be reborn in heaven; it also contains the Bodhisattva Way.
But to practice the Bodhisattva Way, in addition to doing good deeds, we must also cultivate wisdom.Wisdom comes from interacting with people, doing good deeds while remaining free of attachments.Moreover, we must also patiently withstand the various turbidities that we found among people as well as their mental impurities.People who practice the Bodhisattva-path must maintain a pure mind.
So, even while the Buddha “gave wondrous provisional teachings,” they still contained the Dharma of the One Reality.The Dharma of the One Reality is the One Vehicle.In the past we have talked about how the Buddha challenged His disciples.Some were biased toward emptiness, others were biased toward everlasting existence and thought that being human in this lifetime meant they would be human in their next; so if they did not have the chance to practice in this lifetime, they would do it in the next.
Even if people know there will be a next life, they may not know that the causes they create in this life will bear fruit in their next.With the karma you have created, will you have the chance to be human again in your next life?To have the chance to be human again, we must uphold the Five Precepts.To have blessed retributions in our next life, we must practice the Ten Good Deeds.
If in this lifetime, we do not perform our basic duties as a person and do not even understand basic morals, in our next life, we may be in the animal realm.If a person does not practice the Ten Good Deeds and instead commits the Ten Evils, in his next life he will be in the hell or hungry ghost realm.Whether we end up in the Three Evil Realms or not depends on how we have acted in this life.This is why the Buddha helped all sentient beings to first understand these principles, so that He could more easily guide them.
But some people that accept the Dharma, become biased; if one thought goes astray, they lost sight of the principles and end up far off course.So, we must always remind ourselves to be vigilant.
We sentient beings are still in a state of ignorance.[Trapped] in the Three Realms, we endlessly create karma and afflictions.With these afflictions, it is as if we are in a burning house.
The Buddha hoped we can all eliminate these affliction brought on by desires so that our minds can be pure.This is why He told the parable of the burning house.
As we discussed earlier, the Buddha, the great elder, set up three kinds of carts outside the house.“Everyone, hurry up and come out! Do you want a sheep-cart, deer-cart or a cart pulled by a great ox?. Come out quickly!”Then the children came out.
Sariputra, at that time, the elder equally gave each child a great cart.These carts were tall and broad, decorated with all kinds of treasures, surrounded by railings and hung with bells.
This is explaining that the great cart that was drawn by a great white ox was broad and tall and was exquisitely and wonderfully magnificent.
He equally gave each child a great cart that could carry many people.This is an analogy for the only teaching that can lead people to attain Buddhahood.This is the Buddha’s only teaching.
This large cart is the cart that everyone should use.See, “This cart is tall and broad.”This was such a large cart and the inside of this cart was especially well-decorated.All kinds of jewels and treasures were used to adorn it.Its exterior was beautifully decorated as well.
It was “hung with bells”.Whenever the cart started moving, the sound of the bells could be heard.
Moreover, it was exquisitely and wonderfully magnificent, and filled with rare treasures.When the elder saw that all the children were out, he said, “I do not want to only give you a sheep-cart or a deer-cart; I want you to have this great cart. Because of its size, it can transport many people. You can put as many things in it as you want.” This is an analogy for the “only teaching that can lead people to attain Buddhahood”. This is the ultimate reality of the One Vehicle, the teachings that can help us attain Buddhahood. This is what the Buddha wanted to teach us, hoping that we can all attain Buddhahood.
In order to become Buddhas, we need a cart that can carry a lot. This is an analogy.
“These carts were tall and broad: Tall and broad is an analogy for its essence, appearance and function. It extends throughout the three periods of time and pervades the ten directions. Our essence is True Suchness, and we are replete with wisdom, compassion and so on. Our appearance is one of infinite merits and virtues. Our essence and appearance are unfixed, so we can act in response to conditions to manifest our function.”
“Essence, appearance and function”. “Essence” refers to the body of this cart, which is very large. We can see that the sheep-cart and the deer-cart are very small in size. When we see this great cart, that is the ox-cart, it is very well-decorated. You see, that kind of cart can carry many people! This is due to the large body of the cart. We can say it is great; we can say it is magnificent. We can say it contain many treasures. This is its “appearance”.
The function of this great cart is to transport people. It can carry many and is well-decorated. This is its “function”. These are its essence, appearance and function. This is analogy for how. “Our essence is True Suchness”. We all intrinsically have a nature of True Suchness, a nature equal to that of the Buddha’s. We are all replete with wisdom and compassion, so we can all give to others and practice according to what the Buddha taught. Thus our appearance is one of merits and virtues.
When we act out of a pure heart and diligently go among people to help them, we are replete with wisdom, compassion and a sense of equality. We will treat all sentient beings equally. We will open up our hearts so that we can embrace all things in this world and treat them equally. When we give without expectations, our appearance is one of merits and virtues. Everything we cultivate within, manifests without. This is our “essence and appearance”.
“Essence and appearance” arise in response to various capabilities. For those with limited capabilities, the Buddha gave limited teachings of limited scope. For those with great capabilities, the Buddha gave great teachings of a great scope. Everyone He sees is different, so He makes use of what is appropriate. The interior of this cart is “decorated with all kinds of treasures”. This symbolizes “wisdom of all Dharma”. “Wisdom of all Dharma can initiate myriad actions”. When it comes to wisdom, we must be replete with “wisdom of all Dharma”. As we just discussed, we must give teachings according to capability. People of different capabilities need to be taught in different ways. This requires that “With wisdom of all Dharma, we initiate myriad actions”.
“[It is] decorated with all kinds of treasures: With wisdom of all Dharma, we initiate myriad actions. Myriad actions give rise to myriad virtues. This is the meaning of decorated with all kinds of treasures”.
We constantly say, “Actualize the Six Paramitas in all actions”. Giving, upholding precepts, patience, diligence, Samadhi and wisdom can be utilized in all situations. All sentient beings are different and their surroundings are also different. Taking environment and capabilities into account, we give to others with various methods; we give them teachings, material things, etc. Only with all these “myriad actions” can we give rise to “myriad virtues”. We need the Dharma, and have received it, so once we attain the Dharma, we can then use various methods to give charitably. We want to cultivate loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity. We must feel a sense of abundance in order to be happy and feel that we can give to others. We must have an abundance of wisdom in order to have an abundance of Dharma to share. This is “virtue” that we can cultivate.
So, “Myriad actions give rise to myriad virtues”. This is the meaning of “decorated with all kinds of treasures”. So, inside of this large cart there is an abundance of decorations. This symbolizes how we also have an abundance of Dharma. When we hear one teaching, we realize ten, or we may hear one and realize 100, or 1000. By learning one teaching, we are able to understand many things. This is because we have internalized the Dharma we have heard. Thus, we can give according to various capabilities.
“Surrounded by railings” means that it is enclosed on all sides. This protects the people in the cart so that no external objects will be able to hurt them.
Thus, “The evil outside cannot enter, and the good inside will not be lost. Taking good care of what is inside and preventing outside evil from entering is the meaning of “surrounded by railings”. Then “hung with bells” represents the. Four kinds of Unobstructed Eloquence.
We need four kinds of wisdom to teach according to sentient beings’ capabilities.
Hung with bells: the bells on all four sides are an analogy for the Four kinds of Unobstructed Eloquence. Bells are an analogy for a rousing teaching. The Four kinds of Unobstructed Eloquence: Unobstructed Dharma. Unobstructed Meaning. Unobstructed Language. Unobstructed Joy in Speaking.
First is Unobstructed Dharma. When we speak, what we say must contain the truth of the Dharma. Then we will not face obstacles as we teach. Thus, we must first understand all kinds of Dharma so that we can find a way to influence others and teach them the principles of being a good person.
So first, we must have Unobstructed Dharma. Then we can teach smoothly without interruption; the Dharma will be able to endlessly flow into the minds of sentient beings. Second is Unobstructed Meaning. The meaning in what we say must be complete. We need a complete understanding of the Dharma so people will be able to accept these principles. Third is Unobstructed Language, when our words are understood clearly. We may clearly understand the principles but still be unable to use language in such a way that our writing or speech [is beautifully composed]. The words we say and the words we write should be very beautiful. So, if we can be unobstructed in our language, that is one of the wisdoms. The Fourth is Unobstructed Joy in Speaking. This means we must share; I must share what I understand. If I do not share what I understand, I feel like I would be doing everyone a disservice.
The Buddha always said that to expound the Dharma and turn the Dharma-wheel, we must have these four kinds of wisdom. First is Unobstructed Dharma. Second is Unobstructed Meaning. Third is Unobstructed Language. Fourth is Unobstructed Joy in Speaking. We truly must listen to many teachings and take them in, so that we are then able to transmit the Dharma to whomever we encounter. If we want to teach the Dharma, then in this era, in the present, there are people, matter and objects that confirm it; there are principles in all these things. We are not telling people to do the impossible; we always give them a path in what we say, so there is a path for them to walk. For them to be able to take that path, we must explain teachings clearly. We must speak of people, matters and objects in a very harmonious manner.
Then, when we have such wonderful principles, such wonderful language and such an abundance of Dharma, we must share them joyfully. This is the Unobstructed Joy in Speaking. We need to share constantly; thus we are turning the Dharma-wheel.
Dear Bodhisattvas, as we learn the Buddha’s Way we must make an effort to be mindful and to compassionately treat all as equals and adapt to sentient beings’ capabilities, whether their capabilities are great or limited. We must try to understand everything in the world; although the Buddha taught the Dharma for living in this world, it is actually the path to Buddhahood. We cannot say, “This is [just] Small Vehicle Dharma.” In fact, the Small Vehicle Dharma was used the Buddha as a way of guiding us onto the course laid out by the Great Vehicle. In the end, it is the path to Buddhahood.
So , the True Dharma of the One Vehicle is what the Buddha put His heart into. Therefore, we must always be grateful and always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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