Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Uphold the Flawless Studies to Escape Suffering (智慧方便權實並用)
Date:June.29. 2015
“The Buddha used His own realization as a guarantee that by upholding the Flawless [Studies], escaping the suffering of the Three Realms and attaining the joy that exists outside the Three Realms is not an illusion. He freely expresses His original intent and speaks in accord with His own mind. He guarantees that the path to Buddhahood is true.”
The Buddha is the Great Enlightened One. He already has a complete realization and understanding of the universe, the world, all things within it and all the various kinds of principles in this world. So, the Buddha took responsibility for the Dharma He taught. Taking responsibility means He could guarantee it.
He “[used His realization] as a guarantee.” He had already attained realizations, so He guaranteed to sentient beings that “The Dharma I teach is absolutely not false.” The Buddha said this to sentient beings, hoping they would have faith in the teachings.
So, “By holding the Flawless [Studies], [we] escape the suffering of the Three Realms.” The Buddha taught us this in the hope that we will listen, believe and put these teachings into practice. “Upholding the Flawless [Studies]” refers to the Three Flawless Studies which are precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. We must uphold precepts, Samadhi and wisdom and also listen, contemplate and practice.
We have heard the Buddha’s teaching that, “As are the causes and conditions, so are the effects and retributions.” Because of the karmic law of cause and effect, those creating evil will face negative retributions, and those who do good enjoy positive retributions. Goodness and evil are clearly different. Therefore, we must uphold precepts; we must be vigilant of our conduct and be content with what we have. Then we will do nothing that violates the teachings.
So, precepts are for stopping evil and guarding against wrongs. We must accept and uphold the precepts flawlessly so we do not lose any of their essence. With precepts, we will naturally be able to stabilize our minds. When our minds are calm, we can observe our conditions and clearly discern right from wrong. This is wisdom.
We treat all sentient beings with equal compassion and show respect and love to all. You and I are the same. I do not distinguish between our abilities, and I do not distinguish between our intelligence. I do not draw any of these distinctions because I know that we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature. Where do the Three Flawless Studies come from? Listening, contemplating and practicing. We should listen to the Dharma and then earnestly contemplate it. We must think carefully.
We cannot just say, “Yes, I’m listening. I listen to the teachings every morning. Not only am I listening, I’m taking notes.” After listening and taking notes, have we applied the teachings to our lives? Are we putting them into practice? Are we living according to the Dharma? We must live out the Dharma in our lives. The Buddha-Dharma is meant to be applied, not to be used as decoration when we say, “I have listened to many teachings.” It is not like a flower vase, but like a water dipper. Thus, it is something to use in our daily living.
So, we need precepts, Samadhi and wisdom and must listen, contemplate and practice. “By upholding the Flawless [Studies], [we] escape the suffering of the Three Realms.” If we can cultivate the Flawless Studies, we can take the Dharma to heart and put it into practice through our actions. After we listen to the Dharma, if we do not allow it to leak out, we can put it into practice. By engaging in spiritual practice, naturally we will be able to realize that this world is like the burning house of the Three Realms.
The fire is approaching, so we should be afraid; we must make preparations to transcend the Three Realms.Then “[We] attain the joy that exists outside the Three Realms [and] is not an illusion.”We will comprehend the suffering that arises from the desire form and formless realms and the complications in our thinking and so on.
If we cultivate the Three Flawless Studies, then we recognize this is suffering, emptiness, impermanence and no-self.We understand this completely, so we can “attain [the joy that] exists outside the Three Realms”; we can escape and be free of the Three Realms, free of these afflictions and become very happy.
Take the Buddha’s cousin as an example.After he became a monastic, he should every day, “What joy! What joy! I’m very happy!”A bhiksu came to the Buddha and said, “Venerable Buddha, every day Mahanama still clings to the pleasures of the royal palace.”
The Buddha asked “Why do you say that?”
The bhiksu said, “Every day, I hear him shouting, What joy! What joy!”
The Buddha said, “Tell Mahanama to come see me.”
So, the bhiksu sent for Mahanama.
The Buddha asked, “Mahanama, is your mind still greedily clinging to the pleasures you enjoyed in the royal palace?”
Mahanama said, “Venerable Buddha, status is like a floating cloud I do not cling to it at all.”
“Then why are you shouting every day that you are so happy?”
Mahanama replied, “Venerable Buddha, I have let go of all worldly things such as recognition, wealth and being right. I have let go of all of that, therefore, I am very happy. I feel peaceful and at ease all the time. I have already transcended the Three Realms, the afflictions in the formless realm and the desires in the form realm. I have eliminated all my desires so I am constantly happy. I feel peaceful, at ease and happy!”
As the Buddha asked questions, the other bhiksus listened.They were no longer suspicious of Mahanama.
This is how one “attains the joy that exists outside the Three Realms and is not an illusion.”
So, “He freely expressed His original intent and spoke in accord with His own mind.”
The Buddha wanted to help everybody understand that since we intrinsically have Buddha-nature, we must not remain attached to worldly things like recognition, wealth, status and various desires; we must quickly free ourselves.This is what the Buddha wanted to tell us, that we must eliminate our ignorance.Only after we completely eliminate our ignorance can our nature of True Suchness become one with the universe.Then true principles will become apparent.
If we can understand how the Buddha “freely expressed His original intent” and “spoken in accord with His own mind,” if we can experience and comprehend what it was that He wanted to say, we can see that it is the path to Buddhahood.
The Buddha guaranteed to us that it is not false.So, the previous sutra passage states, “You must not happily remain in the burning house of the Three Realms.”
We must not remain in here anymore.“Do not be greedy for coarse and worthless forms, sounds, smells, tastes and sensations.”We must not be greedy anymore.All worldly desires, pleasures, wealth and fame are deceptive, not true.
Thus, I said this, “You must not happily remain in the burning house of the Three Realms. Do not be greedy for these coarse and worthless forms, sounds, smells, tastes and sensations. If you are greedy and give rise to cravings, you will be burned.”
How long will our lifetime last?In the end, everything is ultimately empty.We must understand the truth of this illusion.We must not be attached these coarse things that have no value at all.If we still greedily cling to these things, we will give rise to cravings, and “we will be burned”.In the Three Realms, we will be burned by the fires of ignorance and afflictions.
Ignorance and afflictions are like fires.As we are being burned, we feel truly tormented.
The following sutra passage states, “If you quickly leave the Three Realms, you can attain the Three Vehicles, the Hearer, Pratyekabuddha and Buddha Vehicles. I now guarantee to you that this matter is ultimately not false.”
The Buddha had hoped to freely express.His original intent to everyone “If you can turn from ignorance to True Suchness, you will attain Buddhahood”. But we were unable to comprehend this, so the Buddha had to teach us with the principles of the Three Vehicles to help us achieve realization through listening. Hearers understand principles through listening. They still rely on continual listening to achieve realization. But Pratyekabuddhas hear one thing and realize 1000. When we speak of impermanence, just from the word “impermanence” alone. Pratyekabuddhas can realize the principles of all things in the world. They can analyze the phenomena they encounter and break it down from existence to non-existence.
Thus they understand the principle of “emptiness”.
“Emptiness” can be found in impermanence. We must seek to experience this. This is the state of Pratyekabuddhas.
Buddhahood is achieved through the Great Vehicle. To attain Buddhahood, we must walk the Bodhisattva-path; that is the Great Vehicle Dharma. So, there are the “Hearer, Pratyekabuddha and Buddha Vehicles. Because He was teaching spiritual practitioners, He skipped over the Bodhisattva-path. Pratyekabuddhas only benefit themselves, while Buddhas also benefit others. These were teachings He gave to His monastic disciples.
Spiritual practitioners, other than Hearers and Pratyekabuddhas, must vow to attain Buddhahood. These are the Three Vehicles.
“I now guarantee to you that this is not false”. This means that from now on and into the future, this teaching is the True Dharma. The Buddha set aside the provisional teachings, the past skillful means. Now He was teaching everyone the True Dharma, “which is ultimately not false”. In the end, this Dharma is definitely not false.
So, the Buddha, “kindly and earnestly called on us”. The Buddha earnestly called on everyone, “Your spiritual practice is very good, but you must be even more diligent, because in the burning house of the Three Realms, the fire is approaching from all sides. In particular, life is painfully short, so while we have this body, we should seize this opportunity”.
If we do not transform ourselves in this life, in which lifetime will we do so?
So, as the Buddha taught the Lotus Sutra, He more and more earnestly called on us to uphold our mission and follow the path. “If we can keep our minds free of greed, we can quickly escape the Three Realms and attain [the fruits of] the Three Vehicles”.
This we should be able to understand. If everyone can earnestly uphold their resolve, hold firm to their mission and be free of greed, we can “quickly escape the Three Realms”. The Three Realms are in our minds. As long as our minds do not give rise to the desire for more and more money, more and more wealth, as long as we are free of this greed, naturally we can transcend these realms and be free of all afflictions in our minds. Not only will we be free of afflictions, we can also eliminate delusions and ignorance so that our minds will be pure. In this way, during this lifetime, we can “quickly escape the Three Realms” and be peaceful and at ease.
“I now guarantee to you that this matter is ultimately not false”. This is what the Buddha guaranteed to us. This is because He had already attained this.
I now guarantee to you that this matter is ultimately not false: The Buddha used His own realization, His awakening to the truths of the universe and His unlocking of the ocean of enlightened wisdom as a guarantee that this was clearly not false.
His intrinsic nature of True Suchness was already one with the true principles of the universe. Of all the things in this world between heaven and earth, is there anything the Buddha does not understand? He realized all true principles of the universe and completely unlocked His ocean of enlightened wisdom. Although He was still in the human realm, His wisdom was already one with the true principles of the universe this ocean of enlightened wisdom is the state of the Buddha’s mind. The Buddha “guaranteed that this is clearly not false”. What He has helped us understand is clearly not false.
I recall sharing this story with your once before. One time, the Buddha, Ananda and other bhiksus were out asking for alms. When they walked into a side street, a group of people suddenly rushed forward and stopped the Buddha and the bhiksus. They would not allow them to pass through.
This group of people were quite menacing. One of the men said to the Buddha, “Give us 500 taels.” His disciples stepped forward and said “The Buddha does not owe you any money, why are you asking Him to give you 500 taels?
The man responded. “I don’t care, I must collect this debt from Him today.” The Buddha did not say anything. These people still blocked the way and would not let Him pass.
This news quickly spread and when the government officials heard, they were confused. They rushed over there and said, “Can I give you this money in place of the Buddha? The man said, “I want 500 taels from the Buddha, not from you. So no, I don’t want your money.” The official then said, “What if I give you 1000 taels then?” the man still refused. “With about 5000 taels?” Again the man refused. “What about five large carts of treasures?” “No.”
They remained in a deadlock. When Elder Anathapindada heard the news, he also rushed over and said, “In this case, can I repay the debt for Him?” “If it is from you, then yes.” What that, the people happily left.
When they got back the Jeta Grove, everyone felt that this was odd, so they asked the Buddha to explain the cause and conditions behind this. The Buddha told the following story.
Countless kalpas ago, the son of a government official was very good friends with the crown prince. The son was fond of entertainment and pleasures as well as gambling. As a result, he accrued a debt of 500 taels.
Eventually, his creditor found him and said, “You haven’t repaid the debt that you owe me. I want you to repay this debt right now.” But at that moment, the official’s son did not have any money on him. Just then, the crown prince was passing by. He said, “Can I pay you back on his behalf? The creditor said, “If you want to pay the debt on his behalf, I will accept that.
Then the crown prince said, “I don’t have that much money on me either but. I will guarantee this debt and you can collect the money from me.”
Since that say, the debt has remained unpaid. At this part of the story, the Buddha said, “I was the crown prince and that official’s son is Elder Anathapindada. I guaranteed the repayment of this debt. Therefore, when the creditor saw me, he wanted to collect the debt only from me. The official did not owe the money, so the creditor didn’t want any of his money. These are the causes and effects.
So, we should realize and understand that the Buddha had already verified for Himself that the Dharma He taught was all true. We must understand this. Since the Buddha guaranteed to us that “By upholding the Flawless [studies], as long as we cultivate the Flawless [Studies], the Dharma will enter through our ears and go into our hearts and minds.
Then we must listen, contemplate and practice with precepts, Samadhi and wisdom. If we can do so, we will be able to promptly let go of all our afflictions.Then we will no longer give rise to delusions and create karma. In this state, our minds will be peaceful and at ease. “We will attain the joy that exists outside the Three Realms and is not an illusion.”
Then we will always be very happy. Like Mahanama, we will be joyful every day. This is a state of being peaceful and at ease.
The Buddha taught the Lotus Sutra to freely carry out His original intent. Therefore, the Lotus Sutra was taught “according to the Buddha’s intent. The Buddha wanted to share His state of mind and express His original intent so that everyone would have the chance to attain Buddhahood. Thus He guaranteed to us that “It is not false.
So, dear Bodhisattvas, as we learn the Buddha’s Way, we must think carefully. As I have said before, we must contemplate very carefully, and we must be careful in our daily living. After listening to the teachings, we must carefully contemplate them and always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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