Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Kumbhanda Demons Represent Deviant Precepts(鳩槃荼喻邪戒)
Date:July.07. 2015
“If the direction of our spiritual practice is off by a tiny amount, we may seek a better birth in the heaven realm but fall and return to the desire realm. With deviant thinking and biased actions, we cling to confusion and cannot awaken.”
In cultivating our actions, we are also cultivating our minds. The focus of our spiritual practice is our minds. If our [initial] direction is off by a tiny bit, we will end up far off course. Some may seek a better birth in heaven, or in the formless and form realms. They want to transcend the desire realm. But if the direction of their thinking is off, they will “fall and return to the desire realm.” People seeking to be born in a higher realm, if they are not careful, will easily fall down. They end up back in the desire realm. The slightest deviation in our thinking or action is the difference between going to heaven or falling into the human realm or hell. This is what happens if our mind goes astray or if we make mistakes in our behavior. We may be off only slightly.
Where is this slight difference found? In our deviant thinking and biased actions. [The direction of] our thinking must be correct. As we engage in spiritual practice, we talk about following the Eightfold Right Path. Everything from our thinking and views to our actions and livelihood must be right.
“Deviant” means we have gone astray. If we stray from the right path, we have deviated. This slight deviation has led us far off course. After making an initial mistake, we keep going in the wrong direction. So, we cling to delusions and do not awaken. Once we deviate we will cling to that course, making it hard to return [to the right path].
Thus, the course of our spiritual practice is very important.
The previous sutra text states, “They were laying, nursing, procreating, each hiding and safeguarding [their young]. Yaksas were contending with each other to seize and eat them. Having eaten their fill, their evil thoughts became even more fierce. These sounds of clashing and fighting were deeply terrifying.”
As we discussed yesterday, this includes those hatched from eggs and those born with four legs or two, those who are nursed. Thus it says, “laying, nursing, procreating.” This is an analogy for karmic cause and effect. “A seed contains an ocean of fruits.”
Recently Tzu Chi volunteers from central Taiwan collected some seeds for me to see. When I look at the seeds, I find them wondrous. Some seeds have natural patterns. These different patterns are very beautiful. No matter how we look at it, no matter whether the seed is big or small, it inherently has a free hidden within it. Once the tree grows, it will endlessly produce fruits. So, “the seed” is very powerful. Nowadays, people are concerned about atomic or nuclear power.
Everyone is concerned about this. We recall the earthquake in Japan that triggered a tsunami; to this day, it continues to cause problems and create all kinds of hidden dangers. This is truly terrifying. Indeed, we can say that seeds like these exist everywhere, and they can contain both good and evil. We humans are the same. Our genes are like these seeds; the modern term for them would be genes. The Buddha-Dharma describes them as “causes”.
The law of karma tells us the causes we create will matures and manifest as certain appearances, which are the “effects”.
These are [hidden and safeguarded].
The causes we have created determine the karma we bring with us.These are our karmic causes.
The karma we create is contained in these causes.The source of the “cause” us karma so the Buddha-Dharma describes this as “karmic seeds” of seeds of karma.
In all of our actions, in everything we say if we speak kind words that will bring people happiness.If we are on the right course, we should keep walking.Thus, we say, “Just walk on” and “Just do it”.By speaking kind words and being on the right course everything we do will be right.As a result, everyone will be pleased.
When we benefit everyone, the karmic causes we create through our actions are also stored in our karmic consciousness.I do not know if everyone can understand this.
In summary, all things in the world, including the four kinds of beings and sentient beings’ way of life, etc., arise from karmic cusses.
First there are causes, then there are effects.
This is this karmic cycle of cause and effect.
[The causes are each hidden and safeguarded].
We cannot take anything with us when we die; only karma follows us into our next life.This is what are “hiding and safeguarding”.
We use yaksas as an analogy for how each of us has different causes and effects.Yadsas are invisible to us much like karmic forces we cannot see.People say to other people, “Evil spirits seem to be guiding you”.Others might say.“You are bound by the five ghosts.”
What are the five ghosts?Form, sound, smell, taste and touch.These are called the five ghosts.Some like to drink, gamble, indulge and so on.Once they are deluded, it is as if living ghosts are pulling them along.These people are not very different from yaksas.
While we cannot see what yaksas look like, in our interpersonal interactions, we will encounter [people] like yaksas and ghosts.They destroy our wisdom-life, damage our character and so on.This is a way of describing yaksas who are “contending and fighting with each other”.
Sometimes, we have so many unwholesome friends that when a spiritual friend tries to wake us up, that group of unwholesome friends [prevents this].Then the five ghosts will entangle us again.This is due to the law of karma.We brought karmic causes and conditions with us, thus we encounter these things in our lives.
So, “Yaksas were contending with each other to seize and eat them.”People often say they have mutual karmic debts.“I work so hard just to keep providing for you.”This could be between men and women, husbands and wives, fathers and sons and so on.It could be someone not related to us in any way, yet they still bind or control us, and we must keep providing for them.There are many such cases.
So, “Having eaten their fill their evil thoughts became even more fierce.”These kinds of people exist among us.“These sounds of clashing and fighting were deeply terrifying.”
This is the state of our world.
The next sutra text states, “Kumbhanda demons were crouching or squatting in the dirt
and occasionally jumping up one or two feet into the air travelling up and returning, lazily indulging in this game. They would catch a dog by his two legs, attacking and causing him to bark. They stretch his legs over his neck, scaring the dog but pleasing themselves.”
See, these kumbhanda demons are one of the eight kinds of demons.They specialize in eating people’s vital essence.They have an ugly appearance, with a body shaped like a pot.Their neck is skinny, but their body is large, like a winter melon.
Their entire [body] is so fat, and their arms and legs are skinny.They have a really ugly appearance.Look at the way young people and middle-age people not only put on pale foundation and red lip stick they also apply blue, green or black eyeliner.They add many colors around their eyes.Actually when you are old you are old; there is no way to be beautiful again.So, aren’t we just like kumbhanda demons?
In fact, in Buddhist sutras, there is a similar description.The kumbhanda demon described is actually the mother of demons in the Sutra on the Mother of Demon Children.This demon had 1000 children.To raise her 1000 children,she hunted the children of other people to feed her own children.
During the Buddha’s lifetime, when He heard about this, He was determined to tame the mother of demons. How could He tame her? With His wisdom, the Buddha called on the bhiksus and Ananda. “Go, from among the 1000 children of the mother of demons, bring me the youngest one”. The bhiksus went to find her children. They captured several of them and brought them all to the Buddha.
The Buddha hid all the children, especially the youngest one. When the mother of demons came home from snatching other people’s children to feed her own children, she wondered why so many of them were missing. In particular, her favorite, the youngest child, was also gone.
Then someone told her, “The bhiksus took your children”. She kept crying and looking for her children. When she saw the bhiksus outside the abode, she asked, “My children, where are my children? Why did you take my children?”
A bhiksu said, “Don’t you have many children? Let some of them follow the Buddha.” So, the mother of demons quickly went before the Buddha and begged Him, “Please return my children”.
So, the Buddha release several of her children. There is one still missing. Why is my youngest child not among them?”
The Buddha said, “You already have so many children. Will missing one make that much difference?” The mother of demons said, “I really cherish this child”.
The Buddha said, “What about the other children? Can they follow me?”
“No, I cannot lose a single child”.
The Buddha said, “But you normally hunt the children of others and eat them so that other parents have lost their children and cannot even find a trace of them. How do you think these parents feel?”
At that moment, the mother of demons began to awaken. “Yes, I must put myself in their shoes. When I thought I lose my children, I felt tremendous suffering. I have caused so many parents to suffer. That was wrong of me; I realize that now. I am willing to take refuge with You and abide by Buddhist precepts.”
The Buddha allowed her to take refuge with Him, and the mother of demons became one of the Buddha’s Dharma-protectors and helped fulfill sentient beings’ [wishes]. When someone was sick or wanted children, she took care of them like a kind mother.
The kumbhanda demon does in fact look like that. If a woman gave birth to that many children, how could her appearance not become unkempt? Women can apply makeup to look beautiful. But if they use [too much] in their old age, they will look ugly, because they have lost the natural beauty of the elderly. Humans are most beautiful when they look nature. Most importantly, they must have the heart of a kind mother.
The kumbhanda demons have bodies shaped like pots. They are shaped like pots. Because they are shaped like pots, people are scared at the sight of them.
Kumbhanda means pot-shaped because they are shaped like pots. These are frightful demons. They crouch, which looks like sitting, or squat, which is actually sitting. This is like how heretical practitioners take deviant precepts. They cling to deviant paths as the correct path. This is seeing the wrong cause as the cause. One example is taking cow or dog precepts.
These “kumbhanda demons were crouching or squatting in the dirt.” Due to the shape of their bodies, they find it difficult to sit. Another way of describing this is, due to their disheveled from, they cannot sit properly. So, “they crouch, which looks like sitting.”
To actually sit down is not easy for them. Sitting is not too different from crouching.So, they
squat, which is actually sitting. This is how they sit; it is very difficult for them. You can imagine the appearance of their bodies.
If someone is very fat, weighing well over 100 kilograms, they will find getting up, sitting down, to all be very difficult. “This is like heretical practitioners who take deviant precepts.”
Heretical practitioners have deviated in their spiritual practice, so they are attached to the wrong kinds of precepts. When we cling to deviant precepts, we see the wrong cause as the cause and the wrong effect as the effect. Everything we do would be wrong and this would be the opposite of cultivating ourselves.
In ancient India including those that involved fore or water or living like cows or dogs. Some practiced living in cow-dung and eating it and so on. They chose to live like cows and dogs. However cows or dogs lived, they lived the same way. They went naked as part of their practice. This is analogous to the ugly appearance of kumbhanda demons. The appearance of these demons is an analogy for the deviate practitioners of heretical practitioners.
The Buddha used this [analogy] to help us realize that we must enter the right path and avoid deviant paths. “Occasionally jumping up, one or two feet into the air. For some [heretical] practitioners, it is not that do not practice; they do engage in spiritual practice. But in their spiritual practice, they “occasionally jump up.” “To jump up” is to leave the desire realm.
To jump up is to leave the desire realm; one foot into the air is leaving the form realm, while two feet is leaving the formless realm. They always travel up and return, rising and falling in cyclic existence. This refers to futile effort.
In one or two feet into the air, “one foot” means leaving the form realm, while “two feet” is leaving the formless realm. They want to leave the Three Realms. In the hope of doing that, they seek out methods of spiritual practice. They “occasionally jump up” means they leave the desire realm, or the form realm or the formless realm. This is what this mean.
“They always travel up and return.” They rise for a moment and then fall again. This actually describes our minds. When we listen to the Dharma, [we say] “I understand; I know I can’t be greedy. I must eliminate my greed.” Or, “I know that my mind is afflicted and I must let go of my afflictions. I must be vigilant to avoid having afflictions.”
But how long can we maintain that state? For how long can we be free afflictions? Soon, we will fall back into a state of greed, anger and ignorance. “You want me to be vegetarian? That’s fine can I start with one meal a week?” “Can I start with one meal a week?” “Ok, use this skillful means of being vegetarian for one meal per week.” “Can you try to do it for three meals per week? They think about it, “Fine, three meals.” “Can you go a step further and be vegetarian three days per week?” “That’s harder.” “I know it’s harder, but give it a try?” “I will try.” After they do it for three days, “Try for another three days next week?” “It’s too hard.” Then they retreat again. Living in this world, we are filled with desires, so abiding by precepts feels very difficult.
So, “One or two feet up in the air, they always travel up and return, rising and falling in cyclic existence.” This refers to futile effort.”
I often hear people say, “They have also decided to be vegetarians now.” Really?” “Yes, once a week.” “What’s the use of doing it one day a week?” This is what people’s minds are like, constantly rising and falling.
Everyone, as we learn the Buddha’s Way. In being mindful, we have a dignified appearance, which reflects our virtue. “Wealth enriches the house as virtue enriches the body.” We must earnestly engage in spiritual practice, otherwise, we would not be able to see what is truly around us in our daily living. “Yaksas, evil ghosts or kumbhanda demons” may appear around us at any time, but we cannot tell. Are they Bodhisattvas or mothers of demons, or kumbhanda demons, etc.? As we live in the world, there are many goblins and monsters around us. In our lives, they may lead us into traps.
Therefore, dear Bodhisattvas, as we learn the Buddha’s Way. In this desire realm, we must not let ourselves be led astray by demons. A slight deviation can cause a great divergence, so everyone, please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
首頁 
