Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Transforming Those with Limited Capabilities(垢衣度小機)
Date:March.07. 2016
“From a fear of birth, aging and illness, we fear the cyclic existence of birth and death and thus vow to eliminate afflictions and uphold the Small Vehicle Dharma. The Buddha teaches the Right Dharma of entering the Bodhisattva-path. We must vow to enter cyclic existence and extensively learn myriad practices.”
Indeed! Life is inseparable from birth, aging, illness and death; this is the law of nature. However, we are afraid of this. We are most afraid of illness and death. These are our greatest fears in life. During the Buddha’s lifetime, spiritual practitioners sought a practice that would eliminate afflictions of birth and death. So, many became Small Vehicle practitioners.
But the Buddha’s goal in coming to this world was to teach all to practice the Great Vehicle Dharma.
To practice it, we must enter the Bodhisattva-path. Only by entering the Bodhisattva-path can we eliminate afflictions of birth and death. We should remember that [we must] not only put an end to cyclic existence, but also eliminate afflictions. If we care only about our own cyclic existence, we will only become more afraid of birth and death. But if we courageously and diligently advance for the sake of everyone, naturally we will not be afraid of our own birth and death. If what we are concerned about is the sentient beings of the world, then naturally afflictions about our own birth and death will not arise.
Though we fear it, nature will run its course, and in the end, we will still die. If we are not afraid, but serve others, maximizing the value of our lives by giving of ourselves to others, nature will still run the same course. So, as we go through cyclic existence, if we can form Great Vehicle aspirations, “vow to enter cyclic existence and extensively learn myriad practices,” we will be on the Bodhisattva-path.
When we open the door to our minds, we will not be afraid; though life is filled with suffering, we will be willing to go among people. It is among people that we create blessings. It is among people that we learn wisdom. So, being willing to go among people to “extensively learn myriad practices” is the Great Vehicle Dharma. What is most important is that it is Right Dharma. We must know, Right Understanding and Right Views are truly very important. What the Buddha taught us is Right Dharma, which is to go among people and walk the Bodhisattva-path. This is correct Buddha-Dharma.
Thus, we should form aspirations and make vows. With the Four Great Vows, we vow to deliver all sentient beings. We hope that for all sentient beings, the Dharma we have can enter their hearts so that everyone can accept Right Understanding and Right Views. These are the vows of a Bodhisattva.
With these vows, they are unafraid of entering cyclic existence. Only by “vowing to enter cyclic existence” can we “extensively learn myriad practices.”
How can we eliminate afflictions, extend great love and eliminate our habitual tendencies? This must be done by interacting with people. So, we must be mindful when we are among people and in our daily living; this is the Bodhisattva-path.
The previous sutra passage states, “Later, on another day, looking through the window, he saw the figure of his son in the distance, scrawny, haggard and downcast, filthy with the impurities of much, dust and dirt.”
When the elder looked out the window, he saw his son clearing excrement, doing heavy manual labor.Seeing this was heartbreaking for him.Seeing his son covered in filth and looking haggard and downcast, he felt for him.So, the elder devised skillful means.
Unable to bear his son continuing on like this, not knowing to return to his father’s side, he had to think of a way to help him.What method did he come up with?
The next sutra passage states, “Right away he took off his necklaces, his fine and soft outer garments and his magnificent adornments, changed into coarse and dirty clothing, and smeared himself with dust and dirt. With his right hand grabbing tools for clearing excrement, he assumed a frightened look.”
He took off his magnificent garments and changed into very coarse clothing.He even purposely smeared himself with dirt and filth to look like a manual laborer in order to approach his son.
Not only did he change his appearance, in his right hand he held a dustpan, a broom, all kinds of tools for clearing excrement.Holding those tools, he approached his son.
This is an analogy for “how the Buddha observes the capabilities of sentient beings and accordingly takes on an appearance to entice them. In the same way, the Buddha’s reward-body is like the moon that appears in all bodies of water, without any appearance of coming or going.”
This is analogy for how the Buddha uses His wisdom to observe the capabilities of sentient beings and teach according to their capacities in a way they can understand.He has to establish skillful means to approach sentient beings.
So, He had to take on this kind of appearance and live a life like that of sentinet beings in order to go among people.
This is an analogy for the reward-body.The reward-body is what appears in response to the present causes and conditions and capabilities of sentient beings to go among this people; this is the reward-body.It is likened to the moon in the sky.
There is a saying, “there are a thousand moons in a thousand rivers.”In fact, there is only one moon.No matter where we go, as long as there is a body of water, we can see the reflection of the moon.“[It is] like the moon that appears in all bodies of water, without any appearance of coming or going.”
We can see the moon in the water.Seeing its reflection, we wonder, where does the moon come from?Where does the moon go?It had no appearance of coming or going.
Of cause, the moon only appears at night; when the moon is visible when the moon is visible, it just naturally appears.
The same thing happens when the Buddha manifests in this world.He comes for the sake of one great cause; it is to get close to sentient beings that He appears in this reward-body.
This is how He draws near sentient beings.
“Right away [the elder] took off his necklace.”
Not only did he change his clothes, he removed his outer adornments.This was how people dressed in the past.To show off their riches, the wealthy decked themselves in jewelry.Even the men adorned their entire bodies as a sign of their wealth and nobility.
So, “Right away he took off his necklace.”
First he removed his necklace, the jewelry he was adorned with.Then he took his garments.
This is what people normally do.
The necklace is “an analogy for precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, the necklace of dharani.”
This is Dharani of precepts, Samadhi, wisdom.
With precepts, Samadhi and wisdom we retain all goodness.“Retain all goodness, uphold all teachings.”
Do you remember this?Dharani means “total retention,” retaining all goodness and upholding all teachings.That is how precepts, Samadhi and wisdom help maintain the dignity of our appearance.
If we all practice precepts, Samadhi and wisdom, naturally people will feel that we look virtuous, that we look very dignified.
If we retain all goodness and uphold all teachings or retain all teachings and uphold all goodness, that is the “door of total retention,” also referred to as Dharani.
“Necklace” is an analogy for this; it is something that makes us look very dignified.
“His fine and soft outer garments” are an analogy for non-arising patience and the patience of cessation. We should engage in spiritual practice until we have non-arising patience.
In life, many people are afraid of birth, aging, illness and death. This is something practitioners of the Small Vehicle are afraid of, they fear returning to cyclic existence in this world. Because they cannot patiently endure, they focus only on benefiting themselves. Though they do not commit bad deeds, they are unwilling to go among people to do good deeds. This is because they are unable to endure.
But non-arising patience and the patience of cessation are what Great Vehicle practitioners cultivate.
“To have non-arising patience means to have understood that all Dharma is fundamentally non-arising as well as never ceasing. In examining the truth, we attain patience and no longer give rise to delusion.”
“To have non-arising patience” is “to have understood that all Dharma is fundamentally non-arising”.
What is all Dharma? True principles. What are true principles? Our nature of True Suchness. We have had this since Beginningless Time. All living beings have had it from the beginning; in children and old people it neither increases nor decreases. This Dharma, the true principles, fundamentally did not arise; it has always existed. If it has always existed, why would it arise?
“It is fundamentally non-arising as well as never ceasing”. It is everlasting, so it does not cease. Even though we will die, what dies is this physical shell. Our body, our physical shell, dies, but our nature of True Suchness still exists.
Our ninth consciousness is everlasting. Our eighth consciousness leaves this life for the next, bringing the karma we are creating now. This is our eighth consciousness, where all our [karmic] seeds accumulate. We die and leave this life, but our eighth consciousness will carry these seeds into our future lives.
Still, our ninth consciousness, our nature of True Suchness, remains neither increasing nor decreasing. As it is fundamentally non-arising, naturally, it will never cease. With these principles, we have already “examined the truth [and] attained patience”.
We already understand principles well; we have “examined the truth” and already thoroughly understood the principles.
“Attaining patience” means that we no longer have worries; when we “attain patience”, we are free of worries. Since delusions no longer arise, we will be free of ignorance and free of arising and ceasing. We will be free of worries and willing to enter cyclic existence to learn. Among people, we can learn many things. This is what we should learn to do, to develop a mental state without worries so we can dedicate ourselves to helping others without being hindered.
Knowing “The Five Aggregates are empty”, we will have “no hindrances. There are no hindrances, therefore there is no fear”. Why should we fear birth and death? This has always been the natural course of life; why should we fear it? For this reason, when the Buddha manifested in this world many Dharmakaya-Bodhisattvas followed Him here. They manifest life after life to teach and transform sentient beings, approaching sentient beings as one of them.
So, the Buddha, in His [countless] lifetimes, has not only come to the human realm. He has also gone into the animal realm, even the hell realm. He manifested the same kind of lives as beings in that realm. This is His transformation-body. He uses it to approach sentient beings, to deliver them and transform their minds with the Dharma.
Next, we discuss “his magnificent adornments”. He put aside them all His luxurious and elegant garments gave them a dignified demeanor. He put aside all those adornments. This is an analogy for the Buddha’s magnificence arising from hundreds of blessings.
We have previously explained the “magnificence arising from hundreds of blessings”. We must accumulate many good deeds in order to give rise to the “magnificence arising from hundreds of blessings”.
The Buddha had to first temporarily set aside. His dignified appearance and appear like other sentient beings in order to go among people. After all, if [the elder] went out with his magnificent garments and appearance, his son would be scared.
This is like nowadays; when people see their boss coming, they quickly step aside. So, the elder must dress in a similar way as the laborers and hold tools for clearing excrement in order to get close to his son. Otherwise, his sin would be scared. This is analogous to how, “it would not sui Two Vehicle practitioners to see the Buddha’s [true] appearance.”
It would not suit Two Vehicle practitioners to see the Buddha’s [true] appearance. Thus, He took off His necklaces, His fine and soft outer garments and His magnificent adornments.
The Two Vehicle practitioners are afraid. They are still unable to connect with the Great Vehicle. When they hear great teachings, they get scared. When they hear about going among people, they become fearful, they are very afraid.
Because they want to end their cyclic existence, they do not want get close to people. However, the Bodhisattva-path. So, when the elder wanted to get close to his son, knowing that his son did not dare look at a person who looks dignified and noble, he took off his garments. Thus it is said, “He took off his necklaces, his fine and soft garments.”
He took off all these treasures and adornments. “He changed into coarse and dirty clothing and smeared himself with dust and dirt.” He took filthy things and smeared them on his body to make himself dirty.
This refers to how “He appeared as a bhiksu of sixteen chi.” This was considered “coarse.” He was now just like us ordinary people.
What is sixteen chi? It is considered to be a dignified appearance. [These are] the most ideal proportions of a person. We open our arms wisely and measure the width with our hand. This is one, two, three and four handspans long. It is four handspans on this side. The two sides add up to eight. When our arms are extended horizontally, we are eight handspans wide. The top of our head to our feet can also be measured with eight handspans, these two eight handspans add up to sixteen.This signifies a noble appearance. Two sets of eight make sixteen. That is what is meant by sixteen chi. He manifested the appearance of and ordinary person, the [ideal] appearance of a bhiksu. This is called “coarse.”
He had already attained Buddhahood, but He lived the same way as the bhiksus.
Thus He “were clothes for clearing excrement. Monastics wear clothes that people have thrown away. They pick them up, then sew and patch them. This is “wearing clothes for clearing excrement.” Dressed in this, He was able to approach them.
In the Buddha’s lifetime, He was born into the palace.
In this place, his father needed him to continue their lineage, so he had to take a wife and produce a son. Then he undertook six years of ascetic practice, manifesting all kinds of afflictions. After attaining Buddhahood, He came back and took the appearance of a regular bhiksu.This is like “changing into coarse and dirty clothing and smearing himself with dust and dirt.”
With this appearance, He approached sentient beings to pass the teachings to them. This is going among sentient beings to transform them.
Everyone, as Buddhist practitioners we must truly go among people to transform them. Only by going among people can we truly learn myriad practices. “We vow to enter cyclic existence and extensively learn myriad practices.” We must accept the Buddha’s proper teachings, the Right Dharma. We must enter and walk the Bodhisattva-path, otherwise we [live in] fear of cyclic existence, of birth, aging, illness and death. All this begins with afflictions, there is no other way to engage in spiritual practice but to earnestly take good care of our minds, to form great aspirations, make great vows and eliminate afflictions. So, we must always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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