Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: An Ocean of Wisdom Comes from Understanding (了達諸法智慧海)
Date:March.24. 2016
“Entering the Path and upholding the Dharma is not difficult. What is truly difficult is listening to and accepting the Great Vehicle teachings. By first listening to the Small Vehicle that was taught, we gradually advance toward realizing the Great Dharma. Then, we can come and go without doubts or difficulties and transform afflictions into Bodhi.”
As spiritual practitioners, is it difficult to uphold the Dharma? Actually, all it takes is resolve. If we are willing to orient ourselves toward the proper path, the Bodhi-path, and pick up our feet to step forward, it should not be difficult. All difficulty is only in our minds. If we cannot turn our minds around, we cannot take that first step. So, we must be very mindful.
Listening to the Great Vehicle Dharma is indeed difficult. This is because what our minds seek is that which will benefit us. If we want teachings that benefit us and then we are told to benefit other people, those who have absolutely no connection to us, why would we be willing accept that?
Thus, for the Buddha to teach according to sentient beings’ capabilities, He gave teachings that were most practical, that people could experience. From the beginning, He helped us understand that [life] is in fact full of suffering. Where does all this suffering comes from? The karmic law of cause and effect. The causes and conditions we created in past lives result in the effects and retributions we face in our current life.
If we willingly [accept these consequences], we will be broad-minded. There is a passage about this in the sutras. In the past, in the kingdom of Kophen, there was a spiritual practitioner who had already attained Arhatship.
Though he had a large group of disciples, he lived alone in the mountains. One day, he needed to dye his clothing. Monastic practitioners should wear robes of a faded color. [In the past,] we also dyed white cloth like this. This monastic boiled an herb in a pot until the water became the color of red soil. Then, he put the robes inside the pot to boil in order to dye the cloth.
At this time, there was an ox-herder nearby. As he was about to return home, he began counting the oxen. “How did I lose an ox?” He looked everywhere for the missing ox until he saw a pot of boiling water and what looked like blood in the water. He went to report to the officials and said, “I lost an ox and then I found him in this spiritual practitioner’s pot.”
When the officials came and looked, they arrested the practitioner. They locked him up for 12 years. After 12 years passed, one of his disciples suddenly had a feeling; it seemed to be a kind of spiritual power, telling him that his master was locked in prison. He hurried to the prison to look for him.
After the disciple identified his master, the officials rushed to the ox-herder to go over what he saw again. The ox-herder said, “I am sorry. But, when I got home, I saw that my ox was home already.”None of them had gone missing. It turns out the practitioner was wrongly jailed for 12 years.
The officials hurriedly apologized to him.The spiritual practitioner had a smile on his face.
Once again he assumed the appearance of a bhiksu.The he demonstrate this spiritual powers; he exited the cell and floated in mid-air.
When the officials saw this, they immediately prostrated before him.
The officials then asked him, “Clearly you have spiritual powers; why did you smilingly allow yourself to be wrongfully imprisoned for 12 years? Why did you not appeal the sentence?”
Peaceful and at ease, he answered, “In one of my past lifetimes, I was also an ox-herder. At that time, there was a Pratyekabuddha who also engaged in spiritual practice and was also dying his clothes.
Similarly, I had also lost an ox. Unable to distinguish right and wrong, when I saw the clothes cooking in the pot, I also thought it was ox-hide, and I also reported him to the officials. I even insulted this spiritual practitioner, this Pratyekabuddha. So, I fell into hell for several lifetimes. Life after life I repented. Life after life I made vows. If only I could leave hell, I was willing to engage in spiritual practice. Finally, after enduring many hardships in hell and so on. I came to this-lifetime. To be released after 12 years, I am graceful; I have exhausted the remnants of retribution.”
This conveys to us that when we engage in spiritual practice, we must first understand the law of karma.Though this is Small [Vehicle] Dharma, if we do not understand it, we will be unable to truly realize [the later teachings].
Though we say this is Small [Vehicle] Dharma, the teachings must be realized in sequence.
If we gradually realize [the teachings], we will gradually advance.
Thus, “We gradually advance toward realizing the Great Dharma.”Just as those who commit evils face [negative] retributions, people can create blessings by benefiting others.
Amongst people, we can see the truths of the Great Vehicle Dharma.This is “gradually advancing.”
First we understand the Small [Vehicle] teaching of karmic cause and effect.The karmic law of cause and effect is real.
Committing evil brings negative retributions.
Benefiting others will definitely bring blessed retributions.So, “We gradually advance toward realizing the Great Dharma. Then, we can come and go without doubts or difficulties.”
We enter into and then transcend the Dharma; we enter the Small Vehicle then recognize and understand the Great Vehicle.This is not difficult at all.
So, we can “transform afflictions into Bodhi.”
With each bit of affection we eliminate, we develop a bit of wisdom.
In the Chapter on Faith and Understanding, we have been using matters to understand the principles in hopes of gaining a better understanding.
This is the parable of the poor son.The elder had approached him over a long period of time.
They communicated well, so the son began to feel at peace; the poor son’s mind had settled down.
At this point of the story, Subhuti called directly to the World-Honored One.
“World-Honored One, at that time the elder became ill and knew that he would die before long.”
This is what Subhti told the Buddha.At that time ,the elder was advanced in age.He knew that he was ill and did not have much time left.
This was why the elder quickly spoke again to the poor son.
The next sutra passage states, “He said to the poor son, I now have gold, silver and treasures filing my storehouses to overflowing. You already know precisely how much or how little of this is to be taken in or given out.”
Now the elder revealed his true identity.He told the son, I have a lot of gold, silver and treasures. You can freely take as much you want.
This is an analogy for the True Dharma of the Middle May,the principles of the Great Vehicle teachings. “By grasping one truth, we can understand 10,000 truths”. Once we understand this principle. Once we understand this principle, once we understand the Great Vehicle principles, the True Dharma of the Middle Way, then even understanding 10,000 teachings would not be considered many. No matter how many afflictions sentient beings have, there are an equal number of teachings that can treat them.
“All the different Dharma-doors and teachings that accord with conditions and respond to capacities are said to be many”.
The Buddha explained so many principles for the sole purpose of guiding us to earnestly learn the Middle Way.
The Middle Way is not clinging to “existence” nor to “emptiness”. This is the principle of walking the Middle Way.
Thus, “This explains that all Dharma-doors are treasures”.
In fact, these are all methods. Whether speaking of existence or emptiness, these are ways the Buddha responds to capacities. The ocean of our intrinsic wisdom is boundless. It is like the storehouse, which can accommodate many things.
The storehouse is also an analogy for Samadhi and wisdom. It “includes all cultivation of contemplation, Samadhi and wisdom. It lacks nothing”.
We must focus and settle our minds to earnestly engage in contemplation. We must be reverent ant earnestly and diligently practice. We must go among people to create blessings. When we interact with people, everyone is a Dharma-door. As long as we can “cultivate contemplation and Samadhi”, naturally we will not be lacking in wisdom; we will be equal to the Buddha.
This means that this storehouse is so full, “filling [our] storehouses to overflowing”. We are not lacking anything at all. We are all rich in wisdom; our storehouses are filled to overflowing.
We have an ocean of enlightened wisdom; we have an abundance of enlightened wisdom. This can also refer to emptiness, there are the 18 Emptiness, the 18 Aspects of Emptiness, etc. In the Prajnaparamita Sutra, the principle of emptiness is analyzed in detail.
The 18 Emptiness are include in this. In addition to the Dharma of emptiness, there is also manifesting “the Six Perfections in all actions”.
As we always say, “Give without expectations and also express gratitude”. Giving without expectations express the principles of emptiness. Giving is also part of the Six Perfections. We practice “the Six Perfections in all actions”.
No matter how much we do, the Six Perfections must be shown in all actions.“When both provisional and true wisdom manifest”, that is the 18 Emptiness. “We are filled past the point of overflowing”. Inside of our minds, we have taken all the Dharma to heart. What are the 18 Emptiness?
There are many aspects of emptiness. “Internal emptiness, external emptiness, internal and external emptiness, emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, emptiness of the supreme meaning, conditioned emptiness, unconditioned emptiness, ultimate emptiness, beginning less emptiness, emptiness of dispersion, emptiness of nature, emptiness of self, emptiness of all phenomena, unattainable emptiness, emptiness of non-existence, and the emptiness of neither non-existence nor existence”.
These are aspects of emptiness. There is so much emptiness. Thus, we must give without expectations and not take issue over anything. Then our minds will naturally be undefiled.
From when we began learning the Buddha-Dharma, the teachings all fall into one of four categories; there are four categories of teachings.
“Unique teachings” on the principles of emptiness are like gold.
“Common teachings” on the principles of emptiness are like silver.
“Pitaka teachings” on the principles of emptiness are like treasures.
“Perfect teachings” encompass them all. Perfect teachings encompass everything, retaining all teachings and capturing all goodness.
In the past we have discussed these; “pitaka, common, unique and perfect” are the four categories of teachings. As the most complete, the Lotus Sutra falls under “perfect teachings”.
This is because it explains both emptiness and existence, both the Great and Small Vehicles. As principles of emptiness [are taught through] “pitaka, common, unique, and perfect teachings the emptiness of all Dharma is His throne”. This is “overflowing”; there is such an abundance of Dharma. “How much or how little of this” is an analogy for Prajna [teachings] that can be very extensive, or very simple.
How much or how little of this: This is an analogy for the two doors of Prajna, the extensive and the concise. Bodhisattvas practicing Prajna must know both the extensive and the concise. The Great Prajnaparamita Sutra is the extensive, while the Heart Sutra is the concise. Thus the concise is “how little”, and the extensive is “how much”.
“The two doors [are] the extensive and the concise. The extensive is like the Great Prajnaparamita Sutra. There is so much in the [these teachings]. The concise would be like the Heart Sutra.
Every day during evening recitation, we chant the Heart Sutra. If we want to discuss it in a broader sense, there would be infinite [teachings].But, [the teachings] can be summarized as “He realized the Five Aggregates are all empty and was thus delivered from all suffering.” In this way, we are free of afflictions, and we will have eliminated all suffering.
Therefore, if we can thoroughly understand this principle, by grasping one truth we understand all truths. As for “taken in and given out, cultivating oneself is taking in, and transforming others is giving out.”
Taken in and given out: Cultivating oneself is taking in, and transforming others is giving out. Or, taking in is benefiting oneself, while giving out is benefiting others.
“Cultivating oneself” is self-awakening. We seek to awaken ourselves. We have to do things ourselves in order to truly experience them. After we have experientially understood, we can form great aspirations to share them with others. We do not obtain this Dharma only for ourselves; we should also go out and transform others.
Look at how many countries we provide aid to, how many impoverished people we have helped. After we helped them, we share the principles with them. So after they receive assistance, they may take that rice they received to help people who are more impoverishes than they are.
Thus, they are the wealthy among the poor. As spiritual practitioners, in terms of the Dharma, we must be “the wealthy among the wealthy” and have abundance of spiritual wealth.
Not only must we seek to take the Dharma to heart, we must take the Dharma already in our hearts and put it into practice to help others. “Having relieved them from suffering, [Bodhisattvas] then expound the Dharma for them.” This means we have understood the Dharma.
“You already know precisely” means we already understand everything. The “gold, silver and treasures [in] our nature” are merits and virtues.
You already know precisely: Gold, silver precious treasures are the merits and virtues intrinsic to our nature. “You already know precisely how much or how little of this” refers to the function of our nature due to the empty nature of interdependent arising. Understanding the nature of all phenomena is the meaning of “You already know precisely.”
Gold, silver precious treasures are analogies for the merits and virtues in our intrinsic nature. If we put in the work, the merits and virtues will be ours.
“How much or how little of this is to be taken on or given out.” We already have this; it is “the merits and virtues empty nature of interdependent arising.”
This is the function of our nature once. When it comes to our nature of True Suchness, once we have experienced it and caused and conditions have matured, we must earnestly make use of it. We can turn this mirror around. A pure mirror can clearly reflect the mountains, rivers and the land. As we understand that the nature of all phenomena is empty, we also understand we have a wealth of Dharma. This shows how “You already know precisely.” We already know.
Thus, the principle of the “empty nature.” Comes from the intrinsic nature of all phenomena; this is something we all have.
The empty nature of interdependent arising: This means that the nature of all phenomena is intrinsically. All things arise due to the coming together of causes and conditions. Had these not come together, then this phenomenon would not exist. Thus, the nature of all phenomena is unattainable. This is “empty nature.”
All things arise due to the coming together of causes and conditions. Each of us comes to this world because of our causes and conditions. Our karmic affinities with our parents and the causes and conditions we created in past lives are what our karmic forces bring. We all likewise “arise from the coming together of causes and conditions. Without the coming together of conditions, nothing would exist.
Thus, “The nature of all phenomena is unattainable. For all things to happen, we need assistance from everyone to bring these causes and conditions together. So, we must always have this sense of gratitude.
Immersed in the Dharma, we must diligently practice in order to eliminate our afflictions. “Our empty nature is like a radiant mirror. Only after we have wiped away our afflictions can our mirror be clear. Looking at this mirror, it is actually empty. when it is wiped clean, it can reflect of external phenomena. So, as we learn the Buddha’s Way, we must be truly mindful. Please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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