Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: The Wisdom of Suchness (以如如智‧契如如境)
Date: January.03. 2016
“With the wisdom of suchness, we resonate with the state of suchness. With external states we awaken our wisdom; with our wisdom we reflect external states. When external states and wisdom are united, that is the reward-body. That mind is deep, clear, still and tranquil, with vows as vast as the universe.”
Such a state sounds so pure and undefiled. It is truly pure and undefiled. Everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature. We all have the wondrous wisdom of True Suchness. It is intrinsic in all of us.
The Buddha told us this, so we must believe it to be true. “With the wisdom of suchness, we resonate with the state of suchness.” This is saying that our wondrous wisdom of True Suchness is inherently pure. It is impossible for ignorance to seal or contaminate our nature of True Suchness. Afflictions also cannot defile the wondrous wisdom of True Suchness. The wondrous wisdom of True Suchness, our pure intrinsic nature, can never be completely sealed by ignorance. It is just that these afflictions we speak of and the turmoil of the outside world have covered the wondrous wisdom of True Suchness.
It is as if a mirror were covered by a cloth. The cloth is not mixed together with the mirror; the mirror itself is pure and clear. We have merely used many layers of cloth to pollute it. This is because we ordinary people continually generate many complicated afflictions in our daily living, without even being aware of it. If we know that we intrinsically have Buddha-nature, that wondrous wisdom of True Suchness is within us and that it is inherently pure, when we come to know this, we will begin heightening our awareness. We will constantly look within and reflect on ourselves. “With the wisdom of suchness,” we come to “resonate with the state of suchness” and return to our pure state.
The state of suchness [is found] in daily life, in dealing with the outside world, in facing all sorts of situations. What state of mind do we use to view the external environment? What kind of perspective do we use to understand people, matters and objects? Everything depends on this; are we being mindful?
If we are not mindful, our minds will be transformed by the outside environment. If we are mindful, have awakened and understand the Buddha-Dharma, then in dealing with people, matters and objects we are able to mindfully transform our afflictions. Thus we enter our nature of True Suchness. With True Suchness, once we transform afflictions, they become wisdom. We transform delusions into wisdom, transform afflictions into Bodhi, transform delusion into awakening. This is something we must seek to experience in our daily living.
“With external states we awaken our wisdom.” If we are mindful, then external states, those people, matters and objects around us, all become resources for awakening our wisdom. Wisdom-life must be nurtured through interacting with people, matters and objects. This is like a lotus flower in the mud. All the things mixed up in the mud provide the lotus with nutrients. It is because of the mud that the lotus blooms so fully and so beautifully; when the flower opens, the fruit is formed. If you go now and have a look at our lotus pond, the lotus flowers already bloomed and withered, and their petals have fallen off. The lotus seed pod, the fruit, is very pretty.
People have recently been cutting them and bringing them inside, and I will look at them. I sometimes hear about people and matters in the outside world and think, “How can there be so man afflictions?” I then quickly extend my hand to take a lotus seed pod and look at it. I see that when the flower opened, the fruit was formed. That lotus seed pod had grown from the mud.
You can go now to have a look at the lotus pond. Although I have not been to the lotus pond for a long time, the lotus pods which they have cut down, this fruit, [is placed here]. When I hear of all the complicated situations surrounding people, matters and objects, I quickly go and take a look at these fruits. Indeed! They have grown up out of the mud without becoming defiled!
The seed pod of the lotus flower contains seeds inside. I often count to see how many seeds they have inside. Sometimes I count 16 of them. Sometimes I count 18 of them, and sometimes I even find over 22 of them.
Even the lotus seed pods, the fruits of the lotus, come in different sizes. The larger seed pods have greater capacities and contain more seeds. The smaller ones have smaller capacities, so they contain fewer seeds. From this real-life phenomenon, I can think of so many things. True Suchness has been present in us since birth. It is so pure and simple, yet it grows amidst defilement.
Look at the severity of the world’s turbidities. Shouldn’t the lotus be grateful for the turbidities of the muddy pond? It is only the turbid mud that enables it to fully bloom. The mud is also lucky to have the lotus bringing beauty to it, for this is what makes people want to draw near, to go to the lotus pond to admire its flowers. Isn’t this the case?
The world the Buddha was born into was this world which must be endured, this place where the Five Destinies coexist, a world full of impurities. But the Buddha was born into such a place through His own assimilations and vows to deliver and transform sentient beings. He taught all kinds of Dharma to take our afflictions and ignorance and turn them around. This is turning the Dharma-wheel, turning afflictions into Bodhi, turning delusion into awakening. If we can listen to the Dharma, when we are facing this complicated life, naturally we will be constantly aware; our awareness will be heightened so we will be able to analyze the principles and thus guard against wrongs and stop evil.
We practice the Three Flawless Studies, the precepts, Samadhi and wisdom we have learned. We are replete with many teachings, and we can use all these many teachings to cure the many different kinds of afflictions. There are 84,000 afflictions, and there are 84,000 teachings to cure them.
You probably heard last night that Bodhisattvas have returned from Malaysia. They will perform a musical adaptation for three days. Before performing it, they had to first participate in a study group to study the meaning of the sutra, and then they practice the lyrics. They not only have to memorize the lyrics, but also have to keep time with the rhythm. With rhythm and lyrics, they can begin to sing it. At the same time as they are singing, they also have to know the sign language and how to match it with their physical movements. They have to rehearse it over and over, all in different places, in their own communities and their own teams, training earnestly, before finally gathering together. They have all already studied the books. They have also already memorized the lyrics. They also have the sign language almost down. This is when they come together to adjust how they can perform with each other, keeping the same timing and the same mind.
So, 10,000 people have a single mind. They begin training in their own districts, where everyone gradually learns it, so that when they come together in a large group, they naturally display the same timing and the same mind. So we often say, “Take the Buddha’s heart as our own heart.” To have the Buddha’s heart, we must first go through a great awakening, for only then can we realize the Buddha’s heart.
How long does it take to attain such a great awakening? Does it take several years? The seeds of this probably came from five year ago in Taiwan, when we first performed the musical adaptation of the Water Repentance. They began to form aspirations then. I told them, “We can do it here in Taiwan, so you can also do it in Malaysia!”It was so dignified and praiseworthy; I told them, “You can do the same too! With the resolve and the vow, you naturally will have the strength.” It was the same scene repeated in six performances over three days, involving 60,000 people. Every performance lived up to its name of having 10,000 people united with a single mind.
That was not the end of it either. Many people were moved by them! They truly repented openly. During the performances, what everyone saw with their eyes and what they heard with their ears entered their hearts word by word, like drops of water. The Dharma is like water; it cleanses everyone’s hearts, moistens this patch of withered earth. Now the land has been moistened by the Dharma-rain.
Didn’t we keep discussing this at length in the Chapter on Medicinal Plants? The earth needs water. To attain Dharma-water we must wait for the “gathering of dense clouds,” for the ripening of causes ad conditions. Many causes and conditions must come together. When dense clouds gather, that indicates it is going to rain. When the rain falls, all the things on the earth are revived, the plants and trees and so on. When the land is moistened, the plants and trees thrive.
This also requires time and cause and conditions to accumulate. It is the same for the ground of our minds. We needed to nourish the ground of our minds. The ground of ordinary people’s minds is dry, so when the seeds of the virtuous Dharma fall upon that earth, they are like seeds in a desert, with no way for them to possibly sprout. When a seed falls in the desert, with the passage of time, it will shrivel and dry up. It will have no chance to sprout.
So, we must nourish the ground of our minds well, constantly using Dharma-water to moisten it. Then when seeds of Dharma fall upon it, they will be able to sprout and grow. These seeds of Bodhi grow into Bodhi-sprouts, Bodhi-trees, then Bodhi-forests. This is what we all must seek to experience. Everyone has Buddha-nature; it is inherent in us, but when we encounter external states, an ignorant thought creates the Three Subtleties. Thus we have greed, anger and ignorance. With greed, anger and ignorance, external states are the conditions that lead us to give rise to the Six Coarse Marks, to the afflictions of the Six Coarse Marks. A thought of greed arises or a thought of anger, and when anger arises, we begin to display a furious attitude. This is an ignorant and unawakened state; this is the kind of life we live.
Once we are ignorant and deluded, how can we manifest the principles of being a good person? We cling our delusions and do not awaken! We are greedy for fame, wealth and status. If we become famous, we think we are the best; our arrogance begins to appear. This is greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, doubt; we may harbor doubt regarding the true principles, or lack sincere faith in the Dharma. Then, in our daily living, how can we remain constantly awakened? It is not possible, because we are already deluded.
We do not take in the true principles, and external states are incessantly enticing us, constantly tempting us off course. Think about it; our nature of True Suchness, our “wisdom of suchness,” our inherent wondrous wisdom of True Suchness, has always been pure. It is just that external states have covered us, so we remain deluded, unable to activate our awakened nature. We have no resolve to activate it.
If we are to learn the Buddha’s Way, we need faith. “Faith is the source of the Path.” We must believe in the Buddha’s teachings. The Buddha said that dust-inked kalpas ago, beginningless dust-inked kalpas before now, live Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha. Are you willing to believe this? I believe it deeply, because I believe what the Buddha taught. I believe we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature, that everyone, since Beginningless Time, has had a nature of True Suchness that has followed all of us as we come and go. For a long time, for dust-inked kalpas, our Buddha-nature has existed in us; our nature of True Suchness never decreases. Recently, we have kept talking about this.
So, we must “resonate with the state of suchness.” The wisdom of suchness must resonate with the state of suchness. Whatever external state there may be, we must immediately arouse our awakened nature to guard against wrongs and stop evil.
The Three Flawless Studies are the precepts, Samadhi and wisdom we learn. To guard against wrongs and stop evil, we need precepts. We also must have Samadhi, so that whatever external states we encounter, none can tempt us or cause us to waver in our faith. Wisdom is then applied here in discerning right from wrong. This is resonating with the state of suchness. External states exist outside us, and True Suchness exists in our hearts. What must we do in our daily living so that from deep within us we can awaken to the people, matters and objects in life? How do we resonate with them, unite with them?
This requires that we are constantly vigilant of ourselves. So, “With external states we awaken our wisdom.” We should also be grateful for having these states that become provisions for our wisdom-life. There are so many external states that enable us to experience the truth of suffering, causation and cessation in the world, so that we know to practice the Path.
These states are things like the way [Malaysian volunteers] practiced great repentance. How did they get up on stage, sincerely reveal their past mistakes and [vow to] earnestly correct them in the future? This is a mind of repentance.
Or the way during Nepal’s [2015 disaster relief], a group of young people there had to shoulder responsibilities daily. They had to be on their guard in that environment, thinking about how to fulfill their mission. They had to be very careful. So, they had to constantly arouse their nature of True Suchness, constantly arouse their awakened nature.
Thus, “With external states we awaken our wisdom.” In states like those, they can awaken this. As they see the impermanence of life, the goodness of humankind, the suffering of the world and so on, they must also think about how they can bring the Dharma back to the Tathagata’s birthplace. This is also the meaning of “With external states we awaken our wisdom; with our wisdom we reflect external states.” We must apply our wisdom in those states so everything is clear and distinct, then reflect on our own nature of True Suchness. With our mirror, we can see external states; it reflects external states. This mirror reflects external appearances, but once these states, appearances or images are gone, the mirror is pure.
So in this way, “With our wisdom we reflect external states.” A mirror reflects external states very clearly. So, during our video conferences, they can describe who they talked to yesterday. They expressed how, because Taiwan has sent so much love there, when [people there] saw in Taiwan the recent powder explosion at the Formosa Fun Coast Resort that injured many young people, and the love of so many in Taiwan wan was awakened, with everyone praying reverently for them, in Nepal, a group of young people was also inspired.
They prayed reverently for the [youth in Taiwan], writing cards of blessings and sending them to Taiwan in order to encourage everyone. A group of spiritual practitioners in their practice center there began officially initiating a Dharma-assembly to pray for blessings for Taiwan and for those young people. It is mutual, individual states affect each other.
The mirror and states reflect each other. We reflected the state of suffering in Nepal, reflected this phenomenon, their suffering, and thus arousing our nature of True Suchness and sending our love there.
With Taiwan’s Formosa Fun Coast Resort explosion, where so many young people were seriously injured, everyone in Taiwan set their love in motion, and in Nepal they did the same. Reflecting this state [in Taiwan] also set in motion the pure love of their nature of True Suchness, that universal compassion and unconditional loving-kindness. Although this state was far away from them, their love was awakened.
See, “With external states we awaken our wisdom; with our wisdom we reflect external states. With external states and wisdom are united, that is the reward-body.” The Buddha came to the world, to this environment, for one great cause, to open and reveal [teachings for] sentient beings. This was the Buddha’s objective in coming to the world in His reward-body.
Did sentient beings realize and enter? For us to realize and enter, we must use all kinds of methods, skillful means, to interact with people, to help everyone see, “Oh!” This is suffering! “I have awakened and believe. I should always heighten my awareness of people, matters and objects and analyze them very clearly.” This is what the Buddha taught us. Are we able to awaken to this? Are we able to take this Dharma so it enters our hearts? In our daily living, our “minds are deep, clear, still and tranquil, with vows as vast as the universe.”
We should not allow our many afflictions to become defilements in our hearts. They should remain extremely pure, “deep, clear, still and tranquil.” Our minds remain undefiled by the environment. They are not disturbed by it. With our vows made, our minds unlocked, our minds can embrace the universe, and the Dharma can pervade the endless void. Our understanding will be complete.
This is how “[with] the wisdom of suchness, we resonate with the state of suchness.” When our wisdom, our mind’s wisdom, resonates and comes together with external states without it being disturbed by them, we can then manifest the wisdom inside of us to help others. Whether tangibly, we give for the sake of sentient beings. This was the Buddha’s goal in coming to the world and His goal in educating us. This is something we should always be mindful of!
The previous sutra passage says, “Each of these sons had all kinds of precious and marvelous playthings. When they heard that their father had attained Anuttara-samyak-samodhi, they abandoned their precious playthings and went to where that Buddha was. Their mothers all wept and followed them to see them off.”
“These sons” refers to the time of Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha, when, like [Sakyamuni], He too left His palace, having resolved to engage in spiritual practice. He left behind His father, the king, as well as “these sons,” His 16 sons. These 16 were not born of the same mother. This is why it says, “their mothers.” By speaking of “mothers” in the plural, it shows that the prince had wives and concubines. He had wives and concubines, so He had many sons.
These many sons originally lived a wealthy life in the palace. We talked about this yesterday. Yet, Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha after attaining Buddhahood, returned to the palace to teach the Dharma. After everyone there had heard the Dharma, their enlightened natures were awakened, especially His 16 sons. They realized that however valuable an object might be, It was still subject to “decay,” that it was impermanent and subject to “formation, existence, decay and disappearance.” Once they were clear on the principle that the tangible world of physical existence was impermanent, they wished to seek the unconditioned Dharma, the true principles that do not arise or cease.
So, they too abandoned their many pleasurable things and resolved to follow their father, who by then had become a Buddha. They wished to follow Him in spiritual practice and become monastics. Their mothers were reluctant, yet they wished to help them achieve their wishes. They wanted their sons to succeed in their alms, but they were still reluctant. These are the affections of ordinary people. This is how people are. They knew that these were the true principles, that these principles were correct, so they encouraged their sons to do this. Yet, it was difficult for them to let go, so they cried. However, they reverently sent them off to their place of spiritual practice.
The next sutra passage then says, “Their grandfather, a wheel-turning sage king, 100 great ministers and the other trillions of subjects all surrounded them and followed them to the place of practice. They all desired to draw near Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Tathagata.”
Not only did the mothers send off their sons, their grandfather, a wheel-turning sage king, also accompanied his grandchildren to their place of spiritual practice. Because [they all knew] this was the True Dharma, the true principles of the world, even their grandfather supported his grandchildren in their desire to become monastics.
“Their grandfather, a wheel-turning sage king,” refers to the wheel-turning sage king, the father of Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha. Because the [16 princes] were his grandchildren, it calls him “their grandfather.” He was their grandpa. So, a “wheel-turning sage king is a stage Bodhisattvas reach through spiritual cultivation.”
A wheel-turning sage king is a benevolent king, a benevolent and loving king. If there is a benevolent king in the world who governs with the principles, using the principles to lead his subjects, the people will all follow morality, as well as family ethics, making for very satisfactory lives. This is a wheel-turning sage king. He rules the country benevolently, using the Dharma to teach and transform all, sharing it with his people.
So, since his son had become a Buddha and the true principles had manifested in the world, he of course was very supportive of his grandchildren going to engage in spiritual practice and become monastics. So, when his grandchildren wished to become monks, their grandfather, a wheel-turning sage king, also sent them off, even bringing 100 great ministers and the other trillions of subjects.”
100 ministers and the other trillions of subjects: He went with the ministers and officials who helped to govern and all the people in the kingdom.
Besides bringing his ministers, he even appealed his subjects to go “Let us all earnestly draw near to the place of practice and listen to the Buddha teach the Dharma.” This was the king’s royal edict. He hoped all of his ministers and subjects might draw near to the place of practice so that everyone could listen to the Dharma.
He was a wheel-turning sage king. A wheel-turning sage king has the heart of a Bodhisattva. Those “who helped to govern” were ministers. They assisted the king in promoting benevolent government among the people. There were many who assisted the king in spreading the principles of life among the people to use in their daily living. These were called ministers.
The kingdom’s citizens were “all the people.” these were the many commoners who “all surrounded them and followed them all the way to the place of practice.”
All surrounded them and followed them to the place of practice: The princes’ grandfather, their mothers, the ministers and subjects of the kingdom all surrounded the princes and followed them all the way to. Great Unhindered Tathagata’s place of practice.
“The princes’ grandfather” means the princes, their grandfather and their warm and caring mothers, the mothers of the 16 princes, [all went]. “The ministers and subjects of the kingdom, so many people, “all surrounded the princes.” Everyone was filled with joy during the process of seeing them off. Everyone had come to offer them blessings. Think about it; becoming a monastic is such a momentous occasion! For a single kingdom to have 16 princes vowing to become monastics, the grandfather must have been so delighted as the ministers and his subjects all surrounded the princes.
What a grand formation it must have been. So, they all set out, grandly marching forward in procession. All the people wanted to go to Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Tathagata’s place of practice to send off the princes with a grand procession. This was truly a very joyous occasion. They rejoiced I the princes’ merit and virtue; everyone rejoiced in the fact that the princes were becoming monastics. This too is merit and virtue! It was a magnificent scene as they left lay life.
When Sakyamuni Buddha left to become a monastic, He had to secretly leave, climbing over the palace wall in the dead of night. Why was it so different? Nevertheless, this shows that those wishing to engage in spiritual practice have to truly overcome many difficulties. [When] Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha attain Buddhahood, clearly His father was a wheel-turning sage king. His father was joyful that his son became a monastic to engage in spiritual practice. When through practice, He had become enlightened, of course the wheel-turning sage king was happy and was happy to assist at His place of practice.
So, this is saying that when Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Tathagata wished to go off and engage in spiritual practice. He received His father’s blessings when He left. This demonstrates that everyone intrinsically has Buddha-nature.
So, it says in the beginning of the Chapter on the Conjured City that nothing could be said of the past lives of Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Tathagata but in His present lifetime, everything went very smoothly for Him. He was already replete with the Dharma. Nevertheless, He still sat in spiritual practice for ten small kalpas, which shows how the Buddha-Dharma permeates the universe. It is so vast and great, yet also incredibly subtle and intrinsic. He also needed to “resonate with compassion while exercising wisdom.”
If we wish to attain Buddhahood, none of us can lack a heart of compassion, of universal compassion, of being completely one with all sentient beings. We need that sense of dedicating our practice to all sentient beings. It takes a long period of spiritual practice to accumulate these understanding and views, this enlightened understanding. This means that those of us in the future wishing to engage in spiritual practice must be very clear. The source lies in Beginningless Time. Our nature of True Suchness is like that of Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha.
If we wish to engage in spiritual practice now, we must be like the present Buddha, Sakyamuni. The power of His vows was His willingness to be born in the Saha World. The power of His vows was to work for the sake of the world’s sentient beings. For a long time, since Beginningless Time, lifetime after lifetime, He sought the Dharma and transformed others. This is the nature of True Suchness, which has existed since Beginningless Time. Since then, we must return to our nature of True Suchness. Why do we say that we are returning? We had already left our original home, our wealth household, and wandered about outside, becoming a poor son. Now that we wish to return home, there is still some way to go.
We spoke of spending 20 or50 years this way. This is what we must understand. The principles of the Buddha- Dharma are expressed like this, using analogies to help us understand that True Suchness existed since Beginningless Time. But we have been in the evil world of Five Turbidities for a long time, and in this turbulent world of temptations, we have lost our direction.
So, there were many people who sent them off to see Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha. “They all desired to draw near to “Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Tathagata.” The wheel-turning sage king, the mothers of those 16 princes, his subjects and the ministers all went with the goal of drawing near to Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Tathagata. “The grandfather, a wheel-turning sage king, the mothers of the 16 sons and their king all surrounded them and followed them to the place of practice.”
This sutra passage describes how “All these people desired to draw near to the Buddha. “Their grandfather” was the king. “Their grandfather, the king, followed them there.” They went together like this. He was a man of the Path; while the father had not attained enlightenment, “his son had.” It turns out the wheel-turning sage king had already formed Bodhisattva-aspirations, but when it came to the true principles, to his enlightened nature, [the questions of] why humans experience, birth, aging, illness and death, and how enlightened nature comes and goes, he still did not know. So, although he was a man of the Path, he still could not understand it thoroughly. The father could not comprehend thoroughly, but the son already thoroughly understood. The father could not achieve enlightenment, but the son had awakened and become enlightened. The true principles of all things in the universe were contained in the wisdom of His mind.
Thus, it says, “He was a man of the Path; while the father had not attained enlightenment his son had.” “The ministers and subjects also went,” which means that “what those above did, those below followed.” The people above did so, and the people below them followed. The wheel turning sage king led the way, while his subjects and everyone else followed.
Therefore, the way the people of a country live depends upon how their leaders guide them. In summary, “With the wisdom of suchness, we resonate with the state of suchness.” In our daily living, we let the True Suchness inside us encounter external states and reflect them like a mirror. We do not let external states contaminate or disturb our minds. This is of the utmost importance. So, let us always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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