Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Attaining the Dharma in Accord with Conditions (隨境會法理事融會)
Date: April.24.2017
“When we deliver the Dharma into our heart, “our capabilities mature. All phenomena are dependent upon causes and conditions. The Dharma-realms around us change incessantly. With the Beginningless Dharmakaya of the causal ground, matters and appearances reveal the principles so they are easy to understand. Principles and matter converge harmoniously into one entity.”
We take the Dharma to heart. The Dharma must be taken to heart so that we can always review it in our minds as our minds are constantly ground and polished by the outside world. When it comes to all the different varieties of external conditions, whether people or matters, or all the great and small things we see, we must always use our minds to try to understand. Within all things, everything is connected with the principles of the Buddha-Dharma. Matters, objects and principles have always been connected, thus the principles can become clear to us. If the Dharma is not connected to matters or to objects, when we act we will always be lacking principles and will be unsuccessful in the things we do. In looking at things, if we have no understanding of the principles of people’s minds, then everything will be an obstacle for us. We need to take the Dharma into our hearts so that our minds can reflect the outside world and have a clear understanding of all things. Our mind must become mature; we must not remain forever ignorant and childish. We must mature, for only then will we truly recognize the Dharma clearly and remain diligent while learning Dharma.
So, “When we deliver the Dharma into our heart, our capabilities mature”. Didn’t we talk yesterday about “crossing into extinction?” this is the complete extinction of all afflictions. When we take the Dharma to heat, we can bring ourselves and others to cross [the river of samsara]. This is crossing into extinction. If we do not take the Dharma to heart, then how can we possibly deliver others? We must take the Dharma to heart, and we must get rid of afflictions. If we do not get rid of selfish, discursive thoughts, the Dharma will not be able to enter our minds. Why are we unable to eliminate afflictions? It is because our capabilities have yet to mature. We are still very childish inside, just like a child. “I just want things to be just like this, I don’t want to listen to you!” isn’t this just like a young child? We clearly know that only the Dharma can unlock the door of our mind so that we can see clearly into everything around us and comprehend the principles of all things, only by taking the Dharma to heart can our mind become open and spacious and our heart can encompass the universe.
Ironically, it is we ourselves who have closed this door, or this pair of doubt doors. We are just like the poor son, standing outside, looking through the spaces in the gate, peering in at all the wealth within. Seeing all that wealth, he thought, “This is not a place for me to stop, and thus ran away again. The son did not recognize his father, but as the father had been searching for his son, his every thought held on to the image of his son. So, upon seeing his son’s figure, he recognized him immediately. Nevertheless, his son was so childish and still preferred to wander the streets.
We should all be very familiar with this story, because at that time we constantly spoke of the parable of the poor son. However, while we may remember the story, have we deeply penetrated the principles? If we deeply penetrate the principle, then our capabilities can greatly mature. This is how, in the sutras, the Buddha compassionately used stories like these to open our minds, then later taught us the principles. However, having understood the story, have we understood the principles? It seem they are still a great distance away from us. So, the poor son is still a poor son, if we cannot comprehend the principles, there is no way we can take the Dharma to heart. Then our capabilities are still not matter. How long will we have to wait before our capabilities mature? “All phenomena are dependent upon causes and conditions”. all things in the world, all matter and principles, are dependent upon causes and conditions. causes and conditions are found in our interpersonal relationships, in our relationships with matters or objects and in our relationships with afflictions, ignorance and wisdom. Are we still living gin ignorance, or have we unlocked our wisdom? All this depends upon our causes and conditions. Have we matured in relation to the Dharma? Are people, matters and objects still able to disturb our minds? This requires us to keep reflecting on ourselves, so we talk about polishing the mirror of our mind. Has our great and perfect mirror again become covered with the dust of ignorance? Or has it become cloudy because of steam? I constantly and diligently polishing it, we must always be very mindful.
There are courses and conditions for all things; all things are dependent on causes and conditions. Otherwise, we want to take the Dharma to heart, but our capabilities are still immature, so we advance, but then retreat again. All phenomena are still cut off from our mind and the Dharma. Sometimes, upon encountering the Dharma and connecting with it, we take it to heart. Other times, external negative causes and conditions will again come to separate us from the Dharma. This way, our capabilities cannot mature. So, we must be very mindful. “All phenomena are dependent upon causes and conditions.” We should take advantage of causes and conditions. Otherwise time continues to pass by the second. In the same way, as the Dharma is taught, it continues to slip away. We may have an understanding, but as soon as we are careless, causes and conditions may come again to separate and obstruct us [from the Dharma]. Then we again retreat and lose those causes and conditions. So, we must be very careful, because with causes and conditions “the Dharma-realms around us change incessantly. [We have] the Beginningless Dharmakaya of the causal ground.” Actually, if we earnestly take the Dharma into our hearts, our capabilities will mature to the point where external states will no longer trouble us. All our afflictions must be extinguished, and we must no longer allow ignorance to cover us. As we journey on good causes and conditions, with the Dharma surrounding us, we should take advantage of this. Only by truly taking the Dharma to heart will we be able to experience and understand how “the Dharma-realms around us change incessantly”. When we take the Dharma to heart, our mind no longer has any hindrances and we can thoroughly understand the principles of the Buddha-Dharma that pervade all Dharma-realms.
Though the Dharma-realms change incessantly, we can grasp the Dharma according to conditions. The Dharma-realms are like this; all people, matters and objects in the world, without exception, come back to the principles. When we connect with the outside world, it causes us to give rise to discursive thoughts, causes us to go into action. We create karma, and once the action is complete, this seed is then considered to be part of our causal ground. With the Dharma, each and every seed is a seed of goodness. Then in this way, [we can comprehend] the Dharma[-realm] around us though it is ever-changing.
Look at how many people are suffering in the world. Refugees are fleeing to foreign lands. What is the reason for this? It is also because their seeds are changing. The causes and conditions in their life, the country they end up in, their direct and circumstantial retributions led them to be in that country. As the environment of that country changes, the collective [retributions] of the many people there are being created. All we see every day are the tears on the faces of those refugees displaced in faraway countries. This is suffering! It is beyond their control. This is the changing of the Dharma-realms; it is created by each of those individual’s causes and conditions. There is so much that they can do nothing about. Seeing the creation of so many helpless situations, we now understand this teaching and know that all phenomena is illusory. Or, in the Dharma-realms around us, we know how the many people, matters and objects are in the causal grounds of the karma they created long ago in the past. What kinds of changes will these seeds cause? In whichever place our seeds are planted, depending on the causes and conditions and the seeds, we face circumstantial and direct retributions. All this goes back to the principles. The Dharmakaya is the principles. Everything goes back to the principles. If we can take the Dharma to heart, every single one of these seeds is pure, not affected by outside influences. Each and every seed returns. After we purify our eighth consciousness, they then return to our ninth consciousness, to our nature of True Suchness. This is the true Dharmakaya; it is likewise talking about the principles. There are principles of both good and evil. To where do good and evil ultimately return? With our eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body, everything that we connect with or create is taken in by the sixth consciousness. Then the sixth consciousness guides this, and once formed, these seeds go to the eighth consciousness. The sixth consciousness is where things are seen, experienced and felt. The seventh consciousness is where ignorance begins to function, leading us to take action; after we consider things, if we are biased toward ignorance, we create all kinds of afflictions. This is because of ignorance. Before we purify our minds, ignorance remains. Upon encountering the Buddha-Dharma, we can consider it, so we must cultivate contemplation. We must earnestly consider it.
The sixth consciousness connects to external conditions, so we must contemplate them; we must engage in spiritual practice. We are not contemplating how to think up schemes and create karmas. The external states we see return to our [sixth] consciousness, where must earnestly engage in contemplation in order to be able to comprehend the constant changes of the Dharma-realms. If we can be clear and cultivate contemplation, then naturally the “beginningless Dharmakaya of the causal ground this principle, will become very clear to us. We will no longer be confused. If we can do this, then this is our direction. If our direction is accurate, “Matters and appearances reveal the principles so they are easy to understand”. When the matters and appearances of all things manifest out of the principles, we will understand very well.
So, “Principles and matters converge harmoniously into one entity”. Whether principles or matters, all can be connected together for us to understand. In this way, whether external states, or people, matters and things, nothing can disturb our mind. Our mind will remain very firm. Our capabilities will be very mature. As for the Dharma of causes and conditions that all phenomena depend upon, we will understand it very clearly. We understand the Dharma of causes and conditions. “The Dharma-realms around us change incessantly”. As we see all kinds of matters and things and hear all kinds of sounds, we clearly filter them. So, we know, “These are natural laws; this is how things are”. We are clear about the constant changes of impermanence. Naturally, the Dharmakaya of the causal ground [has existed] since Beginningless Time. Even before Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha’s time, since before Beginningless Time, these principles have existed. We understand them very clearly; we understand everything without hindrance. “Great Unhindered” fundamentally refers to the ground of our mind.
So, when we speak of “causal ground”, Great Unhindered has always been our intrinsic nature of True Suchness, so we understand everything without hindrance. The principles have always been contained in our mind; it is just that ignorance drives our mind to waver. It drives our mind, so our nature is not settled. This is how our mind is. With this understanding of the ground of the mind, our capabilities have not yet matured. They have not matured, because we have not worked hard to eliminate afflictions, so we cannot take the Dharma to heart. That is why our ignorance is repeatedly circling around in our minds.
So, we must work hard. We have had these seeds since Beginningless Time. From Beginningless Time, our nature of True Suchness has always been the pure principles, the Dharmakaya. So, we must work hard to take care of the Dharmakaya of the causal ground. Then naturally, “Matters and appearances reveal the principles so they are easy to understand”. We ae not hindered from understanding anything. So, principles and matters will naturally converge harmoniously as one entity. If we can experience and understand this, then we will naturally know what we should do in our daily living. All the things that we are doing are to benefit other people. We are not taking issue over our own viewpoint but creating blessings for everyone in the world. This is the great, direct Bodhi-path given to us by the Buddha; this is the path we must walk.
So, the previous sutra passage says, “He will then gather all Bodhisattvas and Hearers in order to teach this sutra. In the world there is no second Vehicle through which one can cross into extinction. There is only the One Buddha Vehicle through which one can cross into extinction”.
Causes and conditions had ripened. The disciples present were listening to the Dharma. So, now it was time “to teach this sutra”. “This sutra” refers to the Lotus Sutra. The Lotus Sutra is the Great Vehicle Dharma. He had already dismissed the provisional teachings of the Small Vehicle. Now He was very clearly and openly teaching this Great Vehicle sutra. He let everyone know that the teachings He had used in the past were to guide them in the door. Now He wanted to reveal the true Dharma to them. Because the Buddha knew that His time was nearing its end, He had to teach this Dharma.
So, “In the world there is no second Vehicle through which one can cross into extinction”. There is no other teaching that allows us to completely extinguish all of our afflictions, take the Dharma to heart and deliver ourselves while also delivering others. This is the Great Vehicle Dharma. So, there is not separate Two Vehicle [teachings] that allow one to cross into extinction. When all afflictions are truly extinguished, when we have taken the Dharma to heart and also use it to transform others, this is “crossing into extinction”. I hope everyone will remember these words, “crossing into extinction”. So, “There is only the One Buddha Vehicle through which one can cross into extinction”. There is only the One Buddha Vehicle, which is taking the Buddha’s heart as our own and resolving to walk upon the Bodhisattva-path. This is called the One Buddha Vehicle.
The next passage goes like this, “Bhiksus, you should know that the Tathagata, through skillful means, penetrates deeply into sentient beings’ natures. I know their resolve, that they take joy in the limited teachings and are deeply attached to the five desires. For this and other reasons, I taught about Nirvana. If these people heard this, they could then accept it faithfully”.
In this [cycle of] teachings, in the Chapter on Parables, and on Faith and Understanding and so on, He had used matters and appearances, had used matters, appearances and analogies to teach the Dharma. Now, He wanted to explain. “His previous provisional teachings”. He wanted us to know that His previous teachings were provisional.
This teaching is to explain. His previous provisional teachings. It indicates the reasons for using provisional teachings in the past for those of superior capabilities, the Buddha taught and explained the provisional nature of the Three Vehicles to reveal the truth of the One Vehicle. This was talked about in the Chapter on Skillful Means.
“It indicates the reasons for using provisional teachings in the past. He wanted us to understand that what He taught in the past was “provisional”. Because their capabilities had not yet matured, He taught in response to sentient beings’ capabilities, just as with the sheep-cart, the deer-cart and the great white ox-cart. [He said] “Come, I will let you choose”. Those with limited capabilities chose the sheep-cart, thinking it would be fun, or the deer-cart, thinking it was cute. But are these really things that have the power to help us? These are just playthings. With the ox-cart, not only can I ride it myself, not only will it carry me, but it can also carry many goods. Not only can it carry goods, but it can also carry others. The ox is strong and powerful. He is extremely steady. He can carry people long distances. He has endurance. He had driver and endurance; he can carry us a very long way. If we are travelling a long road, without a great ox-cart, just us alone on a sheep-cart or a deer-cart, just how far will they be able take us? These are merely playthings. The principle is the same.
So, in the past, the Buddha used the Agama, the Vaipulya and the Prajna teachings. The Agama was adapted ti suit our capabilities, to guide us and lead us in He used the Vaipilya to open our hearts even more. The Prahna teachings helped us to understand that all things arise with causes and conditions, all things cease with causes and conditions. This helped us to eliminate all [afflictions], to realize that all is emptiness. But thought the Buddha helped us understand that everything is empty in nature, He then quickly made a turn. He turned the teachings to let us know that in “emptiness” there exists wondrous principles. Amidst emptiness, although in life we all pass away in the end, though our body cannot stay in the world forever, our karmic seeds still remain. Will our karmic seeds lead us to a rebirth beyond our control? Or, will our karmic seeds, those seeds of pure karma, allow us in subsequent lifetimes to abide in places with the Buddha- Dharma? Then we live in the cleansing current of the Buddha-Dharma, so we can be purified again, and our seeds can become even more mature as we cultivate these seeds. this is wondrous existence.
Although over many lifetimes. We must spend a very long time [in practice], depending on the way that we live in this world and the form that we will take in our next lifetime, this is wondrous existence. This is because all the phenomena we create, whether good, bad or otherwise, all these countless varieties are all the creation of the mind. The Buddha, in so many different sutras, in the Agama, in the Vaipulya and in the Prajna, has already used these kinds of analogies. However, did we really understand them? This depends on our capabilities. are we still stuck in the Small Vehicle, in a selfish state of mind? Or did we open the door to our hearts to be able to awaken ourselves as well as others? This all depends upon us.
So, the Buddha did everything in His power to teach. “Ie indicates the reasons for using provisional teachings in the past”. In the past, we could not understand; our capabilities had not yet matured. So, in these ways, He enticed us to enter the Buddhist path, with obvious principles everyone could understand. Thus, “For those of superior capabilities, the Buddha taught and explained the provisional nature of the Three Vehicles”. Now, with this great sutra, He began teaching to superior capabilities. Since those of limited and average capabilities had already left the assembly, what He now began to teach was for those of great capabilities. though in the past they were not very clear and had yet to form great aspirations, when He began teaching this great sutra, they remained there and still wished to listen. They heard Buddha teach this “profound, profound infinitely profound” Great Dharma. These were people of great capabilities; He was teaching to these people He wanted us all to more clearly understand the provisional nature of the Three Vehicles to “reveal the truth of the One Vehicle”. These people of great capabilities had remained stuck in the Small Vehicle in the past. But now their capabilities had matured and they had become those of superior capabilities, He revealed the One Vehicle to them. This was the Dharma talked about in the Chapter on skillful Means. This was the [cycle of] teaching the Dharma. The Dharma is given as an analogy. Matters and appearances can thus bring us back to the Dharma. So, there are analogies in the Dharma, and these is Dharma in the analogies. Bhiksus, you should know: Perhaps there were bhiksus who heard what the Buddha taught and gave rise to doubt in their heart. Since there is only the One Vehicle, then why had He repeatedly given the teachings of the Three Vehicles? He wished to reveal the capabilities and conditions for provisional teachings to eliminate doubts and confusion. Therefore He said, “You should know”.
“Bhiksus, you should know. This is saying that perhaps there were some bhiksus who heard what the Buddha taught, and though they had remained in the assembly to listen to the Great Dharma, they “gave rise to doubt in their heart”. After all, they had not yet reached the ultimate stage. However, they had remained behind in order to listen to the Great Vehicle Dharma, and over the course of their listening, doubts had arisen in them. So, “Since there is only the One Vehicle, what were they doubtful of? Since there was just the One Vehicle, only the One Vehicle Dharma, “then why had He repeatedly given the teachings of the Three Vehicles?”
Since the Buddha had wanted to teach the One Vehicle Dharma, why didn’t He just directly teach it? Why did He have to still teach so indirectly? Why did He have to teach the Small Vehicle, the Small and Middle Vehicles, before returning to the Great Vehicle? Why not just directly teach the Great Vehicle Dharma? Why was it necessary to turn it into the Three Vehicles? “He wished to reveal the capabilities and conditions for provisional teachings”. The Buddha was afraid sentient beings would have doubts like this, so because of this He revealed the capabilities and conditions of using provisional teachings. He revealed the sheep-cart and the deer-cart so everyone could understand that in the past it was due to everyone’s limited capabilities. “With limited capabilities, I had to give you limited teachings so you could enjoy them. I had to suit your capabilities, so you would be happy to come in. This was a way to entice you to enter the Dharma. When you understand, see and cultivate your capabilities, you can then accept the Dharma”. So, “He wished to reveal the capabilities and conditions for provisional teachings”. These are the provisional teachings. For those with limited capabilities, He gave limited teachings, shallower teachings. When children are small, still in kindergarten, a teacher must use speech that they understand. If it is graduate school, then the professor will teach his students very profound principles. These are the workings of the world; [the Dharma] is inseparable from worldly teachings. We similarly must utilize worldly teachings to transform sentient beings. It is because our capabilities were weak that He had no choice but to teach the Small Vehicle. So, now He opened up the Three Vehicles. Some people had doubts and confusion. So, in order to remove their doubts and confusion, the Buddha again told them, “Bhiksus! You should know. Do not have doubts! Why did I begin with the Small Vehicle teachings? Your capabilities were not very mature so I went from the Small Vehicle Dharma gradually into the Great Vehicle Dharma. Therefore, you should know that. I put much heartfelt effort into this”. So, “The Tathagata, through skillful means, penetrates deeply into sentient beings’ natures”.
The Tathagata, through skillful means, penetrates deeply into sentient beings’ natures: All Buddhas, the Tathagatas, out of mercy, use skillful means of compassion and wisdom. They know well the natures of all beings, their natures, practices and karma. They penetrate these deeply without limits.
This is because the Tathagata uses skillful means. In order to transform sentient beings, skillful means are the Dharma-door to lead people in. He opens the door so that everyone may enter. Thus, “All Buddhas, the Tathagatas, out of mercy, use skillful means of compassion and wisdom”. This is the Buddha responding to sentient beings’ capabilities and is also the Buddha’s compassion and wisdom. He uses skillful means of both compassion and wisdom in parallel, for He “knows well the natures of all sentient beings”. It is because Buddhas are so compassionate that they have such mercy on sentient beings. [Sentient beings’] capabilities are inferior, so They must be very accommodating in how They treat them, patiently teaching them until they understand. They give them the Small [Vehicle] Dharma slowly and gradually. This is how Buddhas, “out of mercy, use skillful means of compassion and wisdom”. This is because “They know well the natures of all sentient beings,” how stubborn they are in nature. [They know their] “natures, practices and karma”. Are sentient beings’ capabilities sharp or dull? The Buddha observes then earnestly. Sentient beings, due to their behavior and their habitual tendencies, must be given time in order for them to penetrate more deeply. So, though they penetrate gradually, their penetration is without limits. They start small, then continue more deeply until [their understanding] becomes vast, until their hearts become open and spacious. So, the Buddha is patient. In addition to having delivered sentient beings for beginningless dust-inked kalpas in the past, after attaining Buddhahood, the causes and conditions had already ripened. But the Buddha still had to wait on capabilities. He had already waited for over 40 years. Now He had to teach the Great Dharma. So, He “opened the Three to reveal the One”. This was the Buddha’s compassion and wisdom for sentient beings. This is why we should quickly awaken ourselves, because we must understand the Buddha’s mind.
So, “I know their resolve, that they take joy in the limited teachings and are deeply attached to the five desires”. The Buddha understood; clearly, we sentient beings are so stubborn and attached, yet, the Buddha never gave up. He clearly knew how bad we were. “He knew their minds’ resolve, that they took joy in the Small [Vehicle] Dharma”. We were very stubborn like this. ”Deep in their minds, they took joy in and were attached to form, sound, smell, taste and touch”. These are the states of the five desires. This is how sentient beings are; sentient beings’ capabilities are like this. They think, “I do listen to the Dharma, but I am unable to give up my desires. You want me to sweep away ignorance right away, or tell me that I must change quickly, but please, let me take my time!” These are the capabilities of sentient beings. They “take joy in the limited teachings and are deeply attached to the five desires”. Sentient beings truly have poor capabilities. They are “deeply attached to the current of desire”
[They] are deeply attached to the five desires: Being deeply attached to the current of desire, they were transmigrating in fragmentary samsara; so, how could they draw near to the Buddha’s Way? Therefore, He delivered them with the Nirvana of the Small Vehicle to enable them to first escape from afflictions and ignorance, then head toward the Buddha-wisdom.
This desire is like this, continually flowing and turning within us. Desires for external things continually enter, and the mind still forms attachments. This is the current of ignorance. The current of ignorance flows into our mind. So, we “transmigrate in fragmentary samsara”. We remain in fragmentary samsara. Yesterday, we clearly explained “fragmentary samsara”. As sentient beings come and go without any control, “how could they draw near to the Buddha’s Way?” How could they enter the path to Buddhahood? Stuck in current of ignorance, unable to get rid of this ignorance, we spend many lifetimes in fragmentary samsara. When will we finally be able to enter the great, direct Bodhi-path? This is very worrisome. “Therefore ,He delivered them with the Nirvana of the Small Vehicle”. So, He had no choice but to use the Small Vehicle in teaching them. “The sufferings of life are all accumulated in this way and that, so you must hasten to eliminate them”. Do not cling to external conditions, earnestly guard your minds”. This is the Small Vehicle, caring for their own minds. However, they only worried about their own transmigration in the Six Realms, or descending into the four forms of birth. He taught of how the hell, hungry ghost and animal realms were terrifying, that they should quickly heighten their vigilance. In this way , they only practiced for themselves and were unwilling to return to the world. This is the “Nirvana of the Small Vehicle”. By entering the Small Vehicle, they got rid of Small Vehicle ignorance. Although their minds were pure, they were attached to transforming themselves and were unwilling to transform others. This is the Small Vehicle; they “first escape from afflictions and ignorance then head toward the Buddha-wisdom”. They first had to leave afflictions and ignorance. Now He would begin to [ help ] everyone by leading them to enter the Buddha’s door to wisdom. This was another door, a Great [Vehicle] one, that they were about to enter. “For this and other reasons, I taught about Nirvana”.
For this and other reasons, I taught about Nirvana: For those whose minds were attached, those with limited capabilities such as this, He taught in response to average capabilities and conditions for them to enter the Nirvana of skillful means.
This was for those with limited capabilities. Now He revealed the Great Dharma, teaching this Dharma for them again. So, “ For those with limited capabilities, He taught the conditions that were “suitable for those with average capabilities for them to enter the Nirvana of skillful means”. He helped them to go a step further. It is not just people, matters, things and samsara that are terrifying. In fact ,the world is impermanent and ever-changing, the land is fragile and so forth. He helped everyone go a step further to not only understand one’s own birth and death but also understand the principles ofthe constant changes in the world. This is the Middle Vehicle. “If these people heard this, they could then accept it faithfully”. Since they believe we undergo birth and death, they could understand even more deeply that all things in the world are impermanent. This helped them understand more deeply. So, “people with shallow capabilities, if they listened” would naturally understand. “It suited their capabilities, and they could faithfully accept it”. They could understand. People are born and die ,the world goes through formation, existence, decay and disappearance. Everyone could understand this more clearly“. With skillful wisdom, the Buddha considered how to deeply penetrate sentient beings’ capacities. Thus, He could know sentient beings’ resolve, that they took joy in the Small”. The Buddha contemplated very mindfully using skillful wisdom like this to deeply penetrate sentient beings’ capabilities. So, He knew sentient beings took joy in the Small. Therefore, He gave them things that they could easily believe in. He gave them shallower teachings. This was the Buddha’s mindfulness. As Buddhist practitioners, we must knowhow dedicated the Buddha was in our world, how He helped us to see that life is birth, aging, illness and death and that through this course of life, the suffering of impermanence is everywhere. This is what He emphasized about life. There is so much suffering in life. We must see this clearly. If we go through our entire life in confusion, what we will see in subsequent lifetimes will be causes and conditions of suffering even worse than in this life, because that is how they are created. We should earnestly engage in spiritual practice for only then will we live happily in the next life, only then will the life we live be a life where everything goes our way. He taught this first by using the more easily understood law of karma. If we go deeper? Ah! The world is so impermanent. Everything in this world is, in the end, illusory and impermanent. Only spiritual practice can help us to eliminate the suffering of samsara in future lives that lifetime after lifetime of sickness, pain and suffering. The coming of death is terrifying, what is the direction for our next life? We do not know. Earnestly engaging in spiritual practice and cultivating this seed to maturity so we can come and go at ease is the Middle Vehicle. In this world, everything is impermanent, everything under goes formation, existence, decay and disappearance. Everything is [ in a process of] birth, aging, illness and death. There is so much to life that we must see clearly. This is how the Buddha treats sentient beings’ capabilities, through the skillful means of teaching the Great and Small Vehicles. So, we should be very clear and, once clear earnestly take the Dharma to heart. If we do not take the Dharma to heart, our capabilities will always be like those of a young and immature child. Coming and going like this, we will never be able to realize the Buddha’s original intent. We remain immature. All matters and appearances are always impermanent and changing, so we must put effort into being clear, put effort into seeing the principles revealed through matters and appearance so as to deepen our understanding. Then matters and principles will be harmonized and connected together. We must do this, otherwise we will continue to pass our days in confusion. Therefore, let us always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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