Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Upholding the Dharma-Treasure, Free from Bonds (守護法藏 通達無礙)
Date: September.18.2017
“Now Ananda is the Buddha’s attendant, protecting and upholding the Dharma-treasury. In the presence of 6.2 billion Buddhas, he will be no different than today and will subsequently attain fruits. This is because he personally cultivated the causes to attain the Path. His mind is free from the bonds of afflictions; he understands thoroughly without obstruction.”
We must always be grateful to Ananda! When we speak of Ananda, our hearts give rise to a sense of gratitude. Ananda was one who upholds the Dharma. He was not just the Buddha’s attendant; he was also one who protects the Buddha-Dharma and upholds the Dharma-treasury. The Buddha-Dharma can flourish in the world today because of Ananda. With Ananda’s memory and his being by the Buddha’s side, the Dharma taught by the Buddha, every word, every phrase, flowed into Ananda’s mind. This [powerful] memory of Ananda’s did not come out of nowhere; for dust-inked kalpas, for an infinite, immeasurable amount of time, he had been building up his memory. The foundation of the Buddha-Dharma is always in Ananda’s mind. It is profound, profound infinitely profound, and it was firmly in Ananda’s mind. Ananda had followed Sakyamuni Buddha for an unknown number of lifetimes. This is how he manifested in the world. He is always in the same era as the Buddha, to help and assist the Buddha. He teaches and transforms sentient beings in this way. More than 2000 years ago, Sakyamuni Buddha’s causes and conditions matured so He manifested by being born into this world. Ananda was also born when the Buddha attained Buddhahood. In His enlightenment, the Buddha became one with the universe. He awakened to the true principles of the universe. This was the moment Ananda was born. It just so happened that the moment of the Buddha’s enlightenment was the moment Ananda was born. Then the Buddha began to travel in the world to teach and transform sentient beings, Ananda gradually grew up. He mindfully experienced the Buddha’s teachings and thus realized that everything in the world is like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow.
Look around at this world; what is enduring? Day and night cycle continuously; time is impermanent. Conditioned phenomena, humans, human bodies and material things, all exhibit arising and ceasing. He comprehended this too. With the Buddha’s principles, he believed that only by seeking the Dharma could he obtain something everlasting. So, he asked to become a monastic. From among the Buddha’s Sangha, he was recommended by Sariputra and Maudgalyayana to be the Buddha’s attendant. One of Ananda’s conditions was that the Buddha repeat the teachings He gave in the past. Everyone should still remember this. So, the Buddha did as Ananda requested out of necessity. The Buddha and Ananda always had this kind of common understanding. He understood Ananda’s intent. He knew that for the principles of the universe [to be known,] Ananda had to be able to take these teachings, the Buddha-Dharma, and store them away; they should be complete. So, for the worldly Dharma He taught in the past to be heard in the world, to be learned in the world, He had to teach the Dharma again so it could be stored in Ananda’s mind. The Buddha happily repeated the past teachings, so the Buddha-Dharma could be complete. After Ananda became His attendant, he did not leave His side. The Buddha taught the Dharma to everyone, and we have this “Thus have I heard” from each assembly all because Ananda was there. So, “Now Ananda is the Buddha’s attendant, protecting and upholding the Dharma-treasury.” It was because he was by the Buddha’s side that we have these complete teachings of the Dharma.
Life’s impermanence all comes from the karma that we create. People need the Dharma. But it is because people have much ignorance that they need the Dharma. People intrinsically have the Buddha-nature. Originally, everyone intrinsically has this Dharma but affliction and ignorance [covered it]. How much afflictions and ignorance are there? There is a lot. Take Ananda for example. After the Buddha bestowed a prediction of Buddhahood upon him, He then told Ananda, “in the presence of 6.2 billion Buddhas” in the future, “[you] will be no different than today”. In the future, Ananda will endlessly return to this world in the same way. This will go on for a very long time. Every time a Buddha comes to the world, he will be that Buddha’s attendant. But the time this takes, being in the presence of 6.2 billion Buddhas, is too long. We learn from Ananda that we need to repeatedly return to this world and go among people in the same way. Everyone is a future Buddha. Everyone has in their minds the Tathagata-garbhi （Tathagata-treasury）. However, it is covered by ignorance. Ananda carried the principles that the Buddha awakened to; they have already been very deeply planted in his mind and consciousness. So, life after life, he carries this Dharma-treasury and comes to the world. And when he is among people, he treats everyone as a future Buddha. At all times, Ananda is always reminding us of the Dharma that is in our daily living.
I have also mentioned that we should treat every person as Ananda as someone we should be grateful to. All the appearances they manifest are to remind us and help us become vigilant. We should think of them in this way, “They are like Ananda, teaching us.” Whenever someone gives us a [dark] look, [we say,] “Please do this thing for me. All of us need to have gratitude, respect and love. Our hearts should encompass the universe and the boundless worlds within it. We are doing things to benefit this world. We are giving to others. We should give with a grateful heart. Every person is someone we can learn from. Do you understand?” When they are calm, they understand. When they become afflicted, they do not understand. “I just don’t want to do it. Ah! Be accommodating, let it go. Be humble! Be grateful! Be united in harmony! After all, you are giving.” If they still have a dark look, what do we do? “Please! Because [you] are Ananda, I am grateful to you. You are giving me that attitude to test me. Thank you! I need you, Truly, I really need you. I need you in order to accomplish this matter.” The Dharma must be perfect and complete; it must be perfect and complete in this world. The Dharma-treasury, which is the Dharma, must also be perfect and complete in the world. So, when virtuous friends are educating us, we must be grateful, [take on] good deeds and accept good principles. When adverse conditions arise, when they manifest for us to see, [they can be] beneficial adverse conditions. We must be grateful. Indeed, we must be grateful. This is in our daily living; there is much ignorance and many afflictions in our lives this ignorance and these afflictions are all beneficial conditions. They are teaching us; they are reminding us. We face challenges at every turn and must overcome them all. We must do this as well. This is “in the presence of 6.2 billion Buddhas”. These people, who will attain Buddhahood in the future are here to teach us. For every sentient being, within their ignorance lies the opportunity for their awakening. So, we must be grateful.
In the world, there are many examples of impermanence and imbalance of the four elements. We saw that in Japan, on May 1 (2016) the volcano at Sakurajima erupted. When the volcano erupted, the ash plume shot 4100 meters high. It was that tall! This was also an imbalance of the four elements. We have heard that in Japan, this is probably the seventh largest [eruption]. Clearly, it was very large. This is the sign of an imbalance of the element of earth. More, than ten days ago, on April 16, [a disaster struck] Kyushu, Japan. In fact, Sakurajima is also in Kyushu. Again, in Kyushu, the heavens and earth shook. There was a large earthquake. It was not just Japan. On the same day, Ecuador also had a large earthquake; it was very powerful. This very strong earthquake had caused a tremendous disaster in Japan. Tzu Chi volunteers in Japan are still in Kyushu, keeping the disaster survivors company. They provided them with hot meals and stayed there to calm their minds.
Another group of volunteers are in Ecuador. On my video-conference with them, I saw that this group of Tzu Chi volunteers included six from the United States and three from Chile. Nine Tzu Chi volunteers went to Ecuador. Among the newly-inspired volunteers, there was a group of local Taiwanese businessmen. One of them was Mr. Huang. Several years ago, he had come to Taiwan to participate in the Jing Si Lifestyle Camp. At that time, he began to make vows. He said that he was touched. We hoped that when he returned to Ecuador, eh could form aspirations and make vows to do Tzu Chi work. But as time passed, we did not keep in contact. Things were peaceful there, and we did not see him again. However, this recent earthquake in Ecuador caused a tremendous disaster. So, he proactively contacted Tzu Chi. This group of volunteers from the United States and Chile came together and was welcomed by Mr. Huang. Among the local Chinese population, including the Taiwanese people and businessmen, dozens of people also [joined in]. They called on others to help and necessary manpower was falling in place. During the video-conference, Mr. Huang started to talk. He said, “Master, do you still recognize me? You have not seen me in a few years. Indeed, a few years ago you made a vow to me. Now you are beginning [to fulfill it]. The causes and conditions have matured”. This was in Ecuador. We saw the places they walked through, where they left their footprints. Truly, everything was in rubble. How tragic! What were they to do about the suffering people?
They started to make proposals for disaster relief. [Mr. Huang] spoke to the local government and brought up Tzu Chi’s disaster relief experience such as the Cash for Relief program. He explained how in several countries, we have successfully conducted the Cash for Relief program. The local government was very glad to hear this. He mentioned this as part of his report. I told him, “I am in agreement; this is what we should do”. Of course, he had to begin preparations. He had to prepare the material goods for a large scale disaster relief effort. We see that when these kinds of disasters occur, in that moment Tzu Chi gets involved immediately. Even in Japan, a very wealthy country, there were many people who needed comfort. Their lives have not yet returned to normal, so we still need to help them. Ecuador is in economic difficulties. Their economy is in trouble. In face of such a tremendous disaster, we must gather both manpower and material things. Everything is in progress, advancing according to plans.
This is called “impermanence”. This is reminding us to be vigilant! The four elements are not in balance; the world is impermanent. Not only is the element of earth not in balance, the element of water is not either. In India, there is a water shortage. 3.3 million people are experiencing severe drought. There is not even enough water to drink, not to mention for other uses. There is a shortage in drinking water alone. Now, people are guarding pools of water. They hire people with guns to patrol the perimeter of the pool to safeguard the water. They are afraid that people will steal water. They guard the water like it is gold. Water is more expensive than gold. People have money but no water. So, their government is keeping an eye on any place with a pool of water. This is a very serious problem. It is not wonder that those in Vietnam reported something similar. They told me about the drought in Vietnam. Their entire land is cracked. There has been a water shortage for three years. In the first year, the harvest was poor. In the next two, they gave up on farming. The famers had no way of making a living, and they had no water to drink. They asked us in hopes that we could provide them with water storage tanks so they could store up some water if it rains. I asked, “What if it does not rain?” “If it does not rain, then we have no ideas. There is nothing we can do”. I then asked them, “An aboveground solution is temporary. Is there an aquifer underground”. He said, “The underground aquifers are buried very deep. The water pumped form them is salty. Now, the top layer of soil has been salinized, so nothing can be planted”. I then said, “Is it possible to research crops and see if there are plants that are suitable for salinized soil”. So, this may require lots of effort and energy. How should we help them? Should we give them water containers first? [To use that,] they need to wait for rain. But when will it rain anyway? Everyone is starving now. So, we discussed how to provide relief. They hoped that we could hold large scale distributions. Indeed! [We need] large scale distributions. If we give money to them, what is someone used it to by alcohol out of depression? We suggested that they distribute material things and nutritional supplements. They had to quickly make preparations. They mindfully contemplated this with Tzu Chi’s Department of Religious Affairs. See, this is the imbalance of the element of water. There is the imbalance of earth and of water; there is also the imbalance of fire. There is a lot! To sum it up, right now, in addition to lacking rain water, the world also lacks Dharma-water. People need to be nourished by Dharma-water. The Dharma- water must soak into people’s minds. This is very difficult. For those who listen to the Dharma frequently, it may not be the case that every drop of Dharma-water will be able to nourish their minds. Their minds are still in imbalance. “Fire” is constantly surging. “Are you angry?” Indeed! This is the element of fire. The flames in our minds are roaring. We give rise to anger and hatred, thus we are greatly lacking in water; there is a shortage of Dharma-water for nourishing. All in all, “In the presence of 6.2 billion Buddhas, he will be no different than today”. We should start with the myriad sentient beings, a human population of almost 7 billion. We must treat them all as Buddhas. These people all lack the Dharma-water. We hope that we can all purify people’s hearts. We hope that we can all have gratitude, respect and love toward each other. When every drop of Dharma-water nourishes people’s minds, then naturally, the four elements can be in balance in nature, and Earth will no longer be running a fever. Look at Earth; it has been shaking frequently. This is like how when humans are unhealthy, they will begin to stray when they walk; it is the same. So, we must be earnest. “In the presence of 6.2 billion Buddhas, he will be no different than today”. This Dharma is not found in some distant future, when Ananda attains Buddhahood. It is not. It is in the present time, in every second and minute. If we treat everyone as a Buddha, won’t the world be very harmonious? So, “[He] will subsequently attain fruits. This is because he personally cultivated the causes to attain the Path”. If we want to attain Buddhahood in the future, we must begin now. we must not wait until the distant future. From this time on, we must “personally cultivate the causes to attain the Path.” Even if we start now, immediately, even if we rush, we will have to wait until the distant future to attain the fruits. But we must immediately start now. [We] “personally cultivate the causes to attain the Path.” We must enter the great, direct Bodhi-path and walk it with a straightforward mind. This is truly the Dharma that can help sentient beings.
So, our minds must transcend afflictions. We must no longer be bound by afflictions. We must not! When we resolve our afflictions, won’t we have complete understanding without obstruction? Then in our interactions, we will not each have our own attachments and be in opposition to each other. We can mutually connect with the principles. This happens with a single thought.
When this thought arises, is there anything we are unable to do? So, we must be mindful. There are no difficulties; we just need to give rise to that single thought. “At that time….” Let us take a look at the precious sutra passage, I hope that when we listen to sutras, we will not just focus on the text; we must actively put them to use, even if now, we must still turn back to the sutra text.
The previous sutra passage said this “At that time, the World-Honored One, wishing to restate His meaning, spoke this verse, ‘Today I speak among the Sangha. Ananda who upholds the Dharma will make offerings to all Buddhas, and will then attain perfect enlightenment. His epithet will be Montain-Ocean-Wisdom FreeUnhindered King Buddha. His land will be clear and pure, named Forever Standing Superior Banner. He will teach and transform all Bodhisattvas. Their number will be like the Ganges’ sands. That Buddha will have great might and virtues. His name will be known throughout the ten directions.’”
This was after Sakyamuni Buddha bestowed a prediction of Buddhahood on Ananda. This sutra passage is very important. The Buddha restated the meaning of the long-form prose. So, the Buddha said, “Right now, in the Sangha, this Sangha you are all part of, I want to tell you that Ananda is one who uphold the Dharma. All of my teachings have already been stored in Ananda’s memory. Ananda will attain Buddhahood in the future. But a long time still has to pass for him, during which he has to make offerings to all Buddhas.
How many Buddhas are “all Buddhas”? 6.2 billion Buddha. then he will attain perfect enlightenment. At that time, Ananda’s named as a Buddha will be “Mountain-Ocean-Wisdom Free Unhindered King Buddha.” Mountain-Ocean-Wisdom Free Unhindered King Buddha has a land that is very clean and pure. It is pure like crystal. This was mentioned in the long-form prose. It is pure and clean just like crystal. The ground is made of crystal, very pure and clean. The name of the land will be “Forever Standing Superior Banner,” because principles will pervade the world like a superior banner. When the Right Dharma stands tall like this, it draws everyone to become familiar with it.
So, the name of that land is “forever Standing Superior Banner”. “He will teach and transform all Bodhisattvas.” He will constantly make use of the Right Dharma to teach Bodhisattvas. In that place, there are no Hearers or Solitary Realizers. They are all Bodhisattvas. So, “He will teach and transform all Bodhisattvas. Their number will be like the Ganges’ sands.” The number of Bodhisattvas is so great that it is incalculable. “This Buddha will have great might and virtues. His name will be known throughout the ten directions.” Mountain-Ocean-Wisdom Free Unhindered King Buddha has awe-inspiring virtues and is free and at ease. So, His name will be known throughout the ten directions.
Let us look at the next sutra passage. It says, “His lifespan is beyond measure. Due to His compassion for sentient beings, Right Dharma will remain for twice his lifespan Dharma-samblance will remain twice as long as Right Dharma. Sentient beings as numerous as the Ganges’ samds, willm in this Buddha-Dharma, cultivate causes and conditions of attaining Buddhahood.
When this Buddha attain Buddhahood, how long will His lifespan be? It will be very long; it is limitless, “beyond measure”. This is very exceptional. In the past, as the Buddha bestowed a prediction of Buddhahood for each disciple, their lifespan [as Buddhas] were tens of kalpas. But Ananda’s lifespan as a Buddha is beyond measure. “Due to His compassion for sentient beings…”. Because He has compassion for sentient beings, “The lifespan of His reward-body (Sambhogakaya) is extremely long and immeasurable. His reward-body in the world will last for a long time. No matter how long the heavens and earth last, the Dharma will always be there. This is the true principle.
His lifespan is beyond measure. Due to His compassion for sentient beings: The lifespan of His reward-body is extremely long and immeasurable.
Ananda is one who upholds the Dharma-treasury. The Dharma-treasury in the universe cannot possibly be measured. When did it begin? When will it end? It has no beginning and no end; it is beyond measure. This reward-body can manifest at any time and reveal the Buddha-Dharma, the true principles, among sentient beings. no matter how long the time, no matter how large the space, this Dharma will manifest in the world. It was not just found in the kingdom of Kapilavastu, in Nepal, not just there; it manifests throughout all space. In the universe and all Dharma-realms, the reward-body of the Dharma can be found everywhere.
So, we must fill a large space with the Dharma, not limit it to the space right around us. It must be part of the space that encompasses all. In the universe, there are tens of thousands of teachings, innumerable true principles that exist. So, “The Right Dharma will remain for twice His lifespan. Dharma-semblance will remain twice as long as Right Dharma.”
Right Dharma will remain for twice His lifespan. Dharma-semblance will remain twice as long as Right Dharma: The Right Dharma and Dharma-semblance will abide in the world for a long time, twice as long as the Buddha’s lifespan.
The era of Right Dharma will be longer than His lifespan. The era of Dharma-semblance is even longer than the era of Right Dharma. This indicates that in the universe, for the true principles to be practiced in the world [is not easy]. No matter how long that period of time may be, they will eventually deteriorate. It is deteriorating, not disappearing. The Right Dharma will have a weaker presence. Dharma-semblance is present in appearance only. Practitioners may look properly reverent, but there is no respect in their minds. The same principle applies here. People build statues of the Buddha, stupas and temples to draw many people to pay respect to the Buddha. Why are they paying respect to the Buddha? They are seeking! What are they seeking? They are seeking desires, seeking what they want.
Look at our work in Myanmar. There is a child we have been taking care of for many years. It has already been a very long time. He has a physical disability, and his family is impoverished. However, during Tzu Chi’s 50th Anniversary, which was also celebrated in Myanmar, they too were prostrating and praying during the blessing ceremony. This child was asked, “What did you pray for?” and he said, “I did not pray to be able to walk; all I prayed for was peace in the world.” Seeing this footage, I was very moved. This child is so young. He has been tormented by all kinds of suffering from his illness. His prayer was not, “I want to be able to stand. I want to walk. I want to be like the healthy kids my age.” He did not pray for any of this. What he prayed for was peace in the world. This is Right Dharma. The child has Right Dharma in his mind. He lives in a place that is very simple and crude, and he has Right Dharma in his mind. Thus, that place is a dignified spiritual training ground. However, in our present day, there are many opulent and massive spiritual practice centers that draw everyone to them. But what are these people seeking? They are all seeking for themselves, for the desires that they want to fulfill, for the wishes they want to satisfy. This is Dharma-semblance; they see the statue of the Buddha and pray to satisfy their own wishes. This is called “Dharma-semblance”.
Or, [the Dharma] may appear to be flourishing, and people to have heard many teachings, but they have only put a little bit into practice. This is Dharma-semblance. Even more terrifying is Dharma-degeneration. The era of Dharma-degeneration is when the Dharma is about to disappear. Is the Dharma truly disappearing? The Dharma still exists. It is just a matter of whether the lifespan of Right Dharma in people’s minds is long or not. Has it grown shorter already? When it come to these people’s minds, they are only outwardly respectful; their minds have become lax. Is this the case? Or have they returned to the state of ignorance and afflictions of ordinary beings? This is not just about Dharma-degeneration when the Dharma no longer abides in people’ minds. So, the Dharma can be Right Dharma or Dharma-semblance.
Although Ananda has Right Dharma and the true principles themselves are immeasurable, in the human world there can be an era of Dharma-semblance, a world of Dharma-degeneration. So, “Right Dharma and Dharma-semblance will abide in the world for a long time.” After Ananda attains Buddhahood, this will be the lifespan of Mountain-Ocean-Wisdom Free Unhindered King Buddha. The Buddha-Dharma he will teach, Right Dharma and Dharma-semblance, will be able to abide in the world for a long time. “Sentient beings as numerous as the Ganges’ sands.”
Sentient beings as numerous as the Ganges’ sands: During the eras of Right Dharma and Dharma-semblance, among those transformed there are no Hearers. They are all Bodhisattvas.
There will be many sentient beings. During the eras of Dharma-semblance, these sentient beings will be transformed. Can sentient beings be transformed during the era of Right Dharma? Yes! One can be transformed during Right Dharma. They can be just like that child and have the goal of being one with the universe. This is Right Dharma. If it is in appearance only, that is Dharma-semblance. So, in the eras of Right Dharma and Dharma-semblance, many sentient beings are transformed. “There are no Hearers; they are all Bodhisattvas” They are transformed by Mountain-Ocean-Wisdom Free Unhindered King Buddha. His principles abide in people’s minds. “[They] will, in this Buddha-Dharma, cultivate causes and conditions of for attaining Buddhahood.” Within the Buddha-Dharma, they will spread the seeds in this place, teaching and transforming sentient beings. Within the Dharma of Mountain-Ocean-Wisdom Free Unhindered King Buddha, many seeds of goodness of the Buddha are planted. These are the virtuous causes and conditions of Bodhi. If the Buddha-Dharma can abide in our minds, these seeds of goodness will be planted in the ground of everyone’s minds, whether it is Right Dharma or Dharma-semblance. In our minds, it is best if Right Dharma always abides there. We must earnestly protect it. It should be like when there is a drought in India and people guard and protect the water like gold. They protect water as if they are protecting gold. Dharma-water can nourish the ground in our minds. So, we must earnestly safeguard it. Nothing is more important than the Dharma. So, we must protect his water as if it is gold. Now, as we have often mentioned, water is the source of life of the land, as well as the source of life of humans. What if humans suffer a water shortage? Now we have already seen in India that they protect the water like gold. That is how important it is! So right now, while we have water, while we have the Dharma-water to nourish us, how can we not guard and protect it in our minds? So, everyone must earnestly guard and protect the Dharma-water in the Chapter on Medicinal Plants, if there is no rainwater to nourish the land, the land will dry up. The principles is the same. So, the ground of our minds truly need the nourishment of the Dharma-water. We must [remember] this great principle. Everyone, we must always be mindful!
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
首頁 
