Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Doing Good Deeds amidst Unconditioned Dharma (住無為中 行有為善)
Date: October.26.2018
“’Space’ and ‘empty’ refer to nothingness. Space is formless and immaterial, while emptiness is free of obstructions. Thus, [the sutra discusses] ‘abiding in empty space.’ This empty space has substance and appearance. Substance is impartial and all-pervasive. Appearance depends on the material, and each material has a different appearance. Amidst unconditioned Dharma, we must practice conditioned good deeds.”
We all must mindfully seek to comprehend this. When we typically talk about space and emptiness, we are referring to nothingness. [The Chinese word for] “space” can also mean weak. That which is empty contains nothing at all. “Empty” means there is not a single object. Space is formless and immaterial. Emptiness is free of obstructions. We can understand this from the words themselves, but we must also seek to understand the principles of emptiness. When it comes to true emptiness, to be empty, we must be completely empty. We must have “true emptiness.” At the end of emptiness lies “wondrous existence.”
Thus, [the sutra discusses] “abiding in empty space. This empty space has substance and appearance.” Now, in this place, we abide within empty space, within that emptiness and nothingness; this is what it means [to abide] in emptiness. “This empty space has substance and appearance.” This is wondrous existence. Empty space is inherently free of obstructions. However, emptiness contains substances and appearances.
For example, when we are in outer space, out in the great void, are there objects in outer space? Space itself is devoid of [substance]; it is nothing but emptiness. But how many things exist within this space? Countless things, many, many things, are all contained within this empty space. This still holds true for our universe; even just beyond our atmosphere, it is the same. Modern technology is so advanced. Once we launch a [rocket], it can travel through space and go to other planets. So, when it comes down to it, it seems like there is nothing there when we look up into the sky. It is so vast that it is endless and boundless. Yet amidst this endless and boundless [universe], there are so many things. We all exist within this empty space. We are just one [part of] this space. When we talk about empty space, this encompasses all space [everywhere], from this world all the way throughout the vast and boundless [universe]; everything is contained within this empty space. “This empty space has substance and appearance.” It contains mountains, rivers and lands. In addition to this Earth, there are also other [planets]. There are infinite, countless, boundless, limitless galaxies and worlds. There are so many!
So, [empty space] truly encompasses so many things. Speaking of just the Earth alone, there are countless living creatures. Just plants alone come in countless varieties and all shapes and sizes. In fact, every object contains its own principles. All matter has its physical principles; every physical [substance] contains its own truths and principles. But tracing these [principles] back from a certain object to see what form or substance they have or what kinds of plants they encompass is actually impossible. [The principles] are infinite and boundless. So, for us humans on Earth, we find that the study of physical principles has branched into many specialized fields of study and separate categories for conducting research. There are so many categories that we are unable to keep count of them.
Just speaking of the human body alone, the human physiology and anatomy, we examine a person’s body until we find out what kind of illness they have, which organ is sick and so on.
Nowadays, whether it is physics or physiology or so on, they are all different. When we go the doctor, [we find that] there are also many different specializations. There are so many principles. How do we encompass them all? This is the nature of substances and appearances. These things are easy to see, but no matter how we categorize them, at the end of our analysis, we find that everything is empty. Whatever we can see and touch in this world invariably returns to emptiness. This is to say nothing of time, places and people. When it comes to time, seconds do not exist; seconds are gone in an instant. Naturally, hours do not exist either, nor do years. They are formed as the seconds quickly accumulate into days, months and years. We use names and numbers to define it, but what does time really look like? We use numbers to determine time. Hence, every 365 days is called a year. But this only applies to Earth. The 365-day year only applies to Earth. On other planets, such as Venus and Mars, [their years] are not 365 days; [on Mercury] a year is under 90 days. This is how their years are. If we go further out, to more distant planets a year there is over 100 of our years.
In short, this number depends on the planet and [its place] in the solar system. The number [of days] in a year is not actually anything at all. What does a year look like? A year is just a number.
By the same principle, brief microseconds are so short and fleeting that they pass us by in a flash. Our eyes cannot see the passing of a second. We cannot see it. It is the same with years; the years pass us by like this. Before we know it, a year has gone by. When it comes to little children, when a baby is born, before we know it, a year has gone by and the child can walk and sit up. We watch this child learn to roll over, sit up, crawl and walk, and this all happens in a year, before we can realize it. This is all because of time. The child will physically change and grow along with time; this is how they grow up. Everything in the world is like this. Human physiology and way of life are like this, and it is the same when it comes to plants. Where do these things grow? Along with us humans, everything grows in empty space, which contains substances and appearances. Into this space, this empty space, one by one, we are born like this.
[For example], in this family, the husband and wife have just gotten married, but after ten or twenty years, this family will grow to three, five, ten people. This is how we go from nothing to something. From a married couple of two, they start having a number of children. What about after a few decades? There will be grandchildren. This all happens within this emptiness, which contains these substances and appearances. This is true for people as well as for physical matter. Before a house is built, there is an empty plot of land. Once built, this house becomes a space. Then we decorate this space with things. We keep buying things to decorate it with. Wow! How splendid! What a large and magnificent house. Then people start to move in and keep [living there], but after a few decades, the house will also become old. This principle is the same for everything.
“Substance is impartial and all-pervasive. Appearance depends on the material.” So, all substances and appearances are like this. Originally, there was nothing there. They were all equal, all non-existent. They did not exist, but their principles did. The empty space [in this house] can be filled with things. Empty space also has its principles. This “space” is a certain size and can contain a certain amount of things. Once we define its boundaries, it will have its capacity for substance. Then, we can place certain things inside it.
This is the meaning of “substance is impartial”. We have these limitations. This is the way it is; it is all the same. We cannot say, “Inside this tiny space, I can fit so many things.” Only small things will fit into a small space while big things will fit into a big space.
This is just like how when the Buddha taught the Dharma, the Hearers could only accept what was for their own benefit. The principles that they could accept fell within this limited scope. Their hearts only had space for themselves. “I just want to stay with what I personally need. That is enough.” They were unwilling to open up a bigger space in [their hearts] to dedicate themselves [to others]. Our own hearts are like this; we also have a limit to what we can accommodate. We can only accommodate a certain amount. Depending on the capacity of our hearts, we can only take in so much Dharma, and our wisdom will only reach so far.
So, the Buddha teaches us to open our hearts and broaden their capacity. We must do this for ourselves, but we also must be able to accommodate others. These are the principles. We have a capacity for substance, and this is what it is. This is all that we can accommodate. So, there is substance and the capacity for it; this is all that it is. Even though the universe is so vast and there is so much space, when you limit it to substance and appearance, then it will have its substance and appearance. As such, it will have its boundaries.
But when we break through this [boundary], we will find that the space beyond it is so vast. [The space beyond] can be built into whatever we need. This is just like how our intrinsic nature has no bounds. It all depends on our aspirations. If we limit ourselves to the Small Vehicle, the capability of our hearts to accept [the Dharma] will likewise be [limited].
The Buddha encourages us to open our hearts to accommodate all sentient beings in the world. This is what the Buddha wants to teach us. So, as for “appearance, appearance depends on the material”. This is the nature of physical matter. So, as Buddhist practitioners, we should try to understand that so long as there is physical matter, substance and appearance, there will always be obstructions. That which has no physical matter, no substance or appearance, are the true principles. “’Space’ and ‘empty’ refer to nothingness”. This means that they have no hindrances or obstructions. This is because they have no afflictions, no afflictions or ignorance. When we eliminate our afflictions and ignorance, all of our obstructions will be gone. When we eliminate afflictions, we become empty. Emptiness is being free from afflictions.
Like space, it has no essential nature, so it has no physical limitations. Therefore, once we are also empty, we will have no obstructions. [Material objects] have mass, but our nature of True Suchness cannot be seen, nor can it be touched. If we cannot see it or touch it, then, naturally, it does not have mass. It has neither mass nor boundaries. So, we often say it is “infinite”.
That which is infinite has neither form nor mass. When we open up the boundaries of our hearts, it is the same. “Space is formless and immaterial, while emptiness is free of obstructions”. We will be free of obstructions, and because of this, we will “abide in empty space”. Earlier, we were discussing how the earth split open and [the Bodhisattvas] emerged from the ground. This is the way Bodhisattvas are. We have used the ground of the heart as a metaphor for our fundamental nature of True Suchness, our intrinsic nature. It is the ground of the heart.
The ground of the heart has no substance or appearance. When others call us “kind-hearted”, it is our behavior that is kind. What does the heart have to do with any of this? There is no ground of the heart.
So, this is just an expression. What about our behavior? This has to do with our character. This is also just an expression. Everything in the world is expressed this way. So, we have this body. “This empty space has substance and appearance”. [To say that] we have substance and appearance is an expression. In truth, that which has substance and appearance will also have its restrictions and limitations.
Since we have this body, the length of our life is limited. The substance of a material object will have limitations on its use, and its years are also limited.
I heard that in Kaohsiung there are three Bodhisattvas nicknamed “the Trio”. This time, they followed Da Ai TV staff to Singapore and Malaysia. When they arrived in Malaysia, they went to meet with local volunteers and share with them about to journey by which they formed aspirations. Da Ai TV went there to help [the locals] learn how to watch it, so everyone was supporting each other there. They had the opportunity to accompany the local volunteers to visit refugee children in schools.
As it turns out, in Malaysia, [Tzu Chi volunteers] there also look after the education of refugee children from Syria and other countries. In Malaysia, there are other international humanitarian groups and NGOs. One of the organizations collaborated with Tzu Chi to return some house so that these refugee children could go to school. [Tzu Chi volunteers] there are responsible for providing these children with what they need, as well as providing care, long term care, for these children.
I asked, “When you visited, how many children were there?” They said, “We saw two locations. In both locations, each place has about 200 children. The children are so cute! One of the locations has chairs and desks. It looks pretty good. They all dress very neatly and the children are very well-behaved”.
Then, they went to the next place, which is further away from Kuala Lumpur. This place is more strapped for resources. The children there have no chairs or tables. They sit on the ground. This place is much poorer. The children simply sit on the ground. They sit on the ground to study. The volunteers could not ear to see them like that, with their figures hunched over like that, with their figures hunched over. Fewer of them [had good posture]. The children were sitting, crouching or lying there. One of our volunteers, Mr. Pan, squatted down to talk to a child. There was a chair there, so he thought to sit down for a while. Little did he know, when the sat down the legs of the chair all broke. The whole chair was broken. The child saw this and began to mutter, “My chair is broken”. The child saw that the chair had been broken by this adult and started muttering to himself, continuously, “My chair is broken”. Our volunteer felt bad about his, so he quickly brought some candy to make it up to him.
Now, this is what I am getting at I asked him, “Why did you break the child’s chair?” Mr. Pan felt embarrassed. He said, “That chair was past its time. It was so old and fragile. Who knew that just by sitting down the whole thing would break into pieces?” This is how material objects [transform over time]. Plastic is, inherently, very strong, and plastic chairs should be very resilient. He sat down very gently, so why was it that this chair could not support an adult, but broke and split apart like this?
I said, “it must have been a small chair”. He showed it to me on his cellphone. The chair was not small. It was something that we could normally sit on. It was just that it was so old that its material structure had deteriorated and could not bear his weight. This is the cycle of formation, existence decay and disappearance. An object is “formed”. There exist a period of time where it is usable, but slowly, its material structure will decay. When the causes and conditions arise, it will be destroyed it “disappears”. This chair was completely broken to pieces. It has disappeared. Human life is the same.
Ultimately, our life will also come to an end and we die. There is birth, aging, illness and death; this is “substance”. Substance has its limits and appearances. This is the way time works. It makes our appearances go through changes, our physical appearances changes from infancy to childhood, from youth to middle age all the way up to old age, ending in death. This is because substance and appearances have their restrictions. We cannot last forever. We have our limitations and obstructions. We cannot last forever. However, our intrinsic nature is boundless. It is without substance or form. Our nature of True Suchness is everlasting. The principles are everlasting. Our physiological principles are everlasting. Everyone has these physiological principles. These principles have existed since our birth.
The desires between a man and a woman, if combined, will form a human body. These are all principles. Likewise, a seed also needs causes and conditions. When causes and conditions converge, the seed will turn into a sprout, then a sapling, then a tree, then from a small tree to a large one. The same goes for all material forms in this world, the process of growth is entirely the same. Everything has its own characteristics and appearance.
So, “each material has a different appearance”. For all things, their “appearances depends on the material”. Based on their physical characteristics, they come [to appear] like this. So, everything has different physical characteristics. Each has its own physical conditions. So, the Bodhisattvas emerged from the ground, the ground split open, and the Bodhisattvas emerged from it. “Each material has a different appearance. Amidst unconditioned Dharma, “we must practice conditioned good deeds. By the same token, because there are so many substances, appearances and material in the world, this means that the people of the world will all have their own karmic conditions. People have different physical characteristics; our bodily conditions are not the same. Some are healthy their entire lives. Even when they are one hundred years old, their bodies are still healthy.
There are some people who are weak and sickly from birth. There are people like this, too. Although we are all human, we all have different names. Everything is like this. This is not to mention that, other than humans, within this empty space, there are so many different phusical things made up of different material substances that come in so many forms and appearances.
As a matter of fact, just for humans alone their suffering is truly unbearble, and there is so much of it. We understand the principles and comprehend unconditioned Dharma. Amidst unconditioned Dharma, we must put “conditioned good deeds” into practice.
Previously, we discussed conditions good deeds and all conditioned phenomena, when it comes down to it, are like a dream and illusion, a bubble, a shadow. They are just like a dream, a bubble, a shadow. So, they are “like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow. In this Saha World of ours, on this earth, when we are about to pass 100 years, in Trayastrimsa Heaven, not even a single day has gone by. So, everything we do in this world and everything grows here is very illusory from the perspective of Trayastrimsa Heaven. As for Tusita Heaven, it is even more illusory in Tusita Heaven one of our years is equal to one second there. [It passes] very quickly, in just a second.
For us, that would be an entire year. So, all in all, when we compare our world to other worlds, such as the Buddha’s world, our world clearly is like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow. Our lives are very short.
So, when it comes to unconditioned Dharma awakened beings can already see the unconditioned Dharma. They have returned to their awakened nature, the unconditioned Dharma. However, within this awakening, they go among people to walk the Bodhisattva-path. The world is full of suffering. So, amidst unconditioned Dharma, we must practice conditioned good deeds”. “Unconditioned” means non-arising and non-ceasing. There is a lot of it. We must understand this very clearly. We must understand that although what we seek is liberation, we must go among people and take action. This is true liberation.
Many previous sutra passage mention time and numbers. We must seek to understand this. The precious sutra passage says, “There were also those who were alone, who took joy in the practice of distancing themselves than what any calation or analogy could make known.
[The sutra] uses many [numbers], including the sands of 60,000 Ganges Rivers. If we were to reduce [this number], even if we were to reduce it greatly and use this as a comparison, it would still be limitless and boundless. We would still be unable to comprehend that number.
“Neither a mathematician nor a mathematician’s disciples would be able to know the exact number. This refers to Great Unhindered Buddha’s [era] in the Chapter on the Parable of the Conjured City. This was what we were told before.
So, the next sutra passage continues, “After these Bodhisattvas had emerged from the ground, they each went to the wondrous stupa of Seven Treasures in empty space where Many Treasures Tathagata and Sakyamuni Buddha were.
We must clearly understand that “these” Bodhisattvas came “from below,” emerging from the split ground. Everyone should remember this image. “As to the place where the Bodhisattvas abided, they neither abided here nor there. They abided in empty space.
After these Bodhisattvas had emerged from the ground: from below, the ground split open and they emerged. As to the place where the Bhdhisattvas abided, they neither abided here nor there. They emerged into this world but abided neither above nor below it. They fully abided in the Middle Way.
So, “They emerged into this world but abided neither above [nor below it]”. They emerged from the ground. They did not abide above it nor below it. So, they abided neither here nor there. “They fully abided in the Middle Way.” They did not deviate. They were neither high nor low and did not deviate to the left or right. They abided in the Middle Way. As Buddhist practitioners, we should learn the Middle Way. We do not abide in complete emptiness, where everything is empty and there is nothing we need to do. No. We abide in “the wondrous existence in emptiness”.
Abiding in unconditioned [Dharma], we must go further to do “conditioned good deeds”. This is called the Middle Way. So, “They each went to the wondrous stupa of Seven Treasures in empty space”. Now, we must recall how they emerged from the ground in that place and “each went to the wondrous stupa of Seven Treasures in empty space”.
Do we all remember this? In the Chapter on Seeing the Stupa of Treasures, [the stupa] also emerged from the ground and abided in empty space. Let’s look back again to the Chapter on Seeing the Stupa of Treasures. “The stupa of Many Treasures Buddha abided in empty space. Bodhisattvas came from afar, wishing to see the Buddhas. They all went to where the stupa of Seven Treasures was in empty space”. These Bodhisattvas had come there emerging from the ground. The stupa of treasures had also emerged from the east and had risen up into empty space. If we still remember this part of the sutra, [we will remember how] the Buddha also summoned many bodhisattvas and His multiple manifestations.
Everyone should remember this passage clearly. [They went to] where Many Treasures Tathagata and Sakyamuni Buddha were”. They went to Vulture Peak, where Many Treasures Buddha’s stupa had risen into the sky. These Bodhisattvas had emerged from the ground and were now at this place.
They went to where Many Treasures Tathagata and Sakyamuni Buddha were: Sakyamuni Tathagata and Many Treasures Tathagata were the two Buddhas in Many Treasures’ stupa. [They came] to see the two World-Honored Ones.
“Sakyamuni Tathagata and Many Treasures Tathagata,” the two Buddhas, were inside the stupa. These Bodhisattvas had come to see Them. Let us recall this again.
In the Chapter on Seeing the Stupa of Treasures, [it said,] “At that time, the Buddha told Great Joyful Eloquence Bodhisattva,” “‘In this sutpa of treasures is the entire body of the Tathagata from long ago, from infinite trillions of asankyas of worlds to the East. His land was called Treasure Purity. In that land, there was a Buddha with the epithet of Many Treasures when that Buddha was practicing the Bodhsiattva-path, He made a great vow.”’ “’“After I attain Bdudhahood and enter Patinirvana, in the lands of the ten directions, wherever the Lotus Sutra is taught, my stupa, for the sake of those who listen to this sutra, will emerge before them to stand as testimony.”’” “’”In praise, I will say, ‘excellent!”””
Everyone should remember this. This is how Sakyamuni Buddha introduced Many Treasures Buddha. In a far-off, distant kalpa, there was a Buddha in a world to the east named Many Treasures. In His past journey of spiritual practice, He made such a vow. He asked that [His disciples] would build a stupa for Him and place His entire body inside. Wherever the Lotus Sutra is taught, [He vowed] to go to that place and manifest the stupa of treasures to bear witness to the Buddha teaching the Lotus Sutra. When Sakyamuni Buddha came to the Saha World and finally expounded the Lotus Sutra, because of this, Many Treasures Buddha, in accordance with His vow, manifested [in His stupa] at Vulture Peak and floated up into the sky to meet with Sakyamuni Buddha. His great voice emerged from the stupa of treasures Sakyamuni Buddha opened the door of the stupa and entered the stupa of treasures. Many Treasures Buddha yielded His seat to Sakyamuni Buddha. So, we can see that there were two Buddhas inside the stupa of treasures. We have read and understood this passage before.
So, in that section of the Chapter on Seeing the Stupa of Treasures, Sakyamuni Buddha, after Many Treasures Buddha’s stupa appeared, “used His spiritual power to thrice transform the defiled lands into pure lands”. Everyone should remember that in that place, the Buddha thrice transformed the defiled lands into pure lands.
“He first transformed the Saha World. Next, He transformed 200 trillion nayutas of lands and then transformed another 200 trillion nayutas of lands [into pure lands]”. He constantly expanded [these transformations] in order to accommodate His many manifestations. So, He had to make His [space] bigger and bigger. This represents how when people were Hearers in the past, they practiced the Small Vehicle teachings, and when they were Solitary Realizers, they also sought only to benefit themselves. The Buddha taught them throughout the past until everyone understood that they must form great aspirations. So, they formed great aspirations, dignifying this great Dharma-assembly. The same thing goes for the [Bodhisattvas]; they also came to dignify the Dharma-assembly. During the Chapter on Seeing the Stupa of Treasures, we explained all of this. So, we should mindfully seek to understand this.
“Once they arrived” means that they had arrived. The Bodhisattvas had emerged from the ground. They did not abide anywhere, neither above nor below, but within empty space. Our Bodhisattvas had emerged. So, when they arrived at Vulture Peak, they intended to see the two Buddhas.
Once they arrived, they prostrated to the two World-Honored Ones with their heads at Their feet. Then they went to the lion’s thrones beneath the trees of treasure where the Buddhas were and also paid their respects to all of Them.
“Once they arrived” at the Vulture Peak and the stupa of treasures in the sky, everyone was already there at this great assembly. They had all arrived. “They prostrated to the two World-Honored Ones with their heads at Their feet.” They prostrated to the two Buddhas, Many Treasures Buddha and Sakyamuni Buddha, and began to pay their respects.
Once they arrived, they prostrated to the two World-Honored Ones they prostrated to the two World-Honored Ones with their heads at Their feet: After those Bodhisattvas had arrived, with reverence in body and mind, they paid their respects to the two World-Honored Ones.
This was the etiquette of those Bodhisattvas. Everyone had arrived. Once they arrived, they had to go to the spiritual ground of the Buddha. The Buddha’s spiritual ground was still at Vulture Peak, inside the stupa of treasures. So, these Bodhisattvas prostrated at the feet of the two World-Honored ones. There were also the Buddha’s many manifestations. If we still remember the Chapter on Seeing the Stupa of Treasures, [the manifestations] paid their respects to Them, one by one, according to etiquette “Once they arrived, they prostrated to the two World-Honored Ones with their heads at Their feet”. This means that all the Bodhisattvas had arrived. These Bodhisattvas had “reverence in body and mind”. They were very reverent in body and mind. In this way, “They paid their respects to the two World-Honored Ones”. Then they went to the lion’s thrones beneath the trees of treasures where the Buddha were and also paid their respects to all of Them”. This is because in the Chapter on. Seeing the Stupa of Treasures, Sakyamuni Buddha’s manifestations had arrived. So, these Bodhisattvas prostrated to them, one by one, in the same way.
Then they went to the lion’s thrones beneath the trees of treasures where the Buddhas were and also paid their respects to all of Them: They made their rounds to pay respect in sequence. Having paid their respects to Many Treasures Buddha and Sakyamuni Buddha, they made their rounds, paying their respects to each of the Buddha’s multiple manifestations. This shows the manifold etiquette of the Buddhas. They were replete with the essence of the principles, teachings and practices.
They made their rounds, paying their respects in sequence. This is established custom. So, having paid their respects to Many Treasures Buddha, Sakyamuni Buddha and all the Buddha’s multiple manifestations, they circumambulated in that place. They circled around, paying their respects. “This shows the manifold etiquette of the Buddhas”. There are many etiquettes in Buddhism. “Propriety“ is “the principles”. “Through propriety, we manifest the principles”. This means that propriety embodies the principles. When the Bodhisattvas gathered around, they had to follow these principles. They had to pay their respects in this way. “They were replete with the essence of the principles, teachings and practices”. They were replete with the essence of the principles, teachings and practices. This is what we Buddhist practitioners must learn. Once we attain the principles, we must carry out the proper etiquette. Learned people have an even greater need for propriety. They must be elegant and refined. Learned people must be more capable of teaching the principles. They must be able to teach. Not only must they teach, they also need demonstrate the principles through practice. This is what we must understand. The Lotus Sutra is a continuous whole, divided into chapters.
I keep telling everyone that we must be able to remember it, recall it. Once we listen to it, we must go back [ and refresh our memory] to be able to fully understand the principles. We are on the 15th chapter right now, the Chapter on Emerging from the Ground. We must revisit the 11th chapter, the Chapter on Seeing the Stupa of Treasures. This is because that Dharma-assembly represents the magnificence of the ground of our mind. When Sakyamuni taught the Dharma, Many Treasures Buddha came to bear witness. Furthermore, Many Treasures Buddha came to put His vow into practice.
In the Chapter on the Practice of Bringing. Peace and Joy, the Four Practices, the Four Practices of Bringing Peace and Joy, are inseparable from our body, speech, mind and vows. Making vows is very important. When we use our body, speech and mind to practice conditioned phenomena, this all leads us back to the unconditioned Dharma. The unconditioned Dharma lies in making vows which lead us back to our nature of Ture Suchness. This is just like Many Treasures Buddha. Sakyamuni Buddha had manifested in this world, but even though Many Treasures Buddha had attained Buddhahood so long ago, still the power of His vows brought him back to the Saha World. He came with His stupa of treasures to speak and bear witness. Emerging from the ground represents the “ground of the mind”.
Truly, our ground of the mind will always be able accommodate so much, will always be able to accommodate so much, an infinite amount. Sakyamuni Buddha had also gathered all His many manifestations. This represents the “myriad phenomena”. The Dharma is infinite, like the sands of the Ganges River. We can encapsulate these many phenomena with the principles. Infinite and boundless, they all return to one. This requires everyone to be very mindful. We must mindfully engage in contemplation in order to understand how to bring the “intrinsic” and the “manifest” into harmony. We must always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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