Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: Spiritual Viruses(心靈的病毒)
As we mentioned last time, wrongdoings arise from the Threefold Karma. Due to the Six Roots or external conditions our minds create defiled attachments, causing the Ten Evils to continuously proliferate.
External conditions can defile our minds. Our minds, in response to external conditions, will give rise to greed, anger and ignorance. When those thoughts arise, the Seven Branches of Body and Speech will move, resulting in killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lies, flattery, gossip, harsh words, etc. These seven acts follow thoughts of greed, anger, and ignorance. We have spoken about this earlier. This is how we commit the Ten Evils.
The Ten Evil Karma:
Body: killing, stealing, sexual misconduct
Speech: harsh words, lies, flattery, gossip
Mind: greed, anger, ignorance
This Ten Evils are just the broad categories. They can be further broken down into many detailed and subtle evil actions. We accumulate karma from more than these Ten Evils. The text indicates, “the Ten Evils will continuously proliferate into the 84,000 types of defilement." Due to these defilements in the mind, the Ten Evils arise. From the Ten Evils, we continuously commit evils in a myriad of subtle forms. We can sum them up into 84,000 acts.
There are many ways to create defilements. Defilements are afflictions. Afflictions multiply unceasingly, they expand from 3 to 10, then to 84,000. Actually, the number 84,000 simply signifies a very large figure. In ancient India, to convey “numerous” they used the term 84,000. For example, the Earth Treasury Sutra refers to 84,000 Kalpas, 84,000 grains of sand in the Ganges. The number 84,000 is used in many places.
I often say that afflictions are like viruses of the mind. The Buddha said there are three or five poisons of the mind. The Three Poisons are greed, anger and ignorance. You add two more for the Five Poisons: arrogance and doubt.
Greed, anger, ignorance, and doubt are afflictions we all have in our minds. When these afflictions arise, through our actions, speech & thoughts we create immeasurable boundless bad karma. For instance, in the heat of the moment, we may have said something we should not have. But after we said it, we were reluctant to admit our mistakes and unwilling to repent. But we clearly know that we were wrong.
What should we do if we said something wrong? Inside, we are very upset about our mistake. That affliction keeps churning in our minds but we refuse to tell someone, “I was rash. What I said was really wrong.” Sometimes, what we have said has already created many afflictions. Then our minds continuously multiply those afflictions.
This is how we humans are. Some commit offenses intentionally, others commit them unintentionally. They keep hiding and covering up their deeds. This is the way of ordinary people. This is all continuously created by our minds. So the Buddha told us that illnesses of the mind come from the Three Poisons or the Five Poisons.
I often think, aren’t these poisons just like viruses today? We often talk about illnesses in the mind. What makes the mind ill? The unceasing accumulation of afflictions. So illnesses in the mind come from the multiplication of afflictions, just like viral replication.
Look at how viruses spread. As medical technology advances, research has been done continuously. We were able learn how viruses come about, how many complicated germs there are in a human body, how the germs cross and combine to create different viruses, and how viruses cross between humans and animals to create other types of viruses. The virus is such a tiny particle, yet it multiples and spreads quickly.
As we have heard previously if we culture bacteria from drops of our saliva, they can grow to colonies of over 100 million. This process can result in innumerable countless numbers of viruses. See, this is the microbiological perspective of viruses.
Aren’t the tiny, subtle afflictions in our minds just like these viruses? How do we prevent such illness in our lives? How do we maintain physical and mental health? We must begin with our minds. If these five types of viruses greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt, are always present in our minds, we will also affect other people. Their perspectives will be infected by our five types of viruses. Look at our interactions with others.
If we spend time with people who create disputes, very soon we will also become a source of conflict. If we spend time with good people, if we spend time wise people, we become the wise people who stop conflicts. If conflicts are brought to this group of wise people, they will be understanding and gradually teach us how to accommodating, be content with our circumstances, and be grateful. Such is the way of the wise.
Then our greed, anger, ignorance will naturally be eliminated. So do not harbor these illnesses, the Five or Three Poisons, in the mind.
Always make friends with wise people. Apply wisdom to treat the Five Poisons, so you will not become the source of spiritual viruses.
If we physically contract viruses, the worst case scenario is that we die after a few days. We, as an individual, die within a few days and this life is over. Spiritual viruses, however, do not simply disappear at the end of a life. These viruses of the mind, greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt, collectively generate innumerable bad karma. When we leave this world, the only thing we take with us is karma. We bring along these poisons, these afflictions that our minds have continuously produced. How many are there? 84,000. Life after life, we continuously produced afflictions and take them with us.
So the Buddha told us, when this evil, turbid world is in the Era of Dharma Decay Dharma is at the farthest end of people’s minds. You may think, “How can that be? It is very easy to read Sutras now. The Canon is widely available, and not just in print. They can all fit on a single computer disc. If we want to read a certain sutra or find a certain dictionary, we can do so quickly and easily.” It is very easy. However, are we truly respectful in our hearts? There is an abundance of the Canon in print. Not only are hard copies available, but with technological advances, we can conveniently carry it all on a disc and refer to it anywhere we go.
But how do we refer to it? We need tools. Some treat Dharma as a tool. They expound it to show how much they know. Even if they have a good understanding, how much do they actually practice? This is the Dharma not abiding in the mind.
In our spiritual practice are we following the rules, upholding the precepts and practicing accordingly? Are lay practitioners abiding by the Five Precepts and the Ten Good Deeds? Are we monastic practitioners following the prescribed regulations and abiding by ethics, morality, etiquette, etc? Only we know the answer.
Those who are aware will quickly self-reflect and correct their mistakes. It is not too late. We are ill but we have found the medicine, we have found Dharma. If we have Dharma in our minds, then no matter how many afflictions we have had, Dharma can gradually penetrate our minds. If external phenomena can penetrate our minds, why can’t Dharma also do so, little by little?
Our minds are easily defiled by interpersonal conflicts and afflictions. Whether they are real or illusory, we turn them into real afflictions in our minds. It is often said: “One man’s lie 10,000 people’s truth”. One person says something ambiguous and then rumors start flying. It poisons and afflicts so many people. This becomes a spiritual defilement. The person was unclear the facts, so he unwittingly and unintentionally misspoke. But this mistake turned into a rumor. After we learn Buddhism, we know that external conditions are merely conditions that we come into contact with. After those conditions pass nothing should remain in our minds.
But one important thing should remain in our minds at all times--Dharma-Water. Dharma is like sweet dew, it washes away the afflictions in our minds. Every day when we wake up in the morning, we should treat it as a brand new day. Whether we hear the Sutra recitation or read the text, we pour it into our minds. Constantly self-reflect with a pure mind and restore your vows to learn and practice Dharma.
By doing this through the day, we are using Dharma-water to cure the illnesses in our minds. If we do not thoroughly heal ourselves with Dharma-water, these viruses will continuously multiply. Life after life, our karma will grow. The collective karma of sentient beings comes from what all of us are continuously producing. When our afflictions continue to interact, this type of karma grows in strength, just like viruses. When viruses cross and reproduce, they become more virulent.
Greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt are like viruses that invade the human mind and bring an unending stream of 84,000 afflictions. Only when Dharma-water enters the mind can we wash them away.
When we see any reference to 84,000 afflictions, we consider whether the Buddha was referring to how each of us, every second of every day, is constantly reproducing afflictions. Everyone, if this is true, we need to be highly aware of our every thought, in every second. This is why I tell you, “Seize this moment maintain the resolve forever”.
This Truth can cure our illness. If we are producing afflictions in every second of every day, our practice should be to seize this very moment to quickly do what we need to do and change what needs to be changed. If we wish to transform our hearts, we must firmly hold on to our resolution, to the vow we make now. If we can hold on to this vow, we will stop producing unwholesome thoughts.
So how can we immunize the mind illnesses? By always taking good care of it. As I said in the beginning, Dharma needs to thoroughly penetrate our hearts, bit by bit. Only then can we constantly be filled with Dharma-joy. So everyone, please always be mindful.
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