Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Four Immeasurables and the Six Perfections (四心六度)
Every day, I seem to be saying the same things, but have you all taken in what I have said? Have you instilled these principles in your mind and practiced them in your daily living? If we take the teachings to heart we can have a better understanding of this world. When we practice these principles, we can further develop our Wisdom-life.
In learning Buddhism, we must rely on Buddha-Dharma, follow the Buddha’s teachings in accordance with the sequence He outlined, and make the most of them by practicing them.
In the passage of the Repentance Text about developing Bodhicitta, we realize that we must “take joy in the Buddha-body.” Since we are learning Buddha’s way, with respect to the Buddha, we should give rise to a joyous heart. Buddha-body refers to His Dharma-body, which is also the wisdom of infinite merit and virtue. Fellow practitioners, I think this is very important. As we seek Dharma, if we neglect the pursuit of infinite wisdom, merits, and virtues, then there is nothing else worth learning. Therefore, we must pursue our goals with infinite wisdom, merits & virtues. What exactly are we pursuing? We pursue the 4 infinite Minds or 4 Immeasurables, the 6 Paramitas, and also the 37 Practices to Enlightenment.
The 4 Immeasurables are very simple. In Tzu Chi, we all understand and diligently cultivate the 4 Infinite Minds. Tzu Chi’s Four Missions stem from the Four Infinite Minds. Take the Mission of Charity for example. The Buddha taught us to give? To give and provide relief is loving-kindness. Loving-kindness is infinite. The process of providing relief is arduous. We must educate the rich in order to help the poor. If we do not educate the rich, how can we give to those in need? We need people to awaken the love in their hearts and contribute their worldly so we will have the means to do charity and relief work.
Many wealthy people in the world are unhappy, anxious, and miserable. They are anxious and worried about losing what they have. Worries about loss increase with the increase in status, fame, and wealth. Dwelling on loss creates great fear. There are also those who seek to attain things. Therefore, they act unscrupulously do ruthless and harmful things. Which are morally wrong, all in the pursuit of gains. But what do they really gain? What do they really lose? Ordinary people cannot realize the impermanent nature of fame, wealth, and material goods, so they worry about gains & losses.
Some people work hard and perform backbreaking labor because they are always worried about not having work. This is worry about gains “Today’s work is finished but will there be work tomorrow?” They fret about this. Such worries about gains and losses are also a form of affliction. So we do not just teach those who are materially rich. If people lose their material wealth and are filled with worry, we can inspire them to contribute their strength toward doing good deeds.
In Tzu Chi, we see many who are wealthy and spiritually rich, and many who are poor yet spiritually rich. I often watch our TV program, “Grassroots Bodhi” on recycling volunteers. I’m filled with joy looking at what they have accomplished. They can protect the Earth, sell the recyclables for money, and use the money to support Da Ai TV. Such acts connect them to people around the world. The programs are broadcast in various countries. When people watch Da Ai TV, their minds become open and understanding and they will experience true joy. Those who are unhappy can turn their life into a happy one. The recycling volunteers are not wealthy, but they are willing to give. Some are in poor health, but they willingly bear the pain to do the work. In the midst of difficult living conditions and physical pain, they still make time to do volunteer work. Even without material wealth or good health, they still contribute as much as anyone else, and experience great happiness. This is called loving-kindness. Teaching spiritual wealth with loving-kindness awakens the abundant love in people’s minds. To teach spiritual wealth is to awaken everyone’s love so that everyone can contribute their share in charity work. Some give money, others give time and energy, so everyone can experience the joy of giving. This is teaching loving-kindness.
Inspire the love in the hearts of others. Allow everyone to feel fortunate and happy. This is Great Loving-kindness.
Compassion is about relieving suffering. The greatest suffering in life comes from illness. This is what we learn from the Mission of Medicine. Look at the patients, they are indeed suffering. In life, illness causes the greatest suffering. However, with good medical treatment and a good medical team, patients can be relieved from this pain.
In the Tzu Chi Hospital in Hualien, a 31-year-old man from Taitung suddenly passed away. His family was willing to donate his organs. When we received this news, we immediately looked for appropriate recipients. We found a Mr. Zhang in Caotun, around Taichung, who was a match. When we asked him, “Are you willing to accept this liver?” he was overjoyed and consented. He was willing to fly to Hualien immediately. Even though the weather was unstable, he was still willing to do so, for it was a rare and precious opportunity.
Since he was willing and on his way, our doctor set off immediately to Taitung to retrieve the liver. When the doctor returned, he was happy to see the patient and quickly prepared him for surgery. The surgery took around 20 hours. The liver of the 31-year-old donor was healthy. It was placed into a nearly 50-year-old man. The diseased liver, which had turned black, was replaced with a healthy pink liver. Although the surgery lasted almost 20 hours, it was a success and the patient was sent to the Intensive Care Unit. Within a day, some of the tubes in his body could be removed. With a healthy liver in his body, his kidneys began to function normally. Seeing that his waste discharges appeared normal, the doctors decided to remove his tubes. He was transferred out of ICU on the third day. He was very happy and recovered very quickly.
The patient, Mr. Chang, was more than grateful. He said, “Aside from being grateful for these excellent medical facilities, I am also grateful for the medical team who worked to save my life” Furthermore, he knew that his body was infused with more than 10 liters of blood. He said, “If one person donates 250 cc of blood, 10 liters had to come from over 40 donors. So many people donated blood for me. Perhaps I will walk past one of them on the street.”
Indeed, between human beings there are many such things that can be shared I may have your blood flowing in my veins, or you may have my bone marrow in your body. With the advancements in medicine, with good facilities and equipment, and with good doctors and medical personnel, we can quickly save people. So medical care can save lives. Sometimes saving one life is equal to saving a whole family.
After Mr. Zhang had his surgery, his mother brought a lot of luggage with her because she wanted to accompany her son. She thought he might have a long convalescence. When she arrived, her son could already talk and was recovering well. The doctor said that he should be discharged in a week. The mother was put at ease. Mr. Zhang also has a wife and children. He himself worked at a medical facility. He still had a lot to contribute to society. For such a life to be saved depends on the convergence of many causes and conditions. The purpose of medical care is to save lives and relieve suffering. This requires the love of many people. This is called Great Compassion.
Realize the interconnectedness of all living beings. So your best to relieve the suffering of others. This is Great Compassion.
Great joy is our Mission of Culture. See how our cultural efforts have expanded from paper publishing to multimedia that can reach the whole world in an instant. We can see the whole world from Taiwan. We get a lot of information from television. News of what we do in Taiwan can also spread quickly around the world. I have heard of people who were depressed, afflicted, and even contemplating suicide, who came to that senses after watching Da Ai TV. They sought out Tzu chi and began contributing to others, so now they lead happy and meaningful lives. There are many such cases that were reported back to us. The programs awaken people’s minds and transform their afflictions into joy and peace. This is the Mission of Culture.
Transform and eliminate afflictions, so you can evoke appreciation and joy in others, this is called Great Joy.
As for our Mission of Education, when we see children grow up one by one and become accomplished, we realize that the hope of society lies in education. The future of each person also lies in education. Individuals, families, all need education. Teaching requires giving providing education is indeed a difficult mission.
Give unconditionally to others. This is Great Giving in Equanimity.
Tzu Chi’s Four Missions encompass loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity. Our actions must arise from these 4 sentiments. These are the 4 Infinite Minds. We must have Infinite Loving-kindness. Infinite Compassion, Infinite Joy, and Infinite Equanimity with these 4 Immeasuables, we practice the 6 Paramitas, which are Giving, Uphold Precepts, Patience, Diligence, Samadhi, and Wisdom. The 4 Immeasurable and the 6 Perfections comprise the right path for learning the Bodhisattva’s ways.
We must practice on this proper path. We have already discussed actualizing the Six Perfections in myriad actions. The 6 Perfections includes Giving, Upholding Precepts, Patience, Diligence. The 6 Perfections have many supporting practices and can be expanded to many actions. All Buddha-dharma is encompassed in the 4 Immeasuables and the 6 Perfections. If we can internalize the 4 Immeasuables and practice the six Paramitas at all times this encompasses all the teachings found in the Buddha-Dharma and in the Sutras. Learning Buddhism need not be complicated. It can really be quite simple. With assistance from the 37 Practices to Enlightenment, we will strengthen our will to practice. When we deal with people, matters, and conditions, we can use the 37 Practices to Enlightenment to constantly heighten our vigilance. If we can do this, walking the Bodhisattva-path will not be difficult. It will be an easy journey.
So we must use a simple mind to learn Buddhism. But we need genuine and pure faith to believe, accept, and practice Buddha’s teachings. We must follow the teachings with simple and innocent minds. The 4 Immeasuables, the 6 Perfections, and the 37 Practices to Enlightenment should be applied to our daily living. I have made these points repeatedly. But everyone must remember this: is this repetition having an impact on us? So everyone, please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水).
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