Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Six Practices: Ten Dedications Part 10(六行~十回向行十)
Our surroundings are very serene. Is our True Nature just as tranquil and clear? This is a most wondrous state.
Our minds and environment are serene, so we can experience an ocean of perfect nature. So in learning Buddhism, we progress step by step. We must transcend mundane desires and worldly cravings, and head toward a broad spacious world – our own nature. We can return to our innate True Nature.
True Nature is boundless. It can accommodate everything. The mind is also all-encompassing and boundless. We must broaden our minds so they can encompass the universe. We cannot overstate the capacity of our minds. Our minds must extend love to wherever there is dirt or sand. They should be boundless as the universe.
To where should we extend our love? To every corner of the universe. It should be all-encompassing. If we can return to our True Nature, how pure and open will our minds be? “The mind is equal to the Dharma-realm and as all-encompassing.” Our minds must be equal to the Dharma-realm, be as all-encompassing and vast. Thus, “vast as the universe boundless dedication equal to the Dharma-realm” is the tenth Dedication.
Tenth of the Practice of Ten Dedications: The ocean of perfect nature, the mind equal to the Dharma-realm is all-encompassing and vast. This is boundless Dedication equal to the Dharma-realm.
We have reached the tenth Dedication so our True Nature must be equal to the Dharma-realm. To be equal is to be as vast. However vast the Dharma-realm is, so must our True Nature be. Haven’t we often said, our mind, Buddha and sentient beings are the same? Dedication to the vast Dharma-realm teaches us to open our minds wide. Then we can realize our original nature.
We talk about practicing to bear fruits or rewards. So how do we practice? We say, “Humble yourself and accommodate others.” We should start our practice from right here. We must work on ourselves. How do we do so? What do we work on? We should constantly shrink our egos and humble ourselves. We should never be arrogant, or think that everything is about us. If w are pompous, no one can stand us. Therefore, we must work hard on being humble. Doing so, we can move around the world freely and positively influence everyone’s mind.
How small do we need to be? Small enough to enter their eyes without causing any irritation, and to stay in their minds. If we are welcome in their thoughts, we have also entered their hearts. So we must be humble. Practicing humility sounds easy but it takes a lot of effort. We must truly remain humble, modest and self-effacing.
We must also be courteous. Courtesy and manners can open up the world for us. It is a virtue. In practicing to obtain merits and virtues, we reap what we sow. So when we practice, we must make and effort. Virtue is the fruit of our labors. Virtuous efforts are appreciated by others. That is “realizing the fruits of virtue.” “True Suchness is perfect and all-encompassing.” Our minds and behavior must be one. We must be humble and courteous. What an open mind, we can embrace and accommodate everything. Such an accommodating mind is the principle of True Suchness. Thus, our minds can be all-encompassing. To encompass the Dharma-realm is to encompass the universe, the boundless realm. Sometimes a few words can carry deep meaning.
So, “it is without external limits” describes the boundless Dharma-realm and the Ten Realms we have spoken about. I have said The Ten Realms are the Four Sages and Six Ordinary Beings. The Four Sages are Buddha, Bodhisattva, Pratyekabuddha and Sravaka. Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are Mahayana practitioners. They benefit themselves and others, and transform themselves as well as others. This is Mahayana, the Great Vehicle. Sravaka and Pratyekabuddha practice Small Vehicle. They only benefit themselves and purify their own worlds. Nonetheless, they have transcended the mundane, so they are called sages. These are the Four Sages.
The Six Ordinary Beings are: Heavenly Beings, Human, Asura, Hell Beings, Hungry Ghost, Animal. These are the Six Ordinary Beings. They cannot control their own destinies. The realms of the Four Sages are distinct. But the Six Ordinary Beings exist in the mix of the Five Destinies: Heaven, Human, Hell, Hungry Ghost, and Animal.
Each type has its own realm. Heavenly beings enjoy luxuries. Many religions pronounce that if people do good deeds, they will ascend to the Heaven Realm. If they do bad deeds, they may or may not return to the Human Realm. When a heavenly beings life ends, he may not necessarily be reborn as human. According to Humanistic Buddhism, the Ten Realms are also within the human world.
The Ten Realms:
Four Sages : Buddha, Bodhisattva, Pratyekabuddha, and Sravaka.
Six Ordinary Beings: Heavenly being, Human, Asura, Hell Being, Hungry Ghost, and Animal.
If we can know Buddha in our practice, we can vow to emulate Him.The Buddha is equal to us. Our minds, the Buddha’s mind and sentient beings’ minds were originally one. Buddha continued to return to the Human Realm, which is the Saha world to teach and transform people. This is the mind of the Buddha. If our minds become like the Buddha’s then we have regained our innate nature and are in a world equal to His, especially if we transform others through the Great Vehicle. If we vow to have Buddha-mind and attain enlightenment, we must also practice the Buddha’s teachings. The Buddha taught us that to attain Buddhahood, we must vow to walk on the Bodhisattva-path. He inspired us to start on that path. We must be considerate of sentient beings. We cannot bear to let them suffer.
Doing so, our minds and our Tathagata-nature traverse the Bodhisattva-world. If we cannot make a great vow to benefit ourselves and transform others, we should, at least, try to study and future understand the Buddha-Dharma. You have often heard me say that Earth-shattering disasters must lead to world-awakening realizations. Have we realized that? We often hear “Life is impermanent, the land is fragile.” Are we vigilant? Will we have a few more decades to focus on our spiritual practice? Will we? The Buddha said life is impermanent. We never know if we will live to see tomorrow. Tzu Chi members often repeat this to each other. So we all know about impermanence. We must always be vigilant and aware of it.
If we keep putting things off until tomorrow or the next year, we are not diligent. Everything depends on causes and conditions. When a patient comes to the emergency room, every second counts. Life passes away be the second. If we do not rush to save him, he could die. Since we understand this, we must quickly make a vow and then taken action, so we practice what we have heard. After we hear Dharma, we must become aware and then move forward. This is how we walk the Bodhisattva-path and transform ourselves and others.
To attain Buddhahood, one must walk the Bodhisattva-path. One does not do so through words, but through vows and diligent action.
So, we must understand Buddha-mind and vow to walk the Bodhisattvas-path. Thus, to reach the realm of the Four Sages, we must practice in the Human Realm. We do not need to wonder what the Buddha’s world is like, or what the Bodhisattva’s world is like. We are living in the human world. The Realms of the Four Sages are actually within human world. We can reach that state; it is not far. It depends on how we live our lives.
If our mindset is correct, our environment will be as well. That is the practice of the Four Sages. My teacher, Venerable Master Yin-Shun, also said that Dharma cannot be separated from the here and now. It is our world, our environment and the people: you, me, everyone here. Therefore, I often say, “Dharma pervades time, space and relationships.” They are all part of the Ultimate Reality.
My teacher also said, “First purify the mind. Benefitting others is supreme.” The most important part of practice is to purity our minds. Our minds cannot be defiled. Our innate nature was pure. A pure mind is our innate Tathagata-nature. In Beginningless Time, ignorance arose from one delusional thought. It created the Three Subtleties. The effects of a little ignorance can grow into something big.
The most important part of important part of spiritual practice is purifying our minds. Everyone has a pure innate Tathagata-nature. An ignorant thought results in uncontrollable effects.
I have spoken of hurricanes forming on the surface of the ocean. In the beginning, perhaps it looks like a bit of form on the waves. Combined with factors like climate and air pressure, it can slowly evolve into a weak, medium, into a weak, medium, or strong hurricane. The sea of our minds is the same. It was calm and quiet. Our innate nature was calm and quiet like the sea. But the sea was stirred up by other conditions and became uncontrollable.
Venerable Yin-Shun taught the Dharma that validates the Buddha’s original teachings. He evidenced teachings over 2000 years old with current examples. Many teachers have studied and validated the Dharma through their spiritual cultivation, so the Dharma is now accessible. My teacher, Venerable Master Yin-Shin, said it this way, and his voice still lingers in our ears, “Practice Dharma here, now, with this person.” He constantly reminded us to, “first purify the mind. Benefitting others is supreme.” That is how we learn Buddhism and return to our pure innate nature.
Therefore, our pure nature is like a mirror. If we wipe it clean, it clearly reflects all conditions. In summary, the world of our minds is just like a mirror. It is clean, but if you tarnish it, the world will be blurred. Thus, We learn Buddhism to learn to clean our mind’s mirror. When our minds are pure and clear, we naturally act to benefit others.
Everyone, it is quite easy to learn Buddhism. Once we are awakened we can realize everything. So, everyone always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)