Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: Unconditional Understanding (善解寬容無所求)
Every day we must diligently guard our minds to keep them pure and undefiled. Pure love is being understanding, accommodating, content, and without desires. If we can always maintain this purity, not be polluted by the world and maintain our innate clean and loving state of mind, we can be understanding of all things, accommodate all people and always feel content. Then we can live in freedom and happiness, with nothing restricting us.
But ordinary people are narrow-minded; we cannot see the good in others, cannot tolerate others’ joy and success. The repentance text indicates, “Envy leads to the karma of no transformation. With discrimination based on love and hate we create karma of no impartiality. Attachment to desire is karma of no-renunciation.” If our mind is narrow, it is easy to create karma. Which karma? Envy. Envy is jealousy of others’ virtues and abilities. Seeing excellence in others, we become unhappy. Seeing those with great ability, we become afflicted. We should have a broad mind.
We should emulate the virtuous. Seeing excellence in people, we should be joyful for them. We should learn from them, learn how they are able to excel, how they win others’ hearts, and why everyone has so much respect for them. We should learn this.
I often say the phrase, “Emulate the virtuous.” We should even be happy for those who are complacent and at ease because of their talents. If we hear of someone who passed an exam, and got into the best schools, we should congratulate his family on this achievement. We shouldn’t think, “It should have been my son accepted to that school,” and become unhappy. That is envy of ability.
“I pushed so hard to get that job. That job should have been mine. Why did he end up with that job? Why do others earn money instead of me?” In the same way we become unhappy.
We should say, “Congratulations! You were able to get this work. You should do a good job. If you need my help, feel free to tell me. I will definitely assist you to make sure your success is complete.” This is being open-minded. Although there is competition in business, if someone else has the ability and is blessed with success, we should be happy for him and wish him well.
We can open ourselves up even more and help with his insufficiencies. We should have this mentality; then we can help “transform others.” When we help others, we can transform their hearts. But if your mind is narrow, you will not be able to transform them. So, you must open your mind.
Someone may have higher abilities, and be reasonable and modest, but we respond with jealousy. This is called karma of no transformation.
Next, “With discrimination based on love and hate we create karma of no impartiality.” Being human, it is hard to avoid having strong likes and dislikes. If a person succeeds, we may be very happy. But if it is someone we do not like, then we refuse to recognize his accomplishments. We feel that he should not receive all these rewards, these things should go to the one we love. Looking at the people around us, whether our friends, relatives, etc., or our fellow practitioners in this place, we should view everyone with equality, and not discriminate based on love or hate. We must be sincerely mindful. A heart of envy will destroy our cultivating mind.
Discriminating among ordinary people based on feelings of love and hate is called karma of no impartiality.
In the past, in the Buddha’s time, there was this story. There was a man with a very pure and open heart. He had realized the Great Path, and understood that all physical things were illusory. So, he felt that he should share with everyone. Those with blessings should share. This man had a lot of wealth. He saw many poor and suffering people, so generosity and love arose in his mind. Every day he gave happily. Sakra, the ruler of Heaven, saw this mortal human with such an open mind, giving away everything he had, and doing so with such happiness. He wondered whether this was a scheme to be born in Heaven and seize the throne. So, he sent a heavenly being to sound out this elder.
The heavenly being transformed into a man and approached the elder, saying, “Why bother? You have so much wealth, it is enough for you to enjoy in any way you want. Why are you always giving it away? When your wealth is exhausted, what will you do?”
This elder said, “All material things belong to all beings. They are not all for my own enjoyment. So, I should share them with everyone.”
The heavenly being then said, “One day, when you money is exhausted, what you will face is your karma.”
“I have done so much to let everyone share in and enjoy an abundant life. Exactly what karma have I created?”
The heavenly being said, “You will fall into Hell”
“Is this really true?”
“Yes, if you don’t’ believe me, go ask someone else Let someone who understands explain it to you.”
He asked the other heavenly being, who explained, “Indeed, if you behave this way and exhaust your wealth, you will receive the retribution of Hell.”
“Doing good deeds leads to birth in Hell? Let me ask you what will happen to all the people I’ve helped?”
“The people who you saved, who have received your generosity, will be reborn in Heaven.”
“If it is true that the people I have helped will be born in Heaven, while only I will descend to Hell, what could be bad? This is just what I want. The Buddha’s teaching is simply to have the generosity to give to all suffering people. Compassion means wanting to save all beings. Since the beings who received my help will go to Heaven and be free of suffering, what happiness could equal that? I should help these beings even more. Their enjoyment is my enjoyment. If they are born in Heaven, I’m in Heaven. If it is only me who goes to Hell, I am very willing.”
The heavenly being realized how open, generous, and impartial this elder was He treated everyone as himself, with no discrimination. This type of heart is truly open. Thus, Sakra revealed himself, prostrated before this elder, and repented. “Your minds is the mind of a Buddha, You give with the heart of a Buddha. I misunderstood you, and have offended you. Please accept my apology and forgive me.”
This is what we must cultivate. We should always be content and use a pure and true mind. We should be open and accommodating. Then we are truly practicing. The liberation of all beings is our own liberation. Don’t we want to help transform sentient beings? We should not have a mind of discrimination. If we are in that mental state, we create karma of no impartiality.
In our practice, we should have an impartial mind. All sentient beings are related to us, so we should love all beings equally. This is pure, great love.
Attachment to desire is karma of no renunciation. If we can always be content, and maintain an open heart, we will not be attached to the Five Desire or indulge in insatiable greed and sensual enjoyment. A lack of renunciation is also karma.
Clinging confusedly to the realm of the Five Desires is called karma of no renunciation.
Next it says, “Enjoying clothing, food and beautiful landscapes brings karma of idle indulgence. If we indulge freely in desires while in the prime of our lives, we create karma of many transgressions.”
This means that we have many desires. We choose the clothing we wear, and we eat and drink excessively. Some people are so picky in what they eat, wear, and everything they use. Even the environment they live in must be made for them to enjoy. They use such a large area. Now we often see people living in mansions with grand views all around. They may spend all day engrossed in these kinds of conditions, or seek out springs where they lounge around. Practitioners often talk about “contemplating impurity of body.” The body is actually very unclean. When it is hot, we sweat, and the whole body feels unclean. When many people gather together, if the air circulation is bad, body odors come out. This strange mix of odors is indescribable. If you are with sick people whose bodies are not cleansed, you will definitely experience and realize how filthy our bodies are. What is there left to cling to? People waste so much time for the sake of their body, soaking in the water for hours in extravagantly built bathhouses. There are also people who build big pools outdoors with artificial scenery. Isn’t this karma of idle indulgence? Just passing the days without meaning, wasting material goods in extravagant luxury, all for the sake of the body. This is creating karma.
Enjoying clothing, food and beautiful landscapes without cherishing their time people create karma of idle indulgence.
The prime of life, from youth until middle age, is the right time to accomplish things. But being wanton, not thinking of earnestly working, loafing in dance clubs, music halls, or just doing nothing, passing days like this is living a life of unrestrained desire. The youth are full of energy and can create karma of many transgressions. One careless step and they fall into a trap. Whether for sensual desires, or desire for wealth or fame, by fair means or foul, they use their health and strength to create so much karma. There is so much karma from unrestrained desires.
Full of youthful energy and not careful with their actions, people give in to unrestrained desires and create “karma of many transgressions.”
Everyone, as Buddhist practitioners, we must learn to let our minds return to a pure and undefiled state. Our heart should hold boundless Great Love as we learn how to be understanding, accommodating content and without desires every day. We must seize the time, and truly give for the sake of all people. “Self-enlightenment, enlightening others and perfect enlightened practice.” This is our goal as practitioners. So we must always take good care of our minds. Please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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