Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Aim of Studying Buddhism (學佛的目標)
We must always have a heart of sincere repentance. The Dharma, like water, can wash away filth. During repentance, no one ever says, “My mind is pure every day. My behavior has been proper. I have not made the slightest mistake.” I believe people like this do not exist. As soon as thoughts arise, it is hard to avoid messy distractions in the mind. So, we must always protect our minds. We must always repent with a reverent heart. If we make a mistake like those in the text, we should quickly change our ways. After we change, it is like being reborn. The person who made that mistake has already passed away. Since we are reborn, our mind is pure like an infant’s. What newborn isn’t pure right after birth? When they are hungry, they want to eat. If their diaper’s wet, they want it changed. In the same way, if we have a childlike heart, we want to develop our Wisdom-life and will quickly seek the teachings. If we are slightly defiled our unclean, we must quickly change. We cannot keep making the same mistakes. It was not easy to repent and purify ourselves. If, after we are clean, we get dirty again, that is quite a pity.
So, we should be pure like an infant and safeguard our minds. We should always remain pure and take caution to not get dirty again. We created all of our own karma. Since it was created by us, can someone else eliminate it for us? Can the Buddha do it for us? Can Bodhisattvas do it for us? No. So if the Buddha tells us our mistakes, we should change at once. Bodhisattvas teach us the path and accompany us as we walk it. As we follow them, we uphold the rules and precepts. These precepts are like a path. We do not want to be lost again. Karmic obstacles are created and eliminated by us, so we must always be mindful. We have repented with a reverent heart to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha.
Now the Water Repentance tells us, “We disciples, through this repentance, vow to eliminate all transgressions of ignorance and all negative karma.”
Stating now, we completely repent our past. With the force of repentance, all the karma we have created from ignorance, not only that of our actions, but even the ignorance we have not acted upon that has been stored up in our minds, can also be repented. All can be completely corrected. Not only do we correct our behavior, we also correct our minds and eliminate ignorance. All transgressions of ignorance, in our thoughts and actions, in all we have done, must be repented together. If we can eliminate all negative karma, we will not descend into the Three Evil Destinies. We hope that since all is created by the mind, since all karma arises from it, we can eliminate karma of the Three Evil Realms. Then we will surely have a blessed birth.
“With the blessings created, we vow, life after life, to eliminate the Five Offenses.”
In the process of eliminating negative karma, we also create blessings. Everything we do is based on a vow to eliminate the Five Offenses life after life. This means we should not commit any of the Five Offenses, which defile our minds.
The Five Offenses are Patricide, Matricide, Killing an Arhat, Breaking the Sangha’s harmony, Shedding the blood of a Buddha.
We should make this vow and set our resolve. Life after life, we have parents, teachers, brothers and sisters, so we must certainly protect this resolve. We cannot even allow greed, anger, or ignorance to arise, let alone kill our parents. That is absolutely wrong. So, we make this resolve, life after life, to extinguish the Five Offenses. They are the root causes of descending into Hell.
“Eliminate Icchantika-delusions. “Whether these transgressions are mild or severe, from this day on, wherever we practice we vow not to commit them again.”
Icchantika means one who has severed their roots of goodness. It is the root cause of descending into Hell, with no opportunity to become a Buddha. This is Icchantika.
Delusion is the same as ignorance. Much karma is created because of delusions, and many roots of goodness are severed. Whether the Icchantika –delusions are mind or severe, they lead us to transgressions. They lead us to sever our roots of goodness, and they hinder our progress [in cultivation]. It matters not whether they are light or heavy. They are already in the past. We have already repented for our past. It is over, it is the past. We are now starting anew from today forward. So we vow to do no more wrong, regardless of where we practice. Although we have made a vow, and we had the affinity to begin cultivation, we still must earnestly look after our minds.
Though some people may be called practitioners, their thoughts and behavior do not follow the Dharma. This passage is here to alert us. From this day forward, in all of our spiritual training grounds, we must swear to absolutely do no more wrong. We must always be very alert to the great evil of Icchantika. Whether light or heavy, it is still karma. What is Icchantika? I will clarify Icchantika means it is very difficult for one to become a Buddha, extraordinarily difficult. If you want to become a Buddha, with a pure heart and diligent mind, you must do no evil and practice all good. Then you will certainly have the opportunity.
Here, lcchantika means extreme difficulty to become a Buddha. Actually, this can take two forms. With no belief in cause and effect, some commit the Ten Evils, or the Five Offenses. This severs all roots of goodness and these people will descend into Avici Hell. You know that Avici Hell is for serious offenses. Once you enter, the Earth Treasury Sutra says, time stretches out endlessly, and it is very difficult to leave.
So, an lcchantika who commits these kinds of acts descends into Hell with no way out. Then it will be very difficult to become a Buddha. Another name for this is called a “severed-root lcchantika.” All of their roots of goodness have been severed by their delusions. The majority of lcchantikas fall into this category.
There is also another form, which is a Bodhisattva of Great Compassion. Why is a Bodhisattva of Great Compassion also an lcchantika? What vow did the Earth Treasury Bodhisattva make? He will not become a Buddha until Hell is empty. Only after all beings become Buddhas will he become a Buddha. Is there any chance? There are so many beings, when will they all be transformed? For this kind of Bodhisattva, it is also very difficult to become a Buddha. This is why they are called lcchantika of Great Compassion.
lcchantika:
It means it is extremely difficult for one to become a Buddha.
There are two kinds:
those who sever their roots of goodness and those who have Great Compassion.
Severed-root lcchantika do not believe in karma. They commit the Five Offenses and Ten Evils, so they sever all good roots. These people descend into Avici Hell, thus it is extremely difficult for them to become a Buddha.
lcchantika of Great Compassion:
Compassionate Bodhisattvas vow to not become Buddhas until Hell is empty. But when will all beings be delivered? Thus, it is extremely difficult for them to become a Buddha.
There is a story that goes like this. There were two friends, who took refuge in Buddhism with a certain master. Whenever their minds were troubled, they would speak to the master and ask him to resolve what was on their mind. This pair worked for the same company. In this company, the relationships among the workers and among the bosses were discordant. So, the work environment was very troubling. This pair of disciples went to ask their master what to do. “In all the dealings in our company, there are so many grievances, everything is difficult. This is what the master said to them, “All this is just for a bowl of rice.” Just this one sentence. They listened and took it to heart.
After they went back, one of them submitted his resignation, and returned home to farm. “Why should I be mistreated just to earn money? I am going home to earnestly and mindfully farm.”
The other person stayed to work for that same company.
Later, when these two met again they asked about each other’s work. “I am still at the same job. I am still doing the same thing to earn money. I do whatever the boss commands. I bury myself in work, and now I have been promoted to manager.”
“That’s what you’ve been doing?”
“Yes.”
“But when the master commented that it was all just for a bowl rice, I thought there was no reason we should suffer so much mistreatment. So, I went home. Now I run a farm, and I am quite successful.”
“For me, when the master told us that, I thought that since work is only a means to earn money; I really have nothing to take issue over. So, I just kept working there.” These two people both heard what the master said to them.
They rarely saw each other over the years, but they met again to visit their master. So many years had already passed, and their master had aged. They asked the master, “When we came to ask for your teaching, he heard it one way, I heard it another. Both of us became successful. Which one of us understood it correctly?”
Because the master had aged, he spoke slowly, “It is all a matter of a single thought.”
Indeed, it is all in one thought. You have all heard me say the same thing, but what are the thoughts you all have? You must simply choose the right one, and act on it. As long as you know not to do wrong and to sincerely do what is right, then that is correct.
Everyone, aren’t we just like this? We talk so much. We have many thoughts and create karma. We suffer various obstacles that keep us from getting close to the Buddha. We make vows to practice and become Buddhas, but we are unable to draw near to the Buddha-realm. This all hinges on one thought. Icchantika means “difficult to become a Buddha. I want you to be clear about the two kinds. One severs all the roots of goodness, creating karma of the Ten Evils and Five Offenses, which leads to Hell. Since their roots of goodness are severed, they are reborn repeatedly into Hell, with no way out.
The other kind is Icchantika of Great Compassion. It is also hard for them to become a Buddha, because of their compassionate hearts. They want to save all sentient beings. All beings are creating karma and descending into Hell. As long as those beings are not yet Buddhas, these Bodhisattvas will not become Buddhas either. They will forever remain among sentient beings. They cannot bear to let others suffer, so they do not seek happiness only for themselves. This is Earth-Treasury Bodhisattva’s vow. No matter what, all of us ordinary beings must take good care of our minds. We use our love to give, and we follow the Bodhisattva-path. Whether or not we become Buddhas, we will never abandon suffering sentient beings. This is our aim in studying Buddhism, so we must be more mindful. It is all a matter of a single thought. Icchantika is also a matter of one thought. Do you want to be Icchantika of Great Compassion, or ones who have severed their roots of goodness? So everyone, please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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