Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Bodhisattva’s Virtuous Mind (覺有情的功德心)
As we have said, the Sutra of Infinite Meanings originated in the Buddha’s Abode. We cannot overlook even seemingly small things.
This Sutra reminds us to be mindful. Whatever we are doing and wherever our minds may be, we must know to be mindful. All paths come from the Buddha’s Abode. They tell us to take good care of our pure nature, which is equal to the Buddha’s. Our pure nature has infinite merits and virtues.
So, in the lyrical Chapter on the Ten Merits, it is said, “The first merit is inconceivable. Merits and the Path arise from path. This Sutra allows all Bodhisattvas who have not developed Bodhicitta to develop Bodhicitta.”
We nurture our thoughts on this path. The scenery on this path is abundant and beautiful. We cannot overlook or disregard trivial matters. We cannot overlook our disrespect small creatures.
The Water Repentance says, “We may swat mosquitoes and gnats, or squash fleas and lice. When we burn garbage or dig ditches, we wrongfully harm living beings.”
These are very small actions. Normally, we do them unconsciously. Everything has life, even the tiniest creatures. Here, we have small, black midges, which most call Little Jin-gang. We cannot see them well, [but they still bite us]. They are such tiny creatures. If we are not careful we might smack them. Is this a transgression? It is a small, unconscious action, but we should not disregard even the tiniest life forms. We must respect all living things. We must increase our vigilance and nurture loving thoughts. We must always cultivate respect and love. Even such small creatures remind us to nurture loving thoughts.
This reminds us that in our daily living, without our awareness, our actions are driven by ignorance. We are under the influence of our ignorance. When we encounter something, we reflexively react very quickly. Their bites may only hurt us a little but we hurt them back tremendously. Unconsciously, we create the transgression of killing. Although it is not severe, retribution will come. Though the retribution may not appear now, it has been accumulating for countless lifetimes, since Beginningless Time, and will continue on this way into the future.
So, I often ask, “Who dares to say he has made no mistakes?” Everyone has made mistakes, like swatting mosquitoes and gnats. Do you dare say you have never done this? Sometimes I also reflexively wave my hand when I unexpectedly feel something on me. I may accidently harm or kill something. This reaction is very quick. It is an unconscious reflex. So, I am the same as you.
We all keep accumulating this karma. I often tell everyone that spiritual practice is about nurturing habits.
Always increase your vigilance, cultivate respect and love. Do not overlook small living beings, then you will not unconsciously create the transgression of killing.
In summary, sentient beings may either react unconsciously or kill deliberately.
As I said yesterday, all sentient beings have their own worlds.
If we do not disturb creatures in their burrows, they will not bother us.
In the past, kids used to have fun by pouring water on crickets. This was passed down through generations. Adults would teach them that wherever the ground is loose and uneven, there are crickets in the soil.
How could they see the crickets? They poured water on the dirt until the crickets escaped from the ground. Kids found this entertaining. They played with others’ lives as a game. People passed this down as common knowledge. Those were the old days.
Children nowadays are very fortunate. They do not need to play in the dirt. But they still need to develop respect for other creatures’ habitats. If we know there is life in a burrow, we should not destroy it. If we cause damage deliberately, then we are inflicting harm on others knowingly.
We just talked about being bitten by mosquitoes. Ants bite people, too. If we feel something, we reflexively swat at it.
If we see an army of ants, we may pour water on it. Sometime I think ants must be terrified of water.
If we pour water on them, isn’t that just like the floods we see on television? Aren’t humans and ants the same? Our homes and their nests are pretty similar. When a flood comes, it can easily cover everything. Houses are knocked over like dominoes. Entire homes are easily destroyed. People flee when they see the water coming.
Some people do not escape in time and drown. So, when we pour a bucket of water over the ants, don’t they experience it the way humans experience floods and tsunamis? As we go about our living, we must always respect other creatures’ habitats.
The Buddha always said that there are 3,000 worlds. Was He referring to planets in outer space? Not necessarily.
Each type of living being has its own world. How many types of living creatures are there? An incalculable number. Therefore, there are infinite, countless worlds. How do we respect and care for them so that this living planet can be at peace?
When we learn Buddhism, we start by learning the Bodhisattva-path. We have to believe that each sentient being exists in its own world. Since we are learning to be Bodhisattvas, we have to be enlightened enough to recognize that every life form and every creature has feelings and fears death. We ourselves seek to live peacefully, without interference from other living beings. So, we should not interfere with them either.
We often say that if we diligently maintain the place we live, keep it clean and neat, then we will not attract cockroaches, ants and mice. If they are not there, then we will not unconsciously or accidentally kill them. We will also not engage in deliberately destroying them or knowingly causing damage to their habitats. How do we protect our minds, nurture enlightened thoughts and cherish all sentient beings’ environments? If creatures continuously disturb our living conditions, what should we do? Can we avoid killing them? Do not wait until something happens to act. If we always take good care of our surroundings, this problem will not happen.
Tzu Chi volunteers often help the elderly, the handicapped and the ill clean their houses. As they clean, they see cockroaches, mice and even snakes. What do they do? They would kindly drive them out. They give them time and room to escape. Naturally, these creatures will return to their own worlds, their outside habitats. In this way, we also protect the person’s or family’s quality of life and sanitation I see their loving hearts, and their enlightened minds. They cherish sentient beings and aim to liberate them. We want to protect human lives and save animals’ lives by releasing them. If we practice the compassion of a Bodhisattva, then we are always cultivating the merits and virtues of an enlightened mind.
As Bodhisattvas, we must be enlightened. We protect human lives and save animals’ lives by releasing them. Protect all living beings and their environments, then you naturally cultivate merits and virtues.
So, do not “swat mosquitoes and gnats” or “squash fleas and lice.” The same goes for cockroaches, etc. Do not scoop up things from the water. Those creatures live there, why do you need to scoop them up or kill them? It is unnecessary.
Even if it is a tiny organism, do not kill it deliberately or set fires [and kill indiscriminately]. Ants are everywhere, especially all over the grass. Sometimes we see ants build nests on stuff like dried grass, sticks, and wood. What do we do? If we scatter them, we are afraid of where they may go. So, some sweep them all into a pile and set a fire. That is not good either. We should rustle the sticks, give them time to escape. In summary, we cannot overlook even tiny living creatures. Because we are enlightened sentient beings, we really need to protect all living beings and their environments. We must train ourselves to always think like this.
Next the text says, “When we eat fruits, grains and rice, or vegetables, or when we burn firewood, we may indiscriminately kill sentient beings.”
In our daily lives, this may happen when we eat fruits. What happens when there are worms in the fruit? How do you eliminate them? That depends on your wisdom. Be enlightened and wise. What should you do? When some people discover bugs in their fruit, they kill them. As for grains and rice, what happens if they have worms? We wash them in water. But what will happen to those worms? They will die. Wouldn’t that be too careless? What to do?
We have to keep rice fresh so worms will not grow.
Otherwise, it will be bad for our health and for those tiny living creatures. How do we deal with them? We have to maintain freshness. If there are worms, what do we do? We have to give them time, shake them a bit. Open the container, lay out the rice and shake it. Then the tiny creatures will have time to escape. Otherwise, we do not know if we should throw out this rice or what.
So, we must use love and wisdom to deal with the matters we inevitably encounter in life. There are some people who kill indiscriminately. They kill everything they see, like these tiny creatures. In our daily living, if we see bugs in what we eat, what should we do? This requires us to be more mindful. We have to give them time to escape.
Sometimes we burn firewood. As I just said, sometimes there are ant nests or
other bugs in there. We should move and knock on the firewood to let them know we are putting it in the stove. We must give them an opportunity to escape. If you see a bug’s nest, do not just throw it in the stove. If you see an ant colony, do not just throw it in. If so, that is deliberate killing.
We just talked about nurturing a virtuous mind. We must develop it in our daily living. It comes from having the Buddha’s heart. If we keep the Buddha in our minds, naturally we will foster merits and virtues. Merits created from living a meticulous lifestyle are truly inconceivable. In this world of living things, how can we protect the environment with enlightened love? If we are always aware of these thoughts, won’t we create inconceivable merits? Do you believe it? We have to believe in order to cultivate them.
Merits and the Path arise from faith. We must have faith. We often say the Sutra of infinite Meanings is [the basis of] the Tzu Chi School of Buddhism. We must consider and comprehend these principles to develop our Bodhicitta. So, this Sutra is truly inconceivable. If we want to understand more, in reading the Water Repentance and Emperor’s Liang’s Repentance, we can learn more about many worlds. If we are not careful we will hurt other beings. So, we must understand this.
Everyone, Please always be mindful and always be present.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)