Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Enter the Dharma with a Pure Heart (心靜入法循善緣)
Date: July. 09, 2013
When we learn the Buddha’s Way, our hearts must be pure and clear. If our hearts are pure, our surroundings will be peaceful. Then a thousand teachings can enter our hearts. In particular, as we listen to the teachings, our hearts need to be even more tranquil. For the sake of ignorant sentient beings, He manifested and engaged in spiritual practice to attain perfect enlightenment. His first thought was to share this perfect enlightenment so everyone can fully understand the principles of all things in the universe. Originally, the true principles of all existence were already intrinsically possessed by everyone. When we say this to everyone, it sounds very simple! But when these simple principles are taught, does everyone accept them? It is simple for the teacher because he has already attained this realization. After realizing it, everything seems simple. But ordinary people have not realized it yet, so it is not simple for them. How then can principles that are not simple be taught? So, the Buddha kept these true principles hidden in His heart. He absolutely could not allow them to leak away. Ultimately, these principles have to be passed down. So, He had to “express thoughts He had guarded for a long time.” He wanted everyone to thoroughly understand the pure, awakened nature He had been protecting. Everyone inherently has it; it is really that simple.
So for over 40 years, the Buddha kept these same principles in His heart. His every intention was to teach these principles so that everyone could understand them. But sentient beings had dull capabilities. Based on the level of their capabilities, He could not freely expound the great teaching. Because sentient beings could not comprehend, the Buddha had to continuously use skillful means. So, the Buddha guarded this intent for over 40 years. But now He was going to freely carry it out. Freely means without impediments, He could teach whatever He wished to teach. But even though their capabilities had matured, and the time was right for Him to teach, the Buddha still reconsidered. For over 40 years, He had taught according to the understanding of the [ordinary] people of the world. He did this for over 40 years, which was a long time. Now, all of a sudden, the skillful means He used in the past had to be set aside for true principles to emerge. Would such a change be accepted by all? He contemplated this again and again. “What methods can I use to inspire everyone’s reverence?”
We have mentioned before that at this spiritual training ground, there were many miraculous appearances, especially of the Buddha Himself. In the past, when He taught sutras, He would first enter Samadhi. As people arrived one after another, He remained in meditation. But it was different this time. While people arrived, the Buddha expounded the Dharma, the Sutra of Infinite Meaning.So, as people kept arriving, the Buddha kept expounding and lecturing on the Sutra of Infinite Meanings.
So at this assembly, this sutra was expounded completely.But people still kept arriving, one after another.Then the Buddha began to meditate.On one hand, He was contemplating the methods He would use to retract the provisional teachings, the skillful means of the past.Though He was about to expound the true Dharma, He must also retract past skillful means.So, the history had to be reviewed as.He revealed the truth at this moment.This was what the Buddha was contemplating.
The World-Honored One wished to freely carry out the ideas He had long guarded, His original intent.But He thought to Himself that since.He had already expounded the Dharma for so long, others would not value this.Therefore, He manifested various auspicious appearances.
So, the Buddha had to be contemplative, but He was still joyous.The time had come.People’s capabilities had matured, and there would be no more obstructions.At this moment, the Buddha’s heart was truly filled with excitement.How could He create a tranquil environment?How could He inspire a spirit of seeking in those who saw this environment?When He “expounded Dharma first, then meditated second, this created a totally different state”.Though flowers rained down and the earth shook, the hearts of the people listening to the Dharma rested completely on the Buddha.
Everyone’s eyes focused on the Buddha.
At that time, a fine light radiated from between His eyebrows.This great light shone everywhere.
From between the Buddha’s eyebrows, this light radiated and attracted people’s hearts.This great radiance pervasively illuminated a vast area.Not only could one see into it, one could see any and all states one desired.So, that was the light.Though this great light shone widely, it also illuminated all the different states of everyone’s hearts, all their different ways of understanding.
So, we use “18,000 lands” to refer to everyone’s states of mind.
Some people are pure of mind, others are able to comprehend the Dharma and become joyous and enthusiastic.When their hearts connected to the Buddha’s light [they were in] the realms of all Buddhas.Some people had questions, or perhaps regrets, worries, etc.That mindset [put them in] the Six Destinies, either in the heaven human, hell, hungry ghost or animal realms.The states [that appeared] depended on the state of their minds.So, the light the Buddha radiated was not just a visible light, but also a light that was absorbed by the heart and had penetrated everyone’s minds.So, “this great light radiated everywhere”.
In the surrounding environment, there were visible mandara flowers, large and small softening flowers of every color were spread around this place.Indeed, these flowers represent softness.
[They are] softening because they can take on whatever color people needed to see; thus, entering everyone’s hearts and taming the stubbornness of sentient beings.So, coming in contact with these softening flowers could pacify aggressive minds.There was “the fragrance of sandalwood”.
Naturally, this fragrance was the fragrance of the virtue and the Way.In the fragrance emitted by the body of Buddha, everyone sensed the fragrance of the land, of the trees.They also sensed His spiritual fragrance. An aroma of sandalwood often came with the breeze. The beauty of this scene caused joy to arise in everyone's hearts. They were happy to follow the Buddha so they single- mindedly watched Him. There were six kinds of shaking that all occurred at the same instant. Now we can comprehend that this was the spiritual state the Buddha inspired in everyone as He was about to give the teachings.
So, now we should understand that next, the light will radiate from between the Buddha's brow. The next passage of text is,
“The bright light from between His brows illumines the east, causing 18,000 lands all to take on a golden hue, from Avici Hell up to the summit of existence. All beings in the Six Realms of these worlds, their destinies within cyclic existence, their good or bad karmic conditions, their positive or negative retributions, can all be clearly seen.”
We can use this passage of the sutra to infer the Buddha's age. When He started to expound the Dharma, He concealed the true Dharma in His heart. He protected this true Dharma that He awakened to while middle-aged. Continuously for over 40 years, He used skillful means to help sentient beings accept His teachings and understand the principles of life. It had already been over 40 years, so the Buddha had reached His old age by then. This whole process was like the sun rising in the east, climbing to the middle of the sky, and then setting in the west. Look at the sun setting in the west; its light shines towards the east. The sun rises from the east and moves to the west. So, the sutras were obtained from the west; the Dharma was spread to the east. You see, the light illuminating the east revealed the “18,000 lands,” a vast realm where “all took on a golden hue”. The sun already has his golden hue.
At this moment, the sun is not like the hot sun at midday, unbearable to sentient beings. That would be oppressive. The wisdom of the Buddha was such that He softened the Dharma so it could be accepted by everyone. As this happened, the Dharma reached “from Avici Hell up to the summit of existence”. Suffering sentient beings were in urgent need of the Dharma at that moment.
So it is often said, “Bodhisattvas arise because of suffering beings”. The most miserable state for sentient beings is described as hell. So, the Buddha-Dharma really needs to be spread to places with the most suffering. That is where the Buddha-Dharma is most needed. So the Buddha's light also shone down into Avici Hell and even up to the summit of existence. The summit refers to heaven. Heavenly beings need the Buddha- Dharma. Only with the Buddha-Dharma can heavenly beings maintain their existence, or else when they deplete their blessings, they will fall into the Three Evil Destinies.
So the heaven realm also need Buddha-Dharma, “All beings in the Six Realms of these worlds, their destinies within cyclic existence, and “their good or bad karmic conditions”. This lets everyone know that in all these worlds, whether in the heaven or the human realm, the ghost or animal realm, etc., all the beings in these Six Realms are in different states. But in the Buddha's teachings, the Six Realms all exist in the human mind. So, people have “destinies within cyclic existence”. All things in the world are created and destroyed. Material things “from, exist, decay, disappear”. Humans experience “birth, aging, illness, death”. The mind's thoughts “arise, abide, change, cease”.
All things in the world are our “destinies within cyclic existence”, they are all “good or bad karmic conditions.” Good and bad [conditions] come from karmic connections.
In the past life, if we made a good karmic connection with a person, we are happy when we see him now, and we will listen to him no matter what he says. If we formed a bad connection with the person, even if he has a very kind heart and is a nice person, even if he earnestly tries to help guide us to the path of goodness, we will become unhappy at the sign of him.
Do you remember the Buddha and Ananda’s karmic connection with the poor woman? The Buddha did not have good affinities with her, so this poor woman could not accept the Buddha’s teaching. When she saw the Buddha, she did not feel happy. But when she saw Ananda, she was joyous. Wherever Ananda went, she followed she accepted. Even someone who had attained Buddhahood still had past negative karmic connections.
Everyone, shouldn’t we heighten our vigilance? We need to make good connections with everyone. We should not hold any kind of attitude or take even the slightest action that would create bad affinities with sentient beings.
Now the text of the sutra continues, “Their good or bad karmic conditions, positive or negative retributions, can all be clearly seen.” From here we can see it all. No matter how we create karmic connections with other people, the good and bad retributions we face in the future are a result of these connections. In this life, we need to immediately make an effort. If we created such connections before, in this life we need to recognize the law of karma. We must quickly change the connections of our lives. Even if we do not feel a positive connection with a person, we must quickly subdue our thoughts and change our views towards this person. Then we can turn bad conditions into good ones.
In this life, someone may torment us.[We suffer] positive or negative retribution.” Positive or negative is determined by the past. So, we need to change now [for the future.] If we can understand this state thoroughly, we will be able to change.If we do not understand fully, we can never truly change. If people tell us, “You are wrong in doing so, and [we say] “I did not do anything wrong, still refusing to admit fault, then we did not understand fully. If we can see everything clearly, which means having thorough understanding, [then we will say], “I was wrong. This may not have been a mistake made in this lifetime, but a past one. If we can think this way, we will know that if someone does not understand us it may be due to something we did in this lifetime; we can then accept that it may be due to a mistake from a past lifetime.
So, we should all understand the law of karma. Karmic conditions, whether good or bad, if they were not created in this life, must have been created in a past life.Therefore, “[they] can all be clearly seen. For us to [see them], we need to be mindful of our interpersonal relationships and what we experience in body and mind. We should self-reflect. If we never think that we may have done something wrong, then we will never correct ourselves.
Everyone, to study the Buddha’s Way, we must be mindful. Only when we mindfully learn can the Buddha-Dharma enter our hearts. Only then can we connect with the Buddha’s mind. Only then can we follow in the Buddha’s footsteps, one step at a time. The manifested Buddha comes to the world to teach and transform. But we should return to the state of the in the intrinsic Buddha, which is our intrinsic Buddha-nature. So, we first follow the teachings of the manifested Buddha. We will follow Him so that we can reach the ultimate realm and return to the intrinsic Buddha, which is our intrinsic Buddha-nature. So everyone, please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV - Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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