Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: With Deeply-rooted Samadhi, Our Minds Are Not Scattered (深心定力 一心不亂)
Date: February. 20. 2014
“With deeply-rooted Samadhi, our minds will not be scattered. A heart with Leaks cannot see the Truth, just as a reflection cannot be seen in rippling water, and a candle cannot be lit in the wind.”
This tells us that the Power of Samadhi is very important. Our Samadhi must be very deeply-rooted. I often say that roots must be deeply planted. Our Root of Faith must be great; it must be deep, extensive and long. This is true Samadhi. So, “with deeply-rooted Samadhi, our minds will not be scattered.” In our minds, we may still have Leaks, which are also called afflictions. If our faith is superficial and insufficient, the Dharma we take in will quickly leak out. This comes from having afflictions.
The Dharma cannot enter our hearts because we have Leaks, because we have afflictions in our hearts. So, as long as we have afflictions, we cannot penetrate and realize the principles. This is just like how “a candle cannot be lit in the wind.” When we want to light a candle, if it is windy, no matter how we try, we cannot light it. This is the same principle. Also, if the water is rippling, we cannot see any reflection. If we allow the water to become still, we can see a reflection of our surroundings in the water. Then when we lean in to take a look, the water surface is like a mirror that can reflect our appearance. But if we disturb it even slightly, if the water ripples, images cannot take shape.
With the same logic, our minds must be still and calm. This requires vast faith. Only when we have vast faith can we cultivate deeply-rooted Samadhi. With deeply-rooted Samadhi, our minds will not be scattered. I talk about the mind every day. We must always keep our minds very still. Some people cannot still their minds, so they cannot deal with their present conditions. We are all influenced by how we lived in the past and disrupted by our current conditions, so our minds cannot remain in Samadhi as we practice.
The past, present and future, distractions and discursive thoughts, all disturb our Power of Samadhi. So, when we engage in spiritual practice, we must cultivate deeply-rooted Samadhi. In our present condition, we must always be aware that we are spiritual practitioners. Not only should we not carry discursive thoughts of the past with us to the present, in particular, we must also not be swayed by our present conditions.This is what it means to be “deeply-rooted”.
We must not be affected by past distractions or discursive thoughts about the future.
We must take good care of our minds right now to be single-minded and undistracted.
Our minds must not have any Leaks.We cannot have any afflictions in our minds.
If we have afflictions, we cannot realize the knowledge and views.We will be like rippling water that cannot reflect images or a candle in the wind that cannot be lit.
So, we must always vigilantly guard our minds.
Previously, I mentioned how Sariputra asked questions on everyone’s behalf.
Because they had doubts in their minds, he hoped the Buddha could expound upon the skillful means He taught in the past and upon the very profound Dharma.He would reveal now and in the future.He hoped the Buddha could give an extensive explanation.
So he asked Him to “expound upon this subject” to help everyone understand the differences between what He taught in the past and what He would teach from then on.
I only pray that the World-Honored One can expound upon this subject of why He is earnestly praising this extremely profound, subtle, wondrous and difficult-to-understand Dharma.
“Why is [the World-Honored One] earnestly praising this extremely profound, subtle, wondrous and difficult-to-understand Dharma?”Before the Buddha started teachings, He kept praising the Dharma He was about to give as subtle and wondrous and difficult to understand.He had not even started teachings yet; why did He keep saying it was hard to understand?They hoped the Buddha would explain to them how subtle an wondrous it is.In this case, subtle means “profound and extensive”.
Subtle and wondrous:
Subtle means profound and extensive.Wondrous means beyond words and thoughts
Bodhi is subtle and wondrous, for all Dharma is difficult to understand.
Only the great wisdom of a Tathagata is so subtle and wondrous.
Profound and extensive means that the teaching is very, very deep.Extensive means it is very, very broad.It is so very deep, broad and also very subtle.It is not something obvious that people can easily comprehend.This teaching is indeed very wondrously profound.This wondrous profundity is very subtle and intricate.
So, to comprehend [His teachings], we must have the same wisdom as the Buddha.
Only when we have His knowledge and views can we comprehend these profound and extensive principles.This is the meaning of subtle.
“Wondrous means beyond words and thoughts,” not something we ordinary people can comprehend.[His teaching] is indeed wondrous and is not something we can understand just by thinking about it or discussing it.It is a very profound teaching; it is subtle and wondrous.“Bodhi is subtle and wondrous, for all Dharma is difficult to understand” .
What is subtle and wondrous is Bodhi.Bodhi means awakening, truly realizing and comprehending.These profound principles.This is very hard to understand.So, we say “Bodhi is subtle and wondrous, for all Dharma is difficult to understand”.Only “the great wisdom of a Tathagata is so subtle and wondrous”.So, the Buddha repeatedly praised.
Buddha-knowledge and views, which are deep and far-reaching, extremely subtle and profound.They are truly broad and deep.
In addition to teaching what He realized, He also praised all past Buddhas,countless Buddhas, for having the same state of mind. But when teaching sentient beings. They also had to start by using skillful means. So, we say all Buddhas share the same path. Every Buddhas has the same understanding that can penetrate all subtle and wondrous principles. The state of His realization is not something, we ordinary people can easily understand. So, this was why Sariputra asked the Buddha to carefully explain it to help everyone more clearly understand these subtle and wondrous principles.
So, the following verse states, “At that time, Sariputra, wishing to restate this meaning, spoke the following verses”.
Because he very sincerely asked the Buddha to explain this subtle, wondrous teaching in detail, this request became a formal matter. After asking once, Sariputra restated his request in verse, which is shorter and more profound. He recited these verses very formally, like reciting poetry. [Verses] are used to emphasize respect.
“Great Sage, Sun of Wisdom, at long last You give these teachings, speaking of Your attainment of Suchness, Samadhi of power and fearlessness”.
Sun of Wisdom is what Sariputra respectfully called the Buddha, comparing His wisdom to the sun. The sun’s rays are for brilliant, and as long as the sun rises, it illuminates the whole world. We can see the landscape and all things on Earth because they are illuminated by sunlight. So, the brilliance of the Buddha is like the sun in the sky. Sun of Wisdom, in Buddhist teachings, can be explained the following way. The Buddha’s wisdom can illuminate the darkness of the world. Therefore, it is compared to the sun.
Great Sage, Sun of Wisdom: The Buddha’s wisdom can illuminate the darkness of the world. Therefore, it is compared to the sun. When the sun of wisdom illuminates the world, it eliminates ignorance, defilements and delusions. The Buddha’s wisdom is like the sun, it can illuminate all darkness.
This means that the Buddha’s wisdom can illuminate the world. See, when the sun rises, the darkness disappears. After night passes, the sun will surely rise. When the sun rises, the night has passed. So, once we unlock our wisdom, our ignorance will be eliminated. Therefore, the Buddha’s wisdom illuminates the darkness of the world. Our lives are dark and dull; we seem to be walking in the dark. The Buddha’s wisdom represents the sun that [illuminates] the microcosm of our minds. Our ignorance causes darkness [in our minds].
We all intrinsically have Buddha-nature, the radiance of the Buddha’s wisdom. However, we have shut the door to it, creating an obstacle. Even if there is sunlight outside, if the door is closed, it cannot shine in.So, we are all replete with intrinsic Buddha-wisdom. But the Buddha’s wisdom has been unlocked because He opened the door to His mind and completely illuminated it. Hopefully, the radiance of the Buddha’s wisdom can shine through the minds of all sentient beings.
Therefore, we need the Buddha’s wisdom to open up our minds. When the sun illuminates the world, it eliminates ignorance, defilements and delusions. We must all take the Dharma into our hearts.
The Buddha’s wisdom is like the sun and the moon; it illuminates the darkness. We must understand the Buddha’s intention. Thus Buddha “spoke of [His] attainment of Suchness. Sariputra previously said, “Venerable Buddha, your wisdom is great like the sun. You are considered the Hero of the World, and indeed you teach with the courage of a lion. Furthermore, you can understand what we cannot. You spoke of your ‘attainment of Suchness’” “What is Suchness?” “The true nature of things is called Suchness.”
[He] spoke of Hus attainment of Suchness: Truly, such noble teachings, the true nature of things, is called Suchness. The Dharma, as Thou had taught, fits an agree with the principles; thus, it is called Suchness.
“Such, I have heard” is [how sutras begin]. Haven’t we discussed this before? “Suchness” refers to what is true. “Suchness” is the way things really are. That is what Suchness means. This is what you have said, and I verify it by saying, “Indeed, this is so.” That is what Suchness means. “The Dharma, as Thou had taught, fits and agrees with the principles.” What you taught is correct and fits with the principles; thus, it is called Suchness.
“Samadhi of, power and fearlessness.” The Buddha said, “This comes from the Dharma I have attained.” Sariputra then said,“Venerable Buddha, what you have said and what you have attained is power. The Buddha already attained “Samadhi of power and fearlessness.” The Buddha, the great noble one, can comprehend many things and thus develop fearlessness. When we ordinary people do things, speak and so on, we are afraid of many things. This means we have fear.[In contrast,] the Buddha is fearless. So, to become fearless, we must first develop wisdom. Once we open our wisdom, radiance appears, so we can see everything clearly. Then when we move forward, nothing around us can make us fearful. So, we have a sense of security.
When we learn the Buddha’s Way, we must be grounded every step of the way and always have deep faith. We must have very deep Power of Faith, so we will not be influenced by our surroundings or waver in our determination. Once we have this power, naturally we can open our wisdom, attain Samadhi of fearlessness.
“Samadhi” refers to our concentration. I have already spoken about this before. So, “with deeply-rooted Samadhi, our minds will not be scatted.” This way, we can reach the level of “power and fearlessness.” Therefore, we must always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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