Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Believe in Virtuous Dharma and Spiritual Friends (服膺善法與善友)
Date: June. 23. 2014
As we deal with our surroundings every day, are we happy? Or, are we depressed? Over the course of a day, as we deal with people and matters, we must first adjust our mindset. The first adjustment we must take is to feel happy whenever we see other people and develop great aspirations whenever we learn of matters. We must not give rise to afflictions or vexations.
As we deal with things every day, if we can view others with a happy mind, everyone is a good person. If we can deal with matters with a peaceful mind, every matter is a good thing. Everything depends on our minds. A mind inclined toward goodness sees everything as good. If we are not happy, then nothing we do today will go smoothly. So, “good and evil depend on conditions.”
Actually, all the unpleasant things we are dealing with today are not a result of what we are doing now, but what we have done in the past. Positive and negative causes and conditions have led us to the people and matters that we have encountered in this lifetime. So, if we can always [remember] this principle, we will always remain even-tempered, no matter what happens to us. We must realize that “good and evil depend on conditions.” No matter what challenges we encounter, it is best to cultivate a mindset of always being happy and grateful. Then we will be peaceful and at ease.
How can we happy and at peace in this life? We must learn that everyone we see is our spiritual and virtuous friend. No matter how they treat us, no matter how they feel about us, we must feel gratitude toward them. Thus, in Buddhism, we constantly say, “Even adversities help us to succeed” in taming our hearts and training ourselves to subdue our anger. Therefore, they are also our spiritual friends.
Do not think, “When I see him, I get very angry. Nothing he says makes any sense at all. I feel an aversion toward this person.” Do not have this kind of [mindset]. Otherwise, we will form negative conditions. Even if that person is foolish, and what he says is not an aligned with principles, we must still be grateful to him. He is our spiritual friend. If what he says makes no sense, we will know that we should not do what he says, and we will heighten our vigilance. Even if such a person is right in front of us, we also want to treat him as a spiritual friend, not to mention those who are sincerely teaching and guiding us. They are truly our spiritual and virtuous friends. If we have this mindset, then in our daily living, there will be nothing that we cannot handle.
No matter what we are doing, especially when we learn the Buddha-Dharma, “We must remember their words well and sincerely adhere to Bodhicitta.” When our spiritual and virtuous friends are teaching us, whether they are discussing the Buddha-Dharma or talking about everyday things, we must remember [the teachings] that are helpful to us. “We must remember their words well.” We must treat their words as teachings and constantly remember and sincerely adhere to them. There is an old saying, “Once we learn a good thing, we must sincerely adhere to it.” I have often repeated this saying as well. We must safeguard everything good within our minds. Only when we are in this state of mind can we choose [wisely] between good and bad things.
Good and evil depend on conditions. When we draw near spiritual and virtuous friends, we must remember their words and sincerely adhere to Bodhicitta.
In the Buddhist sutras, there is a story that illustrates this.There was a man who grew followers for a living.One day, he picked some flowers and took them to sell at the market.At that time, a non-Buddhist practitioner came over and asked him, “How much does this pot of flowers cost?”Then he named a price.Just then an elder, Venerable Sudatta, came up next to the man.He said, “I will buy it at this price.”The non-Buddhist practitioner said, “I am willing to pay more, let me buy it.”Venerable Sudatta said, “No, let me buy it.I am willing to double the price.”
In this way, they argued over the price of this pot of flowers.The flower seller said, “Why do you need this pot of flowers so much?”The non-Buddhist practitioner said, “Today, I am holding a ritual, so I need this pot of flowers as an offering to the gods, thus I can be blessed.”He then asked Venerable Sudatta, “Elder, what will you use these flowers for?”He said, “I’m going to see the World-Honored One.I want to buy this pot of flowers to show my respect to the Buddha.”
The flower seller said, “What kind of person is the Buddha?He is not a heavenly being, nor is He a god.He is just a person, why do you need to show Him so much respect?”
Venerable Sudatta said, “Although He is a person of this world, He is an enlightened person.He thoroughly understands the true principles of all things.He can guide everyone onto the right course, so lost sentient beings can be awakened.”
The flower seller recognized Venerable Sudatta and knew that he was person of good character, someone how was usually very self-composed.He would not arbitrarily haggle over a pot of flowers with a non-Buddhist practitioner.He must really want to buy it because this Buddha that Sudatta spoke of must really be the Great Enlightened One.
“I’m just a person who grows and sells flowers.Do I have the opportunity to see the Buddha, the Great Enlightened One?”
Venerable Sudatta said, “Yes, I can lead you to see the Buddha.”The flower seller quickly picked up the pot of flowers and said, “I will not sell these flowers to either of you.I’m going to visit the Buddha myself, this Great Enlightened One.I will reverently offer the flowers I grew to Him.”
Thus, he followed Sudatta to the Buddha’s abode.The flower seller saw the Buddha from afar and felt great joy and eagerness.With a pure, eager and joyful mind, he slowly approached the Buddha.When Sudatta knelt to pay his respects, he also knells and paid his respects to the Buddha.At that moment, he thought, “The Buddha is so dignified.”Then he closed his eyes and felt like he had been transported to another place.In this place, the flowers suddenly flew up and surrounded the Buddha.The flower petals fell all around Him and seemed to form a canopy on top of His head.His mind was truly in a joyful spiritual state.
All this happened in an instant.Upon closing his eyes, this state appeared a state full of joy, purity and radiance.Then he [opened his eyes], looked up and saw the Buddha smiling.The flower seller presented the pot of flowers to the Buddha. The Buddha accepted it joyfully and then asked him, “Flower seller, in making this offering, is there something you hope for?”A thought came to him, and he told the Buddha, “If there is anything I sincerely wish for, it is that, in the future, I can be like You and engage in spiritual practice. After that, I hope that when I meet the multitudes of sentient beings who have no taken refuge, I can give them the chance to take refuge in the Right Dharma. If someone is suffering and no one is helping, is someone is ill and has no medication, I want to be able to help them. If someone is filled with afflictions and cannot escape them, I want them to be able to rely on me and allow me to guide them to liberation. If I have the chance to do this in the future, I will be very content”.
The Buddha was joyful, as this man was a true spiritual practitioner. This became a very joyful Dharma-assembly. The arrival of a single flower seller inspired joy in the entire assembly of people listening to teachings. And this person was grateful for Venerable Sudatta, who led him here, so he could see the Buddha and make this offering with a pure heart.
So, to attain causes and conditions and virtuous friends are not very difficult. He was selling flowers on the street and was offered various amounts of money [by two people]. But he knew how to make his choice “I should choose the virtuous friend who will give me a [good] opportunity”. Thus he was not greedy for money, but he cherished the guidance of virtuous friends. So, he was able to offer the flowers to the Buddha. By drawing near spiritual and virtuous friends, he was able to quickly seize the opportunity to fulfill his potential.
In summary, when we learn the Buddha’s Way in this world, we must constantly seize every opportunity, no matter who or what we encounter. I always say, “Seize this moment and sustain it forever”. Whether we can constantly live up to our vows depends on our thought in each moment.
The Lotus Sutra also mentions, “With all conditions [and] analogies…”. Many causes and conditions can be used as analogies, just like the previous story from the Buddha’s era. From it we can also understand that we must promptly do good deeds and see everyone as spiritual friend who can guide us. So, this can also be considered an analogy for promptly taking advantage of our karmic conditions. So, with expressions and skillful means, and the convergence of various causes and conditions, the teachings of the Buddha have the strength to help sentient beings complete their spiritual practice.
“With all conditions, analogies, expressions and skillful means, I enable all to rejoice. Perhaps I may speak of sutras, gathas, previous lives of disciples, previous lives of Buddhas, or things that have never been.”
Whether [He taught] the Small or Middle Vehicle Dharma, He did so solely to guide us to reach these state of the Great Vehicle. Thus, with expressions and skillful means, [He] enabled all to rejoice. People of all capabilities became happy, they happily and faithfully accepted and practiced. This is how the Buddha taught the Dharma, which allowed and sentient being who received it to feel joyful. For sentient beings to be happy, the Buddha gave teachings with various methods. Now we have to understand, “Perhaps I am speak of sutras, gathas, previous lives of disciples, previous lives of Buddhas, or things that have never been”. From understanding the Dharma comes happiness. Why are we happy? Because the Buddha was not born a Buddha. He continuously and diligently engaged in spiritual practice, lifetime after lifetime. [His] sole aspiration was developing Bodhicitta and walking the Bodhisattva-path.
So, life after life, He spent time everywhere in the Six Realms, saving and transforming suffering sentient beings, thus He was considered a Bodhisattva. A Bodhisattva practices the Six Perfections, which are giving, upholding precepts, patience and so on. There are methods of benefiting sentient beings. Because of this, everything Bodhisattvas do helps them form good connections with many sentient beings.To transform sentient beings, we must first inspire happiness in them. Then hearing us speak makes them happy, seeing us makes them happy, and hearing our names makes them happy, and so on. So, either seeing or hearing us will benefit them. If, when people hear us or see us, or hear of us from others, and they become happy, that is what it means to “enable all to rejoice”.
“I enable all to rejoice: This means that Bodhisattvas can use the Six Perfections to benefit sentient beings. Because Bodhisattvas take these actions, sentient beings give rise to happiness.”
Next, it states, “Perhaps I may speak of sutras, gathas, previous. With various skillful means and expressions, He enabled everyone to be happy. The words He said, the Dharma He expounded, all became “sutras.”
What is a “sutras”? it is not to be confused with “asura;” [it is entirely unrelated].
“Sutra” is the Sanskrit word for Buddhist texts.
Sutras: Sutras are corresponding texts, they correspond with the wondrous truths of all Buddhas and the capabilities of sentient beings. They can also be compared to a thread that ties together the meaning of the Dharma so that it does not become scattered or lost.
If this word “sutra” is directly translated, it would be “corresponding texts.” “Corresponding” means to be in agreement [Sutras] “correspond with the wondrous truths of Buddhas.”
All Buddhas means not only Sakyamuni Buddha. A Sutra agrees with the principles of all Buddhas from the past, present and future. It “corresponds” closely with all Their principles. Actually, being “corresponding” is itself a principle. It is inseparable from the truth. Being “corresponding” means it “corresponds with wondrous truths.” The original intent of all Buddhas, the wisdom of all Buddhas and the intrinsic Tathagata-nature of all Buddhas are all considered subtle and wondrous principles.
So, they correspond well with sutras. [Sutras also] “correspond with the capabilities of sentient beings.” This is the smooth road that connects noble beings to ordinary people, and the Buddha’s mind to sentient beings’ minds. That which connects the state of ordinary people to the state of Buddhahood is called a “sutra,” which is also a path, a road. So, it “corresponds with the wondrous truths of all Buddhas.” [It also] “corresponds with the capabilities of sentient beings.
Also, a sutra is like a thread. Consider a set of pearls. To string them together, we must use thread. Every word is like a pearls, and each passage of the Dharma must be joined together. It is like a thread that strings them together, so the Dharma runs all the way through it. This is an analogy for a “sutra.”
“Gatha” is also a Sanskrit word that means “hymn.” When we recite sutras, we can chant them [lyrically] in verse, or continuously and directly. Teachings may be given in verses, instead of long-form prose.
Gathas: Gatha is a Sanskrit word for hymn. It can also mean direct verses. So, teachings may be directly taught in verses, instead of the longer prose form.
In summary, [whether] the sutras are written in prose or in verse, they help us further our understanding and help us learn through repetition. So, we must remember [the words] well, engrave them in our minds and sincerely adhere to them. We must cherish the spiritual friends we encounter every day. Karmic conditions and virtuous friends help us take the Dharma to heart. We must not lose them right away, so we must string them together like a thread. Every day, we must connect the Dharma we have learned. Thus, we must always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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