Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Craving Hinders the Elimination of Suffering (貪愛自蔽不知斷苦)
Date: October. 28. 2014
“Because foolish people crave desires and pleasure, the Five Roots and Five Dusts entangle each other. Being covered by ignorance is like being blind. They do not see or know the way to end suffering.”
In our daily living, we are never free from our greed, anger and ignorance. Our cravings come from our desires. Because our desires are endless, there are many things we crave and pursue. When our cravings cannot be fulfilled, the ignorance in our minds is multiplied, and we become more ignorant and more foolish.
All karma [created] in life originates in ignorance and foolishness. This is how our greed entangles us with each other. All this is due to the Five Roots and Five Dusts. The Five Roots are eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body. The Five Dusts are form, sound, smell, taste, touch. When the Five Roots come in contact with external phenomena, they become entangled with them. When we look at external conditions with our eyes, cravings and desires arise. When our ears hear a sound and it is something unpleasant, we give rise to anger. What we feel with our bodies, the desires we come in contact with and physical pleasures we enjoy, make it harder for us to be separated from our external conditions. This is how we become attached to desire and pleasure and how our mutual entanglements become ever larger and ever tighter. They become very difficult to dissolve.
Then we are living life with our mind’s eye covered by ignorance. So, if our mind’s eye is blind, we cannot see, understand or end our suffering. We are unable to find the source of suffering, or figure out how to completely eliminate it. People who do not understand principles only care about indulging in pleasure. They will not think of seeking out the truth. How did we come to this world? What are we so busy doing in this world? Why is there so much suffering in this world? Suffering comes from natural disasters, manmade calamities, meeting those we hate, parting from those we love. So much suffering arises from interpersonal interactions. When we are suffering, we are bewildered. We do not think to bring clarity to our minds or understand where suffering comes from.
In the past, during the Buddha’s lifetime, there was a large group of 500 people who could not see with their eyes. Because they could not see, they could not work, so they had to beg for alms. These 500 people were always gathered as a group. Someone said, “I heard,” as his ears could still hear, “that Prince Siddhartha has attained Buddhahood through spiritual practice. He is pointing out a way for others to clearly see their hearts. We all feel that because in this lifetime, we cannot see, because we live a life in which we are unable to see our surroundings, our lives are unbearably painful. Every day, we have to beg to make a living. This is so painful!
“If the Buddha can provide us with guidance, that would be so wonderful!” Another person said, “I’ve also heard about this. But the Buddha is now in the Kingdom of Sravasti.It’s very far, how can we find our way there?”
One of the others said, “It’s possible.We can pool all our resources and hire someone to lead us there”So, they hired a sighted guide to lead them.This sighted guide led this group of 500 blind people.Each person held the hand of the next.This long and grand procession followed behind the sighted guide.After a few days, the sighted guide felt annoyed.“They are all blind people”“We have to go such a long way to find Buddha.
“How many more days do I have to spend guiding them?”An unwholesome thought arose in his mind, so one day he told them, “I have something to do.I’m thirsty; I’ll find some water to drink.”Then he left and never came back.
These blind people had already come halfway, and did not know where they were; they grew afraid.They began to comfort each other.“Since we have come this far, we have to keep going forward.We still have mouths, we can talk to people.”So they marched on in their procession without knowing their course.
Suddenly, they heard someone yelling angrily, “Where did all you people come from?How could you not see my crops?You have trampled over them!All of my crops have been ruined by you!”This group of people became even more frightened.In chorus, they quickly called out to the owner of the field, “We apologize! We really cannot see.We are truly blind.Because we heard that the Buddha is in the Kingdom of Sravasti, we wholeheartedly want to find and meet Him. However, the sighted guide we hired has deserted us midway through our journey, so now we don’t know which way to go.”
The owner of the field was moved.This long procession of blind people had traveled so far to look for the Buddha.So, he resolved to hire someone to lead this group of blind people to the Kingdom of Sravasti.
The blind people felt very grateful to have encountered this benefactor.So, they marched on with gratitude.Another sighted guide came to lead them.This one was very loving.Finally, they arrived in the Kingdom of Sravasti, at the Buddha’s abode.But the people there told them, “You’re too late. The Buddha went to the Kingdom of Vaisali.”
The Buddha had already left.
Everyone was eager to seek the Dharma and see the Buddha, so they asked the sighted guide to quickly lead them to the Kingdom of Vaisali.The journey was very arduous.But when they got to the Kingdom of Vaisali, the Buddha had already returned to the Kingdom of Sravasti.In this way, they went back and forth seven times.They made three round trips.On the seventh leg of their trip, they arrived again in the Kingdom of Sravasti.
The Buddha heard about their sincerity and felt great compassion for them, so He waited for them there.Finally this group blind people could approach the Buddha.
Although they could not see with their eyes, every one of them felt as if the Buddha’s light had entered their hearts.The Buddha seemed to stand in front of them with a radiant and dignified appearance.They were all very moved and prostrated to the Buddha and told Him of their suffering and hardship.
Out of great compassion,He expounded the Dharma for them to help them understand that they were living this kind of life because of the law of karma.He talked about past causes and conditions.These people were very moved upon learning how all things happen according to the law of karma.So, they all asked to take refuge with the Buddha.
They asked Him if they could become monastics.
The Buddha was compassionate and could not bear to abandon any sentient beings.
The Buddha said, “Welcome, bhiksus, you may shave your own head.”So, these 500 people became monastics, and peacefully resided there. All of them engaged in spiritual practice. Their understanding was clearer than the sighted. So, they attained the first, second, then third fruit, in this way successively realizing the fruits of spiritual practice.
Look at that first sighted guide. His mindset led him to desert these 500 people and go on his way. His eyes could see, but his mind was blind. When it comes to sight and blindness, one who can see with physical eyes may be blind in their mind’s eye. This is from “deep attachment to the Five Desires”. This [next] sutra passage discusses how ignorant and foolish people are deeply attached to the Five Desires.
“Like a yak obsessed with his tail, they smother themselves with greed and cravings, blind and in darkness, they see nothing. They do not seek the Buddha of mighty power, or the Dharma which ends suffering.”
Isn’t this sutra passage very similar to what we just talked about? In life, we have to eliminate the Five Desires, since we “are deeply attached to the Five Desires”. Our minds are covered because of the Five Desires.
“They are deeply attached to the Five Desires:
These are the turbidity of afflictions. They are like a yak with a big tail who is particularly attached to it and constantly uses his body to protect it. He is completely enamored with it. This is like how sentient beings cling to the Five Desires without regard for their future and safety. Furthermore, they do not know where they will go after they leave this body, nor do they know the suffering of cyclic existence.”
There is a lot of turbidity in our minds, so we have the turbidity of afflictions. We are like a yak with a big tail. A yak is a kind of ox. This yak is particularly fond of his tail so he always use his body to protect it. When he walks, he rarely looks ahead. His hair is very long to begin with, covering his eyes, but when he is walking, he keeps looking at his tail.Even animals also have their own particular attachments. Don’t we find this kind of clinging in ourselves? Aren’t we sentient beings just like this? We do not understand principles, so all we do is cling to our daily living, enjoying our cravings and objects of desire. This is like how sentient beings caught up in the Five Desires show no regard for their future safety.
Indeed, as we go about our day, if our words, actions or thoughts go astray, this can lead to great danger. Our future in the human realm is determined by the thoughts we give rise to and the physical actions we take. Dangers are lurking all around us. Thus, we constantly speak of impermanence. We are safe now, but not necessarily in the future. This is something we constantly talk about. So, the Five Desires lead us to cling to the present without regard for our future safety, without knowing where our next life will be.
We are simply clinging to the present, to how much wealth or recognition we want, to people we love and things we love, and so on. This is all we know. We do not realize that we are creating karma when we love this person, hurt that person or seek this thing and let go of that thing. None of us realize this at all. We may set aside principles to get what we want right now, but do not think about how this affects the future.
So, [they do not know] “where they will go”. In the future, after we leave this body, where will we go? What will our future life be like? We are always talking about the Six Realms. Will we go up to heaven? Or return as a human? Or will we be in the hell, hungry ghost or animal realms? Where will we go? We are only clinging to the present. We do not think about our future. We are like the yak who loves his tail. We human beings crave the Five Desires without thinking about our future and how we should walk the road of this life.
“Nor do [we] know the suffering of cyclic existence”. Cyclic existence leads to unbearable suffering. “They smother themselves with greed and cravings; blind and in darkness, they see nothing”.
“They smother themselves with greed and cravings: blind and in darkness, they see nothing: Sentient beings roam about in the long night. They endlessly cycle through the Six Realms of suffering, all because of greed and cravings. Sentient beings are blind and in darkness. They do not abide by morals or their filial duty. Lacking respect, they willfully disobey their parents, make unwholesome friends and cover themselves so they are blind and in darkness”.
Sentient beings roam about in the long night. We truly live in darkness. Because our mind’s sys is still in the dark, we are living in an endless night. What is the direction that we want to go in? We do not know, so we “roam about in the long night, in the Six Realms, and cannot escape.” This is simply due to “greed and cravings”. Desires [arising from] greed, anger and ignorance cause us to endlessly cycle in the Six Realms. We sentient beings who are blind and in the dark do not abide by morals or our filial duty.
Because we have greed and desires, we are not filial our parents, we disobey our elders and we do not abide by principles. All evil things done in this world begin from not abiding by morals. So, “lacking respect, they willfully disobey their parents and make unwholesome friends.” With this, they “cover themselves so they are blind and in darkness.” This is the darkness of life.
Now, let us discuss, “They do not seek the Buddha of mighty power, or the Dharma which ends suffering.”
They do not seek the Buddha of mighty power or the Dharma which ends suffering: Humans cling to the Five Desires. They are completely enamored with them, and thus are deluded and cannot awaken. The Buddha has mighty power and can end sentient beings physical and mental suffering and its resulting afflictions.
Therefore He is the Great King of Healers. Sentient beings cover themselves with greed and desires. Blind and in darkness, they cannot see. They do not seek the Buddha of Mighty Power, or His teachings about ending suffering.
We humans cling to the Five Desires. We are completely enamored of them. We have nothing constant greed. So, we cling to objects of craving and desire. Thus we are “deluded and cannot awaken”. We do not know about the Buddha and do not seek Him. From the story I just told, the blind people focused on meeting the Buddha, but the first sighted guide focused on his greed. “The Buddha has mighty power and can end sentient beings’ physical and mental suffering.”So, He is also known as the Great King of Healers.
You see, when the blind people saw the Buddha, their minds became illuminated and principles entered their hearts. Didn’t this open their mind’s eye? However, if the Five Desires cover our minds, then we cannot understand the true principles of the Buddha-Dharma in the world. Then we do not think of seeking ways of ending suffering. Since we do not see the Buddha or hear the Dharma and do not take these principles to heart, how can we find a way to end suffering?
So sentient beings are greedy and desirous. They “cover themselves with greed and desires.” Because they have covered their own minds, “blind and in darkness, they cannot see.” If their minds are blind, they cannot understand principles. So, for people who are blind and in darkness, their minds are covered and they cannot see the principles. They do not want to seek them because they do not feel like they are suffering.
Suffering people may also create more suffering our of arrogance and an inferiority complex. Perhaps they doubt the Buddha’s teachings. In this case, they will never see the Buddha or hear the Dharma. They will always be roaming the long night. Forever “blind and in darkness, they cannot see.” This is how life works.
Because ordinary people are “foolish people who cling to cravings and desires, their Five Roots become entangled with the Five Dusts. Being covered by ignorance is like beings blind.” ”They do not see or know the way to end suffering.” These people refuse to improve themselves. Since we are learning the Buddha’s Way, after listening to the Buddha-Dharma, we must always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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