We continued our ZOOM class discussion of Lesson 36 “How to Realize Prajna” with a discussion of sudden awakening, eliminating karmic hindrances, and the beginning steps to follow in cultivation. We then began Lesson 37 to discuss the Preliminary Practice Dharma with some thoughts on strange miraculous phenomena and qigong; worldly affairs, adverse circumstances, and forbearance. We also considered how to “learn from Buddha” and how to contemplate impermanence.
What Is the Problem with Seeking Sudden Enlightenment?
“. . . anyone who falsely boasts of enabling people to instantly become thoroughly aware of their original nature or enabling people to become accomplished through sudden awakening, is a deceiver. All such people advocate evil doctrine that violates the law of cause and effect! If you depart from cultivation, you simply will not become accomplished. Therefore, you must cultivate yourself. Without cultivation, you will not be able to achieve the holy fruit through any sect or school.“
What method did the Buddha Master give us to enable us to correctly cultivate ourselves?
“Today I will tell you disciples a method to transform causality whereby bad causes are pressed to the back, enabling good causes to mature first. Through this method, you plant various causes leading to great liberation. You disciples will naturally be planting the causes of liberation. You will then be able to eliminate your beginningless karmic hindrances. . . Once you have mastered this method, karmic hindrances will leave you and stay far away. Only then can the light of wisdom manifest. Only when karmic hindrances are kept far away from you can the light of wisdom appear.“
What are the steps to follow in cultivation listed here?
“People who seek liberation first must have a mind truly cognizant of impermanence, a mind truly determined to leave samsara; must have true faith, vows, and practice; and must have true precept-observance, dhyana, and wisdom. These things must be true, not false. If they are false, they will be of no effect, disciples. They must be true. Only with such determination can you truly carry out what the Buddha taught.“
Why must one have a mind truly cognizant of impermanence?
“A mind cognizant of impermanence knows that our lives are incessantly in the process of dying. Each second and each minute incessantly passes. With the passing of one second, one’s life decreases by that one second. . . Your lifespan will not increase. . . it is very possible that you will not be able to learn Buddha Dharma in your next life. That is why you must become liberated in this life. . . you must have a mind that is truly determined to leave samsara. The reason one does not have a mind that is truly determined to leave samsara is that one has not established a mind cognizant of impermanence.”
What is the first part of the Preliminary Practice Dharma?
“. . . after you have a state of mind cognizant of impermanence, true faith will arise. When you truly have faith, you will know that you should make vows about what you will do. Having made vows, you will actually carry them out. That is called practice.“
What did the Buddha Master say about supernormal powers and miracles?
“Your intent in learning Buddha Dharma should not be to pursue strange, miraculous phenomena. I do not advocate having the intent of pursuing strange, miraculous phenomena. You should cultivate yourself in an earnest and down-to-earth manner. . . The mind produces all phenomena. They are produced by the mind. All illusory, unusual, and marvelous applications of phenomena cannot be separated from the illusions of our own mind consciousness. They are either perceptions of the sixth consciousness or manifestations from the seventh consciousness, called the manas consciousness. Or, they are either the affliction of karma-induced delusion that has deeply accumulated in our consciousness like innumerable dust or sand since beginningless time or are the affliction of avidya pouring forth from the eighth consciousness, called the alaya consciousness, which is the king of one’s consciousness. Thus, there is nothing amazing or strange about the appearance of any phenomenon.“
Can Buddha Dharma be separated from worldly affairs?
“Buddha Dharma is to be applied in the world, and attaining enlightenment from Buddha Dharma cannot be separated from worldly affairs. . . it is the truth of awakening to the causes behind the coming together of earth, water, fire, wind, space, and consciousness. To put it explicitly, Buddha Dharma entails using all aspects of the world, including sentient beings, non-sentient things, and so on, to thoroughly shed light upon one’s own speech and conduct so that one can truly cultivate oneself. Therefore, Buddha Dharma applies to how we attend to matters and deal with people, how we conduct ourselves, how we live, work, and think, how we behave, and all of our other worldly actions. It even applies to thoughts that arise in the mind with regard to worldly matters.“
How should we view adverse circumstances or events?
“You must temper and refine yourself by experiencing adverse circumstances. Can you restrain your anger? Can you truly cut off attachment to self? Without experiencing adverse circumstances, how do you know whether you can? Chan Master Yongjia of the Chan school said, ‘If not for the slander from family and adversaries, how could one demonstrate the power of loving-kindness and patience that stems from non-birth?’ If nobody slanders you, how do you know whether you could patiently endure it? . . . You should use all worldly matters to check and examine your own conduct.“
What do you need as an initial foundation to be able to “learn from Buddha”?
“. . . you must actually act accordingly through your three karmas. . . What methods should be used to check how you deal with worldly objects and affairs? They are the most basic criteria consisting of the myriad practices subsumed in the Six Paramitas, the Ten Wholesome Behaviors, the Four Limitless States of Mind, and the precepts taught by the Buddha. You should use all of the precepts, disciplinary rules, and other Dharma expounded by the Buddha as the criteria or standard.“
Since as Buddhists, we must always practice great loving-kindness and compassion to all living beings, how do we deal with those scoundrels and evil demons who do great damage to the interests of living beings, poison or harm the lives of the public, use evil teachings to sully the true Dharma, espouse feudal superstition, and create chaos in society?
“It is true that Buddhism advocates great loving-kindness and compassion, has as a fundamental tenet the universal saving of living beings, and teaches sacrificing one’s own interests to benefit others. However, Buddhism also includes having great heroism and a fearless will! With respect to those scoundrels and evil demons who do great damage to the interests of living beings, poison or harm the lives of the public, use evil teachings to sully the true Dharma, espouse feudal superstition, and create chaos in society, Buddhism advocates fighting back against them without relenting in the slightest and without the least bit of fear toward them. Since Buddha Dharma is not for furthering one’s own selfish interests, why would Buddhists fear such evil scoundrels?
Therefore, Bodhisattvas are even willing to give up their own lives to protect the interests of the public. Safety and peace among people are interests of the public. As for you small number of villains out there doing bad things, it will of course not be possible to forgive you. Because cultivating oneself in accord with Buddha Dharma entails enlightening oneself and others, therefore, in order to protect the interests of the public and the world, we will not forgive that small number of bad people. Thus, we should report to the appropriate authorities bad people and their bad deeds and evil conduct. If you want to do bad things, we will have the law punish you, correct your behavior, and reform your soul. Since you are a bad person, of course you should be reformed. The Buddha Dharma also holds this view. When you do bad deeds, you will not only be dealt with from the worldly perspective. When the karmic force of the law of cause and effect matures, you will also descend into one of the three bad realms, including even descent into hell.”
What is the purpose of cultivating yourself and learning from Buddha?
“So, the first purpose is to end your own cyclic birth and death. The second purpose is to liberate living beings. Therefore, you should understand and practice the contents of the four lines of Dharma that follow, putting them into practice with your three karmas in correspondence. You should do so all the way until the reality state arises. The four lines to take refuge and arouse bodhicitta are: The Buddhas, the true Dharma, and the virtuous and holy venerable ones, I take refuge in them until I reach enlightenment. Based on all of the meritorious virtues I accumulate through cultivation, I vow to become a Buddha to benefit living beings. . . All the way up to the time I become a Buddha, I will always learn from Buddha(s), forever turn to Them and rely upon Them. All of the meritorious virtues I cultivate today are for the benefit of living beings. I wish that they become Buddhas together with me at the same time. I do not wish that I alone become a Buddha. May all of us together attain Buddhahood. “
How do we contemplate impermanence?
“Our contemplation of impermanence entails contemplating all conditioned phenomena as being like a dream, illusion, bubble, or shadow, as being like dew and like lightning. All sentient beings will definitely die. All non-sentient things will definitely perish. Any being that has life will die. Anything that does not have life will eventually break down. Our bodies are false combinations of the four great elements. They likewise will break down. There is nothing in the world that does not break down. . . They will all undergo the process of arising, existing, decaying, and vanishing.“
Next:
We will continue DCB26 with a discussion on Dharma practice and how to realize prajna at our May 11, 2024 ZOOM session starting at 9:00 am. We will consider the methods used in the various sects of Buddhism to generate a mind that is determined to leave samsara and how to generate good causes and transform bad effects. We will focus on the Three Categories of Pure Precepts and other dharmas like the Ten Wholesome Behaviors and Four Limitless States needed to become accomplished.
The recording of the May 4 DCB26 class is now available. You must be enrolled in DCB26 in one of the membership programs at the LFBCS to access the course materials, questions covered (in parenthesis), and/or the class recordings. Please note that these links will only work if you are logged into LFBCS with your membership identification number AND are enrolled in this class.
DCB26-Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra: “How to Realize Prajna”
May 4, 2024: Lesson 37.1-H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III Imparts Buddha Dharma-Causality and the Rules and Methods of Continual Practice, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra-How to Realize Prajna, (53-75B) and (HERE) for recording of class.
May 4, 2024: Lesson 36.3-H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III Imparts Buddha Dharma-Causality and the Rules and Methods of Continual Practice, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra-How to Realize Prajna, (47-52) and (HERE) for recording of class.
April 27, 2024: Lesson 36.2-H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III Imparts Buddha Dharma-Causality and the Rules and Methods of Continual Practice, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra-How to Realize Prajna, (18-46) and (HERE) for recording of class.
April 20, 2024: Lesson 36.1-H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III Imparts Buddha Dharma-Causality and the Rules and Methods of Continual Practice, Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Text of the Heart Sutra-How to Realize Prajna, (1-17) and (HERE) for recording of class.
CLICK for links to DCB22-Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra: PART TWO–I. through Lesson 11a.2-“Consciousness.”
CLICK for link to article on the last class held on DCB21 and links to videos of all 18 ZOOM class discussions on DCB21 held from November 2022 to April 2023. Note: not all of the forwards, notes, and introductions are complete.
CLICK for Background information on Expounding the Absolute Truth through the Heart Sutra and why it is such an important text.
Revised June 3, 2024.
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