Ai Nói Phật Pháp

X. Thuyết Pháp Theo Kinh Duy Ma Cật

Theo Kinh Duy Ma Cật, khi Mục Kiền Liên vào trong thành Tỳ Xá Lê, ở trong xóm làng nói Pháp cho các hàng cư sĩ nghe, lúc ấy ông Duy Ma Cật đến bảo rằng: “Nầy ngài Đại Mục Kiền Liên, nói Pháp cho bạch y cư sĩ, không phải như ngài nói đó. Vả chăng nói Pháp phải đúng như pháp (xứng tánh) mà nói. Pháp không chúng sanh, lìa chúng sanh cấu; Pháp không có ngã, lìa ngã cấu; Pháp không có thọ mạng, lìa sanh tử; Pháp không có nhơn, làn trước làn sau đều dứt; Pháp thường vắng lặng, bặt hết các tướng; Pháp lìa các tướng, không phải cảnh bị duyên; Pháp không danh tự, dứt đường ngôn ngữ; Pháp không nói năng, lìa giác quán; Pháp không hình tướng, như hư không; Pháp không hý luận, rốt ráo là không; Pháp không ngã sở, lìa ngã sở; Pháp không phân biệt, lìa các thức; Pháp không chi so sánh, không có đối đãi; Pháp không thuộc nhân, không nhờ duyên; Pháp đồng pháp tánh, khắp vào các Pháp; Pháp tùy nơi như không có chỗ tùy; Pháp trụ thực tế, các bên hữu, vô thường, đoạn, không động được; Pháp không lay động, không nương sáu trần; Pháp không tới lui, thường không dừng trụ; Pháp thuận 'không, ' tùy 'vô tướng, ' ứng 'vô tác;' Pháp lìa tốt xấu; Pháp không thêm bớt; Pháp không sanh diệt; Pháp không chỗ về; Pháp ngoài mắt, tai, mũi, lưỡi, thân, ý; Pháp không cao thấp; Pháp thường trụ không động; Pháp lìa tất cả quán hạnh. Thưa ngài Đại Mục Kiền Liên! Pháp tướng như thế đâu có thể nói ư? Vả chăng người nói Pháp, không nói, không dạy; còn người nghe, cũng không nghe, không được. Ví như nhà huyễn thuật nói Pháp cho người huyễn hóa nghe, phải dụng tâm như thế mà nói Pháp. Phải biết căn cơ của chúng sanh có lợi có độn, khéo nơi tri kiến không bị ngăn ngại, lấy tâm đại bi khen ngợi Pháp Đại Thừa, nghĩ nhớ đền trả ơn Phật, chớ để ngôi Tam Bảo dứt mất, như vậy mới nên nói Pháp.

Cũng theo Kinh Duy Ma Cật, ông Duy Ma Cật đã nhắc nhở Phú Lâu Na về nói pháp phải tùy căn cơ chúng sanh như sau: “Thưa Phú Lâu Na! Ngài nên nhập định trước để quan sát tâm địa của những người nầy, rồi sau mới nói đến nói Pháp. Ngài chớ đem món ăn dơ để trong bát báu, phải biết rõ tâm niệm của các vị Tỳ Kheo nầy, chớ cho ngọc lưu ly đồng với thủy tinh. Ngài không biết được căn nguyên của chúng sanh, chớ nên dùng Pháp Tiểu Thừa mà phát khởi cho họ, những người kia tự không có tì vết, chớ làm cho họ có tì vết, họ muốn đi đường lớn, chớ chỉ lối nhỏ. Ngài chớ nên đem biển lớn để vào dấu chơn trâu, chớ cho ánh sáng mặt trời đồng với lửa đom đóm. “Ngài Phú Lâu Na! Những vị Tỳ Kheo nầy đã phát tâm Đại Thừa từ lâu, giữa chừng quên lãng, nay sao lại lấy Pháp Tiểu Thừa dẫn dạy họ? Tôi xem hàng Tiểu Thừa trí huệ cạn cợt cũng như người mù, không phân biệt được căn tánh lợi độn của chúng sanh.” Theo Kinh Duy Ma Cật Sở Thuyết khi ông Ca Chiên Diên diễn nói lại lời Phật thuyết pháp về vô thường, khổ, không và vô ngã, Duy Ma Cật đã nhắc ông Ma Ha Ca Chiên Diên rằng chớ nên đem tâm sanh diệt ra mà nói Pháp thực tướng như sau: “Thưa ngài Ca Chiên Diên! Ngài chớ nên đem tâm hạnh sanh diệt mà nói Pháp thực tướng. Ngài Ca Chiên Diên! Các Pháp rốt ráo không sanh, không diệt, là nghĩa vô thường, năm ấm rỗng không, không chỗ khởi là nghĩa khổ; các Pháp rốt ráo không có, là nghĩa không; ngã và vô ngã không hai, là nghĩa vô ngã; Pháp trước không sanh, nay cũng không diệt, là nghĩa tịch diệt.”

XI. Mười Bốn Điều Không Thể Thuyết Giảng Được

Đức Phật đã từng luôn nhắc nhở tứ chúng về rất nhiều điều không nên nói, trong đó có mười bốn điều quan trọng không thể thuyết giảng được. Người Phật tử thuần thành chỉ nói khi cần thiết. Kỳ thật, Đức Phật không trả lời những câu hỏi về tự tồn, không tự tồn, thế giới vĩnh cửu, vân vân. Theo Đức Phật, người giữ im lặng là người khôn ngoan vì tránh được hao hơi tổn tướng cũng như những lời nói tiêu cực vô bổ. Nếu người ấy hỏi để vấn nan Phật thì Ngài chỉ im lặng. Một hôm có người nói với Phật y sẽ nhập bọn các đệ tử của Ngài nếu Ngài đưa ra được những giải đáp sáng tỏ về các vấn đề như Phật sống mãi hay không, nếu thế thì cái gì sẽ xãy ra sau khi Ngài chết? Nguyên nhân đầu tiên của vũ trụ là gì và vũ trụ rồi sẽ giống như cái gì trong tương lai? Tại sao loài người sống và cái gì xảy ra sau khi chúng ta chết?

Vân vân và vân vân. Nếu người ấy hỏi để vấn nan Phật thì Ngài chỉ im lặng. Ví bằng Ngài thấy rằng người ấy hỏi để học thì Ngài sẽ trả lời như thế nầy: “Giả sử bạn bị trúng một mũi tên tẩm thuốc độc, có một y sĩ đến để nhổ mũi tên ấy ra khỏi thân thể của bạn và trị vết thương cho lành, trước tiên bạn có hỏi ông ta những vấn đề như mũi tên được làm bằng thứ gì, thuốc độc được chế bằng thứ gì, ai bắn mũi tên đó, và nếu y sĩ không trị vết thương, cái gì sẽ phải xãy ra, vân vân và vân vân; và từ chối chữa trị trừ phi y sĩ trả lời tất cả những vấn đề đó để thỏa mãn bạn? Bạn sẽ chết trước khi nhận được những giải đáp.” Trong thí dụ nầy, Phật khuyến cáo các người hỏi nếu là đệ tử của Ngài thì đừng nên phí mất thời gian về những vấn đề quá sâu xa ngoài tầm lãnh hội của một người thường, có thể sau thời gian dài tu tập theo nhà Phật thì tự nhiên sẽ thấu hiểu. Theo Triết Học Trung Quán, sự im lặng bí ẩn của Đức Phật đối với những câu hỏi có tính cách siêu hình căn bản nhất đã thúc đẩy Bồ Tát Long Thọ nghiên cứu tìm hiểu lý do tại sao Đức Phật lại giữ im lặng. Có phải Đức Phật chủ trương “Bất khả tri” như một số người Tây phương nghiên cứu Phật Giáo đã nghĩ? Nếu không thì vì lý do gì mà Ngài giữ thái độ im lặng? Qua một cuộc nghiên cứu đối với sự im lặng nầy, Long Thọ đã đặt ra biện chứng pháp. Có một số câu hỏi trứ danh mà Đức Phật cho là “Vô ký” tức là những giải đáp mà Ngài cho rằng không thể diễn đạt. Trong những chú giải của Nguyệt Xứng về Trung Luận, Ngài đã từng nói về chuyện Đức Thế Tôn đã tuyên bố về mười bốn sự việc không thể thuyết minh như được kể trong những câu theo sau đây. Thế giới phải chăng là vĩnh hằng, không vĩnh hằng, hoặc vừa vĩnh hằng vừa không vĩnh hằng, hoặc chẳng phải vĩnh hằng mà cũng chẳng phải không vĩnh hằng, vân vân. Phải chăng thế giới là hữu biên, vô biên, hoặc vừa hữu biên vừa vô biên, hoặc chẳng phải hữu biên mà cũng chẳng phải vô biên, vân vân. Phải chăng sau khi Như Lai nhập diệt, Ngài vẫn tồn tại, Ngài không còn tồn tại, Ngài không còn tồn tại, hoặc Ngài vừa tồn tại vừa không tồn tại, hoặc Ngài chẳng tồn tại mà cũng chẳng không tồn tại, vân vân.

Phải chăng linh hồn và thể xác đồng nhất, không đồng nhất, vân vân.

Who Preach The Buddhist Dharma? — Thiện Phúc

Teach the Dharma means to preach the truth so that people can realize the mortal danger, or to preach others about Buddha's teachings with the hope that they will eventually understand and be able to escape the cycle of births and deaths. The birth of the Buddha's teachings is the pinnacle of the Buddha's achievement. The Buddha's enlightenment was in some respects the pinnacle of his achievement, but it was his subsequent teaching of Dharma

(Truth) that laid the foundation for his enduring legacy. Thus, the Buddha was the first Dharma Master who preached the first sermon and then started His preaching mission to save beings. After the time of the Buddha, a Dharma master is an honorific title for a monk of maturity and high standing. Dharma master is a title of respect used to address a Buddhist Bhiksu (monk) or Bhiksuni (nun) who can preach the Dharma to save beings. It implies that the person so addressed has mastered the Dharma and is qualified to teach it. A Dharma Master is a Buddhist teacher, a Master of the Law (Teacher of the Law). The teachings that the Buddha taught were not for the sake of displaying knowledge to others, but to help them. Therefore, a real master is the one who is able to preach definitive dharmas which are not damaged by reasoning. According to Buddhism, all friends who cultivate with us, good or evil friends, can directly or indirectly give us lectures on Dharmas in our path of cultivation. Good people speak good Dharma, bad people speak bad Dharma. For good advisors, we can directly learn good examples from them; for evil friends, we can also indirectly learn to do opposite to their behaviors, so we can prevent committing evil deeds. Also according to Buddhism, all things in the world are constantly expounding the Dharma. Some things expound wholesome Dharma, while others expound unwholesome Dharma. Some things speak of the deviant knowledge and views of heretics; others speak of the proper knowledge and views of the Ultimate Meaning of the Middle Way. In other words, those that speak wholesome Dharma teach people to see through things, to let things go and to become free. Those that speak unwholesome Dharma teach people to preserve their illusions and continue to cling tightly to things, and so on, and so on. According to the Avatamsaka Sutra, “The Buddhas manifest hundreds of thousands of millions of sounds to proclaim the Wonderful Dharma for sentient beings. We, ordinary people, should always remember that all the sounds in the world are speaking the Dharma for us. For example, the sounds of the stream and creeks are just like the soft sounds from the golden mouth of the Buddha. The green color of the mountains and forests is the pure color of the Dharma body delighting those who see it. If everyone of us understands this principle, then absolutely everything in the world is speaking the Dharma for us. Good people speak good Dharma, bad people speak bad Dharma, and animals speak the Dharma of being animals for us. They enable us to understand how they got to be good, bad, animals, and so on. If you observe cats chase mice, lions chase tigers, tigers chase bears, bears chase deers, the strong oppress the weak, and so on. They are all speaking the Dharma for us. Each has its own cause and effect. When we contemplate and understand things this way, we can get rid of all attachments. If not, we will forever be sinking in the sea of life of attachments. Hoping this little writing will help those who wish to achieve and lead a life of peace, mindfulness and happiness.

(A) Dharma

I. An Overview of Dharma:

According to Buddhism, dharma means Buddhist doctrine or teachings. The teaching of the Buddhas which carry or hold the truth. The way of understanding and love taught by the Buddha doctrine. The Buddha taught the Dharma to help us escape the sufferings and afflictions caused by daily life and to prevent us from degrading human dignity, and descending into evil paths such as hells, hungry ghosts, and animals, etc. The Dharma is like a raft that gives us something to hang onto as we eliminate our attachments, which cause us to suffer and be stuck on this shore of birth and death. The Buddha's dharma refers to the methods of inward illumination; it takes us across the sea of our afflictions to the other shore, nirvana. Once we get there, even the Buddha's dharma should be relinquished. The Dharma is not an extraordinary law created by or given by anyone. According to the Buddha, our body itself is Dharma; our mind itself is Dharma; the whole universe is Dharma. By understanding the nature of our physical body, the nature of our mind, and worldly conditions, we realize the Dharma. The Dharma that is the law of beginningless and endless becoming, to which all phenomena are subject according to causes and conditions. The Dharma, which comprises the spoken words and sermons of Sakyamuni Buddha wherein he elucidated the significance of the Unified Three Treasures and the way to its realization. The

Dharma, the teaching imparted by the Buddha. All written sermons and discourses of Buddhas (that is, fully enlightened beings) as found in the sutras and other Buddhist texts still extant.

Generally speaking, dharma means things, events, phenomena. Dharma also means duty, law or doctrine. The cosmic law which is underlying our world, but according to Buddhism, this is the law of karmically determined rebirth. The Dharma that is the law of beginningless and endless becoming, to which all phenomena are subject according to causes and conditions. When dharma means phenomenon, it indicates all phenomena, things and manifestation of reality. All phenomena are subject to the law of causation, and this fundamental truth comprises the core of the Buddha's teaching. Dharma is a very troublesome word to handle properly and yet at the same time it is one of the most important and essential technical terms in Buddhism. Dharma has many meanings. A term derived from the Sanskrit root “dhr” which” means “to hold” or “to bear”; there seems always to be something of the idea of enduring also going along with it. Originally, it means the cosmic law which underlying our world; above all, the law of karmically determined rebirth. The teaching of the Buddha, who recognized and regulated this law. In fact, dharma (universal truth) existed before the birth of the historical Buddha, who is no more than a manifestation of it. Today, “dharma” is most commonly used to refer to Buddhist doctrine and practice. Dharma is also one of the three jewels on which Buddhists rely for the attainment of liberation, the other jewels are the Buddha and the Samgha. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit root “Dhri” means to hold, to bear, or to exist; there seems always to be something of the idea of enduring also going along with it. The most common and most important meaning of “Dharma” in Buddhism is “truth” “law” or “religion.” Secondly, it is used in the sense of “existence” “being”

“object” or “thing.” Thirdly, it is synonymous with “virtue” “righteousness” or “norm” not only in the ethical sense, but in the intellectual one also. Fourthly, it is occasionally used in a most comprehensive way, including all the senses mentioned above. In this case, we'd better leave the original untranslated rather than to seek for an equivalent in a foreign language.

To Buddhist theories, nothing is real and permanent, the five aggregates make up beings, pillars and rafters make a house, etc. All is temporal and merely phenomenal, fallacious, and unreal. Names are only provisionary symbol or sign. All dharmas are empirical combinations without permanent reality. All things are false and fictitious and unreal names, i.e. nothing has a name of itself, for all names are mere human appellations. In the Lankavatara Sutra, the Buddha reminded Mahamati: “Mahamati! As they are attached to names, images, and signs, the ignorant allow their minds to wander away.” Things which exist only in name, i.e. all things are combinations of other things and are empirically named. All things or phenomena are combinations of elements without permanent reality, phenomena, empirical combinations without permanent reality. The phenomenal which no more exists than turtle's hair or rabbit's horns.

According to the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra, the basic characteristic of all dharmas is not arising, not ceasing, not defiled, not immaculate, not increasing, not decreasing. The Buddha says: “He who sees the Dharma sees me.” Dharma means the teaching of the Buddha. Dharma also means the doctrine of understanding and loving. Dharma means the doctrines of Buddhism, norms of behavior and ethical rules including pitaka, vinaya and sila. Dharma also means reflection of a thing in the human mind, mental content, object of thought or idea. Dharma means factors of existence which the Hinayana considers as bases of the empirical personality. According to Prof. Junjiro Takakusu in The Essentials of Buddhist Philosophy, the word “Dharma” has five meanings. First, dharma would mean 'that which is held to, ' or 'the ideal' if we limit its meaning to mental affairs only. This ideal will be different in scope as conceived by different individuals. In the case of the Buddha it will be Perfect Enlightenment or Perfect Wisdom (Bodhi). Secondly, the ideal as expressed in words will be his Sermon, Dialogue, Teaching, Doctrine. Thirdly, the ideal as set forth for his pupils is the Rule, Discipline, Precept, Morality. Fourthly, the ideal to be realized will be the Principle, Theory, Truth, Reason, Nature, Law, Condition. Fifthly, the ideal as realized in a general sense will be

Reality, Fact, Thing, Element (created and not created), Mind andMatter, Idea and Phenomenon, reflection of a thing in the human mind, mental content, object of thought or idea, and factors of existence which the Hinayana considers as bases of the empirical personality. According to the Madhyamakas, Dharma is a protean word in Buddhism. In the broadest sense it means an impersonal spiritual energy behind and in everything. There are four important senses in which this word has been used in Buddhist philosophy and religion. First, dharma in the sense of one ultimate Reality. It is both transcendent and immanent to the world, and also the governing law within it. Second, dharma in the sense of scripture, doctrine, religion, as the Buddhist Dharma. Third, dharma in the sense of righteousness, virtue, and piety. Fourth, dharma in the sense of 'elements of existence.' In this sense, it is generally used in plural.

II. The First Sermon That Gave Birth to Buddhism Almost 26 Centuries Ago:

After the Buddha's Enlightenment at Buddha Gaya, he moved slowly across India until he reached the Deer Park near Benares, where he preached to five ascetics his First Sermon. The Sermon preached about the Middle Way between all extremes, the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. In the Deer Park, Benares, at first the Buddha was ignored by the five brothers of Kaundinya, but as the Buddha approached them, they felt that there was something very special about him, so they automatically stood up as He drew near. Then the five men, with great respect, invited the Buddha to teach them what He has enlightened. So, the Buddha delivered His First Teaching: Turning the Wheel of the Dharma. He began to preach: “O monk! You must know that there are Four Noble Truths. The first is the Noble Truth of Suffering. Life is filled with the miseries and afflictions of old age, sickness, unhappiness and death. People chase after pleasure but find only pain. Even when they do find something pleasant they soon grow tired of it. Nowhere is there any real satisfaction or perfect peace. The second is the Noble Truth of the Cause of Suffering. When our mind is filled with greed and desire and wandering thoughts, sufferings of all types follow. The third is the Noble Truth of the End of Suffering. When we remove all craving, desire, and wandering thoughts from our mind, sufferings will come to an end. We shall experience undescribable happiness. And finally, the Noble Truth of the Path. The Path that helps us reach the ultimate wisdom.”

The birth of the Buddha's teachings is the pinnacle of the Buddha's achievement. The Buddha's enlightenment was in some respects the pinnacle of his achievement, but it was his subsequent teaching of Dharma (Truth) that laid the foundation for his enduring legacy. The community of monks and nuns that he established ensured the transmission of this doctrine to future generations, and in the 3rd century B.C. the reign of the emperor Asoka played an instrumental role in the dissemination of Buddhism in India. After he had attained enlightenment, the Buddha remained for seven weeks at the site of the Bodhi Tree and enjoyed great bliss. During this period he realized that what he had come to understand was a profound and difficult truth, which other people relished worldly attachment, would find hard to grasp. According to the Buddha, the Buddha dharma is simply worldly dharma in which we turn ourselves around. It is the dharma that most ordinary people are unwilling to use. Worldly people are sinking and floating in the worldly dharma; they are always busy running here and there, constantly hurried and agitated. The source of all these activities is invarably selfishness, motivated by a concern to protect their own lives and properties. Buddha dharma, on the other hand, is unselfish and public spirited, and springs from a wish to benefit others. Sincere cultivators always think of others' welfare. Sincere cultivators always forget their own “Ego”. They always give up their own interests in service to others, and never bring uncomfortable circumstances and afflictions to others. However, most people fail to clearly understand the basic ideas that the Buddha once preached. As a result as we can see now, within Buddhist circles we find struggle and contention, troubles and hassles, quarrels and strife. These problems seem to be no different from that of ordinary people, if we do not want to say worst than what we can find in worldly life. The Buddha predicted all these problems, thus He concluded that it would be pointless to try to teach others about his enlightenment, but the great god Brahma Sahampati intervened and implored the Buddha to share his discoveries with humankind.

The great god Brahma Sahampati intervened and implored the Buddha to share his discoveries with humankind. Impelled by his great compassion, the Buddha decided to survey the world. He saw that beings are of different kinds: like lotuses in a pond, some are immersed underwater, other grow and rest on the surface, and other again come right out of the water and stand clear, He understood that just as some people have good qualities and others bad, some would be easy to teach and others would be difficult. Because of this diversity and out of his great compassion for all beings, the Buddha changed his mind and resolved to teach. The Buddha's first sermon was addressed to the five ascetics who had been his companions before the enlightenment. At the deer park at Sarnath, near present day Varanasi, he explained to them the content of his enlightenment in the form of the Four Noble Truths. These ascetics were so struck by the depth of his insight and the novelty of his message that one of them instantly became an arhat, a “worthy one” who attains nirvana through a Buddha's teaching. The other four followed suit in the days to come. This momentous first sermon, which has become one of the better known articulations of the Buddha's teaching and of Buddhism in general, is called the “Setting in Motion of the Wheel of Dharma.” It is still celebrated in most Theravada countries in the festival called “Asalha Puja” which takes place on the full moon day of the month of July.

For the next forty five years, until his ultimate extinction, the Buddha taught Dharma. The number of his followers increased steadily and the community of monks, the Sangha, began to form. The Buddha himself continued wandering and begging for his food. He taught indiscriminately, talking to kings and paupers alike, and ceased traveling only in the three months of the rainy season. The Buddha did not appoint a successor. When his disciples asked who would lead them after his death, he retorted that they must turn to themselves and be guided by the Dharma as he had taught it to them. It would be the duty of the Sangha to maintain the Dharma when he was gone. At his death approached, the Buddha asked the assembled monks if they had any questions. The gathering remained silent. The Buddha's last words to the monks were: “All things composed are perishable. Now strive diligently.” Then, lying on his right side between two “sal” trees, he began meditating into the many stages of his complete and final extinction (parinirvana), after which he would never again be reborn. His body was cremated and, in accordance with his wish, the remains were divided among humans and gods. Stupas (dome shaped funerary mounds) were erected over the relics. Stupas can be seen today at such sites as Sanchi and Amaravati in India, Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka and Borobudur in Indonesia.

III. Mind & Dharmas in Zen:

All Dharmas Are Created Only By the Mind: Zen Master Seung Sahn wrote in The Whole World Is A Single Flower: One day, as the big temple bell was being rung, the Buddha asked Ananda, "Where does the bell sound come from?" "The bell, " replied Ananda. The Buddha said, "The bell? But if there were no bell stick, how would the sound appear?" Ananda hastily corrected himself. "The stick! The stick!" The Buddha said, "The stick? If there were no air, how could the sound come here?" "Yes! Of course! It comes from the air!" The Buddha asked, "Air? But unless you have an ear, you cannot hear the bell sound." "Yes! I need an ear to hear it. So it comes from my ear." The Buddha said, "Your ear? If you have no consciousness, how can you understand the bell sound?" "My consciousness makes the sound." "Your consciousness? So, Ananda, if you have no mind, how do you hear the bell sound?" "It was created by mind alone."

All Dharmas Are Manifestations of Mind: Once, Man an wrote to a government official: "People in all walks of life have all sorts of things to attend to. How could they have the leisure to sit silently all day in quiet contemplation? Here and now there are Zen teachers who have not managed to cultivate this sitting meditation concentration; they teach deliberate seclusion and quietude, and avoiding population centers, stating that 'intensive meditation concentration cannot be attained in the midst of professional work, business, and labor.' Thus causing many students to apply their minds mistakenly. Many people who listen to this kind of talk consequently think of Zen as something that is hard to do and hard to practice, so they give up the inspiration to cultivate Zen, abandon the source and try to escape, time and time again swimming in the worldly desires. This is truly lamentable. Even if they have a deep aspiration due to some cause in the past, they get to where they neglect their jobs and lose their social virtues for the sake of the Way. As an ancient said, 'if people today were as eager for enlightenment as they are to embrace their lovers, then no matter how busy their professional lives might be, and no matter how luxurious their dwellings, they would not fail to attain continuous concentration leading to appearance of the Great Wonder: Great Enlightenment.' Many people of both ancient and modern times have awakened to the Way and seen essential nature in the midst of activity. All beings in all times and places are manifestations of one mind. When the mind is aroused, all sorts of things arise; when the mind is quiet, all things are quiet. When the one mind is unborn, all things are blameless. For this reason, even if you stay in quiet and serene places deep in the mountains and sit silently in quiet contemplation, as long as the road of the mind monkey's horse of conceptualization is not cut off, you will only be wasting time. The Third Patriarch of Zen said, 'If you try to stop movement and resort to stillness, that stopping will cause even more movement.' If you try to seek true suchness by erasing random thoughts, you will belabor your vital spirit, diminish your mental energy, and make yourself sick. Not only that, you will become oblivious or distracted and finally fall into a pit of bewilderment of Zen."

Myriad Things But One Mind: Myriad things but one mind; all things as noumenal. According to the Sun Face Buddha (the Teachings of Ma Tsu and the Hung chou School of Ch'an), one day Zen master Ma Tsu entered the hall and preached the assembly: "Though the reflections of the moon are many, the real moon is only one. Though there are many springs of water, water has only one nature. There are myriad phenomena in the universe, but empty space is only one. There are many principle that are spoken of, but 'unobstructed wisdom' is only one. Whatever we established, it all comes from One Mind. Whether constructing or sweeping away, all is sublime function; all is oneself. There is no place to stand where one leaves the Truth. The very place one stands on is the Truth; it is all one's being. if that was not so then who is that? All dharmas are Buddha dharmas and all dharmas are liberation. Liberation is identical with suchness: all dharmas never leave suchness. Whether walking, standing, sitting, or reclining, everything is always inconceivable function. The sutras say that the Buddha is everywhere." Tsu yuan, name of a Chinese Zen master of the Yang Chi branch, Lin chi Sect, during the Sung dynasty. He was the author of the book titled "Mind, the Source of All Dharmas" in the thirteenth century. One day, a monk came and asked, "What does it mean to snatch away the person but not snatch away (save) the object?" Tsu yuan replied, "In the realm of self awareness, if one can empty one's mind, what obstruction can be there from an outer object? Therefore, when a Zen master teaches a disciple of low capacity, he should snatch away the person but not the object." The monk asked, "What does it mean to snatch away the object, but not the person?" Tsu yuan replied, "In the realm of self awareness, one does not dwell on outer objects but reflects with one's mind alone. Therefore, the Zen Master should snatch away the object but not the person when the disciple is of average capacity." The monk asked, "What does it mean to snatch away both the person and the object?" Tsu yuan answered, "In the realm of self awareness, both the mind and the objects are empty; whence, then, comes the delusion? Therefore, the Zen Master should snatch away both the person and the object when the disciple is well endowed." The monk asked, "What, then, does it mean to snatch away neither the person nor the object?" Tsu yuan said, "In the realm of self awareness, mind naturally remains as mind and objects as objects. The Zen Master therefore takes away neither the object nor the person when the disciple is highly gifted."

All Dharmas Are the Same As Magical Illusions: Illusion, the continually changing, impermanent phenomanal world of appearances and forms, of illusion or deception, which an unenlightened mind takes as the only reality. The phenomenal universe is subject to differentiation and impermanence. Maya is merely a medium through which we measure and appraise the phenomenal world. It is the cause of illusion when this world of form is incorrectly perceived as static and unchanging. When it is seen for what it is, namely, a living flux grounded in emptiness, maya is bodhi, or inherent wisdom. According to Zen Master Tao An (312 385) in Shan Men Hsuan I: "All dharmas are the same as magical illusions. Because they are the same as magical illusions they are called the 'worldly truth.' The mind and spirit are real and not empty; this is the truth of supreme meaning. If the spirit is empty, then to whom are the teachings given, and who cultivates the Path to advance from an ignorant state and attain Sagehood? Therefore it should be known that the spirit is not empty."

In Zen, All Things Are Like Maya: Illusion, the continually changing, impermanent phenomanal world of appearances and forms, of illusion or deception, which an unenlightened mind takes as the only reality. The phenomenal universe is subject to differentiation and impermanence. Maya is merely a medium through which we measure and appraise the phenomenal world. It is the cause of illusion when this world of form is incorrectly perceived as static and unchanging. When it is seen for what it is, namely, a living flux grounded in emptiness, maya is bodhi, or inherent wisdom. One of the favorite analogies used by the Prajna philosophers when they wish to impress us with the doctrine of Emptiness is that of Maya, and they are frequently called by other teachers the Mayavadins. According to the Prajnaparamita Sutra, once the Buddha asked Subhuti: “Oh, Subhuti, do you think Maya to be different from Rupam and Rupam from Maya? Do you think, again, Maya to be different from Vedana, Samjna, Samskara and Vijnana; and Vedana, Samjna, Samshara, and Vijnana from Maya?” Subhuti said: “No, Blessed One, they are not different. If Rupam is different from Maya, it is not Rupam; if Maya is different from Rupam, it is not Maya. Maya is Rupam and Rupam is Maya. The same can be said of Vedana, Samjna, Samshara, and Vijnana.” The Buddha asked: “Oh, Subhuti, do you think the five clinging Skandhas constitute Bodhisattvahood, or not?” Subhuti said: “Oh, Blessed One, they do.” The Buddha added: “Oh, Subhuti, and you should know that these five clinging Skandhas are no more than Maya itself. Why? Because Rupam is like Maya, and Vedana, Samjna, Samshara, and Vijnana are like Maya; and these five skandhas and six senses are what constitutes Bodhisattvahood and, therefore, the Bodhisattva too is like Maya. Those who wish to discipline themselves in the Prajnaparamita should do so as if disciplining themselves in Maya... But those Bodhisattvas who have first started in their disciplining exercises may be terribly frightened and led astray, if they are not properly guided by good spiritual teachers.” Subhuti said: “Oh, Blessed One, such a discourse as this, indeed, if the hearer is not properly instructed by a great competent master of the Prajnaparamita, will lead us to the follies of libertinism.” The Buddha asked: “It is like a magician conjuring up by his magical art a large crowd of beings at a crossroad. As soon as they are seen to come into existence they vanish. Oh, Subhuti, what do you think? Do they really come from some definite locality? Are they real realities? Do they really pass away somewhere? Are they really destroyed?” Subhuti said: “Oh no, Blessed One.” The Buddha said: “It is the same with the Bodhisattva, although he leads innumerable sentient beings to Nirvana, in reality, there are no sentient beings to be led to Nirvana. Those who are not frightened at all, even when listening to such discourses as this, are true Bodhisattvas well fortified in the Mahayana armour.”

To Be Spontaneous Harmony With Daily Affairs Is Happiness: In his first meeting with Master Shih t'ou, P'ang Yun asked him: "Who is he and who is not dependent upon the ten thousand things (all phenomena)?" Immediately, Shih t'ou held P'ang Yun's mouth shut, and insight dawned on the layman. Later Shih t'ou inquired about his everyday affairs, P'ang Yun answered with a poem, which, freely translated, is as follows:

"There is nothing special

About my daily affairs,

I am simply in spontaneous harmony with them. Clinging to nothing and also rejecting nothing, I encounter no resistence and am never separate.

What do I care about the pomp of purple robes, The pure summit was never sullied by So much as a fleck of dust.

The wondrous action of supernatural forces

I find in hauling water and chopping wood!"

When Zen master Bankei was preaching at Ryumon temple, a Shinshu monk, who believed in salvation through the repetition of the name of the Buddha of Love, was jealous of his large audience and wanted to debate with him. Bankei was in the midst of a talk when the monk appeared, but the fellow made such a disturbance that Bankei stopped his discourse and asked about the noise. The Shinshu monk boasted: “The founder of our sect had such miraculous powers that he held a brush in his hand on the bank of the river, his attendant held up a paper on the other bank, and the teacher wrote the holy name Amida through the air. Can you do such a wonderful thing?” Zen master Bankei replied lightly: “Perhaps your fox can perform that trick, but that is not the manner of Zen. This old monk's miracle is that when I

feel hungry I eat, and when I feel thirsty I drink.”

The Azure Heaven and the Bright Sun, Constantly Free Activities: At the end of the summer retreat Ts'ui Yen said to his assembly, "All summer long I've been talking to you, brothers; look and see if my eyebrows are still there." Pao fu said, "The thief's heart is cowardly." Ch'ang Ch'ing said, "Grown." Yun men said, "Kuan (a barrier or gate as at a border crossing)!" After concentrating on “Kuan!” for ten days, Shuho came to a deep concentrating. He later wrote that in penetrating the koan he came to a state of non duality in which all opposites were reconciled; the whole of the Dharma, he declared, was clear to him. Bathed in sweat, he rushed to express his understanding to his teacher. But before he had a chance to speak, Nampo was able to know from his deportment that he had attained enlightenment. “I had a dream last night” Nampo told him, “in which it seemed that the great Yun men himself had come into my room. And here today you are, a second Yun men!” Shuho embarrassed by the compliment, covered his ears and fled from his teacher's chamber. But the next day he returned and presented Nampo with two poems he had written to commemorat his achievement:

“Having once penetrated the cloud barrier (kuan), The living road opens out north, east, south, and west. In the evening resting, in the morning roaming, Neither host nor guest.

At every step the pure wind rises.

Having once penetrated the cloud barrier,

There is no old road,

The azure heaven and the bright sun, These are my native place. The wheel of free activity constantly Changing is difficult to reach.

Even the golden hued monk (Kasyapa)

Bows respectfully and returns.”

IV.Buddhist Teachings Are The Raft of Dharma For Those Who Wish to Cultivate:

From beginningless eons in the past, we have died and been reborn, over and over, passing through hundreds of thousands of Asankhyas. During all this time, we have never encountered the Buddha dharma, so our bad habits and faults have not decreased by the slightest bit. In fact, our ignorance and afflictions have increased day by day. Now that we have encountered the Buddha dharma, we might say that the roots of goodness we have planted throughout measureless eons in the past have matured, enabling us to meet the wonderful and inconceivable Dharmas. Someone who lacked these roots of goodness, who has no virtuous practices, would never have the chance to encounter the Buddha dharma. Therefore, we should cherish our precious time, do not let the time pass in vain. In the Alaguddùpama Sutta, the Buddha compares the dharmas to a raft which has to be left off after crossing the stream; they are not meant to be taken as ultimate tenet. In Buddhism, dharma refers to all the methods of cultivation taught by the Buddha which lead to ultimate enlightenment. They are means that lead to an end, not an end themselves. The Buddha's teaching is likened a raft for going the other shore. All of us depend on the raft of Dharma to cross the river of birth and death. We strive with our hands, feet, and wisdom to reach the other shore. When the goal, the other shore, is reached, then the raft is left behind. The form of teaching is not final dogma but an expedient method. According to the Discourse on the Water Snake's Parable, the Buddha taught: “My teaching is like a raft for crossing over, not for carrying.” Also according to the Middle Length Saying, the Buddha taught: “The dharma that I teach is like a raft. Even Dharma should be relinquished, how much the more that which is not Dharma? The Raft of Dharma is for crossing over, not for retaining.”

V.Why Should We Quest For The Truth?:

According to the Flower Adornment Sutra, Chapter 38, there are ten kinds of quest for truth of Great Enlightening Beings. Enlightening Beings who abide by these can attain great knowledge of all elements of Buddhahood without being instructed by another. First, quest for truth with a straightforward mind, being free from dishonesty. Secơnd, diligent quest for truth, being free from laziness. Third, wholly devoted quest for truth, not begrudging their lives. Fourth, quest for truth to destroy all sentient beings' afflictions, not doing it for fame, profit, or respect. Fifth, quest for truth to benefit self and others, all sentient beings, not just helping themselves. Sixth, quest for truth to enter knowledge of wisdom, not taking pleasure in literature. Seventh, quest for truth to leave birth and death, not craving worldly pleasures. Eighth, quest for truth to liberate sentient beings, engendering the determination for enlightenment. Ninth, quest for truth to resolve the doubts of all sentient beings, to free them from vacillation. Tenth, quest for truth to fulfill Buddhahood, not being inclined to lesser aims.

VI.Ten Non Seeking Practices for Buddhists: An Excellent Lecture on Buddhist Dharma:

The Buddha always reminds His disciples about ten things that should be always memorized. First, we should not wish (yearn) that our bodies be always free of diseases, because a disease free body is prone to desire and lust (because with a disease free body, one tends to be tempted with desire and lust). This will lead to precept breaking and retrogression. Second, we should not wish that our lives be free of all misfortune, adversity, or accident because without them, we will be easily prone to pride and arrogance. This will lead us to be disdainful and overbearing towards everyone else. If people's lives are perfect, everything is just as they always dreamed, without encountering heartaches, worries, afflictions, or any pains and sufferings, then this can easily give way to conceit, arrogance, etc.; thus, becoming the breeding ground for countless transgressions and offenses. Sincere Buddhists should always use misfortunes as the opportunity to awaken from being mesmerized by success, fame, fortune, wealth, etc. and realize the Buddha's teachings are true and accurate, and then use this realization to develop a cultivated mind seeking enlightenment. Third, we should not wish that our mind cultivation be free of all obstacles because without obstacles, we would not have opportunities to excell our mind. This will lead to the transgression of thinking that we have awakened, when in fact we have not. Fourth, we should not wish that our cultivation be free of demonic obstacles, because our vows would not be then firm and enduring. This leads to the transgression of thinking that we have attained, when in fact we have not. Fifth, we should not wish that our plans and activities meet with easy success, for we will then be inclined to thoughts of contempt and disrespect. This leads to the transgression of pride and conceit, thinking ourselves to be filled with virtues and talent. Sixth, we should not wish for gain in our social relations. This will lead us to violate moral principles and see only mistakes of others. Seventh, we should not wish that everyone, at all times, be on good terms and in harmony with us. This leads to pride and conceit and seeing only our own side of every issue. Eighth, we should not wish to be repaid for our good deeds, lest we develop a calculating mind. This leads to greed for fame and fortune. Ninth, we should not wish to share in opportunities for profit, lest the mind of illusion arise. This leads us to lose our good name and reputation for the sake of unwholesome gain. Tenth, when subject to injustice and wrong, we should not necessarily seek the ability to refute and rebut, as doing so indicates that the mind of self and others has not been severed. This will certainly lead to more resentment and hatred. Thus, the Buddha advised all of us to consider: “Turn suffering and disease into good medicine (consider diseases and sufferings as miraculous medicine). Turn misfortune and calamity into liberation (take misfortune and adversity as means of liberation). Turn obstacles or high stakes into freedom and ease (take obstacles as enjoyable ways to cultivate ourselves). Turn demons or haunting spirits into Dharma friends (take demonic obstacles as our good spiritual advisors). Turn trying events into peace and joy (consider difficulties as our joy of gaining experiences or life enjoyments). Turn bad friends into helpful associates (treat ungrateful people as our helpful aids). Turn opponents into “fields of flowers” (consider opponents as our good relationships). Treat ingratitude as worn out shoes to be discarded (consider merits or services to others as ragged slippers). Turn frugality into power and wealth (take frugality as our honour). Turn injustice and wrong into conditions for progress along the Way (consider injustice or false accusations as our virtuous gate to enlightenment).”

(B) Who Preach the Buddhist Dharma?

I.An Overview of Preaching the Dharma:

The responsibility of a preacher is to propagate the Wonderful Buddha dharma: Objectively speaking, the Buddha dharma is so wonderful that so far no philosophers can ever argue or deny. To many people, Buddhism is always the best. However, for non Buddhists, the so called wonderful teachings seem nonsensical if they do not have the opportunity to hear them. How sorry! It is certainly that the majority of religions want to transform a bad person into a good one, but there are still a lot of religious cults that rigidly give people with blind faith and make them more and more ignorant. Therefore, we need more Buddhist lecturers to propagate the Wonderful Buddha dharma.

Preaching the Dharma means to preach the truth Suffering and the End of Suffering: Teach the Dharma or Teach the Dharma means to preach the truth so that people can realize the mortal danger, or to preach others about Buddha's teachings with the hope that they will eventually understand and be able to escape the cycle of births and deaths. According to The Agama Sutra, in 45 years of preaching the Dharma, the Buddha must have preached many hundreds of discourses, but He declared explicitely that He did preach only on Suffering and the End of Suffering, and nothing else. He exhorted His disciples to go forth to preach the Dharma and to explain the holy life for the welfare of the many, for the happiness of the many, out of compassion for the world, for the advantage, for the happiness of the deities and human beings. The Buddha made it very clear that His purpose in preaching the Dharma was not to quarrel with other religious leaders or to compete with antagonistic doctrines. There is no quarrel in His preaching. He just shows the way to enlightenment and liberation from all sufferings and afflictions. The Buddha is always filled with love and compassion for all living beings. Even when He takes a rest, He still wants to spread His love and compassion to other beings. His preaching is only performed out of compassion and love for the world. However, at the end of His life, the Buddah emphasized on “Not a word has been said nor declared”. This statement was said by the Buddha when he emphasized the danger of abusing words. He said: “In forty five years, I haven't said a word.” Later, this statement has become popular when Zen Masters using the statement to teach their disciples. Besides, the Buddha also emphasized on the “Unutterable.” Later, in the seventh century, it became the Zen notion that Zen utilize to explain that the experience of awakening cannot be captured in words. This is connected with the general orientation of Zen, which is suspicious of the distorting power of words and concepts.

II.The Buddha, the First Dharma Master Who Preached the First Sermon and Then Started His Preaching Mission:

After the Buddha's Enlightenment at Buddha Gaya, he moved slowly across India until he reached the Deer Park near Benares, where he preached to five ascetics his First Sermon. The Sermon preached about the Middle Way between all extremes, the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. In the Deer Park, Benares, at first the Buddha was ignored by the five brothers of Kaundinya, but as the Buddha approached them, they felt that there was something very special about him, so they automatically stood up as He drew near. Then the five men, with great respect, invited the Buddha to teach them what He has enlightened. So, the Buddha delivered His First Teaching: Turning the Wheel of the Dharma. He began to preach: “O monk! You must know that there are Four Noble Truths. The first is the Noble Truth of Suffering: Life is filled with the miseries and afflictions of old age, sickness, unhappiness and death. People chase after pleasure but find only pain. Even when they do find something pleasant they soon grow tired of it. Nowhere is there any real satisfaction or perfect peace. The second is the Noble Truth of the Cause of Suffering: When our mind is filled with greed and desire and wandering thoughts, sufferings of all types follow. The third is the Noble Truth of the End of Suffering: When we remove all craving, desire, and wandering thoughts from our mind, sufferings will come to an end. We shall experience undescribable happiness. And finally, the fourth is the Noble Truth of the Path: The Path that helps us reach the ultimate wisdom.” Since then, the Buddha spread the seeds of Bodhi far and wide. Specifically after the time the Buddha met with Yasas and preached to him the teachings of Buddhism, Yasas and fifty friends of his immediately donned the yellow robe and followed Him. They were the first large group of Sangha to take vows right after the Buddha's enlightenment. Henceforth, the Buddha and His Sangha started his preaching mission. On one occasion, while in his way to Magadha, a kingdom in central India at the time, the Buddha called on UruvilvaKasyapa, the leader of the fire worshipping cult and asked for lodging. Uruvilva Kasyapa showed the Buddha a stone hut and warned that inside the hut there was a poisonous dragon that always appeared in the middhle of the night to devour human beings. So, not be regret if the Sangha of the Buddha chose to stay there and were eaten up. However, the Buddha and his new Sangha still decided to enter the stone hut and sat calmly in a crossed legs posture. By midnight, the poisonous dragon appeared, showed its jaws widely and clutched its sharp claws, but it could neither harm the Buddha nor the new Sangha. The following day, beyond the prediction of Uruvilva Kasyapa and his followers, the Buddha and his new Sangha were still safe and sound in that stone hut. So Uruvilva Kasyapa and his followers went from extreme surprise to admiration. So, Uruvilva Kasyapa came to consult the Buddha about the methods of correct practices. After hearing the wonderful Dharma from the Buddha in his ever convincing tone and his virtuous manner, Uruvilva Kasyapa was now totally convinced. He then determined to give up what he had practiced in the past and led his five hundred disciples to take refuge in the Buddha. After the Buddha converted Uruvilva Kasyapa and his five hundred followers, he also preached to them the Four Noble Truths. All of them was filled with joys of the Dharma and found that they were very lucky to have the Buddha's help to get rid of the evils, to receive the good, and come to tread on the right path. After that, Uruvilva Kasyapa met his two brothers and gave them the account of how he was converted. The two brother also agree to attend the Buddha's preaching and finally took refuge in the Buddha. It should be reminded that the two brothers of Uruvilva Kasyapa also had five hundred followers. So in a very short period of time, the new Sangha of the Buddha already had more than one thousand people. All of them followed the Buddha to return to Mount Vulture Peak in Rajagrha. For the whole Sangha only walked, this long procession of Monks on the move caught the attention of the entire Kingdom og Magadha.

In his preachings, the Buddha always reminded that Buddhists always need two ways of education: the first way is secular education and the second one is religious education. These two ways are considered as the two wings for a bird. Without two wings, no bird can fly. Similarly, without these two ways of education, Buddhists would lead to a poor and obscure life, not only in the secular world but also in the spiritual life. Secular education will help us with an appropriate profession to support our family while religious education will help us lead a true happy life. As a matter of fact, religious education is extremely necessary, for it teaches us how to think and act in order to be good and happy. Besides, it also helps us love and understand the meaning of life so that we are able to adjust ourselves to its laws in any circumstances. After experiencing six years in ascetic practices, the Buddha advised his followers to follow the middle path. He taught: “Buddhists should always make best use of their secular life while cultivating the path of true happiness in this world and hereafter.”

According to The Agama Sutra, in 49 years of preaching the Dharma, the Buddha declared explicitely that He did preach only on Suffering and the End of Suffering, and nothing else. He exhorted His disciples to go forth to preach the Dharma and to explain the holy life for the welfare of the many, for the happiness of the many, out of compassion for the world, for the advantage, for the happiness of the deities and human beings. The Buddha made it very clear that His purpose in preaching the Dharma was not to quarrel with other religious leaders or to compete with antagonistic doctrines. There is no quarrel in His preaching. He just shows the way to enlightenment and liberation from all sufferings and afflictions. The Buddha is always filled with love and compassion for all living beings. Even when He takes a rest, He still wants to spread His love and compassion to other beings. His preaching is only performed out of compassion and love for the world. There are over 150 Buddhist sutras, all of them are talking about the danger of mortalilty, so to preach others about Buddha's teachings with the hope that they will eventually understand and be able to escape the cycle of births and deaths.

III.Dharma Masters:

After the time of the Buddha, a Dharma master is an honorific title for a monk of maturity and high standing. Dharma master is a title of respect used to address a Buddhist Bhiksu (monk) or Bhiksuni (nun) who can preach the Dharma to save beings. It implies that the person so addressed has mastered the Dharma and is qualified to teach it. A Dharma Master is a Buddhist teacher, a Master of the Law (Teacher of the Law). The teachings that the Buddha taught were not for the sake of displaying knowledge to others, but to help them. Therefore, a real master is the one who is able to preach definitive dharmas which are not damaged by reasoning. The Buddha taught in the Miscellaneous Agama: “Monks and scholars! You should accept my words not out of respect, but on analyzing it.” Thus, sincere Buddhists should not determine that a master is a reliable source of refuge by the fact that his body was adorned with good marks, or with his good voice, but because his preaching for the achievement of higher status and definite goodness are reliable. Dharmakirti taught: “A master must be one who is skilled in which behavior is to be adopted and which discarded. One should not accept a master because that person performs miracles, has the supernatural power, or psychic power to see things in the distance, or is able to create certain physical emanations. Whether one can see far in the distance or not, does not matter. If it were sufficient to be able to see things at a distance, then one should go for refuge to a vulture. So, what matters here is whether one knows the techniques for achieving happiness.”

It should be noted that “teachers of the Law” in Buddhism are not limited to monks and nuns, but include any persons who have the ability and devote themselves to spreading the teachings of the Buddha, whether monks, nuns, lay devotees, either men or women. In the process of cultivation, if we believe and discern the teaching after hearing it, and if we raise the mind of joyful acceptance of it, we would keep it firmly, then, reading and reciting the sutra, to inscribe it on our memory. As a personal discipline, this practice is done to establish the foundation of our faith. When our faith reaches a high level, we cannot help transmitting the teaching to others. As a result, we expound the sutra or teaching and copy it in different forms, such as video tapes, and DVD, etc. Generally speaking, there are five kinds of masters or teachers: teachers of the sutras, teachers of the Vinaya, teachers of the sastras, teachers of the Abhidharma, and teachers of the Zen or meditation. However, there are also five kinds of heterodox masters or five improper ways of gaining a livelihood for a monk (five kinds of deviant livelihood). First, changing his appearance theatrically, or displaying an unusual appearance to cheat people. Second, advertise his own power or virtue, or using low voice in order to appear awesome. Third, fortune telling, or performing divination and fortune telling. Fourth, hectoring and bullying. Fifth, praising the generosity of another to induce the hearer to bestow presents.

According to the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, there are five kinds of Dharma master. The first kind of Dharma master is receiving and keeping master. Receiving indicates believing deeply in the teachings of the Buddha, and keeping means to adhere firmly to that belief. The second kind of Dharma master is reading master. Reading means actually reading the sutras, this practice includes reading the sutras aloud, or reading them silently, or listen intently to others' reading of them. The third kind of Dharma master is reciting master. Reciting means to recite the sutras from memory. This practice includes the repetition of words of the sutras that we have learned by heart and the mental repetition of their meaning. To be able to do this, the teaching becomes deeply rooted in our mind through repeated recitation from memory. The fourth kind of Dharma master is expounding master. Expounding means to explain the meaning of the sutras to others. This is both an indispensable practice for spreading the teachings of the Buddha and also a practice for our own benefit. It is difficult for us to preach the teaching to others, and for this reason we must study the sutras deeply and do this over and over again. While preaching the teaching to others, it is extremely difficult if we lack our own faith and discernment of the teaching. The fifth kind of Dharma master is copying master, a master who copies the sutra by hand. This practice is significant in two ways. One is its practice for propagating the teaching and the other is its practice for deepening our own faith and discernment. Before the art of printing was invented, copying sutras by hand was necessary in order to spread them. In modern times, we make use of printing and other high techniques in spreading the teaching, the duties of copying masters also include spreading the teachings of the Buddha by making best use of printing, movies, video tapes, DVD, etc.

There are four things a Dharma Master must concern. First, a Dharma Master must be concerned about his own behavior. Second, a Dharma Master must be concerned about his choice of words when he approach and teach people. Third, a Dharma Master must be concerned about his motive and the end he wishes to accomplish. Fourth, a Dharma Master must be concerned about the great compassion. According to Buddhist traditions, there are five virtues of the teacher of the discipline. First, ability to obey to the rules. Second, ten years as a monk (some sects require 20 years or more). Third, ability to explain the vinaya. Fourth, ability to understand and prctice meditation thoroughly. Fifth, ability to explain the Abhidharma. The Buddha also taught: “To be a trainer of elephants, one must have five qualifications. To follow the Buddha's Noble Path to Enlightenment, one must have the same five good qualities: good health, selfconfidence, diligence, sincerity of purpose, and wisdom.

According to the Mahaparinirvana Sutra in the Digha Nikaya, volume 16, the Buddha compassionately reminded Ananda: “It is through not understanding the Four Noble Truths, o Bhiksus, that we have had to wander so long in this weary path of rebirth, both you and I!” On his last days, the Buddha always reminded his disciples to be mindful and self possessed in learning the Three fold training “Such is right conduct, such is concentration, and such is wisdom.” In His last instructions to the Order, the Buddha told Ananda: “The Tathagata does not think that he should lead the Order or the Order is dependent on Him. Therefore, Ananda, be lamps to yourselves. Be a refuge to yourselves. Go to no external refuge. Hold fast to the Dharma as a lamp. Hold fast to the Dharma as a refuge. And how, O Ananda, is a Bhiksu to be a lamp to himself, a refuge to himself, going to no external refuge, holding fast to the Dharma as a lamp? Herein, a Bhiksu lives diligent, mindful, and self possessed, overcoming desire and grief in the world, reflecting on the body, feeling, and mind and mental objects.” In Kusinagara, the Buddha told his last disciple, Subhadda: “O Subhadda, in whatever doctrine, the Noble Eightfold Path is not found, neither is there found the first Samana, nor the second, nor the third, nor the fourth. Now in this doctrine and discipline, O Subhadda, there is the Noble Eightfold Path, and in it too, are found the first, the second, the third and the fourth Samanas. The other teachers' schools are empty of Samanas. If, O Subhadda, the disciples live rightly, the world would not be void with Arahants. Void of true Saints are the system of other teachers. But in this one, may the Bhiksus live the perfect life, so that the world would not be without saints.” Then the Buddha turned to everyone and said his final exhortation: “Behold now, O Bhiksus, I exhort you! Subject to change are all component things! Strive on with diligence!”

IV. External States or Objects Are Preaching the Dharma:

According to Buddhism, the sphere of form for the eye, of sound for the ear, of smell for the nose, of taste for the tongue, of touch for the body, etc. They all are preaching the dhrama. As a matter of fact, all the sounds in the world are speaking the Dharma for us. For example, the sounds of the stream and creeks are just like the soft sounds from the golden mouth of the Buddha. The green color of the mountains and forests is the pure color of the Dharma body delighting those who see it. Fish swim in the water, but they don't know they are in water. Every moment we breathe in air, but we do it unconsciously. We would be conscious of air only if we were without it. In the same way, we are always hearing the sounds of cars, water falls, rain, etc.; but we do not realize that all these sounds are sermons, they are the voice of the Buddha himself preaching to us. In fact, we hear many sermons, all the time, but we are deaf to them. If we were really alive and mindful, whenever we heard, saw, smelled, tasted, touched, we would realize that this is a fine sermon.' If we reaaly listen to the nature, we would see that there is no scripture that teaches so well as this experience with nature. If everyone of us understands this principle, then absolutely everything in the world is speaking the Dharma for us. Good people speak good Dharma, bad people speak bad Dharma, and animals speak the Dharma of being animals for us. They enable us to understand how they got to be good, bad, animals, and so on.

According to Buddhist teachings, external realms are realms which are not created by the mind, but come from the outside, i.e., a prospect, region, territory, surroundings, views, circumstances, environment, area, field, sphere, environments and conditions, i.e. the sphere of mind, the sphere of form for the eye, of sound for the ear, etc. If you can remain unperturbed by external states, then you are currently cultivating. On the contrary, if you are turned by external states, then you will fall. External states are also external conditions or circumstances which stir or tempt one to do evil. Problems and dissatisfaction do not develop because of external conditions, but from our own mind. If we don't have internal peace, nothing from outside can bring us happiness. According to the Mind Only theories, different realms mean the ideas, or mental states which arise according to the various objects or conditions toward which the mind is directed. According to the Fa Hsiang School, this group of elements falls under the general category of “mental function” which has five elements: desire, verification, recollection, meditation, and wisdom. According to Lama Anarika Govinda, the Buddhist as well as a Zen practitioner does not believe in an independent or separate existing external world into those dynamic forces he could insert himself. The external world and his internal world are for him only two sides of the same fabric, in which threads of all force and of all events, of all forms of consciousness and of their objects are woven into an inseparable net of endless, mutually conditioned relations.

External realms are realms which are not created by the mind, but come from the outside. For example, some practitioners might see Buddhas and Bodhisattvas appearing before them, preaching the Dharma, exhorting and praising them. Others, while reciting the Buddha's name, suddenly experience an awakening and immediately see the Land of Ultimate Bliss. Some practitioners, in the midst of their pure recitation, see deities and Immortals arrive, join hands and circumambulate them respectfully, or invite them for a leisurely stroll. Still other practitioners see “wandering souls of the dead” arrive, seeking to take refuge with them. Yet others, having reached a high level in their practice, have to endure challenges and harassment from external demons. In case of seeing the Buddhas and lotus blossoms is it not to see demonic apparitions? If cause and effect coincide, these are not “demonic realms.” This is because the Pure Land method belongs to the Dharma Door of Existence; when Pure Land practitioners first develop the Bodhi Mind, they enter the Way through forms and marks and seek to view the celestial scenes of the Western Pure Land. When they actually witness these auspicious scenes, it is only a matter of effects corresponding to causes. If cause and effect are in accord, how can these be “demonic realms?” In the Zen School, on the other hand, the practitioner enters the Way through the Dharma Door of Emptiness. Right from the beginning of his cultivation, he wipes out all marks, even the marks of the Buddhas or the Dharma are destroyed. The Zen practitioner does not seek to view the Buddhas or the lotus blossoms, yet the marks of the Buddhas or the lotus blossoms appear to him. Therefore, cause and effect do not correspond. For something to appear without a corresponding cause is indeed the realm of the demons. Thus, the Zen practitioner always holds the sword of wisdom aloft. If the demons come, he kills the demons; if the Buddha comes, he kills the Buddha, to enter the realm of True Emptiness is not to tolerate a single mark.

According to the Dharmalaksana, the objects of the outer world (visaya), which throw shadows on the mind face are of three kinds. The theory of three kinds of the object domain may have originated from Nalanda, but the four line memorial verse current in the school is probably of Chinese origin. It runs as follow:

“The object of nature does not follow the mind (subjective).

The subject may be good or evil, but the object is always neutral.

The mere shadow only follows the seeing (subjective).

The object is as the subject imagines.

The object with the original substance.

The character, seed, etc, are various as occasions require. The object has an original substance,

but the subject does not see it as it is.”

This four line verse explains how the three kinds of the objectdomain are related to the subjective function and the outer original substance. One may be puzzled in understanding how an idealism can have the so called original substance. We should not forget that though it is an outer substance it is after all a thing manifested out of ideation. The eighth, the Alaya consciousness itself, is not an unchangeable fixed substance (dravya), but is itself ever changing instantaneously (ksanika) and repeatedly; and, being 'perfumed' or having impressions made upon it by cognition and action, it becomes habituated and efficient in manifestation. It is like a current of water which never stops at one place for two consecutive moments. It is only with reference to the continuity of the stream that we can speak of a river. Let examine these three kinds of object domain. First, Object domain of nature or immediate perception. The object that has the original substance and presents it as it is, just as the five objects of the sense, form, sound, smell, taste and touch, are perceived as they are. The first five senseconsciousnesses and the eighth, the store consciousness, perceive the object in this way. Second, Object domain with the original substance. The object has an original substance and yet is not perceived as it is.

When the seventh, the thought center, looks at the subjective function of the eighth, the store center, it considers that it is self or ego. The subjective function of the eighth, the store center, has its original substance or entity, but it is not seen as it is by the seventh consciousness and is regarded to be self or an abiding ego, which is in reality an illusion since it is not self at all. Third, Object domain of mere shadow or illusion. The shadow image appears simply from one's own imagination and has no real existence. Of course, it has no original substance as a ghost which does not exist at all. Only the six sensecenter, functions on it and imagines it to be.

Meditation helps our mental intelligence or spirit of mind be no longer troublesome with external things. Whether something objective is troublesome or not often depends on the state of mind rather than the object itself. If we think that it is trouble, then it is trouble. If we do not think that it is trouble, then it is not trouble. Everything depends on the mind. For example, sometimes during meditation we are interrupted by outside noises. If we dwell on them and cling to them, they will disturb our meditation, but if we dismiss them from our minds as soon as they arise, then they will not cause a disturbance. If we are always demanding something out of our life, then we will never be content. But if we accept life as it is, then we know contentment. Some people seek happiness through material things; other people can be happy without many material things. Why? Because happiness is also a state of mind, not a quantitive measure of possessions. If we are satisfied with what we are and have now, then we are happy. But if we are not satisfied with what we are and have now, that is where unhappiness dwells. The desire is bottomless, because no matter how much is put into it, it can never be filled up, it always remains empty. The Sutra in Forty Two Chapters taught: “Though a person filled with desires dwells in heaven, still that is not enough for him; though a person who has ended desire dwells on the ground, still he is happy.”

V. Internal Realms Are Also Preaching the Dharma:

According to Buddhist teachings, all things are our mind being manifested. That is to say all phenomena are just internal, or are just in this only one mind. As a matter of fact, if someone asks us to show our true nature, what can we do? We cannot reply that our true nature is in our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body or mind. It is nowhere to be found. However, when we look at the mountain, we see the mountain; that mountain is our mind being manifested. When we hear the birdsong, the birdsong itself is our mind being manifested. Zen practitioners should always remmber the Buddha's teaching in the Shurangama Sutra: “The existence of all phenomena is the mind nature, and the

mind nature is the existence of all phenomena.”

Also according to Buddhist teachings, internal realms are also called “realms of the Self Mind” because they do not come from outside, but develop from the mind. Those who do not clearly understand the truth that “the ten thousand dharmas are created by the mind” think that all realms come from the outside. This is wrong. When the practitioner reaches the stage of mutual interpenetration of mind and realms, completely severing external conditions, the seeds of latent dharmas in the Alaya consciousness suddenly manifest themselves. For the Buddha Recitation or mantra chanting practitioner, the power of the Buddha's name or the mantra penetrates deep into the mind, eliciting a reaction from the wholesome or evil seeds in the Alaya consciousness. The realms that result are very complex and usually appear in dreams, or even when the practitioner is awake and striving to recite the Buddha's name. In Buddhism, this condition is called “Changing manifestations of the Alaya consciousness.” In the dreaming scenes, if the events or scenes result from evil seeds, the practitioner may see various species of worms crawling out of his body, or witness himself, night after night, removing from his body six or seven loathsome creatures with many limbs, such as scorpions or centipedes. Or else, he may see various species of wild animals and or spirits or ghosts. Such realms are innumerable and cannot al be described. In genral, individuals greatly afflicted with greed, who are miserly and wicked, usually see marks of men and women, snakes and serpents and odd species with white features and forms. Those harboring a great deal of anger and resentment usually see tigers and leopards or strange species with red forms and features. Those who are heavily deluded usually see domestic animals, clams, oysters, snails or different species with black forms and features. The above, however, is merely indicative; it does not mean that everything will be exactly as described. If the scenes in his dream come from good wholesome seeds, the practitioner sees tall trees and exotic flowers, beautiful scenery, bright adorned with nets of pearls. Or else, he sees himself eating succulent, fragrant food, wearing ethereal garments, dwelling in palaces of diamonds and other precious substances, or flying high in open space. Thus, in summary, all the seeds of the ten Dharma Realms are found in the minds of sentient beings. If wholesome seeds manifest themselves, practitioners view the realms of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, human, and celestial beings; if evil karma is manifested, they witness scenes from the wretched three Evil Paths. If the cultivator has followed externalist ways in past lives, he usually sees his body emitting electric waves, or his soul leaving the body to roam, meeting demons, ghosts and the like, to discuss politics and the rise and fall of countries and empires. On the other hand, when the practitioner's mind is pure, he will know in his dreams about events that will occur three or fours days, or seven or eight months, hence. In general, those who have cultivated in previous lives will immediately see auspicious realms when reciting the Buddha's name. Those with heavy karma, lacking merit and virtue, will usually see evil realms when they begin Buddha Recitation. In time, these evil omens will disappear and gradually be replaced with auspicious omens. If the practitioner's efforts have reached a high level, there are times during his walking hours when all deluded feelings suddenly cease for a while, body and mind being at ease and free. At other times, the practitioner may recite for four or five hours but feel that the time was very short, perhaps two or three minutes. Or else, at times during recitation, wholesome omens will appear. At other times, unconsciously, his mind experiences great contentment and bliss. Sometimes, he realizes for a split second that mind and realm are both empty. At other times, just by hearing or seeing something once, he becomes awakened to the truth of suffering, emptiness, impermanence and No Self, completely severing the marks of self and others. These occurrences are too numerous to be fully described! Visionary scenes such as the above, called “internal realms” or “realms of the Self Mind” have their origin in a thought of peace and stillness, or are caused by wholesome seeds generated by Buddha or Mantra Recitation. They appear suddenly and are lost immediately. The practitioner should not be attached to them, thinking that they are real, nor should he remember them fondly. It is an extreme mistake to develop nostalgia for them, thinking how ethereal, calm and peaceful, beautiful and well adorned they were, they daydream about them, unable to forget them, longing for their reappearance. The ancients have criticized such thoughts as “scratching in advance and waiting for the itch.” This is because these scenes have their origin in diligent exertion and appear temporarily. They have no true existence. We should realize that when the practitioner exerts a certain level of efforts, the scenes and features particular to that level will appear naturally. Take the example of a traveller who views different scenery as he passes along various stretches of the road. If he has not reached home, yet develops such an attachment and fondness for a particular scene along the road that he refuses to proceed, his travel will be impeded. He will then be helplessly lost in the midst of his journey, not knowing when he will finally return home to rest. The practitioner is like that traveller; if he becomes attached to and fond of temporary realms and scenes, he will never attain the true realms. Were he to dream of them to the point of insanity, he would be destroyed by demons and waste an entire lifetime of practice! The Diamond Sutra states: “Everything in this world that has marks is illusory; to see marks as not marks is to see the Tathagata.” Everything that has marks refers here to compounded, conditioned dharmas. Tose marks canot be said either to exist or not to exist, or to be true or false. Delusion arise precisely because unenlightened sentient beings discriminate, become attached and think that these marks exist or do not exist are real or are false. Even the fondness which some Zen practitioners develop for samadhi, upon entering concentration and experiencing this immense, empty, still, transparent, peaceful and free realm, falls into the category of “having marks.” The same is true when these practitioners, once awakened to a certain lofty, transcendental principle, joyfully grasp at it. Once there are marks, there is delusion. “To see marks” means to see such marks as auspicious or evil, good or bad, dirty or clean, existent or non existent, Buddha or sentient beings, even the realms of the Five Skandas or the Six Dusts, etc. “As not marks” means seeing but neither becoming attached to nor rejecting them, just letting everything be. Why should we not reject them? It is because makrs, while illusory, are not non existent. This is not unlike the reflection of the moon in the water. Although the reflected moon is not real, this does not mean that there is no illusory mark of moonlight. Therefore, if we see marks appear while we are cultivating, we should disregard them and redouble our efforts, just like the traveller, who views varied scenery en route but must push forward to reach home quickly. “To see the Tathagata” is to see the original Buddha Nature, to see the Way.

In summary, all states of mind, from those described above to the state of one pointedness of mind, belong to the category of “internal realms.” These realms have two aspects: “Attainment like” and “Partial attainment.” “Attainment like” realms appear temporarily and disappear immediately. “Partial attainment” realms are those that once achieved, we have forever, because we have actually attained a part of

True Thusness. Regardless of whether it is internal or external, if it is “attainment like” it is not a True Realm; it is merely a full understanding of some of the manifestations of the True Mind. Practitioners who truly seek liberation should not confuse these aspects, taking attainment like marks for the True Realm. Attainmentlike marks are like a dark, leaden sky which suddenly clears, thanks to the winds which temporarily push away the dark clouds, letting a few rays of sunlight through before the sky becomes overcast again. They also resemble the “mark” of smoke just before the fire, that people used to get when they rubbed two pieces of wood together. The True Realm can be likened to the bright sunlight in a clear and calm sky. It is like rubbing pieces of wood together and already having fire. However, we should not underestimate attainment like marks, as they demonstrate the genuine existence of the True Realm. If, from that level, we diligently redouble our efforts, the True Realm is not that far away after all.

VI. All Dharma Friends Who Cultivate Together With Us, Good or Evil, Can Directly or Indirectly Give Us Lectures on Dharmas:

According to Buddhism, all friends who cultivate with us, good or evil friends, can directly or indirectly give us lectures on Dharmas in our path of cultivation. Good people speak good Dharma, bad people speak bad Dharma. For good advisors, we can directly learn good examples from them; for evil friends, we can also indirectly learn to do opposite to their behaviors, so we can prevent committing evil deeds. In Buddhism, there are two kinds of dharma friends (fellow cultivators): Good knowing advisors and and evil advisors. Good Knowing Advisors: Anyone (Buddha, Bodhisattva, wise person, virtuous friends and even an evil being) who can help the practitioner progress along the path to Enlightenment. Good is kind and virtuous, Friend is a person who is worthy of giving others advice, Knowledgeable means having a broad and proper understanding of the truths, Awakened means no longer mesmerized by destinies of life. Thus, Good Knowledgeable (knowing) Friend or Advisor is a good person who has certain degree of knowledge of Buddhism and has the ability to benefit himself and others. A Good Knowledgeable (knowing) Friend is a friend in virtue, or a teacher who exemplifies the virtuous life and helps and inspires other to live a virtuous life too. A good friend who has a good and deep knowledge of the Buddha's teaching and who is currently practicing the law. Someone with knowledge, wisdom and experience in Buddha's teaching and practicing. A wise counsel, spiritual guide, or honest and pure friend in cultivation. The Buddha talked about being a Good Knowing Advisor in Buddhism as follows: “When speaking of the good knowledgeable advisors, this is referring to the Buddhas, Bodhisatvas, Sound Hearers, Pratyeka Buddhas, as well as those who have faith in the doctrine and sutras of Buddhism. The good knowledgeable advisors are those capable of teaching sentient beings to abandon the ten evils or ten unwholesome deeds, and to cultivate the ten wholesome deeds. Moreover, the good knowledgeable advisors' speech is true to the dharma and their actions are genuine and consistent with their speech. Thus, not only do they not kill living creatures, they also tell others not to kill living things; not only will they have the proper view, they also will use that proper view to teach others. The good knowledgeable advisors always have the dharma of goodness, meaning whatever actions they may undertake, they do not seek for their own happiness, but for the happiness of all sentient beings. They do not speak of others' mistakes, but speak of virtues and goodness. There are many advantages and benefits to being close to the good knowledgeable advisors, just as from the first to the fifteenth lunar calendar, the moon will gradually become larger, brighter and more complete. Similarly, the good knowledgeable advisors are able to help and influence the learners of the Way to abandon gradually the various unwholesome dharma and to increase greatly wholesome dharma.

There are three types of good spiritual advisors: Teaching Spiritual Advisor is someone conversant with the Dharma and experienced in cultivation. The retreat members can have him follow their progress, guiding them throughout the retreat, or they can simply seek guidance before and after the retreat. When several persons hold a retreat together, they should ask a spiritual advisor to lead the retreat and give a daily fifteen to thirty minute inspirational talk. Caretaking Spiritual Advisor refers to one or several persons assisting with outside daily chores such as preparing meals or cleaning up, so that on retreat can cultivate peacefully without distraction. Such persons are called “Retreat assistant.” Common Practice Spiritual Advisor are persons who practice the same method as the individual(s) on retreat. They keep an eye on one another, encouraging and urging each other on. These cultivators can either be participants in the same retreat or cultivators living nearby. In addition to keeping an eye out and urging the practitioners on, they can exchange ideas or experiences for the common good. This concept has been captured in a proverb: “Rice should be eaten with soup, practice should be conducted with friends.”

Nowadays, in order to have a right cultivation, Buddhist practitioners should be guided by a good advisor, who has a thorough understanding of the sutras and many years experience in meditation. This is one of the five necessary conditions for any Zen practitioners. If a Zen practitioner does not meet these five conditions, he is very easily subject to get harm from demon. According to the Kalyana mitra Sutra, the Buddha taught, “Nowadays, if one wishes to find kind friends and virtuous teachers to learn and to be close to them, they may find these people in the shining examples in old books. Otherwise, if one searches among the living, it would be extraordinary hard to find a single person.” They also reminded us five things about good knowing advisor as follows: Nowadays, in 1, people, there is one good person. In a thousand good people, there is one person who knows religion. In one thousand people who know religion, there is one person who has enough faith to practice religion. In one thousand people who practice religion, there is one person who cultivates in a genuine and honest manner. Thus, out of four thousand people, we would find only four good people.

Thus, the Buddha always encouraged his disciples to listen to Good Knowing Advisors without any doubt. Once we call someone our Good Knowing Advisors, we should truly listen to their advice. If Good Knowing Advisors say that cultivation requires arduous effort, we should truly believe it. If we believe completely, we will surely be able to understand the mind and see the nature, return to the origin and go back to the source. Devout Buddhists should always listen to the instructions of a Good Knowing Advisor. If he tells us to recite the Buddha's name, we should follow the instructions and recite. If he tells us not to be distracted, then we should not be distracted. This is the essential secret of cultivation that we can benefit from our Good Knowing Advisors. The followings are the Buddha's teachings on “Good Knowing Advisors” in the Dharmapada Sutra: Should you see an intelligent man who points out faults and blames what is blameworthy, you should associate with such a wise person. It should be better, not worse for you to associate such a person (Dharmapada 76). Those who advise, teach or dissuade one from evil doing, will be beloved and admired by the good, but they will be hated by the bad (Dharmapada 77). Do not associate or make friends with evil friends; do not associate with mean men. Associate with good friends; associate with noble men (Dharmapada 78). Those who drink the Dharma, live in happiness with a pacified mind; the wise man ever rejoices in the Dharma expounded by the sages (Dharmapada 79). If you get a prudent and good companion who is pure, wise and overcoming all dangers to walk with, let nothing hold you back. Let find delight and instruction in his companion (Dharmapada 328). If you do not get a prudent and good companion who is pure, wise and overcoming all dangers to walk with; then like a king who has renounced a conquered kingdom, you should walk alone as an elephant does in the elephant forest (Dharmapada 329). It is better to live alone than to be fellowship with the ignorant (the fool). To live alone doing no evil, just like an elephant roaming in the elephant forest (Dharmapada (330).”

Evil Friends: Coarse people are always overwhelmed by anger and lacking loving kindness that they cannot appreciate the difference between wholesome and unwholesome activities. They do not know the benefit or appropriateness of paying respect to persons worthy of respect, nor of learning about the Dharma, nor of actually cultivating. They may be hot tempered, easily victimized by by anger and aversion. Their lives may be filled with rough and distasteful activities. What is the use of making friends with such people? On the contrary, good people have a deep considerateness and loving care for other beings. The warmth and love of their hearts is manifested in actions and speech. Refined people like these carry out their relationships with other people in sweet speech, beneficial action, and sharing a common aim. They always vow to give whatever they can give to benefit other people. In the Dharmapada Sutra, the Buddha Taught: “If a traveler does not meet a companion who is better or at least equal, let him firmly pursue his solitary career, rather than being in fellowship with the foolish (Dharmapada 61). Those who advise, teach or dissuade one from evil doing, will be beloved and admired by the good, but they will be hated by the bad (Dharmapada 77). Do not associate or make friends with evil friends; do not associate with mean men. Associate with good friends; associate with noble men (Dharmapada 78). He who companies with fools grieves for a long time. To be with the foolish is ever painful as with an enemy. To associate with the wise is ever happy like meeting with kinsfolk (Dharmapada 207).”

VII.All Things Are Preaching the Dharma:

Teach the Dharma or Teach the Dharma means to preach the truth so that people can realize the mortal danger, or to preach others about Buddha's teachings with the hope that they will eventually understand and be able to escape the cycle of births and deaths. According to The Agama Sutra, in 45 years of preaching the Dharma, the Buddha must have preached many hundreds of discourses, but He declared explicitely that He did preach only on Suffering and the End of Suffering, and nothing else. He exhorted His disciples to go forth to preach the Dharma and to explain the holy life for the welfare of the many, for the happiness of the many, out of compassion for the world, for the advantage, for the happiness of the deities and human beings. The Buddha made it very clear that His purpose in preaching the Dharma was not to quarrel with other religious leaders or to compete with antagonistic doctrines. There is no quarrel in His preaching. He just shows the way to enlightenment and liberation from all sufferings and afflictions. The Buddha is always filled with love and compassion for all living beings. Even when He takes a rest, He still wants to spread His love and compassion to other beings. His preaching is only performed out of compassion and love for the world. However, at the end of His life, the Buddah emphasized on “Not a word has been said nor declared”. This statement was said by the Buddha when he emphasized the danger of abusing words. He said: “In forty five years, I haven't said a word.” Later, this statement has become popular when Zen Masters using the statement to teach their disciples. Besides, the Buddha also emphasized on the “Unutterable.” Later, in the seventh century, it became the Zen notion that Zen utilize to explain that the experience of awakening cannot be captured in words. This is connected with the general orientation of Zen, which is suspicious of the distorting power of words and concepts.

Objectively speaking, the Buddha dharma is so wonderful that so far no philosophers can ever argue or deny. To many people, Buddhism is always the best. However, for non Buddhists, the so called wonderful teachings seem nonsensical if they do not have the opportunity to hear them. How sorry! It is certainly that the majority of religions want to transform a bad person into a good one, but there are still a lot of religious cults that rigidly give people with blind faith and make them more and more ignorant. Therefore, we need more Buddhist lecturers to propagate the Wonderful Buddha dharma. All things in the world are constantly expounding the Dharma. Some things expound wholesome Dharma, while others expound unwholesome Dharma. Some things speak of the deviant knowledge and views of heretics; others speak of the proper knowledge and views of the Ultimate Meaning of the Middle Way. In other words, those that speak wholesome Dharma teach people to see through things, to let things go and to become free. Those that speak unwholesome Dharma teach people to preserve their illusions and continue to cling tightly to things, and so on, and so on. According to the Avatamsaka Sutra, “The Buddhas manifest hundreds of thousands of millions of sounds to proclaim the Wonderful Dharma for sentient beings.

We, ordinary people, should always remember that all the sounds in the world are speaking the Dharma for us. For example, the sounds of the stream and creeks are just like the soft sounds from the golden mouth of the Buddha. The green color of the mountains and forests is the pure color of the Dharma body delighting those who see it. Fish swim in the water, but they don't know they are in water. Every moment we breathe in air, but we do it unconsciously. We would be conscious of air only if we were without it. In the same way, we are always hearing the sounds of cars, water falls, rain, etc.; but we do not realize that all these sounds are sermons, they are the voice of the Buddha himself preaching to us. In fact, we hear many sermons, all the time, but we are deaf to them. If we were really alive and mindful, whenever we heard, saw, smelled, tasted, touched, we would realize that this is a fine sermon.' If we reaaly listen to the nature, we would see that there is no scripture that teaches so well as this experience with nature. If everyone of us understands this principle, then absolutely everything in the world is speaking the Dharma for us. Good people speak good Dharma, bad people speak bad Dharma, and animals speak the Dharma of being animals for us. They enable us to understand how they got to be good, bad, animals, and so on. If you observe cats chase mice, lions chase tigers, tigers chase bears, bears chase deers, the strong oppress the weak, and so on. They are all speaking the Dharma for us. Each has its own cause and effect. When we contemplate and understand things this way, we can get rid of all attachments. If not, we will forever be sinking in the sea of life of attachments.

Besides, all things are our mind being manifested. That is to say all phenomena are just this only one mind. As a matter of fact, if someone asks us to show our true nature, what can we do? We cannot reply that our true nature is in our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body or mind. It is nowhere to be found. However, when we look at the mountain, we see the mountain; that mountain is our mind being manifested. When we hear the birdsong, the birdsong itself is our mind being manifested. Zen practitioners should always remmber the Buddha's teaching in the Shurangama Sutra: “The existence of all phenomena is the mind nature, and the mind nature is the existence of all phenomena.”

All the Myriad Things are speaking the truth Suffering and the End of Suffering: All things in the world are constantly expounding the Dharma. Some things expound wholesome Dharma, while others expound unwholesome Dharma. Some things speak of the deviant knowledge and views of heretics; others speak of the proper knowledge and views of the Ultimate Meaning of the Middle Way. In other words, those that speak wholesome Dharma teach people to see through things, to let things go and to become free. Those that speak unwholesome Dharma teach people to preserve their illusions and continue to cling tightly to things, and so on, and so on. According to the Avatamsaka Sutra, “The Buddhas manifest hundreds of thousands of millions of sounds to proclaim the Wonderful Dharma for sentient beings. We, ordinary people, should always remember that all the sounds in the world are speaking the Dharma for us. For example, the sounds of the stream and creeks are just like the soft sounds from the golden mouth of the Buddha. The green color of the mountains and forests is the pure color of the Dharma body delighting those who see it. If everyone of us understands this principle, then absolutely everything in the world is speaking the Dharma for us. Good people speak good Dharma, bad people speak bad Dharma, and animals speak the Dharma of being animals for us. They enable us to understand how they got to be good, bad, animals, and so on. If you observe cats chase mice, lions chase tigers, tigers chase bears, bears chase deers, the strong oppress the weak, and so on. They are all speaking the Dharma for us. Each has its own cause and effect. When we contemplate and understand things this way, we can get rid of all attachments. If not, we will forever be sinking in the sea of life of attachments.

VIII.Practitioners Contemplate on Everything That Is Preaching the Dharmas:

As we proceed with our practice, we must be willing to carefully examine every experience, every sense door. For example, practice with a sense object such as sound. Having heard is the same as not having heard. Listen, our hearing is one thing, the sound is another. We are aware, and that is all there is to it. There is no one, nothing else. Learn to pay careful attention. Rely on nature in this way, and contemplate to find the truth. We will see how things separate themselves. When the mind does not grasp or take a vested interest, does not get caught up, things become clear. When the ear hears, observe the mind. Does it get caught up and make a story out of the sound? Is it disturbed? We can know this, stay with it, be aware. At times we may want to escape from the sound, but that is not the way out. We must escape through awareness. Whenever we hear a sound, it registers in our mind as this common nature. We can not expect to have tranquility as soon as we start to practice. We should let the mind think, let it do as it will, just watch it and not react to it. Then, as things contact the senses, we should practice equanimity. See all sense impressions as the same. See how they come and go. Keep the mind in the present. Do not think about what has passed, do not think, 'Tomorrow, I am going to do it.” If we see the true characteristics of things in the present moment, at all times, then everything is Dharma revealing itself. Contemplation on everything will help us realize that all things are impermanent and have no self. Look at the person we are now, we see it is different from thousands and millions of persons we were yesterday. Therefore, we see we are just a stream running swiftly, manifesting endlessly in different forms as waves rising and falling, as bubbles forming and popping. Waves and bubbles continuously appear, but water remains unmoved, has no form and stays unconditioned. Once we realize this, we will become more and more mindful of the way to emancipation, and no longer want to cling to this suffering world. In Zen, the mirror is a symbol of the mind. We can turn the mirror in any direction, and see it always reflects equally. After realizing this; in other words, after realizing the true mind, we see that all phenomena become one with us. All things our mind manifested; we are what we think, what we feel, what we hear and see, and so on...

Thus, whatever we see, whatever we do, notice everything. Train the mind until it is firm, until it lays down all experiences. Then things will come and we will perceive them without becoming attached. We do not have to force the mind and sense object apart. As we practice, they separate by themselves, showing the simple elements of body and mind. As we learn about sights, sounds, smells, and tastes according to the truth, we will see that they all have common nature: impermanent, unsatisfactory, and empty of self. Mindfulness constantly with us, protecting the mind. If our mind can reach this state wherever we go, there will be a growing understanding within us. Which is called 'investigation', one of the seven factors of enlightenment. It revolves, it spins, it converses with itself, it solves, it detaches from feelings, perceptions, thoughts, consciousness. Nothing can come near it. It has its own work to do. This awareness is an automatic aspect of the mind that already exists and that you discover when we train in the beginning stages of practice.

Do we put the meditation aside for a rest after the period of sitting meditation? Do not put the meditation aside for a rest. Some people think that they can stop as soon as they come out of a period of formal practice. Having stopped formal practice, they stop being attentive, stop contemplating. Do not do it that way. Whatever we see, we should contemplate. If we see good people or bad people, rich people or poor people, watch. When we see old people or young children, contemplate all of it. This is the mind of our practice. Place all attachments in our awareness. In contemplating to seek the Dharma, we should observe the characteristics, the cause and effect, the play of all the objects of our senses, big and small, white and black, good and evil. If there is thinking, simply contemplate it as thinking. All these things are impermanent, unsatisfactory, and empty of self, so do not cling to them. Place them all in our awareness. Zen practitioners should always try to look into the Truth, for once we can see the impermanence and emptiness of all things, we can put an end to suffering. Keep contemplating and examining this life. Notice what happens when something good comes to us. Are we happy? We should contemplate that happiness. Perhaps we use something for a while and then start to dislike it, wanting to give it or sell it to someone else. If no one comes to buy it, we may even try to throw it away. Why are we like this? Our life is impermanent, constantly subject to change. We must look at its true characteristics. Thus, Zen practitioners should always contemplate that all such things are impermanent, unsatisfactory and not self. Once we completely understand just one of these incidents, we will understand them all. They are all of the same nature. Perhaps we do not like a particular sight or sound. Such things do happen. When we realize clearly that all such things are impermanent, unsatisfactory and not self, we will dump them all and attachment will not arise. When we see that all the various things that come to we are the same, there will be only Dharma arising. Zen practitioners should always remember that all faculties contemplate one another. When we practice sitting meditation, let our eyes contemplate our nose; let our nose contemplate our mouth; and let our mouth contemplate our mind. This allows us to control the unrest mind, or the monkey of the mind and rein the wild horse of our thoughts, so that they stop running outside seeking things. Practiotioners should not stare left and right because if we look around, then our mind will wander outside, and we will not be able to concentrate. When we realize the true nature of phenomena, we will see that emptiness and existence are inseparable. If we really live in harmonious with emptiness and existence, we indeed live with the realization that emptiness is inseparable from existence. Finally, Zen practitioners should always remember that although all things are just like dreams, like echoes, like mirages; but we are still trapped in this world and confronted by sufferings. Therefore, the Buddha taught: “It is important to guard the mind carefully, just like thatching a roof for the rain of passions would not penetrate the house.”

Practitioners should utilize the non dual knowledge to examine all things in this world. Buddhism believes that all things being produced by cause and environment are unreal; therefore, we cannot say they are different and opposite. All dharmas are created only by the mind or everything is created by mind alone (myriad things but one mind; all things as noumenal). According to the Sun Face Buddha (the Teachings of Ma Tsu and the Hung chou School of Ch'an), one day Zen master Ma Tsu entered the hall and preached the assembly: "Though the reflections of the moon are many, the real moon is only one. Though there are many springs of water, water has only one nature. There are myriad phenomena in the universe, but empty space is only one. There are many principle that are spoken of, but 'unobstructed wisdom' is only one. Whatever we established, it all comes from One Mind. Whether constructing or sweeping away, all is sublime function; all is oneself. There is no place to stand where one leaves the Truth. The very place one stands on is the Truth; it is all one's being. if that was not so then who is that? All dharmas are Buddha dharmas and all dharmas are liberation. Liberation is identical with suchness: all dharmas never leave suchness. Whether walking, standing, sitting, or reclining, everything is always inconceivable function. The sutras say that the Buddha is everywhere." As a matter of fact, everything reverts to one, the mind. Zen Master Seung Sahn wrote in The Whole World Is A Single Flower: One day, as the big temple bell was being rung, the Buddha asked Ananda, "Where does the bell sound come from?" "The bell, " replied Ananda. The Buddha said, "The bell? But if there were no bell stick, how would the sound appear?" Ananda hastily corrected himself. "The stick! The stick!" The Buddha said, "The stick? If there were no air, how could the sound come here?" "Yes! Of course! It comes from the air!" The Buddha asked, "Air? But unless you have an ear, you cannot hear the bell sound." "Yes! I need an ear to hear it. So it comes from my ear." The Buddha said, "Your ear? If you have no consciousness, how can you understand the bell sound?" "My consciousness makes the sound." "Your consciousness? So, Ananda, if you have no mind, how do you hear the bell sound?" "It was created by mind alone." Robert Aiken wrote in Encouraging World: "All things reflect, interpenetrate, and indeed contain all other things. This is the organic nature of the universe, and is called mutual interdependence in classical Buddhism. Affinity and coincidence are its surface manifestations... The other is no other than myself. This is the foundation of the precepts and the inpsiration for genuine human behavior. To acknowledge one's own dark side with a smile and to acknowledge the shinning side of the other person with a smile, this is practice. Keeping the shinning side of one's self always in view and holding fast to the dark side of the other, this is not practice." Buddhist practitioners should realize what kind of Truth? That is the truth about the absolute in everything or the ultimate reality behind everything.

In short, Buddhist practitioners should always remember that the opportunity our precious human lives does not last forever. Sooner or later, death comes to everyone. The very true nature of our lives is impermanent, and death inevitable. When we first took birth, given the countless number of bodies into which we have been born. Death is an irrevocable result of living. Therefore, we should not ignore it; on the contrary, it is good to think about it seriously. According to the Buddhist point of view, death is not an end but a means leading to another rebirth. The conscious mind only migrates from life to life. The starting point of such a process is impossible to retrace. However, our existence in samsara is not naturally infinite. Also according to the Buddhist point of view, it is possible to put an end to it. A seed has no beginning but it is not naturally infinite, if we burn the seed we can destroy its potential to grow. That is the end of sufferings and afflictions. Devout Buddhists should also always remember that sufferings and afflictions only be eliminated when we understands things as they really are, that is seeing the impermanent, unsatisfactory, and non substantial or non self nature of the five aggregates of clinging in ourselves. It is not easy to understand ourselves because of our wrong concepts, baseless illusions, perversions and delusions. It is so difficult to see the real person. The Buddha taught that to be a real knower, we must first see and understand the impemanence of the five aggregates. He compares material form or body to a lump of foam, feeling to a bubble, perception to a mirage, mental formations or volitional activities to water lily plant which is without heartwood, and consciousness to an illusion. The Buddha says: “Whatever material form there be whether past, future or present, internal, external, gross or subtle, low or lofty, far or near that material form is empty, unsubstantial and without essence. In the same manner, the remaining aggregates: feeling, perception, mental formation, and consciousness are also empty, unsubstantial and without essence. Thus, the five aggregates are impermanent, whatever is impermanent, that is suffering, unsatisfactory and without self. Whenever you understand this, you understand yourselves.” Once having seen and understood the preaching of dharmas of all things, that is to say we have thoroughly understood their true nature, we will have gone beyond wrongdoing and wrong understanding. Our mind will have turned, will have changed direction, and it will not be able to fall back into sufferings and afflictions again. Finally, when we inwardly observe the mind, yet there is no mind; when we externally observe the physical body, yet there is no physical body. At that time, both mind and body are empty. And we have no obstructions when observing external objects (they are existing, yet in our eyes they do not exist). We reach the state where the body, the mind, and external objects, all three have vanished. They are existing but causing no obstructions for us. That is to say we are wholeheartely following the principle of emptiness, and the middle way is arising from it. In the middle way, there is no joy, no anger, no sorrow, no fear, no love, no disgust, and no desire. When we contemplate on everything, we should always remember that internally there are no idle thoughts, and externally there is no greed. Both the body and mind are all clear and pure. When we contemplate on things, if we are delighted by pleasant states and upset by states of anger, we know that our nature is not settled. If we experience greed or disgust when states appear, we also know that our nature is not settled. Devout Buddhists should always remember that we should be happy whether a good or bad state manifests. Whether it is a joyful situation or an evil one, we will be happy either way. This kind of happiness is true happiness, unlike the happiness brought about by external situations. Our mind experiences boundless joy. We are happy all the time, and never feel any anxiety or affliction. Devout Buddhists should always remember about the three unattainable mind: the mind of the past is unattainable, the mind of the present is unattainable, and the mind of the future is unattainable. Thus, when a situation arises, deal with it, but do not try to exploit it. When the situation is gone, it leaves no trace, and the mind is as pure as if nothing happens.

IX.Buddhist Practitioners See Things:

Practitioners See Things As They Really Are: Ignorance is not seeing things as they really are. It is failing to understand the truth about life. Ignorance is the opposite of the word 'to know'. In Budhdism, ignorance means 'not knowing', 'not seeing', 'not understanding', 'being unclear', and so forth. Whoever is dominated by ignorance is like a blind person because the eyes are shut, or not seeing the true nature of objects, and not understanding the truths of cause and effect, and so on. Ignorance is the root of all sufferings and afflictions. Due to ignorance, people cannot distinguish between right and wrong. They become blind under the delusion of self, clinging to things which are impermanent, changeable, and perishable. As long as we have not develop our minds to obtain wisdom, we remain ignorant of the tru nature of things. According to Buddhism, ignorance means regarding the self as real. Ignorance is the main cause of our nonenlightenment. Ignorance os only a false mark, so it is subject to production, extinction, increase, decrease, defilement, purity, and so on. Ignorance is the main cause of our birth, old age, worry, grief, misery, and sickness, and death. Due to ignorance, people do not see things as they really are, and cannot distinguish between right and wrong. They become blind under the delusion of self, clinging to things which are impermanent, changeable, and perishable. Once anger arises, one has nothing but “ignorance.” In order to eliminate “ignorance” you should meditate on causality. All of our psychological problems are rooted in ignorance, in delusion. Ignorance is the crowning corruption. Our greeds, hates, conceits and a host of other defilements go hand in hand with our ignorance. The solutions are to be found in the problems themselves and hence we should not run away from our problems. Analyze and scrutinize the problems, and you will see that they are human problems, so do not attribute them to nonhumans. Our real problems can be solved only by giving up illusions and false concepts and bringing our lives into harmony with reality and this can be done only through meditation.

Practitioners Always have An Objective View on All Things: The Buddha taught: “The mind is like a monkey, the thought is like a horse.” Whenever our mind wanders to other thoughts, be aware of them, but do not get involved in them emotionally or intellectually; do not comment, condemn, evaluate or appraise them, but bring our attention back to the nature rhythm of our breathing. Our mind may be overwhelmed by evil and unwholesome thoughts. This is to be expected. It is in meditation that we understand how our mind works. Become aware of both the good and evil, the ugly and beautiful, the wholesome and unwholesome thoughts. Do not elated with our good thoughts and depressed with the bad. These though come and go like actors on a stage. When we hear sounds, become aware of them and bring our attention back to our breath. The same with regard to smell, taste (which you may get mentally), touch, pain, pleasure and so forth. Sincere Buddhists should observe the thoughts in a calm detached way. Mindfulness means observing whatever happens inside oneself, whenever one does, not judging it as good or bad, just by watching with naked awareness. Sincere Buddhists should always observe things objectively, not subjectively, observing with our naked awareness. In Buddhist cultivation, impartial observation is the key to release all attachments. Therefore, the Buddha stressed the importance of objective observation, one of the keys to the Buddhist cultivation. Through objective observation we realize the real face of sufferings and afflictions. it's is objective observation that gives us an opportunity to cultivate to totally destroy sufferings and afflictions. Thus, objective observation plays a key role in the process of cultivation.

Buddhists should always remember the Buddha's advice: “You should always have an objective not a subjective view on all things, for this will help you to be able to see things as they really are.” In the Satipatthana Sutta, contemplation of mind is especially concerned with an objective view, not a subjective one. Even the practice of all the four types of contemplation (of body, feelings, mind, and mental objects) should be done objectively without any subjective reaction. We should never be an interested observer, but a bare observer. Then only can we see the object in its proper perspective, as it really is, and not as it appears to be. When we observe a thing subjectively, our mind gets involved in it, we tend to identify ourselves with it. We judge, evaluate, appraise and comment on it. Such subjective observation colors our view. Thus, in Buddhist practice, we should cultivate and contemplate without any biases, prejudices, likes, dislikes and other preconceived considerations and notions. Especially in meditation, contemplation and mindfulness should be practiced in an objective way as if we were observing the object of outside. Sincere Buddhists should always remember the Buddha's teachings: “In what is seen there should be to you only the seen; in the heard there should be only the heard; in what is sensed there should be only the sensed; in what is cognized there should be only the cognized.” Only with objective looking, the idea of “I am seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, and cognizing” is removed. The “I” concept as well as the ego illusion is also eliminated.

X.Expounding the Dharmas According to the Vimalakirti Sutra:

According to the Vimalakirti Sutra, one day when Maudgalyayana came to Vaisali to expound the Dharma to lay Buddhists in the street there, Vimalakirti came to him and said: “Maudgalyayana! When expounding the Dharma to these upasakas, you should not preach like that for what you teach should agree with the absolute Dharma which is free from the (illusion of) living beings; is free from the self for it is beyond an ego; from life for it is beyond birth and death and from the concept of a man which lacks continuity (thought seemingly continuous, like a torch whirled around); is always still for it is beyond (stirring) phenomena; is above form for it is causeless; is inexpressible for it is beyond word and speech; is inexplainable for it is beyond intellection; is formless like empty space; is beyond sophistry for it is immaterial; is egoless for it is beyond (the duality of) subject and object; is free from discrimination for it is beyond consciousness; is without compare for it is beyond all relativities; is beyond cause for it is causeless; is identical with Dharmata (or Dharma nature), the underlying nature (of all things); is in line with the absolute for it is independent; dwells in the region of absolute reality, being above and beyond all dualities; is unmovable for it does not rely on the six objects of sense; neither comes nor goes for it does not stay anywhere; is in line with voidness, formlessness and inactivity; is beyond beauty and ugliness; neither increases nor decreases; is beyond creation and destruction; does not return to anywhere; is above the six sense organs of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body and mind; is neither up nor down; is eternal and immutable; and is beyond contemplation and practice. “Maudgalyayana, such being the characteristics of the Dharma, how can it be expounded?” For expounding it is beyond speech and indication, and listening to it is above hearing and grasping. This is like a conjurer expounding the Dharma to illusory men, and you should always bear all this in mind when expounding the Dharma. You should be clear about the sharp or dull roots of your audience and have a good knowledge of this to avoid all sorts of hindrance. Before expounding the Dharma you should use your great compassion (for all living beings) to extol Mahayana to them, and think of repaying your own debt of gratitude to the Buddha by striving to preserve the three treasures (of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha) for ever.” Also according to the Vimalakirti Sutra, Vimalakirti reminded Purna that expounding Dharma should always be in accordance with sentient beings' faculties: “Purnamaitraynaiputra, you should first enter the state of samadhi to examine the minds of your listeners before expounding the Dharma to them. Do not put rotten food in precious bowls. You should know their minds and do not take their (precious crystal for (ordinary) glass. If you do not know their propensities, do not teach them Hinayana. They have no wounds, so do not hurt them. To those who want to tread the wide path do not show narrow tracks. Do not enclose the great sea in the print of an ox's foot; do not liken sunlight to the dim glow of a firefly.” “Purnamaitryaniputra, these bhiksus have long ago developed the Mahayana mind but they now forget all about it; how can you teach them Hinayana? Wisdom as taught by Hinayana is shallow; it is like a blind man who cannot discern the sharp from the dull roots of living beings.” According to the Vimalakirti Sutra, Vimalakirti reminded Mahakatyayana not to use mortal mind to preach immortal reality as follows: Mahakatyayana said: “Vimalakirti came and said: 'Mahakatyayana, do not use your mortal mind to preach immortal reality. Mahakatyayana, all things are fundamentally above creation and destruction; this is what impermanence means. The five aggregates are perceived as void and not arising; this is what suffering means. All things are basically non existent; this is what voidness means. Ego and its absence are not a duality; this is what egolessness means. All things basically are not what they seem to be, they cannot be subject to extinction now; this is what nirvana means.”

XI.Fourteen Inexpressible Things:

The Buddha always reminded his assemblies on many thing that people should not mention in any occasion, among them, there are fourteen important inexpressible things. Devout Buddhists only talk when they need to talk. In fact, Buddha Sakyamuni refrained from giving a definitive answer to many metaphysical questions of his time (questions of self exists, not self exists, if the world is eternal, or unending or no, etc). According to the Buddha, a silent person is very often a wise person because he or she avoids wasting energy or negative verbiage. If the person asks because he wants to cause troubles for the Buddha, the Buddha will remain silent. One day a certain man said to the Buddha that he would join the band of his disciples if the Buddha would give clear answer to the questions: “Would the Buddha ever die, and, if so, what would become of him after death? What was the first cause of the universe, and what was the universe going to be like in the future? Why do men live and what becomes of them after death?” If the person asks because he wants to cause troubles for the Buddha, the Buddha will remain silent. If the person asks because he wants to study, the Buddha's answer was to the following effect: “Suppose you were shot by a poison arrow and a physician came to draw the arrow from your body and to dress the wound, would you first ask him questions as to what the arrow was made of, what the composition of the poison was., and who shot the arrow, and, if the physician did not dress the wound, what was going to happen, and such blissful questions, and refuse the treatment until the physician answered all the questions to your satisfaction? You would be dead before you obtained the answers.” In this parable the Buddha advised the questioner to become his disciple without wasting his time on problems which were too profound to be understood by an ordinary man, probably a long cultivation as a disciple of the Buddha he might come to understand.

According to the Madhyamaka Philosophy, the mysterious silence of the Buddha on most fundamental questions of Metaphysics led him to probe into the reason of that silence. Was the Buddha agnostic as some of the European writers on Buddhism believe him to be? If not, what was the reason of his silence? Through a searching inquiry into this silence was the dialectic born. There are well known questions which the Buddha declared to be avyakrta or the answers to which were inexpressible, Cadrakirti enumerates them in his commentary on the Madhyamaka Sastra that the Buddha announced fourteen things to be inexpressible as mentioned in the following sentences. Whether the world is eternal, not eternal, both eternal and not eternal, neither eternal nor not eternal, and so on. Whether the world is finite, infinite, both finite and infinite, neither finite nor infinite, and so on. Whether the Tathagata exists after death, does not exist after death, either exists or does not exist after death, neither exists nor does not exist after death. Whether the soul is identical with the body, different with the body, and so on.

Tài Liệu Tham Khảo

References

1. Những Đóa Hoa Vô Ưu, Thiện Phúc, USA, 2012, Tập I, II & III The Sorrowless Flowers, Thiện Phúc, USA, 2012, Volumes I, II & III.

2. Trích trong Phật Pháp Căn Bản, cùng tác giả Thiện Phúc, California, U.S.A., 2009, Quyển 1, Chương 10 Extracted from Basic Buddhist Doctrines, the same author Thien Phuc, California, U.S.A., 2009, Volume 1, Chapter 10.

3. Thiền Trong Đời Sống, Thiện Phúc, USA, 2012 Zen In Life, Thiện Phúc, USA, 2012.