A Parable

Chapter 3

Sutra:

All the ghosts and spirits
Screamed loudly,
While the hawks, vultures, and other birds,
The Kumbhandas, and so forth,
Ran about in a panic,
Unable to get themselves out.

Outline:

N4. The appearance of the blaze

Commentary:

All the ghosts and spirits meaning those ghosts and spirits mentioned before. They represent the Five Quick Servants and the Five Dull Servants. Screamed loudly. They raised their voices in a great, loud bellow. Why did they scream? They saw the walls falling in on them, and so they were all scared. While the hawks, vultures, and other birds. Hawks can eat deer. The vultures like to eat unclean things. The birds represent the Five Dull Servants.

The Kumbhandas, and so forth, Kumbhandas represent the most powerful, the most evil of the Five Quick Servants. By “most evil” and “most powerful” we mean whichever Servant is the most dominant in any particular personality. Basically, the Servants themselves are of equal power but an individual personality may be more afflicted with one of them than another and so, for that person, that Servant is the most powerful. For example, if you are a person with a great deal of greed, then greed is the most powerful servant on your list. Another person may not be bothered by greed, but may have an uncontrollable temper and so hatred is the most powerful servant for him. The same applies to all the other Servants.

Ran about in a panic, unable to get themselves out. They could not get out of the three realms. If it were not for the Triple Jewel, the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha and the Four Truths and the Four Applications of Mindfulness, they would never be able to get out of the three realms.

Students of the Buddhadharma should not allow themselves to be controlled by the Five Quick or Five Dull Servants. Do not be turned by them. You should transform them and then they can become Dharma Protectors.

What has just been discussed represents the difficulty of escaping the realm of desire. One must rely upon the power of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha in order to escape the three realms.

Sutra:

Evil beasts and poisonous insects
Hid away in the holes and crevices,
While the pishacha ghosts
Also dwelt therein.

Outline:

M2. Verses about the events in the cave as likened to the form realm.
N1. Those creatures being burned.

Commentary:

This passage of text talks about the form realm. Evil beasts and poisonous insects hid away in the holes and crevices. When they saw the house catch on fire, they ran to hide away in the crevices and crannies. The holes and crevices represent the realm of form. While the pishacha ghosts; pishacha ghosts are the ghosts that eat essence and energy. They were also hiding in the holes, in the form realm, that is. This represents people who attain the Four Dhyanas and are born in the form realm heavens. The form realm heavens are like the holes and crevices. Also dwelt therein, there in the realm of form.

Sutra:

Their blessings and virtue scanty,
They were hard pressed by the fire;
They wrought harm on one another,
Drinking blood and eating flesh.

Outline:

N2. Cause of the fire.

Commentary:

Why did the fire start? Why do people get angry? It was because their blessings and virtue scanty, they were hard pressed by the fire. Because they had no blessings, in turn they had no virtue, and so they liked to get angry. In China they say,

“Lacking virtue, one wears a smokestack on one’s head.”

Why do people get angry? It is because they do not have enough virtue. People with virtuous conduct do not get angry. Even if they do get angry, it is not for real. They may pretend to get angry sometimes at people, but they are just using this kind of Dharma-door to subdue that person. This is their way of teaching people. Some living beings, unless you get a bit upset with them, they will think you are joking and they would not take you very seriously. Bodhisattvas may sometimes use this kind of suppressing dharma. When ordinary people get angry it is because they do not have enough virtue. Since they do not have enough virtue, they catch on fire with anger. They had no blessings or virtue and so when the fire started, they were hard pressed by it. This represents the fact that in the three realms there is no peaceful place. The Four Inversions, the Five Turbidities, the Eight Sufferings, and the Five Skandhas press in from all sides like a raging fire.

They wrought harm on one another. Because they are in the form realm, they dislike the realm below, the realm of desire; they like the realm above, the formless realm. They forcefully apply the realms above to the realms below, they suppress the subtle afflictions in the lower realms. This is what is meant by “They wrought harm on one another”. Drinking blood and eating flesh. Drinking blood refers to the attachments of those in the form realm. What attachments do they have? They are attached to not talking. They think that not talking is a form of cultivation. Those, for example, in the Fourth Dhyana are not beset with the evil dharmas found in the realm of desire. They do, however, crave the “flavor of Dhyana” and this is a subtle form of suffering. They are also attached to their merit and virtue, to the good deeds they have done. This is like eating flesh.

Sutra:

As the packs of Yeh Kan
Were already dead,
Monstrous evil beasts
Raced to devour them,
While billows of stinking smoke
Permeated all four sides.

Outline:

N3. The appearance of the blaze.

Commentary:

As the packs of Yeh Kan.These are animals like foxes, but they live out in the wilds and roam at night in packs, wailing with a strange and terrifying sound. They are kind of like foxes, but trickier. They represent greed in the desire realm.

Were already dead. This means that greed in the realm of desire was already dead. But monstrous evil beasts representing greed in the form realm which can swallow the greed of the desire realm: raced to devour them. The greed in the form realm can eat up the greed in the desire realm. So the fire has been subdued to a small “burn.” This is a subtle form of suffering. They have not as much suffering as the desire realm. The suffering is still there in a subtler form. They still have love. If people can get rid of love, they can go to the formless realm. In the form realm one still has thoughts of love and the flavor of states of Dhyana.

In the realm of desire, the Four Inversions and Eight Sufferings are like a blazing fire. In the form realm, they are like billows of stinking smoke. This love attachment is like billows of stinking smoke. It permeated all four sides. This represents the Four Inversions and the Eight Sufferings penetrating the four elements and the body, feelings, thoughts, and dharmas, the Four Applications of Mindfulness.

This ends the verses on the affairs in the holes and crevices representing the form realm.

Sutra:

Centipedes and millipedes,
And various kinds of poisonous snakes,
Burnt by the fire,
Fought to escape their holes.
Kumbhanda ghosts
Grabbed and ate them.

Outline:

M3. Verses on events outside the cave as likened to the formless realm.
N1. Those creatures being burned.

Commentary:

These verses represent the affairs in the formless realm. The formless realm is one level higher than the form realm. Cultivators who attain to the form realm heavens grow to dislike them because in the form realm heavens there is still the mark of form which can be seen. They grow weary of the cage of form. In the form realm living beings are not free at all. Form keeps them locked up, so they decide that they want to go up to the formless realms, like birds flying out of their birdcages. People in the form realm heavens suffer; they have coarse obstacles. They hope to be born in the formless realm where there is no form only emptiness. This is represented by the line of text “Burnt by the fire.”

Centipedes and millipedes, and various kinds of poisonous snakes. Being burned by the Four Inversions, the Five Skandhas, and the Eight Sufferings is like being burned in a fire. Fought to escape their holes. They fought. None wanted to fall behind. They all tried to get in front of each other. The holes represent the form realm heavens. They are trying to get out and get into the formless realm. The Samadhi in the formless realm is one level higher than that in the form realm. Having attained the formless samadhis, they have extinguished the causes and conditions in the form realm.

Having seized the samadhis in the upper realms and extinguished conditions in the lower realm, the text says kumbhanda ghosts grabbed and ate them. The conditions in the lower realms have been extinguished just like being eaten by kumbhandas ghosts. The ghosts also represent the Five Dull Servants and the Five Quick Servants. Basically, if one were to explain in detail, the Five Dull Servants and Five Quick Servants can all attain the formless samadhis. But here in this passage we are only referring to the Five Dull Servants which detest the lower realms and want to attain to the formless realm. The Five Quick Servants have already attained to the formless realm. They have extinguished the lower form realm.

Sutra:

Further, all the hungry ghosts,
The tops of their heads aflame,
Tormented by hunger, thirst, and heat,
Ran about in terror and distress.

Outline:

N2. The appearance of the blaze.

Commentary:

Further, all the hungry ghosts. Hungry ghosts have nothing to eat. Their throats are as thin as needles, and their stomachs are as large as bass drums. They eat all day long but never get full. Hungry ghosts represent the living beings in the heavens of the four Stations of Emptiness: 1) the station of emptiness without limit, 2) the station of consciousness without limit, 3) the station of nothing whatsoever, 4) the station of neither perception nor non-perception. Although beings in these heavens have reached emptiness, they still have consciousness and they have not ended birth and death. They have not obtained the food and drink of non-outflows and so they are said to be like hungry ghosts. They have not eaten of the food and drink of no-outflows.

Although they are at the top of the three realms, in the formless realm, in the highest of the heavens, they still have not ended birth and death. They still cannot avoid impermanence, and eventually they are burned by it. Thus, the text says the tops of their heads aflame. When they have used up all their heavenly blessings, they will fall again into other destinies. In the heaven of neither perception nor non-perception, beings live for eighty-thousand great aeons, enjoying their heavenly blessings, but then they fall--burned by the fire of impermanence.

Tormented by hunger, thirst, and heat. Hunger represents their inability to acquire the Proper Path. The Proper Path means cultivating the genuine Way. Because they do not find the path of cultivation which leads to the end of birth and death, they are hungry. They are said to be thirsty because they have not gained the drink of the aids to the Path. They have not obtained the causes and conditions which aid one in cultivation of the Path, and so they are thirsty.

Although they are at the top of the three realms, they are still vexed by subtle forms of the Eight Sufferings--not a lot, just a little. These sufferings remain in their eighth consciousness and that is what is meant by “heat.”

They are also tormented by subtle forms of delusions which manifest. The delusions are very few and very fine, but they are still present because they have not severed the root of the delusions. In the future when they fall, they will have more delusions.

There are various categories of delusions:

1. View delusions. This refers to giving rise to greed and love for externals.

2. Thought delusions. This refers to being confused about a principle and giving rise to discrimination.

3. Delusion of ignorance. This refers to being stupid about things. For example, one may clearly know that a given action is wrong, but do it anyway. One may know that something is bad, but do it anyway. Why? Because one does not really know that it is bad! One has no true understanding of things.

These delusions tormented them and they ran about in terror and distress. The beings in the formless heavens are still on the wheel of birth and death, but they give no thought to escaping it. They do not look for a method to escape the three realms, to transcend the turning wheel of rebirth. They run about confusedly all over the place in terror and distress. This has been a discussion of the affairs in the formless realm.

Sutra:

So it was in that house:
Terrifying to the extreme,
With dangers and conflagrations--
A host of troubles, not just one.

Outline:

M4. General conclusion: many kinds of difficulties.

Commentary:

So it was in that house. The burning house, as stated above, was a dangerous place. This means that there is no place of peace in the three realms. It is terrifying to the extreme, with dangers and conflagrations, a host of troubles, not just one. Not just one kind of trouble beset them. This represents the fact that when you are in the burning house of the three realms if you do not cultivate the Way and find a way to get out of the burning house, you remain in great danger. It is filled with danger. If you do not run into one kind of disaster, you encounter another. There is not one single happy day. Now, we in this world should think it over. Where is there peace in the world? No place. Everywhere you go, you see a lot of problems. You might say that several thousand years ago the Buddha was addressing us here in the world today where there are a host of troubles, not just one.

Sutra:

At that time the owner of the house
Was standing outside the door
When he heard someone say,
“All of your children
Awhile ago, in play,
Went into this house.
Being young and ignorant,
They delight in play and cling to amusements.”
Having heard this, the Elder
Entered the burning house, in alarm.

Outline:

K2. Specific verses about the parable.
L1. Elder sees the fire start.

Commentary:

At that time the owner of the house was standing outside the door. The Buddha was standing outside the door. What does this mean? “Outside the door” refers to the Buddha as having already certified to the ground of the Dharma body. “Standing” means that the Buddha always keeps a heart of compassion. In his great compassion and kindness he always wishes to rescue living beings. He never forgets living beings; he always works to save them. He does not dwell in the emptiness of the primary principle because he wants to teach and transform living beings.

When he heard someone say. In the previous prose section of the text said, “When he sees….” and this points to the non-duality of hearing and seeing. “Says” refers to Samadhi. The Buddha takes the Dharma as his teacher, the Dharma of Samadhi. When you obtain the Dharma of Samadhi, you can observe the potentials of the beings and dispense the proper teaching to them. Thus, the Buddha’s entering Samadhi enables him to view the potential of beings. His Samadhi enables him to see those potentialities. Therefore the text says, “When he heard someone say” representing Samadhi.

All of your children. This refers to all the living beings in the five destinies. Awhile ago, in play, went into this house. This refers to living beings who have first brought forth the resolve for Bodhi. At this time it is as if they had already gotten out. But before they have ascended to the level of no-retreat, they can still give rise to the view delusions and thought delusions and thus “in play” run back into the burning house. You can also interpret this line thus: All living beings, speaking in terms of principle, are basically pure. In this sense, then, there is no burning house and there are no three realms. The basic nature of living beings is pure of itself, but because of ignorance, they falsely give rise to attachments leading to a continuous round of birth and death. This is like entering the house in play.

Being young and ignorant. This refers to that time in their cultivation when their merit and virtue is not yet perfected and has not manifested. One is then young, not having enough virtue, being, as was said above “of scanty merit and virtue.” “Ignorant” means they are stupid. Being stupid, they are bound up by delusions, view delusions, thought delusions, and delusions of ignorance.

They delight in play and cling to amusements. Hah! There they are! They imagine that they are having a real good time. Who would have guessed that it was really so terrifying?

Having heard this, the Elder entered the burning house, in alarm. The Buddha, seeing living beings undergoing just too much suffering, gives rise to great compassion and comes to teach and transform living beings, to rescue them, and get them all safely out of the burning house.

Sutra:

Intending to save them
From being burned
He warned his children
Of the host of disasters:
“The evil ghosts, the poisonous insects
and the spreading conflagration,
A host of sufferings, in succession
Are continuous, without interruption.

The poisonous snakes and vipers
And all the yakshas,
And Kumbhanda ghosts,
Yeh Kan, foxes and dogs,
Hawks, vultures, kites and owls,
And varieties of centipedes
Are frantic with hunger and thirst,
And terrifying to the extreme.

There are so many sufferings and troubles,
So much increased by this great fire!”
But all the children, without knowledge,
Although they heard their father’s warnings,
Still clung to their amusements
And sported without cease.

Outline:

L2. Casting aside the table to use the carts.
M1. Casting aside the table.

Commentary:

Intending to save them. Just at that time the elder, the Buddha, was preparing to use the Great Vehicle Dharma-door to rescue all living beings. He was intending to save them from being burned. He wanted to keep all living beings from being burned by the blaze of the five skandhas. He warned his children of the host of disasters. He said “This burning house is filled with many terrifying things. There is no peace in the three realms. It is like a burning house.”

The evil ghosts, the poisonous insects. These represent the Five Dull Servants and the Five Quick Servants which are always playing tricks. And the spreading conflagration. The raging blaze of the five skandhas is spreading everywhere. The more it burns, the brighter it gets and the more territory it spreads across, burning through the three realms. A host of sufferings, in succession. These manifold troubles arise in succession, and are continuous, without interruption. They arise one after another without stopping. The fire is out of control; it cannot be stopped.

The poisonous snakes and vipers. Various snakes and venomous creatures again represent the Five Dull and Five Quick Servants. And all the yakshas, and Kumbhanda ghosts. These ghosts are terrifying! Kumbhandas are the ghosts that look like watermelons. They may sit down on you when you are asleep so that you cannot move. Yeh Kan, foxes and dogs, hawks, vultures, kites and owls, and varieties of centipedes are frantic with hunger and thirst. They lack the food of the proper Path and the drink of the Aids to the Path, and so they are hungry and thirsty and terrifying to the extreme.

There are so many sufferings and troubles, so much increased by this great fire! So many strange creatures and this big fire! Hurry and find a way out!

But all the children, without knowledge. All the living beings lack any understanding of what is going on. They lack the disposition or the potential for the Great Vehicle Buddhadharma. Although they heard their father’s warnings. Even though they heard their father tell them of the danger and the fearsome creatures, they still clung to their amusements. They continued to play, imagining the place to be very amusing. And sported without cease. They jumped around having a good time and not listening to their father at all.

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