The Wondrous Adornments of the Rulers of the Worlds

Chapter One, Part Four and Five

Sutra:

Moreover, Vajra-wielding Spirit Wondrous Narayana Physique gained a passage into liberation of seeing the Thus Come One manifest bodies of boundless forms.  

Commentary:

Who can explain the word Narayana? What does it mean? [A disciple explains.] You cannot completely explain the meaning. If people want to know more, they have to investigate on their own. In lecturing the sutra, you cannot explain everything in full, for if you did, it’s not known when we would finish lecturing this sutra. You cannot fully explain all the meanings even in a short sutra, not to mention a long one. Even if a sutra is short, it takes a long time to completely explain its meanings.

For example, the Great Master Zhi Zhe of Tiantai spent ninety days explaining the word miao “wonderful.” You might say that he went into too much detail in his explanation. Actually, not to speak of ninety days, even nine months, nine years, or ninety years would not be enough time to fully explain the meaning of “wonderful,” simply because it is wonderful. One can only give people an general idea of what it means, regardless of whether the meaning of the term is good or not. People who want to know more will spend time investigating in greater depth on their own.

Moreover, to continue the discussion of the meanings mentioned previously, Vajra-wielding Spirit Wondrous Narayana…Narayana means strong and solid. How do I know? Well, the text says that he is a Vajra-wielding Spirit. If he were not strong and solid, how could he wield a vajra jeweled pestle? If his arms were as weak as a baby chick’s, how could he hold a vajra jeweled pestle? Vajra jeweled pestles and vajra jeweled swords are weapons wielded by Dharma protectors. Vajra-wielding spirits are Dharma protectors. This particular spirit gained a passage into liberation of seeing the Thus Come One manifest bodies of boundless forms. He sees the Buddha manifest these bodies. The word “manifest” indicates that these bodies are not real. They appear out of nothing. Originally they did not exist. The Buddha manifests boundlessly many of such bodies. This spirit attained that passage into liberation. 

Sutra:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Banner as Swift as the Sun gained a passage into liberation of seeing how every hair on the Buddha’s body displays assorted clouds of light, just like the sun. Vajra-wielding Spirit Flower Light of Mount Sumeru gained a passage into liberation of conjuring up measureless bodies and tremendous spiritual transformations. Vajra-wielding Spirit Pure Thundercloud gained a passage into liberation of uttering boundless sounds that accord with the categories of beings.  

Commentary:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Banner as Swift as the Sun is very speedy. He gained a state of the Buddha, a passage into liberation of seeing every hair on the Buddha’s body displaying assorted clouds of light, just like the sun. Every hair on the Buddha’s body sends forth a ray of light, just like the sun. This ray of light is not of a single color. It is actually a cloud of light of rainbow colors, like a five-colored auspicious cloud floating in the sky. That is this spirit’s passage into liberation.

The next Vajra-wielding Spirit is named Flower Light of Mount Sumeru. Sumeru means “wonderfully tall.” The light he emits has flowers in it, and the flowers in turn give off light. This spirit gained a passage into liberation and understood the Buddha’s state of conjuring up measureless bodies and tremendous spiritual powers and transformations.

Demons have the appearance of demons, and Buddhas have the appearance of Buddhas. Sometimes, in order to subdue a demon, the Buddha himself may manifest as a demon. However, he manifests in a form that is larger than the demon. For example, if the demon is five thousand feet tall, the Buddha might manifest as a ten-thousand-foot-tall demon, so that he is five thousand feet taller than the demon. When the demon sees how small he is in comparison to the Buddha, he submits and pays obeisance, promising to follow the Buddha’s instructions. After the demon surrenders, the Buddha reappears in his own body. When the demon sees the Buddha’s tremendous spiritual powers of transformation, he dares not disobey the Buddha’s teaching.

If you know how to apply the Buddhadharma, it is infinitely wonderful and mysterious. If you don’t know how to use it, it is like not being aware of a bright pearl that is sewn in your clothing. Once you discover the bright pearl, you can use it. The bright pearl can give you all kinds of treasures. You can use it forever, and it will never wear out. If you find the pearl in your clothing, you will be the richest person. If you wish for money, the pearl produces money. If you want gold, it produces gold. If you prefer silver, it gives you silver. You can have whatever you want. That is an analogy for the passage into liberation of conjuring tremendous spiritual transformations. 

The next Vajra-wielding Spirit is named Pure Thundercloud. She gained a passage into liberation of uttering boundless sounds that accord with the categories of beings. He understood the Buddha’s state where the Buddha is able to appear in the appropriate form for different kinds of sentient beings, speak in a way that they can understand, and proclaim the wonderful Dharma for them. You shouldn’t have the idea that the Buddha always appears as a Buddha. The Buddha can take on any form at all. For example, if he wants to save fish, he appears in a fish’s body and goes into the water to teach and transform fish, speaking to them in fish language. If he wants to save dragons, he manifests as a dragon. If he wants to save other animals, he appears in their forms. Not only does he take on the same form as them, he communicates with them in their own language. This spirit attained the Buddha’s passage into liberation of uttering sounds that accord with the categories of beings.

Sutra:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Celestial Lord with Splendid Arms gained a passage into liberation of manifesting as all worldly leaders and enlightening sentient beings.

Commentary:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Celestial Lord with Splendid Arms gained a passage into liberation of manifesting as all worldly leaders and enlightening sentient beings. The wonderful thing about this spirit is that he can rub oil on his head using his hand. After rubbing, he turns into a slippery-head. When one hand is done rubbing, the other hand rubs some more. What is more, one hand can turn into countless hands, and those countless hands can turn back into one hand. One hand can become ten million hands, and ten million hands can become one hand, so he is said to have “splendid arms.” Splendid means inconceivable. With his hands, he can pick up as many things as he wishes.  

Sutra:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Delightful Brightness gained a passage into liberation of expounding all the different entrances into the Buddhadharma, so that they are fully understood without exception. Vajra-wielding Spirit Great Tree Thunderclap gained a passage into liberation of using delightful ornaments to gather in all tree spirits.  

Commentary:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Delightful Brightness understood the Buddha’s state and gained a passage into liberation of expounding all the different entrances into the Buddhadharma,so that they are fully understood without exception. He makes all sentient beings understand all the entrances into the different meanings within the Buddhadharma. They thoroughly understand all the principles of Buddhadharma without exception. That was this spirit’s passage into liberation. 

Vajra-wielding Spirit Great Tree Thunderclap gained a Buddha’s state and a passage into liberation of using delightful ornaments, including toys, to gather in all tree spirits. He uses toys and adornments to keep the tree spirits under control. Probably tree spirits love to play and have fun. That was this spirit’s passage into liberation.  

Sutra:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Brilliant Lion King gained a passage into liberation of being fully endowed with and understanding the adornments accumulated from vast blessings.  

Commentary:

The next Vajra-wielding Spirit is named Brilliant Lion King. This spirit is very awesome and dignified, like the lion, the king of beasts. This spirit also has the radiance of wisdom. He gained a state of the Buddha and a passage into liberation of being fully endowed with and understanding the adornments accumulated from vast blessings. Because the Buddha never passed up even the smallest opportunity to create blessings, he eventually accumulated vast blessings. When blessings and wisdom are abundant, adornments naturally come about. Absolutely everything is adorned—the land is adorned; the palace is adorned; his Dharma visage is adorned. The Buddha is fully endowed with both blessings and wisdom. With perfect blessings and wisdom, he has the great wisdom to understand the dispositions of sentient beings. That is this Vajra-wielding Spirit’s passage into liberation. 

Sutra:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Covert Blazing Auspicious Eyes gained a passage into liberation of universally contemplating the evil thoughts of sentient beings and appearing before them in a majestic body. Vajra-wielding Spirit Lotus Gem-like Cowl gained a passage into liberation of universally raining down all Bodhisattva adornments and mani topknots.  

At that time, Vajra-wielding Spirit Wondrous Form Narayana received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, contemplated all the multitudes of vajra-wielding spirits, and spoke the following verse.  

Commentary:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Covert Blazing Auspicious Eyes often has a blazing appearance and enjoys good fortune, but he is unknown to most people. He helps people secretly, benefiting all sentient beings. He gained a passage into liberation of universally contemplating the evil thoughts of the most malicious sentient beings, those who have not one whit of goodness in their hearts, and appearing before them in a majestic body. He displays a stern, imposing, powerful, meritorious, and dignified appearance. His body is both majestic and adorned, inspiring awe and reverence in sentient beings. They submit immediately, bowing and making obeisance to him and doing whatever he says. This spirit attained this passage into liberation. Vajra-wielding Spirit Lotus Jeweled Topknot gained a passage into liberation of universally raining down all Bodhisattva adornments, the ornaments that Bodhisattvas use, such as necklaces, precious gems, and mani topknots. He attained this passage into liberation. 

At that time, Vajra-wielding Spirit Wondrous Form Narayana received the Buddha’s awesome spiritual power, universally contemplated the multitudes of Vajra-wielding Spirits, and spoke the following verse.

Sutra:

You ought to contemplate the Dharma King.
The Dharma of the Dharma King is thus.
His physical appearance has no bounds
As it universally manifests in all worlds.  

Commentary:

Vajra-wielding Spirit Wondrous Form Narayana said: You ought to contemplate the Dharma King. What should you contemplate about the Dharma King? Contemplate his Dharma. The Dharma of the Dharma King is thus. The Dharma body manifested by the Dharma King is such that his physical appearance has no bounds / As it universally manifests in all worlds throughout the ten directions of the Dharma Realm in order to teach and transform sentient beings.  

Sutra:

Every hair on the Buddha’s body
Emits inconceivable nets of light,
Which, like the sun, pure and clear,
Universally illumine the lands of the ten directions. 

Commentary:

The Buddha’s body has Thirty-two Hallmarks and Eighty Subtle Characteristics. This is common knowledge. Let’s not talk about the Buddha’s whole body. Actually, every hair and pore on the Buddha’s body / Emits inconceivable nets of light. Every hair releases measureless light. The light from all the hairs and pores mutually shines and interpenetrates, weaving inconceivable nets of light, which, to give an analogy, are like the sun in space, pure and clear. Like the sun, they universally illumine the Buddha lands of the ten directions. The Buddha’s light shines upon all sentient beings in the ten directions. 

Sutra:

The Thus Come One’s spiritual powers
Pervade the entire Dharma Realm.
Before all sentient beings,
He manifests infinitely many bodies.  

No one in the ten directions fails to hear
The sound of the Thus Come One speaking Dharma.
It satisfies the hearts of sentient beings
According to their categories.  

Commentary:

The Thus Come One’s great, awesome spiritual powers / Pervade the entire Dharma Realm. The Buddha’s spiritual powers reach to the ends of empty space and the Dharma Realm. Before all sentient beings, / He manifests infinitely many bodies. Every sentient being in the Dharma Realm gets to see the Buddha. Since there are infinitely many sentient beings, the Buddha appears in infinitely many bodies. With infinitely many bodies, he saves infinitely many sentient beings. 

No one in the ten directions fails to hear / The sound of the Thus Come One speaking Dharma. Since the Buddha’s body pervades the entire Dharma Realm, his Dharma sound also pervades the Dharma Realm. All sentient beings in the worlds of the ten directions hear the Buddha speaking the Dharma. It satisfies the hearts of sentient beings / According to their categories. The Buddha speaks the Dharma for all the various categories of beings, filling their hearts with the joy of Dharma. 

Sutra:

The multitudes see Muni, the Honored One,
Dwelling in his palace in the world.
For the sake of all beings,
He expounds and propagates the Great Dharma.  

In the whirlpools of the Dharma ocean,
All the different meanings
And various expedient doors
Are endlessly proclaimed.  

With boundless great expedient means,
The Buddha responds to those in all regions.
Upon encountering the pure light of the Buddha,
All being see the Thus Come One’s body.  

Commentary:

The multitudes see Muni, the Honored One. All sentient beings see Shakyamuni Buddha, dwelling in his palace in the world and proclaiming the Buddhadharma. For the sake of all beings, / He expounds and propagates the Great Dharma. The Buddha explains and sets forth the Dharma, so that it can spread and flourish. The Buddhadharma is also the Great Dharma, the Wonderful Dharma, and the Dharma of the Infinite Treasury. 

In the whirlpools of the Dharma ocean . Within the Dharma there are 84,000 Dharma doors, which are used over and over. All sorts of expedient Dharma doors are employed to clarify the meaning. The Dharma is explained over and over. This can be likened to the circular flow of water in a whirlpool. [note 30] That was a whirlpool; the water spins around and around. The whirlpool analogy represents the repeated speaking of Dharma. All the different meanings within the Dharma are explained, and various expedient doors/Are endlessly proclaimed. One principle is explained, and then another, followed by another. Infinitely many principles are proclaimed. 

With boundless great expedient means , infinitely many expedient Dharma doors, the Buddha responds to those all regions throughout the ten directions, going to teach and transform sentient beings. Upon encountering the pure light of the Buddha, / All see the Thus Come One’s body. When sentient beings encounter the Buddha speaking Dharma, see the Buddha’s radiance, or behold the Buddha’s body, those who have affinities with the Buddha see his body adorned with the special hallmarks and characteristics. 

Sutra:

Having made offerings to all Buddhas
In billions of lands as numerous as dustmotes,
He has merit like space
And is admired and esteemed by all.  

His spiritual powers are impartial.
He appears in all lands.
Peacefully dwelling in sublime bodhimandas,
He manifests before all sentient beings. 

His blazing clouds shine upon all worlds,
Perfectly formed of many kinds of light.
They reach every place in the Dharma Realm,
Displaying the aspects of the Buddha’s practice. 

Commentary:

The Buddha made offerings to all Buddhas. When the Buddha was still at the level of planting causes, he made vows to make offerings to all Buddhas in the ten directions and the three periods of time. In billions of lands as numerous as dustmotes, infinitely many lands, he made offerings to Buddhas as numerous as dustmotes. Having made such great vows and having given offerings to so many Buddhas, he has merit like space, vast and boundless. And the Buddha is admired and esteemed by all. All sentient beings admire, revere, and worship the Buddha.  

His spiritual powers are impartial. The Buddha uses his spiritual powers to impartially rescue all sentient beings. He appears in all lands throughout the ten directions of the Dharma Realm. Peacefully dwelling in sublime bodhimandas in those lands throughout the ten directions, the Buddha realizes the Way beneath the Bodhi tree. He manifests before all sentient beings.  

His blazing clouds shine upon all worlds in the ten directions. They are perfectly formed of many kinds of light, not just one kind. The Buddha’s lights pervasively reach every place in the Dharma Realm, shining everywhere, displaying the aspects of the Buddha’s practice. They teach sentient beings about how the Buddha cultivated and realized Buddhahood, so that sentient beings understand how to realize Buddhahood themselves.

Students of the Buddhadharma should recognize the importance of the Dharma. If we study the Dharma every day without realizing the importance of the Dharma, we will not take our cultivation seriously. If we fail to cultivate, we will attain nothing and have no wisdom. Wise people do not live in places characterized by ignorance.

Ignorant people do not live in places of wisdom. Places of ignorance refers to dark places. Ignorant people live in darkness and don’t feel that it is dark. Wise people know that darkness is wrong and so they seek a place of light. Light represents the lack of anger. Ignorance is anger. If you get angry, you are ignorant. If you have no anger, you are wise.

We ought to reflect upon ourselves daily and watch ourselves so that we do not entertain ignorant thoughts all the time. Instead we should develop wisdom in thought after thought. Once we develop wisdom, we will not get angry at others. Ignorant people like to lose their tempers.

As we study the Buddhadharma, every day we should become more and more intelligent, not more and more confused. If you can endure being scolded by others, then you have real skill in patience. Don’t scold others or lose your temper at them. Not to mention your Dharma peers, you shouldn’t even get mad at those who are your juniors. It’s understandable that you might lose your temper once in a while out of ignorance. But you cannot let your ignorance flare every day.

There is a saying:

The fire of ignorance and a tiger-like spirit
Are rooted in offenses created in past lives.

Since you have these offenses, you ought to root them out and get rid of them. If instead of eradicating your offenses, you increase them day by day, you will take a great loss in your cultivation. Cultivators must be very careful to avoid this kind of mistake.

When cultivators encounter adversity, they should take it in stride and not get upset. “Great Master Yongjia’s Song of Enlightenment” puts it well:

Contemplate vicious words as merit.
Then the speaker becomes your good advisor.
Without his slander leading you to choose
between hostility and friendship,
How could you demonstrate the power of compassion
and patience with nonproduction?

When someone scolds you, you should regard his malicious words as helping you to earn merit. Regard that person as your good advisor. He is helping you to cultivate the Way. He is testing your skill in patience. If he did not slander you and goad you to get angry, how could you prove that you had compassion? When someone scolds you or tries to kill you, he is testing you to see if you have samadhi power. You shouldn’t be overjoyed by a few words of praise or upset by a few words of criticism. That is to be blown about by the Eight Winds. When the Eight Winds cannot blow you about, then you are not even aware of being scolded. You treat the scolding as a song that people are singing for you. Since you don’t scold others, when you hear a scolding it doesn’t even register. You don’t understand what the person is saying. You think the person is speaking Japanese, English, German, French, and some other language that you don’t know. So, it’s no problem. When someone scolds you, just pretend they are singing a song for you, praising you—except that the praise is from the reverse side. In cultivation, you must take what you cannot take and bear what you cannot bear. Skilled cultivators are those who can be patient and who can yield to others. Without these abilities, you cannot be said to have skill.

Some people say, “The world has gone bad.” That is a mistaken view. The world itself cannot go bad. Others say, “Well, the world may not have gone bad, but people have gone bad.” That’s also wrong. People have not gone bad. What has gone bad then? The human mind. Since people’s minds have gone bad, it has ruined the world and the people in it. When the mind is bad, it creates evil karma and consequently incurs an evil retribution. When evil retribution is incurred, there is no peace in the world. Thus, if you want people to be good and the world to be good, you must start with the mind. When the mind is good, there will be no more wars in the world. In order for everyone to be a peace-loving person, we must start by ridding our minds of contention, hatred, greed, anger, and foolishness. Then the world will become peaceful.

Why is there no peace in the world right now? It’s because people are too greedy. People in high positions are greedy on a large scale. Those in low positions are greedy on a small scale. Each person has his own greed. However many citizens there are in a nation, that’s how many greedy people there are. When people’s desires are not satisfied, they are greedy. They are greedy for fame and profit. Among ordinary people, businessmen are greedy to make more money and strike it rich. From the time they are born until they die, they live for money. If they don’t have money, it’s as if they don’t have blood. This attitude pervades every nation. Farmers have the greed of farmers. They plant their seeds and then hope to reap a big harvest in the fall. That’s the greed of farmers. Scholars are greedy to quickly complete their studies and get a high position in the government. Laborers are greedy to make more money, just like businessmen. Government officials already have a high position, fame and status, yet they too are greedy for money.

There is an ancient saying about greed:

All day long a person stays busy just to keep from starving.
After eating his fill, his thoughts turn to clothing.
When he has abundant food and clothing,
He finds that his home lacks a beautiful wife.
Having acquired an elegant wife and pretty mistress,
He lacks a sedan-chair and a horse for his transportation.
Once he has a herd of mules and horses and a sedan-chair as well,
He still gets scorned because he doesn’t have an official post.
At fifth and fourth ranks, he is but a minor official.
Even in the third and second ranks, he considers his rank too low.
As prime minister, he becomes the top-ranking official in court.
Yet his ambition now is to ascend the throne and face the south.
One day he does ascend the throne and presides over the royal court.
But then he wants to play a game of chess with the immortals.

A sedan chair then, would be a car, a ship, or a plane now. But those with material possessions might still be mistreated if they didn’t become government officials. Ascending from petty officer to emperor, this person is still not satisfied. He wants to play chess with the immortals so as to gain immortality. This goes to show how the human mind is never satisfied. It is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant. How could the snake do it? That’s how people are. Due to their greed, they can never be content.

A Buddhist is a Buddhist. You cannot “be” a Buddhist. A Buddhist is a Buddhist, period. You cannot “be” a Buddhist or not be one. Buddhism encompasses all sentient beings. No sentient being can run outside of Buddhism. Why not? All sentient beings have the Buddha nature and can become Buddhas. Whether or not they believe in the Buddha, they are all Buddhists. It’s not the case that you are a Buddhist if and only if you believe in the Buddha. As long as you are a sentient being, you have the Buddha nature. Whether or not you believe in the Buddha, you have the Buddha nature. The only reason you might not have a Buddha nature would be that you were not a sentient being. But you wouldn’t dare say that you are not a sentient being.

Even the Bodhisattvas Manjushri, Universal Worthy, Guanyin, and Great Strength are sentient beings, so how could we not be sentient beings? Since we are sentient beings, we are of the same family as the Buddha. You may say that you are or are not a Buddhist, but that is your own opinion. In Buddhism, this is not even an issue. Not only are believers and nonbelievers both considered Buddhists, even those who scold the Buddha, beat the Buddha, or kill the Buddha are Buddhists; none of them have gone beyond the boundaries of Buddhism. Buddhism encompasses the whole scheme of things, not just one small piece of the picture. Even if you belong to another religion, you are included in Buddhism; you have not gone beyond Buddhism.

No matter which part of you is ailing, it is still a part of your body. Therefore, whether or not the sentient beings in the world believe in the Buddha, they are like a piece of flesh on the Buddha’s body; they all have the Buddha nature. They are one with the Buddha.

Six Types of Harmony:

When one’s nature is calm and demons are subdued,
one is happy every day.
When no discursive thoughts arise,
one is at peace everywhere.

Cultivators of the Way have to cultivate samadhi. How does one cultivate samadhi. First of all, one must hold the precepts. The precepts stop evil and prevent wrongdoing. Refrain from all evil and practice all good deeds.

Holding precepts requires that we constantly restrain and examine ourselves. We ask ourselves, “Have I created merit or offenses in the deeds I have done today? If I have created merit, then I ought to continue. If I have created offenses, I should quickly repent and reform.” Those who hold precepts should avoid obstructing other people. They must be careful never to cause anyone to retreat in their cultivation. That amounts to obstructing others from making the resolve for bodhi. If you obstruct others from making the bodhi resolve, you will not achieve rapid success in your own cultivation. You cannot disturb any sentient being, how much less one who has made the bodhi resolve. No matter who he is, if that person has made the Bodhi resolve, you ought to help him to succeed instead of ruining his resolve. If you do not hold the precepts clearly and you try to oppress others with your authority, you will not be able to cultivate the Way. Cultivators should be kind, humble, and reverent toward all. They must observe Six Types of Harmony:

• Harmony of bodies through dwelling together. You cannot say, “I can be here, but you cannot.” You have to live together. You cannot engage in physical, verbal, and psychological battles with your Dharma peers and fellow cultivators all day long. You have to live together in harmony. You should not be so absorbed in yourself that you have no consideration for anyone else. Don’t use your authority or status to oppress others. That’s not allowed. If you oppress people, you are not practicing “harmony in body through dwelling together.”
  
• Harmony of mouths through refraining from argument. Don’t use your mouth as a vehicle for debate and contention, always arguing your own case and putting others down. You should not think that you are better than everyone else.
  
• Harmony of minds through shared joy. In your thoughts you are in harmony with everyone. You should realize that the Way-place does not belong to you alone. It belongs to the entire assembly. Therefore, you cannot use force or oppression with people.
  
• Harmony of views through a common understanding. You cannot set yourself up as someone special and criticize everyone else as wrong, saying that your own view is superior. Everyone should have a shared understanding. You should not think you are special. What’s so special about you? If you don’t eat, you will starve just like anyone else. If you can go without food for a hundred days, you can consider yourself special. But can you do it? Humph! After seven days without food, you want to steal some food to eat. So, what’s so special about you?
  
• Harmony of precepts through common cultivation. Everyone must hold the precepts. You cannot say, “You have to hold these precepts, but I don’t.” The precepts must be held in common by everyone.
  
• Harmony of benefits through shared enjoyment. If there are any benefits, they should be shared by all. If one person enjoys all the benefits by himself, he is being selfish and unfair. He is partial to himself.

Those who have left the home-life should always be clear about the Six Types of Harmony. They should never obstruct or oppress their fellow cultivators. This is of foremost importance. You Yourselves Must Cultivate

You should all take yourselves seriously. Don’t see yourselves as worthless. Each person should fulfill his own duties, so as to avoid making mistakes in cause and effect. If you do not fulfill your duties according to your position, you are making mistakes in cause and effect. Therefore, I said, “When one’s nature is calm and demons are subdued, one is happy every day.” If your nature is calm and you can hold the precepts, no demon will bother you.

When one’s Way is lofty, dragons and tigers are subdued.
When one’s virtue is weighty, ghosts and spirits pay respect.

If you possess virtue, the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, gods, dragons, and the rest of the eightfold division will protect and support whatever you say. If you lack virtue, your words will not be efficacious. If you have virtue, everything you say will be efficacious. The line says, “When one’s Way is lofty, dragons and tigers are subdued.” When you attain the Way, the dragons coil up and the tigers crouch down in submission. When you have sufficient virtue, ghosts and spirits will respect you. They will bow and make obeisance as soon as they see you. They won’t be disrespectful.

When one’s nature is calm and the demons are subdued, one is happy every day. When false thoughts no longer arise, everywhere is peaceful and auspicious. If you indulge in false thinking all the time, no place that you go will be peaceful. When you’re on this mountain, that mountain looks higher to you. When you get to that mountain, you’re ready to go on to the next mountain. If cultivators cannot reflect upon themselves and find their own faults, but instead direct their attention outwards, they are making a grave mistake.

Samadhi is gongfu or skill in cultivation. If you lack samadhi, you lack skill. If you have samadhi, you have skill. To develop samadhi, you must first hold precepts. That will help you to gain samadhi. Holding precepts simply means stopping all evil. It means refraining from evil and doing all good. You should do good deeds, not bad ones. Then samadhi can arise. Once samadhi arises, you have to be able to pass tests. Adverse situations that don’t go your way are all tests. People who slander, scold, or beat you are testing you to see if you have samadhi. If you do, then when scolded, you think, “Who is being scolded. I don’t have a self, so who is he scolding?” You have no sense of self and no sense of others. Therefore, who is being scolded, and who is doing the scolding?

Just now I said you should not oppress people. If others dare to oppress you, they are truly your good and wise advisors. It is truly a case of:

Contemplate vicious words as merit.
Then the person becomes your good advisor.
Without his slander leading you to choose between hostility and friendship,
How could you demonstrate the power of compassion and patience with nonproduction?

If someone can scold you, no matter who he is, he is actually helping you to cultivate. However, if you help others to cultivate in that way, you yourself will accrue offenses. Who helped Shakyamuni Buddha to achieve Buddhahood? It was Devadatta, who tried to ruin the Buddha but failed. The Buddha realized Buddhahood, and Devadatta fell into the hells alive.

Good and evil are two different paths.
You can cultivate the one or commit the other.

If you want to cultivate the Way, you can; if you want to commit offenses, you can do that. It’s up to you. The teacher can only bring you in the door. You yourself must cultivate. If you don’t cultivate, your teacher can do nothing. You must end your own birth and death, just as you must eat your own food to get full.

previous   next   Contents

Chapter 1 Part 4 & 5 pages:  1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9    10    11    12    13
   
                                                  14    15    16    17    18    19    20    21    22    23

return to top