The Twelve Places

VOLUME 3, Chapter 4

 

P4 The place of the tongue and tastes.
Q1 Sets the scene to discuss organ and object.

Sutra:

“Ananda, twice every day you take up your bowl along with the rest of the assembly, and among what you receive may be things of supreme flavor, such as curds, buttermilk, and clarified butter.

Commentary:

From whole milk comes buttermilk; from buttermilk comes curds, and from curds comes butter. Butter can be further refined into clarified butter, or ghee.

The first period of the Buddha’s teaching of dharma is called the Avatamsaka period. The Avatamsaka period is likened to the time when the sun is first rising, for when the sun first rises it first The Twelve Places 75 illumines the high mountains. The high mountains represent the great Bodhisattvas.

The Avatamsaka Sutra teaches and transforms great Bodhisattvas. So, when the Buddha spoke the Avatamsaka, those of the two vehicles, the sound-hearer and those who are enlightened to conditions, “had eyes but did not see.” They could not see the Buddha manifesting the ten thousand foot Nishyanda body. Those of the two vehicles saw Shakyamuni Buddha as usual in the six foot body of an old bhikshu. They “had ears but did not hear the perfect sudden teaching.” They did not hear Shakyamuni Buddha speaking the perfect sudden, wonderful teaching of the Avatamsaka Sutra.

The five periods of Shakyamuni Buddha’s teaching are likened to dairy products. The dharma of the Avatamsaka is like whole milk. Adults can digest whole milk, but infants cannot usually take whole cow’s milk. The period of the Avatamsaka Sutra was devoted exclusively to the teaching and transforming of Bodhisattvas. It was like milk taken directly from the cow.

The second was the agama period. Agama is a Sanskrit word which is interpreted as meaning “incomparable dharma,” which means none of the dharmas of externalist sects can compare to it. It is also called abhidharma, that is, the small vehicle. In the milk analogy, the agama period is likened to the buttermilk which can be made from whole milk. The nature of buttermilk is not so strong, and children can drink it as well. It is easy to digest. In the analogy of the rising sun, the second period is represented by the illumining of the mountain valleys, which means that the lower lands are also shone upon.

The third is the vaipulya period. In the milk analogy, this period is represented by the curds extracted from buttermilk. And in the analogy of the rising sun, the plains are now illuminated.

The fourth period is the prajna period. In the milk analogy, it is represented by the butter which is processed from curds. In the sun analogy it is close to the full light of noon.

The fifth is the dharma-flower/nirvana period. It is represented in the milk analogy by clarified butter. The flavor of the Dharma Flower Sutra - the Sutra of the Lotus Flower of Wonderful Dharma, sometimes called the Lotus Sutra - is as wonderful as the flavor of clarified butter. In the analogy of the rising sun, the Dharma Flower Sutra is the sun when it is directly overhead. At midday the sun shines on everything, illumining the high mountains, the valleys, and the plain.

The Dharma Flower Sutra is a most important sutra in Buddhism. The Shurangama Sutra is for the opening of wisdom. The Shurangama Sutra points out the path, the way of cultivation. The Lotus Sutra is for accomplishing Buddhahood. Everyone in the Dharma Flower assembly should become a Buddha.

As the sutra says, “With one recitation of Namo Buddha, all can accomplish the Buddha Way.” The Dharma Flower Sutra is for opening out the provisional and manifesting the actual. In its doctrine, the empty and false are rejected, and only the actual is spoken.

The Shurangama and the Dharma Flower Sutra are extremely important, extremely important in Buddhism. The doctrine of the Dharma Flower Sutra is the most esoteric and wonderful. Great Master Chi Zhe of the Tian Tai school opened enlightenment while reading it.

Soon after he had opened enlightenment, he heard of the existence of the Shurangama Sutra, and he proceeded to face the west every day and bow to the Shurangama Sutra, hoping to be able to read it. But, although he bowed for eighteen years, he never did see it. Wouldn’t you say that was regrettable? The practices which the virtuous patriarchs of China followed in displaying their respect for the Buddhadharma show how extremely reverent they were.

Some people bow to the Dharma Flower Sutra and the Shurangama Sutra. They bow once for every word, bowing all day long from morning to night. Some have become enlightened while bowing to a sutra.

Thus, there are all kinds of different methods of cultivation. No matter which method you cultivate all you have to do is to do it single-mindedly. Don’t cultivate on the one hand and strike up false thoughts on the other.

For instance, I know there are some people here listening to the sutra who are not really listening. They are thinking, “After a while I’m going to telephone my girlfriend,” or “How am I going to answer that letter I got?” With their attention focused on these kinds of questions, how can they expect to have any response as far as the Buddhadharma is concerned? But, they still haven’t awakened. They don’t say, “Ah, now I am studying the Buddhadharma, and I should put everything down and concentrate my attention on studying the Buddhadharma.” So, in the end they have no idea what I have been explaining. And sometimes, if they become aware of it, they say it is meaningless. That’s the kind of fault they have.

Q2 Asks which gives rise to which.

Sutra:

“What do you think? Are these flavors produced from emptiness, do they come forth from the tongue, or are they produced from the food?

Commentary:

Ananda, what is your opinion about the flavors of these curds, buttermilk, and clarified butter which you say are supreme? What do you think? Are these flavors produced from emptiness? Does emptiness bring forth these defiling objects of flavors? Do they come forth from the tongue? Are these defiling objects of flavor produced from the organ of your tongue? Or are they produced from the food? Or is it that the defiling objects of flavor arise from the things eaten?

Q3 Discusses each and refutes all possibilities.
R1 Refutes the possibility that it comes from the tongue.

Sutra:

“Again, Ananda, suppose that the flavors came from your tongue; now there is only one tongue in your mouth. When that tongue had already become the flavor of curds, then it would not change if it encountered some dark rock candy.

Commentary:

Again, Ananda, what do you say this flavor is produced from? Is it produced from emptiness, is it produced from the tongue, or is it produced from the food? Tell me. Suppose that the flavors came from your tongue. You may say the organ of your tongue produces this flavor. Then when you ate something, say curds for example, the tongue would become the flavor of curds.

Now, there is only one tongue in your mouth. When that tongue had already become the flavor of curds, then it would not change if it encountered some dark rock candy. Dark rock candy is made out of sugar cane, and it is as hard as a rock. It was probably an ancient method for making candy that created it. Your tongue has already changed to the flavor of curds, so when you eat candy it will not be sweet. Why? You only have one tongue, and so it will have only one flavor. You cannot change one tongue into so many flavors.

Sutra:

“Suppose it did not change: that would not be what is called knowing tastes. Suppose it did change: the tongue is not many substances, and how could one tongue know so many tastes?

Commentary:

Suppose it did not change. If, when you ate dark rock-candy, it did not change to sweet, that would not be what is called knowing tastes. Then your tongue would not be functioning as an organ that recognizes tastes. Suppose it did change. Suppose that when you ate curds, for instance, there was the flavor of curds, and when you ate candy the flavor changed to sweet. Now, the tongue is not many substances. There is only one tongue-organ. And how could one tongue know so many tastes? If flavors came from your one tongue, how could you recognize so many flavors? And yet you can; so this argument doesn’t hold.

R2 Refutes the possibility that it comes from flavor.

Sutra:

“Suppose it were produced from the food. The food does not have consciousness; how could it know tastes? Moreover, if the food itself were to recognize them, that would be the same as someone else eating. Then what connection would that have with what is called your recognition of tastes?

Commentary:

Suppose it were produced from the food. Suppose the flavor arose in the food. The food does not have consciousness. Edible things are devoid of awareness. They haven’t any consciousness. How could it know tastes? Since food hasn’t any awareness, any consciousness, how could it know tastes? Moreover, if the food itself were to recognize them - if it were the edible things that knew their own flavor - that would be the same as someone else eating. That would be the same as if it ate its own flavor. Then what connection would that have with what is called your recognition of tastes? How could that be called knowing the flavor of what one eats?

R3 Refutes the possibility that it comes from emptiness.

Sutra:

“Suppose it were produced in emptiness. When you eat emptiness, what flavor does it have? Suppose that emptiness had the flavor of salt. Then since your tongue was salty, your face would also be salty, and likewise everyone in the world would be like fish in the sea. Since you would be constantly influenced by salt, you would never know tastelessness. If you did not recognize tastelessness, you would not be aware of the saltiness, either. You would not know anything at all. How could that be what is called taste?

Commentary:

Suppose it were produced in emptiness. Perhaps you want to say that flavors are produced in emptiness. When you eat emptiness, what flavor does it have? Taste it. Take a bite of emptiness, and see what it tastes like. Suppose that emptiness had the flavor of salt. Say, for example, that emptiness tasted like salt. Then since your tongue was salty - since your tongue was turned salty by the salty flavor, your face would also be salty, and likewise everyone in the world would be like fish in the sea. If flavor arose in emptiness, it wouldn’t just be your tongue that it imparted its flavor to. If it made your tongue salty, it would also make your face salty. Your body, too, would be salty, and so would everyone else’s. If everyone’s body were salty, then the people of this world would become like fish in the sea. They would all take on the flavor of salt.

Since you would be constantly influenced by salt - you should realize that if you were constantly soaked and drowned in saltiness, you would never know tastelessness. You wouldn’t know what was meant by tastelessness. If you did not recognize tastelessness, you would not be aware of the saltiness, either. Why not? If you were not aware of tastelessness, you wouldn’t know about flavors, and since you wouldn’t know flavors, you wouldn’t be aware of salt. You would not know anything at all. You basically wouldn’t recognize any flavor at all. How could that be what is called taste? Then why would you come up with a name and call it the defiling object of taste?

Q4 Concludes by returning the false to the true.

Sutra:

“Therefore, you should know that neither flavors nor the tongue’s tasting has a location; and, so the two places of tasting and flavor are empty and false. Their origin is not in causes and conditions, nor do their natures arise spontaneously.

Commentary:

Therefore, you should know that neither flavors nor the tongue’s tasting has a location. They have no fixed place. And, so the two places of tasting and flavor are empty and false. Tasting and flavor - just to speak of these two places - are emptily and falsely produced and emptily and falsely extinguished. Their origin is not in causes and conditions - they are not created from causes and conditions, nor do their natures arise spontaneously. Nor are they created from spontaneity. They are a representation of the wonderful nature of true suchness of the Thus Come One’s treasury, and nothing more.

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