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Master Chaoran: The thirteenth chapter of the "Perfect Enlightenment Sutra"

Han people 2024-07-10

The thirteenth chapter of the "Perfect Enlightenment Sutra"

(Chapter 4: Questioned by Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva )

Therefore, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva rose from his seat, bowed to the Buddha's feet, walked around the right three times, knelt for a long time and crossed his hands to say to the Buddha:

After Manjushri, Samantabhadra and Puyan Bodhisattva, the three great masters, asked the Dharma, the fourth one, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, one of the famous 16 deities of the Virtue Kalpa, to ask the Buddha for us.Alas, as one of the important deities in the Tantric Buddhism, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva also asks the Buddha for his profound secret methods.

So, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva stood up from his seat among the crowd, first came to the center, prostrated himself and worshiped the Buddha.Then, get up, circle around the Buddha three times clockwise, and then go back to the place where you worshipped the Buddha just now, kneel on your knees, cross your hands and put your palms together, and respectfully said to the Buddha:

Great Compassion World Honored One! Good for all Bodhisattvas, preaching the Tathagata's perfect enlightenment, pure and great Dharani, and gradually facilitating the Dharma of the causal realm, and experiencing it with all sentient beings.In the Dharma Assembly, the Buddha's mercy is clear and the wisdom is pure.

“The great compassionate World Honored One! You, in front, have skillfully promoted the perfect and pure method of the Tathagata's perfect enlightenment for all Bodhisattvas, including the causal practices of all Tathagata, the gradual practice of the illusion Samadhi, as well as the convenient method, etc., to help all sentient beings and enable them to develop true wisdom from ignorance.”

“Among the Bodhisattvas who can listen to the Dharma, thanks to your compassionate teachings, they suddenly became enlightened from the illusion and developed a pure and bright eye of wisdom.”

Then, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva began to ask questions:

World Honored One! If all sentient beings become Buddhas, why do they have all ignorance? If all ignorances are originally there, what causes and conditions does the Tathagata say that they have become Buddhas? The different generations of ten directions are originally Buddhas, and ignorance arise later. When will all Tathagata regenerate all troubles?

There are three questions about Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, and I asked the Buddha for three questions:

First, "World-Honored One! If all sentient beings have already become Buddhas, why do they still have all the ignorance and troubles of sentient beings?"

Second, "If all ignorance and troubles are originally present in sentient beings, what is the cause and condition? Did the Tathagata say that all sentient beings originally become Buddhas?"

Third, “If all kinds of sentient beings in the ten directions have already become Buddhas, then they have ignorance and troubles.So, when did all Tathagatas start to regenerate all ignorance and afflictions?"

Dear brothers and sisters, have you thought of these questions? Hey, at least, thinking like this is entangled, almost the same thing, everyone has happened deep in their hearts.

——Yes, since all sentient beings are originally Buddhas, why do they become sentient beings again? Why do they appear ignorance and troubles? Are they originally ignorance and troubles? Or did they arise again after becoming a Buddha?

Alas, there is a lot of meaning in this.What does it look like? There are three questions. In fact, there is one question, that is, in the chapter about the Bodhisattva of the Universal Eye, there is a scripture in which the Buddha said: "I realized that sentient beings originally became Buddhas, and their birth, death, and nirvana are like yesterday's dream."Alas, many people will have questions about this scripture, so Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva asked us all questions.

Therefore, the above three questions arose around the "sentient beings originally became Buddhas".So, how did the Buddha answer? Let's take a closer look and listen carefully.

I only wish to be unwilling to give up great compassion without any obstruction, to open a secret treasure for all Bodhisattvas, and to all sentient beings in the last days, to hear the practice of the perfect method of the Tara teachings, and to eliminate doubts and regrets forever.

After asking three questions, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva specifically emphasized the importance of the problem. Hey, I specifically explained that this question contains the most ultimate secret method.The Bodhisattva said:

“I hope that you will not abandon the vastness without any missed compassion, and for all the Bodhisattvas, you will start to perform the secret treasure of Tathagata.At the same time, in order to enable all sentient beings in the Dharma-Ending Age to completely eliminate doubts and confusion after hearing such ultimate sutras.”

Alas, as the saying goes, "Only faith can enter the sea of ​​Buddhism, only faith can lead to faith." If you hear such an incredible wonderful method as the "Perfect Enlightenment Sutra" and still believe in it without doubt, hehe, such a person is not far from becoming a Buddha.

——What is "unblocked great compassion"?

Without hindrance means no limitation, or, without boundaries, endless! Therefore, the so-called "unblocked great compassion" refers to endless great compassion without any limitations!

After saying this, the five bodies protrude into the ground, and three requests will be repeated.

Just like the previous three Bodhisattvas, after asking the Dharma with devoutly, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva provokes his body again and worships the Buddha. Alas, how respectful is this!

Moreover, the rituals of such a Dharma-in-law were repeated three times, from beginning to end, in an orderly manner.Alas, this is what is called respect and freedom.

After Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva asked the Dharma with devout tribute, the Buddha was ready to answer the Bodhisattva's questions.

At that time, the World Honored One told Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva: Good, good! Good man! You can ask all Bodhisattvas and sentient beings in the last days about the profound secrets and ultimate conveniences of the Tathagata. This is the most important teaching of all Bodhisattvas, the ultimate Mahayana.It can enable Bodhisattvas in the ten directions to practice and study, and all sentient beings in the last days, to obtain decisive faith and forever eliminate doubts and regrets.Now, you should listen carefully and speak for you.

At that time, the Buddha told Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva:

“That’s great, that’s great! Good man, you can ask the Tathagata about the ultimate, profound and mysterious expedient methods for all Bodhisattvas and all sentient beings in the Dharma-Ending Age.This will be the best teaching of the Tathagata to all Bodhisattvas, and the ultimate Mahayana teaching method.”

“The Dharma principles you ask will enable the Bodhisattvas who are practicing in the ten directions, as well as all sentient beings in the Dharma-Ending Age, to gain a decisive belief in the wonderful and perfect enlightenment method of becoming a Buddha, and to completely eliminate doubts and confusion.”

“Now, please listen carefully, Tathagata will explain to you.”

Alas, the Buddha also said, what is the Dharma asked by Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva? It is exactly the "Tathagata's profound secret and ultimate convenience"! It is also "the most teaching of all Bodhisattvas, the ultimate Mahayana"! So, we must pay attention, listen carefully, think carefully, and experience it carefully.

At that time, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was happy to follow the teachings, and the masses listened silently.

At this time, thanks to the promise of the Buddha's upcoming preaching, Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was filled with joy, and the masses of Bodhisattvas at the Dharma Assembly, together, silently preparing to listen to the Buddha's preaching.

——Alas, this joy, where does it come from?

Hehe, if you are not anywhere else, it is in our quiet heart! Hey, if you don’t seek or worry, you will have no obstacles and you will find the joy you already have in your heart.

After reading the "Perfect Awakening Sutra" for a few chapters, some fellow practitioners have passed the freshness, and oh, they are starting to feel bored! Why? Hehe, my heart is starting to be confused, it wants to cling to the outside! It wants to be free and easy.

In fact, once it reaches the realm, it will cause troubles and encounter walls everywhere, and it will suffer so much! At that time, it finally understood again, hey, it would be better to learn a little Buddhism quietly, with a little more duty, and this trouble is less.What about joy? Just a little more.

What does "wandering life and death" mean? That is to say, such a person's heart is restless and always wanders around the realm. Hey, it seems to be kind-hearted. You see: it is worried about the country and the people, and even cynical; it laments that people's hearts are not old and morally degraded; it hopes that the Dharma will live in the world and will never be eliminated; it fantasizes, the best, our Saha world, will directly become the Pure Land of Bliss, how wonderful it is!

——Alas, these clingings, discriminations, delusions, and even expectations, etc. are the so-called minds of life and death!

Why? Hehe, this mind actually regards all kinds of hallucinations like flowers in the void as real! It does not know that all of these are manifested by its delusions and distinctions!

——Ah? Do you know? Do you know that all dharmas are illusory?

——Hehe, then you are miserable! Listen to it, it's like, you have a nightmare, and after waking up, you undoubtedly know that it is like a illusion, but what about? You keep trying to distinguish: Oh, it would be great if it turns into a beautiful dream! It would be okay to turn into a spring dream! Or, it turns into a rich dream, hehe, I will also win it for 50 million prizes once, hehe, that's so cool!

——I understand? Hehe, this is your typical daydream.

OK, let’s listen to the World Honored One’s teachings:

Good man! All worlds are born and die, exist before and after, gathering and dispersing, and the thoughts are continuous, and the cycle is repeated. All kinds of choices are reincarnation.Before leaving the cycle of reincarnation, we can argue about perfect enlightenment, and that perfect enlightenment will flow together.If you are free from reincarnation, there is nothing to do.

In response to the question of Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, the Buddha answered this:

“Dear men! If someone is always thinking: When did all this world begin? When did it end? Where did it come from? Where did it be eliminated?"

“What did it look like before this world was born? What did it look like after the world was destroyed? Does it belong to existence or non-existence?"

“If this world is caused by dependent origination, then, what causes and conditions are it formed by the aggregation of causes and conditions? And what causes and conditions are it dissipated? Where is the starting point of the world? Where is the end point?"

“In this way, in the mind, every thought is continuous, and the cycle of thoughts, as well as various discriminations and choices, etc., are all the cycles of life and death.”

“Before we transcend such a mind of reincarnation, we will explore the wonderful method of perfect enlightenment. Then, this mind of thinking will misinterpret the unmoving perfect consciousness into the form of birth, death and flow.”

“If you can avoid the illusion of reincarnation in this way, there is no such reason at all!"

Alas, this passage of scripture is quite thorough, and it directly points through the life gate of the questioner - that is the false mind of discrimination.

This mind of discrimination is the cycle of life and death.Use it to observe the perfect consciousness, hehe, where can you be perfect! Where can you be enlightened!

The so-called "all worlds" are also called all worlds, and there are about three types: 1. The world of sentient beings, also called the world of true retribution, hey, refers to the five aggregates of the body and mind of all sentient beings; 2. The world of the country, also called the world of dependent retribution, hey, refers to the external environment in which all sentient beings live; 3. The world of enlightenment, also called the world of wisdom and enlightenment, specifically refers to the realm of all Buddhas.

These three worlds, or three worlds, are not separated, but what about? They blend together, "like hundreds of thousands of lamps, light shines on a room, and their light is full, without any damage or any miscellaneousness."Therefore, it is collectively called "all worlds", or "the worlds of Buddhas", etc.

What does "always and death" mean? The so-called beginning of this world is our mistaken recognition; the so-called end of this world is the melting of illusions. Alas, "all illusions are destroyed, and the mind is still moving"! It's not that there is nothing.

Where does hallucination come from? It comes from thoughts.Alas, the root of all illusions of life and death is the birth and death of our thoughts. According to the "Awakening of Faith", the four stages of birth and death of each thought include birth, residence, change, and death. They are also called the four phases.The birth of the form is the generation of thoughts; the abstinence of the form is the continuation of the thoughts; the strange form is the change of the thoughts; the extinction of the form is the end of the thoughts.

What is the corresponding? The so-called enlightenment means awareness of thoughts. Alas, when we perceive the thoughts, it will come to an abrupt end, because it is replaced by "awareness". Alas, we don't have two minds! What is this "awareness"? It is our wonderful and bright true mind! At this time, what about the so-called illusion of life and death? It also declares the end and returns to the wonderful and bright true mind that has no birth and death.

——Of course, unless you have not yet understood what the wonderful and bright true heart is, then you need to study hard or cultivate blessings and wisdom.Alas, as Master Sixth Patriarch said: "If you don't know the original mind, it is useless to study the Dharma." That is to say, even if you study Buddhism, you will not be able to gain real benefits.What is true enjoyment? It means being able to subdue troubles and enjoy the inner happiness at any time.

——Alas, people all hope that they can be happy, so they try hard to pursue those external temporary happiness, and what will happen in the end? Hehe, they will make themselves suffer! Does anyone know that deep in our hearts, our consciousness is originally happy! It will not die, and it has countless functions, and it will not be possible to leave you. What else can you be unhappy!

Of course, everyone's ability to perceive is different. Ordinary ordinary people, even those who study Buddhism, can only perceive the "destruction" of their thoughts. That is to say, the previous thoughts have been eliminated. What about you? I just recalled, oh! I just had a series of bad intentions, so it shouldn't be! I am ashamed, ashamed.

——To be honest, in today's era, you are amazing, you are such a good person! There is no doubt that you are not good at doing bad things! You can basically do it by keeping the precepts.

The three wise Bodhisattvas at the beginning of the dynasty, including: the ten abduction, ten practices, and ten dedication, these Bodhisattvas can perceive the "differences" of thoughts, that is, when the thoughts arise, they cannot perceive; when the thoughts continue and become dwelling, they cannot perceive; however, as soon as the thoughts change, they are just going to move from one to another, hey, the Bodhisattvas immediately become aware of it.So, the thoughts ended abruptly and the hallucinations disappeared.

——Therefore, Bodhisattvas in the Three Virtues may have an evil thought, but this evil thought will not continue to develop continuously. As soon as it is about to develop, the Bodhisattva will realize it.

What about the great Bodhisattvas above the first level? They can perceive the "stay" of their minds, that is, they cannot perceive when the mind arises; however, once the mind continues, stays, and stays, the Bodhisattvas immediately become aware of it, so the thoughts stop abruptly and the hallucinations end immediately.

——Therefore, Dharmakaya Bodhisattvas will have thoughts, but they will not develop into evil thoughts, because they have achieved "no dwelling on the mind". Thoughts will not stay or be attached, and there will be no more good or evil.

The most thorough enlightened person is the Buddha. Alas, the Buddha can perceive the "birth appearance" of the mind, that is, for the Buddha, the mind is a heart that will not produce any thoughts at all.Alas, this heart is about to move, and before it moves, the Buddha realized it, so he would not have thoughts at all.

——Someone said it, isn't it? It seems that there is a similar saying in the Buddhist scriptures: At that time, the Buddha thought like this, how about it.Isn't this thinking?

——Hehe, this is the incredible state of Tathagata! The Buddha does not need to have thoughts to think at all, but just understands the mind and nature. This enlightenment, hey, to put it conveniently, is sometimes called "thinking", or "then making thoughts", etc.In fact, the Buddha's heart is the heart of the right and omniscience. There is no need to have other thoughts of awareness or thinking before you can know and understand!

What does "before and back there is no, gathering and dispersing start and end" mean? That is to say, our world, the seemingly boundless and vast world, from the past to the present, and even in the future, is the situation. This is "before and back".

There is now this world, hehe, everyone thinks so! So, did it exist in the past? Will it exist in the future? Hey, this is called "existence or not".

The so-called "gathering and dispersion" refers to the world gathered due to what causes and conditions, and in the future, it will disappear due to what causes and conditions? Because any world has times of destruction, this is not only Buddhism, but also scientists recognize it.

The so-called "starting and ending" refers to the whole process of the world from nothing to something, and from something to nothing in the future.Alas, the professional term is called the formation, existence, destruction and emptiness of our world, which is the four middle catastrophes in a great catastrophe. Among them, only in the second stage of "staying", can humans survive.

Alas, now we are living in the world of the sacred disaster, which has a beautiful name called "Qi Qi".Hehe, do you think it sounds familiar to you? Yes, there will be thousands of Buddhas in this calamity of virtue, which is quite beautiful! So it is called the calamity of virtue, hey, a beautiful period with a wonderful method of liberation.

The above thoughts and distinctions about the world all belong to the category of the delusional mind of birth and death, and all belong to the illusion of reincarnation.So, there is no way to understand the wonderful and perfect enlightenment mind, why? Alas, the Buddha will give a detailed answer below. Let’s listen carefully.

It is like moving your eyes, which can shake the water.It is also like a fixed eye, turning from the fire; the clouds sail and the moon move, and the boat moves on the shore, which is the same.

In order to explain the reason why the delusional mind cannot be understood in the wonderful and perfect enlightenment mind, the World Honored One skillfully used the metaphor and said:

“It's like, after the eyes move, the things in front of you are shaken, and even a pool of quiet water seems to be shaken to messy.It's like the eyes are not moving, but because the torch is rotating, I see a steamer. In fact, it's just an illusion.”

“Even in the night sky, the moon basically did not move, but because the clouds were floating in the wind, what did it look like? It was like the moon was running backwards.”

“The river bank was originally unmoved, but what? The people on the boat looked like the river bank was moving backwards because the boat was sailing! The truths were the same.”

Alas, these are really four wonderful metaphors.Let's take a look one by one:

The first is "moving eyes", which is a metaphor for the delusion of the mind of birth and death; what about the "sword water" that is shaken? It is a metaphor for the unmoving consciousness, which is the perfect consciousness.

What is eye movement? Alas, our eyes are moving! How do you move your eyes? Hi, just shake your head.As soon as you shake your head, your eyes will move, so what? All the scenes in front of you are in chaos! It’s so messy!

Our perfect consciousness is like a clear water surface, and it is originally clear without thoughts.However, no matter how clear and crystal clear the water surface is, after the head is shaken, from the moving eyes, what about the clear water surface? It is completely messy.

——Alas, this is a completely illusion.In fact, there was no change in the water surface, just like before.It's just that your eyes are moving! It twists the originally clear water surface because of its own chaos.

——The same is true for our perfect consciousness. It was always unmoving, and it is the same now, and it will not change in the future.But what? After your thinking mind is activated, from its perspective, it is broken, and there are cycles of life and death everywhere, there are right and wrong troubles everywhere, and there are unsatisfactory everywhere! Alas, our thinking mind is the thought of birth and death, which distorts all things that are originally perfect because of its own chaos! How can it be possible to enter into perfect consciousness?

However, we regard it as "self" and the moving mind of birth and death as our true consciousness. Isn't this too inverted?

——Alas, this is just a mistake in ignorance, it is an illusion.

The second is "calculating eyes", which is a metaphor for our delusional mind; what is the "fire" in "turning fire"? It is a metaphor for our perfect consciousness; what is the appearance of the fire wheel of "turning fire"? It is a metaphor for all things.

——Alas, this passage is omitted and has a particularly profound meaning.Why? If you look carefully, this "calculating eye" is originally unmoving, just like? The mind body of our delusional mind is originally unmoving.Even so, it may cause misunderstandings and hallucinations! Because it loses awareness.Alas, when you should move, you should move! Don’t stay there blankly, don’t be obsessed with it!

Our perfect consciousness is originally formless, just like this "fire", which has no fixed shape. Alas, this is also a formlessness.But what? Our perfect consciousness has a role and has infinite wonderful uses! Just like? This "fire" also has a role. Once it acts, it has a specific form. For example, when it rotates, it seems to turn into a fire wheel.

——I remember when I was a child, my friends and I often played this game, especially during the Chinese New Year, it was fun and festive.

Alas, our perfect consciousness has extremely rich functions, even "all all living beings have the perfect enlightenment and wonderful mind of Tathagata". Everything is the function of perfect consciousness! But what? Our delusional mind, this time, does not move randomly, but on the contrary, it becomes a "idiot"! What is "stationary eyes"? In fact, it is "idiot"! You are attached to whatever you see, and that is a idiot.

A smart person saw the steamer and knew very well that it was a false appearance. The real "fire" was not like that.What was it like? It wasn't like it.

A wise man, when he sees all things in the world, knows very well that it is a false appearance, the true "reality", that is, the perfect consciousness, it was not like that.What was it like? It was originally formless and clear!

The third is "clouds travel to the moon", among which "clouds" are metaphors for our delusional mind, while "moon" is metaphors for our perfect consciousness.Alas, look, in the pleasant night, colorful clouds chase the moon! The clouds are slowly driving by the wind, but we look like the clouds are not moving, but the moon is running! This is a typical illusion.

The same is true for our perfect consciousness. It is originally unmoving, but what? Observe from the perspective of delusional mind, hehe, it runs! This is why, we must abandon the delusional mind and let go of false distinctions in order to understand the reason for the perfect consciousness.

The fourth is "the boat moves on the shore", among which "boat" is a metaphor for our delusional mind, while "boat" is a metaphor for our perfect consciousness.Alas, look, you are sitting on the boat. It is obviously a boat moving, but it looks like the river bank is moving backwards! This is a typical illusion.

As mentioned above, you must abandon the delusional mind in order to understand the perfect consciousness.

After the metaphor, the Buddha continued to teach us that these three questions in this chapter are the fundamental reasons for the three doubts.

Good man! Before all the whirls are stopped, the things that dwell first, and it is still impossible to obtain.What's more, the filthy mind of life and death has not been pure, and the Buddha's complete enlightenment is not restored without recurrence! Therefore, you will have three delusions.

The Buddha said:

“Dear men! The movement of these things at present is the so-called "moving eyes" \’、‘Rotary fire \’、‘Cloud driving \’and the boat \’,Before it has stopped, the observed results cannot be true.”

“What's more, the fundamental of the cycle of life and death of sentient beings, the mind of discrimination, is the illusion of dust and dirt. When it has not yet recovered from purity, how can it be without being confused and confused?”

“Therefore, because of your discriminating mind, you have become confused about three problems.”

——Alas, this just shows that thinking hard to distinguish is like mediocre people disturbing themselves! Hehe, there is no problem at all, and it is not difficult to learn hard and understand naturally.But what? Some people just keep thinking about random things, rushing around, worrying everywhere, and sticking to each other everywhere.Then what? Create a lot of boring problems for yourself and make yourself feel depressed: Oh, it’s so difficult to learn Buddhism! Master, please help me solve it!

——How to solve it? I haven't dared to say that you are bored yet, I just click the problem gently.What about you? You are about to jump up.

So, for people of our era, asking questions and answering cannot solve the fundamental problem.Why? Because, no one will truly believe in others.Therefore, a lot of so-called communication is just a matter of face-saving work.

——Someone said, no! Master, I believe in you 100%! You tell me how to do it, I will do it.

——I said, that's good! Then you should recite the sutra honestly, choose a Mahayana sutra, study, think deeply, and develop a renunciation mind, and be sure to be liberated. This is your life.However, please remember that you must put your practice first in your life. Others, hehe, you must give way to this.

——Such a person, later, either had no news or did he? Hehe, he started to learn more extraordinary methods again! Oh, today's secret method, tomorrow's oral secret technique, what about the day after tomorrow? Change the Yuanshen doll.Or, come to the three flowers gathering the top, and the five qi are facing the primordial world. Oh, it’s amazing, a true energy breaks out of the top, and you’re becoming an immortal!

——This is the current situation, the so-called Dharma-Ending Age! People are so smart that they look down on anything, so what? They all look for shortcuts and tricks, and no one is willing to practice honestly.Just like this, when will you be able to get rid of your mind? Alas, but if you are heartbroken and too sad about this, then there is no need to!

——Why? Hehe, you have made these things and these empty flowers very real! How did you learn the "Perfect Awakening Sutra"? Why are you lost in these illusions and dirt? You should reflect on it.

OK, at this point, the Buddha did not answer the question of Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva positively. Instead, he criticized the person who asked the question, meaning that if you use your mind to observe the perfect consciousness, the starting point is wrong, and you have confused yourself, so these so-called problems will occur.

Despite this, in order to adapt to our thinking, the World Honored One opened the door to convenience, and then began to answer the three questions of Vajra Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva from the front.Where can we listen carefully.

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