Talk about faith in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas
Medicine Master Zixu Layman
PrefaceThe author has been destined to work in a Buddhist temple for many years, and is often asked what to do to have faith in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas?How can we believe that Buddhas and Bodhisattvas really exist?Most people who are new to Buddhism will encounter this problem.The main reason is that ordinary people cannot see Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and the "emptiness" that is to be realized by studying Buddhism is also unspeakable and indescribable from consciousness, which is completely different from what scientists say about "reality".
Today is the era of science and technology, and everything is not separated from science. Scientists believe that only things and things that can be observed in experiments can be believed and are true. Since Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and emptiness cannot be observed, how can they be believed?This is the main reason why it is difficult for "modern people" to believe in Buddhism. Perhaps this is a phenomenon that should have existed in the Dharma-Ending Age!To achieve success when studying Buddhism and practicing Buddhism, deep belief in "emptiness" and "Buddhas and Bodhisattvas" is an important key. Today, many Buddhist scholars discuss Buddhism as philosophy and treat Buddhas and Bodhisattvas as "myths". The arguments of these scholars are of no help to practice. Those who study Buddhism should be careful and not be misled!In the temple, the author has shown that many people who want to embark on the path of Buddhism seem to have many difficulties in "believing in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas", so in this article, we propose some available methods to share with you.
In the article, the author also talks about the importance of "faith", and by the way, how to find a great good teacher.Many of the concepts in this article come from the "Lingyun Sutra", and some are my personal knowledge and views. Please give me some advice!
2. Practitioners have the intention to seek Bodhi, which comes from pure faith in the Three JewelsPractitioners must start by making the Bodhi wish: "I wish to eliminate sentient beings and benefit the world, to adorn the land and offer to all Buddhas, and to uphold the Dharma and practice all wisdom to attain Bodhi."These vows contain beliefs about Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, Pure Land, emptiness and practice of the Bodhisattva path. If a person does not believe deeply in these things, the vows made will not be fulfilled, so he deeply believes in the Three Jewels. (That is, Buddha, Dharma, and monk )It is the main factor for practitioners to achieve their initial aspirations.If you achieve success in your first intention, you will also achieve the fruit of becoming a Buddha in the future, and vice versa.
3. The importance of deep faithIn addition to achieving bodhicitta, faith in the Three Jewels has many benefits. Here are only a few points to explain. (Mainly from the "Avatamsaka Sutra" )：
(one )「Faith is the mother of merit in Taoism.Prosper all good deeds."This sentence is a famous quote from the "Avatamsaka Sutra", which means that believing that the Three Jewels are the foundation of Buddhist practice and the source of birth merit. All good deeds can be produced by the power of faith, and therefore it is also the basis of all good roots.
(two )「Faith can eliminate doubts and attain the supreme path."If a practitioner has doubts about the Three Jewels, he will always leave the path of learning Buddhism, and even become a foreign devil by doubting the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, a master, a master, a doctor, and a person who is suspected of his own practice.Fall into the heretics or the demonic path.If you can believe deeply and firmly believe in the Three Jewels, you will continue to practice and you will eventually achieve Buddhahood.
(three )「Trust can eliminate arrogance and arrogance."Arrogance is an invisible killer of practitioners, and many master-level figures are inevitable. This issue is detailed in many articles in "The Medicine Buddha Mountain Newsletter", so I won't talk about it more here.The general method of treating arrogance and arrogance is to observe it yourself, including its source, harm, etc., and thus be vigilant at any time to avoid harm.In addition, if we can deeply believe what the Buddha said: "All sentient beings have Buddha nature and can become Buddhas", then sentient beings are future Buddhas. In this way, we should not be arrogant and respect all the people and all animals around us.If this concept can be achieved, it can completely eliminate the habit of arrogance.
(Four )「If you believe in it, you can accept the teachings of Buddhism and good teachers and accelerate the achievements of your practice."Some practitioners are drowsy when they take Buddhist courses, and they are drowsy when chanting certain Buddha names in Dharma Assembly. There are many reasons, such as being disturbed and having poor physical strength, but the inner disbelief is also one of the reasons. Some people do not believe in certain Buddhas, and they become drowsy when chanting these Buddha names in Dharma Assembly. This is a manifestation of the inner disbelief.If you have a deep belief in Buddhism, you will be able to receive the teachings of good teachers, which will be of great help to your practice.
(five )「Faith can bring joy into Buddhism."The Avatamsaka Sutra"
(six )「Faith can increase wisdom and merit."The Avatamsaka Sutra"Thanks to deep belief in the Buddha, one can receive the blessing of the Buddha's power and infused the seeds of wisdom. As a result, the wonderful wisdom grows rapidly into the Buddha's self-conscious holy wisdom.
(seven )「Message all the roots to be pure, clear and profitable."The Avatamsaka Sutra"Believing deeply that the power of the Three Jewels will be blessed by the Buddha's power, making the practitioner's eyes and other senses smart and neat. In addition to benefiting the arising of supernatural powers, you can also overcome the ignorance and drowsiness in practice through faith.Ignorance and drowsiness often make the achievement of practice unable to be fast.
(eight )「Faith can eliminate the source of troubles forever."The Avatamsaka Sutra"Only by deep faith in the Buddha can you have the opportunity to break the "startless ignorance". This ignorance is the root of all troubles. Self-cultivation cannot break the beginningless ignorance.
(Nine )「Believe in the realm and have nothing to do with it."The Avatamsaka Sutra"A deep belief in "emptiness" (It is best to realize emptiness and gain one-pointed and pure faith )Then we can understand that all dharmas are all "empty", that all dharmas are not real, like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and are all born from delusions of the mind, and that they are not attached to all the dust in the world, and that they can be free and unobstructed in the world.
(ten )「Faith can make the mind of practice firm and not be damaged and can be protected by the Vajra Guardian."Therefore, it can overcome all demonic obstacles and be free of obstacles on the road to practice.In addition, when practitioners are on the "seventh level" of the Bodhisattva path, there will be a "drift disaster" happens. If they are unable to overcome it at this time, they will fall into the Hinayana path or the heavenly path, which is inseparable from the Buddha's fruit. The deep belief in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas is an important factor in overcoming this drift disaster. In this critical moment, they will receive the blessing of the Buddha's power, so that practitioners can re-enable their great vows to save life in the past, so that they can have the opportunity to return to the path of resurrection.It is also mentioned in the Lankavatara Sutra that if you do not receive the blessing of the Buddha, the Bodhisattvas of the seventh or eighth level may fall into the "samadhi of feeling and thinking" and cannot escape, which shows the importance of believing in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.
(eleven )「Faith can enable practitioners to see the Buddha and receive the Buddha's teachings and teachings, and eventually become Buddhas."This is also what the "Avatamsaka Sutra" says, which may be difficult for ordinary people to believe, but those who have practiced and realized can truly attain it, just as true as those in the world are taught by teachers.
4. The merits of believing in Buddhism, Dharma, and Sangha(one )「If you believe in Buddhism, you can keep the precepts and practice."《The Huayan Sutra says that if you believe in Buddhism, you can keep precepts and practice. This is because the sutras and precepts are the teachings of the Buddha. If you don’t believe in Buddha, you will not be able to practice and keep precepts deeply. Keeping precepts can lead to the foundation of Bodhi, and practicing can lead to various merits.
(two )「Believing in Buddhism can produce great offerings and achieve incredible merits."This means that believing in the Buddha can receive the blessings of Buddha, quickly eliminate various karma, make the mind pure and wise, and can also receive the Buddha's appearance and direct teachings, showing the incredible emptiness and pure land to those who are pure in their mind, and even making them live in emptiness and produce wonderful uses.
(three )「Believing in the Dharma can make one hear the Dharma indesible, and one can obtain the incredible merits of believing in the Dharma."This means that practitioners who have received the blessing of the Buddha's power because of their deep belief in Buddhism can understand and hear the Buddha's teachings immediately when they see Buddhist scriptures and treatises. This can help them understand the infinite methods of practice.
(Four )「Believing in pure monks can keep your faith unretreated, thus gaining enlightenment and gaining enlightenment from all the aid of evil knowledge, being able to get close to good teachers, and practicing good deeds to achieve Bodhi."This is what the "Avatamsaka Sutra" says.Among them, the Pure Monk refers to those who have pure karma, have enlightened and realized the nature, and have compassionate wishes to save the life.
5. How to find a great charityA great good teacher can guide practitioners to enter the Dharma of Buddha, stay away from evil and bad things, and can teach practitioners to learn the Dharma and achieve Bodhi. Its importance to practitioners is self-evident.But it is difficult for ordinary people to know good teachers. Famous monks may not be good teachers, and virtuous people may not be good teachers.How should those who start practicing find good teachers who are suitable for them?The author believes that only by seeking the blessings of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, those who study Buddhism should make a vow before Buddhas and Bodhisattvas with faith: "I wish to respect and offer good teachers to obtain the Buddha's Dharma and achieve Bodhi to save all living beings." If you always make such a vow to be honest and true, you will definitely be able to see great good teachers.
6. How to deeply believe in the Three Jewels and practice the Bodhisattva PathRegarding the issue of believing in Buddhism, the author believes that there are four different levels:
(one )Natural faithMost of these people have good roots in their past lives, so they naturally believe in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.
(two )Arise from the exploration of mysterious experienceThese people also have good causes and conditions with Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and will have some incredible and mysterious experiences that Buddhas and Bodhisattvas or Dharma protectors will show. (That is what ordinary people often call miracles )，People with good roots will infer from this and believe it deeply.
(three )Believes inspired by good teachers or Buddhist scriptures and treatisesThis kind of letter may be less reliable.
(Four )From the actual practice of offering and respecting Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, faith gradually emergesSince the first two are not something that ordinary people can do, the third one belongs to the understanding of Buddhist principles and is not a work of practice. The author believes that the fourth method belongs to practice, and can reach the state of deep belief in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, so the author wants to make special explanation here."The First Chapter of the Avatamsaka Sutra" says: "Deep faith in the heart and understanding are always pure, respect and respect all Buddhas, and are the same in the Dharma and Sangha, and make sincere offerings and make aspirations."
This passage tells us what we need to do when we first made up our minds to study Buddhism.The meaning is that you must believe in the Three Jewels from the bottom of your heart, believe in and understand Buddhism, and this kind of faith and understanding must be free of confusion. (That is, no other bad hearts )，In terms of behavior, you must offer to the Three Jewels with sincerity.In short, it means to believe deeply in the heart, and to act respectfully and make offerings.But many people don’t believe deeply in their hearts, so how to do it?
The author believes that it can start from behavior.Because the heart and behavior are closely related, for example, if you believe that someone has superb virtues, you will naturally respect and obey him in behavior. By the same token, if you believe deeply in the existence and merits of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, you will naturally respect and offer to these Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in behavior.On the contrary, if you can respect and offer to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in your behavior, it means that you have faith in your heart, but this "faith" does not necessarily mean deep faith, it may be just a conscious mind. (Even forcing yourself )But as long as you can be respectful and offer sacrifices to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in this way, you will receive the blessings of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and your faith will gradually grow.The so-called "respect and offering to the Three Jewels" here are as follows:
(1)respectIt means honor and importance. It is to have noble and supreme thoughts for Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and the same is true for holy images.Instructions to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas (As stated in the classics or in the samadhi )We must believe, pay attention to and follow it, and the same is true for Dharma and Sangha.
(2)RespectYou should be respectful to the Three Jewels and do not slander the Three Jewels.
(3)supportYou must offer the Three Jewels with your most noble things within the scope of your ability.
(4)The current practice method of Medicine ShanIn order to make the need for practice, Medicine Buddha Mountain offers many Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and Vajra Guardians.Fellow practitioners always worship Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in a promising way, so that they can get rid of arrogance and develop faith.We also offer offerings to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas with incense, flowers, fruits, water, tea and lamps, hoping to gain the blessings of Buddhas and increase faith roots through this.Fellow practitioners participate in the study of scriptures and chant Buddhist scriptures during Dharma Assembly, so as to respect and respect for the "Dharma", hoping to receive the power of Buddha to bless the Dharma to create faith in the Dharma.Fellow practitioners use their own mental and financial resources to protect the temple, which is a manifestation of faith in the Three Jewels and the Bodhisattva Path.We also do all kinds of spontaneous service work in the temple, making the temple solemn and making it convenient for those who come to the temple to learn Buddhism. This is a kind of training for faith in practicing the Bodhisattva Path.
7. ConclusionIt is not easy to believe in Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and practice the Bodhisattva path. We have the most sincere heart to "worship" all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, sincerely "providing" Buddhas and Bodhisattvas with various offerings, and do various service work in the temple without seeking rewards. In this way, we gradually turn from external environment to inner heart, and receive the blessing of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Over time, the "faith root" will surely be achieved.
