Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Bodhidharma's Breakthrough Sermon


Bodhidharma: The Greatest Zen Master
Chapter #15
Chapter title: Breakthrough... to buddhahood
12 July 1987 am in Gautam the Buddha Auditorium
Pag. 196


BODHIDHARMA'S BREAKTHROUGH SERMON.

IF SOMEONE IS DETERMINED TO REACH ENLIGHTENMENT, WHAT IS THE MOST ESSENTIAL METHOD HE CAN PRACTICE?
THE MOST ESSENTIAL METHOD, WHICH INCLUDES ALL OTHER METHODS, IS BEHOLDING THE MIND.

BUT HOW CAN ONE METHOD INCLUDE ALL OTHERS?

THE MIND IS THE ROOT FROM WHICH ALL THINGS GROW. IF YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THE MIND, EVERYTHING ELSE IS INCLUDED. IT'S LIKE WITH A TREE. ALL OF ITS FRUIT AND FLOWERS, ITS BRANCHES AND LEAVES, DEPEND ON ITS ROOT. IF YOU NOURISH ITS ROOT, A TREE MULTIPLIES. IF YOU CUT ITS ROOT, IT DIES.


THOSE WHO UNDERSTAND THE MIND REACH ENLIGHTENMENT WITH MINIMAL EFFORT. THOSE WHO DON'T UNDERSTAND THE MIND PRACTICE IN VAIN. EVERYTHING GOOD AND BAD COMES FROM YOUR OWN MIND. TO FIND SOMETHING
BEYOND THE MIND IS IMPOSSIBLE. BUT HOW CAN BEHOLDING THE MIND BE CALLED UNDERSTANDING? WHEN A GREAT BODHISATTVA DELVES DEEPLY INTO PERFECT WISDOM, HE REALIZES ...THE ACTIVITY OF HIS MIND HAS TWO ASPECTS: PURE AND IMPURE ...

THE PURE MIND DELIGHTING IN GOOD DEEDS, THE IMPURE MIND THINKING OF EVIL. THOSE WHO AREN'T AFFECTED BY IMPURITY ARE SAGES. THEY TRANSCEND SUFFERING AND EXPERIENCE THE BLISS OF NIRVANA. ALL OTHERS, TRAPPED BY
THE IMPURE MIND AND ENTANGLED BY THEIR OWN KARMA, ARE MORTALS. THEY DRIFT THROUGH THE THREE REALMS AND SUFFER COUNTLESS AFFLICTIONS. AND ALL BECAUSE THEIR IMPURE MIND OBSCURES THEIR REAL SELF.


THE SUTRA OF THE TEN STAGES SAYS, "IN THE BODY OF MORTALS IS THE INDESTRUCTIBLE BUDDHA-NATURE. LIKE THE SUN, ITS LIGHT FILLS ENDLESS SPACE. BUT ONCE VEILED BY THE DARK CLOUDS OF THE FIVE SHADES, IT'S LIKE A LIGHT INSIDE A JAR, HIDDEN FROM VIEW." AND THE NIRVANA SUTRA SAYS, "ALL MORTALS HAVE THE BUDDHANATURE. BUT IT'S COVERED BY DARKNESS FROM WHICH THEY CAN'T ESCAPE.


OUR BUDDHA-NATURE IS AWARENESS: TO BE AWARE AND TO MAKE OTHERS AWARE. TO REALIZE AWARENESS IS LIBERATION." EVERYTHING GOOD HAS AWARENESS FOR ITS ROOT. FROM THIS ROOT OF AWARENESS GROW THE TREE OF ALL VIRTUES AND THE FRUIT OF NIRVANA.


Pag. 196

Bodhidharma's Bloodstream Sermon


Bodhidharma: The Greatest Zen Master
Chapter #2
Chapter title: A pilgrimage to your own being
5 July 1987 pm in Chuang Tzu Auditorium
Pag. 17

BODHIDHARMA'S BLOODSTREAM SERMON

EVERYTHING THAT APPEARS IN THE THREE REALMS LEADS BACK TO THE MIND. HENCE, BUDDHAS OF THE PAST AND FUTURE TEACH MIND TO MIND WITHOUT BOTHERING ABOUT DEFINITIONS. BUT IF THEY DON'T DEFINE IT, WHAT DO THEY MEAN BY MIND? YOU ASK. THAT'S YOUR MIND. I ANSWER. THAT'S MY MIND. IF I HAD NO MIND, HOW COULD I ANSWER? IF YOU HAD NO MIND, HOW COULD YOU ASK? THAT WHICH ASKS IS YOUR MIND. "THROUGH ENDLESS KALPAS WITHOUT
BEGINNING, WHATEVER YOU DO, WHEREVER YOU ARE, THAT'S YOUR REAL MIND, THAT'S YOUR REAL BUDDHA. THIS MIND IS THE BUDDHA, SAYS THE SAME THING. BEYOND THIS MIND YOU'LL NEVER FIND ANOTHER BUDDHA. TO SEARCH FOR ENLIGHTENMENT OR NIRVANA BEYOND THIS MIND IS IMPOSSIBLE. THE REALITY OF YOUR OWN SELF-NATURE, THE ABSENCE OF CAUSE AND EFFECT, IS WHAT'S MEANT BY MIND. YOUR MIND IS NIRVANA. YOU MIGHT THINK YOU CAN FIND A BUDDHA OR ENLIGHTENMENT SOMEWHERE BEYOND THE MIND, BUT SUCH A PLACE DOESN'T EXIST. TRYING TO FIND A BUDDHA OR ENLIGHTENMENT IS LIKE TRYING TO GRAB SPACE. SPACE HAS A NAME BUT NO FORM. IT'S NOT SOMETHING YOU CAN PICK UP OR PUT DOWN. AND YOU CERTAINLY CAN'T GRAB IT. BEYOND THIS MIND, YOU'LL NEVER SEE A BUDDHA. THE BUDDHA IS A PRODUCT OF YOUR MIND. WHY LOOK FOR A BUDDHA BEYOND THIS MIND?

BUDDHAS OF THE PAST AND FUTURE ONLY TALK ABOUT THIS MIND. THE MIND IS THE BUDDHA. AND THE BUDDHA IS THE MIND. BEYOND THE MIND THERE'S NO BUDDHA. AND BEYOND THE BUDDHA THERE'S NO MIND. IF YOU THINK THERE'S A BUDDHA BEYOND THE MIND, WHERE IS HE? THERE'S NO BUDDHA BEYOND THE MIND, SO WHY ENVISION ONE? YOU CAN'T KNOW YOUR REAL MIND AS LONG AS YOU DECEIVE YOURSELF. AS LONG AS YOU'RE ENTHRALLED BY A LIFELESS FORM, YOU'RE NOT FREE. IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME, DECEIVING YOURSELF DOESN'T HELP. IT'S NOT THE BUDDHA'S FAULT. PEOPLE, THOUGH, ARE DELUDED. THEY'RE UNAWARE THAT THEIR OWN MIND IS THE BUDDHA. OTHERWISE, THEY WOULDN'T LOOK FOR A BUDDHA OUTSIDE THE MIND.

BUDDHAS DON'T SAVE BUDDHAS. IF YOU USE YOUR MIND TO LOOK FOR A BUDDHA, YOU WON'T SEE THE BUDDHA. AS LONG AS YOU LOOK FOR A BUDDHA SOMEWHERE ELSE, YOU'LL NEVER SEE THAT YOUR OWN MIND IS THE BUDDHA. AND DON'T USE A BUDDHA TO WORSHIP A BUDDHA. AND DON'T USE THE MIND TO INVOKE A BUDDHA. BUDDHAS DON'T RECITE SUTRAS. BUDDHAS DON'T KEEP PRECEPTS. AND BUDDHAS DON'T BREAK PRECEPTS. BUDDHAS DON'T KEEP OR BREAK ANYTHING. BUDDHAS DON'T DO GOOD OR EVIL. TO FIND A BUDDHA, YOU HAVE TO SEE YOUR NATURE. WHOEVER SEES HIS NATURE IS A BUDDHA. IF YOU DON'T SEE YOUR NATURE, INVOKING BUDDHAS, RECITING SUTRAS, MAKING OFFERINGS AND KEEPING PRECEPTS ARE ALL USELESS. INVOKING BUDDHAS RESULTS IN GOOD KARMA. RECITING SUTRAS RESULTS IN A GOOD MEMORY. KEEPING PRECEPTS RESULTS IN A GOOD REBIRTH. AND MAKING OFFERINGS RESULTS IN FUTURE BLESSINGS. BUT NO BUDDHA.
Pag. 17