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Question and Answer Session at Peking University Academy of Religious Study
 
[Khenpo Sodargye Rinpoche] [点击:1385]   [手机版]
背景色

Question and Answer Session at Peking University Academy of Religious Study

(June 24, 2010 PM)

 (1) Question: I am a graduate student in the School of Electronics, Engineering and Computer Science, at Peking University. It is my honor to listen to your teaching and to be accepted as a student. I have a question: I feel that I am always indecisive. However, if I try to be brave about making decisions, then I worry about becoming recklessly impulsive, and bringing about a negative impact on myself and others. How do I use wisdom to make a reasonable decision?

Answer: Whatever we do, we must always first observe it carefully by asking ourselves questions, such as: “What are the consequences of this action? Are we going to face unexpected obstacles when we carry out the task? If so, what are they?.…” At present, many people do not have this kind of concept. Whether it is a matter of doing business, or anything, they only look at the positive side of it. The negative side is never considered, and people are not prepared to face it. Some people do not even dare to think about questions such as: “What happens after my death?”, “What if I suddenly fall ill?”, and so on. Although these questions seem morbid, everyone needs to face these things. It is impossible to escape this, and so we ought to think about it.

As Buddhists, usually, when we are dealing with issues, not only do we evaluate the positive aspects of them, but we also put effort into evaluating the negative side in considerable detail. By doing this, since we are prepared to face the worst, if something unfavorable happens in the future, at that time we will then have the courage and ability to deal with it due to our earlier preparations.

Whatever you do, detailed observation at the start is crucial. The well-known Tibetan scholar Sakya Pandita Kunga Gyeltsen also said: “The difference between the wise person and the fool is that the fool only observes things after they have already happened.” A wise person, on the other hand, will carefully observe and evaluate a matter before anything happens. He or she will ask: “What are the consequences of doing this? What are the possibilities of it turning out unfavorably? What method should I use to make it successful? How will it benefit society?” Such questions must be clearly considered at the beginning. With this in mind, you will be neither indecisive nor reckless in making a decision. Instead, you take the middle way.

 (2) Question: I am a PhD student in the Department of Philosophy at Peking University. Listening to your teachings today, I feel that they are very useful. I have a question: Chinese Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism all emphasize the seeking of inner mental peace, and the reduction of an excessive desire for material belongings. During the process of globalization, if China is the only country to give up and renounce material aspirations, and other countries use aircraft or artillery to loot our country, what are we going to do? Are we just going to surrender and obey them?

Answer: It is neither possible nor necessary for all Chinese to renounce the worldly life and follow a monastic life. The point that I am stressing here is that in this era of highly developed material civilization we must not ignore ethics and traditional culture. In particular, your traditional culture, such as philosophies from Lao Tzu, Confucius, and Mencius, at the moment, is not well understood by many Chinese people. In contrast, people in South Korea, Singapore, the United States, Canada, and other countries have been using these philosophies extremely successfully, and countless numbers of people have benefited greatly. It is very sad to see this happen in China, because these philosophies originate from China. A similar case is Buddhism, which originated in India, then spread to the Chinese Han area, Tibet, European countries, and the United States. After that, however, India was occupied by Brahmins, and now, instead of Indians propagating and spreading Buddhism there, Tibetan masters do this work. This is a sad phenomenon. You must protect your own traditional culture, otherwise, after some time, Chinese people may have to invite Americans and Koreans to restore their heritage, which would be a great shame.

Of course, I am not asking everyone to give up seeking material gain and to let other countries simply loot you. As laypeople, you can do business, earn money, but there is one prerequisite: you should not use illegal or unreasonable means. Otherwise, the way the world is advancing every day, if you only spend time observing your mind and doing practice but neglecting everything else, eventually you will become obsolete. On the other hand, when you emphasize material benefits and development, it is necessary to pay attention to your inner spiritual development. You should not blindly fix your goal as monetary gain only, but should instead try to develop a better balance between material development and inner spiritual growth.

Question: Different people have different faiths. While faith can bring about mental comfort, at the same time, due to differences between faiths, it can also cause some conflicts, such as the war in the Middle East. What is your view on this issue?

Answer: Indeed, we often see that conflicts arise due to different faiths, or even due to differences between non-religious and religious people. This phenomenon is now quite common. Even so, however, as a Buddhist, and having studied Buddhism for many years, I have never come across an incident in which Buddhism provoked any war.

In 2009, the International Coalition for the Advancement of Religion and Spirituality (ICARUS) held a meeting in Geneva. During that meeting, through democratic ballot, the major religious groups of the world’s five major religions unanimously voted Buddhism as “the Best Religion in the World.” After the award presentation, some of the participants were interviewed. One of these, the research director for ICARUS, said: “It wasn’t a surprise to me that Buddhism won ‘the Best Religion in the World,’ because we literally could not find one single instance of a war fought in the name of Buddhism, in contrast to every other religion….”

Therefore, we can say that Buddhism truly uses an altruistic mind to treat all living beings equally. Of course, there are some bad Buddhist practitioners, who, due to their own faults and problems, cause internal conflicts and also behave inappropriately, but these are their personal wrongdoings, and don’t represent Buddhism as such. Thus, the fact that different religions cause conflicts is due to the behavior of minority religions or religious groups. We cannot say that all religions around the world are doing the same.

 (3) Question: I am a graduate of the School of Journalism and Communication, Peking University, and have now started working. I would like to ask you a question: In the past thirty years, during the process of economic development, Chinese people have become extremely dry in terms of spirituality. Now that the government is becoming more and more open toward various faiths and religions, the Chinese population of over one billion people has become a huge spiritual market. I have read a report which claimed that, at present, thousands of cults are fixing their eyes on the Chinese, slipping into China using various methods, and even now many bookstores are selling books from such organizations. What is a simple and quick way to identify which are real religions and which are cults?

Answer: In contemporary China, most people are psychologically empty, and so many religions want to exploit this weakness. A means of identifying cults, generally speaking, is to consider whether or not the group is in harmony with the human mind and morals. If it is not, then it is a cult, and even if you encounter it and are mentally drawn into it, the cult will not last long and will eventually be eliminated and become history.

Since ancient times, the world’s major religions have promoted their doctrines in eastern and western cultures. From a broader perspective, all religions should coexist with each other in harmony. Many Buddhist masters advocate this idea: whether Christian, Catholic, Muslim, or Buddhist, we should all respect the rites of other religions. By doing this, we demonstrate that religion is bringing about improvements in the world and making positive progress. Between religions, there should not be any intolerance and conflict. If you claim that “Only Buddhism is the correct faith, all other faiths, such as Christianity and Islam, are cults,” this is very unreasonable.

How do we distinguish a cult from an ethical, authentic religion? To summarize, a cult has neither beneficial physiological nor psychological effects on us, and can even have harmful effects on us. Nowadays, many of the world religions do not harm humanity and are playing a particularly positive role in promoting kindness in human beings. Confucianism is an example of this, with its excellent ethical and moral standards. Also, Christian groups are building many hospitals, schools, and carrying out many charitable causes. These are all worthy of our praise. I have spoken before about Mother Teresa, a Catholic nun. From the age of just twelve years old she had already started to help the poor. In just six years, she had provided shelter for sixty thousand abandoned babies. Such an achievement is incredible. This is something we as Mahayana Buddhists can aspire to equal.

Each individual religion’s doctrines and views can coexist in harmony; they do not necessarily need to be integrated with those of other religions. Establishing your own views using unique doctrines is reasonable. For example, in Tibetan Buddhism, we have many different lineages, such as the Nyingma and Gelug schools. Each of these can establish their own views and expound correct logical reasoning to support their doctrines, but at the same time not assume that they are the only one which is true Buddhism, and believe that others are not.

In the past, due to lack of understanding and communication, the world witnessed a lot of conflicts involving followers of different faiths and religions, causing many evil and ugly incidents between religious groups. They rejected and killed each other. Such behavior is the manifestation of a lack of wisdom. As long as a religion is beneficial to human beings, it can be considered a decent religion; conversely, whatever is harmful or useless to human health and humanity’s development is a cult. This is the fundamental principle with which to distinguish them. Of course, to identify them specifically, we need to analyze with wisdom. It is not appropriate for me alone to point out which is a correct religion and which is not

 (4) Question: I am a third year student at Minzu University of China. While engaging in and studying Buddhism, I don’t know why my mind is increasingly becoming narrower, getting more and more stressed. I am no longer as cheerful and relaxed as before. How do I deal with this phenomenon?

Answer: Ah, what should I do? I am nervous now too. (Laughter.)

The reason why you are not able to relax your mind could be due to the following two reasons: One is because of the effect of bad karma from your past lives. The Abhidharmakosha commentary says that if, in your past lives, you simply threw a bug and caused it to die from fear, then, in your present life, you may experience some abnormal mental states, and you will always have some sense of anxiety. For this kind of situation, seeking medical treatment will not help, and even getting help from others to chant sadhanas on your behalf may not necessarily work either, because certain forms of karma have to be dealt with by the person. Relying on outer conditions cannot change it. If the cause of your problem belongs to this explanation, then you will need to practice confession more often to gradually purify this negative karma.

Secondly, as you grow older, due to changes in your external circumstances, your mood will have ups and downs. This phenomenon does not apply to you alone. In fact, many people have experienced it before: for a period of time, you feel very joyful, but not long after, your mood is very down. This kind of unstable mind can be remedied by adjusting your lifestyle. If you can do it, then, slowly, your mental state will go back to what it was before, relaxed and comfortable.

 (5) Question: I was a master’s student in the School of Software and Microelectronics, Peking University. I have graduated and am currently working as a software engineer. I have a question: When I talk with my parents about studying Buddhism, they are able to accept the view of “wholesome activities bring happiness, unwholesome activities bring sufferings” very easily. However, when I talk about the six realms of cyclic existence, they strongly reject this concept, saying that it is enough to ensure that we have a good life during this lifetime, there is no need to think about the next life. I am very distressed by this. I know that the most beneficial way to repay the kindness of our parents is to guide them to have faith in Buddhism, but I feel I don’t have enough strength to help them. What should I do?

Answer: I rejoice in your aspiration and motivation. Indeed, the best way of repaying the kindness of your parents, from a Mahayana Buddhist point of view, is to guide them to Buddhism and urge them to create virtue. This is quite different to the thoughts of worldly people. For them, they think that buying a house for their parents and ensuring that they are not lacking any daily necessities is enough, but they do not know that these things are very fragile and will be gone in a few years. The method you are using to repay the kindness of your parents is something over which you can really rejoice.

While your parents can easily accept that wholesome activities bring happiness and unwholesome activities bring sufferings, they may recognize this to be true in this particular life only. They may not necessarily recognize that there is a future life, and that karma can be carried over to this future life. I have previously investigated and analyzed this, and what I found is that, although many Chinese celebrities, stars, and literary figures claim to be Buddhist, they think that if they carry out wholesome activities, they can gain blessings immediately in this life. They don’t recognize the existence of future lives, and think that it doesn’t matter what happens in future lives. This point of view is unreasonable. Why? If you subscribe to this view, you will think: “If alcohol is available today, then I will get drunk today.” That is to say, you will only care about today, not tomorrow. Why, then, are you still buying health insurance and paying into your pension for when you are older? Those who don’t consider the next life are short-sighted, just like someone who doesn’t think about tomorrow due to the fact that he can’t see it now.

Of course, it is quite difficult to change your parents’ view immediately, but if you make constant efforts and never give up, I believe you will be able to help them change eventually. It might take ten years for your parents to become truly devoted Buddhists. You must keep trying. Come on, you can do it!

Question: I found out that a company I worked for had posted some pornographic pictures on our web server for the Japanese site. I raised my concerns with my colleagues that this would negatively affect Japanese teenagers. They disagreed with me, saying that the Japanese would never be affected by such pictures, that they would actually attract more traffic to the site, and hence the company would make more money from it. I am not sure how to deal with this issue.

Answer: Everyone values things differently. There may not be a fixed rule to determine this. However, from the Mahayana Buddhist point of view, whether they are Japanese or Chinese, they are all sentient beings, and we should not treat one better than the other. During the 1960s and 70s, many Chinese people hated the Japanese and Americans because of the war between China and these countries, and had this kind of mentality. We are now in an era of international cooperation. Whatever country, ethnicity, or color, we should treat everyone equally with the mind of bodhicitta.

Bodhicitta is great love. The love of worldly people is a small love, limited to “my” family, “my” friends, and so on. Only by expanding this love so that it pervades all human beings in the world, and all living beings, can it really make people happy.

Through observing the human brain, modern scientists discovered that altruistic thought is very beneficial to the structure of the brain. Conversely, when selfish thoughts were transmitted, suffering followed. For the happiness of human beings, there is nothing better than helping to care for and love others. With this kind of mentality, you will always be joyful and happy whatever you do. Whether you succeed or fail, you will be happy. You will have tried your best and will have a clear conscience. On the other hand, if you only love and care for yourself, and often feel that others are unfair to you or have done something to wrong you, happiness will elude you. To love is to dedicate yourself to others, but not to demand that others love you. When you are at work, try your best to help others. Whether we are Japanese or Chinese, nobody wants to suffer.

 

(6) Question: I am a PhD student in Religious Studies, in the Department of Philosophy, Peking University. Can you briefly introduce to us the development of Tibetan Buddhism in the Han region and also share your outlook about its current state of development?

Answer: The spread of Tibetan Buddhism in the Han region is probably going to develop significantly. This is because Tibetan Buddhism is not a superficial religion, and thus it can develop. Tibetan Buddhism has another excellent quality to support its development: the unique methods of studying, contemplating, and meditating which are available in this system. It is because of these things that many Buddhist masters and intellectuals from the Han region are increasingly showing serious interest in it.

Just now, while I was chatting with some students, I mentioned to them that when His Holiness Jigme Phuntsok visited Beijing in 1987, most people basically knew nothing about Tibetan Buddhism. When we went to department stores, the shop workers were surprised and curious to see us wearing robes. They put their work down and watched us closely, as if we were “aliens.” They were no longer surprised to see foreigners with blonde hair and blue eyes. Beijing was already open to foreigners, so they were quite common already, but when they saw us, they were so surprised and curious. They thought that they had seen a “rare species,” surrounded us, and started to talk about us.

This is no longer the case, as more and more Tibetan lamas have brought Tibetan Buddhism to the Han region. Many people now already have a certain understanding of Tibetan Buddhism. Furthermore, because some Buddhist scholars from the Han region have been regularly going to the Tibetan region to seek Dharma teachings, their exchanges with Tibetan Buddhist masters have created an ideal bridge to link Tibetan Buddhism to the Han region. I expect this trend to continue to strengthen in the future, and gradually the number of people aware of Tibetan Buddhism will increase. This is definitely something to be happy about. In fact, Buddhist Dharma is about mind training: if people are happy, joyful, and feel as if they have benefited after relying on Buddhism, then Buddhism will thrive in the area where they live. Therefore, I hope that in the future many more people will become aware of Tibetan Buddhism through the means of CD-ROMs and other technologies. By making this kind of effort, let us promote Buddhism, which can greatly benefit all human beings.

 Question: At the moment, many people in the Han region are studying The Great Exposition of the Stages of the Path. Can you please tell us the importance of this text in Buddhism, as well as your suggestions and advice to those practitioners from the Han region who are studying this text.

Answer: The Great Exposition of the Stages of the Path was composed by the great master Lama Tsongkhapa, and translated into Chinese by the Buddhist master Fa Zun. Master Fa Zun was one of the greatest translators from the Han region, and, after going to the Tibetan region, he translated many texts. While he was alive, not many people knew about him, but after he passed away, people gradually came to know about his kindness and contributions to sentient beings in the Han region. Since he translated this text, Master Ri Chang from Taiwan has expounded on it, and Khenpo Yeshe Phuntsok, from our monastery, has also expounded on it. I have heard that, at the moment, many Buddhist institutes, including some universities, are also studying it.

This text meticulously explains the full path of the bodhisattva, so it is really important for us to study it. In the Nyingma lineage, we also have a text called Finding Comfort and Ease in the Nature of Mind, which basically contains the same practical instructions, with the exception of the addition of the Vajrayana stages. Therefore, I would personally praise those that study The Great Exposition of the Stages of the Path. In addition, when Lama Tsongkhapa was composing the later part of the text, which deals with intuitive wisdom, he felt that its meaning was too subtle and too profound for people to understand, so he decided to stop composing it. However, at that time, bodhisattva Manjushri personally appeared in front of him to urge him to continue composing it and said that in the future there would definitely be people who could realize it. You can see from this that the blessing from this text is incredible. If we rely on it as the foundation of our study and practice, it will certainly bring great benefits to us.

 (7) Question: I am a Sanskrit PhD student in the Department of South Asian Languages, School of Foreign Languages, Peking University. I am very interested in the practice of the Great Perfection. May I request you to introduce it to us?

Answer: I am afraid that I cannot transmit it here. (Laughter.)

Question: OK, then what about a brief introduction?

Answer: OK, let me give a brief introduction. In accordance with the Vajrayana teachings, the Great Perfection is the highest state you can achieve amongst the practice of the nine yanas. Its practice is very simple and is thus particularly suitable for modern people.

We all know that modern people are very busy, and so it would be very difficult for them to study voluminous Buddhist scriptures and texts in this short life. When His Holiness Jigme Phuntsok went to a center in Boston, in the USA, His Holiness said that: “Dzogchen is most suitable for modern people, especially busy urban people like you.” At that time, someone asked why this was so. His Holiness replied: “For you all to learn and study tremendous amounts of scriptures and texts in this relatively short life is quite difficult, but if you study and practice Dzogchen, by relying on your unique confidence together with the direct introduction of the view of Dzogchen from the guru, those with a strong intuitive connection can attain enlightenment within that moment of introduction. Even if enlightenment is not attained, by this simple and profound method the nature of your mind will be understood. After that, it is just like standing at the peak of a mountain: other forms of practice are like the small hills around.” Therefore, this practice is indeed very suitable, and the best for modern people. A famous Tibetan master, (Pin Yin: KeTuDuTa), said that at the Dharma Ending Age, when the darkness of the five degenerations are widespread, the blessed radiation of Dzogchen will become even more powerful and brighter. Therefore, at the moment, sentient beings need a teaching of comparably extreme power and clarity to dispel their confusions, and Vajrayana practice is one that can provide it, particularly the pithy instructions of Dzogchen.

 (8) Question: I am a PhD student from the Philosophy Department of Peking University. Currently, I am doing a post-doctoral degree. I would like to ask you a question. Whatever we do is similar in some respects. Whether doing business or building a temple, we need to gather resources, make decisions, and eliminate obstacles. How can we ensure that everything can be done properly during these processes, while avoiding getting further caught up in our dualistic perceptions, as well as not further accelerating our desires?

Answer: No matter what we do, whether it is worldly matters, building temples, or setting up Buddhist venues, it can be fulfilled only by the aggregation of multiple causes and conditions. We should try not to have too many dualistic perceptions, desires, and dislikes. This is the basic principle. Whether we can successfully do this or not depends on individual circumstances and personalities.

For example, in Tibet, many monasteries are built. Some use very legitimate ways to raise funds and, coupled with help from big benefactors who have very good karma, they are able to complete the building of the monastery smoothly. Conversely, some others may go around seeking monetary support and eventually end up with some unpleasant results, which then taints the name of Tibetan Buddhism. This gives the negative impression that “Tibetan Buddhism is begging for money.” In fact, as I said before, Buddhism is not a superficial religion. It is not about magnificent buildings, and it is also not just about repairing monasteries or building stupas. If this were the case, it would mean that just having Buddhist buildings would keep Buddhism alive, without the need for Buddhist doctrines. This is not the case. Without Buddhist doctrines, Buddhism is extinguished. We must be aware that the purpose of buildings is to provide external conditions; the most important thing is our inner thoughts. To give an analogy: we gather together here today not because we like this building, or because you want to look at me, but because you all hope to gain some benefit by discussing ideas with me, because I have been studying and practicing for a long time. Similarly, I came to Peking University today not because I am interested to see the buildings, nor because I want to see how you all look. The most important thing for me is to understand the different views and thoughts of the people in this place.

As I mentioned earlier, Tibetan Buddhism has a very profound and subtle philosophical system. If you are not aware of this, and you are exposed to a few people who are not behaving in accordance with the Dharma teachings, you will develop deviant views about Tibetan Buddhism, and, as a result of this, may ruin yourself and others, which is very regrettable. Whatever judgments we make should not be solely based on superficial appearances. We should evaluate from different perspectives. Otherwise, it will have adverse consequences.

Question: When I visited Qinghai last year, I found that Tibetan and Han people have very different attitudes towards wealth. How do Tibetans understand the meaning of doing business and accumulating wealth?

Answer: Unlike the Han people, in Tibet, considerable numbers of people do not view wealth very highly. This is especially so with many elderly people. Their happiness is built on faith, so even though their material circumstances may look very ordinary, they live their lives with great joy and happiness. I have visited many herdsmen’s houses, and found that their living conditions are very simple and poor. The money you pay for one meal may be worth more than a few months of their household needs for over ten people. Compared relatively, however, the happiness they enjoy is far greater than many wealthier and more powerful people in the Han region.

There is an old saying: “Being wealthy is not necessarily being rich.” In Buddhism, someone who is content and satisfied with what he or she has is considered the wealthiest. With this satisfaction, whatever you do you will be happier. Nowadays, many people lack this awareness. If they have one car, they want a second one. After getting a second one, they will start to think about a third one, and they will also want a better quality car…. They only see the attractive side of things, but they neglect the negative effects. Ultimately, this leads them into endless mental agitation and suffering. In the Tibetan regions, there are many people who follow Mahayana Buddhism from their early childhood. Because of this, they have cultivated the altruistic mind and also inner satisfaction, and, as a result, their inner happiness greatly surpasses those of people living in big cities.

At present, you may find that there are some young Tibetans who behave even more wildly than people from the Han region. They come to the big cities and go to all the wrong places. This is due to the fact that they have lost their faith. For Han people, some of these things have become commonplace, so they aren’t so affected by them, but Tibetans who come to the big city are desperate for material comforts and often spend their lives in an aimless and self-indulgent way. This is now quite common.

 (9) Question: I am a postdoctoral graduate from the School of Physics, Peking University. I studied biomedical engineering, and am now already working. For various reasons, I feel that Buddhism is very good, so I would like introduce it to the staff in my company in the hope that they not only value money but also develop some faith and beliefs, as well as some respect for conscience and morality. However, I am not able to make them all become Buddhists, nor can I make them believe that there are six realms of existence and past and future lives. What should I do?

Answer: It is not necessary to use religious doctrines as a tool to nurture the positive aspects of people’s minds. As long as employees are guided toward having a kind heart, everyone should be able to accept this. The last time I went to Yunnan, Sichuan, and other places, I found that some entrepreneurs were educating their staff about love on a long-term basis. For example, they formed a group to study Standards for Being a Good Student and Child (Di Zi Gui) and other texts together. This is definitely beneficial for people’s minds.

Question: When I was engaged in biomedical engineering work, I came across some especially dark aspects of it. For example, if your car breaks down and you send it to a garage to be repaired, often your car may have only a small problem, but the mechanic will replace the good parts in your car with old or ineffective parts. Also, even if your brakes are in good condition, the mechanic will pour alcohol into your brake fluid, since changing the whole system is quite profitable work for them. They hope that by doing this your brakes will break down, then they can change them for you and earn a lot of money. At the moment, many of the accidents on the highways are actually due to this problem. However, for outsiders, it is not easy to know what goes on behind the scenes.

Another example is when we start working in biomedical engineering, we have a lot of exposure to cancer, and always discuss how to diagnose and cure it. But gradually, we slowly come to understand that many diseases cannot be cured by doctors because the food that we consume in everyday life contains a large amount of carcinogens. Besides that, some raw chemical materials that can lead to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases or cause liver and kidney failure are being used to produce them. I am sad to say that we cannot control this at the moment. Let me share a statistic so that you can all see it clearly: according to statistics from Beijing Hospital, of all the children diagnosed with leukemia, almost 80% of them have had their house renovated within six months before they contracted the disease. I am aware that, to pass the national standard on interior building materials, as long as the material will not cause serious illness within a few years’ time, it is considered to meet the standards. However, human life is not only for a few years.

Therefore, nowadays, it seems that people simply seek economic and material benefit, even at the expense of other people’s lives. In this kind of environment, most people cannot act in other than a worldly way, and so a worldly method must be used for them. For the sake of spreading Dharma, making society more familiar with Buddhism, making society better and nicer, I have established a nonprofit community organization, the Food Safety Association. We try our best to provide bulk buying services and at the same time give free examinations for things such as pesticides and other relevant goods, so that the harm caused can be reduced. However, during this process, we face many hardships, and so would like to seek advice from you. How should we ensure that these activities can continue for a long time, be sustainable, and not be aborted half way through?

Answer: Very good. You are very thoughtful, and have considerable understanding in this matter.

Most of us here, especially those who have experience, are certainly aware of the dark side of today’s society. What is the cause of these problems? It is because people do not have correct faith, just as it says in the Nirvana Sutra: “Not knowing that there will be a next life, you will create negative karma.” Many people don’t believe in rebirth, and so they only seek immediate benefit in order to make more money. Hospitals may supply fake medicines, educational institutions neglect the future of their students, and, including what you have mentioned just now, what goes on behind the scenes in garages, food factories, and building material factories is very worrying and awful. Even so, manufacturers still act against their conscience, using various advertisements, bribing people, and using ways to promote their products. This, in turn, will cause serious physical and mental harm to human beings.

It is quite difficult for an individual to turn around such social trends. However, with the power of community organizations, some changes and effects can probably be achieved. Two days ago, I attended the “International Charity Forum.” During that time, many professors from Peking University, Beijing Normal University, and Tsinghua University shared their thoughts on charity, as well as ideas on national charity legislation. If public foundations are moving in the direction of better organization, management, and research, this will create a significant influence. On the other hand, with only occasional individual donations and irregular charitable acts, it is quite limited.

Since these issues require the help and cooperation of many parties, even if I provide personal economic and other forms of help to you, it may not necessarily succeed. What I can provide is guidance and counseling based on Buddhist teachings. I have spent a long time in the monastery, so, regarding this aspect, we can work together. If we change our goal so that the only thing we desire is to benefit sentient beings, with this motivation, this kind of organization can definitely benefit society, and will be very important.

Due to various complicated problems in the past, government departments might be afraid of nongovernmental charitable organizations. However, after entering the age of globalization, China is no longer the same. Many policies are open. In this kind of atmosphere, we should create more charitable organizations similar to those abroad, to help those who need mental counseling or material aid.

I have always thought as follows: We live not just for ourselves, but for everyone in this world. Even if we can help others to do a tiny thing, this is our mandatory responsibility. During this process, there is no need to worry that you will lose anything—this is not important. If you really want to do something good for others, you may temporarily face various misunderstandings. However, due to your motivation, you will gradually shine like the sun coming through the clouds, emitting light, and be able to help the infinite number of sentient beings.

 (10) Question: I am a graduate of the Institute of Molecular Medicine, Peking University. Not long ago, I met a young man who was very pessimistic. I guessed that he might commit suicide, become an antisocial person, or become homeless. I very much would like to help him, and have tried to use psychological methods to guide him, but it is difficult for him to listen and accept my advice. How do I guide this kind of person? Or am I perhaps too attached to helping him, and it is actually my own personality problem?

Answer: This is not your problem; it is our problem. This man was experiencing lovesickness. It may look like as if it is not our problem, but if we observe this carefully, we all have a responsibility to help him. There are many unfortunate people in this society who are tormented with suffering. We should help them all.

Regarding the role of psychological counseling, when I was in Yushu, I saw many psychological experts from different parts of the country, including Hong Kong. When I met a few of them, they said: “After the Wen Chuan earthquake, we successfully played an important role. When many people were preparing to commit suicide by jumping off a building, we directed our efforts to helping them and successfully dissuaded them from doing so. In contrast, here, at Yushu, with such a serious earthquake, with so many deaths and so many houses collapsing, you might think that we would be playing the same role here, but, after looking around, surprisingly, we cannot find anyone needing comfort from us. They were not too overwhelmed by the suffering, so we are not really needed here.”

Excessive attachment to love and wealth makes the suicide rate go up considerably. I have heard that there is a lake here at your university named Wei Ming Lake. Many university students commit suicide by jumping in the lake, including Lao She and others who committed suicide there before. The cause of these suicides is too much attachment to worldly matters. Had these people known the teaching of emptiness, they would learn that we come to this world naked, bringing nothing with us, and we will not take anything with us when we die. What more is there to say about love, fame, and wealth? They are nothing for us to attach to.

However, for many people, it is very difficult to understand this quickly or immediately. Sometimes when I see the unfortunate condition of some people, I also feel pessimistic. Perhaps if we try our best to help them with kindness, their situation may gradually change. But if this still does not work, then we have no other way. After all, despite Buddha being great and having already perfectly eliminated all obstacles as well as perfected his realizations, he has not been able to tame those sentient beings that don’t have faith in Buddhism. What more is there to say about the ordinary person? I often come across this kind of situation, in which I really don’t have any way to help. The only thing I can do is to recite some verses and quietly make my vow: “Although I don’t have any other means to help now, in this life, I pray that I can help you in my future life….”

 (11) Question: I am a PhD student of Chinese Philosophy, in Peking University. Several science and engineering students and students of the Department of German Language and Literature registered to participate in this seminar earlier, but due to an emergency they cannot attend the seminar, and so they asked me to pass on a few questions to you.

1. After studying Buddhism or traditional culture, they feel that their profession is not very meaningful and constructive for their life any more. Instead, it seems quite dry or boring. How can we resolve these contradictions?

Answer: Many people may have this feeling. From kindergarten until university, I have studied for nearly two decades now. I have made tremendous efforts to learn a wide range of knowledge, but I cannot use much of it in society. Knowledge such as geometry and maths equations, physics, chemistry, etc. are essentially not needed and not used generally at work. With this in mind, students become very confused, and feel that they have wasted their time.

We can analyze this in two ways. On the one hand, although the knowledge you have gained during your education may not necessarily come in handy at work, it can improve the quality of your life overall and enhance your ability to learn and acquire new skills. With this higher wisdom and intelligence as your basis, in the future, whatever knowledge you are exposed to will be somewhat easier for you to absorb. For example, when highly educated university students and professors listen to the Madhyamika teachings, their ability to understand them is very different to someone who has not been in higher education. Another example is, if you previously studied science and then transfer to the liberal arts field, even if you are not able to use what you have learned previously, due to the overall quality of your knowledge, you will be able to adapt easily without significant difficulties.

On the other hand, as we all know, China has been going through a very successful economic reform, from the 1980s until today. Although the material situation has greatly improved, various educational reforms have rooted out Chinese traditional culture. Especially during the Cultural Revolution, through the “Criticize Lin, Criticize Confucius” (Pi lin pi kong) campaign and other campaigns, Confucius has been treated as an object of criticism, being accused, for example, of feudal superstition. This has made it very difficult for such things to be recovered today. Due to the effects of this kind of mentality, knowledge taught in schools is now only minimally connected to moral education. There is a lot of discussion about war, and many theories about it. This has led many intellectuals to urge that we should try our best to add some topics into the textbooks related to the knowledge and skills of how to be a good person for yourself and for society. Just like in Tibetan region, children are taught how to be a good person, how to cultivate their conscience, and to carry out virtuous activities. Of course, it may not be feasible for the Han region to do this immediately, and so many people are in the dilemma you mention.

2. How can we transform our activities of learning foreign languages, such as listening, speaking, and reading, into a Dharma practice? Are there any visualizations for these practices?

Answer: In Vajrayana practice, whether we are writing, reciting a sutra, or eating, we have to do it mindfully and stay in a state of meditation without wavering. However, this is quite difficult for an ordinary person. For example, to stay in the state of clear light meditation or have your mind always in the state of longing for virtue while you are driving a car, walking, or doing some activities is quite unrealistic. Of course, if you can do it, whatever you do is considered as practice. Other than this, I am afraid that there is no other single method to allow you to learn a foreign language and at the same time practice meditation.

3. How do you realize the state of “luminous clarity of mind (Pinyin: míng xīn jiàn xìng)”? Is it convenient for you to answer this?

Answer: It is not convenient, it is confidential. I am just kidding.

Zen’s “luminous clarity of mind” is the same as Dzogchen’s “direct introduction to the nature of mind.” In Pure Land Buddhism, this is called “Single pointedly reciting the name of Amitabha Buddha (Pinyin: Yi Xin Bu Luan).” Although there are different words used to express this, all their meanings refer to reaching the highest state of enlightenment. “Luminous clarity of mind” appears in the biography of many Zen masters, and refers to the point where, by using skillful means and a simple method, they realized the nature of mind, the state where the clear light is non-dual and indivisible oneness with emptiness. When you realize this state, you will know that it cannot be expressed verbally.

Of course, there are a few ways to attain this state of enlightenment. The first is systematically listening, contemplating, and meditating on the Sutrayana scriptures. The second method is to rely on the instructions of a guru. The third is through reading the stories of the great masters and then requesting and praying to the guru and triple gem to understand and realize the nature of mind. When you really realize the “luminous clarity of mind,” even though you cannot express it verbally, you will experience it clearly. This state is not just an occasional happiness and comfort, but a very stable one. While remaining in this state, even if Buddha or bodhisattvas appear in front of you, trying to shake your understanding, your understanding and realizations will remain unshakable. In the past, Lama Tsongkhapa’s guru, Venerable Rendawa, said at the end of his Commentary on the Mulamadhyamakakarika: “Even if millions of wise men think that my view and understanding is incorrect, I will not be shaken for a moment.” This shows that he had already realized that particularly high state, and so was very confident about it.

Regarding “luminous clarity of mind,” there are many amazing stories in the Han’s Memoirs of Eminent Monks, so if you have time, you should read it. Nowadays, many people like to watch stars, singers, dancers, etc. In fact, this is meaningless. Instead, we should find out how the great masters achieved enlightenment. If we then follow their path, we will be able to achieve liberation, which is the most important thing in our life.

4. I have a problem in my practice. How can I root out arrogance and hatred, which are habitually so strong in my mind, so that I no longer express them and then feel regret and confess later?

Answer: There are two ways to deal with hatred and anger. The first is by using the Sutrayana method, which is explained clearly in the chapter on patience in the Bodhicharyavatara, in which various processes of logical reasoning are used to analyze how to destroy hatred and anger. Many masters when visiting western countries, if they do not have time to teach the whole Bodhicharyavatara, will especially teach the chapter on patience. On the other hand, the best way in Vajrayana to destroy hatred and anger is to instantly observe the nature of the hatred when it arises. To illustrate this point, for example, when I am very angry with someone, I immediately check where the anger is. Is it inside my stomach? Inside my brain? Or in any part of my body? By performing this kind of examination, we find that anger is only a fallacious appearance projected by the dualistic mind, and in fact has no intrinsic essence at all. Thus, the Sutrayana and Vajrayana both have their own instructions to deal with anger and hatred.

Regarding arrogance, a long time ago I also had this fault. I felt that my memory, intelligence, and ability were superior to others’. Later, I thought about this: “Actually, I am a servant for all sentient beings. What I feel so proud and arrogant about is nothing compared to the selfless dedication to sentient beings by all the buddhas and bodhisattvas, as well as the past great masters. Therefore, among sentient beings, I am the most lowly one and most pitiable one, so I shouldn’t be arrogant.” Once I compared myself to the behavior and altruism of bodhisattvas, I felt so ashamed. It was so obvious that I had a very strong ego, was very selfish, and that my mental afflictions and dualistic mind were also very strong. What could I feel proud of and arrogant about?

 (12) Question: I am a PhD student in the Department of Philosophy, Peking University, currently studying Chinese philosophy and also researching Buddhism. I have a question. We read a lot of scriptures, and we would like to know more about the relationship between theoretical study and putting them into practice.

Answer: When we are studying Buddhism, it is very important for us to combine theory and practice. Some people I know, whether religious students or Dharma teachers at a Buddhist institute, are very knowledgeable from the intellectual point of view. They have read many scriptures, texts, and biographies. However, from the level of experiential understanding, which requires practice and action, they are relatively poor. To them, the Buddhadharma remains on paper and becomes a drawing board. They can talk about it clearly and logically, but, in fact, they have never taken any action to put it into practice, which makes literal understanding irrelevant to actual practice.

Nowadays, many Dharma lecturers or practitioners often make such a mistake. They are excellent in, debating concepts or theories, but, since they never put them into practice, there is no transformation of their mental continuum at all. Thus, even with vast knowledge, they are still helpless when facing death. From this, we can see that when studying Buddhism, it is essential that we put it into practice.

In Tibetan Buddhism, theory and practice support each other completely. Nowadays, many people like Tibetan Buddhism very much. This is not because they follow it blindly without reason. It is because of its completeness, having theoretical descriptions at the beginning and a complete practical method that follows, as well as the help of a sadhana that they follow. This is called “listening, contemplating, and meditating”—a package in which you get everything. Otherwise, if you have understanding at an intellectual level only, but lack actual practice, this is not helpful to yourself, let alone to society and the public. When we study Buddhism, we must do our research and investigations at a theoretical level, and, at the same time, put them into practice. This is crucial.

Question: Can you talk about the relationship between Sutrayana and Vajrayana meditation, and practice from the viewpoint of the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya?

Answer: When we compare the three bodies of the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya in the Sutrayana and Vajrayana, there are no significant differences between them. The Sutrayana’s Ornament of Clear Realization mentions the noble qualities of the three bodies of the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya. To use an analogy to express it, the dharmakaya is the nature of all phenomena, such as empty space; the sambhogakaya it is like the sun and the moon arising from empty space; the nirmanakaya is like the light emitted by the sun and moon. In this world, the appearance of Guru Shakyamuni Buddha is the nirmanakaya: he is like the light emitted from the sun and the moon, which has a relationship with the boundless empty space, and also the sun and the moon. This is how some scriptures and texts describe the meditation on the three bodies.

From the Vajrayana point of view, the nature of mind is emptiness. This is called the dharmakaya. Inseparable from emptiness, the clear and luminous aspect is called the sambhogakaya. Appearances and emptiness are inseparable, indivisible oneness, and pervade all sentient beings. This aspect is called the nirmanakaya. Therefore, the three bodies of the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya are not things that exist independently on their own. They are actually one indivisible body with three different aspects, which are emptiness (dharmakaya), by nature clear and luminous (sambhogakaya), and the various appearances that Buddha manifests in the three realms of existence to help sentient beings (nirmanakaya).

So, from the above explanations, we can see that both the Sutrayana and Vajrayana express the same thing; the three bodies are inseparable and not something that exist independently on their own. However, there is a difference when we speak of it from the Vajrayana, as it is expressed as a pithy instruction for realizing the nature of the three bodies. This is quite a subtle and profound state.

Question: I have heard that the Zen lineage only practices the dharmakaya aspect, but Vajrayana practices the three bodies of the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya. What is your view on this?

Answer: This argument may not have any basis, because the three bodies of the dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya are inseparable. Once you are enlightened, all of them will be attained simultaneously. Zen’s nature of “luminous clarity of mind” is exactly what we call the dharmakaya, which is the dharmadhatu of all phenomena. The different manifestations of the dharmadhatu, which are benefit for yourself and benefits for others, are respectively called the sambhogakaya and nirmanakaya. Therefore, Zen’s enlightenment also attains all three bodies simultaneously. Your statement may therefore not necessarily have any grounding.

 (13): Question: I am a staff member of the Lasker Foundation. Next to this room is a Christian Society. When comparing Buddhism to them, I can clearly see that they have an extremely strong missionary spirit, and, as a result, have gathered many members. On the other hand, Buddhism is quite lacking in this aspect. I would like to seek your advice. How can we strengthen this kind of spirit so that Buddhism can benefit even more people?

Answer: There is certainly much we can learn from the Christian missionary spirit, methods, and various means. Information shows that they have a plan to try their best to occupy the Han region’s religious market within fifty years by converting large numbers of people to Christianity. Contrary to this, many Buddhists are not even internally united, are fighting with each other, and slandering gurus and lineages. Such behavior is very unreasonable. Lay practitioners should especially try their best not to talk about the faults of someone following a monastic life, because this is the responsibility of the monastic community, not theirs.

How should we promote Buddhism? On the one hand, we should learn the methods and behavior employed by Christianity. On the other hand, we should also be aware that even if we make substantial efforts to offer medicines and money to all the unfortunate people, one by one, this may still not necessarily help them significantly. But if we offer the wisdom of Buddhism to everyone, then it can create incredible benefits. In recent years, I have been using modern technologies to transmit the Bodhicharyavatara and other teachings. By using this kind of study and contemplation, some people truly gain the benefits of Dharma, and so their life is transformed. They are now able to face adversities with courage. These people are something in which to rejoice.

Knowing the importance of Dharma, I hope that from now on, we will all take responsibility for promoting Dharma, not just because there is an earthquake or disaster, or because we see someone tormented by suffering, and then raise an emergency fund to give support. The altruistic mind for long-term plans has not been considered. As Mahayana practitioners, many people say: “We must benefit the infinite number of sentient beings,” but do not have the courage to pass on the great ideas of Buddhism to others. We can feel ashamed about this.

I have not been able to give good guidance for everyone here about this issue today. However, I think it is the best if, within the Beijing student unions, you set up some kind of organization that can occasionally arrange internal communications and studies for others. This doesn’t necessarily need to be at a high-profile level, because we are not looking for fame nor publicity. What we want is to truly do something for all sentient beings. If we can do this, then not only is this altruistic, but it is also promotion of Dharma.

If you properly consider this, you see that an intellectual has many obligations and responsibilities to carry out. We are all depending on the cooperation of everyone else. Doing it alone is impossible. We are living in an information age. If we employ organizations and cooperate to promote the spirit of Buddhism, we will see a bright future.

 (14) Question: You are usually extremely busy with various types of work. How do you keep your body and mind in an optimum condition so that you can fulfill your responsibilities and obligations?

Answer: My daily life is extremely busy, but as long as I am still alive, I will think of how to benefit more sentient beings. This is the goal of my life. At the same time, while living in such an environment, in which society has been contaminated by various kinds of negativities, I also worry that my body and mind will gradually be affected by them too. To avoid this, personal practice is crucial, so when I am at the monastery, I finish my work in the morning, and then, in the afternoon, I try to find time to do some translation and practice. During the early morning after I wake up, I also recite some sutras and mantras.

I also often encounter difficulties when dealing with things. Sometimes others misunderstand me. When this happens, I face it calmly and comfortably, and never let small things cause mental agitation, or make me feel sad or act emotionally for a long time. As a longterm practitioner, facing unfavorable situations and hardships has become something common for me. I always treat them as a blessing from the buddhas and bodhisattvas and transform them into practice. For example, if someone is creating obstacles for me, I try my best to dedicate my merits to him or her. Even if my work eventually fails, I think of it as a blessing from the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Such problems may seem unfavorable, but ultimately they are a very favorable condition for my practice.

Besides that, I also think of it like this: I am not sure if I will have another opportunity to help sentient beings later. Whether I do or not, as long as I am still alive, I will dedicate my energy to serving all sentient beings.

Finally, thanks to everyone. I think we have had very good communication here today. I have truly enjoyed it, and I hope that we will all always treat others with loving kindness. Many thanks.


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