What is the reason for becoming a Buddhist monk?
(Fuyan chitchat?)
Dear Students!Among
the students in Fuyan, there are those who have been living with me for 18
years and those who are just living with me.
Our only purpose in this place is to learn Buddhism and the construction
of Fuyan Institute is to enable more young people for the same purpose. Since we have the bondage of being together,
undoubtedly there are some basic rules, credos and aims that we share. Therefore, I think I have something to tell
you for the beginning of the coming 3 years, especially for those who are here
for the first time.
As you come to the
institute, first of all, please do not consider this place too ideal. I understand myself very well. I know I am not a talented person, my merits
are scarce and my teaching experience is not enough. It is not very ideal for you to live with
me. But, I would like to tell you, there
is also something good in a person like me who is not smart enough and who does
not have good merits. This is what I understand of myself, and for this reason,
I work really hard in my practice, give up everything and have never acted
rashly and forfeited my own practice by socializing with people. I have had the same aspiration for the past
20 years and led my life accordingly. As
a result, I am able to get a little knowledge of Buddhism and quite a large
amount of benefits. Nothing in the world
is absolutely easy or absolutely difficult. This implies “practice makes perfect”. If one is willing to make efforts and work
hard, despite of one’s foolishness, one will be able to have some kind of achievement
gradually. Therefore, it is my hope that
among the students, those wiser would seize their excellent conditions and work
hard; while for those less clever, which is not an important thing, would set their
mind in their study and they will eventually achieve something in the end, too. I have met many clever students in my study
groups, all of them were young and strong, very talented, and they wrote very
well and spoke very well. However, as
they were too sociable, they had little time for practice. They were too busy as supervisors, abbots and
in handling and socializing with people for the whole day and wasted their
time. Those with luck just became an
administrator. In conclusion, one should
give up everything; the mind should be peaceful and perseverant in order to
practice Buddhadharma and deepen in it to get the real benefits.
My health
condition has never been good. My luck
is not very good either. For a long time
I have had a life of renunciation and studies that leads to the habit of
preferring quietude and immobility. Of
course you should not be as passive as I am.
Many things await you to do in Buddhism.
When you leave this place in the future, you should do anything beneficial
to Buddhism and the sentient beings.
However, in this present stage of study, I hope you could be as placid
and calm as I am, and do not hurry in getting immediate success and fame.
As regarding to
the place, if you are not looking for too much, I think this environment is not
bad for practice and you would be able to calm down, but the sandstorm is just
a little bit stronger. On the contrary,
if you are looking for fame, you will certainly be very frustrated, because
there is nothing than study in this place. There are no ceremonies nor Buddha recitations,
nor donations, and there are not many devotees that come. It is said in the sutras: “I am here for Dharma
and not for bed.” If your only purpose is
to learn Dharma in this place without mingling with the pursuit of fame, then I
think you will be able to practice calmly under the support of the laity.
I have never
considered the construction of Fuyan as my own property. Any youth that wants to learn and shares the
common goal can live in this place. I do
not recruit students or ask certain people to come. Everybody comes to this institute out of his
own will. Now that you are here, you
should study calmly. If you feel like
quitting in the halfway, then you should not force yourself to stay. But if you quit, you don’t need to come back
again. Because unlike the temples in
China in the past, this place is not a hotel for nomadic monks who come and go
when they want. You should stay calmly in this place. If you can stay calmly for 3 years, then you
may leave for reasons such as propagating the Dharma, meeting other good
advisors, or having a retreat on your own, or you could leave this place for
your own practice or for the dissemination of the Dharma. Until when you feel like coming back, you can
still come back, this place is your home.
Right at the moment, the political situation is very critical. Buddhism in China is also suffering
unprecedented disasters. Once China starts the counterattacks, you should go
back and return to those places where Buddhism is destroyed in order to replant
the seeds of the True Dharma. Of course, when you have the opportunity to come
back to Taiwan and to spread the Dharma, this place is still your home.
You should not
think that you come here for a quiet place to study, or because you do not have
a proper place to live, so you are here for just a short stay. You should bear
in mind to follow the steps of the Buddha. On the one hand, you should
comprehend the profound meaning of Buddhism, its systems and practices, while
on the other hand, you should foster enthusiasm in order to spread and protect
the Dharma. It is said in the sutras: the bodhisattvas make vows on behalf of those
sentient beings who are suffering. Our final goal here is to spread the Dharma
and to benefit the sentient beings. The studies are just a process. The propagation
of the Dharma is an indefinite
saying, however to carry out is a manifold work. What do you intend to do in
the future? In ancient time, the practitioners of Buddhism were classified into
several groups owing to their different personality and their adaptation to
current need. I have listed them down for your reference.
A.
Master
of scriptures (not only explains one or two sutras): the master of scriptures understands very well
all kinds of sutras and the profound meaning of the doctrine that they explain
without any problem.
B.
Master
of vinaya (is not the one that transmits the precepts): It is the one that emphasizes
on leading a life according to vinaya. The master of vinaya understands the precepts
set by the Buddha very well, which they uphold strictly and perfectly know the
conditions allowed, the conditions prohibited and how to uphold them and how to
purify themselves whenever they commit mistakes.
C.
Master
of śastra: He is the teacher who studied the noumenon of Dharma and explains
the essentials of Buddhism. The Sutrapitaka, the Vinayapitaka and the
Śastrapitaka are the heritage of the Buddha for his disciples to practice and to
propagate which were responsibilities to them as the heritage from the ancestors.
However, as the Tripitakas are very profound
and vast, teachers who study and propagate them have their own inclination. Therefore,
this class is subdivided into 3: master of sutra, master of vinaya and master of
sastra.
D.
Master
of (Zen) meditation: is also called "yogi" (瑜伽師) whose practice is primarily based on
samadhi (meditation) and prajña (wisdom). They also understand the Tripitaka,
however they spend more time on their own experiences of the meditative contemplations.
But this does not mean they abandon the Tripitaka. The real Zen practitioners are those who work
on the meditative contemplation together with the doctrine. Such is the case of
Bodhidharma, who is a well-known practitioner of Zen, and the meditation he
practiced was sealed by Neunggasa.
E.
Master
of Dārṣṭāntika: this kind of practitioner also comes to realization and
understands the profound doctrines. However they emphasize the teaching of the
Dharma to the taste and comprehension of the majority of the people in general.
They illustrate the profound meaning of the Dharma with mundane examples and in
simple language. From the viewpoint of the spreading of Buddhism, these
teachers are very important and rare.
The above five
types of teachers had already existed in the past. However, for the propagation
of the Dharma, there is another kind of teacher who translates sutras for the
dissemination of Buddhism to different countries and cultures. Also, there is another type of master which is
the master of dhārāni who practices mantras to convert people. This type of
teacher also leads certain people to practice Buddhism.
The above mentioned
are considered those who inherit, practice and propagate the Orthodox Dharma. Apart
from these teachers, there is another class of monk called "managers"
who are responsible for the management of the sangha. After the enlightenment of the Buddha and the propagation
of the Dharma, the monastic disciples grew in numbers gradually and formed the
sangha which was responsible for the dissemination of the Dharma. As the monastics form the sangha, many things were to be done and some of them were
responsible for serving, for example: the abbot of the Chinese temples,
supervisors, 僧值, those in the reception and those who manage
the Buddhist Association etc. These monks who are responsible for the affairs
of the sangha were called "managers" in ancient India. In the past, it
was not easy to be an administrator. In
addition to the basic knowledge of Buddhism, they must have enough practice and
enthusiasm to protect the Order, too. In this way, when they work, their
behavior will agree with Dharma. In
China, the administrators of the Zen tradition are those selected from the
meditation halls and who agree with this principle. If one does not practice
the Buddhadharma, and only considers the administration of the temples, the
organization of the activities and social contacts with priority, this is will
certainly produce chaos and cause the decline of sangha. The decline of Chinese
sangha in modern time is due to this reason.
Apart from these
categories, there are two other classes of monks subordinated to Buddhism and
teach the mankind, which are the esoteric and the artistic. The esoteric goes through practices (there
are some that pretended) for example the Jigong in the old time and the Jīnshān
Huofo in the modern time. Their behaviors were lunatic and their lifestyle was
totally abnormal, but they could predict the future, cure diseases and do
amazing things. This kind of teacher
teaches the humanity in an esoteric way. We can also find their existence in Tibetan
Buddhism where they are called “the crazy lamas". These people exert great influences on people
and on Buddhism, but they cannot be genuine. So, they do not assume the
responsibility of spreading the True Dharma and running the temples. If the esoterics become the center for the
development of Buddhism, then superstition will prevail and the whole Buddhism
will lose its honesty and purity which will lead to more and more
misunderstanding of the society towards Buddhism. With regard to the artistics,
they are those who become popular for their talents and skills. They are
excellent painters and poets, they also know music or write good calligraphy or
have good writings (which is called "literature and art”), who socialize
with writers and the upper class, and occupy a prominent position in the society
and also influence Buddhism. The famous Buddhist poets could have belonged to
this class, but they are never considered seriously by the legitimate Buddhism.
The monks that
influence or propel the propagation of Buddhism are grouped into the above
mentioned categories. Since you are here to practice, you will also have to
propagate the Dharma in the future. But in which of these groups are you going
to manifest for the propagation of the Dharma? In my opinion, any of these
classes would do. Either contributing to
the Dharma and becoming an administrator, or propagating the Tripitakas, or illustrating
the profound meanings of the Dharma by using mundane examples and in simple
language or just practicing alone. The only thing I wouldn't like to see is if you
opt for being an esoteric or artistic teacher.
Furthermore, the
most important thing is you must make vows, great vows. You should be strong and have perseverance. You should not give up in times of
difficulties and self-degrade. Before, Ven. Taixu lamented: traditional Buddhism is too conservative and
does not dare to make changes, but those who have received a new Buddhist
education and lived in the institutes for a couple of years are so arrogant and
do not like anything other than founding schools and publishing magazines and
they ended up in having nowhere to go. Therefore, many of them lose their
initiatives and self-degraded which is not correct. Therefore, when we practice, we must have the
determination to benefit all sentient beings and not to think for oneself. At
the same time, you should understand the current situation in Buddhism and try
to do whatever you can. You should make great vows regardless of the
achievements. If you make real efforts, you
will surely achieve what you want in the end.
In addition, now I
would like to talk about what you can learn in this place. As regarding to my
attitude of teaching, I have always respected freedom. The year before last
year, "the collection of
contemporary comments" written by Ven. Xiuming was published in Hong
Kong. I announced in the Foreword:
"I give freedom to those who wish to learn and do not force others to
follow my steps." This attitude has always been consistent and is not just
to draw the attention of the general public. Because, I feel the Buddhism I
know and teach is not perfect and ideal. Therefore, I never have the intention of
making everybody to follow my steps. The intellect, interest and thought of
each person are different and they cannot be forced. As long as you learn
Buddhism, why should you be identical as me? You do not only have your total
freedom in this respect, but also, the current lifestyle is very relaxed, too.
I do not set complicated rules for you. You
just need to obey a basic principle. This principle is: do not leave without
any important reason, do not to go to another dormitory for chatting, do not gossip
too much, you must study seriously, and listen to the class with attention. With respect to the preference of the type of
sutra, there is a reasonable and careful stipulation: this stipulation is not
to be limited to a certain tradition or to a particular school. Some people
consider me as scholar of the three treaties (三論學者), however this is not true, and I dare not see myself
in this way. Master Taixu said the following to the people: "I am not a
descendant or a student of a particular tradition or school." We do not have
the wisdom and the merits of the great teacher, but I am willing to learn from
him non-sectarianism. The year before last year, Ven. Fafang died and I expressed
at his funeral in HongKong: "All the students of the Great Master learn from
him his vast knowledge, and Ven. Fafang is even closer.” I went to the Buddhist
academy in Wuchang in 1934 to study the three treaties. It is for this reason everyone calls me the scholar of the three treaties. My thoughts are closer to Madhyamaka, but what
I study is not limited to a specific school or tradition. Especially when I lead
you in your studies and practice, it has never occurred to me to control you
thoughts and that you should be the same as me. The sutras that I have selected
to study during these three years, which in the first year consists of more
than 300 fascicles. This includes the
sutras, the vinayas and śastras, and the different texts that represent
Mahayana, Theravada, Madhyamaka and Yogâcāra which were translated from India.
In the second year of the study, on the one hand, we will still study the texts
transmitted from India and while on the other hand, we will expand to the works
of the Chinese patriarchs. In the third year, the study will extend to the
works of the different schools in Siam, Japan and Tibet. With respect to the
classes, I would like to provide you with
the main points of the sutras and śastras of the three Mahayana systems, for example: Laṅkâvatāra-sūtra,
Dasheng qixin lun (as Awakening of Mahayana Faith), the Middle Way and
Yogacara, and also, I am planning to talk a little bit about the three
disciplines: the compassionate behavior, meditation and wisdom. In brief, Buddhism is one but with different
facets. At the beginning of the learning, you must have extensive knowledge to
be able to choose a method of practice and deepen according to your preference,
be it Madhyamaka, Yogacara, Tientai or Xianshou. But in this present stage, you
must learn from various angles so that you would not become sectarian in the
future. Each
of the Buddhist traditions and schools has its own advantage and one can complement
another. For example some of the traditions and schools in China can merge as
one and their margins are not very strict. Consequently, you should not hold to sectarianism.
Buddhism is a single one. It is owing to
the different intellect and character of the people that it was adapted to the different
methods. When
we practice Buddhism, first of all, we must “vow to learn the infinite methods
of Dharma”, until finally we deepen in a single one depending on the intellect of
each person.
Among the
different Buddhist traditions and schools, there are the explicit and implicit teachings,
which are classified by the different standpoint of each school. For example,
in India, Madhyamaka considered Yogacara implicit, and Yogacara considered Madhyamaka
limited. The classification of the teachings made by the different traditions was
like that. Each school has its own
classification, Tientai has its own, Xianshou also has its own. All the schools
considered themselves as explicit, absolute and perfect and looked upon others
as implicit, limited and incomplete. The distinction between the explicit and the
implicit is due to the different viewpoints of the scholars; it could also be
for the intellect of the people. It does
mean that by judging a certain school implicit and limited can defeat or deny
it with hostility. This only implies:
the Buddhism taught and explained by some school is not good enough and is just
limited for some people. Such is the
case of Madhyamaka and Yogacara, who have been reproaching each other as implicit and limited
for thousands of years. However, Madhyamaka still remains Madhyamaka, Yogacara still
remains Yogacara. Madhyamaka was not defeated by Yogacara for considering it
implicit; nor was Yogacara denied by Madhyamaka by naming it limited. This is
the historical evidence presented before our eyes. When the traditional Chinese
Buddhism considers Madhyamaka or Yogacara implicit, nothing would happen. But
when Madhyamaka and Yogacara comment on traditional Buddhist sutras as implicit
(eg Yogacara thinks that the three vehicles are the ultimate truth, while the
only vehicle mentioned in the Lotus Sutra
is implicit. This was the case of
Xuanzang ‘s disciple─ ─ Kuiji who
says Daśabhūmikasūtra-sastra schools in China are "the other alternatives
for this place"), this would surely bring big surprises! In fact, such
impression is owing to ignorance. My preference was considered implicit because
that was the interpretation of a certain group of people. You may say: their intellect is different
from mine, so their viewpoints do not agree with me. Under no circumstance, am I defeated by them
for being considered implicit. Coming up
to this understanding, not only should we learn all the schools of Buddhism,
but also must we understand all the religious philosophies and doctrines from India
and China. Therefore, I advocate the freedom to learn and do not limit your interest
and the correct thought of Buddhism to any person. But for the time being, you still
do not have enough ability to discern between what is explicit and what is
implicit. So, you must obtain this knowledge from the assigned subjects little
by little in order to make correct judgments and choice. Each school has its own
complete doctrine and the way of practice. The judgments are made according to
these terms, and cannot be argued without foundation. Victory and defeat of the arguments is due to
the art of speaking. The truth is clarified through arguments. A Buddhist practitioner can carry forward the
integrity of Buddhism by challenging and discussing the schools that he
considers absolute and explicit. Those that practice and study Buddhism have
different inclinations and thoughts, which is the reason why one cannot agree
with another completely. For example, although Ven. Taixu promoted equality of schools,
however he also had his own mentality. Therefore, if you study the sutras
according to what I assign to you, you will eventually have an extensive
knowledge and integral view of Buddhism. Then you may teach, study and
propagate the doctrine of the school that you think explicit or best for the modern
time based on your understanding. We should be clear in mind not to be sectarian
and obliterate others, since this will destroy the integrity of Buddhism and abandon
its immensity. I am completely respectful to your freedom of thinking. I hope
you can understand it.
Finally, I would like to talk about this specific
point: generally, when you read and study, your will have your reflections or
feelings, and sometimes you need to write them down. I do not know and have no
right to interfere in the type of articles you had written in the past, and in which
journals they had been published. But from now onwards, if you are going to
write, you must take into account: 1) please do not make your own propaganda
and, 2) when you write reviews, please do not you omit your name. You must have
the responsibility for what you say. If you have any suggestion for
contemporary Buddhism, you should only discuss the topic and not the person. The worst of all is to omit your name, and to
write things abusively and severely to defeat another. Since you are insulting
someone without the courage to face the challenge, this is the least ambitious. Among the
students, if there is someone who writes to insult, then your character is not
suitable for the discipline of the place. I wonder if you have written these
types of articles before, if so, you should correct yourself, if not, then, you
should not write anything. A Buddhist should be liberal and tolerant. He should not act as ordinary people who fights,
becomes jealous and seeks revenge. This is the behavior of the asuras not that
of the buddhists. You should know: it is
easy to criticize others but hard to self- accomplish. Usually one is not aware of their own
shortcomings and searches the defects of another person to attack and criticize
thinking that their advantages would be revealed in this way. However they do
not know that to defeat other is not equal to your own success. Therefore, the
sutras discuss the topic of "destroying the malignant in order to show the
good". There are people who think if the evil is not destroyed, how will the
good be revealed? There are people who refute by saying: "your own success
does not come by defeating others." Taking the examples of the worldly phenomena,
we will find that any existence is due to their integrity and consolidation. If they are destroyed, then it must be due to
their own shortcomings. The existence and the decline of the Buddhist traditions
and schools happen in the same way as the things in the world. The decline of a
school or a tradition is not because its doctrine but because of the defects of
the people who propagate it. If this had not been the case, there would not be
any problem. Although it is temporarily dominated, it will still develop even
faster. Therefore, even each of the schools has different position or viewpoints,
they should not attack and humiliate verbally and reciprocally. Instead, they should reflect and expand their
horizons. Those who write from now onwards should write positively and stop making
destructive criticisms.
