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Masters from Wan Fo Chan Monastery, Dharma brothers and sisters from Qinhuangdao City
Good afternoon!
Today, we have come together here, in this monastery.
I would like to make a brief speech, due to limited time.
and to share with you not very much but only three points.
This afternoon, we are going to hold a Life-liberation ceremony here;
we will release birds, fish, and various other kinds of animals.
I think when you chant the Life-liberation Prayer,
you should express, from the bottom of your heart great compassion for those animals.
I have noticed that people in the coastal cities
have accumulated heavy negative karma. Just before I came here from Beijing,
a friend of mine told me that it would be a really nice trip to go to Qinhuangdao,
because the seafood there is fantastic, especially the crab.
He is one of my worldly friends who doesn’t have much faith in Buddhism.
He talked to me in this way. And I told him that I’m a vegetarian,
then he said: “I forgot, Sorry!”
So from this talk, plainly,
we can see that people in coastal cities have accumulated heavy negative karma.
Including the Dharma brothers and sisters seated here today,
when you recall your whole life,
you will remember many bloody stories
of killing animals
in order to satiate our appetite by sacrificing other being’s life.
so as a Mahayana Buddhist,
you must have a heart full of compassion and justice,
and also a kind heart, to save all those miserable lives.
This is our responsibility.
which makes our gathering here today to save lives a great lot of significance.
As we all know, life-liberation can dispel sicknesses and disasters.
It can also enhance your health condition, and improve the world peace at large;
at the same time, it is able to gain us better rebirth or even ultimate enlightenment.
Thus I believe that life-release is really very significant.
Many of you here, are practitioners of Pure Land Buddhism.
I hope that you can refrain from using impure practices as an excuse for abandoning other Buddhist approaches
or for slandering Tibetan Buddhism or any other Buddhist lineages.
We know that Buddhism is flexible and harmonious. Any different kinds of approaches are teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha.
Only those who insist on practicing virtues and keep accumulating merits, will be able to attain the ultimate enlightenment.
I remember that the prestigious master Hanshan from the Chinese Buddhism
also had said:
“Life-release, together with Pure Land practice thousands of people practice this, thousands will be enlightened”
We should keep his words in mind,
by performing animal liberation together with Pure Land practice we will be able to have full confidence in achieving liberation or enlightenment;
in contrast, if we advocate only our own tradition, while rejecting other profound Buddhist lineages
this will not only obstruct our path to liberation, but may also cause us to fall into the three unfortunate realms.
So for the sake of liberation,
for the sake of ourselves, and for all other living beings to achieve the perfect Buddhahood,
we should work hard and practice the profound and pure Dharma together.
This is the first point
of I want to make today, which related to life-release.
Among all the philosophies we pursue, Buddhism is the most profound and supreme one.
Why? Because among all the philosophies in world,
the wisdom and the great compassion of Buddha is supreme.
Any secular scholars’ philosophy
is incomparable with it.
As I remember, for this reason, in Agama Sutra,
it is said “of all the brightness, sunlight is the greatest, of the whole world, Buddha is the greatest”.
That is to say of all the brightness
the sunlight is the most extraordinary, the most supreme.
Similarly
among the countless philosophies or theories,
the thoughts and the wisdom of Buddha are unsurpassable.
They are incomparable with other philosophies.
So we should all understand the supremacy of Buddhism -
after studying Buddhism we would be able to attain the joy from heart.
As I mentioned just now, in the secular world,
all joys and happiness are also attained by relying on the wisdom of Buddha.
If Buddha had not preached Dharma in the past,
all of us would still be drowning in the endless darkness of ignorance (avidya).
For this reason
Buddha said in Mahayana Sutras:
“All the Buddhas and bodhisattvas appear in this world for the sake of revealing pure wisdom to sentient beings, and leading them to abide in eternal happiness.”
in the same word, the purpose for which all the Buddha and Bodhisattvas
have come to this world
in order to
reveal pure wisdom to the poor deluded sentient beings.
with that wisdom,
after which we will see the truth of all realities,
all the sufferings of samsara, and realize the benefit of liberation.
By learning the truth,
we can enjoy happiness in this lifetime and in future lives as well.
I believe that all of you here,
want to achieve liberation and to search for the path of happiness.
But very often you can’t find the real source of happiness,
instead, spending your time rushing around, toiling all day long, but achieving very little.
Eventually we become very disappointed with ourselves. Many of us live like this.
So for us, only through the wisdom of Buddhism
can we find real peace and joy from the heart.
It’s the only way that we can eventually help both ourselves and others to attain enlightenment.
This is the second point I want to mention today.
Briefly speaking, the source of our happiness is the wisdom of Buddha.
Through our efforts, in seeking the great compassion and wisdom of Buddha
only in this way, we will be able to obtain the supreme power.
This is to conclude the second point of my talk today.
Only by performing virtuous actions
can the whole world be embraced in brightness and joy,
and we ourselves, be embraced in happiness.
As I remember, for this reason in the Buddhism Sutras
it is said: “when practicing virtues, with ten virtuous activities, even though you are only one person, millions of Dharma protectors will be around.”
For those who practice virtues, even though they are alone,
millions of Dharma protectors and heavenly gods
will protect them all the time.
We often see that one who practices virtues,
sometimes surpasses far beyond other people in influence. Why?
Because the Dharma protectors and all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas bestow blessings on him.
People can also see his altruistic mind.
With altruism,
we will shine lights on this secular world that we are in.
This is important.
So all of you seated here should learn Buddhadharma.
If not, Buddhism is just a mere form
and all the believers are just following a set of formalizations.
So in the monastery, you must spend time on studying, contemplating, and practicing the Dharma.
as well as on preaching the sutras and teach all the sentient beings by revealing the wisdom of Buddha.
Dharma brothers and sisters here, you shall not just scratch the surface
but to genuinely practice Buddhism frequently. The theory-learning must be combined with practice,
which should be put on the first agenda above all. Based on this,
we need to release lives, chant sutras, practice meditation and do your best to benefit other living beings.
These are the most important thing that we Mahayana practitioners should do.
So today, in this ancient monastery, I would like to
tell you these three points.
I hope that the faithful can engrave them deep into their mind.
I also hope that those brief words can change the sufferings of many people,
and help them to step onto the path of liberation.
this is all for today. Next, I will
give you the transmission of some mantras and prayers.
Today, the main purpose of you all coming here is not to meet me but to recite mantras.
Mantras go first. Which mantras?
We will release life today. I heard that
tens of thousands birds will be set free today as well as fish.
I feel really pleased to see so many lay Buddhists and Dharma friends gathering here in Beijing for this virtuous action.
It doesn’t matter whether you are Buddhist
or you don’t have much faith in Buddhism,
to have a kind heart is the fundamental principle of being a human.
Few people perform virtues after all in the modern world today,
the morals and ethics in this society continue to decline.
Although, as a matter of fact, that
the external material circumstances are very developed,
confusion and anxiety are increasing inside of us.
So at this moment we shall
do something beneficial to other living beings as well as to ourselves.
I think all of us seated here today,
feel enthusiastic and happy to join this life-releasing activity.
Due to the limit of time,
I will shorten my speech and only highlight some points.
First of all , the core value of a meaningful life is to benefit other living beings, and this is also the essence of Mahayana Buddhism.
In the book it says:
“To benefit others is the utmost supreme thing above all.”
We shall remember this. The first thing I want to mention today is
“To benefit others is the utmost supreme thing above all.”
In another word,
all our worldly activities have no significant meanings;
except to benefit others,
which presents the supreme value of our lives in this world.
This is also something about which the Buddhas feel most pleased.
As it also says in the Flower Adornment Sutra “Whoever pleases sentient beings will please all the Buddhas.”
If we can make sentient beings happy
our merits will increase naturally.
Therefore my first wish today is that all of you seated here
should, in your daily lives
to exert yourself to do something meaningful for other sentient beings
This is the first point I want to make today.
Secondly, nothing is more precious than life in the world.
All of us are willing to sacrifice all wealth, status, or fame
when our life is being threatened.
in order to protect our most precious life.
Yet, it’s not only human beings realize the preciousness of life
all other living beings do, equally,
consider their lives as precious as well.
so for us To protect the lives of all living beings
we must
do our best in performing
life-release. Because in our life, this is of great significance.
The Brahmajala Sutra also says
”Out of compassion, one performs the practice of life-release,
for all the male sentient beings have been our fathers, and all female our mothers, throughout the eons of time.”
---All sentient beings have been our fathers and mothers;
if we perform life-release with compassion, the merit is vast.
In Chinese Buddhism, Master Lianchi, Master Hanshan, Master Yinguang
and many other great masters all of them had advocated animal release a lot.
In Tibetan Buddhism,
the omniscient Longchenpa, Lama Tsongkhapa,
the omniscient Mipham Rinpoche His Holiness Jigme Phuntsok,
and many other great masters also put a lot of energy and efforts into releasing animals,
and they rescued a countless number of lives.
So if Dharma brothers and sisters here in Beijing
can often join animal release activities, on a regular basis or not,
it would be very meaningful and contributory.
Even if you release one fish or one bird in a month or a year,
this virtue is incredible.
I have composed
the lyrics for a song called “Song of Life-saving ”
which has also been published on the internet.
The song means that when many birds are released back to the embrace of nature mother,
even the heavenly beings and the heavenly kings will be touched;
when fish are released back to the water,
the Dragon King will be touched;
and when sheep and cattle in Tibet are set free back into the meadow,
many Lords of the land will also be touched.
That is the main meaning of the song.
These are also
the feelings I’ve experienced in life-releasing activities.
Indeed by freeing these lives,
not only do they enjoy the happiness but also bring the entire world benefits.
What has been highlighted today is the need to build a harmonious world.
In order to truly build a harmonious world,
we need to harmonize our relationships with other human beings,
and with nature,\ as well as with animals.
Only by doing that can we build real harmony.
So the second point I want to mention today is that Life is the most precious,
and that we need to protect all living beings.
If possible,
even there is only one fish or bird, we should try to set it free.
I mean that
life is precious.
This is the second point .
The third point is
I hope you will keep this in mind.
Why would I say this?
I’ve been learning Buddhadharma for many years. As you might have heard,
most people in Tibet have believed in Buddhism since childhood.
I have studied Buddhism for almost thirty years.
Your situations might be different.
Generally speaking, the joy and happiness of people today
relies downrightly on the external circumstances
such as your house, family,\ status or wealth.
To gain real happiness from the external circumstances is pretty hard indeed.
But if one has inner peace and can therefore keep a peaceful mind after seeing through all the worldly things,
the real happiness will then be obtained.
I therefore hope that you will be content
with basic material living conditions
and will not be lavish,
nor pursue luxury living.
Today,
many unpleasant things are increasing, and they overflow into the society,
but many Buddhists have found
peace, happiness, and freedom from within.
Most of you seated here today
are buddhists who really study Mahayana Buddhadharma.
I have noticed that
you have been learning some especially profound Mahayana teachings such as ‘The Way of the Bodhisattva (Bodhicharyavatara)’,
‘The Words of My Perfect Teacher’, and ‘The Great Exposition of the Stages of the Path’.
In the process of learning,
you need to continuously absorb knowledge, and never stop learning,
because learning Buddhadharma is not as simple as learning secular philosophies.
You have to work very hard. Through hard-practicing
the happiness and satisfaction you gain from the wisdom of Buddhism
will far exceed the excitement of your sensory organs, or of obtaining material benefits.
Why do I say this?
Because external things are usually difficult to obtain.
Even if you successfully obtain them,
the external things will be exhausted easily, and soon vanish from your life.
On the other hand, the experiences you gain from practicing Buddhism will remain within you.
Why does the number of the suicide rate grow straight upward nowadays especially in big cities?
According to a published report of statistics,
there are two hundred thousand suicides due to mental problems each year in China.
In Higher Educational Institutions,
the suicide rate
is particularly high.
conversely, in Tibetan areas where around 99% of the population believe in Buddhism,
due to this belief,
you can hardly hear anyone commit suicide for problems in relationships,
or kill oneself by jumping off a building just because of failure in business.
Phenomena as such will never happen in Tibet
The reason of this difference is that the spirit of Tibetan Buddhism
indeed brings incomparable peace and happiness to human beings.
That is why so many people today are greatly interested
in the Tibetan Lamas in Dharma Masters,
as well as the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism.
They are not blind,
nor like the fans nowadays chasing after celebrities.
It’s probably that
through observation, with their own wisdom,
they understand what can really make their life more positive, perfect and happier.
This is the reason.
So my third point today is to share with all of you here
that we should not entrust our happiness to external circumstances,
which is pretty hard to achieve.
This is my own understanding, after studying Buddhadharma for many years, and that I want to share with you.
If you can find even a little time and energy
you should spend it on learning Buddhism, practicing meditations, doing mantra-recitation, or reading books,
especially on learning about Buddhism.
As I have always insisted, among the Buddhist study groups,
that listening, contemplating, and meditating on Dharma should always be our first priority. Other activities of
ritual ceremonies, or the superficial ones,
should be treated as subordinate. So for the Dharma friends here from Beijing,
the only thing I hope is that everyone focuses on learning the Dharma.
The better you learn,
the greater the gain you will have at the end of the day.
whatever the level of your learning is,
it doesn’t have anything to do with me personally,
but it is certainly has a lot to do with your own benefits.
When comparing the empathy and behavior towards others,
or the attitude to life, there are huge differences between those who learn Buddhism and those who do not.
Therefore the main reason for learning Mahayana Buddhism is to benefit all the living beings.
Due to the limit of time today,
it is not convenient to talk more.
If you really have the confidence and interest,
you can study through the Internet watching DVDs, or reading books.
You can also exchange your ideas with others.
Some of you here today are not for my talking,
but just out of curiosity.
Some of you, however, who have been following my teachings on a long-term basis,
are taking this opportunity to meet me,
as I have heard.
Anyway, it is not that important to meet with each other,
or to shake hands, or to take photos;
the most important is to carry the teachings of Buddhism in your heart.
This should be the most important thing to do in your life.
If you have indeed absorbed the Tibetan Buddhism teachings and the doctrines of Buddhism into your heart,
then you will be able to cope easily with anything that happens in your life.
even with facing death.
Otherwise no matter how great the superficial things that you acquire might be, they are of little significance.
Today I’m also very happy to join you in this life-release activity.
I have also given this brief speech,
which can be perfectly summarized into three points.
Next
I will give you the transmission of some mantras and Buddha names.
I will also give you blessings with mantra-recitation.
One by one, the little birds return to the blue sky, their joyful songs fill the sky and the space.
Moved by this, Indra rains down joy and happiness, making mountains and rivers bathed in serenity and peace.
One by one, the little fish return to the sea, their dances of freedom rock the sea.
Moved by this, the naga king sprinkles nectar, making flowers, grasses, and trees grow with joy.
OM MANI PAD ME HUM.
People standing at the crossing where are you going?
One path is leading to endless darkness the other to bright blessings and happiness.
Please join me in singing: OM MANI PAD ME HUM
Let out the love in your heart to hug the blue sky and vast earth.
OM MANI PAD ME HUM.
One by one, the flocks of sheep and cattle return to the meadows, silhouettes of peace decorate the land of snows.
Moved by this, the Dharma Protector bestowed the happiness, bringing white clouds to float above green grassland and life to flourish.
OM MANI PAD ME HUM
People standing at the crossing, where are you going?
One path is leading to endless darkness, while the other to bright blessings and happiness.
Please join me in singing: OM MANI PADME HUM
Let out the love in your heart to hug the blue sky and vast earth.
People standing at the crossing where are you going?
One path is leading to endless darkness while the other to bright blessings and happiness.
Please join me in singing OM MANI PADME HUM
Let out the love in your heart to hug the blue sky and vast earth.
OM MANI PADME HUM...