–“Buddha was born to have the independent authority to prove the universe. Bodhisattvas have the authority to prove beings that in levels of training.″

II. Virtue

Thursday, November 2, 20171:41 PM(View: 11397)
II. Virtue

“To attain the sacred wisdom and completely clear hearing, seeing, and knowing, the true Buddhist followers should have sincere confidence in my teaching, charity, generosity, joy and equanimity (grandmotherly love). That way they could recognize Me.

By continuing to exhibit their ego and pride, while believing they are always right, they are not capable of receiving the teaching. Since they display criticism and doubt, they remain in the incessantly changing though they have been trained for thousands of lives." –TV

Self - Enlightenment Sutra 

                                      

II. Virtue

One day, at the Central Assembly, in the wooden loft of number 42, Hong Bang Street, Nha Trang, the Supreme Pure King incarnating the Maitreya had entered into right concentration, thoroughly observing all groups of living creatures who are wrongly practicing. He had solemnly buttoned the collar of his white blouse, burned seven incense sticks at the main hall, sat down and began His teaching seriously as follows:

“In the first stage, the faithful believer attains his stained merits through offerings such as incenses, fruits, flowers and admiration. These merits create blessed rewards of men and devas.  It takes approximately 100 lives of offering and admiration to transfer into the second stage of the training path, but the follower is not yet able to hear the doctrine.

In the second stage, the believer makes up his mind to make offerings such as building pagodas and stupas for the Sangha to practice. He himself practices dharma, worships, respectfully builds the integrity, carries out benevolent deeds, and prays to be attested by the Buddha’s Three Dharma Elements. It takes 100 lives for these merits of offering, yet the believer is still unable to hear the doctrine.

In the third stage, the faithful believer also uses his merits to offer to the Buddhas’ Three Dharma Elements, which also it takes 100 lives. Thus, the faithful believer has to practice more than 300 lives to fulfill his stained merits and step toward the stainless merits. The stained merit stage can be prolonged if the practitioner is tardy and stingy in his character, not openhearted, and practicing only for the sake of it.” –TV

If the stained merits are not yet fulfilled, the stainless ones will never bring results. The fulfilled stained merits naturally transform the practice path into stainless merits with a strong foundation. The believer will then be helped and guided by the Devas, Dragon Deity Dharma Protector, and Land Deity to meet the bodhisattvas, the venerables, and the dharma protectors in order to practice for the liberation through wisdom.

Therefore, many disciples do not like to listen to the doctrine on their way to liberation because they do not have enough necessary merits to practice in order to advance to a higher level. They prefer only to recite the sutra, being a vegetarian and admiring the Buddha’s forms. If they had listened to the doctrine, they could have easily fallen asleep, feeling tired, or something happened and obstructed that did not allow them to hear. It is even more difficult to listen to the enlightened ones.

When a man builds a house, the first thing to do is to build a strong foundation. The higher the house, the heavier it will be. Therefore, the foundation must be correspondingly strong to sustain the house for a long time. If the foundation is not firm enough, the house will eventually collapse. The disciple, wishing for liberation through wisdom and complete enlightenment, has to fulfill his stained merits to receive stainless merits.  Depending on the level or amount of accumulated virtue, he will fairly receive the precious dharma from the awakened ones equally and appropriately.

Suppose a man fills up his glass with the falling rain. If he continues to add water, it will overflow and spread on the ground. It is useless to continue catching it. Even if he uses a bowl or a jar... it will be filled one after another. The Awakened One, with his deep knowledge of equal nature and wisdom, blesses and guides each disciple accordingly. Buddhas should apply the same principle.

You must be joyful while creating merits even if someone denigrates or blames you. You must be joyful and detached in order to have virtue. Merits without joyful detachment will lead, at most, to the reception of the result of your deeds . . .

Joyful Detachment is Virtue

Passing the three above stages, the believer has formed his Bodhisattva conduct that is ‘generosity towards others’ (Dana), ‘avoid even the smallest bad thing, do even the smallest good thing’ (Sila), diligence, patience, wisdom, and meditation. These are the Six Paramitas. He also practices his ‘confidence-conduct-vow’ through compassion, will, courage, and ‘moral-meditation-wisdom’ (Sila-Samadhi-Panna). The practice of dharma by reason and act, included in the abilities and merits, is offered to the perfection wisdom. The disciple has to overcome every obstacle as his bodhisattva vow. After attaining emptiness, he has a solid cuirass to deeply penetrate into the dharma dhatu and gain the ‘Prajana Mind’.

Gaining the ‘Prajna Mind’, his stained merits naturally become offered stainless merits. That means the offering to Tathagata leads to the full attainment to the Bodhisattva realm.

He had stopped his teaching, taking a sip of tea and then continuing:

“If the disciple forms his virtue, but does not listen much or does not want to listen to the doctrine at all, he will only receive the blessed reward from men and devas, but will not attain the liberation through wisdom.

If the disciple is faithful to the Buddha, often studies scripture and sutras, listens to the doctrine, demolishes the hindrance of attachment, and disengages his mind, he would be fearless, self-satisfied. He does not try to create his virtue that will naturally give rise to the ego, so he will be ensnared by the big power or impurity and then becomes pompous.

If the disciple is diligent in creating his virtue, listening to the doctrine, but is deficient in meditation efforts, he will not fully attain. Why? Being deficient in meditation, he won't know the motion of the Tathagata Basket or the universe and men are only one, and are harmonious in communication. He is also doubtful about the scenes of the three realms such as hell fairy, deity... and thinks they do not exist. Being so deficient in his conditions, he will never be liberated through wisdom.

It is very dangerous if the disciple does not know the doctrine, does not create his virtue, only practices sitting meditation, and believes it to be the dharma subject of liberation. Why? In the meditation, we usually see progressing and evolving scenes, which change in accordance with our knowledge and desire. If the meditator directly accepts them and becomes firmly attached, he will easily fall in the fanaticism. It is only through enlightenment that we can get the exactitude.

The meditator's eyes and ears may see and hear the heaven’s realm, heaven music and the voices of the fairies, gods, and deities much the same way as they see and hear the television. That is only a mind created scene, which is unreal, but the disciple wrongly claims himself to be Buddha, God deity. As a result, the disciple becomes mentally unstable and miserable. The danger is boundless. This is a very valuable lecture for all, indeed.” –TV

When the Supreme Pure King was still in the world, He had taught and diffused meditation to all His true disciples. In all provinces, where true disciples of the Phap Tang Buddhism of Vietnam practice; an organization existed to establish the dharma school called ‘Provincial Association of Dharma Guard’, ‘District Association of Dharma Guard’. The Lord has attested all. He has chosen his deputies among the dharma protectors and venerables to guide the followers.

These dharma protectors and venerables are very trustworthy and showed their confidence, obedience and respect toward the Supreme Pure King. They have guided all the true disciples who always assembled to present themselves before the Lord at the Central to learn the truth and Tathagata meditation. He is serious and earnest. Thus, neither dharma protector nor venerable himself dared to distort the principle guidelines of liberation through wisdom. If they do, they will be immediately eliminated because they are in lack of the ‘Confidence-Conduct-Vow’, which is the requisition of the practice for enlightenment. Otherwise, even one hundred lives of practice would not lead to results. The practice of dharma of one’s own volition has no requisition, but it may be dangerous in meditation.

The meditator essentially needs an awakened one. Otherwise, he is just like an idiot who cooks the stones in hopes of getting the rice. This is immeasurably disastrous. The Lord guides the faithful disciples based on their merits and knowledge, to the liberation through wisdom. None are allowed to practice psychic powers.

One day, the monk, named Quan in Nha Trang, came to visit the Supreme Pure King at His hermitage. As they lay side by side, the monk asked Him: “Would you please teach me the meditation.” “I will teach you”, replied the Lord, “I will teach you, if you have the ‘Confidence-Conduct-Vow’”. The monk neither bows nor pays homage to Him. Even though he has been taught, the monk would lose his way in the future, so the Lord has kept silent.

All periods are the same, from pre-history to the advanced civilization. Lord Supreme Maitreya always strictly observes the main ideas of the Buddhas of the Ten Directions and the Three Lives in teaching His disciples.

Meditation is infinitively beneficial for the disciple who knows the truth of Buddhism well. It helps the practitioner attain the insight to see and recognize all things, situations and circumstances no matter how complicated they get in their daily life. It helps to understand and resolve everything in a correct and appropriate manner that would astonish living creatures. It is very suitable in the family, the office, the school, and all activities.

Meditation calms the disciple, gradually clearing all delusions, illusions, ignorance or the unique character so that he can be liberated through wisdom.

The Supreme of Phap Tang Buddhism of Vietnam is increasingly grateful to the Buddhas’ Three Dharma Elements, respectfully requested to thoroughly attest all their abilities and merits so that they are able to attain the result of liberation through wisdom in this period of salvation.

The Supreme Pure King Chief Monk represents the Buddhas’ Three Dharma Elements in His salvation, and returns to guide the practice all Four Vehicles: The ‘Small Vehicle’, ‘Great Vehicle’, ‘Unique Vehicle’, and ‘Supreme Vehicle’:

THE WORSHIP: Eastern Land Medicine Gem Halo Tathagata is the symbol of the present enlightenment.

THE DHARMA SYMBOL: The Phap Tang Buddhism of Vietnam Bikkhu Amitabha symbolizes the Supreme Unique Ultimate.

THE DOCTRINE: The Supreme Sakyamuni Buddha.

The disciple must have confidence, obedience, and respect toward the enlightened ones to be guided thoroughly on these three factors: virtue, doctrine, and meditation in order to attain liberation through wisdom.

First, the disciple must be diligent in regular sitting meditation, releasing attachment, correcting bad habits and character, and always joyful and detached to create virtue. This is the way to eliminate ignorance. When listening to the Awakened One preaching Buddhist doctrine or reading the sutras, the disciples must have fully the three above elements, neither emphasizing nor neglecting any of them. Regularly harmonizing, and fully communicating, then you will be liberated through wisdom and completely liberated.

The religion of the Phap Tang Buddhism of Vietnam strictly follows the main ideas of the Three Lives of Buddhas. It thoroughly explains all the sutras, including discipline, commentary, and sutra, while aiming to clarify the dharma, releasing attachment, eliminating ignorance, and ascending body, speech, and mind to liberation through wisdom.