Hello, everyone. Welcome to this episode of the podcast provided by the Buddhas’ Practice Incorporated of Australia.
In our last session, we discussed the departure of the five thousand arrogant practitioners. The Buddha, however, commented that only the true believers with deep roots remained in the assembly.
Then, the Buddha told Shariputra, “Listen carefully, and I will expound this wonderful Dharma for you. All Buddhas only teach this Dharma after a very long time, just as the udumbara flower blooms only once in a great while.” These words clearly emphasize the rarity and preciousness of the Lotus Sutra.
1. The One Great Purpose for a Buddha’s Appearance
The Buddha then revealed the core message of the entire Lotus Sutra: All Buddhas appear in the world for one great purpose alone.
What is this “one great purpose”? The Buddha explained it on four levels:
- To enable sentient beings to open their Buddha-wisdom and insight. A Buddha appears in the world to help sentient beings awaken their inherent Buddha-wisdom and insight, sharing the true Dharma he has seen and known.
- To demonstrate the Buddha-wisdom and insight to sentient beings. A Buddha not only speaks of his wisdom but also manifests it to all beings.
- To enable sentient beings to awaken to the Buddha-wisdom and insight. A Buddha’s purpose is to help sentient beings personally understand and awaken to what the Buddha knows and sees.
- To enable sentient beings to enter the path of the Buddha-wisdom and insight. Ultimately, the Buddha hopes that sentient beings will also enter his realm of wisdom and insight and eventually attain Buddhahood.
These four steps—”opening, demonstrating, awakening, and entering”—eloquently summarize the single purpose for which all Buddhas appear in the world: to enable sentient beings to truly leave suffering behind, attain happiness, and achieve the supreme joy of Buddhahood.
2. Three Expedient Vehicles, One Buddha Vehicle
The Buddha emphasized that all Buddhas exclusively teach the one Buddha vehicle. He reiterated that there is no other vehicle, neither a second nor a third. The Buddhas of the three periods of time all use immeasurable skillful means and various metaphors to teach the Dharma, but these teachings ultimately serve to guide sentient beings back to the one Buddha vehicle, so they may finally attain all-knowing wisdom.
3. The Origin of the Lotus Sutra
Through verses, the Buddha described the subtle nature of sentient beings’ afflictions: our attachment to the five desires is as foolish as a yak’s attachment to its tail, which would rather die than let go. We are blinded by greed, unable to see the harm, and this is the root of all suffering.
The Buddha also recalled his own initial hesitation after his enlightenment. He thought that if he only taught the one Buddha vehicle, sentient beings would not believe it and would fall into evil paths. Fortunately, he remembered the expedient means of past Buddhas and, comforted by the Buddhas of the ten directions, decided to first teach the three vehicles before finally returning to the one Buddha vehicle. This is the very origin of the Lotus Sutra.
4. Planting Good Seeds, Attaining Buddhahood
The Buddha listed many seemingly small acts of merit that all plant the seeds of Buddhahood.
For example: anyone who listens to the Dharma, practices giving, upholding the precepts, forbearance, or diligence; anyone who makes offerings to the Buddha’s relics, or builds stupas or Buddha images, even a child who builds a stupa out of sand, will ultimately attain Buddhahood. Even a distracted person who recites “Namo Buddha” just once has planted a seed for Buddhahood.
These seemingly small good deeds can help sentient beings gradually accumulate merit, perfect great compassion, and eventually achieve the Buddha-path. This is because the seed of Buddhahood arises from conditions, and any good condition can become a seed for enlightenment.
Conclusion: The One-Vehicle Dharma and True Reality
The Lotus Sutra clarifies the ultimate truth of the one-vehicle Dharma. The one-vehicle Dharma is the complete path to Buddhahood, encompassing all Dharma doors. It is the comprehensive term for all the teachings the Buddha expounded, including the paths of the Voice-Hearer, the Pratyekabuddha, and the Bodhisattva. It also includes all worldly knowledge and skills, because to become a Buddha is to be fully complete in all things.
There are no detours on the Buddha-path. The Buddha teaches the appropriate Dharma for beings of different capacities, and every part of his teaching, from beginning to end, is perfect. No sutra is a “detour”; all Buddhist teachings are skillful means leading to Buddhahood.
To become a Buddha is to be complete in all aspects. If there is even one thing a Buddha does not understand, he cannot be called a Buddha. Therefore, the idea of “mastering one Dharma means mastering all Dharmas” or clinging to one Dharma door while looking down upon others is not the Buddha’s complete teaching.
The true meaning of ultimate reality includes more than just the inherent nature of all phenomena. It encompasses the complete meaning of their “substance, form, function” and their cause and effect. As the sutra states: “All phenomena have such a form, such a nature, such a substance, such a power, such a function, such a cause, such a condition, such an effect, such a retribution, and such an ultimate equality.” It includes both emptiness and its wondrous arising from conditions, making it a comprehensive and ultimate truth.
Thank you for listening.
