Wondrous Dharma

January 15, 2011

Volume 1, Issue 10
©

Activities at the Wondrous Dharma is the newsletter© on the dharma events at the premise
International of the International Translation Institute, 1777 Murchison Drive, Burlingame,
Translation CA 94010 Tel. (650) 692-5912 E-mail wondrousdharma@gmail.com; website
Institutue, www wondrousdharma.org©
Burlingame ;
open to the Liao Fan would have benefited from the Vajra Sutra
public and free
of charge: Layman Liao Fan sat Liao Fan answered, just a common
face to face with Chan “Mr. Kong has clearly person.”
• Vajra (Diamond) Master Yun Gu for predicted the entire
Sutra lectures
“The merit accrued
three days and nights. outcome of my life. I
Fridays 7:45pm from doing
Chan Master said, “The have seen that the
to 8:45pm wholesome deeds
reason why common time of life, of death, of
can change destiny
Repentance/ people are unable to promotion, and failure
Buddha recitation from suffering to
become sages is are all predestined.
Saturdays 1pm to happiness, poverty to
because they have too There is no need for
2pm prosperity and a short
many discursive me to think about it or
life to longevity.
• Meditation for thoughts and false to desire anything.
beginners Conversely it alters
thoughts running That’s why I did not
Saturdays 2pm those who commit
to 3pm
through their minds. In give rise to a single evil.” The Chan
our three-day false thought.” Master is echoing the
Informal disussion meditation, I have not Chan Master laughed principle in the Vajra
on Buddhism observed the slightest
Saturdays and replied, “I thought Sutra that nothing is
3:00pm to wandering thought you were someone of fixed and “do
4:00pm from you. Why is this
remarkable skill. Now I wholesome deeds
Individual so?”
realize that you are with a pure mind.”
Highlights:

A body is not a body His first name is Cause and his last name is Effect
yet ……………. 2 Liao Fan of Ming name is Cause and his impartial, so there is
The Buddha did not dynasty managed to last name is Effect. He no need to contend or
save living beings 2
put down discursive has enabled me to fight for justice. My
thoughts for the quiet my mind. Why is friend will do the
How to empty people wrong reasons. If this so?” justification, needless
2 there is a replay of to say. I know that
“When I have a friend
the scene, here is whatever difficulties I
Meditation simplified Cause Effect working
how Chan Master faced is caused by
lesson 7 3 for me, I will be able to
Yun Gu would have myself; this is what my
quiet my mind because
Buddhism made easy been pleased. friend teaches me.”
I know that he will not
lesson 8 3 “The reason I have shortchange me so I He is my friend, my
Spontaneity, causes put down discursive always try my level guarantor, my body
conditions, karma 4
thinking is because I best. I know that guard and my knowing
have a friend. His first Cause Effect is advisor; all in one.
©
Wondrous Dharma Page 2 of 4

Interpreting the principles of the Vajra Sutra

“The Buddha did S 3 - Orthodox doctrine of S 17 - Ultimately there S 25 - Transforming
not save living the Great Vehicle is no self without there being
beings” anyone transformed
(there is no self) (there is no others)
There are 3 He is not a bodhisattva if He is not a There is really no self
sections of the he has 4 appearances bodhisattva if he has 4 that exists. This is just
Vajra Sutra where it when saving living beings. appearances when a false retribution body.
states the saving living beings. Perceive living beings
equivalent of as no living beings.
“The Buddha did Because all living
not save living beings have the
beings” But each of inherent wisdom; so
the sections of the there should not be 4
Vajra Sutra reveals appearances. There is
different principles no such thing as
as explained in this bodhi resolve in the
table. first place

Note: The 4 Not only there is no 4

appearances are appearances, there is
the mark of self, no such thing as a
others, living bodhisattva in the first
beings and a life place. Ultimately there
is no self.

The above table teaches us how to empty people

Bodhisattvas are people
who try to understand the
world and also teach
others. The thought of
saving others is difficult to
Implicitly s 25 says that
put down. S 3 teaches us
wise people perceive
to put down this
living beings as if not
attachment by saying we
living beings as
are not Bodhisattvas if we
opposed to the
don’t empty this thought.
commonly held
misperception that The Buddha reiterated
people exists. this principle in s 17
adding there is no such
thing as bodhi resolve or
awakening to the
principle of equality.
Every living being is our
equal and no living
beings are being saved
because every living
being possesses the matter of degree of
inherent wisdom in confusion within the
perfection. Buddhadharma.
S 17 also says that there S 25 says that there is no
is neither Bodhisattva self that exists because
nor the practice of this is a retribution body;
Bodhisattva because not your real self.
nothing is attained, and Likewise you perceive
therefore no one is living beings retribution
saved. Everything bodies are not their real
including the selves. Implicitly s 25
Bodhisattva and his says that wise people
practice is within the perceive living beings as
Buddhadharma. if not living beings as
Therefore you should opposed to the
put down the self commonly held
because all living beings misperception that
including Bodhisattva people exists. This is
are no different in how you put down
substance; it was a others.
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Meditation simplified – lesson 7 – the mind

The mind during alert to his presence in inhale and exhale as
sitting meditation the meditation hall; an expedient to freshen
otherwise he has to ask up and ‘reset’ his
The Chan practitioner
himself why is he sitting motivation for sitting in
should be mindful that
there and wasting his the hall.
when he sits in the
time and suffering the
meditation hall, he is There is another
discomfort of sitting
present ‘here and now’. expedient method of
there and just
That is, he should be purposefully thinking
shortchanging his own
mindful of his presence and writing down all the
self.
in the meditation hall outstanding matters Figure 1
and not let it stray Being aware of ‘here and before he sits in
elsewhere in ‘Never now’ is not a practice per meditation. This
Never Land.’ se but merely an expedient allows the
expedient for beginners practitioner to search
The practitioner should
to be mindful of his and exhaust all his
be mindful that he is
practice and to wandering and false
present in the
recognize his wandering thinking and penned it
meditation hall and not
thoughts. down just before he
ponder on matters or
sits. In doing so, he will
events pertaining to the If the practitioner still
have some measure of
past or the future. finds that he keeps on
comfort that he has
straying away from his
At all times, the thought what he needs
practice, then he should
practitioner should be to think and do prior to
slowly and deeply
his sitting.
Buddhism made easy – lesson 8
Lesson 7 introduces Literary prajna involves translating
the practice of reading and listening to understanding into
wisdom. What does the Buddhadharma to practice; a process of
the practice of understand how to turning the Dharma into
wisdom entails? practice. It also involves the Way. As it is said, Prajna wisdom is the
Prajna wisdom is the every activity that “What is spoken is the
ability to forget self
ability to forget self supports the promotion Dharma; what is
and put down and dissemination of practiced is the Way.” and put down
conditioned existence the Dharma such as From contemplation, conditioned existence
and merging with the translating, editing and we are translating our and merging with the
unmoving nature publishing and understanding of our unmoving nature
within ourselves. distribution of the true mind to within ourselves.
teachings. recognizing our true
Prajna is a Sanskrit
mind.
word which has been Contemplative prajna is
retained as it carries to self-reflect, analyze When we do finally
three meanings: and search within penetrate our
literary prajna, ourselves to turn understanding of he
contemplative prajna around the false Dharma without
and real appearance thinking mind into anything attached, then
prajna. wisdom. It is a continual we would dwell in real
self reflection and appearance prajna.
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Wondrous Dharma Page 4 of 4
Spontaneity, causes and conditions and karma
Here is a common planted in the past create a cause that binds
situation in life: “A person caused by his own you in the conditioned
suddenly becomes actions. For example, existence.
terminally ill. This this person may have in
Therefore causes and
person has lived a past lives harmed or
conditions is half of
healthy lifestyle and is a even killed another living
reality; the other half is
good natured person. being. When conditions
that there is no cause in
Yet he is now diagnosed ripen or come together at
the first place. This is the
as having a terminal the right time, he will
true meaning of the law
illness. How do we become terminally ill
of karma in that karma is
explain for this thereby having a short
created either in
situation?” life span. Therefore his
ignorance or without
exposure to the virus did
In science it is normally ignorance anymore.
not happen randomly but
the case of randomly When we have severed
a cause planted in the
being exposed to a virus; ignorance or awakened
past.
just another statistic that to our inherent Buddha
x% of the population will This is the preliminary nature then we no longer
have disease Y. Non teaching that explains create the karma that
Buddhists or atheist share that this world of binds us in conditioned
the same view that the existence is a existence. Yet we should
terminal disease was conditioned existence. not ignore conditioned
spontaneous that he was When conditions ripen, existence and cling onto
exposed to air borne, something appears but the unconditioned or
water borne or some other when the condition emptiness.
contaminations. But the expires, then this
The Buddha finally
bottom line is that it gives something will
introduces the wisdom
The Buddha finally the impression that it is disappear.
of the Buddha that this
introduces the random given that the
After introducing this teaching is level and
wisdom of the person lived a healthy
teaching on conditioned equal; without high or
Buddha that this lifestyle and never harms
existence, the Buddha low. (S23 of the Vajra Sutra)
teaching is level and anyone in this life yet he is
then also explained Conditioned existence is
equal; without high or now terminally ill. Random
unconditioned existence. treated equally as the
low. and spontaneous
(S 7 of the Vajra Sutra) He unconditioned so long as
occurrence seems to be
began to explain that you understand and take
plausible explanation for
“the Appearance of both existences for what
those who don’t
Reality is without they are. This is prajna
understand that we have
appearance.” (S 14 of the wisdom. This is true
been born and reborn for
Vajra Sutra) Every cause in emptiness.
many countless lives.
the first place has no
How do you do treat
Then the Buddha cause. The cause arose
conditioned existence for
introduces the principle of out of ignorance. When
what they are? To do so,
causes and conditions. you are awakened to
don’t grasp at
That the cause of his your inherent wisdom,
appearances and be in
terminal illness is due to you will not create cause
unmoving thusness
causes planted in the past for the occurrence of
because conditioned
which may be in past lives conditioned existence.
existence is to be
such that the person is But that does not mean
contemplated as illusory
now undergoing a that you don’t exist. It is
and dreamlike.(S 32 of
retribution for a seed just that you no longer
Vajra Sutra)