Voice of Master Jingzong - Q and A about the Purpose of Life
淨宗之聲 - 人生目的問答
Question about the meaning, the aim and the pursuit of existence after becoming a Buddha
Answer (continuation to Q11 - 4/5):
The Nirvana Sutra says, “ A Buddha has four virtues - permanence, bliss, self and purity”
◎ “permanence” is truth, eternal existence, and transcends the concepts of time and space.
◎ “bliss” is the ultimate joy, the joy of Nirvana, the joy which is not relative to suffering.
◎ “self” means total freedom, not bound to any worldly concepts
◎ “purity” means: total clarity, uncontaminated, containing no ignorance, no doubts, no attachment to self, no discriminative thoughts. The incorrect notions we have concerning the self and these other concepts are not pure.
When we reach the above states, there is no longer any need to ask about aims or pursuits. All Buddhas arouse their compassionate minds, knowing that sentient beings possess Buddha Nature. It’s like burning wood. Both fire and wood have the fire nature. So, the wood will naturally burn when it is set on fire.
A Buddha is like the pristine fire of the Samadhi of Compassion. Sentient beings possess Buddha Nature; but, it is buried beneath our ignorance, negative karma, and afflictions.
Thus, a Buddha knows he can deliver sentient beings because he knows they already have the Buddha Nature.
It is just like fire naturally able to burn wood. A Buddha’s deliverance is also natural; so, it isn’t necessary to ask about their aims or pursuits. This is an analogy. Please let go of trying to understand a Buddha’s realm with our limited capacities. We need only exclusively recite Amitabha’s Name. Once we arrive in his Western Land of Bliss, we will fully understand.
《涅槃經》裡說,佛有四德:常、樂、我、淨。
◎ “常”是真理、永恆的存在,是超越時間概念的。
◎ “樂”是大樂、涅槃之樂,不是相對於苦樂而言的樂。
◎ “我”是“自在”之意。“我”就是一種本體、真實的存在,大自在、大解脫。
◎ “淨”是清淨,沒有任何的染污、不明了,沒有對萬法萬象不明、疑惑,也沒有我執、分別念。有我執,有分別念,有人,有我,有眾生,這就不淨了。
在這種境界,我們還是用語言說,到這個時候,還提什麼目標、追求?
諸佛緣起大悲心,也是因為眾生本來就有佛性。像火燒木頭,它並沒有什麼目標和追求,火本身就有火性,木頭裡面也有火性,它們火性相關,自自然然緣著這根木頭就燒著了。
佛就像純粹的三昧慈悲之火,眾生就像木頭,眾生有佛性,只是被邪知邪見、煩惱業障給覆蓋住了,但是佛性沒有喪失。
所以,佛度眾生是緣著佛性,這也可以講“無緣”,因為眾生本來就具足佛性,所以自自然然來度眾生。如同火燒木那樣自然,佛度眾生也是自自然然的,也沒有什麼目標之類的,火燒木有目標嗎?這都是打比喻。
總之,不要以凡夫的想法去測度佛的境界,我們還是老老實實念佛,到了西方極樂世界,一切自然明了,
Namo Amituofo!
