 |
|
Kuo Jing's Journal: Malaysia
Butterworth
24 August (Day 27)
A flurry of changes at the Central Welcoming Committee at Penang: they had originally packed our schedule with visits to different temples, lunches with local “chief” monks, and a wide array of interviews with the press and Buddhist groups. The Abbot turns the tables and announces adamantly that there is to be no more of this rigmarole. Reason:
“Who do you think I am? I am not any Dharma Master who has come from abroad to socialize. I stated very clearly in my letters before I arrived that I do not go visiting, I do not attend social lunches, and I do not throw social banquets.”
Truly the above matters seem to be the mainstay of the Sanghins here. Lumped categorically as “Buddhist affairs”, it consists ( as far as my eyes can see) of a lot of tea parties, tete-a-tetes, and business. But, the Abbot will not go along with this.
“We are left-home people. If we do this, what difference is there between us and the lay people of the world? How can we act in a corrupt manner? We leave home to cultivate a world-transcending dharma. If we want to swim around in the mud, why leave home at all?”
A question that taunts many local Sanghins. So our days at Penang, which so far have been eaten up by temple-hopping, ten minutes here and five minutes there with just enough time to bow and exchange courtesies over a cup of tea, have come to an end.
“Our delegates all have important work to do. Not one single moment is spared. Don’t think that we sit in our rooms taking a snooze. Don’t judge us by your own situations.”
You can imagine the mixed reaction. Either the Abbot keeps quiet, or he emits the Lion’s Roar and the hundred wild beasts flee for dear life. If we were any other delegation, the sightseeing and social-calling might have made for pleasant pastime; however, when your aim is to study and propagate the Proper Dharma, your conduct has to be impeccable. The slightest bit of indulgence or self-seeking invites trouble.
In talking to a few young people, the Abbot says,
“You are young and vigorous; you should be one my side instead of listening to the rattle of old antiques. We should change whatever customs that are not in accord with Dharma. They’ve gone down the wrong path; do you expect me to swim in the filth with them? Buddhism is pure; we should restore it to its original purity by guarding over our every act.”
“Revolution is the Sangha’s work,” and every second at that! Not a moment passes when the Abbot isn’t honing living Buddhas and Bodhisattvas out of living flesh – sometimes chipping away tiny morsels from the original stone or clay, sometimes yanking out chunks, when he sees the chance. Don’t expect mercy on a journey like this. If you aren’t prepared to lose your head, don’t cultivate.
And, of course, it hurts at first. When the master-director seizes his chance, he gives you a full push for all it’s worth. The Abbot never calls anyone “stupid” unless they are. Even his seemingly harshest criticism and remonstrations are in total alignment with principle, and they stem from boundless compassion. We need to be shaken up violently sometimes, because we too easily fall asleep and slip down the wrong track, totally oblivious to the dangers of quicksand. In such situations, a well-timed shout may save our necks.
Today’s flurry is a group exorcism. Quite a few Dharma Masters – all local “chieftains”, are shaken up. They never imagined that a guest Dharma Master from abroad would turn the tables on them right on their own stomping ground.
How much need there is for pure precepts! It is acceptable custom in many temples, especially in small ones, for men and women to share the same quarters, or live in close proximity to one another. Such a lack of segregation is like putting dry fuel next to a blazing fire – what else to expect? At the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas and Gold Mountain Monastery we are so fortunate to have rules. Without strict discipline you could cultivate for kalpas and still it would be like cooking sand and hoping for rice. Unless we take the precepts as Master as the Buddha bade us to do, it will surely be the Dharma Ending Age wherever we go.
Penang / Kulim
25 August (Day 28)
Lunch at the Penang Buddhist Association. Dharma Master Pai Sheng shows up, also about ten other elders and Dharma Masters: Dharma Master Chu Mwo, Kuang Yu, Ru Chien, Huei Hang, Those Enlightened to Conditions. Dana (meal offering) is given by Dhatu (the equivalent of Justice of Peace) Chen Jen Hsiang.
After lunch, an animated conversation takes place around the table concerning the question of the sash. The Abbot exhaustively goes into the story concerning the development of the hook-and-ring version during the T'ang Dynasty.
“As time went on, monks just found it too ‘inconvenient’ to wear sashes and finally gave them up altogether. Nowadays the reverse of what is proper is in vogue. You’re considered an odd-ball if you wear your sash.”
The Abbot brandishes his theory with so much wit and cunning that soon he has all the elders nodding their heads in approval. Whether the message sinks in after the first hearing is questionable. However, that a deep impression has been made cannot be doubted.
The Abbot always says,
“I use patience to teach and transform people. No matter how hard they are to subdue or convince, I will still do everything I can to teach them through my own example.”
At one time, the question of approaching old age comes up, and how very hard and exhausting it must be to teach Americans. The Abbot turns to the Dharma Master Pai Sheng with a twinkle in his eye, “Don’t ever be afraid of difficulty. I am one who likes doing difficult tasks, the harder they are, the more I want to do them.” He elicits an approving and sheepish smile.
Sometimes, despite themselves and despite their advanced years and equally high status, some Dharma Masters do become moved by the Abbot’s sincerity. With genuine good will, the Abbot lays his cards on the table. They turn out to be effective, logical, and sound in every respect.
As we sit there watching the subtle transformation, the gradual easing up and warmer smiles and truer words flowing out, the room becomes a much brighter, happier place, and I think, “This is the way it should be, Sanghins like brothers, sharing the Buddha’s blessings and light. We are one family, so why the squabbling and contention? Wouldn’t be much easier to share?”
Today we have a particularly tight schedule. Usually the more work the better. We are kept on our toes. At 2:00 p.m. we drive to a Ceylonese temple headed by the Ven. Pandet Pemartara Mahathera. In front of a group of two hundred youngsters, the Abbot talks about the present state of Buddhism in the world.
“In Buddhism we each set up our own factions and parties; you say you’re fine, I say I’m fine. Nobody is wiling to admit that he is an imperfect Buddhist disciple. Instead we indulge in backbiting and gossiping… Mahayana monks call themselves Bodhisattva, yet most of them do not even put on their precept sashes. Theravadans claim that the Mahayana faith isn’t even Buddhism. If we maintain such strife within Buddhism itself, just imagine the flack we give to other religions. The Buddha did not teach us to be so petty and narrow-minded. Rather, we should include every living beings in the entirety of empty space and the Dharma Realm – whether they believe or not – within Buddhism. The Buddha said, ‘All living beings have the Buddha Nature, all can become Buddhas.’ hence, even if a living beings does not believe in the Buddha, he still has an inherent Buddha Nature, so how can we exclude him from Buddhism? Unless one can run outside of Empty Space and the Dharma Realm, one cannot run outside of Buddhism. Whether he believes or not is just a matter of time. if you do not believe in Buddhism this lifetime, I’ll wait for you until your next life, and on and on – even for measureless kalpas – I will still wait for you.
If we expand the measure of our hearts, then all human beings can unite and benefit the world. For the rise and fall of a country, every person bears a responsibility. As for the rise and fall of Buddhism, every Buddhist disciples should take it as his own responsibility, too. Do not bow to the Buddhas merely out of greed for wealth and fame; rather offer up good conduct and be a true disciple. We at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas and Dharma Realm Buddhism University aim at grooming young people, to get rid of their greed, anger, and selfishness, so that they can mold a new and better world. I hope one day all of you will come to study at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas.”
A short question and answer session follows. A hefty young man stands up and starts asking questions in a gruff and uncompromising manner. He wants proof of why the “world is growing smaller,” as the Abbot had said, and why people should not burn paper money for ghosts. There is nothing wrong with his questions, but his attitude is feisty, as if he has come to pick a fight. We have become aware of certain agitating factors in the audience. Our delegates, particularly the laymen, have encountered quite a few young people of this sort. It is a common ploy of certain subversive elements to work from within organized religions, fanning unrest, pitting side against side, creating dissension and finally undermining the religion. Today several young people who conspicuously ask antagonistic questions quite fit that description. The Abbot answers in one majestic sweep,
“Just don’t be a hoodlum within Buddhism.” (loud applause)
Another question:
“Amitabha Buddha teaches us to recite his name and promise us rebirth with our karmic load in the Land of Ultimate Bliss. Yet, in Buddhist theory it is maintained that we can realize Buddhahood only through our own effort. Isn’t this a contradiction?”
Answer: “When you recite Namo Amitabha, it’s not that you just daydream and recite sporadically. You have to recite sincerely to a point of single mindedness in order to get a response. When you reach that point you do not know whether it is you or the Buddha who is reciting. You ask me whether you are relying on the Buddha to be reborn in the Western world. I feel it is by your own effort that you get there.”
Q: “It is said that the Dharma Wheel always turns, who or what turns this wheel?”
A: (Prof. Yu Kuo K’ung stands upright and bombards the audience with his unorthodox robustness.) “I want to ask you: have you seen this Wheel? Where is it, may I ask you? If you don’t see it, how do you purport that it turns? The Buddhas’ and Bodhisattvas’ sacred store of teaching is the Dharma. You do not turn it with your hands, nor with your feet. You turn it with your Mind.” (loud applause)
Q: “What do you do when you become a Buddha?”
A: (Kuo K’ung) “Let me ask you, what do you do when you are hungry? You eat, right? What do you do when you have afflictions? You cultivate to end birth and death: it’s the same principle. After you’ve eaten your fill, you’re satisfied and need not eat anymore, correct? The analogy also applies to when you’ve cultivated Buddhahood to perfection.”
A young man, quite tense, comes near to the stage and asks the question.
“You say that in order to cultivate and end birth and death we have to cut off desire. What is meant by that, and how does one cut off desire?’
The Abbot glares at this fellow with enough awesome might to frighten an army. He roars,
“What is your motive for asking this question? If you do not want to cut off desire, why bother to ask? Do you think this is just a joke? (By now the young man is visibly moved. The Abbot continues:) “You don’t want to cut off desire, you can’t put it down, so why bother? Do you think cutting off desire is as easy as asking the question? Not to speak of you – a layperson – how many old monks haven’t cut it off!”
The young man’s head hangs lower and lower, the audience is alert – they have never heard such an unclassical rebuttal from a Dharma Master before. The Abbot trumpets,
“So you think it only takes asking a question to cut off desire. You aren’t even qualified to ask! First you haven’t left home, and that is the number one pre-requisite which you have not fulfilled. Besides, you don’t really want to put it down.”
Q: “Is there such a thing as fate; what is the relationship between fate and causes and conditions?”
A: “Some people believe in predestination, and there’s nothing much you can do to convince them otherwise. However,
A superior man has the knowledge of creating his own life.
Your destiny is determined by you,
Blessings you seek for yourself.
Disasters and blessings have no door,
They arrive through your own beckoning.
The retribution of good and evil follows one like a shadow.You can forge your own destiny. If everything depended on fate, then even with regard to becoming a Buddha or not, you’d have to consult a fortune teller.”
Our next stop is the University of Malaysia at Sains. There is a group of over five hundred students from the Buddhist Society, and they are much closer to our age and outlook. The audience we’ve had so far is usually older and less “intellectual”, but these youths face the same problems we face, and there is instant communication. Kuo K’ung is right in his milieu, having been a professor for seventeen years at Auburn University at Alabama. Now he pours his heart out to them,
“You may think that there are a lot of things wrong with Buddhists, but do not confuse these errors with Buddhism itself. Buddhism is truth, and although Buddhists may sometimes act incorrectly, do not forget to turn to the principles of ‘Buddhism’ for reference.”
He makes a persuasive argument that Buddhism and science are one. Science is a part of Buddhism, and Buddhism itself is the ultimate science.
“In scientific investigation, there is both theory and experimentation. In Buddhism, the two functions are fused. The holy texts and Sutras are the theory; your actual practice through cultivation is the experimentation.”
It so happens that this group is largely comprised of physics, chemistry, and engineering majors. The young people cheer enthusiastically. Kuo K’ung goes on to draw sensible parallels between physical laws and Buddhism.
“The difference between material bodies and human beings is that with the former you work with unchanging variables; with human beings you work with an independent variable which I’ll call ‘human freedom’. The input may be the same, but the reaction of each mind is different.”
Kuo Lei goes on to talk about his own experimentation with Buddhism. He took the five precepts several years ago in an attempt to verify the Buddhist formula, observing himself as the control. He also teaches Buddhist principles to children, all the while keeping an open and scientific outlook for effect and results. After several years of observation, he is well satisfied with the results. The formula of “morality, concentration, and wisdom” beats other systems for permanence.
Then the Abbot speaks:
“All of you are smart people with promise. The ten thousand things are all speaking Dharma. Desks speak desk-dharma, chairs speak chair-dharma. Last night there was a question as to how the Dharma Wheel is turned; actually, people turn the people-dharma wheel, dogs turn the dog-dharma wheel, and cats turn the cat-dharma wheel. If you understand, then the Dharma you hear is one of wisdom. If you do not understand, the dharma you hear will be one of stupidity. These are very simple words, but if you truly carry them with you, they will be worth a lifetime’s use. If you understand, you will no longer do upside-down things, be turned by money and fame, and upon death go wailing with empty hands.
Do not wait till old age to study the Way; the lonely graves are full of young people. Make good use of your youth and your intelligence; do not follow the example of old antiques, because your ancestors may not have done everything right.
Some people claim that Buddhism has to adhere strictly to tradition, like insisting on long robes with large sleeves, which are a carryover from the Han Dynasty. Now, I happen to think that in this day and age where material is scanty, this is a real waste of resources. Here we are parading around with these clumsy sleeves, and in other places people don’t even have any clothes to wear. It is too impractical, too unfair.
There’s another custom I’d like to change: the habit of throwing large banquets amongst Sanghins, particularly for visiting Dharma Masters. People like to cook up a storm for their guests. I’ve eaten so much food recently that I do not know whether I am a pig, a dog, or a person. ‘One banquet at a rich man’s house; half a year of rations in a poor man’s home.’ From childhood I was poor, so when I see so much good food got o waste, it really pains my heart. I’ve stuck to my principle of not visiting and not throwing banquets. It wastes too much time – coming back and forth – the time can be put to much better use.
When I touched down at Taiwan a few years ago, the first thing I said to the people who greeted me at the airport was, ‘I’m not going out on any lunches and visiting tours, even if the President were to invite me, I’d still not go.’ I simply don’t have a thousand hundred billion transformation bodies. At Seremban, the food was so good that we were forced to take action. Our group announced that we would go on strike, that we would not eat, if this continued. Then they quickly adjusted our menus. Now we have much simpler and more edible food. We are left-home people; we are well aware of the limit of our blessings and do not want to exhaust them.”
Much electrifying yang happiness. We are ushered into a waiting car to continue on our journey. This is a brief but memorable exchange.
Excrement or Doughnut?
There is an analogy concerning people who turn their backs on the truth which goes like this:
A child has been playing with a piece of excrement and treasures it close to his heart. A knowing adult realizes the excrement is ultimately unbeneficial to the child development. He offers the child a doughnut instead. But the child will not have anything to do with the doughnut. He cannot stand to part from his piece of excrement.
Birth and death blues
For cultivators there is no moment for “laying back”, no time to shoot the breeze or take a snooze, no vacations or sabbaticals. If there aren’t any tests at hand, you can be quite sure that something’s amiss: either you’ve fallen or you’re walking right into a storm. The harder you try to cut bad habits, the harder they flare up in protest. After all, if you went to Buddhahood, your karmic obstacles wouldn’t have anyone to kick around anymore: who’s going to pay back old debts if you’re clean and “out of jail”?
The process of inner cleansing is much like trying to kick heroin or alcohol. People who try the hardest to kick the habit often suffer the worst withdrawal symptoms. At times the hurt is brutal, the progress slow, like inching along on a mountain of knives. During such times, only “keep on, keep on – faith and perseverance” – counts. Weaning from the womb of Birth and Death is no easy matter. You got yourself here in the first place, now you have to bring the show back home. As they said in Tai Chi, “Embrace tiger and return to mountain.”
Penang / Bukit Mertajam
26 August (Day 29)
It is quieter this morning. An early rainfall washes some of the mugginess away; the perfume of lilacs and hyacinths wafts up from the garden. At 10 a.m. representatives of the Malaysian Youth Buddhist Association, a national group, hold a conference with us. The meeting is filmed for distribution to their branches across the country. Several of us speak. Then the Abbot gives some words of encouragement to the young people:
“You are a youth organization. This implies that you shouldn’t follow blindly the stupid examples that some old people set up, but rely on your own discriminating wisdom. Always wield your Jeweled Pestle, so that at all moments you can subdue demons and external ways. Now, this vajra pestle is not visible, it exists inside your mind. Your mind has to be firm, you should be patient, and never fight or argue. Discriminate between right and wrong. If is accords with the Way, progress; if it is counter to the Way, retreat from it. Do not use force. Why not? Once you use force, you’re no longer compassionate. Note how wars begin: because of greed and selfishness. I do not protest against wars. Young people protest, but this is just fighting fire with fire. As soon as this war is done with, another one will flare up somewhere else. You haven’t gotten to the root of the problem. Rather, subdue your own mind. Do people eat to live, or live to eat? If you live to eat, it is really meaningless. Otherwise, you should live to do useful tings: benefit your family, people; and country. Bring forth the heart of a Bodhisattva.”
A big lunch is given by the Justice of Peace at the Buddhist Association. A refuge ceremony follows in the afternoon. Over a thousand people take refuge, again breaking all previous records. They have never seen such a turnout for any visiting Dharma Master. Many people follow us from town to town; as a Shramanerika puts it,
“The more I hear the Dharma, the more I want to hear. It becomes sweeter and sweeter to my ears each time.”
Evening. We cross by ferry again over to Bukit Matarjam, another small village about an hour’s drive away from Penang. The sky is flushed with iridescent orange and crimson hues, the water laps in poetic cadences as our ferry boat breezes cross the waves.
The audience tonight is of village folk. Many of the young work at rubber plantations. Their lives are hard. One has to wake up before dawn in order to gather the rubber sap. The work is demanding and the wages not high. There is no convenient means of transport, yet people take rides that last two or three hours or more to come and hear the Abbot speak.
Tonight the Abbot speaks:
“What is Buddhadharma? Let me ask you, what isn’t Buddhadharma? All Dharma are just the Buddhadharma. Just the everyday common affairs of eating, putting on clothes, sleeping – all this is part of the Buddhadharma. It is a pity that we are immersed every second in Buddhadharma and yet do not recognize it. We go outside seeking for the Dharma.
The definition of an external way is any seeking outside of one’s own mind. If you understand your own mind, see your own nature – this is real Buddhadharma. Do not seek it high and far. Every act, every thought is an enactment of the Buddhadharma. If in every thought you do not create offenses, just this is merit and virtue. However living beings are strange, you tell them to do good and they shirk from it; you don’t have to tell them to do evil, they draw near it on their own. Just like children – their parents tell them to be good kids, to follow the rules, and they won’t. So it is said,
Fish jump in the water,
People mill around the marketplace.
Not knowing to do good deeds,
Willingly they create offenses.Gold and silver piled high like mountains,
Yet when you close your eyes, all is gone.
With empty hands going to see King Yama,
With a remorseful heart your tears begin to fall.King Yama asks you in the hells, ‘Why did you commit all these offense?’ and you say, ‘But I want to change.’ Sorry, too late.
When Shakyamuni Buddha was on the causal ground, he gave up his body thousands of times for the Dharma. He fed his body to the tiger, to eagles. Once, when cultivating as a patient immortal, he allowed the King of Kalinga to chop off his four limbs without giving rise to a single thought of anger. And now we people should ask ourselves: are we willing to renounce our bodies for the Dharma? Not to talk of an entire body, how about just ten pounds of flesh, or even an ounce? I bet most of us aren’t willing to give up even that much.”
The audience is delighted. They huddle around the Abbot, not wanting him to go.