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At the 2024 Fo Guang Shan North America Water and Land Dharma Service Lecture Series, the Most Venerable Hsin Bau, Head Abbot of the Fo Guang Shan (FGS) Monastery, delivered a profound Dharma Talk at the Dining Hall of Fo Guang Shan Hsi Lai Temple on April 21. He guided the audience toward the true goals and directions of Buddhist practice, based on the fundamental principles of the Dharma. Emphasizing the wisdom of "listening, contemplating, and cultivating" and "diligently cultivating precepts, concentration, and wisdom while extinguishing greed, anger, and delusion," he shared the path to liberation from afflictions. The lecture was held both in person and online, with nearly a thousand people experiencing the joy of the Dharma and forming Dharma affinities.
What is the way to liberation? Most Venerable Hsin Bau explained it using the phrase "make good use of one's mind" from the Pure Conduct Chapter of the Avatamsaka Sutra. To achieve liberation, one must have determination. The "mind" can fall into the six realms of reincarnation, but it can also transcend the mundane and enter the saintly realms. He emphasized that the "mind" is a crucial factor in cultivation. He illustrated the importance of "listening, contemplating, and cultivating" by explaining that in the Buddha's time, there were no recording tools, so disciples would listen to the Dharma and then walk beneath trees to contemplate it. The Buddha clearly explained the concepts of cultivation, which depend on whether sentient beings prioritize learning the Buddha's teachings.
Most Venerable Hsin Bau further explained that the key to liberation lies in "contemplating impermanence and realizing non-self" and that one must diligently put in the effort. Sentient beings cling to the notion of "self," giving rise to various delusions and being swept along by karmic forces through the six realms of reincarnation. He reminded everyone to be aware of their arising thoughts and to recognize the "thieves" of afflictions within their thoughts to counteract them. The Buddha's teachings only become one's own when applied; otherwise, they remain mere knowledge from books. The Buddhist concept of "non-self" must be personally experienced.
He also highlighted the six fundamental afflictions in Yogacara's teachings – greed, anger, delusion, arrogance, doubt, and wrong views – with greed being the primary of the three poisons, pervading the three realms. Compared to other afflictions, greed is even more difficult to eliminate. Even if one's level of practice is high, if one does not transcend the three spheres of existence, one will still be subject to reincarnation in the six realms. He cited various stories about greed from different sutras. Due to clinging to the five desires and the five wrong views, sentient beings give rise to erroneous behaviors and suffer afflictions, causing unending reincarnation.
Using the "parable of the burning house in the three realms" from the Lotus Sutra and several Buddhist stories, including the "red pearl," the "gold guardian who fell into the body of a snake for not letting go," and the case of the “jade bowl of Chan Master Jin Bi Feng,” Most Venerable Hsin Bau explained that worldly phenomena are impermanent and illusory. Recognizing that one's body and the objects of attachment are subject to arising and ceasing, and that illusion, one can eliminate greedy thoughts and clinging, leading to liberation. He encouraged everyone to observe earnestly and apply wisdom in practice, engage in the "Three Acts of Goodness and Four Givings," and follow the "Five Precepts and Ten Virtuous Acts." From the perspective of transcending the world, achieving liberation requires realizing the impermanence and illusory nature of the world, that it is non-self and unobtainable, and therefore not giving rise to clinging, greed, anger, or ignorance.
Finally, Most Venerable Hsin Bau encouraged everyone to develop the "Four Objects of Unfailing Faith" with sincere belief. The Water and Land Dharma Service involves the equal giving of food offerings, an act of compassion. By witnessing the suffering of beings in the six realms, one aspires to renunciation and freedom from afflictions. This leads to the Bodhi mind and the practice of the Bodhisattva path for the benefit of self and others. This is the meaning of life, allowing life to become more perfect – it is the most exceptional matter in the world.
(Photos by Chihcheng Chang)
