Completion Stage Practice
Next I shall discuss the Completion Stage Practice. What is the next Completion Stage Practice? It is the highest level of practice for mature students who are in the equivalent of the doctoral program. In fact, Zen Buddhism is a Completion Stage practice. Unlike ordinary people, a person with superior faculties and sharp wisdom is able to “cut through” right at the beginning of the Completion Stage practice. For example, Bodhidharma, the first Zen patriarch, was able to “cut through.” When Hui K’o, who later became the second Zen patriarch, paid Bodhidharma a visit, he was asked by Bodhidharma, “Why have you come here?” Hui K’o replied, “I would like to have my mind pacified.” Bodhidharma the said, “Fetch me your mind and I will pacify it for you.” Hui K’o asked Bodhidharma, “How do I find my mind? I can’t find my mind.” Bodhidharma the answered, “I have already pacified your mind for you.” This is a Zen koan. Hui K’o was an extremely sharp and clever person. As soon as he heard Bodhidharma’s reply that he had already pacified his mind for him, he was instantaneously enlightened. This realization is Great Perfection – Instantaneous Enlightenment.
After hearing this koan, are you able to attain Enlightenment? If you can, you are a Buddha! As long as one hears this koan and is able to penetrate deeply into its meaning, one immediately understands the Buddhadharma. Therefore, the crux of the matter is whether one is able to penetrate the koan and understand it. The second Zen patriarch Hui K’o was able to attain Instantaneous Enlightenment as soon as he heard Boddhidharma telling him that his mind already had been pacified.
There is this other koan. Zen Master Te Shan wrote a book, Commentaries in the Diamond Sutra, which offered a very clear explanation on the Diamond Sutra. Master Te Shan felt that he had already understood the main idea of the Diamond Sutra. Therefore, carrying the book, which was quite a thick one, in a package on the end of a pole, he went on the road to challenge those who were devious and heretical. He arrived at a snack shop and met an old woman who was selling tien-hsin (dimsum or pastries). The old woman asked him, “Reverend, what is that on the end of the pole?”
He replied, “That is the Diamond Sutra and its commentaries. I am someone who understands the meaning of the Diamond Sutra”. This old woman who decided to test him and said “Let me ask you a question. If you can answer it, you shall have the tien-hsin free of charge. If you can’t answer it, you will have to leave without tasting any of the tien shin”. Master Te Shan agreed to this. The old woman the asked, “In the Diamond Sutra, it is said that the hsin (mind) of the past is unattainable, the hsin (mind) of the present is unattainable, the hsin (mind) of the future is unattainable. Please tell me what kind of tien-hsin you are going to order from me?” Right away, Master Te Shan was stumped and could not reply. As none of the three minds (hsin) was attainable, what kind of tien-hsin was he going to order from her? Unable to reply, he felt embarrassed.
One must know that the Completion Stage practice s comprised of “sudden methods” that require one to instantaneously “cut through” delusions. The Generation Stage practice consists of “gradual methods” wherein one advances gradually through different levels until one is able to “cut through”. The Completion Stage practice in Tantric Buddhism is in fact Zen! In this “formless Tantric practice,” one has to “instantaneously cut through” to attain Buddhahood and liberation. Without this immediate “cutting through”, there is no liberation. Bodhidharma told Hui K’o, “Fetch me your hsin (mind) and I will pacify it for you”. To which Hui K’o replied that he could not find his mind. That is the right answer! There is fundamentally no separate existence of the mind. One has to instantaneously sever this delusion of the mind’s separate existence and enter directly into the true nature of the mind. What is the mind anyway? It does not exist. When one is in the state of no-mind, one attains liberation. If one still has awareness of the mind, one cannot attain liberation. If Master Te Shan were to answer the old woman, his answer should be: “No-hsin!” If none of the three minds is attainable, what kind of mind can one have? The answer is “no-mind”. Now that all you have found out what the answer is, all of you have attained Buddhahood! (audience laughter).
Basics [32]. More to come.....
Readers can write to purekarmaservices@gmail.com for a .pdf or .doc copy of this book.
Om Guru Lian Sheng Siddhi Hom
Lama Lotuschef
Next I shall discuss the Completion Stage Practice. What is the next Completion Stage Practice? It is the highest level of practice for mature students who are in the equivalent of the doctoral program. In fact, Zen Buddhism is a Completion Stage practice. Unlike ordinary people, a person with superior faculties and sharp wisdom is able to “cut through” right at the beginning of the Completion Stage practice. For example, Bodhidharma, the first Zen patriarch, was able to “cut through.” When Hui K’o, who later became the second Zen patriarch, paid Bodhidharma a visit, he was asked by Bodhidharma, “Why have you come here?” Hui K’o replied, “I would like to have my mind pacified.” Bodhidharma the said, “Fetch me your mind and I will pacify it for you.” Hui K’o asked Bodhidharma, “How do I find my mind? I can’t find my mind.” Bodhidharma the answered, “I have already pacified your mind for you.” This is a Zen koan. Hui K’o was an extremely sharp and clever person. As soon as he heard Bodhidharma’s reply that he had already pacified his mind for him, he was instantaneously enlightened. This realization is Great Perfection – Instantaneous Enlightenment.
After hearing this koan, are you able to attain Enlightenment? If you can, you are a Buddha! As long as one hears this koan and is able to penetrate deeply into its meaning, one immediately understands the Buddhadharma. Therefore, the crux of the matter is whether one is able to penetrate the koan and understand it. The second Zen patriarch Hui K’o was able to attain Instantaneous Enlightenment as soon as he heard Boddhidharma telling him that his mind already had been pacified.
There is this other koan. Zen Master Te Shan wrote a book, Commentaries in the Diamond Sutra, which offered a very clear explanation on the Diamond Sutra. Master Te Shan felt that he had already understood the main idea of the Diamond Sutra. Therefore, carrying the book, which was quite a thick one, in a package on the end of a pole, he went on the road to challenge those who were devious and heretical. He arrived at a snack shop and met an old woman who was selling tien-hsin (dimsum or pastries). The old woman asked him, “Reverend, what is that on the end of the pole?”
He replied, “That is the Diamond Sutra and its commentaries. I am someone who understands the meaning of the Diamond Sutra”. This old woman who decided to test him and said “Let me ask you a question. If you can answer it, you shall have the tien-hsin free of charge. If you can’t answer it, you will have to leave without tasting any of the tien shin”. Master Te Shan agreed to this. The old woman the asked, “In the Diamond Sutra, it is said that the hsin (mind) of the past is unattainable, the hsin (mind) of the present is unattainable, the hsin (mind) of the future is unattainable. Please tell me what kind of tien-hsin you are going to order from me?” Right away, Master Te Shan was stumped and could not reply. As none of the three minds (hsin) was attainable, what kind of tien-hsin was he going to order from her? Unable to reply, he felt embarrassed.
One must know that the Completion Stage practice s comprised of “sudden methods” that require one to instantaneously “cut through” delusions. The Generation Stage practice consists of “gradual methods” wherein one advances gradually through different levels until one is able to “cut through”. The Completion Stage practice in Tantric Buddhism is in fact Zen! In this “formless Tantric practice,” one has to “instantaneously cut through” to attain Buddhahood and liberation. Without this immediate “cutting through”, there is no liberation. Bodhidharma told Hui K’o, “Fetch me your hsin (mind) and I will pacify it for you”. To which Hui K’o replied that he could not find his mind. That is the right answer! There is fundamentally no separate existence of the mind. One has to instantaneously sever this delusion of the mind’s separate existence and enter directly into the true nature of the mind. What is the mind anyway? It does not exist. When one is in the state of no-mind, one attains liberation. If one still has awareness of the mind, one cannot attain liberation. If Master Te Shan were to answer the old woman, his answer should be: “No-hsin!” If none of the three minds is attainable, what kind of mind can one have? The answer is “no-mind”. Now that all you have found out what the answer is, all of you have attained Buddhahood! (audience laughter).
Basics [32]. More to come.....
Readers can write to purekarmaservices@gmail.com for a .pdf or .doc copy of this book.
Om Guru Lian Sheng Siddhi Hom
Lama Lotuschef
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