Buddhist View of the Science of Life
Nanjing University Doctoral Forum
(March 14, 2011 evening)
Speech from the host:
Today, we are extremely honored to have Khenpo Sodargye Rinpoche from Serthar Buddhist Institute (Larong Gar) here at the Doctoral Forum of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies of Nanjing University. Rinpoche will give a lecture called the “Buddhist View of the Science of Life.” Before we start, please allow me to introduce Rinpoche to you.
When Rinpoche was young, he studied at a teaching college. After this, he renounced secular life to follow a monastic life. He followed His Holiness Jigme Phuntsok as his root guru, in order to put the Buddhadharma into practice. Rinpoche studied many sutras deeply, mastering both the profound and vast Buddhadharma. Due to his great compassion, various of his projects to benefit sentient beings have spanned continents, here and overseas. This can not only be seen in his published works, but also in the way he advocates for various charitable causes and, more importantly, earnestly practices what he advocates.
To have someone with such realization and great compassion to expound the Dharma to us is not only what Nanjing University aspires for, but also the supreme honor of Nanjing University. Nanjing University has always had the tradition “to seek truth from facts and then put them into practical use.” As well as the philosophy of “perfecting oneself practically,” we believe that the ultimate meaning of all knowledge is to help enhance our wisdom and life. Nanjing University not only has a physical building named “ZhiXingLou” (Building of knowledge and practice), but also seeks the tradition of the unity of knowledge and practice. As such, may we listen to the nectar of the Buddhadharma with an open mind and sound spirit. May we use our body and mind to truly experience the practical aspect of knowledge, not just book learning, and may it give rise to wisdom.
Now, may we welcome Khenpo with warm applause.
Good evening to my fellow teachers and students. I am very pleased to be here to share with the students and teachers from the Doctoral Forum of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies of Nanjing University.
I came to Nanjing in 1994. When I was a student, my textbook mentioned the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge. Therefore, when I came to Nanjing during that time, I went especially to see that bridge. Since then, I haven’t been here. Coming here this time, I have found that there have been a lot of changes in Nanjing. Externally, I found that there has been rapid development in terms of material development and architecture. I hope that the people in Nanjing have had similar advancement spiritually, such as in kindness, tolerance, and moral values. Today, I have been invited to talk about the “Buddhist View of the Science of Life,” so now let us explore this topic together.
What Is the Buddhist View of the Science of Life?
Regarding the Buddhist view of the science of life, Lord Buddha said that no matter what kind of life we have, there are infinite and boundless past and future lives. Before buddhahood is attained and samsara is ended, cycling in the six realms will continue.
In order to comprehend this profound truth, we must undertake long-term study, contemplation, and establish it through reasoning. Since you all are intellectuals, I believe you are equipped with a broad vision and the analytical ability to carry out in-depth and detailed analysis. Therefore, first, let us investigate whether humans have past and future lives or not.
This is an extremely important issue for everyone. If we don’t have past and future lives, it is fine to live our life just as we like. On the other hand, if there are future lives, and we do not prepare for them now, it is certain that we will strongly regret our choices later.
Do past and future lives exist? Through long-term detailed study, we found that they do indeed exist. Unfortunately, many people are absolutely ignorant of this. Of course, for those who have little exposure to knowledge, it is understandable that they may not comprehend this, but some intellectuals think they are wise and learned, yet they don’t recognize the existence of past and future lives. This is indeed sad for humankind.
Historically, since ancient times, the concept of past and future lives has always been present in society. Both Roman and ancient Greek philosophers believed in the existence of past and future lives. For example, Plato believed that after death, humans’ souls were reincarnated as humans or other sentient beings based on the wholesome and unwholesome actions they had performed when they were alive. As for ancient Chinese culture, Confucian philosophy also does not deny the reasonableness of past and future lives. Someone asked Confucius: “What happens to humans after death?” Confucius replied: “What is the point of studying life after death while we do not even fully understand our present life?” Confucius highly advocated secular, worldly matters, and so he chose to avoid talking about future lives, but he did not confirm or reject future lives. As for other religions, most of them directly acknowledge the existence of past and future lives. For example, in Taoism there is a longing for immortality, and Christians and Catholics believe that after humans die, those who have done wholesome deeds will be reborn in heaven, and, in contrast, those who have done unwholesome deeds will fall into the hell realms, and so on.
As we can see, believing in past and future lives is not a unique feature of Buddhism. Coverage of this concept is extremely broad, spanning many world religions. If you haven’t thought about this before, you may want to read some books about ancient cultures to find out how other religions and philosophers viewed this concept.
Close Bond between Scientists and Religion
Not only sages and scholars of the past acknowledge past and future lives. A majority of many recent prominent scientists, who have made a significant contribution to humankind and who give impetus to the development of human history, also have religious faith, as well as recognize this view. For example, Mr Gallup from the USA investigated the faith and religion of three hundred famous scientists in the past three hundred years. He found that 242 of them had religious faith, 20 of them didn’t have any faith, and for 38, their attitude to religion could not be determined. In other words, 92% of scientists have religious faith. In particular, within Nobel Laureates, those who had religious faith accounted for 93.27%.
Nowadays, many intellectuals believe that among human beings, scientists are the most rational people, and it is therefore impossible for scientists to recognize any religion. This presupposition can easily be disproved by the statistics above. Whether it is Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Galileo Galilei, or Thomas Edison, by looking at their biographies we can see that not only did they believe in religion, they also had a great enthusiastic passion for it. Even though Buddhism had not spread into western countries at that time and the main religion was Christianity, the concept of past and future lives was still widely accepted by these scientists.
In fact, if we do not acknowledge the existence of past and future lives, we feel that life consists of only a few decades, and therefore it is better to enjoy it while we can; there is no need to worry about what happens in future lives. Guided by this world-view and life-view, our behavior will have no constraints. For the sake of benefits in this life, we will unscrupulously do what we wish. This is exactly as it is described in one of the Agama Sutras: “Without fearing future lives, we unscrupulously commit all evils.”
Conversely, many people in western countries, due to their belief in religion and their code of ethics, are significantly different to the above. In the ceremony to inaugurate a new US president, the president puts his hand on the Bible and makes an oath before God. Perhaps such conduct is viewed as superstitious and seems unnecessary to those who have no religious faith, but we do need this kind of ethical and moral constraint.
Will religion become an obstacle to the advancement of humanity and development of society? Absolutely not, because the two are not contradictory. Thomas Edison, from the USA, was a great inventor, yet he had strong faith. He had a stone tablet placed in his laboratory with the inscription: “I believe in the existence of a Supreme Intelligence pervading the Universe.” Throughout his life, he made over two thousand discoveries, yet his faith did not hinder him. He believed that whenever he faced difficult questions, praying to God was the source for gaining strength and inspiration to resolve them.
If people research and read sutras in their workplace or school, others may criticize them, saying that they are “addicted” or “brainwashed.” In fact, there is nothing wrong in being “brainwashed,” anyway, because it seems some great scientists have been “brainwashed” even more thoroughly than others, and their intelligence became even sharper as a result.
To a certain extent, the reason why many people have misunderstood about religion is related to Darwin’s evolutionary theory. Darwin’s evolutionary theory completely denies the law of causation and the existence of past and future lives. It blindly advocates the idea of natural selection—that the strong survive and the weak die off. He believed that the production of things is accidental. This theory has overwhelmed the world, and owing to this Darwin became very famous. According to some information, he suffered years of illness during his old age. He eventually turned to theology and wrote some articles expressing his remorse to God. Before he passed away at age 73, he said: “When I observe this world, particularly the material objects, I disagree that ‘The world is supported by random forces,’ this is an arbitrary conclusion. I believe that there is definitely a rule that is omnipresent, very subtle and complex, and all-pervasive, governing the good and bad in this world.”
The astronomer Galileo was the same. He had always believed that religious beliefs were not contradicting with science. After he discovered sunspots, Jupiter’s satellites, and mountains on the moon through a telescope, he ecstatically wrote the following: “I render infinite thanks to God, for being so kind as to make me alone the first observer of marvels kept hidden in obscurity for all previous centuries.”
Since such scientists who made significant contributions to humankind strongly believed that religion and science were not contradictory, then it is unnecessary for us, who only have a smattering of knowledge in this area, to blindly refute this.
When people have no faith, they lose moral restraint. On account of this, their behavior is dreadful; conversely, with faith, should an evil thought arise, we will try to tame it. This not only helps us to gain temporary happiness and joy in this lifetime, it also is of great significance in assisting our liberation from samsara.
Therefore, we ought to observe properly what are the most valuable doctrines in this world. If you want to comprehend the mysteries of mind and the truth of the universe, it is necessary to draw support from religion, especially the wisdom in Buddhism. Otherwise, solely based on your presuppositions, I am afraid that even after years of research, your puzzles will remain unsolved. When I was at another university a few days ago, I cited a quotation from Zhu Qingshi, the former president of the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC). What he said is this: “After enduring an arduous journey, scientists finally reach the peak of the mountain, only to discover that the great Buddhist masters have already arrived there a long time ago.” The meaning of this statement is very profound. As a believer of science, you ought to think deeply about it.
Although I am not a scientist, I have spent a lot of time reading many books from ancient and modern times, from China and from other countries. As for Buddhism, I have also read many sutras and treatises. During the process of comparing Buddhist books with other books, I was deeply impressed by the wisdom of the Buddha. On account of this, my confidence became firmer and unwavering. There are many people in this world who claim “Buddhism is superstition” merely after reading one Buddhist book. However, they are not aware that the real superstition is simply making assertions and comments like that. Historically, there are so many scientists and wise people who respected and did not show contempt for Buddhism, so what are the grounds for talking so irresponsibly about these profound teachings?
Actually, the science of psychology revealed by Buddhism is viewed highly in western countries. Many psychologists still acknowledge today the psychologist Carl Jung, who is as influential as Freud. Many psychologists see him as unparalleled or matchless. What attitude did Jung have toward Buddhism? For decades, he always carried the Tibetan Book of the Dead with him everywhere he went; it was his permanent partner. He attributed many of his inspiring ideas and discoveries to this Buddhist scripture, and he had enthusiastically recommended this book to Sigmund Freud, Albert Einstein, and other prominent academic figures.
A while back, when I met a friend from the University of Cambridge, he told me that before Jung passed away, he earnestly urged his daughter: “Please do not publish those articles that I wrote describing and discussing the Tibetan Book of the Dead, including those descriptions of various principles of dreams, until fifty years have passed, because people may not be able to accept them now.” His decision was indeed very far-sighted, because at that time, European society was not as tolerant, free, and open as today. He was also very clear that later, this eastern religion would flourish in every corner of western countries. When this time came, his research on the Tibetan Book of the Dead, his own experience of clear light dreams and near-death experiences, would be revealed.
In the Tibetan area, the Tibetan Book of the Dead is widely known to every household. It is not only Buddhist thought, but has already been integrated into our daily lives. However, many intellectuals now have a rather strange attitude toward it; they think it is a complete superstition. This behavior is quite arrogant. A world of difference exists between this attitude and the attitude of the wise people from the past. This is worth reconsidering by everyone.
In Search of the Past Life Footprint
For every sentient being, life has always continued unbroken. When humans die, life definitely does not disappear similar to when a fire is put out. Within the division of body and consciousness, the body has coarse and subtle levels, and, likewise, the consciousness also has a coarse consciousness and subtle consciousness.
The coarse level of the body is constituted of the four elements, namely, earth, water, fire, and air. Initially, people did not believe this, but in the 15th century, through chemical analysis, it was found that the human body is indeed composed of various chemical elements. After a human dies, this coarser body, which is formed by the four elements, totally ceases. What will happen to it after that? It is transformed into a subtle level of the body, which Buddhism calls the illusory body. It is similar to the body we have during dreams. It is able to float around and arrive at its desired destination quickly. It has many differences to our present body.
The coarse level of consciousness includes the eye consciousness, ear consciousness, nose consciousness, and so on. These consciousnesses will gradually merge into the alaya consciousness, which is the subtle level of consciousness, which continues to revolve in samsara. The continuity of this subtle level of consciousness, how in this life we are a human being and in the next life we could be a yak, and so on, is meticulously explained in the Kalachakra in Tibetan Buddhism.
Of course, our eyes or ears may not necessarily be able to perceive the existence of past and future lives. If it were so simple, then we would not say that this is the mysteries of mind. If you want to apprehend this, it can be done either by using logical reasoning to prove it, or revealed through knowing people who are able to recall their past lives or near-death phenomena.
1. Using Pramana reasoning to prove the existence of past and future lives
If we want to use logical reasoning to prove the tenability of the theory of past and future lives, it is indispensable to draw support from the Pramana knowledge, especially from Dharmakirti’s Pramānavārttikakārika. This treatise says that whether we are a human being or another kind of sentient being, we all have a luminous consciousness. The reason why this consciousness continues unbroken is because it is endowed with the “cause”—the clear light continuum will not cease to exist.
Of course, when you just start to learn this, it is quite difficult to comprehend, but it is a very complete, logical reasoning. Especially for those that are equipped with a strong ability in metaphysics, it is best if you can read the Pramānavārttikakārika, Treasury of Logic on Valid Cognition, and some Madhyamaka treatises. Through this method to ascertain reincarnation, you will completely apprehend that the consciousness of sentient beings does not cease to exist. This is because it is not the same as external matter, such as a light bulb, which, when it is destroyed, nothing is left. In contrast, consciousness is entirely different.
Pramana is rich in this irrefutable logical reasoning. Despite that, it is not easy to learn. If you aspire to research it thoroughly, it is necessary to begin from this complex aspect. Conversely, simply reading one or two books and then drawing a conclusion literally that the Buddhist theory of reincarnation cannot be proved is not enough. I am afraid it is not that simple. You won’t have the confidence to defend your thesis if you conduct a Pramana debate with a Buddhist master on this issue. As such, for someone who wants to refute this, or someone who wants to understand past and future lives with logical reasoning, it is a must to delve deeper into the Pramana and Madhyamaka. Only by doing this can you draw a valid conclusion.
2. The true stories of people remembering their past lives
Putting theories aside, we can find many examples of people who are able to recall their past lives. This is also a very strong basis to support this view. We should not simply dismiss this, since these people recall their lives themselves; nobody tells them about them. For example, if I tell people about the events that happened to me yesterday, they will not simply dismiss it and say that I am talking nonsense. If they don’t believe it, it is up to them, but I have truly, personally experienced it.
In the Ten Stages Sutra, Lord Buddha explicitly mentioned that some sentient beings can recall some of their past lives. Some can even recall events that happened countless eons ago. Certainly, not everyone possesses this ability. For most people, after entering the womb, obscurations cause them to forget everything in their past life. Only a small number of people, due to their meditative power or other special causes and conditions, retain some of their memories.
Of course, those able to remember their past life may not necessarily have studied Buddhism before. In the past, Dr. Ian Stevenson (1918-2007) from the University of Virginia devoted himself to more than forty years of research, collecting over two thousand true cases from different countries to prove the existence of past and future lives. Later, he selected twenty of the most convincing cases and put them together to compose Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation. In each of the cases in that book, the time, the people, and the place involved are clearly indicated. Thus, if someone were to try to refute them one by one, it would take many hours of work.
In the Tibetan area, there are also some eminent monks that are able to remember their past life. For example, my guru His Holiness Jigme Phuntsok used to recall the experiences of his past life during the time of Padmasambhava, when he was born as Nanam Dorje Dudjom. I remember one time when His Holiness was in a place at Dawu expounding on the six bardos (a section of the Tibetan Book of the Dead), during that teaching, he suddenly became very sad, and explained that he had just recalled how in Padmasambhava’s time this scripture had been expounded and who were Padmasambhava’s disciples, but now, as time has passed, everything has changed and become what we are today. While speaking about this, tears fell from his eyes.
On another occasion, His Holiness was invited to the first Tibetan monastery—Samye Ling. When His Holiness was expounding Dharma to the monks there, he remembered vividly scenes when Padmasambhava was transmitting Vajrayana teachings in the past; they reappeared as if they had just happened yesterday. While His Holiness described the scenes, he couldn’t hold back his tears and seemed very sad. I personally witnessed this myself. For someone like His Holiness, who has made such great contributions to Buddhist causes, there is no need for him to simply lie to others.
Besides these renowned masters, there are also some ordinary people who naturally possess the ability to remember their past life. For example, near our Buddhist institute, there is a little girl, who before she was five or six years old was able to remember many things in her past life vividly. Initially, it was hard for her family to believe how it was possible for her to know these past life events, but later they were able to verify the girl’s accounts entirely matched with reality. In the face of these truths, no matter how much her parents were not willing to believe that past and future lives existed, they had to recognize their existence.
Also, the famous English novelist and writer Charles Dickens recounted how once when he was walking in the outskirts of an area, he found that the scenery around him was very familiar, and he felt extremely emotional about it, and started to recall that this was the place where he had been murdered in his previous life.
Another similar case was with a prominent literary figure. He was also able to remember that he had lived in this world for many lifetimes. During his previous lives, he had been a prince, slave, woman, and so on. In the future, of course, he will continue to reincarnate again and again in the human realms.
Likewise, Su Dongpo was able to remember that he was a monk in his previous life, named Monk Jie. Emperor Shunzhi also said in How I Became a Monk: “I was previously a monk in the western land (India). I wonder what went wrong that made me reincarnate in this royal family?” In addition to this, the movie series National Master Yulin, although it includes some fictional stories, was adapted from a true story.
We should therefore never deny the existence of past and future lives without a valid reason. If you have some doubts about this, then I would recommend you read some books about this topic. For example, Khenpo Tsultrim Lodoe purposely composed a text called: Treatise of Past and Future Lives. He established the existence of past and future lives through an extremely persuasive analysis, both from scientific and Buddhist perspectives. After I read it, I found that it was really beneficial to others. I then spent about two months translating it from Tibetan to Chinese and then taught it to our Dharma brothers and sisters in Serthar Buddhist Institute.
After I finished the lecture, I asked the intellectuals attending the lecture: “Do you still have any reasons to deny the existence of past and future lives? Please stand up if you do. To ascertain a truth, we need to convince others by reasoning. We don’t accept something because Buddha said so or our guru said so, when clearly we don’t understand or believe it ourselves. A truth must be able to stand any tests and inquiries. This is the custom that Buddha always adhered to.” In the end, after the debates, many people truly gained conviction that previous and future lives do exist. As such, if any one of you has similar doubts, it is best if you can systematically study this text.
In addition to that, it is also worth reading The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. I met Sogyal Rinpoche when I visited France in 1993. At that time, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying had been published in English and he was preparing to translate it into Chinese. Initially, he asked if I could help to translate it, but I replied that on the one hand, my language skills were not sufficient to translate it, and on the other hand, my schedule was also too tight, and I was afraid I couldn’t do it. Also, it was better to find someone more well known to translate it. In the end, he sought Taiwan’s Professor Zheng Zhenhuang to translate it into Chinese, and for the Tibetan translation he requested a Khenpo from Sikkim to help. However, up until now, I haven’t seen the Tibetan edition yet, and I’m not sure how it is progressing. At that time, half of the text had already been translated into Tibetan. Eighteen years have now passed, since 1993. Perhaps the translation has still not yet been completed. An American friend of mine said eight years ago that he was composing two books, and a few days ago when I met him again, he said he is still composing those two books. Perhaps some people like the style of “slow work produces fine products.”
At that time, the English edition of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying had been well received. Sogyal Rinpoche then had it translated into German and printed a number of copies. Coincidentally, His Holiness Jigme Phuntsok arrived at Sogyal Rinpoche’s Dharma center the same day the book was printed. Rinpoche observed the dependent origination and found it to be excellent, so he gave one copy of the German edition to His Holiness and another copy to me. However, since I don’t understand German, the only thing I could do was to place it on top my head to receive some blessing.
Sogyal Rinpoche said at that time that although many westerners believe in karma, they are still quite limited in their concepts of the existence of previous and future lives and how to face death. He therefore composed this book hoping that it could help to improve their view on living and dying. What happened through this book is quite evident to everyone. Guided by this book, many westerners indeed gained a new understanding about living and dying.
For that reason, we must take heed of such vital issues as living and dying. If future lives don’t exist, it is fine to let things drift in this lifetime, and it is fine to waste time. Conversely, if they do exist, then not accumulating merits in this life is obviously quite foolish. That would be like someone who sleeps all day, commits evil actions, and has no plan for the future because he thinks that tomorrow doesn’t exist or will not come; this is completely idiotic.
3. The recognition of past and future lives is not unique to Buddhism
In fact, the existence of previous and future lives is not unique to Buddhism. By looking at history, even in places where Buddhism was not present, we can see this concept was there and continued to be there, without fail. For example, around the time of the spring and autumn periods of the western Han Dynasty, before Buddhism had spread in China, there were many records about classic cases of past and future lives. In Chronicle of Zuo, there is a case about Ji Peng Sheng, who after he died became a wild boar in order to take revenge. Likewise, in Book of Han, it mentions how Ruyi, Emperor of Zhao, was killed by Empress Lu, and after his death he reincarnated as a dog to hunt her. Furthermore, in Book of Jin, there is a story about how the mother of Song Shizong became a turtle.
Since these kinds of cases can even be found in official historical records, when we hear about the existence of past and future lives we should not simply assume that Buddhists are superstitious. In contrast, we should take an objective and fair position to analyze this principle carefully.
Present Confusions about This Principle
In fact, the Buddhist view of life and death is quite profound. Dr. von Neumann said, in a philosophical section on quantum theory, that: “Humans possess consciousness that is non-material; it can affect and change a material thing.” After this theory was announced, it stunned the scientific world and sparked widespread interest. Before that, people assumed that “physical matter is the only or fundamental reality.” They thought that all things were composed of materials and had not discovered the truth expounded by Buddhism: “Everything is the imputation of mind.” This resonates with the true nature of reality.
Besides our physical body, we actually possess a subtle consciousness which arises and ceases continuously, and can generate an incredible power. Even contemporary scientists are not able to touch upon this power for now, because their research in this area remains unfruitful. At present, scientific research is predominantly on material objects, which also largely depends on advanced equipment. Although scientists have made substantial contributions to humankind in the material aspect, the subject of consciousness remains a blind spot. In fact, if they spent some time researching Buddhist texts such as the Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi, Abhidharmakosha, Abhidharma, Flower Adornment Sutra, and Lotus Sutra, the mystery of mind or consciousness could easily be unraveled.
When I was studying psychology at school, I was always plagued by many questions, some of which were truly perplexing. Sometimes when I went to ask my teachers about these questions, and we had a debate, it displeased my teachers and caused them to think that I was deliberately trying to make things complicated. (I heard that even today some of my psychology teachers continue to have objections about me.) Eventually, I encountered the Mahayana teachings. After studying Mahayana sutras and treatises, including Vajrayana’s Great Perfection, I personally felt a sudden enlightening about the questions that I had been asking, and to which I had been searching for answers. I thought, “Oh, it is like that. Without the guidance of Buddhism, no matter how we explain those theories, it is just like a blind man trying to learn about an elephant by touching the elephant with his hands. In the end, he cannot get a clear picture.”
The physicist Brian David Josephson, who was one of the winners of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1973, meditated in his daily life so as enter into the objective state of the inner clarity of mind. Through this kind of meditation, he discovered the power of the mind, and then put together his discoveries to compose a text. Because of this, he won numerous awards. I strongly believe the experiences that he wrote about are true, because if we realize the nature of our mind through meditation, we are able to have perfect command over everything, whether it is dealing with the material world or researching academic knowledge; we are more than equal to handling it. Conversely, without mastering this key point, however you try to speak about it, it only becomes extravagantly colorful descriptions; the fundamental basis has never been touched upon.
We should therefore try to observe our mind on a daily basis, and use some Buddhist pith instructions and teachings to counter our mental afflictions. If you can do this, your mental states will improve greatly in this lifetime, when you are confronted with various work and life-related stress, not to mention the benefits this can bring in your future lives.
The behavior of some intellectuals is tragic, because of adversities in romance, work, or family, due to which they think about committing suicide. Fortunately, through studying Buddhism, some have been able to completely change their life, as if they have been reborn, giving them an entirely new outlook. During my visit this time, I have met four people who had prepared to commit suicide before they encountered Buddhism. One of them has a son who is in a vegetative state due to a car accident he had while he was studying in Australia. She has to take care of him alone and as such endures many hardships in her life. Another person is facing a crisis in his marriage. The third person isn’t able to cope with his work and other complex problems in life. I need to keep the problem of the last person secret. These four people initially no longer had the desire to live. Luckily, after they encountered the Buddhadharma, their mentality was transformed fundamentally. Although externally their problems seemingly remain, due to the change in their mentality, they no longer complain or blame anyone else; they understand that these things are all due to karma.
In fact, this world is just like what it says in the Four Hundred Verses: “In the ocean of samsara which is boundless, why would foolishly sinking inside this not be intimidating?” Why would an ordinary being not be intimidated by indulging in the ocean of samsara, with its abyss of suffering? Those who do not believe in the existence of past and future lives may temporarily think that life is so beautiful and enjoyable. However, when the scenes of samsara appear in front of them, one by one, I am afraid that they may no longer be able to enjoy it.
Buddha also said in the Buddha-dhyana-samadhi-sagara-sutra that: “Sentient beings in the three realms or the six domains of cyclic existence are like a spinning wheel of fire.” From this teaching, it implies that while revolving in the six domains of cyclic existence, sentient beings have not the slightest joy. In this life we reincarnated as a human being, but in the next life we could reincarnate as an animal. Such impermanent scenes and constant flux of changes continuously appear like a movie.
Not long ago, I read a case mentioned in the Madhyama Agama Sutra, and it helped me to generate great renunciation of samsara. The story goes like this: One day, when Todeyaputta was out, coincidentally, Buddha went to his house begging for alms. In Todeyaputta’s house, there was a white dog lying on top of a bed decorated with gems. The dog was eating some delicious food from a plate made of gold. When the dog saw Buddha, it jumped off the bed and barked loudly. With compassion, Buddha said to the dog: “Due to your previous unwholesome activities, you were born as animal. Why are you still not aware of your mistake?” After hearing Buddha’s words, the white dog became very sad, stopped eating and sleeping, and just curled up in a ball.
When Todeyaputta came back, he was surprised to see his dog’s behavior. He asked his family members: “Why is my dog behaving strangely today?” His family replied: “Buddha came here just now.” Todeyaputta’s dog was the apple of his eye. After he heard about the reasons for his dog’s behavior, he was burning with rage, and immediately went to question Buddha, saying: “Why have you caused my dog to behave strangely?” Buddha told him: “Please do not misunderstand me. Your dog is actually the reincarnation of your father, Todeya. If you don’t believe me, please go back to ask the dog where his treasure from his past life is buried.”
Surprised and bewildered, Todeyaputta went home, and asked the dog if he was his father’s reincarnation, and if he was, to please show him the place where he had buried his treasure. The white dog immediately walked to the place where the father lived in his past life, then used his claws to scratch the ground and barked continuously. Right away, Todeyaputta started digging on that spot and found the treasure.
For this reason, Todeyaputta generated peerless faith in Buddha, then went on to request teachings from Buddha. Buddha then expounded the law of karma to him, saying: “Those who take away the life of living beings will have a short present lifespan; those who liberated animals in their past life will have a long present lifespan; those who practiced generosity in their past life will be rich in this life; those who were very stingy in their past life will be very poor in this life; those who created wholesome activities in their past life will find kindness easily; those who created unwholesome activities in their past life will have negative thoughts endlessly; and so on.” (Some people always complain that evil thoughts come one after another in their mind, and that their mind is very negative. I think this certainly has to do with their behavior in their past life.) After Buddha expounded this Dharma, Todeyaputta gained tremendous joy in the Dharma, took refuge in front of Buddha to become a lay practitioner, and eventually gained liberation.
Those who have no faith in Buddha may consider this story to be a myth. However, it is not so; it is a fact. If you don’t understand it, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. An American wrote a book called Talking to Heaven, in which he wrote about many cases where he had summoned souls of the dead from the hell realms or other world systems so that they could meet with their relatives who were still alive. Initially, many people did not believe him, so he revealed some secrets that were only known to the dead person, so that the relatives would believe the soul of the dead person had truly come. Then they started to communicate. This book created a great sensation in the west, and I suggest you read it if you have time.
I also came across a case during the 1930s in Shanghai. There was a Frenchman who was also able to summon souls from the hell realms, and without needing to enter into the body of a medium, the soul could speak directly in the room. The souls’ voices were completely identical to those of the dead people’s.
Including within Tibet, there are countless soul summoners. Sometimes they depart from their body for a week and look as if they have died, but actually they have gone to the bardo realm to bring back some messages from the dead souls to their relatives who are still alive. No doubt we can find some fake cases, some people may not really have this ability, and pretend to receive messages from the dead souls for their own benefit. However, there are also many real cases. We can find countless examples from ancient to modern times.
University Students Should Be Equipped with Correct Faith
As a university student, many of you probably have full confidence in your future. You think that after your graduation you will immediately work toward your aspirations and gain many accomplishments within society. However, in reality, society is not as beautiful as you might think it is. When you truly experience the complexity of the relationships between various people, from high to low, only then will you understand that the relaxation, freedom, and simplicity of student life is so precious. Therefore, you should be mentally well prepared in advance. Otherwise, when small adversities occur after you enter the world of society and work, you might be at a loss, as if the heavens are falling and the earth is breaking, and everything is in darkness, just like the scenes in the movie 2012.
What mindset should you have to be prepared? At least, you must have correct faith—something upon which you can rely. Without this, even if you are very successful in society, in your old age you may feel very lonely and miserable. We therefore should not be shortsighted and only care about our present. Instead, we should stand on a higher vantage point so we can see further. We should use the wisdom of the Buddhadharma to observe our life, the material world, and ethical and moral principles. If you can do this, you will discover that setting off all other fields of knowledge against Buddha’s wisdom makes those other fields seem so insignificant.
At present, there are many famous bestselling books. Whenever I hear about them, I am always interested to read about them. However, after I read about them, to be honest, I am quite disappointed, because the concepts or contents presented have already been articulated in Buddhist scriptures; nothing is new for me. Regarding this point, I am not fooling myself, boasting, or denying the truth. As a Buddhist, whether principles are derived from Buddhism, from other religions, or non-religions, as long as nobody can overturn them, we will recognize and accept them. However, after comparing various types of knowledge, my conviction in Buddha is even stronger than before. All of you, regardless of whether you believe or don’t believe, should still use wisdom to analyze.
This is basically what I wanted to share with everyone today. I hope that through this you understand the most important concept in our life—the existence of past and future lives. For the sake of your happiness in many future lives, accumulate merits and eventually enter the gate of liberation or enlightenment.
As we are all aware, recently there have been serious natural and manmade disasters in Japan, such as a ninth grade earthquake, a tsunami, a volcanic eruption, nuclear leaks, and so on. After watching these scenes on TV, I felt so sad about it. For historical reasons, the people of Nanjing hated the Japanese. However, as most of us are Mahayana practitioners, if we exchange our self with others, imagine if we had been swept away by waves and terrified by earthquakes. How unbearable it would be. Furthermore, some people may have created heavy negative karma during their past life and are now in the bardo state and don’t have a chance to purify their negativity through confession. Owing to this, they will fall into an abyss of suffering in their next life. If we reflect on this, we will realize that they are so miserable.
For this reason, I hope that we can recite together one hundred times the mantra of Avalokiteshvara and dedicate it to the victims in Japan, wish the dead can have a fortunate rebirth, and that those still alive are able to dispel their sufferings. OM MANI PADME HUM, OM MANI PADME HUM.… Thank you.
