(Continued from issue #272)
The Buddha said to Ananda, “All these bhikshus who just followed me to the city of Shravasti to beg in sequence for food have returned to the Jeta Grove and are rolling their food into balls as they eat. I have already finished eating, but consider the bhikshus: when one person eats, does everyone get full?”
Ananda thought that his mind was located outside so he used the light of a lamp as an analogy. The Buddha will surely recognize his achievement. He felt certain that the Buddha would agree that the mind is outside! Who would have suspected that the Buddha wouldn’t even consider the proposal?
The Buddha said to Ananda, “All these bhikshus who just followed me to the city of Shravasti to beg in sequence for food have returned to the Jeta Grove and are rolling their food into balls as they eat.” They begged from house to house and then returned to the grove of trees donated by Prince Jeta. In India they ate by picking up pieces of food in their hands and rolling them into balls, and this is how the Buddha and his disciples ate. In present-day Myanmar, bowls are used, but those who have left the home-life still eat their vegetables and rice with their right hand, without using a spoon or chopsticks. They take a piece of food in their hand and roll it over and over. Then they eat it. Eating this way is very appetizing to them, though whether it is ultimately very appetizing I don’t know, since I’ve never tried it. When the Buddha returned from his round of begging for food, he also used his hand to pick up the food and eat without using chopsticks or spoons.
“I have already finished eating, but consider the bhikshus: when one person eats, does everyone get full?” I have eaten my fill, but take a look at the assembly: some bhikshus have not finished eating. Now if just one person eats, can the rest get full? If there is any doubt about this principle, we can try it out ourselves tomorrow. Just serve me food, and all of you can look on while I eat, and you can see if you get full. That will prove the principle found in the Sutra!
Ananda answered, “No, World Honored One. Why? These bhikshus are Arhats, but their individual lives differ. How could one person’s eating cause everyone to be full?”
Ananda answered, “No, World Honored One. Why?”Having answered in the negative, Ananda was afraid the Buddha might not understand, so he proceeded to give the Buddha additional commentary. “Why do I say they can’t get full? These bhikshus are Arhats, but their individual lives differ. Although they have become enlightened and they all have spiritual penetrations, their bodies are still not the same. Their appearances, their faces, are all different. If they were all one, then when one ate, all would get full, but they are not one; each has his own individual life. So how could one person’s eating cause everyone to be full? Therefore, I say there is no such principle.”
The Buddha told Ananda, “If your mind which understands, knows, sees and is aware were actually outside your body, your body and mind would be mutually exclusive and would have no relationship to one another. The body would be unaware of what the mind perceives, and the mind would not perceive the awareness within the body.
The Buddha told Ananda: Shakyamuni Buddha, having heard Ananda’s reply that when one eats, it cannot cause everyone to be full, then told him, “If your mind which understands, knows, sees and is aware were actually outside your body, your body and mind would be mutually exclusive and would have no relationship to one another.” If the mind which has awareness, which can calculate, which can discriminate, and which has knowledge and views were outside the body, then there would be no connection between the two. They’d have parted ways; they wouldn’t reside together. Your body would be your body; your mind would be your mind, and your mind would be apart from your body. “You pay no attention to my business,” they’d say, “and I won’t pay attention to yours.”
The body would be unaware of what the mind perceives, and the mind would not perceive the awareness within the body. The body would not be aware of the mind or influenced by it, and if your awareness was within the body, the mind wouldn’t know about it. Your body and mind are being apart and separated.
“Now as I show you my tula-cotton hand, does your mind distinguish it when your eyes see it?”
Ananda answered, “So it is, World Honored One.”
The Buddha told Ananda, “If the mind and eyes create a common perception, how then can the mind be outside?
The Buddha told Ananda, “Now as I show you my tula-cotton hand, does your mind distinguish it when your eyes see it? The Buddha’s hands are extremely soft and supple, like cotton. When your eyes see it, does your mind make a distinction that my hand is a tula-cotton hand?” Ananda answered, “So it is, World Honored One. Yes. My eyes see it and my mind distinguishes it. Your principle is correct, World Honored One! ‘So it is’ means it’s correct.
The Buddha told Ananda, “If the mind and eyes create a common perception, how then can the mind be outside?” If your mind knows what your eyes see, how can you say that your mind is outside your body? Note that the Buddha does not say that the mind is inside. It has already been made clear that saying the mind is inside is also a mistake. Now Ananda claims that the mind is located outside, however the Buddha said that too is incorrect. If it were outside, how could it perceive what the eyes see?
“Therefore you should know you state the impossible when you say that the mind which knows, understands, and is aware is outside the body.”
Since Ananda’s argument that the mind is inside the body did not hold up, he changed his revelation to say that the mind is outside the body. The World Honored One has used all kinds of analogies to instruct him, but unfortunately Ananda only knows how to analyze the Buddhadharma by means of his conscious mind, which is subject to production and extinction. He does not perceive the pure nature and bright substance of the everlasting true mind. The Buddha told Ananda, “Now as I show you my tula-cotton hand, does your mind distinguish it when your eyes see it? Ananda answered, “Yes. My eyes see it and think ‘Ah,’ it says, ‘the Buddha’s tula-cotton hand is the very finest. This is one of the thirty-two hallmarks of the Tathagata.’ My mind distinguishes it. So it is, World Honored One. My mind makes a discrimination of fondness.”The Buddha told Ananda, “If your mind knows what your eyes see, if the mind and eyes create a common perception, then the mind cannot be outside. How can you say that your mind is outside your body? “What reason do you have to say that? Speak up quickly! So the Buddha once again gives Ananda his critique: this is wrong!
“Therefore you should know you state the impossible when you say that the mind which knows, understands and is aware, is outside the body. You were wrong,” the Buddha says. The mind which calculates and understands is not outside your body. Do you understand? You have made a mistake.
With regard to tula-cotton hand, now I will relate a point of physiognomy. If you rub someone’s hand and find it to be as soft as cotton, that person has a promising future and will eventually be honorable. As the saying goes, ‘hands soft as cotton, wealth and honor prevail’. Ordinary people’s hands are very stiff. I know my hands, for example, are as stiff as a board, not soft like cotton. However, soft hands do not necessarily indicate a great future. The countenance is equally important in this matter. Are the features heroic? Is the person’s appearance powerful? As for men, I have met only two whose hands were extremely soft. However, during the time I knew them neither one of them displayed signs of greatness. Their appearances didn’t match up. Generally speaking, when one has soft hands, this is still a noble characteristic.
Editor’s Note: The following is an excerpt of the ‘Driving Force of Subjective Wisdom’ seminar on July 4, 1998.
‘The Seven Locations of Inquiring the Mind’ broke Ananda’s attachment. Not only did it break Ananda’s attachment, it also broke everyone else’s attachment. When we look at this section of the sutra text, we should also reflect our light to look within ourselves; think about this: Where is the mind that each one of us can understand, know of and be aware? Where is it located? If you can recognize this mind, then you can understand the Buddhadharma; if you don’t understand this mind, then you still have not understand the Buddhadharma.
End of the ‘Driving Force of Subjective Wisdom’ seminar
(To be continued ..)