Issue 289

“Ananda! since you now wish to know about the path of shamatha with the hope of getting out of birth and death, I will question you further.”
Then the Tathagata raised his golden arm and bent his five wheeled fingers as he asked Ananda, “Do you see?”
Ananda said, “I see.”

Ananda! since you now wish to know about the path of shamatha with the hope of getting out of birth and death, I will question you further. Ananda! Do you want to know about the path of calming the mind (shamatha)? If you really want to liberate birth and death, I will ask you again! I’ll give you a question to test you now. What was the question?

Then the Tathagata raised his golden arm. As he was about to question Ananda, the Tathagata stretched his gold-colored arm out in front of him and bent his five wheeled fingers. (The Venerable Master made a fist with his hand), this is called bent. (The Venerable Master unfolded his hand), this is called stretch. As he asked Ananda, “Do you see?” You can see how the Buddha is treating Ananda like a child by asking him such a simple question as whether he sees the Buddha raise his arm and bend his fingers. Ananda said, “I see.” Ananda said, I saw it!

Take a look at this point. Why did the Tathagata stretch out his golden arm and bend his five wheeled fingers? It was to let Ananda know that the pure nature and bright substance of the permanently dwelling mind can manifest in the eye, in the seeing-nature. And that is why he concentrates on discussing doctrines involving seeing in the following passages. He wanted to lead Ananda to become enlightened through the seeing nature.

So the Chinese Patriarchs, the great virtuous ones of the Ch’an School would often just point a finger when asked for instruction. That is another way of telling you to become enlightened through the seeing-nature. Sometimes when you request instruction from them they stared at you wide-eyed and speechless. They were indicating that you should break through at that point and comprehend the meaning in totality. So in the Ch’an school they use ‘ferocious stares and raises eyebrows’. The Ch’an master may make some gesture in order to lead his disciples to become enlightened. If you understand, you become enlightened; if not, you miss the opportunity. If you miss the timing it will turn into a mistake. If you understand, it is an awakening to enlightenment. If you don’t understand, you will miss the chance. This is called missing the opportunity which is a mistake.

A lot of Chinese Patriarchs were that way. But they were enlightened, and so it was appropriate for them to use such methods to teach people. But you cannot say, “I heard that Patriarchs merely point their finger, so when I meet up with someone I’ll point my finger and bring about his enlightenment.” Have you become enlightened yourself? If you yourself haven’t become enlightened, how can you teach others to do so?

If you haven’t become enlightened, just as Chris said before, you shouldn’t decide to go help other people while disregarding the fact that you yourself have outflows. To try to rescue others while paying no attention to whether you yourself have accomplished the Way first is to be like a clay Bodhisattva crossing a river; he has a hard time protecting himself. How do you say this? That Bodhisattva image was made of clay, once it tries to cross the river and gets wet by the water, it will crumble and the Bodhisattva is gone. Until he tries to cross the river, the clay Bodhisattva stays intact, but as soon as he hits the water, he disintegrates and disappears.

If you haven’t attained the state of no outflows, and nevertheless go out to help people, you will be influenced by the social environment you find yourself immersed in. You’ll be transformed and won’t be able to transform others. You’ll be turned around by the affairs of the world instead of being able to turn them around. Hence before you have attained fruition and the state of no outflows, you are always in danger. This is very dangerous indeed! Haven’t I said before, if you have not yet understood, how can you teach and transform others?

Take this sutra, for example. If I didn’t understand the doctrines in it myself, I wouldn’t be able to explain it for you. I dare not say that I thoroughly understand it, but to be frank about it, I am clearer about it than you. Because I know more than you, I am explaining what I know so that you can also know it. But even at that, I’m just explaining a little. If I were to explain to you everything I know, there wouldn’t be enough time. I’m just bringing up the important points.

The Tathagata raised his golden arm and bent his five wheeled fingers. The fingers are said to be “five wheeled” because the Buddha has the mark of the thousand-spoked wheel on his hands and on his feet. You could also say that “wheeled” refers to his bending his fingers in sequence: one, two, three, four, five. Moreover, each of his one, two, three, four, five fingers could also be called “wheeled.” It was something everyone could see. Why did the Buddha ask Ananda such a simple matter?

You may see it as simple now, but actually it is not. The more the Buddha’s question is delved into as the text continues, the deeper and more wonderful it becomes. It is just in the course of ordinary everyday matters that you can totally comprehend your inherent Buddha-nature. It is just right at this place and not at other places! The familiar places you come in contact with every day are the representations of the Buddha-nature. But when you don’t know that through your own experience, then what is wrong seems right, and what is right seems wrong, and what is not lost seems lost. Basically you haven’t lost it, but it seems lost to you. Basically you haven’t forgotten it, but you can’t quite recall it. So your own family jewels, the scenery of your homeland, are not easy to understand. Why? Because from beginningless time the fundamental root of birth and death – the mind that seizes upon conditions – has been too strong. If the mind that seizes upon conditions would disappear, you would understand your inherent Buddha-nature in an instant.

The Buddha said, “What do you see?”
Ananda said, “I see the Tathagata raise his arm and bend his fingers into a fist of light which dazzles my mind and my eyes.”
The Buddha said, “What do you see it with?”
Ananda said, “The members of the great assembly and I each see it with our eyes.”
The Buddha said to Ananda, “You have answered me by saying that the Tathagata bends his fingers into a fist of light which dazzles your mind and eyes. Your eyes able to see, but what is the mind that is dazzled by my fist?”

The Buddha said, “What do you see?” The Buddha was still talking. What did he say? “What do you see?”

Ananda said, “I see the Tathagata raise his arm and bend his fingers into a fist of light which dazzles my mind and my eyes.” World Honored One, I see you stretch out your arm and bend your five wheeled fingers, and your fist emits light. That light shines so brightly that I can hardly even open my eyes. My mind is illuminated by it as well.

The Buddha said, “What do you see it with?” The Buddha asked again: “What is it that sees?”

Ananda said, “The members of the great assembly and I each see it with our eyes.” Ananda didn’t speak just for himself; he included everyone in the great assembly. He’s got witnesses, the way the defense in court calls in witnesses to testify that the defendant is not a thief. He calls in friends and relatives to act as character witnesses. If Ananda were to speak for himself, his statement that he saw with his own eyes might still be subject to question. So, he made a concluding review. He drags in some support by including the great assembly. “Everyone in this assembly including myself maintains that we all use our eyes to see.” Now his words spoken before and after contradicts themselves.

The Buddha said to Ananda, “You have answered me by saying that the Tathagata bends his fingers into a fist of light which dazzles your mind and eyes. Your eyes may be able to see, but what is the mind that is dazzled by my fist?” The Buddha said: “Good! Your eyes are capable of seeing. I’ll ask you again! Answer me now. If I (the Tathagata) bend my five wheeled fingers into a fist of light, it will dazzle your mind and eyes. Not bad! Your eyes can see. But what do you conceive to be your mind which is being illuminated by my fist?” The Buddha is taking another step forward.”What do you take to be the mind?” What do you think Ananda would say?