THE RIGHTEOUS or DECLINING DHARMA

I happened to see on the web the photos of the Covid-19 pandemic in India yesterday. It was so terrible. Mass deaths and not enough crematoriums. They had to use the pieces of wood to  burn the dead bodies of their loved right on the small openings in New Delhi, the capital. Inside each of tiny fire was a human corpse. Dead and alive people were in chaos everywhere. The city was full of trash. No one cleaned it. They died due to various reasons, infection and contagion, inadequate hospital services  and oxygen deficiency.  

I remembered in the years  between 2000 to 2004 when our great Master led us, the meditating practitioners, for the first pilgrimages  to India. There was no human minimum  convenience in Indian society then, especially at remote villages. Children had no clothing even flip-flops. There was no restroom. Water was not clean enough. Their simple shelters were just the huts covered by some pieces of cloth. Garbage was everywhere. With those, how could they have masks now to partially protect them from being contagious? They were surely exposed to be attacked by any plague. How glooming for such a humble destiny!

At the time of seeing the poor living conditions of the impoverished  Indians in the rural areas by my own eyes, I made a vow. I solemnly avowed to be an Indian, in my next life, of high authority and ability to improve their life. There would be no rubbish in the streets. Each family would have a small house to stay. Children would have enough clothing. Each of the Indians would possess the minimum knowledge of hygiene.

I, then, remembered to ask our Master “ This is the homeland of the Buddha. How come it is now  so bad like this? The Lord taught humans sagacity for more than two thousand years. How come the people here are so miserable like that? I think they were much and much poorer than  the countryside fellowmen in our motherland. Even bananas and oranges looked so pitiful, too. They were skinny and pale as the young children and the aged people sitting on both sides of the roads doing nothing. When our bus passed them. We saw only their widely-opened eyes on the bony and gloomy faces with their long and loose limbs.

It seemed our Master was a little bit hesitant then.  He lowered his voice and said it might be due to the collective karma. Buddhism was  destroyed  by the locals here around the eleventh century. Up to now, it has not been restored though it is in the Lord’s fatherland.

Waking up last midnight,  I thought of the temporary, little bitty crematoria  side by side everywhere in the openings. The fire was glimmering. The survivors themselves burned their beloved. No one helped anyone. Then, the other corpses, getting in line for their turn, wrapped in the nylon or canvas sacks tightly tied by some ropes around, stayed immobile there. Looking at the bags, I knew where the heads were; and the smaller ends were the legs. That’s it. That is merely what a human being is. And is that all? When alive, everyone enjoyed  themselves, laughed and cried, got married, associated with parents, siblings and lots of friends. But now, at the end of life, everyone was the same. Their families or the friends who felt sorry for them could drop some tear, then, hurriedly  ignited the flame to burn that virus, the Covid 19. The fire flickered day and night. The dense smoke was mixed  with the barbecue smelling. Someone was covering her face in her hands. Was she crying or her tears had dried out?

That is what human life finally ends. Either cremated at the professional crematoria in California with people saying farewell, together with beautiful wreaths and eulogies,  or family members hurriedly set up the burning in the open polluted air, then rushed out to stay far away from the contagious virus, both are similar. What left is just ash and ash.

A human lifetime is finally some ash. And whatever ash is always ash.

Long time ago, at a course of Buddhist Psychology, our Master lectured that  at the time of the Buddhist Sectarianism (BCE),  the Kukkulika sect, under the Mahasanghika, advocated as follows:

 “ Every conditional phenomenon is a pile of ash.”

The practice of contemplating human corpses at the graveyards is among the Buddhist teachings. The Bikkhus, at first, observed the corpses in the process of being spoil rotten and swollen. Vultures or any beastie came tearing, chewing and swallowing. Then the bodies dispersed into powder and dust. Seeing that, many a Bikkhu were sick of their bodies, and tried to commit suicide.

Such news brought to the Buddha’s attention. The Lord had to re-explained: the process of   watching dead bodies with the  attention to  full details in order to recognize that  human bodies one day would be broken up in that way and to  not indulge in  deep cravings for our bodies or others’. That is the best method to terminate the ties of yearning.

The sensual bondage to our physical bodies and the others are the roots of desires or existence that lead to be reborn. This is the most crucial infatuation and the pathway to the ocean of human immense sufferings.

But it is extremely dangerous that while human beings fight with each other, cause resentful anger and sufferings, they keep doing their best to look for those. They think that is happiness, pleasures and honey in life.

It is possible due to that reason the Buddha states anyone who wants to lead a pure living, the saint’s holy life, the virtuous merits, has to be ordained. The most practical fruit from that is  they can cut off all desires and family clinging. Mind is  not tranquil until  the bodies are purified.

Among the sutras, one story tells how the Buddha taught a monk to cut off his worldly cravings. Here is its summary. Sir Jivãka, who was King Ashoka’s physician and the Buddha and his sangha’s doctor, had a younger  sister who was very pretty and widely-known in the old city of Rajagrha for her beautiful dancing and singing.

A great number of  young gentlemen who wanted to enjoy her performances  had to spend countless gold coins. One day, she was suddenly  awake, and initiated a solemn promise of lunch donation for 8 monks per day. The sangha members, then, took turn to get to her house to have the at-noon meals offered.

A Bikkhu, once, after the lunch, came back to the monasty and told everyone the hostess was so handsome. A young monk heard that and wished his turn would come soon. Then, that day finally came. Unluckily, Lady Sirimã got seriously sick the day before.  

At the lunch time, with the help of her maids,  the Lady tried to appear just for paying the homage to the Bikkhus.  That young monk saw her and quietly said to himself “ Oh! Sirimã was very beautiful even though she was so ill.” His mind was so agitated that he could not eat anything. Back to the monastic life, he stopped eating and sleeping. He was immobile, dull of perception day and night.  

A couple of days later, the Lady passed away. The Buddha sent a message to the king that he should keep her dead body,  bring it to the center of the crowds and announce the news for everyone  to come and see her. The Buddha took the whole sangha there. Among them was that young monk. The King had his associates to beat the drums with the shout-outs:

"This is Lady Sirimā, whoever possesses 1,000 gold coins can bring her home.”

No one responded. The King kept  lowering the amount till everyone could get her for free. But none of them wanted that.

Only then did the King release the order of cremating  Shrimã’s corpse. The Buddha led the Sangha back to the monastery. Since then, that young monk devoted himself to his mind training and attained the Arahatship soon.

(For further details, we can reach the Nikaya Sutra, Lady Sirimã’s Castle)

For more than one year, calamities  have happened everywhere. Sometimes it was natural disasters. Sometimes it was caused by humans. That was wars, hatred, and terrorism. That was also bombing, shooting bullets, fires, floods, thunderstorms, and tidal waves.  For the practitioners whose sagacity  has developed got more awake and more diligent in mind culture. Those who did not involve in mind practice were up and down and exhausted in dealing with unexpected dangers in life.

Some assumes this is the end of the Dharma. However, the Buddhist teachings are obviously present everywhere. When the Trio of Invaluable are consistently staying in the mundane world, it is  the very  Righteous Dharma. Thus, those who are unable to see the Three Precious, then, they can think the Dharma is declining now.

Bhikkhuni Thích Nữ Triệt Như

Written at the  Sunyata Monastery, June 06, 2021

English version by Ngọc Huyền

Link to Vietnamese article: https://tanhkhong.org/a2285/triet-nhu-snhp007-chanh-phap-hay-mat-phap