Surangama Sutra Exposition
by Living Buddha Lian Sheng, Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu
The Buddha’s disciples were remarkable: from an ordinary occurrence such as smelling incense, they could contemplate on its nature until conceptual thoughts faded and the light manifested within. By transforming conditioned dharmas into realization of the unconditioned, one can attain realization.
Fragrant Adornment Youth then rose from his seat, bowed at the Buddha’s feet, and said to the Buddha:
“I heard the Tathagata teach me to carefully contemplate all conditioned phenomena. I then took leave of the Buddha and retired to a quiet chamber.
I saw the bhiksus burning agarwood incense. Its fragrance quietly entered my nostrils. I contemplated this fragrance and realized that it came neither from the wood nor from emptiness, neither from the smoke nor from the fire. When it departed, it had nowhere to go; when it came, it came from nowhere.
Through this, conceptual thought dissolved, and I awakened to the unconditioned state free of outflows. The Tathagata affirmed my realization and gave me the name Fragrant Adornment.
When the sensory fragrance suddenly vanished, the wondrous fragrance became secretly perfect and all-pervading. Through the adornment of fragrance, I attained arhatship.
The Buddha asks about perfect penetration. According to my realization, smell is the supreme means.”
Fragrant Adornment Youth contemplated the fragrance of burning agarwood incense as he meditated. What is the nature of this fragrance? Where does it come from? The wood itself is not fragrant, nor does the fragrance simply appear out of nowhere. There is no fragrance in the fire, air, smoke, or the wood. It arises only when the necessary causes and conditions come together. This is referred to as the conditioned phenomena.
Fragrance does not last forever. Where does it come from and where does it go? As Fragrant Adornment Youth contemplated this, he eventually entered into emptiness where nothing exists, not even his own body. His thoughts subsided and he entered the state of no-thought. He realized that the mind is inherently empty. Through the conditioned phenomenon of fragrance, he entered the unconditioned and attained realization. The inner light inside the heart manifested and he saw the wondrous luminous true mind. All mundanity disappeared.
The Buddha’s disciples were remarkable because they could use even a simple experience, such as the scent of incense, as a gateway to deep samadhi and realization. Similarly, Grandmaster’s guru taught him to light a stick of incense and sit in meditation before it in a dark room. By focusing on its burning tip, we can settle our wandering thoughts. Gradually, the red glow expands until it fills our body and mind. Eventually, all thoughts cease and the mind and the body disappear completely. This is a method of attaining realization. Another method is counting the breath.
In Tantric Buddhism, we are taught the Three-Step Dharmakaya Visualization (“enter me, I enter”) that we do in our yidam practice. One starts with the moon-disc, and the seed syllable, which transform into the deity. The more focused and still the mind, the clearer the visualization. Eventually we can see the deity as clearly as in real life, including the light they emit and ourselves receiving and absorbing that light, and ultimately, one’s own body emitting light.
On the other hand, a scattered mind with distracting thoughts has difficulty visualizing clearly. When visualization is not clear, take it slowly and focus on just one point, such as the lotus or the deity’s face until the visualization is clear. The key is in how well the mind can focus. The trained mind can immediately see images vividly as soon as the eyes close. This is an excellent achievement.
When the mind is pure, speech and actions will be pure. The primordial spirit is important to a cultivator, and cultivating the mind is essential. There is a saying in Tantric Buddhism: “When an evil practitioner cultivates the true dharma, the true dharma becomes evil. When a righteous person cultivates a deviant dharma, the deviant dharma becomes upright.” The point is that a righteous mind leads to righteous actions. When the mind is unstable and scattered—or worse, inclined toward evil—one is more easily affected by negative influences, including sorcery or witchcraft.
Yet it can be difficult to discern the boundary between right and wrong, or good and bad. Buddhadharma teaches us to always guard the mind, stay on the middle path, and uphold the precepts so that we do not stray from the proper path.
As Vimalakirti teaches, greed, hatred, and delusion can also be buddhadharma. Take only what is rightfully yours and use only what belongs to you, and you will not violate the precepts. As the saying goes, “Where a lion leaps, a rabbit should not follow.” If you go beyond your capacity, you may be hurt or even die. Do not think, “Guru Padmasambhava could do it, so I can too. He had five dakinis, so I can as well.” A practitioner must understand their own capacity, uphold the precepts, and remain on the proper path.