Surangama Sutra Exposition
by Living Buddha Lian Sheng, Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu
It does not end with death! There are two paths upon death: one is the endless birth and death in the rebirth realm, and another is the no-birth and no-death of the wondrous luminous true mind. The physical body is ever-changing and undergoes birth and death. However, the dharma body is omnipresent and eternal. By cultivating and manifesting the wondrous luminous true mind, we become dharma bodies, eternally existing—non-arising and non-ceasing.
The Buddha said, “Great King, you observe that transformation and change never cease, and from this, you awaken to the truth of your own decay. But in the midst of this decay, do you also recognize that there is something within your body that does not decay?”
King Prasenajit joined his palms and said to the Buddha, “I truly do not know.”
The Buddha said, “Now I shall show you the nature that is neither born nor destroyed. Great King, at what age did you first see the Ganges River?”
The king replied, “When I was three years old, my kind mother took me to visit the deity Jivaka. We passed by this river, and at that time, I recognized it as the Ganges River.”
The Buddha said, “Great King, as you have said, at twenty you had declined from ten, and by sixty, day by day, month by month, year by year, there was constant change. Then, when you saw this river at age three, how was it again when you saw it at thirteen?” The king replied, “It was exactly the same as when I was three—no difference at all. Even now at sixty-two, it remains unchanged.”
The Buddha said: “You now lament your white hair and wrinkled face, which must be more wrinkled than in your childhood. But when you look at the Ganges now, is the seeing that observes the river any different from when you were a child? Has your seeing grown old?”
The king replied: “No, World-Honored One!”
The Buddha said, “Great King, though your face is wrinkled, this pure essence of seeing has never wrinkled! What wrinkles belongs to change; what does not wrinkle is not subject to change. That which changes is subject to cessation. But that which does not change has never been born nor destroyed—how could it be subject to birth and death? And yet, misguided ones like Maskari and the like claim that the body is annihilated after death!”
Hearing these words, the king realized with faith that after abandoning this life there is rebirth, and together with the great assembly he leaped for joy, experiencing what he had never experienced before.
In India, there’s a tradition to bring a three-year-old to pray to Jivaka, the Longevity God, for safety in growing up.
Maskari, one of the six heretical teachers, believed that suffering and happiness has nothing to do with cause and effect; and that when humans die, everything disappears. But this is not true, as the wondrous luminous true mind, likened to the unchanging Ganges River, is ever-present. At the very least, there will be reincarnation—going to heaven is also a reincarnation.
Buddhism states that after death, there are two paths: 1) birth and death in the rebirth realm, and 2) no-birth and no-death of the realm of the dharma bodies. Although the rebirth realm can also be considered as no-birth and no-death, there is much suffering in it—especially in the three lower realms of hells, hungry ghosts, and animals. Once one attains the wondrous luminous true mind, they can transcend rebirth and reach the four sagely realms or the buddhaverses.
If a cultivator practices well and reaches enlightenment, they can generate countless split /emanation/dharma bodies. These incorporeal bodies are omnipresent and continually deliver sentient beings; they appear upon invocation. Many True Buddha School disciples have seen or sensed Grandmaster’s dharma bodies—in dreams, meditation, or even in broad daylight with their eyes open. Whether Grandmaster is still alive in this human world, or has departed in the future, he will manifest anywhere, anytime, to help sentient beings.
Likewise, Ksitigarbha, Avalokitesvara, and Golden Mother have myriad emanations. Sakyamuni Buddha’s physical body left this world 2600 years ago, but Grandmaster can still see and communicate with the Buddha. The Tathagata’s dharma body and the spirit of Buddhism is ever present! Thus, if one attained the Way, [reach the stage of] no-birth and no-death, their dharmakaya is ever present.
In Hinduism, the Buddha is considered the ninth incarnation of Vishnu. In Buddhism, one with spiritual attainment can have many manifestations.
The six heretical teachers believed that there is nothing after death. If that were the case, one would not suffer retribution for past actions, there would be no cause and effect, and people could do whatever they wanted. But Buddhism teaches cause and effect—karma. When there is a cause, there will be an effect (causal and resultant grounds). For Book 307, Grandmaster is thinking to write about karma.