Surangama Sutra Exposition
by Living Buddha Lian Sheng, Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu
Manjusri Bodhisattva, having attained the wondrous luminous true mind and the ability to generate myriad bodies, has a dialogue with the Buddha about what is real and what is not—that form and emptiness are the same. Grandmaster gave an example of how the wondrous luminous true mind can transcend both time and space, and form and emptiness.
At that time, the Dharma Prince Manjusri, out of compassion for the fourfold assembly, rose from his seat. In the midst of the great assembly, he bowed at the Buddha’s feet, joined his palms respectfully, and addressed the Buddha,
“World-Honored One, this great assembly does not understand the Tathagata’s explanation of the two aspects of the essence of seeing form and emptiness, and what is and what is not.
“World-Honored One, if these perceived phenomena of form and emptiness are considered as seeing, then they should have a definite location. If they are not seeing, then nothing should be perceived. But now, without understanding where this principle leads, they feel alarmed and fearful—and not because their good roots are shallow or lacking. I beg the Tathagata, in his great compassion, to explain: What exactly are these phenomena and this seeing essence? And between them, is there truly a distinction of what is and what is not?”
Manjusri is a highly esteemed great bodhisattva, the wisest among the Buddha’s sangha and within the Mahayana tradition. Along with Samantabhadra Bodhisattva as dharma princes (heart-sons of the Buddha), they form the Avatamsaka Trinity with the Buddha. As a teacher of the Seven Buddhas in his past life, he truly understands the mind and has seen buddhanature. He understands the wondrous luminous true mind. Yet for the sake of guiding others, he asked the Buddha to explain further.
The fourfold assembly (male and female monastics and lay practitioners) who have not realized the Dao do not understand form, emptiness, or the wondrous luminous true mind. As stated in the Heart Sutra: “Form is none other than emptiness, and emptiness is none other than form.” All phenomena of form and emptiness arise merely due to causes and conditions.
Manjusri Bodhisattva, who has countless emanations, is present not only in the saha world beside the Buddha but also in all buddhaverses. The Buddha asks him, “Which one is the real Manjusri?” Likewise, which is the real Sheng-Yen Lu—the one giving dharma teachings here, or the dharma bodies that people see? Actually, neither is real, and yet both are real.
As a baby, Grandmaster was often ill. Once, asleep with his parents, his mother, just as she was falling asleep, saw her own deceased parents walking into the room. Frozen in place, she heard them speaking and saw her mother give the baby medicine from the Taoist Master Wangwu (Wang Chang Sheng) of the Eastern Jin Dynasty—a sage who was the teacher of Zhang Guolao of the Tang Dynasty (one of the Eight Immortals). After this, Grandmaster’s health improved greatly.
This is a manifestation of the wondrous luminous true mind—real but not real, seemingly unreal yet real. Time and space are transcended, as are form and emptiness. Though this happened in 1945, the medicine was given by deceased grandparents, and originated from a master who lived over 1400 years earlier.