Surangama Sutra Exposition
by Living Buddha Lian Sheng, Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu
Everything manifests from the wondrous luminous true mind. Though illusory, they are neither true nor false, neither real nor unreal. There is no duality.
The Buddha said to Manjusri and the great assembly:
“All tathagatas of the ten directions and all great bodhisattvas, while abiding in samadhi, observe that both the seeing and the seen, along with all conceptual distinctions, are like flowers in the sky—fundamentally nonexistent. This seeing and what is seen are originally the wondrous, pure, and luminous essence. How can there be any distinction of ‘is’ or ‘is not’?
“Manjusri, I now ask you: You are Manjusri! Now, is there a Manjusri who is Manjusri? And is there a Manjusri who is not Manjusri?”
“Just so, World-Honored One! I am truly Manjusri, yet also not Manjusri. Why? If there were one, then there would be two Manjusris. Yet today, I am not Manjusri either. There really is no duality of ‘is’ or ‘is not.’”
Although they originate from the wondrous luminous true mind, all the seeing and the seen (everything that exists) are illusory and inherently nonexistent.
Manjusri Bodhisattva, the chief and the wisest of all bodhisattvas in the Avatamsaka World, fully comprehends the wondrous luminous true mind, and can manifest countless dharma bodies. In the saha world, he appears next to the Buddha, and in each buddhaverse, he is also next to the Buddha. Of all these manifestations of Manjusri, how many are there? Is there a real or true Manjusri? Does that mean the rest are fake or false? They are all true—yet also false.
In his dialogue with the Buddha, he states that it is impossible to say there is one, two, or many Manjusris [as dharma bodies are uncountable]. It is also impossible to say which one is real and which one is unreal. Even this Manjusri who is speaking is not real. All are manifestations of the wondrous luminous true mind, and all are illusory.
Similarly, Grandmaster has many dharma bodies. What people see—and their spiritual responses—vary. Which one is true and which is false? We cannot say. This distinction is irrelevant because they can be both real and unreal at the same time. It is real to one person and unreal to another. Even the Grandmaster who is now sitting on the dharma throne speaking dharma is both real and unreal—real but unreal; unreal yet real. Everything is illusory, [but for the moment it is real]. In fact, there is no duality of real or unreal, true or false, is or is not. The wondrous luminous true mind is as such.
One time during a group practice, Grandmaster sat on the dharma throne and saw a line of spirits queuing up to receive blessing from him. Some even brought a list for him to sign and bless. However, no one else could see them. Was that real or not? To Grandmaster, yes, but not to everyone else. It seems real, yet it seems false too. There is no duality!
Another time, Grandmaster was very sleepy; his head and body leaning forward, almost falling toward the table. At that moment, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva behind him placed an invisible seatbelt across his chest to prevent him from falling. No one saw it, but he knew it was happening. Saying it is real, no one can see it; saying it is false, it is true.
During samadhi, the wondrous luminous true mind can manifest for the tathagatas and great bodhisattvas. They can perceive what ordinary people cannot. Although these perceptions are illusory and unreal, they are also real. When the wondrous luminous true mind manifests, transcendent powers appear. These too are neither real nor false.