Surangama Sutra Exposition
by Living Buddha Lian Sheng, Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu
Whether one has eye problems or not, because of karma, all that is seen is deluded vision. We all possess buddhanature, yet it is obscured by our own karma and delusions. When karma is cleared and one remains unaffected by causes and conditions, the wondrous luminous true mind emerges.
“Ananda, I shall now clarify these two aspects for you—one moving forward, one moving backward—to help you understand.
“Ananda! Sentient beings, due to individual karmic delusion, may look at a lamp and perceive a round halo around its light. These halos may appear real, but they are in fact illusions caused by impairment in the eye. The vision arises from the strain of the disorder and is not part of the visual object. Yet, perceiving the distortion carries no fault.
“In the same way, what you see today—mountains, rivers, lands, and all sentient beings—is also a distortion stemming from beginningless affliction in perception. The vision and what is seen seem real, but these are misuses of the inherent enlightened awareness.
“The very act of perception is itself a distortion. However, the original luminous mind—the awareness that enables perception—is not distorted. When one realizes that the perception of the distortion is separate from the distortion itself, this is true ‘seeing the seeing.’ At that point, how can one still speak in terms of ordinary perception, hearing, knowing, or seeing?
“Therefore, when you see me, yourself, and all the various beings in this world, you are only seeing the distortions, and not the eye disorder. The true essence of seeing nature is free from distortion; thus, it is not called ‘seeing.’
“Ananda! When sentient beings share a deluded view due to collective karma, it is similar to the individual case, except it applies to an entire country. Just as seeing a halo is due to an eye disorder, the inauspicious signs perceived by the collective arise from shared karmic obscurations—all of which come from beginningless delusion.
“Jambudvipa’s three thousand continents, along with the four great oceans, this saha world, and even the ten directions where defiled lands and sentient beings dwell—arise from the same originally luminous and undefiled wondrous mind. What we call seeing, hearing, feeling, and knowing are merely false appearances born of deluded conditions—falsely coming together and falsely falling apart.
“But if one can distance oneself from both the conditions of aggregates and non-aggregates, then the causes of birth and death are extinguished. The perfect bodhi is non-arising and non-ceasing; it is the pure original mind, the ever-abiding innate awareness.”
What we perceive as real are mere aggregates of the four elements. Even the physical body, mountains, and rivers are not ultimately real. Why? The human body arises from a sperm and an egg, is everchanging, and will one day disappear. A butterfly was once a caterpillar; a frog was a tadpole. Are mountains truly mountains? Are rivers truly rivers? Seabeds have become mountains, and mountains have become seas. Everything—including the Earth—is everchanging.
We all have buddhanature but our karma—individual and collective—enshrouds us. As a result, we mistake illusion for reality. Whether our eyes are ill or not, all that we see is distorted. True seeing is when the wondrous luminous true mind emerges, which occurs in single-pointed samadhi and through the cultivation of right view—part of the Noble Eightfold Path. This happens only when karma is purified and the ultimate truth is understood. If we can free ourselves from both the self-arising and dependent-arising of aggregates and karmic conditions, then the ever-abiding wondrous luminous true mind will manifest.
Though all phenomena are illusory, we may still experience emotions during certain moments in life—wars, disasters, separation, loss. These emotions are fleeting, and all returns to equilibrium when the moment passes. In this world, conflict is everywhere—from individuals to nations. But what are they really fighting for? Not even a needle can be taken with you when you die.
Encountering buddhadharma is a precious affinity that should be cherished. It reveals truths unknown to most worldly beings. Through buddhadharma, one comes to realize that everything is ultimately false and illusory. Once awakened, one releases attachment and affliction, radiates light, and ascends to higher realms.