Surangama Sutra Exposition
by Living Buddha Lian Sheng, Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu
In Tantric Buddhism, the tongue plays an important role. By placing the tip of the tongue on the upper palate, the brow cakra is connected to the throat cakra, so Qi and Heavenly Water can flow from the brow cakra to the throat cakra, then to the heart cakra, navel cakra, and secret cakra.
“By the two appearances of blandness and change, attached to the lucid wondrous perfection, tasting arises. The essence of tasting reflects taste; together with taste, it becomes the root. The source of the root is called the pure four great elements. Thus it is called the physical tongue, shaped like a newly crescent moon. The floating root and four dusts flow and rush toward taste.”
Now, we will talk about the tongue.
In Tantric Buddhism, the tongue plays an important role. In the Sakya Six Postural Changes, the first posture is to place the tip of the tongue against the upper palate. This is also required when practicing Heavenly Water. As the tongue touches the upper palate, saliva gathers in the mouth. It is then stirred and swallowed, nourishing the body’s qi and channels. This is important.
By placing the tip of the tongue on the upper palate, the brow cakra is connected to the throat cakra, so Qi and Heavenly Water can flow from the brow chakra to the throat chakra, then to the heart chakra, navel chakra, and secret chakra.
The tongue discerns flavors and allows us to taste food. Because of this sense of taste, we become attached to delicious food, which is one of the five desires: wealth, sensual pleasures, reputation, food, and sleep.
The tongue often prefers sweet flavors, while some people crave sour foods, such as during pregnancy, because the body needs them. Many dislike bitterness, while sour, sweet, and spicy tastes are generally more pleasant. People from Sichuan and tropical Southeast Asia especially enjoy spicy food.
Through taste, the tongue can tell whether food is good, bad, or spoiled. When we encounter food we love, we naturally want to eat more. Therefore, taste and sensation are hard to resist. Without the tongue’s sense of taste and the nose’s sense of smell, there would be no craving for delicious food. The tongue has many functions. It can help remove fish bones while eating, and it is also involved in kissing because it has both taste and sensation.
The tongue is shaped like a crescent moon. Yet in the Amitabha Sutra, the buddhas are described as having a long, broad tongue, symbolizing that their words are true and trustworthy.
Like the eyes, ears, nose, body, and mind, the tongue can also delude us. These six roots become attached to the surface of the wondrous luminous true mind. When we focus only on external sensations and their functions, we neglect the inner wondrous luminous true mind, or buddhanature. This is how we become deluded by superficial experiences.
The Buddha teaches us to cultivate through the six roots. Once one root is purified, the other roots will also become purified, and we will reach attainment. Although the six roots have different functions, they are actually of one body and one taste, simply divided into six different functions.