He (Shakyamuni Buddha) has been Buddha since forever before. Eons, eons, countless of periods of many Earths, many Heavens, destroyed, rebuilt – He’s been Buddha a long time already. So long you can never count. That’s called many, many eons of time. The same with Maitreya Buddha and many other Buddhas. It is possible for a human to become a Buddha, of course, also.
And you see just like the monk Guang Qin, He came down for 600 years, before his last lifetime on Earth, from Amitabha Buddha’s Land, and His teacher was still in the Amitabha Buddha’s Land, but He came down to the human existence for 600 years. Probably because He wanted to help some people in the world, humans, who, if He doesn’t, they will probably fall into hell or some very lowly existence. And even then, during the 600 years, He did many bad deeds, so He even became exiled into the animal kingdom, becoming an animal-person. He himself told people that and it’s written in His book.
So it’s not like you are a Buddha and you come down to the world, into the human world and you just retain the status of the Buddha and then everybody will see you as a Buddha and worship you, and make offerings to you, and recognize and accept that you are a Buddha. It’s not like that. Even when the Buddha came, the last time of His cycle as the Buddha again, people still wanted to kill Him. Even His own cousin, who was a monk also, who was His disciple, who was Buddha’s disciple, wanted to kill Him many times, and degraded Him, slandered Him, and did all kinds of things. So, you can never be too secure that, OK, I’m a monk, I’m a priest, I’m a nun, I recite Buddha’s Name every day, and I eat vegan and I recite the Sutra every day, I meditate on a breathing technique, or reciting Buddha’s technique, whatever, then I will go to Buddha’s Land. Not necessarily. Please, unless you are already a Buddha, it’s very difficult to free yourself from this world once you’re in it, so be very diligent, diligent.
Monks and nuns, I tell you all this with all my love and respect for your ideal. Before you started your monkhood, you have ideals – you want to be a holy person, follow the Buddha, and do this and that to help other beings. But meanwhile, some of you may be led astray by the difficult situation in the world, or political situation, or too many followers praise you and blow you up into the sky and you fail in some way. But you can always return to your original noble ideal and become a good monk. Just remember, go inside, always check yourself, criticize yourself, no one else. Least of all me. You will have very bad karma if you do that. I’m not afraid of you. I don’t need your praise or worship or acceptance even. I don’t need it. I need nothing in this world, just I’m afraid for you only.
We’ll talk again about going out for alms. If you already know your way, and the villagers already know you and they want to make offerings to you, it’s a short distance and you go back to your temple, then it’s also agreeable. It’s maybe OK if you like it that way, and if you can afford it, and if that does not make any trouble for other monks. Because if you’re doing that, and if the majority of your country or your area are Mahayana monks, meaning they just eat vegan, or maximum vegetarian, meaning they eat eggs, drink milk and eat cheese and all that, then other people or some fanatics will kind of glorify you and put you up on the pedestal so that you could never step back down again. They will make you become like a living Buddha and spread it all over on the net, and oppress anyone who doesn’t believe that you are a Buddha, even though you are not a Buddha yet. And you can’t tell them, but slowly, you might think that it’s no harm, and then you feel proud that people trust you, and anywhere you go, people give you offerings and all that.
Then some faithful, some fanatics will look down upon other monks who eat two, three times a day and live in a temple, but they also do no harm. They also recite the Buddhas’ Names every day. They recite the Sutras. And they take care of their faithful. When the faithful are sick, they come to them. When they have trouble, they come to them, etc. So, they’re also doing work, and they keep the temple clean for the faithful to come to meditate and to retreat and to take refuge when they have free time or when they’re in trouble, need a place to rest for some time, for some days. Or even make an example so that other people will become monks and nuns and continue to keep the Buddhist noble holy tradition. They also do their work. And when people are sick, they come and pray for them, reciting the sutras for them. And when they die, or their relatives die, they come and pray for them.
They’re also doing something, and even if they’re doing work like that and they earn only three meals a day, or two meals a day with a few monks’ robes on their body, then they’re not doing too bad, because humans always do need somebody to lean on, to tell their problems and to help them pray for themselves before they die or when they’re sick or when their relatives and loved ones die. They need all that comfort. And they need also to be reminded that they should do good –be vegan, do good and help others. The monks will remind them to do that. So, it’s not like they are eating just because of an empty stomach. They also do something to help society, psychologically, mentally and physically also. So it’s not like they are worse than you or anything, but some people who do not understand deeply like that, thinking the monks who eat two, three meals a day and become a little chubby, or don’t go around begging, then they’re bad monks. It’s not like that. No, no, no. To eat or not to eat doesn’t decide your Buddhahood.
And the worst is that if people praise you up to the sky when you’re not worth it, then your merit will be all gone, gone, gone. And either you will leave monkhood soon, being charmed by a woman or a man, or being so sick, or any other thing can happen to you. If you are a maya relative, then you probably don’t have to worry about that, because you’re not doing it for the Buddha or for the people. You’re doing it to destroy Buddhism. That happened also, because Mara said to the Buddha, and made Buddha cry, that in the Dharma-Ending Age, like our time now, he would come and even defecate into Buddha’s bowl and destroy Buddhism by sending his children out to become monks and preach against the Buddha, against the real Buddhism.
“When Shakyamuni Buddha was about to enter nirvana, he summoned the demon king and commanded him, ‘You should abide by the rules. Follow the rules from now on. Don’t violate them.’ The demon king replied, ‘So you want me to follow your rules? Fine. During the ending age of your dharma, I will wear your garments, eat your food, and defecate in your alms bowl.’ His meaning was that he would destroy the dharma from within. When the Buddha heard that he was worried. He wept and said, ‘There’s really nothing I can do about you. Your method is the most poisonous, the most destructive.’” ~ A Commentary by the Venerated Master Hsuan Hua (vegetarian) of The Thinking Sutra (The Shurangama Sutra)
So, it could happen. The main point is that you should not be the cause for the separation between monks and monks, between nuns and nuns, like you are better than them. That will give you also very bad karma.
In the Buddha’s time, it was difficult to have a temple and stay in one place to have offerings. But nowadays, it’s very easy. You have the Internet, you can preach online even. And staying in a temple is safer for you. You have to take care of your body because it’s a temple of the Buddha. Because the Buddha Nature is inside you. God dwells within you – according to Christianity. God, Buddha Nature – same stuff. If you’re enlightened well, you will understand that clearly, as if you see the Sun in front of you.
If you’re not enlightened, well, then you still think Buddhism is better than Christianity. And some people still slander Christ and slander Buddha, because they are not in Their religion. But that’s because they’re ignorant. But you are monks, and nuns, and priests; you should at least have some enlightenment, low enlightenment maybe. But it’s your capital. You have to continue to invest with it, with your time, your sincerity, your pure devotion. Then you become more and more enlightened all the time. Praise to the Buddha Who helps you. Praise to God Who sustains you, supports you and helps you.
Even monks have their own destiny, like what they have to do. So that’s why some monks cannot be a real monk, or they will stop after a while, because it’s not their destiny, even though they really want to be a monk. In Thailand, they have temporary monks. That’s also very suitable, very good for that. Some people want to be a monk for one week for the merit for some of their family members, or some become a monk for one month, or two months, three months, or a year, etc. Then you don’t have to be a monk for all your life. People do that in Thailand, many of them do that. And now, if you choose the path of taking alms while you are walking, that’s a different kind of monk – the “Hinayana,” they call it, or they call it the “early Buddhist” monk style.
But as I said before, I don’t really want to offend anyone. I’m just saying what I know. What I know might not be what you think you know, or what you think is correct. But I just tell you the truth, nothing more. It’s up to you. I often also make offerings to monks. I do not discriminate between the animal-people meat-eating monk, priest or non-meat-eating priest or monk. But for you, yourself, if you go out begging for alms, you should… If you stay nearby your city or nearby your village, then people already know what time you come out, what time you go with your bowl for alms. Then they would line the street and give to you. Each one gives different. And then you go home and probably eat together or just eat whatever’s in your bowl, it depends. Maybe it depends on tradition, but mostly eat whatever’s given in your own bowl, that’s it. Now, if you know people already very well, you could tell them, “Please give only vegan.” Because as a monk, you have compassion. That’s why you want to become a monk.
Photo Caption: Togetherness Makes Life Abundantly Beautiful
