His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s Puja Teachings – December 18, 2022

His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche ascended the Dharma throne, and expounded on “Scroll 56, ‘The Buddha Speaks of Entering Womb Treasury Assembly’ (Chapter 14, Section 1)” of the Ratnakuta Sutra.

“Sutra: ‘At that time, when the Heaven Realm had not been seen by supernatural powers, the World Honored One and Nanda arrived at Jetavana. Then at that time, Nanda yearned for what he had seen on palaces of heavens so he was in disciplines of pure living. As the Buddha knew what were in Nanda’s mind, He told Ananda, “Now you can go to tell bhikkhus that they cannot sit by one person only with Nanda in a sitting area; they cannot do walking-practicing together; they cannot hang up their clothes on a same clothesline with Nanda’s; they cannot put their alms-bowls and fill their water bottles at a same place where Nanda does his; they cannot recite sutras with him together.” Ananda imparted the Buddha’s verbal teachings to bhikkhus, and they acted in accordance with all the instructions as imperial edicts.’

From the previous part of this section of the sutra, we can see that in order to get His younger brother liberated, Shakyamuni Buddha had exhausted all His supernatural powers or methods to let His brother know the importance of being a monastic. Of course, with our practices, we do not have the Buddha’s supernatural powers; it is impossible for us to know what our family members think in their minds, and we are not aware of what they will become in their future either. However, there is a key point here that, at least, get your family members to know the benefits of being close to the Dharma or being near a guru to learn Buddhism. Why is it that your parents or your siblings are unwilling to take refuge, not even eating vegetarian food? This must have a direct relevance to you.

We often talk about liberating sentient beings. As you cannot even influence your family members to accept the Dharma, at least you need to get them not to oppose it. Where does this problem come from then? It comes from yourself. If you do not live your daily life in accordance with the 37 Practices of Bodhisattvas, you will be indistinguishable from an ordinary person. It has been mentioned very clearly in the 37 Practices of Bodhisattvas that if you have not done your acts, considered your thoughts, or spoken your languages according to these 37 Practices, then you are not a disciple of the Buddha. Do not think that because you have taken refuge and attended pujas, you are a disciple of the Buddha. If you want to obtain the protection and blessings of the Buddha or the protection and support of the guru, you must take refuge, and you must follow the rules contained in these 37 Practices to change your own thoughts, words, and actions. If you fail to comply with the rules, you are absolutely not a disciple of the Buddha. Do not think these: ‘I have recited the Buddha’s name or sutras, or chanted mantras every day! I have burned incense as an offering, and made prostrations, to the Buddha! I have participated in pujas!’ These are just the acts of believers.

As mentioned in this section of the sutra, when Shakyamuni Buddha was at the door of the home of Nanda, the younger brother of the Buddha, Nanda, who was at home, knew it already. This proved that he had been practicing. At that time, he felt there was a glittering golden light appearing; he knew then that the Buddha had come. How about you? Not to mention the Buddha is at the door, when the guru is in front of you, you do not know it. Why is that? Because your mind is too dirty, fulling of defilements. That is why you do not have responses on all things. Why are there nothings that can be done to change your family members and let them accept the Dharma? It is like what a disciple said when she came to me yesterday to seek an audience with me. She said to me, ‘My mother is….,’ being this way, that way, and so on. She said a whole lot of things which I did not understand. Then I asked her how many times her mother had come to see me. The answer was that the old lady had only participated the Great Amitabha Puja once. And then? Then she stayed home to live a good life. Why is it that your parents do not feel the importance of attending pujas? The reason can be seen from your side. It must be that every day, on your mandala at home, you just burn incense, put small cups with water, place some flowers. Or, you recite casually the Buddha’s name or sutras, or chant some mantras. Then, you say to your mother, ‘Mom, I am going out.’ These are just what you do.

I had a mother too. Before she passed away, she had come here to attend a puja every Sunday, as all of you know very clearly. She did not understand what I spoke of on the Dharma throne because I spoke broken Mandarin with a Cantonese accent. She did not know how to chant mantras; she was also an illiterate! She just sat there in the audience, and she believed in me completely. When she got home, she would hold prayer beads and recited the name of Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. I had not taught her that. Originally, my mother certainly believed in my father very much. In her heart, she only had my father (her husband) from start to finish – there was nothing else. Why did she accept the Dharma for several years at the late stage of her life? Because she had seen that I – this son of hers – had amended myself, or gotten myself changed. She had seen these changes with her own eyes. What had she seen personally? First of all, I saved her second son who is my younger brother. In some year – I forget how long ago it was – on a certain day, my mother called me late at night. She had never cried in front of me; she had not even cried at her husband’s death. On that day when she called me, over the phone, she cried continuously. She called me my childhood name and said to me, ‘You need to save your brother!’ She said this thing, that thing, and so forth. It turned out that he had fainted suddenly while eating a meal. In his brain, the blood vessels – three of them – and a brain tumor had burst; he fainted right then and there. On that day, I performed some Dharmas continuously for him until his bleeding stopped. He was saved. My saving him was for helping my mother; it was not for my younger brother’s sake. I had filial piety for my mother, and I did not wish this saying happening that ‘an old person sees his or her child having died earlier than oneself.’ After my brother recovered and got well, he behaved in the same ways as before that he ate meat and did not believe in the Dharma. One time, I went back to Hong Kong, and had a meal with my mom and him. When we were through half of the meal – I do not remember now what we were discussing about – he got angry, losing his temper, and scolded me very loudly. He had never dared to scold me before because I had always been the boss of my siblings from childhood to adulthood. I had truly been their leader. Since our childhood, it was only I who hit him; he had not dared to be harsh to me.

With my former personality, I would have surely attacked him in words. It would have been just like what you say that ‘Is so-and-so afraid of so-and-so? Definitely not!’ Right? Nevertheless, on that day, I was not like that at all. I was in patience and apologized to him for what I said in the discussion. My mother felt it being strange in that this son of hers had changed. This change in me started getting her to give rise to the idea of coming to Taiwan and living here. Otherwise, she would not have dared to think that because my temper was very clashing. Hence, she came to live in Taiwan. There was another incident occurring. One time my brother came to Taiwan to visit mother, and we were having lunch. I did not know what he thought who he was on that day; suddenly he spoke and scolded me at the lunch table, and he even stood up from his seat, wanting to hit me. Then I took off my glasses and said to him, ‘If you want to hit me, come over to hit me then! Once you have done it and felt delighted, that will be fine.’ At that moment, my mother saw that I had gotten myself amended. If this had happened in the past, would I have let others hit me? For me, from childhood to adulthood, I was a person who never surrendered even when there were a little more than a dozen people hitting me. Why would I have felt aggrieved but not charged back at my brother when he behaved like that? Because I have been learning Buddhism and practicing the 37 Practices of Bodhisattvas. He was and is my family members. If I cannot tolerate him, how can I still be patient with people outside of my family? What about you then?

My mother saw that I had changed. So, in those several, final years at her old age, she was a vegetarian too, and did not have any complaints about it. Before that, she had been eating fish for decades. Because of my changes, she changed consequently in that she believed in the Buddha and Bodhisattvas too. Thus, if your family members do not come here to see me or to attend pujas, you are the problem for 1,000 percent, absolutely. It is because you have not amended yourself. You still have been practicing only for yourself which you think is all right. Your thought is this: ‘If I am fine, all my family members will be fine accordingly.’

So, why is this section mentioned in the sutra? All things done by the Buddha were in perfect completion. Even when He wanted His brother getting liberated, He needed to go through so much trouble, using so many methods. Did you think if you do an act of ‘I make a dedication to my mother, or to my father,’ she or he will learn Buddhism? By what virtue and by what capability are you able to get them doing it? You do not listen to what I have said or scolded to you. No matter how much I have taught you, ultimately, it comes down to one word: ‘laziness’ – you are lazy. You do not put in great efforts to amend yourself. You do not do that and only come to implore me for help when a family member of yours passes away. Before he or she dies, you will think that ‘Ah! my mom will not have problems because I make dedications to her every day.’ What do you think you are? The dedications you have made are so slight that there is not even a drop of water in them. Did you think if you recite dedication prayers for a few thousands of times a day, your dedications will make all things in the whole world fulfill your wishes? If this were to happen, I would not have needed to practice anymore! I would have been the first one to ask His Holiness for a leave, saying, ‘the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, I do not want to practice anymore.’ I am 75 years old. What do I want to do it or handle so many things for? You are really cheeky that no matter how much I have said to you, they cannot get through your mind. To this day, there are still a whole lot of your family members who have not seen me or have done it just once. What does the latter – seeing me once – mean? It means finishing a task and crossing it off the list of things-to-do. These people think that ‘Rinpoche, as I have already met you once, you are to be responsible for all things about me.’ Are there such mentions in sutras? Has it been mentioned that if one has seen the Buddha, the Buddha will be responsible for one’s affairs? No, this is not stated. When the Buddha saw that there were causes and conditions for His brother to practice the Dharma, He still needed to use many methods to get the brother having been taught and guided.

You will just say, ‘Ah, my mom’s karmic hindrances have been heavy. She ate lots of meat before. There are nothings that can be done to help her now.’ My mother also ate a lot of fish; she even killed them for us to eat. It is just that you have not amended yourself! Because you have not done that, you then think your family members are not good. How can you bear such a thought? You had seen your parents being in such pain before they passed away; your heart was even inferior to animals. I have watched many documentaries about animals. When an animal’s mother is at the stage of death, her cubs will stay continuously by her side. What about you? When your father or mother is dying, you say, ‘Ah, this is so annoying.’ You also ‘throw’ the matter to the doctor. If the doctor makes good treatments, you will think, ‘Ah, I am very filial.’ If the treatments fail, you will then consider that ‘Ah, my parent has heavy karmic hindrances.’ Or, you will ‘throw’ the issue to me, thinking, ‘If Rinpoche says there is no more life left for my dad, then my dad will be gone; if Rinpoche says there is hope, then there is hope for dad to survive.’ The minds of people are very terrifying. Therefore, we Cantonese have a saying that ‘There are no filial children when parents have chronic illnesses.’ It means when a parent is ill for a long time, if, originally, there is a filial child taking care of the sick parent, this child will disappear because he or she will get tired or annoyed in the long run.

To put it simply, if you do not want to feel troubled about your family members’ illnesses, you need to learn Buddhism and practice it diligently. Hence, when my mother passed away, she did not encumber me. She stayed in the hospital for about a week and then she was gone. She did not undergo any medical treatments either. As she, an elderly lady, insisted that she must go to a hospital, she exhausted all her methods to influence me to take her to a hospital. I knew very well that once she was in one, she would pass away. There was nothing that could have been done to avoid her going to a hospital. She really passed away when she was there. However, in the hospital, she had not gone through the procedures of being much intubated, did not have surgical operations, and had not been in the intensive care unit either. Why do your mothers need to be admitted to the ICU of a hospital? Why do they have a bunch of problems? It is because they have taken those unaccountable medicine. Such situations occur because of your negative karma – you think, ‘These are paid for by the National Health Insurance premiums!’

So, when I read this part of the sutra, I really felt that Shakyamuni Buddha was so great. At that time, He was already a Buddha, and He could have ‘learned’ from what you will say, ‘There is no affinity existing now, so I will get Nanda liberated in his next lifetime.’ The Buddha did not think of that! He, an elderly gentleman, exhausted all His methods to let His brother know the importance of practicing the Dharma. Nevertheless, we can see that His brother did not have the affinity to go to the Land of Amitabha; he could only go to the Heaven Realm. We can also see with what way Shakyamuni Buddha made His brother change. The method was ‘hooking him in with desire.’ It means knowing what Nanda’s desire was and hooking him in with it – luring him to learn Buddhism.

The section of the sutra we just read shows that the World Honored One knew that Nanda was willing to practice. Thus, He brought Nanda from heavens back to Jetavana to do his practices. ‘Then at that time, Nanda yearned for what he had seen on palaces of heavens so he was in disciplines of pure living.’ Therefore, Nanda’s practicing of a pure living was not done willingly; it was from his desires that he practiced such a living. It is equivalent to the fact that many of you learn Buddhism out of desires, like ‘I do not want to get sick.’ Is this not a desire? Or, ‘I want Rinpoche to cure my illness.’ That is fine too! It does not matter. I will save you once. I have said many times on this: I will save anyone once, including my grandson, and I will do the same to you, my disciples, as well. It is like what Shakyamuni Buddha did. At that time, He saved Nanda once. If he did not listen, then the Buddha could not help him again, not getting him liberated. It is equivalent to what I do to you now. I have used any methods to let you listen, learn Buddhism, or do your practices. If you do not listen to my teachings continuously and do things to suit yourself, then do whatever you want.

So, it is mentioned very clearly here that with Shakyamuni Buddha’s fruition level of a Buddha, He helped His brother just get to the Heaven Realm because the brother did not have causes and conditions, and had not made a vow either, to be in the Land of Amitabha. He only went to the Heaven Realm. When the good fortune he has enjoyed there has been exhausted, he will still come back to be reincarnated unless he has been practicing again after having listened to the Buddha’s expounding of the Dharma in the Heaven Realm if He goes there to speak of it continuously. Only when these occur, will the brother have opportunities to go to the Pure Land. Nonetheless, if you want to be in the Heaven Realm, you must observe the Five Precepts and practice the Ten Meritorious Acts in this life. Also, you cannot have the desires between a man and a woman, as mentioned in sutras. For us laypeople, if you want to go to the Heaven Realm, you cannot go there. There is only one place you can go: the Land of Amitabha or the land of Immovable Buddha. However, you have not listened to my teachings. Then where can you go? There will be your share being in the Three Evil Realms. Do not be superstitious to think these: ‘As I am a vegetarian and have burned incense as an offering to the Buddha, recited sutras, and chanted mantras, I certainly will not fall into the Three Evil Realms.’ There are no such mentions in sutras, and they are not mentioned in the Amitabha Sutra either.

You thought that ‘Rinpoche, you must save me! It is because you are with great kindness and great compassion!’ Now I am going to say this publicly one more time: I will save anyone just once. Why is it only once? It is to save you so as to get you learning Buddhism or taking refuge as a Buddhist. It is not to let you live a good life, be healthy, have longevity, or get your wishes fulfilled constantly. After I save you once, if you are still unwilling to learn Buddhism, how can I save you again? I might as well wait for your death and then liberate you. That is why there are a whole lot of issues appearing later to many disciples of mine because they have not listened. They think that ‘Rinpoche was very amazing that he saved me. Now I will do as I please and whatever I like.’ If you do that, then you will not listen to me. By not listening to me, you break away from the protections of my Dharma protectors or from the blessings of me.

Here, Shakyamuni Buddha went out of His way to make a move again. He also said that ‘Nanda is willing to do practices now.’ Then the Buddha spoke to Ananda, His attendant, ‘Now you can go to tell’ all ‘bhikkhus that’ not anyone of them could ‘sit …. with Nanda in a sitting area;’ meaning the bhikkhus could not sit with Nanda together. In the quote ‘they cannot do walking-practicing together’ indicates that no matter where bhikkhus went they could not be with Nanda. There is another quote ‘they cannot hang up their clothes on a same clothesline with Nanda’s.’ What does this mean? It means bhikkhus could not hang up their clothes to dry with those of Nanda’s on a same clothesline made of bamboo. It is like us, Rinpoches of the Order, that our clothes are hung up for drying separately and are not mixed together with others’ clothes. On this, you are nonchalant though. In your homes, all the clothes are hung up together to dry. This matter of drying the clothes has been described very clearly here. Why is that? There should be explanations in the later part of the sutra.

The phrase ‘they cannot put their alms-bowls …. at a same place where Nanda does his;’ means the bhikkhus could not put their alms-bowls or rice bowls with Nanda’s bowl in a same place. There are also the words ‘and fill their water bottles’ in the quote and these words refer to not even placing bhikkhus’ water bottles with that of Nanda’s in a same area. For reciting sutras, bhikkhus could not do it with Nanda in a same place.

‘Ananda imparted the Buddha’s verbal teachings to bhikkhus, and they acted in accordance with all the instructions as imperial edicts.’ Then these bhikkhus listened to the Buddha, and did not ask questions. You will definitely say, ‘Hey, that is the Buddha’s younger brother! It is all right! Just do these things; the Buddha will not know.’ It is just like what you will do. You will do things privately behind my back, thinking that ‘Rinpoche will not know it. For being customary and personal – we do not want to do it this way. We cannot conduct ourselves like this. We still need to live! Learning Buddhism is just that – to learn Buddhism. Human sentiment is very important, and without it, we cannot live.’ Now, Shakyamuni Buddha spoke of it. What He showed was completely uncustomary and impersonal, right? Nanda was His blood brother, who had been isolated; in Chinese, the word ‘isolated’ means ‘being set apart from others.’ When you hear these things, you will think that ‘Ah! Rinpoche is truly not compassionate.’ You will even send things to the isolated person secretly. It is like the situation when Milarepa wanted to make an offering to Marpa before. Marpa’s Mother Buddha – his wife – knew that Milarepa had nothing for the offering and he felt afflicted. So, the Mother Buddha gave her jewelry to Milarepa and said, ‘Take these jewels for making an offering.’ When Marpa knew the source of the offering items, he threw them back to Milarepa and said to him, ‘These are not yours. I will not accept them.’ Marpa scolded his wife too, meaning ‘This is none of your business.’

What does it have to do with you? Everyone thinks he or she is a good person. For example, when the guru says to someone that this person is not allowed to do a certain thing, the one beside the person will put in a reminder, ‘Hey, be careful. You will be scolded!’ What is it to you? What is the meaning of your interference? Is it that the guru is wrong and you are right? Why was it mentioned in the sutra here that those bhikkhus ‘acted in accordance with all the instructions as imperial edicts?’ What would happen if imperial edicts have not been followed? The violators of the edicts will be decapitated. You are not afraid of being beheaded as death sentence is not imposed in Taiwan nowadays. Hence, you have no fear of death because there is no death penalty here. Every one of you does some things stealthily behind my back. Obviously, I had told you that you were not allowed to do this certain thing but you still did it, thinking, ‘It is all right. Rinpoche will not know. When he does, I will explain the matter to him and that will be just fine.’ With this kind of attitude, whatever you have learned or practiced, will all be useless to you.

Why do you have issues occurring or get sick suddenly? Because you do not listen. You think that ‘It will be all right. When bad things happen to me, I will be cutesy to Rinpoche and he will save me.’ I am saying this one more time: I will save you just once. Then you will say, ‘I will implore the Buddha and Bodhisattvas for help.’ I am their middleman. I have said it that I will only save you once. Do you think the Buddha and Bodhisattvas will save you the second time? They will not unless you have attained the same fruition level as I have. If you have not achieved accomplishment in that level, will they listen to you? You can try to ask their help. Or, you will say, ‘Other Rinpoches will listen to what I ask them.’ Well, you can also try to ask them then.

When we listen to sutras expounded, we need to learn about the focal points mentioned in the sutras.

Sutra: ‘At that time, as Nanda saw that those people who did not want to get together with him, he felt extremely ashamed. Later, at one time, Ananda and bhikkhus were darning clothes in a hall of making-offerings or attending-functions. Nanda, having seen them doing that, he had this thought arisen: “These bhikkhus have disliked and abandoned me and do not want to be with me at a same place. Since this Ananda is my younger brother, how can we disapprove of each other?” Then Nanda went over there to sit with Ananda. When this happened, Ananda immediately got up from his seat and avoided Nanda.’

Nanda knew then that all the people there ‘did not want to get together with him.’ Thus, he felt ashamed. You are like that too. If I get you ‘fixed’ that you cannot be with some people, you will feel losing face. ‘Later, at one time, Ananda and bhikkhus were…. in a hall of making-offerings or attending-functions.’ This hall was a place where they usually took a rest. The phrase ‘darning clothes’ means they were mending their clothes. ‘Nanda, having seen them doing that, he had this thought arisen: These bhikkhus have disliked and abandoned me and do not want to be with me at a same place.’ He was thinking that all these monastics had abandoned him and had not wanted getting together with him. The quote continues with a phrase ‘Since this Ananda is my younger brother….’ which made Nanda think further with this: ‘he should not disapprove of me; should he?’ ‘Then Nanda went over there to sit with Ananda. When this happened, Ananda immediately got up from his seat and avoided Nanda.’

Sutra: ‘He said, “Ananda, the other bhikkhus have consented to this matter that when seeing me, they abandon me. You are my younger brother; why have you disliked me too?” Ananda said, “There is really a reason. As you, Benevolent One, have practiced on a separate way, and I have respectfully followed a different path, that is why I have avoided you.” Nanda responded, “What is my way? What is your path?”’

When Nanda saw Ananda standing up, Nanda said, ‘”Ananda, the other bhikkhus” ignore me. However, “you are my younger brother;” you should not do that. Do not act this way to me!’ Ananda then spoke to Nanda that ‘There is a reason for it. “As you, Benevolent One, have practiced on a separate way, and I have respectfully followed a different path….”’ This means ‘the path you walk on is different from the one I walk on. So, I should avoid you.’ ‘Nanda responded, “What is my way? What is your path?”’ These refer to what Nanda’s questions as ‘What is my path and what is the path you walk on?’

Sutra: ‘Ananda answered, “Benevolent One, you want the happiness to be born in the Heaven Realm so you have been in disciplines of pure living. I want to implore for being in nirvana and for that, I have been eliminating my mind’s contamination of desires.” Having heard these words spoken, Nanda’s worries and griefs had been doubled. At that time, the World Honored One knew his mind and thoughts and spoke to Nanda, “Have you ever seen Naraka occasionally?”’

Then, it is stated here that Ananda said, ‘Benevolent One (meaning Nanda), you think of being “born in the Heaven Realm so you have been in disciplines of pure living.” Therefore, your practices are not for breaking away from reincarnation; such practices have been for fulfilling your desires. Yet, I (meaning Ananda) “have been eliminating” all “my mind’s contamination of desires.”’ ‘Having heard these words spoken,’ Nanda was even more worried and grieved. ‘At that time, the World Honored One knew his mind and thoughts and spoke to Nanda, “Have you ever seen Naraka….”’

Sutra: ‘Nanda replied, “No, I have not seen it.” The Buddha said, “You can hold a corner of my clothes.” Nanda carried out the instruction then. Then, the Buddha, taking Nanda with Him, was on the way to the Hell Realm.’

The Buddha told Nanda to hold a corner of His clothes and then led Nanda to the Hell Realm to see it.

Sutra: ‘At that time, when arriving, the World Honored One stood by one side and spoke to Nanda, “Now you can go to see hells.”’

This quote describes that the Buddha ‘stood by one side and spoke to Nanda: ‘”Now you can go to see” every hell.’

Sutra: ‘Then Nanda went to see hells. Firstly, he saw a gray river. He went to the next one, and it was a fire river of sword-trees and stool-urine. He entered the river to observe the situations. Then, he saw sentient beings had been receiving various kinds of suffering. Or, he saw that they had their tongues been pulled, teeth been torn, and eyes been dug, by pliers. Or, at times, their bodies had been dismembered by saws. Or, again, their hands and feet had been cut or chopped off by axes. Or, their bodies had been dug with large or small spears.’”

Then Rinpoche asked a disciple, who is a PhD in Chinese literature, a question, “What does this uncommon Chinese word in the quote mean? It is a word from Classical Chinese.” The said disciple reported, “Rinpoche, here is my report. So far, I have not been able to find this particular word in my research.” Rinpoche instructed the disciple by saying, “I think you need to look it up in an edition of Kangxi Dictionary.” The disciple answered, “Yes. I will.” (Then Rinpoche continued the teaching.) “This word is not used nowadays; it might be in some edition of Kangxi Dictionary. Try to find the word in it, then.” The disciple responded, “Yes. I will.” (Rinpoche resumed expounding the sutra.) “What have been explained here are about various hells or the suffering of various sentient beings that Nanda had seen.

Sutra: ‘Or, they had been hit by clubs or stabbed by lances, or been smashed by iron hammers. Or, melted coppers had been poured into their mouths. Or, they had gone up to knife-mountains with sword-trees, and with pestles, had pounded grindstones, copper pillars, and iron beds. These sentient beings had received extreme suffering.’

These usages of punishments have also been very similar with those described in the Sutra of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha’s Fundamental Vows.

Sutra: ‘Or, he had seen iron boilers with boiling water, the size of floods, cooking types of sentient beings with boilers burning in hot flame and fierce fire. Nanda had seen suffering received in such situations, and so on. Also, there was one iron boiler with boiling water but it was empty with no sentient beings being cooked. Seeing this, Nanda was worried and fearful. He asked the prison guard, “What were the causes and conditions that as all the other iron boilers are cooking sentient beings, only this boiler, with boiling water, is empty?” The prison guard answered, “The Buddha’s younger brother, Nanda, just wishes to be born in the Heaven Realm so he has been in disciplines of pure living exclusively. He will obtain the birth in that realm and enjoy happiness there temporarily. After his life ends, he will enter this boiler. So, I am now boiling water in it and waiting for him.”’

As I have mentioned earlier, if one goes to the Heaven Realm, one will also fall into the Hell Realm. This is also stated here. Monastics, even if you have been in disciplines of pure living in this life, and then ‘obtain the rebirth’ in the Heaven Realm, when the good fortune you have enjoyed there has ended, you will come down from that realm. Hence, that boiler has been waiting for such a person continuously, who will come down from the Heaven Realm and be cooked.” Rinpoche inquired a monastic present, “Are there people promoting ‘the Dharma of the Human and Heaven Realms’”? The monastic replied, “The human world.”
(Then Rinpoche continued the teaching.) “The answer of ’the human world’ is even more awful. Therefore, if there are any people who promote the Dharma of the Human and Heaven Realms, and if what we have learned are in accordance with what have been mentioned in this sutra, all these people are in a false path. What is a ‘false path’? It means the final conclusion of that path is that one will still suffer.

Why did the Buddha instruct all bhikkhus there that they were not to get together with Nanda? It was because what Nanda had been practicing were not for getting liberated from birth and death or from reincarnation. His practices were for enjoying happiness and good fortune. Thus, he felt he would use the decades of being in disciplines of pure living to exchange for a life in the Heaven Realm. The time duration of his living in that realm, on the basis of time on Earth, is possibly tens of thousands of years or a few dozens of thousands of years. Nevertheless, he did not know that after the enjoyments of his good fortune had ended, he would still fall into the Hell Realm. The Buddha did not speak of it to him, but He led Nanda to the Hell Realm to see the situations there.

Then the prison guard told him this: ‘All those various, suffering sentient beings you had seen previously in the Hell Realm had created various negative karma in the Human Realm.’ For example, some people like drinking. They think drinking can ease boredom, can solve many of their problems, or can do this thing, that thing, and so forth. They are close to be alcoholics. Clearly, they know that they are not in good health or are old, but they still want to drink, saying, ‘I will just drink a little.’ By drinking a bit of alcohol, one falls into the Hell Realm all the same. The hell of stool that was just mentioned in a quote is for those people who love to drink to fall into. This is stated in sutras that those people are the ones who love to drink and treat drinking as a hobby in this life. As for drinking occasionally – meaning drinking a little in some celebrations or ceremonies – it is all right. However, it is not a good thing that one calls up friends, at random, who are with the same interest, and go for drinking with them.

Once one falls into the hell of stool, after the time there is done, one will be reborn as an orangutan with reddish-brown hair; it can also be a chimpanzee, or a gorilla. So, now it has been proved in science that there is only one percent difference between ape genes and human genes; the other 99% of genes on both species are almost the same. After a sentient being is born as an ape, if such a sentient being is reborn as a human again, he or she will absolutely be intellectually disabled – being in such a condition at birth. Also, this person’s parents – in the mother’s womb this person’s ‘bardo’ having entered – certainly love to drink as well. You will say, ‘No, it is not like that! Some married couples love to drink too. Their children are very smart though.’ They are all fine now but how about in their old ages? On the illnesses you call Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, the cause of them is drinking. If one has either of these diseases or amnesia, et cetera in the years of one’s old age, the person will definitely fall into the Animal Realm. You will ask, ‘Is that so?’ Yes, it is. You will then say, ‘Rinpoche, are you intimidating me?’ No, I am not. This is mentioned in sutras. For the subjects not stated in sutras, I do not dare to say them. If the mentions are in sutras, I surely will speak of them.

Many people think that ‘Those who have been practicing Esoteric Buddhism can drink.’ If such practitioners want to drink, only when they convert the drink to nectar, can they have the drink. Besides, they cannot be drunk while drinking it, and only then can they drink it. What does it mean on the phrase ‘cannot be drunk’? It refers to a situation that alcoholic beverages are put in front of a person and while he or she drinks them continuously, the person will not be drunk. It is like drinking water; although consuming water constantly will get a person drunk too, this person will not. Only this type of people is qualified to drink because they have changed the drink to something else. So, this has already been clearly mentioned here. The Buddha made a point of showing it to us.

The prison guard then said to Nanda, ‘“I am now boiling water in this boiler” first. I will wait for him to come down here and attend him.’

Sutra: ‘After having heard this, Nanda gave rise to a great terror. The hairs on his body all raised on end, and cold sweat flowed out of him. He had this thought, “If this prison guard knows that I am Nanda, he will actually and lively fork me into the boiler.” Then, Nanda walked hurriedly to where the World Honored One was. The Buddha asked him, “Had you seen hells?” Nanda wept grievingly, shed tears like rain, choked up, and spoke. By uttering a subtle, slight voice, he said, “Yes, I had seen them.”’

When Nanda saw the empty boiler with boiling water, he was scared to death as he knew that the boiler was waiting for him. Hence, he ran to where the Buddha was immediately. ‘The Buddha asked him, “Had you seen hells?” Nanda ‘said “Yes, I had seen them.”’ He was crying and choking up when he said it; his voice was very slight too. Thus, the Buddha described this very well. Nanda’s manner and yours when you have done things wrong and come to make repentances to me are exactly the same.

Sutra: ‘The Buddha said, “What things had you seen?” Nanda described all what he had seen to the World Honored One. The Buddha spoke to Nanda, “There are people who have made vows to be born in the Human Realm or implored for being in the Heaven Realm, and have diligently been in disciplines of pure living; these people will have such an error.”’

The Buddha scolded people now. So, how can you say that there is a term called ‘the Dharma of the human world’? If you, as monastics, help promote such a concept, be prepared to fall into the Hell Realm. This has been indicated very clearly here. ‘The Buddha spoke to Nanda, “There are people who have made vows to be born in the Human Realm or implored for being in the Heaven Realm, and have diligently been in disciplines of pure living; these people will have such an error.”’ Therefore, for people, who say ‘I have made vows that I want to come back to this world as a human for liberating sentient beings’ or ‘I want to be back to this world as being a member of some religious group,’ they will then ‘have such an error.’ Why did Shakyamuni Buddha make the introduction of Amitabha to us? It was because He, the Buddha, was afraid of your walking on a wrong path. That was the reason that He let us go to the Land of Amitabha and practice to attain the fruition of a Buddha, and only then can you have the capability to come back to this world for liberating sentient beings. Do not say, ‘I have made great vows.’ Such vows of yours are of no use. The vows you have made are from your karma, and are not produced as you wish. Today, if you plan to practice the methods for the Human Realm and come back to this world for liberating sentient beings, you do not need to learn Buddhism; learning Taoism will suffice. If you have done many good deeds in this life, you can also come back to this world as a human. Donate all your money, not having any of it remaining except for keeping enough of it to get food to eat and a place to live. Donate all the rest of your money and things so that you can help some poor people. If you live your life these ways, you will absolutely come back to this world as a human.

Here, the Buddha spoke of an error, shown as the phrase ‘such an error’ in the quote. What kind of an error was it? There will be opportunities for you to fall into the Three Evil Realms. The appearance of the Buddha in this mundane world is for a great matter only. What is the great matter then? It is to teach and help sentient beings get liberated from reincarnation. It is not to save their lives or help cure their illnesses; it is not to help them strike it rich either. If people want these things – lives, health, or wealth – they can rely on non-Buddhist religions, which will be enough for them. Do they still need to utilize the Buddha’s teachings? No, there is no need. However, people are superstitious. They think that learning Buddhism is to learn those things just mentioned; they consider that it is especially so for learning or practicing Esoteric Buddhism. You think this way, ‘After I took refuge in Rinpoche, my career has gotten more and more smooth, and my businesses have been running better and better.’ Nevertheless, I have not seen you making more offerings to me!

Yesterday, there was a disciple of mine coming to see me and she said, ‘My husband is in mainland China, and his business has become good. I want to go there to be with him. Can I attend the weekly puja-telecast there?’ Of course, she could! I have already seen what will happen to her in her future, but I will not say it now. She does not want the Dharma, thinking that she can learn it just by attending the puja-telecasts. Many of my disciples are like this nowadays. They will say, ‘I do not feel well today, so I will not go to the Center; I will watch the telecast.’ A puja-telecast is just an inevitable method during the time of pandemic. If a telecast can be used today for propagating the Dharma and for learning Buddhism as well, the Buddha would have mentioned in sutras that ‘In the future, in 2,500 years, you will see an inexplicable, square object, and you can learn Buddhism from it.’ The Buddha would have said that but He did not. Now, there are some despicable disciples here who behave like this, ‘I have a throat discomfort, so I am going to watch a telecast then.’ Fine. I have followed the wishes of sentient beings now, and this is your wish. You like to watch telecasts; what will happen to you later on? You do not know! Because you love watching telecasts, in the future, if you will not be working on the making of electronic chips, you will be an engineer, at best; that is all. You will certainly not master the practices of the Dharma.

Why do they want to attend puja-telecasts? Because they are lazy. They call their situations by a fine-sounding name of ‘being sick and being afraid to infect others’ so that they can avoid coming to the Center for pujas but watch telecasts instead. Nonetheless, why do they not go to see a doctor and get well? It is exactly because of their laziness. In our Order, the Drikung Kagyu Order, it has been mentioned very clearly that pith instruction is needed for practices. Pith instruction cannot be given through phone calls unless it is especially permitted by the guru. Also, one cannot rely on telecasts to solve problems. Now, it is all right that those overseas disciples attend a puja-telecast as it is an inevitable method for them to learn my teachings. However, all these disciples, who attend puja-telecasts to listen to the Dharma taught, absolutely cannot do their practices very diligently. This is because they will forget the contents after listening to them; there are no blessings for them, and there is no one managing them on their practices.

Sutra: ‘“Thus, now you should implore for being in nirvana. You have been in disciplines of pure living. Do not use those practices to want the happiness to be born in the Heaven Realm, causing you to practice in diligence and suffering.” After having heard this, Nanda felt ashamed and disgraced, and he was silent with nothing to respond.’

The Buddha had done these many acts, and in the end, He still told Nanda, ‘You should implore for being in nirvana.’ What is nirvana? It is getting liberated from birth and death or from reincarnation. ‘You have been in disciplines of pure living. Do not use those practices to want the happiness to be born in the Heaven Realm, causing you to practice in diligence and suffering.’ Be sure that being in disciplines of pure living is not for the purpose of wanting ‘to be born in the Heaven Realm,’ causing you to have much suffering.

‘After hearing this, Nanda felt ashamed and disgraced, and he was silent with nothing to respond.’ All of you cannot feel ‘ashamed and disgraced.’ You still have a whole lot of explanations to say to me.

Sutra: ‘At that time, the World Honored One knew what were in Nanda’s mind, and came out of the Hell Realm to arrive at Jetavana. He then spoke to Nanda and bhikkhus, “There are three defilements inside the mind, and they are called ‘sexual desires, hatred, and ignorance.’ These can be abandoned and should be gotten far away from your mind. The Dharma should be practiced and be learned.”’

Then the Buddha ‘came out of the Hell Realm to arrive at Jetavana. He then spoke to Nanda and bhikkhus, “There are three defilements inside the mind, and they are called ‘sexual desires, hatred, and ignorance.’” We should abandon them and should get far away from them. What we learn and practice on the Dharma are precisely for those principles.’

Sutra: ‘At that time, the World Honored One lived in Jetavana. Not many days later, because He wanted to transform sentient beings by adapting to rising conditions, He went to Campa Kingdom with His disciples and other people, and lived at the side of Garga Pond. At that time, that Nanda and 500 bhikkhus also followed the Buddha to the residence of the World Honored One. They all paid obeisance to the Buddha’s feet and sat on one side. Then, seeing everyone having sat down, the World-Honored-One Buddha spoke to Nanda, “I have an essence of the Dharma, and it is in the good wherever the contents are at – at the beginning, in the middle, or at the end. The meanings of the writing are skillful and wonderful. The essence is a simple, perfectly complete, clean, pure living. It is called the Sutra of Entering the Wombs of Mothers. You should listen closely. Do your utmost intention and contemplate well about what I am going to say. Now I shall expound them to you.”’

This quote describes that the Buddha expounded the Dharma anew to Nanda in a certain place. Because Nanda had decided not to ascend the Heaven Realm, he could get together with other disciples who had determined to get liberated from birth and death. He was then able to go with them to implore the Buddha for the Dharma. The Buddha said to Nanda, ‘You should listen to it attentively. “Do your utmost intention and contemplate well about what I am going to say.” Now, there is a sutra called the Sutra of Entering the Wombs of Mothers. I shall expound it to you today. You should think about the teaching with good thoughts. Listen closely.’

Sutra: ‘Nanda said, “Yes indeed, World Honored One; I am listening with great anticipation.” The Buddha spoke to Nanda, “Although there is a womb of a mother, a ‘bardo’ will or will not enter the womb. How does a ‘bardo’ enter a womb to be born? If parents’ desires are for mutual, sexual love, and with the mother’s abdomen being clean, when her menstrual period comes, a ‘bardo’ presents itself. You should know that at that time it is called ‘a “bardo” entering the womb of a mother.’”’

The Buddha mentioned here that ‘a “bardo” will or will not enter’ a womb of a mother. ‘How does a “bardo” enter a womb to be born?’ What does this mean? It means when ‘parents’ desires are for mutual, sexual love, and with the mother’s abdomen being clean, when she has her menstrual period, a “bardo” presents itself’ – a ‘bardo’ becomes manifest. ‘You should know that at that time it is called ‘a “bardo” entering the womb of a mother,’ meaning this is the time that a ‘bardo’ has entered the womb.

Sutra: ‘There are two types of forms that this “bardo” will be born in. One is that the form is proper. The other is that the form is ugly. In the Hell Realm, sentient beings are with ugly looks, like burned trees with no trunks. In the Animal Realm, those in it have forms like smoke. In the Hungry Ghost Realm, the forms of those in it are like water. In the Human and Heaven Realms, the forms of sentient beings are like in gold color. In the Heaven of Forms, the forms of those in there are in brilliant white. In the Heaven of Formlessness, there are no basics existing because of there being no forms.’

This quote is about what realm a ‘bardo’ is to be born in as it enters a womb, and what type of a form or an image the ‘bardo’ will produce. It means when a ‘bardo’ – say, a human’s – enter a womb, it will not necessarily enter the Human Realm. If it is the Hell Realm, ‘sentient beings are with ugly looks,’ like burned charcoal. ‘In the Animal Realm, those in it have forms like smoke.’ If you are born in the Animal Realm, including being an insect, your color will look like smoke. ‘In the Hungry Ghost Realm, the forms of those in it are like water.’ Those born in this realm are with color like water. ‘In the Human and Heaven Realms, the forms of sentient beings are like in gold color.’ Thus, what is ‘seen’ as golden light is not necessarily the Buddha’s light; it can be that a ‘bardo’ is born in the Human Realm or the Heaven Realm. ‘In the Heaven of Forms, the forms of those in there are in brilliant white. In the Heaven of Formlessness, there are no basics existing because of there being no forms.’ If a ‘bardo’ is born in the Heaven of Formlessness, it does not have a form originally; hence, there is no color of it to be seen.

Sutra: ‘For the “bardos” of sentient beings, they will have two hands and two feet, or four feet and more, or again, no feet. By following their prior karma, they are reborn in places where they should be. When they have a feel of that place, they will have the form of the sentient beings there. If they are in the Heaven Realm, their heads then face upward. In the Human, Animal, and Hungry Ghost Realms, the heads move sideways and go their ways. In the Hell Realm, heads of sentient beings face straight downward. All the “bardos” of sentient beings possess supernatural powers and go through the void and be gone, like, with a ‘heavenly eye,’ visualizing a faraway place to be born.’

This section of the sutra mentions how many limbs sentient beings have when they are born. They are with two feet, four feet, or many hands and feet. ‘By following their prior karma, they are reborn in places where they should be.’ ‘When they have a feel of that place, they will have the form of the sentient beings there.’ This means what the ‘bardos’ feel for that place will make them become ‘the form of the sentient beings there.’ ‘If they are in the Heaven Realm, their heads then face upward.’ If a ‘bardo’ is born in the Heaven Realm, the sentient being will feel the head faces upward. ‘In the Human, Animal, and Hungry Ghost Realms, the heads move sideways and go their ways.’ If a ‘bardo’ is born in the Human, Animal, and Hungry Ghost Realms, the sentient being will feel the head moving sideways and going its ways. ‘In the Hell Realm, heads of sentient beings face straight downward.’ If a ‘bardo’ is born in the Hell Realm, the sentient being will feel the head facing directly downward. ‘All the “bardos” of sentient beings possess supernatural powers and go through the void.’ It means when sentient beings are in the state of being ‘bardos,’ they all ‘possess supernatural powers and go through the void.’ They do not go by vehicles or airplanes; rather, they ‘go through the void and be gone.’ The phrase ‘like, with a “heavenly eye,” visualizing a faraway place to be born’ references that so long as a ‘bardo’ has affinities with the parents, ‘with a “heavenly eye,” it can see those who have affinities with it from a very far distance.

Sutra: ‘These are mentions about the sayings of “when a menstrual period comes” and “when a ‘bardo’ is accepted in a womb.” Nanda, there are women who have their menstruation for three days, five days, half of a month, or a month. Or, there are some women who wait for affinities for a long time, and only then comes their menstruation. If there are women who have no power and authority, they bear much toils, with ugly forms and looks, and they do not have good food and drink. Although their menstrual period comes, it should quickly stop. It is like when spraying water on a dry land, it easily becomes dry.’

It is described here about women’s menstruation. How did Shakyamuni Buddha know it? ‘There are women who have their menstruation for three days, five days,’ even ‘half of a month, or a month. Or, there are some women who wait for’ causes and conditions ‘for a long time, and only then’ appears their menstrual blood. The phrase ‘If there are women who have no power and authority’ means some women are in a status with a poor health and without a good body. ‘They bear much toils, with ugly forms and looks, and they do not have good food and drink.’ This describes that all these women live a hard life, being not good looking, and also without good food to eat. ‘Although their menstrual period comes, it should quickly stop.’ This is the mention about how long a menstrual period lasts. It might come in the morning but might end in the afternoon on the same day. It might come, say, today, but might be gone tomorrow. ‘It is like when spraying water on a dry land, it easily becomes dry.’ This gives us an example that like spraying water on a dry place, once the water is sprayed over, the place will be dry immediately.

Sutra: ‘If there are women who have power and authority, they receive comforts and joys constantly, have proper looks, and obtain good food and drink. When all their menstrual periods come, these do not quickly stop. It is like when spraying water on a moist land, it is difficult to get it dry.’

Therefore, if you have irregular menstruation, it is relevant to your past practices and your lack of power and authority. The words of so-called power and authority do not mean you are imposing or powerful; rather, the ‘lack of power and authority’ refers to the situation that your body does not have the ability to bear the processes of being a woman. Very naturally, such a woman has eaten things that are bad or not good from her childhood to adulthood. When she has grown up and become rich, she will be reluctant to buy good food to eat. She will be stingy on this thing or on that thing, and think buying a house is important. I have a disciple who is very amazing. She earns only NT$50,000 a month. Unexpectedly, she owns two houses. Give her an applause. To this day, she is still reluctant to spend money on other things. She is exactly the type of a woman who does not have power and authority. From this standpoint, her menstruation is certainly irregular. The Buddha is truly incredible; why did He know even such a thing?
If a woman has power and authority, such attributes are the results of what have been mastered in this woman’s practices in past lifetimes and this life. So, when your menstruation is irregular and you know very well that your power and authority are not good, it is precisely because you do not have enough of good fortune; you had, in past lives – including the time passed in this life – done some things that were not good. You absolutely, totally need to do a great repentance, and you cannot be arrogant. It is very easy for women to get arrogant. They think this way: ‘My husband loves me dearly. I bore him children. I am amazing.’ Once you are arrogant, your power and authority will be gone. There are some women who are still very normal when they get older with cessation of menstruation – the menopause. The so-called being normal means they will not have many women’s diseases. Some women have many of such illnesses. Why? Because these women are without power and authority. This means when they are wives of some men, they at least have not been like usual housewives – they cannot be described as not acting in accordance with womanliness – and this is the reason that they have gradually lost their power and authority. When they become older and after their menopause occurs, then women’s diseases appear on them. It is not necessarily that the time period for a woman who does not abide by womanliness is when she is someone’s wife. Having not followed well the usual conducts of womanhood when a woman is young – to put it simply, having made more friends – then at her old age, women’s diseases will come up. Such a woman’s power and authority will then disappear. Some women might not have made many friends, but they are lecherous for other people’s husbands, thinking, ‘If I had known him earlier, I would have married him. That would have been good. How handsome he is. Why had I not married him?’ The women who have such thoughts will not have power and authority either in their old ages.

What the Buddha said were not jokes. Rather, He told us that from a woman’s menstruation, we can see whether she actually has power, authority, or good fortune or not. There is a phrase in the quote just mentioned, ‘….receive comforts and joys…., have proper looks, and obtain good food and drink.’ What does ‘good food and drink’ mean? It does not refer to eating expensive food; rather, it is for nutritious food. If a woman eats such food, she will naturally be in good health as she eats right food. When women eat wrong food, there will be a bunch of problems appearing, and when they menstruate, they will feel cramps. These women are the ones who do not have power and authority. Why are there menstrual cramps? These are relevant to what you eat. You have not had good food and drink; what you eat are icy, spicy, stir-fried, fried, or with meat. These kinds of food will get your power and authority reduced continuously.” Rinpoche then said this humorously: “It is a class on women’s health today.” (Translator’s note: Rinpoche continued the teaching.) “If women ‘have proper looks, and obtain good food and drink,’ their menstruation will not stop very quickly and will be regular. ‘It is like when spraying water on a moist land, it is difficult to get it dry.’ This is part of the sutra quote and it describes that it is like on a moist land, if water is sprayed on it, the land will not be dry immediately.

Sutra: ‘How does a “bardo” not enter a womb? When the father’s sperm comes out but not the mother’s essence, when the mother’s essence comes forth but not the father’s sperm, or if both the sperm and the essence do not come out, a “bardo” does not get into a womb. If the mother is not clean but the father is, if the father is not clean but the mother is, or if both the father and the mother are not clean, the “bardo” does not get a conception either.’

This sutra quote is about why there is infertility. The mentions are very scientific. There is a phrase ‘When the father’s sperm comes out but not the mother’s essence.’ Many people think that only men have sperms and women do not. This is not so. Women have such essence too. It is just that the essence of women does not have spermatozoa as men’s sperms do. Hence, when there is an intercourse between the parents, both the father’s sperm and the mother’s essence will come forth. However, if only the former comes out but not the latter, or vice versa, or even ‘both the sperm and the essence do not come out, a “bardo” does not get into a womb.’

‘If the mother is not clean but the father is, if the father is not clean but the mother is, or if both the father and the mother are not clean, the “bardo” does not get a conception either.’ What does ‘being clean’ or ‘not being clean’ mean? It could be that the father had a venereal disease before, and that is why he is now not clean. Maybe the mother had this disease before so she is not clean, which will also make it difficult for a ‘bardo’ to enter the womb. In addition, the reason that ‘not being clean’ could be that the mother has been eating food that are not good, affecting her bodily conditions; that will get a conception difficult to occur too.

Sutra: ‘If a mother’s vulva area is afflicted with a disease of “wind,” or there being diseases of “yellow” and phlegm from coughing, or there being the bond of blood, “qi” (flow of energy,) and womb, or its muscle increasing, or the mother taking medications, or there being an illness of “wheat-abdomen,” or a disease of “ant-waist,” or the vaginal opening being like a camel’s month, or the inside of the womb being like a tree with many roots, or like a plowshare, or like a shaft of a cart, or like a rattan, or like a leaf, or like awns of wheat, or being deep in a lower abdomen area, or being deep in a place of upper abdomen, or not being a womb “apparatus,” or there being constant bleeding, or, again, fluid flowing, or being like a mouth of a crow, always opening and not closing, or there being unequal width and narrowness on top and bottom parts or on four sides, or being concave or convex on high and low places, or there being worms infected inside, making it rotten and unclean, and if a mother has these misfortunes, she will not get a conception. Or, if the parents are honorable and dignified and the “bardo” is humble and lowly, or if the “bardo” is honorable and dignified and the parents are humble and lowly, in such types of situations, a conception will not be formed either. If both the parents and the “bardo” are honorable and dignified, and if their karma does not converge, there will also be no conception. If, in the prior states described, there are no love and desires between a man and a woman, the “bardo” will not enter the womb to be born either.’

These have been mentioned before. The Buddha stated them anew. Why are there some women who cannot give birth to children? The first phrase of the quote is ‘If a mother’s vulva area is afflicted with a disease of “wind”….’ For example, her ‘vulva area is afflicted with a disease of “wind”.’ What is the disease of ‘wind’? Too much of the ‘wind’ in her body will affect her.” Rinpoche then inquired about this to a doctor-disciple of Chinese medicine: “If there is too much of ‘wind’ in a woman, will she have leucorrhea?” (The said doctor replied, ‘Yes. A ”wind” disease refers to the bodily condition that “qi”-channel does not have a good energy flow and is inharmonious. If the “qi” is too strong or too weak, it will produce the stagnation of the bodily water and hinder metabolism; then there will be leucorrhea easily.’ “If there is leucorrhea in a woman’s body, it is not easy for her to get a conception. What kinds of people are there who will get a disease of ‘wind’ easily? These people are the ones who have the mind of jealousy that is heavy, are narrow-minded, get angry easily, or haggle over things very much. Because of these traits, it is quite easy for such people getting a disease of ‘wind.’ For this disease, there is no understanding or solution about it in western medicine. If you have much of leucorrhea in you, you will only be given some antibiotics or similar treatments from your physicians of western medicine. There will still be some treatments though in Chinese medicine. Nevertheless, the most important method is still to work from your own mind.

The phrase ‘or there being diseases of “yellow” and phlegm from coughing’ refers to issues in the liver with a liver disease, like Hepatitis A, B, or C, or liver cancer and is about phlegm too. This means if there are much of phlegm in the lungs and the windpipe, it is not easy for a woman getting a conception either. Then there is a phrase ‘or there being the bond of blood, “qi” (flow of energy,) and womb.’ The explanation of this should be that there are ‘chocolate cysts’ (endometrioma) in oviduct. That phrase should refer to this kind of description. The phrase ‘or its muscle increasing’ is about fibroids which can grow in the vaginal orifice and the womb. The next phrase ‘or the mother taking medications’ refers to the mother’s taking medicines to make the womb become bad. On the phrase ‘or there being an illness of “wheat-abdomen,” or a disease of “ant-waist,”’ I asked a doctor of Chinese medicine to help me check their meanings last time. What are they then? (The doctor-disciple of Chinese medicine reported, ‘An illness of “wheat-abdomen” is that the womb appears in a form like a highland barley grain.) As a highland barley grain is in pointed shape, it means it is not easy for such a womb to get a conception. As for ‘a disease of “ant-waist,”’ if a woman’s waist is too narrow like an ant’s, it is also not easy for her getting a conception.

The phrase ‘or the vaginal opening being like a camel’s month’ means the vaginal opening looks like a camel’s mouth. The next phrase ‘or the inside of the womb being like a tree with many roots’ means that in the inside of the womb it is like a tree with many roots, which actually do not refer to ‘roots;’ rather, in the womb muscles , there are many stripes, and that will not make a conception easy either. Then the quote mentions ‘or like a plowshare’ which means it is like the head of a plow. For the words ‘or like a shaft of a cart,’ they have been explained last time. The next phrase is ‘or like a rattan,’ indicating a rattan being straight with a slight curve. The phrases have been continued as ‘or like a leaf, or like awns of wheat, or being deep in a lower abdomen area, or being deep in a place of upper abdomen.’ The last description means a retroversion – bending backward of the womb; perhaps its position is too high. That will be very difficult to make a conception happen too. Then there is this phrase ‘or not being a womb “apparatus,”’ and this means the woman is not one who can get conceived and give birth originally.

The phrase ‘or there being constant bleeding’ means this woman has blood dripping all the time from her body. There is another phrase ‘or, again, fluid flowing,’ referring to a situation of some women who will have bodily wastes discharged all day long. These words ‘or being like a mouth of a crow, always opening and not closing’ describe that it is like the mouth of a crow (a type of bird) that remains open and does not close. Then there is a continuation of phrases ‘or there being unequal width and narrowness on top and bottom parts or on four sides, or being concave or convex on high and low places, or there being worms infected inside, making it rotten and unclean.’ These mentions are to show that the woman has some kind of venereal disease with many worms inside. Yet, as her condition is bad, she still does not seek medical treatments, letting her womb get rotten. ‘If a mother has these misfortunes, she will not get a conception.’

The phrase ‘Or, if the parents are honorable and dignified and the “bardo” is humble and lowly’ means the parents are very honorable and dignified, but when they encounter a ‘bardo’ that did not practice well in the past, is not honorable and dignified, has relatively less good fortune, or is humble and lowly, the mother will also not get a conception. The next phrase ‘or if the “bardo” is honorable and dignified and the parents are humble and lowly, in such types of situations, a conception will not be formed either’ explains the opposite that the ‘bardo’ that is coming is honorable and dignified while the parents are humble and lowly. The definition of the latter is that the parents have not acted in accordance with human ethics and morals, like being unfilial or having done many bad deeds. This kind of behavior will not have a conception formed. Even if it does happen, the child born will not have a long lifespan either.

‘If both the parents and the “bardo” are honorable and dignified, and if their karma does not converge, there will also be no conception.’ Even if both the ‘bardo,’ that is appearing, and the parents are honorable and dignified, but they do not have a connecting karma – meaning there being no such causes and conditions between both sides – ‘there will also be no conception.’ ‘If, in the prior states described, there are no love and desires between a man and a woman, the “bardo” will not enter the womb to be born either.’ This quote means ‘if there are no love and desires between a man and a woman’ – meaning if both parents do not arouse their love and desires for each other – it will not be easy for the ‘bardo’ entering the womb to be born either.

Sutra: ‘Nanda asked the Buddha, “How can a ‘bardo’ enter the womb of a mother?” The Buddha said, “If the mother’s abdomen is clean, when a ‘bardo’ presents itself, it sees an act of desires happening between the parents. There are no misfortunes or diseases, many of them having been mentioned above, for the parents. The parents and the child to be born have the karma of mutual feelings towards each other, and only then, can the ‘bardo’ enter the womb of the mother.”’

‘Nanda asked the Buddha, “How can a ‘bardo’ enter the womb of a mother?” The Buddha said, “If the mother’s abdomen is clean, when a ‘bardo’ presents itself, it sees an act of desires happening between the parents” – an occurrence of desires and joy. In addition, ‘there are no misfortunes or diseases, many of them having been mentioned above, for the parents. The parents and the child to be born have the karma of mutual feelings towards each other, and only then, can the ‘bardo’ enter the womb of the mother.’ There is the same karma between the parents and the child to be born; they have ‘mutual feelings towards each other, and only then, can the “bardo” enter the womb of the mother.’ Therefore, if you yourself is not a practitioner, suddenly there is a ‘bardo,’ that had practiced before, wishing to enter a womb. Even if the ‘bardo’ of this child to be born really enters a womb in the period for a ‘bardo’ entering it, and if you do not practice during the 10 months of your pregnancy, this child will not live long after birth either. If you do not practice at all, but the ‘bardo’ of the child did and will, and even if both of you are honorable and dignified, there will not be a conception.
This sutra of getting into a womb is, in fact, very important. It lets us understand clearly what we have done wrong. The subject has already been mentioned before; the Buddha went out of His way to tell Nanda about it one more time. Its meaning is that in wanting to give birth to a child, there are many complicated causes, conditions, and karmic retributions involved. If we are not clear about these, thinking that it is all right just getting pregnant first, and teaching the child gradually in the future, then the matter will become very difficult. Thus, start your practices before you get pregnant so that the ‘bardos’ that have responded to you and come will all be Buddhist practitioners. If you are unwilling to practice, then those ‘bardos’ – even if they were and will be practitioners – will not remain with you. This is because there are no affinities between the parents and the ‘bardos.’”

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Updated on December 25, 2024