To Understand Buddhism - Living and Practicing Together Harmoniously

Living and Practicing Together Harmoniously

The purpose of establishing a way place is to help everyone achieve in group practice. It is definitely not to help individuals escape their worldly responsibilities. It is a serious mistake to think this way, especially in the light of all the offerings we receive from people and the reality that every offering will have to be repaid, if not in this lifetime then in a future lifetime. The manner of living together does not mean that each person has his or her own room. If luxurious and comfortable facilities are available, it will be very difficult to achieve. Why? The Earth Treasure Sutra tells us that,  Every single movement or stirring of thoughts on the part of the living beings is karma and an offense. For uncountable eons we have been de" have developed and accumulated infinite bad habits. When with others, we usually try to be civilized and behave ourselves. But, when alone, we tend to indulge ourselves in doing whatever we feel comfortable with and easily forget proper conduct.

To counter this, members of the group share sleeping quarters. These quarters in a tra" ditional way place are comprised of one large bed with a position for each person. Quilts are neatly folded as in an army barracks. Life in a way place is even more rigorous than in the army and the monks and nuns are even more disciplined than the soldiers are. Only by living in such a disciplined way place, are we able to mold our temperament and reform ourselves through the Three Learnings of self-discipline, deep concentration and wisdom. This is true cultivation.

However, there are exceptions in way places. For example, the managing monk and the executive deputy chief, due to their responsibilities, have their own rooms, which is usu" ally very small, in order for them to plan and take care of daily tasks without disturbing others. Monks and nuns, who are aged or ill, also have their own rooms. To accomplish our cultiva" tion, this shared living is necessary, even in today s affluent society.


Not Quarrelling

All the members who live together need to do so without quarrelling. In this way they can best concentrate their efforts on cultivation. When people are together, the most fre" quent act is that of speech, so speech karma is the easiest to commit. We have a proverb,  Illness enters by the mouth; trouble exits from the mouth . Another is  More speech, more trouble . One, who eats too much, easily becomes sick. One, who talks too much, easily the speaker is careless. Both parties develop resentment, which gives rise to endless retalia" tion in the future. This is why ancient sages advised us to  Talk less and chant the Buddha s name more . The less we speak, the better it is. Ideally, we would only speak when it was necessary.

When I was in Los Angeles, a friend told me about the three-day Zen retreat his high-school son had attended. Once inside, no one was allowed to talk. The daily practice was sitting meditation, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Nothing else was done. Keeping silent for three days in a way place like this will help us to calm down and re" lax. The boy was so impressed that he wanted to go back for the longer winter session. The distinctive feature of such a way place is the harmony of silence and no quarrelling.

So at a strict way place where chatting or other irrelevant talk is forbidden, there is vir" tually no opportunity for quarrelling. Almost exclusively, all we will find is the silent or voiced continuous chanting of  Amituofo in the chanting hall. In a Tibetan way place, the chant" ing of mantras is ceaseless. For instance, during my early stage of Buddhist study, I was under the guidance of Living Buddha Master Zhang-Jia for three years. Through my observation, he never stopped silently chanting a mantra while moving his lips even when he was with visitors. He only paused to talk and as soon as he was finished, would resume his silent chant" ing.

This silent chanting while moving our lips is a form of practice called,  Diamond Hold" ing . Master Zhang-Jia was one of the sincerest practitioners I have ever met. His mind was pure without any attachments or wandering thoughts. His teaching method was unique. He never spoke a word until he found the listener attentive and concentrated. He then spoke only a few words while looking directly into your eyes. Each of his words bore heavy weight, our practice is to eradicate all afflictions and attain the Buddha Name Chanting Samadhi. If we do not practice this method, it will be very difficult for us to achieve this goal.


Experiencing the Inner Peace and Happiness from Practicing Together Harmoniously

This is to savor the Dharma joy. Whichever practice method we choose, the basic achievement we have in our practice is happiness. If we feel unhappy after beginning our practice, we have definitely encountered a serious problem. But the problem does not lie with the Buddha s teachings. We may have done something that goes against the princi" ples of these teachings or we may have chosen the wrong method. Otherwise, the results would be evident; awakening from confusion and obsession, leaving sufferings behind and obtaining happiness.

With each passing year we would have fewer worries while enjoying greater happiness and freedom. This is the evidence of success in our practice. If we are not achieving this, then we need to examine ourselves for the cause of our lack of success. If we can correct our mistakes, find the root of our afflictions and sever them, we can then attain the benefits of our practice.

Practicing Buddhism is to experience life and to train our hearts. Buddhist cultivation arises from our heart as we participate in daily life. What kind of heart do we cultivate? One of purity. When we have proper viewpoints and understanding and truly dedicate ourselves to Buddhism, regardless of who we are or what our circumstances are, whether good or bad, favorable or unfavorable, we will be able to reduce karmic debts and to plant the seeds of naturally arises from our heart, as we savor the Dharma Joy. If we practice together harmo" niously, everybody will attain this Dharma joy, everybody will attain achievement.