What Is the Ideological Realm of "Virtue Arises When Desires Cease"?

When a person has no desires, it means they do not deliberately pursue any dharma, do not scheme to seek anything, and apply no mental effort toward anything. This is non-action. A person whose mind abides in non-action will not employ any means to scheme for anything—even for what is legitimate, they do not deliberately strive to obtain or contend for it, let alone for what is illegitimate or through improper means, which they would never do. Thus, such a person contends with no one in any matter, remains free from worldly strife, and does not struggle against circumstances. Having no heart for contention, they naturally lack any inclination to seize, deceive, or steal. Free from desires in all affairs, they pass the days in accordance with conditions. Such a person's moral character is exceptionally noble, and their state of mind is one of complete self-forgetfulness.

An ordinary person can only occasionally achieve this state, and only in specific matters. If a person can consistently act this way, with a mind and conduct always so pure, detached, free from desires and pursuits, then this person is no longer ordinary. What kind of person is this? They must be one who has severed the view of self, whose mind is free from self. Moreover, they are not merely a first or second fruition practitioner who has severed the view of self, but certainly one who has eliminated afflictions—a third or fourth fruition practitioner. Indeed, the character of Arhats is noble; their virtue and cultivation rank foremost among humans, even surpassing that of heavenly beings. They are teachers to both humans and devas, worthy of offerings from both.

If such an Arhat further engages extensively in actions that benefit sentient beings, deeply cherishing the aspiration to liberate beings, constantly mindful of their suffering, and earnestly seeking to help them transcend hardship, then this Arhat is a Bodhisattva Mahāsattva, from the first to the eighth ground. Of course, the mind of a Bodhisattva below the eighth ground cannot yet abide in non-action at all times, act naturally, or accord with conditions effortlessly. They also cannot remain entirely free from desires and pursuits at all times, as they are still influenced by residual habits and afflictions. Only the mind of a Bodhisattva at the eighth ground and above abides in non-action at every moment, functioning spontaneously and naturally without deliberate effort. With minds empty of self and phenomena, immersed in profound meditative concentration and wisdom, they eternally accord with conditions, accomplishing the work of liberating sentient beings naturally, without attachment to self or dharma.

Therefore, the moral character of any individual is related to their level of cultivation and realization. The higher the level of cultivation and realization, the emptier the mind becomes. The emptier the mind, the vaster its capacity; the more they abide in non-action, the nobler their virtue. The results of cultivation and realization are all manifested within worldly phenomena. Their mind of non-action is also expressed within worldly phenomena, revealed in the process of liberating sentient beings, and demonstrated in all their undertakings. Thus, whether a person has attained cultivation, realization, or the Way can be observed and verified by those with wisdom through examining their physical, verbal, and mental actions.