Lectures on The Sutra of the Combined Discourses of Fathers and Sons (37)

Bacteria Within the Physical Body of Sentient Beings

The fire element possesses the nature of heat and warmth. Without the fire element and its thermal properties within the body, the food in our stomachs could not decompose and be absorbed. Therefore, no matter how delicious the food we eat may be, no matter how complete its color, aroma, and flavor, once it enters the stomach, the fire element within the body causes it to rot. The so-called nourishment we consume from our food and drink is extremely filthy and impure. Thus, one should not crave or cling to food and drink. By constantly practicing this contemplation on impurity, one can reduce the craving for food.

In fact, upon careful reflection, our bodies are extremely filthy from top to bottom, inside and out, teeming with bacteria everywhere. The decomposition of food relies entirely on bacteria breaking down the food. Without the help of bacteria, we could not absorb nutrients. It is bacteria that assist us in decomposition, aid us in digestion, and help us absorb nutrients. Sentient beings depend on these beneficial bacteria to live normally. Therefore, there is no need to crave, cling to, or be infatuated with our own filthy physical bodies or the filthy physical bodies of other sentient beings.

The Buddha said that the physical body of sentient beings is like a mobile toilet, a large excrement bucket, wrapped in a layer of smooth skin. If this outer skin is peeled away, inside is a bloody, messy mass full of bacteria, and the skin itself is also saturated with bacteria. When the skin is peeled away, is that person still beautiful or attractive? It is all blood, flesh, tendons, and bones. Upon careful reflection, there is truly nothing in the physical body of sentient beings worthy of attachment or craving; it is utterly filthy. If we possessed the divine eye, enabling our eyes to function like a microscope to examine our skin and inner body, we would see that both inside and out are entirely covered in bacteria, which our naked eyes cannot perceive but a microscope or the divine eye can see. Those bacteria are also in conflict; when the bacterial population becomes imbalanced, skin diseases and other illnesses arise. Wherever the bacterial population is unbalanced, sickness occurs there. When we feel hungry, it is also because the bacteria are hungry; the bacteria need to eat, so we feel the desire to eat, leading to gluttony and craving for food.