The Six Paramitas Are the Foundation of Zen Meditation

The prerequisite for sudden enlightenment is gradual cultivation. Anyone who experiences sudden enlightenment must undergo a process of gradual cultivation, whether long or short. Without gradual cultivation, there is no sudden enlightenment. To attain sudden enlightenment, one must lay a solid foundation, and the six paramitas of a bodhisattva are that foundation and condition. To become a bodhisattva, one must possess the corresponding qualities of a bodhisattva; one cannot become a bodhisattva without cause. Resolving the great matter of life and death accumulated over countless kalpas is no simple task; it certainly requires paying the corresponding price to accomplish.

As long as these conditions are fulfilled, sudden enlightenment is certain. This is because enlightenment has no quota limit. In worldly affairs, good things are often limited; one might even need to resort to opportunistic means to succeed. However, the Dharma of realizing the mind and attaining enlightenment does not operate this way. Whoever meets the conditions can awaken; no one can prevent it. Therefore, one must diligently cultivate oneself, perfect oneself, and draw closer and closer to the sages, until finally entering their ranks.

Many Buddhists today exhibit an impatient attitude. They neglect the foundation, do not practice the six paramitas, and directly engage in meditation, demanding immediate enlightenment. The mindset of many is like wanting only the seventh floor of a building, without the first and second floors. The World-Honored One repeatedly taught the six paramitas of a bodhisattva, emphasizing that merit, virtue, and precepts are all extremely important, and that subduing the mind is also crucial. Yet, Buddhists disregard these, seeking only the ultimate prajna wisdom, which is impossible to attain. The acquisition of wisdom requires certain prerequisites: the provisions of merit must be complete, the precepts must be upheld, so that concentration can be perfected, and only then can wisdom arise.

We cannot focus solely on the practice of principle and wisdom while neglecting the foundational practices of merit and precepts. Cultivation pursued in this way cannot succeed. We must have faith in and accept the Buddha's words. What the Buddha instructs us to do, we must strive to accomplish. Taking refuge, receiving precepts, upholding precepts, and subduing the mind are all very important. One cannot discard these conditions and expect to directly attain the fruit. A person heavily defiled by worldly impurities cannot become a sage. The gap between a practitioner and a sage cannot be too vast. Therefore, one should uphold the Five Precepts, the Uposatha Precepts, and the Bodhisattva Precepts. Only when the mind detaches somewhat from worldly dharmas can one realize the Way and enter the ranks of the sages.