The Higher One's Wisdom of Practice, the Fewer the Disagreements

When hearing a statement or seeing a thing, ten people will have ten viewpoints, and a hundred people will have a hundred opinions. Why is this so? Because each person's consciousness-mind is different, their cognition differs; when cognition differs, feelings differ; when feelings differ, reactions differ; and when reactions differ, their speech, actions, and karmic formations differ. Because the consciousness-minds have not reached a unified cognition—each has their own degree of understanding—it is impossible to reach a consensus on a matter. Without consensus, it becomes very difficult to bring about the development and success of an undertaking. This is perhaps why worldly affairs are so hard to accomplish!

On the other hand, it is said that all Buddhas share the same Path. Why is the Path the same? Because each Buddha's cultivation has already reached perfection. Since it is perfection, it is the ultimate; since all have reached the ultimate, their degree of attainment must certainly be the same. Moreover, they are identical in every respect, and most importantly, they are identical in wisdom. Thus every Buddha holds the same view on any matter, and there will never be disagreement or dispute among Them. That is to say, the higher the wisdom attained by noble ones in their cultivation, the fewer the points of divergence among them, the more they share in common, and the more they can achieve harmony, tacit understanding, and consensus.

Therefore, the goal of our cultivation is to enhance our own wisdom, to transform our views and knowledge into insight—views and knowledge attained after realizing the Path are called insight—and to make that insight ever more perfect. Then all matters will become harmonious and unobstructed.