The Practice Should Follow the Sequential Stages

Under normal circumstances, spiritual practice must follow a sequential progression, with each stage focusing on specific content; different levels of practice entail different methods. Ordinary people have methods for ordinary people, sages have methods for sages, and saints have methods for saints. An ordinary person absolutely cannot use the practice methods of a saint—the gap is too vast, rendering it utterly ineffective.

Ordinary people can only contemplate the impermanence of the arising, cessation, and transformation of the five aggregates, contemplate the Four Noble Truths of suffering, its origin, cessation, and the path, or engage in Chan meditation to seek enlightenment of the mind. Ordinary people cannot contemplate the realms realized by an eighth-ground bodhisattva, such as abiding without attachment, detachment from all phenomena, emptiness of all dharmas, non-grasping at appearances or distinctions, spontaneous naturalness, and so forth.

Ordinary people and sages after initial awakening are currently in the stage of practicing wholesome dharmas with a mind still attached to appearances. Although sages have preliminarily broken through some attachments to appearances, their level is still too shallow. At this stage, attempting to transcend appearances entirely, to cognize all dharmas without relying on appearances, is not only impossible but will lead to arrogance and the denial of cause and effect. For example, when an ordinary person sees meat, they should think: this is the flesh of a sentient being; out of compassion, one should not consume the flesh of sentient beings. This is the correct way of practice. One should not at this point perceive the meat as empty, as formless, as Suchness, and then think that eating it is the same as not eating it, consequently eating heartily while feeling they have entered the realm of Suchness. In reality, they have entered the realm of greed. This is an erroneous method of practice.

For instance, when an ordinary person perceives male or female appearances, they should not say they empty the appearances of male and female, viewing everything as the single appearance of Suchness. Then, feeling as if they have transcended male and female distinctions, they interact without restraint, resulting in severely insufficient concentration, causing both parties to go astray. This practice method can also be called the misinterpretation of emptiness (惡取空, akuśala-śūnyatā-grāha), and its karmic offense is great. If someone of the opposite sex makes a special demand of you, and you, claiming non-attachment to appearances, non-grasping at forms, perceive the other as empty, as an emanation of Suchness, and thus "go along with conditions" (隨緣), the result is violating the ten major precepts of the Bodhisattva vows. Then, hell is certainly where you will be registered. So-called "going along with conditions" requires you to possess the actual capability to do so. One must have inwardly realized emptiness, truly and genuinely attained a mind empty and free from arising thoughts or grasping at appearances. Without the concentration power of the first dhyāna and the wisdom of a first-ground bodhisattva or higher, anyone is merely thinking and talking about it; it's fundamentally unattainable. One must still diligently uphold the precepts and practice, unable to leapfrog the boundaries and sequence of practice.

If an ordinary person wishes to repent of the karmic offenses committed in the past, they should engage in repentance focused on appearances (取相懺悔), repenting of their evil thoughts and actions to change their evil mental inclinations. However, if they instead perform the Mahāyāna formless repentance (無相懺悔), forcibly convincing themselves that all afflictions are Bodhi, are the appearance of Suchness, yet without actually realizing the formless state, after thinking this way, they feel at ease. But while the mind feels at ease, the karmic offenses still exist and have not been eliminated. Karmic retribution is inexorable. Practicing like this is the misinterpretation of emptiness (惡取空), and the karmic retribution will be exacted without the slightest error.

Our study of Buddhism and spiritual practice has a sequence and methodology; we cannot act recklessly. What a Bodhisattva can do, an ordinary person may not necessarily be able to do. "Going along with conditions" to guide and liberate members of the opposite sex is beyond the capability of an ordinary person; it is the work of Bodhisattvas on the noble grounds (地上菩薩) with profound samādhi. If an ordinary person attempts it, they will certainly fall into the three evil destinies.

Buddhadharma nowadays is utterly chaotic. Most people, relying on their conscious minds which are quite clever, can understand a little about the practice realms of noble-ground Bodhisattvas and the Buddha. Consequently, they parrot the methods that noble-ground Bodhisattvas should practice, thinking they can achieve them too. Is this possible? You are not Sudhana (善財童子), lacking his roots of goodness and merit, nor are you willing to diligently cultivate concentration and contemplation.

We practitioners should change this habit of empty talk (口頭禪). Buddhadharma must be genuinely practiced before it can be genuinely realized. Genuine practice and realization are not slogans; there must be practical and feasible concrete methods for genuine practice. If there are none, then it is not genuine practice, nor can it lead to genuine realization. Even if we can recite the words spoken by the Buddha, it is of little use; it's merely shouting slogans. We must take step by step underfoot to have any hope.