The Purpose and Framework of Precepts

Sentient beings of ordinary people commit more evil than good, frequently engaging in unwholesome karmas, and thus become regular inhabitants of the three evil paths. To enable beings to sever the suffering of birth-and-death within the six realms, the Buddha gradually established numerous precepts. When the Buddha first attained enlightenment, the conditions for establishing precepts had not yet arisen. To restrain the bodily, verbal, and mental actions of his disciples and guide them onto the correct path of cultivation, the Buddha admonished them: "Refrain from all evil, cultivate all good, and purify your own mind—this is the teaching of all Buddhas." This statement serves as the guiding principle for cultivation and the essence and general outline of the precepts. From this outline, specific branches and details can be expanded to guide beings in progressively receiving and upholding various precepts, perfecting the threefold training of precepts, meditation, and wisdom, and gradually advancing toward Buddhahood. The meaning of this outline is: Abstain from all unwholesome actions, practice all wholesome dharmas, and purify your own mind—this is the disciplinary conduct taught by all Buddhas of the ten directions.

Severing all evil and cultivating all good—when evil actions are completely eradicated and wholesome actions are perfected, Buddhahood is attained. This process inherently encompasses the training in meditation and wisdom, for without meditative concentration, one cannot sever evil or cultivate good; without wisdom, one likewise cannot sever evil or cultivate good. Only with wisdom can one fully recognize and discern good and evil along with their karmic consequences, thereby enabling the cessation of evil and cultivation of good. The deeper and subtler the meditative concentration, the deeper and subtler the evil that is severed, and the deeper and subtler the wholesome dharmas that are cultivated. The deeper and subtler the wisdom, the more and finer the evil that is severed, and the more and finer the good that is cultivated. Thus, the threefold training of precepts, meditation, and wisdom is an indivisible unity. If separated, the path to Buddhahood cannot be achieved. The notion of seeking wisdom alone while neglecting precepts and meditation is extremely biased and unwise. Therefore, what cultivation fundamentally entails should now be clear to our minds.

Cessation of evil and cultivation of good is the general outline. Beneath this outline are numerous branches, ranging from coarse to subtle and shallow to deep. As the branches become increasingly profound and subtle, they demonstrate increasingly profound wisdom and increasingly lighter afflictions of ignorance, ultimately leading to their complete cessation. These branches correspond to the various Vinaya systems of the Mahayana and Hinayana. The most fundamental and elementary are the Hinayana five precepts, ten wholesome deeds, and the eight precepts of abstinence. More profound and subtle are the Hinayana Śrāvaka precepts: Śrāmaṇera precepts, Śrāmaṇerikā precepts, Bhikṣu precepts, and Bhikṣuṇī precepts. The most profound and subtle are the Mahayana Bodhisattva precepts: householder Bodhisattva precepts, monastic Bodhisattva precepts, and the Bodhisattva precepts from the Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra. All these branch precepts are inseparable from the general outline and the essential purpose of ceasing evil and cultivating good. The branch precepts respectively correspond to varying depths of wisdom. Among them, Hinayana precepts correspond to the wisdom of the patience with the non-arising of dharmas (anutpattika-dharma-kṣānti) from the first fruition (Srotāpanna) to the fourth fruition (Arhat) and that of the Pratyekabuddha. Mahayana precepts correspond to the wisdom of the patience with the non-arising of dharmas from the ten abodes (daśa-vihāra) to the ten transferences of merit (daśa-pāramitā) and the patience with the non-arising of dharmas from the first ground (prathama-bhūmi) to the tenth ground (daśama-bhūmi).

Different levels of wisdom result in different degrees of ceasing evil and cultivating good. This wisdom manifests in the ability to distinguish and recognize good and evil along with their boundaries, thereby enabling the cessation of unwholesome dharmas and the practice of wholesome dharmas. When beings are deeply entrenched in ignorance and lack wisdom, they fail to recognize what constitutes unwholesome dharmas and wholesome dharmas, nor do they consider the consequences of their wholesome and unwholesome actions. Wisdom is categorized into worldly cognitive wisdom, Hinayana cognitive wisdom, and Mahayana cognitive wisdom. Different levels of wisdom lead to different understandings of wholesome and unwholesome dharmas.

In the process of upholding precepts, the ability to accurately distinguish between good and evil is extremely important. What are unwholesome dharmas? Unwholesome dharmas are actions that harm the interests of others. Such actions may or may not benefit oneself, but ultimately they all cause harm to oneself. Therefore, unwholesome actions are unwise actions arising from afflictions. Any bodily, verbal, or mental action that harms the interests of others is an unwholesome action, arising from ignorance. The heavier the ignorance, the heavier the unwholesome action; the degree to which ignorance is eliminated determines the degree to which unwholesome dharmas are reduced. The coarsest unwholesome actions cause the greatest harm to beings and are generally recognizable and perceptible. Slightly subtler unwholesome actions cause harm that is less obvious and direct, making them harder to recognize and perceive. They are often habitual and difficult to reflect upon. The subtlest evils require the deepest wisdom to eradicate. If ignorance is not removed and wisdom is insufficient, one cannot recognize evil or overcome afflictions. Thus, it is evident that ceasing evil requires wisdom. Without wisdom, one cannot recognize the harm and consequences of unwholesome dharmas and thus cannot subdue the unwholesome mind.

What are wholesome dharmas? Contrary to unwholesome dharmas, any bodily, verbal, or mental action that benefits sentient beings is a wholesome dharma. Moreover, any action that benefits sentient beings also benefits oneself. Therefore, actions that benefit both self and others are acts of wisdom. Without wisdom, one cannot perform wholesome actions. The deeper the wisdom, the greater the wholesome actions, and the greater the benefit to both self and others.

Overall, the Buddha Dharma is the method for enabling beings to cease evil and cultivate good. Receiving and upholding precepts constitutes cultivation itself, permeating the entire process of practice—from the gross evils of the worldly realm, to the subtle evils of the Hinayana, and further to the minute evils of the Mahayana, ultimately extinguishing all ignorance and becoming purely wholesome. Simultaneously, it progresses from the minor wholesome deeds of the worldly realm, to the wholesome deeds of Hinayana selfless liberation, to the great wholesome deeds of Mahayana benefiting others, and further to the Bodhisattvas' great compassion of impartial kindness, the ten infinite vows, until reaching the ultimate goodness of all Buddhas—establishing pure lands in the ten directions, delivering all sentient beings, and attaining the pinnacle of goodness. Precepts, meditation, and wisdom are inherently an indivisible unity; they are divided into three for the expedient purpose of guiding sentient beings to cultivate progressively. Therefore, receiving and upholding precepts is crucial. We should constantly reflect on our bodily, verbal, and mental actions in daily life, not drifting along with unwholesome habits unknowingly. Self-awareness is a vital aspect of cultivation. Only after knowing can we correct ourselves; after correction, we subdue afflictions and karmic obstacles, stepping onto the correct path of cultivation, and will ultimately attain Buddhahood.