Chapter Five: The Precepts

I. What is Learning Precepts?

Just as a child learns to walk, the period before being able to walk normally and unimpeded is the stage of learning to walk. While learning, the child often stumbles, with hands grasping objects for support and bodies leaning on things, inevitably falling from time to time and injuring hands or feet. Only when the legs and feet become adept, freely stepping in any direction, does the learning end, and the child is called an independent walker. Yet, occasional stumbling still occurs; even adults may trip carelessly. Similarly, when a child learns to speak, they babble, uttering one or two words, then forming sentences, until finally expressing their thoughts freely and without hindrance, marking the end of speech learning.

The Bodhisattva’s learning of precepts is likewise. Afflictions and habitual tendencies cling to the mind without conscious awareness. Newly received precepts are not understood in meaning; one does not know how to uphold them. Reciting the precepts monthly clarifies their principles, yet violations occur from time to time. Upon discovery, one repents, corrects the fault, but may repeat the offense. It is a laborious process: minor precepts are hard to uphold, and major precepts are also violated. Only when afflictions are eradicated, upon reaching the Third or Fourth Fruit, does one become free and unrestrained, at ease according to conditions, with a mind unburdened yet never transgressing boundaries. Major precepts are not violated; minor precepts can be upheld, yet occasional negligence still occurs—minor precepts may have lapses, but major precepts remain unbroken. This is called upholding precepts, corresponding to the First to Eighth Bhūmis. After the Eighth Bhūmi, when habits are fully extinguished, one acts spontaneously and naturally; regarding all precepts, there is neither upholding nor violating.

If one violates the ten major precepts for monastic Bodhisattvas or the six major precepts for lay Bodhisattvas, this is not called upholding precepts but only learning precepts. If minor precepts are difficult to uphold and frequently violated, it is not called upholding precepts but only learning precepts. Learning precepts is not easy—harder than a child learning to speak or walk—yet this is an inevitable stage in a Bodhisattva’s growth. Beyond this stage, one is called a great Bodhisattva, a child of the Tathāgata, with a mind liberated, free and unimpeded, traversing the three realms, harmonizing principle and phenomena.

II. Regarding Upholding Precepts

For practitioners, refraining from unwholesome actions of body and speech is already commendable, yet the precepts of the mind are difficult to uphold. If the mind constantly abides in right mindfulness, then unwholesome thoughts have no opportunity to arise; this is upholding precepts. What is right mindfulness? Mindfulness of the Buddha, mindfulness of the Dharma, mindfulness of the noble Sangha, mindfulness of the impermanence of all formations, the selflessness of all dharmas, and the peace of Nirvāṇa. When the methods for cultivating the mind are deeply understood, unwholesome mental actions decrease; when concentration strengthens, unwholesome mental actions also decrease. Understanding the principles of cause and effect heightens vigilance in the mind.

Upholding precepts first requires clarity of principle, not forcefully controlling one’s behavior. When principles are clear, the mental faculty is influenced, and unwholesome mental actions naturally do not manifest. In all practices, clarity of principle is paramount; right view guides the actions of body, speech, and mind. Secondly, deep concentration subdues afflictions. Finally, recognizing causes and understanding effects—knowing that the causes of one matter can bring about the results of another, realizing that all karmic actions of body, speech, and mind are recorded by one’s own Tathāgatagarbha at the very moment they occur, and that retribution must inevitably manifest—heightens the mind’s vigilance. This involves a process. After receiving precepts and attaining the karmic restraint substance (戒体), the substance itself possesses the meritorious function of preventing wrongdoing and stopping evil. This is especially true for the Bodhisattva precept substance. Bodhisattva precepts are precepts of the mind. To fully uphold them without violation, one must cultivate to a certain Bodhisattva stage. Before this, violations are inevitable, varying in severity. Receiving Bodhisattva precepts brings immense benefits: one’s vigilance greatly increases, and with the protection of Dharma-protecting deities, progress on the path is swift.

III. On the Exceptions and Prohibitions of the Five Precepts

Regarding all precepts, if an action brings great benefit to sentient beings—fundamental benefit—it is not prohibited; exceptions may be made. If it is for personal gain, it is impermissible; it is uniformly prohibited. One may not make exceptions due to personal afflictions or unwholesome habits. For the precept against intoxicants: for medical treatment, medicinal alcohol may be used, applied topically or ingested, but one must not crave the taste of alcohol. For the precept against killing: taking medicine to kill bacteria is permissible. As for other insects like mosquitoes, ants, flies, etc., if there is no harmful intent and no deliberate killing, it is not a violation.

For the precept against stealing: taking something without the owner’s consent constitutes a violation. If it is for the greater benefit of others or a group, it is not a violation. Strictly speaking, if something is not one’s own and one intends to possess it, it is a violation. For the precept against sexual misconduct: engaging in non-celibate conduct with someone other than one’s spouse is a violation. There are conditions for exceptions here, but since practitioners generally lack Bodhisattva qualities, this will not be elaborated for now. For false speech: major false speech—claiming meditative attainments without having attained them, claiming fruition without realization, claiming enlightenment without awakening the mind—is major false speech, which inevitably brings retribution, though it can be confessed and repented. Other false speech is minor. If it is to help or rescue others, exceptions may be made. The general principle is thus; when encountering specific situations, wisdom must be applied to handle them accordingly. Without selfishness or afflicted minds, for the sake of sentient beings or the community, exceptions may be considered case by case. Violations of the Five Precepts can be repented, and one may receive the precepts anew.

IV. How many Buddhists can strictly uphold the Five Precepts without the slightest violation, achieving full marks? How many can score eighty percent with minor lapses in the Five Precepts? How many can uphold most of the Five Precepts, scoring sixty percent? I fear all are few. As for the precept against false speech, I estimate very few can uphold it—perhaps not even one. Thus, humans are not entirely honest and cannot be fully trusted.

Does anyone completely abstain from killing? Stealing, also called taking what is not given—taking something without the owner’s consent or nod—is stealing. Regarding something not one’s own, if one mentally considers it one’s own, it is stealing. This includes people: regarding someone not one’s spouse, if one gives rise to lustful thoughts, it is also stealing. An abnormal state of mind, impure or unwholesome intentions—all belong to unwholesomeness. Eating or drinking what belongs to others without their consent is stealing. Many people act arbitrarily, following their own desires without regard. Some even use means to force others into reluctant agreement; though others consent verbally but not mentally, it is still stealing. Stealing includes reputation—deceiving for fame, status, or power—all constitute stealing.

People often crave connections, are selfish, do not accord with conditions, do not guard their minds, are unkind, and greedily seek much, resulting in precept violations, mental distraction, and failure to attain concentration. Moreover, how many have not received the Five Precepts, nor wish to receive them, not even wanting to accept precepts or uphold them, yet desire deep concentration and wisdom? This is impossible; deludedly hoping to realize fruition or enlightenment is even more impossible.

V. “Increasing Precepts” (增戒) means receiving precepts again. “Increasing Condition” (增上缘) is a condition (dharma) that assists in producing mental consciousness. “Increasing Speech” (增语): “speech” represents sound and language; using sound and language to reveal meaning is called “increasing speech.” Language and sound that help reveal the meaning of the Dharma are called “increasing speech.” Here, “meaning” refers to the meaning of Bodhisattva-Mahāsattvas.

VI. Upholding precepts before realizing the unconditioned dharma is all with outflows, with afflictions—upholding precepts in correspondence with afflictions is “outflow-upholding.” After realizing the unconditioned dharma, the precepts additionally cultivated are “increasing precepts.” Those whose mental actions are truly without outflows—who can achieve outflow-free precept upholding—are Third and Fourth Fruit practitioners and Bodhisattvas of the First Bhūmi and above. Their mental actions do not correspond to greed, hatred, or delusion; they are outflow-free.

There are many prerequisites for opening wisdom; precepts are one of them, not the entirety. Merely upholding precepts is insufficient; one must also have merit, concentration, and other conditions. Countless precept-holders lack wisdom; they can only protect their human rebirth or be reborn in heavens to enjoy blessings. Without wisdom, one also cannot uphold precepts well: ignorant of the characteristics of precepts, their essence, and purpose; unaware of the exceptions, prohibitions, upholding, and violations; only focusing on the surface, not cultivating the mind; sometimes violating precepts unknowingly while thinking they are upholding them. More people uphold the form-based precepts of the Śrāvaka vehicle but violate the altruistic precepts of the Mahāyāna Bodhisattva.

Śrāvaka precepts are for cultivating oneself, not concerning others. Bodhisattva precepts consider thoughts for oneself as violations. True great Bodhisattvas should have thoughts solely for sentient beings; as long as it benefits sentient beings and the propagation of the Dharma, they would rather violate precepts and suffer themselves to do what benefits sentient beings. Sometimes upholding Śrāvaka precepts violates Mahāyāna precepts; upholding Mahāyāna precepts for benefiting sentient beings violates Śrāvaka precepts. At such times, Bodhisattvas must skillfully choose: they would rather violate Śrāvaka precepts to uphold the mind-ground precepts of Mahāyāna Bodhisattvas.

When Śākyamuni Buddha was a Bodhisattva, to save sentient beings, he had to violate Śrāvaka precepts—all to fulfill sentient beings and protect the true Dharma. Violating Śrāvaka precepts to protect the true Dharma and rescue sentient beings is not only without fault but meritorious. The Buddha also stated in sūtras that in the degenerate age, to protect Dharma teachers expounding the true Dharma, one may keep weapons and kill evil people who destroy the Dharma. Doing so, their merit far exceeds that of the Dharma-expounding teachers; after death, they will be reborn beside the Buddha as his second chief disciple, while the Dharma-expounding teacher will be reborn as the third chief disciple.

We study Buddhism first as Bodhisattvas, ultimately to become Buddhas. Thus, we should learn the Mahāyāna Bodhisattva precepts well and uphold them properly—this is guarding our own minds. When Bodhisattva precepts conflict with Śrāvaka precepts, we should skillfully protect our mind-ground precepts, not for personal gain but entirely for the multitude and the Dharma. This way, attainment is swift.

VII. Question: In the Dharma-Ending Age, how should we uphold precepts? Should beginners uphold the Five Precepts and Eight Precepts, while long-practicing Bodhisattvas need not uphold form-based precepts, directly upholding the formless mind-ground precepts of Mahāyāna Bodhisattvas, abandoning form without discrimination?

Answer: First, we need to clarify the concepts of “beginner Bodhisattva” and “long-practicing Bodhisattva.” What stages belong to beginners? What stages belong to long-practicing? What are their respective characteristics? What is their mental state?

Long-practicing Bodhisattvas, having been Bodhisattvas for many lives and kalpas, possess Bodhisattva habits. Not only are their afflictions extremely slight or absent from birth, with body, speech, and mind actions naturally pure—needing no teaching, they are automatically self-disciplined—but they also unconsciously, habitually enjoy teaching sentient beings to do good, not to glorify themselves but solely hoping sentient beings abandon evil and embrace good. Since Bodhisattvas are born with slight or no afflictions, only Bodhisattvas of the Bhūmis reborn can achieve this. In past lives, they already eradicated afflictions; this life, due to the obscuration of rebirth, they may occasionally have very slight afflictions, which should be called “afflictive habits.”

Long-practicing Bodhisattvas, having realized Bodhi life after life, upon encountering the Dharma in this life, automatically and consciously practice according to the inertia and methods of past cultivation. They can quickly generate concentration and soon automatically realize fruition and re-awaken the mind without great difficulty. After realizing fruition and awakening the mind, they quickly reconnect with past realizations; their fruition stage remains that of past lives, their concentration remains that of past lives. If they continue cultivating, progress on the path is swift. Regarding teaching sentient beings, they do not need to learn or condition anew; they naturally know how to teach sentient beings, not leading them toward greed, hatred, or delusion, not indulging sentient beings’ afflictions, naturally becoming strict teachers with high standards and rigorous requirements for disciples.

Only such long-practicing Bodhisattvas can effectively uphold Mahāyāna mind-ground precepts because their mind-ground is pure and they do not violate the form-based precepts established by the Buddha. For example, they need not specially uphold the Five Precepts or Eight Precepts; naturally, they do not violate them, with body, speech, and mind actions pure. Because they possess concentration of the First Dhyāna or above, afflictions eradicated, mind-ground pure—on this basis, they can uphold formless mind-ground precepts. Their minds are not bound by precept forms; they may do anything that does not affect the purity of the mind-ground, with the aim of rescuing sentient beings, not indulging their own greed.

If a Bodhisattva still has greed, hatred, and heavy delusion within, they must strictly uphold form-based precepts—each of the Five Precepts and Eight Precepts must be strictly upheld without violation. If violated, they must repent with deep remorse, especially Bodhisattva precepts, which must be strictly upheld without the slightest indulgence or concession. Bodhisattvas who have not eradicated any greed, hatred, or delusion—especially those without even the most basic “access concentration” (未到地定)—are not yet qualified to uphold formless precepts and fundamentally cannot uphold them, because their mind-ground is impure, and every thought corresponds to afflictions. They must uphold form-based precepts well, step by step restraining their minds from transgressing through various phenomena. Only after the First Dhyāna arises and afflictions are eradicated can they begin tentatively to set aside form and guard the purity of the mind-ground.

Those without the above characteristics of long-practicing Bodhisattvas all belong to beginner Bodhisattvas. They should strictly cultivate form-based precepts, not abandoning the restraints of bodily and verbal conduct, acting arbitrarily, indulging their greed, hatred, and delusion. Some, because they cannot abstain from meat, alcohol, or pungent foods, insist on enjoying these gustatory pleasures, find excuses, saying, “I do not grasp forms or discriminate; I uphold mind-ground precepts. Though I eat pungent foods, my mind does not cling to their forms.” If so, why not simply eat vegetarian food? Why still be picky, changing dishes daily, refusing repeats? If the mind truly does not cling to forms, eating the same thing 365 days a year should not cause boredom; one should know contentment. One set of clothes for each of the four seasons is enough. When thirsty, plain water suffices. Why be so particular? It is not entering others’ mouths or stomachs.

Present-day Buddhists are pitiable, lamentable, and detestable! Clearly of slight good roots, they presume themselves long-practicing Bodhisattvas; clearly unable to uphold the Five Precepts, Eight Precepts, or Bodhisattva Precepts, they loudly proclaim upholding formless mind-ground precepts, utterly lacking self-awareness. All are empty slogan-shouters of grandiosity. Continuing thus, Buddhism will surely decline; no one will achieve realization. The threefold training of precepts, concentration, and wisdom, personally proclaimed by the World-Honored One, is now to be abandoned—discarding precept-study and concentration-study, keeping only the dry wisdom of wisdom-study. One after another, they expound the Dharma eloquently and logically but actually possess no cultivation, all talk and no action. This is the chaotic state of the current Buddhist world, irremediable due to sentient beings’ powerful arrogance.

VIII. Some say: “Facing conditions, pick up and put down—free and unrestrained.” But this is not true putting down, nor true freedom or unrestraint; it is self-deception. To truly put down, one must truly eradicate self-view, cultivate the First Dhyāna to eradicate afflictions, eradicate craving, and only then can one put down and be unrestrained. Without reaching this stage, it is not true putting down—only foolish non-release.

Many wish not to be bound, all desire freedom, yet do not know what binds or what freedom is. Thus, they regard precepts as bondage, concentration as bondage, feeling constrained by precepts, unfree, and so abandon precepts for unruliness. They fail to realize that the Buddha established precepts precisely to liberate sentient beings—hence precepts are called “individual liberation precepts” (别解脱戒). By upholding precepts, sentient beings avoid karmic retribution; upholding precepts makes it easier to eradicate self-view, subdue and eradicate afflictions. Eradicating afflictions brings liberation and freedom—the mind does not transgress, nor is it attached to people or affairs. This is true liberation. The desire to be unbound is itself a mind of non-liberation, non-freedom. The precept robe is also called the robe of repentance or the robe of liberation. It is worn when receiving precepts, reciting precepts, chanting sūtras, or repenting. Through these practices, the mind gradually attains liberation.

IX. What is Guarding the Mind Precepts?

Guarding the mind precepts means not letting the mind give rise to thoughts—not arising greed, hatred, or delusion. This is difficult; afflictions must be eradicated. Even subduing afflictions is hard to achieve, often failing to suppress them. In today’s world, precepts of body and speech are hard to uphold; opportunities for violation are many, and with slight lapse, body and speech precepts are broken.

Why are body and speech precepts violated? Because of the mind. If the mind has greed, hatred, or delusion, it prompts body and speech to create karma. If the mind can be guarded, body and speech will not violate precepts or create unwholesome karma. If the mind does not violate precepts, whatever body and speech do is not a violation, for there is no afflicted mental action of greed, hatred, or delusion. All precepts are measured by the presence or absence of intent, but ordinary people struggle to perceive others’ minds, so they use body and speech as standards—thus, errors in judgment are frequent.

Śrāvaka precepts take bodily and verbal actions as the standard: as long as body and speech do not violate precepts, mental actions are irrelevant. Mahāyāna Bodhisattvas take mind-ground precepts as the standard: no thought should be for oneself. True Mahāyāna precepts are hard to uphold. Like the Bodhisattva precepts in the *Yogācārabhūmi-Śāstra*, they are established for Bodhisattvas of the Bhūmis and above. Bodhisattvas below the Bhūmis, not having eradicated greed, hatred, or delusion, cannot uphold them; if body or speech violates precepts, it is a violation. Bodhisattvas of the Bhūmis and beyond take mental actions as the standard: as long as the mind is for sentient beings, it is not a violation.