Spiritual Practice Venues Should Be Divided into Levels

Those who have awakened to the true mind and attained enlightenment, upon being reborn in the land of bliss (Sukhāvatī) at the highest grade (uttamottama-varga), do not need to be enclosed within a lotus bud; those who have attained the fruits of realization and are reborn at the middle grade, upper level likewise do not need to be enclosed within a lotus bud. But those who have neither attained the fruits of realization nor awakened to the true mind, when reborn in the land of bliss, must be enclosed within a lotus bud for a certain number of kalpas. Why is this?

This question should be contemplated as follows: First, what is the difference between the land of bliss and the Saha world? Second, what is the difference between the sentient beings in the land of bliss and those in the Saha world? Then contemplate further: given such differences, third, what consequences would arise if the sentient beings of the Saha world were all allowed to roam about freely in the land of bliss?

Because ordinary beings (pṛthagjana) have afflictions that are too heavy, if they were not enclosed within lotus buds, the land of bliss would gradually turn into another Saha world. Why did Amitābha Buddha establish the land of bliss? Why did he design the land of bliss in this way? Why does he also select sentient beings? Why, out of great compassion, does he not take in everyone, including all beings of the three evil destinies? Sentient beings always hope that others will treat them with great loving-kindness and compassion, but when things truly go as they wish, the result may well be a bad outcome—which would then not be compassionate at all. The compassion that sentient beings are fond of often easily breeds disaster.

Those who have not attained the fruits of realization or awakened to the true mind cannot roam about freely in the land of bliss, nor can they travel to the worlds of the ten directions to make offerings to the Buddhas—this is to prevent the afflictions of these sentient beings from disturbing the land of bliss. From this we can know that those who have attained the fruits of realization and awakened to the true mind will not disturb the practice centers of the land of bliss, because their afflictions have already been subdued; although not eliminated, they will not manifest.

Therefore, those who have attained the fruits of realization and awakened to the true mind in the Saha world must be people who have subdued their afflictions, must be people without serious manifest afflictions, and must be people who would never harass others. If someone has serious afflictions manifesting, or casually harasses others or disturbs other places, then such a person certainly has not attained the fruits of realization or awakened to the true mind, and their self-proclaimed attainment and awakening must be a great misunderstanding.

Therefore, practice centers should be divided into different grades and levels; people of various levels should not be mixed together. Otherwise, the practice center will fall into chaos, afflictions will blaze fiercely, no cultivation will succeed, and the practice center will become a crime scene of afflictions. A practice center without the six kinds of harmony and reverence will certainly be in chaos. Those whose views are discordant should not gather together; those of different levels of cultivation must not gather together—otherwise, someone will certainly commit grave evil karma.