All Bodhisattvas Should Clearly Understand the Path of Practice

A bodhisattva is clear and lucid about the dharma currently being cultivated, the dharma to be cultivated next, and the dharma to be cultivated after that; his wisdom can know the dharmas that should be cultivated over one kalpa, several kalpas, or even longer. Since a bodhisattva possesses wisdom, he must be perfectly clear about all dharmas, thoroughly familiar with every approach to cultivation, and clear in his mind about how to proceed step by step. If he is not clear, that is foolishness (moha), and he must then eliminate that foolishness through cultivation. Every bodhisattva can clearly know what level of cultivation he is currently at, which dharmas have been accomplished and which have not, and what dharma needs to be cultivated next and how to cultivate it—all with complete clarity. If he is not clear, that is foolishness: lacking the wisdom he ought to possess at the present stage.

When a bodhisattva begins to cultivate, at the moment he is about to take his first step, he is clear about which direction he should step toward; he does not walk about carelessly in a muddle. If he walks carelessly, he may end up on a wrong path without even knowing it. Such a muddled person is not a bodhisattva and is not yet qualified to be a bodhisattva. Especially for a bodhisattva who propagates the Dharma and leads the way for others, his mind must be all the more clear about where he is leading sentient beings.