Chapter 32 - Auxiliaries Of Buddhism

Many Buddhist scholars and eminent monks have a disdain for the realm of devas. It is not that they don't believe in deva's existence, but that they consider Buddhism to be the only proper religion. Thus they regard the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha to be the Triple Jewels and other non-Buddhist doctrines to be heresy or teachings from the Deva Mara. However, they are not aware that these maras, so-called heretics, and supposed enemies of Buddha-truth actually render themselves completely to the aid and causes of the Buddhadharma.

If there were no magical interventions from the maras and devas, the number of people taking refuge in the proper Buddhadharma would undoubtedly be much fewer. In the absence of maras or devas, could the proper Dharma have existed?

Among the ten chief disciples of Buddha Shakyamuni, Sariputra held the first seat and Maudgalyayana held the second seat. The former was known for his supreme faculty of Divine Vision and the latter for his supreme transcendental powers. These two chief disciples were originally non-Buddhist scholars and leaders. They became facilitators of the proper Dharma when they were converted to Buddhism. Therefore, today's Buddhist scholars and monks must not despise the heretics. One may refrain from non-Buddhist practices, but one should not arbitrarily denounce them. Many highminded Buddhist monks feel that they are superior to the devas, forgetting that even Buddha Shakyamuni himself has treated the Indra Deva with respect. From the perspective of the Indra Deva, human beings are as minute as ants. Human beings cannot even perceive the existence of the local earth gods, let alone the Indra Deva, so how can we claim that we are more evolved than either of them?

Even if a Buddhist monk is greater than the local earth god, when this monk walks by a local temple and the local earth god comes outside to greet him, should the monk just totally ignore him? How petty it is to proclaim one's superiority over beings from the deva realm when one does not, in fact, even have the ability to see them! As a Buddhist cultivator, one may decide not to learn any of the magical powers of the devas, but one should regard the devas, from the Indra Deva on down, with respect. The devas have, after all, accumulated enough merits in their previous lives to be born into the realm of devas.

The Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva [Kuan Yin] can manifest in tens of millions of different forms to render help to sentient beings. He can take the guise of a man, woman, vajra protector, ghost king, or non-human, as he makes no distinction between the subjects of his salvation. He can transform into a deva or into a local earth god. When a Buddhist monk displays contempt for the local earth god, isn't he also being contemptuous of the Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva? If someone is supposed to attain liberation from the realm of maras or heretics, then Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva will manifest as a mara or heretic to guide one to reach liberation.

Once I was chatting with a Buddhist monk who brought up the same subject.

"A monk is much greater than a local earth god," claimed the Buddhist monk.

"Rev. Tz'u Yin, from where have you heard this? Who has told you this?" I asked him.

"What's the matter? That is what everybody says! Isn't it true?"

"I have heard in Buddhist teachings that, when one's truth merges with the Tao, one attains goodness, and when one's will merges with the Tao, one attains greatness. Buddha Shakyamuni never said that a monk is greater than a local earth god!"

Rev. Tz'u Yin's face turned red and said, "The proper Buddhadharma is much more profound than non-Buddhist deva teachings."

"That is true, but how would you know that, after a being is born into the deva realm, a deva would become complacent and not want to seek the proper Dharma any more? After all, the accomplishments of devas far exceed those of human beings." After my explanation, Rev. Tz'u Yin realized that, although the proper Buddhadharma is superior, one still must not look down upon the realm of devas. Juan Yin Chang, the author of the book Chao Hua Tung [Path to the Creator] has made the following observation.

"The lowest vehicle of divination includes the methods of ideograms, cards, drawing lots, and feather and bone readings. Their efficacy is determined to a large extent by the degree of one's sincerity in seeking divine guidance. The medium vehicle of divination includes the Book of Lo, which is used to divine the fate of a locale, the method of Ch'i Men Chiu Hsing, which is used to divine military strategy, and the Liu Jen Shi Er Shen Chang method, which is used to divine the state of human affairs. If one wants to divine major world happenings, only the upper vehicle methods of divination will do. These are the Huang Chi Yi Hsiang method and Ta Yi Li Shu method, which can predict what will remain constant, and the astrological charting method of Chou T'ien Su Yao Hsing Du, which can see what changes will occur."

This comment of Juan Yin Chang completely reflects my own thoughts on the meaning of the three vehicles of the Buddhadharma. Today, if there is no improper conduct, all elements may be considered auxiliary to the proper Dharma. These include planchette and automatic writing, gazing into mirrors or crystal balls, the integration of five, six, or even all the different religions into one school, and even the claiming that one is decreed by the heavens or an incarnation of Maitreya. When one's actions follow the Bodhicitta, all heretic Dharmas become the proper Dharma. On the other hand, if one uses the pretext of Buddhas and devas to accumulate wealth, deceive others, act perversely and unreasonably, or advocate superstitions, then it would have become truly the evil way. The Dharma that I am studying esteems both the Hinayana and Mahayana teachings. Its ultimate goal is to transcend birth and death and reach perfect Enlightenment. With the auxiliary aids of Spiritual Divination, I am able to attract tens of thousands of people to turn to the Buddhadharma. The way Buddhism is taught today focuses only on the expounding of extras and doctrines, and the devotional aspect. It is devoid of shamanistic practices, does not teach one how to invoke or expel a spirit, nor does it teach people to take refuge in the Great Path to Direct Liberation.

If there had not been the auxiliary aids from the "heretics," I would not have been able to bring so many people to take faith in Buddhism. Many of today's practitioners worshipped at temples before, yet eight out of ten of them started to seek the proper Dharma only after they had experienced the so-called "heretic" element. Therefore Buddhist monks should not slight or disrespect the deva realm which is really an auxiliary to the proper Buddhadharma.

From my understanding, the reason some Buddhist monks have kept a respectful distance from ghosts and spirits is that ghosts often disguise themselves as certain deities, and when they are channeled, they carry on metaphysical talks in a nonsensical way. Since the monks are unable to distinguish the deities from the imposters, the monks simply take the stance of not believing in any of them. I once watched a demonstration of planchette writing at a certain shrine, and a deity descended and claimed himself to be the Taoist Immortal Lu Tung Pin.

When I tuned into my psychic vision, it was not Lu Tung Pin at all, but a wandering ghost with some spiritual powers. Of course, teachings transmitted on that particular occasion would only have pertained to the practice methods used by wandering ghosts. There is fundamentally no difference among Enlightened beings, sages, and ordinary beings. The only differences lie in their levels of realization after cultivation. An Enlightened being or Buddha is at the top rung of realization, while an ordinary being is at the bottom rung. The deva realm serves as a bridge between the two. How much one will realize depends on one's comprehension and ability to do cultivation, as well as the important role of previous karma. My suggestion to some of today's Buddhist monks and Buddhist practitioners is that, although one does not take refuge in the devas or heretics, one must respect them too.

If today I reveal that Kuan Yin Bodhisattva once sprinkled a few drops of sweet nectar from the sky above onto my head, that ever since then all my illnesses and aches have been completely gone, and that I have been feeling empowered by the light, would you believe me? It is possible because the Kuan Yin Bodhisattva can and does manifest everywhere! I often urge others to set up a Buddhist shrine, chant the Buddha's name, and seek the proper Buddhadharma. These people have taken up the Buddhist practice with an unshakeable faith. Why is this so? It is because my spiritual divination has enabled me to see into their secret selves and convince them of the existence of the realm of spirits. Thus they make the decision to halt all conventional pursuits and devote themselves wholeheartedly to the Buddhadharma.

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