Birth Stories

The Jatakas is a collection of "birth stories" detailing many of the previous lives of the Buddha. Buddha Shakyamuni spent many lifetimes in the six realms of transmigration. His lives as the monkey king, elephant king, deer king, and goose king are examples of lives spent in the realm of animals.

The Buddha also has incarnated many times in the realm of humans. One time, after Sundari, the courtesan, made a defamatory accusation against him, the Buddha explained how actions from a previous life can effect the shaping of events in one's present life.

The Buddha said, "Many lives ago in the past, in a city called Varanasi, there lived a man by the name of Pure Eyes (Vimalanetra) who was in the performing arts business of acting and singing (equivalent to today's actor). "At that time, there was a beautiful woman by the name of Deer Form. Pure Eyes and Deer Form entered into a sexual liaison with each other.

"Since Deer Form was a very wealthy lady, Pure Eyes later murdered her for her money and buried her body in the house of a realized spiritual cultivator by the name of Joyful and Spontaneous Solitary-buddha.

"Joyful and Spontaneous Solitary-buddha was mistaken to be the murderer. He was tied to the back of a donkey and publicly paraded through the streets. "Just as Joyful and Spontaneous Solitary-buddha was about to be executed by arrow, Pure Eyes gave in to his conscience and confessed the crime to the prosecutor. A new investigation established Pure Eyes' guilt.

"Pure Eyes was executed by arrow and then beheaded.

"Joyful and Spontaneous Solitary-buddha, after being accused of a crime he did not commit, no longer wanted to stay in the world. In front of a crowd, he leapt into the sky and, while still in the air, assumed sitting, supine, and standing positions. Smoke emerged from below his waist while fire came out from above his waist. Then fire emerged from below his waist while smoke came out from above his waist. Smoke emerged from his left ribs while fire came out of his right ribs. Then fire emerged from his left ribs while smoke came out of his right ribs. Smoke and fire emerged from both abdomen and back.

"In addition, water and fire emerged from the waist, left ribs, abdomen, and back.

"Finally, smoke, fire, and water poured out of the whole body. Right there in the sky, his entire body burnt up and vanished."

(The phenomenon of Joyful and Spontaneous Solitary-buddha entering into nirvana is a result of the practice of the Inner Fire Samadhi.)

Buddha Shakyamuni then made the following revelation,

"Pure Eyes was my former life from numerous eons ago.

"Deer Form was Sundari who is defaming me this life."

Buddha Shakyamuni turned to Shariputra and said, "Shariputra, numerous eons ago, I was Pure Eyes, an ordinary man. Because of my greed for Deer Form's money, I murdered the woman and caused injustice to the Solitary-buddha. This was an extremely grave transgression. As a result, for countless thousands of years, my spirit and consciousness fell into the realm of hells and underwent the punishment of climbing up sword trees. For countless thousands of years, my spirit and consciousness stayed in the realm of animals and suffered. For countless thousands of years, my spirit and consciousness fell into the realm of hungry ghosts and suffered. Even though I have become in this life the Most Victorious Buddha, repercussions from that disastrous lifetime are still casting a shadow over me in the form of Sundari's defamation."

The above is an account in Buddha Shakyamuni's own words of the karmic causes behind Sundari's slandering.

Past Lives, Present Life

Of course, there were many more instances in which Buddha Shakyamuni talked about his previous lives. Apart from the karmic causes that gave rise to Sundari's calumny, other actions from previous lives also resulted in Buddha's defamation by Cincamana, and the rebellion from Devadatta. Other manifestations of karmic cuses include headache, bone-ache, foot splinter, the foot injury caused by rocks, intestinal illness, and the consumption of horse grains.

Why did I cite in particular the karmic causes behind Sundari's calumny? The crimes committed by the Buddha in that lifetime were indeed grave:

1) Murder --- The killing of Deer Form. Killing is the greatest transgression.

2) The killing of Solitary-buddha --- Although Solitary-buddha was not killed by the Buddha, his death was caused by the Buddha. The killing of a realized adept is one of the five deadly sins.

3) Sexual misconduct --- The sexual liaison between Pure Eyes and Deer Form.

4) Theft --- The theft of Deer Form's money and property.

5) Lying --- Laying the blame on Solitary-buddha.

The motive behind my writing about this karmic case is to assure everyone that, even though the Buddha had committed such severe transgressions in one of his former lives, he was still able to cultivate to become the Most Victorious Buddha. Thus, it may be learned from this example that, as long as one is determined to take up cultivation, then, regardless of the type and degree of severity of the transgression, there will come a day when one may attain Buddhahood. Even if one has committed the most heinous crimes, a wrongdoer may achieve salvation as soon as he gives up evil.

My writing has taken a circuitous route to arrive at the conclusion that karma and transmigration exist. The laws of karma and transmigration conform to logic:

If one wants to know the past karmic cause,

Just observe what one has to receive in this life;

If one wants to know the future fruit,

Just look at the actions in this life.

The Venerable Shariputra

I have a student by the name of Lianhua Su-yueh who lives far from Seattle. When she came to Ling Shen Ching Tze at Redmond for a visit, she bowed as soon as she saw me and said, "Homage to the Venerable Shariputra."

Another student in Vancouver, Lianhua Po-hsien, arrived at the True Buddha Tantric Quarter to present me with a sculpture of Shariputra he had purchased in Taiwan.

I asked him, "What sculpture is this?"

He replied, "Shariputra."

"Why do you want to enshrine the image of Shariputra?"

"Isn't Grand Master the reincarnation of Shariputra?" he asked.

"Well, well, ...." I was agape and, for a long while, did not say anything. To my knowledge, several books by different authors have named me as the reincarnation of Shariputra. More than one writer has maintained that I am the reincarnation of Shariputra, the principal of the ten great disciples of Buddha Shakyamuni. This kind of rumor grows stronger the wider it circulates. I seem to have indeed become the reincarnation of Shariputra.

In reality, many people also have written to me asking, "After all, are you Shariputra?"

Am I or am I not? Should I admit it or not? Should I decline to comment? Or just leave it alone?

In my heart I have great veneration for Shariputra, the principal disciple of Buddha Shakyamuni. The Venerable Shariputra was also the person most trusted by the Buddha. The Buddha asked his own son, Rahula, to pay homage to Shariputra as his first teacher.

Shariputra was in charge of erecting the monasterial buildings at Jetavana. The six heretical masters were subjugated by Shariputra. The Venerable Shariputra was a follower of the Buddha for more than forty years, and he claimed that, during all those years, not one single thought of displeasure or dissatisfaction with the Buddha had arisen in him. On the contrary, Shariputra was docile and obedient. By completely and reverently carrying out the Buddha's teachings, he worked arduously on the path until reaching Perfect Enlightenment, attaining the Heart of Equanimity, and transcending self-grasping and duality. Finally, he entered into the tranquil realm of nirvana before the Buddha did.

Shariputra was originally known as Upatisya. His mother, Sharika, was the daughter of Martana, the head of a city one and one half miles southeast of Rajagrha. His father was Tisya, a Brahmin scholar.

Because Shariputra was raised from an early age by a talented and erudite father and a wise and able mother, he became proficient in many fields and developed great wisdom. Before taking refuge in the Buddha, he had already acquired many students of his own. Eventually, he led three hundred fifty students to take refuge in the Buddha.

The Venerable Shariputra is renowned for his great wisdom. Buddha Shakyamuni prophesied that Shariputra would become the Flower Light Buddha [Padmaprabha] and be reborn in the human world to benefit all beings.

In the past, I have drawn comparisons between Shariputra and several of the chief disciples of the Buddha:

1) Mahakashyapa - He was renowned for his ascetic self-discipline and moral strictness. (But he was quite stubborn in his adherence to the existence of "dharmas and practices.")

2) Mahamaudgalyayana - He was renowned for his supernatural abilities. (However, he was quite extreme in his personality, and the heretic groups at that time hated him to the very marrow of their bones.)

3) Ananda - He was renowned for his extraordinary memory and his extensive seeing and hearing of the Buddha's teachings. (However, since he did not advocate actual practice, he was the last one to attain arhatship.)

Shariputra was the only disciple who very early on achieved realization of the nature of Absolute Reality. He was content, with few desires, and was free of self-grasping. Although he disliked competition, he was able to bring many heretics into subjugation. He was vigorous in the practice of meditation and he transcended emotional afflictions.

Buddha Shakyamuni once said, "Shariputra gets along the best with everyone. No one can compare with Shariputra in that respect."

In my heart, next to the Buddha, Shariputra is the person most revered by me. Could I be a reincarnation of the Venerable Shariputra? If I were, then do I have his wisdom and his Heart of Equanimity? Can I bring people who believe in the existence of the phenomenal worlds into seeing the Ultimate Truth? Can I transcend self-grasping? Can I transcend the duality of likings and aversions?

Am I indeed Shariputra?

Who can confirm that I am?

Do I confirm myself?

Flower Light Buddha and Flower Light Self-Mastery Buddha

Buddha Shakyamuni prophesied that Shariputra would become the Flower Light Buddha. In my book, The Colorful Butterflies: A Collection [published September, 1992], there is an essay entitled Having Coffee with Buddha Shakyamuni. The following is an excerpt from that essay:

Time: The evening of May 6th, 1992.

Place: A coffee house in Taipei.

People: Buddha Shakyamuni and Living Buddha Lian-sheng.

Method: Through astral travelling.

Buddha Shakyamuni saw a piece of paper and a pen on the table. He picked up the pen and quickly wrote five words on the paper. Then he showed it to me. They were the five distinct words: Flower Light Self-Mastery Buddha.

Buddha Shakyamuni said, "You, Lian-sheng, are the Flower Light Self-Mastery Buddha."

I replied, "Yes, I am the Flower Light Self-Mastery Buddha."

Buddha Shakyamuni and I (Living Buddha Lian-sheng) reminisced about the delightful moments we had shared together twenty five hundred years ago. We ate our meals together, we slept together, we bathed together, and we dressed together.

"Therefore, are you Shariputra after all?" Many people asked.

I replied, "I am Sheng-yen Lu."

Multiple Identities

This has raised another problem. If Shariputra were the former incarnation of Sheng-yen Lu then, when I first travelled to the subtle realms in the Heavens to see my former life, why did I not meet Shariputra, but Padmakumara instead?

I saw and heard Padmakumara with my own eyes and ears. The Great White Padmakumara of the Western Paradise of Bliss was radiating a white and splendidly great brilliance. Could Shariputra be equivalent to Padmakumara since Padmakumara is equivalent to Sheng-yen Lu?

This is not all there is to the probing of the problem -

While Master Lianhua Ching-hsiang of Japan was meditating, Kobo Daishi, the founder of the Shingon school of Japanese Buddhism, appeared to her. He took Lianhua Ching-hsiang with him, flying all the way to the highest realm in the Holy Ocean of Vairocana.

Kobo Daishi took a lama outfit from the True Buddha School and gave it to Lianhua Ching-hsiang to wear. Then the face of Kobo Daishi slowly transformed into that of Living Buddha Sheng-yen Lu.

"Oh! Kobo Daishi, Sheng-yen Lu. Sheng-yen Lu, Kobo Daishi."

Because of this Samadhi experience, Master Lianhua Ching-hsiang believes Living Buddha Sheng-yen Lu was, in a former life, Kobo Daishi.

Linking these identities together thus becomes:

Padmakumara -- Shariputra -- Kobo Daishi -- Sheng-yen Lu

Yet, this is not all there is to it.

There is a rumor circulating that I am also the manifestation of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism. It is said that my face resembles very much the face of Tsongkhapa at the Yung He Palace in Beijing. We even have the same dimple.

When I was discoursing on the Great Exposition on the Graduated Stages of the Tantric Path, a work by Tsongkhapa, I felt I was commenting on my own work. The outflow of inspiration was unceasing, and the whole discourse was virtually effortless. When I discussed the inner meaning of the work, I felt as if I could never exhaust what I had to offer. I felt I was discussing myself, and I, myself, had transformed into Tsongkhapa. Throughout the discourse, it felt as if Tsongkhapa himself were giving the discourse.

Thus, another identity is linked together:

Padmakumara -- Shariputra -- Tsongkhapa -- Kobo Daishi -- Sheng-yen Lu

On the other hand, my student Lin Hui-jing told me this, "There is a rumor that Living Buddha Lian-sheng Sheng-yen Lu lived as an Emperor in the city of Luoyang in China during the Tang dynasty."

"Is it the Emperor Wu of Liang?"

"No, no, it is Emperor Ming of Tang!"

"Emperor Ming of Tang? He was a dissolute emperor. Where did you hear of this?"

"I read it in a book."

The linking thus becomes longer:

Padmakumara -- Shariputra -- Emperor Ming of Tang -- Tsongkhapa -- Kobo Daishi -- Sheng-yen Lu

This linking of identities may not be in the proper historical order. How can one prove which ones of these are truly my former lives? I asked the Golden Mother of Primordial Pond about my former lives.

The Golden Mother of Primordial Pond replied,

The Heart gives birth to interdependent conditions,

The Heart also extinguishes interdependent conditions;

Who is in control of arising and extinguishing?

Please inquire of yourself and solve your own riddle.

In fact, after achieving Enlightenment, I was able to enter into the realm of consciousness of "sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and thought," then went on to enter into the consciousness of "manas," the consciousness of "alaya," the consciousness of "amala," and finally into the consciousness of Infinity.

At that moment, everything is completely cleared, as clear as the bright blue sky, as complete as the fullness of the autumn moon.

All of my past and present lives were there, and the multiple identities all came clearly to the surface, like personalities in a television mini-series. At that moment, I realized the Siddhi of access into the memory vault of all past lives, because stored in the ground of knowledge is a seed for each lifetime. Explained in modern technological terms, each seed is like a laser disc, with the process of each lifetime compressed and encoded into it.

Some people are of the opinion that Living Buddha Lian-sheng has only attained the wisdom of "prajna" and is not knowledgeable in the domain of the "mind." They believe that only Maitreya Bodhisattva is an expert of the "mind." But, in reality:

Since all have arisen out of the Heart,

Why do we need to ask anyone else?

One just needs to first put in the Effort,

To break through to Emptiness.

 

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