One of the Ten Titles about Buddha -- Tathagata

Author: Tao Qing Hsu

 

The word Tathagata is transliterated from the Sanskrit. The word Tathagata is translated to be As-it-is or As-it-comes. It also means thus come and thus go. It means how it comes and let it goes as the same. That is, to image there is a clean and bright mirror, when something is reflected in a mirror, it will appear exactly the same. It will never appear the different. When this thing is removed, there will be nothing in the mirror. That is, the emptiness and silence in the mirror. Such a mirror and its function which it presents can be compared to be our hearts. Each of our hearts has such a mirror-like function and state. When we can realize this and stabilize such a state of mind, it means that we see our heart of Tathagata’s root. This Tathagata is not others, but our self. However, when we do not understand the Buddhism or when we are the beginner of learning Buddha, we always think that Tathagata is some kind of gods with supernatural power, or is someone else who doesn’t matter with us.   

 

When Buddhist scriptures mention a certain Tathagata, it means that they were once sentient beings just like us. After countless time and generations of practice in Buddha-law, they finally achieved enlightenment and became Buddhas one day, and they were conferred the title Tathagata. The practicing and enlightened achievement of Tathagata is the same as Buddha. Therefore, Tathagata is and means Buddha.

 

There are a lot of metaphor and describing about Tathagata, which are explained by the Buddha Shakyamuni in the different Buddhist scripture. In the content of Buddhist scriptures translated in the future, there will be also opportunities to mention it one after another. The word Rulaifo is transliterated from the Chinese. It means Tathagata-Buddha. The word Rulai or Rulaifo is universally used in the society or novel or drama of China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. In this circumstance and for the common sense, the word Rulai or Rulaifo usually means the Buddha Shakyamuni. But, if you have read a lot of different Buddhist scripture, you will own the different knowledge about the word Tathagata.

 

And why we are not the Tathagata, we know that our inner mind is always like a thick-dust and no-bright mirror which is unable to truly reflect anything. Meanwhile, our mind is always like a drama automatic making machine, what happened outside of our mind would be possible to be distorted or to be mistakenly understood by us, thus to generate a lot of troubles and worries for us which makes us feel bad and emotional. We thus couldn’t make a correct decision when encounter anything. If we want to change our self to be a person with a steady mind, it is worth for us to learn Buddha.         

Chapter 12 ﹝15﹞ : Not saying its right or wrong is difficult.

(Chapter 12 ﹝15﹞ ) A Brief Talk about The Scripture of Forty-Two Chapters Said by Buddha

Co-translators in the time of Eastern Han Dynasty, China(A.D. 25 - 200) : Kasyapa Matanga and Zhu Falan (Who translated the said Scripture from Sanskrit into Chinese. )

Translator in modern time (A.D.2018: Tao Qing Hsu (Who translated the said Scripture from Chinese into English.)

Teacher and writer for explaining the said Scripture: Tao Qing Hsu 

Chapter 12: List the difficulties and exhort to practice   

The Buddha said,” There are twenty difficulties for people. Giving something to others is difficult when people are in poor. Learning the Dao is difficult when people are in the huge wealth and are the nobility. It is hard to the people when they must die because their lives have to be abandoned. Being able to see the scripture of Buddha is difficult. Being born in the time of Buddha is difficult. Enduring the erotic and desire is difficult. Seeing the self-interest and not to pursue it is difficult. No resentment when being humiliated is difficult. When having the authority and not to draw near to ordinary people  is difficult. When contact with things  and no heart  is difficult. Learning widely and researching extensively are difficult. Removing the ego-arrogance is difficult. Not to despise the un-learner is difficult. Practicing the equality in heart is difficult. Not saying its right or wrong is difficult. Meeting the good-knowledge person is difficult. Seeing the Nature and learning the Dao are difficult. According to conditions to reform people so as to save them is difficult. Seeing the circumstance and unmoved in heart are difficult. Good at understanding the convenience is difficult.

Chapter 12 ﹝15﹞ : Not saying its right or wrong is difficult.

Not saying its right or wrong is difficult. It is the fifteenth difficulty in the twenty difficulties said by Buddha Shakyamuni in this Chapter.

Saying someone’s right or wrong is generally existed in our life and our society. Whether it is the right or it is the wrong is strongly based on our personal subjective consciousness and on our likes and dislikes, which is factually our prejudice. Since the ancient time, saying someone’s right or wrong has been a kind of method of the emotional and information exchange of each other. Even today, it still has such function. According to the recent research, it is also good for human health. Such right or wrong is trend to the gossip.  

Mostly, when we are chatting and say someone’s right or wrong, we do not have any negative thought to harm the person. However, if unfortunately, such words are transmitted to the person or someone purposely and try to spoil the relationship of each other, it becomes harmful, especially in the workplace or in a group.

In the group of Buddhist monk or nun, in order to avoid any harmfulness occurred by saying someone’s right or wrong, there is a rule of silence and no words at some time in a day. They use such rule to regulate and discipline the behavior and the heart.

However, in a workplace, it is hardly difficult for us to avoid any harmfulness occurred by others saying someone's right or wrong, especially when we are the main attacked target. Furthermore, such situation is also often happened in the politic in the democratic country. Mostly, it is not the debate for the policy. However, it is more about attacking the candidate or the elected person on purpose.

So the right or wrong is occurred by some kind of causes and conditions, and by some purpose. Such happened harmfulness is occurred as the same. There is a Chinese saying,” Those who are coming to say someone’s right or wrong are the persons of right or wrong itself.” It means that those persons are evil persons who are trying to spoil something and that would make harmful.

We know that the evil of what have been done would be back to the evildoer. We should refuse to be such evil person. If unfortunately, we are the main attacked target, we know that all is occurred by the combining of causes and conditions. The essence is emptiness. Any causes and conditions would be disappeared someday. If our heart is like the sky so great and wide, how could it be possible for us to be harmed by anyone?   

In the chapter 8, The Buddha said,” The vicious person harms the virtuous person, such as spitting the saliva toward the sky, the saliva doesn’t reach the sky, but falls to oneself; to scatter the dust in inversing wind, the dust doesn’t reach the other place, but being brought back to oneself. The virtue doesn’t be destroyed. The disaster absolutely ruins oneself.” 

That is, to harm others is a disaster, and such disaster would ruin the person who has done the harmful.

Secondly, many things are the change of phenomenon, which are not the fact of the situation, and which are easily to blind and cheat us. Do you know, to understand and distinguish the right or wrong are still limited and it is easy to let us entangle in the causes and conditions. The best way is to get rid of any right or wrong, any causes or conditions. Only having such way, we could really get rid of any boundaries, and thus know and understand the true.

Third, the great Dao (path) of Buddha is silence. Saying its right or wrong is not helpful for us to practice and go on the great path of Buddha. 

If we understand the above-mentioned meaning, we would not be interested in saying someone’s right or wrong. 

Supplementary note: Dao is transliterated from Chinese, meaning way and method, deeper meaning as a system of learning or religion. Dao is Tao, which is transliterated from Chinese. The original meaning of Dao is the way and path, and it is extended to be the truth of life that we can learn and practice in our lives.