六祖說：「一日韋刺吏。為師設大會齋。齋訖刺史請師陞座。同官僚士庶肅容再拜問曰。弟子聞和尚說法實不可思議。今有少疑。願大慈悲特為解說。師曰。有疑即問。吾當為說。」

One day, Governor Wei holds a grand vegetarian banquet in honor of the Guru. After the banquet, the Governor implores the Guru to ascend the throne. The Governor, along with the dignitaries and commoners, all respectfully bow down and said, “We hear your exposition on dharma is incredible. There are a few doubts we hope you would compassionately clarify.” The Guru answers, “Questions you have, I shall answer.”

This verse is made up of simple words. The Governor offered a great vegetarian banquet to the Sixth Patriarch. After the banquet, the Governor together with all the guests paid their respect to the Sixth Patriarch and asked him to take the dharma seat. The Governor then asked the Sixth Patriarch for permission to ask questions. The Patriarch told him to go ahead. Why did the Governor have questions? One reason could be the lack of understanding. Another could be some things are still vague to him and he needed clarification. A third reason may be he wanted more in depth knowledge of Buddhism. Or lastly, he wanted to ask the questions for the benefit for all those present. The purpose of Chapter 3, Doubts and Questions, is actually more for the propagation of Buddhism; explaining to those who seek answers on the subject.

In reality, there are indeed a lot of uncertainties and doubts. There are endless questions that do not even have answers to. Changes are constant in this world. Nothing stays the same forever. That is why we say the world is impermanent. I spoke about this previously. One may be healthy this second, but that may change in the next. Just like the recent airplane crash that killed all one hundred thirty two passengers on board; it is impermanence.

Cultivation and enlightenment are no easy feat. Those who have enlightened would have no doubts. Those who still have uncertainties are not yet enlightened. Unless, of course, one asks the questions on purpose for the sake of others – in doing so benefiting the sentient beings through the guru’s answers.

Things I say are usually interpreted differently by people who hear them. How will one attain Buddha’s wisdom? When one can reach the stage of No-Self and No-Thought. Then one will realize that there are actually no problems and hence no need for questions in this world. As for Governor Wei, I can’t say if he is enlightened. If he is not, then it is understandable to ask for clarification. However if he is an enlightened being, then his questions were asked on purpose to benefit the mass to hear the explanation from the guru, the Sixth Patriarch himself.

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師復曰：『今於大梵寺說此頓教，普願法界眾生，言下見性成佛』。時韋使君與官僚道俗，聞師所說，無不省悟。一時作禮，皆嘆善哉！何期嶺南有佛出世。

Guru then said, “Today in the Great Brahma Temple I speak the sudden teaching. I hope all beings in the dharma realm, upon hearing the words, enlighten and achieve buddhahood.” Governor Wei, other officials, and ordained and at-home practitioners, hearing Guru’s words, all gained better grasp. Everyone saluted the Guru and acclaimed, “Excellent! Who would have expected a Buddha to come out of the south of the Five Ridges.”

There are two types of wisdom. There is the worldly wisdom used in our everyday lives, and then there is the great wisdom: Prajna which can be termed the esoteric wisdom (wisdom of “exiting the world”), which is also called wisdom of the Buddha.

If you lack the worldly wisdom, you won’t be able to compete with others. On the other hand, possessing the esoteric wisdom, Prajna, is just as important; because it will serve to determine where you will end up when you pass from this world.

Everyone says that since Grand Master is now a Buddha that He should know everything, including the English language. But because everyone tells me that I don’t speak English correctly, I don’t even say it anymore. Knowing your mother tongue is important, but having a second language will prove to be more useful in another country. All these are conveniences of having worldly wisdom.

As to the esoteric wisdom, think of impermanence. Impermanence has been preached quite a lot, but do you really recognize impermanence when you see it? For example, if we are on a boat that capsizes, those who cannot swim will drown. This kind of impermanence is obvious in that a second ago you are still alive but a second later you may be gone.

Do not presume that Grand Master will be on the dharma throne every time. You don’t know impermanence. We do not know what the future or tomorrow holds. I may be here today but gone tomorrow.

Imagine you are watching TV at home in your high rise flat. What if an airplane were to suddenly crash into your living room? We cannot predict things as such because of impermanence. Just because you are at home does not mean things will not happen to you. This kind of impermanence is still pretty obvious. There is another kind of impermanence. Everyone is changing all the time. Our bodies are not in the same condition as they were a month ago. We are changing by the year, month, day, hour, minute, or even second. One important point, all the cells in our bodies are changing every day. The fact is we are aging every day. This is the other kind of impermanence; it means that we are never in a constant, stable state. Nothing in this world is permanent; this includes our heart and even the weather.

If you realize that all things are within impermanence, then you are beginning to step into Prajna. Nothing is permanent; everything changes.

Every day I practice my departure from this world. When I sleep I practice the “Crystal Light Immersion during Sleep” method which is to immerse myself in light and enter sleep in the Buddha land. This practice and all dharma practices help to prepare ourselves for death.

Someone asked me: what happens when calamity strikes? I say, when the time comes, apply what you have been practicing. Calamities are nothing to fear for. Your cultivation on a daily basis will prepare yourself for the departure from this world. Because we understand impermanence, therefore we must practice our departure from the world. The breakdown of the 5 basic elements in our bodies is in the following sequence: earth, water, fire, wind, and then emptiness. Our bones and flesh will die first (earth), then our blood stops flowing (water), then our body temperature drops (fire), then all the breathing stops (wind), and with our last breath, the soul will begin to leave our body (emptiness).

Impermanence is the truth. There is no being or self. This is nirvana.

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