The Way of Enlightened Beings | There Is No Suffering

If enlightened beings live, act, and think as we do, what is the difference between the enlightened state and the ordinary, samsaric, state? The difference is attachment. The thoughts and actions of ordinary people are projections of a notion of self; the thoughts and actions of enlightened beings emanate from wisdom. Enlightened beings think, feel, talk, interact, and respond naturally to events, clearly perceiving the causes and conditions of situations as they arise. The enlightened Shakyamuni Buddha could not have taught the Dharma without a body, mind, and thoughts; nor did he forget his past, his family, or his friends. To be enlightened is to be empty of attachments, but the phenomenal realms of form and mental activity still exist.

The Platform Sutra sometimes describes the enlightened mind as a mirror, sometimes as the calm surface of a pond. When there are no deluded thoughts, the mind is calm, like a still pond. Do not confuse no-thought with blank mind; the mirror-minds of enlightened beings continue to react to situations. There is response, but no attachment or self-centeredness. One responds naturally without self-involvement, just as a mirror reflects only what passes in front of it, adding nothing of itself. There is no need for a mirror to reflect anything when nothing is in front of it.

We should emulate this mirror-mind and maintain, with concentration, a clear, peaceful presence, without subjective judgments and personal concerns. Realize, however, that judgments and discernment must still be made. If enlightened beings could not discriminate, they would be no different than mindless idiots. Although true discrimination is only possible when we are free
from self-attachments, we can still, to the best of our ability, discriminate and discern how things really are using the principle of non-attachment. It may be an intellectual approach, but it is still a good practice to apply to all methods, as well as to daily life.

Keep foremost in mind the practice of compassion. Until we are enlightened, we can only aspire to operate from a position of non-attachment. Some people who do this may become insensitive to the needs and feelings of others, saying and doing things that cause emotional suffering. They may further justify their actions as non-attachment, expecting others to think and feel the same way. I have observed that some people are afraid to experience their own feelings directly, and mistake this for detachment. This is simply piling delusion on top of delusion. It is neither proper practice nor acceptable Buddhist behavior, and it misrepresents the Dharma.

Buddhadharma exhorts us to steadfastly face ourselves, no matter how uncomfortable it may be to do. Can we expect others to live by the Buddhadharma if we cannot do it ourselves? As Buddhists, we should try to ensure the welfare and happiness of others, knowing that our perceptions and thoughts come from our self-centered, limited view, still tinged with ignorance. Whatever clarity of mind we think we have, it is still relative to another person’ s lack of clarity. It is highly subjective, and the other person may feel the same about us. Also, from an enlightened point of view, our allegedly clear view may be as opaque as the other person’ s view.

PREVIOUS: Emptiness of Form | There Is No Suffering
NEXT: Self-nature | There Is No Suffering