Problems with Guanyin

Generally it is recommended to put it in the upper position, that is, the position that can be seen at a glance once you open the door.

Of course, the actual situation can be flexible according to the actual arrangement of your house, are possible.

Where is the top? Sitting in this seat, every door, people come in when you first see, this position is the big seat, is the upper position.

As long as we pay reverence to the Buddha and Bodhisattvas and pay homage to the Buddha and Bodhisattvas, we will be able to eliminate calamities and avoid difficulties, this is the truth to understand.

Enlightenment

Venerable Master Jokong on Enlightenment

So many of you have invited statues of Buddha to your homes, and many of you have come to me and asked me to enlighten the statues, and I've heard that if you don't enlighten the statues, they won't be able to work, so what is the point of enlightening the statues? You have to know, don't be superstitious, do you need to enlighten the statue of Buddha? Yes, what is meant by enlightenment? The Buddha statue to open the light of our nature, it is the Buddha statue to open our light, not us to open its light, we have to say that to open its light is upside down. So the Buddha statue enlightenment is there, but now people are upside down, looking for a monk to compare the Buddha statue enlightenment on the spirit of deception, there is no such thing! If a monk can enlighten a statue of Buddha, then why do you need to make an offering to the statue of Buddha? Why don't you just make an offering to me? I'm better than him. If I don't enlighten it, it won't work, so why do you make an offering to it? Why are you offering it? So you have to use your wisdom to learn Buddhism, and decide not to be fooled, decide not to be cheated. So enlightenment is when we don't know the significance of a statue of Buddha, and we ask a Dharma master or a great master to explain the significance of making offerings to a statue of Buddha, and then we can really benefit from it, and that's called enlightening the statue of Buddha. In other words, it is as if we mold a statue, inaugurate the ceremony, to explain the statue, this is called the statue of Buddha enlightenment. Nowadays people are getting it all wrong, they are misinterpreting the meaning. This is the significance of making offerings to the Buddha.

Morals

Everything in Buddhism has a moral.

About the symbolism of various offerings:

The incense offering is not for the Buddha and Bodhisattva to eat or smell, but is used to remind oneself of the teachings of the Buddha and Bodhisattva, so that one does not do anything wrong that one would regret.

People have internal troubles and external temptations, and money makes the mind obsessed, and color makes the mind faint. Offering incense is to remind oneself to treat people and make judgments with the wisdom of the Buddha and the Bodhisattva and the heart of the Buddha and the Bodhisattva.

Da Fang Guang Buddha Avatamsaka Sutra (Volume 927) 2003/1/8 Australian Pure Land Institute File name: 12-17-0927

Burning lamps, this is to offer wisdom and light to the masses, to help the masses to break through their confusion and become enlightened. Offering incense is to help the masses turn evil into good. Look at the meaning of this sentence, "incense" table precepts, students of Buddhism know, incense praise inside the precepts of the true incense, five points of the Dharma body incense. So every day we burn incense and lamps in front of the statues of Buddha and Bodhisattva, you have to understand its meaning, not the Buddha and Bodhisattva, "incense and lamps" is a reminder of ourselves. When we see the smoke of incense and smell the smell of incense, we should think of the precepts; when we see the lamps in front of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, we should think of wisdom. Precepts and wisdom are the three jewels, 'with all the colors of the jewels'.

The Avatamsaka Sutra (Volume 734) 2002/6/11 Australian Pure Land Institute File name: 12-17-0734

Flowers and fruits are offered in front of the Buddha. This is very common, and it is common to see people bringing flowers, flowers, and fruits to temples and monasteries to make offerings to the Buddha and Bodhisattvas. What does it mean? Flowers represent the cause and fruits represent the reward, flowers are good, cause is good, fruits must be good; fruits are good, cause must be good, flowers and fruits represent the cause and effect, so that you can see and often think of planting a good cause to get a good result. You have to be able to think about this, and the light shines, and your heart shines! You don't make flower offerings for the Buddha to see or appreciate. The Buddha is a wooden statue, how can he appreciate it? Even if you offer fruits, the Buddha will not eat them. You must understand this, and this is the teaching, so don't misunderstand the meaning! Some people ask, "Which flowers can't be offered to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas? Which fruits can't be offered to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas? That is superstition. In the Dharma, all kinds of flowers can be offered, and all kinds of fruits can be offered to the Buddha. To show the Dharma! When you see a flower, you know how to cultivate the cause, and what is the cause? The Four Regardings and Six Degrees. In the Avatamsaka Sutra, flowers represent the Ten Paramitas, and fruits represent Bodhi Nirvana. In the Pure Land Buddhism, the fruit represents being born in the Pure Land, and to be born in the Pure Land is to realize the fruit, which is to offer the flower and the fruit.

Our most common offering is water. Water is the most important of all offerings, and it is the most important in the Dharma, offering a cup of water. It is best to use a transparent glass for the water, why? So that we can see, this is the best, it represents the Dharma! What does water represent? It represents our heart. This glass of water is pure and uncontaminated, it represents a pure heart. The water has no waves in it, it's flat, it represents an equal mind. So this cup of water is offered there, so that when we see it, we often think that my own heart should be pure and equal, which represents this meaning. Water can always be offered, flowers, fruits, and lamps can also be offered, teaching you that no matter what time of the day or night, no matter what time of the day or night, when you see it, it will cause K???a to teach us, and it reminds me of me all the time at that place, and that's the meaning of it. The only thing that can't be put away for a long time is the rice offering, because the meaning of the Dharma is less, and the meaning of repaying kindness is more. We eat three meals a day, and when we eat, we don't forget: I want to make offerings to the Buddha, I want to make offerings to all sentient beings in the Dharma realm, which is called "food" in the Buddhist school, and "food" is the giving of alms to all the ghosts and gods, and we don't forget that. But you have to know, the Buddha and Bodhisattva are a mid-day meal, so morning and evening decided not to offer meals, mid-day meal. At noon, the offering is made, and after the offering is made, it has to be removed; it's like when you invite someone to dinner, the meal is finished, and of course all the leftovers have to be removed, you can't keep putting them in front of the guests. You can't just leave it in front of the guests all the time. Whenever you run out of food, you have to remove it at any time. Therefore, when you make offerings to the Buddha with food, you immediately withdraw it after making offerings. After withdrawing, you should make offerings to the crowd, first to the Buddha and then to the crowd, and you must understand this. Scented flowers and fruits are for the expression of the Dharma, and the expression of the Dharma can often be placed there.

Nowadays, we also see some dojos, their incense, their candles are made with electric lamps, made like candles, on top of a red light bulb, I see a lot. The incense is the same, it's not really incense, but the front of the incense is little light bulb, very small light bulb, you see it's a red spot of light. This one has form, no scent, but the line, the table of dharma. Let you see, know how you want to practice. Flowers and fruits are also offered as fake flowers, fake fruits, this line, why? It is a manifestation of the Dharma, so that you often see and think about it, and will not forget it, the meaning is here. You can say that in the dojo, in the Buddha Hall, there is nothing that is not a manifestation of the Dharma, you have to be able to see it, you have to be able to experience it, go in and not say a word, and then the Buddha and Bodhisattva will be able to preach the Dharma to you and it will be complete, and that is really the supreme profound and subtle Dharma! It's all in the solemnity and speechlessness, so you should experience it carefully.

What does the incense burner represent? So when you see the smoke and smell the fragrance, you are reminded that I have to practice the three studies of cessation, meditation, and wisdom, and I have to practice the five points of the Dharma body, and that is the "light that shines". There is no incense burning, when you look at it, there is no incense in the incense burner, you see the incense burner, when you see the incense burner, you think of burning incense. When you see candles, in the old days, when you made offerings of lamps, oil lamps and candles in front of the statues of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, it is very obvious that the expression is to burn oneself and illuminate others, which is the modern way of saying that one should give up one's own self for others, and the spirit of sacrifice and dedication. Nowadays, they use electric lamps instead, which is very convenient and clean, but the manifestation is not so easy to realize. So you must know that the offerings are teaching, and must be received to teach.

About each Buddha's expression of the meaning of a brief description:

Maitreya Bodhisattva, nowadays, the statue, generally is the shape of the bag monk, smiling, smiling face to welcome people. He is the next Buddha. Maitreya's name is a Sanskrit transliteration meaning Tzu's, and the manifestation expresses compassion, tolerance and happiness.

Jizang Bodhisattva's expression "filial piety" (see the Jizang Sutra for more details), and the name of Jizang, which means the treasure of the heart, which is available to everyone, and that if you really want to plant a blessing, you should plant it from within your heart, that is to say, start planting a blessing from filial piety, so that you can have a real harvest. Confucius' Xiaojing (Classic of Filial Piety) says, "Filial piety is the origin of virtue. It is only when there is an origin that there are all the benefits that follow. The Buddha also said, "The proper care of one's parents is the cause of the pure karma of the Buddhas of the three worlds. (Guan Immeasurable Life Sutra, the first of the three blessings of pure karma, the first blessing, the first sentence, filial piety and support for parents.)

Some temples also have a venerable Guru (Kwan Kung), which is called "Zhong" (忠), which is the implementation of filial piety, not stupid Zhong, Zhong, as you can see from the word, Zhong Dao (中道), Zhong (中道的信), and Xin Zheng (心正), which is Zhong (忠), which means that you are correct in your heart, and that you are not biased, or that you are not skewed, and that is Zhong (忠); in other words, this is the correct knowledge and correct view of the Buddha's teachings.

By the way, inside the Daxiongbao Hall, generally enshrined is the three saints of Huayan, Pu Yin Bodhisattva Sakyamuni Buddha Manjushri Bodhisattva.

Generally, the combination of three saints like one Buddha and two Bodhisattvas, two Bodhisattvas represent the door of action and aspiration, also represent the great wisdom and great action, and the Buddha represents the perfect fruit of the Buddha, the action and aspiration of the complementary, there is the wisdom and the action, you will be able to achieve the perfect Bodhi meaning.

The last article of the Avatamsaka Sutra, "The Ten Great Wishes of Pratyekabuddha," is a list of the ten great wishes of Pratyekabuddha, which lead to the ultimate bliss. If you have a wish, you have to take action to fulfill it, and only then can your wish be truly realized.

Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of the Great Wisdom, generally holds the Ruyi, the head of the Ruyi is curved back, the real wisdom, to know how to turn back, the so-called sea of bitterness, turn back to the shore, turn back from the confusion, evil, color, rely on the consciousness, righteousness, and purity. Turning back and relying on them is to return to them (the ancient Chinese word for conversion).

With wisdom (judgment), aspiration (direction), and action (practice), one can realize the ultimate perfection of Buddha's fruits. Shakyamuni Buddha is the ultimate perfect Buddha.

Shakyamuni is a Sanskrit transliteration meaning capable of benevolence and silence.

Ren is not selfish, "ren" is a single side, this side is two, is two people, think of yourself think of others, Confucianism, I want to establish and benefit others, I want to reach and reach others, I do not want to do not do unto others. Do not do unto others if you do not want them to do unto you. To the extreme is what the Buddhists call "no self", why can we achieve this level, Buddha really clear, really understand, you and I are one, why you? How can there be a you or a me? It is the Taoist saying that "heaven and earth are one with me, and all things are one with me", which is also the "string" that has been studied in modern quantum physics, and it is the essence of all people and all things.

Silence, is pure, cool, we Saha world beings, always delusion flying, the heart of the waves, anxiety and heat, make their own moment of peace, and silence of the heart, level as a mirror, pure and uncontaminated, cool and free, can be all the mountains, rivers and earth, the so-called mountain to see the mountain, nothing to see.

Behind the Mahamudra is generally the Goddess of Mercy, the Goddess of Mercy table method of great mercy, mercy "to give music", sadness "to pull out the bitter". The big one, there is no difference, regardless of men and women, young and old, age and nationality, faith and religion, all equal to help save. There is also the Thousand Hands and Thousand Eyes Goddess of Mercy, who is the one who sees and helps immediately. See, immediately to help, table this meaning.

In fact, the Buddha's mind is the same, for example, Jizo filial piety, Guanyin not filial? In fact, they are all the same. The same is true for Maitreya, Guanyin, and Pratyekabuddha. They are all compassionate.

We understand that the Buddha and the Buddha are the same, the Buddha and the Bodhisattva are the same in theory and in mind, but only in deed, they show us different aspects. When we see the image of the Buddha and the Bodhisattva, we can remind ourselves to remember the teachings of the Buddha and the Bodhisattva and let go of our delusion, attachment, and separation, and to obtain a pure and cool heart.