Am I Controlling You? What Am I Doing All This For?
His Holiness Dorje Chang Buddha III Imparts Dharma
Am I Controlling You? What Am I Doing All This For?
Translated by the True Dharma Translation Group
Translators’ Notes
All of us in the True Dharma Translation Group express our profound gratitude to His Holiness Dorje Chang Buddha III for giving us the opportunity to translate this Dharma Discourse from Chinese into English. However, His Holiness Dorje Chang Buddha III has neither read nor acknowledged the correctness of the current translation.
This translation is based on a transcription of the audio recording of this Dharma Discourse. Since the Buddhist disciples, who transcribed the audio recording into Chinese text are from different countries and regions, might not have been familiar with colloquial words or dialects used in the Dharma Discourse, there might be errors in the transcript. The footnotes were not in the original Chinese transcript and were added by us as supplementary information to the translation.
Due to the limited abilities of the translation group, despite our having made the best effort, there are bound to be errors in this English translation. We beseech His Holiness Dorje Chang Buddha III and all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to absolve us of the sins of making any mistakes in this translation.
Therefore, this English translation is only intended to be used as a reference while you are respectfully listening to the audio recording of the Dharma Discourse. If anyone has any suggestions for the current translation to be improved, you are very welcome to let us know.
Only the audio recordings of the Dharma imparted by His Holiness Dorje Chang Buddha III and the Buddhist books authored by His Holiness Dorje Chang Buddha III that are published by authorized publishing houses can be considered official.
True Dharma Translation Group
May 22, 2022
His Holiness Dorje Chang Buddha III Imparts Dharma
Am I Controlling You? What Am I Doing All This For?
Sit down, everyone. I was just going to receive you today, and unexpectedly, I am now giving you a Dharma impartation. This karmic condition arose due to a Dharma teacher named Shi Huicong 釋慧聰 who is sitting on the side here. Is that you?
(The disciple Shi Huicong puts his palms together and respectfully replies: Yes.)
Speak louder!
(The disciple Shi Huicong puts his palms together and respectfully replies: Yes, I am Shi Huicong.)
He said he couldn’t find the Dharma lineage of Dorje Chang Buddha III, so he went to China and there he found the Dharma lineage. All Buddhists, disciples, listen carefully: There is no Dharma lineage of Dorje Chang Buddha III in this world! There is also no Dharma lineage of any Dharma masters! The only Dharma lineage in this world is called Buddhism. Again, what Dharma lineage is this? It is called Buddhism: The Buddhism of
Shakyamuni Buddha, and the Buddhism of all Buddhas in the ten directions. Keep this in mind forever! There is only one Dharma lineage. From now on, don’t speak amateurishly.
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
To say that you have follow the lineage of Dorje Chang Buddha III is absolutely nonsense, and it is a non-Buddhist way of thinking. Dorje Chang Buddha III does not come from any lineage, only Buddhism! Remember this forever. As to those so-called lineages, groups, patriarchs, sects, or schools, they are all factions. They are factions established over time by patriarchs after Shakyamuni Buddha entered parinirvāṇa. They are called factions. Keep this in mind forever. Regardless of how accomplished those patriarchs were, what they established are still factions because within Buddhism, there is only the teaching of the Buddha, and there is only one lineage.
When this Dharma master raised this question earlier, he was in fact representing many people who have the same question. What exists in many people’s mind-consciousness and idea is that “this is our lineage.” This is very naive and a seriously erroneous understanding and view. This is even an evil view and it is wrong.
Think about it from a different perspective: Would you say that the teachings given by all the monastics and rinpoches in this world are the teachings of Buddhism? You could not possibly think this way. You have to query it. You have to question those teachings. Are what they teach the teachings of Buddhism? It requires verification. Buddhism means the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha. However, monastics and rinpoches in many sects or schools are propagating Dharma. Their teachings have been passed down from one generation to another. Currently, a great many of those wearing Buddhist attire have already succumbed to evil views. Therefore, they haven’t been Buddhists since a long time ago. Even though they are monks, they are not Buddhists. Even though they are rinpoches, they are not Buddhists. Even if they are geshes or larampa geshes, they are not Buddhists either. I am saying this matter-of-factly.
Why? What they teach are not Buddhist teachings at all. In the audio recorded Dharma, True Dharma Discerns Evil Monastics 正法鑒邪僧, that I imparted more than two decades ago, it was proven that those so-called eminent monks didn’t really know the teachings of Buddhism. This phenomenon is especially prevalent in the recent era. A great number of so-called eminent monks in the recent era are giving people absolutely non-Buddhist teachings that are intermixed with the teachings from the Sutras of Shakyamuni Buddha. As a result, they have confused Buddhist practitioners who mistake those teachings as authentic Buddhist teachings. That’s why I am telling you now: There is no such lineage that Dorje Chang Buddha III learned from. I have no such lineage. All I have is Buddhism—the authentic and unaltered teachings of the Buddhas in the ten directions, and that is what I impart directly.
I am being recognized as Dorje Chang Buddha III. I am neither feigning to be nor naming myself Buddha. I do indeed know very well the Sūtrapiṭaka, the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha as well as what was documented into the Sūtrapiṭaka by patriarchs after the Buddha entered parinirvāṇa. I clearly know that there are errors in the Sutras. The mistakes are there not because Shakyamuni Buddha misspoke. Instead, the errors were made when 500 Bhikṣus convened for four times at the Saptparni Cave, also known as the Seven-Leaf Cave, to compile the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha into the
Sutras. How could they not make mistakes doing that just from memory? Suppose I impart the Dharma today, and more than 10 years later, you transcribe what I said into text from memory, won’t you make mistakes?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
If 500 of you discuss among yourselves, wouldn’t it be completely chaotic?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
Therefore, there are many errors in the Sutras, but not because the Buddha misspoke. I have told you before, Shakyamuni Buddha predicted that certain people would become an Arhat, a Bodhisattva, a person of great wealth and noble status, a powerful statesperson, or even an emperor by a certain time in the future based on their particular merit. The Buddha often made such predictions.
However, people don’t understand this clearly. Even Buddhists don’t understand this clearly. The predictions made by the Buddha were correct. But all Buddhist disciples have misunderstood what the predictions meant. The Buddha said that if those Buddhists continued their current cultivation or followed their current path, then by the predicted time, they would become a Bodhisattva of a certain stage or an Arhat of a certain fruition level. The Buddha made many such predictions. What the Buddha said in the predictions was not wrong. Why wasn’t it wrong? Because the Buddha had already said that the predictions were contingent on those people continuing to “practice the same way,” “cultivate themselves the same way,” and “do what they were doing.” But how could Buddhists continue to do what they were doing at that moment? By the time they woke up the next day, they had already changed their ways. Once they changed, they would not accomplish what they were predicted to achieve. Do you understand?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
However, patriarchs of later generations completely misinterpreted the meaning. They all said that the Buddha had already predicted what would happen: Certain people would become great Bodhisattvas after a certain number of lifetimes. Many accounts like this were documented in the Sutras. But those accounts are in violation with the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha. Why? Do you know why? It is called fatalism. Fatalism is a view that belongs to non-Buddhist sects and evil cults. Shakyamuni Buddha didn’t expound views of evil cults. But such views do exist in the Sutras. What do you make of that? When the content of the Sutras was compiled by the monks and translated into Chinese or other languages by translators of later generations, mistakes were made. I can totally prove this point based on facts. Some Dharma that I imparted was given to some disciples to translate into English. Up till now each of those disciples has a different interpretation of what I said. Ten disciples would come up with ten contradictory translations. They couldn’t translate the meaning accurately. To adopt any one of their versions would be problematic. Isn’t that true?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
Speak louder.
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
Why is fatalism a non-Buddhist view? It is because you must rely on cultivating yourself to attain accomplishment and liberation. If you were to follow the Sutras and adopt the views of the 500 Bhikṣus or other translators as the standards you follow, then don’t cultivate yourself and don’t learn from Buddha. Why not? If you believed that according to the predictions of the Buddha, everyone will become a high-ranking official, or possess great wealth by a certain time and everything has been predetermined by fate, why bother learning. Isn’t that so?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
Therefore, fatalism absolutely is not true. However, there are many accounts relating to fatalism and predictions in the Sutras. Such predictions and such Sutras absolutely cannot be followed because, if you believe in fatalism, you won’t cultivate yourself. For example, if it has been predicted that a certain ordinary person will attain a fourth level fruition to become golden body Arhat when a particular Buddha comes and attains Buddhahood in this world, then why would this person cultivate themselves? No matter how they cultivate themselves, or how much effort they make, they still have to wait until that Buddha comes and attains Buddhahood in this world before they can attain the fourth-level fruition to become an Arhat. Why wouldn’t they rather enjoy themselves now, go gambling in Las Vegas, or spend all their time having fun at all kinds of places?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
Cultivation is so tiring! Yet, Shakyamuni Buddha spoke a great deal about cultivation and the application of the Six Paramitas in myriad practices. The Buddha told living beings to cultivate themselves under all circumstances. When you cultivate yourself, you plant the cause and reap the effect. You have to plant the cause in order to reap the effect. If you don’t cultivate yourself, you won’t plant the cause and therefore you won’t reap the effect. That’s why in Buddhism, there is a very important term called “cultivate oneself by learning from Buddha 修行學佛.”
Cultivation is to correct your conduct. What kind of conduct are you supposed to accomplish in your cultivation? You cultivate yourself to have the same conduct of the Buddha. That’s why it is called learning from Buddha; you emulate the conduct of Buddha. You cultivate yourself by learning from Buddha. Your accomplishment and liberation are dependent upon your cultivating yourself by learning from Buddha, rather than indulging in fun and pleasure, becoming degenerate, and waiting for the day predetermined by fate for you to become a certain somebody. There is no such thing!
At this point, I want you to reflect upon this: Is cultivating yourself by learning from Buddha the truth, or are predictions based on fatalism the truth?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Cultivating myself by learning from Buddha is the truth.)
Right. If predictions or fatalism is the truth, then there is no use cultivating yourself by learning from Buddha. Is that right?
(Members of the congregation put their palms together and respectfully reply: Yes.)
Of course, what I am saying is that this is the problem with the Sutras. Shakyamuni Buddha is tremendously magnificent. The Buddha never speaks amateurishly. The Dharma that Shakyamuni Buddha imparted is excellent because the Buddha is supreme. Buddha is supreme and omnipotent. However, as to how the teachings of the Buddha were compiled or translated by the disciples, that was something nobody could have controlled. Whether living beings deserve to enjoy such Buddha Dharma is dependent on the causality of whether they have planted the causes to reap such good retributions from their karmic conditions, karmic forces, and habituations. That’s why, sometimes, neither the 500 Bhikṣus nor the patriarchs of later generations can be blamed for the mistakes that they made. Rather, living beings are essentially not qualified to learn such Dharma, and therefore, all they can