A Cloud of Fog About “Nature”

Xuefeng

November 18, 2019

The universe is a stage for nature and everything and all phenomena are nature’s dances. The true essence of Buddhism is, “An enlightened heart is perceptive to nature; perceptive to Buddha”. The main theme of the “Bloodstream Sermon” by Master Bodhidharma was that “nature (same word as sex in Chinese) is Buddha and Buddha is nature. Without the perception of nature, all teachings of Dharma are demonic talks and all practicing of magic is demonic conduct”

The Sixth Patriarch, Huineng’s “The Platform Sutra” says: “Who would know that our nature (Essence of Mind, Tathagata, suchness) is intrinsically pure; who would have thought that our nature is intrinsically free from becoming or annihilating; who would have thought that our nature is intrinsically self-sufficient; who would have thought that our nature is intrinsically free from change; who would have thought that all things are manifestations of our nature”.

From this point of view, we should “follow our nature”. If so, “willfulness” is right, and the wayward person is dictated by willful nature, but reality tells us that “willful” people cannot become immortal or Buddha. To “follow one’s nature”, but not be “willful” is a contradiction. This is the fog about “nature”.

Let’s take Jiao’e, Lexian, and Tianxin as examples to analyze “willfulness”. Jiao’e is “weak-willed”, Lexian is “medium-willed”, and Tianxin is “strong-willed”.

“Weak-willed” people have their own cognition and ideas about everything and they always include contradictions and conflicts with Tao. They always want things to develop according to their own wishes, but because they have awe in their hearts, they are still willing to yield even when they are unhappy. Therefore, they can still walk on the way of Tao.

“Medium-willed” people know that they are wrong, but they have strong self-esteem and easily drift between Tao and the mortal trail. If their self-esteem is well protected, they can merge into Tao. If their self-esteem is damaged, they will deviate from the Tao and move toward the trail.

“Strong-willed” people are desperate to act according to their own wishes. Although they might know that they are wrong, their emotions exceed their rationality and they are unwilling to comply with Tao, let alone succumb to it.

Wayward people have generally been spoiled since they were young and have experienced too little frustration in their lives.

How does one escape from this “nature” fog? All speech and behaviors are caused by the trends of nature, and nature is the strongest driving force. Let us observe everything in nature, the loftiness and erecting of mountains, the fickleness and flowing of water, the birth and growth of plants in spring and summer, the fighting and killing of animals, and the fighting and robbing in the human world; all are the deductions of nature. From this point of view, “following one's nature” and “willfulness” are both not only problematic, but also dangerous, just like wolves, insects, tigers, and leopards “following their natures” and Kudo, vine, vitex, and thorns that are “willful”.

From this, the Sixth Patriarch Huineng’s “Who would know that our nature (Essence of Mind, Tathagata, suchness) is intrinsically pure; who would have thought that our nature is intrinsically free from becoming or annihilating; who would have thought that our nature is intrinsically self-sufficient; who would have thought that our nature is intrinsically free from change; who would have thought that all things are the manifestation of our nature”, are also problematic. The self-nature is not pure; it has birth and annihilation and it cannot produce everything.

“Follow one’s nature”; but what kind of“nature”? The nature of a devil or that of Buddha; the nature of beasts or that of humanity? “Willful”, but to follow what will? To follow the will of nature, or to follow that of self; to follow the collective commonality or individual’s personality?

If you want to become a cat, then you must catch mice when you see them, otherwise you will not be a cat. If you want to become an immortal, then you must follow the immortal nature strictly, or you cannot become one. A cat is not a cat if it is compassionate when it sees a mouse. An immortal is no longer an immortal if his or her heart moans and laments when he or she sees marriages and funerals or weeping and crying in the mortal world.

In order to become a Buddha, one needs to perceive nature, but must not “follow one's nature and be willful”. If you want to go to heaven, then you also need to perceive nature, but you must not follow human nature and be obsessed with the debauchery of mortal life and the passing clouds in the physical world.