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Section 15. Words of Commission 1. The Great Master said to many of his disciples, "As you are the first to come and seek this unique fellowship and to study my Law for unusual purpose, I have deep affection for you. What disappoints me about you, however, is that in your studying you are becoming less sincere in moral training, and cherish unrighteous thoughts. Some of you do not observe what I have told you. What if I were to leave you and go off when you forget your original purpose in coming here and go against my instructions? You would never see me again. Therefore, reflect upon yourselves and do not cause me to think in this way. The state of mind of an enlightened person is hardly understood by ordinary minds. When one is devoting oneself to doing something, it would seem one would continue for years, even thousands of years. But, if one makes up one's mind to forget about it, you will never hear of that person again." 2. In January of the twenty-sixth year of Won Buddhism (1941), the Great Master wrote his Verse of Truth, saying, "Ancient Masters usually delivered their Verses of Truth for transmitting Dharma as the last moment approached. However, I give it to you in advance, and although they gave it in secrecy to only a few, I give it to all of you openly. However, it will depend upon your own attitude toward study whether you are to receive the entire Dharma or not. Therefore, each of you put forth your best effort to study and you will not regret it afterward." 3. The year before the Great Master passed into Nirvana, he hurried to complete the Canon. He often sat up late at night proofreading. When all was ready for printing he said to his disciples, "I have not had sufficient time to do a complete job. However, in this volume the essentials of all my aspirations, and my doctrines and morality are adequately expressed. Therefore, follow and learn the teachings in this volume, practice them, and through the teachings enlighten yourselves so that you may transmit this Law forever. Someday, this Law will attain world- wide recognition, and there will be numerous people who will be deeply moved and revere it." 4. The Great Master, in the months before he passed into Nirvana, often gave last-minute instructions to individuals or to groups; "It is time for me to go to a distant place to rest and this is the time for you to reflect upon and tighten your own mind in order not to be negligent in your study in my absence. This is a period of judgement, and therefore one of shallow faith will wither away while one of stable faith will produce good fruits. I give my Dharma to anyone who is faithful, sincere and public-minded. Do not regret afterward your failure to receive the Dharma, but take it with you now as nourishment for your spiritual body." 5. One day the Great Master said to Song Kyu, "Since you became my disciple, you have done what I told you to do without expressing your own opinion. I know this shows your utmost faith in me. But I am wondering what you will do if I suddenly leave you. From now on, try to express yourself and guide the members of the Order by yourself." He continued, "Recently, the interference of the government is get- ting serious and it makes my situation difficult; it seems to be hard for me to stay here any longer. Some will inflict hardships upon you which will be difficult to withstand. However, as nothing serious will happen, you needn't worry." 6. The Great Master said, "If you continue to make progress in your study, with your original intention of practicing the Law, you will not fail. However, as your fundamental abilities develop from lower to middle level, if, while you pass through the middle level, you fail to pass to the next level, evil will stir within you, and you will be unable to develop your fundamental ability. Therefore, you must do your best to pass the crisis of the middle level. Symptoms of disease in this middle level are these: First, a person tires of studying. Once affected with this disease, one feels nothing but pain and boredom in practicing the Law and sometimes one's way of thinking and speaking will become inferior even to worldly people. Second, a person becomes neither thoroughly enlightened nor entirely unenlightened. As people compliment one's occasional speeches and writings, one thinks of oneself as standing above other people and believes only in oneself. One forgives one's own faults, criticizes one's masters recklessly, has cunning doubt about Truth and Dharma and clings to one's own thought. Of all symptoms, this cunning doubt is most apt to cause one's study in vain, completely destroying one's eternal great task. Therefore, all masters from ancient times warned most seriously about this cunning doubt. However, to my regret I have found many among you who have been afflicted with this disease. If you do not cure yourselves, you will not only ruin yourselves but will also become the cause of disaster for our Order. Make every effort to overcome this barrier. In order to overcome the symptoms of disease in the middle level of fundamental ability, give your minds to your master, re- flect upon your original vows frequently and think about the dangerous consequences of the pitfalls of the middle level. Once you are released from this danger, you will reach Buddhahood in a short time, as if you were travelling by airplane." 7. In January of the twenty-eighth year of Won Buddhism (1943), the Great Master made public the newly composed Doctrinal Chart, and said, "Even though the essentials of my teachings are included in this chart, how many people will understand my real teachings? It does not seem to me that many people can receive my teaching completely. The reasons are: First, that their minds are attached to property and sex, and second, that they are attached to fame and vanity, preventing themselves from concentration on studying. Therefore, you disciples must choose either this life or a life of practicing the Law. After you have made a great decision, your success will come by pursuing that one Path." 8. At a monastery, the Great Master asked an assembly, "Throughout the world, from ancient times, who acquired the greatest ability to deliver a suffering people and through what kind of study? At the same time, what kind of ability do you wish to obtain by studying here?" Several disciples gave answers, and Song To.Sung replied, "It is all Buddhas of the Three Worlds who have obtained this ability and become vessels for delivering suffering people. The study which we are all so anxious to learn is the one that enables us to obtain Buddha's ability. We will never be lured to the wicked way, but will always make an effort to find an answer to the problems of age, illness and death, and to deliver people from the sea of suffering by following after Buddha's wisdom and conduct." The Great Master said, "Once in a while, people leave even this Order of morality to pursue outside knowledge. It is regrettable to see some of my disciples putting more value on these outside studies than on studying Dharma. Therefore, to solidify your original vow to study this Law, submit your written oath." In compliance with his request, all the disciples submitted their written oath and consecrated themselves to ceaseless study of Dharma. 9. The Great Master said, "Since establishing this religious Order twenty-Eight years ago, my teaching method has been too interpretative. I am not concerned about the person of higher fundamental ability. But I am concerned for those of middle and lower fundamental ability who are becoming cunning as foxes, regarding Dharma as too easy for serious study, and who are thus unable to attain the real Truth. This is really my great concern. Hereafter, it will be required that people practice the Threefold Learnings as they receive the interpretations of the Law." 10. The Great Master said, "Through many former lives I have established many Orders. Compared with those Orders, this one is the largest. Therefore the first nine disciples of this Order will be followed by numerous others who will dedicate themselves to this Order." 11. The Great Master said, "I have been teaching you for a long time. Yet it is regrettable that I make the following three observations: First, some of you talk about the profound Truth but very few express it through your actions and are not enlightened to the real state of Truth, Second, some of you use the naked eye to see, but very few use the eye of the mind. Third, some of you can see only Buddha's incarnated body, but very few accurately see Buddha's Dharma." 12. The Great Master said, "In our Order there are three difficulties for those who practice the Law. First, it is difficult to understand the state of the absolute Truth of Il-Won. Second, it is difficult to practice the Truth of Il-Won in our daily living, both in Motion and in Quietness. Third, it is difficult to explain the Truth of Il-Won to the general public by using simple methods so that they may be enlightened to the Truth. But one of moral training, who with all sincerity and with strong determination seeks to do one's best, will overcome all these difficulties. To those who are not willing to do this, or who discontinue doing it, everything will always be difficult, no matter how easy it may really be." 13. The Great Master said, "Foolish people are not aware of the benefits from the rain and dew of Heaven and Earth; ordinary people do not recognize the virtues of the sages. As a result, people are neither aware of the benefit of rain until they suffer from drought, nor do they know the benefit of the Dharma of a sage until they are left without a sage." 14. On May 16, in the twenty-eighth year of Won Buddhism, the Great Master, at a regular Dharma meeting, preached to the assembly. "I met several children on my way to this Dharma Hall. They were playing in a grove. Seeing me, one of them made a signal and the others all stood up and bowed. It was all very orderly. This is also a sign of their growth. Human beings, when they are very young, don't fully understand their relationship with their parents and families and understand still less their obligation toward them. But as they grow and develop, they come to recognize relationships, degrees of kinship and their obligations toward others. Likewise, when those of moral training are still immature, they are not aware of the principles of becoming Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, of ordinary people and all sentient beings, of the relationship between themselves and all beings in the universe, or of the principle of their own birth and death. Therefore, the process of grow- th in practicing the Law can be compared to the process of a child's growth. Like children growing into adulthood, ordinary' people come to be enlightened to Buddhahood, and disciples, through learning, become teachers. You disciples, strive diligently to acquire the ability to teach those who follow after you, and become great leaders in order to perform the great task of delivering all beings and curing the afflicted world. In the Yin Fu Sutra it is said that 'Birth is the cause of death and death is the cause of birth.' Birth and death are like the rotation of the four seasons and the repetition of day and night. All things in the universe operate on this principle of Truth. Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are not ignorant about birth and death, but are free from them, while ordinary beings are not only ignorant about birth and death but are also restrained by them. This is the only difference between Buddhas and ordinary people. There is no difference in the physical birth and death of Buddhas and ordinary people. Therefore, do not believe in only physical Buddha, but believe in his Dharma. Make an effort to acquire a genuine power not to be deluded by, but to be free from, the changes of birth and death. Going to temples for a regular Dharma meeting may be compared to going to market. It will be worth going to market if we can get something we need or can sell something to others, thereby making our life better. When you attend the meeting therefore, share your thoughts with others, that they may benefit. At the same time, ask any question the answer to which might enlighten you, and pay particular attention to attending the temple with reason and purpose- Birth and death is a great question and everything changes very fast. How can we be indifferent to this?" 15. The Great Master said, "Mission, education and charity are the objectives of our works. These three activities should have equal emphasis in order to bring about harmony in our works." 16. The Great Master said, "The Threefold Learnings, Eight Articles and Four Graces, which are the great principles of my fundamental doctrine of Ir-Won, should never be changed anywhere or at any time. In some cases, according to the times and the area, the remaining minor points or systems can be changed." 17. The Great Master said, "In past times, religious Orders, governments and individuals governed people under the principle of discrimination. In the coming world, however, if prejudice and discrimination exist, there will be no harmony among ordinary people. Therefore, in our Orders, we will not discriminate between laity and monks, men and women, or between age and youth, in paying our respects to those who attain Enlightenment and who deserve to be treated as holders of the Sacred Rank of the Great Enlightened Tathagata. Even in our birthday celebrations, funeral ceremonies or other events, attention should not center on individuals, but on all members who have worked to establish our Order. All have a right to share in both the grief and pleasure of our Order." 18. The Great Master said, "It is important that you write and preach my Dharma in order to transmit my Law to future generations. But it is more important to practice it and become enlightened to it so that it may never cease. Then your merit will be beyond measure." 19. The Great Master said, "The master who first creates Dharma and the disciples who dedicate them- selves to the Dharma and its transmission to coming generations, and the next generations who themselves respect the Dharma and practice it are a trinity. The merit of each of them is equal." |