Diamond Sutra Explained - 2 - Subhuti’s Request | Buddhist Wisdom for Spiritual Awakening

At that time, Elder Sabudi, who was sitting in the congregation, rose from his seat. He uncovered his right shoulder, placed his right knee on the ground, and as he joined his palms together, he respectfully bowed and then addressed the Buddha. Most Honored One, It is truly rare and majestic how much knowledge and wisdom your monks and disciples have been given through your most inspired teachings. It is remarkable that you Most Honored One, I have a question to ask you. If sons and daughters of good families want to develop the highest, most fulfilled and awakened mind, if they wish to attain the highest perfect wisdom, what should they do to help quiet their drifting minds and help subdue their craving thoughts? The Buddha then replied, So it is as you say, Sabudi. Monks and disciples have been favored with the highest favor by the Tathagata. The monks and disciples have been instructed with the highest instruction by the Tathagata. The Tathagata is constantly mindful of the welfare of his followers. Listen carefully with your full attention, and I will speak to your question. If sons and daughters of good families want to develop the highest, most fulfilled and awakened mind, if they wish to attain the highest perfect wisdom and quiet their drifting minds while subduing their craving thoughts, then they should follow what I am about to say to you. Those who follow what I am about to say here will be able to subdue their discriminative thoughts and craving desires. It is possible to attain perfect tranquility and clarity of mind by absorbing and dwelling on the teachings I am about to give. Then the Buddha addressed the assembly. Sabudi was born into a wealthy family and was a philanthropist we mentioned in Chapter 1, who tried to buy the garden from Prince Jeta in Sravasti. In Buddhism, Sabudi is considered foremost in understanding emptiness. There are three kinds of elders, the elder in years, the Dharma nature elder, and the elder in blessings and virtue. The elder in years must be old and have held the precepts for a long time. The Dharma nature elder may be young, but he must possess great wisdom and be able to lecture sutras and speak Dharma with sufficient power to teach and transform living beings. For example, the Buddha s disciple Sariputra mastered the entire Buddha Dharma in just seven days and became an elder at the age of eight. At that time, he mounted the high seat and spoke Dharma, totally confounding the best Of all the Buddha s disciples, Sariputra was foremost in wisdom and had unobstructed eloquence. Finally, the elder in blessings and virtue must have the reward from having planted blessings and acted with virtuous conduct. It is said that Sabudi was an elder in years, a Dharma nature elder, and an elder in blessings and virtue. The Buddha had arranged his seat and sat down without saying a word. Sabudi arose from his seat and started the conversation with his words of praise. Some people may find this a little confusing, since the Buddha haven t spoken yet. If the Buddha had spoken, it might have made more sense to respond in this way. Was Sabudi making something out of nothing? To answer this, we need to take a look at a concept called Prajna. The ultimate understanding of the true nature of existence and reality. It is a state of pure consciousness that transcends worldly concepts or belief systems that might hinder perfect wisdom. In Buddhist philosophy, there are three stages of Prajna that an individual goes through. The first stage is studying and listening to Dharma or teaching, which results in understanding. This is called literary Prajna. The second stage consists of contemplating and understanding the knowledge received in the first stage, which results in full ingestion of the truth. This is contemplative Prajna. The third stage of Prajna is when an individual comes to complete awareness and realization of the truth, which results in a state of resting meditation and enlightenment, where one is continuously mindful of the truth. This is called Realmark Prajna. The true nature of existence and reality is beyond the form of a spoken word, written word, and any forms of arbitrary conceptions created by our limited mind. Knowing this, Subuddhi uttered his words of praise. For the Buddha, without saying a word, simply dwelling in a mindful state, had already taught the Realmark Prajna. Subuddhi also hoped the Buddha would speak a provisional, expedient teaching of literary Prajna, for the sake of living beings who haven't realized Realmark Prajna. That's why he took the initiative to ask questions and invited the Buddha to teach the Dharma in words. He said to the Buddha. You have already taught Realmark Prajna, but most living beings have not understood or clearly recognized it. Therefore, please teach it once again for living beings in the future. Thank you for watching. If you enjoy the video, please hit the like button. And if you are new, hit subscribe and the bell next to it for future notifications.