Theme Speech at the Dharma Meeting celebrating
Chinese Lunar New Year and Birthday of Maitreya Buddha
5th February, 2000 -
Chinese New Year Day of the Year of Dragon
Buddhism, utilizing the major frameworks of society, culture, and belief, has
established an internally consistent and perfect cultural and belief system, serving all mankind
by being part of history yet transcending history, and being part of the secular world yet
transcending the secular world. According to the classification system of Holy Tantra Esoteric Buddhism, Buddhism is classified into twelve vehicles. Therefore, the teachings of twelve holy vehicles, be them the three exoteric vehicles or the nine esoteric vehicles, are all equal and non-comparable. All vehicles exist in harmony with the others, and each is appropriate for delivering people of different circumstances. For Buddhism to enter the modern society, it should follow the principles of non-intervention with politics and clear arrangement of the religion and teachings. It should enter from the four different angles of culture, society, belief, and ideals. It should utilize the different breadths, different depths, and different vehicles of Buddhist culture and doctrines for education. Therefore, the classification of twelve Buddhist vehicles of Holy Tantra Esoteric Buddhism, in the cultural education of Buddhism, can maintain the uniqueness of each vehicle's concepts and doctrines, while achieving mutual consistency and perfect internal harmony. This also reveals the strong vital force of Holy Tantra Esoteric Buddhism. Several thousand years ago, our Patron Buddha Sakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment under the bodhi tree, and began to spread the seeds of Esoteric Buddhism throughout the Indian society. At that time, when Sakyamuni Buddha first turned the Dharma wheel with the first five monks, the sparks of Dharma were still tiny and few. However, after the challenges and influences through various periods of history, Buddhism has today grown into a major worldwide religion. A translation of a description of the current state being: "Surging are the Dharma ocean waves, the sky is filled with rainbows". |
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