Teachings from Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju, recorded and transcribed by ’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe.
During the first session of the on February 7, 2025, Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju offered these profound insights into the nature of the mind.
The Dance of Mind and
To understand the path of practice, one must first distinguish between two states of the mind:
Intentionality: This occurs when you actively engage your thoughts, deliberately directing your mind toward a specific object or intention.
Non-intentionality: This is the state where you do not actively think or grasp. Instead, wisdom and action flow naturally, without the interference of the ego or deliberate effort.
For ordinary people, whether they are acting with intentionality or non-intentionality, their perception remains limited. Their Six Roots—the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind—can only perceive phenomena within the narrow scope of their physical and mental reach.
Refining the for the Infinite
Through the diligent practice of purifying , heart, and spirit, the practitioner undergoes a profound transformation. As the Six Roots become purified, the scope of what one can perceive expands significantly beyond that of an ordinary person who has not yet embarked on the path of practice.
When a practitioner acts with intentionality, their ability to perceive causes, conditions, and the interconnectedness of all things becomes vast and deep. When they act with non-intentionality, their responses are not merely learned habits, but the natural, spontaneous expression of their original nature.
Unveiling the Echoes of Past Lives
Consider the practitioner who has successfully lightened their afflictions through the cultivation of purity. When they apply intentionality, they can perceive events from their past lives. The depth and breadth of this knowledge are directly proportional to their level of purity:
The higher the level of purity, the further back in time the practitioner can see.
The more purified the mind, the more extensive and detailed their understanding of these past karmic connections becomes.
In contrast, ordinary people are almost always trapped in the state of intentionality. Even when they believe they are acting naturally, they are merely relying on learned knowledge and conditioned responses, rather than the true, spontaneous function of their original nature.
The Boundless Clarity of the Awakened
Those who have realised their true nature possess the wisdom of Prajna. This state is often described as having no knowledge, yet knowing everything. When an awakened being acts with intentionality, they know everything in the present moment with absolute clarity. When they act with non-intentionality, their wisdom flows naturally, as if they know nothing at all, yet they are perfectly responsive to the needs of the moment.
The Golden Brilliance of the Buddha
This principle is perfectly illustrated by the nature of Buddha-light. When a Buddha does not act with intentionality, the light is simply the natural, constant radiance emanating from the Buddha's body. When a Buddha acts with intentionality, it is a deliberate manifestation of light, used to bless, encourage, and guide sentient beings.
As recorded in The Infinite Sutra (The Buddha Speaks the , Infinite Life, Adornment, Purity, Impartiality, and Sutra), in the third chapter regarding the origin of the great teaching, it is said: "At that time, the World-Honoured One’s majestic light was brilliant and radiant, like a mass of molten gold." This describes the moment Shakyamuni Buddha manifested a magnificent, auspicious light—a brilliance so profound and incomparable that it resembled the glow of melting gold.
Whether one acts with intentionality or non-intentionality, the state of one’s heart and the quality of one’s practice will always be revealed through one's actions. May you continue to purify your heart and spirit, moving ever closer to the natural, radiant wisdom of the Buddha.
