The Dharma Has No Fixed Form

(This image was created by Lay Practitioner Hui Hui.)

Teachings from the Teacher, recorded by Venerable HaiZe.

24 June 2023

The Compassionate Adaptability of the Dharma

Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju teaches: The Dharma has no fixed form. For Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, those who have realised their true nature, ancestral masters, or true spiritual friends—and for those who understand the Dharma and follow it accordingly—the Dharma is a living guide. As long as one does not violate the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way, one can utilise various methods to help all beings.

These methods are used to adjust our hearts and transform our actions. By helping us clearly understand the laws of karma and cause and effect, we learn to plant good causes to reap good fruits, and avoid planting negative causes that lead to evil consequences. This is essential to stabilise our Body-Mind-Spirit and ensure that our practice leads to success.

Guiding the Unstable Mind

The Dharma has no fixed form because the number of beings is infinite. When we have the Dharma, our hearts and actions have a reliable foundation upon which to rest. However, the hearts and actions of ordinary beings are inherently unstable; they shift and change according to the circumstances and conditions we encounter.

To address this, Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and true spiritual friends adapt their methods to guide our hearts and actions. They ensure that their guidance always remains within the bounds of the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way, never deviating from the path. Therefore, the Dharma has no fixed form; it is adjusted according to the needs of our hearts and transformed to suit our actions. If we can accept this guidance, be willing to change, and truly receive these teachings, we will surely benefit. We will eventually reach a state where our hearts and actions are stable, no longer disturbed or swayed by external influences, and we will be able to follow the Dharma perfectly without ever going astray.

The Essence of the Path

What is the Dharma? Changing your personality traits is the Dharma. Refraining from what is forbidden—and ensuring you do not violate the path—is the Dharma. Keeping the Precepts is the Dharma. Following the words of the Buddha and Practitioner Su is the Dharma. Breaking free from Greed, Anger, Ignorance, Arrogance, and Doubt is the Dharma.

Letting go of your attachment to wealth, lust, fame, food, and sleep is the Dharma. Anything that helps you do good, leave evil behind, and understand the laws of karma and cause and effect is the Dharma. Anything that helps you leave behind the suffering of reincarnation is the Dharma. Anything that helps you chant Namo Amituofo and be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss is the Dharma. Anything that helps you realise your true nature and attain Buddhahood is the supreme Dharma. Namo Amituofo.