Stepping Into the Mahayana World: When Wisdom Transcends Imagination

Have you ever tried to count all the sand in a river? Then imagine each grain of that sand becoming another river, and adding them all together? That is precisely the kind of number the Mahayana sutras use to describe the worlds of the Buddhas. Just hearing it feels overwhelming, doesn't it?

A Boundless World Opens Before Us

When we step into the Mahayana teachings, we feel as if we are lost in a vast universe far beyond human understanding. Numbers like the sands of the Ganges, countless worlds beyond measure—these render our limited brains helpless. Venerable Thích Chân Quang once said:

"If we use our heads, with this brain of ours, we start counting from one and soon we falter... by the time we reach ten billion, many people have already gone mad. But compared to the number of sands in the Ganges, ten billion is nothing."

He explained that these numbers were spoken by those who have cultivated realization and possess absolutely pure minds. As for us, if we insist on using ordinary thinking to picture them, we will only end up in the asylum. Yet it is precisely this boundlessness that opens a new horizon for our spiritual aspiration, if we know how to practice letting go of our attachment to limited thinking.

Where Did the Mahayana Sutras Come From?

Many people come to the Buddha's teachings (Dharma) through the Mahayana path, believing these are the words of the Buddha, and that very belief gives them strength. But as information circulated, people discovered that the Mahayana sutras may not have been spoken directly by the Buddha. The Venerable recounted:

"In the early days, whenever someone who had placed their faith in the Mahayana scriptures heard that the Mahayana sutras were not spoken by the Buddha, most of them would have jumped into the Saigon River at Binh Loi Bridge and ended their lives."

He himself was shaken when he first heard this. But later, after careful study, he understood that Mahayana arose from humanity's need for spiritual development. Though not the Buddha's direct words, its spirit still comes from the Buddha, and it serves as a bridge, opening the heart toward the infinite.

Harmony Among the Schools

Throughout history, there have been many misunderstandings between the Southern and Northern schools. But for the Venerable, both are guardians of the Buddha's teachings (Dharma), simply standing at different vantage points. He shared a moving memory:

"I asked permission to bow in homage to them. So I knelt down and paid homage to the venerables. Oh, the young Theravada monks stood watching in awe, deeply moved, because it was the first time they had ever seen a Mahayana teacher kneel down before Theravada monks."

He emphasized that we all venerate the same Buddha, believe in the same cause and effect (karmic law), the Four Noble Truths, and the Noble Eightfold Path. So why should we discriminate against one another? Within the Vietnamese Buddhist Sangha, the harmony among the schools is a great success, a model for the whole world. Let us love one another first of all.

Instinct and the Drive to Progress

Human beings differ from animals in that we are always driven to improve, to develop. And one of those driving forces is boredom. The Venerable offered this analogy:

"A rooster can crow from the moment it learns to crow until the day it lands in the pot of boiling water, crowing with flair... it never varies its tune. But human beings—humans cannot stand it... when something delightful becomes repetitive, humans grow bored."

This very boredom has propelled civilization forward, yet it can also shatter many families. On the path, it urges us to seek something new, something higher. And Mahayana is precisely the door that opens onto the infinite, answering humanity's never-bored longing for truth.

Reverence for the Buddha in the Age of Dharma Decline

When the Buddha entered nirvana, he had already liberated all those who needed liberating. He said that even if he lived longer, he could do nothing more. But in our time, we do not have a Buddha, so the fruit of sainthood is difficult to ripen. The Venerable pointed out how to compensate:

"Today we do not have that. So today we make up for it by forcing ourselves, compelling ourselves to generate absolute reverence for the Buddha. Especially when we kneel before the solemn Buddha altar."

If we can rekindle boundless reverence in our mind/heart, the fruit of Stream-Entry can still sprout. That is the hope in this age of Dharma decline. Let us practice living in that reverence, so that our spiritual aspiration is nourished each day.

The Mahayana world is not for those who wish to grasp it with intellect alone. It is for hearts that are wide open, ready to believe in what transcends the ordinary. Walk in reverence, harmony, and love—that path will carry us to the shore of enlightenment, however long and far the journey may be.