master fazang: when you believe in the inconceivable state of buddhas and bodhisattvas

beyond your own experience rationality

generally speaking, we talk about "empirical rationality", which means: when it rains, we have to collect our clothes. this is a kind of "rational thinking" formed by human experience. although it conforms to human "experience", it is not equal to "truth"!

in a certain time and space, the same "experience" can be repeated again and again, so as to "summarize and infer" this experience based on hypotheses or earlier experiences, and thus obtain new conclusions. this is called "empirical rationality". however, humans cannot "use them all", or even "only" humans' own "empirical rationality" to see everything in the dharma realm.

the biggest obstacle to believing in buddhism is that human beings are attached to their own experience and rationality, and then become arrogant and say: based on "human experience", i think "what is credible and what is untrustworthy" and "i earn money, my wife is married, and i just need to do "good things". i can judge and decide all the value and right and wrong of myself. therefore, why should i convert?

the question is how do you define what is "trusted and untrustworthy"? what is "good thing"? what is a "good person"? humans have records of historical civilization, but in just a few thousand years, humans have not been able to travel outside the moon. can humans' unconsciously trained knowledge, experience and reason really thoroughly and unmistakably explore the truth of the universe and life?

is fishing a good thing? of course, so the law does not prohibit it! is eating meat a good thing? of course, it's delicious, it's sold everywhere, and it's not illegal.

these so-called "good things" are actually just human self-centered "collective" experience cognition, or selfish "common identification"! in terms of fish and "animal cognition" that is slaughtered, it is by no means a good thing.

in fact, when you are hurting people or animals, in terms of the law of cause and effect in the universe, we must bring retribution! however, in the experience of ordinary people, they think that it is a good thing, so they ignorantly think: "i am a good person." why do you learn buddhism if you are a good person? why convert? that is what only people who fail in love, suffer, foolish, and cowardly will do.

people are too confident in this narrow empirical rationality, so the world is always full of disputes, greed, selfish and arrogant. therefore, an intelligent person must know how to transcend his own experience and rationality, and have extraordinary ideas and opinions in order to transcend his life.