Daosheng (Venerable) (360-434)

One of the foremost disciples of the Venerable Hwei Ywan (see entry), the Venerable Dau Sheng was a great enlightened master who is best known for his propagation of the teachings of the Mahayana and particularly the doctrine of the universality of Buddha-nature, even in ['those of insufficient faith'].

"At the time when only the first part of [the ] . . . had been translated into Chinese, Dharma Master Dau Sheng was lecturing on it in Soochow Province in JungGwo. When he came to the passage that said that lack the Buddha-nature, he didn't explain it that way, but he said instead that they have the Buddha-nature. His reasoning went like this:

"'Why is it that have the Buddha-nature? It is because all living beings have the Buddha-nature, and although have insufficient faith, they are living beings. Therefore, how can one say they lack the Buddha-nature?'

"He lectured on the question in a way opposite to the reading in the first half of the Sutra, which outraged the other Dharma Masters of his time. They protested, 'That's the talk of demonÄ kings! The Sutra which the Buddha spoke plainly says that don't have the Buddha-nature, yet he says they do. That's really messed up.' No one would have anything to do with him after that, and when he lectured on the sutras, no one came. The Dharma Masters ganged up and told all the disciples and good people of faith, 'If Dau Sheng lectures, don't go. Anyone who listens to his Sutra lectures will fall into the hells.'

Since the whole reason the good men and women of faith were studying the Buddhadharma was to avoid falling into the hells, when they heard they would fall into the hells if they went to Dharma Master Dau Sheng's Sutra lectures, they didn't dare go to listen.

"Dharma Master Dau Sheng was not one to remain silent, but was determined to deliver Sutra lectures. He said, 'Okay, you won't come to listen? Then I'll go lecture to the rocks and see what they do.' And so he went of to Hu Ch'iu Mountain and collected several hundred rocks from all over the area. He set them up in front of him and said, 'I invite you to a Sutra lecture. Be good rocks and sit there nice and still.' It turned out that the rocks were very obedient. They didn't run off or roll away, but stayed right where he put them. When he got to the passage about not having the Buddha-nature, he said, 'That isn't correct. have the Buddha-nature too. "Those with and without sentience identically perfect the wisdom of all modes." will become Buddhas too. I SAID DO HAVE THE BUDDHA NATURE! DO YOU AGREE?'

"What do you think the rocks did then? Probably, although they were supposed to enter , they had not quite gotten into it and had not yet had a chance to fall asleep. When the rocks heard the Dharma Master ask that question, they all jumped to attention and started moving. This dull rock nodded its head, and that dull stone nodded its head. They all nodded in agreement, bumping into each other, because each would hit the rock in front of it.

"Someone might wonder who verified that really happened. It is not something that the venerable Dau-sheng said himself. It was said by those who opposed him. How did they end up saying such a thing? The reason people were against him in the first place was that he lectured too well. His eloquence was unobstructed, as if lotuses were blooming on his tongue. Almost everyone was jealous of the way he could come up with explanations that never occurred to anyone else, and of how he could make the sutras come alive, as it were. That is the way people are. If someone is better than they are, they get jealous, and if they are better than someone else, they look down on that person. Living beings have that kind of knowledge and outlook. And so the people of his time formed a faction in opposition to Dharma Master Dau Sheng. When he went to the mountains to lecture to the rocks, some of them followed him on the sly to see what he was doing. Then, when he lectured there and all the rocks began to move, nodding their heads--without being blown by the wind or splashed by the rain--the Dharma Masters who were spying on him, those who believed in him and even those who were against him, all saw what occurred. That is the origin of the saying,

When the Venerable Dau Sheng spoke the Dharma,
Dull rocks nodded their heads.

"Afterwards, when the had been completely translated, it turned out that the Sutra itself says that also have the Buddha-nature. That proved that Dharma Master Dau Sheng had completely understood the doctrine without having seen the entire Sutra; it showed the extent of his wisdom and insight. Afterward this incident even those who had opposed him no longer did so and came to bow to him.

"The meaning of the dull rocks nodding their heads is that those who had no faith in him were the dull rocks--otherwise how could they have failed to believe in him? Yet in the end even those who had been jealous and opposed him prostrated themselves before him." (WM 71-73)

(Source: Epstein, 2003: pp. 48 - 50)

1) Chinese Mandarin: .

See also: Nirvana Sutra, Buddha-nature.

Buddhist Text Translation Society (http://www.BTTSonline.org) References: WM 71-73; VBS ; VS 151-152; FAS-PII(2) 145-149.

(NOTE: Numerous corrections and enhancements have been made under Shastra tradition and "Fair Use" by an Anonymous Buddhist Monk Redactor (Compiler) of this Online Buddhist Encyclopedia Compilation)

Primary Original Source: The Tripitaka Sutra, Shastra and Vinaya teachings
(as found in the scripture storehouse of the Indian Sanskrit-Siddham, Chinese, Tibetan and Japanese traditions of the Nalanda Tradition of ancient Nalanda University) of Shakyamuni Buddha, and his Arya Sagely Bodhisattva Bhikshu Monk and Upasaka disciples.

These Good and Wise Advisors (Kaliyanamitra) Dharma Master teachers include Arya Venerables Nagarjuna, Ashvaghosha, Aryasura, Kumarajiva, Shantideva, Chandrakirti, Chandragomin, Vasubandhu, Asanga, Hui Neng, Atisha, Kamalashila, Dharmarakshita, Tsong Khapa, Thogme Zangpo, Patanjali, Sushruta, Charaka, Vagbhata, Nichiren, Hsu Yun, Hsuan Hua, Shen Kai, Tenzin Gyatso, Kyabje Zopa, Ajahn Chah, Vasant Lad, and other modern day masters. We consider them to be in accord with Master Hsuan Hua’s "Seven Guidelines for Recognizing Genuine Teachers"

Nalanda Online University's teachings are based especially on the Dharma Flower Lotus Sutra, the Avatamsaka Sutra, the Shurangama Sutra, the Ksitigarbha Sutra, the Bhaisajya Guru Sutra, the Dharani Sutra, the Vajra Sutra, the Prajna Paramita Hridayam Sutra, the Guhyasamaja, the Kalachakra and their commentaries (shastras) by the above Arya Tripitakacharya Dharma Masters.

At Nalanda Online University we practice daily and introduce you to (via downloadable multimedia MP3 audio and WMV video lectures) the teachings and practices of the Five Traditions transmitted by the Buddha Shakyamuni:

1. Teaching School (Mahayana Sutrayana - Paramitayana - Hua Yan and Tian Tai, Yogachara, Nalanda Prasangika Madhyamika, Theravada Sutta)

See also: Tripitaka (1. Sutras, 2. Vinaya, 3. Shastras or Abhidharma, or Tantra), Taisho Catalog Numbering System, Dharma, and names of individual sutras (such as Shurangama Sutra, Avatamsaka Sutra [Flower Adornment Sutra], Lotus Sutra [Wonderful Dharma Flower Sutra], Earth Store Sutra, Dharani Sutra, Brahma Net Sutra, Medicine Master Buddha Sutra, Sixth Patriarch Platform Sutra, Sutra in 42 Sections, Sutra on the Buddha's Bequeathed Teaching, et al.

2. Moral Regulations School (Vinaya Pratimoksha Shila - Bodhisattva Pranidhana - Vajrayana-Samaya - Yogic Yama)

3. Esoteric School (Vajrayana - Mantrayana - Tantrayana - Dharani - Secret School of the Mahayana)

4. Meditation School (Indian Dhyana Samadhi - Shamatha - Vipassana, Chinese Chan, Japanese Zen,
        Tibetan Mahamudra of Kagyupa, and Tibetan Dzogchen of Nyingmapa)

5. Pure Land Devotional School (Bhakti Puja - Buddha-Bodhisattva Mindfulness and Nama Japa --
         Name Recitation of Buddhas Amitabha-Amitayus, Medicine Buddha - Bhaisajya Guru - Akshobhya,
         and Bodhisattvas: Avalokiteshvara-Guanyin-Chenrezig-Mahakala, Tara, Samantabhadra Universal Worthy,
         Manjushri-Kalarupa Great Wisdom, Maitreya Great Loving-Kindness, Mahasthamaprapta Great Strength,
         Ksitigarbha - Earth Store Great Vows, Vajrapani, Vajrasattva,
         Chandraprabha Moonlight Radiance, Suryaprabha Sunlight Radiance, Medicine King Bodhisattva, Medicine Superior Bodhisattva
         and others Dharma Protecting Dharmapala Lokapala Bodhisattvas, Gods and Goddesses)

Compilation Sources for the Above Material on the Teachings of the Buddha:

Primary Compilation Source: Epstein, Ronald B., Ph.D, compiler, Buddhist Text Translation Society's Buddhism A to Z, Burlingame, California: Buddhist Text Translation Society, 2003. ISBN: 0881393533 Paperback: 284 pages. www.BTTSOnline.org www.Amazon.com
http://www.bttsonline.org/product.aspx?pid=118 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0881393533/ref=ase_medicinebuddh-20

Secondary Compilation Source: The Seeker’s Glossary of Buddhism, 2nd ed., San Francisco, California: Sutra Translation Committee of the United States and Canada, 1998: www.budaedu.org.tw

Secondary Compilation Source: Muller, Charles, editor, Digital Dictionary of Buddhism [DDB], Toyo Gakuen University, Japan, 2007: Username is "guest", with no password.
http://buddhism-dict.net/ddb - Based in large part on the Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms with Sanskrit and English Equivalents (by Soothill and Hodous) Delhi, India: Motilal Banarsidass, 1997.

Secondary Compilation Source: Ehrhard, Diener, Fischer, et al, The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen, Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, 1991. 296 pages. ISBN 978-0-87773-520-5 www.Shambhala.com, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0877735204/ref=ase_medicinebuddh-20,
http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-0-87773-520-5.cfm

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Arya Bhikshu Shantideva’s Bodhisattvacharyavatara says:
Just as Manjushri works
To fulfill the aims of all limited beings
To the far reaches of space in the ten directions,
May my behavior become just like that.

For as long as space remains,
And for as long as wandering beings remain,
May I too remain for that long,
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(Like Ananda says in the Shurangama Sutra introduction to the Shurangama Mantra,
"And even could the nature of shunyata melt away, my vajra-like Supreme Resolve would still remain unmoved.)

Whatever sufferings wandering beings might have,
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And the source of all happiness,
Continue to endure for a very long time,
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Updated May 10, 2008