Performing official duties in government to benefit people does not hinder Buddhist practice. As mahabodhisattvas, we need to learn and gain myriad aspects of mundane and transmundane wisdom through the duties and roles we come across with in our countless lives on the basis of the permanent, solid, and true Buddha-nature that each of us inherently has. Through this, we can purify the tainted seeds stored in us and gain the merits required to advance our Buddhist cultivation and eventually attain Buddhahood.
The prerequisites for achieving Buddhahood include fully eliminating two types of vexations: ignorance in a single thought (moha) and the beginningless ignorance (avidyā). These vexations can be removed through the two simultaneous practices of inner-mind purification and outer physical performances as the intentions in our minds will affect our external behaviors on the basis of the conditions we will encounter, which are essentially the contents of the entire Buddhist cultivation. As taught by Buddha Sakyamuni, among others, this process consists of practicing the six paramitas to benefit sentient beings and the four methods of embracement, which correspond to the initial aspirational vows we made to attain the unsurpassed wisdom so as to help sentient beings. Eventually, throughout the needed period of three incalculable eons, these practices will build up and adorn our future Pure Buddha Land.
According to many sutras and treaties, Buddha Sakyamuni was often a king or a high-ranking official in his multiple past lifetimes. Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra states, “To correctly and fully embrace sentient beings (S: samyak-sattva-parigraha)” (Vol. 46). This quote illustrates that there are substantial ways of embracing and benefiting beings with our cultivations as bodhisattvas. During the period spanning three incalculable eons of Buddhist cultivation, we might become kings or government officials. If our role is that of a king, for example, we should not inflict suffering on people; on the contrary, we should ensure their safety and ban cruel punishments, and we should guide people with the True Dharma and enrich them with the correct wisdom and wealth. A decent king should strive to make his kingdom self-sufficient rather than invade other territories to satisfy his personal greed. He should teach his people not to commit evil deeds but to instead practice good deeds. He ought to treat them as a father treats his children, and he should be a man of his word. On top of the foregoing, it is most important for a Buddhist to examine and reflect upon his intention of staying true to these principles. This is the notion of a bodhisattva’s fundamental embracement of all sentient beings.
Self-cultivation in the pursuit of the bodhisattva path is different from the pursuits of the people in the secular world. The minds of Buddhist disciples who cultivate the bodhisattva path are fixed on the prosperity of Buddhism, the benefits of sentient beings, and how to attain the ultimate wisdom of Buddhahood while accumulating the necessary merits. Thus, Buddhist disciples can certainly engage in politics by following their current karmic conditions, but they should constantly bear in mind that their engagement in politics should only be for the sake of cultivating themselves in their pursuit of their bodhisattva path and achieving Buddhahood.
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