The Ten Dharma Realms

 

The six realms in Master Hakuin's chant refers to the lower six realms of the ten dharma-realms. The top four realms are the heavenly realms and the dwellers therein are immune from falling into the lower six realms, referred to by Master Hakuin as the six worlds. The ten dharma-realms are:

1. The dharma-realm of the Buddhas; this is the highest dharma-realm and is beyond words, beyond conception. It is experienced only by a Buddha. As Ch’an master Hsuan Hua says, Yes, we are all Buddhas but until we awaken we are false Buddhas.

2. The dharma-realm of the Bodhisattvas; this is the second highest realm. One simple definition of a Bodhisattva is “A Buddha to be.” The vow of all Bodhisattvas is to help all sentient beings attain enlightenment and not to enter into Nirvana until then. A Bodhisattva is thus a Buddha who has postponed entry into Nirvana. The Bodhisattva is the ideal of Mahayana Buddhism, revered even more than a Buddha.

3. The dharma-realm of those Enlightened to Conditions and the dharma realm of the Pratyeka Buddhas, those who have become enlightened without a teacher, i.e., when there is no Buddha in the world. This is the dharma realm attained by those who have understood the Doctrine of Dependent Origination which is one of the most impenetrable of Buddhist doctrines.

4. The dharma-realm of the Arhats. The Arhats are the enlightened masters of the Theravada school of Buddhism. I have no idea why they are ranked lower than the other three. Mahayana Buddhism says that the Arhats enter into Nirvana without saving others and thus lack the altruism of a Bodhisattva. That sounds unfair; one who has overcome the taints of selfhood could never be selfish. Suffice it to say that the top four dharma realms are all beyond human thought and comprehension; the sentient beings of those realms have transcended self and cannot fall into the lower six realms which are the realms of desire, the realms of suffering.

5. The dharma-realm of the gods. The gods in this realm, unlike the enlightened beings of the above four realms, are perfectly capable of anger, jealousy, and other human traits, just like the God of the Bible. The dharma-realm of the gods is one of the six dharma-realms referred to in Hakuin's chant, meaning that the gods of the sixth dharma-realm are subject to birth and death because they believe, under delusion, that they have an independent self. These gods can fall from the sixth realm into all five of the lower realms. Master Hakuin refers to this when he says: "We endlessly circle the six worlds," i.e., all of us visit the lower six realms until we awaken to the heavenly realms through dint of diligent daily practice.

6. The dharma-realm of humans. This is the first dharma-realm that we can truly say exists, based upon our own experience. A human in one lifetime can visit all six of the lower realms. Master Hsuan Hua says that when we are very worried about something, angry, sad, hateful, or experiencing some other negative emotion, we are "taking a vacation in hell."

7. The dharma-realms of the asuras. The asuras have god-like powers but they fight all the time. They penetrate all six of the lower realms. Thus we will meet people and animals who are aggressive, always ready for a fight.  Master Hsuan Hua says the “good” asuras in human form are usually military or police personnel who do not start fights and the “bad” asuras are thieves and murderers.

8. The dharma-realm of animals. Another dharma-realm that we know exists. Greedy people who scorn the poor while spouting the philosophy of "eat, drink, and be merry" are pursuing re-birth in this realm. As Master Hsuan Hua says: If you want to be a dog, think like a dog. He says that greed conditions rebirth in this awful realm.

9. The dharma-realm of hungry ghosts. Another weird dharma-realm but we can see some evidence of it. Look at humans suffering from malnutrition, with swollen bellies. Rage and hatred lead to re-birth in this realm, where stomachs are large, throats are small, and hunger is not satiated. Some writers say that gluttony, a form of greed, is the cause of rebirth in this realm.

10. The dharma-realm of the hells. The Christian religion uses the concept of hell as a weapon of psychological terrorism. Believe in Jesus or suffer the fires of hell forever. This is yet another doctrinal point where Buddhism differs from Christianity. The Buddha taught that we send ourselves to hell; no third party does that to us.

On virtuous deeds you rise, offenses make you fall.

It has nothing to do with anyone else at all. - Ch'an Master Hsuan Hua.

Another teacher said: “The karma of killing 900 people is the knowledge that you have killed 900 people.”

The Buddha also taught that things always change; not even hell is permanent. Thus the Buddhist concept of hell is not used as a weapon to scare people to attend Buddhist services; it is used as a teaching tool. Our present actions determine our future fate. So instead of lying, stealing, killing people and animals, our time is better spent cultivating joy, loving kindness, repenting, following the precepts, performing prostrations and taking refuge, chanting, reciting the name of the Buddha, studying the sutras, practicing meditation, and leading others to the Buddhadharma.