Deep Commentary

The purpose of reciting the Buddha's teachings is to understand their profound meaning and apply them in daily practice; only then does it bring benefit. Reciting sutras extensively but with a distracted mind, or merely out of routine, brings no true benefit and can even have an adverse effect. Many practitioners merely focus on the quantity of recitations to gain merit, counting the number of sutras read. The more they recite, the more they feel superior to others, which breeds arrogance. In Zen history, there is a famous story of a monk who went to pay respects to a great Zen master. When bowing, the monk's head did not touch the floor. The master rebuked him, asking what great achievement he was harboring to make him so proud. The monk proudly replied that he had recited a major sutra three thousand times. The master then taught him a profound lesson: reciting texts without understanding their essence and letting go of pride is merely chasing sounds. True practice is illuminating the mind. Realizing his error, the monk understood that without grasping the ultimate truth, chanting thousands of times is useless. If one recites sutras with the mouth alone, without genuinely practicing the teachings, it is empty recitation. Such a person is like a hired cowherd who merely counts the cows for the owner but never tastes their milk. Or, in modern terms, like a bank teller who counts money all day long but owns none of it; they only receive a meager wage for their labor. Conversely, even if we do not recite many sutras, but diligently and strictly apply the Buddha's core teachings in our daily lives, it is enough for liberation. Verse 20 clearly explains the true benefit of recitation. The practitioner must practice according to the teachings. If one merely recites—as if trying to earn merit or recite for the Buddha to hear—but does not practice, a lifetime of recitation will yield no benefit. Some recite from youth to old age, yet their three poisons (greed, anger, and ignorance) remain entirely intact. Why? Because the Buddha taught us to recite so we can understand and eradicate greed, anger, and ignorance, not to beg for blessings. It is like a sick person who gets a prescription from a doctor; they must buy and take the medicine to be cured. If they just hold the prescription and read it all day without taking the medicine, they cannot blame the doctor for not getting well! Even more absurd would be reading the prescription aloud to the doctor, hoping to please him. The doctor would only think the patient is foolish. If we are not careful, we act just like that foolish patient. We take the sutras spoken by the Buddha and chant them back to Him, sometimes even training our voices to sound musical, thinking the Buddha will praise us. The Buddha would only feel pity for us! These two verses are a profound wake-up call regarding the study and recitation of scriptures. The Buddha clearly taught what kind of recitation is beneficial for spiritual practice and what is not. The rest depends on our application. Therefore, when reciting, we should read slowly and clearly, reflecting on every word to understand the teachings. If there is something we do not understand, we should seek guidance from knowledgeable spiritual friends. Afterward, we must strive to apply it in our daily lives. Only then will we gain real benefit and truly be someone who knows how to recite sutras. For monastics reciting in a congregation, instruments are used to keep the rhythm, but the core principle remains the same. The emphasis here is on the essence of reciting according to the Dharma versus merely following rituals without understanding.