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Maitreya's Difficulties Sutra 1
Today at Cam Lộ Temple, during the winter retreat, the Di Lặc Nạn Kinh (Freedom from Sensual Desire) – corresponding to the Tissa Metteyya Sutta in Pali – was studied. The sutra was translated into Chinese by lay friend Chi Khiêm (early 3rd century), consisting of ten verses similar to the Pali version, which was transmitted orally for 500–600 years before being written on palm leaves about 400–500 years after the Buddha’s passing (Sri Lanka, around 100 BCE). This period marks the transition from oral transmission to written scripture; Southern Buddhism spread thanks to Prince Mahinda and his sister, who brought the Tripitaka.
The young man Tissa Metteyya – a disciple of the Brahmin teacher Bavari – together with sixteen young disciples, went to Rajagaha to seek the World-Honored One, because Bavari was under the curse of “having his head split” after making an offering. The Buddha taught that “the head” is the mass of ignorance, and to break it requires five energies:
- faith
- diligence
- mindfulness
- concentration
- insight
The World-Honored One emphasized that sensual desire in the presence of “female form” – which includes male with female, female with male, or same-gender attraction – is the root of delusion, causing monastics to lose the opportunity for liberation. When the mind is obsessed by sensual craving, we forget the Buddha’s teachings and the order of practice: mindfulness–concentration–insight. A monastic must maintain “beginner’s mind,” firmly uphold their original aspiration, and let go of unwholesome sensual desire so as not to lose their moral integrity, reputation, and the ability to distinguish right from wrong on the path of practice.