Part 3 - The Precious Human Body

As for the third class:

Supremely excellent beings, spotless vessels of Dharma,
Apply their powers to what they hear and contemplate.
Having tamed themselves, they establish others in goodness.
They are immovable in their practice, like Mount Meru.
All these genuine sages, like banners of saintliness,
Whether they are householders or renunciates,
Are taught by the Teacher to have the precious human body.

After having tamed ourselves by hearing, contemplating, and the yogic resting of meditation, we also urge others to goodness. That is the good gate of auspicious Dharma. Putting on the great armor of liberation, is the great banner of the sages.

Calling this clothing a “victory banner” is not just a figure of speech. When we urge others to work for the good, whether we live in a house or are renunciates, this is called having the precious human body. The Sutra of Glorious Secret (dpal sbas kyi mdo) says:

Glorious Secret, though you have heard much about this, listen to this. Think about its meaning. By meditating without kleshas, produce yogic union. If we also urge others to do this, this is called producing the essence of the freedoms and favors, the most sublimely beautiful thing in this world including its gods. This is called the precious freedoms and favors.

Also the Middle Length Prajñaparamita says:

Subhuti, those who are bodhisattvas say, "I practice the good," to exhort others to do the same. Producing the essence of the freedoms and favors, this is praised by all the buddhas. I praise it. I honor it.

As to how others should be exhorted the Vast Play says:

All compounded things will quickly be destroyed.
Like lightening in the sky, they cannot last for long.
As your time is therefore drawing ever nearer,
The time has come for discipline to manifest.

The great master Chandrakirti says:

First for a little while all the listeners
Will certainly be joined to small talk and the like.
When they become good vessels, after that occurs,
That is the time to relate to them with deeper words.

That is how it should be done. Being such a vessel is applicable to all the vehicles. In particular, as for the freedoms and favors of the unsurpassable vessel, the Jewel of Space Sutra says:

The bodhisattva Aakashagarbha^[1] asked, "Bhagavan, how should the freedoms and favors be viewed?"

This was the Word of the Buddha: If they are divided up by the discursive conceptions of mind, they are abused. This should be known as disrupting what we are engaged in. After discursive conceptions of mind have been pacified, resting within mind’s nature is known as freedom. The favors are knowing the nature of mind. Since we are favored with the attainment^[2] of what mind really is, that is
being well-favored.