Dharma and the “five hundred years”.

By Victor M Fontane

After the Buddha’s parinirvana, the “five hundred years” refers to the anti-Buddhist movement in ancient India, during which the oral transmission of the Dharma was eradicated along with the. As a result, although the scriptures remained, there were no teachers to expound the teachings in proper sequence. Looking into history, during the Shunga dynasty, monks were massacred and temples destroyed; palm-leaf manuscripts survived, yet those who could skillfully adapt the teachings to the needs of sentient beings were lost, as if the lamp of Dharma was about to be extinguished. (* solemn, reflective tone *)

Yet, the Diamond Sutra had long foreseen this calamity, stating: “After five hundred years, there will be those who uphold precepts and cultivate merit, who give rise to true faith in these verses.” This is because the Buddha-nature is inherently present in all beings, requiring no external conditions. Even without teachers to guide them step by step, if one gives rise to a single pure thought of faith, one directly realizes emptiness and thereby surpasses the merit of countless eons. This is the profound intention behind Bodhidharma’s journey eastward. At that time, as the Dharma calamity was about to befall India, he carried the Buddha’s mind-seal, established no written teachings, and traveled far to China, so that the essence of transmission outside the scriptures could continue. (* historical context, sense of mission *)

Just as Guru Padmasambhava entered Tibet and saw the flourishing of Bon rituals, he did not forcibly destroy their forms. Instead, he used their drums and bells as vessels, visualization of deities as oars, transformed sacrificial rites into offering gatherings, and turned fear into Dharma protectors. By using desire to tame desire, seeing selflessness in joy, transcending both suffering and happiness, purifying and defilement alike, such skillful means embody the Buddha’s original intent to teach according to circumstances. First, using “Dharma” to counter the attachments of ordinary people; next, using “non-Dharma” to break the attachments of the two vehicles; finally, using “neither Dharma nor non-Dharma” to free bodhisattvas from attachment. (* illustrative analogy, didactic tone *)

However, as the Dharma was transmitted, after the Buddha’s passing and the three councils, although the sacred words remained, the living wisdom that responded to conditions gradually became shackled by words. Later generations clung to names and forms, argued over schools and doctrines, not realizing that the Dharma is like a raft to cross the river and must be abandoned, and that even “non-Dharma” must be let go. Even with the Tripitaka and twelve divisions of scriptures, without a clear-eyed teacher, Buddhism becomes mere words on paper. (* critical reflection, lamentation *)

Yet, the Tathāgata-garbha (Buddha-nature) is eternally luminous. Hidden treasures may be buried in the heart of rocks, and lamps may be passed in darkness. Just as Guru Padmasambhava concealed termas (hidden teachings), awaiting the right conditions for tertöns (treasure revealers) to establish the stages of exoteric and esoteric teachings, blending Bon and Buddhism in Tibet, transforming poison into medicine. (* metaphor, historical allusion *)

Now, observing the age of the Dharma’s decline, scriptures and treatises are easily obtained, yet true practice and realization are rare; the internet widely disseminates teachings, but few truly accord with principle and circumstance. Yet, the Diamond Sutra had long prophesied: “If one gives rise to a single pure thought of faith, the Tathāgata knows and sees it all.” For the nature of Dharma is equal, not dependent on external forms; the Buddha’s wisdom is like space, encompassing all things. (* contemporary reflection, gentle admonition *)

Know that in times when the Dharma lineage is severed, it is precisely the opportunity for sentient beings to turn inward and reflect on their own minds. Merely by abandoning the four marks and cutting off a hundred negations, by not grasping Dharma nor non-D the ten directions of empty space all become Dharma teachers, and all Buddhas of the three times share in the same lamp of wisdom. The Dharma flows with conditions, and living prajñā (wisdom) arises from dead words. This is the true meaning of the “five hundred years” after the Buddha. Listen well! Listen well! (* exhortation, solemn conclusion *)