Heaven of Comfort Gained Through Others’ Transformations
Joy in this heaven comes forth transformationally from other heavenly beings. They can transfer the joys of other heavens to this heaven with their spiritual powers. Heavenly demons, not real spirits or gods, live in the Heaven Comfort Gained Through Others’ Transformations.
The above are the Six Desire Heavens: The Heaven of the Four Kings, the Tryastrimsha Heaven, the Suyama Heaven, the Tushita Heaven, the Blissful Transformations Heaven, the Heaven of Comfort Gained Through Others’ Transformations. Why are these heavens the six heavens of desire? Heavenly beings still have lust and impure thoughts. When I was lecturing on the Shurangama Sutra during the summer, I talked about these Six Desire Heavens already. I believe none of you enjoyed it so you returned it to me. So I am giving it to you again now.
The beings of the Six Desire Heavens have lust. Beings in the Heaven of Four Kings and Tryastrimsha Heaven engage in lust, similar to human beings. How come? They all have physical form. The beings in the Heaven of Four Kings and the Tryastrimsha Heaven also marry. There are couples and father and son relationships. What size is a newborn in the Heaven of Four Kings? The same size as a five-year-old in the human realm. And in the Tryastrimsha Heaven? The same size as a seven-year-old in the human realm. A newborn in the Suyama Heaven is the same size as a ten-year-old in the human realm. Newborns this size come out and sit on the knees of heavenly beings. Once they are born, they wait to eat a kind of natural, celestial dew that form spontaneously. After they are done, they become the size of heavenly beings, which is half a mile in height and 500 years in the length of life. This is the Heaven of Four Kings.
As it is said, “The Heaven of Four Kings and the Tryastrimsha Heaven engage in desire through embrace.” Sexual activity in the Heaven of the Four Kings and the Tryastrimsha Heaven is the same as the human realm. “Suyama through hand-holding and Tushita through smiling.” Sexual activity between men and women in the Suyama Heaven occurs simply by holding hands. The same way Westerners greet each other by shaking hands, for example. This gesture is enough to count as sexual activity between couples in the heavens. This is the Suyama Heaven. And the Tushita Heaven Men and women engage in sexual activity just by smiling at each other. Heavenly beings of that place do not smile usually. Why? Their emotional desire is very light, nearly none. In the Six Desire Heavens, the higher the heaven, the lighter the desire.
How come we people have to eliminate desire and cut off love as we cultivate? Why do we want to be free of thoughts of desire? It is because the more thoughts of desire we have, the more delusions we have; the fewer thoughts of desire, the more wisdom we develop. Thoughts of desire belong to the Evil World of Five Turbidities. What are turbidities? Thoughts of desire are most turbid and unclean. Desire in the Heaven of the Four Kings is the same as emotions and desires in the human realm. Compare the [[Tryastrimsha Heaven to the Heaven of the Four Kings, it is still lighter, hence lust only requires shaking hands.
“Suyama through hand-holding and Tushita through smiling.” I have already talked about this during the summer. Let me explain it again, if I do not, you all forget. “The Heaven of Four Kings and the Tryastrimsha Heaven engage in desire through embrace. Suyama through hand-holding and Tushita through smiling. Bliss from Transformations through long stares and Bliss from Others through glances. These are the joys of desire in the six heavens.” They just smile at each other in the Tushita Heaven. We people think smiling is a good thing; smiling is not good. There is desire in smiles. When you get to the Heaven of Suyama, people wish to cultivate and work hard, very few people shake hands. Shaking hands is equivalent to sexual activity between couples. In the Tushita Heaven, this consists of smiling at each other. In the Heaven of Bliss from Transformations, this consists of long stares between men and women. “Long” may be one minute or five minutes. They just look at each other for as long as one or two minutes. In the Bliss of Others’ Transformations, a quick glance will do it. No need to look long. This is the way sexual behavior between men and women work in the Six Desire Heavens. The higher the heaven, the lighter the desire is. If your desires were heavy, you would not become born in the heavens either. When you are in those heavens, you do not have much desire. This is the joy from desire in the Six Desire Heavens.
There are three heavens in the First Dhyana, three heavens in the Second Dhyana, and three heavens in the Third Dhyana. The three heavens of the First Dhyana are the Heaven of the Brahma Multitudes, the Heaven of the Ministers of Brahma and the Great Brahman Heaven.
