A verse in one of the later text says, ‘That is truly empty which is empty of lust, hatred, and delusion.’* A mind is empty (unencumbered, disengaged, or free) when it is free of lust, hatred, and delusion.

People unfamiliar with Buddhism may ask you questions such as, ‘Why did the Buddha say the world is empty when it contains all these things? There is matter. There is mind. Isn’t the world just full up with things? What about all these creations?’

The Buddha once said concerning himself, ‘The Tathāgata dwells in the Temple of Emptiness (suññatā-vihāra).’ This ‘temple’ is a spiritual dwelling, not a physical one. Vihāra refers to a spiritual dwelling place, that is, a dwelling of mind and heart.

If asked this, we must not denigrate the Buddha by answering carelessly or recklessly with words that misquote him and belittle his worth.

If we are asked this question, we can answer with this saying of the Buddha: ‘O Ānanda, the Dhamma and the Discipline, which the Tathāgata has taught and demonstrated, let them be your teacher when I have passed away.’

The Buddha said, ‘Anyone who sees Dhamma, sees the Tathāgata. Anyone who does not see Dhamma, does not see the Tathāgata.

The Buddha’s own answer was that he paid homage to Dhamma and to Saṅgha communities with exemplary qualities. Saṅgha communities that conduct themselves well and practice properly can be said to possess exemplary qualities. So the Buddha respected Dhamma and Saṅgha communities of exemplary qualities.

In one of the Numerical discourses*, the Buddha speaks of future generations, which includes our own, as ‘rejoicing in unrighteous pleasures, being too much given to covetousness, and pursuing false Dhamma.’

The Buddha laid down a principle for testing: examine and measure against the Suttas (discourses) and compare with the Vinaya (discipline). This principle is based on not believing anything second hand and not taking anyone else as sole authority.

There have been some who have argued vehemently that we must hear Dhamma from the Buddha himself, that only then could we really understand. But the Buddha himself said that there were some who, though they hadn’t heard Dhamma directly from him, would still be able to walk the right path.

Many Westerners have written books on Buddhism, and they seem to be most proud of the chapters dealing with kamma (Sanskrit, karma) and rebirth. However, their explanations are wrong, quite wrong every time.

Concerning ordinary practice, we might answer ‘The noble eightfold path.’ You have probably heard the details, namely, right understanding, right aim, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. This is called noble eightfold path.

We shall consider a perspective that gives some understanding of the difference in level between the minds of ordinary people and the minds of Buddhists who actually practice.

If you are asked this, answer with the Buddha’s advice from the Kālāma Sutta: believe one’s own clear seeing. What is meant by ‘seeing clearly?’

Answer once again by quoting the Buddha: ‘The five khandhas are impermanent (anicca) and not-self (anattā).’ These five khandhas are the five aggregates into which a person is divisible.

The Buddha called it suññatāppaṭisaṃyuttā which means ‘Dhamma connected with suññatā,’ or even ‘suññatā’ itself. Dhamma that is permeated with suññatā is Dhamma at its highest and most profound.