dharma like a river crossing. Dhamma or scriptures are the teachings of the Buddha, that is the truth, the truth, what the Buddha realized, discovered and preached, bringing peace and liberation to the practitioner. The Bible is a priceless treasure that brings people to peace, liberation, and Nirvana. But in many suttas, the Buddha teaches the Dharma as a raft used to cross a river. We can see this statement in the Vajra Sutra belonging to the Prajna family: "Necessary Tu-dala is like the moon and moon", roughly translated: All scriptures are like a finger pointing to the moon. The Buddha emphasized more: "The second level of bhikkhus, the tri-self teaches the dharma as the false hypocrisy, the superior dharma is satisfied, and the law is illegal". Meaning: Hey, bhikkhus, you should know that my teaching is like a raft taking people across a river; The Dharma also discharges, let alone illegal. Folks often say, Crossing the river must take a boat. Because he is grateful for the boat that took him to the river, he got ashore, but his heart is still longing and regretful. It's a daily love, everyone's life is like that. But here the Buddha shows a resolute attitude so that Buddhist learners need to clearly distinguish, where is the means, where is the end. Because many people mistakenly believe that the means are the end, they cling to the means and give up the goal. Many people chant sutras every day, maintain sutras and prostrate themselves, but do not understand what the sutras say, and assume that they recite thousands of times, bow down to several sets of sutras, and then show them off to the world to prove that they have cultivated. But chanting and maintaining sutras in order to understand the meaning of the Buddha's teachings in the sutras and then practice according to them are true Buddhist practitioners. As a result, the Vajra Sutra uses its dialectical negation to break down the concepts of clinging to beings. This conceptual smash may shake ordinary people, but that is the motto of the true student of the Way. Not only in the Mahayana sutras, but the Theravada Buddhist scriptures say the same thing. The Sutra on Parables of the Snake (Middle Way, No. 22) also has the content and image of the raft: "Bhikkhus, it is as if a person were walking on a long, long road to a large body of water, on the other side of the river. This place is dangerous and scary, the other shore is safe and fearless, but there is no boat to cross or no bridge to cross from one shore to the other. He thinks to himself: 'This is wide water, this shore is dangerous and fearful, the other shore is safe and fearless, but there is no boat to cross or no bridge to cross from shore to shore. that. Now let us gather grass, trees, branches and leaves, tie them up into a raft, and rely on this raft, diligently using our hands and feet, can safely cross to the other side'. Then, bhikkhus, that person gathers grass, trees, branches, and leaves, ties them together into a raft, and thanks to this raft, diligently uses his hands and feet to safely cross over to the other shore. When he has crossed to the other side, he thinks: 'This raft is of great benefit to me, thanks to this raft, I diligently use my hands and feet to safely cross the other shore. Now let us put this raft on our heads or carry it on our shoulders, and go wherever we want. Monks, what do you think? Bhikkhus, if that person does so, is he doing what is right for the raft? - The Blessed One, no. - Monks, how should that person make the right use of the raft? Here, bhikkhus, that person, after crossing over to the other side, may think: 'This raft is of great benefit to me. Thanks to this raft, I diligently used my hands and feet to safely cross the other shore. Now let's pull this raft up on dry land, or submerge it in the water, and go where we want.' Bhikkhus, by doing so, that person does the right thing to use that raft. In the same way, bhikkhus, I preach the Dharma as a raft to be crossed, not to be grasped. Monks, you need to understand the example of a raft... The Dharma must be abandoned, let alone illegal." The Aletra Sutra, (Conclusion of the Pentateuch, 205) explains: “How often do I tell you about the parable of the raft, so that you know how to let go, not to cling? Understanding the Dharma in a wrong way, one can enter into obstinacy, from stubbornness one goes deep into error, causing suffering to oneself and to others. The Buddha said: "O friends! Listen, understand and practice the Dharma intelligently. Thus the new Dharma brings a practical benefit. A good snake catcher knows how to use a stick with crutches and block the snake's neck and eventually catch the snake at its neck. If you don't know how to catch a snake but grab it by the back or tail, the snake may turn around and bite your hand. To study the teachings, one must learn to be as intelligent as catching a snake. Hey guys! The teaching is a means to show the truth, don't accept the means as the truth. The finger pointing to the moon is not the moon. Without that finger, you don't know the direction of the moon, but if you mistake your finger for the moon, you won't be able to see the moon forever. The teachings are the raft that carries people across the river. The raft is essential, but the raft is not the other shore. A smart person when he reaches the other side and then never foolishly puts the raft on his head and goes. Hey guys! The Dharma I teach is the raft that takes you across the shores of birth and death. You must use the raft to cross the shore of birth and death without holding onto the raft. You need to understand this example well so that you don't get caught up in the teachings, so that you have the ability to let go of the teachings. Hey guys! The Dharma still needs to be let go, let alone the wrong Dharma. The Dharma misunderstood is not the Dharma. Gentlemen, all the teachings that you have learned such as the Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path, the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, the Seven Factors of Enlightenment, impermanence, no-self, suffering, emptiness, formlessness, non-action... all these Dharma you must study and practice intelligently and wisely. Use those teachings to reach liberation, but don't get caught up in them." (The old road of white clouds, Thich Nhat Hanh) The Dharma of the Tathagata is not the truth, but it does not leave the truth. Like a finger pointing to the moon, finger is not the moon. Those who do not know the moon must rely on their fingers to see the moon. Truth is inconceivable, so it cannot be described by words and reasoning. We should not cling to words and letters, but must follow them to find out the truth, like a person who leans on his finger to see the moon. If you just stare at your finger, you won't be able to see the moon. The Buddha continued to teach: "Bhikkhus, the teaching is the raft that carries people across the river, from the shore of delusion to the shore of enlightenment. Enthusiasts have to use rafts to cross the river of birth and death. But when he reached the shore, the raft became useless, the raft had to be abandoned, rather than put the raft on its head and go." And the goal of the sutra can be likened to a map that leads sentient beings away from the afflictions and sufferings, towards a peaceful and peaceful life in the present and beyond, escaping from the Three Realms to Nirvana. supreme table. But because sentient beings are different in terms of temperament and level, there are also many different sutras (instructions), i.e. many different methods and means. The Buddha is a great physician, before he speaks, he observes the audience, knows the capacity of the listeners to give appropriate teachings to cure their illness. Each of His teachings is aimed at a certain purpose, for a certain audience and in a certain country or time, to untangle them. And because the deluded minds of sentient beings are always attached to dharmas, in the phenomenal world, the Buddha found it difficult to talk about what he had realized, such as talking about Buddha-nature, the true mind, which is not. form, not quantity. To say that sentient beings have Buddha-nature is an attachment, to say that there is no Buddha-nature is false hope. To say that Buddha-nature also exists is not to say contrary to each other, to say that Buddha-nature does not exist is not no nonsense. Therefore, the Buddha used worldly methods to lead sentient beings across the shore of peace and liberation. Therefore, the essence of Buddhist learners is to use the means to reach the end. Nirvana, enlightenment, and liberation are the goals of spiritual practice. If you practice without aiming for that noble goal, it will be useless. Liberation is the goal of spiritual practice. If you practice without aiming for that noble goal, it will be in vain. Liberation is the goal of spiritual practice. If you practice without aiming for that noble goal, it will be useless.END=NAM MO SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).WORLD VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST ORDER=BUDDHIST DHARMA WHEEL GOLDEN MONASTRY=THE WOMEN OF THE SAKYA CLAN CHAN TANH.AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.26/2/2023.VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THE WOMEN OF THE SAKYA CLAN CHAN TANH.