the ORIGIN OF THE YELLOW ROBE
Hsihu Center, Formosa Dec.31, 1995.Iheard that people who wear yellow clothes have fewer chances ofbeing possessed by the devil. Even if they were possessed, theywould become yellow demons, (laughter) instead of the (yellow)Maya King. (The words for yellow and king in Chinese are similarlypronounced.)
No wonder the monks in ancient times alwayswore yellow clothes. (Laughter) Even the kings wore yellow clothes- they dreaded being possessed! (Laughter) It seems that the coloryellow is quite useful in expelling evil. Perhaps the devil absolutelyhates yellow because it is ugly! (Master and everyone laugh.)Should you wish to become ugly, then wear yellow clothes. Peoplewho are possessed may wear yellow clothes. Also, face south whenyou meditate, and do the same when you sleep. I mean head to thenorth and feet to the south. This helps a little bit. In additionto reciting the Holy Names and meditating, find several personsto help you chant the Holy Names. After having been purified,then put on yellow clothes. (Master and everyone laugh.) I fearthat our Center will be full of yellow clothes later. (Masterand everyone laugh.) Even my eyes will become yellow, includingmyself!
Wearing yellow and sleeping with your headpointing the north is not good enough; you have to elevate yourmorality, and especially your wisdom. We should know that withinus is the Buddha-heart, the quality of God; it is impossible tohave anything diabolical inside. Do you understand? (Answer: Understand.)
However, we tend to forget when we sleep, sothe devil will sometimes come to annoy us. Perhaps we had someanimosities with him last life. To avoid this, we can wear yellowclothes when we sleep, (laughter) and face south. However, dothis only for a period of time. Otherwise, your family will behorrified, and say: "My God, he is already wearing yellowclothes, only his head is not shaved yet. What if he were to becomea monk?" (Master and everyone laugh.) You don't have to dothis all the time.
My opinion is that the ancient people woreyellow to expel evil, but the later generations do not properlyunderstand. In some places, the monks wear red; in other placesthey wear white or blue. It is due to the different traditionsin different places. They have forgotten the ancient and originalreason.
In olden times, there was originally no monastictradition, only some spiritual people who grouped together topractice their method - ways to expel the devil, or summon therain and wind, and so on. Or, they only longed for tranquillity,and contact with God. On and on, people who wanted to leave homeimitated them by living together to avoid sexual relationships.They thought this was more effective.
Some practicing methods demanded abstinencefrom sexual relationships, some abstinence from eating meat, someabstinence from taking certain kinds of food or alcohol, someof them wanted to prevent their morality from sinking. Later,when people observed that they got some results by practicingtogether, they realized the color yellow must have some effectin withstanding carnal influences. Therefore, they also wore yellow.When other people saw that they looked radiant and spiritual thisway, they too followed their dress code.
Therefore, since ancient times, the monks alwayswore yellow clothes. However, when Shakyamuni Buddha came, Hetold His disciples: "It is all right, as the customs andtraditions in each country are different, wherever you go, followthe people there and wear what they wear."
From then on, disciples of Shakyamuni Buddhawore different clothes when they went out. In Tibet, their clotheswear red, with only a little yellow on top. (Master laughs.) InChina, they wear black, or blue if they are more advanced in theirpractice. When they become a senior monk, then they can wear theyellow robe.
Infact, the color yellow was only meant forexpelling evil. The robe was not something to be awarded to advancedpractitioners. Afterwards, people regressed in their practice,but clung to their clothes instead. They said, "Hey! Onlya senior monk can wear the yellow robe!"
It remains the same in many places. Being anewcomer, you can only wear black. With a little promotion, youcan wear brown; further up then you wear blue. (So you went fromblack to blue!) You can wear the yellow robe only when you havereached the status of Head Monk. When I just began to practice,I met several Buddhist monks and nuns in Germany. I said, "Yourclothes are so beautiful and fresh looking. May I wear some likethem for a while?" (Master and everyone laugh.)
My female master told me, "Hey! Don'ttalk nonsense! (Master and everyone laugh.) How can you wear ourclothes? Do you know how many years we had to practice beforewe could wear these clothes?"
I said, "Oh! I see!" (Laughter) Thereare many other traditions. For instance, wow! A patched monk'srobe made of six strips of cloth is great, while one made of fourstrips is nothing. Being a female, I can never wear a patchedrobe in Au Lac. Fortunately, I took vows here in Formosa Chinaand can wear it. (Laughter) One becomes a Master very quicklyin Formosa. (Laughter and applause.)
Previously, when I was ordained in FormosaI wore the patched robe. That was why I became a Master so quicklyin Formosa. I would never have made it in Au Lac! (Master laughs.)There, females are never allowed to wear the patched robe.
In ancient times there were no such dress codes.Being new monastic disciples, Shakyamuni Buddha told all His monksand nuns to dye their clothes, and that they must not wear white.
Later, many of them went to preach in othercountries, and they reported to Shakyamuni Buddha after they cameback: "When we went out wearing yellow clothes, people feltthat we were strange, and would not listen to our preaching. Observingour bald heads and yellow clothes, people treated us like monsters,and fled when they saw us."
Therefore, Shakyamuni Buddha said: "Itis all right, just follow the traditions and customs of that country."
The truth is, as they practiced longer, soit was no longer important whether they wore yellow or not. Theyhad sufficient power, so there was no need to expel evil withthe yellow clothes. Shakyamuni Buddha said that it was not important.As long as they could go out to preach meant they were okay. Anyclothes they wore were okay! However, the troublesome thing is,later people kept hanging on to those clothes and forget the essenceof spiritual aspects!
