“The second group is ‘those who do not know that they know.’ Some in this group are
similar to the first: they don’t know who they are, where they come from, what they are
doing, where they are going, and how to get there. However, because at certain times,
their state of consciousness, composed of the five senses, weakens or becomes relaxed,
coupled with a period where they are intensely focused on something – perhaps a
strong desire to accomplish a particular thing – it is during these moments that their
inner spirit will manifest. This allows them to encounter a state of knowing by chance,
without them even realizing where it came from. They come to understand it as a
creative thought or a talent bestowed from within, which some call inspiration. They
often remember the times when such a state occurred and use those moments as
personal tricks to gain new knowledge in that way again. For example, some
experience this state while lying on the lawn or amidst nature, some in the early
morning, some while bathing, some while under the influence of sedatives. The results
of this kind of process often manifest differently for each person, depending on their
desires or what they are interested in. Suddenly, they will immediately understand the
problem. Some who are interested in poetry or musical melodies will have them
appear instantaneously.”

“People in this group are often the elite, those whom society calls geniuses, discoverers
of new things, presenters of new ideas that have never existed in the world before,
leading to revolutions and changes. These individuals are found in all professions.
Some are even revered as the fathers of their respective fields. However, if you ask
them deeply, they themselves do not know where their knowledge comes from, only
that it is ‘imagination,’ which most of them believe is more important than knowledge,”
Lord Phoche explained.

“Even these elite individuals are only in the second group. At first, I thought these
geniuses would be in the last group. I don’t think there will be anyone left to
categorize,” I wondered.

“There are. The third group is completely different from the second because they have
begun to know that they do not know, so they go in search of knowing, or what I call
‘those who know that they do not know.’ If you want to define who this group is, they
are the same kind of people as you all – ascetics, hermits, religious practitioners,
monks, nuns, spiritual seekers, or those who have begun to seek spiritual truth. Or, to
categorize them broadly, it is anyone who has begun to realize that living this way
cannot lead to true happiness or meaning, so they start to seek it.

But when they begin their search, they necessarily rely on something external, as I
explained earlier. So, the phenomenon that occurs with this group is that they will seek
out great teachers, seek knowledge, or methods that will allow them to access that
state of knowing.”

“It is at this point that ignorance about the pursuit of knowledge arises, because most
fall into the trap of knowledge that comes from others or external sources. Because this kind of knowledge has various methods, those who have experienced knowing have
recorded their knowledge for others to learn. The methods that emerge require
reading to know and memorization to not forget that knowledge. This method makes
the teachers confident that they will impart the same body of knowledge, and the
students are pleased because it is easy and doesn’t require any ability, no trial and
error on their own.”

“But because those who choose these methods do not need to use any ability, as it is
ready-made knowledge, they neglect or do not value their own abilities or the
discovery of knowledge that arises from within. Compared to the knowledge gained
from reading and listening, self-knowing is still vague and unclear, making it uncertain
whether it is correct knowledge or not. This further reinforces the belief that if they
don’t read or listen, they will have no way to discover it. Therefore, in normal
circumstances without these processes, they firmly believe that they cannot access
such a state without that knowledge, which further distances them from true qualities
or accessing wisdom from their own spirit. When they use this belief more and more
often, over time, their power will disappear by default. The longer it goes on, the more
unknowingly incapable they become, even though they have a wealth of knowledge.”

“Lord, I believe what you’re saying, but deep down, I still have some doubts about this
issue,” I expressed my feelings.

“Let’s put it this way. When you study art, if a teacher has always taught you shortcuts
or formulas since you were a child, such as teaching you to draw portraits by tracing
photographs to make your drawing easier, you might produce realistic works that look
like photographs. Do you think that is your true potential?” he exemplified.

“Uh…” I stammered.

“Let me summarize. You will be truly incapable. You will not be able to draw those
beautiful pictures with your own abilities alone and cannot imagine new works
because you have become accustomed to copying or relying on certain processes.”

“This is different from the knowledge that the Buddha taught, which is not to teach any
knowledge at all, but to teach the use of one’s own abilities entirely. These abilities
must be composed of love, goodwill, or compassion, which are basic concepts that the
scholars of that time scorned as shallow teachings,” he explained.

“Lord, what about the fourth group of people?” I quickly asked, because I was starting
to wonder which group I belonged to.

“This fourth type of person I will call ‘those who know that they know.’ This group will
come from the third group who have been searching for some time. Regardless of the
method they choose, if they choose to access the wisdom of the spirit through tools or
certain processes, such as sedatives or hypnosis, they will need to continue using those
methods because they have become accustomed to them. But if they choose to access
wisdom through their own natural intuition, in a way that they are fully conscious and
aware, or in the way the Buddha chose, they will be able to access the wisdom of the spirit through self-reliance. While they are in such a state, various knowledge will pour
in. They will see the truth in different dimensions. Some see the past, some see the
future, some know the thoughts of others, some have psychic powers to control things,
some have the wisdom to advise and solve life problems for themselves and others,
some write textbooks, scriptures, or create curricula about the knowledge they have
discovered. Or some may not have the various abilities mentioned, but have purity, a
purity that comes from letting go, not clinging to anything, being free from all bonds,
understanding the nature of all things that have a beginning, existence, decay, and
return to a new beginning in a cycle, until they discover peace in their hearts. In your
world, this state is called ‘attaining Dharma’ or ‘attaining truth.’ In each era, each city,
each community, these individuals often appear. But I will call this group ‘individual
Buddhas,’ meaning they have attained Buddhahood.”

“So, the Buddha was also in this fourth group, wasn’t he?” I questioned.

“Actually, to say that the Buddha is also classified in this group as ‘one who knows that
they know’ and has a natural process of knowing, not relying on external things, which
is the most perfect and complete knowing, is true. But there is one more thing for those
who are called the Buddha, which is a quality of the fifth group of people, who appear
only once in a long while,” he replied with a sense of excitement.

“What is it? I thought the fourth group was the highest,” I quickly asked.

“This fifth group is ‘those who know and tell others so they may know,'” he replied.

“What do you mean? I thought everyone in the fourth group wanted to tell others what
they knew,” I asked.

“It’s not about telling others ‘knowledge,’ but telling them how to know. When those in
the fourth group have an outpouring of knowledge, they will have others rely on the
knowledge they know. Most people who reach this state of knowing will reserve the
methods that allowed them to access this knowing because they know that if they do
so, they will lose disciples and lose power. Because when their students know as they
know, the students will have the same status as them. If any of their students or
followers show wisdom equal to theirs, they might be displeased. Therefore, the image
that mostly appears is that the fourth type of person often chooses to teach people only
knowledge, to make people see them as wise, admirable, respectable, and reliable, to
maintain their special status for as long as possible. As for the fifth type of person, they
will choose to tell the method of accessing knowledge instead of teaching knowledge,
so that those people can know for themselves,” he explained.

“Or, to put it simply, when the Buddha attained Buddhahood, he told everyone all the
methods to ‘be’ Buddha as he ‘was.’ Therefore, when everyone could become Buddha
as he taught, they called him ‘the Buddha’ because he was the one who told everyone
how to become Buddha like him. This is the difference between the fourth group,
whom we might call ‘individual Buddhas’ who teach knowledge, and the fifth group,
who tell everyone how to become Buddha, or the Buddha.”

“But what he taught people was also knowledge, wasn’t it? Because his knowledge was
collected and recorded for later generations to study, which is called the Tipitaka,” I
asked.

“It is true that what appears has the characteristic of knowledge, because all the
knowledge he conveyed was knowledge that would lead to the state of being Buddha.
Explaining the origins, the course, or the various phenomena that are the results of
knowing for oneself in detail is a confirmation that he had verifiable principles. He
could explain from the beginning the reasons why people cannot know, explain how to
deal with those reasons, and explain what the results would be. And of course, that
result is what is called wisdom or the state of accessing the wisdom of the spirit.”

“At the same time, what he taught at that time also created problems for those who
established themselves as sect leaders or miracle workers because it caused them to
lose many followers, allowing their followers to access the state of being Buddha on
their own, without relying on anyone. And they spread the word about the Buddha’s
methods, further causing the various sect leaders at that time to lose power, and no
one had faith in them anymore, leading to jealousy and plans to slander and eliminate
the Buddha later,” he explained.

“Oh… I understand now,” I replied.

“This is the difference between the fourth group and the fifth group, between those
who ‘know that they know,’ or what is called individual Buddhas who teach knowledge,
and the fifth group, who may not appear in some eras, sometimes thousands or tens of
thousands of years will pass before someone who ‘knows and tells others so they may
know’ appears. But when they do appear, they will quickly continue to teach that
knowing, thus creating many more people with the qualities of a Buddha, like a chain
reaction that will spread rapidly because they will not stop at just knowing for
themselves. They will do everything possible to bring others to the same state as
themselves. Therefore, after the Buddha arose, many more ‘those who know and tell
others so they may know,’ or ‘Buddhas,’ arose for this reason,” he continued to explain.

“Lord, then where is the problem? In fact, as time passes, it should expand more and
more, but why has it been decreasing until it’s almost impossible to find someone who
is a Buddha?” I asked.