Why do people suffer reincarnation? Just because the seven emotions and five desires are too strong
2024-06-24
Lecture by Master Guang-Qin(釋廣欽)
Why do people suffer reincarnation? It is because the seven emotions and five desires are too strong. Being confused by the seven emotions and five desires, they spend their days pursuing wealth, sex, fame, food and sleep, and then troubles come. This is how karma is created.
Reincarnation does exist, don't think it doesn't exist, it's very painful. In the past, Hanshan and Shide saw people holding weddings, clapping and laughing. You see, he married his grandmother and ate his aunt. People scolded them for being empty monks and talking nonsense. He called a pig's name, and the pig really came over. Reincarnation does exist.
We are ordinary people, and men and women should be clearly distinguished and keep their distance so as not to hinder the Dao.
Men and women should be clearly distinguished. When men give things to women or women give things to men, they should never pass things directly to each other. When talking, they should not face each other and should keep a distance. Men and women should be clearly distinguished, even if they live to be a hundred years old. Unless they have already enlightened attained Phala and have concentration Strength, otherwise it is easy to get into trouble.
When fellow disciples are together, you can talk more about Buddhism, and don't talk about anything else, so as not to distract your mind. Don't join in other people's idle chats. When everyone is commenting on who is better, don't give your own opinion, just understand it in your heart. If others are good, you should praise them. If you praise them for bad things, your sin will be doubled.
As disciples, no matter how big the fault of our master is, we cannot say anything. If we hear others say something about their master..., in fact, if we really say these words, their sins will be attributed to us—the sin of talking about the fault of the four groups of disciples.
It is inevitable that our false body will suffer from illness, but these are minor illnesses. Delusions, greed, anger, and ignorance are serious illnesses. If we have delusions, we will continue to reincarnate and we will not be able to end the cycle of life and death. In order to maintain Sati(mindfulness) at the end of life, we should take more "Amitabha" medicine in our daily lives. Otherwise, where will we go after death?
The body will break down just like a house. No matter how much it is repaired, it will still have flaws. We must put down this false body and not cherish it too much. After all, it is an illusion, but we must make good use of it to practice.
We all come here with karma, so we suffer from many illnesses and pains. If we kill less and recite the Buddha's name more, our karma will be eliminated.
If someone wants to harm me, we should think: Maybe I have harmed him in the past, so he is like this, I cannot make enemies with him again, I want to save him. Everything has cause and effect, every needle, every thread, every word, all have cause and effect, the meaning is the same as Brahmajāla Sūtra 20 precepts.
If you really want to practice, it is your own blessing, so you should practice both blessings and wisdom to eliminate old karma. The method is to bow to Buddha, chant Buddha's name, do temple work, and don't haggle over. If you haggle over, you will be troubled, which is to create new karma.
When you get up every morning, don't talk about this or that. You should bow to the Buddha and chant the Buddha's name quickly. After finishing your work, do your personal things and be quiet. This way your mind will be clear and you will have more Sati(mindfulness). What are they doing? What did they say wrong? You won't make the same mistake. Then you should also think about it (self-examination). Did you do anything wrong? Only with Sati(mindfulness) can you know clearly what you are doing.
Contact with people in society is just socializing. When socializing, you should have your own opinions and Buddhist teachings in your mind. Don't talk about worldly matters with people in society, but talk about Buddhist teachings. We should learn from the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and ancestors of all generations and make great efforts.
If you do the pilgrimage properly, you should bow slowly, let go of everything, not be bothered, and focus on this one thing.
Reciting the sutras, reading the sutras, chanting the Buddha's name and talking are necessary processes in a day. Talk less, and the time spent reciting and reading the sutras should not exceed the time spent chanting the Buddha's name. We should still focus on reciting the name of Buddha.
We only know that we were born by our parents, but what were we really like before our parents gave birth to us? Where will we go after we die?
Since we have heard the Dharma, we know that there is a Buddha named Amitābha who made forty-eight great vows. As long as we recite his name, he will lead us to Sukhāvatī at the time of our death. He has this Vow, and we should also have this wish to be reborn to Sukhāvatī. We should firmly believe that there is Sukhāvatī and a compassionate Amitābha Buddha. We should have faith, aspiration, and action, and recite the Buddha's name at all times. When we are dying, if we have Sati (mindfulness) and can recite the Buddha's name, Amitābha Buddha will come to guide us. But if we still think about any needle or blade of grass of Saha world, we will suffer reincarnation again.
Hurry up and practice, practice to Sukhāvatī, otherwise it is very hard here, you see it is so hot... Sukhāvatī is a cool place.
Sukhāvatī is the final resting place, just like an old farmer who waits for the sun to set and can rest.
