20170226把握因緣布善種Cherishing Affinity to Spread the Seeds of Kindness
I always say that everyone innately has Buddha nature. Why do we need spiritual cultivation? If everyone can attain Buddhahood, why do we still need to cultivate ourselves? It’s because through eons of time, one life after another, our Buddha nature has been covered up.
For incalculable eons of time, we have been going through the six realms, one life after another, time after time. We slowly develop and accumulate our habitual tendencies as well as ignorance. In addition, we also accumulate greed, hatred, arrogance, and doubt. These are the five spiritual poisons.
They are very harmful to us. Even if you know life’s principles but without eliminating our greed, hatred, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt, we will not act according to the principles because of our greed. We need to follow the Buddha’s teachings.
Apart from not being greedy, we must also be generous to the point that we give of ourselves without attachment and affliction. We need to practice giving to the point that we give with gratitude and without asking anything in return. In this way, we are truly happy in giving of ourselves.
Some people might think “I do good deeds, how come I end up getting cancer?” Some people do thing this way. They bear this kind of thought and complain about their situation. Such is deluded view. However, doing good deeds is not for getting an immediate good karmic retribution.
Instead, we should think that should anything happen, at least I had the opportunity to do good deeds and volunteer with Tzu Chi. Sometimes, when things happen, I would feel fortune that I have been truly blessed.
I don’t know how much time I still have, so I need to make good use of my time to give Dharma talks as much as I can and do what I can do to help others. This is how I seize time. Everyone, Tzu Chi is entering its 52nd year. Time really flies one year after another. It’s been half a century.
We need to pass on our Dharma lineage. We need to keep the Buddha’s teachings and spirit firmly in mind, as well as our Jing Si Dharma Lineage. Our spiritual practice requires us to cultivate diligently in practicing the teachings (in our life).
We need to purify people’s minds. For those who want to do good deeds, we need to provide them the opportunities to do so, or the kindness and love in Taiwan will slowly disappear.
If we don’t sow the seeds of kindness and love in people’s minds and then tend to the inner-field in their hearts, their inner-field will lay wasted and weeds will grow. These people need us to help them cultivate their inner-field and help them sow the seeds of love so that they can also spread love and kindness.
If we don’t give them the opportunity, isn’t it a great pity? So Tzu Chi volunteers should reconnect with their donating members and inspire the Tzu Chi spirit in them again. We need to revive our own Tzu Chi spirit as well as others’. We need to recall and revive the spirit of love.
Only by doing this can we be safe and sound. Nowadays, not only the climate has become abnormal, so have people’s minds. We need to be vigilant and do whatever good deed we can. If we can each do our duties, it will bring peace and safety.
Nowadays, we are greatly impacted by collective karma. Thus, we need to take good care of our hearts. For those who have karmic affinities with us, we need to take good care of their hearts. To help living beings, bodhisattvas need to go amongst people and serve.
Therefore, we vow to help all living beings with sincerity and to eliminate our afflictions with an upright mind. Don’t let slight ignorance affect our resolve to walk the Bodhisattva Path. We need to strengthen our faith and learn all the Dharma with deep faith. We need to truly learn the Dharma.
If not, we might be easily affected by something small. Think about it, what a pity will be. This is why we ordinary people have yet to attain Buddhahood. This is why we need to vow to attain Buddha hood with a true heart.
In emulating the Buddha, we are to attain Buddha hood, despite it will take a long time. This is the Buddha’s honest words. The Buddha didn’t say that if we follow him, we will immediately attain Buddha hood. This is not possible. One has to go through arduous process (to attain Buddha hood).
This is his honest words to us. As I’ve always told you, doing good deeds does not guarantee a life free of misfortune. No. We still need to accept the consequences of our negative karma with a broad heart. In this way, the misfortune will pass soon (and we won’t create new negative karma.)
Now that we have joined Tzu Chi, our goal is to bring blessings to all living beings. Having blessings, we will create blessings and benefit the world without ever regretting. No regrets, we’ll not quit the Bodhisattva Path.
Such is the spirit of having great loving-kindness with infinite Great Love and without regrets. To spread Great Love in this world, we need to have compassion without complains. There are many people in suffering, and we have to help them even if it can be difficult. Yet, we do so willingly.
For example, when you volunteers help people clean their houses. You don’t even know them, and the environment is very smelly. But, you do so willingly. After the clean-up, their house becomes more comfortable.
Whether the house belongs to elderly or a physically-challenged person, seeing them having a nice place to live makes us feel good. We must harbor a heart of kindness and compassion and put on the robe of gentleness and forbearance.
I’ve mentioned this when I talked about the chapter of the Dharma Teachers in the Lotus Sutra. In conclusion, this is our aspiration. In giving, we have no regret; our aspiration is to have compassion for the suffering beings. So we must have great joy without worries to gain infinite joy.
We give and don’t ask anything in return while harboring gratitude. Tzu Chi volunteers always bow 90 degrees (as a way to show) their sincere gratitude. We’re happy when we give because people receive the help they need. So we must give of ourselves unconditionally to develop infinite gratefulness.
Volunteers, the power of love truly prevails we all work with one heart. We need to remember though we come from different backgrounds, our aspiration is same. We have the same pure heart and (share the mission of love.) Our hearts are clear and pure as crystal.
We all have bodhi seeds in our hearts. Bodhi means to be awakened. Bidhi seeds in great number can become an expansive forest. We need to protect the forest to protect the land. In this way, we can keep our land safe forever. We have to awaken to this.
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