Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: Ignorance Covers The Unrestrained (盛年放逸 無明覆蔽)
We are in this tranquil environment every day. A place with such moments of beauty provides the most satisfactory and ideal conditions for spiritual cultivation. But oftentimes in life, people do not know to be content or grateful.
Therefore, they do not feel blessed even under the best conditions, because their minds dwell on cravings for various pleasures or other forms of desires.
In our prime we are unrestrained and conceited. We crave all forms of wealth and treasures, entertainment, and lustful acts. These give rise to greed and infatuation.
Lust is like a mesmerizing Yaksha. It is very terrifying. It is the reason many couples marry but cannot remain faithful to one another. There are women who have affairs. There are men who hide mistresses. Such families will certainly fail. Hence, the Water Repentance states, “Greed & infatuation arise in our minds and “afflictions arise in our thoughts”.
Greed is when we desire more than what we already have. This is greed. Infatuation is when we know it is wrong, yet we just cannot go. These are our attachments. If we wake up to our greed, we free ourselves. But infatuation makes it harder to let go. If we feel greedy and infatuated with lustful acts, afflictions will surely arise in our minds.
Affliction is a form of ignorance. When we are covered by ignorance, we will easily shatter family ethics and morals. So we must truly take good care of our minds. Between the appearance of the slightest hint of greed and the birth of infatuated thoughts, numerous afflictions will arise. This is a trap from which we cannot extricate ourselves.
When thoughts of greed and infatuation arise, we will easily fall into ignorance & attachment.
If this continues, we will “draw near the unrighteous”. We cannot understand advice offered by good people and will instead idolize bad people. We often see this. Many people idolize those who confuse them and lead them onto evil paths. In people’s minds, they are like heroes.
There was a youth who jumped off a building. Why? He was doing well in school and was a good kid in general. But he idolized a pop star from Hong Kong. That pop star, for some unknown reason, perhaps due to relationship problems, was covered by afflictions and jumped to his death.
This young fan was only 14-years-old. He told his mother, “He is so brave! I really admire him.” Because he was a great fan of the singer and idolized him, no matter what the singer did he saw him as a hero. The singer was a popular idol, so this teen mimicked him in everything. Two days after the singer’s suicide, this teen jumped from the 8th floor.
His mother was heartbroken. He was the only child in his family. Look at what infatuation led him to do. This teen did not commit any wrongs and had no bad records. He was just misguided and wanted to copy his idol, his hero. This is “drawing near the unrighteous”. Once one likes bad people, one cannot differentiate between right and wrong. This is called “drawing near the unrighteous”.
Mesmerized and infatuated by his idols, the young man became misguided and drawn to the unrighteous. He could differentiate between right and wrong and needlessly lost his life.
When it comes to our religious beliefs, if we do not choose wisely, we can easily join cults. This is also very dangerous. I often say that whatever religion we choose, we need to choose one with Right Beliefs. Similarly, when we choose friends, we should also choose those who behave properly. If we are drawn toward the wrong people, our entire lives could be ruined. Hence, be extremely cautious when selecting friends and religion.
When greed and infatuation arise in our minds and affliction arise in our thoughts, we drawn near unrighteous and bad friends, and are unrepentant.
Thus, the Water Repentance states, Due to “the greed and infatuation in our minds and the affliction in our thoughts”, we cannot differentiate between right & wrong. So we choose to “draw near the unrighteous”.
The unrighteous are bad people. “Associating with evil friends” also means to draw near them. So whenever bad friends call to us, we keep following and lingering near them. When good people exhort us not to do so, we cannot stop ourselves our minds are inclined to “associate with bad friends” and “are unrepentant”.
When we make mistakes, if we can repent immediately, it is still not too late. But those attached to delusions are unable to repent. It is often said, “Repentance is cleansing”. If one can thoroughly self-reflect, distance oneself from past wrongs and evils and turn over a new leaf, one still has a chance. Falling in with a bad crowd is most frightening. If one commits all evils and does not know how to abide by ethics and morals, one will continually fall deeper. Such an individual is truly pitiable.
Those who do not know to repent will “repeatedly harm all living beings or become deluded by drinking alcohol”. Such people commit all sorts of wrongdoing. Since they do not respect life, they will harm all kinds of sentient beings. Recently, we talked often of wars and plagues.
These are scary, but human minds are more frightening. If the mind is even a bit misguided, it will be disorder and will ignore rules. Such a scary life filled with wrongdoing is even scarier than germs. Those who do not know to repent will harm all sentient beings simply for a moment of happiness and pleasure. They will commit all evil.
Wars and plagues are frightening. Illnesses in the mind are even scarier. If the mind is misguided, the behavior will not be proper.
Some “become deluded by drinking alcohol”. Some people’s normal behavior involves delusion and they are lost in a drunken stupor. Drinking causes delusions. It is said, “Drunkenness causes grave mistakes”. There are people who are kind and benevolent when they are sober. But once they drink and become inebriated, they do not recognize anyone around them and refuse to accept anything anyone tells them.
We often see people who are so drunk that they remove all their clothing and lie down naked on the street. They really exhibit the most appalling behavior. Once they are sober, they feel embarrassed and ashamed. They want to change but when they give in to their addiction, they cannot control themselves. Actually, the alcohol just sits in the bottle or in the glass. They were the ones who reached out and brought it to their mouths. Once they drink it, they lose control.
These people have the least willpower. They clearly alcohol will cloud their judgment, yet they still drink it. Then they regret it afterwards. In their regret, they swear they will change. But at the sight of alcohol, they give in again. This is truly problematic.
That is why in Tzu Chi, among the Faith Corps members, there are Ten Precepts to uphold. One of the most important precepts is to not drink alcohol. Drinking will definitely cause grave mistakes, for alcohol will cloud the mind and cause one to lose control. Let us listen to stories from our Faith Corps members. Some were once very heavy drinkers and were very addicted to alcohol. If they did not drink, their limbs shook uncontrollably. They were deeply addicted.
However, they were able to break their habit when they met good people. These good friends stayed by their sides to care for and support them. These friends also guided them. To do what? To do good deeds and walk on a good path. They guided their spirits and principles.
The most helpful method was sorting recycling. That kept them busy. When the craving for alcohol arose, since they were working hard and keeping themselves busy, they naturally forgot about that moment of craving. Gradually, they quit their addiction.
Spiritually, a group of good people protected and guided them. They were given work to devote themselves to and felt that this work was meaningful. When one feels the work is worthwhile, one will devote oneself to it. With a new direction and focus for, both the body and the mind, people can change very quickly. It takes a big environment for one to change. The same applies to drug addictions. There were also former drug addicts, both men and women, who were guided and embraced by big organizations.
On the show Grassroots Bodhi, we learned about a volunteers who used to work at a bar. A poorly-behaved customer greatly upset her. When she was about to commit suicide, she met a kindhearted taxi driver and later married him. She vowed to change to do good, and to be a good wife and mother. But it is difficult to quit drugs and alcohol.
Later, for the sake of her child she finally gave up drugs. It was truly a painful struggle. Even then she still could not quit drinking and gambling. Fortunately, there were Tzu Chi volunteers. She began volunteers in Tzu Chi. Tzu Chi commissioners had a certain image and a way of acting, speaking, and moving. Such a beautiful environment naturally began to have an impact on her. Gradually, she learned to have self-respect. Now she is a certified Tzu Chi commissioner and is a model for others. So it all depends on our environment.
In Tzu Chi, our hope is to purify people minds. only when people’s minds are purified can families be happy and stable. Only then can society be at peace. Thus we create a wonderful environment. In such a beautiful environment, those who cherish blessings can be saved, and then will treasure these moments of beauty.
Being amongst so many good people, in a group of Bodhisttvas, people will cherish blessings, quickly turn around eliminate evil and follow goodness. By changing their bad habits, they can turn around and follow this broad Bodhisattvas-path.
Everyone, as we learn Buddhism, I hope we will associate ourselves with good friends. I hope we can all warn and correct each other. Then this will be a good environment. Everyone, we must seize and cherish these great conditions. Of course, the greatest place to cultivate is within our minds. We must constantly take good care of our good thoughts. Please always be mindful.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
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