The world of Tzu Chi December 2020(Vol.129)

TZU CHI 129 51 REMINDERS UNDER THE SALA TREES said, “I have already joyfully made offerings to you for seven days. I now feel that I have done all I need to do; giving to you no longer makes me feel joyful.” Ananda returned to report this to the Buddha. The Buddha said to him, “Ananda, earlier you asked me why, since the elder aspired to help us and it was still snowing, we had to leave the house. It was because the elder’s causes and conditions for giving only lasted seven days!” The Buddha said, “In the past, that spiritual practitioner used the animal bone to feed the lice for seven days. That spiritual practitioner was I in my past life, and that elder was one of the lice who left me after eating of the animal bone for seven days. Back then, I supplied this food for seven days, and now he has supported us for seven days. This grace has been repaid.” Alarmed, Ananda replied, “The principles of karmic cause and effect are truly fearsome!” Therefore, in learning from the Buddha, we must carefully uphold the precepts. We must not only avoid greed, but also actively do good deeds and practise giving to others. Not only must we not kill, but we must also actively protect lives. Not only must we not engage in sexual misconduct, but we must also carefully uphold our own dignity and etiquette. In this way, we will attain many merits and virtues. Uphold the pure precepts to give rise to goodness “Therefore, bhiksus , you must uphold the pure precepts and not break them. Only if you can uphold the pure precepts will you encounter goodness. Without pure precepts, no merits and virtues of goodness can arise. Therefore, you must know that the precepts are the most safe and stable place where merits and virtues abide.” If we can uphold precepts, we will be able to eradicate all suffering and gain all merits and virtues. Upholding the precepts brings many virtues, so bhiksus must earnestly uphold these rules of purity. Of course, the bhiksus that the Buddha was addressing were his monastic disciples. Nonetheless, the meaning of this passage applies to all disciples of the Buddha. It was just that the Buddha was focusing on his bhiksus when he taught this sutra. The Buddha warned those in the Sangha that, since they had become monastics,