The world of Tzu Chi March 2021 (Vol.132)

2021 • 03 52 * This article is extracted from the book “Reminders under the Sala Trees – A Commentary on the Sutra of the Buddha’s Bequeathed Teachings”. harma from thieves—we must never let our guard down, even for a moment. “If one lets them loose even for a moment, before long, one will witness destruction.” If we let the Five Roots loose, then our merits and virtues, wisdom and blessings will quickly be totally obliterated. One must cultivate both blessings and wisdom in learning the Buddha’s teachings, and perseverance is necessary to cultivate them both. There is a famous Buddhist saying: “Aspark of ignorance will burn down a forest of merits and virtues.” The sprouts of Bodhi, which have been cultivated over a long period of time, can be burnt down by even a tiny spark of ignorance. Engaging in spiritual cultivationmeans cultivating ourminds and thenmanifesting our cultivation through our body, or to express our inner cultivation through our outer actions. The Buddha taught his disciples never to practise merely for their own benefit. The Buddha’s teachings require us to put the Bodhisattva spirit into action. The world needs the Buddha’s teachings, and the Buddha’s teachings cannot be separated from the world. Buddhist practitioners must reflect on themselves; disciples of the Buddha must shoulder the Tathagata’s mission and emulate his perseverance and courage. If we can do this, even though we are still at the stage of ordinary people, we will have already taken our first step towards Enlightenment. As long as we persevere in practising the Bodhisattva Path of actualizing the Six Perfections in all our actions, we will attain Buddhahood in the future. Spiritual practice is not something we engage in three or five days out of the week; it requires constant self-reflection. Some practitioners are deeply committed when they start, but after a while, they become lax. Thus, there is the saying, “In the first year of our spiritual practice, the Buddha is right before our eyes. In the second year of practice, the Buddha is far from us. In the third year of practice, we can no longer see the Buddha.” In spiritual practice, we should “keep the Buddha before our eyes and in our hearts” at all times. If we can practise with the same mindset we had at the outset, then we will certainly attain Buddhahood! In spiritual practice, if we can take each day as the very first day and each year as the very first year, we will be sure to bring our merits and virtues to completion. (To be continued in the next issue)