Wonderful Dharma should be found in the scriptures
One night, the old monk Miaofa was teaching the Ksitigarbha Sutra to the lay people somewhere in Henan. He said, “If any sentient being steals permanent property, rice, food, clothing, or even one thing without taking it, he will fall into the endless hell.” , thousands of billions of kalpas, there is no time to seek for it.” When the old monk said: “What does it mean to ‘take nothing from someone’? It means any items in the temple that are taken away privately without the consent of the permanent residents of the temple, including every plant and tree. In this way Those who are destined to fall into eternal hell.”
At this time, a female layman in her 40s suddenly asked nervously: “I have a very good relationship with the abbot of a certain temple. I have supported her for more than ten years and we get along very casually. Sometimes when I go to her abbot’s room and she is not there, I will act like Just like at home, if I see any rosary beads or small Buddha statues that I like, I will put them in my pocket. Anyway, they are donated by others. Sooner or later, the abbot will give them to others to get married. Since the abbot and I are so good, of course it is The first to get the moon is the one near the water! Does this count as stealing?”
The old monk Miaofa replied: “You have no intention of stealing subjectively, but these things are not what the abbot promised you. You take them without giving them. What do you think is your behavior?” The female layman looked very nervous and said: “The flower pond in the temple was last year. There are some very beautiful flowers. I have long wanted to take a few home and plant them when the flowers produce seeds. But when I want to look for flower seeds, someone has taken away only one of the seeds. , when I put this flower seed in my pocket, I also thought that there will be no such flowers in this flower pond next year. Is taking this flower seed considered stealing?”
The old monk smiled and asked her: “What do you think? But you don’t need to be nervous or afraid. You have read the “Ksitigarbha Sutra” many times, but you don’t understand the meaning and have no wisdom, so you have committed sins. But that’s why The reason why you chant sutras is that you understand the truth today, “A heinous sin will disappear with just one confession.” Just repent in front of the Buddha and never do it again. If there are still things you took away, return them to the abbot and admit your mistake in person. As for the flowers If you can plant more seeds in the temple when they produce seeds again, and even offer some other flowers to the temple, all sins and karma will be eliminated. If you can preach these principles among fellow Taoists, it will be a great merit!” said the old man! The monk’s words calmed the layman’s heart.
The old monk continued to teach: “First of all, we chant sutras to understand the truth. Once you understand the truth, you will have wisdom, and you will also know that all the hardships you encounter are caused by the past, so you should eliminate evil as soon as possible. Because, no new evil seeds will be sown. All that is left is to rely on one’s own efforts to recite sutras, repent, and dedicate the merits of chanting sutras and repentance to all sentient beings in the Dharma Realm, so that the evil seeds planted in the past that have not yet sprouted will gradually wither. Until death. To achieve this goal, one must be a good man and a good woman who upholds the five precepts and practices the ten good deeds. Only good men and good women who chant sutras and Buddhas and dedicate them to all living beings will have great merit. Why? Because you think ‘Namo’ with pure body, speech and mind. “Amitabha” and “Namo Guanyin Bodhisattva” not only show that they sincerely take refuge in Buddha and Bodhisattva, but also serve the purpose of calling on all living beings to take refuge in Buddha and Bodhisattva.
Your sincerity will instantly connect with the Buddha, and the Buddha’s light will shine on you. “Many people who recite the Buddha’s name ask me, saying that when they recite the Buddha’s name, they will have a numb and warm feeling from head to toe. What is going on? I said that it is the Buddha sensing that you are reciting his name and emitting light. By you, I will help you eliminate your past sins. At this time, there will be many immortals, earth gods, hungry ghosts, wandering souls and other living beings in the sky and earth around you that you cannot see. Seeing your special response to chanting the Buddha’s name, they will also follow you. While reciting the Buddha’s name, each of them will immediately receive the blessing of the Buddha’s power to be sublimated and liberated. For example, those who were killed by bombs, chopped with knives and axes, wandering souls with missing limbs, those who were drowned, hanged, poisoned, Lonely souls and wild ghosts who died in car accidents and other accidents, etc. These souls cannot be reincarnated or have to wait for a year to find a substitute for the deceased. As long as they recite the name of the Buddha, their limbs will immediately return to health, and the lonely ghosts will immediately go away. Reincarnation, and the longer you chant, the greater the benefits. Maybe hundreds of thousands, maybe tens of thousands, or countless sentient beings benefited at that time, including the flowers, plants, trees and animals around you. Benefits The number of sentient beings depends on the depth of your practice.
For example, in 1994, I saw a large banyan tree in the front yard of Puji Temple in Putuo Mountain suddenly transform into a human form. Hu knelt down and clasped his hands and asked me to explain to it the meaning of “No Suffering Gathers and Destroys the Way” in the Heart Sutra. I asked it: “Where did you hear the “Heart Sutra”?” It said: “Master Xuanhua from the Holy City of Ten Thousand Buddhas in the United States just finished preaching the “Heart Sutra”, but I don’t understand the sentence ‘No suffering sets in to destroy the path’. I understand very well, please ask the old monk for enlightenment.” I asked: “Master Xuanhua lectures in the United States, how can you hear it in Putuo Mountain?” The big banyan tree said: “Master Xuanhua lectures on the sutra, you can hear it in the entire universe and the Dharma Realm. “
We don’t have the merit and power of Master Xuanhua, but around you, or in the city or town where you live, all living beings in the sky and on earth will benefit from chanting the Buddha and chanting the sutras with you. Therefore, those who chant the Buddha must observe the precepts and purify their body, speech, and mind. Then you will not only benefit endlessly, but also benefit all sentient beings, and your merits will naturally be great, enough to eliminate your sins for many lives and kalpas. If you recite Buddha and sutra every day, “you will gain immeasurable blessings and eliminate your sins.”
In the “Ksitigarbha Sutra”, the God of Solid Earth said to the World Honored One: “I look at the living beings in the future and the present. Where they live, in the clean land of the south, their niches are made of earth, stone, bamboo and wood. They can create paintings, even gold and silver. Make bronze and iron images of Ksitigarbha, burn incense and offer them, look at them and admire them. This is the place where people live, and they can get ten kinds of benefits. What are the ten? First, the land is rich and fertile; second, the home and house are eternally safe; third, after death, there is rebirth in heaven; The fourth is that existing ones will increase your life; the fifth is that your wishes will come true; the sixth is that there will be no water or fire; the seventh is that waste will be eliminated; the eighth is that nightmares will be eliminated; the ninth is that you will be protected by gods when entering and exiting; the tenth is that you will encounter holy causes more often … Then he said to the Buddha: World Honored One! In the future, if there are good men and women who have this sutra and a statue of Bodhisattva in their place of residence, they will be able to recite the sutra and make offerings to the Bodhisattva. I will always use this divine power day and night. Protect this person, even water, fire, thieves, big and small, and destroy all evil things.”
The scriptures make it very clear that by making offerings to Buddha statues, you can obtain ten kinds of benefits. Just imagine, if this person who not only makes offerings to Buddha statues but also pays homage and praises Buddha, is unfilial to his parents, continues to kill and eat meat, and speaks harshly every day, he can obtain “eternal peace”, “Longevity”, “fulfillment of wishes”, “divine protection when entering and exiting”? But “encountering holy causes more often” is for sure, because although you make offerings to the Buddha but don’t understand, the Buddha and Bodhisattvas will guide you to listen to the true Dharma, just like today. There are some of you who have given up eating meat. Please raise your hands. (Among the dozens of people, only three people raised their hands. Only one of them stopped eating meat after becoming a Buddhist, another just refused to eat pork, beef, and mutton, but still ate seafood, and one of them had “fetalin” and did not eat meat. I know you can’t eat onions, garlic and leeks). The old monk said: “Please keep the precepts, recite the Buddha’s name, and recite the Ksitigarbha Sutra as mentioned above. You do not need to pray to the Buddha. Let’s see if your illness will be alleviated or recovered, and if your wish will come true.” But be careful that your wishes must not harm the interests of the country or the interests of others. The scripture says: ‘If in the future, there are good men and women who desire hundreds of thousands of billions of wishes and hundreds of thousands of billions of things in the present and future, But when you take refuge and pay homage, make offerings and praise the image of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, all your wishes and requests will be fulfilled.'”
The Buddha is the one who speaks the truth, speaks the truth, and does not lie. I hope all fellow practitioners will study the Ksitigarbha Sutra carefully and benefit from the Dharma in practice. The old monk Miaofa concluded with a verse:
The Buddha has not traveled far in the heart. The wonderful Dharma must be found in the sutras.
Every line is filled with good medicine to cure eighty-four thousand sorrows
