Drilling to remove tumors

A big man in his forties asked the old monk Miaofa: Three years ago, he had frequent headaches. After a hospital examination, he found that there was a tumor in his head that was compressing the nerves, so he drilled a hole in his head and removed the tumor. But less than a year later, another tumor was discovered in his skull, and he had to have another surgery. Now, a review at the hospital found that another tumor had grown in the original location. But the doctor said that he could no longer drill holes in his head, otherwise his life would be in danger. He didn’t want to accept his fate, but he felt that this disease was too strange, and he hoped to understand it even after death. I came here to ask Master for enlightenment.

Old monk Miaofa asked: “What do you do?”

“I work in the company’s security department.”

The master asked again: “Have you ever worked at sea before? You have killed a lot of fish, and you have nailed very large live fish to wooden boards, scraped the scales and disemboweled them.”

“Yes, I once served in the Navy. I was a sailor for three years and often went to sea to perform missions. Fish is our home-cooked dish. We catch it and eat it now, and because the big fish caught is more than one meter long, it is so alive and kicking. If I couldn’t hold it down, I used big nails to nail the fish head to the deck, which made it much easier to pick up and decorate. Master, you can see that this experience of mine is really amazing!”

“Because you hammered nails into the heads of live fishes in the past, so if you get sick today, you have to drill holes in their heads to treat them. You nailed the live fish to the boat and they couldn’t die for a while, and you scraped the scales and disemboweled them alive. Abdomen, extremely cruel. Retaliation for retaliation, I’m afraid you didn’t just get retribution with two or three punches in the head. Death is not terrible, what is terrible is lingering on the sick bed, life is worse than death, and there is no good ending.” Old Monk Miaofa. Although these words were spoken slowly and quietly, they were no less than a thunderclap that woke up the dreamer.

“Master, you have great supernatural powers, you must save me!”

“Amitabha!” Master said kindly, “Bodhisattvas fear causes, and sentient beings fear consequences. You must know that ‘everyone eats, everyone is satisfied, and everyone lives and dies.’ Now a big mistake has been made, and the person who tied the bell needs to be untied. As long as you sincerely repent, abstain from eating meat and eat vegetarian food, and recite the Buddha’s name more often, there is still room for redemption.”

Two years later, I met the layman who took the big man to see the old monk Miao Dharma. He said that the big man started worshiping Buddha when he returned that day, and recited the “Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva’s Original Vow Sutra” according to the master’s instructions. He also went to the temple to make a statue for the fish he had killed. The memorial tablet of the deceased. He continued to recite the Buddha’s name until his death and suffered no more pain. It’s a pity that he was not yet fifty when he died.

​I feel very sorry too. Although reciting Buddha’s name can prevent the big man from suffering from illness, his killing karma is too heavy and his life span is shortened. No matter how great the Buddha’s power is, it cannot compete with the karma of all living beings. It seems that only sincere repentance, early cessation of murderous karma, and abstaining from eating meat and fish are the fundamental ways for us to seek happiness and longevity!