Good and evil thoughts in Buddhism
The Buddha said in the “Eight Great Enlightenment Sutras”: “The heart is the source of evil, and the form is the trough of sin.” The “Sutra of Forty-Two Chapters” says: “The heart is the cause of merit. If the cause of merit is stopped, all those who follow it will cease. “Good thoughts and evil thoughts are all born from the heart, and all things are created only by the heart. When we practice, we must start from the heart and mind, take care of our thoughts, and always have mindfulness before us. Then the retribution will naturally follow the positive retribution, and the destiny will change. Therefore, Buddhism often says: “One good thought will give rise to heaven.” The palace is already there; if an evil thought occurs, the tools of punishment in hell are ready.” If we can further fully understand the source of the mind, the mind of non-dwelling, and diligently practice the Six Perfections and Ten Thousand Practices, then we can achieve liberation from the cycle of life and death and achieve the Buddha’s path.
As Buddhists, when you practice to a certain extent, various tests will come to test you. At this time, you must have a peaceful heart, be patient and diligent, and the test will pass. The following are examples that happened in my life. I hope everyone can benefit from reading them.
My cousin Xiaojun is 7 years younger than me. He is very naughty and willful. My aunt and uncle dote on him. On this day, I went to their house to visit two elders. There was only one cousin in the family. As soon as I walked in, my brother forced me to play computer games with him, but I had no choice but to play with him for a while. I didn’t know how to play games and lost quickly, which affected my cousin’s game score. This made him angry. He jumped over and pushed me to the ground, “Why are you so bad at playing!” Looking at my aggressive cousin, I showed my dignity as a sister and said, “How dare you be so cruel to your sister? For the sake of your parents, I always tolerate it, but today my sister is going to educate you!” So I reached out and grabbed him and spanked him on the butt. As soon as my cousin saw me beating him, he started crying and throwing things around. He broke alarm clocks, cups, game consoles, etc. No matter how hard I tried to persuade him, it was of no avail.
At this time, my uncle and aunt came back. Seeing this scene, they asked me in a reproachful tone: “What’s going on?” Before I could explain, my cousin cried and shouted: “It’s her, it’s her, and it’s her.” He hit me and threw things at me, injuring me and breaking things. Mom, my sister kept bullying me when you were away. Mom… Wuwu.” I was speechless for a moment. I didn’t know what to say. Understand the truth. My aunt and uncle felt sorry for my cousin and scolded me severely: “Why are you so heartless? You have lived with us for a while, but you are so cruel to your brother. You girl is too cruel. Get out of here.” ,Go right now!”
I wanted to explain, but there seemed to be no room for recovery, so I had no choice but to go back. In the dormitory, I cried a lot, thinking: Why did my uncle and aunt treat me like this? It was obviously my cousin’s fault. Why did they scold me so indiscriminately? Great Merciful and Compassionate Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, may your Buddha power and blessing resolve the misunderstanding between me and their family.
I didn’t sleep well that night. After a week, I thought it would be better to go see my cousin and admit my mistake to my aunt and uncle. After all, they usually treat me well. So I brought some gifts to their house, and what I saw when I entered the house surprised me: my aunt was sitting on the sofa, covering her face and crying, and my uncle was sitting on the stool next to him and sighing. “Uncle, aunt, what’s wrong with you? Where is Xiaojun and others?” My uncle pointed to the bedroom, and I ran into the room. When I saw my cousin, I was shocked. Why did my originally good brother suddenly become like a fool? , the tongue sticks out of the lip to the right, saliva flows down drop by drop, and the right cheek and hand are still twitching. “It’s been a week,” my uncle said helplessly. “The day after you left, Xiaojun suddenly had convulsions all over his body. When he went to the hospital, the doctor said that this might be a symptom of cerebral palsy. He could only treat it slowly, and there was nothing good. We have a solution. What should we do? We only have one son!” The aunt was sobbing beside her, her eyes were red and swollen, and she had obviously been crying for several days. I quickly stepped forward to comfort him: “Don’t worry, don’t worry, there will always be a way.”
After returning to the dormitory, I felt that this matter had something to do with me. Although my cousin, uncle, and aunt were disgusting and said bad things to me at that time, as a Buddhist practitioner, I should treat them with kind thoughts and compassion. Give it to my cousin, he may get better faster, and their family will be safe and harmonious. So, I immediately started reading and reciting the Diamond Sutra and dedicating the merits to my cousin.
A miracle happened. Three days later, my aunt called me excitedly: “Xiaohong, at noon on the second day after you came, Xiaojun was fine. His mouth no longer twitched, and he was eating normally. Xiaojun told us He wants to admit his mistake to you face to face if he finds out the truth. I’m so sorry, aunt also wrongly blamed you that day. Please forgive me and come over for dinner tonight!”
In this way, a family regains its former peace and harmony. This incident deeply touched me. If every practitioner of Buddhism has a compassionate heart, even if others have evil thoughts towards you, he will not be angry and use the power of Buddhism to repent, dedicate and have good thoughts. Treat everything and there will be unexpected good results.
Tip: “The Avatamsaka Sutra” says: “If people want to understand all the Buddhas in the three times, they should observe the nature of the Dharma Realm, and everything is created only by the mind.” When Buddhist practitioners encounter adversity or adverse circumstances, they can raise their righteous thoughts and endure humiliation. Only by remaining immobile in dealing with all circumstances will there be a chance for liberation. The Diamond Sutra says: “All dharma is without self, and it is achieved through patience.” At the same time, he also advises the world to be cautious in words and actions, and to cultivate and protect the mind. Don’t slander others with your mouth. Good and evil are only in a thought. Good and evil follow you like a shadow, and cause and effect are true.
