Quote of The Day (184)
This section contains short teachings extracted from the messages that Sifu Kuan Ming received over the years, since 1979. The quotes contained herein are a collection of the daily quotes for your contemplation.
Who is not afraid of suffering? Who looks for pain? Yet who are the ones who try to reduce suffering and pain? Each person has his own mind, his own cravings, and his own store of mental formations, which will determine the ripening and accumulation of karma. Each one knows the value of clean, righteous living—the beauty of a life which is free from anger, jealousy, and all kinds of negativity that lead to further gathering of bad karma, but does he accept such a righteous way of life?
For that, all beings who prefer to be in a state of stupidity must give way to their weak will and allow passions to rule their mind and life. They must therefore suffer and suffer painfully—painfully so that they may be awakened to the desire to escape from it permanently! Painfully not only felt by their own physical bodies, but by their mental faculties as well when they finally see the sufferings of humanity! Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (8)
Do your part towards helping others, but always be careful not to be moved too easily. To be touched by a sad sight is natural, but to draw conclusions without truly knowing its causes would be foolish. As of today, there is no need to wonder why this or that should happen to so and so; it is by their own actions that events must unfold. Thus, they must use their own wisdom to understand the nature of existence and work towards self-cleansing so that suffering will be lessened in the future! Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (7)
How can you help others unless you are fully committed to self-cleansing? Can anyone be expected to play this part unless chosen for this noble task—not by preference, but through one’s own past practices that have been noble and good? Not until one is pure will one truly be able to do the work of saving others; not until one is in the process of purifying oneself should one begin to think of leading others to freedom. Therefore, bring forth the spirit of cultivation. Learn from the experiences of life. Accept life’s varied situations as your own causes of awakening and never look backwards whenever you are tested. Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (6)
Each day is an opportunity for self-improvement, yet how many people have the wisdom to improve themselves? Suffering must exist—not for the sake of causing pains to human beings, but to provide them with a means to seek a way out of suffering, the way to salvation!
The way to salvation is long and very difficult. It must be so; otherwise impurities would pervade the pure realms; therefore, it must be expected that only the Pure Ones will find salvation. To cleanse one’s body and mind is the true goal of life. It is not by water or any external agent that body and mind may be purified, but by righteousness and purity of intentions, thoughts, and deeds. It is achieved through love, compassion, kindness, understanding, self-sacrifice, and the perfection of all the virtues that lead to the attainment of Supreme Wisdom. When that is won, life is empty, everything is empty, and one becomes the Truth, transcending everything! Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (5)
Can prayers work? When will they work? Questions will be many, but who is to give the right answers? How demanding and self-serving the average person is with their words they call “prayers”! You must learn from their mistakes and awaken yourself too! Do not become one of them, or you will end up having grave doubts.
Control your emotions, learn to be calm, and not be drawn into foolish searches. All answers can be found when effort is applied. Be ready to look the other way around—inwards, and not outwards. Only the mind’s eye can see the truth, but is your mind’s eye open yet? How can anyone hope to become wise by being hasty and lazy? Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (4)
How often does someone who is struck down by a painful event cry out, “What have I done to deserve this?” How ignorant his mind, how foolish his words, and how sad it is to see that such a person has not had the great opportunity to learn the doctrines that could provide him with the answer. Yet, how common this scene is in life!
Look deeper and see what it is that you really want out of life, but look with wisdom, and be able to discard short-term gains, temporary gains, and selfish gains. Only when this practice is done seriously may the teachings of the good paths be appreciated and then cultivated. Never cry out at the slightest discomfort, never ask why you are not more fortunate than others, and never blame heaven for the plights that you are in.
12-May-1984 (3)
The qualities of each person's mind cannot be the same; one should never take for granted that others should have the “common sense” not to do this or to do that!
Refrain from having too many expectations in life. Take life as it comes, accepting rain and sunshine, and do not moan that your day is ruined by someone else. It is always oneself that is the cause of all problems in life. Choosing, discriminating, and preferring this over that—these are the very causes of unhappiness and failures in disciplinary practice. How can one ever be happy if so many things, people, and conditions of life are frowned upon? How can one hope to be given the best of everything in life?
12-May-1984 (2)
The happy mind is the greatest wealth anyone can possess. The purpose of spiritual cultivation is to attain a happy mental state that is undistracted by the unreasonable cravings, allowing one to be content and at peace. Those who live a life filled with love for others will reach this state of mind sooner than others. To love others and to care for their well-being is to be unselfish, concerned, and sympathetic. Such a person has a head start over others.
12-May-1984 (1)
Blaming fate is the habit of those who have no Path or do not know the Teachings well enough. Many feel they deserve a much better life than the one they are having now. They do not recognise the meaning of life’s obstacles, which are caused by their past karma, by their own selves. No one is satisfied with the conditions they have—even the fortunate ones! How dull human beings can be! How sick are the thoughts of human beings! How desirous can a person be!
All such unreasonable expectations and daily pleadings for worldly rewards are far too many to be counted. They are the prayers of those who look up to the sky, who gaze at the holy images on the Altars, who seek God in their imaginations, and who are totally ignorant! Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (3)
When times are bad, how do you feel? When cheerful times are present, is there time for cultivating seriously instead of spending time enjoying oneself? How many are really true to their aspirations? Weak human minds are plentiful, but what’s is the use of being a human only to possess such an ignorant mind?
Do not sit and hope for the best. Do not wish that this or that will come about just because of some prayers uttered. Move and see to it that the way is set for things to happen. Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (2)
Spending the day in a hurry will not bring about a calm mind. Being annoyed or irritated with others’ attitudes and behaviours will only set your mind back, allowing the mental poisons to arise. When one is trying to cultivate, it means that throughout the entire day, one must remain calm and be aware of circumstances that cause negative feelings and actions to surface. Only when one is completely aware of all situations and corresponding thoughts is practice done! Om Sari Hum!
7-May-1984 (1)
The aspirant of Bodhisattvahood must not fear death, nor be grieved by death, so as to be able to see that death is not an evil in itself, but a very natural law. The Buddha declared that all conditioned things are impermanent and that even He must die, so what more of lesser beings? Take life as it comes, and fill the mind with knowledge of the great many Truths that govern life; be ready to accept the realities of life and never be saddened by the thought of death. Understand well that the human body must wither, even as mountains will be levelled in time to come, but what happens after death is much more important than death itself!
30-Apr-1984 (2)
Requests for prayers and help will be plentiful, and advice at critical moments of life will be sought; their cries will fill your mind with grief, and tears may well up within your eyes! You will feel sad to hear of so much suffering, and you will rush forth to offer prayers, only to become depressed by the sights you have seen and the stories you have heard. Such is the training of one who seriously tries to walk My Path, who places the Bodhisattva Spirit in his heart, and will be ready to make himself available to the world. It will not be easy, but these kinds of situations are there not just to wake you up, develop your feelings and concern for others, or cause you to practise the Bodhisattva qualities, but more to put you on the Path by actually witnessing the truths of samsaric existence.
30-Apr-1984 (1)
This is the time of searching, studying, and contemplating life seriously. You will see more sufferings and death, and you will have to understand why it must be so. But you will also experience more inner calm and joy. You will need to be less emotional, more practical, and more committed to achieving the goal of this lifetime.
Praying and worshipping must become a part of your daily life. They must be the vehicles that carry you through many difficulties and the way of practice for all who are drawn to this Way-place. Through prayers and worship, you reduce your karmic loads and increase your merits. Through them, you learn to discipline your body and mind, and you will also learn to be selfless.
21-Apr-1984
Know the noble goal of life, live decently, and live happily and comfortably, according to what you have, and be content with life’s conditions. Earning a living is a necessity in life, and hoping to earn more to provide a better life for oneself and one's family is good and natural. But to make the pursuit of greedy wants as life’s goal in place of freedom from wants—that is the greatest harm that you can do to yourself.
Once you have found contentment, you should concentrate more on spiritual attainment rather than pursuing more material wealth, which will only draw you away from contentment. It will increase your cravings, causing the poisons of the mind to increase instead of being reduced.
21-Apr-1984 (1)
All kinds of thoughts will surely enter the minds of the suffering ones, but no amount of thinking can help lessen their pains or to prevent future pains from arising. Understanding the truth of cause and effect will help put one’s mind in the correct order so that suffering will be endured with patience. However, simply accepting suffering and enduring it with the understanding that it was caused by past karma is not enough; anyone can do that. More importantly, one should see the folly of this chain of suffering that will continue forever and ever until one awakens to the decision that an end to suffering must come, and that this should be the lifetime to pursue it!
7-Apr-1984 (4)
The purpose of human life is to attain enlightenment so that no more suffering will arise in the future. Greater minds have a far nobler aspiration: to become enlightened so that help may be rendered to those who are still caught in the sleep of delusion, unaware that there is one great goal to achieve in life—Freedom from Suffering! Once the meaning of life has been grasped, one will appreciate this precious life even more deeply and will realise that the impermanence of life is a threat to one’s cultivation, ensuring that no more time is wasted on idle living. One then appreciates life more and proceeds towards living a meaningful life filled with great and noble purpose.
7-Apr-1984 (2)
To remove anger from oneself, sincerity and perseverance are necessary before any real results can be felt. Discipline is also required, and time must be allowed for such practices. For the true cultivator who has realised this major fault, he must at once set about removing it from his mind. He must contemplate the evils of anger and the pains that inevitably follow.
However, introducing wholesome thoughts will have a positive effect on one’s mind, strengthening one’s motivation and causing one to become more aware of this fault. It will take time, which requires both patience and perseverance, to achieve positive results.
1-Apr-1984 (2)
I have shown the Way, and the Buddha has given the Way. You need only accept the challenge to adopt it within this lifetime; even though you may still feel quite helpless to give full help, wisdom has been gained, good seeds are being planted, and with patience, they will bring their Reward!
The way to develop the qualities that will certainly give you the ability to help others is to strive for bodhisattvahood. Only when you have succeeded will you be able to understand people—their attitudes, their tendencies, their delusions, and everything related to the people of the world, including why they are what they are today. All the mysteries of the world cannot be solved with a mind that is impure, nor by someone who is himself filled with mental obstructions. Become a Bodhisattva, and all such mysteries will become plain truths to you. Don’t you prefer to have this capability to understand the world as it is today?
22-Mar-1984 (4)
Those who come here need to search deeply and practise contemplations on the precious opportunities they currently have to pursue the Path. They must also contemplate the sufferings of the samsaric realms and bring forth the mind of enlightenment, determined to succeed in their daily practice. Unless they seriously commit themselves to daily sitting in deep contemplation, they too will lose the Way.
While in contemplation, do not create the illusion of a dream world—a world that can never exist on this planet. Rather, wake up to the realities of the world and make a firm decision to distance yourself from the masses who prefer to live in a fantasy world.
10-Jan-1984 (3), 22-Mar-1984 (3)
As you pray for the well-being of others, you must be able to feel their plights. Before you pray, always spend a few moments contemplating the sufferings of the world and shift your mind from self to others. Once compassion is felt, the recitations you make will become more meaningful and more purposeful.
Daily contemplate the sufferings of the world and stir your heart so that you are ready to do your bit to make this world a better place and this society a happier one as you walk boldly along the Path of Compassion!
13-Mar-1984 (4), 7-Apr-1984 (3)
A human life is like a bubble that can burst at any moment, even though the ending of a life is simply the cessation of inhaling and exhaling. Past karma, upon ripening, may be the cause of a severe illness; similarly, a good deed in the past can cause others to be concerned and to pray for a person’s well-being. Since past good and bad deeds are countless, one inevitably encounters all kinds of situations each day of one’s life. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas cannot alter the karma of the past, but They can set in motion new causes through which people may benefit from them.
1-Apr-1984 (1)
Anger is one of the greatest faults in human beings, and it arises out of delusion. For those who are constantly troubled by it, they must practise even more diligently to remove it from their minds.
Anger leads one to greater delusion, causing one to commit all kinds of foolish acts and generate all kinds of false views that eventually give rise to hatred.
A single instance of anger can destroy lifetimes of merits. Anger must be removed through patience and sustained effort.
Each time anger arises, remember the fatal results that will follow. Remember that all the prayers that you have uttered will become useless; remember that you have not understood the meaning of cultivation; and finally, remember that anger will destroy you.
1-Apr-1984 (1)
Prayer will cause you to create good wishes, which in turn open your heart. When you are able to feel for others, your prayers will be effective. When you can bring forth genuine feelings for those who are suffering, your prayers will be more concentrated and more direct, as if such prayers are meant for you.
When you pray, you are already committing yourself to a meritorious deed, so you should pray with the greatest concentration. A swaying mind will rob you of the value of this good act. Make sure that you adopt a single-minded attitude so that all the efforts you put in will bear fruit, thereby bringing benefits to others.
20-Mar-1984 (3)
The way you react to any situation reveals your true nature. If you see someone down in the gutter and do not lift a finger to help, what is the use of wishing that someone else were there to do it for you? A day will come when you too are in a bad situation, and you will long for someone, anyone, to respond to you. How sad and painful it will be when you can see that there are many concerned faces, but no one to lift you up.
This is the real meaning of ‘doing unto others as you would have others do unto you'. Each person will need some help at some point in life, but not many will be able to find assistance. This is because most people do not practise what they believe, and so they do not give their help willingly. It is not strange, therefore, to find that the majority of the unfortunate ones also fail to receive help when they need it most.
20-Mar-1984 (2)
Bravely walk on no matter how difficult it seems to be. The way to selflessness is always filled with tests because nobility must be brought forth. It is too easy for anyone to declare his intention to pursue this righteous Path, but it is difficult for him to last a single day. All kinds of declarations are of no use unless one is actually putting those words into action.
20-Mar-1984 (1)
The next time you cannot sleep well, do not just feel miserable and become miserable. Let those hours be spent in deep thoughts on how you will live your life and how you can reach out to others to bring them some relief. Do not waste those hours in useless struggles or ignoble thoughts that are dark and materialistic; instead, entertain thoughts that are kind and calm, for they will draw your worries away. Nothing is permanent, and your sleeplessness too cannot last forever! Be wise, and at all times hold your mind with kindly thoughts and prayers directed towards the well-being of others. Each moment is an opportunity to plant a good seed that is latent with energy and will become a living force one day, so that in the future, you will be able to use this energy fully!
27-Feb-1984 (9)
Remember that practising this great path is not simple at all. Those who are in pain must be firm in faith and practice. There is no such thing as an immediate response to prayers. How can all problems be solved at once after a few pleadings and prayers?
Pain and confusion are always necessary because they must be transcended before wisdom arises. As you learn to bear them, you will discover how much you can learn! Om Sari Hum!
16-Jan-1986 (1), 10-Jan-1986 (1)
Begin to cultivate the habits that will lead you to peace, helping you to become a truly gentle being, a fearless yet loving being, a Buddhist! All that you do, do it for the sake of bringing happiness to others and to yourself. This is the way to remove friction between yourself and others. You will learn to see the good points in others and overlook their faults; you will learn to recognise your own faults and not focus on the virtues that you believe you have. You learn humility so that you can practise charity. You see in others what you should see in yourself—the entire world is but a mirror! 13-Mar-1986 (3)
When the mind is pure, there is peace and serenity. Purity of mind is what every being wishes for, but only a few will go after attaining it. It is not developed out of an intellectual understanding of purity. It must be felt through the various practices of purification of the heart.
Reading and understanding it is insufficient; anyone with the ability to read and the intelligence to understand can do it, but they have not experienced its true state. Mental purity is attained only by a sustained method of righteous living, in accordance with the Eightfold Path, whereby not only the mind but also one’s body and speech must all be free from acts of selfishness.
31-Mar-1986 (1)
When you understand your life’s goal and begin to follow the Path to peace, cultivation has begun. Peace of mind is what you hope to attain. You become a peace-seeker, striving to develop a peaceful nature!
To troubled and wandering minds, peace is very distant; they have forgotten what peace is and they have lost the value of it. But the Truth can only be realised with a peaceful mind. Whether you like it or not, you must subdue your mind and discipline yourself if you wish to be released from the planes of suffering, and if you wish to enjoy endless peace!
13-Mar-1986 (2)