Neil

The Chan School points directly to the human mind and brings sudden awakening to Buddhahood; its encounters of wit let people skilled at argumentation study it with exhilarating satisfaction, with a feeling of the road turning amid the peaks, of sudden illumination, and of coming back from the dead. Watching the Chan patriarchs of old … Read more

Once I came across the saying, “The Pure Land embraces all Dharma doors.” Because I had been exposed to a good deal of the theory of the Chan School and the Esoteric School, I thought to myself, Isn’t this a bit too self-conceited? How can it be said that way? Dharma doors are equal — … Read more

First, don’t have too high expectations of an enlightened master. The enlightened master in our minds must surely be sagely, virtuous, and compassionate. Little do we realize that for most enlightened masters, only their view is sound and well established; their habitual tendencies and desires are not yet thoroughly purified. Fully overcoming these habitual tendencies … Read more

First, when this master is teaching you, can he see through your outer packaging and point directly to the depths of your inner heart? Does this enlightened master have at least some understanding of the Dharma doors or practices you have previously chosen to study? Can the two of you communicate directly, heart to heart, … Read more

Most practitioners have not eaten a pure vegetarian diet since childhood. When they suddenly change their eating habits because of cultivation, some physiological reactions can occur, especially in middle-aged and elderly people who are physically weak. Because middle-aged and elderly people have eaten meat for a very long time, their physiology and energy channels have … Read more

When cultivating and realizing the Dharma, eating a vegetarian diet is of course the best. ① Because a vegetarian diet keeps the qi clear, it can make our energy channels relatively pure, making it easier to open up and transform the energy channels during the transformation of the physiology. ② “Food and sex are part … Read more

Throughout the entire process of cultivating and realizing the Dharma, lay practitioners, apart from needing to go into retreat and abstain from sex for short periods, can maintain a normal, regular sex life at other times without it affecting our ultimate liberation. For practitioners cultivating at home, sexual disharmony is also a focus of family … Read more

If your wife or husband is a fellow cultivator, that is because your merit and blessings have ripened the wholesome karmic conditions for your cultivation. The resistance to your cultivation will then be much less, but most laypeople who cultivate encounter opposition and obstruction from their families. This requires that we not be too attached … Read more

Merit is the essential spiritual provision for a practitioner. Without merit, the obstacles on our path of cultivation become overwhelming, our surroundings fill almost entirely with adverse conditions , and we find ourselves devoid of any support regarding the four conditions of practice: the Dharma, spiritual companions, resources, and a suitable sanctuary. Some may say, … Read more

The first time I meditated, I sat in a half-lotus position, with my hands resting casually on my knees and a playful, almost game-like attitude in my heart. After closing my eyes for just a few seconds, my body and mind suddenly became wonderfully clear and serene. Before my eyes, a series of beautiful images … Read more