It is hard to the people when they must die
because their lives have to be abandoned. It is the third of the twenty
difficulties for people said by Buddha. As we know, most of us are very
cherishing our life. However, once we are coveting life and fearing death, we
would surrender to the threat and inducement from the evil intention of others.
There is no exclusivity in the teaching of
Buddha.
In the teaching of Buddha, once a disciple could
not learn the Buddha well because his personality is very arrogant and he could
not get along well with the public in the group, the most serious education is
to disregard him in silence in the group, until he could have perceived his
faults by reflecting himself. The Buddha would not drive him out, unless the
arrogant disciple leaves the group automatically.
However, most of the Buddhist monk or nun, or
the Buddha-learner has not yet been enlightened. They are not the Buddha. On
the contrary, they are ordinary persons. Therefore, in their group, there might
be existed the exclusivity and to exclude the disobedient person.
In the right teaching of Buddha, people accept
the Buddhism by their free will. Even they leave the group or never accept the
teaching of Buddha again, there are not existed any punishment or any
exclusivity in the society or in the career. Why?
Only in the unequal status, in the unequal
authority, and in the un-contented mind, there is thus existed the punishment
from the self-arrogant mind. In addition, in the hatred mind, and in the greedy
mind, there is also thus existed the exclusivity from the un-awakened mind.
Furthermore, the Buddha is in the nature of
Emptiness. All sentient beings are the unenlightened one, and are the future
Buddha. Their nature is also the Emptiness. In other word, in the heart of
Buddha, all sentient beings are equal to the Buddha. All in one is the
Emptiness. So, how could it be existed any punishment or any exclusivity in the
Emptiness? Such as in the Universe, who could be excluded? Every one is part of
the universe.
So, we could find the difference. In the heart
of Buddha, there is not existed any line to differentiate any person or any
thing. However, in the heart of un-enlightened person, there is existed the
line to differentiate any person or any thing.
If we could understand the above completely, we
could find that a lot of ideology is fooling people, including the threat and
inducement from the evil intention of others. Secondly, we could see through
the intention of others which is hided in their greedy and hatred mind.
Patriotism creates barriers and binary
oppositions and thus limits the thinking and creation of human beings.
I remember that when I was a little girl, we
were instilled the ideology of patriotism at the elementary school, and at any
time we were preparing for fighting with the enemy since we are in the martial
law. Even the thought of Buddhism, it would be regarded as the violation of the
ideology of patriotism. Why?
As I have mentioned, there is no enemy in the
nature of Emptiness. In the body of Emptiness, there is no object, things,
binary opposition, even any ideology. To have the ideology of patriotism is
meant to be loyal to the country, and which is regarded as the right thought.
However, in fact, the ideology of patriotism is to increase the hatred to the
enemy. What so called "the enemy" which is always means that the
person who disagrees with our ideology. So, the ideology of patriotism is hidden the binary opposition.
Such as ideology of binary opposition would make
people narrow their mind and limit their thought and creation. In the history,
I have found that a lot of people were instigated by the ideology of patriotism
or the other, and were thus killed in the war. A lot of soldiers were
illiteracy, and they might have force and courage, but were lack of brain. They
were easy to be fooled by any ideology. If we go into the path of Buddha, the
war is impossible to be existed, and people could not die innocently.
Secondly, the ideology of patriotism is to draw
a line in our heart, to differentiate any persons and any things, which would
increase the conflict and argument from person to person, and would increase
the fighting from country to country. So, if human beings own the intelligence
and wisdom enough, the ideology of patriotism or nationalism should be removed.
All people in the world are equal to each other. It is better to destroy the
intangible line of one country and the other country.
Evil karma would counterattack to oneself in the
future.
A lot of people for keeping their life, they had
to but being instigated by the blind ideology of patriotism or the other, and
thus to kill others. A lot of evil karma has thus been done. They do not know
that such evil karma would counterattack to oneself in the future. In other
word, if one person kills others with the mind of hatred, one day it would be
killed by the hatred mind of other person in the future or in the next life.
That is why the Buddha has said,” What has been
done in the past life is the consequence of the current life; what has been
done in the present life is the consequence of the afterlife.”
“It is hard to the people when they must die
because their lives have to be abandoned.” That is one of the weaknesses of
human nature. The self-righteous person would use it to control human beings.
People’s livelihood is concerned about the life and death. However, do you have
found that the Buddha Sakyamuni did not take part in or play in the rule of
game of any worldly system created by human, let alone the ideology of
patriotism. Why? Think about it.
Life and death are one.
To understand above would increase our wisdom.
Then, we might have one question. When people must die because of their lives
being abandoned, how to let it not be difficult for them?
As we know, we are afraid of dying, especially,
when we are told that we have serious disease, such as cancer. Some of people
are unwilling to die, when they have known that they have cancer and might have
to die in less than half year from knowing the cancer. Unfortunately, they
finally have to die; even they have spent a lot of money to cure their disease.
Under the circumstance, it is hard to them, when they must die because their
lives have to be abandoned.
A lot of people could not accept and face their
disease and death with peaceful mind. So, they feel angry, despair, and
depressed. They are suffering the life and death, and struggling in there.
Finally, once they could not stand or bear the suffering or pain any more, they
choose to suicide or euthanasia.
However, if they have the concept that life is
equal to death, and death is equal to life, the realm of their heart would be
different. The meaning that life is equal to death is also meant to that life
and death are one. Such concept is hard to be understood.
The Function of Soul
In a brief, every one has the soul and the body.
Even though the soul is shapeless, it still has the conscious, feeling,
thinking, and memory. It also could “speak” and “communicate” to others with
mind. It is the “sound” with no sound. In other words, it is the speaking and
communication from the heart or mind to the other heart or mind. It is existed
in the shapeless and in the no substance, and it is hard to be verified by
science instrument. For the most people, it might be experienced when we are
dreaming in sleeping. It is very clear and could be remembered. However, it is
different from the theory of Freud.
Now we have the basic concept for the soul and
the body. Following concept would be hard to be understood, because it is
beyond our experience of the general knowledge and common sense.
The soul is eternal. It can not be eliminated.
There is no arising and no destroying for the soul. In other word, there is no
birth and no death for the soul. The soul is like the software. What we have
learned, what we have thought, and what we have done, would be recorded in
there. The seed of virtue or of evil would be planted in there, which means
that the thought of virtue or of evil would be recorded in there. It would
affect our current life and our future or next life.
Our Body is not permanent.
On the contrary, the body is not eternal. It
could be eliminated. The body could be arisen and then be destroyed. In other
word, there is the birth and death for the body. Our cells are metabolized and
replaced at any time. Our decaying organs can be transplanted or replaced
through surgery.
Sometimes, we describe our body as a car or a
piece of clothing, which could be replaced. Once our body is dead, our soul
would leave the dead body, and dwell in the next new-born body, which is like
that we change a new car or a piece of new clothing. That is reborn or
reincarnating.
The eighth consciousness is soul.
The Buddha Sakyamuni had mentioned eight kinds
of consciousness. Our soul is equal to the eighth consciousness. The soul is
some kind of quality. Some scientist has said that the soul has weight.
To know and understand above, it could help us
understand the concept that life is equal to death, and death is equal to life.
And, it could help us not attach to or depend on our body, but our soul. We
have known that our soul is not dead, and what has dead is just our body. To
have such concept would help us accept and face the fact that our body might
die at any time. Meanwhile, we could let our soul be at peace, and let us
increase our wisdom, to nourish our life of wisdom.
Under the circumstance, it is no difficult for
us, when we must die because our lives have to be abandoned. So, what has being
abandoned is the body, not our soul. Our lives of wisdom are still very live,
abundant and extend.
Supplementary note: Dao is transliterated
from Chinese, meaning way and method, deeper meaning as a system of learning or
religion. Dao is Tao, which is transliterated from Chinese. The original
meaning of Dao is the way and path, and it is extended to be the truth of life
that we can learn and practice in our lives.
