Transforming pessimism to optimism, transforming negativity to actuality, transforming sorrow to strength and the transition from helping oneself to helping others. We progress up the gradient from mundane wisdom, reaching the apex of wisdom that transcends Samsara.
The body may be sick, but not the mind. It is mind over matter and how we rise to the occasion. The worst disease is not physical ailment but mental defilements that cast us adrift in Samsara. This resounds what the Buddha admonished, beings are sick with the disease of defilements. The mental imprints that remains embedded in our mental continuum like words carved on stone can only be effaced by Dharma through unremitting strive in practice. For seeds, laying insidiously deeply embedded in our Alaya consciousness, continue to flow in our mental continuum until they are completely eradicated. Often admonish myself: "The body can be weak but the mind must be strong!"
It is our infused false conceptions of "I am frail, I am weak" that retract our endeavour to learn, introspect and cultivate. By depriving ourselves from extensive and in depth learning ( 少聞 ), we retard our progress. By evasion and refusing to introspect much ( 少思 ), we inhibit our development. And by refusing to ultimately face and transform all mental negativities ( 少修 ), we thwart our penetration into the realities.
Ven. Zhen Jue (27/12/05, revised 9/10/06) |
