75
The Dharma of Loving-Kindness
“Listen, noble ones, you must first understand the entire process, otherwise you may
still harbor doubts and uncertainties arising from the initial explanations I have given,”
the Buddha began.
“What is the entire process, Lord?” Moghara the ascetic asked further.
“The entire process that you must know is that the souls dwelling in this vast universe
consist of two groups of sentient beings with spirit:
The first group is the spirits that generally exist throughout the universe. These spirits
reside at important points in various positions that are the centers of galaxies, large
and small, to maintain the balance of those galaxies and enable them to exist. These
spirits are free and not bound by any regulations, except for the central regulations of
the universe.
The second group is the spirits that have volunteered to be born on this Earth. You also
need to know that this world-element is the center that sustains the universe,
consisting of trillions of galaxies, large and small, allowing them to exist in a cycle, like
the axle of the wheel of the cosmos.
And the spirits that volunteer to be born on this world-element must abide by specific
rules unlike anywhere else in the universe. Before being born, they have already
accepted these specific rules about what they must do and what will happen if they
cannot follow those rules. The duties of the spirits that volunteer to be born are:
First, to perceive the world, to admire the craftsmanship of the Divine, how beautiful,
exquisite, magnificent, and intelligent it is, to have various experiences on Earth, and to
exist as noble human beings on this planet.
Second, to maintain the existence of the world. One of the duties of this maintenance is
to create the power of love and compassion to bestow upon the world with varying
degrees of difficulty, which each individual determines for themselves, to generate the
power of loving-kindness. This power will bring balance to the world. This is why
conditions and roles of hatred arise, which must be transformed into the power of love
and compassion using the highest mental power, or collectively called coming to
express the noble.
And third, these spirits volunteer to create something to arise on this Earth, and what
is created must be rich in nobility derived from the two points above. If they die before
fulfilling this noble creative duty completely, they will not be able to leave these
specific rules. Their spirit will remain here. This remaining has many types:
Remaining because they must return to correct something.
Remaining because they could not release the waves of love as promised.
Remaining because they are still attached to something.
Remaining because they have not yet created something according to their intention.
When the problem of spirit retention increases, they are confined in various
dimensions beyond the physical world that can be touched, known, seen, and
perceived. For example, if they have a clouded mind, when they die, they will reside in a
place filled with that cloudiness according to their own imagination.
If they have a good heart, are attached to goodness, or desire to receive the fruits of the
good deeds they have done, they will reside in a place filled with joy and happiness
according to their heart’s desire, without conditions or tests requiring them to show
compassion, while waiting for the appropriate time for both parties involved and the
situational conditions to converge. Only then will they be allowed to be reborn into a
new physical body.
And if they still cannot fulfill their intended duties, they will have to reside in those
various places again. Therefore, your world at this time is a world filled with a large
accumulation of retained spirits, because new spirits are constantly being added, as the
world needs a great amount of the power of love and compassion. The old spirits that
did not complete their duties are kept in various dimensions that are like transparent
cages, where they themselves do not even know they are being confined, but the spirits
throughout the universe know and see but cannot help.
Therefore, I answer your question about whether spirits that are Pretas, Asuras,
wandering spirits, or spirits attached to goodness in various realms can attain truth.
They cannot, because those spirits are still under the specific rules of the world. As for
other general spirits outside the system, they are already in a state akin to
enlightenment; therefore, they do not need to strive for it again.
The only way these spirits can be free from the specific rules is to return to be born as
a new physical human being and must be able to show love and compassion in every
condition that arises for them in the physical world only, or in short, ‘come to rectify.’
And while rectifying, they can also fulfill the duty of creating the power of love, because
all of you are generators of the power of compassion that helps sustain this world.
From now on, always remember that ‘only the Dharma of loving-kindness can sustain
the world.’ When all of you have fully and perfectly fulfilled your duties, by bringing
forth the Buddha-spirit, which is the subtle mind, into concrete actions through the
mind of the physical body, like two peaceful deer helping each other to turn the wheel
of the cosmos into a cycle,
From now on, you will be called pure, but not a purity born from mere emptiness
without doing anything. Rather, it is a purity born from releasing the bonds that have
long bound you, a purity born from sincere love and goodwill, without any hidden
agenda.
Those who will be able to do this must possess two other qualities in tandem:
First, maintaining love and compassion firmly and unchangeably. It is the process by
which you must constantly examine your thoughts to see if you still dwell in sincere
goodwill. It is steadfastness, or in short, ‘concentration’ (Samadhi).
And second, understanding the various conditions, seeing all things as they truly are,
seeing everything as it is, without separation or judgment, or in short, ‘wisdom’
(Prajna).
When these two processes occur, they will lead to expressions filled with creative
compassion, beneficial to both oneself and others, capable of finally releasing all the
karmic burdens that you have created. When you have completely released them, the
state of purity will arise within you without you needing to try to suppress, restrain,
touch, or perceive anything.”
“Listen… noble ones, now I know that the attainment of truth or entering the state of
Nirvana is no longer a major problem for you, because you know all the steps and
methods. All that remains is for you to put them into practice and prove the results for
yourselves, especially regarding the state where you will feel the ‘being’ of Buddha,
which is both the beginning and the ultimate destination, the origin of the soul that we
all need to return to. And this is the shortest way, a way that does not require going
through any sequential steps. Simply feel that ‘being’ and let it remain with you forever.
I am but one image of Buddha appearing for you to see, and this feeling can also arise
within you, because you are also an image of the Divine. You can do it immediately
without waiting to die. And when your consciousness constantly feels the ‘being of
Buddha,’ when you die or when only your spirit remains, then your final destination is
nowhere else but where you feel you ‘are’…”
“If a person decides to be a carpenter, when they work with wood themselves every
day repeatedly, they will become skilled and knowledgeable in carpentry, and that
knowledge will become more detailed and profound, and their woodworking will
become more refined. In the same way,
If you decide to truly feel the being of Buddha-mind, when you act and express yourself
with the Buddha-mind, you will become skilled and knowledgeable in being the
Buddha-mind, and the phenomena arising from being the Buddha-mind will become
more detailed, profound, and refined.”