In the journey of spiritual practice, one must learn to work from the most difficult places. You may ask, what are these heavy areas? They are the blind spots within your own character that you have yet to discover, yet they follow you closely like a shadow. These are the habits that repeat themselves, the patterns that seem impossible to change. Even when you repeatedly taste the bitter fruits of these actions, and even when you know exactly how you should change, you remain trapped. It is as if you have been bound by a restrictive spell; the more you desire to change, the more you find yourself repeating the same mistakes. This is the essence of a heavy area.
The Shackles of the Heart
Why do these problems persist? They originate from the heart. These obstacles block your path and bind your spirit, inviting to manifest. Your find you, and because these karmic debts are not resolved, they continue to influence your heart and your actions, leading you to create further negative causes. This negative cause is the heavy area of your practice. It is the place where you repeatedly break your , where you stumble time and again, and where you find it most difficult to reform. Yet, it is precisely in these heavy areas that your practice must begin.
The Rarity of True
Why are there so many practitioners, yet so few who achieve an awakened being? The same is true for the practice of chanting . Many people chant, but why are those who truly achieve rebirth in the so rare? It is because they cannot see their own blind spots, their own murky depths, and their own hidden darkness. Without the guidance of a true spiritual friend to point these out, one may live from birth until death without ever knowing the truth. In such a state, no matter how diligent your practice may seem, you cannot realise your true self. This life of practice will pass in vain, and the result will be another descent into the six realms of rebirth.
The Illusion of the Mind
Because your spiritual obstacles are so heavy, you are unable to sever the root of these causes. It is like taking a hallucinogenic drug; you feel comfortable and at ease, entering an illusory world. You become so addicted to this illusion that you cannot wake up, and you lose the strength to save yourself. Others may wish to help you, and they may even reach out their hands, but you do not see them. Even when the Buddha or Bodhisattvas come to save you, you may be so gravely ill that you cannot rise, or you may choose to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear, remaining unmoved until the very end of your life.
The Necessity of Self-Rescue
When a tree’s roots are rotten, its branches and leaves will wither. You must begin the rescue from the roots. You must save as much as you can, and you must do so with urgency. If impermanence arrives and the tree dies, withers, and you will be unable to be saved. Your spirit will leave the body, and you will be cast back into the cycle of rebirth for another lifetime. To save yourself, you must summon your boldness and determination. You must truly face your faults and take action, rather than forgiving yourself and letting the days pass by in complacency. If you know how to save yourself but refuse to do so, if you do not truly practise, then how can the Buddha or Bodhisattvas help you?
The Power of Two-Fold Support
Once you begin to save yourself, the power of the Buddha can assist you, and you will be able to receive His . This is the ease of the two-power method of the Pure Land path. However, if you do not exert your own effort, even if the Buddha or Bodhisattvas have already told you how to act, you will remain stagnant. The Buddha and Bodhisattvas are waiting at all times. As long as you can exert your own effort, they will assist you at the critical moment of your practice, allowing you to break through and improve. But if you do not summon the heart and the actions to save yourself, these heavy areas will remain heavy, and you will have no choice but to continue in the cycle of rebirth.
A Call to Transformation
My children, do you wish to return for another lifetime, to taste the bitter fruits and suffer the pain, without the guarantee of meeting a true spiritual friend or receiving the help of the Buddha or Bodhisattvas? Do you wish to continue in this endless cycle of rebirth? Everything depends on your own heart. When the mind takes charge, it drives the transformation of your behaviour. You must be vigilant and change quickly; only then will you have the opportunity to be saved and achieve success! Practice is the process of adjusting your improper behaviour to avoid creating negative causes and suffering their evil consequences. Only then can you purify your heart, utilise your Six Roots, and clear away the darkness that obscures your light. When the light shines fully, your true self will be revealed. Namo Amituofo.
