Everything for Sentient Beings

Teachings from Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju, recorded by the Buddha's disciple, Venerable HaiZe.

11 June 2022

To achieve success in your practice, you must understand that your purpose is to save all sentient beings. This is the true Buddha-heart. When you dedicate your life to this mission, you are aligning your spirit with the infinite compassion of Namo Amituofo.

The Boundless Scope of Sentient Beings

Who are these sentient beings that you are meant to save? They are not distant or abstract figures; they are everywhere. You must recognise that the term includes:

• Yourself: You are a sentient being in need of awakening.
• Family members: Those closest to you in this life are the first to receive your compassion.
• Those connected by karmic affinity: All beings with whom you share a past or present connection.
• All beings in the six realms of existence: From the highest heavens to the lowest hells, every soul is a sentient being.
• Everything you see before you: Every person, animal, and creature that crosses your path.
• Everything you encounter in your speech and actions: Every interaction is an opportunity to benefit others.
• The countless cells within your own body: Your physical form is a universe unto itself, teeming with life.
• The infinite spirits residing in the spaces within your pores: There are countless beings existing in dimensions beyond our immediate perception.

Many of the beings connected to you through your past actions have come to you now to seek balance for old debts. They are not your enemies; they are souls who have suffered and are waiting for the light of the Dharma.

Addressing the Karmic Debt

When you encounter difficulties, you must turn to your practice to extinguish the fire of anger and ignorance within your heart. You should:

• Chant Buddha's name: This is the most direct way to calm the spirit.
• Perform prostrations: Bowing to the Buddha helps to humble the ego.
• Recite the Sutras: This fills your mind with the Wisdom of the Buddhas.

By doing this, you not only extinguish your own inner fire but also help these sentient beings extinguish theirs. When your heart is calm and peaceful, you prevent them from remaining trapped in a sea of fire and suffering. Do not let them languish in the agony of their current state.

Cultivating the Buddha-Heart

You must also work diligently to change your personality traits and overcome your strong subjective views. This is essential to subdue the wild, restless mind. You must strive to:

• Remove ego-attachment: Let go of the false sense of "I" and "mine."
• Eliminate self-view: See the world through the lens of equality and compassion.
• Cultivate Wisdom: Develop the Wisdom (Prajna) that sees the truth of all things.
• Expand your mind-capacity: Learn to embrace all beings with a heart as vast as the universe.

Do not let these beings remain in a state of confusion, trapped in the various sufferings of their respective spaces. It is truly difficult for them to endure such pain. Compassion, Wisdom, a vast mind-capacity, and the power of inclusion—everything you do must be for the sake of all sentient beings.

Namo Amituofo