Letting Go of the Past to Realise the Truth

Teachings from Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju, recorded and transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe.

August 9, 2025

The Fleeting Nature of Yesterday

The past has already vanished, never to return. It is like a fleeting dream, leaving no trace behind. If you can truly let go of the past, you will finally be able to see the true nature of reality. Many people struggle because they cannot release what has already occurred, yet clinging to these shadows only obscures the clarity of the present moment.

The Burden of Stored Memories

If you harbour even the slightest memory, feeling, or mental state regarding past people, events, or scenes, you are inadvertently stirring the depths of your Alaya consciousness. You are reactivating the countless karmic seeds stored within, connecting yourself to the infinite beings who share those same emotional states. By doing so, you remain trapped in the cycle of arising and ceasing, bound by your own attachments. Within the long, flowing river of time, the past is infinitely vast. Every segment of life and death we have experienced is merely a process of repaying old karma and creating new seeds for the future.

Breaking the Cycle of Karma

When karma manifests, it often brings more suffering than joy. It is a cycle of arising and ceasing that disappears as soon as it passes. Yet, people find it difficult to let go; they grasp tightly to these experiences, becoming imprisoned within them. This attachment is precisely what keeps one far from clarity and the realisation of one's true self. At Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, we understand that all things exist within this cycle of cause and effect. It is our sincere hope that, under the compassionate guidance of Namo Amituofo, our Teacher, and Practitioner Su, the fourfold assembly (monks, nuns, laymen, laywomen) can learn to distance themselves from the past. Do not let the entanglements of yesterday hinder your spiritual achievements or your journey toward Awakening.

The Wisdom of Letting Go

Letting go of the past is a task that every practitioner must face. It is vastly different from the way worldly people strive to preserve every detail, image, and memory of their lives. Consider the following reasons why we must release these attachments:

• The past was spent within the cycle of karma and the arising and ceasing of causal conditions.
• These memories act as layers of defiled karma that cover your true self.
• If you insist on holding onto these memories, they become the very dust that obscures your original nature.

Worldly people do not understand this truth; they do not recognise their own true self. Consequently, they wish to preserve the people, events, and scenes they perceive as beautiful. However, in our practice, we must clearly understand this reality. To be a wise person, one must learn to let go of the past. Only then can the light of your true self shine forth, unburdened by the weight of what has already passed.

Namo Amituofo