Letting Go of Your Heavy Burdens

The Necessity of Letting Go

In your spiritual practice, you must learn to let go of the heavy burdens you carry. Only by releasing these weights can you truly achieve spiritual success. If you continue to carry these burdens upon your shoulders or bind them to your body, you will find it impossible to attain liberation. In fact, you may find that despite your efforts, you remain unable to accomplish anything of significance on the path to awakening.

You might ask, what exactly are these heavy burdens? They are the various experiences, memories, and attachments from your past, your present life, and your anxieties regarding the future. All of these are heavy burdens that weigh down your heart and spirit. Before you have successfully transformed your karma, all these aspects of your life are governed by the laws of karma and cause and effect. The past is already gone; it cannot be retrieved, no matter how much you dwell upon it.

Breaking Free from the Cycle of Karma

The ultimate purpose of your practice is to become the master of your own life, ensuring that you are no longer controlled or dominated by the laws of karma and cause and effect. If you continue to dwell on the past or constantly revisit your memories, you are effectively placing yourself back into the turbulent waves of karmic mental notes. How can you ever hope to transform your karma or leave it behind if you keep returning to the very thoughts that bind you to it?

Therefore, regarding the past, you must learn to let go immediately. Do not think about it, and do not dwell on your memories. Even when it comes to your family members, you must understand that each person must bear their own karmic responsibilities. You cannot carry their burdens for them, nor can they carry yours. You must focus on your own path.

The Illusion of Future Worries

Similarly, you must not dwell on the future. The future is filled with variables that are beyond your ability to accurately predict or perceive. Consequently, the things you imagine and the thoughts you hold regarding what is to come are merely illusions. They do not represent the truth of the present moment.

However, you may wonder about the skills and professional expertise you have acquired in the past. If you can use these talents to serve the community, to support the temple, or to propagate the Dharma, then you may certainly do so. This is a way of performing goodness, cultivating blessings, and creating broad Dharma affinity with all beings. Nevertheless, you must be careful. Do not become arrogant, self-satisfied, or attached to your own personal interests. You must remain diligent in your practice.

The Path to Awakening

When you use your skills, you must maintain meditative concentration. Your heart should remain as still as water, without any ripples of attachment. To act without a sense of self-interest—this is true skill. If you wish to achieve the state of an awakened being, you must be willing to let go of everything you have placed in your heart and everything you have fixated upon with your eyes, including past people, events, and scenes.

The most effective way to achieve this is to chant one Buddha's name to the end. Chant until your heart is empty, until there is nothing left, and you will naturally realise your true, original nature. By letting go of the heavy burdens of the past and future, you clear the way for the light of wisdom to shine through, guiding you toward the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

Namo Amituofo