Personality, Habits, and the Path of Practice

The Illusion of Natural Traits

People in this world often believe that having their own unique personality traits and habits is a natural part of existence. They view these traits much like the basic physical needs of the body: when you are hungry, you seek food; when you are truly exhausted, you might even fall asleep while standing; when you are cold, you look for clothing; and when you are hot, you remove layers. However, they fail to realise that these very personality traits and habits are the primary reasons why beings remain trapped in the vast ocean of karma, endlessly cycling through birth and death, unable to escape the cycle of rebirth.

The Weight of Past Lives

The disciples at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre possess tremendous blessings and a unique, magnificent opportunity. Through the special Causal Conditions of meeting Practitioner Su—known to all beings as the Buddha—and through the profound process of inviting spirits, each disciple has come to know more than just a glimpse of their past lives. You have lived many roles throughout history:

• Royalty, such as kings, queens, and consortsOfficials, generals, and soldiersCivilians, merchants, and even banditsMonasticsVarious forms of animals, insects, and crawling creaturesInhabitants of the various hells, suffering retribution for past deeds

You have all engaged in the five roots of hellish suffering: killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and intoxication, as well as being consumed by wealth, lust, fame, food, and sleep. If someone had told you before this experience that you had committed these acts in past lives, you would likely have denied it with righteous indignation. You would have defended yourself, perhaps even with anger, insisting that because you are not that kind of person in this lifetime, you could never have done such things in the past. Yet, when your karmic creditors appeared to provide detailed evidence, and you witnessed these truths time and again, who among you could still claim innocence? You could only remain silent and acknowledge the truth.

The Trap of Self-Justification

Why did you commit such harmful acts in the past? You were blinded by the pursuit of wealth, lust, fame, food, and sleep, and by the desire for power. You might offer many reasons and excuses, but in summary, you were destroyed by your own personality traits and habits. Even when others offered kind words, good advice, or wise counsel on the right way to act, you rejected it, believing that your own methods were superior. Perhaps you were unaware of the truth at the time, or you listened to slanderous words and committed errors. While some issues may have been resolved, in most cases, you created heavy negative karma or forged deep enmities. Even now, some of your karmic creditors hold the tokens of the King of Hell, allowing them to seek revenge and causing you to suffer various forms of retribution. Why do these situations persist? It is due to karma, personality traits, habits, stubborn insistence on one's own views, and a lack of guidance from a true spiritual friend. Regardless of the cause, the suffering and happiness that follow must be borne by oneself. No one can act as a substitute; you must endure the consequences of your own actions.

The Mirror of Nature

Do animals and plants have personality traits and habits? They certainly do. Otherwise, they would not have been reborn as animals or plants. Have you not learned from the many interviews conducted at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre? Before a being passes away, whatever thought they hold—whatever they desire to eat or do—determines their next life. If one desires to eat clams, they are reborn as a clam. If one desires to be free from all constraints, like a white cloud drifting in the sky, their spirit drifts upward after death to become a being dwelling within the clouds. The Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre has recorded many such stories. Flowers, trees, mountains, rivers, vegetables, fruits, moths, and ants have all been subjects of these interviews. I ask you, do these stories serve as a warning? Or do you merely feel a momentary fear, thinking how terrifying it is, only to return to following your own habits and believing that your thoughts and words are correct? If you continue in this way, I ask you: what kind of being will you be in your next life? Which of the six realms of rebirth will you enter? Can you truly expect to reach the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss?

The Essence of Practice

Practice is the process of correcting your personality traits and habits so that you can align with your true self-nature. Only then can you achieve a state of clarity and transparency, revealing the pure, perfect, and luminous true self that is inherent in everyone. If this were an easy task, there would be no need for the countless practitioners throughout history who have left their homes, abandoned desires, shaved their heads, and lived as monastics to focus on purifying their Six Roots in search of the Truth. While lay practitioners also support the Dharma and engage in practice, they must interact with the dusty world without becoming stained by it. This is even more difficult, which is why the protection of the Dharma and the spreading of the Dharma must coexist and benefit one another. If monastics can achieve purity and realise their true nature, and then return to the world to spread the Dharma and save beings, the merit of those who protect the Dharma is immeasurable.

Humility and the Path to Awakening

Whether you are a monastic, a protector of the Dharma, or a practitioner, if you wish to gain the benefits of the Dharma from the Buddha’s teachings or from those who have realised their true nature, you must face one reality: regardless of whether you are a high-ranking official, a manager, a wealthy person, or a leader with great influence, you must put down your status and seek instruction with humility. In the process of seeking the Dharma, remember that the Buddha’s teachings are not worldly laws. Worldly laws are governed by the six realms of rebirth and karmic obstacles, whereas the Buddha’s teachings are meant to help you transcend the six realms and the world, guided by the power of your vows and your true self. Many of your thought patterns, perspectives, and opinions must be cleared away before you can truly receive the purification of the nectar of the Dharma. You must let go of your habitual ego-attachment and self-views to have any chance of changing your personality and habits. Otherwise, you remain trapped in your old self, and how then can you ever change? In other words, you must have no 'self,' no personal personality, and no habits. To hold onto them is to walk the path of karmic rebirth and destiny.

The Choice is Yours

This is easy to say, but difficult to do. For those willing to let go of their personality and habits, it is easy; for those who cling tightly to them, it is not. Which kind of person do you wish to be? The disciples of the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre have walked a path that few others have the chance to encounter, see, or hear. Many of you have used your stubborn tempers to hit walls, suffering many lessons and gaining much experience. Now, you should better understand the importance of being humble, modest, gentle, straightforward, and always following the needs of sentient beings.

Prescribing the Right Medicine

To deliver sentient beings, one must understand worldly laws and clearly perceive the personality traits and habits of each being to prescribe the right medicine for their specific problems. Among those who provide this medicine, those who have realised their true nature are the most skilled. There is no need for prior preparation; one acts according to the situation and follows the flow of nature. As long as beings can let go of their own opinions, listen, refrain from doubt, and accept and change, the results will be effective and extraordinary. You may even rediscover your true self, which is a joyous event of the highest order—truly a rare encounter in millions of years. These are things you must experience for yourselves.

Words from Xianshou

Recorded by Venerable HaiZe