The Essential Foundation of Faith in the Buddha

My children, do you truly have faith in the Buddha? Do you truly have faith in Namo Amituofo? This is a matter of the utmost importance. Namo Amituofo, Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju, and Practitioner Su have repeatedly emphasised this point, urging you to reflect deeply upon it. If you do not possess genuine faith in the Buddha and in Namo Amituofo, it becomes incredibly difficult to keep your practice aligned with the Buddha’s path. Your mental notes will easily waver, and you will find yourselves susceptible to the influence, control, and interference of your karma, your karmic creditors, and even the demon crowds. When you lack this anchor, you lose the ability to be the master of your own mind, and the existing pollution and damage within your body, mind, and spirit will only be exacerbated.

The Fragility of a Mind Without Faith

If your faith is weak, how can your practice be diligent? How can you hope to achieve purification? Without a firm foundation of faith, how can your original nature gradually manifest, allowing you to continue your diligent practice until you see your true nature? To have faith in the Buddha and in Namo Amituofo means to believe completely in the Buddha’s teachings. It means to accept and practise the Infinite Life Sutra (The Buddha Speaks the Mahayana, Infinite Life, Adornment, Purity, Impartiality, and Enlightenment Sutra) with your whole heart. You must believe in the teachings of the Buddha, the ancestral masters, and the guidance of your true spiritual friends. Only then can you truly accept these teachings into your heart and change your behaviour for the better.

The True Meaning of Surrender

I ask you to have faith in the Buddha and in Namo Amituofo, and to believe in the Buddha’s teachings so that you may truly let go of your personal ego-attachment, your own views, and your subjective opinions. Why is this necessary? Because your ego-attachment, your personal views, and your subjectivity are all manifestations of the "self" that remains trapped within the cycle of rebirth. This "self" is burdened by the Five Poisons and the Five Desires:

• The Five Poisons: Greed, Anger, Ignorance, Arrogance, and Doubt.
• The Five Desires: wealth, lust, fame, food, and sleep.

These personality traits and habits are the most common obstacles that prevent you from practising diligently, purifying your mind, and making progress. Therefore, you must change, you must transform, and you must let go. You must embody this transformation in your heart and actions, in your daily life, and in every moment of your existence.

Living the Dharma in Every Moment

You must practise the Precepts (Discipline), Concentration and Wisdom in all that you do. Maintain a dignified demeanour, be gentle and straightforward, and always keep a pleasant expression. Ensure that your chanting of the Buddha-name becomes a continuous, flowing stream that never stops, and remain diligent in following the rules of the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre and your daily morning service. If you can truly achieve this, then you are a person of true faith. For those who have faith in the Buddha and in Namo Amituofo, the diligent practice of the Precepts (Discipline), Concentration and Wisdom, and the extinguishing of greed, anger, and ignorance, are not merely slogans. They must be truly implemented in your daily conduct. Only then can you remove defilements and attain purity, and truly receive the benefits of the Dharma.

The Vessel of Faith and the Buddha's Light

Those who have faith in the Buddha and in Namo Amituofo do not doubt the words of the sutras, the teachings of the Buddha, the insights of the ancestral masters, or the guidance of true spiritual friends. Doubt is a poison that pollutes the heart. If there is something you do not understand, you should approach it with a heart of respect and use a respectful tone to seek the Dharma, rather than using a tone or expression of questioning and disbelief. Such an attitude is a sign that a being in the cycle of rebirth has lost control of their mind. This state of mind already pollutes the heart and attracts karma to manifest, causing your practice to stagnate or even regress.

Chanting as the Ultimate Remedy

Faith in the Buddha and in Namo Amituofo is a necessary condition for diligent practice, purification, and seeing your true nature on the Pure Land path. Students of Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, you must remember the importance of this faith. The Buddha’s power is equal and impartial; it is blessing you 24/7. If you have faith, you will be able to receive the Buddha's blessings, thereby gaining the magnificent benefits of the dual support of your own efforts and the Buddha’s power. If you do not have faith, even though the Buddha’s power and light are present, it is difficult for you to be receptive, and you will be unable to receive these blessings.

My children, if you find that your delusion, discrimination, and attachment are difficult to subdue, or if greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt arise, or if you find it difficult to control your desires for wealth, lust, fame, food, and sleep, then please chant Namo Amituofo! If you have faith and chant with a sincere heart, and if your chanting becomes a continuous, flowing stream that never stops, you will certainly be able to subdue your delusion, discrimination, and attachment under the blessing of the Buddha’s power. Continue to chant diligently, and you will be able to remove defilements and attain purity, eventually breaking through delusion, discrimination, and attachment entirely. Through diligent chanting, you will maintain the Precepts (Discipline), Concentration and Wisdom, attain meditative concentration, and reach the state where you see your true nature. Remember to have faith in the Buddha and in Namo Amituofo; from your first moment of aspiration until you become a Buddha, your path is simply to remember the Buddha and chant the Buddha-name. Namo Amituofo.