The Heart as the Source of Transformation
Words of Namo Amituofo
Recorded and Transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe, September 2, 2023
The Heart as the Source of Transformation
My children, you understand the importance and the urgency of changing your personality traits. However, do you truly know where to begin this essential work? You must start by changing your heart. If you can successfully adjust and refine your heart, your body and spirit will naturally follow suit, undergoing their own profound transformation.
If your heart has not truly been adjusted, you will fail to see the root of your problems. If you do not put in the work from within your heart to change your ways and ensure you do not repeat the same mistakes, you are merely engaging in superficial change. In reality, the underlying problems remain. Your body and spirit will continue to manifest the same difficult situations, and your afflictions, anger, and confusion will inevitably arise once more.
The Illusion of Superficial Change
When you fail to address the root, you continue to plant negative causes. When the conditions mature, the evil consequences and painful retributions will manifest. In such a state, how can one hope to escape the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, death? Purification often feels as distant as the horizon, while pollution and negativity are added to your life at every moment.
Starting from the heart is the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way, which applies regardless of which realm or space you currently inhabit. Because you possess a physical body, the act of changing your heart must be accompanied by a change in your external behaviour. When you align your actions with your inner transformation, you will be able to improve immediately and receive the benefits of this practice without delay.
Harmonising Body, Speech, and Mind
You must start from the heart to ensure you do not create negative through your Body, Speech, and Mind, which would otherwise lead to great suffering. Instead, you should strive to:
- Practise goodness through your physical actions.
- Speak words of kindness and truth.
- Maintain thoughts that are pure and compassionate.
By doing so, you allow this goodness to permeate your entire being. You allow your very cells to be nourished and influenced by this goodness, and you allow all beings to be transformed by your virtuous presence.
The Path of Vigilance
When you cease to act, speak, or think in ways that are harmful, you no longer subject your cells to an environment of negative energy. You no longer cause other beings to be disturbed by negative vibrations, which would otherwise cause them to awaken within your body and seek balance for past grievances. This is how you avoid the suffering that comes from .
Start from the heart by focusing on the small details of your daily life. By paying attention to the subtle faults that arise, you can cultivate a sense of vigilance. When you notice these errors, you must act immediately to correct them and resolve never to repeat them. This is the path to true liberation and the way to honour the teachings of Namo Amituofo.
Namo Amituofo
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Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre
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