The Necessity of Transforming One's Personality

The Reality of Spiritual Practice

On 24 June 2017, the disciple Shi Faxi sought guidance from the Buddha regarding the nature of spiritual cultivation. The disciple asked: If one does not thoroughly transform their personality, even the most subtle remnants of old habits will continue to manifest as negative karmic retribution. Is this the true nature of practice? I humbly invite the Buddha to offer His compassionate teachings.

Namo Amituofo responded with profound wisdom, illuminating the path for all practitioners. When you engage in the work of purification, your true state is revealed. When your practice reaches its ultimate conclusion, your very form and essence become clear and luminous. Every action you take is known to the vastness of the universe, and whether your deeds are genuine or false, they will inevitably return to you according to the laws of karma and cause and effect.

The Subtle Roots of Karma

It is within the subtle, fleeting moments of your thoughts that the seeds of karma are sown. When you examine your faults, you must look at the entirety of your past thoughts. Once an event has passed, the thought may seem to have vanished, but the karmic imprint remains. If you hold onto resentment when the consequences of your past actions finally manifest, how can you ever hope to settle your karmic debts? The path of practice must be grounded in reality; if it is merely a superficial performance, it is nothing more than an illusion.

How can one achieve true enlightenment? Only by being genuine can you verify the truth. Only by being real can you realise the nature of emptiness. This is the only way to truly enter the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way. Why would you allow yourself to follow a path that is not the Dharma? By doing so, you poison your own heart, damage your wisdom-life, and condemn yourself to an endless cycle of suffering. Why would you choose such a path?

Personality as a Barrier to Liberation

My dear disciples, what is this thing you call personality? It is the very anchor that keeps you trapped in the six realms of existence and the cycle of rebirth. Do not indulge in your past habits, for the laws of karma and cause and effect are never empty. Your karmic retribution follows you like a shadow; what benefit could there possibly be in clinging to your ego? When you allow your personality to dictate your actions, you scatter the efforts of your practice. Your original, pure nature is muddied by the filth of your attachments.

Consider the impact of your personality on your karmic path:

• It is an obstacle that you cannot afford to carry.It makes the cultivation of a peaceful heart difficult.It destroys the pure environment you have worked so hard to build.A single harsh word or a moment of anger can instantly shatter your state of purity.

Cultivating the Heart-Fields

For thousands of years, across countless lifetimes, you have been sowing seeds in your heart-fields. You must nurture the sprouts of goodness, yet if you fail to cultivate the virtues of the heart, you are like a hollow husk. You may appear to be a practitioner on the outside, but you lack the inner substance. You are ignorant of the truth because you measure everything through the lens of emotion rather than the lens of the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way.

True, authentic practice is rare, which is why so few achieve success. Many are unaware of this reality. It is a great pity to see a practitioner whose cultivation never reaches completion, whose heart remains clouded by darkness, and who never sees the light of wisdom. Even if one possesses high virtue, if there is still a place in the heart where the personality remains unchecked, the practice is hollow. It is merely empty talk, leaving the spirit in a state of darkness.

Returning to Zero

This is the great illness of the current age. Though it may seem invisible, it is real. It leaves no trace, yet it is felt deeply, hidden within the dark records of your consciousness. The enlightened beings of the universe understand this clearly: the path of practice does not tolerate the persistence of the ego. To all beings in this world, please remember my words. Take them to heart: do not allow your personality to rule you. If you can change, that is good.

Your personality is the collective weight of your past; it is your spirit, your cause, and the very engine of your reincarnation. When you feel the urge to lash out or when your breath catches in your throat, you must choose compassion. Please, treat yourself and others with compassion. You must:

• Recognise that the body is empty and illusory.Understand that you are here to serve all beings in the dust of this world.Grasp the fundamental principles of the Dharma.Seek true liberation from suffering.

When it comes to your true nature, you must return to zero. If your heart is still rippling with waves of emotion, it means you have not yet adjusted your state. Outside the gate of the Buddha, you are still far from the truth. The rules of the Buddha’s gate are built upon compassion. If you do not embody this, you are like a child wandering outside, and you must start again to truly become a child of the Buddha. The Buddha’s gate is waiting, but you must bear the suffering of your own choices. When you return to the Buddha, you must leave your personality behind. In this world, there is much delusion in practice, and little true adjustment. If you see these words, take them as a sincere counselling to the world. Practice must be real. Do not let your personality be the seed of your own imprisonment in the hellish realms. When you dream of karmic retribution or feel your spirit being pulled away, it is because your karmic debts are calling—and they are calling through the personality you refuse to change. Transforming your personality is the only true practice. It is the only way to reach Buddhahood.