The Path of True Repentance and Transformation

Words of Namo Amituofo, recorded by the Buddha's disciple, Venerable HaiZe, on the 15th of July, 2022.

The Burden of Past Karma

When you find yourself suffering from the infirmities of age or the pain of illness, you must understand that this is often the manifestation of your past karma. At such moments, you must take responsibility for the beings residing within your body. These beings are often your karmic creditors, seeking to balance the accounts of past harms. You must learn how to forgive those who have wronged you in the past, rather than allowing yourself to be led by the desire for revenge or the cycle of retaliation. Only by choosing the path of forgiveness can you elevate your spirit and find true liberation.

If you remain trapped in the cycle of suffering and retribution, and you still do not know how to repent and change your ways, you may find yourself controlled by these beings. This can lead to a cycle where your situation becomes more stubborn than before. You may find yourself giving rise to anger, resentment, and hatred. If this happens, not only will your illness and suffering fail to improve, but you will also be creating new negative causes while you are already enduring the consequences of past ones.

The Ego as a Barrier

When you continue to create negative causes in this way, your problems will not be resolved. Instead, your spirit will fall into deeper states of confusion, and your physical body will continue to be ravaged by the karmic forces of illness. People often refuse to forgive those who have caused them harm in the past. This refusal stems from several deep-seated issues:

• Karmic cause and effect: The deep, interconnected relationships formed over many past lives.
• Unchanged character: A failure to refine one's personality and let go of old habits.
• Arrogance: A sense of self-importance that prevents one from seeing the truth of the situation.

Because of this arrogance, when you interact with those you perceive as enemies, you may find yourself involuntarily giving rise to anger, irritation, or a desire to avoid them entirely. This is what the world calls having enemies or karmic creditors.

The True Meaning of Repentance

Now that you have begun to study the Dharma and engage in your practice, you must start with yourself. You must develop the ability to be aware, to reflect upon your own actions, to repent, and to change your ways. Regardless of how the other person reacts—whether through their words or their actions—you must bring forth a heart of sincerity and kindness. Only by treating others with genuine compassion can you truly wash away the layers of impurity that have accumulated over countless lifetimes.

You must use the Dharma water of compassion to cleanse the stains from your heart. You must use Wisdom actions to repent of your sins and vow never to repeat them. As the ancient teaching says:

• Sins arise from the heart, so you must repent with your heart.
• When the heart is extinguished, the sins also vanish.
• When both the heart and the sins are gone, both are empty.
• This is what is called true repentance.

You must learn to repent of your spiritual obstacles with a sincere heart and have faith in the reality of the Buddha's teachings. When your heart is pure and free from deluded thoughts, you enter a state where the heart is empty. When the heart is empty, sins have no place to manifest. When the heart is empty, the sins themselves are empty. This is the essence of true, compassionate repentance.

The Infinite Power of Namo Amituofo

This is why the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss is so vital. We use the six-character name, Namo Amituofo, to counteract all delusions and all impurities. By chanting Namo Amituofo, you allow your heart to become pure, entering the state where the heart is empty and sins are empty. This is the ultimate form of repentance. Namo Amituofo.