The Path to Absolute Purity and Goodness

Words of Namo Amituofo, recorded and transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe.

My dear children, you often ask how one might attain a state of absolute purity and goodness in their practice. To reach this state, you must cultivate the four foundations of a virtuous life: think well, speak well, see well, and act well.

The Awakening of Your True Nature

When these four foundations become an inseparable part of your inner life, a profound transformation occurs. Naturally, every thought that arises and everything perceived through your Six Roots will be inherently good. There will be no room for impurity. This is because the goodness within your own Six Roots, the goodness within every cell of your body, and the goodness within the karmic creditors and other beings residing within you, such as those with spiritual attachment, will finally be revealed. When this original, kind nature is manifested, you will naturally give rise to all roots of goodness and achieve the fruit of Bodhi.

Transcending the Five Aggregates

I urge you to be mindful of your speech and cautious in your actions. In every word you speak, every sentence you utter, every movement you make, and every thought you entertain, you must strive to transcend the self. Do not act for your own benefit; harbour no evil thought, be not selfish, and release the heavy burden of your own feelings and perceptions. You must not allow yourself to be controlled by the Five Aggregates: form, Feelings, Perceptions, Mental Formations, Consciousness.

The Five Aggregates are the very place where the machinery of karma operates. You must be extremely careful. Do not create further negative karma within this space, for doing so will only stain your inherent pure nature. Avoid the trap of laziness or the tendency to procrastinate. If a task is meant for today, complete it today. Do not delay or allow your responsibilities to accumulate. When your heart is burdened with unfinished business, when your understanding is unclear, or when you carry unresolved obligations, your mind is neither pure nor good.

The Necessity of True Change

If you think, speak, see, or act in ways that are harmful, you are planting negative cause that will inevitably yield evil consequences. This is the opposite of pure and good. If you encounter a situation and are able to change your behaviour, only then can you truly say that you have changed your personality traits. If you face a situation and react with the same old habits and personality traits as before, how can you claim to have changed? Instead, such reactions act like a fire that burns down your forest of merit, adding to your karma and inviting your karmic creditors to manifest and seek revenge and repay grievances.

Everything shared here—the Words of Namo Amituofo and the teachings and counseling provided by Practitioner Su—must be taken to heart. You must listen, allow these teachings to enter your mind, and transform your hearts and actions and your thoughts. Only by truly changing your personality traits can you successfully transform karma, enter the state of absolute pure and good, and finally realise your true nature as an awakened being. Namo Amituofo.