The Primary Essence of Compassion: Delivering Sentient Beings

This interview was recorded on July 16, 2017. Venerable Master Sheng Yen, who sought Spiritual Deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. In this reflection, he shares his profound insights on the necessity of delivering sentient beings.

Venerable Master Sheng Yen speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. The compassion of the Buddha—true, great, and boundless compassion—allows beings throughout the ten Dharma realms to have access to such magnificent Dharma to study. A human life is not very long. How can one practice properly? How can one practice truthfully? And there is another crucial point: how can one practice with true autonomy?

The Depth of Autonomous Practice

The concept of 'autonomous practice' that most people imagine is likely not the direction I wish to point you toward. The direction I want to explain is profound and vast, a level that everyone will encounter, yet few can successfully transcend. Unless one truly practices, the only condition for success is that you must contribute to the void, to the vast expanse of existence. You must be of value to the 'everyone' out there. To put it simply, this 'everyone' refers to the ghost deities, and those most closely related to us are our karmic creditors. Everyone should be able to accept and acknowledge the existence of these beings, but people hold different views on whether their numbers are few or many.

Most people judge the weight of their karma based solely on their current personality and habits. This is a mistake. You likely underestimate your own karma or underestimate the reality of your karmic creditors. Since time immemorial, every person has committed acts of killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, and lying. There is no need to feel ashamed of this, because when people are born, they encounter different conditions. It is very possible that if the conditions are poor, one will learn bad habits and sow the seeds of karma. There is no need to be afraid; one simply needs to change. Furthermore, you must repay these karmic creditors who have followed you for so long and are unwilling to leave. Only then can your practice proceed smoothly, can your Chao Du be successful, and can your karma be truly eliminated. Only then will you not have come to this life in vain, and only then will you be able to achieve true success.

The Compassionate Duty of Deliverance

The primary essence of compassion is the deliverance of sentient beings. You must have pity for the suffering of these beings. There are so many beings who have followed us for so long, waiting to seek revenge, yet our awareness is insufficient to understand their pain. Most of the time, we only know our own feelings and our own suffering. If you only care about your own sensations, it is very difficult to cultivate a heart of compassion and expand your mind-capacity. If you cannot do that, there is no point in even talking about delivering sentient beings. Those beings will remain exactly where they are, right by your side.

Whether you want to deliver them or not, sentient beings with karmic affinity will naturally draw near to you according to the Law of Causal Conditions. Especially if you become a monastic, natural Dharma affinities will manifest. Both the living and the spirits will seek channels for Spiritual Deliverance. Those with whom you have a Dharma affinity will naturally ask you for Chao Du, or those with whom you have a grudge will naturally come to seek revenge. They are of the Yin, and we are of the Yang. At this point, Chao Du becomes truly vital. Being able to lead everyone to the Western Pure Land, to leave suffering behind and gain happiness—this is an obligation that everyone should fulfill, and it is the greatest goal of having a human body.

A Final Warning from Experience

My greatest failure was being taken away by illness. The reason lies in these beings—they were still there, they were all still there. I have come to realise that Chao Du is truly important. I hope everyone will take these words of counseling to heart. True Chao Du is not just repenting; it is leading beings to rebirth in the Western Pure Land. This is necessary, and it is the ultimate path. The Thrice Yearning Ceremony is truly excellent and magnificent. I attend every session now. Here at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, the magnificence is something you can only understand if you come yourself. These are the sincere words of counseling from Sheng Yen. Namo Amituofo."

Recorded by the chief writer, disciple Shi Fa Xi.