The heart is the master of all existence. It is the sovereign force that dictates the direction of your life. Whether you attain Buddhahood or fall into the cycle of reincarnation, it is entirely determined by the state of your heart. The Three Good Realms arise from the heart, and the Three Evil Realms also arise from the heart. Your , anger, sorrow, and happiness, as well as the meetings and partings of your life, are all orchestrated by the heart. Because of the heart, you play out countless different roles and dramas in this life. All good and evil deeds arise from the heart, and the very roles you play within the cycle of reincarnation are also born from its depths.
As it is said, appearance arises from the mind. Your physical features can be transformed by the state of your heart. This includes the light in your eyes, the expression on your face, the condition of your skin, and even the presence of any facial imperfections. When you are born, your appearance is the result of your actions in past lives and your Causal Conditions with your parents. This is already set, and the wisest path is to accept and face it with grace. However, as you grow, your appearance is shaped by your own heart. Is your heart filled with Goodness or malice? Is it simple and pure, or is it complex and clouded? Is it a heart that remains youthful, or one that has aged through bitterness? A person with clear insight can look at your face and eyes and discern the state of your heart in that very moment. A practitioner who has attained the power of knowing past lives can look even further and perceive the history of your previous incarnations.
The Inner Landscape of
The Buddha’s teachings are essentially the teachings of the heart. By putting in the work to refine your heart, you can achieve a profound transformation of both body and spirit. When you suffer from physical illness, or when your spirit—the three hun souls and seven po souls—is scattered and damaged, you can find relief through the practice of harmonising the heart. This process leads to the alleviation of illness, the healing of the body, and the return of the soul to the body, allowing your spirit to become stable and firm.
When we speak of harmonising the heart, whose heart are we actually adjusting? It is not merely your own heart that requires attention. You must also harmonise the hearts of the countless cells within your body, as well as the hearts of your , attached spirits, and demon crowds residing within you. To do this, you must be a skilled practitioner. Only one who possesses true attainment, capability, and virtue can move and influence these hearts.
Every body contains countless cells, and each cell possesses the eight consciousnesses and fifty-one mental factors. In essence, every single cell has a heart of its own. Each karmic creditor also possesses the eight consciousnesses and fifty-one mental factors; they, too, have hearts that can be reached. Every attached spirit and demon crowd possesses the same eight consciousnesses and fifty-one mental factors. They are also beings with hearts.
Healing Through the
Physical pain is a sign that your karmic creditors have manifested. It is a direct reflection of the karmic debt between you and them from past lives. This is why it is so vital to listen to sutras and hear the Dharma. When you listen to the teachings, you are not the only one receiving them. At that very moment, the hearts of the cells in your body, your karmic creditors, your attached spirits, and the demon crowds are also listening to the Dharma.
If you can successfully harmonise everyone’s heart, allowing them to hear the Dharma and understand the Truth and the reality of existence, you can touch their hearts. By offering them the reliance of and the hope of the of Ultimate Bliss, you fulfil their deepest wishes. This is the key to resolving your karmic debts. When their hearts are moved, there is a genuine opportunity to resolve these conflicts, allowing your physical ageing and illnesses to be alleviated, or even completely healed. Therefore, you must not only harmonise your own heart but also the hearts of the infinite suffering beings within you.
The Ultimate Remedy
Namo Amituofo invites all beings to protect their hearts with diligence. This is why the Buddha offers you the holy name of Namo Amituofo. By chanting this name, you receive the Buddha's , which strengthen the power of your heart. When you chant until the name is familiar and penetrates your very being, you can encompass and soothe the hearts of yourself and the infinite suffering beings within you.
At the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, we engage in the practice of Resolving conflicts with karmic creditors through mediation and spiritual deliverance, sending these beings to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This practice relieves the suffering of the body, the suffering of the mind, and the suffering of the spirit for both you and the beings you carry. This is the reason Namo Amituofo is known as the Great Physician King.
