The Wisdom of Restraint: Teachings from Namo Amituofo
Words of Namo Amituofo
Recorded and transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe, on May 18, 2025
The Distinction Between Two Worlds
There is a profound difference between the secular world and the path of spiritual practice. The secular world is a place defined by the six realms of rebirth, where beings are bound by the laws of and cause and effect. It is a realm where we are constantly caught in the cycle of seeking balance—repaying debts, settling grievances, and fulfilling karmic obligations. In contrast, the path of spiritual practice is a sanctuary for purification. It is a place dedicated to cultivating the qualities necessary to realise one's true nature and attain Buddhahood.
Whether you find yourself navigating the secular world or walking the path of practice, your experiences are shaped by your unique , your good roots, and your accumulated . When you transition from a secular life to a life of practice, you often carry the heavy baggage of your past: your personal ego, your deep-seated habits, and your unresolved karma. These elements act as significant obstacles to your spiritual progress. Therefore, as a practitioner, you must learn to let go of your personal ego and habits. You must strive to stop the manifestation of negative karma and actively work to transform it. Only then can your practice truly advance.
The Three Doors of Action
There are certain actions that you must strictly avoid. These are the pitfalls that trap the spirit and hinder the purification of your Body, Speech, and Mind. You must refrain from the following:
- Acting against your conscience: Do not perform actions that you know are wrong.
- Speaking against the truth: Do not utter words that you know should not be spoken.
- Harbouring negative thoughts: Do not allow your mind to dwell on thoughts that you know are harmful or impure.
These three areas—your actions, your speech, and your thoughts—are the doors through which you create karma. To be mindful of these is to protect your spiritual integrity.
The Vital Importance of
Furthermore, you must never knowingly break the Precepts. To understand the importance of the Precepts yet choose to violate them is to knowingly commit a transgression. This is the act of adding new karma upon old karma, and it is the primary source of suffering for your Body-Mind-Spirit. Even when your karma manifests so strongly that you feel you have lost control, you must remember your identity as a practitioner. You are called to be self-disciplined and to encourage yourself to overcome your personal ego and habits. When you face trials, you must accept them and confront them with a steady heart, rather than succumbing to the temptation to break your vows.
The Roots of Suffering
There are deep-seated roots of suffering that you must be diligent in cutting away. These are the foundations of the hells, and they must be abandoned by all who seek the right path, whether in the secular world or the path of practice:
- The : Greed, Anger, Ignorance, Arrogance, and Doubt.
- The : Wealth, lust, fame, food, and sleep.
These are the universal standards that every practitioner must uphold. If you violate these, you will face the consequences of the laws of karma and cause and effect. In the secular world, there are worldly punishments, and in the spiritual realms, there are the laws of the underworld and the suffering of the hells. For those who have left the secular life to become monastics, the consequences are even more severe. You must be extremely cautious.
The Path of and True Repentance
Compassion is the natural state of your original nature. It is the fundamental heart that you must possess if you wish to achieve success in your practice. If you lack compassion and cause harm to the lives of other beings, you are abandoning goodness and creating ten types of evil. This will inevitably lead to the fruits of suffering and pain. Such karmic consequences will cause your practice to regress, making it difficult for you to achieve any spiritual success.
Take these teachings as a serious warning. If you have committed these errors, you must change your ways immediately. To change in the present moment, and to resolve never to repeat the mistake, is the essence of true repentance. May you walk this path with sincerity and diligence.
Namo Amituofo
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About the Author
Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre
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