The Wisdom of the Circle: Teachings by Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju

These teachings were recorded by the chief writer, Venerable HaiZe, on the seventeenth of September, two thousand and twenty-one. During the Thrice Yearning Ceremony, Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju provided a profound instruction on the nature of the self, using the simple yet elegant metaphor of a circle.

The Centre of All Existence

When a compass is used to draw a circle, the result is a perfect, continuous form that people naturally find pleasing to behold. Whether the circle is drawn large or small, it remains a circle. It can expand to an infinite size or shrink to an infinitesimal point, yet its fundamental nature as a circle does not change. However, there is one absolute requirement for a circle to exist: it must have a centre point. Without this central anchor, the compass cannot function, and the circle cannot be formed.

The True Self Amidst the Cycle of Being Reincarnated

In this metaphor, the centre point represents your true self. The various outer circles that are drawn around this centre represent the different manifestations of our lives within the cycle of being reincarnated. Just as the outer circumference of a circle may vary in size and shape, our experiences in the cycle of being reincarnated are constantly shifting and changing. Yet, these external changes do not affect the true self at the centre. The true self remains constant, pure, and untouched by the fluctuations of the world.

Protecting the Heart of the Path

You must learn to protect this heart of the circle—your true self—with great care. By maintaining this focus, you can perfect the supreme Bodhi path and complete your journey along the Buddha's path. Your primary practice should be to save all beings and guide them toward rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This is the true purpose of your existence in the human world; do not let this precious life pass in vain. It is our deepest wish that all beings may find their way to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, for this is the ultimate expression of the Bodhicitta.