Understanding the Diverse Needs of All Beings

Teachings from Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju, recorded and transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe. On the sixth of April, 2025, during the noon offering, Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju provided the following guidance.

The Many Faces of a Single Event

Consider the nature of rain. The meaning of a single rainfall is never the same for every being; it depends entirely on the conditions and the karma of the one who receives it. We can observe this through the different ways beings experience the same phenomenon:

• For regions suffering from severe drought, the rain is a life-saving gift that brings hope to the parched land.
• For the crops in the rice paddies, it is the vital nourishment that restores their life force, allowing them to flourish and grow once more.
• For the thirsty earth itself, it is a blessing that saves countless earthly creatures from the brink of exhaustion.
• For those living in flood-prone regions, however, the rain brings immense suffering. When the water has not yet receded, additional rainfall is a disaster upon a disaster.
• For the smallest of beings, such as insects, ants, and other tiny creatures, a heavy downpour can be a tragic event that leads to the loss of countless lives.

Every event that occurs in our lives carries a different meaning for every being involved. This meaning is fundamentally rooted in our karma. Depending on our past actions and our current state of mind, this karma may manifest as intense pain, profound joy, deep sadness, or a sense of resistance against the world.

The Power of Stillness and Wisdom

As a practitioner, you must cultivate the meditative concentration and Wisdom (Prajna) necessary to accept any situation that arises. When you encounter difficulties, speak less. This is a sign of true meditative concentration and a vital part of your mental cultivation. Your goal is to maintain a heart that remains calm, steady, and unmoving, regardless of the external circumstances.

If your mind begins to fluctuate, becoming agitated or disturbed by the events around you, you create openings in your own energy field. This instability can easily attract karmic creditors, attached spirits, and even demon crowds to manifest before you. Therefore, protecting the stillness of your heart is the most important work you can do.

Transcending the Self

People often live their lives with themselves at the centre of their universe. They are conditioned to think of their own needs first, and only after those desires are satisfied do they begin to consider the needs of others. However, the path of the practitioner is different. We must practise no-self, placing the needs of all beings above our own.

When you truly put the needs of others first, your own needs are often resolved invisibly, without you even having to seek a solution. You must realise that your personal needs are also a part of your karma. When you shift your focus entirely to the welfare of all beings, your own karmic burdens are naturally released and dissolved.

This is the profound reason why saving others is, in truth, saving yourself, and why helping beings reach liberation is the same as helping yourself. This is the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way. If you can understand this, you will find joy in helping others and will come to see the salvation of all suffering beings as your own fundamental duty. Namo Amituofo.