KHENPO'S BLOG

The other three types of ripening do not result in karmic effect that will manifest swiftly. The first is ripening in the next life. For example, the effect of committing great evil, such as the five hellish deeds, or great virtue will definitely materialize in the next life. Second, the effect is certain to manifest but the timing of which is uncertain; it may take three or four lifetimes or even longer. Third, there may or may not be any effect. What could be the reason for this uncertainty in view of infallible karma? When a weak cause (or karma) encounters a strong antidote, causality may then be broken.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW - On Cause and Effect

In recent years, natural disasters such as earthquake, tsunami and hurricane have occurred more frequently while suicides and mental problems have become more widespread. Increasingly, people come to realize how fragile life is and begin to focus more on the subject of life and death, which everyone must face eventually. To the majority, death is a very heavy topic as it signifies great fear and trouble. But there is no escape from death, no matter what. Understanding what death really is can help us not only quash fear toward death but also find the opportunity to be free from death completely. 

~Depicted from THE HANDBOOK'S FOR LIFE JOURNEY - On Death And Rebirth-What Life Truly Is

The practice of the Four Noble Truths begins with the cultivation of renunciation and bodhicitta. Renunciation enables us to transcend samsara while bodhicitta inspires us to remain in samsara without being bound by it. Are they contradictory to each other? No, they’re not. If renunciation is not generated, samsara cannot be transcended. We will then end up in the same position as all other beings in the six realms, having no ability to save anyone. In order to transcend samsara, one must resolutely cut off all attachment to it. But that does not mean one should abandon all those remained in samsara afterwards. To abandon them means one’s goal is only to seek enlightenment for oneself and upon reaching that goal, one ignores their need for liberation. Sravakas and pratyekabuddhas, abiding in the meditation of cessation,1 have transcended samsara and at the same time abandoned those left in samsara. Alas, owing to their limited power of samadhi, they neither have the ability nor the aspiration to lead other sentient beings to liberation.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW - The Four Noble Truths—the Path Out of Samsara

In our lifetime, we have never experienced our innate clarity, even though all our suffering, happiness, and emotions come from deep within the mind. Buddhism often uses the term “clarity” to describe the most fundamental level of the mind (luminosity and clear light are other terms also used). This kind of “clarity” is neither visible light, nor non-visible light; it cannot be found in any electromagnetic spectrum in physics. It is a state of purity totally free of defilements. There is no happiness or joy, suffering or anxiety in this state of great equanimity.

~Depicted from ARE YOU READY FOR HAPPINESS - Suffering is just a Paper Tiger

In the first turning of the wheel of Dharma, the Buddha focused on the subjects in the outer preliminaries, suffering in samsara, infallible karma, etc., which are the four truths of Theravada Buddhism, not so much on emptiness; in the second turning of the wheel of Dharma, the Buddha also mentioned impermanence and suffering to some extent, but the heart of the teachings was emptiness; in the third turning of the wheel of Dharma, emptiness was no longer the most important, rather the luminous mind became the main topic the Buddha expounded.

~Depicted from GATEWAY TO VAJRAYANA PATH - Vajrayana Terminology

Some students of Buddhism or other religions like to dwell on clairvoyant power and states of realization, but this is not the real purpose of Buddhism. Although Buddhism does not object to transcendent power, it does not chase after it. Buddhism mainly teaches how to cultivate compassion, develop wisdom, and serve others.

~Depicted from ARE YOU READY FOR HAPPINESS - The Significance of Buddhist Philosophy Today

In the past, people used to think Buddhism denotes pessimism and passivity, and teaches escape from the real world. Actually, that is not the case. The Buddhist understanding of human suffering goes well beyond this view. Buddhism is not passive; on the contrary, the Buddhist view on life, suffering, and happiness is intimately connected with the real world. We can all benefit greatly if we understand some of its concepts.

~Depicted from ARE YOU READY FOR HAPPINESS - Suffering is just a Paper Tiger

Some regard Buddhism as a kind of belief. Belief also means faith. Of course faith is needed in Buddhism, but it would be oversimplified to regard Buddhism as a belief since keeping faith is only one of the aspects of Buddhism.  The foundation and the priority of Buddhism are not about belief, but wisdom and compassion.  Although Buddhism does advocate the importance of faith, it is not unique to Buddhism; science also calls for faith.  For example, people today all want to promote faith in science.  If one does not trust science, one probably would not even dare to take airplane.  People take planes because they believe in the technology that allows airplane to transport people to their destinations.  It takes faith to accomplish anything in this world, the same kind of faith as in Buddhism. Therefore, it is incorrect to equate Buddhism with belief.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW - Buddhism—the Definition

Although freeing small fry or other beings that will not be killed in the near future is also liberating living beings, they are not lives saved at the point of being killed. To engender great merit and to be deemed a genuine form of fearless offering, lives saved should be those that are about to be killed such as the assorted fish sold in the marketplace.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW - Liberating Living Beings