September 12, 2546 B.E.
Why Are We Here?
The Rains-Exit Day will be here in less than a month, and we are still doing the countdown daily. This Rains-Retreat is the season for attaining the Dhammakaya or the Inner Triple Gem. Every person on earth regardless of his race or creed,whether or not he knows about the Dhammakaya, and whether or not he believes in His existence, has the Dhammakaya inside him.
The Dhammakaya is humanity’s highest refuge.One can prove the existence of the Dhammakaya by bringing one’s mind to a complete standstill at the seventh base in the center of one’s body. If one practices correctly and earnestly, one will definitely be able to find the Dhammakaya and when that happens, one’s life will be made complete.
The reason is that every human being shares the same wish, and that is to find true happiness. True happiness can happen only after one has attained the Dhammakaya.It must be frequently reiterated that as a human being, one’s real life-goal is to make clear the Path and Fruit of Nibbana. Or at the very least, one is here to accumulate merit and pursue Perfections. There are altogether Ten Perfections. And they include Generosity Perfection, Morality Perfection, Renunciation Perfection, Wisdom Perfection, Endeavor Perfection, Patience Perfection, Truthfulness Perfection, Resolution Perfection, Loving-Kindness Perfection, and Equanimity Perfection.
There are three levels to each Perfection, namely, the basic level, the intermediate level, and the ultimate level. Three levels of ten Perfections become thirty Perfections. Once all of one’s Merit Spheres and all of one’s Perfection Spheres are of the same size, one will be able to attain Nibbana. To go further than Nibbana, more and more Perfections will need
to be pursued.
Perfections are crucially important and must be pursued to the fullest extent in order to be emancipated from the round of rebirth and attain Nibbana.For those personages who have been emancipated, they differ in the level of their ability. For example, each Arahat is different in terms of his foremost virtue. It all depends on which particular virtue he has cultivated and what resolute wish he has made for himself. Chief Discipleship requires more Perfections than an ordinary Arahat. Paccekabuddhahood requires more Perfections than Chief Discipleship. And Buddhahood requires more Perfections than Paccekabuddhahood, so on and so forth.
The length of time it takes to attain Enlightenment or the ease or difficulty in attaining Enlightenment depends on the level of one’s Perfections. The higher the level of one’s Perfections, the quicker and easier it will be for one to attain Enlightenment. The lower the level of one’s Perfections, the slower and harder it will be for one to attain Enlightenment. Therefore, everyone should endeavor to pursue Perfections to the best of one’s ability because Perfections enable one to make clear the Path and Fruit of Nibbana. The Path and Fruit of Nibbana is inside every person but it is hidden by defilements. To see the Path and Fruit of Nibbana, one must first be able to achieve inner brightness.
This Rains-Retreat is the season for attaining the Dhammakaya. Everyone must endeavor to practice meditation earnestly especially the monks and the novice monks. They have more free time and fewer worries than the householders. Moreover, as monks and novice monks, it is their job to practice meditation. Practice it correctly and as often as possible
so that you can attain the Dhammakaya and bear witness to the Lord Buddha’s attainment of Self-Enligtenment or at least to the fact that the Dhammakaya or the Inner Triple Gem is real, true, and sublime.
Only by practicing keeping your mind still and quiet correctly and earnestly will you be able to meet with success. Householders should not waste too much time watching TV or doing other things. Time is precious and should be spent practicing meditation as much as possible. It is a pity that some monks spend too little time doing their real work which is practicing meditation.
