September 19, 2546 B.E.
Taking Control of One’s Life
The Rains-Exit Day will be here twenty-two days from now. This is the Rains-Retreat designated as the season for attaining the Dhammakaya. Everyone has been endeavoring to practice meditation earnestly since the first day of this Rains-Retreat in order to attain the Dhammakaya or at the very least in order to see a Buddha Image which may be different for different people. This is the Rains-Retreat that the monks can see the Dhammakaya, the novice monks can see the Dhammakaya, and the lay devotees can see the Dhammakaya.
The Dhammakaya or the Inner Triple Gem is our highest refuge. The quest for the Dhammakaya keeps one’s mind clear and earns one merit. It also provides the special code for rebirth in the States of Happiness as taught by the Lord Buddha: A bright and clear mind is destined for the States of Happiness whereas a sad and gloomy mind is destined for the States of Unhappiness. The state of one’s mind, in turn, is determined by the level of merit and demerit derived from the level of wholesome deeds and unwholesome deeds performed through one’s body, speech, and mind. Merit makes one’s mind clear whereas demerit makes one’s mind gloomy. For as long as one cannot yet attain Nibbana, one will still have to undergo a very long journey within the round of rebirth.
As provisions for this very long journey, merit and Perfections are needed. Every person on earth,regardless of his race or creed, whether or not he knows about the Inner Triple Gem and whether or not he believes in the Inner Triple Gem, is governed by the Law of Kamma. The claim of ignorance cannot be used to refuse the destination of one’s rebirth.
Since everyone must undergo the round of rebirth, it is crucially important that one continues to pursue Perfections to the best of one’s ability and to design one’s life in such a way as to ensure that the quality of life is constantly improving.
The quality of one’s life is determined by the level of one’s corporeal wealth, material wealth, and favorable attributes. These blessings protect one from a life of poverty and hardship. It is necessary for everyone to learn about the various laws operating in the round of rebirth so that one can be well equipped to design one’s future existences.
Whatever a person wants to be, a millionaire, a poor and destitute person, a middle-class person, a high-class person, a handsome person, a beautiful person, a wealthy person, a clever person, so on and so forth; it is all up to him. One has the right to be the poorest person such as Mahadugata. One has the right to be the wealthiest person such that all of Bill Gates’ wealth is like small change by comparison.
There were persons in the past who possessed inexhaustible wealth. There were Universal Monarchs who had sovereignty over the four Human Worlds. Whatever one wants to be and have in ways that are positive or negative, it is all up to one. If one wants to be blessed with good looks, material wealth, and favorable attributes, one can have them provided that one knows how to go about incorporating them into one’s future existences.The three major systems which control one’s life are merit, demerit, and neither merit nor demerit.
These three systems possess equal powers in designing an individual’s life. But the most important systems are merit and demerit. The last system is neutral. Merit and demerit exert their influences over one’s life from one’s birth to one’s death. They design one’s life to be smooth or filled with vicissitudes. If one wishes to experience happiness from one’s birth to one’s death, then one must accumulate only merit. If one wishes to experience hardship from one’s birth to one’s death, then one must accumulate only demerit. If one wishes to experience the vicissitudes of life, then one must accumulate a mixture of merit and demerit.
For example, one goes to make merit at the temple, yet one is a habitual drinker. Knowledge of such rules will enable one to have an easier time living in the round of rebirth. One must learn these rules from a personage who is all-knowing and not from individuals who possess partial knowledge about the round of rebirth unless of course the all-knowing personage is not available. One has not yet seen a great warship but one is still floating in the vast ocean. In that case, one may in the meantime hang on to a corpse or a log that is floating by. However, as soon as one sees a great warship, one had better abandon the corpse or the log and climb up on to the ship. The all-knowing personage here means the Lord Buddha. Countless existences earlier, He was just an ordinary human being, but he possessed an uncommonly stout heart in that he had the aspiration to attain Buddhahood. Having pursued Perfections to the fullest extent for countless existences, in His final rebirth, He was able to attain Self-Enlightenmentand became the Lord Buddha.
As the Great Teacher of Truth, He has taught humans and celestial beings alike the Higher Knowledge about the reality of life and the round of rebirth without holding anything back. The Lord Buddha is every human being’s role model. He is every human being’s Great Teacher because He is all-knowing. Do not be fooled by those who have not yet been emancipated from the round of suffering. Do not be fooled by those who seek material gain from others. When one watches TV, one can see the different ways that one’s fellow men earn a living. Whatever programs that is on TV, it is all about people earning a living.
Newscasters read the news for a living. Reporters go about obtaining the news for a living. Program sponsors advertise their merchandise for their businesses. Actors and actresses work for their living, so on and so forth. None of these people are searching for the way to be emancipated from the round of rebirth and the Law of Kamma. Such a thought cannot be further from their minds. If one happens upon an all-knowing personage like the Lord Buddha who knows all about the Law of Kamma, one can be said to be very fortunate indeed. One should believe in Him and His Teachings which can benefit every person on earth. Buddhists must not be so in name only. But they must be true Buddhists by studying and practicing the Lord Buddha’s Teachings in order to work on their shortcomings and improve themselves in every way so that the quality of their lives can continue to improve.
