Neglecting to Guard the One Single Thought, the Entire Substance is razed

When bowing in repentance we must bow with utmost sincerity, channel our essence, energy, and spirit on what is most precious. So, everyone should eat your fill to have enough physical energy for bowing in repentance. However, if we overeat, then we are tired and drowsy and lose track of the recitation on the repentance text. So, everyone must regulate oneself to what works best for them. This is very important.

This is a grand event that occurs once a year. We are very fortunate to encounter this great causal condition. As we have just heard, the Venerable Master has repeatedly exhorted us to learn and cognize the dharma door of non-duality. The dharma door of non-duality pertains to not engaging in random thoughts, not utilizing our conscious mind, not using the selfish and self-benefitting mind, not using the mind that discriminates between self and others, rights and wrongs. We should learn from what’s stated in the repentance text, to access all kinds of merit and virtue within our self-nature. Our self-nature is originally whole and complete. Why does self-nature replete in all the merit and virtue? Because self-nature is the brightest and the purest; it is foremost in integrity, kindness and compassion. Then, what is our buddha-nature? It is the mind of kindness and compassion. Likewise, the mind of all buddhas is the mind of kindness and compassion.

For us to enter the dharma door of no-duality, we need to regain our kindness, compassion, joy, and giving within our self-nature. Throughout countless kalpas of cycling between birth and death, we think that we have accomplished a lot; but, in the end, we have created limitless karmic offenses for ourselves. Consequentially, we have created ourselves a vast sea of suffering in birth-and-death in this boundless world. Once we realize what we have done, we must admit our faults and acknowledge the debts we owe. We must recognize our original mind, our original nature.

Taking into account all the karmic offenses that we have committed, we are still considerably lucky. We have the mahayana sutras, the instructional talks given by the Buddha, and the teachings of a bright eyed good and wise advisor. We are blessed with a pure bodhimanda of proper dharma, enabling us to cultivate such dharma door in the company of dharma friends and fellow cultivators. These various causal conditions are not something we can realize on our own. Hence, we have to be grateful. Since we are grateful, we have to sincerely repent and reform. This is the only chance we have, and if we miss it, the possibility for a second chance is ultra slim. From the very beginning we must exert ourselves; everyone must put forth his/ her best effort and work hard. There is no warm-up to speak of. Do not dillydally.