Improve one's spirit.VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=THICH CHAN TANH.

1. Tu Tam.To cultivate the heart.

Many people often say that I do not need to recite the Buddha's chanting ..., only "cultivate the mind"! So please ask: What is mindfulness? I heard it sounded simple, but when it was time to ask the questioner again, didn't I know how to answer? Turns out, just speaking and understanding is not really understood. So, we need to ponder to understand the practical meaning of mindfulness.

Thinking carefully, all human sins come from the mind. The mind is the root, which is where all kinds of sin arise. Therefore, if the application of spiritual practice and not cultivating from the root of the mind, then how can it be done?

For example, where do people who eat or steal or scold others, are angry at things, where do things, words and psychological states come from? Stealing is because of not stopping the mind, so it is a theft. Then angry, cursing too. Because the mind is angry, there is a verbal abuse, or a sexual misconduct for a new sexual misconduct.

As someone steals, knows that he is wrong, every night he comes to the temple to repent or prostrate 108 pink names to the Buddhas, so is the crime of stealing? If the person does not stop being interested, then another day will be good enough to steal.

Or you can create a profanity to scold people and then go to the Buddha's repentance. If you can not stop talking, the habit of the school arises again and curses again, so it doesn't work out. Therefore, those who want to clean up all sins must stop their greed ... except for original descent, the sin will be clean.

Because I don't understand, there are cases of upside down. As in the old days, in Kosala, there is a Brahmin practice of asceticism. This person conceived that because of having a body, he should be guilty, but now he wants to finish his sin, he must fix it from his body. Thinking so, Ms. Ba-la-Mon immediately used five fire ovens to burn her body very miserable, thinking that doing so would destroy the suffering. For a long time, the head of the hair was crunchy, the lips cracked, the world called him La County Chua, because it looked like a roasted broccoli.

There was a nun who heard the rumors coming. She saw that the practice of Ba-la-Mon was so compassionate, said to him:  "The scary thing that you did not burn, you burned the unremarkable, how delusion?"

That is, something that is scorched but not burnt, and that which is not worth worrying about, is mistaken and deluded.

Listening to the fire, the fire in his mind raged, angrily shouting:  "What is the donkey, what do you say is the scary thing?"

The niece said,  "The scorching thing is your angry mind . "

It means that the real scorching is his anger, he burns that angry mind. But he also worries about burning this torso, but the center of mind does not go away, but despite the use of misery, suffering is still in progress. So, if anyone burns angry minds ... then it is true that they will burn away their sins. Like the car does not go, then beat the buffalo but whoever hit the car. Also, to beat the other mind, burning the other mind, the new body is tormented and suffering.

The awakened bhikkhu, kneeling back to the nun.

Sometimes, we do not understand the truth, when we hear or see people do, imitate it. Therefore, there are many cases, people who use ascetic practice are very sophisticated but do not follow the law so they have to cultivate for a long time without ending their sins. Just like Ba-la-Mon, although there is a spiritual mind that wants to end suffering, but because it is not clear that the Dharma practice only worries about burning the body and the mind does not burn, the anger is still intact and meets the condition that it burns angry and yells at the person. .

We too, because we want to clean our karma, we force ourselves to cultivate ascetic practices like drinking cold water. Although drinking cold water, the mind is not cold but still hot as usual. This is called upside-down cultivation, sin never ends. The root of the crime of being born from the mind, not cultivating right at the root, but only worrying about the body, while this body is not at fault, it is a crime for it.

Like his mouth, he doesn't know how to say anything wrong, but we often blurt out a bad mouth. This mouth is two pieces of leather wrapped in meat, so you don't know how to say anything wrong? It is because of the mind, the mind starts and starts acting on the mouth. So the mouth is just an organ, not an active one, but it is blamed on a mouth that is mischievous. If you can't get rid of the root inside and blame your mouth, that's a way to avoid responsibility. Should cultivate to see backwards, except for the original, the new sin is clean.

In the past, there were monks who wanted the poor couple in Xa-Guard, so he came to their house to beg for alms. At the time when the husband was away, the wife saw the monk who immediately hated and cursed, chasing:  "He was so sick, even if he died on the spot, I did not give food. like this, what do you eat? ”

She had just finished speaking, the monk immediately used the dead spirit to stand on the spot, only for a moment to stumble and stink. She panicked and ran away, scared. After that, the sa-mon was revealing the old minister, going to sit under the tree far away. When my husband came home, I heard my wife tell me how to get angry. The wife pointed out, he immediately wore a bow and arrow, and took a knife to try to kill the sa-mon. Seeing him come, the monk turned out a transparent crystal covering his whole body, so although he saw the monk sitting there, he could not touch it.

He did not know how to go around and said:  "Hey master! Why don't you open the door? ”  The monk said,  “ Let go of the knife, bow and arrow down, I will open the door . ”

The husband who thinks he is healthy using his hands and does not hit the sa-sac will also need a weapon, so let go of the bow and arrow. But when let finished still see recluses was impassive not open the door, he asked the recluses he said:  "I want to tell him to let knife and called evil in his mind, rather than a knife, name in hand " . The husband heard startled, did not know why this sa-keeper knew his mind, so panicked, after awakening, he asked for money. Sa-keeper said the law of that husband.

The meaning of the story above helps us see, it is the knife, the name that is in the mind of a dangerous new person, which is the root to create sin. Because if there's a knife and arrow bow outside without a knife, the bow and arrow are inside, it doesn't matter, sometimes it's beneficial.

For example, if we do not have evil minds, or do not have a hammer mind, we can use knives ... such as helping to cut food, chopping wood ... But because of the hammer mind, it is dangerous to use them. Sa-mon said that letting go is letting go of the knife in the mind, not letting go of the knife outside, thus understanding it to see the root of cultivation.

Tu mind is the original Dharma, if clever practice right away, this law will be all legal, because the mind is the basic practice.

But if only the mind is the root, the basic cultivation of the mind is not yet. It is crucial to know what the mind is. Do you know It is closest to us without knowing it, and if the person doesn't know, isn't it mindless?

The mind is knowing. It is from this knowledge that so many good karma, karma ... exist in the world, even the unconscious karma of this world comes from this knowledge. For example, seeing gold bars, by knowing it is a gold ingot, should be born in mind to steal gold, or compete for gold. Also, because of the mind to know the crime, the new blessing to blame, to do merit and to cultivate because of the mind, should come here to listen to the dharma ...

But in all that knowledge, it is also necessary to distinguish clearly, if not clever to receive only the sad and the sad, to cultivate, the practice also follows down.

There is a clear understanding, a clear understanding; the ignorant and the enlightened. Meaning that knowing according to the scene, distinguishing more than losing, love to hate is the knowledge that carries heavy ego in it, agreeing with me, I love, against me, I hate ... that knowledge is the knowledge that carries minh, accept ego, call it the sorrow, ignorance.

Because the mind knows this, that, and everything else, but only around the decaying self should there arise so many things of fighting that cause suffering for each other, just because life is narrowed in the self.

And the knowing of enlightenment, which knows forgetfulness, the new, pristine, unconscious knowing, it does not bring the color of the ego, it is the pure knowing, pure, that is the knowing of the solution. escape suffering.

Cultivation is to cultivate this knowledge right away. Must understand that idea, see your practice. If you only cultivate the mind and don't know what the mind is, then cultivate, it turns out that it is also speaking on the word meaning.

Another point is when understanding the mind is the clear knowledge as mentioned above. But that knowing is right in yourself, so the mentally minded person must often see himself rather than see outside, because of the mind! If cultivating the mind, just look outside, look at this person, the other person is not right.

So, to cultivate is to be able to see yourself again, if you see yourself again, you will be wrong to correct and wake up.

Next, if we do not cleverly reflect on ourselves, we cannot see the mind, our mind will not see again and again, if we see only the outside, how to correct the mistake, how to be alert! But, often people like to see this person, see the other than see them again. As in business Security Forum, His Spirit Association asked the Sixth Patriarch:  "Venerable meditation is seen or not seen?"  Sixth Patriarch rated for three clubs, said:  "I beat him is pain or no pain?"  He said:  "It hurts, it doesn't hurt . " Lu To said:  "We also see and we don't see" .

The Goddess asked again:  "What is it that is seen and not seen?"

The Sixth Patriarch said:  "My sight is often to see mistakes in my mind, not to be disturbed, to be good and bad of others, so I can see and see. He said it was not painful either. If he does not hurt then copper is like a stone, if he hurts, then he will be with the lady, immediately anger, he will say before and not see that the two sides, pain and pain are not destroyed, he does not even see the nature but dare to joke with you. ”

Right there, the Divine Spirit worshiped, apologized.

The Patriarch said:  "If your mind does not see it, you will ask Good knowledge to find your way, and if your mind is enlightened, you will see your own nature and practice, you will not feel your mind, come back and ask you to see it. not see. I can see for yourselves know, I in the place the charm for him, if he found himself nor replacement is the charm for us, why not self-aware self see which questions we see the same could not see. "  Spirit Society to feast over a hundred bows, plead guilty and diligently serve beside the Patriarch without leaving.

This is where many people learn meditation often. Learning a little bit, if I want to try this taste, the other person will see if this teacher is enlightened. The truth is that the teacher is enlightened or not enlightened is his story, he does not change his enlightenment, nothing has been worried about asking others, only seeing people who forget themselves, it is also more mindful than losing.

Here, Luc To rebuked the God of the Spirit and taught me clearly whether or not I saw my story, I also saw that it was my business, I did not see it as mine. If we see it, it will not change his view. Also, do you see that enlightenment can not be changed for us, it is essential that you have to look back to see for yourself or not, that is the important thing, the key point to practice. As if only worrying about people, going to look at people, because they should forget to reflect on themselves, it is a mistake that should be rebuked by the Patriarch.

Thanks to the reflection, I can see my own truth, I can see that I am still in love, and have not yet arrived, so I have made an effort to progress further. If nothing yet, just worry about seeing people, sometimes giving birth to a child.

If the test is done, what should we go to ask people to spend? Want to know more than lose. What if it is not possible for people to ask again? When the pumpkin is floating, it will reveal its charm more.

You should remember, cultivators are people who often see themselves very carefully, not see people carefully.

The book is about a young Tibetan monk named Ben, who takes precepts very seriously. One day, this teacher was invited to invite the real life at the house. While the whole family was wandering to prepare food, this young teacher was hungry. I go into the kitchen, found behind a bags containing tea, to draw into their mouths to eat for help hungry, but when he reached into his bag of tea, I quickly realize immediately shouted:  "Theft, burglary!"  Then Now, everyone wanders in and runs, the father holds the stick with a stance and asks where to steal because he thinks it is stolen. He blushed, raising his hand in front of everyone:  "I myself caught me . "

It means that the teacher is taking advantage of the goodness of the owner, so stealing is the teacher. After that, he prayed loudly:  "If I go back from here, I will cut off my hands . "

Be careful, that's right! Self-check me, I see my mistake, otherwise, I will defend myself, because then the teacher took out my hand and did not commit the theft.

Another time, then the elder lamas were invited to the family of luxurious owners to make offerings. According to the permission, everyone sits in order, as an elder and then gradually descends to new practitioners. The attendant began pouring milk in advance, also following the top-down class.

Mr. Ben was impatient to see that the person pouring milk was far from where he was sitting, but if the bottle was small, if he came to his place, the milk would be empty. When I thought about it, I immediately awoke, shouting among the party:  "Oh! Greed and greedy! ”  Then, just as his prediction was that the milk in the bottle had dried up, the family took another bottle to pour the milk over, when it came to Ben's bowl, he was about to pour it in.  "Thank you, my greedy thought of drinking all my milk, stop it!"

It is courage, is true cultivation. He considered me very carefully, and more courage to dare to show my mistake in a crowded place. If we were, would we dare to do that? Many times hide to prevent losing face.

Lead this story to see clearly the mind is to often see yourself very carefully like that, to practice and truly master your mind, it has just started and is known immediately, it is stopped immediately. As if to follow or nurture it, it is more and more distant. Yes, it is the one who has true life, not letting the broken mind turn.

For a long time, we said we live with our minds, but we don't really live at all, because we are always passive, dependent on things that are hopeless. After all, we will have strong awareness.

In Japan there is a meditation story about a retired general who learns meditation. He has a precious antique cup set, so he cherishes it and brings it to watch or fascinate. One day, holding a cup of entanglement, suddenly dropped his hand, he panicked. At that time, his face was pale. Why? For fear of the cup, nothing.

When he recovered, he thought:  “In the past, during the battle, I had been born and died, in front of the enemy line, the bow and arrow class, still not a bit scared, now just because the cup is small. panic " . Right there, he flipped his hand and broke because he knew that fear was due to the love of the precious cup, fearing that it should be like that.

It is also a way to see yourself, be alert; clearly see why I am bad now, just because the cup breaks and I panic, and the old days of birth and death are considered to be okay.

We check that sometimes it is the same. It is because of the love for the precious cup that you are afraid of losing the tank, just a little bit, but the craving mind has made us dependent and enslaved by the slave. So, you must often see yourself, practice mastering again, otherwise you will continue to be mastered and led by it and enslaved it.

People say good listening, but most lives are always enslaved by craving. Have you got rid of that slavery? If not, they all agree that they are living in slavery. Ask, is it sad? Should cultivate is to see clearly and then wake up, otherwise it will always be proud.

For example, you know that the yard is a bad thing, which leads us down. Because I know there is no one who wants the yard, but when it comes to things, it is also good, and it is obvious that we are being enslaved by slaves. Sadly, everyone wants to be happy, but nobody wants to be sad, but it is sad to meet a story, sometimes want to chase away sadness, but if it is impossible to chase, it is also impossible to sleep in bed and sleep. Then like craving, it also led it to go forever ... We cultivate as practice to gradually master again. This is what I have to do because no one can do it, it is important for each person to know.

So, to cultivate the mind is to know what the mind is, to see it often, then we can cultivate it.

Another step is that we have to be clever about moving things, because cultivating our mind is not a thing, we must move things. For a long time, our lives have always forgotten about things, called losing our mind. In the Dhamma Sutra called the same death wandering in a country where people forget the head of a fake father, forgetting their roots, it is sad.

At present, we study the path to be reminded, to know our mistake, to wake up and to live back to the mind and not to wander. In the Shurangama Sutra, there is a part of Buddha who teaches:  "It is you who have the present wisdom . " That is, the intact consciousness is shining, it is also the knowing. This knowledge is new, pure, yet sticky yet mixed with nothing. “It is born of conditions but missed by grace. Because beings abandon this duty of being (lucidly available), although it is important to cultivate without self-awareness, the beds drift into the animals. ”

There are those who cultivate nostalgically, cultivate all day without being able to be aware of themselves, learning well and still not enlightened, wandering and being dragged along the ceiling forever. It is a forgetting fault according to things.

Here, Buddha teaches anyone who has a wise knowledge or a predestined relationship, but when it comes to conditions, it misses itself. That omission must be wandering.

On the truth, each person has an intact knowledge, which is known all over, this knowledge or the birth of predestined relationships, there has never been a mistake.

Because he knows that all these conditions and conditions are born from him, but when he knows what he is, he only remembers that fate and forgets himself. The country forgot the homeland to be reincarnated in the different places.

Do you check if you are currently in a country or in your home country? Listening to what you know? Were you listening to your voice and missed yourself? It is this so-called wandering in the ceiling, but it is true that when you hear the sound, you have to remember what you hear clearly so that you don't miss it, so that is the sound of the wise sound, so that you can hear it all.

And when we hear just remember the sound but forget what we hear, we get the sound obscured, so when we see something, we just remember that thing without remembering the good thing, so we don't see- hear-know widely.

As we see the vase, we only see this beautiful red-yellow, bad-looking flower vase without remembering what we are seeing-hearing-knowing, which is called losing us.

Today, if you want to practice spirituality, you need to switch back, that is, you also know everything, but do not forget about yourself, called the object, which is so-called smoothly without stagnation. It is the original liberation, joy. But liberation is not up to any realm, when listening to liberation, it is not up to some realms to liberate. Not in any realm but right here. Nor who freed me, but freed himself.

Four Dharma Credits declare Mr. Dharma Dung:  "It is not good or bad, good and bad in the mind." If the mind does not follow the name, then hope the love from where to start, hope that the situation does not arise, then the heart of the mind knows all over . "

Here he said that the condition of the condition does not have good or bad, but good and bad start from the mind, and the mind starts to arise. If the mind does not follow the name, then hope that the love does not arise, even though the heart and mind are known throughout. Often we blame the predestined situation, but he makes it clear that the condition of grace does not have good or bad, good and bad because of the mind, if the mind does not arise, everything is peaceful.

It means that the world is peaceful, but because we disturb and blame it, then we pray for liberation. Does anyone sitting here have no true heart? If there is a mind, there must be a true heart, otherwise we cannot sit here. If you know your true heart, but you know all about it? If not, why? Because at this center starts by name, follows the scene.

We, too, only start with the name of the scene, remember this name, the other name, and the other person forgets about it, how can we know all about it!

As if seeing the glass and only remember the glass, I don't know if there's a glass. And if the mind flows smoothly, seeing the glass knows the glass, the flower vase knows the vase ... but still does not forget, still in its place, knowing everything around is not covered, not stopped Any place, I know it all.

That is the place where we need to be careful to observe and cultivate in the mind and cultivate to the point where we don't let the mind be born on the scene. As Zen Master Duy Nghiem teaches Tri Vien teacher to grow vegetables:  "Plant it for him to grow, but don't give it roots . " That means he does everything but does not allow attachment. We, too, practice living, practice not to sit still in a place in the meditation hall, but it is important not to let it root. Growing roots means being mindful, following grace, clinging to the scene, so as to forget things, as far away from the root as possible, how can the mind and soul be known throughout.

You check it will see where the mind is rooted, it is dark, if the mind does not grow roots, it is bright. As if walking through a peaceful, gentle soul, walking through some corner of the garden listening to the inside of the two people who had a silly conversation had their names again, what did they do then? Ear listened immediately. If so, that place is clear, it's dark right? If you say anything that touches you, it will darken, grow deeper. On the contrary, if you don't stick with it, just take it easy to go on, what you can hear if it is over and over!

The Four Noble Teachings are very meaningful:  "The scene is not good and bad, nothing is happening, the mind is on it . "

If you see flowers, if you see that the flower is still a flower, there is nothing, because birth is distinguished by good, bad is growing on that flower so it is covered, and the flower is still intact!

Many people heard that Zen masters were so easy, as Ma To said:  "I am angry with Buddha" . Not adding anything, but why do you still not feel "angry" anywhere, where is the error?

Because we keep forgetting things, just seeing or hearing something, then cling to the roots right away, how do we  "get angry"  here! So how to get the mind to be Buddha? Error right here, just blame the scene. As if the scene here harassed all the time and practiced, I went to look elsewhere, and when I came to another place, I had trouble making trouble and looking for another place. In fact, we have to wonder why that, why the other person is also in that scene and they are able to cultivate and cannot cultivate when they see the error again.

Once, he Huyen Sa was sitting just a brick white background monk asked:  "Can you see it?"  Tang said,  "saw" . He decomposed three times, the monk answered that he saw it. Mr. Huyen Sa immediately said,  "You see too, I see, why do you say that you don't receive the meeting?"

Just as everyone sees this vase, it is the same, why do people see people? The error is to see and only remember that, so it is covered by it.

In  the Shurangama Sutra , when Buddha raised his hand to ask Mr. A Nan if he could see, A Nan could only remember the hand, and when he had his hand, he said "see" and did not have the "no" hand. Buddha rebuked as crazy island forgot to follow things, because just remember the hand should have hands, then see, without hands, not seen. In fact, when I remember right away, I saw that the hand is not in my hand, I have the hand, I see the hand, I don't have the hand, I see the wall, but I don't have to see it. The island forgot about itself.

The word crazy is very good, very meaningful. Crazy island means seeing upside down, taking the fake to make the real thing, taking the top as the root, turning upside down. If you check it, there are billions of people in this world who are seeing it, or are you seeing it in that upside. What kind of style do you sit here, check if anyone here goes beyond this crazy view, if it is, it's great!

When Luc To heard the two monks arguing about wind or motion, he said:  "It is not the wind, not the movement, but the mind of the human . " It is a group that awakens the two, but also awakens people to wake up, do not run after the wind, following the path of whirring with controversy. At present, we often follow the charm and then forget about the original, and the important thing that is moving is forgotten.

So, the skilled people must see the original, also to open up their love. So you consider it easy to cultivate your mind? The problem must be seen, if not, sometimes imitating the speech without seeing the deep meaning.

In short, the meaning of cultivating mind is very important, profound, not ordinary, not only understanding well on the letter but enough, because it is the root. So, I need to be consistent, consistent and deep in order to practice spirituality, this is the true path beyond suffering, delusion in reincarnation, not trivial. Thus, it is common to reflect, the mind is the root of the place, not the outside, often self-reviewing, this is the key point that cannot be forgotten, just worrying about looking outside, I don't know where the mind is but cultivate .

If only the mind is moved, the scene will move, then the darkness and the negativity will follow, and the others will change.

There is a story about a crying old woman. She has two daughters, she sells even, she sells fans. When it rains, she thinks of her fan sales because no one buys fans, then she cries. In the sun, she thought of her selling, though few people could buy it, she cried. The other day, she went to see the Zen master, who taught:  "It simply has something that she cries. Now she moved back when it was sunny, she thought of her fan sales, she must sell a lot, sell expensive, she was happy and smiled. When it rained, she thought of her selling, although many people bought it, she was happy . ” Hearing her reasoning, she immediately followed the teacher's instructions, so she smiled all the time, becoming an old lady or laughing, an old woman crying.

So just move a little bit, everything it moves. Life is the same, sometimes just turning a look is life moving along, such important transformation.

To conclude, tell me about a young lady standing by the river, her face silently, sad, disappointed, suddenly jumping into the river, splashing water. At that time, there was the Venerable old man who just came, seeing that he hurriedly called for help. Unexpectedly, when she was saved, she reprimanded him again:  "Why don't you let me die, what do you do? I hate you so much! ”

The Venerable Master asked,  "Why do you want to commit suicide?"

A:  “Because I'm too bad, criticized and ridiculed by everyone, I don't like me. So I found it to be no more interesting, not dead. "

The Venerable Master said:  "People have two lives, one is their own, everything only thinks of themselves, because I worry, but that selfish life has just committed suicide so it is dead. In addition, people also have a second life, this life specializes in caring for others. Currently, she has been rescued and resurrected, from now on she will transform her thoughts, modify her behavior depending on where, depending on the time to help people, serve others.

This girl finished listening to her awakening, since then she has been doing good work, every day taking care of everyone, gradually her good reputation spread widely throughout the village, people thought that she was a happy person, happy good, everyone compliments. Then her confidences therefore became more and more happy, so she became more and more beautiful every day.

You see, just changing the mind changes the whole life, it is very important to cultivate the mind, not on the meaning of empty words. Therefore, we learn to master and apply it to life. Hopefully, each of us really understand the meaning of spiritual cultivation, to practice, not only "cultivate the mind", if you practice like that, what is it? Every skilled person knows! END=NAM MO SAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THICH CHAN TANH.GOLDEN AMITABHA MONASTERY=AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.20/6/2019.