Understanding and correctly distinguishing "merit" and "blessing".VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THE WOMEN OF THE SAKYA CLAN CHAN TANH. We should pay attention to avoid confusion between Blessed Virtue and Merit, even misleading to the point of inflation from petty and miscellaneous things such as: contributing money, building donations, spiritual bribery, praying for aspiration. . As Patriarch Datma said: "People today do not understand these meanings, due to their shallow understanding, they only take things according to their appearance, which they consider meritorious, and cost a lot of money; building statues, building towers wastes human energy; Dedicating ourselves to our best will only harm ourselves, fascinate others, not knowing how shameful, when will we be enlightened? Seeing conditioned dharmas, one is wholeheartedly attached and confused; hearing about unconditioned dharmas is foolish and equivocal.” Distinguishing between merit and virtue is a prerequisite for Buddhists and Dharma preachers. Screen Shot 2017-12-14 at 16.59.18 All of us, rich or poor, whether in full or difficult conditions, always have a hidden heart of kindness, that is, we always want to help and share with people with more difficult circumstances than ourselves. That has been expressed as a tradition since ancient times, a Vietnamese proverb has a saying "Good leaves cover the torn leaves" in folklore, often called "doing a blessing" - that is, helping others with words of encouragement and consolation. , by advice to solve the current problem, or by acting as a supplement with effort or money of material ... in the original Buddhism called it "PRUCK DUC" (Good karma conditioned) . In addition to the word "PHUOC DUC", we often hear the word "CONG DUC", so are these two words the same or different? "GERUS" (Non-karma) is the practice of studying, self-reflection, or so-called editing of body and mind. The Sixth Patriarch Hui Neng taught in the Dharma Jewel Dan Sutra, "Self-cultivation is merit, self-cultivation of the mind [nature] is virtue, merit comes from one's own mind..." or "Knowing nature is merit, equality is virtue..." Recalling the old story when To Dat Ma went to China to meet King Luong Vu De and the king asked: For a long time I have built pagodas, copied scriptures, and increased so many unspeakable amounts, so is there any merit? The Patriarch replied: It's not merit, it's just worldly meritorious virtues, ie human beings can produce small results in the circle of humans and gods (still reincarnating in the human and heavenly realms), although there is, it's not real. True merit is that the mind must be completely pure and the body empty (must be diligent in cultivating virtue), completely unable to take on worldly affairs (such as building temples, copying sutras, saving monks, worshiping monks, etc.). seems) that is possible!… Through the teaching on contrast and comparison we have understood. “Blessings”: External works by effort (charity to help the disabled, the elderly, orphans, the poor), helping the community (right knowledge, means of living, means of learning) practice, practice), protect the environment, in order to help reduce your own retribution and avoid worldly resentments, but not at all to help you attain the Way. "GOD": Practicing merit through diligent cultivation of right wisdom and virtue, self-reflection (self-reflecting and correcting one's inner behavior) cultivating virtues to gradually return to the Tao. Liberation from the cycle of birth and death). Therefore, we should pay attention to avoid confusion between merit and virtue, even misleading to the point of inflation from small and miscellaneous things such as: contributing money, making offerings to build appearances, propagandizing evil Dharma, spiritual bribery, supplication, supplication, enslavement, blasphemy, propaganda of evil dharmas, etc., but using these things for wrong views, propaganda and propaganda, is merit, meritoriousness, and confusion. worldly work. At the end of the 5th century, when Patriarch Datma went to China to do a mission, at that time Taoism was very developed here and he saw the mistakes of the believers at that time, so he skillfully explained it to them. consistent with the traditional perception of the local faith. At that time, he made it easy for them to accept the new teaching, and correctly harmonized Buddhism and Taoism, so we will see the words "Dao", "Dharma". , "Conformed", "Non-vii"... of Taoism. Buddhism is the path of wisdom and truth, let's together examine (analyze, filter) the meaning to understand thoroughly. If we, because we are gullible, lazy to think, like to rely on, misunderstand the teachings of the Buddha and the Patriarchs, then we will be very sorry for the Master, for the Patriarchs, and for our own mind of Truthfulness - Compassion - Beauty because surely misunderstood, wrong practice, our karma will never escape from samsara, birth and death. For example, when Emperor Luong Vu was alive, he misunderstood and misbehaved, leading to cause and effect being imprisoned by Hou Canh to starve to death in prison. His efforts to propagate superstition (destructive virtue) caused consequences for many generations of his descendants and for our current generation. Together we contemplate the teachings of Gautama Buddha in the A-Ham Sutra. "According to the Tathagata, believing in the Tathagata, respecting the Tathagata without understanding, misunderstanding, or misbehaving the Dharma taught by the Tathagata is tantamount to slandering the Tathagata." “How good! Rather good! Those who really admire and believe in the Tathagata should try to follow the example of a true bhikkhu . The person who respects the Tathagata the most is one who practices the Dharma that the Tathagata has pointed out." "He who sees the Dharma sees the Tathagata." In the Thirty-seven Luc Mon Key Sutra, Patriarch Datma taught : “People today do not understand these meanings. Due to their shallow understanding, they only take things according to appearances and consider them meritorious, costing a lot of money; building statues, building towers wastes human energy; Dedicating ourselves to our best will only harm ourselves, fascinate others, not knowing how shameful, when will we be enlightened? Seeing conditioned dharmas, one is wholeheartedly attached and confused; hearing about unconditioned dharmas is foolish and equivocal.” Summary of distinction between merit and virtue: Blessing: equivalent to good karma. In good karma, charity is only a very small part, good karma consists of 10 good things located in: BODY (saving lives, giving charity, not committing adultery). KAU (speak truthfully, speak briefly, speak politely, speak in harmony). Italy (the mind of greed, the mind of the yard, the mind of delusion). Merit is due to our self-reflection within ourselves, self-reflecting and correcting our inner behavior, diligently cultivating into virtue to gradually return to the Tao. Self-cultivation is "public", self-cultivation is "virtue". Merit cannot be created by: The works according to the appearance such as building statues, building towers, casting bells; Building pagodas, giving alms, and making offerings are just cultivating merit, not taking merit as merit. See more Essays on Temple Building, Statue Casting, Bowing Ceremony - Quotes from Thieu That Luc Mon Key Points/ The Destruction of Generals Luan De Nhi Mon; Obsessed with attachment to external appearance, inwardly letting go of greed and stupidity, pretending to be majestic, not ashamed of saints, deceiving ordinary people. Let's investigate and understand thoroughly so as not to be regretfully confused about "Gong Duc" and "Phuoc Duc". Talking about the word "Duc" means talking about the word Dao. Merit and merit are concepts not found in the original Buddhism, and appeared when Buddhism spread to China. So, to get it right we need to understand more about the history involved. The word Dao comes from the ancient Chinese philosophy of Taoism, which was proposed by Lao Tzu around the 6th century BC. After Buddhism was spread to China and widely coordinated, the concept of Tao was understood in two ways: Narrow meaning: is the way. Specifically: Buddhism: the path to enlightenment and liberation from samsara. Six Paths: 6 ways that sentient beings float in the whirlpool of samsara (Heaven, human, Asura, hungry ghosts, hell, animals) Eightfold Path: is the right way to help escape samsara Broad meaning: is the primordial function of heaven, earth, visible and invisible things Therefore, in "Achieving Dao", the word "Dao" should be understood in a broad sense, that is, the achievement of merit (action) to help transform the conditioned (demanding, fighting, obtaining, grasping) into the unconditioned, which can be incorporated into it. Dao. In a number of documents on Buddhism compiled from China, the concept of Tao (stillness, cessation, fusion, omniscience, infinity) is understood synonymously with Nirvana (Peace-Pure-emptiness). in early Buddhism. Similar to the original enlightenment doctrine (Theravada Buddhism) that the Buddha preached in the past (VI century BC) all revolve around the central concept of "Suffering" (also samsara) and the cessation of suffering". And always remember that Theravada Buddhism is not at all a religion or an abstract philosophy or psychology (to reassure, activate peace/joy/health/leisure/pleasure...) or a philosophy of life (to decorate) healthy body, longevity) or elaborate cultivation/magic or art of living (smart, dodge in life to succeed in money/fame/enjoy leisurely)... but the Science of Mind Because applying wisdom to understand and act according to the laws of dharmas is impermanent, is constant change, is the assignment of space and time. The essential content of early Taoist philosophy, too, is by no means religious or abstract philosophy, or psychology or philosophy/art of life. This philosophy has been presented very clearly in the document "Dao De Kinh", specific details readers can refer to. To summarize some of the main points containing the similarity between the Tao and the enlightened teachings - which was successfully applied and deployed by Patriarch Datma in his mission to China around the end of the 5th century (see the text " Thieu Thi Luc Mon"), he skillfully explained it in accordance with the traditional perception of the indigenous believers at that time, so that they could easily accept the new teaching - using harmony of Buddhism and Taoism – precisely. Returning to the content of contrasting and contrasting the similarities between Buddhism and Taoism, which we should pay attention to to avoid misunderstanding the similarity of some basic concepts between Taoism and Buddhism, this does not mean The consensus is that Taoism replaces the doctrine of Enlightenment. Similar ideas between Theravada Taoism and Theravada Doctrine of Enlightenment are as follows: 2-1. The Way is permanent, unchanging, the source of all things -> similar to Nirvana which is the permanent essence of all dharmas. 2-2. The Tao is usually (always, like) Void (doesn't seek, doesn't compete, doesn't take, and doesn't hold on to), unlike what we call (name) or know with the five normal senses. ordinary (Dao is worthy of extraordinary religion, Danh is famous for its extraordinary name) and has no form, not the name of the world (No, the name of heaven, earth, and water). That is, the Way is always quiet, dead and empty (No Name, No Vi, No Sign). Similar to 3 calculation functions: Static-Pure-Emptiness of Nirvana. Therefore, concepts such as: attaining the path are also understood to be analogous to parinirvana, and unconditioned dharmas are analogous to dharmata (unconditional origination, formless) precisely here. 2-3. Virtue is the power to turn all things toward or away from the Tao. Virtue helps to return to the Dao, morality helps to approach the Tao, merit helps to not stay away from the Tao, and unethical conduct keeps away from the Tao. So the concept of Virtue is similar to the concept of Karma in Buddhism: * The merit is similar to Right Concentration Karma, leading to Wisdom and Wisdom. * Ethics are similar to Right Action. * Blessings are similar to Thien Karma. * Loss of virtue or Evil is similar to Evil or Evil Karma. Note is always: self-confident, self-reliant, self-cultivated, self-fulfilling, self-sufficient. Therefore, it is also necessary to distinguish: Effort , which is spent on worldly activities, is different from merit , which practices through the cultivation of righteous knowledge and virtue. Effort or merit is only a cause that brings good results, but it is still just around the world. As for merit, merit is the cause that results in entering the path, or gaining liberation. Note: if you do not practice righteous wisdom, you will be lost in the outer path, and you will be lost in the outer path. In short, without distinguishing between merit and virtue, there will be no distinction between right and wrong. Then how do you see the way to the Tao? The basis of the dharma of enlightenment is always to use wisdom to see the nature. Diligence, love to take refuge, hope and praise for forms, but lazy thinking is to practice delusion and enlightenment. You will certainly see ghosts. Without distinguishing between Merit/Blessed Virtue as well as Gong/Effort, the Dao can never be seen. Remember that merit is due to us reflecting within ourselves (self-reflecting and correcting our inner behavior) cultivating virtues to gradually return to the Tao. Blessings are external works (charity for the disabled, elderly, orphans, and the poor), helping the community (right knowledge, means of living, means of learning and practicing), protecting protect the environment, in order to help reduce their own retribution, to avoid worldly resentments, but not to help attain the Way at all. Again let us not misunderstand this basic point. It is also important to distinguish between effort (trying to do worldly things, trying hard to learn/teaching) and gong (diligence in cultivation according to orientation). However, if the orientation is conditioned (seeking/combating/winning/accepting), then of course that practice is just an outsider Tao or an effort to practice and practice according to the evil dharma, enslaving (protecting the dharma) to evil teachers, propagating propaganda. promoting evil dharma, leading to sedation for the faithful, that would be an unethical action (Evil/Evil Karma). “If the path-seeker does not understand the meaning of casting images (using the body as a furnace, using the Dharma as a fire, using wisdom as a skillful craftsman, taking the three groups of pure precepts along with the six perfections- secret is a mold to be molded and refined) rather than a dharma that is conditioned and destroyed, then why can it be said to be meritorious?… Again talking about prostration (Rite means reverence for the true nature, bowing means prostration. is the subjugation of ignorance and darkness), it is necessary to follow the true Dharma. The reason in the mind must always be clear, the outside must know to change appropriately depending on the situation. Understanding the meaning like that is called following the true Dharma... Outside clear, clear inside, nature and appearance are compatible with each other. If you don't follow the dharma like that, you will only fall in love with the outer appearance, let go of greed and stupidity in your heart, and often do evil deeds. then, apart from just toiling the body in vain, pretending to be majestic, not ashamed of the sages, deceiving ordinary people, not getting out of samsara, how can one achieve merit? Only greed for small good things in the immediate future, who knows the great suffering in the future? If you study like that, you will only waste your time and effort, forsake the right and follow the evil, who says you will be blessed?"... “Building a temple, giving alms, and making offerings is just cultivating merit, not taking merit as merit. Merit resides in the Dharmakaya, not in the field of merit . In the dharma-nature already has merit. Knowledge of nature is merit, equality is virtue. Inside you see Buddha-nature, outside you practice reverently. If you look down on everyone, and you can't cut off self-grasping, you won't be able to get merit on your own. If the self-nature is deluded, the Dharmakaya no longer has virtue. If there is continuous practice in mindfulness and virtue and equality of mind, then the merit will not be small and the behavior will always be respectful. Self-cultivation is merit, self-cultivation is virtue. Merit comes from the mind, merit and merit are different." Let's wake up together to realize the truth through the teachings of the Buddha and the regular Patriarchs, if you don't want to be a ghost in the end of the Dharma. END=NAM MO SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).WORLD VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST ORDER= BUDDHIST DHARMA WHEEL GOLDEN MONASTERY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THE WOMEN OF THE SAKYA CLAN CHAN TANH.AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.3/1/2022.