Transcending the Burden of Wandering Thoughts

Recorded and transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe

November 3, 2024, Noon Offering

Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju’s Teachings:

The Origin of Our Burdens

The burdens we carry are born from the perceptions of our hearts, manifesting as physical changes in our bodies. As the Buddha’s teachings remind us, all phenomena arise from the mind. Therefore, if you can truly let go of these burdens, you will effectively counteract the pressure and helplessness that weigh upon your body and spirit. When you finally release the world of the body and mind, a sense of lightness and freedom will naturally arise.

The Art of Letting Go

You may ask, what exactly must you let go of? To walk the path of liberation, you must release the following:

• Physical sensations and perceptions: The constant feedback from your body that keeps you tethered to the material world.
• Mental constructs: Your personal thoughts, opinions, and subjective views that cloud your judgment.
• Relational attachments: The various roles, identities, and emotional entanglements you hold, such as those with parents, children, spouses, and romantic partners.
• Afflictions and worries: The anxieties and concerns that this physical life inevitably brings.
• Internal confusion: The ignorance within your heart and the disturbances caused by external people, events, and objects.
• Ego-driven desires: Your attachment to gain and loss, your subjective biases, and your rigid perspectives.
• Karmic history: The good and evil deeds, as well as the accumulated karma, from your past lives.

Do not look back, do not let these things stir your heart, and do not dwell upon them in your thoughts. You must learn to be still.

The Path of Total Surrender

Students of Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, you are fortunate to receive the Buddha’s guidance. Please listen carefully to what the Buddha wishes to tell you: listen, change your personality, and do so thoroughly and completely. If you can discard everything else and hold only to the Holy Name "Namo Amituofo", chanting it with unwavering focus, you will be free of burdens.

Returning to the True Self

Through your own efforts and the support of the Buddha's blessings, you will be able to purify your body, heart, and spirit. This practice will foster the growth of your spirit and lead to true spiritual elevation. You will feel a profound sense of joy, be filled with Dharma joy, and experience the infusion of energy. This allows your practice to move forward—a straightforward advance that will eventually lead you to see your true nature.

In truth, these burdens do not exist within your true self; they only exist because you have allowed them to take root. You must discard these burdens, letting them go from the very depths of your heart. By letting go of what is present, you enter the realm of the void, where you can rediscover your true self and finally see your true nature.

Namo Amituofo