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Posts tagged with "merits"
Posts tagged with "merits"
Dec. 24 |
[1] Is It Inauspicious To Keep A Damaged Buddhist Image?
Question: Is it inauspicious to keep a Buddha or Bodhisattva image with a defect, such as a missing finger at home?
Answer: The defect is but a reminder of neglect, that it should...
Nov. 26 |
Question: How tall was Śākyamuni Buddha?
Answer: In Chinese Buddhist texts, the Buddha is usually described to be ‘丈六八尺’ in height, which is ‘one zhàng and six chǐs or eight chǐs. How tall are both measurements?...
Sep. 24 |
Question: Is chanting to express respect to Buddha? How does it help us and others?
Answer: Chanting should always be practised respectfully, so as to be attentive, to receive the teachings chanted well. But chanting is not done just to express respect...
Sep. 18 | Be with yourself as you are,
but without haste,
without impatience.
– Shunmyo Masuno
In our everyday lives, do any of us have time to think about nothing? I imagine most people would say, ‘I don’t have a moment to spare for that.’...
Aug. 2 |
假使一月,常以衣食,
供养恭敬,一切众生,
不如有人,一念念佛,
所得功德,十六分一。
– 释迦牟尼佛
《大般涅槃经》
If for one month, constantly with clothing and food, offering reverently, to all sentient...
Jul. 18 |
我观是
阎浮众生,
举心动念,
无非是罪。
– 地藏菩萨
《地藏经》
I see that of these
Jambudvīpa sentient beings [here],
with their raising of minds and moving of thoughts,
none are not with transgressions.
– Kṣitigarbha...
May. 8 |
忏悔文 (1)
我昔所造诸恶业,
皆由无始贪嗔痴,
从身语意之所生,
一切我今皆忏悔。
– 普贤菩萨
《华严经: 普贤行愿品》
Verse For Repentance (1)
Of all my past created evil karma,
all by beginningless greed,...
Mar. 27 |
Giving what others need now
will create merits,
which can manifest
as what we really need later.
– Shilashanti
In the Avadāna Sūtra《阿婆陀那经》, Velāma Bodhisattva (韦罗摩菩萨) had the following reflection – ‘People speak...
Mar. 14 | Those who make this heartfelt aspiration for the Bodhisattva way
Will be free of all lower rebirths,
Free of harmful companions,
And will quickly see Amitabha, Infinite Light.
– Samantabhadra Bodhisattva
(The King Of Prayers)
In order to train just...
Mar. 14 |
Question: Many pray for their ancestors to bless them. Does this work?
Answer: They are not able to bless us, unless they have been reborn with greater blessings, or have become Bodhisattvas and Buddhas, and are looking after us. Also, merely asking...
Feb. 27 |
Question: If there is sutra-chanting for a deceased Chinese person, with dedication of merits, both using a non-Chinese language, will the deceased be able to benefit?
Answer: The power from sutra-chanting and dedication comes from the power of the...
Jan. 23 | Receive needs
humbly and gratefully.
Offer needs
humbly and gratefully.
– Shilashanti
Before the Dalai Lama departed from Thailand, he told his secretaries that he wanted to go out in the morning on alms round. It is common to see orderly queues of...
Dec. 26 |
Question: Who benefits from the merit-making when a donation is made to the temple which accommodates the deceased’s niche – the donor or the deceased?
Answer: If the donor has no intention to benefit anyone else, all the merits go to the donor. If...
Dec. 11 |
破地狱偈 [3]
每自作是念:
‘以何令众生,
得入无上道,
速成就佛身?’
– 释迦牟尼佛
《法华经》如来寿量品第十六
Verse For Breaking Free From Hell [3]
[I] always personally have this thought,
‘With...
Dec. 4 |
若不去淫,断一切清净种;
若不去酒,断一切智慧种;
若不去盗,断一切福德种;
若不去肉,断一切慈悲种。
– 净土宗六祖永明大师
《永明延寿禅师全书》
If not departing from lust,
this severs...