The Admonitions and Encouraging Words of Master Guishan by Thich Nhat Hanh

Author:Thich Nhat Hanh [Nhat Hanh, Thich]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781952692192
Publisher: Parallax Press

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Your actions and words are neglectful, and you let down the donors who give you your means of livelihood.

We have to realize the above aspiration; if not, then we have entered the Sangha just to make use of it for our own ends: our practice is simply the outer form with no real content. As the days pass, your words and actions are less and less spiritual, less and less in accordance with the Dharma. Just like a neglected plot of land that grows into a jungle because it has no one to cultivate it, so your words and actions become every day more coarse and worldly. You betray the good intentions of the donors. The donors give you offerings so that you can practice. You receive the offerings but do not practice right mindfulness. You do not fulfill the duty of a monastic practitioner; that is how you betray the heart of the donors. In the Five Contemplations that you read before eating, there are the following sentences: “This food is the gift of the earth, the sky, numerous living beings and much hard and loving work. We vow to live mindfully and with gratitude in order to be worthy to receive it.” This means that you have to live in a way that is worthy of receiving the food that is offered by donors. If you want to be worthy of the offering, then every action, every word, and every gesture should be mindful.

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