Life is constant change. Every new life
is nothing but a chapter in the constant process in which we
are born and die, over and over again. Death means that our
present Karma has run its course. When it has run its course,
where are we going? We are simply going to our next “body of
karmic memory,” exchanging one life with the next, comparable
to transferring software into a new computer. Life and Death
is nothing but this transferring of the software; and karmic
memory is the key information that determines the form that
our new life will take.
It is because of this process that Buddhism emphasizes the
importance of creating wholesome karmic seeds of memory. Buddhism
speaks about three forms of time: The past, the present and
the future. Where does the present come from? It comes from
the karmic seed sowed in the past. And where does the future
come from? It comes from the karmic seed that is being created
right now. The past therefore is the cause, and the present
is the effect. At the same time, the present is the cause
for the future. Our present life is a link in the chain of
karmic memory, the software that stores up the information
which creates the circle of life and death. This is the reason
why we need to pay attention to every seed that we sow in
this life, to every piece of information that we put into
the software.
The place where we create these seeds is to be found in our
body, speech and mind. If the seeds that we generate there
are full of wholesome energy, their fruits will help us to
lead a good life. It is important to understand the law of
cause and effect, to take it as a fact and to follow the maxim
of the Buddha: “Do everything that is wholesome, and refrain
from doing anything that is unwholesome.” In order to proceed
one step further from this towards “purifying the mind,” we
need to rely on the help of spiritual practice. If we practice
Chan, we need to learn how to concentrate well and no longer
be dispersed; if we practice reciting the name of the Buddha,
we need to be clearly aware that this is what we are doing.
The same applies to the recitation of mantras. All of these
practices help us to purify our mind, and thus to cleanse
all the actions of our body, speech and mind.
If our aspiration in this life is to awaken and be free from
delusion, to see everything clearly and let go, to fully understand
that everything is impermanent and overcome the world of phenomenal
existence, to realize emptiness and thus total freedom, then
we have to apply ourselves to the study of Buddhism and practice
of the teaching. Studying and practicing Buddhism means to
sow wholesome seeds and reap good fruits in life. And once
we clearly grasp the wisdom of emptiness, we will be able
to lead a life of total liberation.
自在的生命
生命是一種轉變，每一次的生命都只是一個階段、一個過程，我們的生命不斷的生生滅滅，滅的時候代表因緣盡了，因緣盡了要到那裡？就是再到我們的另一個記憶體裡，這是生命的轉換，也是軟體的轉換，所以，生死叫做軟體的轉換，而記憶體是讓我們變成生命的狀態的關鍵。
所以學佛最重要是把基因做好，佛法說三世：過去、現在、未來，現在怎麼來？是從過去基因來的；未來怎麼來？是現在的基因做的！所以過去是因，現在是果，現在同時也是未來的因，而我們的生命就是記憶的環扣，也是軟體的儲蓄，儲蓄這循環的因果，因此在生命的環節中，我們就要做好每一個因。
造因的來源是我們的身、口、意，就是我們創造記憶的地方，如果所造的因是正能量的，也就能讓每個緣都能幫助我們好運好命。所以我們要「相信因果，勤行善。諸惡莫作，眾善奉行」；再進一步做到「自淨其意?就必須要靠修行，比如禪修，要能專注不散亂；比如念佛，要清楚知道自己在念佛、念咒，我們的意就會清淨，讓我們的三業清淨就會好運好命。
我們想要在生命中能夠覺悟不迷惑，看清一切而放得下，了解一切都是無常而能夠超越現象，證得空性而能夠自在，那麼就要好好學佛、實踐佛法，因為學習佛法就是把因果做好，把空的智慧觀照清楚而能過自在的生命。
─── 心道法師
