Lighting Up Bodhicitta and All Beings

Distinct Sponsors of Ling Jiou Mountain Committee held an award ceremony for the new members. Many sponsors overseas traveled back to Taiwan to join this great event. I’d like to thank all of your great efforts and engagement along the path of Bodhisattva.

“Live to serve, dedicate life to lives” is the motto of LJM. Starting from generosity in the Six Paramitas, one learns to give, care, help, and benefit others. This is the learning of becoming a bodhisattva. To do so, one can begin from the five precepts for laity and the ten virtues. By upholding precepts, we can make a positive interaction with all beings. Be sure to offer the four givings: convenience, hope, faith, and joy. These are the quality service that a Bodhisattva could offer to sentient beings.

LJM offers the Four-stage Training that leads to the fruition of Buddhahood: 

1.  Agama Stage - the cultivation of virtuous qualities among sangha and lay students. 
2.  Prajna Stage - the groundwork of the right Buddhist view and the cultivation of prajna wisdom.
3.  Saddharma-Pundarika Stage - the fulfillment of the path of the Bodhisattva to benefit sentient beings.
4.  Avatamsaka Stage - the realization of the ultimate truth. 

In the third stage, Saddharma-Pundarika, we engender bodhicitta and receive a prophecy from the Buddha. From that moment onwards, we dedicate our infinite lifetimes to an infinite number of beings. We serve others by all means. Little by little, we are constructing a bridge that allows others to walk towards Buddhahood.

The meaning of our life no longer set on self-interest but the cultivation and maintenance of beings’ wisdom and merits. Our wish is for all beings to attain Buddhahood. Bodhicitta is our Dharmic activity that lasts forever.

As we reach the Avatamsaka Stage, our bodhicitta can inspire the Buddha-field. We can learn from every Pure Land and all kinds of manifestation projected from the seed, or our nature. We become enlightened bit by bit from different learning. When we no longer discriminate and reach the universal sameness, we’d accomplish the perfect wisdom. While this life dashes by in a blink of an eye, we must strive to make bodhicitta as the backbone of our life. Furthermore, with the vast aspiration, we can also accomplish a Buddha-field.

When practicing the path of the Bodhisattva, we need to be fueled by bodhicitta. The focus project of LJM now is the University for Life and Peace. This institute is our shared vision that leads us to gather well wishes from many. Together, we can optimize the value of traveling on the path of the Bodhisattva. Let us light up this life, planet Earth, and mankind. May all be at peace.

I’d like to encourage all of us to expand our path as we grow in life. At the same time, thank you all for being the torchbearer among people. When we dedicate ourselves to guide others, we become the light that only brightens up this world.