http://www.jenchen.org.sg/cultivat.htm#purify
Observe the mind to purify it
We are all human beings and we all have a mind. We are frequently
deceived by our minds. For an entire lifetime we are deceived
and misled by our minds without ever realizing it! If the mind is
good, then of course, it is all very well. Such a mind creates a
good person; one can ascend to the heavens or one can perform a lot
of virtuous deeds. What happens if the mind is evil and becomes
defiled? It can drag us to become animals, ghosts and deities, or
descend to hell. This is because our mind is not pure, and
therefore the world becomes a sea of suffering. This suffering
world of ours is called the "Saha World". It means having to endure
and is also called the "World of enduring sufferings".
If we all purify our minds, then the world becomes a heaven.
Everybody is very happy and there is no suffering. In learning and
practising Buddhism, the most important thing is to purify our
minds. When we can purify our minds, then naturally there will be
happiness in our world.
To do that we have to observe the non-arising of the mind. This is
called contemplation of the mind. When the mind is polluted, then
we cleanse it with the dew of the Buddha. And when our minds have
been purified, then they are the same as those of the Buddhas and
Bodhisattvas. In this way, we will progress very quickly in our
cultivation.
Observing the mind is very simple. It is like watching out for the
mouse. Everybody dislike mice because they steal our food or they
damage our clothings. An idiom describes this sentiment with the
phrase, When the mouse crosses the street everybody goes after
it. Obviously mice are not welcomed and they have to be dealt
with. One method of dealing with it, is the cat. At the sight of a
mouse, the cat puts his paws firmly on the ground and fixes its
steely eyes on the mouse. On seeing the cat, the mouse trembles
with fear, not daring to make even the slightest movement. Treat
your mind as if it were a mouse and your awareness as the cat. At
every moment observe your mind, in the same way as the cat watching
the mouse. The mouse wants to live and hardly has time to think of
its own safety, let alone of stealing food. If we can observe our
minds, then we will hardly have time enough to treasure our wisdom
life, let alone think of committing evil deeds.
Therefore when we are learning and practising Buddhism, we need to
learn to "contemplate the mind". In this way, we will very quickly
be able to avoid all evils and do all that are good.
"Avoid all evils; do all that are good; purify ones mind. These
are the teachings of all Buddhas". Besides avoiding all evils and
doing all that are good, we need to purify our thoughts. When our
thoughts have been purified, then the mind is pure. The purpose of
learning and practising Buddhism is to purify the human mind. If
the minds of everyone in the family is pure, then our home is pure;
if the minds of everyone in this society is pure, then our society
is pure; if the minds of everyone in the country is pure, then our
land is pure; if the entire human race in the world is pure, then
our world is as happy as the Western Pure Land.
Our mind is like the stealthy mouse, ever watchful of a chance to
creep out to commit evil deeds, and we are not even aware of that.
I hope all of us will keep a cat to watch our minds, so that we can
become Buddha quickly.
