What you do in your daily cultivation

justdoit77 SG

Just want to get some opinions from you, what else a buddhist should do for cultivation.

I seen many buddhists like to study dharma, their knowledge in dharma is indeed very profound. But when comes to action, they don't seem like having much use of dharma in their life.
Knowing the facts is one aspect, willing to put it into action and experience the facts is totally different aspect.

Other than chanting, meditation, uphold of precepts, reading of buddhism books and scriptures, I think accumulating of merits is also very important. It is not that we are greedy on the merits, but without merits, we can't even get to know buddhism, not even born as a human.

Speaking on merits, I come across article saying that when we see people doing some good deeds, we should feel happy about it, then we naturally will gain half of the merit. If the party's cultivation is below you, when you feel happy on his good deeds, you will gain twice as much merits as he get.
If you think you need more money, start to do donation. Giving of money to the needfy will make you rich.

What other things that you all can think of, please share with us.

An Eternal Now SG

Very good.. practising and cultivating buddhism has two aspect.

One is cultivate 'Fu De', one is cultivate 'Zhi Hui'. Fu de as in blessings, zhi hui as in wisdom. Other than keeping precepts, one must practise 10 Virtuous Deeds, able to give away what he has and lend help to those who need. The highest achievement is reborn in celestial realms. On the other hand, if a person only practises supramundane wisdom, but has little blessings, even if he become an arhant he receives little alms. There is a true story about this.

Fu De also got two kinds... one is Wu Lou Fu (blessings without leaking), and You Lou Fu (blessings that will leak away). If we break precepts in order to bring benefit to someone it is called You Lou Fu. If we cultivate blessings only for one's greedy intentions, or for 'merits' and 'blessings', or for the 'name', it is also You Lou Fu. Therefore don't give away money for the intention of getting rich. It is not that you will not have anything in return, but that the blessings will be very limited and small.

With regards to merits, I often say:

Merits are consequences of the non-orignation and non-cessation of the mind. During the Tang Dynasty in ancient China, Emperor Liang Wu-Ti asked the patriarch Bodhidharma, "Venerable One, I have built many monasteries for the well being of the Sangha and I have also performed many virtuous deeds. What merits have I accumulated? Bodhidharma answered, "You have no merits." Why is that so? It is because when Emperor Liang Wu-Ti performed those acts of giving, he was attached to them. Thus, even though he had performed many virtuous deeds, because he had not cultivated the purity of his mind, he did not attain "non-origination and non-cessation". Therefore, his actions can only be considered as cultivation of blessings, not merits. Without liberation there are no merits. On the other hand, when there is liberation, all virtuous deeds will reap merits.

....

What are merits and blessings? Is being a vegetarian considered meritorious? How does one cultivate in accordance with the Dharma?[/b]

Merits and blessings are two different matters. Blessings are cultivated through using material or other means to benefit other people. It is a blessing when we benefit others. Merits are different. When we cultivate to a state where there are neither arisings nor ceasings in our minds, only then is it a merit.

What merit is there in being vegetarian? To observe vegetarianism is to abstain from taking lives. Abstaining from killing while also cultivating, one's merits are very great indeed. However, even if one were to be vegetarian and abstain from taking lives, if one aids others in their killing, then one is also considered to have violated the precept.

Another very good source of reading, this one is spoken directly from the 6th Zen Patriarch Hui Neng regarding merits: http://www.katinkahesselink.net/tibet/hui_neng3.html

maggot SG

Curb my desires Laughing

marcteng SG

Well for a lay buddhist, they should follow the 5 precepts faithfully and follow the Buddha's teachings on compassion, tolerance, loving kindness to all beings, equanimity, do good and avoid all evils.

For those who renounce, their job is to end birth and death, ie attain Nirvana.

For those with aspirations to be a Buddha to save all beings, they have to practise the perfections life after life, learn what is to be learn and practise what is to be practised.