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What the heart does not behold. It naturally manifest it’s intentions through the sort of behaviour we embrace. How can the results of a willing heart be found in unwilling behaviours , actions and attitudes? Unless the heart is unwilling to begin with at some level or aspects. How can an unwillingly heart meet future buddhas when it is already conditioning itself with all the causes to avoid it? Buddhism talks about cause and effects the same way an entrepreneur grows one’s business. If one is to have a successful business, one has to create the causes and conditions that brings one closer to the goals one wants to achieve. If one does not have a particular goal. It is very likely one will not try to score in the direction of the goal itself. We have to be truthful with ourselves at times. Amitabha pureland is the swiftest path to liberation. The Buddha spoke about it without people asking him to. However becos of the ease of practice. It is also considered a hard to believe path because humans just can’t believe that it is so easy. Humans are the most difficult to please living beings. When things are easy, they find it hard to believe. When they want to do difficult practices. They complain it’s too hard and cannot sustain. What then do they really want as time tickles by and death surrounds us. I always think that the pureland practice should be a compulsory foundation of every Buddhist practitioner. After all liberation is the reason we started out on the path. If we cannot even do the best with the easiest vehicle, how well can we drive more complex vehicles to liberation? We should all learn widely but which of your learnings will be your core muscles driving the rest, it is totally your choice.
Our heart takes us places. In the same way when our heart longs for a country. We will go travelling. When the heart longs for certain food one may actually go out to look for it. Our heart is the engine, driving force and motivation that drives all developments. In the same way if humanity does not out their heart into improving lives. We may not see the developments we see around us today. In the same way if our motivation is wrong. The wrong results of the motivation will rear it’s ugly head someday simply becos all the cause and conditions were created in order to fulfill that motivation whether it is openly or subtly. The heart has a very important place in Buddhism. All motivation and intentions starts from the heart. From bodhicitta to heart sutra, wisdom without compassion is simply limited wisdom. Buddhism trains the heart while pacifying and developing the mind to work in tandem with it. While some may think that the mind is the ultimate controller but the most evil of thoughts can never overwrite a heart that is unwilling. In many Chinese characters, the word 念,æ€ meaning intention or motivation has the character heart in it. The mind can corrupt the heart but a good heart can transform the mind. In the same way, someone with an evil thought may not necessarily actualise the evil deed as long as one does not have the heart to do it. On the other hand even the noblest of intentions may sometimes end up in distasteful situations simply becos someone has the heart to bend it in a certain way. One very good example is how charitable causes can sometimes end up in the wrong hands or wrong outcome despite the noblest of the intentions. Therefore the heart is very important even in mundane context. Success only come when one managed to capture the hearts of others based on our attitudes, behaviours and actions. To be free from samsara and to meet Buddhas one need to develop the right motivation first. If one has in one’s heart a place for a new toy or new shoes. Keeping a place for amitabha Buddha is not something too much to ask for. One has nothing to lose and everything to win.