Deceiving Oneself

The Buddha said, "A Buddha has no form, no self, no ego, no sentient beings. A Buddha has no discriminative mind."

This means that in reality, there is no inherent distinction between good and bad, or right and wrong in this world. Goodness, badness, rightness, and wrongness are all distinctions made by the human heart.

Therefore, there is no such thing as good, and no such thing as evil.

Look at Lu Zhishen from Water Margin. Before he left, he wrote a poem:

"In my life, I cultivated no good deeds, only loved to kill and set fires. Suddenly, I broke the golden rope, and here I severed the jade lock. The tide of the Qiantang River is coming, and today I finally know who I am."

This poem refers to Lu Zhishen's enlightenment, his realization of the "self" after awakening, referring to his "true nature," his "original face."

Buddhism believes that the "self" perceived by unenlightened mortals is actually impermanent and illusory, as the Heart Sutra says, "the five aggregates are all empty."

There are many different interpretations of the character Lu Zhishen, and many people don't understand how he, who drank, ate meat, killed, and set fires, could ultimately become a Buddha. Didn't the Buddha say not to kill? Everyone has mixed opinions about Lu Zhishen.

In fact, the Buddha never said these things, and certainly never said not to kill. Otherwise, where would the phrase "Buddha's wrath descends upon demons" come from?

Aren't demons also a state of being among living things?

The prohibition against killing here refers to not harming sentient beings indiscriminately, but there is a saying, "Exterminate one evil to save a hundred good deeds."

These are inherently contradictory and based on discrimination.

Lu Zhishen's actions throughout his life were not against his conscience for personal gain. Though seemingly reckless, they contained great righteousness.

May you all comprehend this for yourselves.

Look at a tiger eating a deer; can you say the tiger is evil? This is the law of nature.

It's the same for humans eating chickens, ducks, geese, or even plants.

There is no inherent good or evil; it is all caused by self-perception, by ideas instilled in you by others.

Looking back at our ancestors, which one of them didn't fight on the battlefield to secure peace for us?

In the end, you might feel fear when you go to a graveyard, but you feel warmth in Martyrs' Park.

Because acting not for oneself is Buddhahood, and acting for oneself is evil.

The "not for oneself" here means acting without personal emotions or biases, acting without the perspective of the self.

But why do cultivators preach against killing and creating karma? If they teach you to act on behalf of Heaven when facing injustice, wouldn't the world fall into chaos?

"The heavens are dead, the Yellow Heaven shall rise. I, this poor Daoist Zhang Jiao, invite the Great Han to its death?"

Is that what they teach you? Wouldn't you die even faster then!

If you haven't even figured out who you are, how can you act on behalf of Heaven?

Are you acting on behalf of Heaven with your backside?

Your so-called good and evil are merely distinctions of your own thoughts, not a fair mind, nor a correct mind.

Due to the impermanent nature of the human heart, you might see someone's evil at one moment, but you might also see their good at another.

Saying that all people are selfish is merely a result of discrimination.

Therefore, except for patriotism, which is imprinted in the very blood of Huaxia's children and cannot be changed, people can act as they please.

Look at those on the internet who make mistakes yet continue to thrive.

As long as you don't commit a major offense and are willing to take responsibility, your mistakes are not mistakes. Sometimes, they can even help you.

This world is not black and white; it is constantly shifting, like yin and yang.

Justice today does not mean one will not do evil tomorrow, and evil today does not mean one cannot reform.

What is capital's operation? It's that I rob you of your money today, and tomorrow I will give back to you. Because I take responsibility, I don't fall.

Today I harvest the leeks, and tomorrow I want to quit and run, so I get caught because I don't take responsibility, and I'm a scoundrel.

Therefore, as a person, one must cultivate their virtue.

Don't talk about how hard it was to eat sweet potatoes back then; you don't mention your fortunate experiences at all.

Nor should you think that because you are glorious today, your hardships are unseen by others.

Bury your head and just do it, be true to Heaven, be true to the people, and be true to your own true heart and inherent nature, and anything is possible.

Plagiarism can be called imitation and borrowing, and imitation and borrowing can also be deemed plagiarism, it all depends on how you do it.

People want to see the results after your struggles; they don't care about your growth process.

When the heart beats, love can be like a raging fire; when you smile, the crazy person is me.

Only by being shameless can one succeed; those who are concerned with appearances are all working for others.

Those who sell their ugliness gain wealth, while those who follow the rules become leeks.

As long as there is communication between people, there will always be human relationships and social dynamics.

The so-called Jianghu, the so-called coexistence of immortals and demons, are all paths the heart must tread through the twists and turns of life.

The spiritual energy depletion of the Dharma-ending Age is merely a description of the state of the human heart, but at the same time, once it reaches a certain point, it will be reversed.

The Manifestation of Buddhas refers to people awakening and beginning to help others achieve spiritual liberation, which is also the key to the spiritual energy recovery.

There is no unfairness; the only unfairness is your own unbalanced heart.

If your heart is always upright and balanced in all matters, then nothing is a big deal.

If you constantly fret over gains and losses, or the length of things, you are only tormenting your own heart in the end.

Some people say that the essence of human interaction is mutual exploitation.

This is indeed true for ordinary people. Even if you are close to someone and don't seek anything from them, isn't the closeness itself something you seek?

This is the essence.

A cultivator should possess an absolutely correct heart. After seeing through this essence, they should not concern themselves with gains or losses, nor with people leaving and relationships cooling.

Because you know these are temporary. Where there is an arrival, there must be a departure; where there is a departure, there must be an arrival.

People coming and going, flowers blooming and fading, are all natural processes.

It's just like human birth, aging, sickness, and death.

This is a natural law, so why would you be unbalanced about it?

In other words, a cultivator does not seek happiness through gains and losses, but directly from their heart.

So, if human interaction is all about self-interest and mutual exploitation, do cultivators also exploit others?

No, what cultivators exploit is the exact opposite of what ordinary people do.

What cultivators exploit are their own inherent laws, or rather, they exploit themselves.

Or, it can be said that they deceive their own hearts to achieve their goals.

If you can even deceive yourself, what can you not accomplish?

Quitting smoking and drinking: if you can deceive yourself into believing you don't smoke or drink, and truly believe it, then you can quit instantly.

If you cannot deceive yourself, then deceive yourself slowly. Whenever you have the chance, hint to yourself: "Ah, I don't want to smoke anymore. This cigarette tastes so bitter, it's meaningless. My mouth feels so foul, I have so much phlegm, and sometimes I feel nauseous."

"This alcohol isn't good. After drinking, I'm muddled, my mind is sluggish. I can't be like this forever, can I? What's the point?"

As long as you absolutely believe in yourself, you can deceive yourself into possessing the ability to change everything.

If you cannot deceive yourself, then you need others to deceive you, telling you that smoking and drinking prevent you from becoming a Buddha, and that they will lead you to hell.

You are afraid, and if you believe it, you will naturally change, haha.