As practitioners, we often hear the concept of "the defects of Samsara". For many people, this evokes images of conspicuous hardships, such as illness, death, bankruptcy, and decline from prosperity.
For example, those celebrities who were once extremely glamorous may, in their later years, fall into a whirlpool of financial ruin, public scandal, and health crises, losing the spirit and vitality they once had. If we compares their youthful images with their later-life photos, the “defects of Samsara” become tangibly visible. Conducting such observations and comparisons over a long period of time will develop a very intuitive sense of impermanence and the sufferings of Samsara.
However, we must be mindful of one crucial point: do not merely take "bad things happening" as the defects of Samsara. As your practice and study deepen gradually, you will realize that even a seemingly perfect secular life, if it goes against the Dharma, also falls under the defects of Samsara. For example, like those models and celebrities with millions of followers, or those young tycoons celebrated by Forbes. While many people envy their lives, a profound grasp of the defects of Samsara enables one to see that this is not necessarily a blessing. Immense secular merits, if not channeled into spiritual cultivation, can instead become the capital for creating negative karma.
Compared to the obvious suffering, this life of grandeur and prosperity is far more deceptive and potentially more dangerous. Although poor people suffer, their capacity for creating negative karma is often limited; whereas a person endowed with immense influence and worldly merits may accumulate correspondingly heavier negative karma. Without practicing, properly accumulating wealth, and purifying obstacles, it may ultimately lead to a very sorrowful outcome.
If you truly understand the complexity of the defects of Samsara, you will not cling to the pursuit of wealth and status, nor will you excessively recoil from poverty and adversity. Temporary gains and losses will lose their grip on you. You might think: "I am poor now, but it's alright. I can practice generosity to create the cause for future abundance.” Or "Even if I am rich now, there is no need to be proud of. Without cultivation, my negative karma will accumulate and eventually l will still fall into the lower realm." When such beliefs penetrate into your mind, our hearts will gradually loosen from the bonds of the Eight Worldly Concerns, while giving rise to a sense of relaxation and joy. In short, "believing in Samsara" brings many practical effects. It is not just a mere concept.
If we cannot feel the joy of Dharma during our practice, it is often because our minds are still entangled in worldly affairs, clinging to our own fame and wealth, success and failure, gains and losses, unable to detach from them. For example, a sudden thought of a stock market crash during meditation causes the heart to clench in a knot, leading one to lose the track of the practice entirely. This shows that we are fundamentally unable to face the manifestations of the present moment with equanimity.
What does it mean to "face the present manifestation with equanimity"? This involves your view. If you believe in reincarnation, then when adverse phenomena occur, you will naturally view it from the perspective of cause and effect. For example, if you are bullied, for those without a conviction in rebirth, their first reaction is often anger, followed by a desire to retaliate; but if the concept of cause and effect has penetrated deep into your heart, you may think, "Perhaps I have hurt him before, and now it is the result of ripened conditions. I should accept it with equanimity!"
If you are anchored in the view of the Bodhicitta, you will see the other person as your own mother from countless past lives. You might consider: “Since she is my mother, it does not matter if she hits me a few times, I will regard it as paying filial respect to her!' If you can truly sow the seeds of virtue with such a mindset, the outcome of this matter will change accordingly.
For those with the right view of emptiness, the arising and ceasing of phenomena do not stir their emotions at all. Even if a ripple of emotions are momentarily triggered, they can directly perceive its empty nature. Once this emptiness is perceived, the emotion no longer have any power.
But in reality, what is the first thought many people have when provoked by others? To retaliate! Even a slight glance that feels off can ignite our anger: 'How could this person treat me like this? They are not well-cultivated!' We often rush to judge others without observing whether our own cultivation is sound or not. This naturally leads to various emotions and afflictions.
There are also some fellow practitioners who constantly create conflicts within the community, commit unwholesome deeds, and incite disputes, etc. In essence, this reflects a disbelief in the existence of Samsara. Those who truly believe in Samsara would never do such things, instead they would urgently seek liberation as if their heads were on fire. The Buddha’s teachings on rebirth may seem simple, but if you can develop a profound faith in them, your cultivation will go ahead smoothly.
This article is a preliminary translation draft and has not yet been reviewed or proofread by the speaker.
