Avoid all negativities
Build all positives
Tame your mind
This is Buddhism
We used to say that we need a bus stop Buddhism. This is it – given by Buddha himself. When we say we need some solid to carry and not waste our life, look at this:
Avoid all negativities.
We do have tremendous negativities. Again, I can guarantee that, unless you are enlightened. Other than that, we all have tremendous negativities. Don’t even doubt that. They are there. And we are continuously making more. So what can you do? Negativities are purifiable. You can purify them. Honestly. Negativities are impermanent. Even permanent monuments get bad.
One time I saw the head dress of the Statue of Liberty sitting in someone’s back yard in New York for re-painting. That’s years ago. Why is that? Because although it is a permanent monument it needs repair, because it is actually impermanent. So negativities are also impermanent. The definition of impermanence is that it changes minute to minute, moment to moment, actually.
That goes for negativity as well as positivity, negative as well as positive karma. They are both impermanent. Purification cuts the negative karma. Anger/hatred burns positive karma. In the field of karma that is so simple. We can purify all these negativities. You keep on purifying.
If you only say one time:” I purify all my negativities,” that just doesn’t purify enough. Otherwise we can all just say that. In our culture we normally say, “forgive me,” or, “I apologize.” That’s all good, but it doesn’t make the negativities go away. Keep on repeating the purification with sincere mind and the application of the four powers. It is important, so I have to say it. Constant repetition helps.
If you put a drop of water in a bucket all the time, there will be a time when the bucket is filled. Keep on purifying every day with sincere dedication, not simply just saying a few words – which we do all the time. So make sure it is not just a movement of the lips. That wouldn’t be good enough. The words must be backed by thoughts. Thought comes first. That produces the words. The words make the reality, it forms your character. So that’s what you do every day.
By doing that every day, it gets you somewhere. You cut the negativities out and you build the most profitable positives up. That will give you something to carry when you go. Preferably, it will change and transform your life from negative into positive, becoming fully enlightened during the bardo or the next life. If not, then at least make sure that the next life will also be, if not better, but at least as good as this, with all opportunities, particularly to continue your work until you become a fully enlightened Buddha and be able to complete the path in that life.
When you have that, then you have something solid, otherwise it is a gamble between the positive and negative karma. Most people do that. How does that work? Whichever you are more familiar with will materialize a little earlier, whichever is less familiar will materialize later – also the more powerful karma materializes earlier and the weaker karma materializes later. That is how it works, when it goes to the gamble. It is a like a common pool of karmas. When you make a difference to your life and lives, make sure you don’t have to go to that common pool – gambling business.
~ Gelek Rimpoche, Jewel Heart Ann Arbor, November 11, 2012
