Master Jun Hong Lu’s
Buddhism In Plain Terms
Volume 10 Chapter 36
(An Excerpt)
WE HAVE TO CULTIVATE TO UNCOVER OUR BUDDHA NATURE
The virtuous deeds you performed in the human realm is known as ‘virtue of the mortal world’. It is considered worthless, unless it is coupled with an ‘understanding of one’s mind and seeing one’s true nature’.
For a deed to be considered virtuous, they have to be equivalent to those performed by the Arhat, Bodhisattva and Buddha. In other words, when one’s dharma-body (Buddha-nature) is revealed through spiritual cultivation – this is true Virtue.
Even if you are just preparing a meal, you have to think that, ‘I am a Bodhisattva, and I am cooking for my family who are Buddhist practitioners. I must take good care of them’. With this mindset, preparing the meal becomes a virtuous deed.
If you are instead thinking, ‘I am just helping them to cook a meal’, then this will only end with good retributions as you did not perform the deeds with your Buddha nature. You may just end up with a reward of others telling you, ‘Someday, I will cook a meal for you in return’.