WAYS TO CONTROL DISTRACTING THOUGHTS
Caller: Master, when we constantly safeguard our mind and the moment distracting thought arises, do we have to deliberately exercise restraint? We can recite some short sutras or mantras to fill up the time and gaps so as not to allow such distracting thoughts to perpetuate; recite more Heart Sutra daily, and read Buddhism in Plain Terms, perform more acts of Bodhisattva, as well as preoccupying ourselves with the welfare of sentient beings. Is my understanding correct?
Master Jun Hong Lu: That’s right! What you said shows that you have just entered the path of enlightenment and you have wisdom. What it means here is, one should not allow any room for selfish motives, distracting thoughts or ‘muddy water’, so to speak, to contaminate the purity of one’s mind. So how should we fill in such gaps? Through chanting, making great vows, reading Buddhism in Plain Terms, performing kind and virtuous deeds, we could protect ourselves from the invasion of the Five Desires and Six Sense Objects.
Source: Wenda20140815 01:24:47, Master Jun Hong Lu’s call-in radio program
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