WHAT IS RIGHT LIVELIHOOD? Question: May I know what is Right Livelihood? Master Jun Hong Lu: Right Livelihood is about being an upright person in this world. You are someone who accords with conditions, you go where your fate and destiny lead you and never go against them. If you insist on going against what […]
FREE FROM GREED IS WHEN ONE IS NOT COVETOUS OF SMALL GAINS Master Jun Hong Lu: To be free from greed is when we are not covetous of small gains. We get what we deserve in life. Predestined affinity will grant us what is rightfully ours while insisting on having something that is not meant […]
THE POWER OF CONCENTRATION Master Jun Hong Lu: What is the power of concentration? When one encounters difficulties, one must be able to stay composed, keep to the moral precepts and be steady. Nowadays, there are many people, when something unforeseen happens to them or their family, they become distraught. How does the Power of […]
THE ELIMINATION OF KARMIC OBSTACLES IS THE PREREQUISITE TO RETURN TO BUDDHA LAND Master Jun Hong Lu: Many people recite the sacred name of Amitabha Buddha in hopes of ascending to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. They think by persevering with the recitation till the day of their demise, they will ascend to […]
A RIGHTEOUS PERSON WILL ALWAYS BE BLESSED WITH WISDOM AND MERITS Master Jun Hong Lu: A constant presence of right mindfulness will enable us to increase our wisdom and merits on this Bodhi path. As long as a person is righteous, not only would he always be blessed with wisdom and merits along the path […]
REIGN OVER THE TWO DEMONS IN OUR LIVES Master Jun Hong Lu: When a person goes into a frenzy, even the Buddha is not able to save him, as he is already in a very different spiritual state. He has lost the right mindfulness and faith. This is when the devil can possess him. This […]
THE FOUR BOUNDLESS STATES Master Jun Hong Lu: In Buddhism, loving-kindness, compassion, empathetic joy and equanimity are known as the Four Boundless States. To constantly think about the suffering of others is known as loving-kindness. Compassion is to feel the suffering of others. To give others strength and help them with a joyful heart is […]
THE RIGHT CONCENTRATION Master Jun Hong Lu: “Right Concentration” means to have proper control of one’s mental state and not to be affected by the worldly fame and fortune that cause confusion and derangement in us. This is when you have the right concentration. A truly composed person is able to control his own concentration […]
THE RIGHT EFFORT Master Jun Hong Lu: The word “right” within “Right Effort” means, everything is done right. “Effort” here means putting in the hard work. For Buddhist practitioners, it means promoting righteousness, recognising what’s evil, concentrating on cultivating the mind, being single-minded in our practice and being bold in our ascend to the Four […]
THE RIGHT LIVELIHOOD Master Jun Hong Lu: To have the Right Livelihood, is about adopting the right method to extend one’s life, standing righteous in the vastness between heaven and earth, instead of scheming against others, harming or getting jealous of others. Strive to be an unadulterated person, a person with morality and a person […]
KARMIC OBSTACLES STEM FROM YOUR MEMORY Master Jun Hong Lu: As a matter of fact, karmic obstacles stem from your memory. When a specific unhappy incident dwells in your mind, resentment, apprehension and vexation will arise and from which, karmic obstacles will be formed. To remove karmic obstacles, don’t you think you should erase from […]
THE ACCUMULATION OF BAD SEEDS SOWN Master Jun Hong Lu: Sentient beings do not know the existence of the law of cause and effect, hence they commit evil deeds day in, day out. When you yell at others, speak ill of others, mistreat others or roll your eyes – all these create negative karma that […]
THE NOBLE EIGHTFOLD PATH Master Jun Hong Lu: The Noble Eightfold Path is to prevent us from doing the wrong thing and creating karma in the many aspects of our undertakings including our career. Based on the law of cause and effect, when a negative cause is planted, it will give rise to undesirable consequences. […]
THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS Master Jun Hong Lu: The basic doctrine of Buddhism is to show us the way towards liberation from Birth, Ageing, Sickness and Death, by understanding The Four Noble Truths: “Suffering, The Cause of Suffering, The Cessation of Suffering and The Path towards the Cessation of Suffering”. There is a tremendous amount […]
KNOWING WHEN NOT TO ACT, YOU CAN LIVE YOUR TRUE SELF Master Jun Hong Lu: Buddhist practitioners need to understand that all things on earth are unperturbed. As long as the heart stays unchanged, all things will stay put. No matter what, you are still that kind to others, and likewise, others remain as kind […]
THE PURPOSE OF THE BUDDHA’S TEACHINGS IS TO TRANSFORM ALL WRONG THOUGHTS INTO RIGHT THOUGHTS Master Jun Hong Lu: There are two sides to every coin regardless of one’s point of view and their pursuit of things. You can say that something is good but for the very same thing, you can say it is […]
DO NOT LET YOUR SURROUNDINGS FLUTTER YOUR STATE OF MIND Master Jun Hong Lu: A person needs to have the Buddha nature that is fundamentally pure. As the Buddha often said, “The mind remains unmoved despite external changes”. No matter what changes have taken place around you, your mind remains unperturbed. Don’t let the surroundings […]
THE NOTION OF SELF Master Jun Hong Lu: The “Notion of Self” is when you make yourself a priority where you always go, “This is what I think…” “This is what I believe, etc”. Everything revolves around the word “I”. This is a typical case I often come across when I answer questions from the […]
RIGHT THOUGHT – TO SEE ALL PROBLEMS IN A POSITIVE LIGHT Master Jun Hong Lu: Let me tell all of you, when looking at a problem, we must see it in a positive light, which means we should steer our mind towards the positive. For example, you have a fight with someone today, and you […]
EFFECTIVE METHODS TO OVERCOME OUR SHORTCOMINGS Master Jun Hong Lu: Many people are confused. For example, when others are greedy, they will tend to be greedy; if others are out to harm others, they, too will do the same. In a group of children, if one child is hit by a person, others will secretly […]
ONE SHOULD NEITHER HOLD TO THE WRONG VIEW NOR BE OBSESSED TO THE IDEA OF HOLDING TO THE RIGHT VIEW Master Jun Hong Lu: To unleash your Buddha nature, you should not hold to the wrong views, neither should you be obsessed with the idea that you are holding on to the right view. When […]
APPLY BUDDHISM IN DAILY LIFE Master Jun Hong Lu: The Dharma is hard to come by and the chance to be born a human is rare. Even though we have such a good opportunity to be a human, it is only for a limited time. Those who fail to let go will definitely suffer. Therefore, […]
ERADICATE THE THREE POISONS WITH THE RIGHT VIEW Master Jun Hong Lu: When you allow greed, hatred and ignorance arise in you, you welcome the devil into your heart. These Three Poisons will then continue to reside in your heart. When this happens, you will start to hate everything that you see. “Why is he […]
BREAK THROUGH IGNORANCE AND DELUSION WITH PRAJNA WISDOM Master Jun Hong Lu: I want you to study Buddhism so that you can correct your wrong views and to eliminate your worries and ignorance with the Right View. What does that mean? It means you are to look at situations and things in the right way […]
THE RIGHT VIEW Master Jun Hong Lu: We need to have the Right View to properly see through all the wrong views and thoughts, our vexations and ignorance. To give a simple example, today, you are told your neighbour is spreading a rumour about your family. Upon hearing it, you immediately give rise to the […]
THE THREEFOLD TRAINING OF MORALITY, CONCENTRATION AND WISDOM IS THE KEY TO NON-OUTFLOWS Master Jun Hong Lu: Perfection and non-outflows are tantamount to the cultivation of morality, concentration and wisdom. Only with a mentality that is always perfect, you are able to free yourself from outflows. In other words, when you do not allow any […]
CONTEMPLATE FEELINGS AS SUFFERING Master Jun Hong Lu: Let me tell you about: “To Contemplate our Feelings as Suffering”. We have to constantly contemplate and recognise that our feeling is suffering. For example, you had a lot to eat today. It was all bliss when you were eating. You just wouldn’t want to stop. What’s […]
THE THREE DHARMA SEALS – UNDERSTANDING THE NATURE OF EMPTINESS Master Jun Hong Lu: “All dharma is devoid of self” means you do not own any of your undertakings in the human realm. You have no idea where you would go ultimately. If not for the name that was given to you at birth, you […]
CONTEMPLATE THE DHARMA AS DEVOID OF SELF Master Jun Hong Lu: Let me tell you about: “To contemplate the dharma as devoid of Self”. The word ‘dharma’ in this context refers to the dharma realm. To “contemplate the dharma as devoid of Self” means we should hold the view that “I do not exist in […]
THE ABILITY TO MANAGE ONE’S TIME IS A FORM OF WEALTH AND WISDOM Master Jun Hong Lu: The ability to manage one’s time is in itself a form of wealth and wisdom. You may not understand this. Don’t you think a person who makes good use of their time reciting Buddhist scriptures and performing good […]