QUIT GRASPING; BE FREE FROM DESIRES
Master Jun Hong Lu: The human realm has always been a place that taints our inherent nature; a realm where all the contamination takes place that causes our innate nature to be clouded. It is not that our Buddha nature is lost. In fact, its presence can be likened to the Sun which is shining brightly in us, with all its warmth and brilliance. This is the nature of the Sun.
Why is it that some of us seem to have lost our Buddha nature? This does not mean that the Sun is no longer present.
It is because the Sun has been shrouded by dark clouds. The Sun has lost its shine as its brightness has been blocked.
Such people would have lost all the kindness of human nature as their mind has been corrupted. Even though their inherent qualities are brilliant, they have been concealed.
For example: you switch on a torchlight, it is very bright, isn’t it? Cover it with a piece of black cloth, can you still see the light? Can you say that the torchlight is not working? The torchlight is working and shining just fine, just that it has been blocked by the black cloth.
It is said, mankind is all about desires. Once you are in this realm and take the form of a human, you have essentially entered the passage of desires. As long as you are a human being, you would start to have desires. You desire for food, wealth, reputation, sex and you are consumed by greed and hatred, all of which stems from your desires; this is the emotion that would move you towards the animal realm.
Source: Master Jun Hong Lu’s Buddhism In Plain Terms, Volume 5 Chapter 41
< Words of Wisdom