SEE CLEARLY THE SIX REALMS OF EXISTENCE
Master Jun Hong Lu: Let me tell you this. If you are merely living your life doing the things you are supposed to as a human and stay away from evil deeds, the best outcome will be for you to be reborn as a human in the next life. That said, how many people are doing the ‘humane’ things now?
There are many people who are committing all sorts of evil deeds in this world. They con, sabotage, speak ill of others behind their back and commit negative karma of speech. They play with others’ emotions and swindle others – all of these are tickets to descend to the lower realm and become underworld spirits.
When you deceive others for financial gain, sexual gratification, social status or reputation, you will be sent to the hungry ghost realm. On the other hand, those who do not commit any evil deeds throughout their life, that is, they behave like a decent human being, at best, they will be reborn as a human in their next life. The problem is, how many animal-like acts have you committed? If you commit deeds that you should not do, you must understand that you will end up in the animal realm in your next life.
In cases involving heinous and grave misdeeds, hell is where you will be heading to. If you rob others or harbour jealousy towards others, you are setting yourself a path to the hungry ghost realm. Let me reiterate this. Your jealousy is something that is severely detrimental to you.
Here I am desperately urging all of you so that you do not end up in the lower realms. You will only grasp the significance of my words when you are about to leave this world. We have been committing all those immoral acts in the past, we cannot continue to be like this. We must seize this very moment to mend our ways so that there is still a chance for you to ascend to heaven, or at least be reborn as a human in your next life. Failing which, you will lose your precious human form in your next life.
You need to recognise the human realm and the six realms of existence and ask yourself which realm you are aiming for. To say the least, it’s not easy to be a human of morality. How many of you are able to be one? Who has never back-stabbed or spoken ill of others?
Unfortunately, there are still some who will give lame excuses such as, “What’s the big deal? Everyone’s doing it”. Ask yourself this question: When these evil doers fail to ascend to the higher realm, are you willing to be a ghost and join them in the ghost realm?
Are you ready to endure the pain and suffering that they are bound to undergo? Just because these people are doing something that seems like a norm, you want to descend to the lower realm like them too?
Source: Master Jun Hong Lu’s Buddhism In Plain Terms, Volume 8 Chapter 34
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