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 will cause harm to others. And, the moment the karmic retribution manifests itself, most people will be stricken with fear and agony.
Did you realise how many times you have bullied him, looking back at all those years? It has reached a point of no return, and he now chooses to leave you and you feel the pain. Isn’t the pain you are suffering now the result of your own doings that build up every day?
Here’s a true story that happened in Australia. There were two neighbours, a 74-year-old and a 78-year-old, who had a quarrel over a fence that stood in between their houses.
One of them would deliberately move the fence over, infringing on a little of his neighbour’s area, and when this happened, the other would do likewise. This tit for tat persisted over a prolonged period during which the bad blood between them boiled over.
One fine day, hell broke loose when one of them struck his neighbour with a shovel and killed him. Would you say their hostility was formed overnight?
Just like the accumulation of kindness happens over an extended period of time, so is the accumulation of evil deeds. Do not mistreat others senselessly or harm them – understanding that this entails the suffering you fear, all the more you should avoid planting any seeds that cause harm to others.
Source: Master Jun Hong Lu’s Buddhism In Plain Terms, Episode 9, 7 March 2020
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