The Cruelty of Human Life

2007/12/1 13:26:48

To be born as a human is, in itself, a cruel affair.

Those who are born human fall into no more than two categories: those who come riding on their vows, and those driven here by karmic force. The first category is beyond ordinary discussion — it is not the domain of ordinary people. The vast majority belong to the second category.

The vast majority of people are driven into human existence by karmic force. Evidently, the manifestation of this karmic force failed to reach the level of the heavens or even of the asuras, and so they fell into the human realm. All that crowing about "humanity being the crown of creation" is nothing more than the ignorant moaning of the human race.

A human being is a half-finished project — not like the hell realms or the hungry ghost realms where there is pure suffering, nor like the heavenly realms where there is pure bliss. With both suffering and bliss, human life proceeds. But at the root of it, within the three realms, there is no bliss to speak of. Even the heavenly realm ultimately faces transmigration and descent — how much less can be said of humans.

Precisely because human beings are not creatures of pure goodness, within their very nature, within the karmic force from the moment of conception onward, there is already contained the side of degradation and malice. Therefore, in the human world, malice, degradation, and cruelty are eternal themes.

The vast majority of people will ultimately transmigrate into the ghost realm, the hells, or the animal realm. "Before the gates of hell, monks and priests are many" — don't think that just because you believe in Buddhism you've put on some kind of protective condom. Most so-called faith is nothing more than a thieving heart.

In truth, there is no need to speak of post-mortem transmigration. Just consider this present human life. The cruelest statement one can make is this: the vast majority of people are fated never to achieve what contemporary economic society calls success. And among those who do achieve so-called success, the vast majority are planting seeds for the ghost realm, the hells, and the animal realm. And even more people are simultaneously planting seeds for the ghost realm, hells, and animal realm at the very moment they collapse on the road to so-called success.

In the five-turbidity evil world, every step, every instant is a trap — traps of degradation, whether in this life or the next, forever surrounding every single person.

Just imagine — if everyone walked in a field of lotuses with every step, how could it be called the five-turbidity evil world?

People always have this laughable idea that the whole world owes them something. You followed your own karmic force into this human birth — that is entirely your own affair. After becoming human, the foolish karma you create, the failing karma you create, the karma of drawing water with a bamboo basket — what does any of that have to do with anyone else?

The most laughable beings in the world are those who beg others to save them. May I ask: why should anyone save you? Don't invoke so-called compassion to bluff your way through. For those whose thieving hearts refuse to die, the greatest compassion is to let them die. Why? Dying sooner means creating less evil karma — is that not the greatest compassion?

All karma is ultimately self-created and self-borne. No one can take your place — not even the Buddha. Facing the cruelty of human life, if you still refuse to let go of your thieving heart, then the best course is to die soon and reincarnate soon.

Facing the cruelty of human life, evasion is useless, and thieving hearts are useless. No matter what, one can only face it head-on. Anything and everything — one must place oneself within it in order to penetrate through. If you do not penetrate through everything, everything will exercise its karmic force upon you.

"I cannot see the true face of Mount Lu, only because I am within this mountain" — this is utter nonsense. Su Shi and his ilk were merely wagging their tongues. And there are even more contemptible types who have made "not being in this mountain" their creed, forever adopting the stance of an observer, believing this way they can avoid the "concerned party's confusion." Thus they have created a herd of empty talkers, forever lacking the actual practice of plunging into the midst of things.

Without entering hell, how can one empty it? Without entering delusion, how can one break through it? Yet the vast majority of people are merely counting treasures for others while starving themselves. The most contemptible seek crutches everywhere — their entire life is a farce of seeking crutches, and their daily discussion is which crutch in the world is number one. With that crutch, everything will be fine once and for all. May I ask such people: where have your own feet gone?

There is no crutch in this world. The Buddha is not one, Bodhisattvas are not, and human beings certainly are not. A person who stands with both feet on the ground and head touching the sky — why would they need a crutch?

Those even more contemptible spend all their time debating the merits and demerits of various crutches. Consider this: with your level of foolish intelligence, if you can still distinguish the good crutches from the bad ones, can those crutches possibly be of any use?

Everything, at most, can only be a finger pointing at the moon. The moon is not on any finger, whether pointing or pointed at. Whoever tells you they can hand you the moon is talking nonsense — you might as well first check whether they even have a finger.

In truth, you yourself are the real moon. What moon are you still looking for?