A Dharma Lecture at Kim Linh Pagoda 1 - Tien Giang

In the evening of Jan. 30th, 2015 (December, 11th lunar Horse Year), Senior Venerable Thich Chan Tinh came to Kim Linh Pagoda located at Section 1, Cho Gao town, Tien Giang Province to give a dharma lecture to the Buddhists by the invitation of the Venerable Thich Thien Tam, the Abbot.

In the Dharma talk, he explained the word "Karma".\r\nHe said that every person born in this life in different shapes, lives,\r\nlifespan, personalities, etc. is due to the domination of law of cause and\r\neffect or, in another word, different karmic law. He added that karma refers to\r\nactions driven by intention that are always changeable: they may be good or\r\nbad. For example, a man used to do good deeds, and, as a result, he lives a\r\ngood and comfortable life now. Otherwise, he will undergo retribution for his\r\nnegative karma in the future if he do evil deeds now. To clarify this issue,\r\nthe Venerable cited Tamonata Sutta: Darkness - Anguttara Nikaya 1. The Buddha\r\ntaught to Bhikkhus that there are 4 types of people in the human realm. What\r\nare they?

1. Type of people who live in the dark\r\nheads to the dark.

2. Type of people who live in the dark\r\nheads to the light.

3. Type of people who live in the\r\nlight heads to the dark. 

4. Type of people who live in the\r\nlight heads to the light.

The first type is those who sowed bad seeds in the past and\r\nreaps a bad harvest now. They do not cultivate and create more evil karma; so\r\nthey suffer from more evil in the present life and will definitely fall into\r\nevil paths of existence in the next life.

The second type is those who sowed bad seeds in the past and\r\nreaps a bad harvest now but they are inclined to the good. They repent and\r\npurify the three karmas (body, speech and mind), so they enjoy a peaceful and\r\nhappy life and they may be reborn in the good realms of existence in the next\r\nlife.

The third type is those who sowed good seeds in the past and\r\nreaps a good harvest now but they do not practice religion and create bad\r\nkarmas. Therefore, they will sooner or later suffer and definitely fall into\r\nevil paths of existence in the next life.

The last type is those who sowed good seeds in the past and\r\nreaps a good harvest now. Moreover, they repent and purify the three karmas, so\r\nnot only do they enjoy a peaceful and happy life, gain more blessings and\r\nlongevity at present but also they may be reborn in the good realms of\r\nexistence in the next life.

At the end of the Dharma talk, the Venerable offered the\r\nparticipants DVDs of "Dawn In The Land Of Mist" and the VCDs of\r\n"Whose Responsibility Is It?"

These are some recorded photos: