Dharma talk "Rebirth-linking consciousness and support of reciting the Buddha names" preaching by Senior Thich Phước Tiến

On the seventh day of the Retreat of Dec. 17th, 2024, Senior Thich Phuoc Tien, – General Secretary of Viet Nam Buddhist Research Institute, Abbot of Tuong Van Monastery (HCMC), and Nhi My Pagoda (Vinh Long) had a dharma talk named "Rebirth-linking consciousness and support of reciting the Buddha names."

The more people have ways to transmit information, the more information is saturated, related issues and Buddhist knowledge are no exception. Without a correct doctrinal foundation and firm faith, followers can easily be swept away by wrong movements or ideologies. The Venerable pointed out some wrong understandings about the theory of non-self, reincarnation and support of reciting the Buddha today. Without a clear and thorough understanding, cultivators can easily mistake the non-self that the Buddhas taught for nihilism, one of two typical wrong views.

 

Rebirth-linking consciousness according to Doctrine of Consciousness is storehouse consciousness, the place to store the good and evil seeds of the mind and the tendencies that guide sentient beings. In "Rules of eight consciousnesses" it is said that this consciousness comes first and goes last, meaning that in rebirth the consciousness is the first to be reborn and when one dies the storehouse consciousness leaves last. Therefore, a dying person who wants to be reborn in a good realm, not only  remember to think good thoughts, but also needs support from those around him. It is a tradition that dates back to the Buddha time and has a positive meaning, helping the dying person direct their mind to the Three Jewels and good things so that their mind does not go to the evil path. Pure Land practitioners should also understand such protection and should not turn it into a superstitious form, losing the inherent value of protection.  

 

 

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