"Don't wait until old age to cultivate the Way. Inside the lonely graves, there buried people of young age." Every one in this world is blown awry by the karmic wind so that they cannot maintain the proper course. Sometimes, they bring forth the mind for the Way and want to cultivate. Yet after a little while, they become lax. In our entire life time, we alternate between advancing and retreating. We may suddenly bring forth the mind and want to cultivate, yet we may suddenly bring forth another mind and don't want to cultivate. We want to strike it rich in one moment, and in the next, we want to become a high official, and yet the next, a movie star or a world celebrity. These kind of false thoughts are like the waves in the ocean, countless and limitless. Even the most intelligent person won't be able to tell you how many this kind of false thoughts he has had in his whole life. We don't know how many false thoughts we have stricken up in this life. No wonder we cannot remember that we have been driven by our karma and undergone retribution in life after life in the past. If we ask someone what did he do in previous lives, the answer will be, "I don't know." We are the same in that we strike up false thoughts during meditation but when asked what we have been false thinking about, "I don't know," is the answer.

Someone may have been false thinking about stealing things. But if you ask him, "Why do you want to steal from others?" He would say, "No, I don't." One will deny it even when he's asked "Why do you want to kill people?" right at the moment he is having this thought, "That guy treats me like dirt, I like to kill him." Thoughts are invisible. Since he cannot see his own thoughts and neither others, he thinks he doesn't have to admit it. It is the same for both men and women. Men will be thinking about women and women men. But if you ask them, "Why do you always have this kind of improper thoughts?" They would say, "No, I don't." People tend to be pretentious, putting up a serious and proper front. You see how casual it is for people to tell lies?

You don't know how many false thoughts you have had in this life. This proves that you have gone through countless births and deaths in the past and that you don't know how many good deeds or bad deeds you have committed from life to life. You don't know anything about what you have gone through in past lives because you don't know how many false thoughts you have. All retributions that we receive are results of our false thoughts. Whatever false thoughts we strike up now will be the retribution we receive in the future. We receive the fruit of our own creation.

When we are confused and have no understanding of things, we create karma. Giving rise to false thoughts is being confused. We give rise to false thoughts and create karma. Consequently, we receive retribution of such karma. When we receive retribution, that is the time of suffering. Therefore, we should not be so conceited and think that we are intelligent, the number one, and no one is comparable to us. Of course we are incomparable, when we fall into the hells, no one is comparable to us.

Learners of Buddhism should investigate how this world is formed. This world is formed through four great kalpas, or stages, of forming, dwelling, decaying, and void. Each of these four stages: forming, dwelling, decaying, and void, consists of twenty small kalpas. Twenty small kalpas make a medium kalpa, and four medium kalpas amount to a great kalpa. We should investigate how is it that there is the kalpa of forming, the kalpa of dwelling, the kalpa of decaying, and the kalpa of void? Forming, dwelling, decaying and void are just birth, aging, sickness, and death. They are also production, staying, changing, and extinction. How do birth, aging, sickness, and death; or, production, staying, changing, and extinction, come about? That's what we should know. They come about because of our false thoughts. That's why it's said, "When the mind ceases, there is nothing; when the mind moves, hundreds of things arise." When the mind moves, mountains, rivers, the great earth, houses, and corridors, everything, come into being.

Therefore, the forming, dwelling, decaying, and void of the world; birth, aging, sickness, and death of people; and production, staying, changing, and extinction of things; are all creations of false thoughts. On a greater scale, the world; on a smaller scale, a country; on a even smaller scale, a family, are all results of false thoughts. Even our bodies and minds are created by false thoughts. Our false thoughts are as profuse as dusts, limitless and countless. The dusts which we can see flying and floating in the empty space are countless, our false thoughts are the same in numbers.

When we strike up wholesome false thoughts, we help make up the proper energy of the world. When we have evil false thoughts, we help the evil karma of the world to increase day by day. Good false thoughts increase wholesome karma. Neutral false thoughts create an ordinary world. Even in this very assembly, people talk to each other of his and her ideas. All these are the manifestation of false thoughts. Today, we get together here which is the result of our past false thinking. All these people here and each has his or her own false thinking. Let me tell you, your coming here is the result of false thoughts I had in the past. I had false thought in the past that one day I would leave the home-life to cultivate. I would have a Buddha Hall, and in the Buddha Hall there would be Mr. Chang who's five feet, three and a half inches tall, and Mr. Lee who's five feet, four inches in height. There would be this many women and that many men investigating Buddhadharma there. There would also be this many left-home people and that many lay people, and this many old people and that many young people. All these are the result of my past false thinking. I had these false thoughts in the past, now the state has manifested in which all have gathered together to investigate Buddhadharma.

People are a very strange creature, very strange indeed. If you tell them to be good, they are always full of doubts. But if you tell them to be bad, they can learn it in no time. Take, for example, the bus loads of people going to Las Vegas every day. When they get there, they know how to gamble without being taught. They don't need a teacher to know how to pull the slot machines. They pull and hit the jack pot, a lot of money will drop from the machine. And another pull may bring them nothing and they lose money. They don't need to be taught. This is the world created by false thoughts.

How we look and appear are all results of our past false thoughts. If we look ugly that's because we had ugly false thoughts in the past. If we are as handsome as heavenly gods, that's also because we had false thought about nothing but heavenly gods in the past. You might have thought, "I want to be reborn a most beautiful human being and win the world beauty pageant and become Miss Universe." If you actually won the title of Miss Universe, you will feel very uncomfortable. You will be ill at ease whether you sit, walk, or lie down. You will constantly be under some sort of restraint. That's how people in the world deceive each other. Miss Universe always wants to find the best mate in the world. If she cannot find him, she will be extremely upset. And a handsome man desires a beautiful woman. If he cannot find her after spending all his time and effort, he will also be very upset. Therefore, this world is solely created by false thoughts and that's why it has so much suffering. Each person has his or her own set of misery.

When a girl reaches the age of eighteen, nineteen, or twenty and beyond, she starts to have miseries. All day long, if she is not weeping she will be wailing. There will be a lot of trouble. All sorts of problem will emerge. That's the situation in the world.
You all know the king of Iran, the most wealthy person in the world. He owns the most beautiful mansion in every country, big or small, around the world. He has the most money and was also a king. However, he is dethroned and though he has all this money no one welcomes him. He has all those mansions but he cannot live in them and all his money is frozen in the banks. Is it not suffering to wander from place to place and live the life of a wanderer? All his money has become useless. On top of that, people want to assassinate him wherever he goes. The government of Iran offers a reward of a few hundred thousand dollars for his head. All of you, think about it. What's the use of being rich or being powerful? When he is dethroned, all his power is gone and his money has become of no use to him. All banks deny his access to his money. Won't you say that's pitiful? In this case, what's the use of all this money?

When one gives rise to such a confused false thought, one becomes a muddled person. Living the life as if drunk or in a dream is a very pathetic matter.

Therefore, if one constantly indulges in false thinking, one is subjecting oneself to the influence of the deviant demons, ghosts and spirits. What is the principle like? When one is proper inside, deviant things outside will not be able to find their way in. If one is clean inside, dirty things will have no way to come in. It is said, "If one is not weak internally, one will not incur illnesses." If one is healthy inside, the external illnesses will not be able to come in because one's defense is strong. That's to say outside thieves cannot come in. However, if one indulges in deluded thoughts, one will incur all kinds of problem such as being possessed by ghosts or spirits. For this reason, every one of us must rectify our minds, straighten our bodies and refrain from false thinking about improper things. Then, ghosts and spirits will be kept away. The principle is the same as flies appearing because you have kept the cat's bowl around which is unclean. If you don't have the cat's bowl around, flies will not come. Whatever you have inside, you attract the same things from outside. Things don't just come to you from outside, they are invited in by what's inside of you. Therefore, we must rectify our minds, be sincere, and modify our bodies. Just don't strike up false thoughts and there will not be any ghosts. This is the most important point.

It is said, "Guard the mouth when in the crowd and protect the mind when alone." We should be particularly careful and not to be casual when we are alone. Keep proper thoughts in mind always. When one's mind is proper, one will not incur improper thoughts. Proper thought is just the Buddha's mind, deviant thought is the demon's mind. With one proper thought, the Buddha manifests; with one single deviant thought, the demon comes. A single thought is this important.

It's said, "Be cautious when one is in solitude, harbor only proper thoughts at all times. Don't do things against one's conscience when one is in a dark room, then, one feels no guilt when the roof leaks." Being in a dark room means one is unseen by others. If one's roof leaks and one has engaged in discreditable things, one will become scared. The ancient said, "If one has never be deceptive when unseen, one will not have a guilty conscience when the roof leaks." When one's roof leaks during a rain storm, one will have no fear because one has never done anything against one's conscience. It's also said, "If one does not do discreditable things, one fears not to hear the door knocked at midnight." If one doesn't do bad things, one will not be scared at all even if he is visited by ghosts. This is easily understood. Why does one not be scared? It is because one's conscience is free of guilt. Therefore, it is said, "Don't do things against one's conscience when one is in a dark room, then one feels no guilt when the roof leaks." It is very important that we uphold precepts. We should not transgress the precepts against killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, telling lies, and taking intoxicant. If we are able to observe these five precepts at all times, then we are the true disciples of the Buddha.

Gods are not from outside. They exist inside of your mind, they are spirits of the mind. Buddhas are the Buddhas of the mind, and Bodhisattvas are the Bodhisattvas of the mind. If you want to deceive others, you should turn around and reflect upon yourself. Ask yourself if you are aware of it. If you do and know that it is wrong, then that thought of awareness is divine. However, people normally think that gods come from outside and they will not know what they are up to. In fact, the altar of gods is right inside of your mind. Gods, Bodhisattvas, and Buddhas know of each movement of your mind. They are not apart from you. The only thing is that you don't believe in them. If you do, you will understand. We must be true and not to be deceptive in every thing we do and say.

False thoughts are false and not real. Since they are not real, we should not follow them. It is not the case that we pay no attention to them, it is that we must not be led away by them. We should turn around. To turn around means to be able to detect the thoughts when they arise. As long as we are aware of them, they will disappear. When bad false thoughts arise, we should make a search to find where they come from and where they go. Is there a place where they come, are they for real? If not, then, are we not trying to stop what's false with what's unreal by allowing ourselves be led away by false thoughts? When we are taught not to become attached, it does not mean that we can casually kill people, set fires, or practice deviant dharma. One must do no evil and do all good in order to conform with principles in the sutras. One should change one's bad habits and faults. If one doesn't, and instead, follows them to do things at will and does not observe rules, one is being deviant and will fall into the hells.

Learners of Buddhism must be in accord with the principle of cause and effect in all places. We must not make any mistake in cause and effect. When we make mistakes in cause and effect, the error may seem to be small at the beginning but the difference will be a grave one in the end. Everyone, we should investigate our lives to find out how we can stop losing our capitals and keep our basic strength. Shakyamuni Buddha was born in a royal family, but he chose to abandon the kingdom and go to the mountains to cultivate. He preferred suffering to enjoyment. That's why I told you just now, "We should vow to seek peace and happiness for the sake of living beings and not for ourselves." This is the spirit of the Buddha. Learners of Buddhism should, upon coming to understand the spirit of the Buddha, be in accord with the principle of cause and effect and act accordingly.

Having faith in the Buddha means we should strike up our spirit and apply effort in studying Buddhadharma and not to let the time pass in vain. Perhaps, we investigate the profound meaning of the sutras, or recite the Buddha's name at all times to the point that our minds are clearly mindful of "Amitabha Buddha," or, perhaps, we bow repentance in reverence.
Side B

We should repent of our past karmic obstacles. If we can cultivate in accord with Buddhadharma and don't waste time, that is not losing one's capital but making progress instead. If you spend time in striking up false thoughts, this is losing one's capital because you waste useful time and make it useless. Since you have come to the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, you should investigate Buddhadharma and change your bad habits and faults. Base your cultivation on the principle of cause and effect. As it is said, "Planting wholesome seeds, one reaps good fruits; planting evil seeds, one reaps bad fruits." We should at all times be very careful in our study of Buddhism.

Some learners of Buddhism think, "Every one can become a Buddha and so can I because every one has the Buddha nature. Therefore, I will for sure become a Buddha." So they sit there and wait to become Buddhas and don't bother to cultivate. When sitting in meditation, they false think, "How come I have not become a Buddha? When will I become a Buddha? How much longer must I sit? They say some got skills as soon as they sat. I have sit so long and it doesn't seem to be much fun." They strike up so much false thoughts that they hairs turn gray and their faces grow wrinkles. And they keep this false thought up, "How come I have not become a Buddha? How come I have not gotten enlightened?" They don't bow to the Buddhas or recite sutras. They don't cultivate but want to become Buddhas. How can one become a Buddha without cultivating for it. This is a foolish thought. Foolish thoughts are not real.

Some may false think about having Immortal Lu's finger which can turn rocks into gold. By just pointing at a mug made of either glass or clay, it will become a gold mug. Having this finger is pretty nice, when will I be able to do that? So they sit and wait for their fingers to possess that kind of power. They wait until the end of their lives and still don't get that power. This is also a foolish thought. Foolish thoughts will never come true but people still want to have them.

If you want to open wisdom, just work on it. Do you want to become a Buddha? That's easy, as long as you can cultivate in an earnest and honest manner. The most important point is that you must follow rules. If you don't follow rules, you won't become a Buddha even to the ends of future. Observing rules is the shortest path to Buddhahood. If you don't observe rules, you will never become a Buddha. Whoever does not follow rules should pay attention to this. People who are already following rules don't have to listen to this since you are already doing so. Those who don't should think about this, "So, I will never become a Buddha if I do not follow rules." By just neglecting rules a little bit, you will make great mistakes and take a lot of time before you can become a Buddha. If you want to become a Buddha, then you must cultivate. If you want to have a good harvest of grains, you must work in the field. If you want to become rich, you must do some business. If you want to own a skyscraper, you must build it. If you like to have a Ph.D. title, you should study for it. If you don't study for it, it will not become possible. By the same principle, if you want to become a Buddha, you must cultivate it. If you don't cultivate it, it will not become possible. There's no other clever or wonderful means. If you don't believe what I say, try it out yourself.

Shakyamuni Buddha saw a bright star one night and suddenly became enlightened. He thoroughly realized the truth of the universe and the matter of life. Therefore, he got enlightened and became a Buddha. He said, "Strange, strange, strange indeed! All living beings possess the wise and virtuous mark of Thus Come One. They can all become Buddhas." He said that all living beings have the Buddha nature, the thirty-two marks and eighty characteristics of a Buddha, and the Buddha's adornment of myriad virtues. They are not different from Buddhas. However, "Because of false thoughts and attachment, they cannot certify to Buddhahood." Why living beings are not Buddhas? It is because they have false thoughts. We don't have to learn a lot of Buddhadharma, it is sufficient to learn just this one sentence, "Because of false thoughts and attachment, living beings cannot certify to Buddhahood."

Our false thoughts bring us all of a sudden up to the heavens and all of a sudden down to the earth. We think of southern dynasty and the northern country, boy friends and girls friends, father and mother, sons and daughters, and sisters and brothers. We keep ourselves so busy from morning to night that we don't even rest in our sleep. We strike up false thoughts even in our dreams. We dream of our sisters, brothers, this and that, that and this...all sorts of things. We have so much false thoughts that we become confused and have no idea what things are all about. We cannot put down our attachments. How is it that we have dreams? It is because of our attachments. If we are free of attachments and dream like false thoughts, we will not have dreams. It is only because of confused thoughts that we have dreams.

If you want to be apart from deluded and dream-like thoughts, you should get rid of attachment. When you have no attachment, you will not have dreams. Thus, it's said, "The wise has no dreams." The wise ones are those who have no false thoughts, and who are true and sagely. They are the living dead who are different from common people. They are free of all attachments. Being free of attachments and false thoughts, one will certify to the fruition of Buddhahood.
Remembering this statement, "Because of false thoughts and attachment, living beings cannot certify to Buddhahood," we should cut off all our attachments and false thoughts. By wiping them clean, we will be apart from deluded and dream-like thinking and attain to the ultimate nirvana.

What is great wisdom? When living beings no longer strike up the false thoughts of living beings, then whenever they use their minds, the true wisdom of prajna will come forth. Prajna wisdom is a great, bright kind of wisdom. One will radiate a great brilliance. How is it so? It is because one has true wisdom. When one has true wisdom, one has light while foolish people have only darkness. Light is sunlight, darkness is the ying energy. Why are you foolish? It is because your ying energy is too strong. Why are you so intelligent? It is because you have sufficient sunlight. People with great wisdom do not think like common people. They can distinguish right from wrong and don't need to ask. They know what's right and what's wrong instantly when they see things. They will refrain from doing what's wrong and only do what's right. When they see what's right for cultivation, they will go ahead and practice it. Therefore, in cultivation, one must possess great wisdom so that one will be able to distinguish what's right from what's wrong. And consequently, one can advance on right path and retreat from wrong path.

One must not do things knowing that they are wrong, such as insisting in trying it out when one knows it is violating the precepts. If one has this thought, "I just want to do it and see if I actually transgress on the precepts." This is being most foolish and having no wisdom. If you deny it and say that, in fact, you do have wisdom but just got muddled in that particular period of time. Well, gotten muddled in a period of time is just being foolish and having no wisdom. One with great wisdom will have no deluded thoughts. The Venerable Ananda said, "Extinguishing deluded thoughts from past millions of eons, and needing not to pass through eons till the Dharma body is gained." In here, millions of eons refers not to one, two, three, or five eons, or even one hundred, or one thousand eons. It refers to countless great eons. Why do we have so many false thoughts? One thought disappears, another thought arises, when another thought is gone, yet another thought follows right along. They follow one another like the waves in the ocean. The waves in the great ocean is just the false thoughts of living beings, and our false thoughts are just the waves in the ocean. You may think the ocean is a lifeless thing. However, it is not outside of living beings' minds. The waves in the ocean never stop. Our false thoughts are just like the waves, one follows the other. They are endless and they never cease from emerging, all compete to get ahead. Why do we have false thoughts? It is because we have no wisdom. If we have wisdom, the waves will disappear. It's said, "The gentle breeze causes no ripples in the pond." When the waves in the ocean disappear, it is just like a cultivator having obtained samadhi. When the water of wisdom appears, all false thoughts are gone. At that time, it is true stillness and genuine purity. Not a single dust mote can be found and all worries are emptied. That is the state of having great wisdom.

One with great wisdom will succeed in anything he does, while one without great wisdom will often fail. Wisdom is the most wonderful thing.

If one cultivates for a long time but cannot correspond with the Way, it is because of the mischief of false thoughts. False thoughts destroy samadhi, precepts, and wisdom. If you have false thoughts, you will not be firm in upholding precepts and cultivating samadhi, let alone developing wisdom power. Why? It is because when you strike up false thoughts, the mind which exploits conditions will follow right along. Once you give rise to such a mind, your will follow the myriad things outside and get turned by them. States, or myriad things, are hat you see with eyes, hear with ears, smell with nose, taste with tongue, sense with body, or come to aware with consciousness. If you get attached to the myriad things and are turned by them, you will become greedy and start to seek. You will be greedy for things you like and try to possess them. Such greed is insatiable, it is like a bottomless pit. When you get one thing you will be greedy for something else. When you are satisfied with this, you will want that; and when you have that, you will want this. It is an endless process. If one is greedy for money, when he becomes rich, he will want to be famous. When he becomes famous he is greedy for a house, a car, an airplane, a steamboat, etc. Greed can never be satisfied. Being greedy means seeking. But one does not always get what one seeks for.

When one's wish is not satisfied, one becomes afflicted. All kinds of false thoughts arise when one gets afflicted. When false thoughts arise, one becomes emotional. Consequently, one suffers in both the body and the mind. Food becomes tasteless and one becomes sleepless. And one's mind is constantly undergoing some type of struggle. As a result, all kinds of impure thought arise and all kinds of improper conduct manifest. For this reason, one constantly revolves in the wheel of birth and death. The longer one revolves in the wheel of birth and death, the farther away one will be from one's self nature. Thus, one falls into the bitter sea of suffering. In the sea of suffering, one's original substance of self nature will seem to be lost and cannot be found. The original substance of one's self nature is the Way of truth and permanence. What does it like any way? Nothing. If you can understand, you will attain to the Way. If you don't, you will fall farther and farther every day. Should you be able to awaken to this principle, your wisdom will manifest at all times. The originally pure and clean substance, the wonderful and true nature, will appear.

Be mindful means to be right there. What is it? It is just contemplating being at ease. If you can contemplate being at ease, you are being mindful. If you cannot, you will have run away. What does it mean by having run away? It means to have stricken up false thoughts. When you give rise to false thoughts, you will not be at ease. When you don't have false thoughts, right at that moment, you are being at ease. Someone asks how should contemplating being at ease be translated. Not having false thoughts is just contemplating being at ease. Once the mind moves, all sorts of things appear. When you strike up a false thought, all matters manifest. Once the mind stops, myriad things disappear. When your mind stops, there's nothing at all. Thus, I often say to you, "When the mind stops and the thought ceases, it is being truly wealthy and noble." It is having genuine wealth and nobility when one's mind stops giving rise to false thoughts. Why is it? It is because one is free from greed. When one is not greedy, one is a truly noble person. When one is greedy, one is a poor person. If one is not poor, why should one be greedy! Right? Being greedy means one does not have enough. Therefore, one is greedy. When one has a million dollars, one wants to have two. When one has two million, one wants to have twenty million. When one has twenty million, one wants two hundred million. One is never satisfied. Why is it? It is because one is afraid of being poor, being insufficient, so he becomes greedy and never feels content. When one is not content, that is suffering. If one can be content, that's happiness because one is no longer greedy. That's why it's said, "When the mind stops and the thought ceases, it is being truly wealthy and noble." This is having true wealth and nobility.

"When selfish desires are cut off in its entirety, that is being a true field of blessing." Selfish desires are the worst. When one has truly gotten rid of selfish desires, one will have true blessing. All day long, if one is not greedy for this, one will be thinking of that. Consequently, one's desires increase every day. In this case, one has no blessing. When one is free of false thoughts, does not contend, is not greedy, and has no desires what so ever, that is having blessing.

You need not to fear of having too many false thoughts. You can count them to see how many are they. When you start counting them, I believe you will find that they have all disappeared. When you count: one false thought, two false thoughts, three false thoughts,...and when you count to ten, all false thoughts will probably be gone because you will have fallen asleep.