What I publish is published to be read[...] Every time we read a work, it changes the way we feel. It changes the way we see things as well. Every time we listen to a piece of music, every time we watch movie, the same happens : they change the way we feel. When reading waters the seed of sadness within us, it makes us feel sad. The seed of sadness within us grow and manifest in our mind and our heart. Indeed, reading a book might make us feel guilty, sad, anxious or joyful.
But seeds don't stop there. They manifest as speeches and actions, not only thoughts and feelings. Indeed, we speak and we act out of the way we feel. When we feel good, we talk in a gentle way to people. But when we feel bad, we aren't disposed to talk gently to people. We are not that disposed to act gently towards people neither. We act out of the way we feel.
If reading a book causes us to feel bad, if feeling bad causes us to speak harshly to others, then reading the book would have indirectly caused us to speak harshly to others. In that way, the book spread. We act out of the way we feel for reading a book or watching a movie. In that way, the book we read – and the fact we read it – are also responsible for the actions we undertake after it. The work continue on watering seeds of joy, not only within our mind, but in others' mind as well. It is all indirect, but it is still significant. It has a thousand harms, it goes in all direction. A writer has to know it and bear part of the responsibility for what he writes, because it will spread in all directions. What he writes could heal or destroy lives. The same goes for every act we undertake, every word we say, every look we throw.
For these very reason, every time before writing that work, may I never forget generating motivation by reciting the following (as stated by Lama Tsongkhapa's Three Principles of the Path, ལམ་གྱི་གཙོ་བོ་རྣམ་གསུམ་) :
I bow down to the venerable lamas
I will explain as well as I am able,
The essence of all the teachings of the conqueror,
The path praised by the conqueror's offspring,
The entrance for the fortunate one who desire liberation.
Words might heal or destroy the reader's mind. They - the words - can be taken directly as a medicine, or they can be transformed as garbage to grow flowers. A writer has a great responsibility, but it is a shared one. A reader has a responsibility as well. While I say “I shall speak of Buddha's teaching as well as I am able to”, please, allow yourself to relate to that work as well as you are able to. I hope that, in this way, you will better my "instructions", and that my little Dharma will become greater in your heart than it is under my "pen".
To those that this work might affect : when reading the following, if you would feel angry with what I say, disappointed by it, or discouraged in any way, please take time to read these lines :
“It is a great news that the writer doesn't have authority,
For neither does is work.
His work is so light a rain
That it doesn't water seeds of anger, resentment
And so forth within me.”
For neither does is work.
His work is so light a rain
That it doesn't water seeds of anger, resentment
And so forth within me.”
Please, take time to do so. This is your responsibility towards yourself. On the other hand, whenever what you read on that website makes you feel joyful, easy, or bring you some relief, please take time to read these lines : I surely am not a teacher, neither active nor qualified as such. This is, you and I are co-students.
With best regards and prayers.
