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Protecting and Serving
Every human carries a seed of fear deep in consciousness, often covered by layers of mental formations. To transform this fear and despair, one must recognize five facts:
- I am of the nature to grow old.
- I am of the nature to get sick.
- I am of the nature to die.
- I will have to let go of everyone and everything I treasure.
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I can only bring the results of my actions—my thoughts, speech, and physical actions—which bear my signature.
Great understanding, the mother of all Buddhas, allows for the transformation of these fears into true happiness.
Deep looking reveals that nothing can become nothing. A cloud does not die; it transforms into rain or snow. Similarly, a sheet of paper contains the cloud, the sunshine, and the forest; when burned, it continues as heat, smoke, and ash. This reality is the nature of no-birth and no-death. The French scientist Lavoisier discovered this same truth, declaring “Rien ne se crée, rien ne se perd,” which mirrors the Heart Sutra’s teaching of “no production, no destruction.” By looking deeply, one transcends eight specific notions: birth, death, coming, going, same, difference, being, and non-being. Reality is like a flame that manifests when conditions are sufficient and stops when they are not, yet it never truly comes or goes.
The insight of neither the same nor different is illustrated through the five rivers of a human being: form, feelings, perceptions, mental formations, and consciousness. This wisdom is essential for accompanying the dying, as shown in the story of the lay disciple Anathapindika recorded in “The Teaching Given to the Dying Person.” By watering seeds of happiness and practicing the recollection of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, a person can die peacefully. This practice involves realizing one is not caught in the six sense organs—eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind—nor the four elements of air, water, fire, and earth. Building a Sangha provides the necessary refuge and support to maintain this mindfulness and achieve the greatest gift: non-fear.
