Likewise, it is stated in the scriptures that ripening of the cause comes in four types. The first is the one that ripens in the same lifetime. For example, karma was committed in youth and the effect takes place in middle or old age. Sometimes karma ripens even sooner, and the effect can be seen immediately. The reason is that certain conditions can expedite the manifestation of fruit. Such fast ripening has something to do with the object and the motivation of the action. There are many such cases told in One Hundred Stories about Karma (Karmasakata). For example, the Sangha and ordinary people are two completely different objects. If it is a serious case of stealing from or slandering the Sangha, the retribution may come right away or in this lifetime. If the same act is committed against ordinary people, one will surely bear the consequence but not necessarily right away or in this lifetime. The different results arise from the difference between the two objects. The other condition is the difference in motivation. If the intention to kill is very strong or has been premeditated for a long time, the retribution will come swiftly, whereas the effect may not be immediately apparent if the motivation to kill is not so fierce.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW - On Cause and Effect

It is best that busy people today take up the practice of Dzogchen. Even though Dzogchen is for people of superior capacity, we can still try to elevate ourselves to that level, and the way to do that is by practicing the preliminaries. Through hearing and contemplating the Dharma, and the practice of the preliminaries, an ordinary person who knows nothing about karma, let alone renunciation and bodhicitta, can also turn into someone of superior capacity. A person who has cultivated renunciation and bodhicitta after completing the preliminaries and developed great faith in tantra is said to have superior capacity. Such a person has a chance of succeeding in the Dzogchen practice. Whether we can be someone of superior capacity is all up to us. However, to practice Dzogchen prematurely would not only fail to bring any benefit but also run the risk of losing one’s faith in the practice. Therefore, make effort to practice the preliminaries first.

~Depicted from GATEWAY TO THE VAJRAYANA PATH - The Completion Stage —the skillful means to realize emptiness

People think that desire motivates growth and development of mankind, a point that is not rejected by Buddhism either. It is said in the Mahayana scriptures that there must be self-grasping as great as Mount Sumeru in order to attain Buddhahood. Normally, self-grasping is condemned in Buddhism because it can cause greed, anger and delusion to arise. But here, it becomes the impetus to seek liberation; to certain extent, this is also a kind of desire. When desire to attain Buddhahood is absent, aspiration to learn Buddhadharm, to achieve enlightenment and to benefit sentient beings will not happen either. Genuine Dharma practice is a big, demanding and time consuming project that needs sufficient courage and drive to achieve its goal, and the source of this courage is the desire to attain Buddhahood. Arhats, lacking such desire, do not have the motivation to reach Buddhahood and hence seek only liberation for themselves.

Desire can be good or bad. Good desire is a driving force for Dharma practice and gaining enlightenment. Worldly desire, if unrestrained, can ruin a person.

~Depicted from THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE'S JOURNEY- On The Three Poisons-How to Handle Desire

To know death correctly can help us overcome fear, anxiety and evasion when death is mentioned because we already know that death is only a part of the cyclic process of life, not the end. There is no need to feel disheartened and pessimistic when facing death. On the contrary, we may even be able to elevate our life to a different level when in death if we know how to make use of the opportunity.

~Depicted from THE HANDBOOK FOR LIFE'S JOURNEY -On Death And Rebirth-How to Face Death

A person without renunciation only seeks satisfaction in this lifetime, and rebirth in the human or god realm; apart from being content with his lot in life, and getting by, he does not have a loftier goal. A person with renunciation may occasionally think the same way or enjoy good food, fine clothes, and a nice home. However, deep inside, he knows: this is not the purpose of my existence, merely a temporary lifestyle and means to an end which may or may not be necessary—my ultimate goal is to attain liberation. This way of thinking is basically considered renunciation. To sum up, a Vajrayana practitioner must first generate a heart of renunciation.

~Depicted from GATEWAY TO VAJRAYANA PATH - Entering the Vajrayana Path

First of all, we should know that to encounter the teaching on emptiness is not something to be taken for granted. Hearing it plants the seed for realization of emptiness that is not only indestructible but will also come to fruition in the near future. It is stated in the Four Hundred Verse Treatise by Aryadeva: Most sentient beings do not have the chance to hear the profound teaching on emptiness due to insufficient merit. Even if they do, most are unable to generate faith in or have reasonable doubt about the empty nature of phenomena, having little merit and inferior capacity or being negatively influenced by the surrounding environment and their social background. Anyone who can muster even the slightest doubt about the plausibility of all phenomena being empty of self-nature will hence have the means to cease samsara in the end.

~Depicted from THE RIGHT VIEW -The Two Truths—the Key to Unlocking Madhyamaka

Without practice or mind training, we cannot be sure of attaining liberation. For instance, over the several decades in our lifetime, we do not in general have to worry about our livelihood; as long as we are willing to work, it is more or less guaranteed. However, death, this uninvited guest, comes when we least expect it. At the critical moment, we are not at all prepared to confront death or transform it into the path. Invariably, we are helpless when death arrives, so the question of birth, aging, illness, and death is a more important one than existence. If we cannot address this problem properly, it is more frightening than the struggle to stay alive; if we can come to terms with the problem in the correct way, it will be more meaningful than solving our livelihood. Therefore, practice is extremely important.

~ Depicted from THE FOUR SEALS FOR DHARMA - The Importance of Practice

As we breathe out during meditation, visualize our happiness and the causes of this happiness – the virtuous actions and merits of the past, present, and future – transformed into a white gaseous substance which is then dissolved into the minds and bodies of all sentient beings. Visualize all sentient beings receiving this happiness and its causes, and thus being free from suffering.

~Depicted from ARE YOU READY FOR HAPPINESS -How to Face Suffering and Happiness-How to Face Happiness

Nowadays, many lay people proclaim themselves to be students of the Buddha. But what of the Buddha have they learned? Most lay practitioners, ranging from intellectuals and business people down to the old ladies in the villages, practice the Dharma as a way of cultivating worldly blessings. Their motivation to practice, take refuge, and undertake the five precepts is to obtain good health, longevity, a smooth career, successful business, and so on for themselves, and a chance to enter a good university or get a promising job for their children. Are they following the way of the Buddha? The Buddha never did any of these. We all know that after the Buddha aroused bodhicitta, he never once sought worldly benefit for himself during the incalculable eons of three asamkhyeya kalpas. This mode of “learning the way of the Buddha” conforms more to learning the Dharma. The meaning of the Sanskrit word dharma encompasses all mundane and supramundane phenomena. In the context of practicing the right Dharma, dharma denotes an ability to deliver sentient beings from all suffering, and can be translated literally as “that which upholds.” It is in accord with the meaning of dharma if people practicing the Vehicle of Human and Celestial Beings enjoy the resulting blessings and take rebirth in the higher realms. Thus, undertaking virtuous deeds for the purpose of obtaining worldly benefits is not considered learning the Buddha’s way but learning the Dharma. Today, many self-proclaimed Buddhists maintain this kind of motivation.

~Depicted from GATEWAY TO THE VAJRAYANA PATH - Vajra Master and Empowerment