我們禮敬常住三寶，正法永存佛光普照。
我們信仰人間佛教，生活美滿家庭幸福。
我們實踐生活修行，隨時隨地心存恭敬。
我們奉行慈悲喜捨，日日行善端正身心。
我們尊重會員大眾，來時歡迎去時相送。
我們具有正知正見，發掘自我般若本性。
我們現證法喜安樂，永斷煩惱遠離無明。
我們發願普度眾生，人間淨土佛國現前。
信，是做人處事的根本。有了堅定的信心，即使有排山倒海之難，我們也能設法克服。清淨的信念在佛教中尤為重要，《華嚴經》云︰「信為道源功德母，增長一切諸善法，除滅一切諸疑惑，示現開發無上道。」《梵網經》也說︰「一切行以信為首，眾德根本。」國際佛光會是一個有理想、有組織的佛教團體，為了凝聚會員的力量，達到崇高的宗旨，我們將佛光會員應有的信念，列為八項條款，於每次開會時大聲宣讀。現在將其意義闡述如下，希望各位能藉著口誦心維，將這些信條貫徹在日常生活當中︰
(一) 我們禮敬常住三寶，正法永存佛光普照︰
佛、法、僧之所以稱為「三寶 」，乃因其為宇宙世間帶來光明，為無量眾生添增喜樂，使我們解脫倒懸，得大自在。佛陀在鹿野苑度五比丘時，佛陀是佛寶，四諦、十二因緣、三法印是法寶，五比丘是僧寶，此三者是「最初三寶 」。佛滅後，梵音沉寂，聖僧漸凋，最初三寶已不復見，因此以土塑木雕、金屬塑像為佛寶，三藏十二部經為法寶，受具足戒之比丘、比丘尼為僧寶，此即「常住三寶 」。但就廣義而言，人人皆有佛性是為佛寶，人人都有平等無差別的法性是為法寶，人人都有喜好清淨和樂的心性是為僧寶，此名「自性三寶 」。如今，去佛時遙，世人有賴常住三寶，才能體證潛藏於內的自性三寶，常住三寶也因而成為佛教在世間的具體形象，所以大家均應誠心禮敬。尤其佛光會員負有弘法利生的崇高理想，對於常住三寶，更應恭敬護持，凡發揚常住三寶之事，大家共襄盛舉；凡詆毀常住三寶之舉，大家同聲唾棄。果能如此，必能使佛光普照，廣利眾生；法水長流，被及三世，其功德自是不可限量！
(二) 我們信仰人間佛教，生活美滿家庭幸福︰
佛教有上座部佛教、大眾部佛教，有藏傳佛教、中國佛教。在許多宗派裡，有南傳的宗派、北傳的宗派；有顯教的宗派、密教的宗派。國際佛光會所倡導的佛教則是從佛陀以來一脈相傳，具有普遍屬性的「人間佛教」。
過去佛陀說法，主要的地點在人間，主要的對象是人類，主要的內容是指導人們如何將修行落實在日常生活上，所以經典中對於個人生活美滿、家庭幸福之道論述頗多，後人稱為「人間佛教 」，旨在彰顯佛教的人間性格。至於所謂的「出世佛教 」，是佛陀最初順應當時少部分修持苦行的行者所說；而「山林佛教」則是在中國古代君王體制下產生的特例，並非佛意。
一己之不修，一家之不齊，盍能奢言國富民安、世界和平？不論屬於何宗何派，我們佛光會員都是在佛陀的信仰之下，從事弘揚佛法、利濟有情的千秋偉業，因此大家對於佛陀的人間佛教應信受奉行，以期建立幸福的佛化家庭，成就輝煌的佛化事業，擁有美滿的佛化生活，積集具足的修道資糧，並以此功德散播一切眾生，回向無上菩提。
(三) 我們實踐群我修行，隨時隨地心存恭敬︰
人，無法離群索居，所以我們必須在錯綜複雜的人際關係中求取和諧，才能共享安樂。
常聽大家感嘆「做人難，人難做，難做人 」，其實就因為做人難，我們才要更積極地學習如何做人。太虛大師說︰「人成即佛成，是名真現實。」修道無他，主要就是在「處難處之人，做難做之事 」，如果我們能把群我之間的問題解決，還有什麼不能做到的事呢？
群我之間所以不能協調，一言以蔽之，就是自己的恭敬不夠。古德云︰「愛人者，人恆愛之；敬人者，人恆敬之。 」如果我們能易地而處，本著你大我小、你樂我苦、你有我無、你好我壞的態度，以布施、愛語、利行、同事等方法來攝受對方，一定能左右逢源，皆大歡喜。
經云︰「佛法在恭敬中求。」我們處在一個同體共生的世間裡，唯有大家心存恭敬，彼此合作，才能共創美好的明天。
(四) 我們奉行慈悲喜捨，日日行善端正身心︰
七佛通戒偈云︰「諸惡莫作，眾善奉行，自淨其意，是諸佛教。」所以，什麼是佛教的修行呢？簡而言之，就是端正身心。
《華嚴經》云︰「心如工畫師，能畫諸世間。」我們的心如同畫師，心存清淨的畫師畫出諸佛菩薩的境界，內懷惡念的畫師畫出魑魅魍魎的景象。佛教裡所謂的「四無量心 」，就是希望我們能以慈悲喜捨的畫筆，為世間增添色彩。
在《四十二章經》中，佛陀曾說︰「弟子去吾數千里，意念吾戒，必得道。在吾左側，意在邪，終不得道。其實在行，近而不行，何益萬分耶？ 」心好，還要行直。所以古德作「功過格」日日反省，世界各地的童子軍也奉行「日行一善」的美德，我們佛光會員都是有志一同的社會精英，怎能妄自菲薄？舉凡鼓勵安慰，給人信心；點頭問好，給人歡喜；協助幫忙，給人希望；舉手之勞，給人方便，都是我們隨手可做的善事。如果大家能養成習慣，內外一如，必定能為整個社會帶來無限的光明。
(五) 我們尊重會員大眾，來時歡迎去時相送︰
俗謂︰「登高必自卑，行遠必自邇。」群我修行、心存恭敬、慈悲喜捨、日行一善等等都不是徒喊口號，虛應故事，我們應率先從本會會友身上做起。尤其在目前科技進步、交通發達的時代裡，天涯有若比鄰，整個世界儼如一座地球村，佛光會員經常來往於國際之間，如果大家都能本著尊重會員大眾的精神，抱持「四海之內皆兄弟」的胸懷，來時歡迎，去時相送，必定能縮短彼此的距離，增加情誼的交流，提升團結的信念，促進會務的健全。
(六) 我們具有正知正見，發掘自我般若本性︰
正知正見是做人處事的根本，也是佛弟子應該具備的條件，因為有正確的知見才會有正確的行為。尤其今日社會中，邪說紛紜，許多人因為不能明辨是非，誤信邪師異端而深受其害，在痛心疾首之餘，希望佛光會員們都能擔負起破邪顯正、利益眾生的重責大任。
我們如何培養正知正見呢？佛教是正覺知的真理，深切了解佛法的意義，自然能具備正知正見。像佛教裡「善惡業力」的主張，打破過去長久以來宿命的觀點與神權的迷信，「因緣果報」的說法則與現代科學不謀而合，在在證明佛法亙古今而不變的特質；「四聖諦」與「三法印」不但洞徹宇宙人生的實相，也是放諸四海皆準的真理；而「佛性本具」的論點更是獨具慧眼，不僅總括一切佛法，也為眾生點燃希望的明燈。
《華嚴經》云︰「心、佛、眾生，等無差別。」禪宗六祖惠能大師將佛性本具的真理闡述得最為貼切︰「佛，猶覺也；分為四門︰開覺知見，示覺知見，悟覺知見，入覺知見………汝今當信︰佛知見者，只汝自心，更無別佛。蓋為一切眾生，自蔽光明，貪愛塵境，外緣內擾，甘受驅馳；便勞他世尊，從三昧起，種種苦口，勸令寢息︰莫向外求，與佛無二，故云﹃開佛知見 ﹄。吾亦勸一切人，於自心中常開佛之知見。世人心邪，愚迷造罪，口善心惡，貪瞋嫉妒，諂佞我慢，侵人害物，自開眾生知見；若能正心，常生智慧，觀照自心，止惡行善，是自開佛之知見。」
經云︰「能善分別諸法相，於第一義諦而不動。」如果大家都能多聞薰習，反觀自照，開發正知正見，破除顛倒妄想，使六根不染萬境，般若本性現前，就不枉今生為人，得聞佛法了。
(七) 我們現證法喜安樂，永斷煩惱遠離無明︰
斷惑證真，常樂我淨，並不是來生之事，我們應該當下體證！所謂「過去種種譬如昨日死，現在種種譬如今日生。」學佛最重要的是把握每一個當下，勤息煩惱，集合小悟，久而久之，自然會有遠離無明、大徹大悟的一天。
惑障苦惱，類別甚多，但究其根本，多從心緣五欲六塵，比較、計較而來，所以《大般涅槃經》中說︰「一切屬他，則名為苦；一切由己，自在安樂。」除自他，以法為樂，自然喜樂現前，曠達無礙。在《維摩經》中，維摩大士勸諸天女︰「樂常信佛，樂欲聽法，樂供養眾，樂離五欲，樂觀五陰如怨賊，樂觀四大如毒蛇，樂觀內入如空聚，樂隨護道意，樂饒益眾生，樂敬養師，樂廣行施，樂堅持戒，樂忍辱柔和，樂勤集善根，樂禪定不亂，樂離垢明慧，樂廣發菩提心，樂降伏眾魔，樂斷諸煩惱，樂淨佛國土，樂成就相好，故修諸功德。樂莊嚴道場，樂聞深法不畏，樂三解脫門，不樂非時；樂近同學，樂於非同學中心無恚礙；樂將護惡知識，樂親近善知識；樂心喜清淨，樂修無量道品之法，是為菩薩法樂。」天女聞後，悉皆歎言︰「吾有法樂，不復樂五欲之樂！」
可見世間苦樂、迷悟只在一念之間，如果大家能隨時注意現前的身口意業，必能去除煩惱無明，顯現真如自性，度過法喜安樂的人生。
(八) 我們發願普度眾生，人間淨土佛國現前︰
淨土是人人欣樂的境界，我們如何修行，才能到達淨土佛國呢？佛陀曾說︰「眾生之類，是淨土行。」意即︰唯有勤度眾生，才能證得淨土，因為離開眾生，就沒有淨土可言。當菩薩發心化度眾生時，就是佛國淨土的現前。所以，佛陀又進一步開示︰直心、深心、菩提心、六度行、四攝法、方便、三十七道品、回向心、去除八難、自行守戒、不譏彼闕、十善等都是菩薩淨土，並且說︰「若菩薩欲得淨土，當淨其心，隨其心淨，則國土淨。」舍利弗聞言，心中納悶︰難道佛陀心有不淨，為什麼娑婆世界如此惡濁？佛陀知道他的想法，於是以足趾按地，即時三千大千世界珍寶嚴飾，佛陀告訴舍利弗︰「我佛國土常淨如是。」原來我們之所以見娑婆為穢土，是因為自己心有高下，而諸佛菩薩因一切眾生悉皆平等，深心清淨，所以能見此土清淨。
經云︰「三界唯心，萬法唯識。」佛光會員應和光接物，普度眾生，當外在眾生度盡的同時，內在貪瞋愚癡的眾生也將轉為菩提眷屬，果能如此，則何處不是淨土佛國？
佛光會員的信條是︰
(一) 我們禮敬常住三寶，正法永存佛光普照；
(二) 我們信仰人間佛教，生活美滿家庭幸福；
(三) 我們實踐生活修行，隨時隨地心存恭敬；
(四) 我們奉行慈悲喜捨，日日行善端正身心；
(五) 我們尊重會員大眾，來時歡迎去時相送；
(六) 我們具有正知正見，發掘自我般若本性；
(七) 我們現證法喜安樂，永斷煩惱遠離無明；
(八) 我們發願普度眾生，人間淨土佛國現前。
如果各位都能奉行這些信條，必能淨化自己，利濟有情，廣結善緣，修持圓滿，成為人人歡迎的人間菩薩。
Beliefs of the BLIA
Belief lies at the core of all human activity. If our beliefs are firm, we can move mountains. Buddhism places special stress on the purity of belief.
The Flower Adornment Sutra says, “Belief is the mother of all virtue. She nurtures all goodness as she eradicates all doubt. She shows us how to reach the highest path.”
The Brahma Net Sutra says, “All practice springs from belief.
Belief is the source of all virtue.”
The BLIA is a well-structured organization with specific ideals. To fully participate in the BLIA, all members should share the following eight points of belief.
We respect and abide in the Triple Gem.
The Dharma is eternal; Buddha’s light shines everywhere.
The Triple Gem of Buddhism is Buddha, Dharma, Sangha.
The Triple Gem brings light and joy into this universe. The Triple Gem is the means through which we all can seek and find liberation from suffering.
The Triple Gem originated in Deer Park when the Buddha taught his first five monks. The Buddha himself is the first part of the Triple Gem. The Four Noble Truths, the twelve links of dependent origination and the Three Dharma Seals, which the Buddha taught to his monks, compose the second part of the original Triple Gem. The five monks whom the Buddha taught are the third part of the original Triple Gem. After the Buddha’s great nirvana, his teachings were spread orally.
In time, they were written down and passed from one generation to the next. As direct memories of the Buddha faded, people made paintings of his face, or they carved statues of him, or they made images of him in gold. Since the original Triple Gem no longer is with us today, we must accept images of the Buddha, printed sutras and living monastics as our Triple Gem. It is these that we must now respect and abide in. These are the embodiments of the original Triple Gem.
There is a subtler way of speaking about this, though. We might also say that the Triple Gem is something that all people possess in their deepest nature. All people have a Buddha nature. All people have the equanimity and wisdom of the Dharma inside them. All people have the joy and purity of the sangha in their hearts at all times. These qualities can be called our “inner Triple Gem” or the “Triple Gem of our basic natures.”
The Buddha’s era is long past. People today need to rely on and abide in the outer Triple Gem in order to fully realize the deepest essence of the subtle Triple Gem they always carry within themselves. For this reason it is important that all of us respect the outer Triple
Gem as it exists in this world now.
This is especially true for BLIA members, who have taken on the profound responsibility of spreading the Dharma for the good of all sentient beings.
We, more than anyone else, must make certain that the Triple Gem is well cared for, that it is supported and protected, and that anything that might destroy or harm it is completely avoided. If we are success- ful in these aims, we cannot but be successful, too, in bringing the light
and wisdom of Buddhism to all corners of the world. The merit that will accrue from doing this is immeasurable!
We believe in Humanistic Buddhism.
We work to have good lives and happy families.
The Buddhist tradition is full of variety. It has many divisions and many levels.
There are elitist levels and common levels. There are strains of Buddhism associated with nations and cultures, such as Tibetan Buddhism, Chinese Buddhism, Japanese Buddhism and so on. There are northern traditions and southern traditions. There is esoteric Buddhism and exoteric Buddhism. All of these differing traditions make up the fullness of Buddhism. The BLIA takes its guiding princi- ples from the Buddha himself. It bases its activities on the universal- ism of Buddha’s essential humanism. We call that universal human emphasis “Humanistic Buddhism”.
When Buddha preached the Dharma, he always preached among people, to people and for people.
More than anything else, the Buddha taught people how to cultivate higher behavior and higher awareness in this very world.
This is why so many of the sutras are devoted to explaining how to live a satisfying life in this world.
The emphasis by Buddha on human life itself came to be called “Humanistic Buddhism” by later generations. A“humanistic Buddhist” is someone who transforms his or her character so that it expresses the same deep truths and ideal expressed by the Buddha himself.
Transcendental Buddhism, which seeks to leave or abandon this world, is an outgrowth of Buddha’s earliest period, when he first taught a small number of monks basic austerities. The “Buddhism of the mountains and forests” was an elitist Chinese tradition developed by the Chinese ruling class many hundreds of years ago. Neither one of these forms of Buddhism is true to the real meaning of what the Buddha actually taught.
If you don’t cultivate your own behavior, can your family be expected to know well-being? If our families do not know well-being, how then can our nations be prosperous and the world at peace?
No matter what kind of Buddhism you practice, if you are a member of the BLIA, your ultimate belief still lies in the Buddha. Your ultimate practice still lies in preaching the Dharma to all sentient beings.
It is incumbent on all of us who take on this great task to practice diligently the humanism of the Buddha’s teachings. We should make our lives beautiful expressions of these truths, as we see to it that our families always are happy and content within the warm embrace of the Dharma. When our lives are based on this humanistic foundation, we will have all the profound resources necessary to further the culture and society of Buddhism. Our practice will begin to take in others, as our humane and understanding behavior naturally reaches beyond the narrow limits of our individual lives.
We actively practice Buddhism with others.
We show respect for others wherever we are.
Almost no one can live entirely alone. All of us depend on one another. For this reason, we must learn to cultivate our behavior right here in this world, right here among all the flawed and confusing influences that constantly impinge on us from those who are around us. There is no better place to practice Buddhism!
We respect all BLIA members.
We welcome each other when we meet and acknowledge each other when we part.
There is a folk saying, “If you want to climb high, you must start low. And if you want to travel far, you must start wherever you are.”
To work together as an effective group, we must show respect, loving-kindness and compassion toward each other.
These are not just slogans. We must begin our practice among the other people in our BLIA chapters.
The world has developed so much in recent years, we all can feel our interconnectedness even more than in the past. Truly, we live now in a global village.
If we are careful to practice loving-kindness when we are together and to be cooperative and harmonious even when we are not, then our BLIA community will have even fewer separations and distances within it. We will be a strong and effective force for bringing the truths of Buddhism to all people in the word.
We have right beliefs and right views.
We discover the prajna wisdom deep inside ourselves.
Right beliefs and right views are the basic virtues necessary for all disciples of the Buddha, and they are the only means by which we can expect to effectively do good things in this world. Without them, we will be lost. Without them, we have no standard on which to base our behavior. This is especially true in the modern world, where there are so many temptations and so many apparent reasons to wander into darkness. I deeply hope that members of the BLIA will do their utmost to be good examples before society, so that people everywhere will have the opportunity to see what a difference it makes to live a life illuminated by the truth.
How should we strengthen and deepen our sense of right belief and right view?
Buddhism is based on universal truths that also can be found within our basic natures. If we continuously deepen our understanding of Buddhism, we will come to understand ourselves better, and in that, we will strengthen our sense of right belief and right view.
Once we achieve a clear understanding of the workings of karma, the darkness of countless lifetimes will gradually begin to lift from our minds. Once we have a clear comprehension of the laws of cause and effect, we will know that our behavior, and its consequences, are not meaningless, disembodied forces that strike at us from nowhere, for no reason.
The Four Noble Truths and the Three Dharma Seals are basic realities that govern the universe. They are truths whose force can be experienced at all times, everywhere. When we really understand that our basic natures are our Buddha natures, we will have come to see that right inside us is the most powerful light in the universe. It is a light that can illuminate all obscurities and that can cleanse all defilements. The Flower Adornment Sutra says, “There is no difference between the mind, the Buddha and the consciousness of all sentient
beings.”
Huineng the Sixth Patriarch of Chan Buddhism, expressed this truth perhaps better than anyone when he said, “Buddha is enlighten- ment. Realization of this enlightenment proceeds through four stages. The first stage is when you begin to comprehend. The second stage is when you begin to exhibit understanding. The third stage is full reali- zation, and the last is complete entry into a consciousness composed of nothing but enlightened awareness. If you believe this and are able to see your Buddha nature, then you will see that Buddha is nothing more than your own mind. Most people hide their light. They are greedy for the things of this world. They cling to outer conditions and, thus, their inner beings are turbulent and confused, and they are pushed this way and that by forces beyond their control. Then they hear the teachings of the Buddha, who through his own Samadhi achieved realization. Through his own hard practice, the Buddha taught the rest of us how to quiet ourselves and achieve self-control. There is no need to look outside yourself for the Buddha. You and the Buddha are the same. This realization is the beginning of real understanding. I encourage all of you to look within yourselves to find your Buddha nature. Most people in this world are deeply deluded. Their delusions cause terrible things to happen. They speak nicely, but their hearts are evil. They are greedy and prone to ferocious jealousies. They use other people and feel proud of themselves. They harm each other and destroy many things. If they would only stop for a while and look within their own minds, they would see the truth, because that is where the truth lies. With that truth in mind, they would stop their evil and begin to do good. This is the way to understand Buddhism.”
The Madhyamika Sastra says, “The ability to properly discrimi- nate among the phenomena of the world lies in holding fast to the truth of emptiness, and not moving from it.”
If all of us will study and reflect on the truth often, then we will achieve right belief and right views. We will learn to overcome senseless thinking and to keep our minds pure of all defilement. Our prajna wisdom then will come to the fore, and then not only will we not waste our present lives, but we also will live in accordance with the great truths that have been passed down through the ages and that have come to us only because others before us toiled and dared to keep them alive.
We live in the peace and joy of the Dharma.
We disentangle ourselves from suffering and ignorance.
To escape delusion and live in truth and joy are not things to be done in the next life. They are things that must be done in this life, right now! There is a saying that expresses this truth very well: “All the things of the past are dead and gone. All the things of the present are
born in this very moment.”
The secret to successfully practicing Buddhism is to pay strict attention to the very moment that is present right now.
You have no other moment. Nothing else is important.
When we pay close attention to the moment that is before us and around us, we begin to focus our attention in the place where it should be focused.
It is in the moment that we begin to distance ourselves from suffering and delusion, and it is in the moment that we begin to make small realizations. Before long, our small realizations will accumu- late. They will grow larger and larger. Eventually they will become large realizations, and then one day, they will culminate in the ultimate realization of full enlightenment within our Buddha natures.
Defilement and suffering appear in many, many forms. If we examine them closely, however, we will see that all of them stem from nothing more than the desires and defilements of our own minds. There is no other cause.
The Great Nirvana Sutra says, “Everything which seems to be outside of ourselves is a source of suffering. Peace and joy can only be found within.”
When we remove the misconception that forces are impinging on us from the outside, and replace it with the joy of the Dharma, then we open the door for untold blessings to come into our lives, and we will find that nothing can obstruct our progress any longer.
In the Vimalakirti Sutra, Vimalakirti exhorts a group of heavenly women, saying, “Take joy in the Buddha, take joy in the Dharma, take joy in aiding all sentient beings. Look upon the five aggregates as thieves and the four elements as poisonous snakes. Take joy in seeing emptiness inside yourself, take joy in protecting the Dharma always, take joy in helping others. Take joy in finding your bodhi mind, take joy in abandoning the demons of resentment and anger, take joy in disentangling yourselves from suffering. Take joy in Buddha’s Pure Land, take joy in accomplishing good things and in increasing your merits. Take joy in the magnificence of your temples, take joy in hearing the Dharma without fear, take joy in the three means of libera- tion. Don’t place your joy in things that are past, or not yet come. Take joy in your fellow practitioners, and take joy in the knowledge that even those who are not your fellows are possessed of pure minds. Take joy in protecting your wisdom from evil, and take joy in learning. A joyful mind is a pure mind. Joyful practice is the highest practice. This is called the joy of the bodhisattva.”
Upon hearing this speech, the heavenly beings replied, “Now that we have the joy of the Dharma, we have no further need of the pleasures found in mundane desires.”
In this world the difference between joy and suffering can be bridged in a single thought, in a single instant.
If all of us can pay close attention to halting the bad karma caused by our bodies, speech and minds, then we will all succeed in uprooting the only causes of suffering in this life. Once we have done that, we will find that life truly is beautiful and that all of us are capable of passing our days in this world in joy and peace.
Vow to save all sentient beings.
We will make this world a Pure Land.
The Pure Land is something all of us desire.
What do we need to do to bring the Pure Land fully into this world of ours?
The Buddha said, “Helping all sentient beings is the way to practice for the Pure Land.”
This means that we can fully achieve the Pure Land only by helping all sentient beings.
The reason for this is there is no Pure Land apart from sentient beings. When a Buddhist takes the bodhisattva vow to save all sentient beings, that Buddhist is bringing the Pure Land into this world. That is the reason Buddha so often spoke of the “true mind,” or the “deep mind,” or the “bodhi mind.”
The Buddha gave us many methods to bring the Pure Land into this world, including: the six perfections, the Four Noble Truths, the Thirty-seven aspects of the path to enlightenment , ten wholesome acts and many others. He also taught us to use “skillful means” or “expedient methods” to do our utmost to help others escape from the delusions of this world.
The Vimalakirti Sutra says, “If a bodhisattva wants to reach the Pure Land, he must purify his mind. When his mind is pure in all situations, he will have reached the Pure Land.”
Sariputra once asked the Buddha why the world was so full of evil and suffering if the inner mind of all beings was really pure and undefiled. Buddha answered him by tapping his foot on the ground. Suddenly, all around them the whole expanse of the universe became exceptionally beautiful and pure. Buddha then said, “My Buddha world always is pure and beautiful like this.”
Sariputra, as the rest of us do, saw defilement and suffering all around him, because his own mind still contained distinctions as to better and worse, higher and lower. Buddhas see even this saha world with perfect equanimity and deep purity, so what they see is always completely perfect, while what the rest of us see is not.
The Flower Adornment Sutra says, “The Three Realms are our minds. The phenomenal world is our consciousness.”
I hope all BLIA members will live their lives with this kind of consciousness. As we work to help other sentient beings, our inner minds gradually will change from their defiled states of greed, anger and ignorance to the state of perfect purity within the fullness of the bodhi mind. When all of us start thinking like this, how can our reali- zation of the Pure Land be far behind?
In sum, the Eight Beliefs of the BLIA are:
We respect and abide in the Triple Gem. The Dharma is eternal; Buddha’s light shines everywhere.
We believe in Humanistic Buddhism. We work to have good lives and happy families.
We actively practice Buddhism with others. We show respect for others wherever we are.
We practice compassion, joy and equanimity. Daily we do good deeds as we purify ourselves.
We respect all BLIA members. We welcome each other when we meet and acknowledge each other when we part.
We have right beliefs and right views. We discover the prajna wisdom deep inside ourselves.
We live in the peace and joy of the Dharma. We disentangle ourselves from suffering and ignorance.
We vow to save all sentient beings. We will make this world a Pure Land.
If all members of the BLIA can adequately establish themselves within these beliefs, then we all will succeed in purifying ourselves, in helping others, and in creating wholesome, positive relations with those who are around us. As we do this, we will successfully complete our own practice of Buddhism. We will all become bodhisattvas, and we all will find that we are welcome wherever we go.