“If your mind is not clear, you will mistake a thief for your own son.” It’s just a parable. If somebody who is not very profitable to you and you invite him to your house, he might steal all your things. He might look like your son, look friendly or you might adopt him, but it’s not too good for you. Thus, the Buddha warned you: “Don’t mistake a thief for your son.” Why did He liken this demon to a thief? Because they can steal. They steal your spiritual energy if you let them near and they use it to empower themselves. The more they steal from you, the more powerful they become, and the weaker you are, and then they will control you.
Always remember the Five (Holy) Names, they protect you. Never think that you are anybody. Always pray for help. There are Gods and Goddesses and Bodhisattvas, Buddha, always trying to help you if you call for help, before you call even. It’s just if you call then it’s better, together. You call, they respond, so you are connected with each other.
If any of the demons, they can take hold of you, then they hang around. They know you’re weak, or some weak point, maybe your precept is not complete, not clear enough. Maybe you still tell some lies, white lies or lies that you don’t even think you tell. You make excuses for yourself doing something that you should not do. And even maybe your mind doesn’t understand, but your subtle mind knows it. Your subconscious knows it is a lie, but still you think it’s OK. So, these kinds of lies, the subtle precept problem, you must be aware. That’s why the Buddha kept saying about precepts, precepts; otherwise, He would’ve just said, OK, come become a monk with me and you’ll become a Saint already. You leave everything, you renunciate, you are great and then you’ve no need to worry about anything. Continuously He taught. In every sutra He mentioned again and again. Don’t eat meat, even don’t wear silk, don’t take milk, don’t take butter.
Even if you see Master come to your house, it’s also nothing. It’s maybe halfway only. Maybe, maybe not. The Buddha said you may feel satisfied even just from small accomplishments. “Like the Unlearned Bhiksu who reached the Fourth Dhyana and claimed that he had realized sagehood.” Some monk, maybe he meditated and then he attained some level, Fourth Level or something, and then he felt like he’d already become a Saint. Probably one of His disciples was like that, one of His monks had boasted, “OK, I have attained Sixth, Seventh, Eighth Level.” You understand? So, the Buddha says in general, like that.
But there must have been some monk who had not realized the complete enlightenment but thought he had, so the Buddha warned them all in general. “When his celestial reward ended, and the signs of decay appeared, he slandered Arhatship as being subject to birth and death, and thus he fell into the Avichi Hell.”
You see, he was too happy with his little attainment, then he thought he attained Arhatship already. But then, when his old age came or sickness, something that was not to his satisfaction, then he didn’t see anything anymore. Maybe because of the limited enlightenment that he had because he already felt too proud, then he stopped his own progress. And then at that time, instead of feeling regretful or feeling ashamed, he blamed the sainthood as no good. He said, “What’s the good of attaining sainthood? I am still sick now, I am still dying, I am still getting old.” It’s not the sainthood, it’s not the method, it is a person who has not been vigilant enough. Have to be vigilant all the time, because our egos are our enemy also, apart from the Asura demons, apart from the ghosts, apart from the heavenly ghosts, we also have our own egos, very, very big egos.
So, if you see some (inner Heavenly) Light or hear some (inner Heavenly) Sounds at the time of initiation and continuously, this is just to show you, just like a lamp, to light your way, so that you know you are in the right direction. Because we always heard that Heaven has Light and the Buddha will teach us with the Heavenly Sound, or God’s Sound and that it’s like the sound of many waters, the sound of thunder. OK, I heard all that. So, that means you hear God, you see God in the form of (inner Heavenly) Light or in the appearance of Jesus, or maybe Master or Buddha, but that doesn’t mean you are a Buddha yet. Seeing (inner Heavenly) Light, hearing (inner Heavenly) Sound, you must, you should. It’s just the sign post. And all the scenery you see on the way, also the landscape to show you where you’re going. Just like on the way here, I saw some hufa, Dharma guards, I saw some trees, I saw some statues, I know I am going to the fourth hall to see you, but I have not reached you yet until I am here. If meanwhile I stop, watch the trees, chat to the guard or then lost my way and keep chatting away and forgot my goal is here, then I will never reach here, even though I knew the way. Similarly, the way to Buddhahood is full of traps.
