Bodhi Light International
  • Home
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Live Stream
    • Temple Activities
    • FoQi
    • ChanQi
    • Online Classes
    • Relics
  • Calendar
  • Dharma
    • Download Audio & Slides >
      • Sutra Lectures >
        • Avatamsaka Sutra
        • Six Patriarch Sutra
        • Heart Sutra
        • Vajra Sutra
        • Amitabha Sutra
        • Earth Store Sutra
        • Medicine Master Sutra
        • The Bequeathed Teaching Sutra
        • The Sutra in 42 Sections
      • Dharma Talks Archive
      • Chan Meditation Archive
      • Fo Qi Archive
      • Chan Qi Archive
      • Outreach Archive
    • Ceremonies
    • Dharma Blog
    • Q&A
  • Practices
    • Practices
    • Training Program
    • Cultivation Stories
  • Publications
    • Publications
    • Chan Handbook
    • Pure Land Handbook
  • About
    • Statement of Faith
    • Location
    • Contact
    • Master YongHua
    • Contribution
    • Sponsorship
  • Languages
    • Tiếng Việt
    • 한국어
    • 中文首页
    • Español
    • Portuguese

Uncertain about Future

10/18/2015

 
Question:

Dear Dharma Masters,
​

I have recently finished a PhD in engineering and have been involved in a startup company to commercialize my research. Unfortunately, this is a medical product and requires animal testing to get approved. ​I will not be directly involved in these experiments but the thought of it still causes me stress. Right now, we are still in the early stages and have not started any animal work yet.
In addition, I don’t think I want to follow this path. I am more interested in Buddhism and would like to volunteer and eventually leave the home-life in a monastery. However, my main obstacle is my worry for my mother, particularly who will take care of her. My father passed away years ago and my siblings right now are not financially stable and my mother makes minimum wage. I feel as if she had pegged the hopes of the family on me.

What do you suggest I do? Should I drop everything and follow my heart? Or should I continue down my current path and hope conditions improve?

Amituofo and thanks for your time,
​

MT
Answer:

Good indeed! Good indeed!

You have very lofty aspirations for a person of your background and achievements. The Buddhists believe that when one’s son leaves the home life, nine generations ascend to the heavens. Better yet, I feel that it is far more important to help generate blessings to help them escape the Reincarnation Wheel by cultivating the Proper Dharma.

It is hard to provide good suggestions without more detail. However, we would like to point out a few major concerns for your consideration:

First, it is very important to take care of your mother. It is very hard to cultivate when in the back of your mind, you are still worried about her and feel guilty that you did not try to help when you could. Perhaps one compromise is to work and save enough to take care of her financial needs. For example, a financial planner could help you figure out how much of an annuity you could set up to take care of her. It is just like the Sixth Patriarch: he took care of his mother before he set out on his spiritual journey.

Equally important is to plan carefully for your spiritual journey. The ultimate goal of leaving the home life is to attain liberation so that you can then learn how to save your parents, family and all living beings. Just like earning your doctorate, you also need to choose a competent teacher and temple to maximize your chance of success. I was very lucky that I encountered Great Master Xuan Hua when I left the home life. Even more important was his guidance in cultivation: I would not trade it for anything else in the world. I later realized that I became his disciple and trained under him only because I had already planted countless blessings with his Dharma throughout many lifetimes. In brief, select a Dharma Master with a proven success rate and intensively plant your blessings with him so that you have enough blessings to accomplish his Dharma.

Finally, one excellent way to discharge your filial piety to your mother is to send her to the Pure Land where she will never know suffering ever again and where she will become a Buddha in one lifetime. You can find more information on the American approach to the Pure Land Dharma in our publication, “The Pure Land Handbook: A Mahayana Approach to Birth and Death”.

If you wish we will be glad to discuss with you in person after your plans become clearer.
​
Best wishes.

    Categories

    All
    42 Hands & Eyes
    49-day Dharma
    Abortion
    Chan & Meditation
    Deviant Sex Precept
    Healing Illnesses
    Karmas & Repentance
    Leaving Home Life
    Medicine Master Buddha Dharma
    Non Buddhist Practice
    Personal & Family Issues
    Proper Dharma
    Pureland & Rebirth
    Tantric & Mantras

    Archives

    October 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    January 2015
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011

    RSS Feed

RELATED LINKS

Temple Locations
MahaStupa


​
​© 2010 – 2023 Chanpureland.org 

Subscribe

Join our mailing list today!
Join Now
  • Home
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Live Stream
    • Temple Activities
    • FoQi
    • ChanQi
    • Online Classes
    • Relics
  • Calendar
  • Dharma
    • Download Audio & Slides >
      • Sutra Lectures >
        • Avatamsaka Sutra
        • Six Patriarch Sutra
        • Heart Sutra
        • Vajra Sutra
        • Amitabha Sutra
        • Earth Store Sutra
        • Medicine Master Sutra
        • The Bequeathed Teaching Sutra
        • The Sutra in 42 Sections
      • Dharma Talks Archive
      • Chan Meditation Archive
      • Fo Qi Archive
      • Chan Qi Archive
      • Outreach Archive
    • Ceremonies
    • Dharma Blog
    • Q&A
  • Practices
    • Practices
    • Training Program
    • Cultivation Stories
  • Publications
    • Publications
    • Chan Handbook
    • Pure Land Handbook
  • About
    • Statement of Faith
    • Location
    • Contact
    • Master YongHua
    • Contribution
    • Sponsorship
  • Languages
    • Tiếng Việt
    • 한국어
    • 中文首页
    • Español
    • Portuguese