Comprehending Causes and Realizing Effects, Abandoning Evil and Cultivating Good

Good causes yield good results, evil causes yield evil results, and causes that are neither good nor evil yield results that are neither good nor evil—all are encompassed within cause and effect. These causes and effects are all faithfully actualized by the Tathagatagarbha. The Tathagatagarbha impartially actualizes all karmic retribution according to its inherent laws of causality, ensuring there is never unjust retribution. Part of our practice in learning Buddhism involves transforming and eliminating the causes, conditions, and retributions of evil, while continually increasing the causes, conditions, and retributions of good, in order to attain the ultimate, perfectly pure, and unsurpassed Buddhahood.

Karmic causes are created by the five aggregates within worldly phenomena, and the retributions are also realized within worldly phenomena. Since they belong to worldly phenomena, they are illusory phenomena, not real and unchanging phenomena. They are all illusory manifestations projected by the Tathagatagarbha—appearances exist, but their essence is empty. Sentient beings often cling to all phenomena of the five-aggregate world as truly existent, and thus create all karmic actions for the sake of the five aggregates. If one truly realizes that the five aggregates are not the self and severs attachment to them, one will no longer easily create evil karmic actions.

Although karmic cause and effect are empty and illusory, experiencing retribution is still very distressing. Therefore, it is necessary for us to understand causes and comprehend results, refraining from creating evil karma and creating only good karma, so that we may enjoy good results life after life until attaining Buddhahood. The World-Honored One, out of compassion, came to this Saha World with Five Turbidities and used various teachings to instruct sentient beings to eradicate the erroneous view of taking the five aggregates as the self, so that sentient beings may ultimately attain liberation and return to their inherent nature. We should follow the World-Honored One's teachings: cease evil, cultivate good, eliminate all afflictions and defilements, purify the mind, benefit ourselves and others, and swiftly accomplish the Buddha Way to perfect the fruit of Buddhahood.