The Scope of Trishna

The scope of greed is vast; any phenomenon within the desire realm, if one becomes attached to it, constitutes greed. Literary masters skilled in poetry and prose, painters who wield their brushes with effortless grace, almost all descend to the ghost realm to indulge their passions, for all such pursuits belong to greed. How much more so for other matters—sentimental attachments and romantic love are even greater greed, inextricably binding one to rebirth in the ghost realm. Those who frequently paint horses, achieving remarkable likeness, are reborn in the wombs of horses after death. Those who often write ghost stories, crafting them with uncanny vividness, are reborn as ghosts after death. Whatever the mind frequently dwells upon, one will join that very thing after death. Painters who focus intently on painting horses, their minds resonating with horses, will be reborn as horses in the next life. Those who constantly write stories about ghosts and spirits pour their minds into these beings, resonating with ghosts and spirits, and will become ghosts after death. Now, if we recite the Buddha's name, our minds resonate with the Buddha, and we will be born in the presence of Buddhas. When the mind resonates with goodness, one is reborn in virtuous realms; when the mind resonates with evil, one is reborn in evil realms.