Mahatma Gandhi was once a lawyer, Jesus was once a carpenter, and Buddha was once a prince. We all have to start somewhere. Sometimes, in a moment of inspiration, you may realize that things need to change, but when you are stuck in a lower level, that memory may become chaotic again.
When you have some realization and feel that you can improve, this idea may flash in your mind. However, when you are in a bad state, you may forget the positive realizations, becoming lost and confused again. So, we really need good spiritual friends, especially help from fellow practitioners. When you are in a bad state, the guidance from your spiritual teacher or fellow practitioners can make a difference. For those with sharp faculties, a little reminder is enough; for those with dull faculties, a bit of scolding may be needed; but for those with the dullest faculties, they need to experience hardships in the secular world, otherwise they won’t change. We have also seen many such cases in our meditation center. Initially, they were quite good; but after a while, their energy became lower and lower, and no one could help them anymore. The only way is to let them return to the secular world and let them suffer. When they have suffered enough, perhaps they will think about elevating themselves again. Only when they have suffered will they feel fear. Otherwise, they won’t understand what suffering is. Look at those in the palace who enjoy worldly blessings but have strong vexations. Why? Because they have forgotten and don’t realize that all these blessings are the result of their own cultivation, and they should cherish and elevate themselves. Without going through suffering, they forget previous hardships. For example, if a person spent two or three decades living as a beggar and suddenly got a chance to live in the palace, transitioning from an ugly duckling in a very difficult environment to a better one, they would remain grateful all the time and wouldn’t become too negative. No matter how others might treat or hurt them, they wouldn’t care too much. Because they had experienced too much suffering before, they would cherish the current blessings, just like the good monastic community we have now. However, some people don’t cherish what they have in the here and now. They forget how much suffering and negativity they had in the past, and how low their energy level used to be. They harbor negative mentalities, mainly arrogance and inferiority complex, which are the most terrifying. In a high-energy environment, your inferiority complex, jealousy, and arrogance are the only reasons that could lead you to leave the team. If you remain grateful and altruistic, how could you ever leave? Whereas, when you start to envy others, you are hopeless! In this monastic community, we are supposed to help each other. If you maintain a strong sense of gratitude toward your spiritual teacher and fellow practitioners, you won’t fall. Without gratitude, you start to envy your fellow practitioners and get angry with them. After envy comes anger. If a fellow practitioner doesn’t meet your expectations, you get angry with them. At that point, you will fall much faster than worldly people, because you envy or resent those with high energy levels. When you get angry with those who come to help you, your energy level instantly drops below 200, which is even lower than average worldly people.