Happiness Comes as We Cultivate Blessings

Everyone desires happiness. However, where do the blessings of happiness come from? As Master Sheng Yen said, "Anyone who seeks blessings must first sow the seeds of blessing, cultivate blessings, and cherish blessings!"
 
Most people associate blessing with enjoying good health and having everything go smoothly as one wishes, which, in fact, belongs to karmic rewards in the human and heavenly realms. The true sense of blessing is to attain human birth, so as to be able to cultivate spirituality, thereby accumulating the provisions for the journey towards liberation. As we use wisdom to share our blessings with others, we are practicing the bodhisattva path. In giving and receiving, we'll gradually achieve the Buddha path. Hence, the Buddha said, "The power of blessings is most superior, and it is through blessings that Buddhahood can be attained."
 
Living in the 21^st century, we can actually find merit-fields everywhere to allow us to cultivate blessings, such as cherishing food, reducing plastic use, practicing zero-waste, supporting eco-friendly agriculture, implementing empowerment programs, protecting animals, and engaging in environmentally friendly activities. By starting with a small wholesome thought, developing good habits in our daily life, and practicing altruistic actions, we can accumulate more and more deposits in our account of blessings, thereby bringing well-being to all.



Related articles:

Happiness Comes as We Cultivate Blessings

Cultivating Merit to Become Blessed

Concepts for Cultivating Meritorious Blessings
The Buddhist Approach to Nurturing Merit and Spirituality

Fu-yan Monastery, founded on the basis of merit cultivation

Reflections and Habits to Cultivate Blessings
Debunk the Myths about Sustainability



Resource: Issue 437 of Humanity Magazine (January 2020), Dharma Drum Publishing Corporation
Original Chinese text: Editorial team of Humanity Magazine
Photo credit: Li Rung-sheng (李蓉生)
Translation: Li Siang-ling
Editing: Keith Brown, Chang Chia-cheng (張家誠)