The Buddha's teachings are the way for every sentient being to attain liberation in an equal way. The Buddha treats all sentient beings regardless of their age, whether they are beginners or old students, and as long as our own piety is sufficient, there will not be much difference in the blessings we receive and our ability to understand the Dharma. To have enough devotion to study Buddhism, one must first have a strong faith in the Buddha. One of these kinds of faith is the cause of the world, and the other is slowly started by the subduing of others.

When some people see Buddha statues, temples, stupas, sutras, and other symbols related to Buddha, they can't help but feel a strong sense of joy, and even shed tears or hair stand on end. Such a reaction means that he has already practiced in his previous life, and in this life he only needs to continue the karmic practice of his previous life. Sometimes we don't have such a strong feeling, but when we see a solemn Buddha statue, a solemn Dharma teacher or a solemn Buddha hall, although we don't shed tears and our hair doesn't stand up, we will have a happy heart, which is actually very Buddha-like. If it is not for the above two situations, of course, you need to rely on your own efforts, through understanding the Buddha's great compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings, to develop a devout heart towards the Buddha, and then slowly cultivate it, so that your piety will gradually grow, and eventually it will become an unrelenting faith.

Many Buddhists believe that after taking the refuge vows, the refuge is complete, so they do not recite the refuge text most of the time, and even think that reciting the refuge text is a relatively rudimentary method. This is a very wrong notion. It's like going from one place to another, always remembering where you are going, or the path that led you to your destination. If you forget the path you are going to take, it will be difficult to reach your destination. It's even worse if you forget your destination! Either stay halfway or return to the starting point. Therefore, it is very important for a Buddhist to cultivate his own devotion to the foundation. After cultivating a pious heart, you can develop an unrelenting confidence after a long period of exploration and tempering.

All the teachings that the Buddha preached are to guide us on the path to liberation. It is not to paint a Buddha statue at home, or to sculpt a statue of Guanyin, and then take the incense to worship, even if you are learning Buddhism. That's making offerings to the Buddha, worshipping the Buddha, not learning the Buddha. To be a true Buddhist, one must learn the Buddha's thoughts, ways of thinking, and actions.

The Buddha's teachings are very profound, and in simple terms, what they convey is that "all evils should be done, all good should be practiced, and all good minds should be purified, which is all Buddhism." As long as it is a harmful evil cause, avoid it; If it's a good cause for doing good, try to do it. The point is to be able to "purify one's mind," that is, to subdue one's own mind—and that's the hardest part.

The Buddha's compassion and blessings for all sentient beings are omnipresent, rich and poor, and they are the root organs of all sentient beings. In other words, there is no difference in the compassion of the Buddha, but there is a difference in our devotion to us. Because sentient beings have discriminating minds, the blessings of the Buddha are completely different in the way each sentient being feels.

If a person has complete devotion to the Buddha, the blessings he receives are 100 percent. If you are only half pious, you will receive half the blessings. If the devotion is only a little, the blessings will only be a little. If your devotion is not enough, if your karma is not purified, then the Buddha is sitting in front of us and there is nothing to be done about what happens to us. Because karma is our own, it has nothing to do with the Buddha. The Buddha has the power of compassion, but because of the cover of karma, our minds cannot correspond to the Buddha. If you can't correspond to the Buddha, of course, you won't get the blessings of the Buddha.

The key to success is not in the external appearance, but in the strength of the abilities that come out of our inner mind. For example, if a person who has just studied Buddhism and a person who has studied Buddhism for decades have the same point in time, there is no difference in the mind of the two people, although there is a difference in the order and length of time for studying Buddhism, there is no difference in the blessings and wisdom growth of practice. If the mind of the first scholar is not always resting on the Dharma, and the later scholar is extremely strong in devotion and compassion, then the latter may have achieved more than the former. When you reach the realm of "no self of others", then "Dharma without self" will follow, and after reaching the wisdom of these two selfless realms, and then have the compassion of generosity, precepts, patience, diligence, and meditation, that is, compassion and wisdom, and it will be easier for us to get rid of life and death.

The Buddha told us the cause of the suffering of samsara, and showed us the direction and method of liberation from the suffering of samsara. But the road is up to us. In the process of this journey, we need to carry some necessary bags to support ourselves on the way. Correct knowledge and piety are necessary, just as we know the general direction of the path but still need to navigate. When we have correct knowledge and piety, we will not lose our way and we will be less on the path to liberation. If we are just walkers, it doesn't really mean much, but if we can be a good guide to guide others on the path to liberation in the process, then it will be even more meaningful.