The practice of vegetarianism is upheld as the ideal diet for monks, nuns, and Elders, but all are permitted to consume meat provided it adheres to the three following rules:
1. Monks/nuns may not witness the killing of the animal.
2. Monks/nuns may not hear the sound of the killing of the animal.
3. Monks/nuns may not consume the animal if it was killed for them.
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Sila (virtue, moral conduct) is the cornerstone upon which the entire Noble Eightfold Path is built. The practice of sila is defined by the middle three factors of the Eightfold Path: Right Speech, Right Action, and Right Livelihood.
Practicing Buddhists voluntarily undertake a particular set of training rules appropriate to their life-situation:
In most Buddhist sects, death and rebirth is connected to reincarnation, to put it simply. The dictionary says of the term of Samsara: “The cycle of death and rebirth to which life in the material world is bound.” This is not exactly the same view in Monijiao. There are actually two different definitions of Samsara held by adherents.
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Truth knows neither birth nor death; it has no beginning and no end. Welcome the truth. The truth is the immortal part of mind. Establish the truth in your mind, for the truth is the image of the eternal; it portrays the immutable; it reveals the everlasting; the truth gives unto mortals the boon of immortality.”
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Look about and contemplate life! Everything that is of matter is transient and nothing endures. There is birth and death, growth and decay; there is combination and separation. The glory of the world is like a flower: it stands in full bloom in the morning and fades in the heat of the day.
Wherever you look, there is a rushing and a struggling, and an eager pursuit of pleasure. There is a panic flight from pain and death, and hot are the flames of burning desires. The world is full of changes and transformations. All is Samsara, the turning Wheel of Existence.
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Truth desires to appear; truth longs to become conscious; truth strives to know itself.
There is truth in the stone, for the stone is here; and no power in the world, no god, no man, no demon, can destroy its existence. But the stone has no consciousness. There is truth in the plant and its life can expand; the plant grows and blossoms and bears fruit. Its beauty is marvelous, but it has no consciousness. There is truth in the animal; it moves about and perceives its surroundings; it distinguishes and learns to choose. There is consciousness, but it is not yet the consciousness of Truth. It is a consciousness of self only.
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“A man that stands alone, having decided to obey the Truth and its precepts, may be weak and slip back into his old ways. Therefore, stand together each one of you, assist one another, and strengthen one another’s efforts. Be like brothers to one another; one in love, one in holiness, and one in your zeal for the truth.”
“Spread the Truth and teach the Dharma in all quarters of the world, so that in the end all living creatures will be citizens of the Celestial Kingdom of Light. This is the holy brotherhood; this is the Sangha, the assembly of the blessed disciples of Buddha Mani; this is the Sangha that establishes unity among all those who have taken their refuge in the Truth and the Three Jewels.”
“To the Sangha will I look in faith; the Sangha of the ordained male and female monks and nuns instructs us how to lead a life of virtuousness; the Sangha of the ordained monks and nuns teaches us how to exercise honesty and justice; the Sangha of the ordained monks and nuns shows us how to practice the truth and the precepts.
They form a brotherhood in kindness and charity, and their blessed ones are worthy of reverence. The Sangha of the ordained monks and nuns is founded as a blessed brotherhood and sisterhood in which the disciples of Buddha Mani bind themselves together to teach the behests of rectitude and to do good. Therefore, to the Sangha, also consisting of the Householders, will I look in faith.”
“Namo, namo, Buddha Mani, both from myself and from the Lord Who sent me to you and Who chose you to spread the Dharma. He has commanded you to invite others in your own right and to teach on His behalf the Truth, laying it upon you to do so with your utmost effort.”
“Very many are the visions and very great the marvels which he showed me throughout all that period of my youth.”