The seeds of bad habits
One day, while the Buddha and Sariputra were standing under the sun, a little bird flew near and stood in the shadow of Sariputra. All the time it was there, however, the bird was trembling and frightened. It seemed to be on the alert and very restless. After a while, it flew over to rest in the shadow of the Buddha. This move had transformed the behaviour of the bird. It seemed to have found some form of protection in the Buddha's shadow as it settled calmly in comfort.
Seeing this, Sariputra curiously asked the Buddha: " Buddha! When this bird was in my shadow, I had not raised any thought of harming or killing it. Why was it trembling and did not want to stay?"
The Buddha said: " Although you had no intention of hurting it, the remaining influence of your anger accumulated since time immemorial was sensed by the little bird. This was why it was so frightened under your shadow and was afraid you might harm it."
On hearing this explanation by the Buddha, Sariputra said regretfully: "Buddha! I now know that I am still not compassionate enough. From now on, I will aim at becoming more compassionate so that the influence of my habitual anger can be eliminated. How can I deliver sentient beings if even a bird would not approach me?"
'Influence of past bad habits' is latent in all of us. It is the force that is left of our cumulative store of defilements. When we are strongly affected, it means we have still retained a lot of bad habits. In the Sutra, this influence has been compared to seeds, which will be manifested in our actions and behaviour under the right conditions. Worldlings have been unable to escape the cycle of reincarnation because they have not severed completely from this influence of the past. Buddhism is to help us demolish it and replace it with the new seeds of purity. There is a common saying:' The lakes and mountains may change, but our nature by birth is difficult to move'. Though it may be difficult to move, it is not impossible. We only need to have the courage and resolve to repent, and reforming ourselves should not be a problem. We know that ' everyone can accomplish Buddhahood'.
If we believe in this, there should be nothing that cannot be achieved!
