Question:
Dear
venerable, the habit of each person is different. Some have good habits, some
don’t. I’d like to ask Luang Phaw what caused these good and bad habits.
Answer
by Venerable Dhattajeevo Bhikku
Human habits come from the reiteration and repeated thoughts
of each person. Since our habits are based on the same reason, the next
question is what makes the difference between them.
If we have good attitudes while our reiteration and repeated
thoughts are being run, we will have a good habit. On the other hand, if the
reiteration and repeated thoughts are about bad things, bad habits will be
begotten. This is the principle.
Then the next question is what are the things that humans
usually repeat. The things that humans like to repeat in their whole life
starting from their birth till their death are these 4 things.
The first thing is about the 4 requisites for comfort;
namely, provisions, clothing, shelter and remedies. All these things are called
four requisites for comfort and they are the things we emphasize in our whole
lives.
The second thing is our regular activities; namely,
sleeping, waking up, cleaning ourselves, brushing our teeth, etc.
The third thing that humans regularly do, think and talk
about is their careers. If the careers they have are the right livelihoods, it’s
possible that they will have good habits. On the other hand, if somebody earns
money from stealing, we can take an easy guess what kind of person he will be.
Fourth, another thing people always think and do though they
don’t mean to are the things from their environment no matter if it is about
human or nature; for instance, if a family lives in a slum that is always noisy
in the mornings, they will have a habit that is different from the people from a
family that lives among the people who like to go to temples.
Well. Briefly, habits are begotten from what people usually
think, say and do; for example, the habits that are begotten from the 4
requisites for comfort starting from food. If the parents of a family have an
attitude that we eat just to live, the children will love to spend money
sparingly and do good deeds; compared to another family with an attitude that
people live to eat , the members of the family will not care about the country
and are willing to corrupt. Do you see? Even an attitude about food can give
people a habit.
It’s the same to the way people eat. In a family that its members
eat together, they will love and care each other; compared to another family
that the dining time is up to individual person which is never the same, the
children will not love and care about each other since they already live
individually.
As well as about clothes, the attitudes of each family also
give an effect to their children; for instance, the children from a family
thinking that clothes are used just for protecting them from the sunlight, the
wind, the rain, the heat, the cold and
the shame will not be extravagant since their childhood; but on the other hand,
the children from the family caring so much about fashion and prominence will
have a different habit, i.e. they will always be globalized without having
their own standing point. Do you see?
Clothes can give people habits.
Besides, residence can also beget habits. Why? The children
who make their bed after waking up and help their mothers do housework will be
responsible since their childhood. But the ones who never make their beds can
be told that they are not responsible even to themselves through their
residence.
Meanwhile, think about healthcare. If parents take good care
of themselves and teach their children to do the same thing since their young
age, the children will slightly follow them starting from brushing teeth and
taking a shower correctly, etc.
These things that are repeated over and over again give
habits to people. Daily activities, careers and environment are the things
people always do, say and think repeatedly; and they all beget human habits. With
a good attitude, the things we repeatedly perform will give people a good habit.
On the contrary, with a bad attitude, actions that are repeatedly performed
will also give people a bad habit. Habits are actually from our basic daily
activities.
Therefore, you can make a decision. If you want you and your
descendants to have a good habit, you and they need to perform only good
actions repeatedly.
