Creating a Heavenly Family through Dhammakaya : หน้า 27/62

alcohol, gambling and adultery. If we resolve to live virtuously, even to experiment with it for a period as short as one month, we will see an immediate surge in happiness within our family. We refer to a 'heavenly family' as a 'Dhammakaya family. The word Dhammakaya means 'Body of Enlightenment', 'Dhamma Body', Truth Body A Dhammakaya family does not refer only to a Buddhist family, because Dhammakaya exists in all human beings. It is the enlightened form, an inner refuge, which is located at the centre of the body in every person in the world. True happiness can be realized and the truth of life is understood when one attains the Dhammakaya within. When family members practice meditation and attain the Dhammakaya within, that family becomes a Dhammakaya family - a heavenly family There is an urgent need for all of us to reach the status of a Dhammakaya family so that our family will be full of love and happiness. We must strive to reach our inner, enlightened qualities or else our existence is not worthwhile. We may doubt whether it is possible that we may possess an enlightened form within ourselves. One way to confront this doubt is through meditation. All serenity and peace begins at the centre of the body when the mind is still and void of all thoughts. When we can calm the mind and bring it to a completely still state, a supreme sense of happiness will spread throughout our body and radiate outward to encompass our family. If each member practices meditation daily, it is possible to achieve the 'heavenly family' state before long. In the time of the Buddha, one example of a Dhammakaya family was the Anathapindika family. Everyone in Anathapindika's household from his wife, children and servants - all attended the temple, listened to the Dhamma, and lived a life of purity. On Buddhist Holy Days, everyone observed The Eight Precepts, even the youngest children. They all reached their Dhammakaya within. This is an example of a heavenly family. Any family that has alcohol, cigarettes and other unwholesome items within the house will find it difficult to become a heavenly family. The atmosphere of the house will be saturated with the offensive smell of tobacco smoke and alcohol, together with the noise from all the yelling and the fighting going on in the house. PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com