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Buddhist texts present the following hypothetical analogy to illustrate this rarity. Suppose a blind turtle lives at the bottom of an ocean and comes to the surface only once every hundred years, and yet its neck which is constantly being swayed by the waves of the ocean. Human birth, it is argued, is rarer than the turtle getting stuck to the yoke. Using such examples and many other methods, one is made to see the preciousness of human birth.<ref>(link to meditation on the precious human body, refer book, audio, etc.)</ref> | Buddhist texts present the following hypothetical analogy to illustrate this rarity. Suppose a blind turtle lives at the bottom of an ocean and comes to the surface only once every hundred years, and yet its neck which is constantly being swayed by the waves of the ocean. Human birth, it is argued, is rarer than the turtle getting stuck to the yoke. Using such examples and many other methods, one is made to see the preciousness of human birth.<ref>(link to meditation on the precious human body, refer book, audio, etc.)</ref> | ||
Such a human state is not only rare and precious but very fragile. As such, one should meditate on the certainty of death and the uncertainty of when and how it will come. A student carries out meditation on the impermanence of life in order to cherish momentary existence and urgently make the best use of it. Meditation on the rarity of human existence and its impermanent nature is often followed by meditation on the law of cause and effect and the flaws of the cycle of existence, also known as samsara. If one does not take advantage of this fleeting human state to break the cycle of rebirth, one is bound to follow the law of cause and effect, and given the negative actions accumulated in innumerable lifetimes in the past, one is bound to remain trapped in this cycle of existence, which is filled with misery and pain. These four points of meditation, which often constitute the first set of topics for meditation in Tibetan Buddhism, are known as the four points of mind turning (''blo ldog rnam pa bzhi''), as they turn one’s mind away from the cycle of ordinary existence and are considered to be foundational practices on a spiritual path.<ref>(links for meditation on four points of mind turning.)</ref> | |||
<h4>Mental Support</h4> | |||
Just as holding dear the precious humanhood, one must also cherish and take advantage of the brief mental moments of positive thought and moral growth. Śantideva writes in ''The Way of the Bodhisattva'': | |||
{{QuoteCite | |||
|quote-text=Just as on a dark night black with clouds, | |||
The sudden lightning glares and all is clearly shown, | |||
Likewise rarely, through the Buddhas’ power, | |||
Virtuous thoughts rise, brief and transient, in the world. (1.5)<ref>Blankleder and Fletcher, Way of the Bodhisattva, 32.</ref> | |||
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