As stated in the sutras, "Existence in the human realm is rare, and all is impermanent. " Most of you here are already in your 30s and 40s. The remaining days, a few more decades at the most, are really not that long and will soon pass by before you know it. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee the opportunity to practice will present itself again in the next life you fail to seize it this time. So the point is to lay the necessary foundation now as the stepping-stones leading to a better start for the next life. 

~Depicted from From Believers to Boddhisattvas

If we are neither Mahayana nor Hinayana practitioners, then strictly speaking, we are not Buddhist practitioners at all. What are we after all? At best, we are believers of Buddhism or of Shakyamuni Buddha, who may intermittently chant some mantras and do some good deeds here and there. Really, just be a little better than non-believers. Though we may have had many teaching and empowerments, met more than a few respectable teachers and practitioners, we still cannot get any closer to even the edge of liberation. Worse, it must have been horrifying to discover that we possibly may not even be Buddhist practitioners when going through the aforementioned self-examnination. 

~Depicted from From Believers to Buddhisattvas

Naturally, before cultivating great compassion, one should generate renunciation first. Once cannot have great compassion for sentient beings if one is unaware of the suffering of samsara, because for sentient beings if one is unaware of the suffering of samsara, because compassion comes from the suffering of sentient beings. No compassion, no bodhicitta either. The other condition for developing renunciation is the desire for liberation. When seeing the suffering of sentient beings, one aspires to save them from the clutches of samsara forever. But on second thought, how can one help others if one cannot attain liberation for oneself in the first place ? With this in mind, the two requisites for generating renunciation - aversion to samsara and desire for liberation - are complete. 

~Depicted from From Believers to Boddhisattvas

With strenuous effort, an iron bar can be ground into a needle. Likewise, with persistent meditation, we can suppress negative and destructive emotions such as greed, aggression, pride, and jealousy, etc, and our mind will reach a state of freedom to some extent. Freedom here means being free from anxiety, and maintaining joy for extended periods if you want.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

Yong people are not above this either. They may look lie they can afford to play and have fun all the time. But once they begin to contemplate the purpose of this life and the question of the beginning and the ending of life, the cannot help but realize that the two ends of this present, fleeting moment. Most of them, unable to face this frightening conclusion directly, just cast these issues aside and ignore them. 

~Depicted from From Believers to Boddhisattva

Naturally, before cultivating great compassion, one should generate renunciation first. One cannot have great compassion for sentient beings if one is unaware of the suffering of samsara, because compassion comes from the suffering of sentient beings. No compassion, no bodhicitta either. The other condition for developing renunciation is the desire for liberation. When seeing the suffering of sentient beings, one aspires to save them from the cluthes of samsara forever. But on second thought, how can one help others if one cannot attain liberation for oneself in the first place ? With this in mind, the two requisites for generating renunciation - aversion to samsara and desire for liberation- are complete. 

~Depicted from FROM BELIEVERS TO BODHISATTVAS

Although from the meditative concentration’s point of view, the heavenly beings in the form and formless realm are endowed with great capacity, the meditative concentration they abide in is mere tranquility, which is devoid of the wisdom of realisation, thus their meditative concentration has nothing to do with liberation. Among sentient beings in the three worlds and the six realms, only humans have the best chance to attain liberation. Thus being a human is fairly significant, we need to cherish our human body.

~Depicted from LUMINOUS WISDOM BOOK SERIES

Although it is understandable for laypersons to acquire a skill or two in order to make a living, it has nothing to do with liberation and is not the purpose of life, only something we do temporarily. Nonetheless, it does not mean that we ought to drop everything we do once we start Buddhist practice. If that were the case, Buddhism would not stay viable for long either. In Buddhist tradition, there have always been two distinct groups of lay and monastic practitioners. The monastics dedicate themselves solely to Buddhist practice whereas lay practitioners are not supposed to concern themselves fully with worldly matters, like those who do not practice at all. Appropriately measured participation in the mundane activities is already quite sufficient. 

~Depicted from From Believer to Bodhisattvas

Many people are practicing the five extraordinary preliminaries diligently. If you ask them, "Why do you practice the five preliminaries?" "If I don't, I won't be allowed to begin the main practice of the Great Perfection." or, "Without practicing these preliminaries, I cannot listen to the teachings on the Great Perfection." These answers may sound reasonable at first glance. However, if you ask further, " What happens if you are barred from practicing the Great Perfection or listening to its teachings?" "Then it will be very hard from me to attain liberation." Ask again, " What would happen if you were to attain liberation?" "I would have no more suffering, nor any defilements" 

If your motivation is as such, there can be no boddhicitta to speak of in your practice. In other words, where can we find bodhicitta, one of the five extraordinary preliminaries, that you are supposed to be practicing? I'm afraid your so-called bodhicitta practice may just be a matter of completing the required mantra recitations. Bodhicitta itself, on the other hand, has yet been aroused in your mindstream. You may think that your practice is to generate boddhicitta, but your aim is actually selfish. This can hardly be the way of a genuine practice of boddhicitta. And your practice of the five preliminaries also inadvertently becomes a Hinayana practice as you have completely missed the point about bodhicitta. 

~Depicted from FROM BELIEVERS TO BODHISATTVAS