We shall now attempt to look into this big problem. Actually all problems do not go beyond the confines of "cause and effect resulting from good and evil." Good causes bring success; evil causes doom people to failure. The immutable law of cause and effect dictates that "if you plant melons you get melons; if you plant beans you get beans." This law has kept the world from being completely annihilated. If good causes could bring failure and evil causes could bring success, then there would be no laws of Nature at all, and the world would have long ago vanished.

How do we prevent the world from being utterly destroyed? By changing the hearts of people so they become good. When people's hearts turn toward the good, then alight fills the world-the light of wisdom. People with wisdom have a glow of righteousness about them. Everything they do exemplifies what is bright, great, proper and just. They seek to benefit all of humankind. They don't discriminate on the basis of race, nationality, or religion. They long to see the world become a unified whole where all beings are equal and live in harmony.

However, now is a time when people's moral behavior is declining drastically to the point that almost everyone is selfish and self-seeking. More and more people sacrifice the happiness of the majority in order to fulfill their own private desires. For that reason, the world becomes darker and darker day by day and people become more stupid as time goes on. The situation now has grown so precarious that all the inhabitants of the world are poised on the brink of extinction. If we do not exhaust our efforts to turn this tide of selfishness, then the outcome is inevitable: the utter destruction of everyone. None will escape this doom.

How can the world be saved? We could start by "doing no evil and performing every good." if everyone does good works and refrains from doing evil, then the influence will be all-pervasive. From the top international leaders down to the most common citizens, we are all capable of shining our wisdom light to dispel the darkness of stupidity. If we join together in this, we can remove the dark shadows that cover the world and replace them with bright, wholesome energy. That is how to put an end to wars.

We now live in the gloom of a dark night. Born as if drunk, we die as if in a dream. We need light. Darkness casts fear in people's hearts; everyone becomes worried and miserable. Bright light brings happiness to people's hearts. Darkness and light are created by good and evil thoughts. People's minds can destroy the world; yet people's minds can also reform the world.

Buddhist disciples are intent on learning to get rid of their false minds and on finding their true minds. The Buddhadharma is an invaluable, precious raft that can ferry across the people of this world. That is because the Dharma contains the methods by which people's thoughts can be influenced toward the good.

Everything in the world works by opposites. The cons balance out the pros. For example, by watching television, you learn a great deal about international affairs. Without leaving your living room, you become aware of all the happenings in the world as they filter through your TV screen. Becoming well-informed is a good aspect of television. And yet, there are many bad points to TV viewing too. The negative influence television exerts on children is horrendous. They learn ways to cheat and steal and commit all sorts of crimes that violate the laws of heaven and nature. Increased TV watching has contributed to the breakdown of families, and the disintegration of social mores. Many youths raised in front of the TV set have now become misfits and vagrants who go around stirring up trouble everywhere. In the future when these young people take their place ruling this world, how can we expect there to be peace? So, corrupting children is one major evil of TV viewing. Therefore, for the sake of the generations to come, for the preservation of the world's future, we should discourage our children from watching television. If people simply would not buy TV sets, they could eliminate this problem at its root.

The world has degenerated to the point that our very atmosphere is pervasively dark, dismal, and toxic. What should we do? First, as members of the human race, we should each work to get rid of our own bad habits and problems. We should brush away our greed, anger and stupidity and act as models who influence others to go toward the good. Only if we rectify our own thoughts and actions can we be effective models in exhorting other people to be virtuous. Otherwise, we will only be mouthing empty words. For example, the two monks doing Three Steps, One Bow have chosen to influence the world by their actions on their pilgrimage. They have resolved to bow and dedicate the merit derived from their work to the stopping of all wars and the elimination of all lethal weaponry. They have influenced many people to cleanse their hearts of greed, anger, and stupidity. If people get rid of those three poisons, then the world will become peaceful. If the world is peaceful, then it won't be destroyed.

People who view the entire world's predicament as their personal responsibility have hearts of great compassion. For example, when Shakyamuni Buddha cultivated the Bodhisattva path in his past lives, he endured uncountable sufferings. For what purpose? He suffered in order to influence living beings to cultivate according to the Dharma, to leave suffering and attain bliss. I often say to you,

To endure suffering is to end suffering; but To enjoy blessings is to use up blessings.

Look into this and base your actions on this principle.