Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

"Red" comfort is gained from worldly pleasures, such as
those of food or contact with the opposite sex. Whether
people are bent on the first or the second, they never
think of the shortness of life, or when they may die, or
of disease, old age, and so forth. Although they do not
think about these things, they are just like deer with
many wounds from hunters' arrows.
Even those who come to a monastery with the idea of
becoming monks may be treated very well, with plenty
of food, good beds, and fine views from the windows.
Chinese monasteries are commonly built on or near
famous mountains and have much land with many
farmers working to support them.
Under the present regime in China, read "had"
instead of "have."
There was no need for visitors to bring food from one's
family, as was the usual practice among Tibetans. All
this, we see, is very comfortable and really shows a lack
of the Hinayana spirit of renunciation. Of course, not all
monks and monasteries are like this, but still this
condition was certainly very common.
One should think of taking refuge as similar to the small
chicks crowding under the wings of their mother when
things around them threaten to harm them. Or else one
may think of the Tibetan refugees when they escaped
from their Communist-dominated homeland to India,
730