My very dear Vera,
Thank you very much for your kind letter.

I did an observation regarding which deity you should practice for your quickest enlightenment and to be able to quickly enlighten all sentient beings. It came out as: Yamantaka and Secret Chenrezig Gyalwa Gyatso. So, when the time comes, take the initiation to do retreats and study the commentaries.

Regarding your question about being an accountant, it is my understanding that being an accountant itself is no problem. Actually, the work can be most beneficial for sentient beings and the teachings of Buddha; it depends on the motivation one has and how one does the work. This can be a good or bad motivation. If being an accountant itself is bad, then whatever job we do will also become bad.

If we say the job is bad because we have problems, then that would apply to all jobs. So, one can’t generalize like that. Otherwise, all the rest of the jobs in the world also become bad, because sometimes we have difficulties in each job. Sometimes people who are accountants are really benefiting sentient beings and the teachings of Buddha; sometimes this job can be incredibly beneficial for others.

The most important thing you need is to have a good motivation, a good heart to benefit all sentient beings. If being an accountant benefits the teachings of Buddha, then from your job sentient beings receive happiness. This is how having a good education, with a good heart, and your accounting become virtuous.

Even if you don’t have a good education and you are an accountant and make many mistakes, but because you have a good motivation, a good heart, your activities become virtuous. So, your life is not wasted because you are practicing Dharma. This means that one’s problem comes from a bad, impure motivation, such as the self-cherishing thought, ignorance, anger, and attachment. All of our problems come from an impure motivation.

Of course, there can be harm if one does not know accounting well and makes many mistakes in the job, which has an effect on others, even if one is doing the job with a good heart.

So, this is not just referring to being an accountant, this refers to any work you do; being an accountant is just an example. You don’t have to pray to be free from being an accountant. Instead, you should pray to be liberated from all the sufferings of samsara, all the sufferings of the hell realms, hungry ghost, animal, human realms, suras and asuras and intermediate state beings, by ceasing delusion and karma, actualizing the path, and completing the path, especially to achieve enlightenment and to enlighten all sentient beings as quickly as possible by completing the Mahayana path as quickly as possible.

Every job one has is going to have difficulties, so to pray for a job without difficulties is not the solution. It is better to pray to be free from samsara and to be able to free all sentient beings as quickly as possible.

Thank you very much.

With much love and prayers...