Life Wisdom: Forbearance and Gratitude: The Keys to Ease and Peace
Due to manmade disasters, countless people have been displaced and are now homeless. Their situation is tragic and saddening. This world is truly filled with much suffering. Since life is impermanent, what is worth fighting to possess? The best way to enjoy life is by seizing time to help the needy, for doing so can bring us joy.
Many people say: "Let us bring forth our goodness and seize time to help those in suffering." When we help those in suffering, we will be filled with joy and have no afflictions or regrets. So, we must seize time to relieve people's suffering. If we have nothing to do, we might keep thinking about the debt others owe us.
We will become afflicted and might want to be repaid double the debt. If we are desperate to collect the debt or if we ask for double the debt, we will suffer greatly. So will the person we force to pay the debt. If driven into a corner, he or she might take a tooth for a tooth. This is how our thoughts might lead to the creation of turmoil rather than blessings.
To sow blessings, we must open our hearts and minds. Let bygones be bygones. When something does not go our way, we must endure without feeling we are enduring and also harbor gratitude within. Instead of thinking that we are enduring, we should be grateful for being able to dissolve our bad karma. We are paying our karmic debts. If we understand this, we will be able to turn tolerance into gratitude.
This is how we can be at ease and peace. The highest achievement of spiritual cultivation is being at ease and peace, free of afflictions. We must practice forbearance rather than crave wealth or fame, for wealth and fame are impermanent and seeking them brings us suffering. Let us gain a peace of mind through cultivation. Let us also pay our karmic debts willingly. Tzu Chi members all remember my words: "If we pay our karmic debts willingly, we will suffer less. If not, we will suffer even more."
In all, we must work hard to cultivate our hearts and minds. Instead of just saying it or thinking that we will do it, we truly must take action. I hope you can all look back at how much value you have created out of your lives. I've been mentioning this. Life is impermanent. We must strive to relieve people's suffering. This is how we live out our value in life.
“Flooding is rare in Shanxi Province. So, the flood this time makes everyone anxious. My colleagues make time to volunteer even though they have to work the night shift, which is very touching. Tzu Chi volunteers in five provinces in northern China came here to help in the immediate aftermath,” said Liu Liansheng, Taigang Group Volunteers.
The affected farmers were all desperate for relief supplies. When I gave out the relief supplies, I was so grateful that I was in tears. I keep saying that we must look back at how much value we have created out of our lives. We must also look back at how many wrongs we have done. Let us correct our bad ways quickly and do more things that can sow blessings for the world.
When something is right, we should just do it. The Buddha taught us to walk the Bodhisattva Path and practice the Six Paramitas of giving, moral discipline, forbearance, diligence, samadhi, and wisdom. In this time and age, it's not difficult to live out this teaching from the Buddha, for there are many people we can work with, the transportation is convenient, and information can be accessed easily. With access to a lot of information, as long as we have the heart to practice this teaching from the Buddha, it's not hard for us to do so.
Everyone, I hope you can pay more attention to what's happening in the world. See how our volunteers have been bringing together people with different religious beliefs, be it Buddhism, Catholicism, Christianity, or other religions. Our relief work brings everyone's heart together. Regardless of religion, everyone works together to help the needy.
Learning people of other religions wish to help the needy but cannot provide relief supplies, we feel blessed to live in safety and peace, and so, we do all we can to deliver relief supplies to them so they can give out the supplies to those we can't reach out to. This is how relief work can be carried out with mutual support.
In all, when a disaster occurs, our volunteers will come forth to provide aid. Isn't there a passage in the Lotus Sutra that describes how Bodhisattvas emerged from the ground? Indeed, when a disaster occurs, locals who have been inspired to volunteer with us and volunteers from other countries and regions will go to the aid of those affected. Aren't our volunteers like Bodhisattvas emerging from the ground and coming from all directions?
Everyone, please read the Lotus Sutra and make a comparison. The Buddha taught us to relieve people's suffering. In our times, we have convenient transportation, easy access to information, and ample manpower and material supplies. So, we must seize time to help those in suffering. This is doable for all Tzu Chi members.
May we all look back at what we've done and aspire to serve as living bodhisattvas. We must sow blessings for ourselves. To do it, we must look back at our past. If we've committed wrongs, we must change our bad ways quickly. Don't we chant every day about vowing to eliminate our bad karma, walking the Bodhisattva Path life after life, and repenting our past greed, anger, ignorance, etc.? We should not only chant these principles but also guide all to live them out.
To mitigate disasters, we must always harbor sincere piety within. We must bring balance and harmony to the climate, the land, and people's minds so the world can be free of disasters.
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