Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Fivefold Stinginess (part 2) (五慳二)
The Fivefold Stinginess may cause all wrongdoings. The Fivefold Stinginess: Stinginess of Abode, Stinginess of Sharing Alms, Stinginess in Praise, Stinginess of Assets, Stinginess of Sharing the Dharma.
As mentioned yesterday, there are five kinds of stinginess in our minds. Stinginess means being unwilling to share or give and wanting to keep everything to yourself. That is what stinginess means. The Stinginess of Abode, which we mentioned yesterday, includes wanting a bigger place than others and being unwilling to share living space. Even while eating, the stingy one does not want to share a table with those whom he dislikes and he does not want to stand in line with those he dislikes. In all occasions, he always wants to monopolize everything.
Those whom he dislikes cannot be anywhere near him. This is narrow-mindedness and stinginess with spaces and materials.
The thought of monopolizing the place where one belongs, and excluding and repelling those whom one dislikes Is called the Stinginess of Abode.
The second is Stinginess in Sharing Alms. If others are giving something away, a stingy person feels, “I must receive it.” He has to receive more and is unwilling to share equally with others. No he does not want to share, everything must be for him only. He wants to monopolize everything. He wants to keep every good tem to himself,
and doesn’t want others to enjoy the same good benefits. This is wrong. That is being narrow-minded.
Unwillingness to share the things that one likes; unwillingness to share profits evenly with others; desire to monopolize everything-all of these are Stinginess in Sharing Alms.
The third is the Stinginess in Praise- wanting people to only praise him but not others, being self-centered and believing that he does everything better than anyone else. In modern terms, this is called narcissism. He sees himself as the greatest and feels that everyone should praise him. He cannot endure hearing others being praised. It is painful for him. This mindset is called Stinginess in Praise.
Being self-centered, seeing yourself as better than others, and expecting people to praise only you but not others, is called Stinginess in Praise.
Do you remember this phrase from the Jing S Aphorisms: “To praise others is to beautify oneself? That means praising others is a virtue. We should often speak good words, and praise others. Do not monopolize the praises. Not wanting anyone else but ourselves to be praised makes our lives miserable.
The fourth is Stinginess of Assets. Wealth is something we seek insatiably. The more the better. Yet to use the earned money properly, and to use the assets effectively, this requires wisdom. This is something we must constantly reflect on. People who are stingy in sharing wealth not only will not give alms, but will get angry when they see others giving alms. We have probably often heard and seen people like that.
When we solicit for charity funds, we want to inspire the giver to do good. We hope to teach the rich and help the poor. We hope that they can be inspired to share their love. How do we show our loving thoughts? By being willing to give and contribute. Giving others what they need is an expression of love. There are many who live in scarcity, especially among the poor and the sick. There are also many with the means to help. So we can entice the ones with the means to help those who are in need. This is called educating the rich and helping the poor.
Everyone knows this is a good principle, but when asked to help, some become reluctant. Do you remember? In August, 1999, there was an earthquake in Turkey. The earthquake ruined the homes of countless people. We felt very sorry, and wanted people to know of this startling disaster. We are all on this Earth together. Wherever there is disharmony we should be on high alert.
That is why I say that an earth-shattering disaster should bring about a world-awakening realization. Even though Turkey is far away, we are on the same Earth. Therefore, those who are in a safe place should help those who are suffering. Besides, this is a kind of awakening.
People live between blessings and disasters. We should constantly reflect on why we are so blessed in our daily lives, or why everything in our life has worked out so perfectly for us. Without alertness and self-reflection, we will not realize our blessings, for we rarely have other opportunities to reflect. Though worldly disasters, we can see and compare ourselves to others. We should contemplate why others are suffering so much, and live under such harsh conditions, and why disasters keep happening to them. We should put ourselves in others’ circumstances to gain a deeper understanding.
This is what the Buddha meant by “suffering is the reality”. Immersed in bliss, we are deluded and think that this is the reality of life. Therefore, we never come to a realization or awareness and can never be enlightened. We must practice through adversity. When there is a disaster far away from us, we must reflect on why so many disasters occur. It is because all sentient beings share collective karma, the force of which is called “vibration.” When the force overflows, it will shift and move.
We must quickly come to a realization. When such a devastating disaster happens, we must raise our awareness and all everyone’s attention to the fact that in this faraway place called Turkey, such a catastrophic disaster has occurred. Everyone must quickly come to a realization.
What do we need to realize? We must work together to create be blessings. If one person creates one blessing then more people create more blessings. When we pool our efforts together, we may reduce the shared karma. The stronger the negative karma, the greater the disasters. The more positive the karma, the more peaceful the world. This is like a tug of war between good and evil.
So at the time of the earthquake, we asked each person to perform one good deed, or to at least think sympathetic thoughts. We wanted people to at least know that such a disaster had happened. So we held a special fundraiser for Turkey. We are grateful to the Tzu Chi volunteers who all put their love into action and raised funds on the streets.
During the street fundraising, there were a lot of moving stories. Do you remember? There was a story of a disabled person who could not stand up. He had always crawled on the ground. When he saw the Tzu Chi people holding the donation boxes, he wanted to contribute. As a beggar, he still wanted to donate. Although the volunteers were extremely mindful, they did not notice that there was a person who kept trying to crawl toward them. So they kept in walking, and he crawled behind them, trying to get closer. He kept calling to our volunteers, but they did not hear him.
A passerby then called the volunteers. They turned their heads and saw him. The moment they saw him, they thought that this man might need some help. So they walked back toward him quickly. “What’s the matter? Do you need any help?”
“No. l’d like to donate money.”
So they quickly squatted down.
“Help the poor to realize their riches,” is something that l also say. It is good for the poor to also develop their love. The compassion of the poor and the rich are equal, and so are their blessings. Hence, our volunteer bent down. And the beggar dropped NT$500 in the box. “This is too much, too much.”
"Not at all. I can't contribute physically, but I'll do whatever I can do to help."
"Where do you live? Do you need our help?"
"No, thanks. I live alone. I am grateful to still be able to come out on my own every day."
He crawled on the ground. His legs and hands were deformed. Living as a beggar, he could still save money and donate all he had. Although poor financially, he is rich spiritually. He is the rich among the poor.
Around the same time, some people saw our fundraising, and denounced us openly.
They not only had nothing good to say, but they scolded us unpleasantly, "Why help other places but not Taiwan? We don't even know where Turkey is." They not only used abusive language, furthermore, when they saw Tzu Cheng members holding the posters and Tzu Chi commissioners carrying the donation boxes, some not only cursed openly, but also physically hammered at the posters.
One of them even said, "If you want to help, help me instead! I need help!" He then put his hands inside the box. Seeing that, our commissioner lowered the box away from him. So the bystanders scolded his action. Look, this man not only did not want to donate, he also got angry when he saw others soliciting or donating. This is called Stinginess in Assets.
Not wanting to give, but instead getting angry when seeing others give, this is called Stinginess in Assets.
So in learning Buddhism, we should learn to be open-minded. In addition to always saying good words, we must always be open-minded and realize that the one who helps others is the most blessed. We must constantly contemplate that disasters are derived from collective karma. There is peace and stability in society with the gathering of good karma. So we must always have a mind of vigilance.
Fifth is Stinginess in Sharing the Dharma. It means that after learning the Dharma, we need to apply it well. Good Dharma must be passed on. We hope that everyone has the opportunity to hear Dharma and good teachings. In addition, we must also practice them physically. So the Dharma or good teachings are not just for one person alone.
If we are the only ones who know, and most people in the world do not, then more people will create evil karma. People spread the Way, the Way won't spread itself.
Everyone has the responsibility to spread good teachings. So do not be stingy in sharing the Dharma. Do not feel that only we need to know, that others do not need to know.
When we wish to keep all the good teachings and Buddha-Dharma to ourselves and are unwilling to spread them, this is called Stinginess in Sharing the Dharma.
Look, Tzu Chi volunteers continuously spread the seeds of love and pass down the good teachings. But I think we are not doing enough. We should let more people know and not leave the good teachings hidden in our minds. We must promote them widely.
The Fivefold Stinginess leads to all wrongdoings. We should all avoid the Fivefold Stinginess. Do not let stinginess and greed stay in the mind. We must open our hearts.
Do not be stingy and greedy. This is not right. The universe is vast. Our minds should be open and broad. In this way, our world can be free of disasters.
(Source: Da Ai TV 靜思晨語 法譬如水)
首頁 
