20210324廣招菩薩共善行Inspiring More People to Do Good
We must always remain vigilant and sincerely pious. Having come to this world, we must work to benefit all humanity. See how the Buddha came to this world to guide everyone to end suffering. The COVID-19 pandemic is still rampant. Everyone’s heart remains unsettled, businesses and industries have been deeply impacted, and many things have changed. Due to people’s anxiety, cases of social unrest have occurred around the world. This is truly worrying.
Those of us who are safe and well are truly blessed. We must cherish and be grateful for this blessing. Even in times of safety and peace, we must remain vigilant and sincerely pious, harbor goodness within, care for those in suffering, and sow blessings for the world. This is how we can benefit all humanity.
Look at this Jing Si Aphorism.
Did you post it here as a reminder?
Yes. I can see it whenever I sit here. Indeed, hard work brings wealth. I often think about this to give myself strength. We must keep our desires in check rather than want this or that. By saving money, we’ll become well-to-do over time. We shouldn’t spend money on unnecessary things. Even if I make donations, I do not become poor. I’m neither rich nor poor. I’m spiritually wealthy, so I’m content and happy.
I often remind everyone that with few wants, one will never be poor. We must consume less so we won’t lack resources. We must cherish resources so we won’t discard things and buy more. Discarding things will pose a major environmental problem. If people keep discarding things and recyclables are not collected, natural resources will become depleted.
People have been discarding the old and buying the new. Is there much land for garbage disposal? Should we burn garbage? It’ll pollute the air, which will in turn cause a rise in global temperatures. Nature’s elements of earth, water, fire, and air have become imbalanced, which is truly worrying.
There have been earthquakes. Ten years ago, on March 11, northeast Japan was hit by a devastating earthquake. It’s been ten years since the quake. According to scientists, the quake that occurred a few days ago was an aftershock of the major quake and more aftershock are expected. Due to the imbalance of Nature’s elements, not only climate disasters but tectonic plates are also in active motion, pushing one another. Such motions are hard to measure.
The Buddha said that all matter undergoes changes that are often too subtle for us to notice. The same can be said of our physical changes. Old age comes after childhood and adulthood, and everyone goes through birth, aging, illness, and death.
We see Ms. Zhuang Zi-yao, who was a Tzu Chi commissioner in Kaohsiung. She served with Tzu Chi for 41 years and was a certified volunteer for 35 years. She was very experienced and was fully dedicated to Tzu Chi’s work. We have faith that she’d sown many blessings and formed good affinities with many people. She has passed away, is at peace, and when she comes to this world again, everyone will be happy to see her and she will continue to harbor goodness within and dedicate herself to Tzu Chi’s work.
She always thought of me and loved me dearly. In her next life, she will continue to sow blessings and walk the Tzu Chi Path. This is the cycle of rebirth. As Tzu Chi members, we will guide one another life after life, and most importantly, guide one another to walk towards the Bodhisattva Path and cultivate right views, right thinking, and right conduct. So, Zi-yao’s passing is a blessing. Let us give her our best wishes.
Birth and death is a natural cycle. Having come to this world, we must come to terms with our lot and seize our lives to sow blessings for the world. If we keep our hearts and minds at ease, we will not worry about what may happen to us. Even if we are ill or things do not go our way, we must think: “Thankfully, I’m a Tzu Chi member and the Dharma has pointed out the right path in life for me, so even when faced with such a difficulty, I can still be at ease and peace.”
With each passing second, we must be grateful for being able to remain at peace. In the cycle of rebirth, we must be firm in our steps and walk the Bodhisattva Path unwaveringly. Otherwise, in the future, there will be more collective bad karma. Just think, there are more than seven billion people in the world, and only a small percentage of people have joined Tzu Chi.
This is why I often tell everyone that we must work hard to recruit volunteers. I hope more and more people will join our rank and that Tzu Chi’s Dharma lineage can be passed on forever and ever. I hope each Tzu Chi volunteer can be like a seed that can grow into a big tree and give rise to countless seeds. This way, there will be generations and generations of Tzu Chi members, and in our next lives, we will also become the future generations of Tzu Chi members. While we follow the cycle of rebirth, our Bodhi tree will always yield abundant fruits.
If we pave the Bodhisattva Path generation after generation, the path will always exist no matter how the Dharma declines. So, we must strive to pave the path, and most importantly, we must do so with sincere piety. Let us pray for the pandemic to end quickly. Let us work to purify people’s hearts and minds so as to bring Nature’s elements back to balance. That is our shared goal.
首頁 