LIVING LIFE SERIES 1

A BO TIEN (武天) MISSION INITIATIVE LAUNCHED ON 28TH SEPT 2010 BY INNER TRUTH NETIZEN 2. THE MISSION IS TO SHOW THE WAY TO HOPE, INNER PEACE AND ULTIMATELY SALVATION FOR ALL BEINGS. THE PURPOSE IS TO SAVE SOULS. IT IS WAY BEYOND NORMAL GOOD WORK LIKE CHARITY AND WELFARE ACTIVITIES. NO ONE SHALL BE SAVED BY GOOD WORKS ALONE BUT BY MORE THAN GOOD WORK. THERE IS NEED TO BE IMBUED WITH THE BASIC DOCTRINE COMMON TO AND BEHIND ALL RELIGIONS AND SECTS. LIVE IN DOCTRINE. DOCTRINE IN LIFE IS PARAMOUNT.

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The Living Life Series is dedicated to Lord Bo Tien (武天菩萨). The doctrine is in His image. The image is the doctrine. He who sees, understands and effects the doctrine sees and knows Him. He who does not see, know and effect the doctrine sees not and knows not the saint even if the saint or His image is beside him. The far may be near and the near may be far. Let the doctrine and the saint be part of our life. The lord saint in your life can be any heavenly saint of any religion, sect or school. The doctrine of truth is behind all and this is the Inner Truth that leads all (regardless of their religious affiliation or even if none) to inner peace and heaven on earth here and now and not just in the after life. The ideal worship and devotion is to know and effect the doctrine of God and the saints. The best gospel is the gospel of life. We learn from our life and the lives of others. The true temple is the world we live in. The sky is the roof of the temple and religions and sects are the pillars of the temple. All under Heaven are in the temple. Needless to say that all the saints we know are in this temple. Ji Gong Posat too is no exception. The whole wide world and web is the temple and must be regarded as a sacred place --- a temple for living and learning. It is more important that everyone that counts plays a role in this universal temple if due focus is to be given to the Mission of Heaven. Men must not be distracted by the agenda of men and end up serving the mission of man. That would be a far cry from the Mission of Heaven. We worship God and saints, not man however good that man may be. There should be no hero worshiping or idolizing of man whether he is a charismatic pastor, priest, monk, medium or lay leader. We don't even idol worship the image of any saint but reflect on what the image stands for. - the doctrine in the image. Omitofo 阿弥陀佛!.

Saturday, March 19, 2011

It is the little things in life that make the difference

No 254 of Living Life Series 1

Big issues count but it is the small things that make the difference.

Why small issues are important? A stitch in time saves nine. Little drops of water make a mighty ocean. Also, when we take care of small issues, big issues will not be there if we can handle the issues as they arise and nip them in the bud. Practise and cultivate peace in life a little at a time. Never mind if you are slow or still troubled in mind and far from peaceful for now. It is important that you do not stop trying and move on in life however slow you may be.

A fruit tree rooted in subterranean water will be there and bearing fruits even if there is drought but not the trees in big plantations which will wither in drought with no subterranean water. A man rooted in inner truth and practice of inner peace may not be as well off world wise as others much better off in good times. But in face of drought of life, he stands and still thrives. He is at peace when others many times better are not. Why? He is at peace as he is not affected by the yin and yang of life, for he stands at the centre of the pakua and not swept around by cyclical yin yang.

Nurture the candle flame of life however small and weak it may be compared to others. If sheltered by God and saints, this flame will glow and grow and not flicker in the wind.

Go for strength in numbers. A collection of candle flames can out do a big candle flame. This was alluded to by Lord Bo Tien.

If thus far, the efforts are not enough, seek the blessing and shelter of God and saints. With combined self effort and heavenly blessings, issues however big will be small even if they cannot be no issue due to the element of fate. Small issues will naturally be no issue.

Lord Bo Tien

In going about life, go for the little blessings in life. Often it is the little things in life that make the difference. Small things in every day life do add up and big things you will have. Also, it is easier to maintain the peace when you go for the small things in life. You are less upset if they do not come your way but surely you will have no problem getting many of the small things in life which do not require great effort and are not exacting.

The man of peace goes for the daily blessings of life and treasures them however small they may be. He does not take life for granted. He values life and often this translates to valuing the little blessings of life that come his way.

It is the little things in life that make the difference. All good things and for that matter, even the big things in life depend on our having the little things in our daily life which we often take for granted and often not even aware of. When we have them, we are complacent but when they are not there, we feel the loss and realise that the little things do count and are not little after all.

They do add up to big things to come. They do pave the way for more good things in life. It is from the little things that we can end up having big things. It is from starting small that one day we can end up big. All great men were small at some stage of their lives. Go for small if ever you want to give yourself the chance to be big one day. But do not insist that you must make it big.

This holds true for both mundane and spiritual life. The principle of being peaceful means we go for small steps and not take big leaps. A little spiritual peace every now and then will one day put us to the path of sainthood. The effort required is small and within the capability of all men. It is not in the least daunting.

The same spiritual principle of going small if you hope for better things if applied to mundane world will ensure peace and comfort in mundane secular life as well. This is the teaching of all saints and Lord Bo Tien is one of them.

Do not envy over what others have. Do not crave for what you yet to have. Do not rave over what you have. Do not stave off or deny life and left to waste what you have. Praise God for the little things in life. Then you will not crave, rave or stave off life. This may sound profound and complex but truth is actually so simple and yet difficult to perceive as what my late Senior Brother P Philip said.

At this juncture, let me share what I read many years ago. 50 years ago, one medical doctor at Ipoh Malaysia in the Voice of Buddhism wrote to a school boy to say that five precepts for a Buddhist is good enough.

"Five precepts are good enough for you. You do not need to know more or do more."

It may be a small step but it is all that boy needed to know and do to be big in spiritual in time to come, be it in present life or in afterlife.

The five precepts are: do not kill, do not steal, do not tell lies, do not commit sexual misconduct and do not be intoxicated.

The five precepts and for that matter the precepts of any religion

go some way to ensure peaceful and fruitful life, both spiritual and secular. The individual will also be peaceful and pleasant to others and will bring out the peaceful and pleasant side of others.

Inner truth netizen would like to add that one can belong to any religion or even if none but as long as one's beliefs enable one to go for the little joys in life, that would ensure that one's life is peaceful, pleasant, comfortable and fruitful in every day of life.

Take care of the little things and the big things will take care of themselves. Is this an overstatement? Dear readers you have to decide for yourself. Cheers and once again God bless.

Lest you forget

Do not make the mistake of idolizing any man who tells you about the Word. He is in the same boat as you even if religion refers to him as a religious leader. Mere mention of a religious leader is as good as encouraging idolising of that man. Why must there be hierarchy in religion? Hierarchy is conventional but may end up as liability rather than a necessity or asset. There should be no caste or hierarchy system in religion. No one is to be considered above another in religion. A religious leader or follower is a servant to serve you and not a leader to be idolised. Do not put him on the pedestal and make a monster out of him.

MAY ALL BE WELL AND HAPPY

May all be well and happy. May they have peace. May our departed friends and kins be well, happy and have divine peace. The main writer wishes the best for all for those near and far. Our kins may be far when they had passed on to better lives but they are near though far. He remembers and wishes his parents Mr Siow Soo Koh and Mdm Tay Hung Siang, his uncles and aunties like Mr Tay Koon Huay, his cousins like Mr Tay Chong Sim and his friends like Mr Philip Png well and have abundance of life. May they be rich in spirit for without such ancestors, there will be no posterity - no us and no you and me. They have blessed us and we must blessed them in return forever and ever.