No 348 of Living Life Series 1
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| Lord Bo Tien |
Thus have been heard that emissaries of the lord saint had said that the mission of the lord saint to bring out the inner truth behind religious practices have to undergo phases.
Firstly there are three baptism or developmental hurdles or phases before it can establish a foothold proper in this world. They are the fire phase, the flood or water phase and the human obstacle phase.
It had also been said that there will be also be three success phases - the Bo Tien phase, the Kuanyin phase and the Buddha phase.
Brethren, the mission is to save souls and can be seen at two levels --- at societal level and at individual level. The three developmental phases refer to the development or growth phase when there is going through hurdles of fire, followed by that of water and lastly human complexities.
Fire may burn down a temple and when it is rebuilt, it may be inundated by storm or flood. Finally once it is built in concrete, steady and firm and able to withstand fire, flood or storms, the temple may be beset with problems of non-concrete dimension, that of trials and tribulations of society due to the complexities of human agenda superseding, side stepping spiritual drives.
The human obstacle is of greater magnitude than the fire and water obstacles of the first two phases. Why? The reason is obvious for in man lies all the five elements of fire, water, air, wood and metal. The third phase is not just fire and water obstacles but all five.
The human phase with onslaught of waves upon waves of human issues is a hurdle for a temple to overcome. "The problems and issues of men are many and plentiful." Lord Bo Tien said.
The three phases of development namely fire, water and human are due to the yin and yang world men live in. Yin refers to passive forces and yang to active forces. Some say that in the fire phase, there is too much yang and in the yin phase, too much yin. But this is an oversimplification. In the human or near established phase, there is both yin and yang and interplay of the five elements. Lack of balance or harmony means there is no peace and tranquillity
Likewise, for the individual, growth in early years is beset by fire and water obstacle phases. The young or infant child is faced with problems of biological development --- of infection and growth, the ancient refer to these as fire and water obstacles. But when he grows to be adult and enters society, he faces all the problems of being man --- the problems of yin and yang. Thus Lord Bo Tien said that the issues and problems of man are many and plentiful.
If a temple or individual uses worldly or human ways and go for human agenda, they will be caught in the web of yin and yang. If the temple or individual uses spiritual focus and able to balance and be atop the yin and yang, they will be able to taste peace and fruits of the divine way. This will benefit in both aspects of life - mundane and spiritual. The values that bring spiritual blessings will if applied to worldly life bring worldly blessings but the reverse may not be the case.
Following the three baptism phases, then there will be three success phases - the discipline or Bo Tien phase, the devotional or Kuanyin phase and the wisdom or Buddha phase. We need all three to succeed. We need to be disciplined and steadfast. We need to be devotional. We need to have wisdom and insight.
In any temple of Lord Bo Tien, there are three images at the main altar --- that of Lord Buddha, Goddess Kuanyin or Goddess of Mercy and that of Lord Bo Tien in Chinese general armour.
Fire may burn down a temple and when it is rebuilt, it may be inundated by storm or flood. Finally once it is built in concrete, steady and firm and able to withstand fire, flood or storms, the temple may be beset with problems of non-concrete dimension, that of trials and tribulations of society due to the complexities of human agenda superseding, side stepping spiritual drives.
The human obstacle is of greater magnitude than the fire and water obstacles of the first two phases. Why? The reason is obvious for in man lies all the five elements of fire, water, air, wood and metal. The third phase is not just fire and water obstacles but all five.
The human phase with onslaught of waves upon waves of human issues is a hurdle for a temple to overcome. "The problems and issues of men are many and plentiful." Lord Bo Tien said.
The three phases of development namely fire, water and human are due to the yin and yang world men live in. Yin refers to passive forces and yang to active forces. Some say that in the fire phase, there is too much yang and in the yin phase, too much yin. But this is an oversimplification. In the human or near established phase, there is both yin and yang and interplay of the five elements. Lack of balance or harmony means there is no peace and tranquillity
Likewise, for the individual, growth in early years is beset by fire and water obstacle phases. The young or infant child is faced with problems of biological development --- of infection and growth, the ancient refer to these as fire and water obstacles. But when he grows to be adult and enters society, he faces all the problems of being man --- the problems of yin and yang. Thus Lord Bo Tien said that the issues and problems of man are many and plentiful.
If a temple or individual uses worldly or human ways and go for human agenda, they will be caught in the web of yin and yang. If the temple or individual uses spiritual focus and able to balance and be atop the yin and yang, they will be able to taste peace and fruits of the divine way. This will benefit in both aspects of life - mundane and spiritual. The values that bring spiritual blessings will if applied to worldly life bring worldly blessings but the reverse may not be the case.
Following the three baptism phases, then there will be three success phases - the discipline or Bo Tien phase, the devotional or Kuanyin phase and the wisdom or Buddha phase. We need all three to succeed. We need to be disciplined and steadfast. We need to be devotional. We need to have wisdom and insight.
In any temple of Lord Bo Tien, there are three images at the main altar --- that of Lord Buddha, Goddess Kuanyin or Goddess of Mercy and that of Lord Bo Tien in Chinese general armour.
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| Main altar of temple of lord saint in Singapore |
To surmise, there are three baptism and three success phases in life of any temple, organisation or individual.
Cross reerence: The divine test a temple has to undergo
Cross reerence: The divine test a temple has to undergo
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