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.

.

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!.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Ill wind presents opportunities for spiritual cultivation

No 265 of Living Life Series 1

(Please read post 264 before this post 265. To read post 264, left click Blessings in every ill wind)

If at any time, you feel hurt by the very ones whom you respect as your mentors or brethren in faith or in secular life, this should not ruffle you.

There will always be two sides of the coin and in the world of life be it on earth and elsewhere, this will be true. We do need to accept reality of this and make the peace in life by making do with the two sides of a person. Even the wiser amongst men have two sides but for some, the two sides are good but still there will be the better side.

Each coin has both the near and far sides. There will always be attributes of a mentor or brother which are near and dear to you and there too will be some attributes in him from which you wish to distance yourself. This is the far side.

Lord Bo Tien

"The far may be near
and the near may be far
to God and saints."

Even Lord Bo Tien reminds us that the far may be near and the near may be far to God and saints. All are valued by God, be they believers or non-believers. There is somehow, like it or not, the far side to those who uphold divinity and you can see this too in the mentors or seniors in your temple or church. For those who are distant from divinity, their exemplary ways can make them near to God and saints even though they may be far and never attend any church or temple.

Our friends too can at times be unfriendly to us if they differ in ways of approach. At the other end, there are also those who are strangers and are not our friends. Surprisingly, they too can be friendly to us. The issue is not these people, be they friends or not but us. Are we able to make the peace out of life and make life work out for us?

If we do have to relate with those who appear hostile or aloof, do not be perturbed but keep the peace and we can still have blessings in every ill wind. Somehow, if we keep the peace in life by balancing the two sides of life and of the persons we relate with, as depicted in the image of Lord Bo Tien, we can bring out the near or good side in them and in life to balance out the not-so-good or far side.

The pakua too reminds us of the need to balance the yin and yang of life. There are eight trigrams. Each has three lines broken (yin) and unbroken (yang).

☰ ☱ ☲ ☳ ☴ ☵ ☶ ☷

Trigrams

The balance in situations is not necessarily the mid point of yin and yang but the equilibrium point and this point varies in differing life situations as depicted by the eight trigrams. One trigram has only unbroken lines of unequal length where the shorter line is less yang and relative yin to the longer line. This gives more insight into the way to nurture blessings even in every ill wind. (For more on the pakua go to Perspectives of the Pakua)

Cheers. Ill wind provides opportunities for spiritual cultivation. We become more resilient and resourceful in the process and these are the attributes necessary for success, peace and comfort in mundane and spiritual life

Pakua

☰ ☱ ☲ ☳ ☴ ☵ ☶ ☷

Trigrams

The Pakua figures prominently at Bo Tien Temple shrine hall

at 6th, Fourth Chin Bee Road Singapore 619708 Tel: 65 62626021

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.