One saying Ji Gong 济公活佛 loves to mention is 心中有佛. As long as deep within the heart, there is Ji Gong, whatever represents him doesn't matter.
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| Ji Gong riding the yin yang dragon |
We must have the Buddha thought or nature in us and this must be given a place in the center of our heart. The Buddha in the heart is all that matters and not how we represent the Buddha on the altar, be it in the temple or at home.
Ji Gong stresses on this so much so that once in his lifetime at a deserted and isolated temple at Hangchow in China with no firewood, he asked his disciples to take down the Buddha image at a shrine to be used as firewood to keep them warm in the harsh cold of winter.
Let the Buddha be centered in our heart. We must put our heart in the practice of the doctrine taught by the Bodhisattvas or saints.
The best image of a saint is the doctrine he taught. "The doctrine is the image and the image is (reminds us of) the doctrine". This Lord Bo Tien said time and again.
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| Lord Bo Tien |
The lord saint's feet atop the elements remind us of the balancing of worldly contingencies like praise-blame, gain-loss, etc. This is what sages in China refer to as the Tao or Way of balancing yin and yang. He is also seated on the twin dragon seat of yin and yang.
The holy scepter in right hand is the mission to rekindle the doctrine in religions and sects. The right hand in salutation bids us to be steadfast and steer the path minimizing the sways to the left or the right.
This the Buddhists refer to as the Middle Way. Taoists refer to this as the Tao as symbolized by the Bagua,
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| The tadpole-like yin and yang are later day versions of the yin yang dragons |
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| Ba gua |
It is sincerity and commitment that count and this must come from the heart. It is not the religion we belong to, the church or temple we go to, what we said or what we do. All these would be hollow if we do not put our heart into what we believe and who we believe. It is what goes through the heart and not what we do or what goes through the gut. This is another saying of Ji Gong.
If the man is wholeheartedly involved in the Way or Tao, who he prays to and what he eats or drink be it liquor or meat, it matters not. If the man does not put his heart into the Way, it is of no use if he acts pure, eats no meat or dressed in monks robes if he has no heart in Tao.
Some men in the mission of the lord saint Lord Bo Tien may be like that. They can be like wolves in sheep's clothing. They can take cover in the temple of the lord and proclaim to the world, they are men of the lord but may have no qualms in sexual misconduct or in expelling a pioneer elder. They may be like that because they do not have the Buddha in the heart.
We must feel sorry for them if indeed they are like that, for they know not what they do. Then, they are like insects and ants coming to the flower. Blame not the flower for insects coming to it. Lord Bo Tien did remind us to reflect on this.
So we must have the Buddha in the center of our heart - 心中有佛. It is the heart that matters.
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| Better it is to have Ji Gong in the heart than on the altar 心中有佛 The altar is the heart of the house Ji Gong resides there in the heart of the faithful Faithful to the 佛 Way Ji Gong stands for |
