Greatness is in the teachings and not the events

No 645 of Living Life Series 1

The single most important thing that we must come to terms with is that the notion of the greatness of a sage like Gotama or Jesus is not the person their followers would want us to believe in but the teachings that arose from them and associated with their names. 

Even if Gotama is not the Buddha in the way portrayed by adherents and even if Jesus is neither the son of God nor resurrected after being crucified, they and their great teachings will in no way lose its stature and impact on men. 

The teachings of the sages are pivoted on how men in exceptional troubled times can still be peaceful and be cultivated to be peaceful like them. It is something so reachable by the many each in his or her own small way. 

They are what a renown swami refer to as men of God. The peace exuded by such men is fuller than full and what matters is their teachings on how to be at peace

But the adoration of men is such that men will blow things out of proportion and the sages are portrayed as that much more greater and more important than their teachings. 

But the reality is that what counts is the Word for as the Bible says the Word is God. 

As the good lord Lord Bo Tien says that the Doctrine is him and he who knows the Doctrine knows and sees him. 

Gotama too left us his Dharma or Doctrine and the Doctrine is him. In the language of the Bible of Christians, the Word is God and the Word is Jesus. The stature and glory of Jesus is not at all diminished even if there was no resurrection, for it is the teachings centered on the love of men that counts. Need more be said.

武天菩萨
Lord Bo Tien

Lord Bo Tien further reminds us that men do tend to add on to the teachings and elaborate them so as to expand the teachings to be more palatable, attractive and acceptable. But men need to go to the inner truth, the basic truth of God and how to be at peace with life. 

To do so, they have to do away with the layers of history and the opinions of men over the centuries - more so the thinking of men who mostly do not grasp the basic or inner truth and therefore have propensity to distort and confuse. 

The greatness of a sage lies in the teachings and not the imaginative portrayal of the sage, least of all the events in life of the sage which may be blown out of proportion or mere distortion of history. Go for the teachings and even more so, do go for the basic inner truth common to the teachings of all sages and religions. This pointer was elucidated at length by the good lord Lord Bo Tien.

When the monks asked the Buddha who would be the teacher in the hour before his final passing on, the Buddha left no doubt that the teachings will be the teacher and his monks as the keeper of the teachings would see to this. The Bible too is silent on several decades in the life of Jesus but has plenty on the teachings. The teachings matter more than the sages and the events in the lives of the sages. 

Eternal harvest and eternal weeding approaches

No 644 of Living Life Series 1

Lord Bo Tien says that all religions are one in God and basic inner truth but remains different as separate distinct religions. He did however stress that every religion has its own way of holding on to its people. People like little children in early schooling must be shepherded like sheep so that they will not be lost

This is necessary so that there is focused exposure to the religion and hopefully learning that will lead to spiritual cultivation of the souls of men. But according to the understanding of the writer, there will always to be two approaches. There are two broad ways for religion to hold on to its people.

One approach is that the religion is exclusive and adherents must not stray. Of course, then the teachings of other religions are sort of out of bounds but detente and respect for other religions are still the norms if it is going to be meaningful to practice one's professed religion. There is tolerance and at worst some form of detente but the line is clear that members of such a religion must not stray beyond the out-of-bound markers.

Another approach is that the religion is inclusive. Any new thinking beliefs and any newly introduced heavenly deities and prophets are welcome but not as separate religions but integrated as part of the professed religion of men. This is another way for a religion to hold on to its people and expand the interests and culture so as to afford better opportunities for its people to enrich their width and length of spirituality. 

This will provide richness in substance for men to develop insight of the true and basic spirituality that every man must cultivate. As compared to the exclusive approach, there is the free hand to explore and less dogmatic. It is more likely that insight on true and higher levels of spirituality is enabled rather than suppressed because control is less. 

But where there is control and suppression of free wheeling, then it is easier for the people in a religion to pull along together. There is better organised activity and projection of the religion as a dynamic entity. 

But alas, men being men, this will not last and dissension will set in and new sects and independent denominations will result. Cult cultivation where people idolise men rather than God and heavenly saint is one consequence of the exclusive approach. This is because they see the man at the pulpit and not the God up there, more so when that man speaks for God and they see the God in him. 

Even in the inclusive approach where there is constant expansion of the repertoire of subjects and objects into the religion so as to hold on to the interests of the people, cult too can take form. But this is less likely to be more damaging to society at large because religion is not as organised as with the exclusive or eternal weeding approach. 

It has however still tainted the image of spirituality. We thus hear of priests on the take and having sexual favors, and spirit mediums having more than one wives with children born out wedlock. 

We may conveniently put it that the inclusive approach is the eternal harvest approach where as much as possible of all that are new and interesting are harvested and presented to the people in the fold of that religion. 

The other approach where the people are sort of barred from showing interest in anything new and outside the religion may be referred to as the eternal weeding approach - like the weeding away wild grass and plants so that the tree will grow better. This is in a way the removal of competition of sorts and this may not reflect well on those in charge or at the helm of matters. 

Obviously with the more favored eternal weeding approach, the otherwise extra and additional good may be inadvertently removed. But too much of good things too may not be good at all. Well, that's life, isn't it? 

Both approaches have their good and bad points. We need both in religions so that all of humanity will benefit in the long term but meanwhile, there will be trade-offs which may be ugly. Somehow, men must arrive at some balance and sanity before they can have peace  to decide what's best for them. 

To begin with, some will find it fitting to have the eternal weeding approach but others may benefit more with the eternal harvest approach. To each his own but please do not impose ... To the more discerning and wise, both are not good enough.

Lord Bo Tien speaking
through the late Philip Png

武天菩萨
Lord Bo Tien

Bring out the God and not the devil in man

No 643 of Living Life Series 1

To be spiritual is to seek calm and have confidence in life come what may. Good tidings are welcome but taken calmly for the man of at least some spirituality knows that what are of the world are like the world - never satisfy for long and may turn out not so wonderful in time to come. They may one day be no more.

The best good tiding is the gift of the Word or Doctrine and the man of spirituality wants to share this with others. Sharing is one thing but imposing and cowing others into accepting what is wholesome to the man is yet another thing. 

It would only reflect on the mentality of the man who decides to peddle what has inspired him. It is certainly wholesome to share but not wholesome to impose or when others are not seeing things at his level or perspective. 

Even for others of the same faith, it is important to be prudent in sharing more with them. Are they ready or receptive? It would be counter productive for say a Buddhist to talk about the Abidharma Higher Doctrine in depth to one who is comfortable with The Sutras or Conventional Teachings of the Buddha. He may be cheesed off. 

Thus one must know oneself and the other party as well. This requires insight and insight is something lacking in many men of religion. 

Instead of effusing others with peace, calm and love, the man with lack of insight can be nauseating, intrusive and irritating - very much ungodly. That man may certainly know not what he is doing. Instead of being of service to God and men, he is of disservice. 

Such men are the ones who are passionate about what they believe. But to be passionate on religion is different from being passionate in worldly matters. 

One must end up more calm, more pleasant and have more empathy of others. One must allow others to be different and enable them to be better men. It is often better that the others be better at their religions than to change to the religion one is in. 

The beautiful attitudes are often common to all religions. They are invariably there in any religion and they constitute part of the inner truth common to all - as was said by Lord Bo Tien. Therefore, do attempt to know the religions of others and rejoice with others the beatitudes in life common to all religions. 

This is the more peaceful way and is better able to bring out the God in man, as opposed to the forceful and intrusive way which brings out the ugly side - the devil in man. It is the latter than makes religion ugly with the ultimate being terrorism. 

Why would religion want to terrorise and instill fear in men? Religion should bring out the God in men and not the devil in man. It is the good that matters not the bad. We can do with more good and less with the not-so-good. 

The ones who are peaceful and away from the crowd of those who disturb the peace in the name of religion are near and dear to God and saints even though far. They have less of the ego or 'I' thought. The far may be near and the near far. This did the good lord Lord Bo Tien say. 

Lord Bo Tien
武天菩萨

Many may not know who the good lord is. This is not important. He would rather that they not know him but know how to be peaceful in their respective ways and religions than to be crazy over him as a heavenly saint. 

It is the doctrine men live by that gives them peace. If men do not have peace, they know not the religion they are in and are less worthy and wholesome to be good and able ambassadors of their faith. Ambassadors do not take over but are emissaries of goodwill and detente. They win hearts and not crush goodwill and life in the name of God. 

The need to be loud and emotive in religion

No 642 of Living Life Series 1

Is there a need to love God and Heavenly Saints? Do they need our love or is it the other way round? While there is need to have some bond with divinity, is it necessary to be emotive when we love God? 

In all religions, the basic truth is that we need to know what God wants in us. It is not the desire to glorify him in the way many men want to make big their egos. God (玉皇上帝) is beyond ego and being emotive towards him is the last thing he expects of us. 

But yet many coax us to jump, dance and shout our love for God and worse still to let the world know that it is their God that matters and not the God others have in their eyes. God is one and the same to all but some simply don't see it that way. 

It is one thing to love God but it is another thing to be carried away by the love for God. Many are sadly carried away to extent of bigotry. They openly and verbally ridicule those others who do not join their ranks with threats of damnation to Hell. This makes a devil out of God. Is God that hungry and thirsty for acclaim if he is God? 

The ridicule complex is worth going into. When it is present in the followers of a religious group, it is inevitable that the pioneer man from which their religion originated was himself the victim of ridicule. 

But if that was so, then why the need to ridicule others and to hurl unpleasantry at them - effectively ridiculing them the way their pioneer was subjected to. Isn't this sort of doing unto others what they don't want others to do unto their leader and pioneer? 

Well, in a way they have the right to do so because they are grateful and love the pioneer sage. Well, this love is good but must be channeled to more fruitful gains. 

The love should make them want to know how to make it in life so that God will be pleased with them and truly say that they are indeed his good sons. Good sons are those whom others respect for how they carry themselves and how they serve society. It is definitely not how they insist that others who don't join them are not with them. 

Good men of God are those who can make God proud of them. They must be calm, peaceful, accepting of the differing ways of men and able to join others and blend with the crowd. They must not be loud, jarring and standout because of their often emotive approach to God. 

They must show that they are more substantive so that others will feel attracted to them and want to know what made them the way they are. They may be more silent but the silence certainly speaks out better. 

Well, if by now readers are not convinced, then the writer of this blog is too loud and jarring, more so if he writes on and on. There is no need to peddle spirituality, for people will go to it and not it goes to the people. 

If they are ready, they will go for it. If not, it should not be imposed on others. That will be unwelcome, isn't it? 

Emotive approach in religion is not the way. Religion is not about sales. There should be no sales talk, no loudness and pageantry for others to buy God. That would be belittling God. 

Instead go about life the way God teaches us in our respective religions and be good role models for others to want to know why we are like that - so peaceful and worthy of company. That is the way, isn't it? 

There is the basic truth that is common to men in all societies. The good lord Lord Bo Tien refers to this as the inner truth behind life and religions.

Lord Bo Tien
武天菩萨

What makes us a magnet for problems

No 641 of Living Life Series 1

We may sometimes wonder why we don't seem to have an end to issues. So long as we are humans, we will have issues but how to have less of issues and if there are issues, how do we resolve them? 

How do we handle life if these issues cannot be resolved? Is there a way to mitigate their impact on life? How do we live life so that we do not end up magnet for more issues? 

Is going to God (玉皇上帝) and heavenly saints the answer? How is it that the more we go to God, the more issues there will be? Sometimes and often so, God and heavenly saints don't seem to have the answer but we are told we still need to have faith in God and saints. Isn't this double talking?

Let us not ramble at at a tangent and be lost. The main problem is not the problems in life but that we somehow become like a magnet for problems. What makes us the magnet for problems. Every where we go and how we try to run away problems, problems are attracted to us like mosquitoes biting us and giving us the itch and discomfort. It is not in going places or using repellents but how to be not magnets for problems.

We must realize that when we are not at peace with life and the world and we are always wanting and craving for this and for that, or when we gave up and don't want this or that, we will end up having more issues. 

We must first know ourselves and know that we are not at peace, be aware of the unpleasantness of being troubled and wanting more and more or trying at the other extreme of not wanting at all. In either scenario, we are far from peace. 

We must be at peace before we can attend to problems. Some of the problems cannot be solved and need to be mitigated but if we are not at peace, we will blow up the problems rather than mitigate them. 

If we are not at peace, our prayers to God and heavenly saints seem to be ignored or at best seem not properly attended to by God and saints. That is upsetting isn't it?

It is the constant want to have more and to be perfect that results in less peace and perfection. Yes, it is good to turn to God and saints so that problems big or small will be no problems or at least less of being problems. That is also what the good lord Lord Bo Tien said.

But if we are not at peace, how are we able to anchor our faith in the peace, glory and grace of God. Let there be some peace in us and grow the peace and cultivate the shelter and guidance of God and saints so that our peace grows and glows like the candle flame sheltered from the wind. 

All these did Lord Bo Tien dwell in depth in his messages. They are also dwelt by all saints. 

Lord Bo Tien
武天菩萨

According to the sages of old in China, there are the pull and push in life and if our mind is not at peace and ever in wants, we add to the pull and push. Then how to stand still, be calm and be at peace. 

We must be steady and not be affected by the push and pull, worse still add to the push and pull which are referred to by sages as the yin and the yang. 

We will then reach the stage of being able to be still while moving on in life. We will have more peace and not experience more wants and problems ever the more. 

Religion no barrier for men to be brethren in God

No 640 of Living Life Series 1

Just the other day, a minister of my relative church visited her at hospital and there was a good banter for I have met him four decades ago at his church. 

At the end of the goodwill visit, he offered prayers for her recovery and I joined in though I am not a Christian but a free thinker though very much bent on Taoism and Buddhism. 

Like many, more so influenced and won over by the messages of Lord Bo Tien, I am able to go along in worship of those in any faith. 

So, I joined in wholeheartedly though not a Christian, and when they invoked the blessings of the Holy Spirit, I was amazed that I could feel the presence of very warm energy around and it was heart warming type of feeling and very comforting - the very same feeling I have when I meditate and pray in temples and to any heavenly saint. 

This really came as no surprise as the good lord Lord Bo Tien had foretold that God is one and universal, and basic inner truth is there in all religions. 

That I could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit invoked by the church minister and felt welcome by it came as no surprise though my Christian kin and friends may say that only those who are baptised can have the experience of the Holy Spirit. 

This and many such incidents have given me confidence on the message of Lord Bo Tien that all religions are one in God and truth, and God and truth are one in all religions. There is oneness in religions, God and truth though religions may differ be in form. This is the universal reality. 

Lord Bo Tien
武天菩萨

Anyway, the experience of being able to experience the gift of God in the form of the Holy Spirit professed and so sacred to all Christians reinforces my conviction that all men are brethren in God regardless of religions. Religion is no barrier for men to be brethren in God. 

Men do sensationalise the teachings of pioneers

No 639 of Living Life Series 1

Men tend to distort the teachings of the pioneers of religions. Men tend to sensationalize the teachings. Below are three examples. 

One such area is on death. To some, they proudly proclaim they will no longer die for they will live on beyond this life. They insist that there is no death though men do die. Out of sheer faith, they insist that there is no death. They live because a pioneer died for them. This to them is real and not to be debated. 

Then there are those who proclaim the need to be aware of death, to be attuned to the death thought and say that death is no different from and akin to the passing of a thought moment to give rise to the next. Death occurs all the time and they are taught to seek to exit from the cycle of deaths and births. This they say is no annihilation but the way to be around with no death and yet not living in the conventional sense. 

So all the hype on death or no death may not be good for the inner peace of men but may instead reinforce the uneasy attitude of men to life and heightened the fear factor. Men may then be cowed, intimidated or awed. But is this the purpose? 

Another area where men may sensationalize the teachings of pioneers and put them in bad light is with issue of who need to be saved. Some men of religion peddle the self preservation of the species concept that only man can have life beyond the present life. Animals don't and they are there it seems just for men. 

Why are men the chosen ones of all living beings? Of course there are men who think that all beings have life after death? What about small creatures like snails and insects?  

A third area is on the concept of God Almighty. Is God the absolute beginning and the absolute end-all? Some men would simply think this is so and would be so distressed when told this may not be so. 

Of those who think this may not be so, they think that person who is God is not worth seeking refuge in as he too will not live forever. But they do fail to realize that God like many heavenly deities can further the welfare of all other beings, men included. 

What makes God less of being God just because he God is not the absolute beginning or creator? If we can respect and adore a human leader of a country and a monarch even though such a man is mortal, why can't we respect and adore God and the deities who are immortals though not in absolute sense. 

God The Jade Emperor (玉皇上帝) is after all the ruler of the three worlds of Earth, Hell and Heaven. It just does not make sense if we just ignore him, look down on him and think that he is not worthy of reverence at all just because he is not the absolute creator or end-all. 

Something must be somehow wrong with men if they can end up distorting and sensationalizing the teachings of the pioneers. They may well be doing some disservice to the pioneers and to all men and beings.

Thus a man must depend on himself for what is right and what not so right and not follow the crowd as the crowd is often swayed by the sensational. So it seems...

Lord Bo Tien 
武天菩萨

It is therefore the intention or rather the mission of Lord Bo Tien to correct these distortions or tendency to sensationalism in religions so that men will go for the basic simple unadulterated truth common to all religions and sects. 

Men must not be separated from God and saints by the layers of emotionalized human thinking contributing to distortions and rather warped views. Men must not even be emotional about God and deities but just simply to know the truth or teachings they represent. As some would say the Word is God. 

Do the crowd set the tune in religion ?

No 638 of Living Life Series 1

The best of those loved by God and saints are not those who attend worship at the houses of God unless they are there just to make their presence but still stay apart from the crowd. Why is this so? 

They do know too much and are far more cultivated in spirit than the rest. If they speak what they know, the rest will be confused for the rest are at the level of popular religion. 

But since they know, they are aware that it is best to leave the rest alone. If such cultivated souls in men do exist, they are few and rare. 

If they are priests or pastors, they will be at odds with not only the rest but with new and emerging pastors and priests. They will give way to the new and young clergy who though more shallow in spiritual can work better with the crowd. 

They know full well that they have to keep the distance hoping that one day a rare few in the the crowd will be like them. They may thus even retire to be out of the limelight of men but to be more near to God and saints. 

Didn't Lord Bo Tien say that the far may be near and the near far? This does not mean that the men in the crowd at the house of God are not attuned to God and spiritual. They are, but may do what the few who are that more cultivated use to do but will no longer do. 

Lord Bo Tien
武天菩萨

The leaders of the common crowd and even some among the crowd may even be those who are there not for the right reasons but are like wolves in sheep's clothing. They come for the limelight, for the glamour and more secular gains in a non secular world, to be exact in a house of God and saints. 

Though this is upsetting to some who see through them, it is in a way, the will of God and saints. It is already good enough for them to be in a house of God and saints and even if they are unbecoming in their motives, at least they are there and there is every chance that they will turn good and make good. 

They are like what the good lord Lord Bo Tien said - insects that are attracted to a flower for nectar. The good lord added that the flower should not be blamed for insects coming to it. 

So judge not, for it is good that men with erstwhile intentions are in the midst of a house of God and saints. But then, why will God and saints allow them to mislead the flock? Perhaps men must learn that this is a reality in the world and what better place to learn than in the house of God and saints. 

Also in their faith and devoutness, some may take offence with them and create schism within the house of God and saints. They are not wise enough to know that if God and saints do not seem to mind, why should they? 

Alas, any conflict will only frighten away the crowd and in popular religion which operates at simple level of believe and all will be well, to be able to attract the crowd matters allot. 

Popular religion is after all, the platform or launch pad for cultivating a few who are more discerning and able to rise above the crowd. The prophets and sages like Gotama, Jesus, Ji Gong and Lao Tse are among them. But they too go for the crowd and popular religion. This is needed as vehicle to spread the message of hope and peace. It is the best vehicle. 

If spirit medium-ship works with the crowd, so be it - never mind if there are those who find it objectionable and lowly. Men will learn and that matters. Moreover, there will always be two sides to the coin. 

We cannot have one solution or way for all men - no one size fits all. What fits the common crowd may not be ideal but at least it works as means to the end - to bring about some affinity with God and saints. There must ever be the crowd puller way in religion. 

Do the crowd set the tune in religion? Yes and no doubt about that, though not ideal to many who think they should know better. But more can mean less just as near may be far. Would the good lord say so since he said that the far may be near and the near far? Meditate on this and call upon the good lord to guide you to an answer. 

Life is the perfect teacher in an imperfect world

No 637 of Living Life Series 1

The irony of life is that for most, we do neither know about our past life nor our next life. As such, most of us only plan for this life and model our life based on experiences and events in this life. 

Some of the events were consequences of our actions in past lives but we are not aware of them. In fact, many of us are not even aware of the consequences of our actions in this life. We just want to move on and get what we can. 

It is just inherent on the need for self preservation and we struggled against the odds. Sometimes, we get what we want and sometimes we don't. 

When things don't come out the way we want, we are ruffled unless we have the peace of mind of the saints who are not affected by the ups and downs of life- the yin and yang. 

For most of us, we just don't get it as to why at times we cannot get what we want. We call this suffering and not a single day pass by when we are not really happy with the day. 

We go for life as if it is a rat race and in a rat race, if we are ahead we are better off than those behind. In a way, we gain more by ensuring others lag behind. Isn't this a bit unkind in our thoughts and actions as well? Why must we gain at others expense? 

But at the same time, we cannot be standing still and let others get by, unless we have arrived. The issue is have we arrived, when we will arrive and what we mean by arriving? What are we getting at in our life? What do we want? We want to be happy and to live as well as yesterday if not even better. Is this reasonable? 

Is it all because we are myopic and cannot see beyond this life either of our past or future life? Is there past and future lives? Why are we denied any knowledge or inclination of the past and present lives? Of what purpose is knowing them or not knowing? 

Perhaps there is the divine purpose in that there will be a level playing field that all do not know the past and future lives except for the rare rare few. 

But then in life, some are more fortunate and some less. So where is the level playing field? 

But to the sages, the ones who are fortunate or suffer less are the ones who are less fortunate. For the sufferings in life in a way are good teachers to toughen us though many will break down and despair. 

But the sufferer learns more and comes out tougher and more resilient if he has the right mind set. He does not need a religion but will be better off with one. 

Life is the best religion for him. The sufferings in life are the lessons and if he can weather them with fortitude, he is that much better off. The sufferings don't seem to bite him as hard and don't seem to matter. 

Even without a religion, he is more calm and not given to roller coaster emotions. He accepts his lot and treasures every moment when life is a bit easier and less harsh. Isn't he better off in a sense? 

But who want to suffer? We all don't but by being in the world of ups and downs, we all are subject to imperfections. Even the richest of men are never at peace unless he can learn from life more so from the lives of others seemingly less fortunate than them. 

In fact, if they don't learn, the day will come when there is the precipitous drop in life before life comes to an end. Then it will be too much to learn in too short a time. Do not wait for that day and this applies to all. 

Lord Bo Tien, Chinese culture and religions

No 636 of Living Life Series 1

The Chinese in old China were a practical lot. They probably are the same today in 2014 and beyond. Rather than professing to be Buddhists, Taoists or Confucians, they believe in all religions and integrate them into their practical culture. 

Chinese festivals in popular Chinese religious practices have various versions depending on the religious orientation. Thus we have Chinese New Year, Moon Cake Festival, the annual visits to the ancestors niches or graves being adopted or influenced by various religions. It may well be said that Chinese culture has become part of any religion adopted by the Chinese. 

In the world of 2014, it is more out of convenience that Chinese call themselves Buddhists, Taoists, Confucians and Christians. Their counterparts in religion in other races would not even find this uncomfortable. This to them is a trade-off so that they can have more converts or to put it mildly to beef up their numbers. 

Depending on the social strata and exposure to western culture, the practices of Chinese can range from mere road side cultural rituals with burning of incense sticks, jos papers and hell money to going to air conditioned halls for worship with guitar, organ and orchestral music and seats with plush upholstery. 

The good part is that Chinese who identify with one religion is very much at home in the company of those from the houses of worship of other religions. This is in a way built-in into Chinese culture that men may not be divided by religions. But colonial masters and invaders preferred otherwise or at least so it seemed to be in age-old past. 

Chinese over the centuries have assimilated religious practices and thoughts from all over the world. Thus in a sense, we do not find anyone who is Chinese singularly in only one religion. 

They may profess to be of one religion but in practice and in day-to-day life can worship at any place of worship of any religion. They can find the same God in the houses of worship of all religions. You can find the same people in the various houses of worship of religions. 

After all, Chinese culture of more than 5000 years ante-ceded and preceded that of all world religions. It may be good if the world can imbibe this interesting and pragmatic way of the Chinese with regards to religion. Globalization is a sure way to enable this good trait of the Chinese to be adopted by the rest of the world. But of course, there will be those who don't agree. They have narrow views and often bigoted.

Lord Bo Tien 武天菩萨 descended in 1969 to undertake the Mission to save souls through any religion. His message is that all religions are sanctioned by God (玉皇上帝) and will have their own ways to hold on to the people. 

Lord Bo Tien
武天菩萨

The good lord Lord Bo Tien does not favor any religion and he is not here to start any new religion. He chose to descend in a Chinese style temple because such a temple is already inclined by culture to embrace all religions and the saints of all religions. 

Also, men generally do not understand why ethnic Chinese practices are tantamount to a melting pot of religions even if they identify only with one specific religion. But it is best that they do, as it is a social culture that has worked for more than 5000 years. Religions as institutions may stand to gain by learning from it. This is rather than for religions to draw the line and disturb the peace in society and contributing to the detriment of the fabric of society.

Omitofo 阿彌陀佛

Do have insight on the many levels of spirituality.

No 635 of Living Life Series 1

There are many levels of spirituality ranging from the lowest level of mere belief and be saved to the highest level where men be saints. At the lower levels beyond mere belief, men can even perform miracles through acts of faith. 

Miracles may be awesome but really, they come about because of the ability of men to more fully focus and harness the energised mind. Examples are levitation, reading the mind and even faith healing. 

But alas, such men are still relatively low down in spirituality for they have more faith than spiritual cultivation of pureness of mind when there is little or no clinging to ego and to life. 

Many self and publicly acclaimed spiritual masters have developed more of the focused mind than purity. Faith in God (玉皇上帝) or heavenly saints is necessary for this but unfortunately, faith and devotion fuel the ego or self even more. 

Then when they are able to effect miracles, they think they have arrived but they are even more so full of ego to the brim. They have little insight beyond faith in their own religious beliefs and they think that men shall live by faith alone as men would be saved by divine grace of God (玉皇上帝) and heavenly saints. This is both true and yet not true. 

True, as men need devotion and faith to be attracted to God and saints and they must have blind faith to begin with and for some time, often for a long time, till they climb the ladder of spirituality and nurture the purity in them - the God light. This can only come about if there is no clinging to self or to the mega-self in the world. 

Men project the mega self in God and may even tell the world that their God is the only God and the God of other religions and sects is not God. This comes naturally to them and is second nature because they are still very much self or ego driven. They have a long way to go before they are purity driven. 

The highest purity comes when there is no going for self nor denying and rejecting self. It has to do with the mind and not the body - not what one eats or does. It comes when the person is one with the universe but still an entity except that there is no divide between the person and others. 

He is himself but is in tune with the world outside himself. He does not impose the world of his mind on others. He does not lose his identity but he also will not impose his identity and thinking on others. 

He does not impose his views on others but has insight why others are not ready for deeper insight and views of life, be it spiritual or mundane.  He will not insist that others follow him for if he does so, he may do more harm than good. 

That is why Lord Bo Tien says that He is not here to start a new religion or to favor any sect or religion but to show that all ways lead to God and the salvation of the souls. He knows that many are not ready and need simple devotion and religious systems but they must focus on the basics and their spirituality must not be hampered by lack of understanding of the basics such that they would end up with a lower spiritual ceiling and cannot breach it to go to much more higher levels of spirituality. 

Lord Bo Tien
武天菩萨

But these (the simple belief systems and the notion that men need only to believe and that is all) do have their places in society at large. They are necessary for beginners and infants of sorts. They are necessary and here to stay. They are even popular and no one in right mind will want to wish them away.

You cannot tell an infant to cross the road and how to cross the road but just have to make him believe that you will bring him across the road. But all men have to grow, and grow they must to breach the artificial ceiling of spirituality to go higher and be more worthy, more wholesome, more free from ego drives and one fine day be pure and with God and saints. 

That day will come but may be long way off but what matters is to take the first step and the next, and relish in the peace that the process will yield. But one should neither cling to the peace of the moment nor deny the peace. Need more be said. Life is the greatest teacher and the living gospel. Learn from life, and saints we too will be in time to come.

Meanwhile even religions and sects that cater to mass popular appeal will learn to be more embracing of other religions and beliefs. This is so that they will be more relevant and able to survive for the long term. 

They will not say that only they are right and others not so. They will go beyond the first level of spirituality and upgrade their emphasis to more profound and yet simple concepts of purity of the souls of men that are more difficult to sell to the crowd who often want the easy way with no need to lift a finger. 

But there must be more of the religions and sects that are willing to stay at the lower level as only the lower levels will have mass popular appeal. We need to attract more to God even those who are far from Godly or no where near Godly. 

The parable of insects coming to a flower is a good reminder by Lord Bo Tien 武天菩萨. It is necessary that insects be attracted to the flower but blame not the flower for insects coming to it. This the good lord did say. 

It is necessary to further quote from what the good lord 武天菩萨 says that the far must be allowed to be near by being in the house of God but then this may mean the near who are in higher levels of spirituality may have to be far from the house of God; otherwise they may find themselves out of place and sore thumbs of sorts... 

We need popular forms of religion and without them, the world will face religious drought and spirituality will be only the reserve and enclave of the elite few who may still be far from purity and very much overcome and overtaken by ego - very much like the Pharisees in days of old. They may well be no better than the many humble and meek in popular religion who know little or less but may be more rich in spirituality.

Had it not been for the popular forms of religion that arose from the Middle East, the world will be poorer off spiritually and this is true. But the will of God or call this the will of Heaven prevails and humanity is that much more blessed with popular religions. 

But the catch is that there is more than meet the eyes. There are many levels of spirituality beyond basic and simple popular forms of religion. Men must be able to eventually breach the self created low ceiling of spirituality in popular religion. But this is a personal choice and not something that can be evangelized. 

It requires self cultivation. In China, it is called Tao (道) but Tao or Way to Inner Peace is not just confined to Taoists and Chinese. It is in all mankind regardless of religion, race or creed.

Tao

Peace matters more than works, faith and grace

No 634 of Living Life Series 1

In life, there shall be no place for regret. Regret disrupts the peace and we wallow in misery. Instead we must to make better choices in future We must pick ourselves up and move on. We must be more mindful to make better choices in future. 

Even if a not-so-good choice was made, so what if it is not so good. We are still what we are, must accept ourselves and must be at peace with what we are, never mind if we could be better. 

What counts is that we have arrived at the here and now. We are able to make do and make good. This applies to us as individuals and as a society or as a temple. 

The present is good enough a stepping stone for the future and that matters more than that it could have been better, had it not been for the choice we made in the past. Be at peace with self, with our past and with our present. Value them, learn from them and move on in peace and in one piece. That is the way of the ones who are in Tao or of Tao. 

The man of Tao is ever at peace and comes to terms with anything that is in his life or that comes his way. He neither denies life nor wants all in life, for going for either will put an end to any semblance or shade of peace he may have. He balances life and seek the peace ever the more. 

He breathes in peace, lives in peace, sleeps in peace, eats and drinks in peace. What more can a man want to have?

When Kingdom comes, he moves on in peace as though life is as before. He is after all the embodiment of peace in every sense and in every bit. 

Be the embodiment of peace. Are we at peace? That is how God and heavenly saints want to know in us and of us.

It matters not what creed or religion we are from, or who is our master. What matters is that we are at peace? 

Go for the peace rather than good works, faith or grace in both spiritual life and secular life. Good works, faith and grace are good only if they are not based on self gain at expense of others or self sacrifice for others. 

We are no sacrificial lambs for others gains and we too should not make others sacrificial lambs for our own gains. Good works, faith in God and saints and harnessing the grace of God and saints must arise from a good heart rooted in peace with no self denial or self wanting. 

What matters is peace more than good works, faith and divine grace. Give this more thought. May peace be with you. Be a picture of peace in every sense of the word. 

May God reside in you and add to your peace. This may be another way to augment peace in life. 

When the emphasis in spiritual is on peace and good works but not on faith and idolizing of God and saints, there is less risk of men rising against men in the name of God and religion. Then there will be no bigotry, war and terrorism in name of religion. That would be nice. 

Men must realize that kowtowing (prostrating) to God is not the answer but how to be peaceful and godly is what God and saints want to see in us. We are not to be crazy and possessive over God. We are not to promote our self-centered ego in God and justify our ego excesses in distasteful  ungodly way. 

Glory to God in the highest and on Earth peace among men. This must be and this is so if God has its way. 

Alas there is freewill and men takes charge of their own actions. Men are in charge, not God. 

Though this is good in a sense, it is also the problem. Men decide on issues in the name of God. So men end up arguing over God and there will be less peace when they are at loggerheads once too often.

Men of religion who are not at peace in the heart will often create less peace for others and cannot handle the lack of peace in society. This in turn boomerang back and they will have less of the precious little peace they have at heart. 

All the good works, proclaimed faith and divine grace of God and heavenly saints will be less worthy and wholesome without having more peace at heart. Have heart for peace within and that matters more so when there is lack of peace around.

Good works, faith and divine grace are never enough. We need more of the peace at heart.