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!.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Be saint for the moment and not dream of being one

No 548 of Living Life Series 1

Worry not whether you have been devoted to the Buddha or whether you have bowed before his image? Of what use is it to worship the image if we see not the doctrine in the image?

The image is just made of wood and might be better off as fuel for fire to keep monks warm in the cold of melting snow when there is no wood or fuel for miles around. That is what Ji Gong did despite the pleas of his disciple monks in his day as man.

What the image represents matters more and that must be in the hearts of men. It represents love for men. So why not use it to keep men warm but that would be desecration, isn't it?

What matters is the heart and not what one does or what goes through the gut. Ji Gong is never wrong in this and to the horrors of the monks of the monastery in his day, he also ate and drank what he might despite pleas for him to mend and to keep to the rules of monks of his day. But he succeeded where others who put up a front failed.

Well, well what we have today. Many still with heads bowed and legs bent double in front of Buddha, kowtowing 108 times and more if need be. Such devotion is worth admiring and is awesome but the hearts of men must match what they do. But why of all days only on Vesak Day? There are some who do this on other days but is this what Buddha wants out of them?

Better to revere the Buddha in the heart than to go to temple with little or not much heart for the Buddha Way. Take refuge in the Word of Buddha and saints by living in the Word day upon day and not just on special days. This is the one and only way to peace in Buddha and saints.

This too is why Lord Bo Tien says that his image is the Doctrine (Word) and the Doctrine is his image. The image at his temple is empty and void if men do not see the doctrine on seeing his image. The doctrine he talked at length about must come to mind on seeing his image.

The man who sees and knows the doctrine sees and knows the saint even if the lord saint or his image is not in front of him. To see and to know is to practise, they say.

LORD BO TIEN

His image personifies the universal way of Tao - the delicate balance of life contingencies the yin and yang as depicted by feet on the elements.

His seated pose represents the need to be at rest and at peace in life in whatever we do and face. Do not wait for sainthood to be at peace. Try to have as much peace as we can here and now and not wait for day of sainthood to have peace.

This is the secret recipe for more peace, never mind if we cannot make it to sainthood as yet and for a long long time to come. The taste of peace every now and then is already sweet evidence of sainthood that is yet to come.

The scepter in right hand is the weapon to face life. The doctrine is the weapon we can have to have peace here and now, come what may. We do not wait till kingdom come.

We need to live by the Word here and now. We need to balance and be atop the ups and downs, the swirls and twirls around - the yin and yang the sages of old in China refer to, or the worldly contingencies Gotama Buddha talked at length about.

We need to be at peace in heart and not wait for peace to be around. Peace around us is hard to come by but peace at heart we can have any time if we try.

Try we must and we must be resolute, like the left hand of the lord in his image in salutation, bidding us to be steady and steadfast so as to move forward in life in peace and not ever wait for peace around.

Worry not when we be saints but do worry if we have less of peace here and now at this moment. Go for peace today and never mind when we be saints. Peace in life makes the moment.

Isn't this like being saint for a moment and anytime better than dreaming of sainthood? Be saint for the moment and not dream of being one. That is the no nonsense common sense of Ji Gong. He made it didn't he?

It is just like many who are taught to dream of heaven in afterlife when they can create moments of heaven and peace in this very life here and now. This is how Ji Gong will help to make our life tick. Why not have heaven now instead of waiting till kingdom come?

Peace is what heaven means to us and if there is no peace, then that is not heaven. If there is even a moment of peace, then there is that moment of heaven or sainthood.

Ji Gong balancing yin yang dragon

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.