VOLUNTEERING IS MORE THAN JUST A JOB, IT IS A VIRTUOUS ACT
Question: If someone volunteers at Guan Yin Hall not out of genuine intentions but for the sake of accumulating merits or just for the sake of doing it, would this cause an outflow of merits? Is this attitude appropriate?
Answer: Remember, everyone who volunteers at the Guan Yin Hall comes with an aspiration, and the extent of which will determine the merits garnered by each individual.
Assuming that today you come with the intention of wanting more Buddhist friends to stay focused on their Buddhist practice and recitation at the Guan Yin Hall, by guarding the hall you are essentially a Dharma Protector. For this, your merits will be immeasurable. Conversely, if you regard it as merely a task that you are obligated to perform, there will indeed be a loss of merits.
Question: Master, could you kindly offer advice to correct any misconceptions we might have so that we feel motivated and truly experience the dharma joy in volunteering at the Guan Yin Hall?
Answer: When Bodhisattva is right before you, would you feel the dharma joy? Similarly, when you act as a Dharma Protector standing beside the Bodhisattvas, won’t you feel the same? In fact, you owe it to your blessing and good fortune to be able to serve as a volunteer at the Guan Yin Hall. Can you imagine the joy you feel when you make it to heaven eventually and stand beside Guan Yin Bodhisattva, while playing the role of a Dharma Protector?
Question: Thank you, Master.
Source: Master Jun Hong Lu’s World Buddhist Fellowship Meeting (Q&A Session), New York, USA, 17 September 2016