Wenda20160325 29:12
(Master Jun Hong Lu’s call-in radio program)
HOW SHOULD WE DHARMA CULTIVATORS REACT TO THE HARM INFLICTED ON US?
Caller: Master, you have said before that even Guan Yin Bodhisattva had often been deceived by people. We emulate the Bodhisattva in doing good to others but instead, our kindness has been exploited. How do we adjust our frame of mind and continue with our selfless contribution?
Master Jun Hong Lu: This is simple. Superficially you may seem to have been hurt but in reality, he is the one being hurt. Although he has taken advantage of you, you do not owe him anything as he is the one who now has done something that has harmed his own soul. He will have something on his conscience for the rest of his life. He will continue to feel sorry towards you even after he passes away while you might not think about that person ever again. You will recover from it in no time as if nothing had happened before. He had hurt you and although there is no visible wound on him, his own soul is bleeding from the injury.
Let me tell you a true story. There was a boy who was crazily in love with a girl. The girl ended up single and lonely. She was very unhappy and disgusted as she found the boy has many issues. She decided to change him and make him a better person and wrote him a letter: “In order to make you change for good, I have decided to ignore you for a month so that you can rid yourself of your weaknesses and ill behaviour”. In those days, it would take quite some time for the letter to be delivered. Thinking that the girl had left him for another boyfriend, he took vengeance by throwing acid into the girl’s face. Eventually when he received the letter, he regretted what he had done and felt miserable. The girl underwent cosmetic surgery and recovered. She made a complete break with the boy from then on. She was not grievously hurt but what about the boy? He lived in agony since then. In the end, he slipped into depression and committed suicide. Think about it, this is a true story and it is not fabricated.
When a person cannot get what he wanted, he would react in an abnormal manner. When people say, “You are not behaving normally”, that is to say that you are abnormal. An abnormal person is no longer a human and an inhuman person behaves like an animal. So the story ended. Therefore, do not be indebted to other people. It does not matter if you are harmed by others because when they harm you, they are being ignorant. Deep in your heart you are well aware of it, so it won’t leave you with a feeling of deep hurt. You will understand that the real hurt will actually be felt by the one who has caused harm to you. Take my case as an example, how many people have taken advantage of my kindness to seek blessing from the Buddha. I bowed and prayed to the Buddha on their behalves. When their problems were resolved, they turned their back on me. They even went to the extent of scolding me, There are so many people of this kind. What should I do? It would cost me my life if I were to dwell on these issues and fume with rage every day. I have long forgotten about it. It is my blessing to able to help others. If he is down and out today, it is his bad luck and I feel sorry for him. When you feel sorry and show compassion for this person, it will not leave any trace of scar in your heart, but it will leave a scar in his. (Master, you have helped him and now he is treating you this way, he will regret and feel remorseful one day). Regret he will! Some of theses people have already ended up in hell with regrets, haven’t they! During the discipleship initiation ceremony, they pledged, “Oh, Master, I will follow you all my life!” Then I give them lots of blessings. In the end, they made use of me to make money and perform Totem reading for other people. He scolded me for correcting him. Is he not dead now? (Yes, indeed) It has happened right before our eyes, won’t the incident caution you people to cultivate earnestly?