| The Illustrated Jing Si Aphorisms | ||
| Translated by E E Ho and W.L. Rathje; drawings by Tsai Chih-chung; coloring by May E. Gu | ||
The Buddha says: Our bodies and minds are formed from the causes from our previous lives. When the causes cease, our bodies vanish. Since everything comes and goes according to temporary causes, nothing will exist forever.
Nothing in life lasts forever. Everything in this world comes into being, exists, decays and vanishes. The human mind also goes through cycles of beginning, existence, change and ending.
If we can clearly see through the natural human cycles of birth, aging, illness and death, then we will no longer quarrel over every little thing. With nothing to argue about, we will automatically concentrate more on our spiritual path. The ups and downs of daily life will no longer affect us.
Master Cheng Yen, after you formally became Venerable Master Yin Shun’s disciple, did you learn a lot from him? When I formally became his disciple, I was immediately accepted to be initiated as a nun. The initiation lasted more than a month. Because Master Yin Shun did not have any facilities for female disciples, I went back to Hualien. We lived far apart and did not have many chances to meet directly. Nevertheless, I studied and benefited from everything he wrote. |
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