Liao Fan's Four Lessons

Liao-Fan Yuan was born during Ming Dynasty, in about 1550, in Jiangsu Province, Wujiang County. During the sixteenth century in China, Liao-Fan wrote a book, Liao-Fan's Four Lessons, which was written originally to teach his son, Tian-Chi Yuan. The principal behind those lessons is that destiny can be changed through proper cultivation of kindness and humility. Thus one should not be bound by fate but by one's own actions. Relating from his own experience at changing destiny, Mr. Yuan himself was a living embodiment of his teachings.

First Lesson:

The Principle of Destiny

Second Lesson:

The Method of Repentance

Third Lesson:

The Way of Accumulating Merit

Fourth Lesson:

The Benefits of Humility

 

First Lesson: The Principle of Destiny

I lost my father when I was young. My mother thought that learning medicine would be a good way to support myself and also to help others. Also, having a skill on hand, one would never have to worry about making a living. Besides, I could become famous through my medical skills, fulfilling an ambition my father had for me. Therefore, I listened to my mother and gave up the dream of becoming a scholar and passing the imperial examinations in order to serve as an official in the government.

One day in my travels I met an elderly distinguished looking man at the Compassionate Cloud Temple. He wore a long beard and had the look of a sage. I paid my respects to him and he told me,” You are supposed to be a scholar. You have the destiny to be a government official. Next year you will enter the rank of Erudite (first level scholar). Why aren’t you studying?” I told him the reason, and asked his name. The old man said, “My name is Kong from the province of Yunnan. I have a very sacred text on astrology. I have inherited the knowledge of Shou-zi (a scholar from the Sung Dynasty who developed a method of predicting the future) and I am told that I should pass it on to you.” Therefore, I bought Mr. Kong to my home and told my mother about him. My mother told me to treat him very well and we tested the old man in his ability to make predictions. He was always very correct whether it was for big events or small everyday events. Therefore I became convinced of what he told me about my destiny, and I started studying to prepare for the examination the following year. I consulted with my cousin, Shen. He recommended a teacher, a Mr. Yu Hai-gu, who was teaching at the home of his friend. I became Mr. Yu’s student.

Mr. Kong then did some calculations for me. He said, “At the prefectural level you will rank fourteenth; at the regional level you will rank seventy-first; and then at the provincial level you will place ninth.” The following year, at the three places, when the examination scores came back my ranking was exactly as Mr. Kong predicted. Then I asked him to make a prediction for my entire life. Mr. Kong’s calculations showed that I would pass such and such test in such and such a year, the year I would become a civil servant, and the year I would get a promotion. And, lastly, I would be appointed to magistrate in Sichuan province. After being in that position for three and a half years I would retire, return home to live until the age of fifty-three years, and die on August 14 at the hour of tso. Unfortunately, I would not have a son. I took down the information carefully and set it aside.

Thenceforth, the outcome of every examination turned out exactly as predicted. Mr. Kong also predicted that I would receive a salary ninety-one dan and five dou (unit of weight) of rice from one position before I would be promotes to the next level. When I received seventy dou of rice, my superior, Mr. Tu, recommended me for promotion, and so I secretly suspected that Mr. Kong’s prediction was incorrect. But he turned out to be right because the recommendation was rejected by Mr. Tu’s superior, Mr. Yang. It was not until several years later that I was finally promoted, and when I calculated the amount of rice I had received there had been exactly ninety-on dan and five dou. 

From then on, I believed that whether it was promotion or wealth they have their own time, including life and death. Everything is predestined. I became quite relaxed about desiring anything. That year after my promotion I was sent to the northern capital for a year. I became interested in meditation and lost interest in studying.

At the end of the year I was to enter the imperial college in the southern capital. When I returned to Nanjing, one day I went to visit Yun Gu-hui, a Zen master at the Chi-sha mountain. We sat face to face for three days and three nights without ever falling asleep. Master Yun said, “The reason why ordinary people cannot become sages and saints is because they have too many disturbing thoughts and too many desires. There must be a reason.” Yun then responded, “The average person is controlled by the chi of yin and yang, and therefore an average person is under the control of fate. However, for a person who has done extremely great deeds, fate cannot control him. If someone performs extremely evil deeds, fate cannot control him either, for the last twenty years you have been bound by Mr. Kong’s predictions, not being able to change your fate even a bit, and so you are still a mere mortal. Here I was thinking that you may be a sage or an enlightened being.” At this Yun started to laugh.

I then asked him, “Is it true that one can change one’s fate, that one can escape from one’s fate?” Yun said, “Fate is created by ourselves, our form is created by our mind, by our thoughts. Good luck or bad luck is also determined by ourselves. It is said so in all the ancient books of wisdom. In the Buddhist sutras (writings on Buddha’s teachings), it is written that if you pray for wealth and fame, for a son or daughter, or for longevity, you will have them. There are not lies because false speech as one of the great sins in the Buddhist teaching, so certainly in a sutra it would be true.” I then responded, “Mencius (a Chinese sage who lived from 372-289 B.C.) has mentioned that one should only ask for what is within one’s ability, in other words, virtue, kindness, honor are qualities on can work towards. However, when it comes to wealth, fame, position, how can we seek them or ask for them?” Yun responded, “Mencius was correct. You have not beyond a small square inch. One seeks from within, in one’s own heart, and so one can then be connected with the everything. The outside is merely a reflection of the inside. If one seeks from without, then even if you plot and scheme you still will not attain your goal.”

Master Yun continued to ask, “What did Mr. Kong say about your destiny?’ So I told him in great detail. Yun then asked, “What do you think you should receive? Imperial appointments? Do you believe you deserve to have a son?” I thought about this question for a long time and then said, “While those who receive imperial appointments all have the look of good future, I do not have the look of good future, and also I do not accumulate merits to build my fortune. I am very impatient, intolerant, undisciplined, and speak without any restraint. I also have a strong sense of self-important and arrogance. These all have the look of non-virtue so how can I receive an imperial appointment? There is an old saying, that life springs from the dirt of the earth, and the clear water oftentimes has no fish. I have a fetish about cleanliness and so that is the first reason why I do not have a son. The second reason I do not deserve a son is because love is the basis of all life, and harshness is the cause of no life, and I am very irritable and without kindness, too. I am overly concerned about my reputation and cannot forget myself in order to help others in need; I am not compassionate towards others, and these are reasons why I do not deserve to have a son. I also tend speak a lot which destroys my jing (essence). I love to stay up all night and so I do not know how to take care of myself. These are the reasons I should not have a son.”

Yun then said, “According to you, then, there are too many things in life ones does not deserve, not only fame and a son. In the world, why there are people who are rich or who have starved to death is because they have created their own fate, and heaven simply rewards that which people have sown. It is the same with bearing children; if one has accumulated enough merit for a hundred lifetimes, then one would have descendants to last a hundred lifetimes. One who accumulates merit for ten generations would then have descendents for ten lifetimes to protect the merit, and those who do not have any descendants are those who have not accumulated enough merit. If one understands the reason for creating destiny, then changing the reasons for not receiving imperial appointments and for not having a son, changing from miserliness to giving, from intolerance to understanding, from arrogance to humility, from laziness to diligence, from cruelty to compassion, from deception to sincerity, then one accumulates as much merit as one can. In loving oneself and not wasting oneself, letting the past be the past and starting a new day, one can start a new life. Once one understands the principles in creating one’s destiny, then one can create anything that one wishes. This is what is meant by a second life. If the physical body is governed by the law, then our mind can also communicate with heaven. As it was written in the Tai Ja book, one can escape the deeds of heaven but one cannot survive one’s own evil deeds. Mr. Kong had calculated that you will not receive imperial appointment, and also that you will not have a son. These are the deeds of heaven, but if you start new ways and start accumulating merit, then you will be able to change your destiny. The I Ching was written to help people avoid danger and attract good luck. If everything is predestined then there would be no point in avoiding danger nor in improving one’s luck. In the very first chapter of the book it is written that families who perform good deeds will enjoy good fortune.”

From then one, I was awakened and understood the principle of fate, and so I started to repent all my past wrongdoings in front of the enlightened ones. I put down in writing that I wished to pass the imperial examinations to receive an official appointment, and I vowed to do three thousand merits to show my gratitude. Master Yun also taught me how to keep a record of my merits as well as of my mistakes because sometimes the merits will be neutralized by mistakes. He taught me to chant a certain mantra in order to strengthen what I asked. (Note: Mantra Cundi can be found in any Buddhist liturgy book.) Then he told me that I should also learn the art of written mantra, otherwise I would be laughed at by the gods and spirits. The secret to the art of written mantra is to be in complete silence of thoughts from the beginning to the end of the whole process. It is only under some circumstances that the mantra will have its power. He also added that when one prays for something in terms of changing one’s fate, it is important to do it in a time of stillness of the mind, then one’s wish is easily fulfilled.

Mencius’ theory on establishing one’s life had stated that a long life and a short life are not different. Superficially the two seem different but without the differentiating mind they are the same. Taken further, if one should live the proper way regardless of good or bad harvests, then one has mastered the fate of wealth and poverty. Or if one lives properly regardless of position in life, then one has mastered the fate of high and low status. To change one’s fate for better, one should first correct all bad habits and bad thought patterns. As a bad thought is formed, remove it from its roots. To be able to control one’s thoughts is in itself quite an accomplishment. It is not possible to not have any thoughts but if you repeat the mantra to the point where even when you are not chanting it you are unconsciously repeating it, then its magic will manifest.

My middle name used to mean “sea of learning” but from that day on it was changed to Liao-fan, or “transcending the mundane.” It signified my realization that we create our own fate. I no longer wished to fall into the trap of mundane thinking. I changed my whole way of living. I approached life very cautiously and seriously. In the past I had been totally undisciplined, my mind was out of control, but from then on I started to watch what I thought and watched what I said, even when I was in a dark room by myself. Even when people cursed or slandered me, I tolerated it and did not become angry. The year after this, I entered the preliminary imperial examination. Mr. Kong had said I would come in third; I came in first. Mr. Kong’s predictions started to lose their accuracy, and therefore I passed the imperial examination that autumn which had not been in the original prediction.

When I looked within myself, I thought that I was still not totally comfortable in my new way of being. For example, when I did good deeds I was not thorough, or when I helped people I still had some doubts, or when I performed good deeds but did not always speak properly, or if I watched myself when sober then I would let myself go when drunk. Merit and demerit sometimes cancelled each other out. From the time I made the vow it took me ten years to complete the three thousand merits.

After that, I returned to my old home and went to the temple to pay my respects and offer the merits. Then I made my second wish and that was for a son. I also made another vow to perform three thousand merits. In the year Sin-ze I had a son – that is you, Tian-chi. Whenever I performed a merit, I would record it in a book. Your mother (Yuan’s wife), who could not read, would draw a circle on the calendar with the stem of a goose feather when she performed a merit. For example, we gave food to the poor, or helped people in difficulties, or released living things. Sometimes she could accumulate more then ten circles in a day. So within two years’ time we had accumulated three thousand merits and again we returned to the temple to pay our respects and offer the merits. Then I asked for another wish which was to pass the next level of imperial examination, the jin-shi level, and also made the vow to perform then thousand merits. After three years, in 1586, I passed the imperial examination at the jin-shi level and became mayor of Bao-di prefecture.

From then on I kept my record book of merits and demerits next to my office desk. I also told my staff to kept track of merits, and in the evening I would report to the heavens. My wife saw that I had not accumulated much merits and was concerned. She said that when we were home there were many opportunities to perform merits. Now that we had moved into the official residence there were fewer opportunities. How were we going to accomplish ten thousand merits? One night in my dreams I saw a god who came to me and said, “If you just reduce the tax on the rice fields, that one deed would be worth ten thousand merits.” As it turned out, in Bao-di prefecture, the tax on the rice fields was very high. For each acre the farmer had to pay so much tax that I decided to reduce it by approximately half, but I still had my doubts. How could one deed be worth ten thousand? Just at that time there was a monk traveling from the Five Plateau mountains, and I told him about my dream. He said that as long as one is sincere in performing a good deed, one could count for ten thousand. When I heard that, to express my gratitude I donated my month’s salary for the monk to take back to the Five Plateau mountains to donate food for ten thousand monks.

Mr. Kong had calculated that I would die at the age of fifty-three. I had not asked to change this or asked to increase my life, but my fifty-third year came and I survived. Now I am sixty-nine, from then on, I believed that if someone said that luck is determined by the heavens, I would consider the person a mere mortal. If someone said luck is a matter of what we create or become in out heart, then I would consider the person a sage.

In summary, although one does not know one’s fate, in times of success one should carry oneself humbly and when things are going our way we should still carry ourselves as if things were going against us. When we are wealthy we should be as if we are poor. Even if we have the love, respect, and support of others we should not become arrogant. If we come from a very prominent family we should not be full of self-importance. When we have a lot of knowledge we should treat others with respect and consult others when necessary. We must always try to help others and yet be very strict with ourselves. We should with out hesitation check on ourselves everyday and change any part of ourselves that is to perfect.

 

Second Lesson: The Method of Repentance

In the Spring-Autumn Period of Chinese history, during the Zhou Dynasty (800-400 B.C.), there were many officials who had the ability to predict one’s future just by observing one’s words and behavior. As recorded in history, they were also very accurate. Generally one’s future whether it will be good or bad begins first in one’s heart (mind), then it is expressed in one’s behavior. If one looks kind and sincere and one’s behavior is good, one will receive great future. However, one who looks very cruel and behaves without consideration for other usually is inviting trouble, so there is no mystery in this. One’s heart (mind) is connected with heaven. If one is about to invite trouble, one can also that from their perverse behavior. It one wants to invite good fortune and not trouble, the first thing one has to do is to repent, even before performing good deeds.

There are three ways to repent. The first way is to have a conscience or shamefulness. When we think about our ancestors, the sages of the ancient time, they were also human and yet their teaching have lasted thousands of years. We are only attached to sensual pleasures, fame and wealth, and we have no discipline in out behavior. We commit disgraceful acts behind others’ backs, thinking that no one else can see. Gradually one only becomes an animal dressed in human clothing. This behavior is most shameful.

The second way is to have respectfulness. This regards being in the heavens and beings in the other realms. We cannot device them, even if we have made a small mistake, the heavenly beings and other beings in other realms will know about it. And if we make a big mistake, heaven will bring about a major punishment. Even if one is in a dark room, one’s every thought is known to the heavens. Even if one tries to hide, one cannot hide one’s thoughts, for these thoughts can be communicated. As long as one has one breath left, one can repent, however serious the previous mistakes. There are recording of people who have done whole lifetime of evil, yet at the time of death, they suddenly became awakened and repented and passed away in peace. There is a Buddhist saying, “As soon as you put down the butcher knife, you can become a Buddha.” So, regardless of one’s mistakes, large or small, the main thing is to be able to change and repent.

The third way is to have courage and determination. Oftentimes one cannot change one’s ways because one does not have the courage and determination to stop wrong behavior or to change a mistake. One should regard a small mistake as a bamboo sliver sticking into the skin and one should quickly remove it. And if it is a big mistake it should be like being bitten by a poisonous snake and one should cut the finger without any hesitation. If one can follow the three ways, then repentance will come as easily as ice melting in the spring.

There are three stages in repentance. The first is changing one’s behavior; the second is altering one’s mental understanding from a mental change; and the third is changing from the level of the heart. Each stage is practiced differently, with different degrees of success. An example of the first one would be if one has killed on a previous day, one vows not to kill on the present day. Or, if one had become very angry on a previous day, one could calmly govern one’s inner thoughts on the present day. This is changing one’s behavior. However, if ones just does this simply from this level it is an oppressive method and it is very hard to truly accomplish a level of repentance.

A more appropriate way to repent is through understanding from the mental level. For example, if one wants to change the habit of killing one thinks about how all living things value life; we should ask ourselves that if we kill them to feed ourselves how can we be at peace? And besides, pain of boiling water and hot oil must penetrate through the bone and marrow. The secret of health is in balancing one’s inner life energy and is not dependent on obtaining precious food from the mountains and the oceans. After one eats it is no different from getting nutrients from humble vegetables. Why let one’s stomach become a graveyard, reducing one’s merit? Furthermore, if one considers that all beings with blood and flesh have consciousness, then the fact that we cannot let them be like children playing close to us is already shameful. How can we further hurt them and cause them to hate us? If we think about all this, then we would be unwilling to kill them for food.

To change one’s bad temperament is also the same. One thinks about how everyone is different and how everyone has their strengths and weakness; and so we should be tolerant of one other. And when others cannot do things according to our wishes or if they do things against the principles, that is their mistake. It had nothing to do with us, so what is there to be angry about. If things do not come our way, usually it is because we have not accumulated enough merit. So, if we think about this, and even if we are slandered, it should be like fire burning in empty space. It will burn itself out. If we hear ourselves being slandered and try to defend ourselves, it would be like a silkworm making a cocoon, and we would be isolating ourselves. In any case, killing and anger are actions that harm us.

There are other mistakes that we can all change along the same lines. If we understand the reasoning behind the need for change we will not make the same mistakes. Generally, although one has many hundreds of mistakes, when you come down to it, it all comes from the heart (mind). If the mind does not generate thoughts that are rooted in selfishness, then we will not make mistakes arising from greed. And if our hearts tend toward kindness, naturally we would not have evil thoughts. This is the most basic way of repentance from the level of the heart. All mistakes come from the mind, from thoughts, and so if we want to thoroughly remove the cause of these mistakes it is just like digging up the root in order to chop down a poisonous tree. So to change at the level of the mind, one should be conscientious of every though. As soon as we generate a negative thought we should watch and eliminate it. This is the best method. If we cannot do it at this level, then we do it from the level of understanding, and if we cannot do it from that level then we do it from the behavioral level. But the most thorough way is to combine watching one’s thoughts with understanding. For those who have made the determination to improve themselves, it is best to have friends and relatives to constantly remind them, or to invite heavenly beings to be a witness and to sincerely repent day and night with out reset. After a while we will start to get result, then we fell more at peace and wisdom will begin.

We can expect some of the following signs. Even if we are in a very disturbing environment, we will not get upset. If we see an enemy, instead of getting angry we actually become very happy. When we dream that we are spitting out black things, or dream that the saintly beings have come to promote us, or dream that we are flying in the sky, although many of these occurrences are unusual phenomena, they are only indications that we have resolved our past negative mistakes, and this is not a time to become complacent.

We average persons have as many mistakes as the many spiny needles on the porcupine. If we quit our mind down and still cannot see a mistake, it is because our mind is too coarse and we cannot see it. Those people who have accumulated a lot of demerits, usually show certain symptoms. The mind is cloudy, forgetful, worrying when there is nothing to worry about, and one appears to be very embarrassed when meeting honest and saintly people, appearing to be unhappy when hearing the truth spoken. Sometimes when people give them things, instead of feeling grateful they would actually become very upset or angry. In their dreams they always have nightmares. They also complain all the time. These are all the symptoms of someone who has accumulated a lot of demerit, and when the symptoms appear, one should make his move to repent.

 

Third Lesson: The Way of Accumulating Merit

In the old days, there was a woman named Yen. Before she agreed to give her daughter in marriage to the man who later became Confucius’ father, she only asked if the ancestors had accumulated merit and virtue and did not care if they were wealthy. She felt that as long as the ancestors had accumulated merit, their offspring would definitely be outstanding. Confucius (511-479 B.C.) himself had praised Shun (one of the first emperors of China) on his filial piety. For that, Shun will be known for thousands of years and his offspring will be prominent for many, many generations, and these saying are actually based on truth.

I will give you another example. In Fujian province, there was a prominent person, Yang Rong, who held the position of Imperial Instructor. His ancestors were boat people who made their living by helping people cross the river. Whenever there was a storm and flood, the flooding would destroy house and oftentimes the people and animals and goods floated down river. Other boats were trying to collect the goods, and only his great-grandfather and grandfather would be interested in helping people and they would not take any of the goods. The villagers thought they were very stupid. After Yang Rong’s father was born, the Yang family became very wealthy. One day a Taoist monk came to the Yang family and said, “Your ancestors have accumulated a lot of merit; their offspring will definitely enjoy wealthy and prominence. There is a special place where you can build the ancestors’ tomb.” So they followed the suggestion and then Yang Rong was born and he passed the imperial examination when he was quite young and received imperial appointments. The emperor had given even his grandfather and great grandfather imperial honors. His descendents are still very prominent today.

Another example, Yang Zi-cheng was from the prefecture of Jin and was a member of the staff in the prefecture courthouse. He was a very compassionate person. Once when the prefectural magistrate was punishing a prisoner, beating him until he was bloody but still the magistrate was so angry. Yang pleaded with the magistrate to stop beating the prisoner. The magistrate said, “This person has broken the law, how can one not get angry?” And the staff member said, “When people in positions of power have not followed the Tao, then the people do not understand the law. Thus in the case like this we should be more understanding.” The prefectural magistrate then stopped the beating. Yang came from a very poor family, yet he never took any bribes. If the prisoners were short of food, he would always take food from his home even if it meant going hungry himself. This practice of compassion never ceased. He had two sons – the older son’s name was Shou-cheng, the second son’s name was Shou-zhi, and they both became very prominent, and held important positions. Even their descendants were prominent for a long time as well.

Another story is from one of the periods in the Ming dynasty. In the province of Fujian there were a lot of bandits and the imperial armies were going to pacify them so they appointed Hsieh to do this. Because they wanted to make sure that innocent people were not killed, they managed to get a list of all the bandits who belonged to an organization ands secretly gave a white flag to those who did not belong. They were told to place the flag on their door when the imperial armies came into town. The imperial armies were ordered not to kill the innocent. Because of this procedure, tens of thousands of people were saved, and many of Hiseh’s descendants as a result became very prominent.

Another example is the Ling family. Among the ancestors there was a mother who was very generous. She would make rice balls to give the poor. However many pieces people asked for, she would give. There was one Taoist monk who would ask for six or seven each time, and he came every day for three years. The woman always gave to him, and never expressed any displeasure. The Taoist monk realized the sincerity of this woman’s kindness and told her, “I have eaten of your rice balls for three years with nothing in return to show my gratitude, but I want you to know that in the back of your house there is a good place where you can build the grave for your ancestors. The number of your descendants who will have imperial appointment will be equivalent to the number of seeds in a pound of sesame seeds.” And so in the first generation after the Ling family built the ancestral grave there were nine men who passed the imperial exams, and it was like that for every succeeding generation.

Another famous person was the imperial historian whose surname was Feng. One day his father on the way school saw a person frozen in the snow. He quickly took his coat off, put it around the frozen man and took him home. That night he had a dream in which he was told, “When you helped that man you helped with a pure heart, and I will send the famous general from the Sung dynasty, Han-chi, to become your son.” Later the child was born and his nickname was Chi.

Another story of a famous person was of Ying who lived in Tai-zhou. When he was young he used to study in remote areas. In the nighttime he often heard ghosts and spirits but he was never afraid. One day he heard a ghost speaking, “Because a woman’s husband left a long time ago and had not returned, her in-laws think that their son is dead and are forcing her to remarry. Tomorrow night she is going to commit suicide, and then she will replace me and so I will be able to be reborn.” Mr. Ying heard this and immediately sold a parcel of his land for four lian (a weight unit) of silver, and he made up a letter from the woman’s husband and sent the silver with it to the home. The mother noticed that the writing was not her son’s handwriting, but she then thought, “Perhaps the letter is fake, but the silver cannot be fraudulent. Why would anyone want to send me the silver? Maybe my son is fine and we should not force our daughter-in-law to remarry.” And later the son did come home. Then Mr. Ying heard the ghost say, “Originally I was able to be reborn but now Mr. Ying has interfered with this.” Another ghost said, “Why don’t you take revenge?” The first ghost said, “No, because of his goodness he is going to become very prominent. How can I hurt him?” Mr. Ying thereafter was even more diligent in accumulating merit. Whenever there was a famine he would take his money and help people, or he would help people in emergencies. And when things did not always come his way, he also looked within himself rather than complain on the outside. Even nowadays his descendants are still very prominent.

There was another person, Mr. Hsu, whose father was very wealthy. Whenever there was a famine he would donate a lot of food to others. One day he heard a ghost say, “No lying, the family of Hsu will have a person who will pass the imperial exam.” This went on for several days. And sure enough, that year Hus passed the imperial exam. From then on his father was even more diligent in accumulating merit, whether it was building bridges or taking care of travelers or monks. Then he heard a ghost say, “No kidding, the Hus family is going to have a person who will pass even the higher level imperial exam.” And sure enough Hsu later on became the governor of two provinces.

Another person named Tu used to work in the courthouse and he would spend the night in the prison visiting the inmates. If he met anyone who was innocent, then he would write a secret report to the judge so that when they opened the court the judge could ask the prisoner and clear their case. So they released ten innocent people, and all the people were grateful to this clerk in court. Mr. Tu then also sent a memorial to the Imperial Judge, “In the land within the four seas there are many people, and there are bound to be many more innocent people who are imprisoned. I recommend that every five years you should send a special agent to check into each of the prisons to reduce sentences in order to prevent innocent people from remaining in prison.” The Imperial Judge agreed, and Tu was chosen as one of the sentences-reducing agents. One night he dreamed that God On High told him, “In your life you were not supposed to have a son originally, but this act of reducing prison sentences for innocent people is in line with the wishes of the heavens, and so heavenly emperor is going to send you three sons. They will all attain high position.” Soon after that, his wife became pregnant and gave birth one after the other to three sons all who later became prominent men.

Another person, Bao-ping, was the seventh son of the magistrate of Ci-yang and married into the Yuan family. He was a good friend of my father. He was very knowledgeable and very talented. Once touring around Tai-hu, which is a famous lake in China, he came to a village and saw a temple in disrepair with a statue of Bodhisattva Kuanyin wet from the rain. He took out all his money, which was ten lian of silver, and gave it to the abbot and said, “This is for fixing the temple.” The monk said, “This involves a lot of money. I’m afraid we cannot accomplish what you wish.” Then Bao-ping took out all his expensive clothing and fabrics and turned them over to the monk. Even though his servant tried to prevent him from doing this, he said, “It does not matter. As long as the statue does not get damaged so what if I do not have any clothing.” The monk said, “To give money and clothing is not difficult, but your sincerity is difficult to attain.” After the temple was repaired, he came with his father to visit and spent the night in the temple. In his dream the Dharma protector came and thanked him, “Your children will enjoy prominence.” Later on his son, Bing, and his grandson both were appointed to imperial positions.

In Jia-xing prefecture there was a person named Li whose family name was Zhi. His father was once a staff member in the prefectural courthouse. There was a prisoner who was sentenced to death but was innocent. The staff member knew about it and attempted to plead his case with his superior. The prisoner, after hearing about it, requested his wife to invite the staff member to her home and offer herself to him in marriage as an expression of gratitude, and also as a way to increase his chances of living. The wife cried as she listened to her husband’s request because she really did not want to do it. The next day when the staff member came to visit she offered wine and told him of her husband’s wishes. The staff member refused the offer of marriage but continued the effort to clear the case. When the imprisoned man was finally released, both he and his wife came to thank the staff member. They told him that since he had not a son yet, they wanted him to take their daughter as his wife. The staff member agreed and sent gifts to marry her. Their son Li passed the higher level imperial examination when he was barely twenty. Li’s son, Gao, and grandson, Lu, and great grandson, Da-lun, all received imperial appointments.

With regard to accumulating merit, one can go into further details. There is true goodness, and fake goodness; there is the straightforward goodness and the crooked goodness; there is the hidden goodness and the visible goodness; there is the appearance of goodness when there is no goodness; and there is the half goodness and the full goodness; there is the greater goodness and the lesser goodness, difficult goodness and easy goodness. So we need to go further to understand, otherwise if we practice what we think is goodness, but it actually has negative effects then it is not accomplishing our goal. Sometimes people say, “So and so is a philanthropist yet his descendants are not successful. Yet someone else may perform demerits but his family or descendents are very successful,” and start to misinterpret the common saying that the reward of goodness and evil is like the shadow falling after them. This is all nonsense. Often people do not really understand what is true goodness and what is true evil, so one cannot judge by appearance.

For example, just take true goodness and fake goodness. Beating and scolding someone, and taking someone’s wealth is usually considered evil. Respecting someone, being courteous to someone is usually considered good. These kinds of conduct are not necessarily good or evil, because we need to go further and understand the motivation behind them. It is only then we can understand whether it is true merit or demerits. Popularly speaking, as long as it benefits humankind then hitting or scolding someone is considered merit; if it is for one’s own selfishness then respecting others and treating other with courtesy is considered demerit. As for one’s behavior in the world, what benefits others is true merit but what benefits oneself is demerit or fake goodness. What comes from the inner heart is true goodness; if it is only for show it is a fake goodness. If one performs a virtuous act without expecting anything, that is true goodness; if one performs it with a thought of a goal, then it is fake goodness.

         What about straightforward goodness and crooked goodness? Usually, one considers a cautions and easygoing person to be a good person, but actually the sages think that those who are daring and courageous are truly good. Even though everyone consider the person who is careful and weak, with out personality, to be a good person, but the person actually does not have any will and any virtuous spirit. Using this, one can judge others in society as well. In any case, as for what is considered goodness and what is considered evil, the judgment of the heavens is the same as the sages and usually differs from the average view of society.

Therefore, if one wants to accumulate merit one cannot do it only through following the way of the world and to please other people. It has to come from within where the only thought is to help the world and not to please the world. Truly wanting to help others, that is the straightforward, proper goodness. If one has any thoughts of pleasing the world or playing with the world, then it is the crooked goodness.

Goodness is also divided into hidden goodness and visible goodness. If one performs a good deed and is know by others, that is considered a visible goodness. If one performs a goodness and it is not known by others, that is a hidden goodness. The visible goodness can only receive the reward of good reputation, and yet the hidden goodness which is not known by others heaven will reward even more. If someone’s reputation is beyond one’s true worth, then one will invite great trouble. Fame is not considered a blessing because many people who have the reputation oftentimes have a superficial fame. It does not have true virtue to substantiate it.  That is why a lot of families with fame oftentimes have strange mishaps. Therefore the ancient wise men have recommended that it is important to have no more fame than one’s true worth. If one has not made any mistakes but is given a bad name, the one who can accept this and not be disturbed by it is a someone with great virtue. Oftentimes their children will become very successful. Anyway, the difference between visible goodness and hidden goodness is whether it is known or not known.

In performing good deeds, there is also what appears to be goodness that is not actually goodness. For example, in the state of Lu, the law is when there are people who are captured by another state, if people are willing to pay the ransom to bring back the captured, the government usually gives a reward. Confucius’ student, Zi-gong, after he paid the ransom to bring back the captured people, did not want to receive the reward. When Confucius heard this, he scolded him and said, “You are wrong, because what a gentleman does can affect the society. It becomes a model for everyone; you cannot do it just for yourself. In the state of Lu there are very few wealthy men; most people are poor. If you start this example of making the receipt of reward money a shameful thing, then who is going to be able to afford to pay the ransom? The tradition of paying ransom to bring the captured back will disappear.”

Another example is when another student of Confucius, Zi-lu, saved someone from drowning and was given a cow as a token of gratitude. Zi-lu received the gift and when Confucius heard this, he said, “Very good. Now people in the state of Lu will be happy to save drowning people, because one is willing to rescue and the other is willing to thank. They created a proper model.” And if you use the two examples just mentioned, an average person would view Zi-gong not receiving the reward money as being very good thing. Confucius’ view is different from the average person. Therefore, when one performs a good deed, one cannot just look at conduct but has to consider other effects. One should not see only the present but also see the final outcome. One should not consider only one’s own personal gain but how it affects the greater society. If I were performing something that appears to be a good deed yet if the final result would actually hurt people, then it is something that appears to be goodness but is not. Or, on the other hand, if behavior or conduct is not good but the result benefits others, then the ultimate result is goodness. There are other examples of what appears to be goodness but actually is not, such as improper forgiveness and tolerances; overly praising someone and causing the person to lose his sense; keeping a small promise and causing a greater trouble; spoiling a child and causing later problems; these are all worth contemplating.

In terms of goodness there is also proper and improper. How does one explain that? I will give an example. There was a one-time primer minister, Lu. When he tired and returned to his village, the villagers still treated him with great respect. One day one of the villagers got drunk and went over to scold him. Mr. Lu was not concerned by it, thinking that it was because the man was drunk so he did not punish him. Next year, this man became even more outrageous in his behavior. Eventually he did something that got him a death penalty. This time Mr. Lu was quite remorseful. He said, “At that time, if I had disciplined him then it would have straightened him out and maybe he would not have continues his behavior causing him to do something that incurred the death penalty. I should not have been too lenient with him.” This is an example of how a good heart can actually do evil.

I can give you another example of how bad conduct can actually produce good results. Once at a place there was a famine and the people became violent, openly taking food from other people. There was a very wealthy man who reported this to the government but the government did not care, so these people became more and more violent, and became bolder in their behavior. In this situation this family had to punish these people on their own and only then the area had some peace. Everyone knows that goodness is proper and that evil is not proper. But if one is being good yet making a situation worse, then it is improper. If one is being evil but making a situation good, then it is proper.

This is something one should also understand – what about half good and full good? In the I Ching it is mentioned that if goodness is not full, then one would not become successful. If evil is not full, one would not bring about destruction. It is like throwing things in a container; if one is diligent in accumulating then it will become full, if one is lazy it will not become full. For example, once there was a woman who went to the temple to offer her prayer and wanted to give something but because she came from a poor family she could only find two cents, but the temple’s abbot still came out to bless her. Later, this woman became a palace woman and brought thousands of gold to give. This time the abbot sent only one of his students. Therefore she asked, “Last time when I offered only two cents you came personally to bless me. Today I am offering thousands, how come you will not give me a personal blessing?” The abbot said, “In the past, although you gave little you were sincere. Unless I personally blessed you it was not enough to reward you. Today although you give much, your heart is not sincere. Therefore I only sent my student.” This is an example of thousands in gold as being half goodness, and two cents as being full goodness.

Some time ago, there was an immortal named Zong-li. He was teaching Lu Dong-bing the art of transforming iron into gold to help the world. Lu Dong-bing asked whether this gold would ever return to its original form, and Zong said that five hundred years later it would return to iron. Lu said, “Won’t this way cause trouble for the people five hundred years later? I do not think I want to learn this.” Zong said, “To become an immortal one needs to accumulate three thousand merits, and just this speech of your is worth three thousand merit. Now you can practice becoming an immortal.” Therefore to perform goodness it has to come from naturalness and sincerity, and one does not make a conscious note of it afterwards. And so even if it was a small goodness, it will bear good fruit. If one has a goal for doing good, and in giving wants a reward, then even if one performs goodness all life long it is still half goodness. For example, if one were giving money it can get to the point where it is as if there is no receiver. Therefore, the giver, the receiver, and the money are all not in one’s consciousness. In this kind of giving then one cent is enough to neutralize thousands of lifetime worth of negative karma, and the giving of a pound of rice can bring about infinite merit as well. If one, in giving does not forget, or in giving expects return, or in giving material goods feels agony, then even if one give ten thousand in gold it is still half goodness.

Let’s discuss the fact that goodness is great and small, and difficult and easy. In the old days, there was someone named Wei Zhong-da. He was a high official in the palace. Once when his spirit left his body he was taken to the underworld. The king of the underworld took out the record of his good deeds and bad deeds. He noticed that the records of his bad deeds filled up the whole courtyard, yet the record of his good deeds was only a few pages. Then the king of the underworld asked some of his staff to weigh it, and yet the records of his evil deeds were lighter than a few pages of his good deeds. Zhong-da was curious and said, “I am barely over forty. How could I have accumulated so many bad deeds?” The king of the underworld said, “Evil thoughts are recorded as well. One does not necessarily have to carry them out.” Then Zhong-da asked, “Why is the records of good deeds heavier than that of the bad deeds?” The king said, “The emperor oftentimes has building projects. When they were about to build a stone bridge in Fujian province you had proposed that it not be carried out because you were concerned about tens of thousands of people undergoing hardship.” Zhong-da answered, “I did send the proposal but the emperor did not take my suggestion. How can it bear any weight?” The king said, “Because even though the emperor did not take your suggestion just your intention to do good would have affected tens of thousands of people. If the proposal was accepted then the weight of good deeds would be even greater.”

Therefore, one can see that when one things about the world, if it affects tens of thousands of people, even though the deed may be small the merit can be great. If one is concerned only about one person, and the goodness affects only one person, and even though the act of goodness is great, its total effect is small.

When it comes to difficult and easy kinds of deeds, one uses the same principle as working on oneself. If one starts with the difficult parts then one will not make even small mistakes. Examples of people performing good deeds under difficult conditions are the Jiang-xi’s Mr. Shu who used two years of his salary from teaching to pay for another person’s violation fee so to allow that person’s family to reunite. In Hunan province, there was the Mr. Zhan who used his saving from ten years to help someone return a debt and so saved the person’s wife and daughter. In Zhen-jianf, another man though he had no son when he was old, did not want to take in a young woman offered by his neighbor for a concubine.

So the above examples of people who give all they have to benefit others, to understand and consider others, these are all cases where people are doing beyond what a normal person can do or tolerate. This is the kind of goodness that is most special. When one has no money or no power, to perform good deeds and to help others is more difficult, but the merit is the greatest.

If one has money and power, then the opportunity to perform good deeds and accumulate merit is very easy. If in a situation like this where it is easy to accumulate merit and to perform good deeds and one does not do it, then it is to give up on oneself. And just as the common saying, “If one is wealthy and does not perform goodness, one is like a fat pig.”

We have discussed the principles and understanding behind performing good deeds. Now we will talk about helping others through other methods. The first is to benefit people, the second is to treat people with respect and love, the third is to facilitate the wishes of others to do good, the fourth is to encourage others to perform goodness, the fifth is to help people in emergencies, the sixth is to support public work, the seventh is to give of one’s wealth, the eight is to protect and support the spiritual teaching, the ninth to give respect to elders, the tenth is to protect living beings.

So, the first one, what does that mean, to benefit others? One of our first emperors, Shun, when he was young he would watch people fish in the Shandong province. He noticed that in the places where there were a lot of fish, such as in the deep water, it was usually monopolized by the younger fisherman and the weaker older fisherman were left with the rapid streams, and he felt very sad. So then he decided to join them in fishing, and whenever he met other fisherman who came in pushing and taking his place, he would let them have it without a word. And if he saw that someone that gave him the opportunity to fish, then he would praise him and be grateful. After a while he created an atmosphere of mutual respect in giving. And so, think about the talent of Shun who could easily have used words to teach but he set his own example to change the atmosphere. Therefore, in one’s behavior in life, it is important not to use one’s own good points to highlight the weak points of other. Do not overtly demonstrate one’s own goodness to show up the evil of others, and certainly do not use one’s own cleverness to play tricks on others. Always live in humility. If one sees that others have shortcoming, one should be tolerant. If one sees others performing small good deeds then praise them. And so, it will become a silent treatment to those who are evil, but also will not shame the face of the other person, allowing them to change. Therefore, always thinking about the welfare of the whole and protecting the truth, this is what is meant by benefiting others.

Second, what is to have a respectful and loving heart? If I were judging from behavior, the difference between a gentleman and a non-gentleman is very difficult sometimes. But if you were seeing it from the aspect of motivation, then it is easy to tell. Therefore, there is a saying that the difference between a gentleman and a non-gentleman is in their thought. There is another saying that the same kind of rice feeds a hundred different kinds of people. Although people are different in closeness, in high and low positions, in intelligence, they are all people. Therefore one should treat all of them with respect, and respect the ordinary people in the way one respects sages, and understand where the average person comes from.

The third, what is it to facilitate others to perform good deeds? Generally speaking, in society there are fewer people who perform good deeds than those who do not. Usually people have the habit of defending one’s own kind and pushing out those who are different. Therefore, a gentleman in this society unless he has great determination and courage he has a very hard time making a stance. Oftentimes those who have the motivation for performing good deeds have speech and conduct that are different from the rest of society. They usually are very honest and uncalculating, and they do not know how to build up themselves to receive the proper recognition. Therefore, people who do not have the wisdom oftentimes will criticize these people and so they do not have a chance to perform good deeds. So it is important to support the gentlemen, the ones in society who have a good heart. It is like treating jade. Once does not throw it out like rocks but polishes it to become a jewel. Therefore, when one sees others performing good deeds, one should give them support to help them accomplish their goals.

The fourth, what does it mean to encourage others to perform good deeds? Everyone has a conscience but because of the confusion of life and also the attractions of fame and wealth, oftentimes it causes people to sink. Therefore, in interacting with the average person it is important to always remind others to do good. There is a saying – To wake people up once one uses the mouth. To wake people up for a hundred generations, one writes books.

The fifth, what is meant by helping people in an emergency? In one’s life one often will be in a situation of failure or misfortune, treat it as if one were encountering misfortune, and give help without reservation. For example, using words to give comfort, or use other methods to help them.

The sixth, what does it mean to support public work? This is to support work that is for the public good. For example, building dams, bridges, helping the poor – these are examples of public work that one should support.

The seventh, what does it mean to give of one’s wealth? The teaching of Buddha is that there are ten thousand ways of developing spiritually and the first is to give. Giving is also non-attachment. The more evolved ones can be giving inwardly the six senses, outwardly the six worldly phenomena. And everything that one possesses can be given without any question. Of course, the average person cannot accomplish this level and oftentimes sees wealth as more important than life, therefore the first step in becoming unattached is to start giving what is most difficult, and that is money. To help others is to build up one’s merit. Inwardly one will start to remove the selfishness, the miserliness, and outwardly one can help others in an emergency which will facilitate the spiritual growth. In the beginning one may feel it is forced, but then it becomes very natural. It will also neutralize one’s other shortcomings.

The eighth, what is meant by supporting the spiritual teaching? The spiritual teaching refer to dharma, the teaching of Buddha. The teachings of Buddha provide a guide for people to become liberated, to become free from life and death. Therefore, when one sees Buddha’s temple or sutras one should treat them with respect and protect them.

The ninth, what is meant by respecting elders? This means respecting parents, elderly brothers and sister, people who are in authority, and especially those who are virtuous and wise. In treating one’s parents, one should treat them with kindness and respect. And in working in society, one should not misbehave even if the emperor is far away. In punishing prisoner, it is important not to overdo it. This all has to do with accumulating merit as hidden merits.

The tenth, what is meant by protecting life? The ancient ones have said, “Because one cares about the rats, one save some rice for the rats, and because one cares about the moth one does not light the lamp.” Of course, this is hard for the average person to do, but this is just a reminder that we all have innate compassion. That is why Mencius said, “The gentleman should stay far away from the kitchen,” (in China a lot of killing occurs in the kitchen) as a way to protect people’s innate mercy. He also said that even if one cannot become a complete non-meat eater, one should at least come to the point that if the animal was raised by oneself one does not eat it; if one has seen the killing of the animal one does not eat the meat of it; if one has heard it being killed one does not eat its meat; and if it is killed specifically for us we do not eat it. These are the four cases where one does not eat the meat, at least to start building the compassion and also to expand one’s merit and wisdom.

The ancient people boil the six cocoons to get silk for clothing, and nowadays when we farm we get rid of insects to feed people, so the resources of clothing and food all involve killing. Thus it is also important to protect our things, not to waste food and clothing, and so to indirectly protect life. And sometimes one will accidentally step on things or hurt things with our hands, so one should be very careful. The methods with which one can accumulate merit are many and I cannot describe them all in full detail, but if one can at least start with these ten methods it would be a good beginning.

 

Fourth Lesson: The Benefits of Humility

In the I Ching it is said that the heavens will take away from those who are arrogant and help those who are humble. If you look at the way the earth is structured, the water in the higher places always flows to the lower places, and so it is with the spirits and the demigods who will take away from those who are arrogant, and protect those who are humble. It is the same with humans. Those who are arrogant and full of self-importance usually are despised by other and only those who are humble are respected by others. In the I Ching there are sixty-four principles describing three hundred and eighty-four counsels, two-thirds of which are for warning and caution. But in the six principles that belong to the “humble hexagram” they are all for praises. No wonder there is a common saying that humility receives benefit and arrogance invites trouble.

If you look at those scholars who were poor, usually just before they became famous they were very, very humble. A few years back there were ten people from my village who went to Beijing for imperial examination. Among these there was someone named Ding-bing who was the youngest but also the most humble. I had told other friends that he would pass the imperial examination that year and my friends had said, “How do you know?” I said, “Only those who are humble will receive fortune and in that group he is the one who is humble and very sincere. Only he is respectful of others and does not fight with others. When he is mistreated he is tolerant. When he hears of slander he does not fight back. When one can come to this level of humility, the heavens and the spirits will all protect him, of course he will pass the examination.” When the time came, sure enough he did pass the imperial examination. There were several of the other who did not pass and they changed their previous arrogance and became very humble. They passed the examination later. Before the heavens are going to reward someone, before their fortune comes, the heavens will first awaken their wisdom. Once wisdom is awakened they naturally will become humble, arrogance will dissipate and fortune will follow.

There was another person from Jiang-ying whose name was Chang. He was very talented, very knowledgeable, and he had quite a reputation. When he participated in the examination he did not pass and he became very angry. He started accusing the examiner of not having any eyeballs. There was a Taosit monk at the time watching on the side who started smiling and then his Mr. Chang directed his anger to this Taoist monk. This monk then said, “It must be that your writing is not good enough.” Mr. Chang said, “How do you know? You have not read my writing.” The Taoist monk said, “People say that to write well one has to be calm and peaceful, and now I have watched you open your mouth to scold others, and you are definitely not very peaceful and not very calm so how can you write well?” Mr. Chang became quiet and then turned around and asked the Taoist monk for advice. The monk said, “Passing an examination also relates to destiny. If in your destiny you are not supposed to pass, then no matter how much time you spend you will not pass. You first have to change yourself.” And Chang asked, “If it is destiny, how can one change?” And the Taoist monk said, “Although destiny originates in the heavens, to build it is dependent upon the person. If one accumulates good merit, then one can attain everything that one ask for.” Chang then asked, “I am a poor man. How can I perform good deeds and accumulate merit?” The Taoist monk said, “The good deed and the merit are accumulated from the heart. If you always keep your kindness in treating people, than that in itself is a great merit. For example, to be humble does not cost any money. Why don’t you turn around and instead of accusing the examiner look within your self and perhaps you see that you do not have enough humility or that you are not good enough.” Mr. Chang all of sudden was awakened and started to change his ways. Three years later in a dream he came to a large building and picked up a booklet. He was curious and asked someone next to him, “What is this booklet?” The person next to him answered, “Well, it is this year’s list of  those who have passed the exam.” Then Chang asked, “How come there are a lot of blank spaces?” And the person answered, “Every three year in the underworld we do a check and only those who have accumulated merit and have not committed evil deeds can remain on the list. The spaces where names have been erased are people who originally were supposed to pass the exam but because of recent misconduct there name were removed. In the past three years you have been very cautious, and have worked on yourself very diligently. You may fill in these blank spaces so take care of yourself.” And that year Mr. Chang passed the examination and he was the 105th person to pass.

Therefore, one can understand the common saying that in one’s life one should not do anything that is disgraceful because there is a god consciousness above us that knows it all. So, in one’s life, whether one will have luck or misfortune, how one can stay from bad luck comes down to a thought – if one can watch one’s thought and keep it pure and also watch oneself through humility, then one will always be protected by the gods and the spirits. If one is arrogant and full of self-importance, using one’s power, talent, and wealth to show off or manipulate others, then one does not have a bright future. One will not become anything, and will not even enjoy a little fortune. Therefore, those who are wise and those who are understand the Tao will never destroy one’s own future or destroy one’s own fortune. Only those who are humble can receive wisdom and fortune and benefit a great deal. This is the fundamental understanding in living.

In Buddha’s teaching there is a saying that if we want to have wealth and position, we will have wealth and position. If we want to have fame we can have fame. Therefore, when we make an inner commitment, it is like a tree setting down its roots. We should set them down deep, always remembering humility in our dealings with others, always facilitating others, and then naturally we will accomplish what we wish.

Back to the Top
OR
Return to Taoism