A Guide to the - Rissho Kosei-kai

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If one imitates the lifestyle of Tachibana or Grateful Yoichibe, one's world will be broadenedand one will feel much more at ease. We should always keep in mind that whether we arehappy or miserable is determined by how we see and respond to things.A happy life begins with small pleasures, which greatly multiply.8
Rose or Thorns?The rose is beautiful, but its stem has many thorns‐‐this is a fact. One person will say the rose isbeautiful, but that it has thorns, stressing the negative. Another person will concede that thereare thorns, but will insist on the rose's beauty, emphasizing the positive. When the matter athand is the ability or other qualities of a human being, the ways in which one accepts someonecan be just as various. If one comments, "He does good work and he's a pleasant fellow," andleaves it at that, everyone will be left in congenial spirits. Yet in every society there arefaultfinders, who are not content unless they have noted some imperfection and can saysomething like, "He does good work, but he's overconfident and likes to boast." By draggingothers down, such people hope to maintain a sense of superiority. If they could somehow applythe brakes before making critical comments, it would open up an entirely new world.Near the gate of the temple Nanzen‐ji in Kyoto, there once lived an old woman whom everyonecalled Tearful Granny. Rain or shine, she was always in tears. One day the chief priest asked her,"What could be so sad that it makes you cry all the time?" The old woman replied, "I have twosons, one an umbrella‐maker at Sanjo and the other a sandal‐maker at Gojo. When it rains, Iknow people won't want to go out and buy sandals from my first son, and that makes me sad.When the sun comes out, I realize people won't buy umbrellas from my second son, and Igrieve over that." The priest said, "How about looking at it the other way around? When itrains, be glad that people will buy lots of umbrellas. When the weather improves, rejoice thatyour other son's sandal business will prosper." The old woman took his point. "You're right,"she said, and from that day on she always smiled and lived happily.Most people, when they hear this story, laugh at the old woman's foolishness. However, it isnot something that can be so easily laughed away, because many people, big or small, think likethis. By searching for the seeds of discontent in one's surroundings, one makes oneselfunhappy.Several people are climbing a mountain and become thirsty. There is not much water in thecanteen, and when they divide it up, each person gets half a cup. "Why, I only get half a cup,"grumbles one. "I'm glad I have at least half a cup to quench my thirst," says another, happilydrinking it. It goes without saying which of the two is happier and the kind of person whomothers find an agreeable companion.Life is an accumulation of small happenings. This is precisely why the spiritual habit of lookingat a rose and meekly accepting its beauty is of such great importance. Doing this is certainly notvery difficult. All that is required is a momentary change of heart. Tearful Granny was able toreorient herself as a result of the priest's simple comment. Blessed today with an abundance ofknowledge, we ought to be able to make such a conversion with our own strength through socalledself‐awareness.It goes without saying that this kind of spiritual practice is for our own happiness, but it alsomanifests great power when we meet and lead other people. If we look at others with a criticaleye, our attitude turns caustic and we tend to heap spiteful remarks on them. Others onlyrecoil from one who does this. On the other hand, if we look for others' strong points, wenaturally meet them with "smiling faces and loving words"‐‐one of the Buddha's "sevenofferings that cost nothing." Our facial expressions become friendlier and we speakconsiderately. When we treat others this way, they naturally open their hearts. Furthermore, ifothers recognize their own strong points, they will gain confidence and courage.It is important, when you are scolding someone, to recognize his or her merits. You might saysomething like, "You are always so careful; how come you made such a mistake?" Or, "This isn't9
Page 1 and 2: Invisible EyelashesSeeing What is C
Page 3 and 4: THE TWO FUNCTIONS OF A CELL 55The P
Page 5 and 6: For this to take place, it is vital
Page 7: Pleasure is filling the empty rice
Page 11 and 12: The Contents of Hotei's SackThe mor
Page 13 and 14: GratitudeFor the past two decades I
Page 15 and 16: Looking Into the DepthsEach of us m
Page 17 and 18: Self‐AwarenessSometimes we allow
Page 20 and 21: the mountains, Po Chu‐i went to m
Page 22 and 23: and hesitating to take a first step
Page 24 and 25: "Nothing has an ego" means that all
Page 26 and 27: self‐love, endeavoring to develop
Page 28 and 29: ampant, Dr. Schweitzer devoted his
Page 30 and 31: Everyone has some ability that is b
Page 32 and 33: een pondering Kepler's theories of
Page 34 and 35: improved, I would return home only
Page 36 and 37: work.In another section, "The Daily
Page 38 and 39: Hakone, I finished in fifty‐five
Page 40 and 41: Many people want to work in their o
Page 42 and 43: eplied, "One hundred divided by two
Page 44 and 45: at the gate, the Buddha appeared an
Page 46 and 47: once again sinks into despair, it t
Page 48 and 49: individuality grows beyond the boun
Page 50 and 51: this truth, one becomes keenly awar
Page 52 and 53: suddenly turned irritable and said,
Page 54 and 55: well in a sport, one obeys the rule
Page 56 and 57: There is, however, one infallible r
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The offering of kind words means sp
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We must never think of ourselves an
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The Wind Blowing from the FutureThe
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Courage That Opens DoorsI have many
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"Even Insects Work and Eat"My paren
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Home Is More Than a HavenIn recent
Page 70 and 71:
Where Affection and Gratitude Begin
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Forever Young at HeartAlmost every
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A Guide to the - Rissho Kosei-kai

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