Page 58 - 44-Summer 2015_Final

(Excerpt)

Dharma Master Cheng Yen introduces a collection of short, wise
sayings designed to guide us in our daily lives.

Dharma Master Cheng Yen

A filial person is truly blessed
A peaceful world is most auspicious

he four seasons come and go in a cycle. When I look up at the sky in the early
morning or at night, sometimes I see a lone star and a crescent moon. Sometimes
Tmany stars surround a full moon, while other times thick, dark clouds make it hard
to see either the stars or the moon. Whatever the weather, I always sincerely pray for the
climate to remain temperate throughout the four seasons.

When we observe everything in the world with a tranquil mind, including the sun, the
moon, and the stars, we will find profound meaning even in a flower or a blade of grass.
The Buddha attained enlightenment in the universe; there is no place where his mind is not
present and no Dharma that he cannot thoroughly comprehend. The Buddha’s mind is so
broad that it encompasses the whole universe. The Buddha realizes the truth of the universe
and has loving-kindness and compassion for all beings. Therefore, he is called the Great
Enlightened One in the Universe.

Modern science allows us to study the relationship between Buddhism and the universe.
The sutras mention that one day in the Trayastrimsa heaven is equal to a hundred years in
the human world. A human’s lifespan is less than one day in the Trayastrimsa heaven; how
short it is! Earth takes 365 days to orbit the Sun; on the other hand, it takes Mercury, the
planet closest to the Sun, 88 days to orbit the Sun. In other words, one year on Mercury is
equal to 88 days on Earth. On the planet Neptune, one year is a little longer than 160 of our
years on Earth. On Pluto, a dwarf planet far from the Sun, one year is longer than 240 of
our years.

Each planet has its own period of revolution, and science has shown the “billion worlds”
the Buddha spoke of is not groundless. These cosmic phenomena have always existed in the
universe, yet people live their lives completely unawares. Compared to the entire universe,
human life is in fact extremely insignificant, so what is there worth fussing over?

When I look at the vast world, the more I understand about world affairs, the more
worried I become. In the world, there are natural disasters caused by the disequilibrium
of the Four Elements (earth, water, fire, and air) as well as man-made conflicts caused by
uncontrollable human desires. Actually, the disharmony in people's minds is even more
dangerous than the disequilibrium of the climate. With their disquieted minds, people
disrupt the order of Nature's laws, throwing the entire environment into disarray.

Approximately 2600 years ago, the Buddha predicted that the world of the future would
suffer the Five Impurities, as the Four Elements would be imbalanced, and the Three

5 8 TZU CHI USA SUMMER 2015