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We walk on roads every day, but have we ever realised that every inch of the road we step on was paved with the sweat and toil of many?”
I was invited to attend the opening ceremony of the Taiwan Railways Administration’s South-Link Line in the previous year (1991). The construction of the South-Link Line was a great project as it helps to connect the railway lines all around Taiwan. We can imagine that such a massive project had involved the efforts of numerous people—large numbers of workers were needed to clear out paths, and drill and blast the rocks to make way for the railway tracks. All these were very tough and challenging tasks. The beautiful and impressive railway line became a reality thanks to the hard work of all the construction workers, and I give my highest respects to these heroes!
We walk on roads every day, but have we ever realised that every inch of the road we stepped on was paved with the sweat and toil of many? Hence, we should feel grateful when we are walking on a road, and be thankful to those who paved the roads, which enable convenient travel and help make our journey easy.
If everyone can cooperate with and complement each other, our society will be peaceful and prosperous. We should also be grateful to one another, then we will be joyful every day.
Not creating disputes and conflicts between people is a basic courtesy as a human being. A sutra says, “By staying away from disputes and conflicts, we will perfect our spiritual practice.” If we can serve diligently in our society without being affected by conflicts and disputes, and always bear a heart of gratitude and humility no matter what happens, we will be able to perfect our spiritual practice.
Those who aspire to practise spiritual cultivation will perfect their virtues and practice if they bear a humble heart, and are courteous and forbearing. Upholding the precepts prevents us from breaking the rules and shelters us from harm, and the precepts must be practised with humility and gratitude.
As modern day people go about their busy lives, they should keep their minds calm and at ease despite being busy with work. A busy mind may lead to over-thinking, which messes up our minds, and as a result, we would tend to feel disturbed and troubled in the face of adversities in life. With such a mindset, we will never be content or satisfied even when we live in a materialistically rich environment. Therefore, we should cultivate our body and mind in our daily lives and avoid creating obstacles for others. Then, we will not obstruct ourselves from achieving our goal of perfecting our spiritual practice.
In our daily lives, if we are able to look at every person, matter and thing with a heart of gratitude, contentment and joy, we will perfect our practice of the precepts, Samadhi and wisdom as taught by the Buddha.
Extracted from “Sheng Huo De Zhi Hui”《生活的智慧》
Translated by the Tzu Chi Singapore translation team
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