PureInsight | June 23, 2007
[PureInsight.org] Three monks were discussing what was the hardest to come by in this world.
The first monk said, "The hardest thing to obtain is youth, health, and
longevity. You may be rich, but if you are old and sick, you cannot
enjoy anything."
The second monk said, "The hardest thing to find in this world is
someone who knows you and is also your loyal partner. If you are in a
powerful position, but you don't have someone who will support you and
care about you, you are just like a flower without its fragrance and
the hovering butterflies."
The third monk said, "Nice relatives. They are the hardest to find. If
one has only a healthy body and a best friend, but with relatives
fighting all the time, what good would that be? Every day would
be like living in Hell."
A Buddha from Heaven heard the discussion and decided to call for a big
meeting. It was autumn and the breeze was cool and refreshing.
The Buddha told the monks, "The hardest to come by on the planet Earth
is not health, not a wonderful partner, and not nice relatives. I
would like to tell you a story."
At the bottom of the ocean, there is a blind turtle, which has had a
lot of living experiences. There is also a piece of driftwood
with a hole in the middle that floats along in the wind. It is
difficult enough for a blind turtle to surface, once in a hundred
years, let alone to find a piece of drift wood with a hole in the
middle, so it can carry the turtle safely to the shore. A blind turtle
meeting a piece of driftwood may have a probability of one in ten
thousand. If anyone wants to have a human body, I would say it is
about ten thousand times harder than a blind turtle wanting to get to
the shore.
Then the Buddha put some dirt into his hand, opened his hand, and said,
"The beings who have a human body are like the dirt in my hand, a very
small amount, but the beings who fail to obtain a human body are like
the huge ground. A human body is the hardest to come by. You
monks need to listen and think about that."
Once you lose your human body, it may take another ten thousand years
to regain it. This is not an old saying from the Buddhist
scripture, but the true realization of life. We need to cherish our
lifetimes and our predestined relationships here and now. What is
the hardest to come by? Nothing other than a human body. Human
beings are the masters of all lives and only human beings are allowed
to cultivate and become a Buddha or a Tao.
We came into this world with nothing and will leave this world with
nothing. Fame and fortune will be left behind. In this human maze,
being enslaved by fame and wealth as well as accumulating more karma,
we eventually will get what we deserve. Good deeds will be rewarded and
bad deeds will meet with retribution. Cherish the present. Follow the
great way of Dafa cultivation and return to one's true self is the
purpose of life.
Translated from: http://big5.minghui.org/mh/articles/2005/6/13/103221.html
