PureInsight | September 4, 2013
[PureInsight.org] There are many professions in the world. People from any walk of life can do good deeds or commit crimes. In China, running a pawn shop is regarded by many as one of the most lucrative businesses. There is an old saying in China, “If you want to get rich, open a pawn shop.” Most people believe pawn shop owners usually take advantage of poor people. When a poor person needs money urgently and there is no way for them to get it, they have to visit a pawn shop. The pawn shop owner often demands the poor person pays very high interest on the loan and the poor person usually has to agree to it. This is yet another reason why Chinese people say “those that are rich are not good.” Yet, there is also another old saying that says human beings can perform any profession righteously. We simply should not view every pawn shop owner the same way; there are many who perform good deeds for people.
There is a story about a pawn shop owner named Mr. King in Jiangsu Province back in the Ming Dynasty. He was known for his integrity and kindness toward poor people and he managed his business fairly. Mr. King often gave people long-term loans and didn’t ask for interest from the poor or elderly.
One time a farmer’s wife got a serious disease. The farmer’s family was poor and had no money to pay for a doctor, so the farmer had to pawn his winter coat to Mr. King’s shop. Winter soon arrived and the farmer still didn’t have the interest to get back his winter coat. The cold winds made the farmer tremble all the time. Mr. King realized that the farmer didn’t have the money yet, and he was afraid that the farmer might get sick in the cold without a warm coat. So Mr. King approached the farmer and told him to redeem his coat without paying any interest on the loan. The farmer was so moved he didn’t know what to say.
Mr. King never hesitated in reaching out to help people in need. During winter, he wouldn’t ask for interest on winter coats people pawned, while in the summer he wouldn’t ask for any interest on summer clothes. As time went by, the number of good deeds that Mr. King performed for people became countless. The strange thing was that Mr. King’s shop didn’t lose any money at all; on the contrary, his business was growing steadily and Mr. King had become one of the richest businessmen in his region. Actually, it should be no surprise that Mr. King’s business was so successful. It was due to his good reputation. People spread the news about Mr. King by mouth, and soon, many people knew about Mr. King’s shop and visited. His shop was almost always busy; it was as if there was a market full of people right in front. Of course, Mr. King’s business grew quickly, proving that a good reputation is the most reliable foundation for growth and profitability in business. Such a reputation has a much stronger influence than the usual commercial advertisements. Building an excellent reputation is the sole path to success for a business.
Those who are always ready to help out not only gain more materially in this world, they also receive blessings from heaven to protect their lives and properties.
One year, a group of gangsters attacked Mr. King’s town. Many wealthy families were robbed of their money and jewellery. People were surprised to learn that Mr. King’s shop was not broken into at all; no one in Mr King’s family was hurt.
Local law officials were suspicious that Mr. King might have had some connections with the robbers. Mr. King’s business was one of the best in the area. Many people visited his shop, and among them many were poor, and some of them were gang members. Could it be that Mr. King had made some underhanded deals with the gangsters? Otherwise, why was his shop not damaged at all? However, the officials could not find a single piece of evidence to incriminate Mr. King.
Later, the gangsters were eventually captured. While being interrogated, they claimed they had no connection with Mr. King at all. When asked why Mr. King’s shop was not burglarized, the robbers confessed that they indeed had gone there to steal money, however, when they arrived, they saw many heavily clad heavenly beings standing on the roof. Every one of those deities was holding a sword or knife, and they appeared very formidable, ready to attack at any moment. The gangsters were terrified upon seeing that and scrambled off in a hurry. Upon hearing this, the law enforcement officials were relieved; they immediately realized that Mr. King really was a good person. He had performed so many good deeds that even the deities were moved and decided to protect him and his property. The local county administration later bestowed a plaque to Mr. King to show the county’s appreciation to him. The plaque read, “Heaven Blessing the Good House.”
After reading this story, I am pretty sure the reader will have a new understanding of the old saying “Deities admire those who are virtuous.” How are we going to accumulate virtue, then? The Chinese people used to say, “By pulling bits of dirt together, you will make a mountain where wind and rain will form; by accumulating enough water, you will make a lake where dragons will live.” This is a very philosophical saying. As long as we never stop doing even the most trivial good things, as time goes by, we will be able to accumulate virtues out of our kind deeds. By doing so, we will be protected by deities. We don’t have to seek protection, yet, there is protection over us. We don’t have to seek safety, yet there is already a safety net for us.
From this story, we can see that rewards for good deeds are always there. In today’s China, where the CCP is ruining the country, those who reach out to help Falun Dafa practitioners who are being persecuted will definitely be rewarded handsomely by heaven. By helping Falun Dafa practitioners, you are helping those good citizens that are following the Buddha Fa; the virtue that you will gain will be much more plentiful, and the rewards will thus be much more splendid. The door to fortune has to be pushed open by oneself, and the path to such a fortune is just right in front of oneself. Why doesn’t one take this first step that will determine his future life? Destiny is determined by one’s heart, and heaven will bless good people. When the truth is revealed, when the door to fortune is finally open, only those who are performing good deeds will have the chance to go through!
Translated from: http://www.zhengjian.org/node/118375
