Robot Monk Xian'er

Perfection Vs Delusion Perfectionism in itself is a delusion and clinging. Perfectionists believe their inner expectations to be real, which is an obsession that causes one to suffer. No situation in this world is controlled by our random wishes. There are only combinations of causes and conditions. If we can observe this nature, we will be relieved, at ease and in peace. Work hard on the seeds we plant, and behappy with the harvest we reap. Seeking perfection focuses only on the harvest. However, all things are but the result of causes and conditions, which wecannot c ompletely control. Hence, demanding a good result leads to suffering.Spare no efforts in what we can do, and let go of the demand for everything tobe of utmost satisfaction.   What others think is their business, while what we do is ours. There are things that cannot be perfect in the moment no matter how hard we try. We cannot control the opinion of others or the environment, but there is no need to control these. The important

BystandersWhen worrying about gains and losses, one suffers. In exams, when students want a better grade really badly, they do below par; in sport games, when athletes want to win really badly, they make a lot of mistakes; in relationships, when people want to hold on tight to someone else really badly, they make that person suffocate; in seeing oneself, when one wishes to be perfect really badly, one tends to have a lower self-esteem. All these afflictions come from “clinging”. When we let go of our this clinging, we can become a balanced person and act appropriately. Thus, we should cherish the moment and avoid aiming too high, having delusions about what one cannot achieve, and over estimating oneself. What we are experiencing in the moment is the best, and our lives are these moments put together. When we are not involved in other causes and conditions, however good they may be, we are still by standers. One can read biographies of saints. When being trapped in swamps that we cannot get out of by ourselve

Attachment VS perseverance Perseverance is a strong aspiration. When we enjoy or understand the significance of what we are doing, we can overcome many difficulties. For example, football fans can wake up early during the World Cup even if they usually can’t. So, the essence of perseverance is to let oneself fall in love with practicing dharma. To Buddhists, the aspiration to elevate life is the pulling force, and the deep understanding of impermanence and suffering is the pushing force. When we don’t have enough will power, it is best to study with good dharma friends and let your team protect and support you. It is common that people take attachment as perseverance. For example, we may get attached to how much work we have done. Hostility toward others pops up easily when we are in the control of arrogance. When caught in unfavorable conditions, we quickly doubt ourselves: I’ve already done so much, why am I still not getting what I want? All of these come from attachment—the attachment to one’s image

An ideal VS a jobIt is quite easy for people to transform their pursuit for their dreams as the pursuit of a job, or as some material substances. A job does not equal to a dream, but rather, a job is just one of the ways to realize the dream. A dream is what should be accomplished in people’s mind. It is a state of life, rather than an external object. If people approach their own jobs from a negative perspective, then every job has many points to be complained about. Instead, people should view their job from an active perspective, with a firm understanding on what they are doing, and the meaning of their deeds. Some say that, wherever there is sunshine, there is shadow, whereas others say that wherever there is shadow, there is sunshine.That is, the way people see things decides their attitudes. People want to realize too many things through a job, such as a high income, their own interests, and the realization of individual values. In many cases, people cannot balance these aspects in a job and t

A capacity of the mindTo take loss as gain means that in the process of getting along with others, we let go of short-term interests or disputes upon tantrums. Instead of cornering others with aggression and competing for advantages in everything, we are willing to take a step back.People who can do so spontaneously do not regard themselves too high. They tend to leave room for both themselves and others, to have a farther-reaching vision and broader mind. As a result, they accumulate more fortunes and virtues. This is a great capacity of the mind, not a forced and perfunctory let go.心上的功夫“吃亏是福”是一种豁达的心态，能够坦然接受眼前的不如意，不比较、不斗气，在利益冲突时甘愿牺牲自己成全他人、牺牲小我成就团体。有这种心态的人，表面上看起来损失利益，其实是在为自己培植福德。这个心是关键，如果缺乏这种心，仅仅“吃亏”，是不能转化为福报的。

The most powerful mindGreat power comes from love and responsibility. We get strong when we desire to protect, to help and to repay others’ kindness. The greatest power comes from shouldering the welfare of all living beings. This is the power of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas, the power of Bodhicitta. On the contrary, the energy of those who always desire to protect oneself, to satisfy oneself, will get weaker and weaker, and they would be easily defeated by trivial matters.  People with a determined heart never complain of the predicaments of the outside world. No matter what the setbacks are, he can convert them into the wealth of life. He can always find the bright side of life. Whenever and wherever possible, he is willing to partake the pain of others and share the wonderful things he has. He knows what is expected of him and why. His mission of life is clear and firm.  We should start from thinking and then acting, increasing our compassion and wisdom bit by bit. Compassion leads to inclusivenes

Strive for the practice of DharmaIn our daily life, we can often see many things that  should be done by ‘others’ but no one has taken the responsibility to do it. To put it in another way, it is very easy for us to blame others. First of all, we may not totally understand why he/she acted in such a way. There might be certain reasons and considerations. He/she might be troubled or inexperienced.The key lies in our state, our stand point and our attitude. Are we willing to try our very best to solve problems that hinder the development of our team? Or are we quite content to just finish what is within our responsibility? For opposing sides, both will consider the other side selfish, ignoring the reality that it is the selfishness in our own mind that has taken dominance and can’t swallow the fact that the need of our “self”has not been met by the other side. In a family, if we calculate who contributes more and everyone cherishes only his little “self”, it is very hard to establish mutual understand

Let go of your wronged feelingWe are often very tolerant towards ourselves. When we do something wrong, we would simply see it as a “careless mistake”; when we do a bad job, we would think that “I am not perfect, but I gave it my all.” The reason that it’s hard for us to face criticism, even the slightest kind, is that we have the mindset of self protection and approval seeking. Such is the spikes of self-grasping. Observe your heart when you feel falsely treated, and you will see that it is completely occupied by the notion of“self”. MY talents were belittled, MY actions were misunderstood, MY efforts were not paid back, etc. When this notion becomes lighter, so will the feeling of being wrongly accused. The ability to let this feeling go shows the truest practice of Dharma. Calm your mind, carefully analyze your emotions and look for your afflictions. Ask yourself:Is there anything I can improve on? Is my work really satisfying to those who assigned me it? Can I have a better temper and character?

InexhaustibletreasuresLiving only for oneself, life would be ordinary and justbearable; living for more people, life would be vibrant with colors. Emptinessand loneliness are not results of being alone, but rather lacking purpose inlife and not caring for others. Those who always think about making themselveshappy are the unhappiest of all, while those that constantly try to help othersare surrounded by happiness all the time. We should give more instead offorever taking. Only when we give can we receive. The more one takes, the lessone owns. What use is money when a rich man is not healthy? How canlife be happy when a healthy man has an ill heart, which makes him feel lost,anxious and worried all day? Hence, the body is of more value than riches, andthe heart is more important than the body. If we put all our efforts intochasing external “gains”, and drift further and further away from our hearts, lifewould lose its true value. Each and every heart contains inexhaustible treasures, which can surely

Effective communication Communication is not to persuadebut to understand. When we try to understand the other side with all sincerity,we will be understood accordingly. Why is it so hard to communicateeffectively? One speculation is that we are not skillful speakers. In fact, thereal reason is that we are much too skillful. You are skillful. He is alsoskillful. The irony is that what the skillful speakers say can’t be trusted.This leads to difficulty in communication. An honest heart with all sincerityis what we need to cultivate. Once this quality is built up in us,communication would be easy even without much talking. If you can feel what the otherwants to say, what he is thinking right now, what is forming in this mind, thenyou will have a way to communicate with him. Otherwise, your conversation isjust idle chattering to kill time. What is lacking, in ourcommunication with others, is tolerance, inclusiveness, and appreciation. Weneed to have the capacity to rejoice when others have done a good

Each and every of our virtuous thoughtIn good times, it is easy for us to get carried away and conceited, so we should be modest and prudent and focus inwardly; in times of adversity, we are often pessimistic and desperate, so we should open up a little bit. Think more about the bright side and take it easy. Whatever the situations, once we are attached, afflictions will breed. With a troubled mind, we won’t do anything well. The road of our life goes uphill and downhill. It is normal. When caughtin favorable conditions, we mustn’t get attached. When confronted by unfavorable conditions, we shouldn’t be intimidated. Instead, we need to be focused and do what is expected of us. Conditions, both favorable and unfavorable, are not meant for us to carry along as a burden. What leads us forward is the future not the past. Wherever we were from, we need to strive for where we want to go.   Not knowing where to go, favorable conditions can become obstacles. Knowing where to go, unfavorable conditions

Adapting to conditions activelyWhatever external conditions are, we canalways adapt to the conditions to do good deeds and to create virtuous karma. Forthis adaption to work beautifully with the given conditions, we should have aclear direction and goal in mind. “Opportunity is always ready for those whoare well prepared”. This is what is meant by adaption to conditions, which iscarried out with ease and comfort. When the given conditions are not matureenough, we do not force them because we are not kidnapped by what lies outside.Instead, we adjust our expectations, wait for the right moment, or we createnew opportunities.  Many of us take “flowing with conditions”as an excuse for not to act, not knowing that the prerequisite for this dharmadoor is to have a purpose, a direction. It is far from a cry of helplessness.Instead, it is wisdom realized with ease. We act upon the given conditions,with no attachment nor delusion. Meanwhile, we are active not sluggish. This iswhat it is meant to adaption to condi

A healthy lifestyleCherishing one's fortune means cherishingeverything one has. Less and less people are doing so nowadays. People wanteverything to be luxurious, from eating, dressing, working to shopping,completely casting away the good traditions passed down from our ancestors ofworking hard, being humble and managing the family’s finance diligently.  Cherishing one’s fortune is ahealthy lifestyle. It can form a good attitude towards life, freeing oneselffrom comparing with others out of vanity, and reducing one’s desires. With apositive mind comes a healthy body. Desire is a bottomless pit. Therefore,overdrawing one’s life and health to satisfy ever growing desires, will onlycause endless pain.健康的生活方式惜福就是珍惜福报，珍惜自己所拥有的一切。现在的人越来越不知道珍惜福报。吃饭、穿衣、上班、购物讲究的是奢侈、豪华，全然丢弃了先辈们流传下来的艰苦朴素、勤俭持家的优良传统。 惜福是一种健康的生活方式，可以培养良好的心态，使自己不盲目和别人攀比吃的穿的，欲望就没有那么强，心态好自然身体健康。因为“欲壑难填”，所以为了满足自己盲目增长的欲望，透支生命、透支健康，带给自己的将是无尽的痛苦。

A compassionate doctor To contemplate the faults in others is thegeneration of afflictions upon observing the faults or imagined faults inothers. When contemplating others’ faults, our mind is in the shadow ofafflictions and is deluded. We see only the part we repulse and ignore thebright side. What’s more, we can’t reflect upon our own weaknesses nor do wetake the needs of the whole into consideration. No one would commit offenses on purpose.People are conditioned by their abilities, their understandings and theiropportunities. They may not be as skillful or as experienced as we are. So,what we should do is to offer a helping hand if we are more capable andexperienced. It does no one any good to just belittle others and to brood uponour own afflictions incurred.  The other side of the story might be thatout of sheer stupidity someone committed offenses and did unwholesome deeds.Even so, what we should do is to offer help and reflect upon ourselves: do wealso do bad things? Have we done enough? Have

The life purposePurpose, toput in a colloquial way, is the ‘goal’, whichhas to be found and established by oneself.The Great Learningsays, “The way of Great Learning lies in the dissemination ofbrilliant virtues, in showingloving-kindness to ordinary people, and in the pursuit of ultimate goodness.” This is what we call purpose. The purpose of life could be either short- term orlong- term. It could be for this life alone, or for many lives to come.However, no matter it is a long- term or short- term goal, we all need apurpose, a great aspiration to live with a direction and with strength.  Having a purpose in heart, we won’t be swayed by the outside world.We should be fully aware that the outside world will affectus only when we accept and internalize its influence. If we empower our mind,many problems won’t be problemsany more. We should read more biographies of the sages. When we read it, weshall get involved and think, if we were caught in the situations, what wewould think and how we would handle, an

Sit quietly with himWith neither aspirations nor directions, wewill find the journey ahead less and less exciting, and we tend to be trappedin confusion and desperation upon tiny bits of setbacks. Before we’ve found ourown ideals, we can make friends and learn from those who have a purpose andgoal. We may feel the inner light and enthusiasm emitted from these people.Gradually, our own mind will be enlightened and ignited. He who keeps nothing but his own grievanceand distress in mind is prone to be defeated by setbacks; he who has thewellbeing of more people in his heart is able to shine from inside with hope.Let the darkness be lit up because of our brightness, instead of drowningourselves in the sea of blackness. Apart from mere “wiping”, positive“building” is equally required. Read more great books, and constantly plantseeds of wisdom on the ground of our heart; do more good deeds within reach,and light up our life with kindness. Give a helping hand when others are inneed; sit quietly with those

Shouldering the karmaOne’s own karmic effect cannot be taken by someone else. There is a saying that the venerable masters and sages shoulder the karma for sentient beings,however it is not what we imagine,  something like “repaying debts for others”. As the venerable masters and sages have complete compassion and responsibility,they are willing to help sentient beings to be liberated from the sweats and bitters of life, namely the so-called “shouldering the karma”.  “Shouldering the karma for sentient beings” is the manifestation of the virtuous teachers’ compassion. For instance, when a mother sees her child get sick,she will be sorrowful and cannot eat anything at all; whereas in order to teach students well, teachers exert their utmost efforts and become sick because of being overloaded. It is so because teachers really care for their students, have strong sense of responsibility and contribute themselves whole heartedly. It maybe said that the teachers become sick because of the students, but t

Real helpBuddha is not a god but a mentor.Prostrations and offerings are not made to an idol. Buddhism doesn’t notbelieve in an outside god who dominates everything, instead, we are our ownmasters. Through learning the doctrines of Buddhism, we are able to correctlyknow and observe the laws of the world and of our life, and able to make ourlife more and more beautiful. When we prostrate before Buddha statutes, we arenot worshiping stones and wood, rather, we are respecting the Way thesestatutes represent, just as the ancient Chinese doing prostration before theirancestors, thanking them for bestowing life. Buddhists bow to the Buddha because hetaught us how to liberate ourselves from suffering and to obtain the ultimatebliss. Prostration before the Buddha statutes severs as a way to show ourrespect to the Three Jewels, to tame our arrogance, and to express ourgratitude. To go a step further for enlightenment, for the liberation fromafflictions, and for the final escape from samsara, we need to learn theB

Plant the karmic seed of a sageMencius once said, everyone could be Yao and Shun. The Dharma believes that ordinary people can become Buddhas and Bodhisattvas by practicing. Aspiration does not distinguish sages from ordinary people. On the contrary, it is on the base of one’s aspiration that people become what they want to be.Everyone walks along his own life track. It is unnecessary to compare with others. If one insists, then compare with sages,with role models, and with oneself so that one may move upward constantly.Each of our thought is new. Each of every moment is new. If one aspires to be a sage, then plant the karmic seed for it. Protect the seed so that it may sprout, grow up, blossom and bear the fruit of a sage. 种圣贤的因孟子曾说：人皆可以为尧舜；佛法说：佛菩萨也是由凡夫修行而成。愿，不分普通人还是圣贤，恰恰相反，成为一个什么样的人，是由所发之愿决定的。每个人都有自己的生命轨迹，不必与人比高低。真正要比，就与圣贤比、与榜样比、与自己比，让自己有一个不断向上的人生。我们每一念都是“新”的，时时刻刻都是“新”的。想要做圣贤，就要种圣贤的因，然后不断保护，让这个因发芽、生长、开花、结果。

Be active and go easyTo work hard on the cause and go easy with the effect. The former is meant to change what can be changed while the latter is to let go what can’t be changed. If we don’t work hard on the cause,we are being inactive; if we hold too tight to the effect, we suffer. To be active but not to hold too tight is taking the middle way, wise and easy. The Buddhist doctrine of cause and effect is far from fatalism. Fatalism and the negation of cause and effect are two extremes. The former overemphasizes past karmas while the latter totally neglects them. Both are wrong views. The Buddhist law of cause and effect is the middle way. It believes that the happenings of our life “is not bound by this life but is related to this life”. What we are experiencing now is not the effect of only this life but is not unrelated to this life. We can change our destiny by seizing the present moment. Fatalism overemphasizes the effect of past karmas on this life while neglecting the effect of our effort in