Life Insights ⁽³⁰⁵⁾

When the heart is at peace, a thatched hut stands firm; when the nature is settled, even turnip roots taste sweet. The ways of the world are seen only in stillness; human bonds endure longest when kept light. — Excerpted from Mingxin Baojian (Mirror of…

After dinner, my wife asked me to go with her to the supermarket to help carry the heavy things. It had been a long time since I had wandered a supermarket or a department store; once inside, I suddenly found this dazzling world of goods…

From the evening of May 2, 2012, into the morning of May 3, my mother—who had suffered from various illnesses for several decades—entered the final moments of her life. In those last hours, our whole family kept vigil at her bedside. By then I was…

Life can never be calm; the only thing that can be calm is our own heart. —Epigraph At the age of eighteen, when I was a freshman, my father went bankrupt and the family fell into hardship. That year my elder brother was a junior,…

Last night, reading the works of Master Hsing Yun, I came upon the master's quotation of Vimalakirti's words: "One silence, like spring thunder." It struck me deeply. Silence can sometimes emit a sound louder than spring thunder; action is always more important than words. Reflecting…

Last night the two brothers spoke on the phone. My elder brother said two things that touched me; I record them here: First, he said that I still have a touch of vanity—I like being respected. This is a flaw, and many of my troubles…

Nothing forced is true destiny; only following nature is real. How can storms never cease? The old monk at last enters deep samadhi. What truly remains of life, after the storms have passed, is only something plain and unadorned. As one goes on living, one…

There is no marriage in this world without problems; if one insists on looking for problems, even the most perfect marriage yields countless ones. When people reach middle age, marriage problems are the most likely to surface. A friend of more than ten years once…

Confucius said: At thirty one stands established; at forty one is free of perplexity. For a person to reach the state of being free of perplexity, he must have roughly seen the world clearly and roughly seen himself clearly. Achieving both is no easy matter.

When are a person's best years? In my view, the best years are when one can direct one's own actions and care for oneself autonomously. As an idealist, I am willing to dedicate my best years to my ideal rather than submit to reality. The…