Don’t Get Lost

Life is a journey which travels from beginning to end, to a final destination. It is said that if a traveller wants to make a journey, he needs to map it out before setting off. Without mapping or good planning, he will get lost on the way, or get distracted away from the right path. To prepare well can guarantee or assure one’s life. There is a Zen story which illustrates this well. Here is the story:

At Tayian mountain there was a Zen Master who had meditated there for years and was a good Dhamma speaker. He always used objects that lay around him for his talk. Once there was a man who asked him, "Worshipping the Buddha is not as good as practising his Dhamma; practising Dhamma is like following in the Buddha’s footsteps. Isn’t that right?" The Zen Master answered, "Listen! It is just as if a cloud blocks a bird’s way, so it gets lost." The man asked the Zen Master for the meaning of this. He explained it by saying, "If the cloud blocks the way to the bird’s nest, will the bird get lost? In the same way, if we just worship the Buddha, we will get lost in belief. If we practise his Dhamma, the practice of Dhamma will lead us to our real home, to our own mind of right understanding. We will neither be distracted nor get lost."

The man continued by asking the Master, "Sir why has the big temple been built?" The Master answered, "The temple is regarded as a school for students, so it needs to be built to accommodate students who want to learn and practise Dhamma". The man asked him another question, "The temple should be a quiet place so why is the drum there hit so loudly?" The master replied, "Hitting the drum reminds people that they should not do bad actions, but do good actions, cultivate good will and purify their mind, or develop wisdom." The man asked the Master again, "We can learn and practise Dhamma at home. Why do we have to become a Buddhist monk?" The Master replied, "Yes people can learn and practise Dhamma at home as lay Buddhists, but as monks their dedication to learn and practise Dhamma is greater than that of lay Buddhists. It is like a peacok that has beautiful wings, but it cannot fly high." The man realised what the Master answered and was able to make use of it in his life. He didn’t get lost.

The story reminds us that when we want to do something, we need a good plan, or when we want to make a journey, we need a clear map, so when we do finally set off, we won’t get lost and can reach the destination safely. Also in terms of our life journey, we need to know life clearly and well, so that our life journey can be safe and sound.