Pulling Firewoods

Yutang Lin

Haggling over present matters all fall into animosity;
Roasting one another in cycles blurred mental clarity.
Ants on a hot wok long for firewood to be pulled out.
Chanting Amitabha and prostration bring inner peace.

Comments:

Animosity and antagonism among people are born of haggling over current interests that lost sight of long-term perspectives and ignored the fundamental importance of relying on clarity of mind to live a peaceful life in a swiftly changing world. To escape the predicament of eagerly roasting one another in cycles one needs to switch to concentrating on Buddhist practices such as chanting Amitabha and making prostration to Buddha. Thus one would gradually attain peace of mind. Only after the mind has returned to peace and clarity can one handle problems in life wisely.

Written in Chinese on February 3, 2002
Translated on February 12, 2002
El Cerrito, California

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