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A long time ago, there was a young novice monk who followed an eminent monk to learn about becoming a monk. The novice monk was filial and obedient, serving the senior monk with utmost sincerity. One day, the eminent monk foresaw that the novice monk would die in seven days. Feeling sorrowful, the eminent monk called out to the novice monk and said, “Novice monk, you have not gone home to see your mother in a long time, do return and pay her a visit today! Fulfill your duties as a filial son, then return to the temple after eight days.”
The eminent monk had asked the novice monk to return home, for he knew that it was fated for the novice monk to die after seven days. Unexpectedly, the novice monk returned after eight days. The eminent monk was shocked, and even more puzzled after noticing that the novice monk’s face appeared very radiant. He asked, “My child, in my whole lifetime, I have been able to predict events with great accuracy and predicted that you would die in seven days. Yet you return after eight days, devoid of the negative aura that you previously carried, what could have happened?”
The novice monk was stunned. Even he was uncertain of the answer, and did not know how to respond to his master. The eminent monk immediately entered a meditative state, and the reason dawned upon him soon enough. He asked the novice monk, “My child, when you were on your way home to see your mother, did you stop to save many ants along the way?” The novice monk replied, “Yes I did! Master, when I was on my way home, I saw a colony of ants that were trapped in some water. They looked like they were about to be drowned to death, so I used a wooden stick to save them from danger.”
The master then said, “An ancient sage once remarked that saving a life triumphs over building a seven-story pagoda. Your heart contains seeds of kindness, hence you have saved countless lives. You will surely live a long life that is filled with countless blessings. You must remember to plant good seeds in your heart, so that you can reap fruits of goodness. Hence, in the future, you should often leverage the spirit of compassion to save lives as well as benefit the world and all sentient beings.”
Translated by Nicole Sim Hui Jun
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