(Photo credit: Kanenori / Pixabay)
To live with peace of mind, we must eliminate greed.
There was a mother with only one son. The boy grew up without his father and his mother worked very hard to bring him up till he completed his studies and started working. Although they were not wealthy, the mother and son depended on and took care of each other. The son was very filial towards his mother and their life was very smooth.
In the past, the mother used to wake her son up every morning to attend school. Even after her son had completed his studies, she still woke him up every morning to go to work. This was something she did every day without fail.
One day, the son said to his mother after coming back from work: “Mum, you have worked so hard, and yet I have never let you enjoy any comfort since I was young. Look! Our home is really spartan. Now, I plan to start a business with my friend; he invited me to work with him. If everything goes smoothly, we will be able to renovate our house and make it really beautiful, with everything we want. Then, you can have whatever you wish!”
After hearing that, the mother asked, “Will the business be earning money through legal means?”
Her son replied, “The earnings are legal. However, it might cause unfairness to others.”
The mother asked, “Son, I wake you up every morning, don't I?”
The son said, “Yes, you do. Why did you ask that?”
The mother replied, “I prepare breakfast in the kitchen every morning, and when it is about time to wake you up, I will start calling you from the kitchen. But you never reply even after I’ve called you for a long time, and I always have to go upstairs to call you. Sometimes, I can’t wake you up as you continue to sleep, so I have to shake you awake with my hands. Often, although I see that you have slowly opened your eyes, you still look sleepy. Despite so, this is something that makes me feel at ease. I do not wish to see that (in future) you are already wide awake even before I wake you up because I do not want to see you not being able to sleep soundly (due to uneasiness and worries).”
After hearing what his mother said, the son had a sudden realisation and said, “Mum, I know what you mean. I will not do things that make you feel worried. It is okay for us to live a harder life. As long as we have peace of mind, we can still have a happy life, right?”
The mother replied joyfully, “Right! Being filial is about letting Mum have a peace of mind. We must not have too much greed. So long as we can make ends meet and live with a peace of mind, it is happiness!”
Indeed, the right way of life is to earn money through hard work and not do work that will make our hearts feel uneasy and make us unable to sleep soundly. Otherwise, we will not be able to have peace of mind no matter the amount of material comfort we have. As long as we abide by our duties in life and keep the gates of greed shut, we will naturally live a peaceful life with ease every day!
Source: Tzu Chi Taiwan website
Translated by the Tzu Chi Singapore translation team
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