The affinities that have brought us together here on this earth were developed through hundreds of thousands of eons. Isn it a pity that rather than cherishing these affinities, we always want to hurt and humiliate each other instead?

Why should we cherish all living beings? Why not just look after ourselves? There is a saying: “Heaven has the virtue of cherishing life.” If we think only of our own well-being, but fail to consider the well-being of other people and other living beings, then we are being selfish.

 “The Way of Heaven is unselfish.” Nature allows the myriad things to grow naturally; each has its right to survive. Even a small plant will struggle through the winter so that it can produce a resplendent flower in the spring; how could we mercilessly destroy it? The affinities that have brought us together here on this earth were developed through hundreds of thousands of eons. Isn’t it a pity that rather than cherishing these affinities, we always want to hurt and humiliate each other instead? All beings were born from and raised by their parents. Are we the only ones who get to receive our parents’ loving care and to show respect to our parents? Can we take away the right of other beings to do the same for their parents?

Therefore, it is not enough to respect our own parents and elders and to be careful and trustworthy in our own conduct. We must also be kind and friendly to other people and other beings. That is true humaneness. If we wish to refrain from all evil and practice all good, we should constantly draw near to good teachers and ask them to teach us how to conduct ourselves well and to get rid of our bad habits. In drawing near such teachers, we should not feel shy or embarrassed, nor should we fear difficulty. No matter how far we have to travel, we should still draw near to them, not just sit at home and wait for a good teacher to show up and teach us.