handling SITUATIONSWemust handle things when necessary, and with flexibility! We haveto be hard or soft as appropriate. No matter soft or hard, fierceor sweet, always do it from our heart. Being sincere and frank,without any complicated thought.
..... Everythingis a habit. We learn the way of wisdom is the way of flexibility.When we are so used to flexibility, so used to all kinds of suddenchanges, we are so used to immediate action, spontaneous action,not preconceived action - that's the best way.
..... Ihave met many so-called "great" people, truly greatpeople, and I have seen how they take care of minor details withgreat attentiveness, and with such a natural spontaneity thatis kind of a second nature. I think that is how they became great;they do not neglect anything. They know everything without havingto pay much attention. Some ordinary people, even when they wantso much to pay attention to something, their so-called attentionis so minimal that when they say they have paid their whole attention,it was not much. Therefore, they neglected every corner, and thatis how things are spoiled and not completed. I have seen manyso-called great people. They are truly very humble in their wayand they truly take care of things in such a joyful way, verywilling to do things, to take care of other people, and to takecare of the tasks at hand entrusted to them.
..... Spiritualpractitioners should be able to judge, and know how to handledifferent circumstances. We cannot respond to all situations inthe same way.
..... Ifwe are prepared at all times, we can immediately turn around andchange ourselves under any circumstances. In this way our mindswill not attach anywhere. We will not be overthrown by any situation.
..... Itis enough for us if everything we do is from inside and we knowour own nature and standpoint. We should not imitate others.
..... Wemust always do the right thing, then God will see what we do.But we must do it in a selfless manner and naturally, not justwith motive, then it's perfect. The Truth is not a fixed nirvanaor Kingdom of God, it is a forever growing process.
..... Whenwe do something with concentration and spontaneity, then the resultcome out perfect because it comes out from God, from our realwisdom, from our real nature. Once we have some expectation orsome pride in it, or some calculation in it, things go wrong.
..... Nomatter what situation we are in, we must look on the bright side.Look at the optimistic side. Don't pick on the little things.We should turn the undesirable situation into one that will benefitus.
..... Whyis this world always changing? It is for us to learn the lessonof always being prepared, of being on the alert. Do you know this?So, the world is neither good nor bad; it only depends on howwe use it. Good or bad depends on how we use the situation tolearn our lessons well. So, you understand now! You should belearning every moment. Spiritual practice goes on round the clock.
..... Weare really enlightened only if we are flexible in our spiritualpractice. We should act flexibly according to the situation, sothat we don't get the "Zen symptom"!
..... Whateveryou have to do, do it well. Devote yourself entirely to the workso you don't waste time.
..... Wehave to be at the look-out at all time. When we do something,we have to be independent, logical and with good conscience.
..... Whenour actions are inspired by our inner self and done naturally,that is our original nature working.
..... Onlywhen you are satisfied, then you can satisfy others.
..... Allday long we look outwards at both good or bad. We are influencedby the outside and forget to focus our attention inwards. Therefore,we do not succeed in most of what we do. Concentration is thesecret of success. The more we meditate and focus our attention,the more smoothly we can carry out whatever we do.
..... Weshould always do what is correct, reasonable and proper. Thenwe would not experience any improper, incorrect or unhappy situations.
..... Mostof you find trouble and hinder yourself. You don't allow yourselfto develop and to relax. Not being relaxed, your thoughts areblocked, thus your deeds are not perfect!
..... Weshould do things without any purpose in mind. It applies to anyjob. Unconditional devotion is the best.
..... Weshould strive for perfection in whatever work we do, so that wedon't give others any reasons to complain or worry.
..... Wecan do anything well if we do it naturally and sincerely. Perfectionis found in how well the job is done, not the job itself.
..... Wehave the choice to think positively. Everything that is beneficialto other people and ourselves at the right moment, that is positive.And everything that hurts you and hurts other people, that isnegative. So every time we have to consider what is negative,and what is positive and that is how we fight. And when we alwaysthink positively, speak positively, and love people, and alwaysact in a positive way, which means properly, in the right timeand beneficial for ourselves and to other people, that is whenwe are siding with the positive force and the positive force hasone more storehouse of power to overcome the negative energy inthis world.
..... Themoment we make the decision of doing good or bad, or to avoiddoing bad or good, that is a very important moment. If at thatmoment, we decide to do the good deed, no matter how difficultthe test, we will remain absolutely fixed towards the right direction.If we make the correct decision like that often, we will becomestronger and go towards the right direction every day. Also, wewill get rid of more and more of our bad habits and become a betterperson. If when facing the moment of decision, we do not havethe will to go towards the right direction, then we will go astray.If this happens often, we will become weaker and weaker, and domore and more bad things, strengthening the bad habits.
..... Q. When confronted with evil, physical or spiritual,such as someone trying to harm you or destroy you, whatever, whensomeone is trying to hurt you, will you fight back to defend yourself,or will you just die?
M.Or just die? You must be joking! I won't die just like that, Iwill run. [Laughter] I won't fight back, but I will run for mylife. Yeah! Anybody stupid enough would lay down and die, butI won't. Life is precious. I have a lot of things to do, and evenif I don't need my body, my disciples do. If I die like that,it is very irresponsible. Of course we have to do our utmost toprotect our life, because life is precious. Without life we couldn'taccomplish anything. We couldn't even come back to God withoutthis human life. We need every minute of our human existence tocome nearer to God, to realize our greatest power and our blessingpower, and in order to help other beings who need our help. Wemay not need this ourselves, but we must acquire it. It is likewe don't need money so desperately, but we must have money inorder to provide for our kid and wife, and other needy, poor persons.
