Bringing benefit to others is one’s great achievement

Update: 17/04/2015
It is true that bringing benefit to others is one’s great achievement.
 

Bringing benefit to others is one’s great achievement

 

However, there are people who just want the profit in short term for them without thinking about the others’ sake.

For example: there is a person who litters garbage at random\r\nwhich makes the second person follow as he thought these places are used for\r\ntrash. So do the third and the fourth person. Until the first person come back\r\nto the place where now turns to be rubbish dump. Nevertheless, he realizes how\r\noriginal feature of the place was and he starts cleaning it. Then the second,\r\nthe third or the fourth person will be affected and won’t dirty the place. As a\r\nresult, when the first person comes back to the place, it is still kept clean.

\r\n\r\n

Therefore, one person’s action can affect many people and it\r\nis the circulation of life. However, there is people who bring many benefits\r\nfor others but rarely get back anything. In this case, he still thinks it is\r\nalright, and he keeps helping people patiently. It is real perseverance! If\r\nsociety has one or two out of ten person like that, they will gradually affect\r\nothers. The number thus will increase more. Ones who think that bringing\r\nbenefit for others is his great achievement are very practical.

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Life is imperfect so people tend to behave selfishly. Rarely\r\ndo people care about the others. However, there are people who want to achieve\r\nfame, honour, status, power etc, so they always say “giving benefit to other\r\npeople will receive it”. In fact, it is easier said than done. Hopefully, from\r\nnow on someone who says it can do it then the statement is not an advertising\r\nslogan anymore. Upon a religious standpoint, “giving benefit to other people is\r\ngetting it back” is true.

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In the Vimalakirti Sutra, it was said that\r\n“thank to sentient beings, there appears Bodhisattva”. Bodhisattva achieved the\r\nstage of attainment or Buddha achieved Buddhahood because there are human\r\nbeings who challenge and strengthen their will. Nonetheless, Bodhisattva and\r\nBuddha serve sentient beings without expecting to receive back. With great\r\neffort of their own, they strive, overcame and accomplished the Enlightenment.\r\nFrom that perspective, bringing benefit to others without expecting for return\r\nis one’s big achievement which is accurate and useful. In short, this viewpoint\r\nis sound and beneficial which should be spread for the sake of everyone.
 

Kieu Giang

HT. Thich Thanh Nghiêm

Translated into English by Thai Nhuoc Don.

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