Opening your Heart, Overcoming difficulties

Many people think that they have good jobs, successful careers and stable life with materials.

Open heart can be divided into two levels. The first level is a wide open view or generosity. Usually a person who has an optimistic and liberal life often lives with "natural happiness", even in an unexpectedly social environment. Such people are usually very lucky with their nature of generosity. But these people have apathy, no care of things around, acceptance with any job they work, even jobless. If someone keeps on things like those, surely their lives will raisee other problems such as lack of meaningful living.

 

The second level indicates to those who have the mind of jubilance and happiness, overcome any limits of time, space, and go over the thought of benefit-danger, get-lost, success or failure. Those with mentality beyond all the other obstacles are truthly persons with open hearts.

 

I am accquainted with a quite successful businessman, and then his business has gradually been declining. Facing the poor situation of the bussiness, he lost all faith.

 

I gave him the advice: "You are normally like such many others as not a successful businessman; gradually you will become the boss. So "entrepreneur" is not owned by you. Now the worst, you should return yourself in the past. Therefore, you must have enough courage to accept your formerly life! ".

 

He said: "Previously when there was no business, I easily accepted the change. But it is different when my favorable business is suddenly in heavy loss. I have lost too much money in a short time and I do not know how to do in fact!"

I consoled: "We are born not to carry on trading and cannot take it with us when we pass away. So, just do the best as you can and let down any thing you cannot do.  What happening with your business is the result of many causes or many objective factors? Even though you have worked up on your job, there is no effect!"

 

Hearing my words, he immediately lemanted: "May I stay and see the business going away?"

I said "You initially I had nothing. Just assume that you do not have anything now and have to start at the beginning, do you?"

He hopelessly answered "But I do not have a chance any more, sir".

I honestly advised "Tou should not think so. If you no longer have any hope in this life, you won’t do the next ones and forever all that!"

A person with an open heart would never think that all things were "terminated". They just think that they do best when they have to. If there is no solution left, no way to change things around; at least it still remains the courage to accept the truth and wait for new opportunities to recover. This is the right attitude. Someone should be flexible like an old saying “an honorable man is satisfied with himself” - an honorable man counts his blessings with poverty, does humane things and accepts things that cannot be changed. So if the condition at that time does not allow you to do your dream, just stop it. This is also an intellectual decision.

 

 One time, when knowing the news about the storm, I worried that the rain would flood The Great Bear.

Zen Monastery. So we moved all objects to higher places, but finally all things got wet and were in serious damage. In that situation, I did not blame myself so much because I did all possibilities but could not save the stuffs. The key thing is that you did your best, but whether being successful or not is no longer a matter. In this case, find the best way to face and handle the incident when it happened.

 

The reason I have such attitude is because I do understand the causality and have a right look about the spirit of causality.

If you understand the spirit of causality, you overcome the situation, exceed the thought of benefit-danger, get-lost, success or failure. When reaching this level, you have an open heart.

HT Thánh Nghiêm.

Translated into English by Le Van Nhu.