by Shi Wuling

A line drawn on water
vanishes in an instant.
Our lives are like that line on the water.
Life is short.
Do not waste it.

Ego, self-importance
keep us from forgiving others,
from forgiving ourselves.
Pride, arrogance keep us
from making peace with others,
from making peace with ourselves.

Problems do not cause suffering.
The cause is how we choose to react to the problems.

One who is free from desire and sorrow
leaves all fetters behind
to pass beyond birth and death.
Like a swan rising from a lake,
he moves on in peace
never looking back.

Ideally we help others.
If we cannot help,
at least
we should not harm.

With giving, we eliminate greed.
With morality, we let go of afflictions.
With patience, we dissolve hatred.
With enthusiastic effort, we overcome laziness.
With concentration, we calm pointless thoughts.
With wisdom, we leave delusion behind.

With absolute sincerity
a few choice words
a simple act
a gentle smile
will ease apprehension
will dissolve sadness
and alleviate suffering.

In the midst of pain and sadness,
find love for all who suffer,
the will to seek the truth,
the heart to let go of the pain,
the strength to find the way out.

We are not waves crashing
onto the shore,
we are the ocean.
We are not individuals
alone and lost.
We are the universe.

Every thought we conceive,
each act we commit
in the present,
creates the conditions
we will encounter
in our future.

In our last moments, we will ask:
What have I accomplished?
Did I make a difference?
Do not wait till then.
Ask now.

Why become angry
when we fail to control others,
when we cannot control ourselves?

Awakening is the blossoming
of the mind and
of the spirit.

The acorn and oak tree are separate
or are they?
The wood and flame are separate
or are they?
The act and actor are separate
or are they?
We are alone and separate from all else
or are we?

Anger is a poison,
patience its antidote.

With hearts pure and clean
like newly fallen snow,
with patience impartial and accepting
like the earth,
with compassion broad and all-encompassing
like the universe,
awakened ones help others.

A lute’s strings tightly strung will break,
strings loosely strung will not play.
With balance, comes a pleasing sound.
Just as with a lute,
serenity is found when one’s life is
properly balanced.

Inflamed by greed,
incensed by anger,
confused by delusion,
obsessed by these,
overcomed by these,
man causes his own suffering.

When looking, see clearly.
When listening, hear keenly.
When doubtful, pose questions.
When working, be responsible.
When speaking, be truthful.

Refusing to accept things as they are
does not make them go away,
would it not be wiser to learn
how to work with them?

Look within
…look deeper
…deeper still.
Everything we need
is already here
within us.

Just as the ice melts
under the springtime sun
disagreements and mistrust evaporate
amidst the warmth of kindness.

Even the largest jug
will become full
drop by d…r…o…p.

Conflict in the name of religion
arises not because of a teacher’s words
but due to humankind’s
misunderstanding of those words.

Go through life
as if floating on water;
move with it
without drowning in it.

It takes more courage
to create peace,
than it takes
to create war.

Do not
emphasize the superficial differences –
instead,
celebrate the universal similarities.

Excerpt from Path To Peace