Planning has always not kept up with change.

 

Author: Tao Qing Hsu (Hsu, Tao-qing) 

 

There is a Chinese saying, ”Artificial calculations are not as good as those of heaven.” It also means that human calculations cannot keep up with heaven's calculations. That is, any planning about our life may not be as good as the arrangement for us from the heaven. It seems the destiny. But, it also tells to have the open-minded attitude and not to tangle in the stuck situation. It may be a good choice to turn around the way. And the light of our future may be there.

 

So, the planning is also impermanent. But, it doesn’t mean that we do not need to plan anything in our life. There is a saying, “The only constant thing in the world is change.” When we know the impermanence of change, we would have more flexibility in mind to deal with any change.

The God for me is the Buddha; The Buddha is the God.

 

Author: Tao Qing Hsu (Hsu, Tao-qing) 

 

Even though I am a Buddhist teacher now, I had been baptized informally, read the bible, and went to the church, sang the saint song. I also prayed to the God before I went to bed. Do you know what I pray to the God? I pray to him that I hope that I am able to help people someday. In that time, I was a 16-years-old girl and I only had a little idea about Buddhism.

 

Meanwhile, I also have read a novel which is a story about an American nun of Christian, who does her best, and abandon her self-ego, so to help people and to take care of what the peoples need. And she is always misunderstood by another nun. I have forgotten the name and the detail of the novel. But, I remember that I was so moved by the drama. I think that what the nun has done is the virtue of human beings, which is not concerned about any belief or any religion.

 

One day I realize that my wish and what I have prayed to the God has come true. And the God never left me alone. In that time, I was already a 46-years-old woman and have trained in Buddhism. What you have known about the God might be different from what I have known. I tell you a truth that I do not know what the said in the bible. The God what I have known is very mercy and its mind is very open and inclusive the all. It absolutely would not reject any human beings who do not believe the God. The God for me is the Buddha; The Buddha is the God.

 

In Buddhism, the Buddha Sakyamuni also mentioned about the God who dominate one of the 33 heavens. And the God always guards and supports the Buddha Sakyamuni and his disciples, or any person who puts the Buddhism into practice. When I read the Buddhist scripture, I think it is reasonable according to my personal experience. God for me is not someone else, it is the Bodhisattva. The nature of name, image, and picture is emptiness. The essence of the Buddha-nature is true, which is the Emptiness. It is not important about what the name is. In my realizing and opinions, the essence and the nature of the God is Emptiness. The state of Emptiness is still and "be able to create and appear". Due to the Emptiness, it can create and appear the all, including the ideologies of religions, or of the public, or of the politics, or of any parties, or any ideas.  All of these things is created from the nature of Emptiness.