05 - Liao Fan 4 Lessons

Liao-Fan:  Master Yun Gu continued to ask:


Master Yun Gu: What were Mr. Kung's predictions regarding your entire life?

Liao-Fan: I told him in great detail, from the placement positions in the examinations, to my appointment as an official, and finally, the date of my death.

Master Yun Gu: Do you feel you deserve imperial appointments or a son?

Liao-Fan: I reflected upon my previous deeds and attitudes in the past for a long time. Then I answered him saying, "No, I do not feel I deserve an imperial appointment or a son. Those who receive imperial appointments all have the appearance of good fortune, and I do not. I do not work towards accumulating virtues to build up my fortune, either. I am very impatient, intolerant, undisciplined, and speak without any restraint. I also have a strong sense of pride and arrogance. These are all signs of scant fortune and non-virtue. How is it possible for me to receive an imperial appointment?

Narrator:   Next we will see why Liao-Fan has no children. Liking cleanliness is a good thing, but it can become a personality problem if one gets too immaculate. There is an old saying, 'life springs from the dirt of the earth, and water too clean often harbors no fish.'

Liao-Fan: The first reason why I feel I do not deserve a son is because I am addicted to cleanliness, resulting in the lack of thoughtfulness for others. The second reason is that 'harmony is the cultivator of all life', but I have a quick temper and easily become angry. The third reason is based on the principle that 'Loving kindness is the basis of reproduction, and harshness is the root of sterility', I overly guard my own reputation and cannot sacrifice anything for the sake of others. The fourth reason is that I talk too much which wastes a lot of chi, or energy. The fifth reason is that I also delight in drinking alcohol, and that depletes my spirit. To remain healthy, one must not sleep during the daytime and stay up through the nights. The sixth reason I do not have a son is my habit of staying up nights, not knowing how to conserve my energy. Aside from these, I have many, many, other faults which are too numerous to mention.

Master Yun Gu then said:

Master Yun Gu: According to you then, there are too many things in life you do not deserve, not only fame and a son! We should know that both good and bad fortune are all formed from one's heart- a wise person knows that everything one achieves or fails at in life are only consequences of their own actions and thoughts. Only a fool assumes that all is the work of fate and destiny! We must understand that those who have thousands of dollars in this life must have cultivated the fortune worthy of that amount in the past. Those who have hundreds of dollars must also have fortune which is worthy of containing that sum. Those whose fate is to die of starvation, in fact were meant to die in that manner. We must understand that the fate of these people was created by their own past thoughts and actions the retribution today is simply the fruit of their deeds. Heaven does nothing more than punish evil beings with the suffering they deserve, and reward kind ones with the fortune they deserve.