February 14, 1997
Saying what we are thinking is the right speech and right mind, which should go together to have the right action.
However, in many situations the right mind and right speech cause misunderstanding to others.
Is that our fault or others' fault?
The Prophet said it depends on the adaptation to the people's livelihoods and customs. This means, the issue of founding and preaching the religion to the people of any era, century, and class with different levels of knowledge, should be flexible in the spreading of words, ideas, and religious practice.
However, when we practice the Way, we should constantly keep the right mind and the Right Way. We should say what we think. If our words may cause misunderstanding to others and they think wrongly about us, we should accept that. When they advance farther on the religious path, when they awaken and think right, say the right things like us, they will understand us.
On the path of spiritual practice, we should accept our own spiritual evolution. Do not stop or recede under the influence of others, because our progress is helpful to the mass of people. We practice for ourselves and for others without making the difference between the closed ones or strangers, their races, or their skin colors.
Stabilize the mind and go forward with forbearance, and discharge sufferings to advance. The long path of religious practice will confirm our thoughts and words. This is the unity in knowing and executing. Not only because we want others to understand, should we speak differently. When we worry of being misunderstood, and try to say what others are thinking to avoid their misunderstanding, we will step into the reasoning, the thinking of high or low, good or bad. We will no longer have the right mind and the right speech.
If we only want to please others or try to make them understand us, how can we help the mass of people; because the mass of people are of different characters, situations, and levels of knowledge. Therefore, if we can please some, others would be displeased.
For these reasons, if we want to help the mass of people, we should keep the right mind and the right speech, to advance on the right path, then the unity in knowing and executing, or as thinking, as saying and acting.
Keep on this way, as this is
the Righteous Way.
Valentine Day 1997