the beauty of volunteering.

a little share in one sunday afternoon :)
it's taken from a Buddhist book, which is "diantara keraguan dan kesadaran" by Master Hsing Yun.

last time i just read it a little, n i'm re-readinq it now.

n i found this notes in blia yad indonesia's facebook, as i'm still 10 pages behind >.<

in my opinion, dharma really can change a human's life if you apply it :)

so, here it goes! in english. to read in indonesia, please refer to: here.

"In the society, there are a lot of people with compassion to do good deeds, helping troubled people, sick and suffer, this action is one with mine and i'll encourage. In the society, there are a lot of people who are assiduous on their professions, i voluntarily praise them. "Volunteering" is a really good and beautiful action which is supposed to be exemplified.

Do good deeds, speak good words, even I'm not able to do it, but you've done good deeds, spoken good words, I'll voluntarily encourage you.

The Great Buddha said: if we encourage other people or what we've done by ourselves, then the merit is the same, thus volunteering is a crucial action in daily life.

Which is lamentable is, in society nowadays, people who voluntarily do good deeds are too little, in fact, most of the people are happy on others' suffering, there are a lot of people with no voluteering attitude in our society. As for example: you're a wealthy person and helping disable person and elderly people, instead, they'll criticize what you've done is a useless action, if compared with incapable person, but still want to encourage good deeds, instead, they'll say, "your life is difficult too, yet you still want to show off". This matter is caused by a heart that like to criticize and insult, how can there is any good people and good deed in such a society?

In this society, if you do good deeds, you're ruling, you're wealthy, I envy you. On the contrary, if you're poor, you're miserable, you're stupid, you're naive, you're despised.

If you didnt do good deeds, while I'm the one who did it, and you'll criticized my action. I'm compassionate, while you're not, you'll say I'm lack of compassionate. No matter how you act, he still insults, still criticizes, making people to keep on asking, do you wish there's noone in this world to do good deeds? If you're not doing and everyone is not doing too, then we'll only see the destruction of this world.

A nation can develop and community can improve, it's all because of the voluntarily fostering success. You want to be chosen as representative, to be dutiful of public interest, I'll voluntarily choose you. You're running a useful enterprise, helping the debilitated ones,  I'll voluntarily watch the broadcast. You're repairing the bridges and roads, I'll cheerfully be a volunteer, so that we can do noble deeds together. He's helping orphans and poor ones, I'll voluntarily express his goodness. The beauty of "volunteering" world is incomparable.

That's why, hoping from all nowadays generation till the next ones, can blissfully speak good words, do good deeds and voluntarily participate in useful activities, spirited to support fully. If every society succeed to build the courtesy of "volunteering", the nation will be harmonized automatically, so people's lives will be prosperous.


Thus, if we're doing things voluntarily and purely, we'll gain the beauty in our daily life physically or spiritually."

some people hv a perception that not going to temple or not praying is no big deal as long they didnt do bad deeds in their life.

yet, their meaning of 'bad deeds' is something that is really really bad and they dont realize sometimes word and small actions are also bad deeds.

moreover, if you're not doing good deeds, then your life wont improve as well.

remember, what you reap is what you harvest.

if you dont do any good deeds, then how can you harvest something good?

and fyi, going to temple and praying are good deeds itself :)

so, let's start to do good deeds from the very small ones,

be mindfulness of your thoughts,

be mindfulness of your words,

be mindfulness of your actions.

"行三好，

three acts of goodness,

说好话就是真，

ones speech is true when one says good words. 

做好事就是善，

ones deed is good when one does good deeds.

存好心就是美，

ones mind is beautiful when one thinks of good thoughts.

所以三好就是真善美。

hence, the three acts of goodness is indeed good, true and beautiful." -- Venerable Master Hsing Yun.