Open Your Mind to Prosperity

You are embarking on a journey to realize a dream. You probably know about Zeng Zi’s saying. Every day, he examines himself many times. What does he examines? There are several things. First, in work, is he devoted to his duty? Is he loyal to his job or superior? Second, in socializing with friends, is he sincere and does he keep his promises? Thirdly, things that he has learnt, has he reviewed them? This is a standard on learning. As a person, have you become better today? In self-cultivation/self improvement, have you achieved any new enlightenment? Have you lifted yourself to a higher level of attainment?
These are the standards for a superior man to reflect on every day.

“Jun Zi’ (superior man) is the term that appears most frequently in Lun Yu. The principle behind this term is always simple and harmonious. It does not exist only in the sages’ books more than 2000 years ago. It actually exists now in the options before us.

In a 15th century religious reformist’s book, there is this little story that happened when he was young. This story changed his entire life.

One day, under a scorching sun, he passed by a huge worksite. The workers were moving bricks with sweat streaming down their backs. He did not know why they were doing it. He asked the first worker: “What are you doing?” The worker said gruffly: “Can’t you see? I am doing hard labour moving bricks.”

The young man still could not understand, so he asked the second worker: What are you doing?” This worker was milder and friendlier than the first one. He arranged the bricks in his hands and took a look and said: “I am putting up a wall.”

The young man went to ask the third worker: “What are you doing?” This worker’s face radiating with gentleness looked up, wiped away his sweat and told him proudly: “You are asking me? I am building a church!” We can see that the three workers were doing exactly the same job. But they had three levels of interpretation of their job.

The first level, he is a pessimist. In everything he does, he finds a reason to say this is hard labour that life gives me. He is right in a way. We need to work. We can see that work is tough. This is a reality.

The attitude of the second worker is a “professionalism” attitude. You know you are putting up a wall which is part of a product. This is your salary, your job function, your job title. You know that you have a duty to fulfill in your job. So you won’t perform below the baseline of your professionalism. But you don’t aspire to things at a higher level of attainment. What is this level? This is the level that Confucius describes as ‘qi” (implement). If you exist as an implement, you are qualified.

The third level is the level of idealist. You know that every brick, every drop of sweat now will eventually lead to a church. You know you have a final dream. You are embarking on this journey to realize this dream. Every step you take has a value. What you give will eventually be rewarded. When you are on such journey, whatever you do will never make you a mere implement. It is a simple principle. But it has a deeper meaning. After satisfying the requirements of a superior man at the various levels mentioned before, when you come to the stage of actual applications, do not be content with what you are doing, delve into the interpretation of the job at hand. See how it relates to your life, to your dream. See whether you, at your present position in society, will be able to build up a church. Perhaps your personal effort helps in building a church or perhaps having the dream of building a church helps you succeed as an individual.

The superior man is Confucius idea of what a man of good moral character should be. In Lun Yu, which contains only 20,000 words, the term jun zi (superior man) appears more than 100 times. Even today, people still aspire to the standard of the superior man.

How can we become a superior man?

In Bible, there are three things that are irretrievable. They are: an arrow that has been shot out, words that have been uttered and opportunities that have been missed.

Like water splashed, words uttered are difficult to recover. You can’t take them back. So a truly superior man would rather get something done first. This is the standard set by Confucius. “A superior man is ashamed of talking more than doing.” This has since become the Chinese idiom yan guo qi xing (more talk than action). If a man talks more than he does, a superior man would regard it as a shame.

So a superior man is always harmonious easy to get along with and respectful. Under this premise, he finishes calmly what he intends to do. The strength of a superior man is always the strength of his action and not the strength of his words. A truly superior man after understanding something thoroughly aspires to achieve on even higher standard. He does not tie himself down to a fixed job or a minor role. He is flexible. He progresses with times. He constantly adjusts himself according to major changes in society. Because he improves constantly, he enjoys a good position. This is what Confucius says: “A superior man is unlike an implement.” A superior man does not exist in this world merely as an implement. What is meant by being an implement? This means, as a qualified man, you just follow the rules and do a good job in your given position. In other words, idealism is a higher level of attainment than professionalism. For a superior man, what he does is not as important as the motive behind what he does. Man is a strange animal. We let thinking decide our action. In other words, attitude decides everything. Day in day out, we do more or less the same things. But reasons differ as to why we do certain things.

Free Report on Attraction Accelerator

It is often said that at homes, we rely on parents; outside, we rely on friends. In society, friends are very important. Birds of a feather flock together. Your friends can serve as a mirror in which you see your own image. Lun Yu contains clear standards on making friends.

There are three types of good friends and three types of bad friends. What are the standards for good friends? In what ways can they help us in our life and career? Who are the three bad friends? What impact do they have on our life? How can we distinguish between good and bad friends?

What Lun Yu teaches us about the way to make friends? In life, the kind of friends that we have is a direct reflection of the kind of person we are. A good friend is like a book. It can open up a whole world for you. Birds of a feather flock together. To know someone, you need only to observe his social circle. Observation of his external environment can shed light on his values. What kind of friends does Lun Yu encourages us to make? Very simple, Confucius says, in this world, there are three types of good friends and three types of bad friends.

First, we will talk about the three types of good friends. The so called three types of good friends are the upright, the forgiving and the well informed. First, friends are upright, magnanimous and principled. A good man should not flatter. He must have a sound moral character and be able to stand stall in society. This is a kind of good friends. He can make you decisive when you are hesitant. Being tolerant and forgiving is a virtue. When a careless mistake is made or an injury is caused by others, the impact of harsh reproach and criticism. We feel worse during our repentance.

Two woodcutters went to the same mountain daily to chop woods. The first one set off very early in morning and came back in the night time. The second woodcutter set off in the afternoon after he finished his lunch and came back before night time.

The first woodcutter managed to chop less than a basket of wood. The second woodcutter managed to chop baskets of wood.

One of their fellow villagers was very puzzled, he followed the first woodcutter and found that he was working very hard in chopping the tree and did not idle around. The next day this fellow villager went to see the second woodcutter and found that he was working very hard in sharpening his axe. On the third day afternoon, the fellow villagers went to see them chop the trees. He saw the first woodcutter chopped the tree four times but the tree did not fell down whereas the second woodcutter chops the tree once and the tree fell down immediately.

When we are working, are we using the correct method to do our work or are we like the first woodcutter; working very hard but less result? It is important to review our work flow and remember to sharpen our tools.

Year 2008 is for us to start afresh to enjoy, grow and face new challenges.

Wish Everyone a Happy and Prosperous New Year!