Mr. Toda once said: ‘On sunny days, we must do things we ought to do on sunny days. One who keeps doing the same thing regardless of sunny, rainy or gloomy days is indeed foolish.’

This tells us that every day and at every moment we must create the utmost value in all our actions. Although we may have so much wealth, money cannot buy time. Hence, the most we could do is to create the most value out of the limited time we have and cherish our precious time. When you are caught up with assignments, you may give yourself excuses to skip meetings or spending longer time to complete the assignments, but isn’t this an irresponsible attitude? If we knew that we have important matters at night, we should set a target for ourselves and complete it within the intended time. Once we accomplished it, our heart will be filled with great satisfaction and our lives will be very fulfilling.

Besides that, we must know how to grasp opportunity and time in everything we do or anything we say. Here, it doesn’t mean that we have to become superstitious, say for example restricting ourselves doing some things on specific days, etc, on the contrary it’s how we view our circumstances and people. During sunny days, your mother will definitely seize the time to dry your clothes; during rainy days, it’s inappropriate to dry clothes but it’s more appropriate to do interior household chores like sweeping or mopping. What about us? When our friends are in trouble, we should also send our regards and concern and offer them words of encouragement because if we hesitate, things may change with time and our friends won’t be able to feel our concern. When we couldn’t cope with our exams, do you think it’s wise to go out and play? Under any situation or circumstances, we must possess the wisdom to contemplate whether we are making the correct decisions. First of all, we must go back to our daimoku, through chanting our Buddha wisdom will well forth and we will be able to organize our time wisely and make full use of our time to accomplish and create the greatest value through our actions.

British philosopher Francis Bacon said: ‘One must look sharply and attentively for opportunities and must grasp time to make more opportunities than he finds.’ We must be very perceptive on all matters happening around us in our environment besides matters concerning ourselves. This way, we will be more efficient and meticulous in all our tasks without hurting anyone. Thoughtfulness and consideration is nurtured this way. When we perceive the rapid changes in our surroundings, we can act decisively and make prompt decisions; the mighty current of kosen rufu will also be unlocked.

The most important thing is to live our life with the determination to devote for ourselves the world and for humanity. The so-called opening up a valuable life doesn’t mean holding on the past but having the firm resolve of ‘how should I live my life’ and progress. Living without regrets may seem simple but in reality, it is very difficult. People are often easily influenced by extravagance and lavish lifestyle. At times, one may find that some work may seem more suitable for them and as a result they gave up where they came from and searched far and wide, and eventually they always end up with nothing, aimlessly wasted their precious life. We must never forget that a spring lies beneath our feet!

Labels: e. Words of mentor