Going With the Flow of Life
by Master Lee Feng San Shifu
Translated by Sophia Lui
Edited by Ric Meyers
Now we are going to talk about why going with the flow of life is in our best interest. At the time when Madam Chiang Kai-shek passed away, I mentioned to my students that the reason she had lived a happy life in her golden years was because she was able to go with the flow of life. Students then asked: “How can we go with the flow of life?”
Confucius, the Master, once said: “At fifty, I knew the decrees of heaven.” His sayings preceding were, “at forty, I had no doubts; at thirty, I stood firm.” And finally, “at fifteen, I had my mind set on learning.” The question is, how many young people today understand what it means to set their heart on learning?
Generally, they do not seem to, and so, when they reach thirty, they are not able to stand on their own two feet. If a person can really take learning seriously in their school years, then by thirty they will naturally become self-reliant and autonomous individuals. Only then will they be able to dispel their doubts, and reach the highest stage of self-development — which is to know the will of heaven.
What is the will of heaven? The natural order of things, or, in other words, the natural laws we see operating around us, is the will of heaven. What is morality? Lao Tze was very clear about that, and pointed out that morality is “nature” itself. Therefore, whatever is against the natural order of the universe is immoral.
For example, some people will not think twice about getting married if the opportunity presents itself. Once I had a student who was so eager to get married that he said he was going to make that happen no matter what. And when he finally did manage to do so, after expending much effort, we invited him to a discussion on the foundations of good governance to achieve world peace. In reply, he said, according to the ancients, we must first build strong and stable family units before we can build strong nations. Right now, I have not yet secured the well-being of my family, so how can I discuss matters of state?”
I replied: “Then you’ve got it wrong. The ancients also said that one must first rectify one’s mind and nurture one’s character before starting a family. However, at the time when you contemplated marriage, had you attained the goals of self-cultivation yet? If not, then why did you think you were ready for marriage? This is the same principle.” After that, the student fell silent. When people want something badly for themselves, they manage to find lots of excuses for it. Conversely, when they do not want something, they manage to do the same as well.
On the path of self-cultivation, we must try to lead by example, making progress by putting one foot in front of the other. In this way, we will naturally be going along with the flow. If we learn to spare a thought for others before thinking of ourselves, I believe we will all know what to do, why we need to do it, and how we should do it. This is what it truly means to go with the flow.
“On the path of self-cultivation, we must try to lead by example, making progress by putting one foot in front of the other. In this way, we will naturally be going along with the flow of life.” — Lee Feng San Shifu