All about time

Dear Reader,

When I was little boy, I used to dream how nice it would be if I am older and taller just so I could reach the heights of the windows and see what was happening beyond the windows. I also wondered what was going on beyond the walls when adults peered over the walls. I wished to see what they had seen. And when adults talked amongst themselves, I would linger to listen to their conversations but was often chased away with the reasoning that I was too young to participate and would not be able to understand the topics. Now that I am an adult, looking back, the reminiscence of being a kid is wonderful. This is a real human nature that is not perceived today as something wonderful and full of opportunities. We tend to look for wonders and great opportunities that is in the future. We do not see today as ‘great’, rather we view it with so much stress and confusion. Actually if we make careful examinations, we will see that today is the most wonderful day. Today, I am still alive and I can do as I like. Yesterday is already gone which can’t come back and tomorrow is unknown to us, whether we will survive another day or not, whatever situations we may go through tomorrow are not known.

So today I am living and experiencing every opportunity that comes my way. We need to think positively and grab the moment for full use of good cause.

Time is precious - most of us know that. But we do not know the management of time. Often we don’t do it correctly or we always think we will do it tomorrow. Tomorrow is a non-ending process of our life. A Tibetan master said “We do not know whether tomorrow or next rebirth will come first. So don’t always strive for tomorrow but work for next rebirth.” If we don’t manage our time for best usage, then unexpectedly one day on the death bed, our last breath will definitely come. At that moment, we do not have time to do anything. It’s too late and we will have no opportunity to prepare for next rebirth. If we manage our time for good use and appreciate what we are today, then we will always be happy. Also it makes us work harder and more productive towards the spiritual goal. Every moment is an opportunity because every moment we have the ability to think positively, speak positively, and act positively as well. So all this positive thoughts, speech and actions are accumulation of positive energy or in the dharma term, the accumulation of merits. Every thought, speech and action will be imprinted onto our minds and that affects our future or rebirth. Thus, one of the main practice is atuning our body, vocal and mind into positive actions, speech and thinking.

Time is our asset for every achievements and success, time is the most precious because it is the source of our happiness. In this world, we see many successful people. Some are successful in spiritually while others are successfully materially. If we examine their backgrounds, we can clearly see that they have managed their time properly and efficiently. They did not misuse any single moment, they did not misuse time. That is one of the secrets of their successes. Similarly, we can also achieve what we have aimed for as long as we do not misuse our time and fully utilize it well.