Contrasting Views on Life Success

Xuefeng

June 20, 2013

The erroneous life views passed down over thousands of years need to be corrected.

Traditionally, it is believed that a successful life means earning a fortune, achieving high official positions, gaining fame, bringing honor to one's ancestors, and being admired by others. In Lifechanyuan, a successful life means living healthily, peacefully, smoothly, and satisfactorily throughout one's life, always being happy, joyful, free, and blessed.

In the past, we believed that in order to lead a happy, joyful, free, and blessed life, certain prerequisites were necessary. The primary condition was to possess wealth, assets, and a substantial material foundation. Simultaneously, one needed to stand out among others, making people around them admire, envy, and look up to them. How could one achieve all of this? Confucianism taught that "In books, one can find houses of gold, and in books, one can find faces as fair as jade." To become an extraordinary individual, one had to study diligently and exhaustively. Only through excellence in education can one gain recognition and official positions. Only with fame and authority can one amass wealth, allowing them to accumulate great fortunes. “In the Qing Dynasty, a virtuous magistrate for three years, amassing one hundred thousand silver taels.” Even if one chose the path of an honest official, they could still acquire a substantial sum. However, if someone was even slightly greedy, their earnings over three years would surpass "a hundred thousand silvers." At that point, they could have whatever they desired—whether they craved respect, beauty, or even supernatural favors. Nevertheless, does this represent a successful life? Even if it did, how many people could truly enjoy such a life of luxury?

Thousands of troops and horses pass a single-log bridge, but how many can make it across? Some fall off, get injured, or even drown in the river. Even if they all have managed to cross, they have grown old, their legs weaken, and by the time they reach middle or old age, their happy childhood has been drowned out by books, their beautiful youth gnawed away by books, and their blissful youthful years spent competing in the world of books. Is this what we call a successful life? I consider it the tragedy of life, a failure. After striving and toiling for most of their lives, what do they have to show for it? Not to mention middle age, even in old age, they haven't achieved the wealth, power, fame, gains, or carnal pleasures they idealized. What else can we call this but a failure in life?

Therefore, the traditional concepts of success and failure in life are erroneous and must be corrected; otherwise, the tragedy of life will continue.

So, what is the path to a successful life?

Childhood should be filled with joy.

Youth should be filled with play, fun, and passions.

Young adulthood should be filled with dreams and ideals.

Middle age should be filled with diligent work.

Old age should be filled with leisure and self-care.

Reaching the end of life with no regrets, no hates, and no unfulfilled desires, being content and smiling even in the tomb, is an ideal and successful life because it aligns with the way of the Greatest Creator.

Is it possible to achieve this?

The answer is: undoubtedly!

Where is this path?

Answer: It can be found in the Second Home created by Lifechanyuan.