Fated Encounters, Fated Departures

Xuefeng

“People experience joy and sorrow, reunions and separations, just as the moon has its phases of fullness and emptiness. This has always been difficult to reconcile.”

“There is no sorrow greater than parting, no hardship greater than the absence of kinship.”

When a loved one passes away, the living inevitably feel sorrow; this is the natural response of human beings. If one does not grieve, how could they be any different from grass or trees?

However, joy and sorrow, reunions and separations, all have their causes and are inevitable. Fated encounters bring us together, and fated departures cause us to part. Allowing sorrow to linger in one’s heart only compounds the grief and is unwise.

Every individual has a life path that is uniquely their own. Even the most powerful emperor, president, or billionaire cannot control the trajectory of their loved ones’ lives. Parents cannot control the paths of their children, just as children cannot alter the course of their parents’ lives.

Every person with a normal heart wishes for their loved ones to be safe, healthy, and happy. Children hope their parents live long and enjoy peace in their later years, while parents pray their children encounter no misfortunes and lead smooth, harmonious lives. We all wish for our siblings to live in harmony and prosperity, and for spouses to respect and grow old together.

There are three great sorrows in life: the death of a father in youth, the loss of a wife in middle age, and the death of a child in old age.

The compassionate Bodhisattvas, such as Kṣitigarbha and Avalokiteśvara, vow to completely empty Hell, liberating all beings from suffering. They aim to eliminate sorrow and guide the kind-hearted into higher realms of existence. While their intentions are noble and their efforts effective, their ultimate goal cannot be fully realized. The universe operates on the principle of balanced opposites, and the structure of life’s spaces must remain symmetrical.

The greatest sorrow is the death of the heart. When Xianglin Sao’s son was taken by wolves, her heart died with him. Countless people take their own lives because their hearts have died. Those left behind mourn the sudden or premature departure of loved ones, sinking into despair and emptiness.

The weather is unpredictable, and human fortunes and misfortunes can change in an instant. Every family has its struggles, and no life is flawless.

For the unenlightened, life seems impermanent. But for those who have entered Lifechanyuan, impermanence is not truly impermanent, and coincidences are not purely coincidental. If we fail to awaken and recognize the constancy within change and the change within constancy, what meaning would living a thousand or ten thousand years hold? Could we ever escape confusion and find clarity?

Lifechanyuan was established to provide a spiritual sanctuary for the suffering, to offer a beam of hope to those in despair. It aims to illuminate the divine lamp within one’s heart, enabling individuals to transcend the bonds of life and death, traverse the vast unknown, and move toward the ideal shores of existence.

In the current era of human history, only Jesus and Sakyamuni truly understood the essence of LIFE. Those who believe are blessed; those who do not may follow their own path. Some find the scent of cilantro fragrant, while others find it unpleasant. Penicillin can save lives but may also take them. The key lies in the structure of LIFE or, perhaps, the depth of one’s destined connections.

Since March 1st, those whose spirits have entered Lifechanyuan, reflect on yourself. Do you feel a daily sense of coolness, as though drinking from the life source’s clear streams? Your LIFE has already connected to the vast ocean of existence. Day by day, this connection grows, and when you depart this world, you will naturally ascend to higher realms of existence.

The purpose of this essay is to remind everyone not to overly grieve the passing of loved ones. When we mourn, we fail to consider that their departure was inevitable, governed by complex and profound causes and effects. Writing a hundred thousand words could not fully explain it. For instance, if your child dies (whether through fire, drowning, an accident, or illness), it is a misfortune for you. Yet for your child, it may be a transition to the Thousand-year World, or even the Ten-thousand-year World—a beginning of a truly beautiful existence. They are blessed. They came to settle a debt from your past life and, in the process, transitioned themselves. Why should we grieve their happiness?

From a conventional perspective, this may sound like heretical nonsense. But from an unconventional perspective, life and death are one, misfortune and fortune are interconnected. Those who enjoy blessings must endure suffering, and those who suffer will eventually enjoy blessings. From the short span of decades, we see nothing clearly. But from the perspective of hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of years, everything becomes lucid and apparent.

In conclusion, fate brings us together, and fate separates us. Reflect on this deeply.