Selfishness Is the Source of Worry

Xuefeng

November 29, 2010

Do you have worries? Take a moment to think carefully. Trace the root cause of each instance of worry and conduct an analysis. You’ll eventually find that the source of our worries is not other people, society, or nature, but our own selfishness.

Whenever we begin a thought or action with our own interests in mind, troubles, distress, anxiety, and pain inevitably follow. Life is filled with unpleasantries—nine out of ten things often don’t go as we wish. Why is this? The root cause lies in selfishness.

You are selfish. He is selfish. I am selfish. The entire human society is a swamp of selfishness, and thus no one can escape pain. The wars and conflicts between nations, ethnic groups, religions, political parties, and interest groups—all of which result in worry—stem from human selfishness. Likewise, the disagreements, estrangements, clashes, and disputes between siblings, relatives, friends, colleagues, and all individuals originate from selfishness.

Emotions like jealousy, resentment, anger, blame, criticism, and laziness, as well as greed and possessiveness, are also rooted in selfishness. The desire to own, occupy, dominate, or seize stems from the same source. Wherever selfishness goes, it leaves fear and unease in its wake. Wherever selfishness passes, troubles, distress, worries, pain, sorrow, and anxiety grow like wild grass, inseparable and ever-present.

What you sow, so shall you reap. Plant the seeds of selfishness, and you will inevitably harvest the fruits of worry. There’s no escaping it.

Some say, “If people don’t look out for themselves, they’ll be doomed.” Indeed, as long as we are human, we are bound to have selfishness. However, the degree of selfishness varies. The deeper the selfishness, the greater the worries; the lesser the selfishness, the fewer the worries.

To free yourself from worries, you must reduce selfishness. A truly selfless person has no worries.

You might argue, “I’m not selfish, but the people around me and the world I live in are selfish, so my worries come from their selfishness.” This reasoning only scratches the surface. The deeper cause still lies in your own selfishness. If you were truly selfless, no matter how selfish others might be, they couldn’t cause you worry.

If someone strikes my left cheek, I’ll offer my right cheek as well. If someone takes my belongings, I’ll let them have them. If someone harms me, I’ll invite them to harm me further. I won’t resist. I won’t retaliate. If someone wants to kill me and take my life, so be it! Take it! After all, I’ve entrusted my LIFE to the Greatest Creator and my life to the Tao. Everything operates according to cause and effect. No one is wronged in this universe. “You reap what you sow.” Good deeds are rewarded with good outcomes, and evil deeds with bad outcomes—not immediately, but when the time comes, it will be repaid. The universe maintains balance between positive and negative energy; what you give and what you receive are always proportional. Nothing happens by chance. Whatever I must endure is the result of my own karma. What I don’t deserve will not befall me because the Tao operates with meticulous fairness.

As long as I walk the path of the Greatest Creator, everything is as it should be. I will neither rush nor fret, neither rejoice nor grieve. Even if I face starvation or freezing, I will accept it with equanimity. Everything I have belongs to the Greatest Creator. I’m willing to offer up even my life. If someone wants to eat my flesh, drink my blood, or take my life, I will not harbor resentment or seek revenge. I am willing to give everything, including my life, selflessly.

When one reaches such a state, can there still be worry? Even if the world around you is selfish, filled with unrestrained selfishness, what does it have to do with you?

The reasoning is clear: take a look at heaven, then at hell. It’s not hard to conclude that the more selfless a LIFE is, the closer they are to heaven; the more selfish a LIFE is, the deeper they dwell in hell.

You might say, “I can’t go to heaven, so I cannot see heaven, nor can I see hell.” Well then, compare the lives of those in traditional society with those in the Second Home of Lifechanyuan. Who experiences fewer worries? Those living in traditional society have far more worries than those in the Second Home. Why? The root cause is the difference in levels of selfishness. Those in the Second Home are less selfish, so they live with fewer worries.

From this reasoning, it’s easy to conclude: selfishness is the root of all worries. The more selfless and advanced a LIFE, the closer they are to heaven. The more selfish and inferior a LIFE, the closer they are to hell.

People are often confused, saying, “If I’m not selfish, how will I survive?”

Actually, survival is not something we need to worry about. What we need to worry about is the path we walk. If we walk the path of the Greatest Creator, everything will be naturally arranged, and everything will be guaranteed. There’s no need to worry because the Greatest Creator knows exactly what we need and will take care of us.

You might be concerned, “What if the Greatest Creator doesn’t see me? What if the Greatest Creator forgets me? What if the Greatest Creator falls asleep?” If you have such worries, it proves you don’t truly know the Greatest Creator, don’t truly understand the Greatest Creator, and don’t have the Greatest Creator in your heart. That is the source of confusion.

“There is no greater curse than greed, no greater disaster than dissatisfaction.” The profound teachings of Lao Tzu are not deception but the wisdom of truth.

Of course, you may not fully believe my words, but you can test them in life to see the results. I can confidently say that if you think and act as I suggest, joy, happiness, freedom, and bliss will find their way to you. Not only that, but your future will also become increasingly beautiful. Conversely, troubles, worries, and pains will persist if you continue as you are, and a beautiful future will remain out of reach.

I am a messenger of the Greatest Creator, an incarnation of gods, buddhas, and celestial beings. You may choose not to believe this and dismiss it as nonsense. I understand the mysteries of the universe, LIFE, causality, time-space, and human existence. You may doubt or outright disbelieve this too. But the truths I speak are simple and implementing them is equally simple. Selfishness is the root of worry; selflessness eradicates it. “Facts speak louder than words.” Try it and see the results for yourself.

“The sage is selfless and thereby achieves personal fulfillment.”