The Grandfather's Lesson on Humility

Xipeng speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Xipeng. Looking back at my life twelve centuries ago, the most vivid memories I hold are not of the world's grand events, but of the quiet, steady hands of my grandfather. He was my only family, my anchor in a world that often felt too large for a small boy. I remember one morning in the courtyard, the air crisp and still. My grandfather had prepared a bucket of peanut oil. With a simple ladle, he began to pour the oil into a narrow-necked jar. The opening was barely wider than a finger, yet he poured with such precision that not a single drop touched the rim. I was mesmerised. 'Grandfather, your technique is truly incredible!' I exclaimed. He looked at me, his eyes crinkling with a gentle, knowing smile. 'This is nothing to marvel at, Xipeng,' he replied. 'In this world, if you truly set your heart on doing something, you can accomplish anything. Think about it—even an iron pestle can be ground down into a fine embroidery needle. My pouring oil is a trivial skill by comparison.'"

The Wisdom of the Oil Jar

"I nodded, absorbing his words. 'You are right, Grandfather. There is truly nothing difficult in this world. Look at the birds flying in the sky; perhaps one day, humans will fly through the air as well. To those in the future, flight might seem mundane, but to us, it is unimaginable. It shows that human potential is limitless. If one has the heart to do it, everything is possible.' My grandfather was a man of constant motion. His hands were never idle, and he taught me that idleness was a luxury I could not afford. He insisted that I try everything myself—sewing my own clothes, cooking, and tending to the vegetable garden. He wanted me to be independent, to believe in my own capacity to survive and thrive. Under his patient guidance, I began these tasks when I was only four years old.

The villagers adored me. They would often praise me in front of my grandfather, calling me a 'good, obedient child.' I thrived on this. I wanted to be seen, to be acknowledged. But my grandfather was different. He never joined in the chorus of praise. Instead, he would pull me aside and say, 'Xipeng, these words of praise do not need to be part of your life. Every action you take should not be for the sake of seeking approval or validation from others. That kind of heart is not genuine. It creates a cycle of gain and loss that will only leave you exhausted.' I was young and stubborn. I shook my head and argued, 'But Grandfather, their praise makes me more confident in my abilities! It makes me work even harder!' He asked me, 'If no one praised you, would you stop working?' I answered honestly, 'I would still work, but it would lack that... that sense of joy, of victory, of pride.' He sighed, 'So your joy comes from others? If the praise stops, the flavour of your life fades?' I nodded, 'Exactly! That is how my heart feels!' He shook his head, and I could see he was already planning how to adjust my wayward spirit."

The Trap of External Validation

"The very next morning, he sent me to the vegetable garden to harvest produce for the market. I obeyed, picking fresh vegetables and carrying them to the market in a shoulder pole. I was small, and the load was light, but as I walked, passersby showered me with compliments: 'What a good child! So young and already helping out! Look at how he carries that pole—he looks like a professional!' Hearing this, I straightened my back, puffed out my chest, and walked with an air of effortless grace. I sold out quickly. The next day, my grandfather asked me to go again. This time, I pulled more vegetables, making the load heavier. Before I even reached the market, people were calling out, 'Look at this child! So capable, walking so steadily with such a heavy load! Truly remarkable!' My mouth curled into a smile. I was hooked.

For days, my grandfather kept sending me to the market, and each day, I added more weight to my load. I was desperate to prove myself, to earn more praise. Customers would say, 'If he could bring white radishes, that would be even more impressive!' or 'If he could bring winter melon, he would be a prodigy!' Another said, 'I love pumpkins! If he brings ten of them, I will buy them all just to reward his ability!' I was ecstatic. 'They think I am capable! I cannot let them down!' I began waking up earlier and earlier, piling more and more onto my shoulders, terrified of missing the chance to be seen and validated."

A Lesson in Shame and Truth

"Then came the disaster. 'It's bad! It's bad!' A fishmonger from the market came running to our home, breathless and panicked. My grandfather walked out, still sleepy. 'What is the matter?' The man gasped, 'I was heading to the market and saw your grandson fall into the ditch. It isn't a deep ditch, but the water is high from the recent rains. He couldn't get up; he was drowning! I pulled him out just in time. He is resting in my home now. All his vegetables are ruined—pumpkins, winter melons, radishes, all floating in the mud. He was carrying so much! Why would you let a child carry such a burden?' My grandfather didn't say a word. He simply put on his vest and followed the man to his house.

I lay on the bed, my face flushed and raw from the biting cold. My grandfather looked down at me. 'Did you get your praise today?' I couldn't speak. He continued, 'Even if you had ten arms, you could never satisfy the praise of twenty people. Even with twenty arms, you could never meet the demands of thirty. Why destroy yourself just to hear their empty words? Whatever you do, never make the praise of others your goal. The more people praise you, the more humble you should be. If you lack humility and try to do more just to feed your vanity, you will collapse before you ever achieve anything. Look at you today—you accomplished nothing, and all your hard work ended up in the mud.' I hung my head, ashamed, but I knew in my heart I hadn't truly repented yet."

"Ever since my grandfather spoke those words to me, Xipeng went to the temple every single day to prostrate before the Buddha and study the Buddha’s teachings. I sought to be close to the monastics there, simply because I wanted to emulate their virtues and one day become a Buddha just like them. One day, a monk noticed me and said, 'Little Bodhisattva, I see you coming to the temple every day. Do you have a wish?' I had been waiting for this opportunity for so long. I nodded immediately and replied, 'Yes! I am here to learn how to become a Buddha! Please, Master, teach me how to achieve Buddhahood!' The monk looked at me and said, 'If you study the Buddha’s teachings only for the sake of your own Buddhahood, I fear you will never have the chance to attain it. Those who truly follow the Buddha’s path must not only help themselves but also benefit all beings. Are you willing to sacrifice yourself to help others?' I answered without hesitation, 'Of course I am!' The monk nodded and said, 'Very well. From today on, go to the tribe in the south and help them.'"

The Weight of Responsibility

"I set off for the southern tribe with great enthusiasm. But after walking for less than half a day, I was already exhausted. I sat by the side of the road, looking toward the southern tribe, which was still so far away that it was invisible. My body felt completely drained of strength; I couldn't take another step. Just then, two people hurried past me, talking as they walked: 'I heard that a certain monk possesses the power of foresight. He knows a great disaster is about to strike the southern tribe, so he sent a Bodhisattva ahead to help them. The disaster is almost upon us, so why hasn't that Bodhisattva arrived to help yet?' I jumped up from the rock, my heart pounding: 'Could I be that Bodhisattva meant to save the tribe?' It was only then that I realised the gravity of my responsibility. I stood up immediately and set off again, taking three steps in one, desperate to reach the tribe before the disaster struck. I rushed to the location of the tribe, only to find nothing but ashes. I was so heartbroken that I walked back to the temple in tears. The monk told me, 'Saving beings allows for no laziness or delay. The suffering of beings happens every single moment. Once you allow a heart of arrogance or neglect to arise, beings must endure endless suffering.' I felt deeply ashamed and engraved the monk's teaching into my heart."

A Vision of Compassion

"That night, I slept fitfully. Before my eyes appeared immeasurable and boundless beings, each one suffering from a different kind of agony. Every scene of their pain was crystal clear to me, and this vision lasted for a very long time. Watching them suffer, I felt helpless, not knowing how to save them. Suddenly, a golden light shone down, and the towering, majestic form of Amitabha Buddha manifested before the beings. Every single one of them immediately knelt, begging the Buddha for salvation. With infinite compassion, Amitabha Buddha reached out His hand to lead them away from suffering, and they were all saved by the Buddha, their hearts filled with gratitude. I woke up from the dream and sat by my bed for a long time, my heart deeply stirred. I finally understood: Amitabha Buddha is of such vital importance to every single being. Only the Buddha can truly rescue these suffering souls. I understood now. After washing myself clean and putting on neat clothes, I bid farewell to my grandfather. He knew I had made up my mind and said, 'You must persist on this path until the very last moment of your life. I will be waiting for you in the Western Land.' I smiled and nodded, telling him, 'For the sake of all beings, I will exhaust every ounce of my strength.'"

The Path of Practice

"I entered the temple to practice. The environment of my practice was filled with both favourable and adverse conditions, but I followed the Buddha’s teachings, constantly observing my own heart. No matter how the environment changed, my heart never wavered with the circumstances. When my heart was settled in Buddha-matters, Buddha-actions, and the Buddha-heart, it became increasingly in sync with the Buddha, and I could more deeply feel the suffering of the spirits within all beings. Years of practice taught me that the cultivation of a compassionate heart requires constant exercise. I had to temper my heart through every situation and see the suffering of life in every being, nourishing my compassion through each experience—practicing again and again, growing step by step."

A Life Dedicated to Deliverance

"At the age of fifteen, I made a vow to become a monastic and spend my entire life following the Bodhisattva path, compassionately saving beings. I faced many tests, but I passed through them all smoothly because my heart was no longer influenced by the dust of the world; it was forever fixed on the thought of the Buddha. After decades of practice, I became the abbot of a temple, fully endowed with dignity. I continued to pass on the Dharma lineage and carry out the mission of saving the world, until the day I returned to the Western Land to reunite with my grandfather."

The Urgency of the Human Body

"Every day that Practitioner Su speaks the scriptures, countless beings attain awakening. These are spirits from the spiritual realms who have been trapped in the sea of suffering with no way out. Before they lost their human bodies, they were just like every Buddhist practitioner sitting here—they possessed this precious human body. Yet, people often do not know how to cherish it while they still have it. Once it is lost, they suffer all kinds of hardships, only then regretting that they did not know how to grasp the Causal Conditions to study the Buddha’s teachings. They suffer in the spiritual realms for hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years before they finally meet Practitioner Su today. Under the torment of such suffering, they hear just one sentence of the scriptures spoken by Practitioner Su and immediately awaken. Now, these beings are all begging for deliverance, begging for Practitioner Su’s compassionate salvation. During the Thrice Yearning Ceremony, they are all rescued and delivered by Practitioner Su, forever leaving the three lower realms behind. People of the world, wake up! The human body is hard to obtain, and the Buddha’s teachings are hard to hear. While you still possess a human body, you must seize the opportunity. Do not wait until you have lost it to regret your choices. Who knows when you will ever meet Amitabha Buddha again? Or meet Practitioner Su? No one can say. I am so grateful that Practitioner Su compassionately abides in this world, allowing so many beings to be saved today. Namo Amituofo."

This interview was recorded and written by the chief writer, Shi Fajing.