How to Guide Yourself 要左右自己 from Collection of Rain Blossoms

True influence begins within, by steadying your heart and enduring what others cannot. Image: Shutterstock.

I once heard it said that if you wish to help guide the world, you must first learn to guide yourself. Without great wisdom and strong determination, this is not possible. Simply put, guiding yourself means learning to steady your thoughts. In Buddhism, this is called “gathering the mind.” Without inner stillness, even a determined person may not be able to govern their own actions.

I often see people doing what they know they should not. The reason is simple—their hearts are not steady. Their thoughts are like a horse that has slipped its reins, running wild and beyond control. When that happens, their actions are driven by restless thoughts, and what they do no longer follows the true voice of the heart.

If you wish to guide the world and touch the lives of others, it is not enough to master yourself. You must also win people’s trust and earn their kindness. To do this, you must endure what others cannot endure, and accept what others cannot accept. Only then will there be hope of bringing your vision to life.

要左右自己

雨花集

濟公活佛

嘗聞為人欲左右天下，必先左右自己，然非具有大智慧，大決心者不足為之。要言之，左右自己者，則控制自己思想之謂。亦則佛法中之攝心，人無定力，雖有決心，未必能控制自己的所作所為，每見世人有明知不應為之事而亦為之，此無他定力不足，思想如脫韁之驥，無所控制，則本身為思想而左右其行動，行不從心而已。

欲左右天下，左右別人，除具備左右自己之條件外，還須控制人心，爭取同情，則須做到忍人之所不能忍，容人之所不能容，其庶幾矣。

This translated text is a chapter from Collection of Rain Blossoms, a scripture written by JiGong Living Buddha in the 1900s through spirit writing. Here the link to the original Chinese source.

If you are interested in other chapters of this book, here is the link to the table of contents.