| When the earth just shakes a little, thousands suffer | | | | change in the wheel of six paths of reincarnation shall |
| and die. The first sound is a cry. The last breath | | | | go on indefinitely, with the spirits being transfer from |
| makes many cry. Along the way, many tears and | | | | one realm to another depending on the order of merits |
| fears. Human life in this world is like suddenly waking | | | | done, unless the cycle is ceased or one knows how to |
| up, all life is born; suddenly slipping off, all silent creep in. | | | | transcend this cycle of birth, death and |
| With: one change, one is born; with another change, | | | | rebirth.Therefore, life and death is not a pleasant thing |
| one dies. Living creatures moan, and mankind weeps. | | | | and the world is not a good place to live in. King Xuan |
| The sufferings of mankind are so innumerable as to | | | | said, "I do not wish to be born but suddenly I was born; |
| be unimaginable, changing from place to place and | | | | I do not wish to die but suddenly I was died." The world |
| from time to time. They cannot be all listed, but let us | | | | is like a "live hades" and in the "real hades," it is a "dead |
| just roughly mention the major ones that are readily | | | | world." So, life is like a "come again" to live in a world |
| apparent:a]Seven sufferings from living: 1]rebirth | | | | of suffering.All living beings in the world only aim at |
| 2]premature death 3]physical debilities 4]being a | | | | seeking happiness and avoiding suffering. They follow |
| barbarian 5]living in frontier areas (on the fringe of | | | | no other course if they are not spiritual. Some take a |
| civilization) 6]being a slave and 7]being a woman | | | | roundabout, some zig-zag, some expedient way and |
| (woman has more sufferings than man and lesser in | | | | some going through painful experiences without getting |
| spiritual cultivation than man by 500 years according to | | | | tired. Although men differ in their nature, we can safely |
| Heaven).b]Eight sufferings from natural calamities: | | | | say that the way of mankind is never to seek |
| 1]famines resulting from floods or droughts 2]plagues | | | | sufferings and avoid happiness. Gautama Buddha |
| of locusts 3]fire 4]flood 5]volcanic eruptions (including | | | | (Prince Siddharta) was deeply disturbed and filled with |
| earthquakes and landslides) 6]collapse of buildings | | | | compassion when he saw the first four suffering |
| 7]shipwrecks (including collisions of cars) and | | | | sights outside the palace; birth, old age, sickness and |
| 8]epidermics.c]Five sufferings from conditions of life: | | | | death. He decided then to go out into the world to look |
| 1]being a widow or widower 2]being an orphan or | | | | for the Truth to end the suffering and this is what he |
| childless 3]being ill without medical care 4]being poor | | | | said;"Having been born in an age of disorder, and |
| and 5]being humble in social station.d]Eight sufferings | | | | seeing with my own eyes the path of suffering in the |
| from human feelings: 1]stupidity 2]hatred 3]sexual love | | | | world, I wish to find a way to save it. I have thought |
| 4]burden imposed by others 5]toil 6]desires | | | | deeply and believe the only way is to practise the way |
| 7]oppression and 8]distinction.e]Four sufferings from | | | | of Great Unity and Great Peace. Looking over all |
| being objects of honor and esteem: 1]a rich man 2]a | | | | means in the world, I believe that aside from the Way |
| man of high station 3]a man of longevity and 4]a king | | | | of Great Unity there is no other method to save living |
| or emperor.In the unseen plane, the degree and form | | | | men from their sufferings or to seek their great |
| of punishment one receives in Hell and the subsequent | | | | happiness. The way of Great Unity is perfect equality, |
| channelling into one of the six forms of reincarnation is | | | | perfect impartiality and perfect humanity."Author: T.A |
| determined by one's own deeds in the last life. These | | | | ChewT.A Chew while practising Buddhism in 1993, had |
| sufferings are not visible to the eyes. The average | | | | read more than 50 Buddhist books written by many |
| age of human life no matter rich or poor is only about | | | | wise monks and renouncers. The very basic is life is |
| eighty years. The miserable lives of the other four | | | | suffering and the first precept of the teachings of |
| forms are also short, with butterfly at the bottom of | | | | Buddhism. With this understanding and able to accept |
| the list whose age is about a day or two. The cycle of | | | | and live with it, itself makes life better. |