Once upon a time, there lived a Korean Seon Master named Kyong Ho. He began studying sutras at the age of 14. By the time he was 23, he had already mastered all the major sutras. Master Kyong Ho played a vital role in Korean Buddhism, and together with his disciples was committed to propagating the Dharma.

 

One day, Master Kyong Ho was on his way to a town with his disciple to give a Dharma talk. On the way, the disciple kept complaining about how heavy his bag was. Whining non-stop, he muttered, “Why do we need to carry so much with us? Why can’t we just travel light?”

 

The Master said, “We need to bring books for our Dharma brothers.”

 

“But this bag is so heavy...Can we take a rest please?” the disciple replied.

 

“We’ve just started our journey, we shall rest later. If we keep taking breaks, we'll be late or even miss the talk,” the Master said as he continued walking.

 

Moaning and groaning, the disciple dragged himself to follow behind his master.

 

Not long after, they arrived at a small village. Walking past the market, they met a beautiful woman walking towards them with a water jug perched on her head. As she came closer, the Master leaned toward her and muttered something. The woman screamed, dropped the water jug, and it shattered into pieces. Everyone at the market heard the commotion and was frightened. One of the villagers waved his stick at the Master and yelled, “Hey you! What did you say to the lady?”

 

Without replying, the Master ran away as fast as he could. Behind him, the disciple saw his master running away, and ran after him.

 

After a while, the Master looked behind him to make sure they were safe and the villagers were nowhere in sight. Reaching a crossroad, he stopped and turned around to wait for the disciple.

 

After the disciple had caught up to his master, out of breath, he said, “Are we safe?”

 

The Master nodded, patting him on the shoulder, and asked, “How goes it with the bag? Is it still heavy? You just ran over 5 miles carrying it.”

 

“Master, all I could think of was not to get caught. So no, I did not even feel the weight of the bag when I was running!!!” the disciple replied.

 

The Master laughed and said, “Now, our journey is back on schedule. We might even have extra time to now take a rest!"

 

Only then did the disciple realize why his Master had made them run.

 

This story teaches us that having goals can motivate us to overcome the obstacles we face on our path to success. In this story, the disciple overcame the burden of his heavy bag after realizing he did not want to be caught by the villagers. This became his goal, and he was determined to succeed. Similarly, on our journey in life, if we set goals and maintain a strong determination to succeed, then our inner strength will grow as a result. Even if we are faced with challenges or obstacles, we will have the courage to face them and move forward.

 

Similarly, a person with big dreams can go a long way. Bodhisattvas, with their great compassion, have the power and resolve to help countless sentient beings, and yet their bodies and minds never feel tired.

 

The journey in the cycle of life and rebirth is long and endless. Only if we aspire to firm vows can we transcend time and space, and reach the state of a bodhisattva. All bodhisattvas have made great vows to liberate living beings without discrimination. If we can be like the bodhisattvas, no matter how heavy the “bags” we carry in our lives may be, we shall accept and tolerate whatever life throws at us. By cultivating our minds and willingly accepting responsibility, all our burdens will feel as light as a feather and be handled with ease.

 

Just as Venerable Master Hsing Yun says,

Determination helps you reach your goal.

Perseverance leads to success.