Be Grateful to Your Enemies
I received the blessings of Maitreya almost 3 years ago. Since then, my temper had drastically changed. Before I attained the blessings of Maitreya, I had a terrible temper. If anyone treats me poorly, I would bear grudges and look for opportunities to avenge myself!
About half a year after I attained Tao, I had an argument with a Tao brother from the temple. I was so angry with this person that I literally wanted to beat him up! I disliked this person so much that every time I saw him, I would choose to be rude and not greet him. Over months of continuous conscience prayer and reflection, I sincerely hoped to change myself. I felt that I had karmic baggage which prevented me from being a happy person because I would be angry and affected by little things. One day during conscience prayer, I remembered Grandmaster reminded us that regardless of situations we must carry a heart full of joy and compassion. I realized that to be a follower of Maitreya, we must carry His traits. Maitreya teaches us to be grateful, happy, compassionate, embracing, and understanding. After realizing this, every time I felt myself getting angry or unhappy, I would remember the teachings of Maitreya. I would look at Maitreya and gradually my anger would dissipate.
I was told that to those who angered or saddened us, we should not be angry with them. On the contrary, we have to thank them! This is because they are there to test our patience, so that we have the opportunity to learn to control our angers and tempers. After realizing the importance of embracement and compassion, whenever I saw that particular Tao brother, I would always greet him! In the beginning, he ignored my presence, but later on he started to greet me back. My anger had totally dissipated!
From this experience, I have learned to be grateful to people who do not treat me well. Because of them, I have the golden opportunity to become a more compassionate person and learn how to live my life with greater bliss and happiness!
Sun – Canada