Thursday, June 17, 2004
Petrol stops in a person's life (2)
The moment the Reverend started the lecture, I knew I was in trouble. Try as I might to make out her lecture through her thick accent, I knew that my limited knowledge of Chinese was going to bring me crashing down. I paused and stuttered and came up with a sorry excuse of a translation for what she had just uttered. The audience fidgeted and frowned. Sensing my discomfort and teh audience's impatience, the Reverend immediately told the audience that it was my first time.
" Everyone needs a chance to start and it is here in the temple that we learn to cultivate compassion in our hearts, and give our dharma sister a chance," she said. " Imagine, if she was outside on the streets attempting to translate,would she be able to enjoy the support she has now? No, I foresee many a rotten tomato heading her way!"
THe audience laughed gently, and I felt the fear leave me. So it continued, me trying to keep up with the reverned and translate her words of wisdom as best as I could. Everytime she felt my confidence waver or my voice falter, the reverend would immediately support and encourage me. I was extremely grateful to her and wished fervently that I could properly express my gratitude to her with my limited chinese. Somehow, throughout the rest of the lecture,i was overcome with an inner feeling of peace and calm, and i knew that the Buddha was giving me the strength to help Him spread the Dharma, for I had prayed to Him for the strength prior to the dharma function. On the exterior, I faltered and failed to do the translation justice, but on the interior, my heart was bathed by the radiance of His aura, and I knew that He was watching over me and that He was supporting me throughout this time.
Afterward, I knelt in the prayer hall alone and prayed to Him for forgiveness, but with the knowledge that I had tried my best. I felt enlightened through this experience for it helped me discover my self confidence and face up to my problems instead of running away from them, something i was always inclined to do.
" One could be stupid, have a poor command of languages and have absolutely no knowledge of the great doctrine," Reverend Miaoyu told me after during the debrief. " But as long as you have the heart, sincerity and the determination to learn, i am willing to teach you and I am certain that i'll see an improvement. And help you I will, for you have touched me with your sincerity and willingness to learn. HAve confidence! You need to break into the circle of your problems, and let this be a start."
The moment the Reverend started the lecture, I knew I was in trouble. Try as I might to make out her lecture through her thick accent, I knew that my limited knowledge of Chinese was going to bring me crashing down. I paused and stuttered and came up with a sorry excuse of a translation for what she had just uttered. The audience fidgeted and frowned. Sensing my discomfort and teh audience's impatience, the Reverend immediately told the audience that it was my first time.
" Everyone needs a chance to start and it is here in the temple that we learn to cultivate compassion in our hearts, and give our dharma sister a chance," she said. " Imagine, if she was outside on the streets attempting to translate,would she be able to enjoy the support she has now? No, I foresee many a rotten tomato heading her way!"
THe audience laughed gently, and I felt the fear leave me. So it continued, me trying to keep up with the reverned and translate her words of wisdom as best as I could. Everytime she felt my confidence waver or my voice falter, the reverend would immediately support and encourage me. I was extremely grateful to her and wished fervently that I could properly express my gratitude to her with my limited chinese. Somehow, throughout the rest of the lecture,i was overcome with an inner feeling of peace and calm, and i knew that the Buddha was giving me the strength to help Him spread the Dharma, for I had prayed to Him for the strength prior to the dharma function. On the exterior, I faltered and failed to do the translation justice, but on the interior, my heart was bathed by the radiance of His aura, and I knew that He was watching over me and that He was supporting me throughout this time.
Afterward, I knelt in the prayer hall alone and prayed to Him for forgiveness, but with the knowledge that I had tried my best. I felt enlightened through this experience for it helped me discover my self confidence and face up to my problems instead of running away from them, something i was always inclined to do.
" One could be stupid, have a poor command of languages and have absolutely no knowledge of the great doctrine," Reverend Miaoyu told me after during the debrief. " But as long as you have the heart, sincerity and the determination to learn, i am willing to teach you and I am certain that i'll see an improvement. And help you I will, for you have touched me with your sincerity and willingness to learn. HAve confidence! You need to break into the circle of your problems, and let this be a start."
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