What causes people to be evil?

Posted on May 9, 2013 by heaventruth

What causes people to be evil or bad? Is it their childhood on how they were raised? Is it ingrained in their genes? How do we make evil people good? Is it possible?

We try to teach the inmates job skills in trying to keep them from returning to incarceration. So being employed, or having income prevents one from evil? If that is the case, we need to give good paying jobs to bad people.

Child services tries to take away children from abusive and derelict parents. So early negative experiences cause evil? Should we take away kids from evil people?

Mental hospitals use to remove part of the brain to treat disruptive behaviors. So genes cause evil? Would we ever go back to lobotomies to remove evil?

With all these theories on what causes evil, how do we deal with evil people? Presently and in the past, we have caught and imprisoned them, preventing them from contacting society. But how long can we continue to build new prisons and give them excellent health care?

In the Tip of the Writing Brush, it is stated:

Among all mankind, there is no one who is evil.

It is only a bit of dust stuck on them. 1-52

These dusts are greed, arrogance, and self-love. If we can remove these evils from these people, it is said that they will become good.

But how do we remove these bad thoughts from evil people? We as society may not be able to directly help these people. But with our prayers, God may be able to help these bad people sweep evil from their minds. More to come on how God performs this miracle transformation…………..

Heaven’s Truth Church/Tenrikyo Church

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Have Faith in God

Posted on May 9, 2013 by heaventruth

Long time ago, people depended on faith when they became ill. Now we depend on doctors and medicine to get well. Long time ago we depended on God to feed our families. Now we depend on the government. Long time ago we depended on God to protect our families from evil. Now we depend on the law. Long time ago we depended on God to protect our properties and life, now we depend on insurance. The list goes on and on.

We have lost our connection to God. We do not depend on God to protect us from the perils of life. We lock our doors at night; we don’t let our children play outside without adult supervision, and many of us have firearms to protect our homes. We do not have faith that God will protect us.

If we do not have faith in God, do the criminals have fear of God’s wrath? Do they believe in God? They commit crimes, and get away with it. And if they are so unlucky to get caught, they are released due to the overcrowded conditions in our jails. They have no fear of a God that they cannot see or hear.

It is this lack of belief or faith in God, that most of the world goes through life. It is the material possessions of the modern society that give us a false security replacing our belief in God. It is only when suffering befalls us that we look past these possessions, and seek a higher being to help us.

It is this acknowledgement of God, which is the first step in having faith in God. Some will learn to have complete faith in God, while others will continue to attain materialistic possessions to back up their insecure faith in God. But materialist possessions are ethereal and fleeting. When they are gone, one is lost in this complex universe.

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What is the appropriate prayer?

Posted on May 8, 2013 by heaventruth

What is an appropriate prayer? Many are self serving, like asking for financial gains,  prosperity and good health. Others are selfless asking for help for others, like people who are ill. Some ask for forgiveness and forgiveness of those who have wronged us. Sometime we even try to barter with God, asking for a wish in exchange for an act, like a donation.

But how about a prayer asking God to eliminate the evils in the minds of mankind? In recent days, we saw the horrors of mankind treating each other with contempt and degradation. Who could imagine humans enslaving each other. How much evil must the three brothers have who have committed these heinous crimes against humanity. How many of these evil souls are still out there in the world? These people definitely need help.

In the Heaven’s TruthChurch (Tenrikyo), we have a very special prayer. We ask God to help us sweep the evils (greed, arrogance, and self love) from the minds of mankind.  We beseech God to help these poor spirited individuals. We ask God not to punish them, but to help them in eliminating their evil thoughts. (see previous or future blogs to see how God eliminates evil)

When greed, arrogance, and self love are eliminated from the minds of the world, there will be only joy in this world with people helping each other.  Human degradation will be a tragedy of the past.

Heaven’s Truth Church/Tenrikyo Church

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Our thoughts and our bodies.

Posted on May 8, 2013 by heaventruth

In the Tip of the Writing Brush is written that God lends us our bodies.

So long as you remain unknowing that the body is a thing borrowed, you can understand nothing at all. 3-137

That is why we cannot sometimes control what happens to our bodies. We can take care of our bodies daily, but sometimes disorders or illness take place on our bodies. Often medicine and physicians can help, but sometimes we succumb to these disorders.

If illness and misfortune do not take our lives, old age will. There is still no fountain of youth; and eventually we give our bodies back to the earth (part of God’s body). We certainly do not have complete control of our bodies.

But what do we have control of? We have control of our thoughts and our actions. We use what is borrowed (the brain and the other organs) in facilitating our thoughts. We can have good thoughts like helping each other, or we can certainly have bad or evil thoughts, like greed, arrogant or selfish thoughts.

But is there a relationship between our thoughts that we control, and the body that we borrow from God? Suppose there is a relationship. Evil thoughts bring about suffering and misfortunes, while good thoughts bring upon health and prosperity. These thoughts become implanted in our inner hearts (soul), and eventually germinate as suffering or joy. But suppose there is a long time lapse between cause and effect? It would be difficult for one to see the relationship between our thoughts and the future.

In the Tip of the Writing Brush, it is written that God seeing the sufferings in the world will shorten the time lapse between cause and effect, making the relationship between our thoughts and our future easier to understand. In the future, when you have illness or disorders of your body, it may be God helping you understand the law of cause and effect. Remove greed, arrogance and self love from your minds!

Heaven’s Truth Church/Tenrikyo Church

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Where is Heaven?

Posted on May 7, 2013 by heaventruth

Have you ever wonder where God lives? Many will say God lives in Heaven. But where is heaven? Is it located in our solar system, or is it somewhere in the universe light years away?  Imagine if we were to die in a space ship away from our solar system, would we find heaven?  

Is heaven tangible, or is it like a dream world manifested by our minds, or God’s mind? Would we have a physical form, or would we be a spirit composed of energy?

In the Tip of the Writing Brush is a verse that states  the Universe is the body of God. What does this mean? Could we be living in the body of God? If this is true, could we all be parts of God? Could our minds be part of God’s mind?

When the world’s minds become in unison with God’s mind, the body of God will be complete.  When evil (greed, arrogance, and self love)  are eliminated from the world’s mind,  suffering and illness will disappear (Cause and effect).  This will bring health to everyone, and finally restore the body of God to health. The once imperfect universe (body of God) becomes perfect.  Could this restored body of God now be called heaven?

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Undercover Boss

Posted on May 7, 2013 by heaventruth

In the television show Undercover Boss, many times the chief executive officer finds out that his or her company is not operating as expected. This is not surprising since many of the executives have limited contact with the employees that actually provide the service. I will give you an example of an imaginary company XYZ.

John Smith, 30 years ago had a fantastic idea of providing a special service xyz to the public. His first year, he spent most of his money and his time in providing this service to as many people that he could personally meet. In time, he was able to gain and retain many satisfied customers. This growth provided him the opportunity to hire and train a few people to sell his special service xyz. As time went on, he was able to hire and supervise others to provide this special service. John was able to concentrate on the growth and revenue of the company, thinking that his special service was delivered in the same fashion that he had done thirty years ago.

But suppose the executives under John did not have the same vision as John, and began to deviate from John’s initial plans. The company continued to grow despite the less than ideal service to the public. John seeing the growth and revenue, was satisfied that his vision of thirty years ago was expanding. John continued to pay his executive staff yearly raises for their efforts. Also with the extravagant salary provided by the company, John was able to donate to his community and church, and is held in high esteem by the community.

This is a fictional character, but would God hold John accountable for the mediocre service xyz provided to the public? Is it John’s responsibility to find out if the service provided is the same service he provided 30 years ago? Would God only hold accountable the executives under John?

This is why God may hold any one who has supervision or authority more accountable for their actions or inactions because their decisions may influence the lives of many people. The lack of knowledge of what is happening does not let one escape from the watchful eyes of God. John, our imaginary CEO may feel confident that God will bless him; but God may have a different plan.

Heaven’s Truth Church/Tenrikyo Church

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Pleasure of talking about others

Posted on May 6, 2013 by heaventruth

Do you know how easy it is to talk about others? Sometimes I get pleasure out of this. There is always a person at work or any congregation who likes to talk about others in a bad way. This person tends to attract people of the same. You always see them in a group during lunch or during the break.  Sometimes you join them. They bring out the arrogant qualities in you; but when you see them and are not in their clique , you wonder if they are talking about you. This does not feel good.

Most people do not like to be evaluated because they already know their deficiencies and it hurts when it is confirmed;  but we all  like to evaluate or judge others and find their weakness.  What is this quality in human beings that make us behave this way? Instead of finding their assets and good qualities, we tend to look for their flaws. Instead of looking within for our weakness, we tend to look for it in others.

We all want to feel good about ourselves. When we find fault with others, it makes us feel worthwhile. Could this be the reason?  Arrogance is the reason behind our poor behavior.  Do we want to feel superior to others at their expense? Is arrogance, a compensation for our own weakness as individuals?

In society, there is an hierarchy in any job, organization and even in religion. As we climb this ladder we must be more wary of becoming more arrogant. Because of our experience, we have more information and knowledge. We must use our experience  to help others , instead of using it  as a means to take advantage of others, or to influence others.  Having knowledge and material wealth by themselves  are not vices, but using them as a mode to debase others is. We become arrogant when this occurs.  When we become arrogant, we cause suffering to those around us; but it also takes a toll on ourselves. It causes stress and suffering  by eliciting the emotion of anger.  

In summary, be aware of the evils (selfishness) in your minds, and see the good in others. When this occurs, the greed, arrogance, and self love in your minds will be more easy to remove.

Heaven’s Truth Church/Tenrikyo Church

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The Perfect Job, and the Perfect Marriage?

Posted on May 6, 2013 by heaventruth

What is the perfect job? I remember when I was a teenager when I had my first job in the strawberry fields in Southern California, I felt so tired at the end of the day. But after showering and relaxing, it felt so good to have worked. So I guess it’s not the pay that makes a perfect job.

From my personal opinion, the perfect job is a job that has a purpose to help people in some way. It has different responsibilities and challenges everyday. It has interactions with people. It is work based, and not time based. It has interactions with the administration, influencing how the company runs. And of course has good compensation.

Many companies today, the administration has no understanding of what goes on at the delivery part of their organization. They are excellent at recruiting employees, and bringing in customers; but they have mediocre knowledge on the most important part of their company, the delivery of service. Part of this may be due to arrogance of the executives, who believe that they have more knowledge than their employees. How many times have you been asked by your company on how your job can be improved to help the company?

There must be a purpose in your job. Without a purpose, the light goes out, and you become just a worker, like working just for the money.  Knowing that you are helping others gives you purpose in working. This I believe is the most important part in keeping one happy in a job.  The knowledge that you are a vital part of the company is very important for your happiness and your company’s success. Good companies bring out the motivation to succeed in their employees.

Variety is the spice of life. This applies also to work. An ideal job has many functions. It is not just to be supervised, but it is also to supervise others. The employee takes many roles in the company. The employee wears many hats during his or her career in the company. It involves decision-making, and cooperation between workers, and administration. The administration lets it’s employees make some of the decisions of the daily operations.

Companies that offer the perfect job usually retain the best workers, while companies that do not, retain the mediocre worker, and continue to lose their best employees to these elite private companies. Government financial assistance usually supports the existence and sometimes the prosperity of these mediocre companies, especially during a poor economy. Because of this support, these companies continue to retain the mediocre employees and produce mediocre service to the public. We all lose, when this happens.

In summary the perfect job may never be realized for the majority of workers because greed and arrogance prevents us from creating this position. For most people, their inner heart believes that greed and arrogance is wrong, while their mind succeeds in believing that material wealth and power will bring them happiness. Therefore, mankind will continue to be  subjected to a less than optimum work place until we become less selfish.

Next time I may blog on the perfect marriage.  What prevents the perfect marriage? The answer may be the same as what prevents the perfect job. Enough said?

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The Perfect Job

Posted on May 5, 2013 by heaventruth

What is the perfect job? I remember when I was a teenager when I had my first job in the strawberry fields in Southern California, I felt so tired at the end of the day. But after showering, it felt so good to be alive. So I guess it’s not the pay that makes a perfect job.

From my personal opinion, the perfect job is a job that has a purpose to help people in some way. It has different responsibilities and challenges everyday. It has interactions with people. It is work based, and not time based. It has interactions with the administration, influencing how the company runs. And of course has good compensation.

Many companies today, the administration has no understanding of what goes on at the delivery part of their organization. They are excellent at recruiting employees, and bringing in customers, but they have mediocre knowledge on the most important part of their company, the delivery of service. Part of this may be due to arrogance of the executives, who believe that they have more knowledge than their employees. How many times have you been asked by your company on how your job can be improved to help the company? For me, I cannot remember any instance.

There must be a purpose in your job. Without a purpose, the light goes out, and you become just a worker, like working just for the money.  Knowing that you are helping others gives you purpose in working. This I believe is the most important part in keeping one happy in a job.  The knowledge that you are a vital part of the company is very important for your happiness and your company’s success. Good companies bring out the motivation to succeed in their employees.

Variety is the spice of life. This applies also to work. An ideal job has many functions. It is not just to be supervised, but it is also to supervise others. The employee takes many roles in the company. The employee wears many hats during his or her career in the company. It involves decision-making, and cooperation between workers, and administration. The administration lets it’s employees make some of the decisions of the daily operations.

Companies that solicit the perfect job usually retain the best workers, while companies that do not, retain the mediocre worker, and continue to lose their best employees to these elite private companies. Government aide usually supports the existence and sometimes the prosperity of these mediocre companies, especially during a poor economy. Because of this aid, these companies continue to retain the mediocre employees and produce mediocre service to the public. We all lose, when this happens.

In summary the perfect job may never be realized for the majority of workers because greed and arrogance prevent us from creating this position. Our inner heart believes that greed and arrogance is wrong, while the mind succeeds in believing that material wealth and power will bring us happiness. Therefore, mankind will continue to control others, even in the work place, causing the imperfect job.

Next time a blog on the perfect marriage.  What prevents the perfect marriage? The answer may be the same as what prevents the perfect job. Never mind on the next blog.

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God’s Library

Posted on May 4, 2013 by heaventruth

Consider the books in God’s library. Some books are very thin, and others are extraordinary large. In each book, the first and last pages are very similar. Each book represents who we are. Each separate page represents part of our lives. For those who do not believe in reincarnation or past lives please bear with me.

Sometimes in life, we cannot understand what is happening to us. Why does God inflict pain on us? I am a good person, why do bad things happen to me? Even Job in the Bible asked God this question.

Like in a book, if we were to look at one page, one would not be able to understand the content if one did not read the previous pages. If we believed in the law of cause and effect, we would be able to trace our sufferings to an action or actions in a previous life (page or pages). The law of cause and effect states that evil (greed, arrogance, and self love) thoughts and actions result in future sufferings. The time lapse may extend into the next life, making it difficult to see the relationship of our thoughts and our future.

Some people are able to understand God’s truth, and are able to have good thoughts. Their books are very thin, due to having less suffering in their lives. Others have large chapters representing their lives due to prolong sufferings caused by their bad thoughts and actions.

In all the books, the first page is the same beginning with the origin of purity of mind. The last page is also the same in each book. Each book ends with the salvation of the individual, with the restoration of the purity of the mind. When all books are completed, God’s plan of the joyous world will be finalized with everyone helping each other.

To take it to another level, consider each book representing the soul. More to come……..

Heaven’s Truth Church/Tenrikyo Church

 

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