Why should we worry about property and houses and all that? Everywhere is different, of course, but still we can survive. Can survive. The tents can last three to five years. Many tents that we use for the monks in Taiwan (Formosa), including mine, are still lasting now, after three years. […]
Now, even then, even if I earn the money so fast, but if I spend it the way ordinary people do outside, I would never have enough. But we spend wherever we must. I’m not a stingy person. It’s not the same. I’m very generous concerning food and clothing and comfort for disciples. I would choose the best for them. But when it comes to not necessary things, I don’t even spend one penny. Whatever we can do ourselves, we do it. And that’s where we save money.
It’s easy for me as a Master to make demands on you. Even if I don’t have money, I can demand you to build a house for me. Or even a wooden house or some house or a bathroom for me. You would do it for me. But I don’t want to trouble you. Why? I am intelligent, independent, creative. I can look after myself. If I cannot look after myself, how would I look after you and the world? Even if one person’s personal comfort, I cannot look after, how would I boast about looking after you or anyone else?
But it’s just you have to know how to organize your life and live a very happy and simple life. […] We heat with a stove, stone stove, self-made, with a lot of stone inside. You can make a beautiful life. You don’t even want to come out. They say they don’t want to come out. If it’s not for a duty there, they don’t want to come out here. They said, “What for? Heavy karma outside.” […] I said, “It’s OK. You have to go into the water in order to swim, to learn how to swim.” […]
