Everything that Challenges You Is Actually There to Guide You

I came across a saying: “Without physical suffering, one’s fortune and prosperity will not be abundant; without mental suffering, wisdom will not unfold.”

All experiences in life, including those hardships that are difficult to endure in the moment, are actually part of one’s spiritual journey when looked back upon.

In just eight words: “Everything that challenges you is actually there to guide you.” As I have said before: “In life, we rely on self-liberation.”

This self-guidance and liberation require immersing oneself in life to feel and experience, to taste both sweetness and bitterness, in order to achieve enlightenment.

As the saying goes: “People may not learn from being taught, but they will learn from experiences. Without going through certain experiences, one cannot gain wisdom.”

One must personally experience what suffering truly is in order to understand its depth. One must deeply engrave that pain in their heart to find strength and resilience within that pain. Only by facing the deepest despair can one find rebirth.

The so-called suffering in life is often self-inflicted. Only by attempting to elevate one’s mindset, no longer fixating on personal gains and losses, no longer fixating on the faults of others, can one endure the myriad sufferings on the path of self-liberation and, through the dark night, welcome the dawn.

Wang Yangming once said: “The world is a place of practice, where lotuses bloom from the mud, and worldly hardships are all opportunities for honing and cultivating oneself.” Perhaps this also echoes the saying: “Through experiences, one gains ambition; through trials, one matures.” Those who appear strong and fearless in the end are often those who have experienced much. Their stories, unknown to others, have transformed into the armor they wear today.

The more trials a person undergoes, the greater their cultivation and the different degrees of benefit they gain. It’s like a spice: the finer it is ground, the stronger the fragrance. Life tests people to thoroughly experience a variety of flavors, and then be reborn.

So, dear friends, bravely face your own life, regardless of its ups and downs, regardless of tomorrow, and continue to live your life today. Life is a grand adventure. All those who have had great realizations were once beyond redemption. Without the death of the heart, the Dao cannot be born, and the end of a person is the beginning. With a broad and open mind, there is a boat to ferry others across.