Living in this world is none other than how we interact with people and how we engage in different activities. When we fuss over petty things and cannot tolerate each other, we create conflicts that can consume us. This happens when we are not broad-minded enough, and we do not realize that “tolerance brings blessings.” We should learn to have an open heart to accomplish great things. As an old saying goes, “An ocean accepts water from hundreds of rivers. It embraces all so it is great.” In the same way the ocean accepts the converging flow of hundreds of rivers, we must be broad-minded enough to not only think of ourselves, but also embrace others. If we can do this, there will be fewer obstacles in our lives. Living this way makes every aspect of human relationships and career development easier and better. Otherwise, difficulties naturally follow.
There was a high official named Zhang Ying (張英; 1637-1708) during the Qing dynasty. Everyone called him “Zhang the Charitable” because he always treated people kindly and was fond of creating wholesome affinity with others. One time Zhang’s neighbor, in the course of building his new house, moved their neighboring wall three feet, wrongfully occupying Zhang’s land. Zhang’s son wrote a letter to his father, requesting him to deal with it by virtue of his official position. Zhang Ying replied, “You sent me a letter from a thousand miles away just for a wall? What does it matter to give him three feet? The Great Wall is still there. But the builder, First Emperor of Qin, is already long gone.” Upon reading his father’s reply, Zhang’s son felt ashamed, and the whole incident was resolved without any trouble.
When facing situations, we should give leeway to others and be considerate of them instead of only thinking about ourselves. If everyone can have this broad-mindedness to embrace others, then there will surely be happiness and harmony among people.