| There are two kinds of smiles. One is a smile that is generated to please others. The other kind of smile is that which is worn when the smiling person attaches more importance on his or her emotions and personal convenience than on others. There are also two kinds of greetings. One kind of greeting aims to please others. The other kind is self-centered, reflecting no concern for other people. There are two ways of working, too. One way is working with a strong intention to please others. The other way is to work with the earning of money as the central concern. This is indeed a way of working where one's personal feelings and convenience take precedence over all else. No one can see inside the minds of others, yet, sooner or later, the true nature of a person's mind is always revealed clearly. We often use expressions like "a virtuous person" or "a person without virtue." I don't know why such expressions are used, but after making a serious mistake people often say, "It's all due to my lack of virtue." Somehow, virtue and fortune may be deeply interrelated. Although it appears that money dominates this world, it also appears that luck and good fortune have more influence on the world's ups and downs than money has. I believe that in so much as we make an effort to please someone, we store virtue in ourselves and the virtue in turn brings luck and good fortune to us. So it may be virtue that really dominates this world. |