Story part 1

Once upon a time, in front of the Quan Yin Temple late at night, a man was kneeling at Lord Buddha's feet, asking him to teach about love.

Man: Lord Buddha, I am a married man. I am currently in love with another woman. I don't know what to do.

Lord Buddha: Could you confirm that the woman you are in love with is the last one in your life?

Man: Yes.

Lord Buddha: Get a divorce and then marry her.

Man: But my wife is honest, reliable, and thoughtful. Would it be cruel and immoral to leave her?

Lord Buddha: A marriage without love is cruel and immoral. You are now in love with someone else, not your wife anymore. What you do is right.

Man: But my wife still loves me very much, Lord Buddha.

Lord Buddha: Then your wife is happy.

Man: After I break up with her to marry the other woman, my wife will be very sad. Why is my wife happy, Lord Buddha?

Lord Buddha: Your wife's true love still exists. You have lost her love. Because you had the happiness, you lose it; that's why you are a miserable man.

Man: But obviously, I divorced her and married someone else. She lost me. She is always the one who suffers.

Lord Buddha: You are wrong. You are just the one your wife loves. When you leave your wife, the true love of your wife will continue with another person. Because the true love of your wife has never been lost, it is your wife who is happy. You are the one suffering.

Man: My wife once said that she would only love me in her life. She won't love anyone else.

Lord Buddha: Have you ever said the same thing too?

Story part 2

Lord Buddha: Now, look at the three candles on the incense burner. Which one is the brightest?

Man: I don't know. Looks like they are all the same?

Lord Buddha: Three candles are like three women. One of them is the woman you are in love with. Women are not only a few hundred or a few thousand. If you don't know which one of the three candles is brightest, how can you tell who is the last woman in your life?

Man: ...

Lord Buddha: Now hold a candle in front of your eyes and see which one is brightest.

Man: Of course, the one in front of my eyes is the brightest.

Lord Buddha: Now put it back where it was and see which one is brightest.

Man: I still can't see which one is the brightest.

Lord Buddha: The candle you just held in front of your eyes is like the "last" woman you are in love with right now. When you focus your attention on the candle, you see it brightest. You couldn't get back the brightest feeling when you put it back where it was. Your so-called last and only love might be just the flower in the mirror, the moon in the water. After all, it might be just an empty love.

Takeaways

Q: What is the most precious thing in life?

A: The most precious thing in life is not what we cannot get or what we lose. It is the happiness that we are currently holding.

Love is like a rope that two persons pull together on each side. If one person stretches or loosens the rope, that love will tense or slacken. To love a person does not need to try. But to continue loving someone, you have to try hard to maintain the balance of the "love" rope.