A monastic used the simile of baking a cake to explain about karma and what we do with our life.
He mentioned that some people had the top grade, highest and best quality of ingredients, yet they bake an awful cake.
While others who have the worst possible kind of ingredients, yet they bake a delicious cake.
Some people are very fortunate, yet they still complain that life is unfair to them, mistreated them.
They don't appreciate, or are grateful with what they have, and they make a mess out of it.Yet there are others who make use of the little and limited ingredients that they have, and are happy, contented and successful.
I don't have good ingredients, too.
As a matter of fact, some of my ingredients were so bad.
But I never lament on those ingredients.
I'm only grateful that I have them.
Cos' there are others who don't even have the necessary ingredients to work with.
I won't say my cake is fantastically delicious of fanciful.
But I know at least it's simple and edible.
Forget about other people's cake.
Avoid being so concern about their cake.
What about your cake?
What does it taste like?
"Man himself is responsible for his own happiness and misery.
He creates his own heaven and hell.
He is master of his own destiny, child of his past and parent of his future."
- Sayadaw U Thittila
"Life is what we make out of it - we are responsible for everything in our life."
"Success is not due to luck.
You determine what your luck is.
That means : You determine if you succeed or not."
"To understand and endure suffering is to end suffering.
To enjoy and spend blessings is to end blessings."
"Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines.
But it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes."
- The Buddha
"Karma is not fixed.
Karma can be changed."
"G-Plan (God's plan) ?
How about your plan?"
"We are our own master.
Our future depends entirely on ourselves.
Nobody can take care of our future lives;And the present rests on our own shoulders."
- The Buddha
"According to the seed that is sown,
So is the fruit ye reap there from.
The doer of good will gather good,
The doer of evil, evil reaps.
Sown is the seed and planted well,
Thou shalt enjoy the fruit there of."
- The Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya 1 : 227)
