Guiding the Horse - Governing your Willpower

The horse reared in fright as the shrouded man walked unexpectedly onto the path and startled it. ‘Ho there,’ cried the carriage driver, struggling to regain control of his animal. ‘What devil does such a thing! What do you think you are doing suddenly appearing like that?’
‘In peace, I am no devil, moreover, if there were a demon it is within your hand, creating a rein of terror upon unsuspecting travellers,’ answered the man.
‘You are either a sage or a simpleton, speaking as you do,’ said the carriage driver. ‘The former, I’ll wager, for any fool can see that this powerful horse has been finely trained and is well harnessed.’
‘Of what good is the strength of a horse and the control of a harness, if the direction of the will guiding the driver’s hand is elsewhere?’ said the sage. ‘It is clear that you are on this road against your will.’

For the rest of this Story see The Teachings of Billionaire Yen Tzu Volume I - Lesson 5 - it is worth reading to the end I promise.

According to Yen Tzu "Our will is the greatest power available to us and the very element that determines our success or failure. Will is the basis of our power of constancy, the virtue that encapsulates our tenacity, steadfastness, determination, resolution, perseverance, and fortitude; the basis of our zeal, faithfulness and devotion to that which is important to us."

I would love to be able to tap into my willpower. The will to be a better person, lose weight, stop spending too much money. I am hoping that this Lesson 5 is going to give me some tips on how to do these things. I will let you know how it goes.

Shooting the Monkey - Freedom from the Distracting Ego

Invited to a grand reception Chang did not dress for the occasion. Arriving in his everyday clothes he was treated with disrespect and contempt. No-one paid him any attention and the servants did their utmost to ignore him, not even serving him dinner. Slipping out unnoticed, Chang went home and changed into the finest silk tunic, belt and robes adorned with breath-taking jewellery, a magnificent turban and an expensive overcoat.
Returning to the banquet he was received with open arms. Although all harboured their individual hidden agenda and a little envy, the hosts were delighted to see such a man of obvious importance and asked him to sit with them at the highest table, offering him a plate filled with the choicest delicacies.
Then, much to the bewilderment of the hosts and everyone present, Chang removed his coat and turban, placed them before the plate and said: ‘Eat, my master, eat.’
‘What are you doing?’ one of the astonished hosts enquired.
‘It is my apparel that you are honouring, not me,’ replied Chang...

For the rest of this story you have to read The Teachings of Billionaire Yen Tzu Volume I - Chapter 4.

These Chinese parables really stimulate my thinking. It is so true that people are influenced to judge you by your designer items and not your true colours. It is sad that we cannot be ourselves in certain situations but feel we have to impress our peer group with what we have. If you read the rest of this story you will see how Yen Tzu directs us away from Ego and towards inner harmony.

Stalking the Heron - infinite patience;immediate results

Yan Kan was worried. ‘If I don’t catch this bird soon the Emperor will carve me into meat for his dogs,’ he complained to his friend, Cai Tok.
‘Yes, thanks to your impulsive outburst about being able to bring him one with no difficulty at all. What demon possessed you to suggest that a mate for his pet heron would bring him great luck?’
‘Because I thought it would be a good way for quick advancement,’ answered Yan. ‘Please help me. Receiving the Emperor’s reward for bringing peace to his dynasty will mean high rank to us both and everything that goes with it.’
It had been some time before when the Emperor had discovered an injured heron in his garden. After it had been nurtured back to health, he had kept it caged, refusing to free it with the argument, ‘Herons are omens and now that I have protected it, it in turn will protect me from the ill luck that continually haunts me.’

The rest of this story is in Chapter 3 Volume I of The Teachings of Billionaire Yen Tzu and well worth the esoteric read I promise you.

One of the teachings according to Yen Tzu is that "Letting go in the knowledge that you will receive is infinitely more powerful than holding on in the hope you may receive, as it places your energy in harmony with the order of the way things work."

I like this idea that you relax and the things that you want will come to you. I am definitely going to give it a try since struggling to get what you want in life is exhausting and depressingly slow. So on that note I shall go and positively chill out for the rest of the day.

Freeing the Bear

Growing Strong Relationships - this is something we all want to do. it is what life is all about and the secret to success on both personal and business levels. Yen Tzu tells amazing stories...

Kung was alarmed to hear the husky growl that awoke him. Even with the shortcut he had taken to C’hu it was an arduous five-day journey, so that when he found a tranquil spot in which to camp he had fallen asleep almost immediately. ‘By the gods!’ he exclaimed, ‘what devil is that?’ as the angry roar continued. Adrenaline soothed his immediate panic as he braved himself to investigate further. It seemed that the roar was not approaching; rather it was changing to one of a crying roar. His search led him to a clearing where he saw an enormous bear caught in a vicious bamboo trap.

More of this in The Teachings of Billionaire Yen Tzu Volume I.

Taming the Bull - Harmonising Communication

Toeless Wong was crippled for allowing Duke Ling’s prize
bull to run amok in the kilns,’ said Ho Chi, in answer
to his fellow disciple’s question. ‘Indeed, it is said, that he lost
a toe for every one of the ten Imperial vases that were smashed.’
‘In truth it was through having his feet stamped on by the
mighty bull while he bravely fought to recapture it,’ said their
Patriarch, upon overhearing their discourse.
‘By my ancestors,’ exclaimed Ho Chi, ‘what courage!’
‘Indeed yes,’ said Yen Tzu, ‘but fighting yang with yang is
not the way to communicate and overcome.’
‘It is said that yin and yang connect all,’ said Ho Chi, ‘but
please explain how, in the context of such a difficult situation.’
‘The mutual seeking of yin and yang depends on opening and
closing.’ began the Patriarch. ‘Opening and closing are the
natural principles that influence the rise and fall in all of
heaven and earth’s ten thousand things, including man and
beast. Yin and yang should always be harmonious. For the
opposite of one, redresses the balances of the other.

If you want to read the rest of this it comes from The Teachings of Billionaire Yen Tzu

This is Volume One and it is packed with excellent esoteric tales that really get you thinking.
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Yen Tzu's Academy

There is a legend that tells of a famous Academy, now lost in the mountains of an Eastern Province. Founded some two and a half millennia ago by an immensely successful Patriarch, Yen Tzu, the School attracted the interest of great leaders, merchants, and individuals, from all over the ancient world; earnestly seeking the secrets of a new alchemy proven to deliver prosperity and well-being. Possibly a member of the inner circle of Taoist Sages, Yen Tzu would have been fully versed in the Metaphysical Wisdom of the Ancients. His paradoxical philosophy, therefore, would have certainly followed the way of self-mastery through individual inner understanding.

Over several generations the School’s acclaim grew through word of mouth, as each student, enlightened by their understanding of this new thinking, graduated. Such a level of understanding was certainly instrumental in Yen Tzu becoming Ancient China’s first commercial billionaire; though such success inevitably attracted the attention of an aspiring Emperor.

History records that in the year 213BCE almost all remnants of this ancient teaching were destroyed by the first Emperor of what we now consider to be geographical China:the ruthless Qin Shi Huang, famous for the army of life-size Terracotta Warriors guarding his mausoleum; unearthed in Lintong County, Shaanxi.

Viewing such teaching as a threat to the divine rule he had decreed, he was convinced that by destroying it no-one would question or usurp his dictatorship. Pursuing this policy to control society’s thinking, his brutal Prime Minister, Li Ssu, ordered countless sages to be executed and their places of learning to be burned to the ground.

In an attempt to save them from destruction, valuable scrolls and texts were hidden in hollowed walls, a time-honoured custom utilised by numerous cultures over the ages. History records that the Qin Dynasty lasted only during his lifetime, a mere forty-one years; a vivid reminder that motives seeking manipulation and control are always short-lived. Unwittingly, Qin had destroyed the very wisdom that could have been his greatest strength as a leader.