Mr Kan said that everyone has his or her favourite Exquisite jadeite and Mr Kan’s favourite is the Dragon Returns to the Sea, which has been chosen by a blessed regular who began with an Auspicious jadeite nine years ago.
Out of curiosity, I read up on this client’s story. Nine years ago, faced with financial problems, she encountered Lotus on Water and began her journey with us. From there, she moved from an HDB to her current bungalow. All these started with her courage to take the first step!
Learning about this touching story gave rise to some thoughts: We regret the first step we didn’t take as it usually means the difference between a brilliant life and an average one.
Therefore, whether you have the courage to charge forth like a lion or to lead an average life like a cat, depends largely on what you want in life…
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| Do you want to be the lion or the cat? |
This is why I’m in love with the lion jadeite recently and amongst the numerous pieces in the Exquisite gallery, this is my favourite—Continuous Prosperity (Lianzhu Fu Lu Shou 连珠福禄寿). Every jadeite in the Exquisite gallery is unique and meaningful, every one of it carved from the raw jadeite boulder and into a piece that suits its natural colour.
And my favourite piece of jadeite is exceptional, it is carved with gourds (hulu 葫芦), lions (shizi 狮子) and beads (zhuzi 珠子)—hence the name Continuous Prosperity (Lianzhu Fu Lu Shou 连珠福禄寿). On closer inspection, a green line extends from the bottom of the gourd to its mouth. What is this? What secret does this gourd hold?
It’s not a secret but a ribbon. Ribbons are supposed to bring wealth, and this ribbon extends from the bottom of the gourd to its mouth, it’s amazing! Overflowing wealth! I believe everyone knows the function of the gourd is to absorb and convert, absorbing negativities and converting them into positives. But this is no common gourd, it’s twice the size of the lion and everything absorbed by this huge gourd can be converted into endless wealth.
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| Endless wealth… it overflows like falling pearls… |
This endless wealth rises from the bottom of the gourd and emerges at its mouth as pearls of water—don’t forget water means wealth—guarded by a ferocious lion. Many of you wonder why the lion of all beasts? I had been pondering over this for days before Mr Kan enlightened me and I finally got the answer.
Mr Kan wrote in one of his articles:
Already during Buddha’s time, he was compared to the lion:
演法无畏，犹狮子吼，其所讲说，乃如雷震——《维摩诘所说经·佛国品》
(Buddha speaks of Dharma fearlessly, like the lion's roar. His voice, like thunder.)
And not just his voice, where he sat was also considered the lion's seat or throne:
佛为人中之狮子。佛所坐处，若床若地，皆名狮子座。——《大智度论·七》
(The Lion's Throne, is where the Buddha sits. Wherever he is sitting or sleeping, that is the Lion's Throne)
The Buddha has been hailed as the lion in these lines, which reflects how mighty the lion is and how they are fearless in face of obstacles. Under the guard of the King of Beasts, the wearer’s wealth will grow exponentially and accumulate like the pearls of water in the jadeite.
This is also not your typical lion, it has a long tail that hooks the beads, guarding the wealth against others. The tail also curls into the shape of a jade sceptre (ruyi 如意), this suggests everything to be in smooth water (shishiruyi 事事如意) right?
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| With a side darker and another lighter, doesn’t this resemble the taiji 太极? |
This jadeite is oval in shape and carved like a taiji—the dark-coloured side with the gourd is yin, while the light-coloured side with the lion is yang. With the yin and yang in harmony, it turns obstacles into opportunities and the bad into the good, bringing the wearer boundless prosperity!
I believe this ferocious lion will soon find its owner, and it shall protect him and bring him unimaginable prosperity!
-- Wong Chen Kiat
(Translated)
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