The story of Jia Mou and Luo Mou highlights the detrimental effect of taking advantage of others. Once again, the following tale enlightens the world’s people about the timeless law that Heaven and Earth know what is in man’s heart: What man sows is what he reaps, and Heaven is weighing everything mankind does.
The following story highlights the word of heavenly justice and the clear distinction between reward and punishment, or as science has termed it, “the law of cause and effect.” During the Qing Dynasty, Luo and Jia lived next to each other as neighbors.
Luo was rich, and Jia was poor. One day, Jia wanted to sell his house, and Luo tried to buy it. Since Luo didn’t want to spend too much money purchasing the home, he tried his best to lower the price. Unwilling to accept this low offer, Jia searched for other buyers. When Luo learned about this, he secretly went about obstructing the process.
As a result, for a long time, Jia Mou’s house couldn’t be sold, and his family life became more difficult. Due to these circumstances, Jia had to sell to Luo cheaply. Once Luo took over the new house, he spent money on renovations.
The day the house was completed, and following custom, Luo hosted a big feast and held a ceremony to honor the Gods. As Luo lit the offerings, a sudden gust of wind blew the burning paper money onto the wooden beams; instantaneously, flames erupted, causing sparks to fly. Within minutes the newly renovated house burned to the ground, leaving only a rafter section. To his horror, the fire spilled over to his old home, which also caught fire.
When the fire started, the guests present scrambled to help extinguish the flames. Luo stopped everyone from doing this, and in remorse, he pounded his chest, exclaiming: “Just now in the fire, I vaguely saw Jia’s deceased father who, in his resentment, had sparked the fire — Ahh! I now regret what I have done, but it is too late!”
Luo thought he had taken advantage of the situation, but did not know that his words and deeds were recorded in Heaven. Through the burning of the house, God allowed him to see Jia’s deceased father warn him that good and evil are rewarded in kind.
Luo instantly realized his mistake and knew how it could be corrected. Immediately, Luo sent people to Jia explaining that they gave his family 20 acres of good land as compensation and presented the written transfer deeds. From then on, Luo strove to do only good deeds and finally lived a long life.
The fact that Luo lived a long life was a reward from Heaven for his good deeds. As this lesson shows, it is wise for everyone to examine their intentions before they act to see if it aligns with goodness or deceit.
So in your life’s journey, when you experience troubles, examine the effects you are experiencing to see if they result from any causes you instigated. The saying “What you sow is what you reap” reveals a timeless truth.
