New year, new goal, and new action. What do you plan to work on or achieve this year? Healthier, happier, more money, or peaceful life? You name it. Secret ingredients to achieve any of the goals are merit and wisdom. Why so? Please see below from Master Miao Tsan's teaching, you will know why merit and wisdom are crucial in life. "Wisdom and merit are the qualities that truly matter in life, as they allow the individual to choose the right path for his life. Therefore, the key to a good life is the cultivation of wisdom and merit. Using an appropriate method to eliminate habitual tendencies will bring forth mindful awareness. This awareness is wisdom; it is the view of a pure mind, vast without boundary. When we can compose our thoughts, attachments and greed are eliminated, and merits are generated. We must see that wisdom is the root of all existence in the mind, and that in the presence of this wisdom the individual and the Collective merge as one without distinction. The ability to handle situations with wisdom in order to live the life of pure Mind is a merit." Fa Hwa