They must not think that this world is meaningless and filled with confusion,
while the world of Enlightenment is full of meaning and peace. Rather, they should
taste the way of Enlightenment in all the affairs of this world. If a man looks
upon the world with defiled eyes dimmed by ignorance, he will see it filled with
error; but if he looks upon it with clear wisdom, he will see it as the world
of Enlightenment, which it is. The fact is - there is only one world, not two
worlds, one meaningless and the other full of meaning, or one good and the other
bad. People only think there are two worlds, due to their discriminating faculty.
If they could rid themselves of these discrimina- tions and keep their minds pure
with the light of wisdom, then they would see only one world in which everything
is meaningful. Those who believe in Buddha taste this universal purity of oneness
in everything, and in that mind they feel compassion for all and have a humble
attitude to serve everyone. Therefore, they should cleanse their minds of all
pride and cherish humility, courtesy and service. Their minds should be like the
fruitful earth that nourishes everything without partiality, that serves without
complaint, that endures patiently, that is always zeal- ous, that finds its highest
joy in serving all poor people by planting in their minds the seeds of the Buddha's
teaching. Thus, the mind that has compassion for poor people, becomes a mother
to all people, honors all people, looks upon all as personal friends, and respects
them as parents.
In Buddhist psychology, one way to satisfy the various cravings of human nature
is to find proper and construc- tive outlet for them. The person whose one-pointed
drive is undermining his constitution and destroying his dispo- sition, can find
other activities to give him inspiration, relaxation, and enduring pleasure. Most
of the desirable directions toward which man turns his attention are in some way
Enlightening or ennobling to his character. He experiences enrichment and a new
sense of values. He may learn that he will be just as happy reading a good book
as watching a crime program on television; that inspiring music will give him
greater internal security than an escape through dissipation can possibly bestow.
There are wonderful things that people can do to increase their own inner happiness
and make life more valuable to others. But while the drives to success are strong,
we give no thought to the enrichment or refinement of consciousness itself. If
we become so tied down by career that we have no time or strength to broaden our
interests, and cannot begin to fulfill our natural instinct for self- im- provement,
something is seriously wrong. We have built a way of life that protects everything
except man himself. He must always sacrifice the real values of his nature to
maintain his institutions, enterprises, and projects. Sim- plification of living
would bring benefits to everyone, and an important step in this direction is to
give priority to such activities as obviously deserve first attention. How does
a tense and confused person justify his own condition? Almost certainly he blames
his misfortunes upon other people. He is unhappy because they do not appr ciate
him, do not share his point of view, or because they interfere with his immediate
objectives. None of these grievances can actually be regarded as a legitimate
cause for complaint. There is no real reason why others should cater to us, or
permit us to use them to achieve our personal desires. Most of all, we should
not feel slighted or abused because we do not have our own way. Such matters should
be solved in the quietude of our inner lives. We should learn to expect little
and appreciate profoundly any expression of the good will of oth- ers that may
be directed toward us. The demanding person is always unhappy, primarily because
he has no right to demand. Elaborate programs of ulterior motives, which we hope
to advance through the ignorance or even cu- pidity of others, are wrong in the
first place and deserve to turn out badly. The moment we fully realize that we
are not entitled to advance ourselves in any way at the expense of others, we
will begin to clarify our own think- ing and remove causes for dissatisfaction
with our friends and associates. Always, selfish- ness and egotism com- plicate
the problems of living and ultimately lead to sorrow. The whole procedure is vain
because life itself will not support any of these private, self-centered purposes.
Everything that we accumulate will be dissipated; ambi- tions are meaningless
even when we attain them, producing only weariness of spirit. Actually, the purpose
of this entire way of thinking is not futility, but maturity. It is perfectly
possible to live a meaningful life without break- ing the rules with which nature
protects essential values. But we must come to realize that there is only one
pur- pose that really makes life worthwhile, and that is to improve in those characteristics
which we can take out of this life when we go. We are fully aware that we are
going to depart, and we know that our departure may be sud- den and unexpected.
Most persons therefore give some thought to what they leave behind for their descendants.
As we grow in insight, we come to understand that the best gift we can bestow
upon young people is the desire to live according to good and honorable principles.
This is far more important than material wealth. We build a heri- tage for our
children through personal example in our daily living. Thus, we should ask ourselves
if we are creat- ing a pattern that we would want them to follow. Do we choose
to enjoy harmless activities and find pleasure in simple amusements and harmonious
associations with friends and family? In personal relationships, do we de- mand
little and give all we can? Do we find special joy in creating and preserving
beautiful things? Do we put our full heart and soul into our labor, finding in
work a sense of fulfillment, and not an odious chore? Are we able to experience
quietude as something that brings us close to the ideals we value in our own hearts?
The devout Bud- dhist loves to walk among the stone lanterns on the grounds of
a temple and unite his thoughts with all the beauty of the world, remembering
loved ones who walked this path long ago. It is not difficult for him to feel
the invisible presences that gather around the sanctuary. Here is a world far
from war and hate and strife and all the legends and fairytales appear very plausi-
ble as the moon makes a path of silver across the temple pond. The Buddhist has
a remarkable capacity to live in a wondrous realm of "dreaming true,"
where all the hopes of the young are still cherished realities. Quietude prepares
the way for the beauties of his simple and powerful faith. Actually, he cannot
be disillusioned, for he has found a region of radiant light, of benevolent beings,
of little miracles sensed even in commonplace occurrences.
