If in our daily life we
can smile, if we can be peaceful and
happy, not only we, but everyone will profit
from it. This is the most basic kind
of peace work.
If in our daily life we
can smile, if we can be peaceful and
happy, not only we, but everyone will profit
from it. This is the most basic kind
of peace work.
The unenlightened person
does not understand his own true nature,
does not realize the Pure Land in his own body,
and thus petitions all over. The enlightened person
never differs no matter where he is. For this reason
the Buddha says, “Wherever I may be I am always
in comfort and bliss…If only your mind is pure,
your own nature is itself the Pure
Land of the West.”
Being in tremendous turmoil,
the unoriented do not know that their own
mind is Buddha. They search about, outside of themselves,
spending the whole day contemplating the Buddha and paying
homage. But where is the Buddha? Do not entertain any
such false views. Awaken to your own mind:
outside the mind there can
be no Buddha.
Just as
the world can reveal itself
as particles, the Tao can reveal itself
as human beings. Though world and particles
aren’t the same, neither are they different.
Though the cosmic body and your
body aren’t the same, neither
are they different.
Worlds and particles,
bodies and beings, time and space:
all are transient expressions of the Tao.
Unseeable, ungraspable, the Tao is beyond
any attempt to analyze or categorize it.
At the same time, its truth is
everywhere you
turn.
If you
can let go of it
with your mind and
surround it with your
heart, it will live
inside you
forever.
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24th Poet Laureate of the United States
True joy is
experienced by those who
are strong within and
gentle without.
The hexagram Tui teaches us how to come into possession of joy. In our search for success and happiness we are prone to think that we must take aggressive actions to achieve them. The instruction of the I Ching is just the opposite: only those who practice innocence, acceptance, and detachment inherit true joy in this world.
We often see around us how forcible effort brings about what appears to be progress. Our egos tempt us to believe that these gains are lasting and valuable, but the truth is otherwise. Whatever is won by the desirous, ambitious, demanding manipulations of the ego will soon be lost. Others can always be temporarily browbeaten into doing things our way, but only hearts won by friendliness and sincere goodwill are true over time.
The I Ching teaches us again and again that joy and success cannot be forced or stolen. They are achieved gradually—but steadily—by those who relate correctly to others and to the Higher Power. To relate correctly means to steadfastly practice innocence, detachment, acceptance, modesty, and gentleness. Life is full of shortcuts, but this is the only route that leads to true joy.
The image of the hexagram is that of two lakes joined together to keep from drying up. It is an encouragement to us to join with like-minded friends now in the discussion and contemplation of higher things. If we engage in an ongoing conversation about proper principles with our friends, our relationship to truth is steady and our ego cannot seduce us into the doubt, fear, and anxiety that lead away from joy.
In your heart, be firm in holding to what is good and honest and correct. In your thoughts and actions, be gentle and accepting. Those who persevere on this path will meet with true joy and lasting success.
from The I Ching, or Book of Changes
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