In the article “Seeking the True Self,” I wrote that one’s true nature is infinite love that transcends the distinction between self and others, and that this dualistic world of self and others was created by the self to experience one’s true nature.
I have experienced these facts through years of spiritual search. There is no room for argument on this point.
But for those who have not had such an experience, it would be incomprehensible. Many people have explored various ways to know their true nature, but the facts they experience have all suggested the same conclusion as mine.
So now, without a doubt, make it a priority to incorporate a way of life based on these facts into your daily life. If you do so, you will find life more enjoyable.
The Relationship Between Myself and Others:
Our essence is pure, omnipotent consciousness that is not trapped in a physical body but is infinite. This consciousness has created a world of duality, where the ego is active in an attempt to know itself experientially. To be conscious of the body, that is, to be aware of the ego is necessary to live in this world.
However, when ego consciousness becomes excessive and selfish, it results in bad outcomes for others, which in turn causes one to suffer.
In fact, the person in front of you is you. To be precise, everything in the world is you, including yourself. You may not believe it, but this is a fact. You can know it experientially if you do a thorough Zen practice. But for now, please just believe.
Everything in this world is you, including your family, your friends, strangers, the forest, and the ocean. Therefore, the joy you give to others can be felt as your joy. Likewise, the suffering you give to others will later be felt as your suffering. Think about this point carefully. Then you will naturally know how to handle it in your life.
The ideal way to live is to put aside selfishness, love those around you, and help them (Love All, Serve All).
Anxiety and Fear:
It is hard to believe that we are one with others because we are separate. We live in a world of duality to know our true selves experientially.
However, in this world of duality, we often become self-centered, attacking others in self-defense because we are afraid of living in this world being separated.
In reality, there is nothing to fear, because everything is you, but you are drawn to your surroundings and lose sight of your true self. This is the root cause of anxiety and fear.
The Internet is flooded with information. By comparing oneself with such information, anxiety arises. Anxiety about caring for our parents in their old age, anxiety about our children’s learning, anxiety about criticism from others, and so on, come one after another. This happens because you have forgotten your perfection. You were perfect, to begin with, and you are still perfect. Don’t be distracted by comparisons; look at yourself and be confident. Realize that you are perfect. Realize that you have a strong sense of the true self. Then act according to your best judgment.
Anxiety and fear attract similar energies (objects) and create a material field. The disease is an example of this material formation.
Thoughts rooted in the opposite, love, create another field. If we think of ourselves as we would like to be and consciously try to think, speak, and act accordingly every day, things will naturally turn around. Do not pay attention to what is undesirable for you. It makes the object real.
When you feel small and insignificant, your inferiority complex creates criticism, hatred, jealousy, and fear. This is not true. The fact is that you are perfect, the incarnation of infinite love. You just need to love everyone with all your heart and act with gratitude.
It would be most desirable to become aware of your true self through spiritual pursuits such as Zen, but we cannot wait that long. For now, please take my word for it.
When you see people who have lost sight of themselves, do not criticize and avoid them, but think deeply about why they are behaving the way they are. They are probably victims of their upbringing and environment. Put yourself in their shoes and help them. Criminals are victims who have lost sight of their true selves and are driven by fear and suffering in their lives. Without fear, they would not have committed the crime.
From a bigger perspective, we can also see every event as an opportunity for us to awaken and act on our true selves.
When you encounter difficulties:
Believe it or not, this life is the manifestation of the world that was planned before you were born in order for you to experience your true self. In this world, thoughts, words, and actions of your own free will create your life as a result.
Whether it is living a hard life as a refugee in war, becoming very successful in business, or being a party to a war, all of these things were chosen by the individual soul in order to experience the essence of the self to grow. This fact is a conclusion reached through rigorous examination of near-death experiencers and regression hypnosis subjects at many prestigious universities and hospitals in the United States. I have no such experience, but I am convinced that it is true through my Zen experience.
When you encounter these mishaps and difficulties, ask yourself, “What would I want to experience now? How would love (God) respond?” Every event is an opportunity for you to determine who you are and become who you really are.
This phenomenal world is like a play that is performed according to one’s own script. All the actors, including yourself, do our best to act in order to move the play forward. Playing the enemy or playing the friend, each person does what he or she has to do. There is no room for ego. There is no comparison, no good or bad, no noble or lowly. Everyone is perfect.
Again, the current difficult situation is one of the tasks that you have planned for yourself in the world of the soul (the world before birth). It is for you(soul) to grow by clearing this challenge. Therefore, you should not run away from this situation but accept it head-on and overcome the difficulty. You(soul) grow by experiencing the various emotions that arise in the process.
If you try to avoid a difficult situation by committing suicide, when you look back on yourself in the world of the soul, you realize that you have not fulfilled your purpose. And then, you will choose to be born again with a similar challenge. There is no such thing as the end.
Whether you look forward or backward, the ordeal will come when it comes. They happen as they are meant to happen, according to plan or fate. You grow by taking these opportunities as learning opportunities and doing your best.
Baggage of Life:
There are people who always push themselves to be superior to others in terms of home, car, education, property, status, people’s evaluation, honor, etc. This causes conflicts with those around them, friction and jealousy with those around them, and unnecessarily wastes their wealth. It is like carrying a lot of baggage on your back. It is always better to have light baggage for a long life, but we don’t realize it when we are involved in the situation.
The current situation is that you have been given everything you need according to what you planned before you were born. The situation is perfect, and it was meant to be. However, we don’t realize it because we have lost sight of our true selves and are confused. If we force ourselves to be superior to others, we may succeed temporarily, but we will have taken a detour for our own growth. And from the standpoint of the inherently indifferent between self and others, it is a meaningless act. In all aspects of life, it is better to minimize the ego and act according to the situation. Because everything is self.
The Weak:
The weak are also those souls who have chosen to be weak before they were born, and they are in this life.
By choosing this life of trials and difficulties, they have emerged in this life to practice and grow in the characteristics (love) of their true self. In this sense, it is a soul that was born with a high, challenging goal.
We who are around them are also experiencing our original characteristics by seeing, feeling, and responding to them. This is a precious opportunity for us. We must support them with love so that they do not waste it. In this way, everything in the world is organically connected, and we are doing what we need to do for each other.
Parent-Child Relationship:
Your children came into this world to experience the essence of self, just as you did. Therefore, your job is to teach them to be independent and to live completely without you as soon as possible.
Otherwise, they will begin to believe that they cannot live without being attached to you. This is contrary to the purpose for which they were born and prevents them from experiencing themselves freely. With your love, push your loved ones out into the world. And allow them to fully experience themselves. That is true love.
When in doubt, calmly consider whether your help and results will help them grow and become more capable.
Live with Gratitude
At this moment, everything is perfect. The results of our thoughts and actions are faithfully reflected. There is no bias at all. You are perfect and have everything you need. Feel it, appreciate it, and live joyfully.
Do not always want to have something better than others. Realize that you are perfect and have everything you need. Otherwise, you will always live in a state of starvation. This is what happens when you forget who you really are and are driven by your desires!
It may not feel true now. But by the end of this life, you will know it clearly. So believe it and live in love with gratitude in this moment. If you do so, you will naturally live a joyful life. Happiness and unhappiness are also your thoughts projected onto the universe without colorless bias.
Conclusion
The happy, sad, easy, and painful things you experience in the phenomenal world are happening for your own sake. There, you can act without criticism or fear, believing in your heart that you are safe, loved, and accepted unconditionally. In fact, you are the incarnation of the Great Consciousness, the Great Love. Give up your ego, face present, and do what you have to do. When you are facing difficulties, do not lose faith in yourself, do not try to suppress your feelings of anxiety, sadness, or fear, and do not deal with them until they pass. And I want you to know that everything about you, such as ego, intellect, body, and spirit, is wonderful. Suffering is caused by forgetting this fact, losing confidence, and being driven by feelings of inferiority.
You are a beautiful product of the universe’s creation, and so are the people around you. They are perfect, and you are perfect. Nothing is unworthy of love.