簡単そうに楽しそうに
Perform with ease and enjoyment
2024-11-10 17:00:00
In any field, masters and experts seem to perform with ease and enjoyment.
The reason they can do this is, of course, because they are masters and experts.
The same applies to walking the Buddhist path; an excellent practitioner appears to practice with ease and joy.
The reason they can walk this path in such a way ultimately comes down to the fact that they have diligently accumulated merits and possess a strong desire to seek the truth.
However, it is certain that these abilities do not come from their natural qualities or talents.
What is important for achieving these things is not talent but rather whether one has a sincere desire to be truly happy.
Incidentally, no matter how delicious a meal may be, it is normal to grow tired of it if eaten every day.
However, the true reason behind this is that the dish in question is not truly delicious in the genuine sense.
This is because only food that one can consume daily without growing tired of is truly delicious.
For example, staple foods fall into this category.
For Japanese people, this would be "rice."
Alternatively, if it is a drink, it would not be juice but "water."
In short, the underlying reason why one does not grow tired of something is that it can be completely forgotten after being enjoyed.
This is why one can consume it daily without getting bored.
Similarly, an excellent practitioner does not dwell on past practices or their merits and faults but engages in practice with a fresh mindset every day.
For this reason, they appear to perform their daily practice with ease and enjoyment.
This mindset is connected to the concept of "detachment" (捨), and indeed, excellent practitioners will reach "detachment" as they progress in their practice.
At that point, they gain a meaningful sense of what it means to be a Buddha.
When they encounter a wise mentor who is an incarnation of the Buddha (a momentary manifestation of a Buddha), they create the conditions for enlightenment and ultimately attain Buddhahood.
In this sense, it is recommended that Buddhist practitioners do not think of practice as difficult but approach it with joy and simplicity.
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