Between The Ideal And Reality

If I had compromised because of the difficulty of the situation, I wouldn\u2019t have been able to take the path I wanted to follow. Even when we are sure of our dream for the future, we sometimes feel doubtful and ask ourselves, \u201cAm I on the right path?\u201d At times like these, we need to work hard while thinking about how things will be in ten years and investigate ways to face the challenges each day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simply waiting will not bring a good future. We make our future dream a reality by always investigating and overcoming difficulties.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Between The Ideal And Reality","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","post_password":"","post_name":"between-the-ideal-and-reality","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2024-07-03 17:38:32","post_modified_gmt":"2024-07-03 22:38:32","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.jungtosociety.org\/?p=19729","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"jnews_block_37"};

I was penniless at the time, so how was I able to keep the Dharma center open? On the days I didn\u2019t give lectures, I worked part time as a Math instructor at an academy to cover the expenses of running the center. I continued doing this for four years and only stopped when the Dharma center finally became financially independent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the lecture program ended, the person who had attended the lectures brought several acquaintances to the Dharma center. Also, after I again handed out additional leaflets, ten more people came, five of which stayed. I gave the three-month lecture to those people. That\u2019s how the Dharma center slowly grew to become what it is now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, after preparing a three-month Buddhist lecture program, I invited a famous monk to the opening ceremony. Five people came that day, but after the first lecture, only one person remained. As it was a three-month education program, most people would have cancelled the program. However, I gave the lecture to the one remaining person for the whole three months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, I handed out leaflets that read, \u201cI have opened a Dharma center. Please, come to study Buddha\u2019s teachings. About 10 people came after reading the leaflets. After looking around the tiny center with disappointment, they never came back. However, I kept handing out the leaflets without giving up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had no choice but to leave the temple and open a small Dharma center and started to spread the Buddha\u2019s teaching. Did many people recognize my good intentions from the beginning and come to the center? No, they didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thirty years ago, I opened a Dharma center with the aspiration to break away from the common practice of seeking good fortune and instead aimed to study Buddha\u2019s original teachings and attain enlightenment. Before opening the center, I tried to follow this aspiration in a Korean Buddhist Temple which led to a lot of conflict. This is because at the temple it was customary to pray for blessings and perform ancestral rites, but I refused to participate. Many people complained about me to the abbot of the temple, saying, \u201cIf he continues to do that, we will lose all our lay Buddhists. \u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ignoring reality while searching for your dream and pursuing future happiness is like building a castle in the air. However, just focusing on making a living in the present will leave you without hope in the future. Therefore, people always agonize over whether to pursue their ideals or focus on their present circumstances. However, the relationship between the ideals and the present does not need to be a conflicting one. Your feet should be firmly planted in reality while your eyes look toward the ideals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s say this person becomes a monk. Wouldn\u2019t he still have the opportunity to design? He could become interested in the design of monks\u2019 robes, garden landscaping, or creative modernization of temple designs that preserve the traditional beauty of the structures. It\u2019s not really important what specific kind of work you do or what kind of design you do. Working on the things that come your way, you will be able to find your aptitude and employt your talent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, you shouldn\u2019t despair about not being able to do what you want to do. Let\u2019s say you want to study design but your current situation doesn\u2019t allow it. Then, you can try to incorporate design into your work instead of agonizing over not being able to study it further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One can become free by not insisting, \u201cThis is the only way for me.\u201d Most people cannot attain such freedom, so they try to focus on at least one thing and try to do it well. Therefore, you don\u2019t have to worry about not wanting to do anything or liking anything in particular right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, you don\u2019t need to torment yourself with questions like, \u201cWhy don\u2019t I have a passion for anything?\u201d or \u201cWhy don\u2019t I have something that I would like to devote my life to?\u201d There are people who have passion and there are those who don\u2019t. Maybe it is better not to have a passion for any particular work. This is because if you can do whatever that is given to you, you will be more free. Cooking when cooking needs to be done, doing laundry when laundry needs to be done, giving a lecture when a lecture needs to be given, and doing farm work when farm work needs to be done is how people on the highest level of enlightenment live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I often tell young people who are looking for jobs, \u201cDo what you really want to do. Do what makes your heart beat faster.\u201d They need to think carefully about the true meaning of these words. Young people should search for jobs that suit them rather than trying to become doctors, lawyers, or government officials in pursuit of money, position, or security. Also, if there are jobs that they think they will be good at and really want to get, they should pursue them even if they don\u2019t get paid much initially, and they should not weigh whether they are so-called good jobs or not. Occupations that most people say are good are not necessarily good for everyone, so one should not blindly follow the path that the majority of people recommend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n