You already are it

By Zen Master Bon Soeng 

We talk about the Buddhist teaching, but the talk is to help us actualize the teaching, the practice, and our own true nature in the very moment of our lives. In many ways, this is a pretty radical teaching because everybody can do it. It's not like you have to attain some special knowledge, or some special state of being and then you can do it in your life. You can show up and your Buddha nature can be manifested. Buddha nature can be expressed in this very moment of our lives.

But much of Buddhist teaching makes you feel like it's something you accrue over time. You understand it and do a lot of studying. Our teaching says you have it. You already are it. Just live. Just be. Just express. It's so easy to distance ourselves from the moment and in our practice there's no escape. Everything counts right now. Not tomorrow, not someday when I finally become something. Right now!