Dharma Message from Rev. Fumiaki Usuki

“Souplantation”

Times of luxury do not last long, but pass away very quickly; nothing in this world can be enjoyed forever. Nothing in the world is permanent or lasting; everything is changing and momentary and unpredictable. But people are ignorant and selfish, and are concerned only with the desires and sufferings

Therefore, people should cast away, while they are young and healthy, all their greed and attachment to worldly affairs, and should seek earnestly for true Enlightenment, for there can be no lasting reliance or happiness apart for Enlightenment. …

Teaching of Buddha (pp.196-200)

 

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Coming to West L.A. Buddhist Temple was the best thing that happened to my career…so far. One of the many benefits for my wife and I is that we will not starve here nor be lost to find a good place to eat. We’re still exploring Sawtelle Blvd. and its many superb eateries. We also like a place called Souplantation and there is one in Camarillo, near my mother’s place. It is an all-you-can-eat salad bar complemented by soup, breads, pastas, and desserts.

Have you ever noticed how people act when it’s a buffet? We have all this delicious-looking food spread out in front of us, and suddenly we’re acting like we haven’t eaten in weeks and may not eat again for several more weeks. Have you ever noticed how your sense-organs operate at times like this? I think we get pumped up by the aroma and the presentation. Our eyes grow as big as saucers looking at the many things that are there for the taking. Whatever you want, as much as you want and we hear people saying “Oooh,” “Aaaah!" Our palms may get sweaty when someone else grabs the serving spoon we want… suddenly we’re racing for the next item to pile it on … It’s true that we are driven by senses.

Do you know that some of these buffet restaurants now charge you extra if you don’t eat everything you take? That’s not a bad idea. Here in the United States, we tend to be very wasteful about food. A recent survey said that Americans eat 10 times more food per person than the Chinese. In Japan, a nation of about 130 million people, the amount of food thrown away every day would be enough to feed about 10% of the population, or 13 million people in one day. That’s a lot of food wasted.

Life is also like a smorgasbord and often out of control. Today, we can almost have anything we want and more. With everything we can eat and accumulate we think we’re going to be happy. Perhaps, you added a room addition or upgraded the kitchen. You may have bought new drapes or may have planted rows of new roses.

I’m sure you enjoyed these things and your senses were satisfied after you got them. But, since then, have you noticed that your wants have changed to something else, perhaps to a new car or trip to Hawaii? Are we here to only satisfy our senses because we have so many things to pick from in our smorgasbord? Sometimes we make our choices from what we think we want out of habit, or worse, desperation. As we get older and still can’t find that ultimate comfort in life then we keep buying. So we catch ourselves playing these same games over and over…new toys, but same old thing. Eventually, everything loses its sparkle and we start to wonder what it’s all about. We spend our lives running after that elusive thing called happiness that still escapes us.

Whether it works for you or not, the time is going to come when you may start to wonder if you have really found the kind of peace and contentment that is going to allow you to move on without regret. All the things in our smorgasbord of life are okay to go after but we have to understand that attaining these things is not what gives us the sense of well-being in the long run. Obtaining things like wealth, status, fitness, etc. is not going to make us eternally happy as stated in the opening passage above.

However, we can enjoy all of these things fully if we live in a sense of security and peace of mind taught by the Buddha. It is difficult to change the many habits and attitudes that we already have and it is in our karma to do the things we do and live out our lives. Yet, if we are aware of what we are doing when we make choices in life then we can fully enjoy what we are doing everyday because we will stop being so desperate. On Thanksgiving and New Year Days, please take the time to eat slowly and enjoy just the right amount of everything that you like.

Namo Amida Butsu

Rev. Fumiaki Usuki
West LA Buddhist Temple

 

 

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