The following is an unedited excerpt from the chapter “Journeying to Our True Nature” in the book Wisdom of Our Elders: Living in Spirit, Wisdom, Deep Mercy, and Truth (Wipf and Stock, 2024), edited by Karen E. Simms Tolson.
Beginner’s Mind
Whenever I hear the word “leader,” I think of a tall person in front of a large crowd or a person walking ahead of others. Sometimes, I visualize a conductor holding a baton, a person sitting at the head of the table, a judge holding a gavel, or a coach blowing their whistle. Over the years, I’ve learned that leadership in the spiritual world looks very different. A true spiritual leader doesn’t necessarily stand at the front, walk in front of others, or sit at the head of the table. A true spiritual leader keeps a beginner’s mind. They’re never at the top because they know there’s always room for improvement. As a result, they are both a teacher and a student.
I think one of the reasons my faith in Won Buddhism grew deep was because I learned it through stories told by my father. He wouldn’t sit me down with the scriptures but instead would retell stories of his teachers, and I would watch his eyes light up. His stories taught me that true spiritual teachers don’t just talk; they put their words into action. This, then, is the greatest strength of Won Buddhism: we are a community of active Buddhas – not just living Buddhas, but active Buddhas.
At one summer retreat, I met a Won Buddhist temple member who attended one of the temples where Ven. Baek Sangwon worked. “I’ll never forget her,” she said to me. “Why?” I asked. She replied, “Because she lived differently.” “How so?” She then began to share a story. “I lived in the neighborhood and passed by the temple several times. I would always see this old woman working in the garden – a very small woman. I assumed she was a grandmother and a member of the temple because she looked so plain, and her clothes were dirty from gardening. A few months later, I decided to attend one of the Sunday services. I arrived a bit early and sat with the other members. When it was time for the service to start, a small woman wearing a clean, bright white robe walked in with her hair neatly pulled back, and she stepped up to the lectern to speak. You couldn’t imagine my surprise when I realized it was the same woman working in the garden. It was like meeting two totally different people. For some reason, this moment will never leave my memory. She taught me that work and practice are not two.”
As she told me this story, I pictured this senior minister in the garden one day, then in front of the lectern giving a sermon the next. In Won Buddhism, we’re trained to see that work and practice are not two. Buddhadharma is daily life. Daily life is buddhadharma. This is possible through spiritual training. We witness this in our Won Buddhist elders, who show us that Won Buddhism is a living religion.
When you put our teachings into practice, you are never done. Won Buddhism teaches that life is a work in progress and the path is the goal. For us, the world is a living scripture, and every place is a training ground. Authentic spiritual teachers are not people who walk around with halos over their heads or have some distinguishing physical features. They might resemble your grandfather, neighbor, or the old lady hunched over gardening in her front yard. Where does this motive force come from? It comes from a deep and wide spiritual vow that grows as we become one with our teacher. True leaders always have a teacher or mentor. The founder of Won Buddhism, Sotaesan, found his teacher after reading the Diamond Sutra. He wrote, “Sakyamuni Buddha is truly the sage of sages. Hence, I adopted Sakyamuni Buddha as my original guide.”* This passage struck me because Master Sotaesan acknowledged that someone had already become enlightened about what he had awakened to.
As I continued reading the scriptures of our masters, I noticed that every one of our great teachers acknowledges their teachers. You will never hear a true teacher talk about “their” teaching. They will always refer to their masters. True leadership is not about where you stand, who you know, or what you wear, but how you make the teachings come to life – in this way, gardening becomes just as important as leading a Sunday service. True leaders maintain the beginner’s mind by constantly training. They know that practice is not something they’ll one day grow out of; it’s a life-long journey. The journey is never done alone, but in the presence of good mentors, we keep it in our minds and hearts.
To our mentors, we give a deep bow of gratitude – that they were able to express something inexpressible to make it relevant and practical for us today so that we can live happier and more meaningful lives not just for ourselves but to better serve others. My wish is to maintain the beginner’s mind and train passionately, learn continuously, teach compassionately, and live fully.
* “Chapter One Prologue: 2,” The Doctrinal Books of Wŏn Buddhism (Iksan: Wonkwang Publishing Co., 2016), 105.
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