It has been written that one day Shakyamuni’s servant took him into the area surrounding the palace, something he had never done prior to this point in his upbringing. We know that what he saw during this excursion deeply affected him. That he in turn left the palace in the pursuit of truth. Because of the level of sincerity he had in what we would call today his practice, and because of his vow to not give up; the Buddha’s enlightenment was quite inevitable. This is true for all of us as well. If we have this level of dedication and sincerity in our practice, enlightenment will be inevitable. What do we want from our practice? Enlightenment? Enlightenment for who? The Buddha was not out for his own enlightenment. The Buddha simply wanted to understand how he could help others, and how he could be of service for mankind. Naturally when people start out in Zen or any form of Buddhism, it is normally a response to their own suffering. They come to find out how to find answers to overcoming their own personal suffering. But what is important to point out here, is that the founder of all of our Buddhist traditions-did not leave the palace on account of his own suffering. That is why his practice was so genuine. And this is why enlightenment did indeed follow. Because the Buddha practiced in a way that was for all beings. Not just for Shakyamuni. Being born into this world, you are bound to suffer. It is not at all avoidable. the first noble truth explains that: life is suffering; unsatisfactory. This is not special. That is not a “tough pill” to swallow, it is quite evident. But there is a path that leads us to freedom from suffering. The very path the Buddha himself embarked upon. The key to this path is the helping of others. If you do not attain that through practice, you will never be enlightened. It is the prerequisite to becoming enlightened. But we spoke before about the instinct of a human being that becomes lost in greed, through the pursuit of self serving actions-which is happening on a worldwide scale. So enlightenment is and always has been-deep within ourselves. But like that gold bar buried deep in our backyards-it takes a bit of digging to unearth it. But be very careful! Don’t let thinking take over and say, “Ah yes, I now understand enlightenment.” Like we said earlier, enlightenment is not at all actual enlightenment. Enlightenment is beyond all words and concepts. Enlightenment is in every action. It is the action, the thinking-not the content! So many practitioners are looking for something. They want to get, or attain, some “thing” in practice. If they experience something they enjoy, i.e. attainment of peace, relaxation, tranquility; they can become very attached to such states. If something happens that they don’t like- a disturbance, pain, suffering-then they attempt to block it out. But true peace, relaxation, and tranquility is derived in a storm or a crystal lake. freedom means that there are no disturbances. That there is no obstacle-everything, just as it is and appears, is already complete-and at rest. This makes our practice practical. What use is there in wishing things were different? That they were not the way they are? That just causes a lot more suffering. Zen means accepting everything precisely as it comes to you. And, if your mind is clear, you will always know how to act. There will be no obstacles.