Practice like Your Hair’s on Fire / Gelek Rimpoche / (5)

Consider the Buddha, who had a human life just like ours. There was nothing extraordinary in his life, except that he happened to be an Indian prince. From the point of view of the capability of human life, his opportunity was no different than ours is now. Everyone has the same potential. Not only that, but we are fortunate enough in this life to have access to the teachings and the shared experience of the Buddha. It is a message that has survived in a living tradition. And we also have many other non-Buddhist traditions that teach us the value and potential of our human lives and what we can achieve if we put our minds to it. As well, we have a sangha that is with us on this journey, and we have spiritual teachers who can give us the teachings and also offer their own example. In fact, within this life we have everything we need to achieve freedom and perfection.

  Once we realize the importance of life, we begin to let go of our attachment to wasting time. Things we once viewed with great urgency gradually seem less important. We begin to make choices that help our spiritual development rather than hinder it. We rearrange our priorities, and the push and pull of busyness begins to lose its hold on us. We no longer want to waste time. That is the sign that we have begun to understand the value of our lives.