Regardless of whether you are a conservative or liberal,
you would agree that it is hard to find politicians who have a genuine concern for people
With that in mind, you only think about
who can better serve your self-interest and vote for that person. However,
what I suggest is a different perspective. Rather than seeking your self-interest only,
take a Hongik perspective which strives to bring the greatest benefit to all people
With this approach, you are bound to recognize the right candidate and the right political party.
In this regard, we could learn from Bhutan's experiment
Their level of happiness is high because they are always mindful of the public interest.
Basically, politics is public service and thus its job is done only when the customer is satisfied.
The goal of any service is customer satisfaction. For example,
when a repairman comes to your home to fix something,
you evaluate the service on a scale of 'very satisfied' to 'very dissatisfied.'
Then, what would it look like if we were to rate our politics?
Would it be 'very satisfied' or 'average?'
There must be someone who is dissatisfied but afraid that dissidents might take over,
so he puts down 'very satisfied.' On the other hand,
there is probably someone who is slightly satisfied but believes that
"this government must be overthrown," so he puts down, 'very dissatisfied' no matter what.
I am saying that this kind of situation itself is not good. If we continue to live this way,
our national happiness index will keep on falling. No matter whom you vote for,
you are bound to be unhappy. In fact, you become attached to the candidates
because you are unhappy. Because it, you hope, "if I vote for this guy, he could save me."
Despite the fact that you are repeatedly betrayed, you are convinced that,
"I can't vote for the opposite party." So you make the same mistake again and again.
Such mentality implies that you are diffident and displeased.
Unfortunately, there are politicians who take advantage of that,
leaving you caught between a rock and a hard place.
If you were a Bodhisattva, would you enjoy living under such circumstances?
You need to break the box and come out of it. Take a look with a broader perspective.
Why do we practice Zen? We do Zen meditation to break free from duality.
You need to be able to remain undisturbed even when faced with a dualistic life-or-death threat.
Wouldn't you agree that if you possess the spirit of Zen
you should be able to stay nonchalant even when someone points a gun at you?
You have to transcend life and death. Without this perspective,
you cannot resolve any issue of this physical world. Not even a single one.
Your past experience(commonly known as Karma) clouds your judgment completely.
You justify your actions by saying, "I've always done things this way.
Based on my past experience, pro-communists are evil and pro-Japanese are traitors,
and thus should be penalized, etc.etc.." Don't be led by the past karma
even though there's some truth to all your arguments. What's at stake
is whether they can truly be considered pro-communists and pro-Japanese traitors
at this point in time when seen with the eyes of conscience. We need to reflect
whether or not we are being unconsciously led by our karma
when judging others in such a blinded manner. Such an opinion will never be accepted
under the law of the Universe. It is merely your opinion
which the Universe does not agree with. It has nothing to do with the law of cause and effect.
If the law of cause and effect were to obey your command
then good luck would come your way just by asking, "Give me blessing for my hard work,"
even though you've led a messy life. The law of cause and effect doesn't work that way.
The Universe would say, "All your hard work was a waste. You know why?
It's because I cannot give you credit for efforts that clash with conscience."
The Universe is forthright. You may plead,
"But I spent the last ten years preparing for this exam. You have to pass me.
The Universe will respond, "I have never seen you study, not once!"
The Universe takes a firm stand. Your fervent insistence won't convince the Universe.
You need to understand the standard law of the Universe. If our action is in accordance
with the Six Virtues(Six Paramitas), the Universe validates it.
Otherwise, the Universe does not see it as goodness. If you haven't figured this out,
your true learning hasn't started yet. We need to vigilantly
apply the Six Virtues first to ourselves, then to our families, politicians, and the society at large.
Then we can resolve the current issues of our nation. Is your family managed by the Six Virtues?
Try to make assessment of your family. Don't be concerned too much about
the national happiness index, but try to measure your family happiness index.
Are your family members happy? Right now? Isn't it something that you should be responsible for?
Beside the fact that politicians should take care of national issues,
shouldn't we as each citizen take responsibility for our own family individually?
Just think about what you're doing or planning to do that is in accordance
with the Six Virtues in order to improve your family happiness index.
Those who are confident in managing their families would be good at taking care of the citizens
if they were to become politicians later. If someone cannot even manage
his own family by the Six Virtues, he is likely to make trouble outside. Why is that?
It's because he is basically unskillful at applying the Six Virtues in managing his life.
(family happiness index and the Six Virtues) I hope this makes sense to you.
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