The Realization of True Wealth

The Realization of True Wealth

by Nichiko Niwano

Knowing what is sufficient and being satisfied with it means exercising control over the impulse to give in to our desires, thereby recognizing what is enough for our needs.

In these confusing and unpredictable times, when the falling birthrate and the rapidly aging population have led to public anxiety over the adequacy of national pensions and the growing income gap between a few and the rest, many of us are now reexamining our lifestyles and asking what really does constitute wealth.

During my dissemination tours last year, many questions related to lifestyle were put to me, reflecting concern about these social issues. On those occasions, I replied that possessing true wealth means "knowing what is sufficient and being satisfied with it."

Knowing what is sufficient and being satisfied with it means exercising control over the impulse to give in to our desires, and thereby recognizing what is enough for our needs. When we know what is sufficient, we realize to what extent we have been engaging in seeking things that we do not really need. Our lifestyles then automatically become simplified, we reduce the amount of waste for which we are responsible, and make better use of things, recognizing their true values. Then, released from the urge to always have more, unswayed by influences in our surroundings, we can lead peaceful, free lifestyles experiencing the wealth that is spiritual richness.

The words of the Japanese thinker Masahiro Yasuoka (1898-1983), "If one knows what is sufficient, then even if one's home is poor, one's heart is happy," teach us the importance of knowing what is sufficient and being satisfied with it.

Just before entering nirvana, Shakyamuni, who was continuing his travels to disseminate his teachings, wrapped himself in a robe said to have been made from the shrouds that had covered the dead in burial places and were then washed in the river and sewn into a garment.

From this we can see the elements of the simple lifestyle of Shakyamuni who, removed from all attachments, could determine what was truly necessary for human life.

Mottainai

The spirit expressed by the Japanese term mottainai (What a waste) made it a key word for the environmental protection movement. The term is a compound of mottai (having an entity) and nai, which negates it. It expresses our awareness of the Buddhist worldview that all things have a worthwhile entity which is constantly changing, change that never stops even for a moment, and that we feel gratitude for being sustained to live in the here and now. In other words, mottainai can be called a term admonishing us for wasting things, not appreciating their true value and not realizing the debt we owe for being caused to live.

A Japanese phrase meaning "Do not treat things in a careless way," if interpreted from a Buddhist viewpoint, reminds us that we should not think that anything will exist forever, since all things are constantly changing.

I hope that we adults can keep these lessons in mind and put them into practice, passing on to younger generations the benefit of a lifestyle that makes good use of things through understanding their true value in our lives.

Nichiko Niwano is president of Rissho Kosei-kai and the Niwano Peace Foundation, a president of the World Conference of Religions for Peace (WCRP), and chairman of Shinshuren (Federation of New Religious Organizations of Japan).

This article was originally published in the July-September 2006 issue of Dharma World.


back	up

Home