The Korean Seon (Zen) master Venerable Pomnyun Sunim (법륜스님) wears many hats: Buddhist monk, teacher, author, environmentalist, and social activist, to name a few.* As a widely respected Dharma teacher and a tireless socially engaged activist in his native South Korea, Ven. Pomnyun Sunim has founded numerous Dharma-based organizations, initiatives, and projects that are active across the world. Among them, Jungto Society, a volunteer-based community founded on the Buddhist teachings and expressing equality, simple living, and sustainability, is dedicated to addressing modern social issues that lead to suffering, including environmental degradation, poverty, and conflict.
This column, shared by Jungto Society, presents highlights from Ven. Pomnyun Sunim’s writings, teachings, public talks, and regular live-streamed Dharma Q+A sessions, which are accessible across the globe.
The following teachings were given in person in Vancouver on 15 September 2024.
How can we live happily without suffering?
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim took the stage to a round of applause and gave his opening remarks.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: A Dharma Q&A is not a place to discuss intellectual knowledge. It’s a place where we can comfortably talk about our inner suffering or doubts as if talking with a friend. The Buddha and the people of his time had conversations like we are having today, sitting around comfortably, and the records of those conversations became the sutras.
As later generations began to study these numerous records, Buddhism gradually became more knowledge-based and doctrinal, developing academically. As a result, some parts turned into a kind of philosophy exploring questions like “How was the world created?” or “Is the world eternal?” However, the Buddha remained silent on most of these questions. He didn’t comment on matters that weren’t directly related to the suffering we experience in our daily lives.
Most people seek help from others when they face difficulties in life. As this practice developed, it became a religion. Also, because of the fear of death, people became very interested in what happens after death. The desire to live more comfortably even after death further developed the religion. However, the Buddha mostly remained silent on issues about what happens after death or whether or not God exists. The Buddha’s concern was “Can I live without suffering now?” If I’m suffering now, how can I be free from that suffering?—this is the central issue of Buddhism. So today, I want to have a conversation with you on the topic of “How can we live freely and happily without suffering?” We call this “practice.”
In reality, there are three types of Buddhism: Buddhism as a religion, Buddhism as a philosophy, and Buddhism as a practice. Today, I want to have a conversation with you about Buddhism as a practice—excluding Buddhism as a religion and Buddhism as a philosophy. Buddhism as a practice doesn’t necessarily need to be called Buddhism. So please don’t think of this as a conversation about Buddhism. Instead, let’s have a conversation from the perspective of “How can we be free from suffering?” and “How can we be free from our anguish?”
How can we find meaning when life feels empty?
Q; My question is, how do I take control of my mind? My life is empty and I can’t find the meaning and living feels like I’m lost. So I was really wondering about it. Thank you.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: Fundamentally, life has no meaning and is empty, so it’s not a problem if you feel that life is empty or if you can’t find meaning in life.
What meaning is there in a squirrel living in the mountains climbing up and down trees, jumping here and there? Similarly, there is no inherent meaning in human life. However, humans create meaning for their lives. We assign many meanings to life and live for them. The values to which people assign meaning differ from person to person. That’s why everyone lives a different life.
No one is born with a predetermined meaning or mission in life. Each person assigns their own meaning, and that’s how meaning emerges. For example, if someone is a Christian believer or a Catholic priest, they might say tthat hey have a mission given by God, and this allows them to pursue their life of faith diligently. If they believe they’ve been given meaning by God, they might be able to stay on that path longer. If someone is a Buddhist monk, they might believe they were given a mission from their previous life to do this work in this world, which allows them to steadfastly follow the path of a monk.
My teacher also told me, “You were born to walk the path of a monk.” He said, “Your idea of becoming a scientist is unnecessary. You should live according to the meaning of why you were born into this world.” He gave me the mission of turning the Wheel of Dharma while traveling around the world, and gave me the Dharma name Pomnyun (meaning Dharma Wheel).
So was I really born into this world with the purpose of spreading the Buddha’s teachings from my previous life? If I believe so, I will live that way, and if I don’t believe it, I won’t. Since my teacher gave me that meaning, I thought that if I had to give some meaning to life anyway, that meaning was fine. So I’ve been walking the path of a monk until now.
However, when you think about it carefully, meaning is something you create yourself. If you think there’s no meaning, you can live without it. And if you’re bored, you can create a meaning and live by it. This is different from wandering because life has no meaning. A rabbit doesn’t wander because its life has no meaning. Wandering means that you’re roaming around following your desires. It’s good that you can’t find meaning in life, because if you need to you can now choose one from various meanings. Isn’t it great to have a wide range of choices? Life is originally empty. So it’s not a problem at all.
We teach children to have dreams, right? Because of such education, many children come to me saying, “Sunim, I don’t have a dream.” Whenever this happens, I tell the children: “It’s good to have no dream. People with clear dreams suffer when they can’t achieve them. But you have no dream, so you won’t suffer from not achieving it. There’s no problem at all. Rather, it’s better because you have more choices, so don’t worry.”
When I tell them this, children’s hearts become lighter. Originally, there are no dreams. If you want to have a dream, you can have one.
What do you think?
We are too bound by artificial constructs. People are naturally meant to meet in various ways. They are also meant to part ways. However, because we hold the belief that once we meet someone we shouldn’t part, we become sad when the moment of separation comes. Is parting bad? In today’s wonderful world, isn’t it good to meet various people? When one person leaves, it allows us to meet others. If we push someone away to meet another, we make the other person sad. But when they leave on their own, isn’t that great? So even if we part ways, there’s no problem. You’re creating problems out of something that isn’t problematic and suffering because of it.
Q: Thank you. I understand.
How can I repay you for saving me from suffering?
Q: I am so grateful for your wisdom and all the lectures. Can I give my child a chance to say hi to you?”
When the child said “Hello,” Sunim responded with “Hello” as well. Then, the questioner proceeded to ask Sunim a question.
Q: I have followed since five years ago because you saved my life. I was really in pain because I got divorced when I was pregnant, and I was suffocating in poverty and all the trauma. My life was in chaos but your wisdom saved my life and, of course, my child’s life. So I really want to ask you what you want to do in the future. Is there anything that you are most concerned about, something you hope will not happen? We would like to know what we should uphold, including what our next generations, including my children, can do.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: I’m grateful that I was able to help. The way to repay the help is to assist others who are in difficulty, just as you were. Helping them is the same as helping me. I lack nothing in my life. What I want to do is help people who are struggling, either mentally or materially. If you do such work where you live, it’s the same as doing what I want to do.
However, while I don’t have any specific fears, there are some concerns. First, the risk of war breaking out in South Korea, where I live, is increasing. If war occurs, many people will die and property will be destroyed. Both sides of the Korean Peninsula have deployed tremendous advanced weapons. South Korea has superior conventional weapons, while North Korea even has nuclear weapons. Although North Korea is much weaker by various measures, it has enough strength to cause significant damage to South Korea. Moreover, South Korea has many nuclear power plants, and if they were attacked the radiation risk would be enormous. Korea originally had no resources, but through education, it developed the technology to reach where it is today. If large companies like Hyundai Motor, Samsung Electronics, and LG Electronics are destroyed by war, it would be very difficult for Korea to recover. And because the territory is small, there’s a risk of total destruction. It’s not about winning or losing. War must be avoided.
However, people misunderstand that avoiding war means fearing the opponent. They respond emotionally, thinking “we need to teach them a lesson,” which I believe is foolish. So I’m thinking a lot about how we can calm their emotions and prevent war. This is not just an issue between North and South Korea. It’s part of the global power competition between the United States and China. Conflicts always arise first in the periphery when two great powers clash. As the risk of war is increasing both internally and externally, rather than fearing it, I’m researching how to prevent it.
Secondly, there’s the issue of humanity’s response to the climate crisis. The 1.2 billion people living in OECD countries have caused the climate crisis through reckless development, which they consider the advancement of civilization. Now China and India are following the same path. Both countries have populations of 1.4 billion each. If these two countries develop like Western nations, the current climate crisis will be amplified threefold.
From my travels around the world, I’ve observed that every country and every person is following this path. This is happening despite the visible side effects of climate change, such as lowering river levels, seawater intrusion into rivers, and drying springs. Moreover, beyond these known issues, signs of change are already appearing in many areas. We really need to stop now. It might even be too late.
What we can do is to stop right here. Yet, we’re not stopping; instead, we’re competing even faster. So, the question of how can we stop this and make it sustainable is a major challenge for me. Personally, I think it will be difficult for humanity to stop this trend. We must appeal and strive to stop, but in reality it will be challenging to do so. Therefore, my interest lies more in the question of what happens next? What alternatives can we create? I believe we need to create a model in advance that humanity can follow when an alternative is needed after this crisis passes. Although there might not be much interest now, I plan to create a model that, when faced with a crisis, people can look to and think, “Ah, there’s also this path.”
However, people are living in the present. Not only are future generations important, but those living now are also important. Nearly a billion people on Earth still live in absolute poverty, and we need to help them maintain a minimal standard of living. In the Bible, Jesus said, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
These “least” are described in six ways. First, those who are thirsty, meaning people who lack water. Second, those who are hungry, referring to people in a state of famine. Third, those who are sick but unable to receive treatment. Fourth, those who are naked, meaning people who lack clothing. Fifth, strangers, which refers to refugees. Sixth, those who are in prison. This means people who are bound for various unjust reasons.
Jesus said that whatever we do for these people it is as if we’re doing it for Him. There are still nearly a billion people on this planet who fall into these six categories. If we turn our backs on them, it’s the same as turning our backs on God or Jesus. It’s like ignoring the path to heaven that you want to take.
Therefore, we need to help these people. This is not a task for the future, but something we need to do now. It’s necessary to share a little of the blessings we have. If you have enough water, you should provide some for those who lack it. If you eat well, you should give even a spoonful of rice to those who are hungry. If you’re healthy or can receive sufficient medical treatment, you should donate medicine for those who can’t receive treatment. If you have enough clothes, you should donate some to those who don’t have even one set. If you live in a safe place, you should help those who have become refugees, living in tents and on the streets after leaving their homes. If we live freely, we should make efforts for the freedom of those who are unjustly bound in dictatorships or prisons.
I don’t agree with using such things for political purposes. However, I also don’t think we should turn a blind eye to this. It’s important to be aware that there are people living in such difficult conditions in our time. Rather than feeling guilty for not being able to help these people, it’s more important to take even small actions right now. I’m interested in these kinds of issues. I hope you and your child will grow up to participate, even in a small way, in such efforts.
Q: Thank you.
The lecture concluded with a round of applause. Ven. Pomnyun Sunim came down from the stage and greeted the questioners and attendees, shaking hands with them.
* Buddhist Monk Ven. Pomnyun Sunim Awarded the 37th Niwano Peace Prize (BDG)
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