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 a series of 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 on 16 July 2024 in Singapore—Ven. Pomnyun Sunim’s first in-person teaching in Singapore since the pandemic.
Relieving the anguish of young people
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim had previously planned to give an in-person talk in Singapore in 2020, but this was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many people had been eagerly awaiting Sunim’s lecture, which was finally happening after four years.
The 400-seat lecture hall was filled to capacity. First, the audience watched a video showing Sunim’s recent activities, including his visit to Bhutan and emergency relief efforts for flood victims in the Assam region of India. Then Ven. Pomnyun Sunim took the stage amid loud applause.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: How have you been? I was planning to give a lecture in 2020, but due to COVID-19, it was postponed, and now I’m meeting you after four years. I’m visiting various Asian countries: I’ve been to China, Japan, southern Vietnam, Thailand, Bhutan, India, Bangladesh, and now I’m here in Singapore. Next, I plan to visit Thailand and northern Vietnam again.
Religion has two inherent characteristics. One is to threaten, saying, “You’ll go to hell if you do that,” and the other is to tempt, saying, “You can go to heaven if you do this.” In modern diplomatic terms, this is called the carrot-and-stick approach. US policy toward North Korea has often been a repeating cycle of carrots and sticks. It’s like saying, “If you do this, we’ll help develop your economy,” or “If you don’t listen to me, I’ll wipe you off the map.” We do the same when teaching children. We say things like, “I’ll give you pocket money if you run an errand,” or “You’ll get nothing if you don’t listen.” Temptation is based on mysticism, while threats are based on fear. Therefore, religion can be seen as existing on a foundation of mysticism and fear, like, “You’ll go to hell if you do wrong.” That’s why young people today don’t readily accept religion. This isn’t unique to Buddhism; it’s the same for Christianity and Islam. In Islamic regions, this phenomenon seems less pronounced because traditional culture is still strong, but if you look deeper you can see that even there young people may formally have a religion, but their faith is almost gone.
Many religious leaders ask, “How can we make young people turn to religion?” But I think the question itself is wrong. Religious people might want more believers to come, but why should young people come to temples or churches? The products we used to sell, saying “If you do this, you’ll go to heaven,” or, “If you do that, you’ll go to hell,” sold well to older generations, but young people today reject such products.
We need to change our perspective and ask this question instead: how can we help solve the anguish that young people have?
If we can help solve their worries, wouldn’t they come even if we don’t ask them to? If we miss this perspective, we’ll inevitably face an era without religion. In Europe, religion already only plays a role as traditional culture and hardly serves the role of solving human anguish—or in Christian terms, the role of the gospel. Our country is also rapidly changing in that direction. Recent statistics show that less than 50 per cent of the population over 18 has a religion, and among those aged between 18 and 29, only about 30 per cent have a religion. We’re gradually moving toward an era where religion is unnecessary.
The reason I’m mentioning this is because I hope that our conversation today can go beyond religion and be a comfortable dialogue between humans about how to live happier lives with less suffering. Since I have a shaved head and wear monk’s robes, those of you who are Christians might feel a slight barrier in our conversation. But I hope we can overcome such barriers and have an open dialogue on any topic without restrictions. So please feel free to speak about anything you want to discuss.
Won’t we fall behind if we let go of attachment?
Q: Working hard to achieve good results, and feeling anxious about not meeting expectations, serve as strong motivation to focus on work and achieve satisfactory results. However, Buddhism teaches us to let go of attachment to success. Even if it makes us feel free and happy immediately, it seems difficult to achieve good results. Rather, if we fall behind in competition and suffer disadvantages as a result, won’t we ultimately become unhappy? What do you think about this?
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: You can work hard to achieve the goals you’ve set, as you think. But there’s a contradiction in your question. For example, let’s say there’s a hot object here. It’s red and looks nice, so you want to have it and grab it with your hand. It’s hot, so the moment you grab it, your hand will start burning. What would you do then?
Q: I should put it down quickly.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: The question you’re asking me now is like asking, “If I put this down, won’t I lose this beautiful object?” In other words, you’re asking me, “This is too hot, what should I do?” And I would answer, “Put it down.” Then you ask, “How do I put it down?”
But you don’t need to ask how to put it down. If you know it’s hot, you’ll naturally put it down. So why are you still holding it although you know it’s hot? It’s because your desire to have it is that strong. If you keep holding onto something hot because you want to have it, you’ll burn your hand. If you don’t want to burn your hand, you need to let go of the desire to have it. These are our only two options. But we think there’s a separate method to letting go. It’s not that we can’t let go because we don’t know how. There’s no special method. If you know it’s hot, you’ll naturally let go. If you still want to have it, then you’ll have to burn your hand.
Let’s say you’re in a tight spot and think you need to borrow some money. There’s no right answer as to whether it’s wiser to borrow or not borrow. If you want to borrow, borrow. If you don’t want to, don’t. The important thing here is that if you borrow money, you need to pay it back with interest. If you grab something because you want it, you have to face the consequence of burning your hand. Most of us feel good when we borrow and use the money, but when it’s time to pay it back with interest, we struggle and feel regret. You might make mistakes once or twice due to inexperience. The cost or effort spent at such times can be considered a learning fee. It’s not so much a mistake as a cost paid for practice. But if you pay back a debt once and think it’s not something a person should do, what should you do? Next time, even if you’re in a tight spot, you shouldn’t borrow money.
After experiencing this once or twice, you need to decide what you’ll do next. The reason we hesitate to make choices is not because there’s good or bad in the choice, but because we don’t want to take responsibility for the results. The reason you hesitate to borrow money, although you want to, is because you don’t want to pay it back with interest.
There are historical examples where human nature’s pursuit of comfort leads to letting go of attachment to success, which in turn leads to a lack of economic growth, falling behind in competition between nations, becoming obsolete, and citizens falling into chaos. How should we view cases where pursuing comfort by letting go of attachment to success leads to being attacked by countries that strive for success?
Yes, if you think that way, then you can be attached. No one else will take responsibility for your actions. You should live your life taking responsibility for yourself.
If you think the economy needs to keep running by consuming a lot, then you can do that. Instead, you’ll have to accept the risks that come with the resulting climate crisis. But if you experience the climate crisis and think humanity shouldn’t continue this way, then you need to find alternatives. It’s already been revealed that the cause of the climate crisis is rising temperatures, and the cause of rising temperatures is excessive energy use. So the way to prevent the climate crisis is for all of us to reduce consumption.
If you’re worried that reducing consumption will stop the economy from running, then you can continue consuming as you do now. If you think you’ll fall behind if you don’t earn money relentlessly, then you can work hard to earn money. It’s our choice whether we want to reduce consumption now to live more safely, or consume a lot and end up living in a garbage dump wearing fire-resistant suits and oxygen masks. It’s not a matter of which one is right or wrong.
Q: Thank you. I understand now.
I feel good when I drink but regret it the next day
Q: I work in real estate in Singapore. I often drink in the evening due to work stress. I drink not only when I’m stressed but also when I’m in a good mood. How can I control my frequent drinking?
I try to live with a mindset of “being happy here and now.” When I go out drinking and talk with people for three or four hours, I feel very happy at that moment. However, when I think about my wife and children, I realize I should stop or reduce drinking for my health.
Rationally, I know I shouldn’t drink, but I also need the instinctive happiness I feel in those situations. How can I find a balance?
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: How do you want to control it? Do you want to stop drinking altogether or drink less?”
Q: I’d like to control it by having only two drinks or ending after the first round. But it’s difficult to do that in drinking situations. When people around me get excited, I get carried along, and sometimes I even lead the atmosphere. The next day, I regret and reflect on why I did that, but it’s difficult to change.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: Just live according to your instincts! (Laughter)
If you continue drinking according to your instincts, one day you’ll suddenly fall ill, go to the hospital, and be diagnosed with cirrhosis. Only then will you quit drinking. Or one day your wife, after trying to stop you repeatedly, will pack her bags and leave. That’s when you’ll quit. You already know it’s better to drink less or not at all. But you can’t change yourself, and my words won’t change you either. This is because the habit has already formed, making it difficult for you to control yourself.
If you really want to quit drinking, you need to set a principle of not drinking in any situation. There should be no excuses. If you set a rule like “I’ll only have two drinks,” the chances of you keeping it are very low. This is because in a drinking situation, it’s hard to get up and go home after just two drinks. You’ll likely end up saying, “Let’s have just three drinks today,” or, “Let’s go for a second round just today,” or, “I’ll start following the rule from tomorrow.”
The reason I suggested living according to your instincts is because if you can’t quit anyway, it’s better not to create unnecessary anguish. It’s better to drink without the added stress. Rather than making a promise you can’t keep and tormenting yourself with worry, it’s better to at least have peace of mind.
How old are you this year?
Q: I’m 46 years old.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: In about 20 years, your problem will solve itself without any special effort! Either you’ll die before then, or you’ll develop an illness, or your health will deteriorate to the point where you can’t drink anymore. One way or another, it will be resolved!
My friends in the countryside say that once they hit 70, their bodies can’t keep up so they can’t drink or smoke anymore. This didn’t happen because I enlightened them, but because their bodies naturally couldn’t handle it anymore. Even heavy drinkers quit on their own when their bodies can’t keep up. For people who worry like you, I usually tell them to drink as much as they want and die early.
The questioner’s wife was sitting beside to him. Ven. Pomnyun Sunim turned his next question to her.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: How about you? Would you prefer that your husband die early or not?
Q2: I still need my husband, so he can’t die now.
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim: The perspective you should have is, “If my husband is going to drink anyway, it’s better if he drinks a lot and dies quickly. Then I can remarry before I get too old.” That’s a good way to think about it. If you divorce while your husband is still alive and marry another man, your children might object, and others might see it as a problem. But if your husband keeps drinking and dies, your children will say, “Mom, you must have had such a hard time. From now on, find a man who doesn’t drink and live well.” Even if you remarry, people won’t raise any issues.
So from now on, try to set up a drinking table at home. When you see your husband’s condition, leave him alone on days that he’s drunk a lot, but on days he drinks less, encourage him to drink more to hasten his death. That’s how your husband will come to his senses. Otherwise, he won’t! (Laughter)
As the audience burst into laughter, the questioner responded loudly.
Q: Thank you for your words. I’ve come to my senses!
Applause erupted in support of the questioner. After the talk, Ven. Pomnyun Sunim came down from the stage for a book signing. Many people lined up to get Sunim’s signature.
Participants expressed their gratitude to Sunim one by one. Sunim received their greetings with a bright smile. After the book signing, he took a commemorative photo with the volunteers who organized the lecture.
* Buddhist Monk Ven. Pomnyun Sunim Awarded the 37th Niwano Peace Prize (BDG)
See more
Pomnyun
Jungto Society
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