Appreciate What You Have And What You Have Appreciates
Sapporo Art Park - Sapporo Hokkaido Japan
When you think about this idea of appreciation of what you have and how what you have appreciates, it sort of seems like common sense. Think about the things you have, what really gives them their greatest value? I think the greatest value arises from your appreciation. Say for instance you have a piece of antique furniture, it’s worth in dollars may be determined by an outside market, but its value to you is based upon what you assign it. If the item is not used, is in the way, is a burden to maintain, or even non-functional, then even if it is worth a lot of money its value to you is minimal.
On the other hand if you have a beat up old dresser that is perhaps vintage early-marriage, it is dinged, stained, perhaps even warped, well if it is holding your clothes nicely and it is all you have then it is a pretty valuable piece of furniture even if you couldn’t get $2 for it in a yard sale.
You see, simply there is a difference between what value or worth others place on your life, your things, and what value they have to you. When you accept the value others give to you and your life, then you are living by the wrong set of values. It is what you value, not what others value that is important, and the more you value what you have the more valuable it becomes.
“He had great difficulty in getting food and clothing. He satisfied himself with what little he had earned.” (Lotus Sutra, Chapter VII)
Have you ever wondered what would have happened if the guy who had the gem in his robe had thrown away or sold his robe? Seriously, if he had discarded his robe we wouldn’t have had the parable of the gem in the robe. We would have a story about some guy who gave away or discarded or abandoned a fortune. Perhaps he did not discard his robe because he had difficulty in getting clothing and the robe was a very valuable thing to him, just for being a robe.
You could say the guy was very ‘lucky’. So are we, besides having the gem in our robe we have a robe. We have not only Buddha within us but we have life itself, the single most valuable treasure.
