Just Shine

"The sun just shines, not for any reason...It just shines. It's "just shining" is the greatness of the sun."

-- Kodo Sawaki Roshi

The sun doesn't pick and choose who it's going to shine upon. It doesn't say to itself, "Hey she looks pretty nice, I think I'll shine on her, but that guy over there is one mean SOB, so no sun for him!" It doesn't choose to burn one person ass and tan another's. The sun is impersonal, in the best sense of the term. It shines without partiality or prejudice.

Furthermore, the sun doesn't have, or need, a reason to shine. The sun doesn't shine in order to help the flowers grow. It doesn't give rat's hiney about tourism in Florida, and it's not in some sort of Battle of the Elements with the rain.

As Sawaki Roshi reminds us, the sun just shines. It's true impartiality, it's total unreasonableness are human descriptors. The sun doesn't care what you say about it. Neither sticks, nor stones, nor words can hurt it, or help it, or change the way it shines.

What better role model for us than the sun? None. Like the sun, the only reason we're here is to shine -- unreasonably, impartially, impersonally -- on all. The difference is that the way in which each of us shines is unique. The way in which the light moves through you is different than the way it refracts through me. We each shine with a somewhat different tint, a slightly different glow.

How cool is that? Way cool! Billions of little suns shining everywhere on everyone -- universal energy abounds!

And, so, that's all you need to do today -- just shine. Shine in your own beautiful idiosyncratic way. Just make sure you shine on all, and withhold from none. Or, at least, move in that direction -- towards the perfect impersonality of love.

One practice, one activity, one calling -- each and every day -- shine on!