If you don’t work hard, then your cultivation is like a whetstone—
although one cannot see it getting worn down, it diminishes day by day.

When we cultivate the Way, we cultivate today, cultivate tomorrow, and still keep on cultivating the day after. When we investigate Chan, we also investigate today, investigate tomorrow, and investigate the next day—every day we investigate Chan. Don’t investigate one day or two days and then get tired of it, saying, “When will I ever get enlightened?”

When? There’s no certain time when you’ll get enlightened.

You say, “Then what in the world am I investigating Chan for?”

"No certain time” means it’s not known when. There is no fixed time when you will get enlightened. It depends on how hard you work. If you work hard day and night, then when your skill is perfected you will naturally become enlightened. If you hope to become enlightened before your skill is perfected, then you are like the foolish person I described today who tried to help his sprouts grow.

Look at a tree. It doesn’t become tall in a day. Every day it grows a little bit. You can’t perceive how it gets tall, but day by day it grows taller. That’s why it’s said, “Investigating Chan is like grass growing in the springtime.” It’s like a wilderness area in the spring. It’s like a meadow of grass and trees. “You don’t see it grow.” You can’t see how much it grows each day, but “Every day it grows more.” Day by day it gets bigger.

Investigating Chan is applying effort to develop skill. If you don’t apply effort, if you don’t cultivate, what’s it like? It’s like a whetstone. “Although one cannot detect it being worn down, it decreases in size day by day.” Day by day the whetstone gets smaller, but you can’t perceive how much littler it gets each day.

Not cultivating the Way is also like that. Don’t think that you can become a Buddha very quickly. Right, becoming a Buddha is fast. It happens in a fingersnap. But that’s if you have applied all the effort needed. Then, in an instant, you become a Buddha. But if you don’t apply effort you will not become enlightened—you cannot become a Buddha. It’s like an education. First you study in elementary school, then you study in secondary school, then you study at a university. After you get a degree, you go on for a Master’s and then a Doctorate. It takes more than ten years of hard work to get an education. How much the more does this principle apply to investigating Chan and becoming a Buddha! It’s not something that can be done easily.

You say: “I really regret this. If I had known it was this difficult, I wouldn’t have joined this session.”

Your regret comes too late; you are already a participant. Since you are participating, don’t have regrets; finish what you have started. Sit through the Chan session at least for the experience of it. I’ll tell you: you won’t participate in vain! Participating in one Chan session causes your Bodhi sprouts grow a lot taller. Sitting in two Chan sessions causes your Bodhi sprouts to grow even bigger. They keep growing and growing until they bear the fruit of Bodhi. And so don’t have regrets. You definitely won’t take a loss. As it’s said, “The work will not be done in vain.” For every day you are here applying effort, the wisdom-life of your Dharma body increases tremendously. We don’t even have to talk about participating in a full week of Chan—just coming to take a look plants causes for Bodhi. Planting causes for Bodhi, you plant good roots. Apply effort with diligence and don’t have any regrets.