12-27-2010, 12:00 AM
Every day is a good day
Unmon said: “I do not ask you about fifteen days ago. But what about fifteen days hence? Come, say a
word about this!” Since none of the monks answered, he answered for them: “Every day is a good day.”
“Every day is a good day” is a simple statement, but very few know its real meaning. The “good day” does
not refer to a nice day as compared to a bad day. It means the absolute, not the relative, day. Today is the
absolute day, the only day in the eternity of time. Today is never repeated. Every day is fresh and new just
as one’s life is new each day. Every day is a good day, but the good is not of one’s own making. It is good
in the original, or absolute, sense—rain or shine, war or peace, sickness or health. The past is only
reference; the future is only hope. Today is real.
Editor’s Note: This is from Rev. Gyomay Kubose’s book "Zen Koans."
Reprinted by permission of the author.
http://www.heartlandsangha.org/good_day.html
Unmon said: “I do not ask you about fifteen days ago. But what about fifteen days hence? Come, say a
word about this!” Since none of the monks answered, he answered for them: “Every day is a good day.”
“Every day is a good day” is a simple statement, but very few know its real meaning. The “good day” does
not refer to a nice day as compared to a bad day. It means the absolute, not the relative, day. Today is the
absolute day, the only day in the eternity of time. Today is never repeated. Every day is fresh and new just
as one’s life is new each day. Every day is a good day, but the good is not of one’s own making. It is good
in the original, or absolute, sense—rain or shine, war or peace, sickness or health. The past is only
reference; the future is only hope. Today is real.
Editor’s Note: This is from Rev. Gyomay Kubose’s book "Zen Koans."
Reprinted by permission of the author.
http://www.heartlandsangha.org/good_day.html