If a newborn baby were able to speak, it would ask,
“Who am I?” or “Where am I?”
But people cannot answer this question until they die.
And so, without receiving any reply, they go on to marry and have children,
And their children will also spend their whole lives mulling over this same question.
This world is a congregation of such parents and children.

By meeting a good teacher, however,
People can rediscover the true significance of such a question
And understand that they ask this question at the risk of their lives.
When they “entrust themselves” to the Buddha,
The Buddha “embraces” them and liberates their minds.
What is given them at this moment is “true faith.”

Let us treasure the sensitivity that allows us to accept instantly the compassion of the Buddha.
And let us always take care to preserve the sensitive working of our minds
So that we may create a place of true encounter
For the formation and enrichment of our personal lives.

Humbly and respectfully
Chimyo Takehara