Be the Fine Horse Among the Herd of Inferior Horses

In a quiet forest, there lived two monks practicing together. One was diligent, the other lazy. The diligent monk always devoted his time to sitting in meditation and entering deep concentration. The other made excuses about the cold weather, burning wood to keep warm, and inviting his companion to chat idly. When the Buddha came to visit, the lazy monk hurriedly interrupted to boast of his own diligence, but the Buddha knew everything. With a stern face, the Buddha rebuked him and pointed to the hardworking monk: "This one is truly my child." Then the Buddha taught this verse:

"Diligent among the careless, wakeful among the deluded. The wise one, like a fine horse, leaves the inferior horse far behind."

This short verse opens up a profound definition of wisdom. Venerable Thích Chân Quang teaches that a wise person is not someone who speaks well or argues skillfully, but someone who knows how to be diligent and wakeful in a world full of laziness and error.

A Short Verse, A Great Meaning

The Buddha used the image of a fine horse — a beautiful, strong animal that runs fast and endures long — as a metaphor for the wise person. The wise person does not stop, does not waste, just as the fine horse leaves the inferior horse far behind. Venerable Chân Quang emphasizes:

"Whoever has wisdom must always be diligent and wakeful."

The first two lines of the verse express the way of life of the wise: amid a crowd of the careless, they remain diligent; amid a world of delusion, they remain wakeful. This is precisely what the Buddha means by wisdom.

Wisdom Is Not Being a Good Talker

We often mistake wisdom for the ability to debate, for eloquent words. But the Buddha defines it quite differently. Venerable Chân Quang explains:

"The way to evaluate a person's wisdom is to look at whether their time is fully used, or whether they have nothing to do. Having time and not knowing what to do with it means one is not wise. That is a lazy person without wisdom. Not knowing how to use one's time is a lack of wisdom."

Those new to the path often love to talk, to share about what the Buddha taught. That is not wrong, but do not mistake it for wisdom. True wisdom is the way you live, the way you use every hour and every minute of your life.

Wakeful Amid Delusion

Venerable Chân Quang distinguishes "wakefulness" from "awakening." Awakening is a state of meditative concentration, while wakefulness is an attitude of alertness in daily life. Wakefulness has two meanings: not making mistakes and not indulging in pleasure.

For example, when someone invites us to skip listening to the dharma talk and go drinking instead, if we waver, we have lost our wakefulness. Conversely, suppose someone entrusts us with one hundred taels of gold and then disappears without a trace. If the thought of taking it for ourselves arises, we have made a mistake. A wakeful person would think of preserving the wealth intact for that person's descendants, or using all of that gold to create merit and dedicate it to them. It is precisely in such difficult moments, when we hold firm to the truth and do not let greed, hatred and delusion govern us, that wakefulness is revealed.

The Wise Always See Work to Be Done

A day has twenty-four hours. If you find the day long and empty with nothing to do, you need to examine yourself. The wise are never without work. They know how to fill their time with doing good deeds, learning, and practicing. Before knowing the path, life seemed to consist only of going to work and coming home. But once we understand the path, we see countless things to do: bowing to the Buddha, sitting in meditation, chanting sutras, visiting the sick, sharing the teachings, learning a new language, and more. None of these is ever a wasted effort.

There is a story about a monk who looked very unkempt. When people urged him to bathe, he only smiled and said, "I have no idle time." People thought he was lazy, but in truth he kept his mind in mindfulness without a single moment of carelessness. Whether walking, standing, lying down, or sitting, he remained wakeful. The virtue of the diligent is to never let time pass meaninglessly. Venerable Chân Quang teaches:

"When we use our time without wasting a single moment, we begin to be children of the Buddha, the fine horses that the Buddha praises."

Of course, we must distinguish between "unemployment" and "laziness." Unemployment means no one has hired you, or no one buys what you make — that is a matter of conditions (dependent origination) and blessings from merit. Laziness means not knowing what to do — that is a matter of wisdom. Even when unemployed, the wise still find ways to do good deeds and cultivate knowledge, in order to transform their karma and become worthy of being valued.

Be the Fine Horse

Today, ask yourself: how am I using my time? Am I devoting time to meditative concentration? If not, begin today. From now until a month from now, review yourself so that no moment is wasted. Life always has its stressful moments, so whenever you have free time, take the opportunity to sit in meditation, relax body and mind, and follow the breath. When the mind grows calm, we will see clearly our past mistakes and our insight will grow.

May each of us become the fine horse, leaving the herd of inferior horses far behind, diligent and wakeful on the path to enlightenment.