the hidden value of being busy

 Master Sheng Yen writes, "the busy make the most of their time" in the fifth of his 108 adages. He further goes on to suggest, "In broadly sowing the fields of merit... why fear any hardship or rebuke?" And while I agree with what Master Sheng Yen says, I begin to think that being busy actually makes me better appreciate not being busy at all! Why is that? Well, I wonder, have you ever had those moments where you became so absorbed in doing something that the sense of self just fell away? I have to admit that this kind of experience does not happen all the time for me, but the point is that moments of busy-ness can put someone in a position that is similar to that of the huatou-- it sort of pushes a person to the point where they have no time to even think about what they have finished or completed.
   This practice of viewing busyness as the emptying of self is interesting to me, because I tend to associate Buddhist views of being busy with 'gathering merit.' Yes, it's correct to say that merit can aid in one's personal practice by purifying the mind somewhat. But there seems to be more to this practice than gaining merit alone. There is a sense that over time, a person loses the feeling that their works really count for very much, focusing instead on how excessive work can really humble the mind and heart, to the point of a diminished self-striving. This is because a person reaches a saturation point, where they are so absorbed in completing the tasks single mindedly in  a 'cue' that they don't even notice themselves as separate beings, at that point. And this is a good insight, because it trains the mind not to look for praise or respond aversely to blame. When there is a lot to be done, there is not much time to dwell on either of these! But as I said previously, doing a lot makes me more thoroughly and deeply appreciate those special moments when there is nothing in particular to do. Soon, these experiences of doing something and having nothing in particular to do, can start to merge together.