President Ikeda - freedom

Taken from SGI Quarterly, July 2011, No. 65

Real freedom ultimately hinges on what you decide to dedicate yourself to with all your heart. It doesn't mean simply to amuse oneself. It isn't spending money like water, nor is it having all the free time in the world. It isn't taking long vacations. Doing only as you please is not freedom; it is nothing more than self-indulgence. True freedom lies in the ongoing challenge to develop yourself, to achieve your chosen goal. This path is paved with the glittering goal of freedom . . . .

You can run away, of course. That freedom exists. But it is a very small, petty freedom. It leads only to a life of great hardship, a life in which your are powerless, weak and completely frustrated. Alongside this small freedom, however, exists a much greater freedom. The well-known Japanese novelist Eiji Yoshikawa (1892-1962) writes, "Great character is forged through hardship." Only by polishing yourself through repeated difficulties can you build a self that sparkles as brightly as a gem. Once you have developed such a state of life, nothing will faze you. You will be free. You will be victorious. 

Once you realize this truth, even hardships become enjoyable. Daring to take on tough challenges - that in itself is immense freedom . . . 

Freedom and lack of freedom are two sides of the same coin. The busiest people may seem to have the most constraints and demands on their time, but they often actually enjoy the most freedom.

Freedom cannot be measure in terms of time - the amount of "free time" we have has nothing to do with the amount of "freedom" we have. It's what we do with our time that counts. Two people with the exact same amount of free time will use it differently: One might savor it, while the other might complain, finding it either burdensome or too short. Similarly, you can spend the same hour watching television, the time passing by in flash without anything to show for it, or studying, feeling a satisfying sense of achievement when you finish. That one hour can be a turning point in your life. Freedom is determined by your values, by what you place importance on in life . . .