Speeches of Hyo Jin Moon 2006-2008
Delivered Sunday at Belvedere Estate in Tarrytown, New York
Hyo Jin Moon Speaks on Independence, Page 369

Some episodes may contain explicit language. Listener discretion is advised.

Independence

November 25, 2007 

Good morning. (Good morning.) 

America is the most proud nation on earth, right? They're proud of their strength and they believe it came from independence. How does one feel independent? What is independence? I mean, you can't really separate yourself from anything permanently. You are always attached to something, otherwise you have to live like a hermit. But, living in a society or being civil, you're always connected to something, absolutely. So, how are you independent? What is the nature of independence? And why is that important to you? And why is that important to everybody? Because that's what you wave as a flag to the rest of the world.

How do you teach yourself? How do you get taught? The first step is that you have to accept something. That's the first step. If you don't accept, you don't get taught. No matter what other people try to drill into your head, if you don't want to accept it, you can't learn. They can torture you, they can imprison you, you will not accept it. If you don't accept it, you will never be taught. If you can't accept something that comes from somewhere else, you'll never be taught. So, as part of that process, what is important is acceptance. That's the first step.

And the next step is belief. You have to believe what you have accepted. And you have to be willing to act upon it, and to practice it, to try to live by it. And the next step is faith, you have to be willing to die by it. Otherwise it doesn't mean anything and you haven't learned anything. What is the point of being independent when you have nothing that you can represent yourself with?

Anyway, there are many things that we can do in terms of choice making. But think about where that choice making stuff comes from. Think about the process of you making a choice. Think about what triggers what. Am I making a choice in a nasty situation or a good situation? Think about the process. Think about you, where you stand.

Okay? If there's a conflict, where's the conflict in my acceptance? Where's the conflict in my belief? Where's the conflict in my faith? You have to know how to determine that, especially in times of trouble. Because if you don't, guess what? In the end you're at fault. You will live with the consequences, nobody else. It doesn't matter how many fingers you can point to other people, you will face the consequences. It doesn't matter how many people you can dupe because you are slick, but you will face the consequences. Ultimately you will face the judgment. You will die. This is a short life. Okay? Thank God there are not too many old people here! If you get old, you feel you're going towards that. And it is true, whether you like it or not, you have to think about that every day, every day. For whatever reason that you may think your life is short, you have to think about life being short every day and accept that as real.

So, what are you going to do with your independence? You have to answer that question. Because it's you, you want to be independent. You have a name. If I look in a phone book in Korea, I'm sure that there's Moon, Hyo-Jin somewhere, but most likely it's going to be a girl. There are a lot of girls named Hyo-Jin. (Laughing.) So, it's going to be you. When you practice anything, all you're doing is you're trying to reinforce your belief. That's about it. You're teaching yourself in belief. That's why you practice, in any technical stuff or whatever, otherwise why do you practice? That's what you're doing. 

When you accept something, there's a stage of growth. Okay? And when you practice something, that's all you're doing; you're just teaching yourself your belief, reinforcing your belief. So, it gets stronger and you feel, "Okay! Okay, let's go. I'll compete! I'll be number one!" But, what are you going to do when you're number one? What is your faith? What are you dying for? Your life's short, so it had better mean something! Having faith is recognizing that I am something, something that is eternal, something that is greater than I. I want to be there. I want to make my steps towards that! And I will have earned it.

There's lots to change, okay? That's a different story and there are practical problems that we need to address. But, we have to have the right attitude, you know? You want to be independent, the key to victory is in your hand, so hold on to it. Believe in it. Okay?