If we trust there is water, we can dig deeper.

Buddha-nature is our originally bright nature. We do not create it from outside; we discover it by clearing away what covers it. So believing in Buddha-nature is not a reason to stop and say, “I am already finished.” It is the resolve to know that there is brightness within us that should be revealed, and to keep moving in that direction.

Practice involves effort and it also bears results. But even when the effort looks the same on the outside, the depth of practice changes when there is faith. If someone digs a well without knowing whether water is underground, they may quickly tire when stones appear and dust rises. But the one who trusts that water is there digs once more, even when water is not yet visible, and goes a little deeper.

Our minds are like this too. Suffering, habits, and doubt may appear first. If we see them and decide, “I cannot do this,” the strength of practice weakens. But if we trust that Buddha-nature is present, the difficulty before us becomes not a failure, but a place to look more deeply. Faith becomes the force that raises the mind again.

The image of a lamp teaches the same point. A lamp is originally bright, but soot can cover its light. We do not force a new light into being; we wipe away the soot and reveal the brightness that was already there. Practice is not running away to a distant place. It is the path of turning back and confirming the brightness that is already present.

Therefore faith is the starting point of practice and a great power that carries us toward awakening. When we trust, “I too can become bright,” our words and actions begin to change, and even in difficult moments we can take one more step. Faith in Buddha-nature turns purposeless repetition into purposeful diligence.