“Sailing along on a boat, scanning the shore, you may mistake the land as sliding by. You need to focus closely on the boat to see that it’s what’s moving along. In the same way, surveying all things with body and mind in disarray, you may mistake your own mind and own nature as enduring. Focusing closely on your life and turning back within will clear up the notion that all things are without self.”
from Genjo Koan, DOGEN ZENJI
Dogen’s essay answers the question for me; If we have Buddha-Nature why do we have to work at it?
Note: This quote comes from a translation of Genjo Koan, “The Truth Unfolds” by Bob Myer’s; http://www.numenware.com/article/category/dogen