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The Buddha's Smile
February 22, 2007
Dear Still Water Friends,
This Thursday, after our meditation period, we
will practice together the Five Touchings of the Earth, a guided movement
meditation that helps us connect with our ancestors, our spiritual lineage, our
country, those who we love, and those who have made us suffer.
Our
discussion will focus on the fourth and fifth touchings, especially on
developing our compassion. In Teachings on
Love Thich Nhat Hanh explains that the Buddhist notion of compassion,
in Sanskrit karuna, is similar to but
not exactly the same as the English language notion of compassion. In the
tradition of mindfulness, it is possible to relieve the suffering of another
without joining in or being overwhelmed by that suffering. It is possible to be
one with the suffering of others, and yet still feel light and joyful. It is
possible, but not necessarily easy. Thich Nhat Hanh explains:
[Karuna is] the intention and capacity to relieve
and transform suffering and lighten sorrows. Karuna is usually translated as
‘compassion’, but that is not exactly correct. ‘Compassion’ is composed of com
(‘together with’) and passion (‘to suffer’). But we do not need to suffer to
remove suffering from another person. Doctors, for instance, can relieve their
patients’ suffering without experiencing the same disease in themselves. If we
suffer too much, we may be crushed and unable to help. . . .
To develop
compassion in ourselves, we need to practice mindful breathing, deep listening,
and deep looking. The Lotus Sutra describes Avalokiteshvara as the bodhisattva
who practices ‘looking with the eyes of compassion and listening deeply to the
cries of the world.’ Compassion contains deep concern. You know the other person
is suffering, so you sit close to her. You look and listen deeply to her to be
able to touch her pain. You are in deep communication, deep communion with her,
and that alone brings some relief. . . .
When I was a novice, I could not
understand why, if the world is filled with suffering, the Buddha has such a
beautiful smile. Why isn’t he disturbed by all the suffering? Later I discovered
that the Buddha has enough understanding, calm, and strength; that is why the
suffering does not overwhelm him. He is able to smile to suffering because he
knows how to take care of it and to help transform it. We need to be aware of
the suffering, but retain our clarity, calmness, and strength so we can help
transform the situation. The ocean of tears cannot drown us if karuna is there.
That is why the Buddha’s smile is possible.
You are invited to
join us this Thursday. The full text of the Five Touchings is available at
www.StillWaterMPC.org under "Articles and Resources" and then under "Still Water
Ceremonies."
Below is a related excerpt by Thich Nhat Hanh on the
transformation of suffering.
Warm wishes,
Mitchell
Ratner
Senior Teacher
The Transformation of Suffering
from
19 Sept 2003 interview with Thich Nhat Hanh
(Available at:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week703/interview.html
.)
Buddhism teaches us not to try to run away from suffering. You have to
confront suffering. You have to look deeply into the nature of suffering in
order to recognize its cause, the making of the suffering. Suffering is the
First Noble Truth, and the making of the suffering -- namely, the roots of
suffering -- is the Second Noble Truth. Once you understand the roots of
suffering, the Fourth Noble Truth -- the path leading to the transformation of
suffering -- is revealed. And if you go on that path -- namely, the path of
right thinking, right speech, and right action -- then you can transform your
suffering.
If you practice in a community, you help the community to
transform suffering. And if you practice as a nation, you help the whole nation
to transform suffering.
The Buddha spoke about suffering in terms of
food. Nothing can survive without food, even your love. If you don't feed your
love properly, your love will die. Your suffering is there because you have been
feeding it. If violence, hate, despair, and fear are there, it is because you
have been feeding them by your unmindful consumption. Therefore, if you know how
to recognize the source of the nutrients of your suffering, and if you know how
to cut off that source of nutrition, then the suffering will have to
vanish.
This is a very important teaching for our time, because the
amount of violence and craving in us and in our children comes from our practice
of unmindful consumption -- watching television, reading magazines, having
poisonous conversation. We bring a lot of poisons and toxins into our body and
into our consciousness. If you don't stop producing these toxic items, and if we
don't know how to protect ourselves by mindful consumption of these items,
there's no way out.