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Page 5 |
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"When through rituals and formalities you create the spiritual space and atmosphere that you are seeking, then the process will have a powerful effect on your experience. When you lack the inner dimension for that spiritual experience you are aspiring to, then rituals become mere formalities, external elaborations. In that case, clearly, they lose their meaning and become unnecessary customs just a good excuse for passing time." The Dalai Lama |
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Ananda, the attendant to the Buddha, having been sent by the Lord on a mission, passed by a well near a village, and seeing Pakati, a young outcast woman, asked her for water to drink. Pakati said, "O monk, I am too humbly born to give you water to drink. Do not ask any service of me lest your holiness be contaminated, for I am of low caste." And Ananda replied, "I ask not for caste but for water," and the woman's heart leaped joyfully and she gave Ananda water to drink. Ananda thanked her and went away, but she followed him at a distance. Having heard that Ananda was a disciple of the Buddha, the woman went to the Blessed One and said, "O Lord, help me and let me live in the place where your disciple Ananda dwells, so that I may see him and minister unto him, for I love Ananda." And the Blessed One understood the emotions of her heart and said, "Pakati, your heart is full of love, but you do not understand your own sentiments. It is not Ananda that you love, but his kindness. Accept, then, the kindness you have seen him practice toward you and practice it toward others. Pakati, though you are born low caste, you will be a model for noblemen and noblewomen. Swerve not from the path of justice and righteousness and you will outshine the royal glory of queens and kings." |
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Delusion, Enlightenment, training, life, death, Buddhas and all living things are in existence when there is Buddhism; none of the above exist when all is within the Truth; since the Way of the Buddha transcends unity and duality, all of the above exist; while we adore flowers they wither; weeds grow strong whilst we long for their destruction. When we wish to teach and Enlighten all things by ourselves, we are deluded; when all things teach and Enlighten us, we are Enlightened; to Enlighten delusion is to become Buddha; most living things are deluded within Enlightenment - some are Enlightened within Enlightenment; others deluded with delusion. There is no need to know that one is identical with Buddha when Buddha is truly Buddha for a truly Enlightened Buddha expresses his Buddhahood in his daily life: to observe objects and voices, with complete awareness of body and mind, is very different from seeing a reflection in a mirror or the moon reflected in water; even if you see one side of something, the other will still be in shadow. When one studies Buddhism, one studies oneself; when one studies oneself, one forgets oneself; when one forgets oneself, one is Enlightened by everything and this very Enlightenment breaks the bonds of clinging to both body and mind not only for oneself but for all beings as well. If the Enlightenment is True, it even wipes out clinging to Enlightenment, therefore, it is imperative that we return to, and live in, the world of ordinary men. When a man first sees the Truth, he automatically transcends the boundaries of truth; once the Truth has been awakened within a man, he is automatically his own Original Face. It is normal for a man, whilst sailing and observing the shore, to think that the shore is moving instead of the boat but, should he look carefully, he will find that it is the boat which is doing the actual moving: in the same way as this, it is because man observes everything from a mistaken viewpoint of his body and mind that he comes to the conclusion that they are eternal, however, should he learn to observe them correctly, as a result of penetrating Truth, he will discover that no form whatsoever attaches itself substantially to anything. The wood that is burnt upon a fire becomes ashes; it does not again become wood; you must not think that wood comes first and ashes afterwards. You must clearly understand that a piece of burning wood has both a before and an after; however, in spite of the fact that it has before and after: in the same way that wood does not again become wood after becoming ashes, so, in the very same way, man is not reborn again as man after dying; it is therefore correct for Buddhism to say that life does not become death and equally true to say that death does not become life, the Buddha Himself constantly preached this. The above views are called non-life and non-death. The two, life and death, are simply positions in time as are spring and winter; winter no more becomes spring than spring becomes summer. The moon reflected in water is the same as the Enlightenment that a man can reach; the moon is not wetted by the water and the water does not become disturbed: however much light the moon may radiate, its reflection can still be seen in a puddle; in the same way, the full moon and limitless sky may be seen reflected in a single dewdrop suspended from a blade of grass. Man is not restrained by Enlightenment, and the moon is not restrained by the water; man puts nothing in the way of Enlightenment and the dewdrop puts nothing in the way of either the moon or the limitless sky; in addition to this, the deeper the moon's reflection, the higher the moon the length of time of the reflection is in ratio to the depth of the water and the fullness of the moon. When a man has an incomplete knowledge of the Truth, he feels that he already knows enough and when he has understood the Truth fully, he feels sure that something is lacking. If you can see no land or mountains; when sailing, the ocean appears rounded but it is neither round nor square, being in possession of myriad characteristics. Some people regard it as a palace and others as a form of ornamentation, but it is only for a very short time that it appears round owing to the distance we are able to see; this distance is constantly changing; we must view all things bearing this in mind. There are many things within the world of Enlightenment, but the Zen trainee can only see as far as his present understanding permits him. If one would know the Truth, it is essential to know that the ocean and the mountains have many other attributes, in addition to being square or circular, and that there are many other words in addition to this. Our immediate surroundings are of no account: it is essential to know that the ocean is contained within a single drop of water and that the Truth is manifesting itself equally on the very spot on which we are now standing. The ocean is limitless no matter how far the fish may swim therein; the sky is limitless no matter how far a bird may fly therein: from the very beginning of all things, both the fish and the birds have been one with the ocean and the sky respectively. Understand clearly, that, when a great need appears, a great use appears also; when there is a small need, there is a small use; it is obvious then, that full use is made of all things at all times according to the necessity thereof. When birds are out of unity with the sky, or fish out of unity with the ocean, they die, for the life of fish is lived in the ocean and the life of birds is lived in the sky: it is equally true that the life of the sky is lived in the birds and the life of the ocean is lived in the fish; birds are life and fish are life - it is easily possible to find many examples of the above idea. In spite of the facts of training and Enlightenment, and variations in the length of a man's life span, all ways of living are the very personification of Truth: should a fish try to go beyond the lim itations of the ocean, however, or a bird beyond the limitations of the sky, there will be no-resting place for either. Should you touch the Truth, your every action will be vital and express the Way naturally, for your every action will be fully understood and digested Truth, performed in the ordinary daily activities of an ordinary man. This Truth can never be understood as a result of conceptual duality, such as big and small or subject and object; the Way of Truth existed from the very beginning and makes no special appearance now, which is just as it should be. It is because the Way of Truth is as stated above that, after taking up one thing, you understand that one thing and, after finishing a practice, you understand that practice; this is the way in which Buddhism itself is practiced. It is not possible for us to know clearly when we are giving deep expression to the Way of Truth, since it is an action which arises simultaneously and synonymously with Buddhist study. It is wrong to believe that one is fully aware of being Enlightened, as personal knowledge, even after Enlightenment: that which is intuitive cannot necessarily be given easy expression and definite form even though Enlightenment is already ours. One summer day a Zen teacher sat fanning himself when a monk asked, "Since the nature of the wind is stationary and universally present, why do you use a fan?" The teacher replied, "Although you know its nature to be stationary, you do not know why it is universally present." "Why is it universally present?" asked the monk: for an answer the teacher merely continued fanning himself and the monk bowed: the True Way of Transmission and Enlightenment, which is the result of real experience, is the same as this. One who thinks that fanning is not needed, simply because wind is stationary by nature and requires no fan since it can be sensed, understands nothing whatsoever of its nature and its eternal presence: it is because it is eternally here that the wind of Buddhism makes the earth golden and the rivers run with 'ghee' (clarified butter - considered a great delicacy in India). |
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(Some Tibetan customs...)
MARRYING:
A young man who wishes to marry, sends two friends to the home of the young woman he has selected. They bring her parents tea and champagne or a rice wine called CHANG (rhymes with song). The emissaries ask for the young woman's hand, but the parents never make a commitment. They say they must consult with their daughter. Two to four weeks later, the friends return bringing more tea and CHANG. If the girl or her parents do not like the young man, her parents will say their daughter is not ready at this time. If the girl and her family are interested, parents make no commitment. However, lack of rejection signifies agreement. The third visit is akin to an engagement ceremony. The groom sends four or five people with many gifts for the bride and her family. They present tea, expensive fabric, and white scarves to everyone. They give the bride's mother one or more trays holding small, white fabric bags filled with vertically placed rolls of paper money. Each bag is tied with a white scarf and looks like a flower. These bags are called NUREEN (payment for milk) and show gratitude to the mother for nurturing the bride-to-be. The families set the wedding date according to astrological calculations, and the day before the nuptials, the bride's family host a party. Everyone |
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dons colorful Tibetan clothing, hats, and shoes. The bride wears a PATU, a black wig with two cone-like rolls of hair standing upright on each side of her head. A Y-shaped, woven fabric strip, adorned with turquoise and coral, attaches to each cone, its tail reaching midway down the bride's back. The bride also wears elaborate, large turquoise earrings and a turquoise necklace that looks more like a breastplate. During the evening, the groom takes five arrows that have been bound together with braided strips of silk in the five sacred colors of blue, green, red, yellow and white and inserts them vertically down the back of the bride's dress. The upper half is visible. On the wedding day at 10 a.m., the groom's emissaries drive in cars, decorated with colored ribbons, to pick up the bride to take her to the groom's family's home. One of the escorts carries a painting of a deity. Another escort replaces the arrows into the back of the bride's dress. Meanwhile, at the grooms' home, the bride's emissaries hang five colors of scarves on the front door, and one scarf on the inside door leading to the home's altar. Before the bride enters her future home, a boy offers her CHIMA, a mixture of barley and wheat seed, which she flicks into the air three times. She then dips her ring finger into the rice wine (CHANG) three times and flicks it, too. Once inside, the bride joins her groom, who waits for her, seated in front of the altar. Guests offer white scarves to the wedding party; also envelopes filled with money. They make additional offerings of tea, rice wine, and CHIMA. At the late-night conclusion of the ceremony, as guests leave, they form a circle, sing, burn incense, and offer the CHIMA to the gods three times. Upon leaving, each guest receives a white scarf.
Gifts: Anything, but shoes, which symbolize parting company. Words: "Have a long, good life together." Clothing: Dressy / Formal
Body Language: Avoid kissing the bride. Use the GASSHO (hands in the prayer position, palms together, positioned slightly beneath the chin, with a slight bow) for greetings. The urbanized younger generation may shake hands.
DYING:
Prior to death, friends offer the dying person sips of holy water. A monk or lama comes to the hospital or home to say prayers and to pour grains of colored sand from a sacred sand mandala over the crown of the dying person. This allows the person's spirit to exit from the top of the head. The funeral takes place three to seven days after death and is determined by astrological calculations, but services do not take place on weekends, considered inauspicious times. During the ceremony and prior to the cremation, monks chant and burn incense, and guests lay white scarves over the casket. For seven days afterward, family members and friends make offerings to monks at monasteries. For forty-nine days following the death, the family prepares dough of barley mixed with honey, milk, butter, sugar, and dried fruits. A small part of this mixture is offered into a flame three times daily to feed the spirit of the deceased. This ends on the forty-ninth day when they believe the deceased finds a way of reincarnating as a human or another life-form or goes directly to heaven. Gifts: The first few days, guests come to the mourner's home for lunch and to offer white scarves and envelopes containing money. This recurs during the fourth and seventh week death anniversaries.
Words: The Tibetans offer words of condolence while offering scarves, placed around the mourner's neck(s). "Don't worry." If the deceased was elderly, they say, "She lived well. She led a long, good life." Clothing: Subdued colors.
Body Language: GASSHO is the respectful form of greeting. (As with everything else in Tibet, these customs are disappearing, or have disappeared, since the Chinese invasion in 1950.) |
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"Human beings are social animals who depend for their survival on others' cooperation and assistance. So it is better not to have a companion at all than to have one who is very aggressive and harmful. You can never rely on such a person but always have to be suspicious and apprehensive about him or her. Conversely, if your own character and personality is such that all people avoid you, that is very sad. Therefore, a kind heart and compassion are the real sources of peace and happiness.
"The grosser consciousness depends heavily on particles of matter. The subtler consciousness is more independent - it does not depend so much on the brain. In the Buddha state, the grosser mind completely disappears. Luminance, radiance, imminence - the three states of subtle mind all of these disappear in the clear light, the innermost consciousness. The Dalai Lama |
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Om Swasti - The right-turning conch of pure compassion in body, speech, and mind pours forth a stream of good intentions that never change. Thereby, may a sweet, resonant melody beyond compare, such music for the ears, open the lotus petals of virtue, excellence, and goodness.
It has the supreme name of the Wish Fulfilling Tree, the ambrosial one. Musical tones of this stainless tree, granting every wish, are dulcet and pleasing. Throughout its branches the gems of lasting happiness nestle among their leaves. Sovereign in our realm, may the world be resplendent with the beauty of this tree.
Aspiration for Tibet - A chain of fragrant flowers, these snow mountains are tranquil and fresh. In a healing land where white incense rises sweet, may the gracious beauty of luminous moonbeams, light of the spiritual and temporal world, conquer all strife, the darkness of the shadow side.
Aspiration for the Dalai Lama - Inspiring festivals of merit in the Land of Snow, you are the Supreme One holding a pure white lotus. With the beauty of all good qualities, a treasure for eyes to behold, may your life be long, steadfast as a diamond vajra.
Aspiration for Culture and Knowledge -
The most excellent virtue is the brilliant and calm flow of culture: those with fine minds play in a clear lotus lake;
through this excellent path, a song line sweet like the pollen's honey, may they sip the fragrant dew of glorious knowledge.
Aspiration for the World - Over the expanse of the treasured earth in this wide world, may benefit for beings appear like infinite moons' reflections, whose refreshing presence brings lasting welfare and happiness to open a lovely array of night-blooming lilies, signs of peace and joy.
Conclusion - Descending from a canopy of white clouds, the gathering of two accumulations, may these true words, like pearled drops of light or pouring rain, falling in a lovely park where fortunate disciples are free of bias, open the flowers of friendship so that well-being and joy blossom forth. |
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(The above words of aspiration, sprung from a sincere intention, were written down by Urgyen Trinley, the one who bears the noble name of the Karmapa, while he was escaping from Tibet. "One night in the illusory appearance of a dream, on a lake bathed in clear moonlight and rippled with blooming lotus flowers serving as a seat for three Brahmins who appeared wearing pure white silk and playing a drum, guitar, flute and other instruments. Created in pleasing and lyric tones, their melodious song came to my ears, and so I composed this aspiration prayer with a one-pointed mind, filled with an intense and sincere intention to benefit all the people of Tibet. Within a beautiful and auspicious chain of mountains, this land of Tibet, may the sun rays of the supreme aspiration for awakening swiftly appear.") |
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Love acts like a radiant light, illuminating whatever it touches, kindling the light in each heart with its own. The more you love, the more you live with passion, the more you give others permission to do the same. In this way, the gift of your passion gets passed on from person to person, from heart to heart, over and over and over again. Isn't this a miracle? There will never be an end to the effect your love has on the world...
Look around you at our miraculous glorious world. Everywhere you will see beauty that calls out to your own passion. Everywhere you will perceive majesty that reminds you of your own magnificence. When you allow yourself to truly view creation in all its splendor, then you will awaken to the inevitability of your own power, your own passion, for you are a part of the splendor.
It is out of passion that faith is born. When you surrender to your passion for happiness, for fulfillment, for truth, you automatically connect to the source of life inside yourself. Suddenly, you feel infused with strength, with purpose, with something far greater than what you previously experienced as your self. Then you realize that faith has nothing to do with hope it is confidence, a knowingness that Universal Intelligence is working through you as you.
"With the love that is simply attachment, the slightest change in the object, such as a tiny change of attitude, immediately causes you to change. This is because your emotion is based on something very superficial. Take, for example, a new marriage. Often after a few weeks, months, or years, the couple become enemies and finish up getting divorced. They married deeply in love nobody marries with hatred but after a short time, everything changed. Why?
"Ordinary compassion and love give rise to a very close feeling, but it is essentially attachment. As long as the other person appears to you as beautiful or good, love remains, but as soon as he or she appears to you as less beautiful or good, your love completely changes. Even though your dear friend is the same person, he feels more like an enemy. Instead of love, you now feel hostility. With genuine love and compassion, another person's appearance or behavior has no effect on your attitude. Real compassion comes from seeing the other's suffering. You feel a sense of responsibility, and you want to do something for him or her." The Dalai Lama
Disclaimer: All images and/or articles retain the original copyrights of their original owners. 4/18/2004 |
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Visit our main Buddhism site. More information, images, and, NO pop-ups! |
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Last Update: September 25, 2005 |
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