a buddhist perspective

The Buddha taught us to have “a mind that embraces the expanse of space and encompasses the vastness of the universe.” He taught “Compassion is the essence, and expediency is the means.” He taught us to have loving-kindness and compassion, to end delusion and attain enlightenment, and to end suffering and attain happiness. If what we think, say, and do is the very opposite of his teachings, is this learning from the Buddha? No, this is going against the teachings of the Buddha. Such a person believes in his afflictions and residual habits. He believes in fame and wealth. He does not believe in the Buddha’s teachings.

What should we do if we wish to help propagate the teachings? We should start with ourselves. This is an era of democracy, freedom, and openness. For many, individual rights are considered to be of the utmost importance. Therefore, we must not interfere with others or criticize them. We can only examine ourselves to see if we have these faults. It is very important to start with examining ourselves. We should be modest and praise others, even when they praise themselves and disparage everyone else. If a person has ninety-nine faults and only one merit, we praise the merit and do not mention the ninety-nine faults or keep them in mind. We focus on cultivating our purity and goodness. If we do this, the Buddha’s teachings will have bright future to be passed on to many generations to come.

Buddhist practitioners should try to keep in contact and encourage one another often. If other Buddhists accept us, we can work together to propagate Buddhism and benefit others. If they do not accept us, we should not pressure them but respect their wishes.

~ Based on Ven. Master Chin Kung's 2003 lecture series on the Amitabha Sutra

One morning, in the spring of 2004, I opened my window blinds, sat down at my desk in front of the window, and glanced out to look at the lawn and pond. Several yards in front of the window, I saw a tiny bunny hovering over the body of a full-grown rabbit. The rabbit had apparently died in a small indentation, about a yard across, in the ground. Throughout the day, I watched as the young bunny ran back and forth over and over across the lawn chasing away a large bird that was trying to get at the dead rabbit.

When not chasing the bird, the bunny bit off mouthfuls of the tall grass growing in the indentation, went to the rabbit, and placed the grass on top of the body. The process took considerable time, as the bunny had to keep chasing off the hungry bird at the same time. The bunny was still trying to fend off the bird when I shut my window blinds that evening.

One morning in the spring of 2005, I saw a grown rabbit hop straight to the spot where the other rabbit had been buried. The rabbit rearranged what remained of the still discernible mound of grass and then hopped back the way it had come from around the side of the building. I did not see the rabbit in 2006, nor in 2007 as I was then working in another room.

It is now spring, 2008. Late Monday night, I returned to the US from two months in Australia. Tuesday, I woke up in the afternoon trying to readjust to a very different time zone. Wednesday was my first morning in about eighteen months to work at my desk in my old spot in front of the window.

The thick grass outside my window was deep and due for the weekly cutting. I could still see the spot where the rabbit had died for the grass has yet to cover the “burial mound.” As I watched, I saw a rabbit come around from the side of the building and hop straight to the spot. It remained a few seconds and hopped off a bit to the left of the spot. Then it hopped straight back to the spot, rearranged some of the dead grass, paused a few seconds, and hopped right back the way it had come from around the side of the building.

Affinities span many lifetimes. They do not involve just human beings. And just as humans can be filial children, other beings can as well.

Time has no beginning;
it has no end.
Throughout immeasurable eons,
violence and conflict have abounded,
and body and spirit deeply wounded.
May the time for healing begin now.

Immersed in anger,
polluted by selfishness.
As though ensnared,
humanity has been beset by ignorance.
But wisdom and compassion lie buried within.
May serenity and insight arise now.

We are not separate:
we are one.
Seeming differences are inconsequential
for our hearts are the same.
Respect and harmony are waiting to awaken.

May universal peace begin now.

Which are we seeking, recognition or respect? What is the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary defines recognition as “acceptance of an individual as being entitled to consideration or attention.” When we perform well at work we may be rewarded with a raise. Or we may get a promotion and find our new office is now closer to the boss. Since so much of our daily life can be spent at work and the rest of our daily life can depend on how we do there, it is certainly understandable that we wish to do our work well. 

But a problem can occur if, in our attempts to win recognition, we sacrifice being deemed worthy of respect. In Lessons of the Lotus, Bhante Y. Wimala defines respect as “a spiritual acknowledgement of one human being by another human being simply because they are human beings.” While recognition can be a measure of work performance, respect is a measure of how we are doing as human beings.

Thus, the president of a company and the person who cleans her office may not receive the same recognition, but they both deserve respect.

One of the many bonuses in traveling to give Dharma talks is staying with generous people who invite me to stay in their home. One such time in Australia, I had the pleasure of visiting the home of some good friends for a few days. Their son and daughter-in-law came from out-of-town with their two children. After the children were fed the mother was bathing the baby. From the next room, I could hear her talking to her laughing son in a monologue that sparkled with laughter, when at one point I heard her say "I’m sorry."

An adult was apologizing to her 11-month old son as naturally and courteously as someone would have apologized to a an adult they had just disturbed! A lively and healthy boy with an excellent vocal system, Harrison and his sister had kept their parents busy all day. Nonetheless, a mother who had every right to be tired had happily cared for her son and said, "I’m sorry" to him.

She had treated her son as respectfully as she would have a newly-met stranger. Such effortless and caring respect could only serve to improve any relationship.