Thanksgiving Dharma Talk given Sunday 21 November 2010
Good morning everyone, thank you for joining together to celebrate the Lotus Sutra this morning by reciting portions together and joyously chanting the Sacred Title or Odaimoku of the Lotus Sutra. Thank you also to the folks who have joined with us online to watch our live stream of this service. What you all have done is truly remarkable, and I am sure you will receive great merit because of your devotion to the Buddha Dharma.
Today is the last Sunday service we will have here at the temple before the Thanksgiving holiday this Thursday. I hope that each of you takes time to appreciate all that you have been given. When you are spending time with your family or friends please take a moment to offer prayers for all that you have and a wish for all mankind to be benefited, peaceful, and at ease.
The day of Thanksgiving is a day to celebrate the bounty of the harvest, a day to celebrate friends and family, a day to ‘give thanks’. It is this the giving of thanks that I would like to talk about briefly today. As Buddhists we understand how important it is to express our gratitude, to give thanks. All of our prayers are in fact an expression of our gratitude for the countless benefits we have received, many without our even asking.
I would like to share a story with you:
One day, a boy that had been selling goods from door to door, to pay his way through school, found he had only a dime in his pocket, and he was hungry. He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry so she brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, and then asked, “How much do I owe you?” “You don’t owe me anything,” she replied. “Mother taught us never to accept pay for a kindness.” He said, “Then I thank you from my heart.”
The young boy left the house, feeling not only a little more full and strong but also with a great sense of the kindness of humanity. He had been ready to give up and quit.
Year’s later that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room. Dressed in his doctor’s gown he went in to see her. He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to the case.
After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, and then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She began to read the following words:
“Paid in full with one glass of milk” Signed, Dr. Howard Kelly.
As is the case so often in the retelling of stories there are parts that are fictional, yet usually the core of the story is quite true. In this case Dr. Howard Kelly was in fact a physician who had indeed stopped at a house to request a drink. Sometime later in life he was asked to perform surgery for a patient who happened to be the young woman who gave him a drink. The bill was indeed marked “paid in full with one glass of milk.” So what we have in essence is the repayment of a small act of kindness by the grateful recipient.
When we think of the wonderful gift of the Dharma that we have received we may wonder how can we repay our debt to our teachers or even to the Buddha. In Chapter IV from the Lotus Sutra the Buddha says the following;
“When you attain enlightenment infallibly, you will have already repaid the favors I gave you.”
Simple, quite simple indeed.
The Sravakas, the intelligentsia of the congregation, the super smart disciples said to the Buddha:
“You, the World-Honored One, are the great benefactor.
By doing this rare thing,
You taught and benefited us
Out of your compassion towards us.
No one will be able to repay your favors
Even if he tries to do so
For many hundreds of millions of kalpas.
No one will be able to repay your favors
Even if he bows to you respectfully,
And offers you his hands, feet or anything else.
No one will be able to repay your favors
Even if he carries you on his head or shoulders
And respects you from the bottom of his heart
For as many kalpas
As there are sands in the River Ganges,
Or even if he offers you
Delicious food, innumerable garments of treasures,
Many beddings, and various medicines,
Or even if he erects a stupa-mausoleum
Made of the cow-head candana,
And adorns it with treasures,
Or even if he covers the ground
With garments of treasures
And offers them to the Buddha.” Lotus Sutra Chapter IV
Our minds think that it must be impossible to repay such a gift the Buddha has given to us by teaching us the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Sutra. When we practice and strive to attain our own enlightenment we must not forget that we are also enabling countless others either directly or indirectly to also attain enlightenment. We are relieving the suffering of numerous people thereby creating a greater propensity within society for peace and happiness. The greater propensity for peace also enables even more people to become happy and at ease. Remember the Buddha said;
“when you attain enlightenment…you will have already paid the favors I gave you.”
As we enter the season of wanton commercialism let us not be swayed into thinking that buying one more thing one more item one more trinket, bauble or gadget will bring us any closer to enlightenment. Remain mindful that things that do not contribute to our enlightenment are not skilful ways of repaying our debts to the Buddha for his gift of the Dharma.
In Chapter XXI, the chapter that specifically deals with the transmission of the Lotus Sutra to ourselves, the Bodhisattvas from beneath the ground who are practicing in this Later Age, the Buddha gives us a specific instruction on how to repay our debts. He says:
“When you see anyone who does not receive [this sutra] by faith, you should show him some other profound teachings of mine, teach him, benefit him, and cause him to rejoice. When you do all this, you will be able to repay the favors given to you by the Buddhas.” Lotus Sutra Chapter XXI
As in the story I shared at the beginning, we have been given a life saving drink, the nectar of the Buddha, the Lotus Sutra. Now it is up to us to repay that drink, to perform the surgery necessary to help others eliminate suffering from their lives, to cut out the three poison of greed, anger, and ignorance.
Let us strive to carry out the Buddha’s instructions, remembering it isn’t just about convincing people to listen to us sermonize about the Dharma, remember it says, “benefit him, and cause him to rejoice.” Let us cause others to rejoice thereby causing our own lives to rejoice. Remember Chapter II of the Lotus Sutra says:
“And when you have great joy, you will become Buddhas!” Lotus Sutra Chapter II
Let us all give thanks to the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha by causing innumerable other people to have great joy, to cause others to have a reason to be truly thankful. Let us dwell in our great appreciation for what we have been given.
Thank you very much for your practice of the Buddha Dharma today and every day of your lives
