Chih-I talks quite a lot about compassion and how important it is to cultivate when one has dis-ease, disease, and illness. As I have been studying this text I am struck by the direction he suggests compassion needs to flow.
Usually when compassion is mentioned, at lease in the medical settings I’ve been in and the other conversations I’ve read and heard outside hospitals, the direction of compassion goes from the healthy towards the sick. You don’t normally hear much mention of the need for the sick to develop compassion. The general concept seems to be that the healthy, the wealthy, the well off, the capable people are urged to be compassionate for thise less healthy, less fortunate, less capable. It is almost as if we don’t expect the poor, the downtrodden, the challenged people to have a capacity for compassion and so we don’t talk about it.
Yet evidence, at least circumstantial evidence or antidotal evidence shows that compassion exists in even the poor, ill, less fortunate, less well off. I myself grew up witnessing the black jazz musicians in New Orleans who had very little beyond their instruments and sometimes shared dwellings rally around others in their community supporting them even while having so little themselves.
Recently I finished reading Michelle Obama’s book Becoming and in there she recounts her life as a child in Chicago where a challenged community would rally around and support those who were undergoing situations more severe than their own already severe situations.
Still even that goes from those relatively better to those relatively not as better. But what Chih-I says is that compassion from those in dis-ease and illness ought to develop the mind and actions of compassion even for those unaffected by illness. Even the healthy will become ill and the healthy are no immune to dis-ease. The compassion developed by the ill is a medicine for their cure. Their compassion in the midst of illness leads them out of dis-ease and enables them to cure others. This he says is the act of a bodhisattva who has illness and is able to cure others with the Perfect Teaching.
2. Arousing Compassion
Through compassion and arousing the mind of compassion it is the overcoming of dis-ease with a single thought and is the single overcoming through compassion.
The compassion Chih-I talks about he calls perfect and universal compassion and it is the manifestation of the universal teaching of the Buddha.
The thought that almost immediately comes to mind beyond the examples in the Vimalakirti Sutra is the actions of the Buddha with regard to Devedatta. For those reading this who are unaware of the story about Devedatta I will recount it briefly here.
Devedatta was the cousin of the Buddha who due to deep jealousy sought first to usurp the Buddha’s portion in the Sangha, eventually leading to the first break up of the Sangha. After the Buddha head that division and the machinations of Devedatta were thwarted Devedatta tried on several occasions to kill the Buddha, each time failing.
So here is someone clearly suffering from dis-ease and what does the Buddha do? The Buddha with infinite patience and compassion never abandons Devedatta even after multiple attempts to destroy the Jewels of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. In Buddhism there is nothing more precious or more revered and protected than the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
Devedatta tried to destroy the Jewel of Sangha by splitting it, he tried to destroy the Jewel of Dharma by perverting it with various rules that were in opposition to the teachings, he tried to destroy the Jewel of Buddha by his attempts to kill the Buddha. If ever there was a bad guy it was Devedatta, and to this day he is considered an evil person due to his actions. He is the perhaps universal name given when speaking of evil.
Yet, the Buddha never shunned him, the Buddha never ostracized him, he never kicked him out of the Sangha, though Devedatta certainly did separate himself from the Sangha. The Buddha never sought praise for his compassion, he gave it freely even though he was mistreated by the recipient of the compassion, he continued to extend compassion to Devedatta. In fact in the Lotus Sutra it is revealed the past relationship between Devedatta and the Buddha as well as the future enlightenment of even this most evil of persons.
In Nichiren Buddhism the name Devedatta even appears on our most important object of veneration which we devote our selves to single-mindedly. What I imagine true compassion is, and I say imagine because I can not say I have developed that depth of compassion yet, is the compassion that can see deep into the heart or soul of a person and see their innate Buddha life. That is hard to do. Yet it is that sort of compassion that lifts Devedatta out of eternal hell realm and raises him to enlightenment. Not as a charitable act to be praised for but as the core fundamental truth of the life of Devedatta and of all of us.
With that sort of compassion disease and illness crumble before us can enable us to become healers even in our own limited state of capacity. Whether our illness is disease or dis-ease we possess the power and capability to heal others because we have healed ourselves even though we may remain sick of physical body. The illness of body lacks essential substance with right contemplation and because there is no substance there is no true illness, dis-ease is shed and the power of the ability to cure others can reside within our very own life even when wracked with sickness.
My own experiences both of my own and those I’ve witnessed in others from the boys dying of AIDS to the many I’ve been with in the hospital have witnessed and experienced this truth. It is impossible for me to say that I have not been cured by those dying boys who I sat with who I attended in their last moments of premature death. My life was and has been profoundly changed, cured even of many dis-eases.
Watching a guy whose skin was literally melting off his body, whose every movement and touch would result in more skin being ripped and even breathing caused excruciating pain please to receive Catholic communion so the could die a Catholic and be buried alongside his wife, can not hep but leave one affected by the spirit of the man to fulfill a promise to his wife so both he and her could be in peace even though he died hours later. Even his receiving the wafer and wine were acts full of pain. The young priest who came to the hospital when I call the dioceses who was on his first ever hospital visit to give the communion and perform the ritual of conversion was affected. He was trembling and kept putting his sacred objects on the bed and I had to keep picking them up and sanitizing them, he was moved by this act of devotion and compassion of the husband.
Like Dana, the giving of support for the Dharma with no expectation or reward true compassion is given regardless of benefit or reward and also given even if it will be refused or used in ways not intended.
I have as I am sure you have as well, heard comments about giving to homeless or street panhandlers or beggars, that giving just enables them to buy booze. That is not compassion. Compassion is not just giving when it is convenient or the outcome is controlled. It would be better and certainly more honest to just say you don’t want to give rather than attach a moral value or statement to the selfishness of witholding aid. Give if you can, if you can’t then walk on buy but don’t try to elevate your life at the expense of those less fortunate. The Buddha didn’t act with compassion to Devedatta with conditions.
Besides you don’t know what your relationship to that other person is, perhaps in a previous life you were the beggar and your fortune in this life is the result of his previous compassion to you, and now you are begrudging your compassion. None of us arrived at any fortune we may have without the support of many people and many acts of caring, giving, teaching, and compassion.
A parent does not rest until their child is cured. When a child become ill so do the parents. This is the life of compassion of bodhisattvas. As long as sentient beings have illness, dis-ease then the bodhisattva has illness and with their great compassion cures all beings. When all beings are cured the bodhisattva is cured.
3. Skillful Means for a Peaceful Mind
Chih-I taks about becoming ill in the meditation chamber in this section . For us the meditation chamber is our practice realm, this realm. It originate from the Omandala of the Lotus Sutra which was inscribed by Nichiren for our benefit. However because of the principle of oneness of self and environment and subject and object everywhere we go becomes the Buddha Realm in this Saha world. This is determined and manifest from our mind, from our faith, and from our practice. Becoming ill, suffering from dis-ease or disease our first practice is to understand and embrace the essence of emptiness as outlined above. This is Chih-I’s instruction.
He further guides us to arouse our aspiration for enlightenment. I recently had a discussion at our Sunday morning service about what enlightenment is. When I asked folks in the Sangha most had at best a vague notion of something they thought might be enlightenment. I find it interesting that this thing we talk about this goal we hold up for ourselves to attain most people have not idea of what it is. The resultant problem here is this means none will know if and when they begin to approach much less accomplish enlightenment.
I highly recommend that beginning now, even before and perhaps especially before you become ill, to form a picture of what you think enlightenment is. What is it that you are in quest of? What will your life be like in enlightenment? What could be some indications to you, some sign posts if you will, that you are close or beyond? A goal ill perceived is a goal likely to be missed.
Here is one point though, I believe that you will find that your expectation of what enlightenment might be like will expand and grow over time, and this is in itself a form of enlightenment. Every ah-ha moment is a small step to enlightenment. Enlightenment is not a fixed destination rather an evolving consciousness. However you may miss it as you journey though life. What ever your thoughts are about what enlightenment is, they are valuable and can help you in the achievement of that which we seek, and it most certainly is even more than your initial thoughts.
Enlightenment expands before you. It probably has already expanded before you, yet you were not aware of it even being. So first firmly anchor your core self, your true self, not your role, not your looks, not your attributes, not your skills, but deeper than all of those your true self. Firmly hold that and anchor it to the attainment of enlightenment. Enlightenment is not about your looks, your personality, your economic status, your eduction, your job, your age, none of those things are factors when it comes to your true self and your enlightenment. The Lotus Sutra clearly teaches that. Young boys who know nothing of Buddhism other than to offer a mud pie to this person coming through their village and whom everyone is making a fuss over become Buddhas themselves due to that simple act in innocence and ignorance.
Next is the instruction to straighten ones body. This can be problematic for many who are sick, especially with some internal organs and with skeletal challenges. Tune in tomorrow as I continue this ….
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