Courage

How can we engage in the Bodhisattva’s practice, like the six paramitas, in our everyday life? Application is the key point of this practice. We must have dedication. This dedication is the essential practice of Bodhisattvas. There are three essential principles of Bodhisattvas:

(1) Noble motivation

(2) Noble wisdom (wisdom of emptiness)

(3) Noble dedication

These are not really separate principles. Dedication means dedicating all of one’s activities, one’s life, one’s possessions, as the cause of bringing liberation to yourself and humanity, to all sentient beings without exception. Whether you are Christian, Muslim, or Buddhist Bodhisattva, the principles are the same: To be a Bodhisattva is to be a living saint. A Bodhisattva is one who unfolds all his loving compassion towards all beings.

The wonderful thing is that Bodhisattva principles can be blended into our lives. When we get deeper and deeper into the essence of Dharma practice, we reach a landmark—there is no longer a distinction between life and Dharma. It seems life is Dharma and Dharma is life. But when we are first scratching the surface of practice, there seems to be a difference between them. Like we have to reject life or be somebody in order to practice Dharma. This is what we call the Hinayana path. I think this is very good for awhile. But once we become a more evolved practitioner, we see that life and Dharma can be blended together. It depends on what kind of life we are going to choose. Life itself can be a powerful vehicle to practice love, wisdom, and the six paramitas.

Remember that the main Bodhisattva commitment is always to come back to samsara and benefit other beings. The meaning of coming back to samsara is to embrace your life, not to run away from your duties. This requires some sense of courage. The sattva in Bodhisattva means hero or heroine. It requires tremendous spiritual courage to embrace your life no matter how challenging it is. The moment you decide to embrace your life, all the conflict and suffering and detrimental situations come to an end.

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Life

Each of us has a different life, different ways of being human and experiencing our life. Let’s talk about what life is. Whatever is happening is your life. It is not past or future, it is the present. Whatever you are experiencing right now is your life. Being married, not married, being a monk, being a nun, this is life. Maybe you could be one of the people who win the lottery. That is your life. Or maybe you are one of the people who does not win. That is your life. Regardless, whether good conditions or bad conditions, that is your life. The question is: Are you enjoying being in your life in this moment? We need to ask ourselves this question: “Am I enjoying this moment, being who I am, and embracing whatever is happening around me?”

It is possible that somebody may be dying. That is his or her life. Or maybe somebody is becoming enlightened right now. That is his or her life. Life is the present. We must ask this fundamental spiritual as well as philosophical inquiry, “Am I enjoying this life?” This is a very profound inquiry. “Am I enjoying this moment?” We may discover that we are not enjoying this life in this very moment. What is the pattern behind that? We are being attached to the past, about pleasant memories, or projecting those grand illusory fantasies into the future. Maybe we are afraid or there is resistance to experiencing what is happening right now. Maybe we are resisting the thoughts, feelings, or sensations that are arising right now. Maybe they seem too detrimental or unpleasant to us. So we are going to the past or the future, not being in the moment, embracing the inner and outer life.

However, embracing life means surrendering to all conditions, outside and inside, whatever arises. Escapism is the opposite of the sattva, the spiritual courage, because we are running away from samsara, we are running away from reality. Being a Bodhisattva is walking towards reality with great courage, appreciation, and joy. A Bodhisattva is somebody who has true spiritual courage, who is completely free from fear and hope.

Bodhisattvas are unique heroes. Worldly heroes may have courage, but they always have hope and fear. Bodhisattvas always transcend hope and fear because Bodhisattvas perceive everything as a blessing. Everything is an amazing source of wisdom and knowledge. Bodhisattvas do not have fear of life because they realize fear is only a mental projection. Bodhisattvas have already awakened to the nature of everything in reality, they do not have a sense of fear and are ready to embrace everything. Also, every time a Bodhisattva goes through life’s challenges, it makes him or her even more compassionate. Situations enhance one’s commitment and practice.

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