The Kindness of All
Living Beings
If I want no more or less
than what I am given,
Then whatever I am given, by
any living being, is supreme kindness.
What the tenets of Buddhism, and
emptiness in particular, are suggesting is that until we understand that each
and every living being is supremely kind to us, we cannot really understand how
to relate to others (see previous blog on Relationships
Without Attachment). Until we understand this in our hearts and
minds–without hesitation, without reservation, without exception–the compassion
which is at our core is unable to arise spontaneously and so we suffer
unnecessarily.
It’s not that the belief “each and
every living being is supremely kind to me” is true or not true. It is, from
the Buddhist point of view, simply a perspective we need to work from.
For the sake of this blog and its
exercises, just take the statement “Each and every living being is supremely
kind to me” at its surface value. (1) Don’t think about changing any of the
words; consider them non-negotiable. (2) Don’t try parsing the words into a
meaning you like better. (3) Don’t think about connotations and denotations:
whether spiders and trees are living beings, for example; whether each and
every has to mean all, without even a single exception. (4) And don’t don’t get
hung up on the act or action that another might do, simply sidestep that issue
for now–eventually it will become clear why it is unimportant.
Consideration One
Consider that all our day-to-day needs are
provided through the kindness of others. We brought
nothing into this life, yet, the moment we were born, we were given what we
needed–all provided through the kindness of others. Don’t drift off message
here into thinking the it-would-have-been-better-ifs. Don’t drift off into the
how it-should-have-beens. Simply consider how kind the universe is to have
provided us with an infrastructure.
Seriously
contemplate this understanding: Everything we now enjoy has been provided
through the kindness of other beings, past or present.
Consider all the ways that is true.
Consider how we are able live and move about in this life with very little
effort on our own part. If we consider facilities such as roads, cars, trains,
airplanes, ships, houses, restaurants, hotels, libraries, hospitals, shops,
money and so on, it is clear that many people worked very hard to provide these
things. Even though we make little or no contribution towards the provision of
these facilities, they are all available to us and for us through the great
kindness of others.
Consider how our general education,
even the language or languages in learn, and our spiritual training were and
continue to be provided by others. All of our realizations and insights into
how to live are and were attained in dependence upon the kindness of others. Even
our ability to learn to be more peaceful, to practice meditation and Buddhism,
is available to use through the kindness of others.*
This supreme kindness of each and
every living being is the gateway through which we see the unmitigated need to
feel and realize compassion for all living beings. It is the gateway through
which we develop this compassion by relying upon the understanding that because
of the supreme kindness of all living beings, each and every living being is
and should be an object of our compassion.
It is through the great kindness of
all living beings that we have the opportunity to live better and more
peacefully, and to make our family and friends and the world a better, more
peaceful place, and to attain the supreme happiness that comes from
enlightenment. Keeping ourselves in this perspective, it is clear that for us
all living beings are supremely kind and precious.
From the depths of our hearts, then,
we should contemplate Consideration Two (below). To do this, write out the
contemplation so you can have it with you. Often during contemplations, the
words morph into another meaning. Having it in writing with you will prevent
this. Go for a half-hour walk, preferably outside in a park or field. Why
outside? Because that’s where you will encounter other living beings whose
presence will strengthen your contemplation. During the walk, let you body
settle into the earth, feel your feet grounding you, develop a mindful
awareness of your surroundings, and think about Consideration Two: validate it
from every angle you can; consider its deeper meanings, and sense who you would
become if indeed you unquestionably and wholeheartedly cherished every living
being. Also, think about what effect this would have on you and your family and
friends and your colleagues and the planet.
Consideration Two
Each and every living being is
supremely kind to me. I cherish each and every living being.
Understanding and thinking in this
way, we generate a warm heart and a feeling of being equally close to all
living beings without exception. By continually contemplating and meditating on
these two considerations, we maintain an open and warm heart and a feeling of
being close to each and every living being, all the time, in every situation,
without exceptions.
This is our practice, to
continuously maintain an open and warm heart and a
feeling of being close to each and every living being, all the time, in every
situation, without exception. To maintain this open heart, this mind of universal
compassion and love, we train ourselves in this new perspective through
contemplation. The more we see all living beings as supremely kind to us the
more we will spontaneously cherish them all. The deeper our understanding of
this becomes, the broader our definition of “all livings beings” becomes, and
the more and more peaceful and happy we find ourselves.
To continuously maintain an
open and warm heart and a feeling of being close to each and every living
being, all the time, in every situation, without exception, is the answer to
the question: how do I relate to others without attachment? We relate to each
and every one of them with compassion. We simply cherish each and every one of
them.
There are others ways to
reason the validity of this every-living-being-is-supremely-kind-to-me
practice. Two of the most common are (1) understanding that everything I do is
to relieve my suffering, then everything everyone else does is to relieve their
suffering, therefore, regardless of the
act, then whatever anyone is doing is an act of kindness so I must respond
compassionately; and (2) if we see the actions of others, regardless of what
they are, as simple opportunities for us to practice being unconditionally
compassionate, then we can understand any action as an act of kindness.
This does not mean that all
acts are to be condoned or approved. Obviously many acts are unwise and
unskillful, like lying and stealing, and at the extremes, like child abuse and
killing. What these contemplations suggest is that we can see past the specific
acts and our labeling and judging of them, and when we do, a profound new level
of peacefulness arises from within and anger and depression fall away.
