What is compassion, what is wisdom?

Ven. Dhammika (Buddhanet.net); edited by Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly

The Buddha's eyes of wisdom, Maitreya, Thiksey Monastery, Ladakh, India (dailymail.co.uk)

I often hear Buddhists talk about wisdom and compassion. What do these two terms mean?

Some religions believe that compassion or love (the two are very similar) is the most important spiritual quality, but they fail to develop any wisdom.

The result may be ending up a good-hearted fool, a very kind person with little or no understanding.

Other systems of thought, like science, believe that wisdom can best be developed when all emotions, including compassion, are kept out of the way. The outcome of this is that science has tended to become preoccupied with cold results and has forgotten that science should serve not destroy us or make corporations rich. It is out of greed for money, not hate, that scientists lend their skills to developing nuclear waste, bombs, germ warfare, plastic xenoestrogens, and the like.

 

Religion sees reason and wisdom as the enemy of emotions like love and faith. Science sees emotions like love and faith as enemies of reason and objectivity. Science progresses, religion declines.

Buddhism, on the other hand, teaches that to be a balanced and complete individual, we must develop both wisdom and compassion. This is the highest wisdom; this is the greatest compassion. It is not dogmatic. Buddhism bases this on actual experience. Buddhism has nothing to fear from science.

 

According to Buddhism, what is wisdom?

Sensual-pleasure is low, jhana is high (H-K-D)

The highest wisdom is seeing that in reality all phenomena are incomplete, impermanent, and not self. This understanding totally frees our hearts and leads to the great security and happiness called nirvana. However, the Buddha doesn't speak too much about this level of wisdom. It is not wisdom if we simply "believe" what we are told. Real wisdom is something to directly see and understand.

At an ordinary level, then, wisdom is to keep an open mind rather than being closed-minded, listening to other points of view rather than being bigoted, carefully examining facts that contradict our beliefs rather than burying our heads in the sand, being objective rather than prejudiced, taking time to form opinions and beliefs rather than accepting the first or most emotional thing that is offered to us, and it means remaining flexible and strong rather than stiff and brittle about what we believe.

We are wise to be ready to change our beliefs when facts that contradict them are presented to us. The Buddha's advice to the Kalama people was not to believe nothing. It was to investigate and see for oneself so that what one believes agrees with one's own experience.

A person who does this is certainly wise and is certain to eventually arrive at higher (liberating) understanding. The path of just believing what we are told would be silly and easy. The Buddha's PATH is a practice that requires courage, patience, flexibility, intelligence, and compassion.

 

So we arrive at compassion. According to Buddhism, what is compassion?

Imperfect translation has heart in the right place (zazzle.com)

Just as wisdom covers the intellectual or comprehending side of our nature, compassion covers the empathic (emotional) or feeling side of our nature.

Like wisdom, compassion is a deeply human quality. Compassion is made up of two words, "co" meaning together and "passion" meaning strong feeling.

And this is what compassion is. When we see someone in distress, we feel their pain as if it were our own -- so naturally we strive to eliminate or reduce their pain. This is compassion (karuna), the active side of love (metta,  loving-kindness, friendliness).

All the best in human beings, all the Buddha-like qualities like sharing, readiness to give comfort, sympathy, unselfishness, concern, and caring -- these are all manifestations of compassion.

Notice that in the compassionate person, care and love toward others originates in care and love for oneself. They are not mutually opposed. It is best to care for other while caring for oneself. They are mutually supportive activities.

(Playing the role of martyr makes two people miserable, ourselves and other. We give rise to pride or resentment. Then if someone helps us, we feel guilt. This is no way to practice compassion).

We can really understand others when we really understand ourselves. We can give to others when we give to ourselves. Selflessness does not mean self-abnegation; it means seeing that things are really impersonal so we can give them up, give up clinging, give up greed, give up selfishness. This is wisdom as it feeds compassion.

We will know what's best for others when we know what's best for ourselves. We can feel for others when we feel for ourselves. So in Buddhism, one's own spiritual development blossoms naturally into concern for the welfare of others.

The Buddha's life illustrates this very well. It was not one of sitting in the Himalayas, as he had done in past lives cultivating absorption (jhana) and developing good qualities, simply withdrawn enjoying the bliss of meditation.

He spent six years struggling for his own welfare, striving to be of benefit to the whole of the human world and the devas.

So you are saying that we are best able to help others after we have helped ourselves. Isn't that a bit selfish?

We usually see altruism, concern for others before oneself, as being the opposite of selfishness, concern for oneself before others. Buddhism does not see it as either one or the other but rather as a blending of the two. 

Genuine self-concern gradually matures into concern for others as one sees that others are really in the same boat, suffering in many of the same ways, not so different from oneself. 

This is genuine compassion, and it is the most beautiful jewel among the many treasures of the Buddha's teachings.

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Berkeley Buddhist Veggie Recipes

Berkeley Buddhist Monastery; Wisdom Quarterly

Grilled Kabobs (berkeleymonastery.org)

  

INGREDIENTS

12 cherry tomatoes

12 sweet mini peppers

12 zucchini cubes, 1/4 inch

12 brown or button mushrooms

12 firm fried tofu or tempeh cubes 1/2 inch

12 smoked gluten (seitan) or veggie meat cubes 1/2 inch

1 tbsp black sesame seeds

2 tbsp soy sauce paste

2 tbsp Taiwanese BBQ saute paste

PREPARATION

Slice zucchini, cube tofu, cube gluten. Mix black sesame seeds, soy sauce paste, and saute paste. Pre-marinate tofu in the fridge for 3 hours before grilling. Skewer all ingredients and brush with sauce mixture. Set the oven to broil (about 500 degrees), grill kabobs, turning if desired. Remove after 3-6 minutes. Serve over rice or salad. Serves 4. More

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Let us Love One Another.

(Above: The famous "Tank Man" who stood down the might and power of the Chinese army during the Tienanmen Square protests in 1989).

Today I just want to reach out to whomever is reading and share a moment of humanity together.

I want to share today how much I love them. Regardless of political viewpoint, religion or non-religion. We are all human beings that deserve love, respect and tolerance. I call on all of us to make this year a peaceful one--we must stop insulting one another and actually listen to one another. We CAN work together--it has been done before, so we know it is possible. My heart is brimming over with compassion for this wounded but beautiful world--if my arms were big enough I'd give the whole world a hug. We need to let go of our pride and heal one another because we're all each other has on this far-flung planet.

So, what can we do to heal this world? Well, not much on a global scale--we are pretty helpless as individuals toward changing global problems. However, we can affect great change in our own daily lives. These are the moments in grocery store when we can share a smile. Times when we can offer a hug and a patient ear to a friend who just had a bad day. These are things we can do daily--if not multiple times a day. And they make a difference. You may have no idea what sharing a smile with someone might do for their day. Maybe they're cynical about the world but that smile gave them hope that not everyone in the world is a jerk. Or maybe you shared some words of empathy with a depressed person and forgot the incident a day or two later but chances are those words were like giving water to a person parched with thirst from wandering in the desert. It might even save a life.

I can attest first hand to the power of a strangers smile, words of empathy or concern. I sometimes struggle with suicidal depression from having a psychiatric disorder, as many of you know. I can tell you that there were several times when the seemingly smallest thought of kindness gave me the strength to go on and live another day. We just don't have any idea what impact our words and actions will have on someone. So, don't disregard those few minutes of empathy that you shared on the bus with a person struggling. It might not seem it but one word of compassion can start a chain-reaction of interdependent causes that touch countless lives for the better. And that momentum builds, slower, but exponentially until one day we witness societal changes that would seem otherwise to have come from nowhere. Yet they didn't. They were a constant wearing down of hatred, anger and delusion like a seemingly weak trickle of water cracked a giant boulder into two pieces.

We don't have to be the next Nobel Peace Prize winner, a world leader, the Dalai Lama or a celebrity to bring hope, strength and confidence to millions of people. Recall the skinny, lone man who stood a column of tanks down during the Tienanmen Square demonstrations in China? His "small action" inspired countless people to challenge not just unjust authority and power but to challenge their own unjust oppression--around the world and beyond time because I am still being inspired years later in far away America from this man's action in the past. This could be the courage to leave a violent relationship, face our often crippling fears or inspire us to be better people to ourselves and those we interact with.

So, don't doubt yourself the next time you get the urge to show some kindness toward another. Don't blow it off thinking your few words couldn't help much because perhaps not to you in your present moment because you aren't in a state of torment at that time. However, to the person who those words would be directed toward, it could mean the difference between life and death. That is how we save lives. That is how we change the world for the better; sharing the present moment with another person to connect and share our common bond is about as powerful an action we can perform!!

~Peace to all beings~

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Barack Obama: An Inspiration to the World.

Don't worry, even though this post is about U.S. Senator Barack Obama, who is running for president here in America, and despite the fact that I am supporting him and plan on voting for him in the primary, I am going to try hard to not talk too much politics. I try to limit political talk here on this blog, I have another one for that stuff.

I want to instead talk about Barack Obama the person. There is no debate that Mr. Obama is a brilliant, gifted man and he could have taken any number of jobs in the private sector making a lot of money. However, Barack felt his talents were needed elsewhere and that he felt a calling to help others. So instead of taking a lucrative position at a prestigious law firm he went to work with the people in the poverty stricken, violent neighborhoods of Chicago. This wasn't always easy for him as many didn't show up to his meetings intended to motivate community leaders such as church pastors. But Obama kept at it.

He has a deep, ingrained gift of listening to people, truly listening and realizing that their suffering was his suffering. In many cases, people who are struggling just want to be heard by someone. They want to feel like someone understands their situation and has faith that they aren't stupid, lazy or worthless because they are poor, sick or homeless. Obama has a way of uplifting people and leading them to a place where they can believe in themselves again. He gave these people hope that better times were possible and that united with others, they could improve their lives and regain their dignity once more. His compassion is on full display, he couldn't hide it even if he wanted to. The very fact that he went to work for those who often have to voice to seek assistance shows that this man has a deep reservoir of compassion and loving kindness. His smile glows that kindness and when his eyes smile you can see his love for others. This is a talent that he still has today, when I hear him speak I feel inspired, uplifted, filled with hope, compassion and yes sometimes tears of joy from feeling understood. He is the first politician that upon hearing them speak, I felt chills of inspiration throughout my body.

Working in those neighborhoods stricken with just about every problem imaginable, Obama was able to bring people of all races, ethic backgrounds and religions together to work as a united unit of people to bring the change that they all so desperately wanted and needed. He understand what we call in Buddhism, oneness, inter-being or interconnectivity. He knew that society is only as strong as the "weakest" link in the chain. He knew that he couldn't feel content knowing that others were suffering and realized that his happiness and that of others is intermixed with the lives of others. He is a rare person that is able to channel many people's hopes and dreams for a better community, a better country and a better world.

To hear him speak is to be inspired to be a better person and a better member of society. He speaks with convincing sincerity that change is not only possible but inevitable just like the Dharma teaches us. He understands that we all too often fear change and only see the bad side of change but he has a way of uplifting people to see the greatness in change, to see the great possibilities in change. His infectious, positive energy beams brightly like a lighthouse in a world so depressed, cynical, tired and lost in the darkness of fear and delusion. It is hard not to feel uplifted by his unflinching optimism and faith in humanity. He has convinced me to believe again that our greatest days as a society are still ahead of us. He is not only inspiring but stands firm as a rock in the face of negativity, criticism and fear. His confidence is admirable as he isn't arrogant about it. Instead, understands how to channel it into the lives of others to assist them in finding their own confidence and greatness that is already there but hidden under layers of fear, self-doubts and pain.

Standing for equality for all people is in his DNA. He is the product of a mixed marriage, his mother white and his father black. He understands the ignorance and fear that motivates people to want to divide society into separate groups. He spent several years during his youth living in the diverse country of Indonesia where he gained further insight into how different yet similar the world can be. He spent time in Kenya with his grandmother and came to know and take pride in his African roots. He may not be a Buddhist be he understands and lives many of the Buddha's teachings, one major one being understanding that all sentient beings are equal and have worth.

Like the Buddha, Barack Obama learned in his early adult years as a community organizer that poverty is the root of much suffering in the world. He saw how poverty seeps into people's lives like a poison that drives people into a life of crime and overall suffering. He understands that to bring people out of poverty is to improve society as a whole. He is known as a uniter, he is quite gifted at being able to bring about compromises that work for all sides involved.

Unlike many politicians he has faith in ordinary citizens and sees them as equals and the foundation of his movement, unlike many others who see ordinary citizens as worthless and tokens to amass to gain money and power. He knows that he wouldn't be where he is in life without countless others. He doesn't forget his roots and where he came from and I think that helps him remain humble and grounded in reality. This is practicing the Dharma teaching of no-self or selflessness where despite having great confidence in himself and seeking power in the government he realizes that his power is nothing without using it to vastly improve the lives of others. He understands that his mission in life isn't just about him but rather about us, everyone. I can see in his eyes and hear in his words and know in his actions that he doesn't think he is above or below anyone else.

In dedicating his life to serving others he is a great example of Right Livelihood. He could have been a very successful, wealthy lawyer and helped many people but his sights were set higher knowing that serving in public office he could help even more beings. That kind of self-sacrifice is rare and very admirable.

He tries to adhere to Right Speech when he speaks because he uses his words to uplift rather than destroy, to heal instead of hurt. True like all of us he sometimes doesn't say the right thing but overall I believe he understands the power of words and weaves them in a way that is helpful and not hurtful.

Barack is a man of peace and you can see that in his eyes and loving smile. When many others were for the Iraq war, he stood on the side of peace. He understands deeply that peace must be
a key aspect to a thriving and loving society. I can feel that this peace stems from a vast pool of peace within his essence, that he is at peace with himself and therefore able to help others feel at peace as well.

Barack Obama may not be a Buddhist (he's Christian and of course Christians share these same values) but he lives many of the teachings of the Dharma and I think that is a big reason why he is the inspirational figure that he is today.

~Peace to all beings~

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