dharmatalks

We live in a world that is growing more aware of the need for better health. Few people would disagree that it’s important to train our bodies through exercise, proper eating and adequate rest. Bottled water sales have quadrupled in the United States in the past couple years, as more and more people realise the importance of physical health.

Many of those reading this will have been among the hundreds of thousands of people who decided to train their bodies and lose excess weight, as part of their New Year’s resolution.

But how many of us have ever considered the importance of training our minds?

The Tibetan Lama Langri Tangpa authored a text known as “The Eight Verses of Thought Transformation” — a foundational part of the study of Lojong, or Mind Training. The practice of Lojong was developed over a 300-year period, between the tenth and thirteenth centuries of the Common Era, as part of Mahayana practice.

One monk, named Chekawa, learned of the Eight Verses and went to study with one of Lama Langri Tangpa’s disciples for twelve years. Upon leaving that teacher (Sharawa), Chekawa went to live among a colony of lepers, with whom he shared the practice of Lojong.

Over time, many of those who had been suffering from leprosy began to be healed. As the news of these healings spread, soon people who were not infected came to study Lojong with Master Chekawa.

The Eight Verses of Thought Transformation are part of the morning reflections of every monk in the Order of Contemplative Monks of the Eightfold Path but they are useful tools for each of us to contemplate and attempt to put into practice, as we strive to follow a Dharma of Compassion:

• With the thought of attaining enlightenment for the welfare of sentient beings, who are more precious than a wish fulfilling jewel, I will constantly practice holding them dear
• Whenever I am with others, I will practice seeing myself as the lowest of all and from the very depth of my heart, I will respectfully hold others as supreme
• In all actions, I will examine my mind and the moment a disturbing attitude arises, endangering myself and others, I will firmly confront and avert it
• Whenever I meet a bad person who is overwhelmed by negative energy and intense suffering, I will hold such a rare one dear, as if I had found a precious treasure
• When others, out of jealousy, mistreat me with abuse, slander, and so on,I will practice accepting defeat and offering the victory to them
• When someone I have benefited and in whom I have placed great trust hurts me badly, I will practice seeing that person as my supreme teacher
• In short, I will offer directly and indirectly every benefit and happiness to all beings, my mothers. I will practice in secret taking upon myself all their harmful actions and sufferings
• Without these practices being defiled by the eight worldly concerns, by perceiving all phenomena as illusory, I will practice without grasping to release all beings from the bondage of the disturbing, unsubdued mind and karma

By working with the practice of Lojong, we can develop better control over our emotional states, and bring about what we refer to as “calm abiding” — the state in which we are able to use our minds, rather than having our minds use us.

His Holiness, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama speaks of the benefits of Lojong, which increases our ability to generate true compassion:

“From my own limited experience I have found that the greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion.

“The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own sense of well-being becomes. Cultivating a close, warm-hearted feeling for others automatically puts the mind at ease. This helps remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have and gives us the strength to cope with any obstacles we encounter. It is the ultimate source of success in life.

“As long as we live in this world we are bound to encounter problems. If, at such times, we lose hope and become discouraged, we diminish our ability to face difficulties. If, on the other hand, we remember that it is not just ourselves but every one who has to undergo suffering, this more realistic perspective will increase our determination and capacity to overcome troubles. Indeed, with this attitude, each new obstacle can be seen as yet another valuable opportunity to improve our mind!

“Thus we can strive gradually to become more compassionate, that is we can develop both genuine sympathy for others’ suffering and the will to help remove their pain. As a result, our own serenity and inner strength will increase.”

Perhaps it’s time we gave as much attention to the need to train our mind as we do to train our abs!

नमस्त

Namasté

dharmacharya gurudas sunyatananda

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Drawing on the essential teachings of the great spiritual teachers, philosophers and freethinkers throughout time, Dharmacharya Gurudas Śunyatananda (retired Archbishop Francis-Maria Salvato, O.C.) has been regarded as a provocative, revolutionary “voice of reason” within the field of religion and spirituality, since 1983. Having the distinction of being one of the few openly non-theistic, openly-gay and post-denominational thinkers ever to serve as Bishop-Exarch and spiritual leader of the autocephalic Eastern Catholic Franciscans in North America, Gurudas is the author of more than 600 articles, eight books and currently serves as the spiritual advisor for a non-theistic, intentional spiritual community, The Spiritus Project. He can be reached at: http://dharmadudeunplugged.com

Copyright ©2008, His Eminence Dharmacharya Gurudas Sunyatananda (The Most Reverend Dr. F. Francis-Maria G. Salvato, M.Sc., O.C.). All rights reserved. This material may be reproduced, blogged, quoted or distributed, provided the entire copyright including contact information remain intact. It may NOT be altered in any way, without express written permission.