Four Great Vows of Bodhisattvas, First Vow

 

 

Sentient beings are innumerable;

I vow to help them all.
Afflictions are inexhaustible;
I vow to end them all.
Dharma doors are boundless;
I vow to master them all.
Buddhahood is supreme;
I vow to attain it.

With much enthusiasm to learn and practice the teachings, most people start by reading books and listening to teachings by various teachers and writers. But in the vows above, we see that mastering the many Dharma doors, the different methods of learning and practice, is the third vow, not the first.

Our first step in becoming a bodhisattva is to give rise to the vow to help all beings. If we practice just to help ourselves or those we love, our mind will not be broad and spacious. It will be narrow and constricted, and our practice will be selfish.

With the first great vow, the aspiration to help all beings, our great compassion will be generated and it will compel us to be diligent on the bodhisattva path. Without this compassion and diligence, we will give up when encountering obstacles. Thus the first vow is imperative if we are to truly help others.

Comments

[Gloria]

I understand the idea behind this. But is it realistic? Will it actually make a difference? Research has shown that pedophiles can't be rehabilitated. Or does it take lifetimes to heal those kinds of wounds?

I'm sorry that I sound so cold and cruel. This has always been a difficult idea to come to terms with.

When I try to put the anger aside I can see that this man is truly suffering. I want to cry for him.

[Shi Wuling]

Is it realistic? Yes.

Easy? No.

We cannot control the outcome, in this case the changing of a pedophile's behavior. But we can control our own thoughts, speech, and behavior. The thought of wanting another killed plants a seed for killing. When conditions are right, that seed will mature and we will kill another being.

The seeds for violence that erupted in this terrible behavior were planted in the man's consciousness in past lifetimes. If he had been able to let go of the anger at the time, he would not be acting in this manner today. Seeing the terrible consequences of anger, we need to let go of any of our own thoughts of revenge.

We do not know if we will be able to touch this man on a deeper level undetectable to us. What we do know is if we kill him, there will be no possibility of helping him to end his cycle of violence.

This first of the four great vows is to develop the aspiration to help all beings nonjudgmentally and without expectations. We wish to help "all" beings not just the ones who behave as we wish. This is not easy. It's a practice that takes lifetimes to develop. But the place to start, as you have done in your last paragraph, is where we are—facing people who are suffering.

[Jak]

Hello... Even though i respect all religions i still struggle with my own spirituality from time to time. The main reason for my struggle is the fact that i am a pedophile; even though i would never hurt a boy sexually or physically i have still been born with the attraction towards them. I have the same desire to share sex with a boy as much as any adult would have for another adult;but it is my knowlage for what is right for the child that stops me from doing those things.
My point is; is that even though i feel love and attraction for children; but do not act these emotions out; does this still make me a monster? I cannot help the way i feel and did not choose the way i am. What advice would you give me?

[Venerable Wuling]

Jak, we are all born with desires and attachments. That is why we are still in the cycle of rebirth. We can give in to those desires or we can work to control them. You understand that to act on your desires as a pedophile would bring great harm to an innocent child and so you work hard and control yourself. This is what our practice is all about—restraining ourselves from harming others.

Ideally, we would not have any thoughts of desire. But since we are not yet awakened, we start from where we are. Each one of us has committed the karmas that have lead to our being the person we are today. To judge and label others or ourselves is pointless because none of us knows the causes that have lead us to who we are. All we now know is that those causes are fixed and cannot be changed.

But we can change who we are and who we will become with our current thoughts and actions. You are successfully controlling your actions. Do not judge yourself; but, rather, continue to control, reduce, and eventually eliminate harmful thoughts and impulses. This is something that each of us needs to do.

[Jak]

thankyou... I see your religion from a different perspective now and im glad that you have helped me. There is however one more reason why i would'nt consider your way of life. can you help me out one more time?
I have always had a very challenging spiritual time growing up... Because i was sexually different from others i turned away from god because i feared that he hated me and so turned to satanism. i joined a cult and i can honestly say i felt accepted for once in my life. However, one ofthe members in the cult told me that he had carried out a spell on me and had cursed me; taking away my souland all of my powers...
I didnt believe him at first, however the phycological effects of this soon took hold and i started to become paranoid.The incident still haunts me today and sometimes i feel that my soul has been ripped out of me and that i am spiritually empty. How could i possibly start a new and spiritually enlightining religion such as buddhism if i have no soul or spiritual powers to build on? Does buddhism believe that a persons spiritual power can be taking from them and if so how can they get them back?

[Jak]

in addition to that imnot in that circleanymore, im trying to defeat my past...any help from ppl who are awakened can only be positive for me

[Venerable Wuling]

Each of has the same true nature as a Buddha—our own Buddha-nature. No one can take this from us. A man who is able to control his urges because he knows such urges are wrong and will harm another is acting from his Buddha-nature.

We are born the way we are because of our past actions and thoughts. What we think and do today will create our future. We cannot change the past, but the future is open to us. In each moment, you have the ability to decide how to behave correctly in the next moment. That ability has not been taken from you. Do not worry, you still have your Buddha-nature, your true nature.

[Claire]

Dear Jak,

May I share with you something from the metaphysical science's viewpoint on the 'Law of Attraction' which is that: 'Likes attract Likes' and thus; 'as you think so do you become'.

Those who are vulnerable, sensitive and ignorant (esp. those who have given their power away, not realizing the truth of their God-nature within) are easy prey to other people's unscrupulous and evil actions, which unfortunately, includes dabbing in black magic. And it is so sad that they do not realize that it is in the Mind; and that they themselves can have the power (if they so believe it) to change for the positive: their thinking, their situation and predicament.

If you have believed in black magic,then why not turn your mind now to believe in its counterpart, good magic? If there is darkness, there is also the light. Darkness cannot overcome Light, but Light does overcome darkness. All you have to do, if you are in darkness, is to switch on the light. In the universal law of attraction that "Likes attracts Likes" and that 'as above, so below', FAITH is the key. You need to know, understand and to truly and firmly believe it so, and then it is so. So you need to have faith or the belief to help you and to change your wrong thinking. Again, the mind!

If you have once believed in GOD, then why not have trust and believe in GOD again?. But this time, understand the Essence of GOD, which I believe, is Pure Love and Compassion, which encompasses all that is good, perfect and positive. GOD does not hate, Jak, otherwise IT cannot be GOD. Any thing that is negative is not of GOD. There is difference between GOD and God; positive is not negative and Light is not Darkness. And also Christ, in his gentle, and beautiful teachings, stated that we are all 'children of GOD, make in His Image. And believe this powerful statement of Christ: 'Though I may walk through the valley of darkness, I shall fear no evil, for Thou art with me'. This applied to you too; if you believe that we all are all children of GOD, i.e. 'children of the Light'.

Our characteristic traits and behavior may be negative and ignorant but our 'kingdom of GOD within' or our innate 'Buddha nature within' is truly PERFECT,
INFINITE, and EVERLASTING. So do not let any one have you thinking that you are any lesser or 'soul-less'. No one has that power to take that away from you by having you believe otherwise, except you yourself and only you, and your mind.

If I may suggest, to encourage you, you have nothing to lose to look deeper into Buddhism as a way of life. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. and if you do have the affinity to be on this path, you will slowly but surely improve your life, as the gentle teachings will help guide you onto the right track of goodness and light, and hopefully in time to let go of your pain, misguided negative thinking, and in time, to become more positive, peaceful, and happier being. If you are truly serious in your study and practice, you will understand your self and life better, and to realize the potential Buddha nature that is innate in all of us, saints and sinners alike. I can certainly say that it has changed my life completely as I am now much more calmer, and happier; and hopefully a bit less selfish and self-centered than before.

Namo Amitabha
Claire