Shantideva's Teaching
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Description
Shantideva lived twelve hundred years ago in northern India. He is the author of the Sanskrit classic elucidating the bodhisattva's way of life, known as the Bodhicharya-avatara, or "Engaging in the Bodhisattva's Way."
Shantideva was by birth a prince, and when he was still a boy, the goddess Tara warned him in a dream about the miseries of worldly existence. On the very eve of Shantideva's royal enthronement, the wisdom deity Manjusri likewise admonished him, so Shantideva forsook his throne and went into the forest to practice yoga and meditation. Later he became a monk at Nalanda University.
This story shows how deceptive appearances can be, especially in the spiritual realm. Isn't it difficult to recognize the hidden saints among us?
Shantideva was by birth a prince, and when he was still a boy, the goddess Tara warned him in a dream about the miseries of worldly existence. On the very eve of Shantideva's royal enthronement, the wisdom deity Manjusri likewise admonished him, so Shantideva forsook his throne and went into the forest to practice yoga and meditation. Later he became a monk at Nalanda University.
This story shows how deceptive appearances can be, especially in the spiritual realm. Isn't it difficult to recognize the hidden saints among us?
Citation
Das, Lama Surya. "Shantideva's Teaching." In The Snow Lion's Turquoise Mane: Wisdom Tales from Tibet, 97–98. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1992.
