Bodhicitta in Practice

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 Citing such verses, a teacher often elaborates on the benefits of having faith and its crucial role in spiritual transformation with the aim of helping a student generate faith in the teacher, teachings, paths, and results. There is a popular Tibetan saying that goes: "For the hook of the Buddha's compassion to catch hold, sentient beings need the ring of faith." Another popular Buddhist statement found in ''The Sūtra of Ten Dharmas'' (''Daśadharmakasūtra'') says "A person without faith cannot give rise to positive things just as a burnt seed won’t produce a green sprout."<ref>''dad pa med pa'i mi la ni''/ /''dkar po'i chos rnams mi skye ste''/ /''me yis sa bon tshig rnams la''/ /''myu gu sngon po ji bzhin no''//. See ''Daśadharmakasūtra'' (''<i>'</i>Phags pa chos bcu pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po'i mdo''), in Derge Kangyur  D53, dkon brtsegs, vol. 40, kha, fol. 166a, http://purl.bdrc.io/resource/MW22084_0053. See also ''Mañjuśrī Root Tantra'' (''Āryamañjuśrīmūlatantra'', ''<i>'</i>Phags pa 'jam dpal gyi rtsa ba'i rgyud'', in Derge Kangyur D543, rgyud, vol. 88, na, fol. 159b, http://purl.bdrc.io/resource/MW4CZ5369_0543.</ref><ref>(link to teachings on faith)</ref>
+A more specific faith required in this case is the faith and trust in the value and merits of the thought of awakening so that one would seek it earnestly. For this reason, many sūtras and masters like Śāntideva extol the power of bodhicitta as a source of incredible merit and benefit. A student is recommended to repeatedly reflect on the merits of bodhicitta and generate great interest in and high regard for the thought of awakening, resulting in a strong enthusiasm to generate it.
+Another fundamental emotion one must cherish and cultivate as a condition for the thought of awakening is compassion, an intense wish to free all sentient beings from suffering and the causes of suffering. Compassion is considered to be the root of the thought of awakening, which is defined as having the two components of compassion and wisdom. Compassion feels the suffering of sentient beings, and wisdom understands the perfect state of the Buddha as the ultimate freedom from suffering. Students are instructed to cultivate compassion, and teachers use different methods, including storytelling, as a way to engender compassion and convince students of its spiritual efficacy and power.<ref>(Read about the power of compassion through Asaṅga's story).</ref> Motivated by the intense compassion to deliver sentient beings from suffering and the deep faith in buddhahood as the ultimate state of deliverance, one must have an earnest wish to seek the state of the Buddha.
+<h4>Preceptorial Support</h4>
+Just as a person on a long and arduous journey to an unknown place needs a good guide, it is vital to have a knowledgeable and experienced teacher to guide the student on the spiritual path to enlightenment. Such a spiritual master is often called a ''kalyanamitra'', or virtuous friend. In ''The Stem Array Sūtra'' (''Gaṇḍavyūhasūtra''), the Buddha compares such a master to a mother who gives birth, a father who attends to the child's welfare, a nanny who constantly looks after the child, a guide who shows the path, a doctor who heals, a guard who protects, etc.<ref>''rigs kyi bu khyod kyis bdag la ni nad par 'du shes bskyed do''/ /''dge ba'i bshes gnyen la ni sman pa'i 'du shes dang''/ ''gdams ngag la ni sman gyi 'du shes dang''/ ''nan tan nyams su blang ba la ni nad 'tsho ba'i 'du shes bskyed par bya'o''/. ''The Stem Array Sūtra'' makes up the lengthy final chapter of the ''The Sūtra of the Ornament of the Buddhas'' (''Buddhāvataṃsakamahāvaipūlyasūtra''). For this passage, see ''Buddhāvataṃsakanāmamahāvaipulyasūtrāt gaṇḍavyūhasūtraḥ paṭalaḥ'' (''Shin tu rgyas pa chen po'i mdo sangs rgyas phal po che zhes bya ba las sdong pos brgyan pa'i le'u ste bzhi bcu rtsa''), in Derge Kangyur D44, phal chen, vol. 38, nga, fol. 286b–287a, http://purl.bdrc.io/resource/WA0RK0044-45.</ref>
+Many Buddhist writings discuss the qualities and character of a spiritual teacher, how to find and follow such a teacher, and the numerous benefits of following the teacher. In ''The Way of the Bodhisattva'', Śāntideva describes the teacher for someone on the Mahāyāna path as having two qualities.
+{{QuoteCite
+		|quote-text=Never, at the cost of life or limb,
+Forsake your virtuous friend, your teacher,
+Learned in the doctrine of the Mahāyāna,
+Supreme in Bodhisattva discipline. (5.102)<ref>Blankleder and Fletcher, ''Way of the Bodhisattva'', 75.</ref>
+}}

Bodhicitta in Practice

Revision as of 19:30, 2 May 2025