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We may wonder why there is a need to again mention the process of dedication at the end of the text when it has already been covered in earlier chapters. Indeed, why devote an entire chapter to dedication? Is this not unnecessary repetition? There are several reasons for this. Crosby and Skilton point out that in the third chapter what is being dedicated is the merit which arises from developing aspirational bodhicitta, whereas here, in the last chapter, having worked our way through the practices which actually implement the perfections, the merit that is being dedicated is that which arises from engaged bodhicitta [Link to GLOSSARY].<ref>Crosby and Skilton, ''Bodhicaryāvatāra'', 134.</ref> As Śāntideva himself says in the first chapter of this text: | We may wonder why there is a need to again mention the process of dedication at the end of the text when it has already been covered in earlier chapters. Indeed, why devote an entire chapter to dedication? Is this not unnecessary repetition? There are several reasons for this. Crosby and Skilton point out that in the third chapter what is being dedicated is the merit which arises from developing aspirational bodhicitta, whereas here, in the last chapter, having worked our way through the practices which actually implement the perfections, the merit that is being dedicated is that which arises from engaged bodhicitta [Link to GLOSSARY].<ref>Crosby and Skilton, ''Bodhicaryāvatāra'', 134.</ref> As Śāntideva himself says in the first chapter of this text: | ||
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Just as there is a difference between having the wish to go somewhere and actually setting out on the road, so there is a much greater difference in the positive potential which is created from just wishing that we and others attain enlightenment versus actively entering into the practices which lead us directly on that path. | Just as there is a difference between having the wish to go somewhere and actually setting out on the road, so too there is a much greater difference in the positive potential which is created from just wishing that we and others attain enlightenment versus actively entering into the practices which lead us directly on that path. | ||
Another reason for the process of dedication here is related to the structure of the six perfections. This last chapter comes at the end of an explanation of how to actively involve ourselves in each of the six perfections. So it is natural that once they are complete we take all that positive action and make sure that it is dedicated to the highest welfare. | Another reason for the process of dedication here is related to the structure of the six perfections. This last chapter comes at the end of an explanation of how to actively involve ourselves in each of the six perfections. So it is natural that once they are complete we take all that positive action and make sure that it is dedicated to the highest welfare. | ||
Revision as of 16:37, 14 May 2024
Dedication for the Propagation and Prosperity of the Buddha's Doctrine
The chapter concludes with Śāntideva's verse of dedication to Mañjughoṣa and to his gurus. Mañjuśrī's kindness enabled Śāntideva to give up all his attachments to worldly life and to make sincere effort in the virtuous practices of learning, contemplation, and meditation.
And now to Mañjughoṣha I prostrate, Whose kindness is the wellspring of my good intent. And to my virtuous friends I also bow Whose inspiration gave me strength to grow.
Page(s) 171
Blankleder, Helena, and Wulstan Fletcher (Padmakara Translation Group), trans. The Way of the Bodhisattva: A Translation of the Bodhicharyāvatāra. By Śāntideva. Rev. ed. Shambhala Classics. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2006.
Particularly because of Mañjuśrī, the wish to cultivate bodhicitta and the urge to compose the Bodhicaryāvatāra arose in Śāntideva, and so he pays his respects and offers his body, speech, and mind up in homage. In Crosby and Skilton's translation from the Sanskrit, we read the following:
I bow down to Mañjughoṣha through whose inspiration my mind turns to good. I honour the spiritual friend through whose inspiration it grows strong. (10.58)[1]
This translation gives the feel of how Mañjughoṣa's influence was the initial cause that helped turn Śāntideva's mind to good. Once turned in a positive direction, his gurus then helped him to build on this inspiration and make firm in his mind the realizations related to hearing, contemplation, and meditation.
Khenpo Kunpal says the following of this homage to the gurus:
In the same vein he prostrates respectfully to the holy beings thanks to whose kindness he was able to take monastic ordination and receive the bhikshu vows—the same beings who spread and propagate the Dharma of transmission and realization, namely, the ordaining abbot Jinadeva and the other teachers of the glorious monastery of Nalanda and elsewhere. To all his spiritual teachers, therefore, Shantideva bows down.[2]
This provides us with the link back to Śāntideva's history—his gurus and the tradition of Nalanda. Khenpo Kunpal continues by saying that
in the same way, we too should consider as our teachers all those through whose kindness our minds have absorbed some of the qualities of the Dharma of transmission and realization. And remembering their kindness, we too should respectfully reverence them in thought, word, and deed.[3]
We should always be reminded that while these are personal reflections of Śāntideva on his experiences of training, they are also an indirect form of advice for ourselves. This is true of the text as a whole. In the first chapter, although he says the text was only composed to familiarize his mind with the topics, inadvertently his audience also gains a complete instruction on the way of the bodhisattva.
For us also, it is important to continually remember the kindness of our teachers. Through them we have received the inspiration to turn our minds toward the Buddhist path. And it is through their continued support and guidance that we traverse the road that leads to buddhahood.
