An Eye Opener

Menu:

About this section:
Imagine trying to generate even the slightest bodhicitta -- the intention to become fully enlightened in order to benefit all sentient beings most effectively -- in a prison environment. It's similar to generating compassion in hell! Although we are all prisoners of our negative karma, negative emotions, and disturbing attitudes, we still have this precious human life. Nothing can ever take away our Buddha potential. Ven. Chodron and the prisoners with whom she corresponds offer practitioners insights into how they can benefit themselves and others in even the most difficult situations.

Excerpts:

While he was going on and on, I could see the anger on the surface fine, but also I started to see all of the suffering underneath. It was weird, because it was so evident to me that I could almost feel it physically. At the same time, I could see myself—I’ve been known to get out of control before—and it re-enforced in me the desire not to be like that anymore.

An Eye-opener

By Bryan Taylor

I had an eye-opener not long ago. We were talking in therapy group and someone mentioned the news that Israel had declared war on Hamas and that they were bombing Gaza. A Christian guy said, “Amen!” I was shocked initially; then I became angry. I stewed about it for three or four hours until later that night we were watching the evening news. They were showing the ravaged parts of Gaza. The scene showed a school that had been bombed and they were pulling dead bodies from the rubble.

I was sitting near the guy who had made the “Amen” comment was waiting for him to say something so I could give him a piece of my opinion. He kept his peace and the longer I watched, the more it dawned on me that this guy doesn’t have a clue as to what is going on over there. He doesn’t know what these people are going through. He doesn’t know their pain and their suffering.

All of my focus was on what this guy doesn’t know and what he can’t feel, when I realized that I don’t either. I’ve never been bombed. My house, school, or business has never been destroyed by warfare. I don’t know what it is like to lose a child. I realized that we all have our own ideas and opinions, but we really don’t know first-hand what it really feels like to be on the other side of the news camera. I also realized that our individual opinions are the same as what has caused the war to begin with. My anger is the same anger that the Palestinians feel. His is the same righteousness that the Israelis feel. I came away with a different outlook. I am still terribly sad for all of the suffering. I still think that bombing people’s homes is wrong. But I also know that although war is not the answer, I don’t really know what the answer may be.

February 2009

All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced by any means for commercial purposes or mass circulation without prior written permission from the webmaster who will communicate your request to Ven. Thubten Chodron. You're welcome to download for your own personal reading.
Please also contact the webmaster if you find any mistakes or broken links.