The Desire to Change the World

In reading and discussing the last section in Chapter 5 last Sunday we got into a discussion on how you change the world and other people.  This is a critical question in Buddhism, as what is the point of attaining insight into ourselves and how to live if it can't be shared in a meaningful way.  It is especially a problem in the Mahayana tradition as your motivation for enlightenment is for the purpose of helping others.

Making this question current and relevant is the display of violence this past week involving the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and others in Arizona.  How can our study, meditation and the rest prevent such tragedies from occurring?  How do we share the truth of compassion and interdependence of life with those who, not only have not realized it, but act in a contrary violent way?  Shantideva also asked this question hundreds of years ago in ancient India and gives us an answer that is not totally satisfactory but has a ring of truth to it.

Harmful beings are everywhere like space itself.
Impossible it is that all should be suppressed,
But let this angry mind alone be overthrown,
And it is though all foes have been subdued.

To cover all the earth with sheets of leather-
Where could such amounts of skin be found?
But with the leather soles of just my shoes
It is as though I cover all the earth!

And thus the outer course of things
I myself cannot restrain.
But let me just restrain my mind,
And what is left to be restrained?

Through working on ourselves in an honest and true way and living as an example of someone who has transcended negative emotions (or at least is working to do so) is the best way to change the world.  We are interconnected and we do influence others and the world everyday.  For Americans this approach may seem slow and ineffective.  But look at your own life for a moment and what has made you change or inspired new ways of thinking in you?  Change is never successfully imposed from the outside.  Instead meaningful change grows from the inside out because people are inspired by an experience or another person to look at the world and act in a different way.

In spite of our best intentions, we cannot force the world to change even if it is for the better.  Shantideva points out that we just don't have the power to do that.  We must inspire change and prove it is possible by doing it, and in this way we will change the world...even if it not as fast and as dramatic as the world needs or as we would like.

Tether the Elephant with Mindfulness' Rope.

Chapter five of Shantideva's text is titled "Vigilant Introspection."  In this chapter we start getting more practical advice about how to make progress on the path of the Boddhisattvas and the first step is mindfulness.  It is not unique to Buddhism that in order to develop something or achieve some goal you first must be able to act when it matters.  Shantideva talks about the virtues of mindfulness and encourages us to cultivate it.  The question is can we master our attention and direct it upon the task you want to attend to?  Can we do better at refraining from negative activities which we habitually fall into?  Mindfulness is the critical skill that we need to be able to make real and lasting progress in these efforts.

If with mindfulness' rope, 

The elephant of mind is tethered all around, 

Our fears will come to nothing, 

Every virtue drops into our hands. (from pg. 61)

If you cannot control your mind, then your mind controls you.  I think most of us have situations where we are in control but have other situations where we let go of that control.  Think for example how you may deal with conflict at home vs. in the work place.  You would not engage in certain behavior at work because it would damage critical relationships or cost you your job.  But at home we let our hair down and talk to people in ways we would not in a more formal environment.  I think this illustrates the capacity for control and a subtle form of discretion that is exercised, maybe subconsciously, when we need to use it or not. 

When we let go of the reins of our mind like this is, when we do things with less than our best self and commit harmful actions, we hurt ourselves or others.  

With the goal of developing mindfulness we develop more awareness of what we do, when we do it and eventually why we do it.  From this position we will be able to change ourselves in a meaningful and lasting way but as Shantideva warns: 

For those who have no introspection,

Though they hear the teachings, ponder them, or meditate, 

Like water seeping from a leaking jar, 

Their learning will not settle in their memories. (from pg. 64)

This is a very appropriate post for New Years and may even help some of those New Years resolutions stick this time.  ;)  Please post your reflections or your resolutions for the new year in comments.