No Soul Left Behind

“May I attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings.”

-          Bodhisattva Vow

 

One reason I am attracted to Buddhist thought has to do with this ideal of the Bodhisattva.  A Bodhisattva is a being who has not only undertaken the task of becoming enlightened but, once enlightened, has vowed to remain in the realms of suffering in order to liberate others.  In fact the vow or intention is to remain in samsara until all beings are liberated.  So the bodhisattva (i.e. one who has taken the vows) forgoes the bliss of ultimate transcendence in order to be of service to others in their spiritual awakening.  The realization of our interconnectedness and the compassion that arises from this is a core aspect of Buddhist doctrine.

I was brought up as a Christian (although I doubt that Christianity as now defined and practiced has much to do with the actual teachings of Jesus Christ.)  As a child I was taught that certain of us would be saved both because we held the correct belief system and because we tried really hard to be good.  Of course, even if we were bad, we were forgiven by virtue of adhering to the correct belief system.  I even heard the idea expressed that those of us who made it to heaven would look down upon those poor bastards in hell with a justified sense of superiority. 

The Bodhisattva is ready to descend into hell in order to help those poor bastards out.  I’m sorry but this is a core distinction in spiritual thought.  It is the difference between dualistic vision and nondual awakening.  As a facebook friend and teacher, Shambhavi Sarasvati, puts it, “Everyone, without exception, is a small fish in a small pond. That is, until you realize there is only one fish, but then size doesn't matter.”  (And all this time I was worried about size.)

Seriously though, compassionate love, or agape, as Jesus taught is about recognizing our unity within our diversity.  It is realizing that we are all here as a temporary stopover on an eternal journey home.  We will only get “there” when we realize that we are one and already home.