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The practice of Buddhism is most frequently associated with the quiet, reflective and introspective aspects of formal meditation, with little recognition or realisation of the many means by which we can cultivate such qualities as joy, gladness and the uplift of the heart.
The devotional aspects of our practice as seen through solitary meditation can seem pointless, or even foolish, but experience teaches us that meditation alone is not a guaranteed entry into the sublime – it can be a wearisome struggle with a wayward mind!
This booklet therefore is about the recognition and cultivation of those means whereby we bring emotive forces into our daily lives.
We need to make the Buddha-Dhamma-Sangha a vital, integral part of our world-view, to inculcate a clear sense of reverence and pride in being disciples of the Blessed One and a sense of fellowship with all those who have trodden and are currently treading the Path to Peace and Truth.
We can feel gladdened and uplifted by the sense of aspirational belonging. So we are seeking to create a ‘crisis-free zone’ – to develop a sanctuary or refuge of our own which we can call upon or retire to, not just in formal meditation, but at all times throughout our daily lives.
This booklet is not concerned with quiet absorption or introspection. It refers more to those outward forms of practice which help us dislodge negative moods or states of mind and substitute in their place, a contemplative space of joy and saddhā.
Although saddhā is translated as ‘faith’, it refers more to a heart-felt sense of ‘rightness’ – an instinctive, intuitive awareness that ‘this is Right’. When our saddhā is unshakeably rooted in the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha, they, in their turn, evoke a sense of zest and enthusiasm to continue.
Once we are firmly established in the Triple Gem, and once we can call upon our sanctuary whenever there’s the need, we have a sound foundation for the cultivation of concentration and calm. This is because the mind, being thereby lifted up, gains perspective on the realm of mundane existence with all its worries, doubts and regrets. However, this is not a refuge that we can simply conjure up at will; it needs the right conditions and we must create them.
We may have experienced a sense of uplift, a feeling of trust when we behold a Buddha image, visit a monastery, or look at a shrine. There is an all-pervading sense that beneath the superficial turmoil and struggle of life, all is well; there is something beyond our limited vision worthy of exploration, worthy of intense effort.
Devotional Practice
One purpose of this booklet is to encourage us to develop our devotional practice, making such symbolic bodily actions as offering candles, incense, and flowers, chanting and bowing, to foster and support the meditative mind. Such practices help us create and focus the mind which otherwise might be drawn towards those commonplace manifestations of the ego; our wanting something, our hoping to ‘get somewhere’, or the longing to achieve, acquire and possess some self-orientated goal. Instead, we should be seeking the very opposite motivation – to give up ‘doing’ anything; to cease the constant wanting, and to practise humility and relinquishment. Only then can the mind settle into the loving, open space of citta, the heart.
On occasions when silent recollection is not strong enough to bring us to this space, we need to have recourse to actions which will facilitate or catalyse this transformative process.
A spontaneous, unfettered response to another’s need – be it by practical help, material goods or the comforting touch of a caring hand not only brings succour and support to the recipient, but arouses joy and gladness in the heart of the donor.
With the cultivation of increasing sensitivity and awareness, situations inseparable from the very fabric of life itself, offer ample opportunities to recognise and overcome the insidious demands of ‘self’ and to develop in its place, an unrestricted tenderness and compassion towards all beings.
Although most of us could live at a prosaic level of everyday reality for a while, once we begin to meditate and cultivate the mind, we feel the need to uplift and gladden the heart, rather than living by simply conforming to established customs.
If we can find symbols and images which come to have a special significance for us, coming alive by our living relationship to them, then their very presence will help us check unwanted, unskilful perceptions such as worries, grudges or fears which otherwise would come to dominate our thoughts.
Furthermore, in adopting and developing suitable rituals as an integral part of our practice, we come to realise the inestimable role they play in strengthening our resolve and motivation, offering as they do, a tangible form by which we can express our commitment and devotion.
Recollection of the Triple Gem
One of the fundamental meditation systems taught in the West, is the recollection of the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha. This is a method recommended by the Buddha himself, where one brings to mind, thinks about, and considers the quality of the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha. One ponders over them and recollects them rather as one uses a mantra or rosary, taking them into one’s heart to uplift the spirit and displace other far less noble thoughts and intentions. This is no superstitious gimmickry, but a skilful practice to brighten the heart by turning the mind towards an auspicious theme.The Buddha pointed out that all the time the mind was occupied in this way, it was free from far less wholesome thoughts, from worries, fears or anxieties.
Such recollections, and the gladness they evoke, function at a different level from ordinary, mundane reality; they operate according to a different kind of perception – a ‘soulfulness’. Yet, it is important to recognise also, that whilst not wishing to reduce our devotions to the level of a routine duty, it is psychologically helpful to adhere to a regular time for formal practice (as seen in the morning and evening pūjās within a monastery).
Ideally, we dedicate a room solely to our practice, but when this is not possible we create a shrine in a peaceful part of our living space. Rather than seeking excuses to avoid or postpone practice, the mind comes to accept an established pattern for the day, when we have a regular place and time for our devotions.
Religious Occasions
Another purpose of this booklet is to help newcomers feel more at ease with the formal practices involved in relating to the shrine and Triple Gem on such religious occasions as births, marriages, house blessings and deaths. Whatever the culture, one always finds that such occasions have a specific significance. There is a universal need to give them a particular place in the heart, and it is the role of religious ceremonies and rituals to do just that.By so doing, our practice becomes more alive and tuned to those particular occasions, imbuing them with a special kind of auspiciousness; a greater attention to the occasion in all its detail serves to convey the quality of that occasion more deeply.
Furthermore, such ceremonies as taking the Three Refuges and Five Precepts have a valuable role in group situations where there might be a number of people with no special affinity to one another, yet who feel united and bound in a common initiative, realising, in their collective devotions, a wider, all-embracing sense of fellowship and community.
Similarly, when people from different backgrounds meet at the monastery to offer dāna, that very activity, that corporate generosity, inculcates a sense of oneness, a feeling of belonging and kinship. Finally, apart from such observances for larger gatherings, there are more personal, intimate ceremonies, each with their own particular significance, each bringing a sense of the sacred into daily life.
So there are many ways including a diversity of devotional language by which we can support and strengthen our practice.
These are: the blessing of a marriage (after a civil ceremony); the rites of passage to help the bereaved as well as those who are dying, or have died; and ceremonies to commemorate birthdays.
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Редакция перевода от 31.10.2016 18:06