Emptiness and compassion
The heart sutra and the purpose of Buddha’s teachings are to achieve emptiness and compassion in life. The emptiness that a devotee seeks is not that of despair and hopelessness, but one that lifts off all suffering and makes life weightless and free. Throughout my life, I have tried to understand life and how one should live, as I felt that what I was raised knowing was not the way things should be. Reading the heart sutra was the start of a journey that would later transform my entire perception of life and how things should be. I agree with Buddha’s teaching that to attain enlightenment, emptiness and compassion need to be pursued by the seeker. Emptiness and compassion go hand in hand. The paper shall first look to the empty nature of all humans, then the heart sutra to understand emptiness. The paper will also look into one’s mental attitude toward achieving Nirvana and finally emptiness and compassion as the ultimate achievement of Nirvana.
Thesis statement: emptiness and compassion go hand in hand and are the ultimate goal of any seeker of Nirvana.
Naturally, all human beings are empty by virtue of their empty nature; they are pure and already liberated (Sue). When one a child is born, it is born free without knowledge of the external world, I would perhaps assume they are empty for they lack the knowledge of the external and always seem to be peaceful and still. As the child grows up, the parents and the environment around them shape for them the perceptions of what and how life should be. This beats reason for in Buddhist teachings, we seek to attain emptiness that is childlike despite the course of life we have experienced. One should be left to grow natural and wild just as nature does, so if nature is left at its most natural state, then growing up wild will have a small amount of corruption. We learn to be content from the inner.
The opening words of the sutra describe emptiness stating that all dharma’s are empty: no eyes, no nose, no ears no body, no tongue, no mind, no form…(Edward). They all take up emptiness almost like they don’t exist but, at the same time, exist. They have nothing to attain and no fear and no hindrance. Growing up, I have been taught that there is always a life goal to be attained, grow up, go to school, get an education, get a good job, start a family, and so on. In every stage of life, there are expectations that one needs to fulfill. Not being able to achieve them leads one to be viewed as a failure. My life then revolves around the attainment of these expectations, and when they are not met, frustration and hopelessness kicks in. Buddha teachings that desire is the source of all suffering, and when we do away with these desires, then one will be able to free themselves of suffering (Sue). So I ask myself, are these expectations that society has of me necessary. And if I choose to do away with them, will I be starting strife with those around me?
Mental attitude determines whether an action is positive or negative. A positive mental attitude produces positive actions and vice versa for a negative mental attitude. The refusal to follow this path of expectations might bring about conflict. This would be an akusala (unskilled deed) that might cause harm to those around me to a certain extent (Sue). So how do I practice emptiness without bringing in pain and conflict? According to the sutra, I have interpreted these expectations are all emptiness, as are all the human thoughts, will, and feelings are. These are expectations made up to cope with daily life and to fit in society as it is today. Many times we have seen devotees living their families and their careers to fully dedicate their lives to pursuing Nirvana. With the understanding that nothing in life is substantial and permanently gives me the wisdom to forge ahead without limiting or bounding myself to these expectations (Sue).
Emptiness is open. Naturally, one feels like they need to protect and defend themselves from others as one is bound to their skin. I found social interaction to be very challenging for me growing up, as I was always afraid of what other people might think of me; therefore I avoided them as much as I could. This was feeding to my fears and ego and closed myself from the world based on my opinions. At most times when an individual finds themselves amid others, interaction and connection are difficult as they are careful and trying very hard to guard themselves, as they often feel hurt, opposed and thwarted by others. When one is open, there is no boundary between others and themselves for we are all one, in these circumstances, the connection and interaction are easy and natural as the love I feel is mutual for others and myself, I perceive them as I perceive myself. Adapting an open self has allowed me to interact more as I am open to others and understand that others do not communicate with others due to the same fears I had. Emptying my fears and ego created an open soul that was able to understand others and deal with the situation in a compassionate way.
When one realizes the nature of the samsara, confused, and full of suffering, one seeks liberation; one starts a journey that seeks to liberate themselves and not the enlightenment of all sentient beings. This liberation carries a self-concern mental attitude and not for others leading to Hinayana (Yen-Kiat)). Hinayana is a good starting point when beginning the liberation journey as one’s problems and concerns has pushed them to the realization of achieving Nirvana. Continuation on the path of Hinayana can be tragic if one is not careful as they are bound to self-attachment and the obsession with the ‘I’, therefore not achieving emptiness and compassion. One’s spiritual path then turns and becomes materialistic as it seeks enlightenment for the self, thus lacking compassion (Sue).
To attain Mahayana, one needs to have a bodhicitta attitude that is filled with compassion. One understands that the samsaras are not unique to themselves, but all humans face them just as they do. The bodhicitta allows one to understand this and therefore seek enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings rather than the self, therefore achieving Mahayana Nirvana (Yen-Kiat). Enlightenment that seeks for self (Hinayana) lacks compassion; therefore, it is limited, but Mahayana enlightenment is founded on both emptiness and compassion as it seeks for all sentient beings indicating selflessness.
There are times I found myself immersed in the daily problems and challenges that I encountered. This immersion led me to be blind to my friends and family and consoled myself that they would understand that am trying to solve the challenges am facing. I was selfish and only concerned with the self. After reading Buddha scriptures, I learned that we are all interconnected beings and started paying attention to those around me and realized that we all go through similar problems and at most times sharing would lead to a solution that is beneficial to all that are sufferings. The realization of the fact that all beings are one allowed me to look at life not as an individual but as all created beings these created understanding and compassion that realized that the samsara’s I faced were not limited to me and having an open attitude allowed us to get to the source of the problem creating an improved state that benefited all.
Attaining absolute emptiness and compassion is a step-by-step process that cannot be skipped (Yen-Kiat). The first step is a personal one that eventually progresses to a communal one. Understanding personal suffering and seeking liberation is the first step, then understanding that this suffering is common to all sentient beings and taking the responsibility to leading them to enlightenment is the next step. The fast step revolves around creating and emptiness that will lead to the creation of compassion for the next step. Bodhicitta allows one to realize that their suffering is not bound to themselves alone, but others are also going through the same suffering. The first step here is realizing one’s suffering then moving to the realization that the suffering is not limited to themselves, but others are also going through it. Helping them out of the problem is not a solution, but leading them to enlightenment is bodhicitta. The bodhicitta is not based on emotional sorrow but rather on enlightenment wisdom (Sue). Understanding that all human suffering and wrong conception are a result of the ego helps one share this knowledge with others.
Seeing the self-potential to enlightenment and also seeing the same potential in others and taking up the personal responsibility of leading others is bodhicitta. One starts by understanding their suffering then moves to the realization that others suffer the same fate. After one understands that they cant solve the problem by doing away with it as it is temporary but leading others to enlightenment will offer a permanent solution to this and other samsara’s. When the thought of attaining enlightenment and the welfare of others come simultaneously to the one mind, it is the state of bodhicitta. Taking up the responsibility of leading all humans’ to enlightenment is a critical thing as it allows one to release them from attachment. This leads to one’s actions naturally benefiting others without one’s knowledge.
Becoming selfless is the path of Mahayana. With the understanding that all creation is from one source, allows one to understand the emptiness mentioned in the heart sutra. Yes, physically, we are different beings leading different lives, but the core reality of things is we are one (Yen-Kiat). We are the creator in that we are all from the creator, and the experiences that we go through are similar despite our different locations and perceptions. Our emotions, egos, thoughts, and feelings are just present as illusions that distract us from seeing the greater picture. They only exist in our deluded minds. The understanding of this oneness allows most, if not all of these distractions to fall way and leads one towards the path of enlightenment as we have emptied out all the deluded perceptions (Yen-Kiat).
Human suffering, when perceived in an emotional angle, can be detrimental as it might lead to hopelessness and despair, pushing one to suicide. When it is perceived from the intellect ego, one may choose to reject the suffering and live an illusion, where one suffers, but since they assume it to bnon-existentnt, suffer more and end up in dire misery (Sue). The enlightenment approach perceives this suffering as a means to enlightenment in that, understanding the source of this suffering; because I desire this, and when I cannot get it I feel a certain way and suffer. Therefore eliminating this desire and detaching the self from the desires and egos does away with the suffering. This knowledge helps one understand the suffering and eventually dealing with it. Creating an empty state.
The journey of self-detachment will eventually move the seeker from looking to self and realizing that the suffering they are facing is common to others. This sets in the knowledge of oneness where I am as you are, and you are as I am (Sue). This interconnectedness does away with the restrains of the ego and allows one to perceive the suffering of others as their own, achieving compassion. Absolute compassion is then needed to lead others to deal with their suffering. Offering an instance solution denies the creator, therefore, sharing the knowledge and leading others to the knowledge of enlightenment shows the compassion of Mahayana (Yen- Kiat).
Conclusively, the teachings of Buddha place focus on emptiness and compassion as attained Nirvana. Emptiness in that one is devoid of attachment and all human illusions that create suffering and pain. An empty being is pure and liberated and, therefore, capable of expressing absolute compassion. Emptiness is open and has no bounds, therefore free like the sky. The journey to attain Nirvana is a progressive one that starts with the Hinayana and will eventually reach the Mahayana nirvana. Human life is a journey or an opportunity for humans to learn of the interconnectedness of all created and perceive the in its absolute truth of all being one. The sufferings are a result of human formed perceptions that distract all humans from achieving Nirvana. These desires and attachments arnon-existentnt and bound humans to misery, but through enlightenment, man becomes empty and free to love without limits and serves with total compassion for all mother sentient beings having emptied themselves of all corruption.
Works cited
Edwards, Ron. The Heart Sutra. Kuranda, Qld: Rams Skull Press, 1991. Print.
Graves, Sue. Buddism. Place of publication not identified: Learning Materials Ltd, 2003. Print.
Yen-Kiat, . Mahayana Buddism. Bangkok: Debsriharis, 1961. Print.