Spirituality/Eastern: Tibetan Buddhism - The Heart of Compassion

In the world of alternative spirituality people are on all sorts of paths. There are those who gather in covens to uncover the spirit of the old European paganism. There are Ceremonial Magicians who attempt to open the door on the Magick of the ancient Egyptians. There are those who sit in their asanas and practice the esoteric breath techniques from India to arouse their Kundalini. In the New Age, there are all sorts of crystal and sound and whatever-feels-good bliss ninnies as well.

As disparate as these groups are, they have more in common that one might at first think. For one thing, all of these groups will readily pay homage to Tibetan Buddhism. In fact, in the New Age Buddhism has become something of an orthodoxy, in much the same way that the Catholics and Episcopalians (or Presbyterians and Methodists - take your pick) represent orthodox Christianity.

Nearly all in the New Age feel a kinship with Buddhism, even when they know little about it. The concept of love as a healing power is the glue that binds all of the various manifestations of the New Age together, a concept that is central to the Buddhist, who calls it "compassion."

Buddhism has been mistakenly called a godless religion because no spiritual belief is necessary for the devout follower. What is necessary is the knowledge that people have the ability to develop "the heart of compassion" and evolve from a smart monkey (or sometimes killer monkey) into a human being. The proof of this is the Buddha himself, who was born an ordinary man but who evolved into a higher being.

All branches of Buddhism go back to prince Gautama Siddhartha, the original Buddha, who lived in northern India or Nepal during the fifth century BCE. As a young prince, the future Buddha took three trips outside the sheltered opulence of his father's palace and observed old age, disease and death for the first time. This disturbed him so much that he left his father's palace, his inheritance and his family to study the real world of suffering, hoping to find some way of escaping fate. Eventually he developed the Four Noble Truths which state that life is full of suffering; that suffering has a cause; that it can be ended; and that it can be ended by following the Eightfold Path.

The Eightfold Path is the blueprint for living a rewarding and uplifting life and living by this plan comes before any meditation or other Buddhist techniques. It's basic to all forms of Buddhism, and paying attention to the lifestyle suggested by the path is itself a meditative process that leads one toward enlightenment. It can be practiced by anyone and following the path, which prescribes right views, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration, is guaranteed to bring a richer life.

But who decides what is right and what is not? The Buddhists say that compassion is the primary guide. Anything which helps to instill compassion for others keeps one on the path to wholeness. The Tibetans and Zen masters say that compassion is the most important thing in life - the key to the whole process of wellness.

While the Buddhists in Sri Lanka, southern India and southeast Asia are content to develop a Buddha-like mind to end their own suffering, the Tibetan and Zen folks contend that this is not enough. Tibetans, very early in their practice, take a Bodhisattva vow, a commitment to devote everything in their lives, including their eventual enlightenment, to the benefit of all sentient beings. They point to the fact that when the Buddha became enlightened and no longer had a need to cling to suffering existence, he didn't leave this Earth but stayed to help others find a way out of their suffering. They insist that this is part of the enlightenment process. Enlightenment (which, at the very least, represents mental and emotional health) is not sought merely for oneself. Enlightenment, knowledge, health; all of these things are sought in order to bring them to others.

The Tibetans indicate that it would be very difficult to carry this practice too far. There is a legend of a guru who came across a wounded dog lying on the side of the road with open gashes that were filled with maggots. The guru realized that without his help the dog would undoubtedly die, but that he couldn't clean the wounds without harming the maggots. His solution was to slice some flesh from his own arm for the maggots to feed upon, allowing him to heal the dog.

With this act of compassion, it is said, this guru achieved enlightenment.