Author Jamgon Kontrul
The Great Path of Awakening is a text written by Jamgon Kontrul in the 19th century. Jamgon Kontrul, known as the Great, was a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, poet, artist, physician and terton (treasure revealer). He was a prolific writer having composed over 90 volumes of Buddhist writing.
Illness as the Path
I highlight this volume, The Great Path of Awakening, because it is filled with wisdom about using one’s illness and adversity for awakening. Jamgon Kontrul gives concise instruction on how to meet difficulty with wisdom and an open heart. It is a “guidebook that offers techniques for developing a truly compassionate heart in the midst of everyday life.” – Shambhala Publications
In this blog I highlight parts of the text which are most helpful for providing insight for those of us dealing with illness and disability. This blog is a kind of “Cole’s Notes” for illness and disability. I highly recommend everyone read the entire text, which is quite short. My personal favorite is the translation by Ken McLeod published by Shambhala Publications.
Ultimate and Relative Bodhicitta
The text starts with a description of ultimate and relative bodhicitta. Ultimate bodhicitta is the primordial mind which rests in a “nondiscursive state free from conceptual elaborations”. He does not elaborate much more than this except to quote Nargajuna who says ultimate bodhicitta is “Pristine wisdom which does not rely on duality”.
Relative bodhicitta meditation is training the mind in love and compassion. Jamgon Kontrul goes on to say that true ultimate bodhicitta will rarely arise in the experience of beginners. However, if we train well, relative bodhicitta will arise. Ultimate bodhicitta will naturally arise with effort at relative bodhicitta. For that reason, he suggests we practice relative bodhicitta.
You will see that most of his advice is about generating compassion. However, at the end of the text he describes how to generate ultimate bodhicitta using illness.
Self Compassion
An important principle of his teaching starts with compassion for oneself:
“In order to be able to take on sufferings of others, begin the sequence of taking with yourself”.
In the above quote, Jamgon Kontrul is talking about the practice of tonglen. In tonglen meditation one breaths into one’s heart the suffering and breaths out healing and wellness. He suggests that one should learn to practice and generate compassion for oneself first. Then you will be able to have true compassion for others.
Illness as the Path
This is where having an illness or disability is a great advantage. This advantage is illuminated in the following pithy statements for generating compassion using adversity:
“Whatever adverse conditions I encounter, may take them as aids to bodhicitta”
“When misfortune fills the world and its inhabitants, Make adversity the path of awakening.”
“Adverse conditions are spiritual friends”
If one takes this attitude and develops bodhicitta he says: “It changes all disturbing emotions and adverse conditions into the way of awakening”
One of the most moving parts of this text is the well known prayer:
“If it's better for me to be ill, I pray for the blessing of illness. If it's better for me to recover, I pray for the blessing of recovery. If it's better for me to die, I pray for the blessing of death.”
Strong Practice
Jamgon Kontrul says we must practice diligently and strongly:
“Always concentrate your full energy – physical, verbal and mental-on virtuous activity. Never be content with your efforts to arouse and strengthen bodhicitta.”
Advice for Time of Death
There is an interesting part of this text for those of us with terminal or life-threatening illness. Jamgon Kontrul gives advice for time of death. He suggests one simply meditates on love and compassion.
Why We’re Ill
I was once asked by a Chinese medicine Doctor, “if you meditate so much and do all these spiritual practices, why do still have illness?”. Jamgon Kontrul provides the answer:
“Since previous evil karma is stirred up when you practice the holy dharma properly, various physical illnesses come again and again. When this happens, work at being joyful when ill. Since it is repeatedly said in the sutras that even a slight headache, to say nothing of a serious illness, is like a broom sweeping away dust. Sickness clears away all the evil obscurations gathered from time without beginning.”
Lama Zopa Rinpoche describes it as ripening negative karma sooner but in a less difficult way.
Ultimate Bodhicitta
In the final parts of the text, Jamgon Kontrul talks about how we can use illness and adversity to development ultimate bodhicitta:
“Take on the suffering and unhappiness of all sentient beings and rest in a natural state.”
“When suffering comes if you look at just what it is, it arises as emptiness. However, much you suffer, the suffering is just the dance of what is, so you shouldn’t be depressed.”
“Turn error right around and look right in. Relax completely and rest comfortably. Not being held they will go freely. “
“Turn your attention right in and look right at your mind. When you look at it, nothing is seen. Relax completely, let everything go, and rest in that state of emptiness. No matter how many thoughts or emotions there are, when they aren't held, they go freely on their own and become the accumulation of pristine wisdom. This instruction is the essence of meditation on ultimate bodhicitta.”
Comments