In a deep relationship, there’s no longer a boundary between you and the other person. You are her and she is you. Your suffering is her suffering. Your understanding of your own suffering helps your loved one to suffer less. Suffering and happiness are no longer individual matters. What happens to your loved one happens to you. What happens to you happens to your loved one.
In true love, there’s no more separation or discrimination. His happiness is your happiness. Your suffering is his suffering. You can no longer say, “That’s your problem.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
by Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Animals have feelings. They have the same mind as we have, and also want happiness, like we do. For example, if you suddenly touch them, they are immediately frightened. They get frightened if somebody beats or hits them with a stick. We also get frightened. If somebody throws cold water on our body, suddenly we feel a shock. It is the same for animals. They have the same mind, and it is very important what happens to them.
Even if they can’t speak, can’t express themselves, animals can show their fear through their body. For example, they try to run away. Human beings can talk and complain, and they can bring court cases. Human beings can report things to the police. Human beings can do so much, but animals can’—they can do nothing. They can’t express their suffering. Human beings can talk about their fears. Whether other people accept your suffering or not, at least you can explain it and the other person can hear. Animals can’t, but you can see how they feel from their movements. If someone tries to attacks them, they run away. They are afraid, which means they want happiness and not suffering. This is a very important point, that they have the same mind as us. If you kill them, you create the negative karma to be like them. For one hundred thousand lifetimes, you will have the karma to be born as an animal. For many thousands of lifetimes, you will suffer the consequences.
It is said in the teachings that if you kill one animal, because of that karma, you will be killed five hundred times by others. You will suffer in very hot hell realm for one thousand eons. It is also good to ask yourself how it would be if somebody killed you with a knife. How would you feel in that situation? For example, if you put your finger in hot water, can you bear that? You can’t bear it. It’s the same when you kill animals. There is no good result from it. There is no question about that.
Over the expanse of the treasured earth in this wide world,
May benefit for beings appear like infinite moons’ reflections,
Whose refreshing presence brings lasting welfare and happiness
To open a lovely array of night-blooming lilies, signs of peace and joy.
Descending from a canopy of white clouds, the gathering of two accumulations,
May these true words, like pearled drops of light or pouring rain,
Falling in a lovely park where fortunate disciples are free of bias,
Open the flowers of friendship so that well-being and joy blossom forth.
~His Holiness the Seventeen Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje
Sometimes we feel empty; we feel a vacuum, a great lack of something. We don’t know the cause; it’s very vague, but that feeling of being empty inside is very strong. We expect and hope for something much better so we’ll feel less alone, less empty. The desire to understand ourselves and to understand life is a deep thirst. There’s also the deep thirst to be loved and to love. We are ready to love and be loved. It’s very natural. But because we feel empty, we try to find an object of our love. Sometimes we haven’t had the time to understand ourselves, yet we’ve already found the object of our love. When we realize that all our hopes and expectations of course can’t be fulfilled by that person, we continue to feel empty. You want to find something, but you don’t know what to search for. In everyone there’s a continuous desire and expectation; deep inside, you still expect something better to happen. That is why you check your email many times a day. ~Thich Nhat Hanh
Ah World
World, we live and die on your lap.
On you we play out all our woes and joys.
You are our home, old ancient one.
Forever we cherish you; we could not bear your loss.
We wish to transform you into the pure realm of our dreams,
into a field where all creatures live without prejudice, all equal.
We wish to transform you into a loving warm gentle goddess.
Our wish to embrace you is unchangeably steadfast. To that end be the ground which sustains us all.
Do not show us the dark side of your character.
And we too will transform you,
all your corners into fertile fields of peace and happiness.
May the harvest of joyfulness and freedom’s sweet scent fulfill our limitless infinite wishes.
So we pray.
~His Holiness the Seventeen Karmapa, Ugyen Trinley Dorje