My group is sitting below three ft of snow, in the intervening time, and we get a number of extra inches every single day. So, I have been doing most of the jobs that one associates with winter snowstorms; insulating the hen coop, placing salt down on the porch steps, and shoveling the driveway.
At present, I occurred to see my neighbor shoveling her personal driveway, so I grabbed my shovel and walked over to assist. With the 2 of us working it did not take lengthy to get the snow cleared, and we had a nice dialog. It was good instances throughout.
After we completed, she provided me cash for my time, and I politely refused; explaining that serving to on this means was a part of my religious observe. She appeared confused for a second, after which she mentioned, “Oh, I believed you have been simply being an excellent neighbor.”
It was at this second that I spotted my neighbor is a Zen grasp. As a result of she’s proper. As Buddhists, we create convoluted tales and liturgies round compassionate actions. We do them to make good advantage, to study equanimity, to avoid wasting all beings from struggling.
These are good, stunning aspirations. However they are often harmful. We will get so caught up within the grandiose language of Buddhism that we overlook why it exists. Buddhism is about being an excellent neighbor.
Buddhist teachings just like the 4 Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path remind us that life is tough, and we’re all on this collectively. Generally, our hardship is getting older, illness, and dying. Different instances, it is sudden snowfall, but when we’re good neighbors, if we work to finish the struggling of others, our personal lives get simpler as nicely.
Buddhism teaches us learn how to be an excellent neighbors, after which it encourages us to broaden our neighborhood to incorporate all sentient beings. Nevertheless it’s a troublesome observe. And we have to begin small, by being good neighbors in our personal households and our communities.
Every time we assist the individuals who stay close to us, whether or not they’re our roommates or the individuals subsequent door, we transfer one step nearer to enlightenment.
Namu Amida Butsu
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