FALL 2005 RETREAT TOPIC:

TAKING THE BODHISATTVA VOW

“To lead others to happiness
and to free them from suffering,
I will attain Awakening.
Such is the promise I make today."

The Importance of Bodhichitta

“The best way to actualize enlightenment is to develop bodhichitta. Bodhichitta is a Sanskrit word; bodhi means “enlightenment” and chitta means “mind” or “thought.” When you develop the thought of enlightenment, you are training your mind so that you will be able to truly benefit other beings.

 “The root of bodhichitta is compassion. Compassion is feeling, deep in your heart, the suffering of others and wishing for them to be free from all pain. The root of compassion is loving kindness, which is the feeling of wanting to replace suffering with happiness and peace. Having true love and compassion for everyone is the most precious practice of the dharma.”  – Door to Inconceivable Wisdom and Compassion, Khenchen Palden Sherab Rinpoche and Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche

What is the Bodhisattva Vow?

The Bodhisattva Vow is the commitment: “To lead others to happiness and to free them from suffering, I will attain Awakening. Such is the promise I make today.” Making this promise, we follow the same path followed by the previous Buddhas. This is why we take the vow in reference to them, thinking:

‘Just as the Buddhas of the past, when they were still ordinary beings, first have taken the commitment to attain Buddhahood for benefiting all beings; just as they have continued on the path of the Bodhisattva, practicing the six paramitas [perfections] up to the perfection; and just as they have attained Buddhahood; in the same way, following their example, I also will realize Buddhahood for the benefit of all beings.”

Being Ready to Take the Vow

“Some people hesitate to take the Bodhisattva vow, thinking that it demands qualities they lack. Their feelings of love and compassion are neither strong nor great. The wish to harm and harboring negative thoughts toward others have not left their minds. How can we know if we are ready to take the Bodhisattva vow?

“If we greatly value love and compassion, if we see their benefits—made apparent to us by listening to teachings—if we consider that ill will, anger, and hatred are defects, we are ready. We must take the vow. The vow helps us improve. We take the vow precisely because we recognize the presence of ill will and conflicting emotions that we want to eliminate within ourselves. The more anger and aversion we see within ourselves, the more we must be determined to take the Bodhisattva vow. Upon taking the vow, our mind is strongly imprinted with the magnitude and importance of the commitment. Even if some ill will persists in our mind, we will be more inclined to reject it because we will remember our promise.” – Taking the Bodhisattva Vow, by Bokar Rinpoche

Recommended Reading

Taking the Bodhisattva Vow, by Bokar Rinpoche

Uniting Wisdom and Compassion: Illuminating the 37 Practices of a Bodhisattva, by Chokyi Dragpa

Keys to Great Enlightenment: Commentaries on Kadam Geshe Langri Tangpa's Eight Verses of Thought Training and Bodhisattva Togmey Zangpo's 37 Bodhisattva Practices, by  Geshe T. Gyeltsen