“Let’s Be Human”
In my last blog I talked about humans in the ten realms in Buddhism. I’ll explain a bit more about that this time.
One school of Buddhism is called Yogachara, literally “yoga practice,” “one whose practice is yoga.” It is an influential tradition of Buddhist philosophy and psychology that emphasizes the study of cognition, perception, and consciousness through the interior lens of meditative and yogic practices (Wikipedia). Sometimes it is called the Consciousness-Only School.
Mahayana Buddhism is based on the concept that everything in this world is causation; that is, the phenomena we perceive is only a small part of causation. And the Consciousness-Only School taught that we only recognize phenomena, and that we think there is no physical existence outside the mind. Whatever we see outside ourselves is a reflection/projection of our consciousness.
We react to what we recognize. Actually, we react to how we recognize phenomena; how we recognize a particular phenomenon. We all have ten realms (worlds) in our heart that consist of six lower realms and four higher realms. Everyone has these ten realms in their heart and each moment we react to a phenomenon with one of these realms in our heart.
Listed from the bottom realm to the top realm:
- Hell: Enjoys the suffering of others.
- Hungry Ghost: Never satisfied and always wants to suck energy from others.
- Beasts: Does not feel shame about their ego.
- Asuras: Always wants to be above others.
- Humans: The mentality of giving and taking (a bit more give than take).
- Heaven: Enjoys giving.
- Shomon & Engaku: Self-enlightenment.
- Bodhisattva: Full transference of Great Love, Wisdom, and the Majestic Power of Buddha to all beings.
- Buddhahood: Oneness with the source of creation (or Great Spirit of the Universe) and the Universe itself.
So, Mahayana Buddhist practice is to recognise in each moment to which realm of heart I am now reacting. Am I caring for the others? Or am I only caring for myself?
The lower six realms are those where a person cares only for themselves, and this takes energy from others, consciously or unconsciously; anyway, this brings Ki down, lowering the energy of people, the field, and the world.
When people are in the higher four realms, they care for others, give energy to the world, and selflessly bring up the Ki of the field. In other words, they make others smile and feel happy.
Moreover, if you experience oneness with the source of creation through Ki practice, you’ll be motivated to help others get the feeling of enlightenment too.
You might notice that in the realms of the heart, “Humans” is fifth from the bottom, so it is still on the selfish side in these worlds. However, it is from this level that people start giving to others.
That is why it is taught that practice starts with this heart. If we are lower than this, for example, if we have the tendency to feel or think that we are above others, have no shame about ego, are never satisfied, and are happy when others suffer, there is no practice — we have not begun.
When we humbly appreciate whatever we think we have, what we receive from this world and from others, and when we have gratitude and give back with a smile and with care, this is the starting point of spiritual practice.
At this point we can begin to create Ki, through living in the future, living for others, and living with enlightenment body sensations.
So, be Human and create life the way you want it to be!
The post Let’s Be Human appeared first on Tao Shiatsu Therapy.
