Never Give Up On A Living Being

[icy]

One of the Bodhisattva precept is never to give up living beings, not even a single one. If we do so, we at once lose the altruistic intention to attain enlightenment for the sake of all living beings. How can we learn never to abandon them? If we know how to transform all adverse circumstances into conditions which help us towards enlightenment, we will never be tempted to abandon anyone.

[fruven]

There are many things in life we don't give up easily such as pursuing our desires and wants with enthusiasm. However when it comes to job or work it becomes secondary, a vehicle for pursuing our desire and wants. We give up easily when doing work. Therefore we should start with ourselves. Taking our duties and responsibilities seriously. That is doing them with the best of our abilities, and not neglecting them.

[brian]

Yes indeed we should never give up on as Buddhist or Bodhisattvas. Most often people were covered with ignorance that even a life on an ant is precious with a normal human being. We measure the life value by the importance one contribute to the society. For instance if the ant is beneficial as a cow in the field, then the life of this ant will be very much treasured.

[Midakpa]

The aim of the bodhisattva is to attain the enlightened state and bring every living being to that state. The bodhisattva practises the three ethics which are: abstention from wrongdoing, collecting virtue and working for the benefit of all living beings.

 There are eleven facets to the third ethic of benefiting all living beings:

1. helping beings overcome their sufferings
2. teaching the dharma , showing valid methods and explaining the reasons
3. showing gratitude and taking care of others who have been helpful
4. protecting living beings from all fears
5. alleviating the suffering of those in distress regarding their wealth and loved ones
6. providing all essentials to the indigent according to their needs
7. providing an ideal place to stay, forming dharma communities
8. greeting others and conversing with them, thoroughly please others
9. advertising others' qualities, in their presence or in their absence, and thereby greatly pleasing them
10. diverting them from non-virtue and guiding them towards virtue
11. showing them hell beings and so forth using paranormal powers, discouraging them from non-virtue and leading them to engage in the Buddhadharma
(from Ven. Dagpo Lama Rinpoche, "The Bodhisattva Vows")

[Manjushri]

To walk the spiritual path of being a Buddhist is to develop boddhicitta as we progress along the way. However, being in a society that has encouraged selfish needs all this while, it is definitely hard to rid the thought of me first, then others. Definitely we should never give up on a living being, as we are thought to help all sentient beings, but how do we embark to develop an altruistic mind?

In most situation, our mind is so cultured to always think of how to help ourselves first. In this degenerate times, what can we do to train our mind so that we put others first ahead of ourselves, because only then are we able to be generate an altruistic mind where we dont give up on any sentient beings.

[dondrup]

A bodhisattva is a person who has generated spontaneous bodhichitta but who has not yet become a Buddha. From the moment a practitioner generates a non-artificial, or spontaneous, bodhichitta, he or she becomes a Bodhisattva and enters the Mahayana path. The mind of Bodhichitta is a primary mind motivated by great compassion that spontaneously seeks enlightenment to benefit all living beings. Bodhichitta is a requirement to become a Buddha.  Hence a bodhisattva can never give up on a living being because the bodhisattva needs all sentient beings to generate the mind of bodhichitta.

[pgdharma]

To be a Bodhisattva is a huge step in helping not only ourselves, but also every other sentient being. A Bodhisattva is motivated by pure compassion and love and the training begins by generating the 6 Perfections which are generosity, ethics, patience, effort, concentration and wisdom.

Extracted from “A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life” by Shantideva, a Buddhist master from the monastic university of Nalanda, India, the entire essence of the meaning of Bodhisattva is beautifully expressed as below:

"For as long as space endures
And for as long as living beings remain,
Until then may I too remain
To dispel the misery of the world."

[Tammy]

 Dear Icy, I have a question for you. When we breath, countless of microorganisms go through our systems and I am sure most of them would not survive the hard journey. When we walk, we would inevitably stepped on worms, ants, etc... Does this mean we are committing killing every second ? If so, what can we do ?

[sonamdhargey]

Dear Icy, I have a question for you. When we breath, countless of microorganisms go through our systems and I am sure most of them would not survive the hard journey. When we walk, we would inevitably stepped on worms, ants, etc... Does this mean we are committing killing every second ? If so, what can we do ?

It is a good question Tammy. I guess some of these conditions maybe unavoidable. As a Buddhist we were thought not to kill sentient beings to cultivate Bodhichitta. This is my take about your question, if we knew the ants, worms or other insects or beings are there and we delibarately walk there and stomp on them then we did it on purpose. If we didn't have any intention to kill them we will avoid from killing them on purpose. However sometimes we kill them because we didn't realise or knew these beings are there. The intentions are key here. This link is interesting, please watch it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNXeAK591Nc

[Midakpa]

This is part of the Bodhisattva's path. In the Lama Chopa, in the section called "Reviewing the Stages on the Path", verse 104, the tenacity with which we practice the stages of the Path is clearly expressed:

"Even if we must remain for an ocean of aeons in the fiery
Hells of Avici for the sake of one sentient being alone,
We seek your blessings to complete the perfection of joyous effort
To strive with compassion for Supreme Enlightenment and not
be discouraged."

[Big Uncle]

This is part of the Bodhisattva's path. In the Lama Chopa, in the section called "Reviewing the Stages on the Path", verse 104, the tenacity with which we practice the stages of the Path is clearly expressed:

"Even if we must remain for an ocean of aeons in the fiery
Hells of Avici for the sake of one sentient being alone,
We seek your blessings to complete the perfection of joyous effort
To strive with compassion for Supreme Enlightenment and not
be discouraged."

That's a beautiful quote from the Lama Chopa, which I believe to have been composed by Panchen Lama Chokyi Gyaltsen. He is of course none other than an incarnation of Kedrup Je, one of Lama Tsongkhapa's heart students. In fact, even the melodious way of reciting the Lama Chopa was composed by Panchen Lama based upon his visionary experiences with the Dakinis, especially the special melody chanted during the Tsog offering. The melody is haunting and based upon the sacred songs sung by the dakinis. The whole of Lama Chopa seems to be attesting to his pure enlightenment!

Anyway, as to this little quote, Panchen Lama does very well to encapsulate the mindset that one must have in order to develop the mind of compassion. As a ordinary being with limited capacity, it would not be possible to save all living beings. However, in training in the ways of a Bodhisattva as aptly described by Panchen Lama, one will develop the skillful ways and the joyous perseverance to benefit them.

[RedLantern]

Manjushri, made a vow:From now on for countless eons.I will provide all kinds of possible ways to relieve all beings from suffering.I will not become a Buddha until all release d from pain"
So ,even after such a longtime,he still has  not become a Buddha and is still a bodhissattva.

[buddhalovely]

Special care is required in our relationships with those who are close to us, those towards whom we feel an instant dislike and those to whom we have been kind and who respond ungratefully. We honor, respect and make offerings to the enlightened ones but neglect and abandon living beings although our attainment of Buddhahood depends as much on them as it does on Buddhas. In the sixth chapter of "Engaging in the Bodhisattva Deeds" Shantideva says:
The qualities of Buddhahood are gained
Through living beings and Victorious Ones alike,
Why then do we respect the Victorious Ones
And not living beings in the same way?

--from Atisha's Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment commentary by Geshe Sonam Rinchen, translated and edited by Ruth Sonam

[Tenzin K]

The purpose of our living is no other than benefiting others, to eliminate the sufferings of others and to cause the happiness of others, nothing else than that, the purpose of our living. Other than that is meaningless. Nothing gives fulfillment in the heart, then that you can really think of worthwhile, worth of living or worth of doing something, whatever the activity is. The best satisfaction also it gives this way.

So now every one of us has the responsibility of the happiness of every single living beings, who want happiness and who do not want problems, sufferings.
If one has good heart, compassion, then with compassion one doesn’t harm others, compassion does not produce actions harming others, only we stop giving harm others and benefit others. These two things, that whole entire Buddhism is involved. How to do that. How to stop giving harm others, how to accomplish that and how to benefit others.

[samayakeeper]

I think to start with our parents, relatives, dharma brothers and sisters, friends, neighbors, our dog/cat/fish etc, colleagues. Unless for those who have already gained bodhicitta, this is a good start for me to start practicing bodhicitta.