"I lift up my heart and rejoice"

from last night's meeting, as promised

Shantideva's Bodhisattva Vows

(Bodhicaryavatara chapter 3)

bodhicitta.net

In the spiritual energy that relieves 

The anguish of beings in misery and

Places depressed beings in eternal joy 

I lift up my heart and rejoice.

In the goodness producing illumination 

I lift up my heart and rejoice. 

I rejoice in the beings who have gained

Eternal liberation from suffering. 

And I rejoice in those attained to Buddhahood 

As well as in their offspring, the noble Bodhisattvas.

In the ocean-like virtue of the Bodhimind 

That brings joy to all beings 

And in accomplishing the well-being of others, 

I lift up my heart and rejoice. 

To the Buddhas of the ten directions 

I join my hands in respect 

Let blaze the light of Dharmas truth 

For the beings lost in darkness 

To the Buddhas considering parinirvarna 

I join my hands in prayer 

Do not abandon the beings in sorrow 

But remain and teach for countless ages. 

May any spiritual energy thus generated 

By my devotion to the enlightened ones 

Be dedicated to dispelling the misery

Of living beings without exception. 

As long as diseases afflict living beings 

May I be the doctor, the medicine 

And also the nurse 

Who restores them to health. 

May I fall as rain to increase

The harvests that must feed living beings 

And in ages of dire famine 

May I myself serve as food and drink. 

May I be an unending treasury 

For those desperate and forlorn. 

May I manifest as what they require

And wish to have near them. 

My body, every possession 

And all goodness, past, present and future 

Without remorse I dedicate 

To the well-being of the world 

Suffering is transcended by total surrender 

And the mind attains to nirvana. 

As one day all must be given up, 

Why not dedicate it now to universal happiness?

My bodily powers I dedicate 

To the well-being of all that lives. 

Should anyone wish to kill, abuse or beat me, 

The responsibility is purely their own. 

Should anyone wish to ridicule me 

And make me an object of jest and scorn 

Why should I possibly care 

If I have dedicated myself to others? 

Let them do as they wish with me 

So long as it does not harm them. 

May no one who encounters me 

Ever have an insignificant contact. 

Regardless whether those whom I meet 

Respond towards me with anger or faith, 

May the mere fact of our meeting 

Contribute to the fulfilment of their wishes.

May the slander, harm 

And all forms of abuse 

That anyone should direct towards me 

Act as a cause of their enlightenment. 

May I be a protector to the helpless, 

A guide to those travelling the path, 

A boat to those wishing to cross over; 

Or a bridge or a raft.

May I be land for those requiring it, 

A lamp for those in darkness, 

May I be a home for the homeless, 

And a servant for the world. 

In order to fulfil the needs of beings 

May I be as a magic gem, 

An inexhaustible vase, a mystic spell,

A cure-all medicine, and a wish granting tree. 

May I act as the mighty earth 

Or like the free and open skies 

To support and provide the space 

Whereby I and all others may grow. 

Until every being afflicted by pain 

Has reached nirvanas shores, 

May I serve only as a condition 

That encourages progress and joy. 

Just as all previous Buddhas 

First gave rise to the precious Bodhimind 

And just as then carefully followed 

The stages of the Bodhisattva disciplines. 

Likewise for the sake of sentient beings 

Do I now myself generate the Bodhimind,

And likewise will I train myself 

In the disciplines of a Bodhisattva. 

They who out of wisdom 

Have seized the supreme Bodhimind 

Praise, glorify and rejoice in it, 

That it may grow to fulfilment.

From today I will reap the fruit of life; 

Having well won the state of man, 

Today I am born in the Buddha-family 

And am now a child of the Buddhas. 

Thus in future I should make every effort 

To live in accord with the Bodhisattva Ways,

And never should I act as would bring shame 

To this noble faultless family. 

Like a blind man fumbling in garbage 

Happens to find a rare and precious gem,

Likewise I have discovered 

The jewel of the precious Bodhimind.

Thus was found this supreme ambrosia to dispel 

The Lord of death, destroyer of life; 

An inexhaustible treasure able to cure 

The poverty of all sentient beings. 

It is the highest of medicines 

To quell the ills of the living, 

And it is a tree giving shade 

To those wandering on the paths of life. 

It is a strong and mighty bridge 

By which beings can cross from misery, 

And it is a moon to shine in the mind 

To clear away the pains of delusion. 

The Bodhimind is a great radiant sun 

To disperse the darkness of unknowing, 

And it is the very essence of butters 

Gained from churning the milks of Dharma. 

For all guests on the roads of life 

Who would take the very substance of joy, 

Here is the actual seat of true happiness, 

A veritable feast to satiate the world. 

Thus today in the presence of all awakened Ones 

I invite every living being to this festival 

Giving both immediate and lasting joy. 

May the gods and all others rejoice.

photo:  under the newly-leafed Copper Beech Tree Being ~

one of my favourite beings and places in the whole world!