CHAPTER VI

SIGNIFICANCE OF BODHICITTA IN MODERN SOCIETY

VI.1. Mahāyāna‘s Approaches to the Modern Crisis

Throughout history, man has complained of the generation of his times.

The present day is no exception; the definition of development and
growth has to be revised. The society is supposed to be more civilized
though everybody has become lonelier, more worried, tensed and afraid
of uncertainty. Science has made it possible to produce more in quantity
but more number of people go to bed with empty stomach, more number
die without medicine, more number of children are working and lesser
going to school. Human race is more awake of the consequence of
environmental degradation, pollution etc., but the defense investment on
nuclear tests have increased, number of vehicles produced and used
have increased, the area of jungle is coming down drastically . In an area
of satellite-communication and advanced technology, man having made
great strides in the scientific domain can solve many material problems,
but has left unsolved those related to sufferings, sickness, poverty,
hatred, jealousy, doubt and war. Dr. Trevor Ling in his book: Buddha,
Max and God227 expressed that the Western people have created

227
Trevor Ling, Buddha, Marx and God, London, 1979: pp. 5-6

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enormous material wealth, but they have also killed off millions of
human beings in periodic outbursts of mass violence which they
dignified by the name of war; at the same time as well as may be this is
the first time in human history, human have to face the threat of
extinction of the human race and of all life on this planet by the nuclear
war and others.
And today, we have come to believe that our society as a whole
finds itself in great crisis. We can read about its numerous
manifestations every day in the newspapers. We face high inflation and
unemployment; we have an energy crisis, a crisis in health care,
pollution and other environmental disaster, a rising wave of violence
and crime, and so on. We are living in a globally interconnected world,
in which biological, psychological, social and environmental phenomena
are all interdependent. And the present day we find ourselves in a state
of profound, world-wide crisis. It is a complex, multi-dimensional crisis
whose facets touch every aspect of our lives-our health and livehood,
the quality of our environment and our social relationships, our
economy, technology, and politics. Or in other expression, we can be
able to say that in this era humanity is primarily faced with problems
such as war, increasing population, degrading the environment,
collapsing the morals, exchanging the West and East thoughts, for
running fast to modern world…
The Crisis of the war: Dr. Fritjof Capra, the best-selling author of the
Tao of Physic and The Turning Point228 declared about the crisis of war
that men have stockpiled of thousands of nuclear weapons, enough to
destroy the entire universe several times over and the arms race
continues at undiminished speed. In November 1978, while the United
228
Fritjof Capra, the Turning Point, London, 1982: p.1

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State and Soviet Union were completing their second round of talks on
the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties, the Pentagon launched its most
ambitious nuclear weapons production program in two decades; two
years later this culminated in the biggest military boom in history: a
five-year defense budget of 1,000 billion dollars. The costs of this
collective nuclear rue are staggering.
In the meantime more than fifteen million people – most of them
children – die of starvation each year; another 500 million are seriously
undernourished. Almost 40 percent of the world’s population has no
access to professional health services; yet developing countries spend
more than three times as much on armaments as on health care. 35
percent of humanity lacks safe drinking water, while half of its scientists
and engineers are engaged in the technology of making weapons. The
threat of nuclear war is the greatest danger humanity is facing today…
the 360 nuclear reactors now operating worldwide, and the hundreds
more planned, have become a major threat to our well beings.229
As a master fact, nowadays, the world is divided into people of
various ideologies; with their power-blocks, who devote most of their
minds and energies to the sterile, negative, cruel business of wars. The
world cannot have peace till men and nations renounce selfish desires,
give up racial arrogance and cleanse themselves of the egotistical lust
for possession and power. Ideology divides, it brings about conflict.
Ideology takes multifarious forms – political, religious, economic, social
and educational. Ideology is an escape from reality. It brutalizes man
and holds him in bondage to fanaticism and violence.
In consequences, the belief that the only way to fight force is by
applying more force has led to the arms race between the great powers.
229
Ibid., pp. 2-3

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And this competition to increase the weapons of war has brought man to
the very brink of total self-destruction. If we do nothing about it, the
next war will be end of the world where there will be neither victors nor
victims-only dead bodies.
We should be conscious that we settle our problems and bring
peace and happiness by adopting this cultured method and by sacrificing
our dangerous pride. When the United Nation was formed after the
horrors of the Second World War, the heads of Nations who gathered to
sign the charter agreed that it should begin with following preamble:230
Since it is the minds of men that wars begin, it is in the minds of men the
ramparts of peace should be created.

The Crisis of Increasing Population

There is really no ground to think that this is the only period in which
the population of the world has increased. There is no means of
compassion with any period of ancient history. Vast civilizations existed
and have disappeared in central Asia, the Middle East, Africa and
Ancient America. No census figures on these civilizations are even
remotely available. Population, as everything else in the universe, is
subject to cycles of rise and fall. For the last few thousand years, there
has been no evidence to prove that there were more people in some parts
of the world than there are today. The number of beings existing in
various world systems is truly infinite.
One of the principle reasons of this crisis is the human’s passion
as Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda in the book “What Buddhist Believe”
pointed out as the main cause of increasing population is the sex

230
Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda, What Buddhists Believe, CBBEF, Taipei, 2000: p. 285

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conduct or sense craving and he has given resolve for this problem: 231
Population can further increase unless sensible people take measures to
control it.
Hence, the credit or responsibility of increasing the population
almost must be given to over enjoyment available. This credit or
responsibility of increasing population cannot be allotted to any
particular religion or any external source, as there is a belief among
certain people that human beings are created by God. Thus, those who
believe that god created everything, why then so much suffering to his
own creatures such as poverty, unhappiness, war, hunger, disease,
famine… all unfortunate occurrences that destroy human lives are not
due to the will of god or to the whim of some devil; instead why cannot
he control the population?232

The Crisis of Degrading Environment

Another reason of the fact makes the hearts of many shudder that is the
disasters suffered by people all over the world in recent past. It is proved
that now nature herself is letting her fury against man in self-defense in
the form of floods, droughts, earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis… this
has resulted in the destruction of various kinds of flora and fauna
making the environment polluted and future of the planet earth itself
unsafe.
As we know, the current environmental crisis is owing to
environmental pollutions: air, water, earth pollutions which are caused
by atomic tests, chemical arms tests, by poisonous gas emitted from
engineering factories, and by the fast increase of above world
population, etc.
231
Ibid.
232
Ibid.

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 The term pollution is defined by the Environment Pollution Panel
of the President’s Science Advisory Committee held in November, 1965
in its report: Restoring the Quality of Our Environment, as follows:233
Environmental pollution is the unfavorable alteration of our
surroundings, wholly or largely as a by – product of man’s actions,
through direct or indirect effects of changes in energy patterns, radiation
levels, chemical and physical constitution and abundances of organisms.
These changes may affect man directly, or through his supplies of water
and of agricultural and other biological products, his physical object or
his opportunities for recreation and appreciation of nature.
Mentioning the problem of water and food pollution, Dr. Fritjof
Capra said:234 The water we drink and the food we eat, both are
contaminated by a wide variety of toxic chemicals. In the United States
synthetic food additives, pesticides, plastics and other chemicals are
marketed. As a result, chemical poisoning has become an increasing part
of our affluent life. Moreover, the threats to our health through the
pollution of air, water and food are merely the most obvious, direct
effects of human technology on the natural environment. Less obvious
but possibly far more dangerous effects have been recognized only
recently and are still not fully understood.
Moreover, the exorbitant use of petroleum has led to heavy tanker
traffic with frequent collisions, in which huge amounts of oil are spilled
into the seas. These spilled oils have not only polluted the shores and
beaches of Europe, but are also seriously disrupting the marine food
cycles and thus creating ecological hazards that are still poorly
understood. The generation of electricity from coal is even more
233
Edward J. Kormondy, Concept of Ecology, New Delhi, 1991: p. 246
234
Paul R. Ehrlich, and Anna H. Ehrlich, Population Resources Environment, San Francisco, 1972: p.
147.

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hazardous and more polluting than energy production from oil.
Underground mining creates conspicuous environmental consequences,
since the mines are generally abandoned once the coal is exhausted, with
huge areas of land left devastated. The worst damage of all, both to the
environment and to human health, comes from the burning of coal.
Coal-burning plants emit vast quantities of smoke, ash, gases and
various organic compounds, many of which are known to be toxic or
carcinogenic. The most dangerous of the gases is sulfur dioxide which
can severely impair the lungs. Another pollutant released in the burning
of coal is nitrogen oxide, which is also the main ingredient in air
pollution from automobiles. A single coal-burning plant can emit as
much nitrogen oxide as several hundred thousand cars… At the heart of
the problem, as usual, lies ecological shortsightedness and corporate
men’s overwhelming greed.
This has become clear and firm that our technology is severally
disturbing, and may even be destroying, the ecological systems upon
which our very existence depends and we can imagine how dangerous
the current environmental pollution on earth is! There is neither security
nor justice to be universally found. Uncertainty and insecurity have
become almost a universal curse. The ‘Conquest of nature’ has not
succeeded in achieving either plenty or peace. And this pollution must
be evident result of the modern scientific civilization with its fast and
uncontrolled development of industries and economics. This
civilization, in its turn, is the result of a very high development of self –
thought, way of thinking and enjoying pleasures. So, the main causes of
the great environmental crisis which is being warned are desire and
ignorance of man.

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The Crisis of Human Moral

One of the controversies which are quite heated in the West, especially
in the United State today concerns the collapsing moral. It is true that
developed countries marched forward fast to satisfy their ambitions to
bring the prosperous richness through the advancement of all their
computer-space-scientific-technological accomplishment, however these
were the societies which claimed to be sane, though well documented
studies have shown that these very societies have been sick and inflicted
by extremely high rates of suicide, homicide, gambling, alcoholism and
the forms of debaucheries etc. Increasing influence was accompanied by
increasing numbers of alcoholics, suicides… and breathtaking
advantages of science and technology have destroyed the solid moorings
of a more stable way of life, which had its own ethical character… More
education in industrial societies is disregarded. Most of the people only
attach great importance on how to acquire more money. They measure
individual value by how much money each one has obtained regardless
of the means. In socialist countries where arbitrariness, dogmatism,
individualism, and factionalism prevail, the value of majority of
population being despotic and in the minority, is discarded; all economic
resource are in the hands of those who hold power. Both above
tendencies give prominence to materialistic value, transforming men
into machines for production and gratification without idea and moral.
As far as the human psychology is concerned, in the face of these
increasing difficulties, men do feel more and more anxious, skeptical
and therefore tend to forget it by hastening to enjoy life and kill
themselves in alcoholism, drug, homicide and suicide etc. It is very
logical of Eric Fromm to state that despite increase in production,

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facilities, technology, and science… in West; in fact the happiness of
westerners merely leans.235
It is no doubt that the crisis of war, increasing population, and
degrading environment generate the danger for all our living in this
earth and make the moral degeneration lead to social crisis of various
sorts. Terrorists attacks, corruption, crime against children, women and
elderly persons have made this world, indeed, a very unhappy and sad
place to live and men became indifference, hard and cruel paved the
way for a life-style of ruthlessness, unfairness, and violence.236
Technological progress does solve certain kinds of problems for
some people at one level, but it introduces wider and deeper issue too.
To live at one level, disregarding the total process of life is to invite
misery and destruction. The greatest need and most pressing problem for
every individual are to have an integrated comprehension of life, which
will enable him to meet its ever-increasing complexities. Technical
knowledge, however necessary, will in no way resolve our inner,
psychological pressures and conflicts; and it is because we have
acquired technical knowledge without understanding the total process of
life that technology has become a means of destroying ourselves. The
man who knows how to split the atom has no heart and becomes a
monster.
In the foregoing chapters, we have known that, approaches of
Mahāyāna are generation of bodhicitta. It is attitude that is based on the
great compassion wishing to remove the suffering of all others and the
recognition of that, to be of greatest benefit to both oneself and others; it
is ideal to attain enlightenment. With such a thought or attitude,
235
See, Minh Chi – Ha Thuc Minh, Dai Cuong Triet Hoc Dong Phuong, Dai Hoc Tong Hop, Tp. HCM,
1993: pp. 32-33.
236
J. Krishnamurti, Education and the signification of life, Krishnamurti Foundation India, 1994: p. 19.

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Mahāyāna’s approaches have much significant in the world as well as in
the modern society, especially in modern crisis.
We have mentioned that basic characteristics of Mahāyāna‘s
approaches are bodhicitta and six pāramitās. Through six pāramitās, the
Buddhist Tzu-chi Foundation of Taiwan has becomes a famous example
of Engaged Buddhism over the world. The doctrine of six pāramitās of
the Foundation is summarized as follows:
* Charity: One begins as a general checkbook member who donates
money, participates as a volunteer who donates time to relieve
others’ suffering, and shares his/her Buddhist reflections with
those who are suffering.
* Morality: One enters the Tzu-chi path as an intern devotee and
observes the Tzu-chi ten Precepts.237
* Patience: One is certified as a commissioner238, and by wearing
the Tzu-chi “gentle forbearance robe,” pledges always to embody
gentleness and forbearance.239
* Effort: One then continuously encourages oneself and the fellow
practitioners to relentlessly pursue enlightenment, bearing the
unbearable and overcoming obstacles.
* Meditation: One becomes committed to the spirit of “the
Buddha’s mind is my mind, the master’s resolve is my resolve”240

237
The ten precepts consist of two parts: The first five are the five basic lay Buddhist precepts - no
killing, no stealing, and no adultery', no lying, no alcohol. Cheng-yen added another five: no smoking, no
drugs, no betel nuts; no gambling, no opportunistic investments (especially in stock market); must show
filial piety, be soft spoken, have a gentle expression; must abide by traffic regulations; and not participate
in political activities, protests or demonstrations.
238
Tzu-chi literature uses "commissioner" as the English translation for the title of certified core
member.
239
Roherenrtt yi, the dark blue traditional Chinese dress (quipao). Among the great varieties of Tzu-Chi
uniforms, the dark blue (quipao) is exclusively to be worn by certified (female) commissioners.
240
Jones's translation, see Charles Brewer Jones, Buddhism in Taiwan: Religion, and the State
(Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press) 1999: p. 210.

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 and to the mission of “always for Buddhism and for all living
beings.”
* Wisdom: One then vows to follow Buddha and Dharma in every
life, practice the Bodhisattva path for all living beings, transcend
life and death with the sentiment of compassion and relief, and
treat all living beings with “Great compassion for those who are
known and unknown, boundless mercy for all beings.”

VI.2. Compassion in Modern Society

In modern society, our world is becoming smaller and ever

interdependent with the rapid growth in population and increasing
contact between people and governments. In this light, it is important to
reassess the lights and responsibilities of individuals, people and nations
in relation to each other and to the planer as a whole.
No matter what country or continent we come from we are all
basically the same human beings. We have the common human needs
and concerns. We all seek happiness and try to avoid suffering
regardless of our race, religion, sex or political status. Human beings
indeed all beings we can use our unique intelligence to try to understand
ourselves and our world. But if we prevented from using our creative
potential, we are deprived of one of the basic characteristics of human
beings. It is very often the most gifted, dedicated and creative members
of our society who become victims of human rights abuses. Thus the
political, social, cultural and economic developments of the society are
obstructed by the violations of human rights. Therefore, the protection
of these rights and freedoms are of immense importance for both the
individuals affected and for the development of the society as a whole.

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 In the modern society, people, rich or poor, powerful or weak,
suffer from one form of misery or other. Whether they attempt to
confront this reality or withdraw and isolate themselves from it, the
suffering of mankind remains. Although war, poverty, disease and
mental dissatisfaction continue to plague the world, an individual should
never blame others for such problems. The true object of blame for all
misfortune is the self-cherishing attitude of those who are directly
involved in such confusion. This self-cherishing attitude narrows an
individual’s outlook to his or her own likes and dislikes and is the
motivating force behind the continued creation of his unhappiness.
H. H. Dalai Lama XIV said:241 We are witnessing a tremendous
popular movement for the advancement of human rights and democratic
freedom in the world. This movement must become an even more
powerful moral force, so that even the most obstructive governments
and armies are incapable of suppressing it. This conference is an
occasion for all of us to reaffirm our commitment to this goal. It is
natural and just for nations, peoples and individuals to demand respect
for their rights and freedoms and to struggle to end repression, racism,
economic exploitation, military occupation, and various forms of
colonialism and alien exploitation. Governments should actively support
such demands instead of only paying lip service to them.
As we approach the beginning of the twenty-one century, we find
that the world is becoming one community. We are being drawn
together by the grave problems of over population, dwindling natural
resources, and an environmental crisis that threaten the very foundation
of our existence on this planet. Human rights, environmental protection

241
Buddhism and Human Right, Edited by Damien V Keown, Charles S. Prebish and Wayne R. Husted,
Printed in G'reat Britain by TJ International, Padstow, Cornwall, 1998: p. xx.

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and great social and economic equality, are all interrelated. We believe
that to meet the challenges of our times, human beings will have to
develop a greater sense of universal responsibility. Each of us must
learn to work not just for one self, one’s own family or one’ nation, but
we must work for the benefit of all humankind. Universal responsibility
is the key to human survival. It is the best foundation for world peace.
In Mahāyāna Buddhism, compassion (karuṇā) is defined as ‘pity
and sympathy that arises in good’, or ‘the desire of removing bane and
sorrow one’s follow men’. “Love and compassion are ultimate source of
human contentment, our need for them lies at our every core. Yet, they
are often omitted from many spheres of social interaction, confined to
family and home, their practice in public life is typically thought of as
impractical even naive; this is tragic”242, the Dalai Lama feels. He
believes that, the practice of compassion is not a symptom of unrealistic
idealism. It is the most effective and practical means to pursue one’s
own interest as well as that of others. He says that, adopting an attitude
of universal responsibility is, first, a matter of personal initiative.
Love and compassion are the basis for harmony growth. The Dalai
Lama also said:243 When you have compassion for very poor person, you
are showing sympathy. Because he or she is poor your compassion is
based on truism. On the other hand, love towards your wife, your
husband, and your children or a close friend is usually based on
attachment. When your attachment changes, your kindness also changes;
it may even disappear. This is not true love. Real love is based not on
attachment, but on altruism. In this case your compassion will remain a
human response to suffering as long as sentient beings continue to
242
Dr. Lella Karunyakara, Modernization of Buddhism, Contribution of Ambedkar and Dalai Lama XIV,
Delhi, 2002: p.127.
243
Ibid.

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suffer… If I compare myself with others, who are countless, I feel that
others are more important because I am just one person whereas others
are many.
All beings wish to be happy and free from misery. Although
scientific development, modern weapons and abundant material progress
may alleviate the temporary effects of dissatisfaction, such external
means can never totally eradicate its fundamental cause. The true
solution is to cultivate deep human compassion, love and respect for
others. Where a person is a Buddhist or Christian, a follower of a
specific religion or simply a believer in non-violence and morality, good
human qualities such as kindness, generosity, humility and compassion
are preferred by all. By cultivating such altruistic and beneficial
attributes, the cause of suffering, self-cherishing, will gradually
diminish. This, in turn, will promote unity and harmony among human
being of all nations.
In Buddhist teachings, compassion, the wish that all beings
separated from their suffering, plays an especially important part. In
order to help others be free from misery, the Buddha taught that the
most effective way is to attain the fully purified state beyond sorrow
(Nirvāṇa). The source of such a selfless motivation is compassion, and
its result – accomplished by means of the six transcending perseverance,
meditative concentration and discriminating awareness – the full
awakening of Buddhahood. In such a state, after completely eliminating
every trade of self – cherishing and when directly understanding
voidness (Śunyāta), the actual way all things exist, one will become as
effective source of benefit for others. This is because an enlightened
being has power to lead others out of their suffering.

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 Although compassion is cultivated in one’s own mind, the
embodiment of it is deity known as Avalokiteśvara, the one
‘Compassion regarding the world.’ The various aspects that are
visualized in meditational practices and represented in mages and
paintings are merely the interpretative forms of Avalokiteśvara, whereas
the actual definitive form is compassion itself. The Dalai Lama XIV of
Tibet has been recognized as true human manifestation of
Avalokiteśvara. Through his deep compassion he has shown himself in
manner to which one can easily relate. In his famous work, Fundamental
values of democracy, he said:244 If we develop a good heart, then
whether the field is science, agriculture or politics, since the motivation
is so very important, the result will be more beneficial. With proper
motivation these activities can help humanity; without it they go the
other way. This is why the compassionate thought is so very important
for human kind. Although it is difficult to bring about the inner change
that gives rise to it, it is absolutely worthwhile to try.

VI.3. Philosophical Aspects of Bodhicitta

It can be said that philosophy of bodhicitta is the conjunction of two

profound philosophies in Buddhism: Wisdom (Prajñā) and Compassion
(karuṇā), which are the most important teachings of Mahāyāna
Buddhism. Bodhicitta is Enlightenment-mind to arising (utpāda) of
which the Mahāyānists attached, unprecedented importance, regarding it
as the axis upon which revolved the whole Bodhisattva career.
Compassion represents not only the positive but also the dynamic aspect
of Enlightenment. By means of wisdom, in the limited sense of insight

244
Ibid., p. 133.

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into the unreality of the self, one could, the Mahāyānists conceded,
attain the peace and Nirvāṇa.
But this one-sidedly transcendental state of personal emancipation
from around of the birth and death was not, they maintained, the highest
goal of them. This was attainable by Transcendental Wisdom that is to
say, by insight not only into the egolessness of the result but also into
the substantiality of all things (dharmas) and the consequent unreality of
the distinction between Nirvāṇa and Saṃsāra. By his attainment of this
non-discriminating Wisdom, the Bodhisattva, instead of remaining like
the Hīnayāna ‘Arhat’ immersed in the quiescent state of Nirvāṇa,
liberates a purely transcendental force, the dynamic aspect of wisdom,
by means of which he is able, even after attaining Supreme
Enlightenment, to live and act in the universe for benefit of all sentient
beings.
The Buddha taught numerous techniques for liberation in his
teachings, the teachings on method. These are profound and effective,
and the Buddha and all great masters always emphasized, in every
Mahāyāna instruction text, that the teachings should only be given to
those who have bodhicitta. The profound teachings cannot be taught to
those who do not have bodhicitta, because bodhicitta is the foundation.
It is the heart. When we have bodhicitta, any sacred method is good and
effective. When we do not have bodhicitta, the methods are useless and
no benefit.
The great Bodhisattva Śāntideva is also said in his work,
Bodhicaryāvatāra: “If you churn the 84000 teachings of the Buddha,
their essence is bodhicitta”245 By churning milk we get butter, which is

245
Ribur Rinpoche, How to Generate Bodhicitta, Amitābha Buddhist Centre, Singapore, 1990: p. 7.

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the very essence of milk. In the same way, if we examine and churn all
the 84000 teachings of the Buddha, their very essence is the practice of
bodhicitta.
According to D.T. Suzuki, in his work, Essays in Zen
Buddhism,246 when the actual process of enlightenment was examined,
the Mahāyāna found that it consisted of two definite steps. In the
beginning it was necessary to create for the sake of others an urgent
longing for enlightenment, and then the attainment of the final goal
itself would be possible. The longing was just as important and full of
meaning as the attainment itself, for the latter was impossible without
the former; indeed the later determined the former in every way; that is
the time, strength, and efficacy, etc. Therefore, in the Mahāyāna texts,
this first stirring of the desire for enlightenment is considered a great
event in the life of a Buddhist, and receives special mention in them.
The idea of the Bodhisattva as a being who on the one hand seeks
after enlightenment and, on the other, out of his compassionate heart
intensely desires to lead the whole universe to the enjoyment of spiritual
welfare has been persistently alive among all the Mahāyāna
followers:”247 has thus come to be the normative principle of Buddhist
life in the Far East. In all Buddhist temples, the following ‘Four Great
Vows’ are heard chanted on every occasion, after a serve, after a lecture,
after a meal, and after the sūtra chanting: “眾 生 無 籩 誓 願 度; 煩 惱
無 盡 誓 願 斷; 法 門 無 量 誓 願 學; 佛 道 無 上 誓 願 成.”248 (All
beings, however limitless, I vow to carry across. My evil passions,

246
Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, Essay in Zen Buddhism, vol. III, Munshiram Monoharlal Publishers, New
Delhi, 2004: p. 168.
247
Above, (I) seek for Bodhi (enlightenment); below, (I) convert all living beings.
248
Sentient beings are numberless, I vow to save them all; Afflictions are inexhaustible, I vow to end
them all; Dharma doors are boundless, I vow to master them all; Buddhahood is unsurpassable, I vow to
attain it.

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however inexhaustible, I vow to destroy. The Dharma teachings,
however innumerable, I vow to study. The Buddha-way, however
peerless, I vow to attain.)249
We do not know exactly when the ‘Four great vows’ came to be
formulated and incorporated into the life of the Buddhist monk, but
there is no doubt that spirit pervading them in the spirit of the
Mahāyāna and as such that of Buddhist, and that ever seen the
introduction of Buddhism into China, Japan, Vietnam, etc. the ‘Vows’
has influenced the culture life of the East in all its branches.
According to the Gandhavyūha sūtra, these two aspects of the
Buddhist life are described; first, as raising the desire for supreme
enlightenment (bodhicitta); and, secondly, practising the life of the
Bodhisattva-that is, the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra. Sudhana the young
pilgrim had his first awakening of the desire (cittotpāda) under the
direction of Mañjuśrī and his later pilgrimage consisted wholly in
inquiries into living the life of enlightenment (bodhicaryā). So says of
Mañjuśrī to his disciple when he sends Sudhana off on his long, arduous
‘Pilgrim’s Progress’: ‘Well done, well done, indeed, O son of a good
family! Having awakened the desire for supreme enlightenment, thou
now wish to seek for the life of Bodhisattva. O son of a good family, it is
a rare thing to see beings whose desire is raised to supreme
enlightenment, proceeds to seek for the life of Bodhisattva. Therefore, O
son of good family, if thou wishes to attain the knowledge which is
possessed by All-knowing One, be ever assiduous to get associated with
good friends (kalyāṇamitra)…’250

249
Translation by Dr. Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki
250
Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, Vol. III, Op. cit, 2004: p. 170.

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 Moreover, in Tantric Buddhism, the highest philosophy of
bodhicitta is described by the five Dhyāna Buddhas as following:251
- According to the Tathāgata Vairocana: ‘My thought (citta) is
devoid of all notions of existence; it is unconnected with factors
of existence (skandha), physical elements (dhātu) or elements of
sense-perception (āyatana) or with subjectivity or objectivity; it is
without beginning and is of the nature.’
- The Tathāgata Akṣobhya gives definition: ‘Bodhicitta is
essenceless like the sky; it considers all existence as devoid of
origination; in it there neither objects (dharma) nor qualities of
objects (dharmata).’
- The Tathāgata Ratnaketu: It is thought (citta) which views all
phenomena as non-existent and devoid of qualities and that all
originate from void.
Tathāgata Amitābha, who puts forward his explanation thus: ‘All
phenomena are without beginning. Therefore, there is neither existence
nor notion of existence. Existence of things is spoken of in the same
manner as the existence as the existence of the sky.’ Tathāgata
Amoghasiddhi explains: All phenomena are naturally resplendent, are
pure and comparable to the sky; bodhicitta is either enlightenment or
comprehension.
All the sūtras belonging to Avataṃsaka literature have a
deliberate penchant for decimal enumeration, and even when there is
apparently no intrinsic need for filling up the required formula the
author or compiler scrupulously proceeds to count up a complete series
of ten. Thus in the above recapitulation ideas belonging to one category
251
G. P. Malalasekera, Encyclopedia of Buddhism, vol. III, Printed at the Government Press, Ceylon,
Reprinted 1999: p. 187a.

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are divided into many heads, evidently for no other purpose than to keep
up the form. ‘Stock of merit’, ‘deeds of good-ness’, ‘moral provision’,
and ‘work of purity’ may be gathered up under the one head of moral
conduct. If this is possible, the conditions necessary for awakening the
desire for enlightenment may be summarized thus:252 (1) moral conduct,
(2) the friendly disposition of the Buddhas and good friends, and (3) a
heart pure, true, loving and all-embracing. When these tree conditions
are perfectly fulfilled, the Bodhisattva is said to raise its head and to be
ready for further evolution.
When we survey of the philosophical aspects of bodhicitta, one
question is usually appeared in us: why is the desire for supreme
enlightenment so necessary in the life of a devout Mahāyānists? Or
simply, what has the Buddhist enlightenment to do with our life? The
Daśabhūmika gives the following reasons:253
* For the realization of Buddha-knowledge (jñanā)
* For the attainment of the ten powers (daśabala)
* For the attainment of great fearness (mahāvaiśā-radya)
* For the attainment of the truth of sameness which constitutes
Buddhahood (Samatabuddharma)
* For protecting and securing the whole world (sarva-
jagatparitrāṇa)
* For the purification of a pitying and compassionate heart
(kṛipakāruṇā)
* For the attainment of a knowledge which leaves nothing unknown
(aśeśajñāna) in the ten quarters of the world.

252
D. T. Suzuki, Essays in Zen Buddhism, Op. cit., 2004: p. 181.
253
Ibid., p. 181.

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 * For the purification of all the Buddha-lands so that a state of non-
attachment (asaṃga) will prevail.
* For the perception of the past, present, and future in one moment
(kṣaṇabodha)
* For the revolving of the great wheel of the Dharma
(dharmacakrapravarto) in the spirit of fearlessness.
In order to clarify further the nature of enlightenment as
conceived by the Mahāyānists, the following is taken again from the
Daśabhūmika, according to which the desire for enlightenment
comprises in the ten following elements:254
* A great compassionate heart which is the chief factor of the
desire.
* Knowledge born of transcendental wisdom which is the ruling
element
* Skilful means which works as protecting a gent
* The deepest heart which gives it a support. And, further, the
bodhicitta is:
* Of the same measure with the Tathāgata-power
* Endowed with the power to discern the power and intelligence of
all beings (Sattvabalabuddhi)
* Directed towards the knowledge of non-obstruction (asam-
bhinnajñāna)
* In the conformity with spontaneous knowledge (svayamdhujñāna)
* Capable of instructing all beings in the truths of Buddhism
according to knowledge born of transcendental wisdom

254
Ibid., p. 182.

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 * Extending to the limits of the Dharmadhātu which is as wide as
space itself.
The philosophical aspect of bodhicitta is explained by Ven. Lama
Pabongka Rinpoche as follow:255 Teaching that is the only way to enter
the Mahāyāna is to develop bodhicitta. The teaching that determines
whether you have joined the ranks of the Mahāyāna is whether you have
developed bodhicitta in your mind-stream. And Ven. Tsongkhapa said:
It is not enough that the Dharma be Mahāyāna - the person must also
belong to the Mahāyāna. You become a Mahāyānist by having
bodhicitta. If you merely understand bodhicitta, you are not much of a
Mahāyānist.
And Nāgārjuna has presented in his work, the Precious
Garland:256
“If you desire supreme enlightenment
For yourself and the world,
Know that its root is a bodhicitta
As firm as Meru, king of mountains.”
Therefore, unless we have absolutely no yearning for
enlightenment, we must make bodhicitta our basic practice. Anything of
value-such as good qualities in any of the vehicles-in the end comes
from bodhicitta. For these reasons we must see if we can develop this
bodhicitta in our mind-streams; we could have no better rebirth to use
for its development than our present one.
Buddhist teachings make it clear that bodhicitta is only cause and
condition for the happiness and well being of all sentient beings. Prince

255
Lama Pabongka Rinpoche, Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand, Wisdom Publications, America,
2006: p. 502.
256
Nāgārjuna, The Precious Garland, http://www.ratnavali.com/content/view/7327/45/.

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Siddhartha became the Buddha because of his bodhicitta. In many
Sūtras, Lord Buddha Shākyamuni described his past lives. He was born
in many realms: human, animal, in heaven, and in the hell, and he
practised bodhicitta for many, many kalpas, a vast length of time. He
did that until he attained enlightenment, developing step by step,
lifetime by lifetime, the practice of bodhicitta.

VI.4. Ethical and Social Aspects of Bodhicitta

As above, we have known that, Bodhicitta is the attitude that is based on

the great compassion wishing to remove the suffering of all others, and
the recognition that, to be of greatest benefit to both oneself and others,
it is ideal to attain enlightenment. With such a thought or attitude,
bodhicitta has much significance in the world as well as in the modern
society, especially in ethical and social aspects. This means that the
efforts given to help all sentient beings are not the product of a desire
but rather the result of having reached a certain spiritual stage. What this
means for someone to have reached such a stage is described by the
following passage of the Bodhicaryāvatāra:257 May I become the
medicine for those afflicted with diseases also be their tending nurse and
their physician so that there is no recurrence of their disease. May I
destroy the hunger and thirst by unending rain of food and drinks. May I
myself become food and drink for beings during an interval of famine.
257
Glānāmasmi bhaiṣajiyaṃ bhaiṣajyaṃ bhaveyaṃ vaidya eva ca |
Tadupasthāyakaścaiva yāvada rogā punarbhavaḥ ||7||
Kśutpitpāsāvyathāṃ hanyāmanna pānapra vavṣanaiḥ |
Durbhikśāntarakalpeṣu bhaveyaṃ pānabhojanam ||8||
Daridrāṇāṃ ca sattvānāṃ nidhiṇ syāmahamakśyaḥ |
Nānopakaraṇākāraipupatiṣṭheyamagtaḥ ||9||
Ātmabhavāṃstathā bhogām sarvantraydhva gataṃ śubham |
Nirapekśastyajāmyeṣa sarvasattvār thasidhaye ||10||
Sarvatyāgaśca nirvāṇani nirvāṇārthi ca me manaḥ |
Tyaktavyaṃ cenmayā sarvani sattveṣu dīyatām ||11||

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May I become an inexhaustible (of things) for poor beings. May I
myself stand in front of those needy beings with the capacity to fulfill
all their various needs. I do herby give up my enjoyments and merits of
the past, the present and the future without (feeling) any sense of loss
for the benefit of all beings. Nirvāṇa is total renunciation and my mind
seeks Nirvāṇa. If I have to renounce all, it is better to give away for the
(good of) beings258.
These verses, and many others, describe what it means to be an
accomplished Bodhisattva, a person who is, in all aspects of the spiritual
as well as material life, of benefit for all sentient beings. There is
another important idea related to the ethical aspect of bodhicitta.
Because of its radical implications it may be viewed as a metaphor, but,
giving this understanding of the spiritual path, that is, the passage from
one state of mind to another (citta-upāda), we believe that it could be
taken literally. This idea is that of the Bodhisattva’s self-sacrifice.
According to Ven. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, the ethical and social
aspects of bodhicitta are three types:259
1. The moral discipline of restraint;
2. The moral discipline of gathering virtuous Dharmas;
3. The moral discipline of benefiting living beings.
The moral discipline of restraint
This is the moral discipline of abstaining from non-virtue. To practise
this moral discipline we need to understand the dangers of committing
negative actions and make a promise or vow to abandon them, and then
keep that promise or vow. Simply failing to commit negative actions
unintentionally is not a practice of moral discipline because it is not

258
Parmananda Sharma, Op. cit., 1990: pp. 71 - 74.
259
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, The Bodhisattva Vow, Tharpa Publications, New Delhi, 2002: p. 83.

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motivated by a determination to abstain. Any spiritual discipline that
avoids or overcomes either mental faults or negative actions of body or
speech is included within the moral discipline of restraint. For example,
if we understand the dangers of the ten non-virtuous actions, we are
practicing the moral discipline of restraint.
The moral discipline of gathering virtuous Dharmas
We practise this moral discipline when we sincerely practise any
virtuous action, such as keeping the Bodhisattva vow purely, practising
the six perfections, making offerings to the Tree Jewels, or putting
energy into studying, meditating on, or propagating holy Dharma.
The moral discipline of benefiting living beings
This is the moral discipline of helping others in whatever way we can. If
we cannot offer practical help to someone, we can at least make prayers
for them and maintain a continuous intention to give assistance when an
opportunity arises. When we help others we should be tactful and
sensitive. We should try to understand the other person’s experience and
point of view, and then offer help that is relevant to them, and in such a
way that they can accept it.
His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, in his work, The Way to Freedom
said:260 Being content with the achievement of liberation from the cycle
of existence is not enough. Even speaking from the viewpoint of your
own aims, it is the omniscient state of Buddhahood that is the complete
fulfillment of your own welfare. After having developed the wish to
achieve liberation and having undertaken practice of the three trainings,
instead of being concerned with the achievement of your own personal
liberation, it is better for intelligent practitioners to meditate on the
altruistic aspiration to Buddhahood, called bodhicitta, right from the
260
The Dalai Lama, the Way to Freedom, the Library of Tibet, 2000: p. 131.

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outset and enter the Mahāyāna, the great Vehicle. If you see people who
are under the constant sway of delusions and undergoing suffering, yet
you do not work for their benefit, it is really unfair and disappointing.
You should not be content with working for your own personal benefit
alone. You should think in broader terms and try to work for the benefit
of many people. This is what distinguishes human beings from animal,
because the wish to work for the benefit of oneself and one’s relations is
something that even animals do. The unique feature of human beings is
that they work for the benefit of others, not being concerned with their
own welfare alone. That is the beauty and the specialty of a human
being.
In the chapter IV, part IV.1.1.2, the methods of generation of
bodhicitta; we have mentioned the seven-point cause and effect
transmission. In the first step, we should develop the thought of
equanimity. This is not to suggest that we do not have friends and
enemies. What we are concerned with here is to offset our drastic,
imbalanced emotional reactions to others. This equanimity is very
important; it is like first leveling the ground before cultivating it. After
developing equanimity, the first of the cause-and-effect precept for
creating the aspiration to enlightenment is the recognition that all
sentient beings have been our mother in a past life. If you are able to
develop deep conviction in this fact, it will be quite easy to recollect and
reflect upon their great kindness. The next precept is to reflect on the
kindness of all sentient beings. This meditation is said to be the most
successful if, after having recognized all the other sentient beings as
your mother, you recollect their kindness, taking your own mother as an
example. Visualize your mother in front of you, and reflect that she has
been your mother not only in this lifetime but also numerous times in

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the past. Then think of how kind she has been to you, how she has
protected you from danger and how she has helped you, how in this life
she first conceived you and even during the pregnancy she took great
care of you, etc. Gradually include all other sentient beings within the
sphere of your recognition of kindness, etc. Through the practice, we
can develop our ethical and social aspects in this very life.
The practice of bodhicitta is indispensable for someone who
wishes to achieve enlightenment. All the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of
the past have achieved these high realizations by cultivating this
altruistic attitude. The Buddha taught that life is our most cherished
possession and that we should treat the lives of others as more important
and precious than our own. This kind of message and teaching retains its
relevance throughout the ages. In this modern age when there is a great
danger of the destruction of the entire world, we find the message of the
Buddha more and more relevant.
The other method for practising bodhicitta is the equalizing and
exchanging of self and others, which is also considered ethical and
social aspects of bodhicitta in the modern society. All the good qualities
in this universe are the product of cherishing the welfare of others, and
all the frustrations and confusions and sufferings are products and
consequences of selfish attitudes. But is it possible to exchange oneself
for others? Our experience testifies that we can change our attitude
toward certain types of people whom we formerly found repulsive and
fearful, that when we get closer to such persons and understand them,
we can change our attitude. Exchanging self and others does not mean
that we physically change ourselves into others but rather that the
attitude that we have about ourselves is applied to others. The strong
cherishing that you feel for yourself should now be shifted to others, so

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that we will have a natural tendency to work for the welfare of others
instead of ourselves.
There are two main obstacles to developing such an attitude. The
first is this strong discrimination between self and others, regarding self
and others as totally independent and separate. In fact, self and other are
relative, like “this side of the mountain” and “that side of the mountain.”
From my perspective, I am self and you are other, but from your
perspective, you are self and I am other. We also have a natural feeling
of indifference because we feel that the happiness and suffering of
others is not our business; they do not matter to remember that there are
certain types of people, like relatives, whom we hold very dear. Even
though your relatives are not you, the sufferings and happiness they
experience do affect you. Also, despite the fact that our bodies,
collections of parts, as very precious. In the same way, we should look
at what unites us, the common feature that the sentient beings like
ourselves share the natural wish to achieve happiness and avoid
sufferings. We regard a person who gives up his or her life for the sake
of others as noble, but we think that it is foolish to sacrifice ten people
to save one. This has nothing to do with religion; it is simply a human
response. Therefore, to give up the rights, benefits, and privileges of the
few for the sake of the many is right and fair. This is what the Buddha
teaches-that to give up the privileges and rights of one individual for the
welfare of all other beings, who are as infinite as space, is right and fair.
In addition to the well-known birth-stories (Jātaka)261 of the
Buddha in which the latter sacrifices his body to feed some beings in
need such as the female tiger and her offspring, there are many passages
261
Jātaka (P): The Jātaka is title of the tenth book of the Khuddhaka Nikāya of the Sūtra Pitaka of Pāli
Canon. The Jātaka is also a massive collection of Buddhist folklore about previous incarnations of the
Buddha, both in human and animal form.

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in the Mahāyāna literature related to the spiritual practice of the
Bodhisattvas that mention this idea. In the Akṣayamati sūtra, for
example, we are told by a Bodhisattva the following:262 I must wear out
even this body of mine for the benefits of all sentient beings. And as
these four great elements, that is, earth, air, fire and water, go to the
varied enjoyment of beings through many directions and turnings,
supports, appliances and uses: so I purpose to make this body of mine,
itself an aggregation of the four great elements, fit for the enjoyment of
all beings through the many directions and other means… So indeed the
Bodhisattva, giving himself amongst all sentient beings, by aiding all
roots of happiness, regarding all creatures in their roots of happiness,
offering himself as a lamp amongst all creatures....
What transpires from such passages is not the idea of strong will
or intense motivation on the part of the Bodhisattva, but rather, an
attitude of readiness. This readiness does not seem to be the result of an
active effort of renunciation similar to that given by a smoker trying to
stop smoking, but, on the contrary, it appears to be a natural disposition
of the mind. It is something that is or ought to be done quite effortlessly.
The idea of readiness is further emphasized by the fact that it is
not the Bodhisattva who initiates the action of giving but rather those
who are in need. In the text just mentioned, one is told, for instance, "I
(the Bodhisattva) will give hand, foot, eye, flesh, blood, marrow, limbs
great and small-my head itself to those who ask for them" or "Whoever
wants them (various possessions), I will give them to him for his ben-
efit," and finally, "Let all sentient beings take them (parts of my body) as

262
Francis Brassard, the Concept of Bodhicitta in Śāntideva’s Bodhicaryāvatāra, Published by State
University of New York, 2000: p. 47.

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they require them, a hand, for such who needs it, or a loot, for such who
needs it.”263
The Bodhisattva, sacrificing his own body, offering his blood to
those begging for it, he whose bodhicitta is delighting (praharṣita--
bodhicitta), desiring to follow the path of the Bodhisattva, not casting
away a thought that was made clear to him, ready and eager for all who
are begging, not hated by any one who receives, practising the path of
renunciation of all the Bodhisattvas, not regarding his own body because
of unconquerable joy and contentment, offering the blood from his own
body, devoted to the Mahāyāna path as the abode of knowledge, with
mind unspoiled in the Mahāyāna path, agreeable, pleased, delighted,
joyful, friendly, happy, contented, and becoming joyful, pleased, and
content, sacrificing the very marrow from his body for those begging for
it.
In history of Buddhism, king Aśoka (circa 273-232 BCE), who
created the largest territory of the Maurya dynasty in the Indian history,
was transformed from violence to ahimsà and peace by the teaching of
the Buddha. After his conquest of Kalinga kingdom, he truly realized
the tragic nature of wars, and governed the country with the spirit of
ahimsà and compassion, taking refuge in the Buddha’s teachings. It is
also considered as ethical and social aspects of compassion and
bodhicitta. As understanding the value of the Buddha’s teachings, he
created rock-edicts and pillar-edicts in various places in his territories to
let the people know about the Dharma in which King Aśoka believed
and encouraged the people to practice it. King Aśoka considered truth–

263
Ibid., p. 48.

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conquest the most important conquest, instead of sword conquest after
the Kalinga war. Here the truth is the Dharma or Buddha’s teaching.
The contents of the Edicts by King Aśoka may be indexed as
follows:264
a. Forbidding slaughter of animals; sacredness of all life.
b. Establishments for the dispensing of medicine for men and for
animals.
c. Duties of royal executive officers; instruction to be given by the
Council.
d. Practice of the Dharma.
e. Appointment of Superintendents of the Dharma and their duties.
f. Prompt dispatch of business of State.
g. Equality of all men of all sects, except in their striving for
perfection.
h. Change in the nature of the king’s pleasure.
i. Virtue is better than ceremonies.
j. Fame doe not bring gain, but good deeds make one free from evil
inclinations.
k. The highest gift is the gift of the Dharma
l. By tolerance of other sects one benefits one’s sect.
With the full meaning of his work, King Aśoka became a true
Buddhist, a famous king of the ancient world until now.

264
According to Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Malasekera, G.P.1961-65 (Vol. II page 183)

216