Religions and spiritual paths are meant to give you strength and help you find meaning. Many people derive strength and meaning through faith in an all-powerful God who works in mysterious ways but ultimately has your best interests in mind. Buddhism doesn’t teach this kind of faith, but it does call attention to many truths upon which we can rely for strength and meaning, no matter what happens to us personally or in the world. For the purpose of this discussion, I’m going call a truth we can rely on a “Dharma Foundation.”
Quicklinks to Article Content:
Dharma Foundation 1: In Reality, we are boundaryless and interdependent
Dharma Foundation 2: There is immense and transformative power in actions that transcend the apparent boundary between self and other
Dharma Foundation 3: The flow of generosity transcends the intentions or relative resources of individuals
Dharma Foundation 4: All beings have Buddha-Nature, in fact all Being is Buddha-Nature
Dharma Foundation 5: What matters most is intangible; although we naturally fear loss, suffering, and chaos, what matters most can’t be taken from us
Dharma Foundation 6: The way to freedom lies in facing the truth, no matter how difficult it is to accept, and with practice even difficult things need not overwhelm us
Dharma Foundation 7: No matter what happens, we can practice and take refuge in Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha
Dharma Foundation 8: In addition to the dependent dimension of Reality – the dimension of time, space, and causality that we are usually aware of – it has an independent dimension in which all things are precious and luminous in their own suchness
The list of truths I will offer is not an established one in Buddhism, it’s just one I came up with when I wanted to give a Dharma Talk to my Sangha recently. Many terrible and frightening things have been happening in the world, and I wanted to give people encouragement. It’s also not an exhaustive list by any means, but I think it highlights some of the most important aspects of our practice.
I hope this list will either remind you of convictions you already have, based on your own experience, or inspire you to go deeper into Buddhist practice in order to get a sense of these truths for yourself. Even at the level of provisional faith, these foundations can offer you a sense of stability and moral order. As you verify them for yourself, they can become part of your nature. These truths will remain no matter what happens to us, and no matter what happens in the world. These truths we can rely on; we can take refuge in them, build our lives around them, and take inspiration from them.
If you want any additional explanation or Dharma background on any of the truths, there are links to episodes I’ve done on them in this episode’s transcript on the zenstudiespodcast.com website.
Dharma Foundation 1:
In Reality, we are boundaryless and interdependent. It is delusion to think we can gain any meaningful or lasting advantage for ourselves at the expense of another. Even if it temporarily appears we can do so, a price will be paid in our own hearts if nowhere else.
You are empty of any inherently existing, independent, autonomous, enduring self-nature (see Episode 14). You are alive and listening to (or reading) this podcast episode due to an infinite number of causes and conditions from the big bang all the way down to the bacteria working to digest food in your gut. Your energy comes from the sun, tens of thousands of years of human culture have shaped your language and intelligence, and someone makes sure the stoplights are working so you can drive safely. It is an illusion that your life is run by an internal “Executive I” who calls all the shots. In reality, your life is an unfolding of causes and conditions within which you have precious moments of choice.
There is no fixed boundary around the self, and therefore no fixed boundary between self and other. The suffering of other beings, the suffering of all being, is our own. In order to cause harm to another, we must close our hearts to them – cut them out of our larger sense of self. The rare exception to this is when we must take an action that causes the suffering or death of another out of compassion, but in that case, we are usually well aware that we suffer along with the other as we do so.
A closed heart atrophies, and it causes our experience of the world to be impoverished (see Episode 288). We may look out at the world and wonder how people manage to exploit, attack, or persecute other beings while apparently enjoying happy, fortunate, self-satisfied lives. Perhaps people have even managed to accumulate power and wealth at the expense of others. Buddhism teaches that any such worldly happiness is fragile, conditional, shallow, and based on the denial of interdependence. It comes at a terrible cost to both self and other.
The Dharma Foundation of interdependence is reflected in the Buddhist moral precepts. These are guidelines for behavior you can follow if you want to minimize harm to self and other, but they also described enlightened activity – how you act when you realize the truth of interdependence. In my Soto Zen tradition, we have three foundational (“pure”) precepts:
Cease from evil – release all self-attachment. “Evil” is not a forbidden category of actions, it is action that prioritizes self-interest over the truth of interdependence.
Do only good – take selfless action. When we do this, we realize that benefiting others also benefits us. It is like one of your hands giving something to your other hand. Zen master Dogen said, “Foolish people think that if they help others first, their own benefit will be lost, but this is not so. Beneficial action is an act of oneness, benefiting self and others together.”[i]
Do good for others – embrace all things and conditions. Two sentences follow this in our precept text: “Leap beyond the holy and the unholy. Let us rescue ourselves together with all beings.”
Even when we don’t feel boundaryless and interdependent, even when we and other beings aren’t acting like we are, it is so. This is a truth to rely on. Sometimes this truth challenges how we see the world, or how we behave, but it also can be encouraging. None of us can remove ourselves from this web of interdependence, so none of us is immune to the power of empathy. Therefore, redemption is always possible.
Buddhism teaches us not to expect that all beings who do harm will awaken to the truth of what they’re doing in this lifetime, but it says such awakening is inevitable. If you take rebirth as a metaphor, this means that even if an individual who carelessly causes harm doesn’t repent and change before the end of their life, they leave behind causes and conditions which eventually lead people toward an appreciation of interdependence. A classic example of this is how, after hundreds of years, growing numbers of white people are starting to understand scale of the injustice and persecution faced by black, indigenous, and people of color over the last several hundred years.
Dharma Foundation 2:
There is immense and transformative power in actions that transcend the apparent boundary between self and other. Such actions of body, speech, and mind include goodwill, kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, generosity, and beneficial action.
The world – and sometimes our own heart – seems full of anger, judgment, stinginess, cruelty, hard-heartedness, even violence and hatred. We may be aware of good in the world, but if we try to calculate whether the good outweighs the bad, we may feel discouraged.
The truth that selfless actions have immense power does not depend on abstract calculations about the overall moral status of the universe. Such actions can be a source of great strength and inspiration regardless of what’s going on. Even in terrible situations – perhaps especially in terrible situations – actions that transcend the boundary between self and other manifest the reality of interdependence and make life worth living. They transform loneliness into connection, hatred into goodwill, misery into generosity.
This truth is illustrated in a chapter of the Lotus Sutra that is widely chanted in Buddhism called the Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva Universal Gateway. Avalokiteshvara is the archetypal bodhisattva of compassion, and the chapter encourages us to call on his/her name when we are in difficulty, promising that she/he will deliver us from distress. Here are a couple of verses:
If surrounded by vicious bandits,
each with a sword drawn to strike,
by mindfully invoking Avalokiteshvara’s power
at once their hearts will tum to compassion.
If, persecuted by rulers,
you face torture and execution,
by mindfully invoking Avalokiteshvara’s power
their weapons will thereby shatter to pieces…
If clouds thunder and lightning strikes,
hailstones fall, and it rains in torrents,
by mindfully invoking Avalokiteshvara’s power
instantly they will dissipate.[ii]
Myself, I don’t go for magical thinking. I don’t believe that calling on Avalokiteshvara I gain supernatural powers to literally overcome all threats to my personal safety and liberty. However, this imagery points to the potential of compassionate actions to utterly transform even the worst situations. If we manage to elicit someone’s sense of empathy, they are much less likely to do harm. When we are faced with misfortune, it can be liberating to shift our attention from self-concern toward taking care of others.
Dharma Foundation 3:
The flow of generosity transcends the intentions or relative resources of individuals. In Buddhism we call this “the emptiness of the three spheres of giver, receiver, and gift.”
The reality of Emptiness means that the phenomenon of selfless action and the transfer of benefit transcends the sphere of personal good deeds. It’s not simply a matter of well-meaning people recognizing they have something to give and then giving it to someone is lacking in some way. We can experience this directly when we have the opportunity to selflessly be of service to someone; we feel a reward from our action that makes us wonder who is benefiting most in the situation. When our giving and service is sincere and completely free from self-interest, it’s a simple matter of joyfully passing on the benefit we ourselves have received. Any sense of ownership or pride about the gift or the giving of it is absent, and we feel only gratitude at being able to give it.
Giving is beneficial at all levels, but Buddhism points us toward in ideal of generosity that we can relate to as a law of the universe. In the Prajna Paramita Sutra in 25,000 Lines the Buddha speaks of the “three spheres” of giver, receiver, and gift, saying:
What, you may ask, is the supramundane perfection of generosity? It is the purity of the three spheres… when bodhisattva great beings offer gifts, they do not apprehend a self, they do not apprehend a recipient, and they do not apprehend a giving. They do not even rejoice in the ripening impact of their generosity.[iii]
This isn’t to say we can’t take joy in giving, but it asks us to think beyond our limited ideas of self, other, and what can be given. In Bodaisatta Shishobo, The Bodhisattva’s Four Methods of Guidance, Dogen writes:
“Giving” means nongreed. Nongreed means not to covet… It is like giving away unneeded belongings to someone you don’t know, offering flowers blooming on a distant mountain to the Tathagata, or, again, offering treasures you had in your former life to sentient beings. Whether it is of teaching or of material, each gift has its value and is worth giving. Even if the gift is not your own, there is no reason to abstain from giving. The question is not whether the gift is valuable but whether there is genuine merit…
Mind is beyond measure. Things given are beyond measure. And yet, in giving, mind transforms the gift and the gift transforms mind.[iv]
Dharma Foundation 4:
All beings have Buddha-Nature, in fact all Being is Buddha-Nature. All life, all being, is precious. Our precept against killing states, “The life of Buddha increases with life, no life can be cut off.”
We usually do not have an unconditionally warm, loving feeling toward all beings, especially if they disappoint or seem to threaten us. However, this is the most difficult kind of situation for us to perceive this truth about the universality of Buddha-Nature (see Episode 203). Just because we can’t perceive it at any given moment doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Without beings, all that is most beautiful – including the ability to awaken – cannot be.
We affirm the inherent dignity and value in any being whenever we are truly able to see them. Truly seeing them means our sense of separateness and self-concern have been set aside. What naturally arises, then, are the Four Brahmaviharas, or Sublime Social Attitudes: Goodwill, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity (see Episode 63). This doesn’t mean we don’t set appropriate boundaries, but it does mean we refrain from cutting anyone off from the life of Buddha.
In the Metta Sutta, the Buddha says:
Even as a mother protects with her life
Her child, her only child,
So with a boundless heart
Should one cherish all living beings;
Radiating kindness over the entire world…[v]
It isn’t just human beings, sentient beings, or even living beings who are manifestations of Buddha-Nature. Mountains, rivers, rocks, coffee mugs, flowers, cars, and rainbows are also part of the miracle of this existence. Therefore, we treat each thing, each being, with loving care.
Dharma Foundation 5:
What matters most is intangible; although we naturally fear loss, suffering, and chaos, what matters most can’t be taken from us. The fundamental teaching of Buddhism is that our experience of life is mostly dependent on the state of our own mind and heart. Regardless of our circumstances, there are choices we can make to give us strength and peace of mind.
If we are living fortunate lives, it’s very difficult not to become reliant on conditional sources of happiness. We enjoy our family, friends, homes, and possessions. We take pleasure in experiences, hobbies, entertainments, and our physical and mental abilities. At the back of our mind is the worry that we will be miserable if we lose these things prematurely, or once we inevitably lose them because of impermanence and death.
Of course, what matters most is intangible – things like love, connection, gratitude, dignity, appreciation, generosity, and peace of mind. We can manifest and enjoy these things regardless of our circumstances.
This doesn’t mean we won’t experience physical and emotional pain and distress in our life. Still, it is valuable to remember that even loss doesn’t destroy our sincere love for someone. When we have very little in the way of personal possessions, health, or abilities, nothing prevents a profound appreciation for what we do have – even if it’s only the summer breeze. In fact, it’s common for people’s true generosity of spirit to grow in inverse relationship to their material wealth, so even poverty doesn’t take everything from us. No one wishes for situations like war, conflict, or social upheaval, but even in these circumstances life goes on, and we can choose to act with courage and compassion.
Before his awakening, the Buddha was deeply troubled by the question of human suffering (see Episode 9). He wondered if we were all simply vulnerable to the winds of fate – sometimes enjoying great fortune, at other times devastated by pain or loss. Through his spiritual practice, he discovered that we can transcend suffering and attain unconditional peace of mind if we awaken to the true nature of things and give up our resistance to things having ended up the way they are (see Episode 145).
Dharma Foundation 6:
The way to freedom lies in facing the truth, no matter how difficult it is to accept, and with practice even difficult things need not overwhelm us.
There are countless ways we try to avoid facing that which is difficult to accept, process, or respond to. We turn to denial, avoidance, distraction, repression, and intoxicants. We weave stories of blame that are meant to blot out complexity and pain. We do this with respect to past or present situations in our personal life, or in the wider world. When someone or something suggests we need to face the truth, the prospect can seem completely overwhelming. We fear being overcome with negative emotions or sinking into despair or depression. We fear that facing the truth will demand something of us we can’t (or don’t want to) give. In the meantime, we live constrained by our avoidance and fear.
It seems counterintuitive, but in reality, the way to freedom – even joy – lies in facing the truth. It doesn’t matter what that truth is. The classic truths we’re asked to face in Buddhism are things like the inevitability of old age, disease, loss, and death – to really allow ourselves to feel the full weight of them, the gritty reality of them. We’re asked to consider that we are empty of inherent self-nature – initially a terrifying prospect! Similarly, in order to be free, we may need to face difficult things about our personal life, including mistakes we have made or continue to make, traumas we have endured, or dreams we have had that went unfulfilled.
Our overall attitude toward the truth is embodied in our meditation practice. In his Universally Recommended Instructions for Zazen, Zen master Dogen tells us to:
Put aside all involvements and suspend all affairs. Do not think “good” or “bad.” Do not judge true or false. Give up the operations of mind, intellect, and consciousness; stop measuring with thoughts, ideas, and views.[vi]
When we practice in this way, we exclude nothing from our perceptions and let go of our attempts to control the world with our minds. If we are attentive and open, anything may arise, including anything we have been trying to avoid. Fortunately, in this same spaciousness, we can allow difficult thoughts and emotions to pass on through us. We no longer need to contain them, fight them, or resolve them, and this allows us to see the truth more clearly. In time, we recognize the Emptiness of all phenomena – that there is no inherently existing nature within anything we fear, nor in our own being. This insight is called prajna paramita, the perfection of wisdom. According to the Heart Sutra:
With nothing to attain, a bodhisattva relies on prajna paramita, and thus the mind is without hindrance. Without hindrance, there is no fear.[vii]
Dharma Foundation 7:
No matter what happens, we can practice and take refuge in Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. Our practice is all about the Great Matter of Life and Death.
As long as things are going relatively well, we may not appreciate how the true value of practice emerges exactly when things get difficult. We may imagine that we will be left without anything to rely on if the worst happens, such as being caught in a war zone, living under an authoritarian regime, or facing a debilitating chronic or terminal illness. Our practice may indeed fall away if we regard it as a hobby or as an activity we undertake merely to enrich our lives. However, if we want a continued source of strength and meaning, our practice can provide it even in the most terrible circumstances. In fact, it is exactly when we are brough face to face with the Great Matter of Life and Death that practice makes the most sense.
Dharma Foundation 8:
In addition to the dependent dimension of Reality – the dimension of time, space, and causality that we are usually aware of – it has an independent dimension in which all things are precious and luminous in their own suchness. We can take strength and inspiration from the independent dimension at any moment. (See Episode 257)
Right here, right now, without reference to past or future, without comparison to better or worse, without discriminations as to good and bad or right and wrong, Reality is a single, seamless, boundaryless whole. If you have perceived this even once, you understand this ungraspable truth which is beyond verbal definition or description. You know that somehow, mysteriously, that despite the very real suffering in the world, everything is also miraculous and infused with amazing vitality. This truth makes everything worth it.
You don’t have to have some great enlightenment experience to awaken to the independent dimension of Reality. You are part of it at all times and will undoubtedly have had quiet moments when the Suchness of Reality became perceptible to you. At any moment you can pause, take a breath, and open to this deeper truth.
As I mentioned earlier, these Eight Dharma Foundations can offer you a sense of stability, strength, and moral order even when you simply put provisional faith in them – faith based on your faith in the rest of Buddhism, or in a teacher, or in conviction you witness in your Sangha members. As you verify these truths for yourself more and more deeply over time, they can become part of your nature. These Foundations will remain no matter what happens to us, and no matter what happens in the world. We can rely on them, take refuge in them, build our lives around them, and take inspiration from them. May you find strength and a sense of meaning in your life.
Endnotes
[i] Tanahashi, Kazuaki, trans., ed. Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Zen Master Dogen’s Shobo Genzo. Boston, MA: Shambala Publications, 2010. “Bodaisatta Shishobo”
[ii] Sotoshu Shumucho. Soto School Scriptures For Daily Services And Practice. Tokyo Japan: The Administrative Headquarters of Soto Zen Buddhism, 2021. https://www.sotozen.com/eng/practice/sutra/scriptures.html
[iii] Padmakara Translation Group. The Perfection of Wisdom in Twenty-Five Thousand Lines. 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, 2023. https://84000.co/translation/toh9#top
[iv] Tanahashi, Kazuaki, trans., ed. Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Zen Master Dogen’s Shobo Genzo. Boston, MA: Shambala Publications, 2010.
[v] Amaravati Monastery Chant Book. https://cdn.amaravati.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/30/Chanting-Book-Vol-1-Web.pdf
[vi] Universally Recommended Instructions for Zazen (Fukan zazengi普勧坐禅儀). Sotoshu Shumucho. Soto School Scriptures For Daily Services And Practice. Tokyo Japan: The Administrative Headquarters of Soto Zen Buddhism, 2021. https://www.sotozen.com/eng/practice/sutra/scriptures.html
[vii] Heart of Great Perfect Wisdom Sutra. Ibid
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