| September 7, 2012
DECORATIVE DHARMA
One should not view one’s dharma practice as being something decorative,
regarding statues and images as material possessions or as furnishings for one’s
house, or thinking that because there is an empty space on a wall one might as
well put up a thangka for decoration. That kind of attitude should not be
cultivated. When you arrange the statues or thangkas, you should do so out of a
deep respect from the mind, moved by your faith and conviction. If you can
arrange these physical representations—statues and so forth—out of deep respect
and faith, that’s all right. On the other hand, the attitude that they are
merely material possessions is dangerous and destructive. I think that some
people who have a cupboard or the like in which they keep all their precious
possessions may arrange an altar on it just for the sake of decoration. This is
very wrong.
Having such motivations is not the proper way to become a Buddhist; the proper
way to become a Buddhist is to bring about some positive change within the mind.
Any practice that can give you more courage when you are undergoing a very
difficult time and that can provide you with some kind of solace and calmness of
mind is a true practice of the dharma.
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“A friend of mine has been battling cancer for 2 years now. Every so often, when I have a little extra I send her a check. She called the other day crying as she had lost the check I sent her and an insurance check. “I was having a hard day and decided to go out for a walk. I was going to stop at the bank and when I got there the checks were missing from my pocket.” she cried. “I looked everywhere but I can’t find them.” I told her I would drop off another check that day and not to worry. A couple of hours later she called to tell me that two people walking had found the checks and brought them to the police station and that she could pick them up the next day. She told the policeman how grateful she was because she really needed this money to pay her electric bill as she did not have much income coming in with the cancer and everything. She also asked if she could get the names and addresses of the pople who turned in the checks so she could thank them.The next day when she went to the station to pick up the checks the policeman told her that when he told the story to the good samaritans, they went to the power company and paid her electric bill also. “She doesn’t need to know our names.” he said
We all need someone, sometimes, to just sit and listen and let us know we are important.
Sangha of Auspicious Companions 