The Ways of the Wise

Wednesday - September 05, 2007

The Ways of the Wise

A Commentary on the Dhammapada–by Swami Nirmalananda Giri

Take it within

“He who drinks in the Dharma will live happily with a peaceful mind. A wise man always delights in the Dharma taught by the Aryas.” (Dhammapada 79)

Water is essential to life, possessing many aspects necessary to the maintenance of form and function. We can live a long time without food, but not without water. Dharma is equally necessary for the true life of the inmost consciousness. But both water and dharma are valueless if they are not internalized–and not drop by drop, but by continual, deep drinking. Buddha is explaining to us that we must drink up dharma as the thirsting man seizes water and drinks it with urgency and delight. Just as the most virulent poison will not harm us, or the best medicine will not cure us, if we do not swallow it, in the same way dharma will have no effect unless we make it part of our very being by taking it into our consciousness.

Looking, touching, applying, or even immersing ourselves in water is useless if we do not drink it. And talking about it is the most useless of all! It is the same with dharma. That is why Saint Paul spoke of “Christ IN you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27) An external Christ is of no value whatsoever. That is why Jesus spoke of “eating” and “drinking” the “flesh” and “blood” of Christ–in other words, internalizing and absorbing Christ. It is the same with dharma.

Work on yourself; change yourself

“Irrigators channel water, fletchers shape arrows, and carpenters bend wood, but the wise discipline themselves.” (80)

Long ago I got an anthology of Buddhist texts, and among them was a life of Buddha. It opened with an account of a discussion taking place in a higher world regarding where Buddha should be born. Various heavenly beings had various recommendations, but finally a wise one said: “You do not understand: a Buddha can only be born in India.” They all agreed; and so it was. There are many reasons for that statement, and not the least is the Indian capacity to convey a tremendous amount of information in a very concise manner. And this verse is an example of that. It is a marvel. And if we follow it, we will ourselves become marvels.

Irrigators channel water. First, they find a source of water. Then they dig a channel to the place where water is needed. Finally, they remove the barrier between the water and the channel, and the water flows in and their work is done. It is hard work that demands perseverance and good engineering. Spirituality is not for lazies or dummies, excellent as Spirituality For Dummies may be. (Those who read it will no longer be dummies!)

Sri Ramakrishna speaks about it this way: “There happened to be drought in the country. All the peasants began digging channels to bring water. One of them was stubbornly determined. One day he vowed that he would go on digging a channel until it became connected with the river and water began to flow into it. He proceeded digging. The time came for his bath. The wife sent the daughter to him with oil. The daughter said, ‘Father, it is late already. Finish bathing quickly after rubbing the body with oil.’ He told her to go away for he still had work to do. It was past midday and the farmer still kept working. No thought at all of taking a bath. Then his wife came to the field and said, ‘Why haven’t you bathed as yet? The food is getting cold. You carry things too far. You may finish it tomorrow or even after taking your meal.’ Scolding, the farmer ran after her with spade in hand and said, ‘Have you no sense? There has not been any rain. There has been no farming at all. What will the children eat? You will all die of starvation. I have taken the vow that I will bring water to the field today and then worry about bath and food.’ Observing his mood the wife fled running. After a whole day’s bone-breaking labor...