No Harm

The world seems to be in turmoil. I don’t think it seems that way only because we get so much information so fast via the Internet these days where we can see and hear about all the big to little news from every corner of the world almost instantly. All the sufferings are presented upfront more vividly than I personally can bear to witness. I often wonder if we, human species, are ever evolving into being more compassionate and convivial after centuries of warfares.

Buddha, before he became Buddha, an awakened one, was a prince of a powerful kingdom in India and was raised with all the privilege and protection. He could have succeeded his father and be a ruler of an ever expanding kingdom, but he was inspired to find a way to end the suffering of human experiences instead.

More than 2500 years later, while his teachings are spread worldwide, we are still facing so much suffering at every level of our existence. I find solace in practicing meditation and learning the teachings although nothing shields me from the pains and sorrows completely while joy and happiness are more appreciated when they’re present in day to day life. Yet I heard one of my teachers, Gil Fronsdal, recently say, “if you can just remember one thing about Buddhist teaching, it is about ‘no harm’.” No harm, first to ourselves, then to others including other beings. It sounds simple, but apparently it’s not so if we still find the world to be so full of harm.

I’m learning that not harming ourselves is absolutely the utmost critical in practicing non-violence. Taking care of my mind is just as important as taking care of my body and spirit. I’ve certainly experienced some thinking patterns that are not necessarily kind or loving to myself, and I’m learning that’s where I have to cultivate no harm first. Our thinking patterns can become habitual, then become our character that leads to some harmful actions to ourselves and/or others. It is my wish to practice no harm although I know I’m certainly fallible. It would take a whole lot of mindfulness for the world to get to a state of no harm everywhere. Is that even possible?