19th Century Tibetan Tangka of Shantideva
A reader asked for an explanation of “Exchanging of Self with Others,” the fourth component of Shantideva’s formula for generating bodhicitta mentioned in yesterday’s post. I thought I might as well discuss all four.
As I mentioned yesterday, Shantideva’s four points are found in the Bodhisattvacaryavatara, specifically in the Eighth chapter, “The Practice of Meditation,” and are said to be based on a work by Nagarjuna, Exchanging Self with Others. They are not clearly enumerated, so evidently someone organized them from the verses. How they came to be called the Four Point Mind Training and exactly what historical relationship it has with the better known Seven Point Mind Training of Atisha is not clear to me.
“Mind Training” is a rather specific sort of practice within the Tibetan tradition. It is spelled “blosbyong” and pronounced as “lojong.” Atisha ((982–1054 CE), an Indian meditation master, is credited with originating this practice, which is actually based on contemplating 59 “slogans” composed by Geshe Chekhawa (1101–1175 CE).
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso in Joyful Path of Good Fortune: The Complete Buddhist Path to Enlightenment says that traditionally there are two methods for generating bodhicitta, the thought of awakening: 1) training the mind in the sevenfold cause and effect, which was taught by the Buddha and “passed down through Maitreya to Masters such as Asanga,” and 2) training the mind in equalizing and exchanging self with others, this one also taught by the Buddha and “passed down Manjushri to Masters such as Shantideva.” These two lineages are, of course, fictional; however, the point here is that perhaps at one time this exchanging self with others was a stand-alone practice, similar to tonglen.
The Equality of Self and Others
Buddhism teaches that we are all equal. There is no one person, race of people, class or gender that is superior to any others. We are interconnected to one another through a variety of factors, such as interdependency (pratitya-samutpada), the fact that we all possess the 3 poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance, that we all experience sufferings, we all want happiness, and so on.
Shantideva says,
At first, one should earnestly meditate
on the equality of oneself and others as follows:
“All equally experience suffering and happiness.
I should look after them as I do myself.
The Fault of Self Cherishing
Self-cherishing, self-centeredness, egoism, greed, etc., all stem from grasping after non-existent self existence or self-being. This is not to suggest that we should engage in self-loathing or anything like that, but rather that we ratchet down quite severely any unwholesome sense of self-importance or superiority over others.
Shantideva:
When happiness is so dear
to others and me equally,
what is so special about me
that I strive after happiness for myself alone?
The Importance of Others and Cherishing of Others
Others are just as important as we are, and since we are all interdependent, our welfare and that of others is inextricably linked together. We should also bear in mind the many benefits derived from cherishing others, benefits that enrich the quality of our own lives.
Shantideva:
Acknowledging the faults of cherishing oneself
and seeing others as oceans of virtues,
one should renounce self-cherishing
and become acquainted with cherishing others.
The Exchange of Self with others
This reverses the tendency toward self-cherishing. “Exchanging self with others” is a tool for really engraving bodhicitta, the thought of awakening, in our mind. In this way, when we see the sufferings of others, it becomes as intolerable and agonizing as though they were our own sufferings.
Shantideva:
One who fails to exchange his own happiness
for the sufferings of others will find it impossible to attain Buddhahood.
How then could there even be happiness
in the cycle of birth and death?
Placing your own identity in others
and placing the identity of others in your own self,
imagining envy and pride with a mind
free of discursive thoughts.
Lama Thubten Yeshe explains,
Exchanging oneself with others . . . means that you exchange the mind which cherishes oneself and ignores others with the mind which cherishes others and ignores oneself. You need to meditate on this again and again, continuously, and in this way train your mind in exchanging yourself with others.
The fourfold mind training is a rather long and involved meditative process, which is too much to detail here. But as far as “exchanging self with others” is concerned, this is very similar (some say identical) to the Tibetan practice of tonglen, “giving and taking” or “sending and receiving.” Briefly, in this meditation, you visualize taking into your own body the suffering of others on the in-breath, and on the out-breath you send out happiness and warm thoughts of loving-kindness. This is usually done by visualizing the sufferings you take in as black smoke, and the happiness you send out as white light, which you visualize as expanding until it fills the entire universe.
Shantideva:
Countless eons have passed
while you sought your own well-being.
This great effort of yours
has only resulted in suffering.
At my request, exert yourself
in this way right now without hesitation.
Later you will see the virtue of this,
for the words of the Sage are true.
This current state, without happiness,
success or Buddhahood,
would not have occurred
had you done this before.
Therefore, just as you formed
the sense of ‘I’ with regard to
the drops of blood and semen of others,
so accustom yourself with others.
Seeing as the other person,
remove from this body
everything that is useful to it,
and use it to benefit others.
