Desires Is Ultimately Futile
Those who persevere in renunciate practices will eventually be convinced that trying to satisfy worldly desires is ultimately futile. This is not something that can be decided intellectually, but must be seen directly in one’s experience. Then, when the full force of this insight strikes home, it leads to what we might call a categorical renunciation of any hope of finding happiness in worldly things. Although worldly desires continue to arise and worldly attachments persist, the seeker no longer takes any pleasure in them. On the contrary, activities prompted by these impulses will seem increasingly mechanical and barren, plunging the seeker into what St. John of the Cross called a “dark night of the soul,” and which others have described as a “desert experience,” and a “wasteland.” Here, the things of this world lose their savor, while the Way to the Real World is still largely concealed. Consequently the seeker often feels isolated and lost.
But no matter how painful or desolate this spiritual night may seem, passage through it actually represents a major turning point on the path. Indeed, if the night is dark enough, it forever secures the seeker against backsliding into a worldly life, for the simple reason that he or she now sees clearly there is nothing in that world or life worth going back to.
To those who have not arrived at this stage, renouncing all hope for worldly happiness may seem downright morbid. But this is because they are still slaves to their own desires and aversions and so cannot envision any other motive for acting. “Why would anyone do anything,” they ask, “if not to get what they like and escape what they dislike?”
The answer, given by the mystics of all traditions, is really quite simple: One acts out of love and compassion for others. In Tibetan Buddhism this is called cultivating bodhicitta, the mind of awakening. Here is how Bokar Rinpoche describes it:
The person living in the mind of awakening wishes to take on others’ suffering, and to give them happiness in exchange. Egocentric vision is abandoned. The only remaining thought is for the benefit of others and love directed towards them.
Actually, love and compassion are always present because they are inherent in the very nature of the mind of awakening (or Consciousness Itself). However, we cannot access their full power as long as we cling to our own selfish desires and attachments when dealing with other people. Practicing renunciation of our own self-interest in all our relationships is what dissolves these barriers and allows love and compassion to start streaming unhindered into our lives.
Tags: Inner Operation Renounce Possession
