The Third Mindfulness Training

Once upon a time, there lived a handsome young man - Megh (Cloud). One day, Megh left his village for the capital in search of a job. On his way to the capital, Megh stopped at many places to do small time jobs. By the time he reached the capital, Megh had earned five gold coins.

When Megh reached the capital, he heard that the Buddha Dipānkara was going to make an appearance. Everyone was so excited! Megh too wanted a glimpse of Buddha Dipānkara. He had heard so much about him. Here was a chance to see a Buddha in person! Megh did not want to meet the Buddha empty handed. But what do you gift a Buddha?

Suddenly she appeared, right in front of him, carrying five lotus flowers in her hands. It was as if the Goddess of Beauty, Rati had appeared in human form. She looked at Megh. He looked at her. The poet Kalidas has said that love begins with the exchange of glances.

Let's call her Pushpa (Flower). If you look closely, you can see the cloud in the flower and the flower in the cloud.

"Those are beautiful lotus flowers! Where did you find them?", asked Megh.

Pushpa replied, "I bought three from the local florist and plucked the other two from the lake near my house."

"I was looking to buy a gift for the Buddha Dipānkara. Will you sell them to me?"

"Why should I? I intend to offer them to the Buddha myself."

"I will give you five gold coins."

"I don't care much for money."

"Ok. Keep the three that you bought from the florist and sell the other two to me."

"What's your name?"

"Megh."

"Listen Megh, flowers are a symbol of love and love is not for sale."

Megh didn't know what to say. Suddenly it was announced that the Buddha Dipānkara was going to appear on the stone platform. Pushpa slipped two lotus flowers into Megh's hands. He smiled. She smiled back. Second stage of love.

The Buddha began speaking. "Dear friends, look at this mango. But can you also see the mango tree? A mango tree comes from a mango seed, earth, water, air and sunshine. These elements are already present here but you are unable to see the mango tree. A mango tree is a sign. We are caught in signs. Where there are signs there is deception. The mango tree is right here but you don't see it because you are looking for certain signs. When those signs are not present we think the object is not present. We experience separation. We experience suffering. But I have some good news for you. Separateness is an illusion. We can awaken from this illusion. To be awake is to be mindful. The Five Mindfulness trainings are the practice of Right Mindfulness. They are an expression of true love. Learn to love. If you truly love, you can be together forever. You can be free from birth and death."

The crowd applauded. Megh and Pushpa were delighted. Megh threw a lotus in the Buddha's direction. It fell right into Buddha Dipānkara's hands. Pushpa too threw a lotus in Buddha Dipānkara's direction. That too fell right into his hands. Everyone cheered! Buddha Dipānkara smiled. He called Megh and Pushpa on to the stage. He could see true love blossoming in their hearts. He advised them to practice the Five Mindfulness trainings together.

A few days later, Megh and Pushpa married. They were happy.

At the age of 50, Pushpa died. Megh suffered. Separation causes suffering. Megh began to understand this. We suffer when we are separated from a person, an object or a condition that we desire. He loved Pushpa and did not want to live without her. What is the use of meeting if we must part? Everything ends in separation in samsara. There is no happily ever after in samsara.

Such experiences lead to one of the two things - despair or a quest. Pushpa's love and their practice of the Five Mindfulness trainings inspired Megh to find his way back to her.

Many years later, Megh was born as Prince Siddhartha in Kapilvastu (Kausambi). Pushpa was born as the Koliyan Princess Yashodhara. They never parted again.

Something is true if it always exists. True love always exists, in samsara as well as nirvana. When we experience true love even for a few minutes we touch nirvana. At that time, we abide in apranihita (the samādhi of aimlessness).

Many people feel that true love does not exist. They say that those who believe in the existence of true love are idealists and are harbouring wrong views. What do you think?

We must understand the difference between existence and manifestation. That something is not manifesting does not mean that it does not exist. When you are at work, your family members who are at home, do not manifest. That does not mean they do not exist. They will manifest when you go home. To come home is to come to love.

The practice of the third mindfulness training has four aspects - Maitri, Karuna, Mudita and Upeksha.

Maitri - Maitri means love, friendship or a union. It is the practice of being a friend or a lover forever, without expecting anything in return. To let go of expectations is the practice of renunciation. We are no longer enslaved by anger, jealousy, pride etc. as they manifest only when we seek for ourselves.

Karuna - Karuna is the ability to understand and eliminate others' suffering. Our presence should bring joy to others. Veganism, social activism, etc. are some ways we can practice Karuna.

Mudita - Mudita is joy. Our practice should fill us with joy. Social engagement in accordance with the Five Mindfulness Trainings can help us manifest joy. Practicing tea meditation in a group is an example of such a social engagement.

Upeksha - In love, there is no discrimination. Upeksha is the lack of discrimination. No one is superior or inferior. Men not superior to women. Humans not superior to animals. There is no hierarchy. We must practice and promote mindfulness and veganism and help social causes like gender equality, peace and non violence etc. but be careful not to become a part of a hierarchy while doing so. We must practice treating everyone as a member of our family and not seek to eat them, use them as resources, earn more than them or to be their manager or ruler.

To love is to understand. Understand what? The understanding that we are not separate from each other. That you are in me and I am in you. I exist because you exist. This is called shunyatā (the samādhi of emptiness). To experience this we must practice true love. For us to exist, everything else must exist. Our body comes from our parents. If we did not exist in our parents, where did our body come from? If our parents are not in us, how come our DNA reveals their identity?

People we love are not separate from us. They are in us. To learn to recognize them without signs like body, voice, name etc. is animitta (samādhi of signlessness). When we abide in animitta, we cannot be separated from our loved ones.

The Five Mindfulness Trainings lead us to the samādhis of shunyatā, animitta and apranihita. So we must practice them diligently.

"Be a lover. Be a beloved."

(The author, Saurabh Singh, is a student of Thich Nhat Hanh.)

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