Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva

Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva: Verse 27

For bodhisattvas who want to be rich in virtue

A person who hurts you is a precious treasure.

Cultivate patience for everyone,

Without irritation or resentment — this is the practice of a bodhisattva.

When you were a child did you dream of growing up and being a famous ballerina? Without knowing about the torturous years of practice, the teacher who taught you to hate your body, and worse, the secret skill of throwing up your favorite foods — you imagined only the grace with which you flew across the giant stage. Of course, you cherished the strictest lessons, the years that will turn you into a swan. This may be the first lesson in worshiping those who punish.

The thing you believed you wanted was fame, and it was likely doomed to failure. What you really wanted was attention, a child’s desperate need. Neglected, your dream was to find parents who paid attention.

Now, your dream is only to gain in virtue — perhaps this too is a hope for attention, hidden behind a spiritual yearning.

If you could be a bodhisattva — which you already are but you don’t yet know it — whatever happens will strengthen you. Being rejected may fill you with shame, but will that not make you humble? When someone harshly turns her back on you, you find another to work with, remembering you’re wishing to save all living beings. This thought will stop inpatient urges for revenge, for anger.

A student of the great Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche says he never got upset, he never got angry. Whatever you told him, he simply nodded, saying “I see, I see.” When I heard that — for just a split second — I wanted to be like HH Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. Perhaps that is wanting only to grow in virtue.

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