In the fall of the year, when days are growing shorter and nights are getting longer, the plant world begins to turn energy to it roots. The human world in autumn, traditionally, having brought in the harvest, begins to take time to rest and reflect. Our cousins in the Jewish tradition set this time of year as a holy period of reflection and repentance. First comes Rosh Hashanah, the “head of the year,” or the Jewish New Year, then Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Atonement means you take an inventory of things you have done wrong, ask forgiveness for those things, and resolve to turn yourself around. That’s what “repent” means, to turn around.
This morning I scheduled the fourth in the sermon series on Buddhist eight-fold path, Right Action. This is also National Coming Out Weekend. Right Action, Yom Kippur, Coming Out Weekend. It’s all about doing the right thing. Doing the thing that sets your heart free.
The reason to do the right thing, in the Buddhist view, is so that you can be happy.
Buddhist teacher Eric Kolvig says “Basically, we do our spiritual practice in all of its aspects to achieve two things: to achieve a clear mind—that is, to achieve wisdom; and to achieve an open heart—that is, to achieve love and compassion.”
People ask Unitarian Universalists why, if we don’t believe in hell, would we do the right thing? Why would you meditate? Why would you forgive?
You don’t do it to avoid hell or to go to heaven. You do the right thing so your mind and heart will be free and happy no matter what happens. Comfortable or broke and struggling, temporarily healthy or temporarily sick, proud of your children or worried to death, your life partner clean and sober or your partner using, accepted for you are or not…. To be happy and free no matter what is going on.
It’s not something
that is accomplished all at once, living into the truth takes many lifetimes to
accomplish. Buddhists believe that we live an infinite number of times, and
that all the harm we do is revisited on us in the form of suffering. This is
called Karma, and it’s not for punishment, it’s for experience, and for another
chance to learn to live in love and contentment. Karma is the law of “What goes
around comes around,” on the scale of many lifetimes. If you believe in karma
you don’t have to be angry at people you hurt you. They are creating their own
suffering. Eventually. You don’t have to get revenge, you can let them go. The
way things work, they will be taught their lessons. So many of you have been
despised and rejected because of your sexual orientation, or because of your
Unitarian Universalist faith. If people do that out of ignorance, they will be
taught. If they do it out of malice, they will suffer. Knowing that, we can let
go of our judgmental mind. When judgment pops up, we can just befriend it and
gently show it the door, because it’s all taken care of.
If you live according to the five precepts of right action, you will be giving a gift to yourself and to the world, as you add good to the world. The Buddha gave five precepts to experiment with. These are not commandments, they are trainings for setting the heart free from suffering and pain. Buddhists say “please don’t believe what I say. Try it for yourself and see what happens.”
1. Aware of the suffering caused by violence, I undertake the training to refrain from killing or committing violence toward living beings. I will attempt to treat all beings with compassion and lovingkindness.
We want to try to remove violence from our lives. No beating our spouses or children, for a start. We can move from that into refraining from having violent fantasies of hurting those who reject or torment us, move from that into refraining from killing animals, being vegetarian, not wearing leather, not killing spiders. (I’m not there yet. I confess to killing ants in the kitchen back there yesterday morning.) I have a vegetarian cousin who doesn’t wear any animal products, doesn’t use air conditioning, and rides a bike everywhere, but he is judgmental, oblivious of the feelings of others, unpleasant to talk to. For him, non-harming in his way is easier, and a priority. For me, it’s easier to begin to try to remove violence from my thoughts and my speech. I’m not a better person or a worse one than my cousin. We are both doing our best right now.
2. Aware of the suffering caused by theft, I undertake the training to refrain from stealing, from taking what is not given. I will attempt to practice generosity and will be mindful about how I use the world’s resources.
We are happier and freer if we don’t take money that belongs to other people, if we don’t take their ideas or their space or their happiness away in order to get what we want. In my opinion, holding on to way more than you need is stealing. If you have clothes you don’t need, for example, clothes you have outgrown, furniture you are storing without a plan for it, consider the possibility that those clothes, that furniture, rightly and truly may belong to someone else. You’re not a bad person for hanging on to it, but you might be happier and freer if you let it go.
3. Aware of the suffering caused by sexual misconduct, I undertake the training to refrain from using sex in ways that are harmful to myself or to others. I will attempt to express my sexuality in ways that bring joy and feelings of connection.
Buddhism teaches that sex is most properly used in the context of a loving relationship. No anonymous hook-ups, no sex with children, As UUs we believe that loving relationship can be a same –sex or opposite sex relationship. The guidelines are the same. No cheating on your committed partner. No withholding sex to get your way. Being generous with sharing sex with your partner, (in my opinion) is as important as being faithful. Too many couples have no sex, and the lack of sex is not consensual, and the partner that doesn’t want to have sex also doesn’t want their partner to have it with anyone else either. That is harmful sexual behavior too.
4. Aware of the suffering caused by harmful speech, I undertake the training to refrain from lying, from harsh speech, from slander, and from idle speech. I will attempt to speak and write in ways that are both truthful and appropriate.
We already talked about this at length when I spoke about Right Speech. If this is of particular interest to you, you may call the church office to get a copy of the tape.
5. Aware of the suffering caused by alcohol and drugs, I undertake the training to refrain from misusing intoxicants that dull and confuse the mind. I will attempt to cultivate a clear mind and an open heart.
Drinking some wine with dinner is not going to harm your happiness. Misusing substances that will dull and confuse your mind is where the suffering happens, not just for you, but for those around you. As soulful people we try to live without being overtaken by drugs and alcohol.
We do the right thing in order to be joyful and free. We do it as a gift to the world, and so that we will be safe for people to be around. So many people in this world will steal, lie, rape, hit, babble, yell, hurt. If we are non-harming in our lives, we create a space of safety. If each one of us in this room held open a space of safety, think how much better this world would be.
How do you know what the right thing to do is? You listen to the wisdom inside you. What does that little voice say? You ask how would you feel if someone did it to you. You ask is it fair, is it harmful to me or to others? How will you feel about yourself and about the world later if you do it?
As our Jewish brothers and sisters practice reflection and repentance, as our Buddhist sisters and brothers tread the eight-fold path, may we soulful Unitarian Universalists pay attention to our actions, asking two simple questions: “What am I doing?” “Why am I doing it?” If you come out this weekend, I hope it sets you free. If you repent this weekend, I hope it sets you free. If you give away some things or some money, I hope it sets you free, if you make amends to someone you have hurt, or let resentments go toward someone who has hurt you, I hope that sets you free. May you be blessed. May you be forgiven, may you be joyful. May it be so.
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by Meg Barnhouse |
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Free for
personal use. All others, please send written request. |