Bodhicitta

When your mothers, who’ve loved you since time without beginning,

Are suffering, what use is your own happiness?

Therefore to free limitless living beings

Develop the altruistic intention—

This is the practice of bodhisattvas 

Repaying the Kindness of All Mother Sentient Beings

This verse begins the topic of the practice of the advanced level practitioner—someone who is cultivating the bodhicitta motivation and engaging in bodhisattva activities. There are two methods for developing the bodhicitta motivation: 1) the seven-point instruction of cause and effect and 2) equalising and exchanging self with others. In particular, this verse talks about the first method. 

Both methods are based on equanimity of friend, enemy and stranger. Usually we have very strong emotions towards these three groups of people—attachment to our friends and dear ones, hostility towards enemies and those we dislike or fear and apathy towards strangers. So first contemplate that these three categories are made up by our own mind: it’s our mind that discriminates someone as a friend, another person as an enemy and a third person as a stranger. In addition, one individual can move from one category to another very quickly, depending on a small change of circumstances or a small action. Given the arbitrary nature of these three categories, generating strong attachment, hostility and apathy towards anyone does not make sense. Instead, we cultivate an equal feeling of care and concern for everyone. When we do this, we find that it’s very pleasant to have a more stable mind that is free from these three deluded emotions. 

After that we practise the seven-point instruction of cause and effect: 

1. Seeing all sentient beings as having been our mother 

2. Understanding their kindness 

3. Wishing to repay their kindness 

4. Love, wishing them to have happiness and its causes 

5. Compassion, wishing them to be free of suffering and its causes

6. The great resolve to undertake the task of bringing them happiness and freeing them from suffering 

7. Bodhicitta—the altruistic intention in which we seek complete enlightenment in order to best benefit all living beings—arises as a result of the previous six causes 

Some people may not be familiar with the concept of rebirth and wonder, “Have all sentient beings really been my mother?” There is a chapter in my book Open Heart, Clear Mind about rebirth. It may help you to read and contemplate it to get a sense of how rebirth works. 

Since our mind has existed beginninglessly, we have had infinite previous lifetimes. There was plenty of time for everybody to have been our mother. When they were our mother, they were kind to us, just like our present mother: they gave birth to us, fed us, taught us, nurtured us, gave us an education, etc. Thinking about this, we see that we have received so much kindness from others when they were our mothers and fathers as well. Seeing this, the wish to repay their kindness automatically arises in us because we see sentient beings as lovable. Wanting to repay their kindness, we wish them to have happiness and its causes—this is love—and to be free from suffering and its causes—which is compassion. Then the great resolve to actually do something to bring about their temporary and ultimate happiness arises. Seeing that a Buddha has the greatest ability and capacity to work for the welfare of all beings, we develop the aspiration to become a fully enlightened Buddha for their benefit. Having generated bodhicitta, we then learn the bodhicitta deeds—the six far-reaching practices of generosity, ethical conduct, patience, joyous effort, meditative stabilisation, and wisdom. 

~Commentary by Bhikshuni Thubten Chodron