A young monk, who had listened to a sermon, went back to his cottage to practice meditation for 12 years so he could see the Buddha in person.
He followed his meditation schedule strictly by getting up in the morning with pure thoughts of the Buddha’s image. He performed each meditation exercise properly and with great care. He also ate and drank in moderation. He kept his emotions under control and did not let anything distract him from his goal of seeing the Buddha. He honestly believed that if he followed his schedule strictly by training his mind, he was sure to see the Buddha at the end of his 12 years of meditation.
The monk completed his 12 years of rigorous meditation. When the day arrived as he was ready to receive the Buddha in person, no Buddha showed up. While he waited anxiously, seconds seemed like minutes and minutes like hours. Though he was perturbed, he could only wait. But then all of a sudden, he felt that he was cheated of 12 great, youthful years while he meditated. He had shown his complete dedication and had followed the strict procedures of meditation according to the book. What had gone wrong? Why was Buddha not showing up? What was lacking in his endeavor? Was he deceived or put on the wrong path by the head monk?
Just then, his troubled self started bombarding him with negativities. He thought to himself: “Why do bad things happen to me when I have been so good? My behavior toward others had been impeccable. I had followed the rules of meditation strictly without deviating from the focus of seeing the Buddha in person. Am I being cheated of the Buddha’s actual presence? What has gone wrong?”
As he went over and over his strange predicament, he started losing control of his emotions. When his disturbance became unbearable, he decided to go to the nearby village to get drunk and drown his sorrow and foolishness. While he was walking, engrossed in his frustrated ego, his eyes caught a glimpse of a childlike puppy with two beautiful black eyes and a tiny nose. The dog’s innocence grabbed him so much that he forgot about his own problems. The dog’s face was innocent and beautiful. When he looked at the rest of the dog’s body, he was shocked to find that maggots were eating it up. For the time being, the monk forgot about himself. He wanted to help the puppy.
He decided to take out the maggots from the body but did not want to hurt them. Because of the overflow of compassion for the dog, the monk took a sharp stone to use it to cut a piece of his flesh to lure the maggots but they refused to move. The monk was in a dilemma. He wanted to relieve the suffering of the puppy, but at the same time he did not want to hurt the maggots. So he decided to stoop down to the level of the maggots. In order not to harm them, he wet his tongue to lick them off the puppy’s infected body.
As he brought his tongue closer to the maggots, the miracle happened. The puppy became the Buddha and stood up in front of him. With a great surprise on his face, the monk asked the Buddha, “Where were you when I completed my 12 years of meditation?” The compassionate Buddha replied, “I was always there to greet you, but your meditation was overshadowed by your big ego. Only when you saw the puppy’s suffering, you discarded your ego and felt compassion for him. Since I am present in every selfless act of compassion, here I am to greet you.”
Meditation on breath
Sit in an easy posture by crossing your legs. Keep your back, shoulders, neck and head straight up. Rest your hands on the knees. Close your eyes. Start breathing in and out. Pay full attention to your breathing in and out. Observe the flow.
As you breathe in and out, you will find that it feels good. Stay in this position for two minutes while observing the flow of breathing. After two minutes, resume your normal breathing. Now when you breathe in, think about the sound “hum” and when you breathe out, think about the sound “so.” Do this for two minutes. If other ideas come through your mind, recognize them and then go back to breathing in “hum” and breathing out “so.” Do this for a couple of minutes and then relax.
You can do this exercise when you have worked in front of the computer for an hour. This will reduce your tension and bring you back to yourself. This exercise can also be done when you lie flat in bed and before you fall asleep or before you get up in the morning. Try it while sitting in your seat during a long flight.