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Continuing the Buddha's Footsteps
Thầy describes his visit to India, recounting how he walked in the Buddha’s footsteps along the Ganges River and climbed Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain (Vulture Peak) using King Bimbisāra’s stone path. He shares the historical encounter between Siddhārtha and the king, describing the mindful march of over one thousand monks into Rājagṛha for the Festival of the Triple Gem.
He elaborates on connecting to a “portable” Pure Land within us through mindfulness, explaining that the Kingdom of God is available in the here and now. Thầy offers a non-dualistic definition of the Pure Land, noting that it is not a place free of suffering, but an environment rich with the opportunities needed to cultivate true compassion and understanding.
Connecting this practice to human evolution, Thầy traces our journey from Homo erectus and Homo sapiens to Homo conscius (the mindful human)—moving from part-time buddhas to full-time buddhas who are entirely free from racial discrimination.
Finally, Thầy details how we can transform our suffering and cross over to the other shore using the Six Pāramitās. He focuses deeply on practical, daily tools for the first four practices:
- Giving (Dāna): Using acts of generosity or sweet words to instantly dissolve anger toward a partner.
- Mindfulness Trainings (Śīla): Embracing the precepts as a protective, fearless shield for the individual and society.
- Inclusiveness (Kṣānti): Expanding our hearts to embrace others’ shortcomings, using the metaphor of throwing a handful of salt into an immense river rather than a small bowl.
- Diligence (Vīrya): Nurturing wholesome seeds in our store consciousness and using the psychological technique of “changing the peg” to replace negative mental formations. (Note: The recording and transcript for this Dharma talk ends mid-sentence during Thầy’s explanation of the second of the four practices of Right Diligence.)
This is the final talk in a series of fourteen given during The Feet of the Buddha, twenty-one-day retreat in the year 2004. Thầy offered this talk at the Upper Hamlet, Plum Village, France.
