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The Realm of Hell and the Boundless Mind
“Arrived, arrived” – I am back, I have arrived. When practicing walking meditation, it only takes two simple steps to realize that we have come home, that we are fully present. Each step is a dwelling, not chasing after the future but living in the full presence of “here and now” – I am in the here and in the now. Each foot touching the earth is a sign that we have arrived, that we do not need to go any further, returning to take refuge in our own roots.
In the past three months, Vien Nghiep has learned many beautiful things from the teacher, the sangha: perseverance, patience, love, and diligence; living at ease without being careless; feeling the joy and presence of the nation, the Vietnamese tradition. The events in the village have been favorable conditions helping me to practice and “with all my being, I take refuge.”
The Four Immeasurable Minds include loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity. Each mind contains the other three; the order is loving-kindness first, then compassion, joy, and equanimity because loving-kindness is the Bodhi mind, the great source of energy wishing to bring happiness to all beings.
- Loving-kindness (maitri): the aspiration, the energy directed toward bringing joy to oneself and others.
- Compassion (karuna): participating in the suffering without being overwhelmed by it.
- Joy (mudita): pure joy, rejoicing in the happiness and merit of others.
- Equanimity (upekkha): equality, non-attachment, “not abandoning” – not leaving anyone behind.