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Thunder and Gentle Cloud: Invoking Avalokiteshvara’s Dharma Rain
In the chapter “Universal Door” of the Lotus Sutra, Avalokiteshvara embodies love arising within our own hearts. Compassion is likened to thunder (tâm bi), and loving-kindness to a gentle cloud (lòng từ). When thunder meets cloud, “the Dharma nectar rains down, extinguishing the fire of affliction” — a single verse that shows how compassion and loving-kindness together produce a cleansing rain of Dharma, bringing immediate relief from suffering.
To rekindle that inner rain, ask yourself at moments of pain or anger:
- Am I still on the path of compassion, or have I gone astray?
- Do my thinking, my speech, and my actions reflect the practice of compassion now?
By recommitting your mind, words, and deeds to loving-kindness, the “fire of affliction” is quenched by the rain of compassion, restoring peace and aligning you once more with the bodhisattva’s vow.
