Bow. . .

One of my favorite parts of the Lotus Sutra is the story of Bodhisattva Never Disparaging. This Bodhisattva was said to have lived in the mythic past and he did not devote his time to reading or reciting the scriptures, but simply went about bowing to people,  bowing in reverence to everyone he met and honoring their inherent Buddha nature. I can imagine him walking up to people today on the street and bowing, “ I bow to the Buddha nature within you, one day you too will be a Buddha.”  We would probably name him Crazy Bowing Bodhisattva. The practice of gassho illustrated in this story, the honoring of others inherent Buddha nature, is essence of the way of oneness and can be applied not just to other people but to all things. The practice of bowing is a tangible practice that can help us cultivate a non-dichotomous reality when we come to understand that,  “The one who bows and the one who is bowed to are the same.”  It can also help us realize the interdependent nature of all things and is the true spirit of namu amida butsu. Many of us suffer from inferiority complexes, self-hate, feelings of worthlessness and a constant mantra of harmful self-talk.  We may have compassion  for others  but rarely does it reach back to ourselves.  Because of this it can be hard to see the inherent goodness within ourselves or acknowledge the reality of our own capacity for evil. This does not stop our Bodhisattva from bowing.  allowing his humanity to shine forth upon us.  He is still bowing toward us. Maybe he knows that the simplest things can get passed the myriad of landmines we place to protect our egos, knowing that arguments, judgements, reasoning, will never be as effective as a heartfelt, humble bow of a Bodhisattva. With humble compassion and without judgement, Never Disparaging Bodhisattva invites us to realize our Buddha-nature welcoming us,  as he helps us to realize  “The one who bows and the one who is bowed to are the same.”  He is bowing right now before each of us,