VOW: FREEDOM OF NO ESCAPE
by Sensei Robert Joshin Althouse (c) 2006

"Creations are numberless, I vow to free them."

first line from the Four Great Bodhisattva Vows

Shakyamuni Buddha's first teaching was the Four Noble Truths. These are often presented as a way to end suffering, but I would suggest they are a teaching about acknowledging and accepting affliction as part of life. In harnessing our response to suffering through practice, we energize an aspiration to dedicate our lives for the benefit of all beings.

I don't think Buddha was talking about a world freed of suffering. He was not talking about a utopian world where no suffering exists. That is as likely to turn out to be a totalitarian state where all feelings and passion have been repressed.

Spiritual practice is about how we work with desire and passion, how we handle our response to suffering. To practice, we need to get into our lives fully and properly. We need to actually acknowledge what is taking place in our lives without pretense, excuse or judgment. This is the basis for a strong spiritual foundation.

From this perspective, we might actually appreciate suffering as the fuel that feeds the fire of our passion, which allows us to walk on the path in the first place. When we view suffering as morally wrong or something that needs to be removed from our lives, we short-circuit an authentic response to suffering which leads to a genuine spiritual path of freedom and liberation.

Freedom is not about getting rid of suffering; it is not conditioned by something else we are running away from. Freedom is unconditional. It doesn't depend on circumstances. It arises when we remember the vertical dimension in our lives that is oriented around taking a vow. This kind of liberation is the freedom of no escape. When we courageously embrace this freedom of no escape, we activate our deepest aspiration to live our lives for the liberation of everyone and everything.

So when we have a genuine relationship to suffering, when we don't run away from it, we energize that deeper place in our human experience which is oriented around aspiration and vows. In Buddhism we call this aspiration bodhichitta which means "awakened heart". We begin to open and touch our sad and tender heart. The Poles have a saying that "the only open heart is a broken heart." We have spent most of our lives defending against suffering. This leads to further suffering, bitterness and disconnection from ourselves and from others. But our vows connect us to deeper aspirations such as the vow to liberate all beings and the vow to take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.

Our usual way of deciding to do anything is by some kind of calculation about the successful outcome of our actions. But living by a vow is something different altogether. Like freedom, it is unconditional. It doesn't depend on whether we succeed or not. It only depends on whether or not we have the courage to take the vow in the first place. So when you sit meditation, sit with the suffering of all beings. Let suffering be your friend. And remember your vows that keep you connected to what is true and genuine in yourself and in everyone else. This is how we heal suffering - by actively choosing to not escape from it.