Wisdom Made Manifest: Exploring Buddhist compassion from Sutra to Tantra
By: Sasha Manu
Tags: Personal Development, Philosophy, Buddhism, Spirituality

Compassion (karuṇā) serves as a profound Buddhist motif, holding important doctrinal significance from the early śrāvakayāna up to the Vajrayāna. Its conceptual richness and depth is rivalled only by the breadth of its usage. Colloquially understood as a sensitivity to the situation of others, the meaning of compassion in Buddhism ranges from a sympathetic attitude informed by wisdom, a factor of enlightenment, to a fundamental modality of the cosmos. This essay aims to survey some of the diverse ways compassion appears within Buddhism, and the techniques used by practitioners to cultivate this state of being. I will begin with a doctrinal survey, starting with early suttas and moving to Mahāyāna texts. I will then situate karuṇā within the Hevajra Tantra, examining the evolution of its relationship to concepts such as bodhicitta, and how its reframing in this text bestows an additional element of metaphysical gravitas to it. Finally, I will move to contemplative practices aimed at cultivating karuṇā, highlighting works by Candrakīrti, Śāntideva, and Atiśa.

As a Sublime Attitude

Tibetan master Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (left), and Trulshik Rinpoche (right).

If the aim of this inquiry was to arrive at a concrete and systematic definition of karuṇā, it would be doomed from the outset. Instead, in this section, I will present an overview of ways in which practitioners are instructed to think about compassion in early Buddhism. To begin, Buddhaghosa describes the quality of karuṇā as such:

“When others suffer it makes the heart of good people tremble, thus it is karuṇā ;it demolishes others’ suffering, attacks and banishes it, thus it is karuṇā ; or it is dispersed over the suffering, is spread out through pervasion, thus it is karuṇā ” (Jenkins 1999, 30).

Rather than outright defining compassion, Buddhaghosa’s Visuddhimagga contains myriad examples of how practitioners should view situations in a compassionate manner.. As such, compassion is more of a meta-attitude — a way of experiencing the phenomenal world. For example, when one sees a leper, one should wish them freedom from misery, and when one sees a robber, we should wish them freedom from ignorance. (Ñanamoli 2010, 308). In the context of meditative absorption — it is said that one should wish compassion so one-pointedly towards people, that the third and fourth jhānas are attained (Ñanamoli 2010, 309). In the Itiyuttaka — the Buddha describes compassion as a cause for action. Describing that the three types of beings that bring welfare to the world have as their motivating factor a compassionate attitude (It 84). On several occasions in the Samyutta Nikaya, it is explained that cultivating compassion alongside the seven factors of awakening[1] leads practitioners to either full realization, or the state of non-returner. (SN 46.63, SN 46.54). Thus far, we see compassion as an altruistic and affective state, a way of concentrating on phenomena, a cause for action, and an accelerant on the path of awakening.

In the Brahmavihara Sutta, we find some more concrete descriptions of compassion. This sutta describes four states that are sublime to abide in: loving-kindness, sympathetic joy, equanimity and compassion. These states are said to be expansive and immeasurable in nature — and this is taken as both a descriptor, and as an allusion to how a practitioner ought to generate the state. Instructions on cultivating compassion are given as follows: “Thus above, below, & all around, everywhere, in its entirety, he keeps pervading the all-encompassing cosmos with an awareness imbued with compassion” (AN 10.208). Getting to the stage of sending out compassion everywhere begins with sending it to close familial relations. Slowly, the sphere of contemplation is pushed outwards until it becomes all-pervading. This method will be analyzed in depth later in the paper. It should be noted that while compassion possess a sort of boundless quality (its immeasurableness), the techniques used to generate the state are firmly rooted in the worldly. In his doctoral dissertation, Stephen Jenkins notes that karuṇā meditation seems to be a reversal of two of saṃsāra’s most basic causes: ignorance and craving (Jenkins 1999, 45). Craving is turned into sensitivity for all beings, and self-interest (ignorance) becomes other-interest. In a nice turn of phrase, the method is summarized as such: “the very energy driving the wheel of saṃsāra, drives the wheel of dharma” (Jenkins 1999, 45).

The Bodhisattva Path

The Bodhisattva of Compassion, Avalokitesvara.

Compassion takes a more central role as we move to the bodhisattvayana. It is often spoken of in relation to bodhicitta (the mind of enlightenment), and is an essential factor in terms of generating it. As such, the following section will be a brief digression into the mind of enlightenment. We find a poetic description of bodhicitta in a verse from Śāntideva’s Bodhicaryāvatāra.

“Because they see its defects,

They avoid saṃsāra.

Because their hearts are loving,

Nirvāṇa will not hold them.

The wise who wish the happiness of beings

Dwell even in saṃsāra” (Dalai Lama 1994, 15)

Bodhicitta is the mind that vows to save sentient beings from saṃsāra. A true bodhisattva doesn’t yearn to leave cyclic existence, but wants to remain in the world with perfect wisdom and perfect compassion. Thus, it is contrasted to the Arahant ideal of the śrāvakayāna, which is often disparaged by Mahāyānists as it is said to lack a strong emphasis on compassion. Yet, one can understand being taken aback by the Bodhisattva’s great vow, and we cannot discount its unusualness. Dubbed ‘unusual’ by Atiśa, this aspiration is special because one not only wishes happiness for all sentient being, but aspires to personally be the cause of happiness and liberation for all — setting oneself up for an impossible task(Newland 1984, 37). Many Mahāyāna texts acknowledge that such an aspiration, given its grandiosity, does not arise spontaneously in the mind, and that it must first be fabricated (Dalai Lama 1994, 18). Śāntideva distinguishes between two types of bodhicitta at the outset: the “aspiration” and “the mind that ventures to do so” (Batchelor 1979, 8). In the beginning, we don’t understand what the depth of our compassion would have to be, such that we actually act to save sentient beings. As such, we aspire to get there and aim according to what the scriptures say. The second stage, attained through textual study and contemplation is the application of bodhicitta, where one is ready to begin expressing their vow through the Six Paramitas (Dalia Lama 1994, 16).

Relative and Absolute

The division between aspiration and application bodhicitta exists in regard to what is known as relative bodhicitta. A further delineation is made between relative and absolute — where absolute pertains to the level of ultimate reality, and the emptiness of all phenomena. Relative bodhicitta is grounded in conventional reality, compassionate means, and daily action. However, these two classes are not at all separate, as to develop relative bodhicitta correctly, it must be firmly grounded in ultimate bodhicitta — which is “nothing more than the total and complete understanding of emptiness (Shamar 2009, 47). The danger inherent is that the enactment of relative bodhicitta (through practicing the paramitas) can cause practitioners to reify both the recipients of their compassion, and themselves as the givers of goodwill. Essentially fabricating a false dichotomy, and turning the path into nothing more than acting nicely towards people in a deluded manner.[3] As such, a bodhisattva must be intimately acquainted with the fact that although they have vowed to save all sentient beings, no sentient beings exist (Jenkins 1999, 182). The natural next question is raised in the ninth chapter of the Bodhicaryāvatāra: if there are no sentient beings, to whom is compassion developed? And how is practice even possible? The answer appears in a subsequent verse.

“Although sentient beings do not truly exist, deceptively one should develop compassion for those imputed (as sentient beings) by the confused mind which has promised to practise the (Bodhisattva) way of life in order to lead them to the goal of liberation.” (Batchelor 1979, 106).

In Prajñākaramati’s commentary on the Bodhicaryāvatāra, he answers the question in an alternative manner. He states simply that compassion is the means of accomplishing enlightenment. It is the sadhana of anuttara-samyak-saṁbodhi (Jenkins 1999, 215). In corroboration with the above quotation, we come to the notion that even the aspiration to embark on the Bodhisattva way of life is delusion, but it is delusion of a kind that is “the cause of the quieting of saṃsāra” (Jenkins 1999, 224).

Mahakaruṇā

The graded nature of bodhicitta goes together with the notion that compassion can also be of two natures. We often see the term great compassion (mahakaruṇā) used. It can be thought of as a perfect expression of karuṇā, or relative action that is maximally informed by the wisdom of emptiness. Yet, three categories of ‘greatness’ can roughly be described: that of scope, sacrifice and wisdom. In terms of wisdom, if karuṇā is mere non-aggression, mahakaruṇā is non-delusion. The ‘greatness’ of wisdom is a total embodied understanding of emptiness. It is liberative wisdom perfectly applied to the conventional realm. With greatness of scope, mahakaruṇā involves a total willingness to do whatever it takes to personally be the cause of happiness and liberation for all beings. Further, this liberation is not just from conventional suffering in its varied intensities, but from the totality of saṃsāric delusion. The scope can also be seen as expanding cosmologically, as a bodhisattva vows to save all beings in all three realms. Finally, in terms of sacrifice, it is written that: “Unlike ordinary compassion which sacrifices worldly happiness, a Buddha’s great compassion (by not entering parinirvāṇa) sacrifices the peak of existence” (Jenkins 1999, 170). An astounding example of great compassion is the figure Vimalakīrti. An exemplary layman, his depth of dharmic knowledge is matched only by his compassionate skillful means. In the sutra that introduces his story, the Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra, Mañjuśrī asks him why he appears to be sick. He responds that in a Bodhisattva, sickness arises from mahakaruṇā (Lamotte 1976, 118). The uniqueness of the Vimalakīrti sutra is its explicit and consistent statement that if a practitioner possess wisdom without compassion, then they are still in bondage (Thurman 2000, 7). In Robert Thurman’s commentary and translation of the text, he goes so far as to say that in this regard, Vimalakīrti teaches “pure tantric doctrine”, citing parallels with what is found in the Guhyasamāja tantra (Thurman 2000, 7). One of the more interesting examples given is that in a verse, Vimalakīrtiidentifies wisdom as the ‘mother’, and liberative technique as the ‘father’ (Thurman 2000, 8). This movement towards a symbolic representations of Wisdom and Compassion is an important feature of many tantras — and it is this domain which I will now turn to.

The Adamantine Lord

There is an inherent difficulty in speaking about the tantras. Becoming sufficiently versed in the various tantric metaphysical systems would take many lifetimes, and as such, I aim only to identify unique turns of phrase, and interesting concepts within my analysis of the Hevajra tantra. Yet what can be said, is that by title alone, this text is well suited to this project on compassion. On the first page, as Vajragarbha asks what is meant by the name Hevajra, he is answered: “He is proclaimed great compassion, and wisdom by vajra. Do thou listen to this tantra, the essence of Wisdom and Means, which now is proclaimed by me” (Snellgrove 2010, 47). I will explore how compassion is mapped not only onto the physical landscape of the practitioner, but onto a unique metaphysical framing of reality

History

Hevajra and his consort Nairatmya. Image obtained from the incredible Himalayan Art Resource: https://www.himalayanart.org/items/623

Authorship of the tantras is often shrouded in mystery, however the ‘finding’ of the Hevajra tantra is credited to the mahasiddha Saroruha (Snellgrove 2010, 13). It existed in its present form of 750 slokas around the end of the eighth century (Snellgrove 2010, 14). However, there is rumored to exist an original with over 500,000 slokas (Snellgrove 2010, 15). The focus of this text is a highly detailed ritual practice, featuring Hevajra and his consort Nairātmyā. In it, we find schemas of the subtle body, a comprehensive and often linguistically paradoxical soteriological system, and complex ritual instructions. To expect rigorous logical consistency of a tantra is to misunderstand its existence — they are there to signpost reality, and offer maps of our inner terrain. The conception of reality taken by this tantra is best exemplified in the following verse.

“In reality there is neither form nor seer, neither sound nor hearer,Neither smell nor one who smells, neither taste nor taster, Neither touch nor one who touches, neither thought nor thinker” (Snellgrove 2010, 20).

This non-dual teaching permeates the entire tantra, as whenever a duality is created, the reader is reminded of an overarching unity. The interplay of wisdom and compassion is where this dichotomous tactic finds its most valuable expression.

Wisdom and Compassion

It is said that the “entire training consists in learning to conceive of existence in knowledge of its non-existence (Snellgrove 2010, 22). Such a task is only accomplished by using existence itself as the means. As such, for the tantric yogi, everything becomes part of the path. On a gross level, karuṇā is identified with saṃsāra, wisdom with nirvāṇa, and the highest truth as the intermingling of the two — symbolized as Hevajra and Nairātmyā in union. Yet, the unique conceptual move is that while Nairātmyā is wisdom, and Hevajra is compassion — they are both complete and total manifestations of the highest truth in-and-of themselves. While symbolically separate and in search of union, they are each all-encompassing ‘pseudo-modalities’ of ultimate reality. The quotations reflect the fact that the bifurcation they represent is only at the apparent level, and that ultimately they each represent union without union, fullness without a seal.

On a more practical level, it is explicitly stated that while wisdom is only realizable through compassion, it is simultaneous the basis for that manifestation. “It is in this sense that of the pair Wisdom/Means[4], Wisdom remains supreme, for although without Means she is unrealizable, it is she that absorbs her partner, and never the reverse. She is the eternally quiescent one, and it is from her that he emerges, and then from their union springs all manifested form.” (Snellgrove 2010, 39). This is reminiscent of the emphasis placed earlier on ultimate bodhicitta (perfect wisdom of emptiness) acting as a prerequisite for correctly travelling along the path, and that without it ones compassion remains insufficient. However, the Hevajra tantra conceptualizes this in a more evocative and symbolic light. The tantra goes on to describe that maya[5] originates through means, and it is equally through means that one returns to a realized state. So while the play of existence is classed as delusion — some delusions point to the way ‘out’.

The concept of bodhicitta is also conceived of in a novel sense, as the Hevajra tantra states that bodhicitta is the union of wisdom and means, and is sometimes referred to as a distinct third element. While this isn’t altogether revolutionary, this triad is then mapped onto the subtle body, as the three main channels are seen as wisdom, means and bodhicitta.[6] Various subtle body meditations are used to facilitate the energetic union of relative and absolute bodhicitta, which are conceived of as bindus residing in the genitals and crown of the head respectively. Various other bodily and elemental correspondences occur in this tantra, and in his critical edition, David Snellgrove offers various charts denoting the specific relations (Snellgrove 2010, 27).

Compassion continues to be given a more cosmically substantial treatment, as all enlightened deities are said to act with it in order to encourage practitioners to rouse it — and in the text it is said that: “Means is the basis of all tantra” (Snellgrove 2010, 94). Yet, what else would the tantras be about? Nothing can truly be said about the highest wisdom. It is wholly beyond the realm of language, and all that ever can be spoken of is means.

Generating a Kind Heart

We have explored some of the diverse ways karuṇā appears in the Buddhist canon. As a cause for bodhicitta, as an enlightened activity, and as a mode of existence. It is important at all times on the path. However, I believe that to stay in the realm of the theoretical is to misapprehend karuṇā. As such, I will now turn to some practical meditative techniques associated with the cultivation of karuṇā. It is apt to begin this section with a quote from the perspective of a realized Bodhisattva.

“True compassion is not emotional. Mature practitioners have a clear view grounded in ultimate bodhicitta. Unhampered and free of emotions, bodhisattvas help others in a sensible and appropriate way.” (Shamar 2009, 84).

As discussed earlier, getting to this level of compassionate activity is a gradual process. We must first fabricate our aspirational bodhicitta. One of the central themes of generating karuṇā, especially at the relative level, is a technique written about by both Śāntideva and Atiśa, the “exchange or equalization of self and other” (Traleg 2007, 5). This simple cognitive act forms the basis of many mind training techniques. It utilizes our natural empathetic qualities, while also serving as a practice of undercutting our own egoic self-cherishing. In Gyalsé Ngulchu Tokmé’s Thirty-Seven Verses on the Practice of a Bodhisattva, he promotes the idea of imagining sentient beings as your mother, and of how willing you would be to exchange your happiness for the suffering of your mother. (Khyentse 2007, 30). This practice is extended as ultimately, practitioners are tasked with imbuing every relation with filial affection.

Three Bases

I will move to the three bases of compassion, as expounded by Candrakīrti and also utilized in the Sakya Lamdré tradition. One of the gems of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism is the Lamdré teaching cycle. In the exoteric component of the Three Visions, we have a detailed training of imaginative exercises whose purpose is to instill a sense of sympathy and intimacy with sentient beings. After this is established, one contemplates that over the course of saṃsāra, every being has once been your mother. As discussed earlier, you then extend your compassion outwards. (Stearns 2006, 380). However, this contemplation has three stages, in which compassion is directed towards sentient being in three distinct fashions.

In Guy Newlands comprehensive tome on Tibetan Buddhist conceptions of compassion, he highlights a verse by Candrakīrti paying homage to three types of compassion. These are: compassion observing sentient beings (sattvālambana karuṇā), compassion observing phenomena (dharmālambana karuṇā) and compassion observing the un-apprehendable (analambana karuṇā ). (Newland 1984, 55). In the case of the first contemplation in Lamdré, one is generating an affective state based on the desire not to have ones mother wander aimlessly throughout the six realms. The second base, as written by Candrakīrti, is allegedly shorthand for: “compassion observing sentient beings who are imputed in dependence upon mere phenomena such as the aggregates” (Newland 1984, 57). As such, compassion is now specifically generated towards the ignorance of imputing stability, solidity and “I-ness” onto the transitory flow of phenomena. Finally, the third compassion base is that of the un-apprehendable, or as explained in Lamdré, the “nonreferential” (Stearns 2006, 380). While at first glance this may appear as simply meaning having a fully saturated psycho-physical resonance of compassion in some vague way — Candrakīrti makes the point clear. This third compassion is understanding that: “the self is not one of the aggregates that serve as its basis of designation, is not the composite of those aggregates, and does not exist apart from those aggregates. Nevertheless, it does have mere nominal existence as an imputation — and as such, great compassion is directed towards beings with full understanding that they are non-existent (Newland 1984, 58). In summary, the first base of compassion is being sensitive to the suffering of sentient beings. The second base is recognizing the cause of the suffering is ignorance of emptiness and impermanence. Finally, the third involves a shift within the practitioner themselves. One must have deeply realized emptiness personally, as you are now directing compassion towards your understanding, on an ultimate level, that the beings from the first base are merely imputed — and lack true existence. Perhaps it could be said that the object of compassion never changes, but the way you view that object does.

Mind Training

One of the enduring legacies of the great Indian master Atiśa, is his system of Mind Training (henceforth lojong). Preserved by the Kadampa tradition, the lojong teachings consist of “pithy aphorisms, poems, and prose commentaries” designed to transform ones orientation to the world (Shamar 2009, ix). Chekawa Yeshe Dorje (1101–1175) was a famed teacher who distilled Atiśa’s teachings into seven core lines. In many texts, the core lines differ, but the pithy instructions that make up the body are ascribed to Atiśa. In essence, the seven points of mind training are ways of training in bodhicitta, and cultivating an altruistic and compassionate attitude towards the world. The seven main points are:

“Learn the preliminaries; furthermore, be training in not conceptualizing the three spheres.

Key instructions for training in the two bodhicittas, beginning with ultimate.

Convert adversities into the path of awakening.

Implement Mind Training in this life.

The measure of Mind Training.

Commitments of Mind Training.

Advice for Mind Training.” (Shamar 2009, 11–14).

The key point, highlighted clearly in Traleg Kyagbon’s commentary on the root lines, is that lojong is not psychotherapy. Namely, it does not “identify malignant and isolating aspects of oneself that are destructive” (Traleg 2007, 10). Lojong is not about working through difficult emotions, but cutting directly to the root of suffering. This is made clear in the commentaries on the third mind training. Practitioners are instructed to “hold one fault accountable for all misfortunes. That one fault is ego-clinging” (Shamar 2009, 64). One of the more active practices contained in lojong is giving-and-taking, known as tonglen. In the practice of tonglen meditation, one synchronizes imagining taking in the misery of beings on the inhalation, and giving out all good karma and happiness on the exhalation. The in-breath absorbs all negativity and suffering, the out-breath sends out merit and goodwill. (Shamar 2009, 58). A note of difficulty could be that in a practitioner with insufficient understanding of emptiness, it could be overwhelming to imagine taking on all the suffering of beings. Yet the path of lojong repeatedly deals with self-cherishing, and one trains in seeing the world as illusion. If there is no one substantial to take in the suffering, to whom can it adhere?

Conclusion

Despite its numerous conceptual forms, various functions, and plethora of generative technique, what remains constant is that compassion plays an integral role in the Buddhist tradition. Karuṇā is not only an essential practice before one embarks on the bodhisattva path, but also during, as well as after. Cultivating a sensitivity to human suffering, grounded in the Buddhist worldview, is a teaching that spans from the śrāvakayāna up to the tantras. As has been shown, thinking of compassion as merely feeling bad for others is insufficient in terms of soteriological value. While the techniques are varied and nuanced, the basics appear to be as such: compassion and goodwill are attitudes to be cultivated, and only through practice will they arise and abide spontaneously. These attitudes are developed with support from, and as a basis for bodhicitta. Important practices include exchanging self with other, and treating everyone as intimately and gratefully as you do your own mother. Most importantly, we must break the habitual dualistic way that we view reality — and inform our compassionate action with liberative wisdom.

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Works Cited

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“Itivuttaka: The Group of Threes” (Iti 50–99), translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu. Access to Insight (BCBS Edition), 30 November 2013, http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/iti/iti.3.050-099.than.html.