A Buddhist Story

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"A violent dragon met a bodhisattva on the road one day. The bodhisattva told the dragon that he should not kill anymore and should instead adopt the Buddhist precepts and care for all life. The bodhisattva inspired the dragon and afterward the dragon became completely nonviolent. But now the children who tended to the animal flocks nearby, seeing that the dragon had become gentle, lost all fear of him. And they began to torment him, stuffing stones and dirt into his mouth, pulling on his tail, and jumping on his head. Soon the dragon stopped eating and became very sick. When the dragon encountered the bodhisattva again, he complained, 'You told me that if I kept the precepts and was compassionate, I would be happy. But now I suffer, and I am not happy at all.' To this the bodhisattva replied, 'My son, if you have compassion, morality, and virtue, you must also have wisdom and intelligence. This is the way to protect yourself. The next time the children make you suffer, show them your fire. After that, they will trouble you no more.'” --Maha Ghosananda, as retold by Stephen T Asthma PhD in his book, "Why I Am a Buddhist"

Dragon Purification Fountain - Kyoto, Japan
I'll be honest, I am kind of stumped for a post today. I have tons of ideas, but whenever I follow one it just seems to lead nowhere. So I am throwing in the towel and sharing this Buddhist story that I read recently and just really love.

Sometimes I think we get confused and think that being compassionate means we roll over or let others treat us badly or don't stick up for ourselves or defend ourselves. Nothing could be further from the truth. "Compassion for all beings" means compassion for OURSELVES as well.

For me that means to stop badgering myself about A POST! A POST! A POST! and post this story. What does it mean for you? Where are you allowing your compassion for others to undermine your compassion for yourself? Make a commitment to change that today and practice self-compassion. Have a good one!

Love, Lara

P.S. With thanks to the Universe for this confirmation: My "message from the Universe" today from TUT.COM was "Always keep in mind, Lara, that no matter what has happened, you did the very best you could. And so did those who may have let you down. Great Love, The Universe"

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