Dogs are Dharma

Sukavati for 8 dogs

2010-08-28T22:37:00.001-03:00

Yesterday we had a buddhist ceremony for 8 dogs that have recently died - we had a gathering of people, and lots of dogs and spent the evening remembering our lives together - after having let them go
Sukavati's are rituals that include fire - and we burned up photos of the dog's to symbolize Stella's, Ursa's, Peaches', Jackie's, Ruby's, Mitzi's, Trouble's and Saige's release from clinging to this live that they've lived with us - and on to whatever great adventure they're going to go to next.
Hopefully the dogs who came to the ceremony and the evening had a good time - I brought Charlie and Buttercup - and I know Charlie wasn't all that thrilled, especially since Janet cut his nails, and he'd rather chew on rocks than have his nails cut - and as the evening progressed, he began to show how he felt -
but I wanted them there so they could suck in any auspicious wafts that might be going around - with them both being so old - they need all the good vibes they can get right now, that's for sure!

During the ceremony, Coleen recited a couple of poems - one of which she only said one line of - but I have looked up the whole poem because it's a good one, and I'll put it here, and the 2nd one is more like a little Buddhist song - I don't know if it made it to the tape - I don't think it did, unfortunately - but here they are -

Here's the little buddhist song -

"all you sentient beings i have a good or bad connection with as soon as you have left this confused dimension may you be borns in the western sukavati and once you're born there, complete the boomis and the path"

And here's the poem - by EE Cummings -

i carry your heart with me

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

Below is a video that I made of the ceremony, which is a distillation of it - I had to cut it down to 10 minutes because You Tube only lets you make videos of 10 minutes or under, so I had to cut out the chit-chat - but you get the meaning of it. I hope you enjoy it -

God is Dog

2010-03-18T13:46:00.003-03:00

Keeping pets in our life from a Buddhist perspective

2010-01-13T23:07:00.004-04:00

From the website "Daily Buddhism" comes the subject of what people should feed their companion animals - whether it should be a vegeterian or a meat based diet.

They suggest that it's "karma neutra" - because if the animal was out in the wild, they'd definitely be killing animals - so whatever you're giving it - meat or vegetable, is no worse than what he'd be giving himself in the wild. Here's some more of what they say -

"Many Buddhists believe people with negative karma are reborn as dogs. Dogs are not intelligent enough to raise their karma on their own, so they essentially have to remain dogs until their negative karma has worn off. Eventually, they will get another chance to become human again and can work on reaching Nirvana. I think the important idea to get from that is that karma doesn’t work the same way for animals as it does for people because they are not able to affect their own karma, at least not to any great extent."

They do give out the idea that dogs and cats are carnivores, which is highly contentious - and I'm not going to go into that, because I don't necessarily agree with their theory - but they also put forward the idea that the better you treat your animal - the better it is for your own karma, which to me - is always a good thing - so it's win win - which is always good!

The Society of Ethical and Religious Vegetarians has an article called "Life as a Vegetarian Tibetan Buddhist Practitioner" that talks about life as a Buddhist, and what they generally eat - specifically Tibetan Buddhists - and it's a great article.

It's by Eileen Weintraub, and she talks about the fact that a lot of Tibetans do eat meat but that according to Tibetan tradition, the The Buddha said, ‘the eating of meat annihilates the seed of compassion.’ There is a big dichotomy in Tibetan culture about eating meat - and their compassion for animals. "The interpretation of Buddha’s teaching was that it was OK to buy and eat meat if the being wasn’t killed directly for you. "

Lama Yeshe has a section of his website devoted to Giving Advice on Practices that benefit animals that are pretty good for helping with day to day activities. It's pretty intersting.

Animals in our lives from an animal communicators perspective

2010-01-13T22:33:00.004-04:00

A good website that's got some neat articles about animals and their relationship with us is one that I found by a lady who's an animal communicator. I personally use an animal communicator with my dogs - Maggie Carruthers - she's got a website at http://www.carpediemhealingcreations.ca/

The website that I found some neat articles at is at http://www.anaflora.com/ - this lady sells animal communication and flower essences. I have no idea where in the world she is located - but her articles are good!

She's got one about animals in Budhism that's awesome - it's called "Buddhism and Animals" and it's all about how Buddhism was the first religion to actually include animals in its philosophy.

She also says - "Buddhism considers all of life to be evolving toward higher consciousness. To the Buddhist, any practice by which man sustains himself at the expense of other sentient beings is considered wrong.

Buddhism considers non-human life to be Divine just as is human life. Animals are seen to be an evolving kingdom of living creatures destined in time to attain perfect enlightenment. All of life is seen to be one. According to this conviction, to harm any living thing is to do injury to the One Eternal and Divine Life.

Since animals are considered to be traveling towards enlightenment just as man is, neither are they to be harmed, discouraged or hampered in their progress."

In another article called "Why do animals suffer" - the lady, who's name is Sharon Cleary - says that "Animals mirror for us our lost innocence. That fragile, sensitive, trusting inner nature that is buried under varying layers of ego, negatively perceived life experience and our own suffering. It seems to be a human tendency to defile that which we no longer possess. Wild animals elicit fear in people who have shut down their own wild natures in favor of "civilized" living. For us to restore the Earth to Her perfection requires that we regain a child like sensitivity to the other beings with whom we share the Earth and that we reclaim our own wild natures."

Animal communicators can have some neat ideas - they come at things from a very different perspective than ost people do.

Lojong for Dogs

2010-01-12T11:29:00.003-04:00

I was given a really great book - "The Practice of Lojong, Cultivating Compassion through training the Mind" by Traleg Kyabgon - and it's funny, I've read ABOUT Lojong, and been taught about the practice of DOING lojong - but I'd never read the actual Prayer of Lojong by Jamgon Kongtrul.

I had previously been taught about "tonglen" - the practice of giving and taking - which is another root teaching of Jamgon Kongtrul - through Chogyam Trungpa's fabulous book "Training the Mind and Cultivating Loving Kindness" - and his Slogan Cards - but for some reason - this Lojong Poem has just blown me away, and the fact that it has a paragaph for animals just puts it over for me.

The first paragraph is the paragraph to help the animals - and then the rest of it is like the 3 or 4 paragraphs of the poem - this isn't the whole thing - these are just the paragraphs that spoke to me the most. You can find out more by clicking on the link I provided at the top of the blog post -

Jamgon Kongtrul’s Lojong Prayer

Translated by Traleg Kyabgon

Under the influence of ignorance,
Sentient creatures are born as animals,
May the karmic cause and fruit of their suffering
Dissipate within me.
I offer my innately born or cultivated intellect
And the virtuous root of non-ignorance
To all migrating beings equal to the expanse of space.
May the dwelling place of ignorant animals be emptied.
May they realize Avalokiteshvara of the Buddha-family
And attain the wisdom of dharmadhatu.

Therefore, may I appropriate
The sudden eruption of obstacles and other sufferings
Of change
On my egoistic fixation from this day forward.
I offer the virtue, power, and influence I have accumulated
Throughout the three times and even life itself
To migrating beings equal to the expanse of space.
May all sentient beings
Be happy and well.
May they embark on the path of awakening.

Virtuous teachings, meat consumed, yogurt drunk,
Transport taken, and respect received
As well as the disrespect, ill will, derision, and being
Robbed and beaten
All connect me with migrating beings.

As a result of whatever beneficial or harmful karmic
Relationships I may have had
With anyone who has seen my qualities or simply smelled my waft on the wind –
May all their karmic delusions be exhausted.
May they be delivered into Sukhavati
Through the power of Avalokiteshvara’s great compassion.

May whatever actions I engage in through body, speech,
And mind
And even my bodily odor
Have only beneficial effects on migrating beings.
May anyone who wants to cause harm to my life or body,
Whether they be human or nonhuman,
That carry ill intent
Be the first to attain Buddhahood.
May I never be the basis or the slightest cause
Of bringing the negative karma of others to fruition.

If we examine dreams, the reflection of the moon in
Water, a mirage,
We will see they have no true nature in themselves
It is only because of egoistic fixation that we have been
Utterly deceived by them.
I and all migrating beings equal to the expanse of space,
Including evil spirits and nonhumans,
Are equal in emptiness, the ultimate truth.
May we understand this without fixation.
May we never become attached
To the truth of emptiness.

There is not one migrating being
Who has not been my mother or father in this world of
Sentient being.
Where can I find anyone, anywhere, who has shown me
More kindness?
To wish harm to one’s mother or her offspring
Is clearly delusional.
Far better to appreciate their kindness.
May I hand over gain and victory to others
And take loss and defeat upon myself
In order to remember the kindness of all migrating
Beings without partiality.

Through the power of the exceedingly noble intention
Generated by me, as a result of this prayer,
May the obscurations and defilements of others be purified.
May all migrating beings accomplish the two accumulations.
The Essence of this previous bodhichitta is emptiness
And compassion,
The inconvertible path of all the Buddhas.
May bodhichitta arise suddenly and with ease.
Having given birth to this precious bodhichitta,
May I speedily attain omniscient Buddhahood.

Sarva Mangalam
May everything be well.

Churches letting dogs into regular church services

2009-11-10T18:22:00.004-04:00

I wish this would happen everywhere, and in the normal parts of churches - that the regular church services would become dog friendly - for those dogs who can handle it. But any movement in this direction is fabulous, regardless!

This article is about a church in Los Angeles that has regular church services for dog owners and their dogs, which is super! It is great that dog friendliness is starting to seep into another aspect of normal everyday life - I hope it spreads outside Los Angeles and into other parts of North America - we should be able to have whatever kind of companions with us that we like - whether it's human, electronic, or canine - whatever we need to get us through our very complicated and difficult lives these days. Wonderful stuff.

Click on the below picture to read the actual article -

Catholic Burial Prayer for a dog

2009-11-10T18:03:00.004-04:00

Some friends of mine attended a lovely burial for a beloved dog of a Catholic nun up in Antigonish County on the weekend, and they shared the handout given out with me - so I wanted to put the prayer said at the ceremony here.

I really like it because at the end it acknowledges that dogs do indeed have a soul that goes back to God - which is super to me - because the dog was owned by Catholic nuns, and sometimes people within the church have problems saying that anything other than humans have souls. I was really happy to see that this lady who had dedicated her life to God was able to see Him in her companion animal that she had lived with for so many years and was now saying Good bye to.

So here's the prayer that was said at the burial ceremony -

Creator God,
our hearts are heavy
as we face the loss in death
of our beloved Cu
who was so much part of our lives.

Cu has made our lives more enjoyable
and gave us cause to laugh
and to find joy in his company.

We remember the fidelity and loyalty of Cu
and will miss his being with us.

From Cue we learned some lessons,
such as the quality of naturalness
and the unembarrassed request
for affection and attention.

In caring for his daily needs,
we were taken up and out of our own
self needs,
and we were able to serve others at,
and what may be,
a deeper level of caring.

May the death of Cu
remind us that death comes
to us all,
animal and human,
and that it is the natural passage for all life to
enter fully into the heart of our Creator God.

May Cu sleep on
in eternal slumber in your loving care,
as with all creation he awaits
the fullness of Your Eternal presence.

Amen+

Sukavati for a dog named Oreo

2008-08-28T20:42:00.000-03:00

Last night a few of us got together and had a "sukavati" for Janet Chernin's dog Oreo - yesterday it was 49 days since Oreo died - and in the Buddhist tradition this is the time when Oreo will be moving on to whatever form she is going to take next - if you believe in reincarnation. She might be going to another dog, or a bird, or even taking on human form based on how she was in her last life. It's also a way for the people who loved the dead being to release their grasping of the life that's been taken away and they can never get back.

There's a little ceremony that's done and then at the end a photo of the deceased is burned - to signify that the loved one is truly gone and disappeared into the "ether". The ceremony was performed by a really good friend of Janet's who also happens to be someone really well known in the local Buddhist community - Colleen Logan. It was a really neat thing to go to - and Oreo was a really lucky dog to have it done for her, that's for sure.

Besides the shrine that had Oreo's photo that was going to be burned - there was an area that had another photo - along with a photo of Janet's other dog who died - Ceilidh, with candles to make everything look nice - and both of their ashes.

Oreo's sister Sassy decided to spend the ceremony laying behind me for some reason - I guess she feels like she's enlightened enough already!
Pickle on the other hand spent the ceremony curled up right next to a painting that Janet had commissioned of a bull terrier that's called "ghost dog" that was right next to the shrine - so she could be right in the middle of everything.

Even one of the most soon to be esteemed CEO's of the Clicker Leash Company showed up!

Zen Dog in Japan

2008-06-05T21:12:00.003-03:00

Okay, so I had to put this little dog on my blog.

A little dog that's being taught how to meditate? How awesome is that? I mean, really. I know that most people who are Buddhist who have dogs - their dogs quietly lay down beside them while they meditate - that's one of the greatest things about us being Buddhist - our dogs are benifiting from the sideways dharma - but, this little dog is especially generating good stuff I hope. I wonder if the Dalai Llama has any dogs who can do this. Now THAT would be amazing. haha!

Dog Prays at Japanese Zen Temple

NAHA, Japan — At a Zen Buddhist temple in southern Japan, even the dog prays. Mimicking his master, priest Joei Yoshikuni, a 1 1/2-year-old black-and-white Chihuahua named Conan joins in the daily prayers at Naha's Shuri Kannondo temple, sitting up on his hind legs and putting his front paws together before the altar.

It took him only a few days to learn the motions, and now he is the talk of the town.

"Word has spread, and we are getting a lot more tourists," Yoshikuni said Monday.

Yoshikuni said Conan generally goes through his prayer routine at the temple in the capital of Japan's southern Okinawa prefecture (state) without prompting before his morning and evening meals.

"I think he saw me doing it all the time and got the idea to do it, too," Yoshikuni said.

The priest is now trying to teach him how to meditate.

Well, sort of.

"Basically, I am just trying to get him to sit still while I meditate," he explained. "It's not like we can make him cross his legs."

Doggie Zen

2006-07-03T19:49:00.000-03:00

I found this neat idea on a website today. It's a dog training idea that's also a Buddhist idea....

Doggie Zen:

http://www.shirleychong.com/keepers/Lesson3.html

Shirley's Clicker Training Lessons

As I am fundamentally an evil, sadistic person who likes to make dogs (and people) suffer , I'll describe the mechanics of the lesson. At the end of the lesson will be some questions; once you've done the lesson, see if you can answer the questions!

I call it Doggie Zen: to get the treat, you must give up the treat.

Get out a treat that is good and smelly. Cheese works well for this, as does liver or Rollover-type stuff. Fix a few pieces that are small enough for you to cover in your closed hand.

Let your dog see that you have a goodie in your hand, then close your hand over the goodie and let the dog sniff, lick, nibble, etc,trying to get the goodie. Eventually, the dog will give up. When the dog turns their head away from the goodie or steps back away from it, even if it's just a temporary thing, catch that moment with the clicker and open your hand.

It's important to leave your hand down at the dog's level, perfectly accessible to them. Let them have a good chance to try to get the treat out of your hand on their own. If the dog gets too enthusiastic and is actually hurting you, say OUCH!, glare at them and pull your hand up out of their reach for a few seconds.

Give the dog as many trials in as many different places as you can.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Questions

Why do you have to leave your hand within the dog's reach? Why not just pull it up and away from the dog until they sit or do some other behavior?

What can the *handler* learn about training a dog from this exercise?

Re-state the Doggie Zen phrase to describe training in general.

ANSWERS

The lesson was teaching Doggie Zen: to get the treat, you must give up the treat.

The first question was: Why do you have to leave your hand within the dog's reach? Why not just pull it up and away from the dog until they sit or do some other behavior?

My thinking goes like this: what Doggie Zen is doing is teaching the dog the very beginnings of self control. Dogs are not born knowing self control. They see something they want and they go after it (unless there are extenuating circumstances). No dog has ever been born that stops to say "is nabbing the steak off the kitchen counter really a good idea?" Unless given a reason to believe that things might not go their way, they leave the philosophical speculations up
to the humans and nab the steak. A lot of what people do is essentially teaching the dog "wanting something is not a good reason to go after it." By taking as many variables out of the equation as possible, it's easier for the dog to learn to hesitate in the presence of something they want. It sounds like a trivial deal but for dogs, it's far from easy.

Now, looking at the situation, I would say it is inaccurate to say I am teaching the dog self control. I can't teach the dog self control.

ALL I CAN DO IS SET UP A SERIES OF SITUATIONS WHERE THE DOG TEACHES ITSELF SELF CONTROL.

This is true of many training situations. The dogs teach themselves--all I do is set up the situation so that the only way they can win will go the way I want.

So that's why I leave my hand within the dog's reach. If I pull my hand up and out of the dog's way, they haven't learned to give up, they've just learned to give me a certain behavior. Now, this behavior is certainly a good thing--but pulling my hand up and out of the dog's reach is hopping over the important part, the part where the dog decides on their own that actively going after the treat will not work, so they should try some other strategy. I can't teach the dog how to make that decision--for one thing, I have no idea how they make that decision. All I can do is set up the situation so that the decision will eventually occur.

The second question was: What can the *handler* learn about training a dog from this exercise?

I'm just like everyone else. I want my dogs to learn fast. I have observed that learning is stressful and frustrating and I don't want my dogs to feel stressed and frustrated. I'm also not the most patient person in the world by a long chalk! I want my dogs to get it and I want them to get it now, if not five minutes ago.

But sometimes the fastest way to get somewhere is not what looks like the most direct route. Some things just have to take their own time and happen in their own way. It's hard to sit back and wait for the dog to figure it out. But I can't force a thought into the dog's head and I can't really force them to do anything.

The third question was: Re-state the Doggie Zen phrase to describe training in general.

Doggie Zen: to get the treat, you must give up the treat. I see this as very close to the training contract: if you do what I want, then I'll do something you want. So it's one way to explain to the dog what the training contract is.

Jean Houston believes dogs can be our spiritual guides and soul companions.

2004-12-10T01:51:00.000-04:00

from http://www.beliefnet.com/story/116/story_11649.html

God Spelled Backwards

Jean Houston believes pets are more than just furry friends -- they can be our spiritual guides and soul companions.

Interview by Lisa Schneider

Jean Houston, a renowned scholar, philosopher, and teacher, has worked as a consultant to the United Nations, UNICEF, and other international agencies. She is the best-selling author of "A Mythic Life," "The Possible Human," and "Jump Time." She was a protégée of Margaret Mead and Joseph Campbell, and currently serves as co-director of the Foundation for Mind Research and the founder of the Mystery School -- an institution dedicated to education and the exploration of human potential.

In her latest book, "Mystical Dogs," Dr. Houston explores the ways in which the dogs in her life have guided her on each stage of the mystic path. She spoke with Beliefnet about how we can learn from our animal companions.

You say animals are part of the sacred flow of nature, while humans, on the other hand, are stuck in this "once-removed spirituality." Are dogs spiritually superior to humans?

[laughs] That's a funny question. I wouldn't say anything like that. I would just say that they are closer to nature and thus seem to be on a continuum with the natural flow of things. Obviously humans are much more complex in their spirituality, and in a sense it's almost the difference between the spirituality of a child and the spirituality of a grownup. Because as grownups we have eros, and aesthetic joy, and passion, and complexity, and the shadows of life that inform our brightness. And I think the same thing is true of animals; it's just that I think they serve as wonderful guides because of their simplicity and the naturalness of their being.
You seem to be saying that we go backwards spiritually as we evolve; why do you think that is?

I think it's the humdrum dailyness of everyday, isn't it, the muchness of our lives, a serial monotony; the living for the object, the goal, the thing. And of course, in our time, the too-muchness of it. At least in the West we've put so much of our emphasis on outwardness rather than inwardness and have disturbed the ecology between inner and outer spaces. This is why I think we turn so much to our pets because they remind us of our deeper nature, of what is truly important. And also in a strange way of what we can be. They rest us deeply and give us sudden joys that we have forgotten.

Have you seen the bumper sticker "Lord help me be the person my dog thinks I am"?

[laughs] Yes, I have that. And it's not a bad idea, that we could become what they see - what with their loyalty, their goodness, their constant presence, their availability to us even when we doubt ourselves. Not to [mention] the fact that they take us on our walks and keep us in shape and restore us to nature and the natural flow of things.

I happen to be a dog person, but I have to ask on behalf of cat lovers, what about cats? Can they also serve as spiritual guides?

Cats are very different from dogs, but I think equally evocative of our spiritual depths -- the way they will sit there and look at you and kneed bread on your chest and be so bright and shining. They have a kind of daemonic -- not demonic -- but a daemonic (as in the old Greek) aspect. They, too, are guides but at the same time they are tricksters who play games with us. Just like great saints and monks and people like Don Juan [laughs] are tricksters and fool our expectations and bring us to new ways of being.

Do you think that we can learn from any animal, or any pet -- does that include iguanas and rabbits and birds?

I've never had them for long periods of time so I can't respond to that. People who enter into any kind of bond with any kind of animal certainly talk about this. I've been privileged to know some elephants well in my time. I have been just astonished by not just the dignity of their presence but a kind of essential kindness.

It's not for nothing that we have often given our gods animal visages, animal personalities -- witness Ganesha of India. I've had the good fortune at one time in my life to spend a great deal of time with dolphins, swimming with dolphins. And I've seen extraordinary things. I've seen little blind kids be with the dolphins and the dolphins would come by and put their fins in such a way so that they would take the child for a ride, and this was not trained behavior, this was just instinctual.

One of the most popular features ever on our site was called "Do Pets Go to Heaven?" and it got an amazing response from our members. In an online poll, 86 % said yes, and 14% said no, and a raging debate ensued. So what do you think, do pets go to heaven?

That's why I include in the beginning of the book that wonderful story from the Mahabharata about how the great king goes to the other world and he is refused entrance because he has his dog with him. He says, "I will not enter." And then the man says, "You have passed the test because anybody who would enter without their dog is not worthy." [laughs] And that really is my answer. The gatekeeper said, "Come in, come in, you've been faithful to the end and so has your dog. Your dog is a living example of the dharma, the way of truth. He has been with you always come in, come in." And the great king and his dog entered paradise.

What about people who don't have dogs? Do people with pets have an unfair advantage spiritually?

Well, obviously there are many paths and many ways into the spiritual life. I once discussed this with the Dalai Lama. I work with a small group that meets with him about every year and a half and we discuss and work on world problems. And I had this conversation with him, and I told him about my way with dogs. And he laughed summarily, "Very good way, excellent way! Animals take us to our spiritual depths." I did see an awful lot of cats there at his house, crawling all around. Whether they were his or not I don't know…

I just think that people who have an inkling of the glory of an animal's presence and the beauty and the sympathy -- one is in a state of utter sympathy which really relaxes one to deepen into the largest stages of life.

Are we better off spending our time with animals instead of people?

It was Matthew Fox who said his spiritual advisor was his dog. As I say at the end of my book I really have felt the same, even though I have been blessed with extremely wise and deep and beautiful human teachers. With dogs, my experience is that words and theologies are not that necessary. Because with them you are in the presence, you can pat and caress the most holy [laughs]. You can run and play and dance with spiritual company. And you can also enter into profound silence and they are there with you. They are there as copartner and witness and deep friend of our spiritual journey. That's why since ancient times they've always been the guides through our darkness, guides to our greater journey. And that's why I say at the end of my book, trust your dogs and cats because they know the way to the ordinary extraordinary life in the kingdom.

Eating meat

2004-10-22T01:16:00.000-03:00

For those of us who don't feed our companion animals a vegetarian diet we can say this mantra over the food we feed them before we give it to them. Hopefully it'll help everyone involved!

om ahbirakay tsara hung

Recite this seven times over the meat to stop the fault of eating meat and to help the sentient beings whose flesh it was to be reborn in a happy realm.

What Christians and Buddhists should think and do about killing/liberating/saving sentient beings who aren't human

2004-10-11T20:31:00.000-03:00

So another aim of this blog is to disseminate information that I've found elsewhere/log the crap that I've found so that I don't lose it. My mind is going - figuratively and literally, so I need to put this somewhere.

This is from "Meditate to Liberate - Buddhism and Animal Liberation" - it's a British organization, and the stuff they say is pretty good.

Their section on religion and animals is good because it covers some really basic ideas about God & Buddha very simply:

(Buddhist Idea)Duty to help animals
The bodhisattva vows chanted by many Mahayana Buddhists include the following: "Innumerable are sentient beings: we vow to save them all."
Therefore, just as it is wrong to kill or otherwise bring suffering upon a human being, it is also wrong to kill or bring suffering upon an animal. Furthermore, we cannot stand by when suffering is being inflicted: "Disciples of the Buddha, you should willingly and with compassion carry out the work of setting sentient beings free… Should you see a worldly person intent on killing an animal, attempt by appropriate means to rescue or protect it and to free it from its misery." (Brahmajala Sutra)

(Christian idea) A Gospel for Every Creature - Professor Andrew Linzey
I have been an advocate for the cause of animals for over twenty-five years. At first I did not believe that cruelty to animals, however important in itself, could ever become a big issue for Christians. An important but secondary matter, I once thought. Not now. In terms of pain, suffering and death, what we do to millions of animals constitutes, I believe, one of the major moral issues of all time.
Moreover, I now see that it goes to the heart of the gospel that Christians profess. This is a gospel of the invincible, unconquerable love of God - not just for human beings but for all creatures. The God of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob, and especially of Jesus, loves all creatures. Christians have to find a new heart - a big enough heart to be open to two great gospel truths.

The first is that animals are God's creatures: not human property, nor utilities, nor resources, nor commodities, but precious beings in God's sight. The second is the Christ-like suffering of animals. "Think then, my brethren", preached John Henry Newman at Oxford in 1842, "of your feelings at cruelty practised on brute animals, and you will gain one sort of feeling which the history of Christ's Cross and Passion ought to excite within you." Christians whose eyes are fixed on the awfulness of crucifixion are in a special position to understand the awfulness of innocent suffering. The Cross of Christ is God's absolute identification with the weak, the powerless and the vulnerable, but most of all with unprotected, undefended, innocent suffering.

I have spoken of how sensitivity to suffering should be a matter of obedience to the gospel. But, in truth, it is among Christians today that one will find the greatest betrayal of this gospel. In Spain not one Roman Catholic authority can be found which opposes bull-fighting. In Canada, Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops support seal hunting and fur trapping. In Norway clergy defend whaling. In Ireland, Roman Catholic priests go hare coursing. And in England the General Synod of the Church of England will not oppose hunting for sport on church-owned land. This betrayal has a long and unflattering history. From the ninth to the nineteenth century, thousands of animals were subject to criminal prosecution and sentenced to capital punishment by ecclesiastical courts, resulting in barbarous cruelty. As late as the middle of the nineteenth century, Pope Pius IX forbade the opening of an animal protection office in Rome on the grounds that animals have no intrinsic worth, and the idea that what we do to them need not be governed by fundamental moral considerations has become standard theology in Catholic countries.

A God who remains passionless in the face of innocent suffering simply cannot be the Christian God. No theology which desensitises us to suffering can be truly Christian theology.

It cannot be stressed enough that the picture of God exclusively concerned with human salvation and indifferent to the suffering of the non-human creation has become a source of moral despair. If Christians today care so little for animals, it is because the God they seem to believe in cares even less. For myself, I believe that if God is good and just and holy, it must follow that there will be redemption for each and every creature that suffers. Nothing less than that would make God a truly just God.

That's just super.

Refuge Ceremony For Dogs

2004-10-09T17:51:00.000-03:00

Annie was a little poodle I brought home Christmas day 2003

Annie was dumped in a parking lot the Saturday before Christmas. It turned out she had a brain tumour and there was nothing I could do to save her and she was dying. It was one of the worst experiences of my life - I couldn't help but get seriously attached to her. But before she died I gave her refuge and called her "Prajna".

I can't remember now where I adapted it from, so if you recognize it, please let me know... but I think it's from somewhere that had something about ceremonies for liberating animals.

I sat Annie in front of me on my zabuton in front of my lit shrine and chanted the whole thing aloud - I wrote it in the context that she was in the process of dying (she died the next day) but it can be changed so that it can be given at any point in a dogs life I'd imagine.

At the end is my particular sect's Homage that is said at the end of all ceremonies - I love it.

Refuge Ceremony for Dogs

Homage to the Lord of Great Graciousness and Teaching, the Great Master Shakyamuni Buddha, Who from His great benevolence and great compassion has pity for all sentient beings.

Looking up in respect to the Lord of Great Graciousness and Teaching, Great Master Shakyamuni Buddha, I pray that his realization of the light of benevolence and compassion may guard and protect, care for and keep us. You are going to die soon, so in accordance with the Universal and Far-reaching Scriptures of Mahayana, I confer upon you the Three Refuges. It should proclaim the twelve links in the chain of dependent origination but, because as an animal you’ve been ignorant and unenlightened and, due to your creation of heavy karma, have received its retribution, your six senses are dull and deluded and have been unable to comprehend the profound Teachings of these Universal and Far-reaching Scriptures. I respectfully ask that the wondrous spiritual powers, awesome virtues, and profound unseen aid of the Three Treasures through Their compassion and pity open up the heart and liberate the mind of your wonderful sentient being so that you will be able to respond swiftly to the profoundly marvellous Dharma and thereby alter your karmic retribution and receive a rebirth that will help attain speedy liberation.

Explain the Three Refuges as follows:
O you sentient being, from beginningless time you have failed to hear of the Three Treasures and have not understood how to take refuge. For that reason you turn upon samsara's wheel of transmigration as it spins out existences in the three realms of sense desire, form, and beyond form. You have now fallen into the body of an animal which your past lives have earned you. For your sake we have now informed the Three Treasures of your piteous state and pray that you endeavour to protect Them and keep yourself ever mindful of Them. Open up the hearts of your companions and free their minds.

I will now bestow upon you the extremely profound and wondrous Dharma of the One Body which is the Three Treasures. The Three Treasures are called Buddha which signifies `realization', Dharma which signifies `the Teaching' and Sangha which signifies `the harmony of those united in their spiritual one-mindedness'. These Three are the One; this One is the Three. They do not form a hierarchy nor are They equally ranked nor are They lined up in a sequence nor are They separate and distinct from each other. We call That which goes beyond the grasp of the discriminatory mind the Treasure House of Profound Wisdom. Whatever in the world and in that which transcends the world is supreme and most valued is called a treasure. When Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are considered to be Treasures, all things will never fail to take refuge in Them. This is why we call Them the Three Treasures. Although the underlying Principle may extend far and wide, nevertheless when It is your pure Original Nature, It returns and is never far from you. You should have the deepest faith and trust in this Principle and take refuge in It. Homage to those who take refuge in the Buddha.

Next, give the Three Refuges, repeating them three times:

I take refuge in the Buddha,
I take refuge in the Dharma,
I take refuge in the Sangha.

Then continue as follows:
From now henceforth, call upon the Buddha and make Him your teacher; do not take refuge in the pathways of Mara. Thus we pray

Offer incense and then recite the following:

And because you are now a Buddhist dog, your new name is –

You who are a sentient being related to land, because your hindrances from beginningless karma are very grave, be mindful that you have fallen into an animal existence. Accordingly, for your own sake, turn now and be face to face with the Three Treasures, lay bare all your mistakes and, with an imploring heart, repent your mistakes. I pray that the karma from your defilements will be eradicated in an instant so that you can then be reborn in a heaven where, being close to a Buddha, you may receive your prediction of Buddhahood. As someone of land now and in the past, repent your mistakes with utmost heart and mind. Since beginningless time you have not awakened to your Original Nature and have turned upon the wheel of birth and death within various states of existence. Now, having encountered these teachings of the Mahayana Dharma, we pray that you will now repent your defilements, however boundless and heavy they are, as though you saw what the Buddha, the World-honoured One, sees and as though you knew what He knows. We pray that you bring your defilements to an end. We pray that you bring your defilements to an end.

Next, recite the following concluding prayer :
From the beginning there is neither birth nor death. Because of the accumulation of bad karma you received the body of an animal; Discard this karmic body quickly and enter the world of purity. Desire the pure crown of Enlightenment and realize the mind of a Buddha quickly. At this ceremony we have heard this Dharma once again. As your heart awakens to the Unborn, you, equally and without the slightest difference, will personally receive the Buddha's prediction of Buddhahood just as the Blazing Lord of Awesome Virtue did. I earnestly wish this as I ordain you, the disciple [name of the animal].

By this merit may all attain omniscience
May it defeat the enemy, wrongdoing
from the stormy waves of birth old age sickness and death,
From the ocean of samsara, may I free all beings.
By the confidence of the golden sun of the great east,
May the lotus garden of the Rigden’s wisdom bloom.
May the dark ignorance of sentient beings be dispelled.
May all beings enjoy profound brilliant glory.

Beginnings and Stupas in Dog Parks

2004-10-09T17:30:00.000-03:00

Well I figure I better shit or get off the pot with this thing. My idea is that our canine life companions - or at least my dogs - are part of every aspect of my life - and my spiritual life has also worked its way into every corner of my being.

I can't be the only person in the universe who's like that - so I wanted to make a space where information and ideas could be accumulated about how to help us and help our dogs.

It all started because I was looking for information on a "Buddhist funeral for animals" and I couldn't find anything anywhere - just snippets of things. It was tantalizing - there was one out there but I couldn't find the whole thing. It was like some terma that I wasn't ready for or something. I still haven't found it. But I've found a ton of other stuff. Which I'm going to post here.

I've also got a bunch of ideas - like dog parks that have stupas in the middle of them - the major dog park in my city is basically just a field that has a path that is a circle that people walk around - what if you put a stupa in the middle of it? So you could circumnabulate it? Acculumulate good karma while exercising your dogs at the same time?

Okay - I've got to go feed the dogs now...