The Bodhisattva's Thousand Arms

Bodhisattvas sometimes are pictured with multiple arms and heads. I didn't appreciate this symbolism until I heard this dharma talk by John Daido Loori, in which he said,

Every time there's a stranded vehicle on the side of the road and a motorist stops to help, Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva has manifested herself. Those characteristics of wisdom and compassion are the characteristics of all beings. All Buddhas. We all have that potential. It's just a matter of awakening it. You awaken it by realizing there's no separation between self and other.

Avalokiteshvara is the bodhisattva who hears the cries of the world and embodies the compassion of the buddhas. When we see and hear the suffering of others and respond to that suffering, we are the heads and arms of the bodhisattva. The bodhisattva has more heads and arms than anyone can count!

Today many arms are reaching toward the people of Burma (Myanmar). The military junta in control of the country continues to get in the way of aid. The Buddhist Peace Fellowship (BPF) and its affiliate group, the Foundation for the People of Burma (FPB) are accepting donations for Burma. FPB has the resources and connections in Burma to enable proper distribution of aid.

People of many faiths are reaching out to Burma. For example, other About.com guides have written about relief efforts by Sikhs and Mormons, among others. The tragedy in Burma is not a Buddhist tragedy, but a human tragedy exacerbated by politics. Most Burmese are Buddhists, but there are also Christian and Muslim Burmese.

The compassion of the bodhisattvas does not depend on a creed or belief system. It manifests in the sincere, unselfish and unconditional response to suffering, not in the beliefs and objectives of the giver and receiver of help. As it says in the Visuddhi Magga:

Mere suffering exists, no sufferer is found.
The deeds are, but no doer of the deeds is there.

May response to suffering be unhindered.