Heart Connection

There is humanness in each of us. When we see that humanness, our sense of closeness with each other can naturally emerge. Everyone wants to be happy. No one wants to suffer if they have a choice. Most people have somebody they love in their life. Everyone has rich emotions, from sadness to joy and beyond. We all have our own fear as well as courage.

Sojong Reminder from Anam Thubten

Dear Dharma Friends,

As long as long we live in this world, people appear in our lives all the time. The moment we wake up, there is our family. Then the moment we walk out the door, there will be either neighbors or strangers passing by. Countless people will appear in front of us in all situations, from driving on the highway to visiting grocery stores. Automatically, our mind tends to judge them or objectify them as “merely people,” without a sense of loving-kindness or heart connection. This can give rise to all forms of unwholesome states of mind, such as prejudice and lack of empathy.

Deep down, people long for a genuine connection with others. We have the desire to interact with others from a tender human heart. This longing becomes quite palpable when we are dealing directly with others, such as during a visit to the doctor’s office. We often wish that the doctors or nurses would relate to us as a human being with tender heartedness, which in turn can warm our heart. Often the very thing that we long for is also that for which others yearn. It’s not necessary to show our heart’s tenderness to everyone that crosses our path. Rather, it’s more about staying open-hearted towards others whenever we remember to do so. There are many moments here and there where we can show our tender heart to someone who just needs it.

There is humanness in each of us. When we see that humanness, our sense of closeness with each other can naturally emerge. Everyone wants to be happy. No one wants to suffer if they have a choice. Most people have somebody they love in their life. Everyone has rich emotions, from sadness to joy and beyond. We all have our own fear as well as courage. While we have differences as human beings, we also have biological and psychological proclivities that bind us together in the same human species. Yet such humanness can be easily veiled when we relate to each other through the illusory matrix of color, race, status, position, physical appearance, and so forth. These various personas hinder our recognition of who we actually are.

In order to make this world more benevolent, each of us can widen our heart and start to practice seeing the humanness of everyone. By doing so, loving-kindness and compassion will become the natural ground from which we interact with this world each day. As a practical guideline, a few times each day we could try to see others humanness rather than their persona. This practice can immediately dissolve many negative emotions such as judgment, envy, or comparison and can bring about a sense of boundless compassion.

Let’s participate in this upcoming Sojong as noble friends walking this wonderful path, and hold the intention to start the practice of loving-kindness in everyday life. Let’s dedicate all of our Dharma practice as a force that will bring more peace, healing, and joy to this beautiful, yet troubled world.

With palms joined, Anam Thubten