Upāsaka Cattasallā (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
cattasalla) wrote2023-08-14 08:08 am
cattasalla) wrote2023-08-14 08:08 am
beauty
An underappreciated aspect of Buddhist practice is that of beauty. I have really only heard one teacher, Gil Fronsdal, expound on this topic.
So, there's this word kalyāṇa. To my knowledge, it is used in two main ways. One is in the phrase kalyāṇa kamma, usually translated as "good actions", "good deeds", or "good karma". The other is in the phrase kalyāṇa mitta, usually translated as "spiritual friends" or "admirable friends". But here's the thing. The first definition of kalyāṇa is "beautiful". Good deeds are beautiful deeds. Good friends, the friends who help us in our lives and our spiritual practice, are beautiful friends.
Doing good, and supporting each other, are acts of beauty. They create beauty. And because our lives are shaped by our actions, doing good and helping each other fashions a life of beauty.
I think that's, well, beautiful.
So, there's this word kalyāṇa. To my knowledge, it is used in two main ways. One is in the phrase kalyāṇa kamma, usually translated as "good actions", "good deeds", or "good karma". The other is in the phrase kalyāṇa mitta, usually translated as "spiritual friends" or "admirable friends". But here's the thing. The first definition of kalyāṇa is "beautiful". Good deeds are beautiful deeds. Good friends, the friends who help us in our lives and our spiritual practice, are beautiful friends.
Doing good, and supporting each other, are acts of beauty. They create beauty. And because our lives are shaped by our actions, doing good and helping each other fashions a life of beauty.
I think that's, well, beautiful.