The other day I got an email from a student, Michael, who said he felt that, because of his daily practice, he was resting in big love. I love that phrase: resting in big love. Why big love and not simply love?
Often when we say love, then this love is stained with wants, needs, desires, attachments, you name it. However big love is free from all of this; it is free from any attachments whatsoever and therefore it is big. Here big really stands for the boundless universe, without beginning or end. This kind of big is not the opposite of small; it is big without a dualistic framework, unlimited and boundless. And because of this, we can include everybody and anything in our love.
Within our normal, or everyday kind of love, we exclude many people, animals, or things due to our likes and dislikes. Because this kind of love comes from our narrow mind-heart, it can not contain everything. But big love comes from an open mind-heart, and therefore it can accommodate everything. Big love is our essence, our natural identity. But due to our upbringing, our fears, attachments, you name it, we cover it up.
Big love is like a great bright light which flows into all directions; it is like the sun and moon together. The sun and moon do not need gratification. They do not want anything in return and they do not judge, label or distinguish. They just shine and all can take from them whatever is needed. Normal love is like a bright light with many lampshades over it: lampshades of anger, ignorance, and attachments. In our daily meditation practice, we are peeling away these layers so that one day we can rest in big love.
The Great Light has no colour, yet it is all colours. It transcends past, present and future. It existed before the universe appeared and it will exist after the universe is gone. And although this Great Light can be talked about for eons, it cannot be explained in words. Nor can it be seen with the most precise microscope or the most powerful telescope.It is simply magnificent beyond description, and it can be seen only with Wisdom’s Eye.
– Ven. Tong Songchol
Resting in big love also means that at that moment we do not have to do anything, we can just be! No need to chant, no need to perform a ritual, just rest in big love. This means that during all our activities of walking, sleeping, eating, talking we can rest our mind-heart, in big love.
Graffiti photo by Hans Braxmeier, Germany.