Dating the Demons
We’ve all been through a variety of challenges in life, and are perhaps tackling a few actively, now. These may have been at work, in the personal space or across other spheres. Our instinctive reactions are to either actively fight the troubles, or passively defend ourselves, or maybe try tactical manoeuvring to influence those issues away. And sometimes these work.
But then there are those persistent irritants, those that just refuse to go away. You may give up in despair, but they won’t, and will continue to rankle you for extended periods. Much like that small piece of dirt that gets into your eyes and refuses to drift away.
I came across this particularly interesting story of Milarepa, a legendary eleventh-century Tibetan sage, re-told by Aura Glaser in the Tricycle Magazine.
“One day, [the Buddhist saint] Milarepa left his cave to gather firewood, and when he returned he found that his cave had been taken over by demons. There were demons everywhere! His first thought upon seeing them was, ‘I have got to get rid of them!’ He lunges toward them, chasing after them, trying forcefully to get them out of his cave. But the demons are completely unfazed. In fact, the more he chases them, the more comfortable and settled-in they seem to be. Realizing that his efforts to run them out have failed miserably, Milarepa opts for a new approach and decides to teach them the dharma.
“If chasing them out won’t work, then maybe hearing the teachings will change their minds and get them to go. So he takes his seat and begins… After a while he looks around and realizes all the demons are still there…At this point Milarepa lets out a deep breath of surrender, knowing now that these demons will not be manipulated into leaving and that maybe he has something to learn from them. He looks deeply into the eyes of each demon and bows, saying, ‘It looks like we’re going to be here together. I open myself to whatever you have to teach me.’
“In that moment all the demons but one disappear. One huge and especially fierce demon, with flaring nostrils and dripping fangs, is still there. So Milarepa lets go even further. Stepping over to the largest demon, he offers himself completely, holding nothing back. ‘Eat me if you wish.’ He places his head in the demon’s mouth, and at that moment the largest demon bows low and dissolves into space.”
A profound story.
On a lighter note, if you’ve decided to make yourself a meal to the demons, then there’s nothing much that you have left in life to really worry about.
Perhaps, it is an ultimate act to accept reality, to be cognisant of the supposedly terrifying outcomes and to give into the troubles as they are, and without remorse. Then maybe, just maybe, those terrifying demons troubling you will leave your life.
