In the late 80’s I discovered, through a friend’s older brother, an album called ‘Great British Psychedelic Trip, Vol. 1’, which was a compilation album of late-1960s rock music. This album contained a wonderful collection of often obscure records by bands that may have only released just one single before disappearing into the mists of time. Tucked away on this record was a song by a band delightfully named Virgin Sleep, who released only two singles in their brief lifetime. Their first single was very aptly titled, for the year of 1967, “Love”. The song itself has a simplicity to it and a certain period charm, with accompanying sitar and strings. But the thing that grabbed my attention was the chanting of the Buddhist mantra ‘Om Mani Padme Hum’, that can be heard towards the end of the song, and, according to the advanced publicity, the record was based on this. As far as I can recall this was the first time I had been exposed to hearing a Buddhist mantra, and I have to say, as a teenage boy growing up in Worcestershire, I found it rather exotic and otherworldly, but also very beautiful.
The mantra ‘Om Mani Padme Hum’ roughly translates as ‘The Jewel In The Lotus’, and is associated with the figure Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion, who is one of the most well-known and beloved figures in Buddhism. Avalokiteshvara is the ‘personification’ of compassion in the world and the willingness to bear the pain of others. I find it interesting to reflect that several years later after first hearing this record I would begin a journey of exploring meditation and Buddhism, so maybe this obscure 60’s single contained a seed that would blossom years later? Now, returning to the image of Avalokiteshvara – what do this Buddhist figure and his mantra communicate? Perhaps, they can be seen as the qualities of compassion in the world.
When I pick up a daily newspaper I am often confronted by the huge amount of suffering and pain that exists in the world, and it can all seem overwhelming. In recent years I have found it helpful to hold the perspective that there will always be some suffering in the world and no matter how hard I try, I cannot alleviate it all. Does this mean that we should then give up? Not at all – rather, to come into relationship with our own suffering and that of others in a different way.
I am reminded of the ecological saying ‘think globally, act locally’. This means that we try to hold a larger perspective of the world and humanity, while seeing that our small acts of kindness and compassion towards our family, friends, work colleagues and neighbours all have an effect on the world we live in.
“Our human compassion binds us the one to the other – not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future.”
Nelson Mandela