Wisdom and Compassion: Twin virtues of Mahayana Buddhism

Located near the center point of the 275-mile Texas Gulf Coast, the city of Port Lavaca is home to one of Taiwan’s Formosa Plastics Corp’s plants in the US. Since its operation in early 1980s, the plant has brought many Taiwan immigrants, many of whom are Buddhist. In late September, Master Jian Dan was invited to give a talk to this Buddhist community. Among the attendees were managers, engineers, and staff from the plant, as well as resident Chinese. Master took this rare opportunity to address the interrelationship between wisdom and compassion. Skillfully integrating everyday examples, Master showed the audiences the practice of both virtues in day-to-day activities.

Master pointed out that “compassion” means to “give happiness” and “eradicate suffering.” He stressed that the concept of “happiness” in Buddhism is simple: When suffering is removed, there is happiness. Wisdom in Sanskrit is pana; it is different from the worldly knowledge. In Buddhism, true wisdom means the removal of defilement & ignorance. When defilement and ignorance are eliminated, we see things as they are, therefore the attainment of wisdom. Master highlighted that both compassion & wisdom are “minuses” – to get rid of sufferings and ignorance, compared to “pluses” – to acquire, possess, and gain things.

As the twin virtues of Mahayana Buddhism, wisdom and compassion are important practices for Buddhist practitioners. Wisdom and compassion are like a bird’s two wings. Just like as a bird requiring both wings to fly, a Buddhist practitioner needs to cultivate both virtues in parallel. In particular, compassion should be rooted in wisdom. Master further illustrated this point by using the analogy of a compass. To draw a circle, you position the compass needle firmly on the center. Wisdom is like the campus needle while compassion represents radius of the circle. Without a firm center, you cannot even begin to draw a circle. The more the compassion you hold, the bigger the circle you can draw, therefore the broader your worldview.

In the work environment, compassion can be shown through the equanimous caring of all livelihoods of employees and wisdom can be represented by selfless management of all affairs. Master encouraged all to take advantage of our interaction with others through work. By helping others to fulfill their goals and perform their duties, we also benefit in the process. Service to others is one of the best ways to practice Buddhism every day. Imagine this. For a moment, let’s switch from profit-driven, expansion-oriented business model to consider running business as a personal responsibility to the living of employees and to the development of society. Under this mentality, running business is no longer a solitary, endless pursue of self-fulfilling prophecy but a socially responsive endeavor. This, as the Master highlighted, is how Buddhism could be practiced in day-to-day activities.

After the talk, many attendees asked questions and Master answered each in great details. He stayed overnight at the Days Inn. Next morning, he had breakfast with the group and continued the stimulating conversations from the night before.