On Saving a Bumblebee
(and on being a limited, fallible being)
Welcome. For information about our book groups starting next week & a video of my talk on consolation, scroll down. First, a story about a bumblebee.
This morning I met a big fat bumblebee in our bathroom. I don’t know how she got there. I shoo-ed Ralph away and carried the bee gently outside on a greetings card. I didn’t have time to find her a good flower so instead I put a small blob of golden syrup on the ground ahead of her. Just before I had to come in for my morning Earth prayer I watched her crawl over to it and start to eat.
In the moment I was simply doing what needed to be done, and it gave me great pleasure to see her accept my syrup. As I walked to town later, however, I noticed myself dwelling on the small act. What a good person I was! Maybe I’d write a newsletter about it later and then you could all read about my good deed…
The most wonderful thing about Pure Land Buddhism is the bombu paradigm. The Japanese word bombu means ‘foolish beings of wayward passion’, and Pure Land teachings tell us that this is who we are: flawed, limited, fallible, driven by our greed, our hate, and our delusion.
In the case of the bumblebee, parts of me that were starving for affirmation and approval had noticed my small virtuous act and starting planning a Satya-PR campaign. They wanted you all to see THIS - not the long unessential trip I took in the car yesterday, or the lattice of cobwebs I noticed on our blue vase just now, or the mean thoughts I had about that man in the supermarket yesterday.
Had I even saved the bee? I looked online and although there seems to be little harm in offering bees a one-off sugar boost, it’s by no means straightforward - some experts say we should never do it. Life is complicated, and our actions often include a mix of help and harm. Sometimes my offers of help are tinged with resentment, and sometimes my idea of what-will-help is warped. It’s also impossible to be morally pure. I know that even as a vegan I strike matches containing animal products every day, and I kill ants and wasps when I need to.
Thank goodness for the bombu paradigm. It allows me to see the parts of me that wanted you to be impressed by my virtue, and to feel fond of them - they’re trying their best to keep me steady. It reminds me that underneath the sometimes-spiky self-protection, underneath the vulnerability, there is good intention, compassion and tenderness. Most of all it reminds me of the Buddha who, when I can’t manage it, accepts me just as I am.
In what ways have you been bombu today or this week? Can you forgive yourself? If not, can you imagine that the Buddha already has, and that they are looking at you right now with perfect love?
Ways to connect with Bright Earth Buddhist teachings
Our book groups are small, informal groups led by an experienced sangha member - they’re not places for intellectual sparring, but places where we share our honest experiences of Dharma books and where we tell others in the group what we liked about what they said. Jump in fast to get onto the next ones (or to ask any questions) - both Monday evenings 7pm UK time 2pm EDT, one at the temple and one on Zoom. Click here for more information.
Do check our calendar, which includes details of our fortnightly online-only Wednesday practice (7.30pm UK time, 2.30pm EDT) - the next is this Wednesday 3rd of April. This Wednesday group still very small and we’re very friendly - total beginners or more experienced practitioners are very welcome to try it out. If you’re near Malvern then maybe we’ll get to meet you in real life 😊
I am still doing a morning prayer to the Earth every morning on Zoom at 8am, followed by ten minutes of silence - find out how to join me here.
We have a free online 30 day email course for anyone interested in experimenting with our main practice, nembutsu.
Our new book (the revised second edition) is the best way to find out more about our philosophy and is full of stories like today’s.
Available from Amazon on kindle (US, UK etc) or paperback (US, UK etc) or order it from your local independent bookshop
Finally here’s this Saturday’s practice session, for you to get a taste of what we do. If you’d like to skip to the talk it’s at 25-ish minutes in. We upload practice every so often to our Youtube channel.
Namo Amida Bu 🙏🏻
Oh Satya, I think we are humins, forever making corrections. I don't feel we are broken or flawed. I am here to learn, become the fullest me there is, and love myself tenderly as I go. From where I sit, your immediate heart felt response to be the bee outweighs the"PR" section. I'm forgiving you for being hard on yourself (although you may not see it this way). ;-)
Thank you for the story of the bumblebee Satya. This is something that I grappled with in the aid sector and one of the reasons I started my substack. When I worked on things like climate change or human rights. No matter how worthy something sounds - life is complicated and nothing is purely a good action.