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Vol. XXII, No. 1
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said thinkingness should not come to our mind. Therefore, from the saying of Santideva it is proved that Buddhists main aim is to love the creatures and for this cause it has been described as the first compound of the Brahmavihara.
The same text i e. Bodhicaryavatara, also describes that cvon ihe enemy is to be served honoured and worshipped like the Good law because forgiveness is the highest virtue. It leads to Buddhahood. viz.,
duhkham pravestukamasya ye kapatatvamagatah /
buddhadhistanata iva dveşasteșu katham mama 18 It is known from the 8th chapter of the Bodhicaryavatara that to a Buddhist, wealth, knowledge, virtues and the like are of no use, if they are not shared by the common men or the community 19
Lastly we will end this short paper discussing an important spiritual discipline called parātma-parivartana. It means the exchange of one's 'self' with that of others According to the belief of the Buddhists he, who is honoured, learned and virtuous and who possesses spotless character should practise the Discipline' and he should exchange his 'self' with one who is the most dispised and degraded in socicty. After such an exchange he should strive to uplift himself". Tbis is a peculiar spiritual thinking of the Buddhists. This idea is fully reflected in the following verse of the Buddhicaryavatara. The verse is :
bdag-ñid-skyon-bcas-gshan-la yan / yon-tun-rgya-mtson-shes-byas-nas // bdag-'trin-yons-su-dor-ba-dan /
gshan-blan-ba-ni-bsogan-par-bya // (VIII-113) This very verse may be reconstructed into Sanskrit as follows:
jñatva sadosamatmanan paranapi gunodadhin /
ātmabhavaparityagam paradanam ca bhāvayet //
Thus the tender heart of the orientation Buddhist Acaryas was "always full of compassion for the lowest and the lost. They came down from the elevated position to the ground and they lifted as their shoulders those who were in the dust, Religious tolerance of these Acaryas was also remarkable. They had no quarrel with the Vedists, Sevaites. Jainas and the other minor religions. They practised the mettă or the Universal love to give shelter to all mankind. At the present days this Universal love should be practised in that way like that of ancient and middle days so that undesired religious quarrel may be avoided. Therefore, in my personal view the teachings of our ancient thinkers are fully relevant in the present society to guide us and to lead us in a correct and proper way.
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