One day Machig Labdron, an 11th century Tibetan Buddhist, was meditating in a monastery near a lake. The lake was known for being unapproachable because it was inhabited by an angry naga (nagas are dragon/water spirits; when theyre angry, theyre what we in the West would call a demon; when theyre happy, theyre what we would call an angel. They are probably simply metaphors for regular human states of heart-mind, but, back to our story...). The naga wouldnt let anyone near the water. Machig, in the depth/ height of her meditation that day, left her physical body and went out through the walls to the edge of the lake, and alighted on a branch of a tree. As expected, the naga came up to her and threatened her. Instead of fighting him, Machig turned her body (which wasnt her material body) into food that would be tasty to the naga. Appeased, the naga became friendly. I believe he may also have invited other naga peeps over for dinner to dine on Machig, but I might have made that part up. :-) In the end, Machig returned to her physical body just fine, and the locals were happy that the angry hurtful naga had been changed into a happy helpful naga. May we all feed our demons as willingly. _/\_
Posted on: Thu, 15 Jan 2015 03:28:44 +0000
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