Shanti
May I be a guard for those who are protectorless
A guide for those who journey on the road;
For those who wish to go across the water,
May I be a boat, a raft, a bridge.
May I be an isle for those who yearn for landfall,
And a lamp for those who long for light;
For those who need a resting place, a bed;
For all who need a servant, may I be a slave.
May I be the wishing jewel, the vase of plenty,
A word of power, and the supreme remedy.
May I be the trees of miracles,
And for every being, the abundant cow.
Like the great earth and the other elements,
Enduring as the sky itself endures,
For the boundless multitude of living beings,
May I be the ground and vessel of their life.
Thus, for every single thing that lives,
In number like the boundless reaches of the sky,
May I be their sustenance and nourishment
Until they pass beyond the bounds of suffering.
- Bodhicharyavatara (“A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life”) by Shantideva
Thanks Rinpoche for the Sharing.
Personally in my humble opinion, all the verses of Shantideva (also the Shantideva dedication) is very meaningful and well thought.
May all beings abide by such sublime thoughts!
It reminds me of Saint Francis prayer, much loved by Mother Teresa:”Lord, make me an instrument of your peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon:
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope
where there is darkness, light
where there is sadness, joy
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.”
“Mother Teresa of Calcutta made it part of the morning prayers of the Roman Catholic religious order she established, the Missionaries of Charity. She attributed importance to it when receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo in 1979 and asked that it be recited.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prayer_of_Saint_Francis
When I see the word Shanti I use to think its just a word for peace. The Hindu likes to use Shanti as a name for their children or words to be used as a signing off for a prayer. Shantideva’s prayers come in the form of verses or poems. Shantideva tells us about how Boddhisattva’s way of savings people from the hell realm is to make sacrifice in savings Sentient Beings. Be it animals or human beings. Chenrezig is a Boddhisattva. She could have become a Buddha but sacrifice to stay on in Samsara to save Sentient Beings as a Boddhisattva. It is said she will not be a Buddha until all Sentient Beings in Samsara have been saved.