“A practicing monk who is striving to cross beyond the
world of saÿsãra is engaged in the noblest form of endeavor. No
other kind of work is more demanding than the task of lifting the
heart beyond the pain and suffering experienced in saÿsãra.^25 It
requires unstinting effort on all fronts – including a willingness
to sacrifice your life. Entrust your life to your own diligent efforts
as they attempt to pull you from the abyss of the kilesas. Unlike
other types of work, there is no room for ambiguity here. If you
want to realize the wondrous results that you have yet to expe-
rience, you must persist in putting your life on the line for the
sake of Dhamma. No other method can be expected to achieve
the right result. You must be willing to give your life to transcend
the world of saÿsãra. Only then will you be free of the burden of
dukkha in future births.
“I myself never expected to survive and become a teacher, for
my determination to transcend saÿsãra was much stronger than
my concern for staying alive. All my efforts in all circumstances
were directed toward a goal beyond life. I never allowed regrets
about losing my life to distract me from my purpose. The desire
to maintain my course on the path to liberation kept me under
constant pressure and directed my every move. I resolved that if
my body could not withstand the pressure, I would just have to
die. I had already died so many countless times in the past that I
was fed up with dying anyway. But were I to live, I desired only to
realize the same Dhamma that the Buddha had attained. I had
no wish to achieve anything else, for I had had enough of every
other type of accomplishment. At that time, my overriding desire
was to avoid rebirth and being trapped once more in the cycle of
birth and death.
jacob rumans
(Jacob Rumans)
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