The Twenty-ninth of 108 Gates Of Dharma Illumination

[Shokai]

29) The Twenty-ninth Gate: Repayment of Kindness.

Repayment of kindness is a gate of Dharma illumination; for [with it] we do not cheat and disregard others.(Nishijima/Cross)

Repaying another person’s kindness is a gate of realizing Dharma; it does not ignore the debt.(Tanahashi)

Gate Gatha:

May we, together with all buddhas;
Be generous in our relationships,
That we may not cheat and disregard others.

Reflection Prompts:

1. We do not always get to directly repay Kindnessses, does that matter??

2. Do you feel that not cheating and/or disregarding others is different from Ignoring the debt?

3. Rewrite either of the verses

Capping Verse:

Kindness is received
Only so
We know how to give

gassho, Shokai
stlah

[aprapti]

aprapti


sat

[Tai Do]

Thank you, Shokai, for bringin us the Twenty-Ninth Gate.

1. We do not always get to directly repay Kindnessses, does that matter??

Repaying kindness bring us closer to others and stimulate even more kindness in the world. In this way, it does matter; even though, from the Absolute point of view, there is no kindness to be repayed, no debt to ignore.

2. Do you feel that not cheating and/or disregarding others is different from Ignoring the debt?

Cheating here seems to be the same as ignoring the debt, for we are not giving others what they deserve after the good done. In this sente, they are not different.

3. Rewrite either of the verses

Kindness received
Kindness returned
Kannon's thousand hands


Gassho,
Tai Do (Mateus)
Satlah

[Lizbeth792]

1. We do not always get to directly repay Kindnessses, does that matter??
It does. While it’s not possible to repay every single kindness, each time we don’t we deprive ourselves of the opportunity to practice and deprive the would be recipient of repayment. It’s best to keep those missed opportunities to a sustainable minimum.

2. Do you feel that not cheating and/or disregarding others is different from Ignoring the debt?
Probably not. Each of these could be considered active choices. Each could be passive choices as well if we haven’t worked to make these into habits that become second nature.

3. Rewrite either of the verses

Kindness received
Is opportunity given
For generosity

Sat today

[Shokai]

All good,

[Veronica]

1. We do not always get to directly repay Kindnessses, does that matter??
If we can't repay a Kindness directly to the one who created the Kindness, then we can try to pay a Kindness forward into the world and to other sentient beings, or even to nature. In this way, we are not in a state of "taking" more than "giving". This is more a state of mind, or a way of living, rather than a "keeping count".

2. Do you feel that not cheating and/or disregarding others is different from Ignoring the debt?
Those two phrases can have similar intent, but they do sound different to my ears. The "cheating/disregarding others" is more a reminder to directly repay the Kindness. But the "ignoring of debt" is more a reflection on my own sate of giving versus taking in a larger context. Either way, they both tell me "don't be stingy with kindness".

3. Rewrite either of the verses.

Repaying a kindness
Helps me to appreciate
All those who have been kind.

Veronica
stlah

[Shokai]

[Anchi]

[Shokai]

[Tairin]

Thank you Shokai

1. We do not always get to directly repay Kindnessses, does that matter??

Similar to Veronica’s answer …. I feel that kind people are generally rewarded by creating more kindness in the world. They don’t seem to need a direct reward (such as recognition or reciprocity) for their kindness. They are trying to make the world a kinder place and see value in others contributing kindness. In contrast, those who are greedy, mean, or generally unkind tend to view with suspicion those that are kind as “working some angle” or some such.

2. Do you feel that not cheating and/or disregarding others is different from Ignoring the debt?

If I am right about #1 then by being kind ourselves there is no cheating, disregard, or ignoring the debt.

Kindness isn’t nor should it be transactional.


Tairin
Sat today and lah

[Shokai]

Kindness isn’t nor should it be transactional.