Cattāri Brahmavihārā

I’ve lost it now but there is a quote somewhere in the Bodhicaryavatara where it speaks about setting the faults in others. I know that my habit of fault-finding is well-developed as a result of lifetimes of practice but it can be downright disheartening at times to see how quickly it leaps into action and how tireless it is in curing down others. Even when its movements aren’t as noticeable it seems always to be there comparing and blaming others.

Perhaps that’s why the verses that popped up on my phone hit home. They went something like this: any fault you see in others should causar you to reflect and see how it had afflicted you in the past too. In other words, most of us are capable of all of the things for which we criticize others. In fact, most of us have lived lives full of the same faults so it is easy to turn the light of awareness back to ourselves.

Finally, when we do mess up we should be quick to admit it faults and share them. However, just as we would forgive a good friend for failures, we should treat ourselves.