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TEACHINGS | EASTERN HORIZON 33

compassion for others, for suffering over the individual and to see our understanding? We’ve learned that
strikes everyone, without exception. purification as more important than everything—above all ourselves—
Even the so-called badness of the wish to have and get, will we comes into being and then passes
others can’t bother us, because it find peace in our hearts. away. When we get too excited,
only arises out of ignorance and instead of recognizing the fullness
suffering. All the evil in this world is of life, we don’t yet have a loving
based on these two things. heart. Only a loving heart can
realize the fullness of existence.
The understanding we get through
meditation clearly shows us that
the end of this life is constantly
before us. Teresa of Avila said: “Not
so much thinking—more loving!”
Where does thinking get us? To
be sure, it landed us on the moon.
Equanimity But if we have developed love in
The Buddha called the fourth and our hearts, we can accept men and
last of these emotions the greatest women with all their problems
jewel of all: equanimity. It’s the and peculiarities. Then we’ll have
seventh factor of enlightenment, built up a world where happiness,
Sympathetic Joy and its far enemy is excitement. The harmony, and peace are in control.

The third of the four highest near enemy is indifference, which This world can’t be thought up; it
emotions is sympathetic joy, whose is based on intentional unconcern. must be felt. Only meditation can
far enemy is envy, consisting of By nature we take an interest present us with this ideal world, in
greed and hatred. The near enemy in everything. We would like to which it is absolutely necessary to
is hypocrisy, pretending to oneself see, hear, taste and experience give up thinking. This heals us and
and others, which we believe is everything. But since we have often gives us the capacity to turn more to
sometimes necessary. We think: been disappointed by our incapacity our heart.
these are just little white lies that to love, we build an armor of
can readily be forgiven. indifference around us, to protect us Loving-kindness, compassion,
from further disappointment. sympathetic joy, and equanimity are
Sympathetic joy is rightly the four highest emotions, the only
understood when we see that But that only protects us from ones worth having.
there’s no difference between loving and opening ourselves to the
people, that we’re all a part of world of love and compassion. What Since equanimity is a factor of
whatever is momentarily existing clearly distinguishes equanimity enlightenment, it is based on
in the world. So if one of these parts from indifference is love, for in understanding, above all on the
experiences joy, then its joy has equanimity love is brought to realization that everything that
come into the world and we all have a higher development, while in takes place also passes away again.
reason to share in it. The universal indifference love is not felt at all So what do I lose? The worst that
will replace the individual when or cannot be shown. Equanimity can happen is the loss of my life.
we have experienced and tasted means that we already have enough But I’ll lose that in any event—so
it in meditation. Our problems insight so that nothing seems worth what’s all the excitement about?
won’t let up as long as we try to getting worked up over anymore. In general, the people who cause
support and secure the “me.” Only problems for us don’t exactly
when we begin to put the universal How did we reach this want to kill us. They just want to