When Bankei held his seclusion-weeks of meditation, pupils
from many parts of Japan came to attend. During one of these gatherings a pupil
was caught stealing. The matter was reported to Bankei with the request that
the culprit be expelled. Bankei ignored the case.
Later the pupil was caught in a similar act, and again
Bankei disregarded the matter. This angered the other pupils, who drew up a
petition asking for the dismissal of the thief, stating that otherwise they
would leave in a body.
When Bankei had read the petition he called everyone before
him. “You are wise brothers,” he told them. “You know what is right and what is
not right. You may go somewhere else to study if you wish, but this poor
brother does not even know right from wrong. Who will teach him if I do not? I
am going to keep him here even if all the rest of you leave.”
A torrent of tears cleansed the face of the brother who had
stolen. All desire to steal had vanished.
Explanation: This story is pretty straightforward, but it
certainly doesn’t make you think any less than the rest. How quickly would most
people turn their back on someone who commits a crime like stealing, just as
the pupils did. But look deeper and you might just see another human being.
Someone that simply needs to be shown the path.
Don’t write people off so easily. Expressing compassion
isn’t always easy, but we’re all together in this life, so we can’t just help
those that keep good behavior. Those people who commit such crimes are often
some of the people that need help with the most basic spiritual and human
principles, such as right and wrong.
Sure, we
need to keep order, so they should be disciplined for their behavior, but we
also need to take time to teach them right and wrong. We should strive to lift
them up just as we strive to lift ourselves and those we love up despite their
own flaws.
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