The monk sat down for meditation underneath a bodhi tree and breathed in and out deeply, preparing his mind for the sit. He had been a part of the monastic community for nearly ten years now, and although he observed the monastic rules diligently, had obtained one-pointed concentration, he still lacked something in his practice, so the truth remained obscured and he remained unable to achieve full liberation. He assumed the issue to be discipline, so this time, he would sit and practice until he reached enlightenment.
As he settled into his meditation, he noted the degree to which the forest around him teemed with life. The trees creaked and groaned, and the buzzing of the insects that flooded his ears nearly consumed all thought. From the points where his legs touched the ground, he could feel the pulse of the woods, thriving with countless other sentient creatures.
Despite the motion around him, his mind quickly stilled as he focused on the movement of his breath, in and out of his body. A few thoughts came up: he wondered how long this would take, or if his body was going to get sore. But as quickly as they came up, he allowed them to pass away. He had long since grown accustomed to the workings of his mind and hence his sense of equanimity was strong. His concentration deepened, transforming from a creek that could easily be halted, to a roaring river with a flow that could not be stopped.
The monk paid no mind when a fly landed on his forehead. This had happened many times before during meditation and it had been a long time since it had been a hindrance. The tickling sensation of the fly walking across the length of his forehead entered into his consciousness, but it did not break the meditative flow. He gradually entered the first jhana, or heightened state of concentration, and then into the second.
The monk still paid no mind when a mosquito bit his exposed arm. A brief feeling of gratitude popped into his field of awareness, knowing that he had given a bit of his life to another sentient creature.
In the midst of the concentration, the only thing that slowed him from entering into the next jhana was a subtle, yet nagging sense of shame. He realized that he hadn’t been practicing as dutifully and compassionately as he should have been. He had been concerned solely about his mind, his own enlightenment, but he hadn’t fully given himself to the path of a bodhisattva, and hadn’t yet aroused bodhicitta, the intense feeling of compassion to save all fellow sentient beings before breaking completely free from samsara. Utilizing the sense of shame as just another tool for his practice, he quickly entered into a deeper state of concentration, striving to be of the greatest use for all beings of this world.
A fly flew to a scrape on his leg and started to consume bits of his blood and torn skin. In the past, he would have broken his concentration to move his leg, but with the current of compassion that he had aroused, he let it be.
Ants started to crawl up underneath his robes and swarm on the flesh of his right leg, and started to make a trail all the way up the rest of his body. Pinching sensations started from the area of his right knee, then all over his leg, and up across the right side of his body. He felt the current of blood that started to flow from the numerous tiny bites on his body. The blood gathered at the base of his leg and began to dampen his robes. This ended up attracting more flies, which followed the blood to the wounds and deepened what the ants had already started for them.
The thought of the flies receiving subsistence and the ants taking bits of his flesh back to their queen filled him with great joy. He knew how many of those tiny creatures he must have clumsily killed in the past with his very own feet, and he prayed that all those that he had killed and those he currently sustained would receive a more favorable rebirth in the future. With the subsistence that he provided them, he felt hopeful that they would have more time to overcome some of their karma that had bound them to the animal realm.
Oh the countless number of creatures that cycled for eons in the animal realms, the hungry ghost realms, and the hell realms! He wanted to weep for the suffering that occurred for them seemingly without end, hundreds of years passing before even achieving the slightest bit of positive karma. He felt an overwhelming amount of gratitude to have the fortunate birth in the human realm and a chance to diligently practice the dharma.
The more biting that he endured, the deeper he went into his meditation. His body remained still and upright. The strength of his resolve and the ever growing sense of concern for all living beings rooted him to the earth underneath. The most violent of storms would not have been able to affect his posture.
He felt that the flies had begun to lay eggs in the wounds that they had deepened. The sheer euphoria of the sensation of them digging and implanting their eggs into his flesh nearly caused him to lose track of his breath. But he did not become attached to the joy and instead strengthened the hold on his breath. The equanimity he held towards the sensations and the insects that feasted on him, he resolutely achieved the stage of non-returner, breaking free from the fetters of ill-will and sensual desire. He was no longer bound to the human realm. At most, he would have one more rebirth in the heavenly realms.
The smell of iron in the air started to grow thicker. His concentration was able to dull the pain, but the itching from the wounds and the endless tickling of the small legs that walked all over his body almost made him shiver and he had to fight to keep his body still. He gradually came to accept that there was no escape from the insects that covered his body and the sensations they caused, and the desire to shiver vanished.
The decay of his body only quickened as the rest of the forest awakened to the free food that they could easily obtain. The ants continued to work their way upwards and began to bite all across his chest, drawing blood that flowed slowly but steadily down his body and into the earth. The buzzing of the flies that had gathered drowned out any other noise. Beetles came and started to make a job of his feet, burrowing and cutting deeper than any other of the insects; he swore they severed muscle. Numerous other insects that he could not even put a name to came to take from his feet, a mass of them gradually coming to cover every inch and continue their way upwards from there. It slowly dawned upon him that he could no longer tell where his feet ended and where the surrounding forest began.
Hours later into his sit, the eggs that the flies had gradually laid across his body hatched, and the maggots burst through his skin, then started to crawl and feast on his body with the hundreds of other insects he hosted. One had burst from somewhere in his cheek, and started to make progress there, working diligently to form a hole through the tissue. The pain grew. Still, he did not break his concentration.
He knew that he would sit here for however long it would take in order to achieve awakening. It did not matter the degree of the distraction. He must not allow anything to perturb him now.
He continued to sit as the decomposition of his body furthered. He realized that there was no difference between his own body and the numerous bodies of the insects around him. They both desired to be freed from suffering and were sustained by the beating of his heart. They both were alive, vibrant, and on the path to their eventual Buddhahood. The forest had sustained him for many years prior, and at last he could return the favor. With every pulse of his heart, he felt the pulse of the maggots, flies, beetles, and ants that covered his body, and they all danced in a harmonious flow with each other. Every single living thing had always been tightly intertwined with each other, but he hadn’t fully realized it until this moment.
With the next exhalation, he firmly relinquished all remaining attachment to his body. He would sit until his death, allowing the whole of his body to go towards the benefit of the life around him. This was the best offering he could have ever given to the dharma.
The act of completely letting go dissolved any remaining fetters he had. Free from the bondage of his body, a new-found lightness washed over him. He hadn’t realized how much he had still been holding on and a deep pang of regret struck him, realizing the amount of time he had wasted defending imaginary boundaries. But at least he had this opportunity now. He cherished each creature that came to feed from his body, deeply thankful to be able to eliminate the karma from selfishness that he had carried for countless lifetimes.
The woods twitched and sighed deeply with relief from the offering the monk gave them. It had been eons since a practitioner had come with such compassion. Just from his mere presence, many of the animals that lived in the forest would be guaranteed a more fortunate rebirth in their next life. The effects rippled even further than just the area of the forest, as numerous beings across the world reaped the fruits of the diligent practice of the monk. They stirred in their sleep as bits of negative karma were effortlessly lifted from them, emboldened by the instinctual knowledge of a true practitioner of the dharma.
As the extent of his compassion grew to cover all living beings in all of the ten realms, no bliss could have compared to what the monk felt. Even if one compiled all the joys of his happiest memories, it would not amount to even the smallest fraction of this bliss. He entered into the most profound state of concentration he had ever experienced: into a realm where there was no space, no time, or consciousness, only the steady stream of tranquil bliss. He sank deeper, and gradually came to abide even beyond the dualities of existence and non-existence.
He sat like this for countless hours until the forest finally overcame him. The swarm of insects took away and dispersed the remains of his body, and his heart pulsed one time, once again, and then for the last time, and he passed into the luminous abode of enlightenment. Holding great compassion for all living things, no more suffering nor ignorance remained.