Most Venerable Bhante Walpola Piyananda's 80th Birthday Celebrating - Collected Essays

you are someone they look up to as an example of how to behave.
Common folks are always looking for reasons to criticize you, so you
had better be careful about how you are perceived – 24/7.”
Another example of the Buddha’s teaching in regards to
message delivery comes from the Brahmajala Sutta in the Digha
Nikaya. In this sutta it is very clear that the Buddha is teaching restraint
and self discipline to the monks, and he emphasizes that their very
spiritual development depends upon it:
“Monks, if outsiders should speak against me, against my
teachings, or against my disciples, you must not be angry or hold that
against them. If you were angry with them, how would you know if
they were right or wrong? And also, if outsiders should praise me,
my teachings, or my disciples, you should not be pleased or proud. If
you were pleased or proud, how would you know if they were overpraising
us? Therefore, whenever people speak either for or against
me, my teachings, or my disciples, be neither proud nor angry. Rather,
be impartial, and acknowledge where they are wrong. Furthermore,
both anger and pride would be a hindrance for your own spiritual
development.”
The Buddha was very specific in regards to his instructions
on speech and the power of the word. In the Anguttara Nikaya he
says, “Speech has five marks, O monks, it is well-spoken, not badly
spoken; blameless and above reproach by the wise. What are the five
marks? It is speech that is timely, true, gentle, purposeful, and spoken
with a mind of loving-kindness.” In many suttas the Buddha stressed
that for society to work together in harmony, then individuals must
communicate correctly, using “words that are pleasant – to ears and
heart – they must be civil at all times.” In order to temper one’s speech
according to these instructions of the Buddha, we must be very selfdisciplined.
The Buddha said to his monks, “Appasannanan pasadaya
pasannanan bhiyobhavaya,” which translates as, “Anyone who isn’t
happy with me or with you, make them happy; if they already like me
or like you, then make them like us even more.”
I told a story in Saffron Days in LA that I would like to share;
it fits the context of what we are talking about here. In 1976, shortly
after I had arrived in America, I was standing at a bus stop at the corner
of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street; I was on my way to a book
store on Melrose Avenue. A couple of other people were also waiting
at the bus stop. A Mercedez Benz suddenly came to a halt, and the
driver jumped out. He walked over to me and spit in my face, shouting,
“You do not belong in this country. Go away!” I responded politely,
“Thank you so much for your advice.”
The other people standing around me were both sad and angry.
One lady reached into her purse and handed me a tissue to wipe off
the spittle. She said, “Don’t worry, sir. He must be some kind of crazy
fundamentalist. Not all Americans are like that.” Then she proceeded
to tell me that I should wear normal western clothes so I would fit in. I
responded, “No, I am a Buddhist monk. I choose to wear these robes
to teach people about the Buddha.”
When I got on the bus, I didn’t realize that a young man was
following me. When I got off at Melrose and La Cienega he stepped up
to me and started asking me questions about the Buddha and Buddhism.
Before too long this young man became a very devoted Buddhist, and I
eventually ordained him as a monk. So, the moral of this story is, you
never know who might be watching your actions, and what opportunity
you might miss to share the Dhamma if you don’t demonstrate selfdiscipline
and restraint.
Unfortunately, people without self-discipline will often react
to situations without thinking – a simple reflex because they are
conditioned or programmed to behave in that way. Lay persons often
commit all sorts of offenses, like road rage on the highways; they forget
to demonstrate patience, and maintain law and order – just because of
some trigger-quick reaction that pushed their anger button. People will
even take the law into their own hands because they lack the discipline
to rein in their angry minds; then they cry out later, “I couldn’t help it!”
and deny their responsibility for controlling their personal actions.
Ananda, the Buddha’s chief attendant, spoke of this type of
reaction in a story in the Udana (No. 5.9):
“Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was journeying
amongst the people of Kosala together with a large Order of bhikkhus.
On that occasion a number of youths were shouting abuse at each other
not far from the Buddha.
“The Buddha saw those youths shouting abuse at each other…
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