Mrigadava means "deer-park".
Remember this: Austerities only confuse the mind. In the exhaustion and mental stupor to which they lead, one can no longer understand the ordinary things of life, still less the truth that lies beyond the senses. I have given up extremes of either luxury or asceticism. I have discovered the Middle Way. ~Buddha~
Disclaimer: This diatribe is not meant to attack Buddhism in any of its forms. Think of it as a train of thought.
I was pondering the spiritual aspects of animal symbology as it pertained to a female hunter and the creatures she hunts in my readings. I wondered if I could find a contrasting scenario that I could parallel some portion of the act of hunting with to show a sort of irony to the symbology of an animal, the regard that is held for a particular animal, its particular use and my Sherlockian deduction of what the information meant, or appeared to be. I thought of one my favorite animals, the deer.
Enter the Buddha and his discourse entitled, "Dhammackkappavattana Sutta".
“The Buddhist emblem of a golden eight-spoked wheel flanked by two deer represents in Buddha’s first discourse, which he gave in the Deer Park at Sarnath, near Varanasi. This discourse is known as the ‘first turning of the wheel of dharma’, when the Buddha taught the doctrines of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Noble Path to five Indian mendicants. As a symbol of the Buddha’s teachings a gilded three-dimensional wheel and deer emblem is traditionally placed at the front of the monastery and temple roofs, from where it shines as a crowning symbol of the Buddhadharma.” (Beer 59)
As I quoted the Buddha above, it would seem that the Buddha was noted to give a discourse at the Deer Park of Sarnath in India (a long time ago). I thought this novel for the time that there existed a deer park and what its particular use was. While there the Buddha gave his commentary on his Enlightenment and its applications to his Sangha, who were dispersed out into the world to spread the meaning and interpretation of Dharma. What are the Four Noble Truths and the Eight-fold path?
The Buddha preached the Four Noble Truths which are as follows:
- There is suffering
- Suffering has a cause
- Cause is removable
- There are ways to remove the cause
To address these Four Noble Truths, the Buddha extended the Eight-fold Path which is as follows:
- Right Speech
- Right Action
- Right Livelihood
- Right Effort
- Right Mindfulness
- Right Concentration
- Right Attitude
- Right View
Seems pretty straightforward; avoid inflicting suffering on self and others by positive mores.
The Buddha is sitting in this deer park in Sarnath, India with noted five men and a crowd of golden Ruru deer where he says that he is turning the wheel of Dharma. This wheel represents samsara (the world) and the eternal existence which goes forward through cycles of reincarnation because of worldly cravings and the inability to tell one’s self no to things that cause suffering.
If the basic precept of Buddhism is non-harm, because you don’t want to incur suffering in the self or other sentient beings, then there is no way to survive life.
I was reading one snippet on a white rabbit sacrificing itself out of compassion to other animals as nourishment; of its own accord. One would have to do as the white rabbit and selflessly give up life to avoid inflicting suffering on self, or others by ingestation, or death at other living sentient beings monkey hands, mouths, claws, etc. These same sentient beings, who do not feel the same as you, are going to devour you. Otherwise, it would be Jim Jones Kool-Aid 24-7. Even if you decided eating fruits and vegetables was the way to go, you are still stopping life in order to eat as plants are life. To eat them you have to pull them up from their happy home and cook them or eat them raw.
If a plant could decide if it wanted to sacrifice itself for human consumption I would dare say it would reply, “No”. This sacrificial rabbit reminded me of indigent tribes of North America interpreting a lone animal giving itself over to a hunter as a sacrifice as a show of compassion to the people for food because the animal’s kind could spare them.
With this being said let us visit the deer in this little drama of to kill or not to kill; which is really the question. Why the deer? Why a female and male deer?
The deer being male and female could signify the human element of sexual desire in people. This desire is at the heart of suffering for it is brought about by lust, longing, loving, and attachment through emotion onto some article, animal, place, or person.
I also wondered on the interpretation of the male being on the right and the female being on the left. It would seem direction wise this was in reference to how each sex is percieved. To be male and on the right meant acrion and solar existance. Right sided maleness in the deer emblem harkened to being the conscious side, nobility, and wisdom.
The left female side interpreted means to be weak, unconsious , lunar, and sinister. Why am I surprised at that?
If we reflect on Jung's idea of the female form in left direction he thought this was flowing from the heart and might I add......all the evil thoughts connected with it.
Buddha’s observation of deer in the wild, or at the park, may have brought him to the conclusion that we should strive not to be as humans but as animals. I would think the Buddha distanced himself from predators as they were instigators of suffering. The Buddha did not have a lot of people as his friends, it would seem. As one reading the story of his approaching the mendicants to give the discourse, they had planned to shun him altogether but changed their mind based on his glow.
One can see why he may have been against suffering for it was also social suffering and not physical suffering. Suffering of the mind can be just as great to the soul as an actual bullet to the heart.
In regards to deer, there is the idea of domination through ownership or power. Marpa the Translator cited, “The Dharma is owner-less, like deer in a meadow.”
When I pondered this, I thought it could be a sign of not wanting to strap oneself to the responsibilities of the world that humans have generated such as capitalism, jobs we hate, or governments that rule out laws that bind us daily for insensible reasons. Either way, we are caged canaries singing right along to our sad, sad songs. Buddha always ran from the expectations that were placed upon him. He ran from his wife, his son, his court duty as Prince. He ran from the prisons other people had made that were waiting on him to enter dutifully. Strange way about saying no but everyone has their quirks.
Let us look to the emblem (ridag choekor) because this is significant to show the location of where the discourse took place. Humans have long referenced the character of deer as human. These deer symbolized a significant place, conscious state, and also sensual desire.
“However, the wheel and deer emblem eventually became the enduring symbol of an establishment where the Buddha’s teachings are transmitted, and where the endless wheel of the dharma continues to turn.
The two deer peacefully rest in attentive obedience on either side of the golden wheel, with the male deer to the right and the female to the left. The male deer is sometimes depicted with the single horn of the seru deer (unicorn) or rhinoceros, and on gilded bronze sculptures the sexual organs of the two deer may be shown. The gentleness and grace of the deer represent the qualities of the true Buddhist mendicant.” (Beer 59)
“The deer is the vehicle of Shou-lao, and he is traditionally represented riding upon a stag with mature antlers. Deer were believed to live to a great age, and were credited with being the only creatures capable of locating the ‘fungus of immortality’ (Ch. Ling-chih). The deer of longevity may be depicted with a piece of this fungus in its mouth. Chinese legends describe the Islands of the Immortals’ as being located in the eastern ocean. Here the immortals consumed the divine food of the ling-chih, and drank from the eternal waves of the jade fountain. In Buddhism the deer is an auspicious symbol of tranquility, harmony, non-violence, and particularly of renunciation, because like a homeless mendicant the deer is believed to rest in a different place each night.” (Beer 55)
Enter Irony.
Disparity is most often used when the author causes a character to speak or act erroneously, out of ignorance of some portion of the truth of which the audience is aware.
Yet Buddhist followers were acquiring pelts either directly or indirectly. Let us face reality. Once you kill an animal if there is an essence of soul or life inside that body it is gone once the animal is killed. It’s no more than an empty sausage casing once you remove the meat, bones, and organs. That is a rude way to put it with indifference to its suffering. Only if you are generating a pseudo emotion of calm in your mind by believing you are absorbing energy from a sausage casing should be scrutinized but still you have its symbolic meaning. In rituals, the symbolic meaning is what helps the person transgress over into a spiritual realm even though humans can’t see spiritual realms. Otherwise, we could have that profane question, “Is there a God?” answered.
This reminds me of a question posed by a philosophy professor of mine. We drew a circle. Inside the circle was the Natural World and outside the circle was the Supernatural World. Professor Black asked, “How to you transpose from one place to another?” I replied, “Why do we think there is a barrier? I believe it is a semipermeable membrane of sorts that can interchange things from side to side in equal measure. We just can’t see it.”
Here I found documentation:
“Deer or antelope skins serve as meditation seats (Skt. Asana) for Buddhist yogins or siddhas, such as Milarepa, rechungpa, or Thangtong Gyalpo. As an asana the deer-skin is believed to enhance the solitary tranquility and awareness required by as ascetic, with the pure or sattvic energy of the deer being absorbed by the practitioner. In wrathful deity practices a tiger-skin asana is more commonly used, denoting rajas or dynamic energy.
Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion, wears the turquoise skin of a magical deer or antelope draped over his left shoulder and heart. This skin is known as a krishmasara or krishnajina, meaning ‘black antelope skin’, and is a symbol of the deity’s love, compassion, and tenderness. The black antelope skin was originally an emblem of Shiva in his forms as Lokanath or Lokeshvara, the ‘Lord of the Worlds’. “(Beer 63)
Maybe this is the difference minus the fact someone skinned that ruminant and tanned the hide for the magical deer drape? The skin was a symbol of the deity's (Buddha was not a God) love, compassion and tenderness versus the present day huntress's animal hide throw being an object of horrific cruel death, ego enhancing relic to top predator status, and objectified taxidermy of animal suffering. Why can this present day hide not mean the same thing? If you humanely kill an animal with minimal suffering, and preserve its hide because you want to remember the hunt, and show tenderness at its numbers while caring for it in the off season, why not? Then again I thought its not just enough for some to kill one when it means food and there is no spiritual value granted to the prey. It's all in the mentality and the perception of each individual huntress and hunter. Those buddhist probably just showed up with it one day swung over their shoulder and no one bothered to be obsessive over where the pelt was acquired, in what way, and how the animal died to get the pelt. Maybe the new hunting reply should be, "It's not against my religions?"
Here it has been documented in stories how renunciates who give up worldly life wander around with a deer or antelope pelt over their upper body (usually the left) or as a garment. One reasonsing for hanging a pelt over the left side is this is the location of the heart which is the abode of the mind. This is the symbolic skin of the Sil-snyen deer of legend who feels heart felt compassion towards all sentient beings. This Sil-snyen deer lives between snow and rock on a mountain, with strength and compassion for nature. Hunters trying to gain access to the Sil-snyen deer’s land pretend to fight amongst themselves. The Sil-snyen deer becomes impatient with compassion and goes out to mediate, where its life is assaulted. Touching the skin of the Sil-snyen calms the mind and endows bliss. Here is another story where Hunters are crafty evil-doers. Even though this pelt is a by-product of a dead animal it still is removed from the judgments of society as being a bad thing, not an object of past suffering if you regard that moment before death or death itself as suffering.
I thought in Western culture if you had such a pelt or animal article mounted, worn as clothing, petrified or taxidermy there could be backlash as it is seen as an object of suffering inflicted by cruelty. Then again, it’s the interpretation it has or its significant use. The monks pelts were used as symbols of spiritual Enlightenment towards compassion. These pelts symbolized sacrifice on the part of the deer through stories.
Thinking about this pelt over the heart gives the heart a dual reality of being the actual heart beating in your chest pumping blood and in another non-physical reality where the heart is a decision maker and a memory keeper. I refer to this second matter when you hear someone tell you to listen to your heart for decisions as they put their hand over your actual heart. This could also be when you have a dead relative you cared about and someone refers to you carrying that relative’s memory in your heart. At all times the actual brain is ignored.
Given all this the truth here is that in order to address suffering one can only alleviate the degree of suffering and not eradicate it. As far as Buddha’s Middle Way of dealing with suffering, it was directly aimed at people not animals even though he thought animals could attain Dharma. Even though deer can represent all those terms contrary to suffering they are always seen living in a realm absent of fear.
The irony of the use of an animal pelt on behalf of Buddhism is very interesting to regard when faced with the onslaught of people against hunting when you consider the history of animal by-products used in tenets that were defined to cause no harm, or suffering. I guess the act of wearing the pelt was showing reverence for the symbolic meaning of the deer but today groups are repulsed by wearing animal by-products unless you are a shaman or the article has a spiritual meaning. When in regards to hunting and the animal suffering there is a belief that you do it as humanely as possible, otherwise suffering itself can hardly be avoided even on the minute levels. That animal had to die for that Buddhist pelt........
"Om mani padme hum'.
Written by: W Harley Bloodworth
~Courtesy of the AOFH~
Literature Cited:
Beer, Roberts. Handbook of Tibetan Buddhist Symbols. Chicago, Ill: Serindia Publications, Inc. 2003. Print, pgs: 53-59.
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