Tiger meditation

If there is nothing to
put pressure on the citta, it tends to become lazy and amass kilesas until
it can barely function. A tiger can help to remove those kilesas which
foster such a lazy and easy-going attitude that we forget ourselves and
our own mortality. Once those insidious defilements disappear, we
feel a sense of genuine relief whatever we do, for our hearts no longer
shoulder that heavy burden...

To say a monk has confidence that Dhamma is the basic guarantor
of his life and practice means that he sincerely hopes to live and die by
Dhamma. It is imperative that he not panic under any circumstance.
He must be brave enough to accept death while practicing diligently
in fearful places. When a crisis looms – no matter how serious it seems
– mindfulness should be in continuous control of his heart so that it
stays steadfastly firm and fully integrated with the object of meditation.
Suppose an elephant, a tiger, or a snake threatens him: if he sincerely
resolves to sacrifice his life for the sake of Dhamma those things won’t
dare to cause him any harm. Having no fear of death, he will experi-
ence the courageous feeling that he can walk right up to those animals.
Instead of feeling threatened, he will feel deep within his heart a pro-
found friendship toward them which dispels any sense of danger.
As human beings we possess Dhamma in our hearts, in a way that ani-
mals do not. For this reason, our hearts exert a powerful influence over
animals of all types. It makes no difference that animals are incapable of
knowing this fact; there exists in our hearts a mysterious quality that has
a soothing effect on them. This quality is the potent, protective power
of Dhamma which softens their hearts to the point where they don’t
dare act threateningly. This mysterious power of the heart is something
experienced internally by the individual. Others can be aware of it only
if they have special intuitive knowledge. Even though Dhamma is taught
and studied all over the world, it still remains a mystery if the heart has
yet to attain any level of understanding in Dhamma. When the heart
and Dhamma truly become one, all doubts concerning the heart and
Dhamma disappear on their own because the nature of the heart and
the nature of Dhamma share the same exquisite, subtle qualities. Once
that state is reached, it is correct to say that the heart is Dhamma and
Dhamma is the heart. In other words, all contradictions cease once the
kilesas have been eliminated.
Normally the heart has become such an extension of the kilesas that
we are unaware of its intrinsic value. This happens because the heart is
so thoroughly impregnated with kilesas that the two become indistin-
guishable. The heart’s real value is then obscured from view.