BlackBird wrote:Animals do not have the capacity to understand the Dhamma. It would naturally follow that they are incapable of meditation.
However I do think animals can act with purpose, let me relate a story.
We used to have 2 cats, Bobby was the Alpha male around the neighbourhood and we loved him dearly. When I was younger I would sit on the porch after school for a good 20 minutes, and wait for a taxi to pick me up and take me to my Mum's work. Bobby would come every day without fail, and sit with me. He didn't expect anything of me, and I didn't expect anything of him. Just two sentient beings enjoying each other's company. Never underestimate the power of animals to make humans happy and teach them compassion.
Bobby used to rush home from prowling his teritory to greet us because he knew the sound of our car. When I was coming home one night he was obviously rushing home to greet me and got hit by a car on the road adjacent to us.
We didn't know this had happened, but our other cat Paru, a quiet shy wee moggy who largely kept to herself - Was in a strange mood that night. For the first time in years she actually came up to my Mum and started meowing at her, and came and sat on her knee. She was meowing quite a lot that night, for a cat who never meowed before. So when we found Bobby dead on the road side it all seemed to add up. My Mum was grieving pretty hard, and I was no different. But this wee cat Paru, stuck by us, and kept us company. Rubbing up between our legs and looking at us with big comforting eyes... If ever you could see compassion in a cat's eyes, this was it.
It was a beautiful moment, and one that served the shy wee cat a lot of merit - I believe, or well I hope it did anyway. She had a good heart.
Some animals have a lot of good merit stored up in there, a lot of good traits which are still easy to see if one pays attention.
Hi Blackbird, I'm pretty moved right now by your post.
It seems to mirror my experience with cats so well.
Both my cats got hit by cars too, the second, Jeannie, died in my arms. My heart was in pieces, I cried all day.
Cats were for us like family members, like children.
I like what you wrote about compassion.
It's true,they are wonderful teachers, also of compassion.
They also HAVE compassion, sure, lots of.
I know they love us. This love makes them care about our wellbeing.
I have several examples of my cats showing compassion in a very tender way to family members if they were sick or sad.
My cats would both roll up beside me, and put one paw on me, from time to time ever so gently grab me with the 'fingers', to reassure me of...yeah,- something like: "Hey.... I'm here, you're not alone".
Thatwas really comforting.
I recall one night were Juli's neck fur was wet from my tears, and she wouldn't move nor walk away.
When I shoved furniture around one day, and moaning, because a closet wouldn't move, Jeannie got up on her hind legs, put her tiny paws on the other corner of the closet and gave me a confident deep look into the eyes.
That made me laugh, and them "we" pushed together.
The closet moved!!!
I was so happy. Hugging that little thing that gave me more strenght, because I don't assume she had a lot to contribute. But I'll never ever forget, how she got up,had her paws on the closet and looked me straight into the eyes.
She wanted support me in her own way. She had good intentions, and compassion.
And so I think, that my cats gained lots of merit, for the happiness they gave us.
They were also very obedient, especially Jeannie.
So, when you say that cats can't understand the dhamma, I will say you're (probably) right, but they can live a part of it.