Page:The Development of Mahayana Buddhism - The Monist 1914.pdf/15

Rh ing. But when he works to add to the general “stock of goodness” and to nourish the “root of merit” this world, he is doing more than mere substituting; he is doing something positive. Parinâmanâ is vicarious sacrifice, self-renunciation, the transference of merit, the promotion of universal goodness, the annihilation of me and thee, the recognition of the oneness of all things, and the complete satisfaction of our inmost religious yearnings.

The doctrine of karma is terrible, the doctrine of parinâmanâ is humane: karma is the law of nature, inflexible and irreconcilable; parinâmanâ is the heart of a religious being, filled with tears: the one is rigidly masculine and knows no mercy whatever; the other is most tenderly feminine, always ready to weep and help: the one is justice incarnate; the other is absolute compassion : the one is the god of thunder and lightning, who crushes everything that dares resist him; the other is a gentle spring shower, warm, soft, and relaxing, and helping life to grow: we bow before the one in awe and reverence; we embrace the other as if finding again our lost mother; we need the one, for we must be responsible to the dharmakâya for our thoughts, feelings, and deeds; but we cannot let the other go as we need compassion, tolerance, humaneness, and lovingkindness. Mahâyâna Buddhism can thus be said to have a singularly softening effect on the conception of karma. Karma cannot be denied, it is the law; but the human heart is tender and loving. It cannot remain calm and unconcerned at the sight of suffering, however this might have been brought about. It knows that all things ultimately come from the same source. When others suffer I suffer too; why then should not self-renunciation somehow moderate the austerity of karma? This is the position taken by the Mahâyâna Buddhists in regard to the doctrine of karma.

With the moderation of the principle of karma, there