Sisu

2023, October, Issue 65

Grit,

Tenacity beyond reason,

Sustained courage,

Precisely focused intention

welling up from great depths

of untapped pure reservoirs,

of who we really are, beyond,

Beyond all reason,

Strength derived from what is,

buried below vast crashing waves

of despair and suffering, held

without a care about this suffering,

seeing that suffering

does not matter;

Sisu means continuing,

we will continue through

oceans of intensity and pain,

when others would certainly die

out of sheer terror,

Continuing in a way

where we do not worry about self,

because our focus is supreme;

Supernatural determination and devotion,

Perseverance beyond all reason,

This is what is needed,

what is necessary,

when we enter the Spiritual Path;

Sustained bravery

that will never break or waver,

or falter when needed most,

This is our quality

when entering the Spiritual Path;

We have what is needed

when we find Sisu within,

within our being we find

unbreakable courage,

stronger than a mountain,

as vast as the sky;

With love and compassion, we then

refuse to die or succumb to pain,

we discover beyond, beyond

absolutely essential unyielding grit

that is fully integrated

with the Spiritual Path;

We will awaken,

No matter what happens, courage,

No matter the pain,

No matter the hopelessness,

or demons standing in the way,

We will Awaken with Sisu;

That unyielding devotion and determination

That essential quality, only this, is Sisu

While on the Spiritual Path.

~Robert Aho~

A poem composed while experiencing heart arrhythmia, 2023

Sisu: Finnish word that means incredible perseverance, having tenacity beyond all reason, facing anything with courage and grit, never giving up, even when everything seems completely hopeless.  (As defined in The Frog: A Spiritual Autobiography, Spanning Many Lifetimes)

Sisu is not a word you will ever find in the millions of Buddhist texts out there, at least not to my knowledge.  It’s not something to be found in ancient Bön or even Dzogchen.  It is, nevertheless, something that has been essential with my own Spiritual Practice; so, if you follow me, or receive teachings from me, as your Spiritual Friend, I will share this principle as an essential component of the attitude you will need.  It benefited me, and I want this to benefit you, as well.  This sense of inner strength and grit needs to be at the core of your Spiritual Practice, if you wish to receive benefit from my teachings.

Sisu is also a very key cultural attitude of the Finnish people.  Considering all the genocide that was perpetrated against them over the centuries, the only reason that there are any Finnish people left can realistically be attributed to this inherent quality of Sisu.  Some people from other cultures might view this as stoicism; however, that is a misunderstanding.  Sisu is far beyond stoicism.  Sisu is focused intention, so much so that it appears to be unflinching and unemotional, as it might appear with stoics.

For several years, people have approached me, asking me to give them teachings.  As I’ve mentioned previously, I’ve been very reluctant to do that, due to some rather harsh trauma that has caused me a great deal of pain and suffering.  Well, as I said in the last newsletter, that is over, and it is time to really think about what I should advise people who want to be my students. 

One thing that you should really understand about that is that what happened to me caused many people to leave Buddhism and never look back.  I, however, remained in that intense pain.  I did not reject it or let it demoralize me in any way.  It strengthened me.  Despite many people attacking who were close to me, I didn’t budge.  I growled at that.  I owned it and it became mine so that I could transform it in any way that I chose.  This attitude of Sisu is essential, because we will all face trauma, and much worse, at some point in our Spiritual Path.

So, we start with the Key of Bodhicitta; however, that aspiration should not be treated lightly.  It needs to be adhered to with Sisu.  When we generate Bodhicitta, we simultaneously tap into our inner strengths.  We generate Bodhicitta like we really mean it.  We don’t only generate a happy thought or a shallow intention.  Bodhicitta needs to be your focus, your entire reason to keep living.  Bodhicitta, that is your extremely compassionate reason to awaken, needs to be sharpened and strengthened to the point that nothing else really matters. 

Bodhicitta unlocks all doors.  It opens your heart and mind to the possibility that you can awaken.  Sisu is then needed to carry you to awakening, once you utilize the key of Bodhicitta.

The basic practice is very simple.  You begin in contemplation of Bodhicitta, that is you generate your own aspiration to awaken, cultivating love and compassion for self and others.  Bodhicitta means that you know, beyond any doubt, that awakening is really the only thing that you can do to help others.  Then you do the main practice, which should at least contain sitting calmly, listening to breath.  Other practices can be added as necessary.  The third part is simply thanking all beings for making your path to awakening possible, which is also Bodhicitta.

In time we will awaken.

Blessings in Light,

Robert Aho