Shoveling Dharma

Dharma is a word that has many levels of meaning. From a Buddhist perspective, dharma with a small ‘d’ simply means phenomena; everything we see and experience in the realm of form. Dharma, when spelled with a capital ‘D’, refers to the teachings and practices of our tradition. The word can also be used to indicate what we are doing in any given moment in service of our highest calling—our work is our dharma.

I thought about this the other day while I was shoveling snow in our neighborhood. I scooped and threw the icy crystals while offering prayers and thinking about our neighbor in a wheelchair, the older woman who loves to walk her little dog, folks who just do not see the value of shoveling, and so on. They all blend into one as I feel my muscles and bones engaged in the task at hand. This is when dharma and Dharma become one.

I notice when little d and big D dharma are acting in concert, the result is bodhicitta activity. Bodhicitta is not just a nice idea about living compassionately, it is a call to action. This can come in the simplest of forms, from offering a smile to someone we do not know to helping a neighbor carry heavy bags of groceries into their home. Every moment gives us an opportunity to be of benefit. We just need to surrender the distractions we think are more important.

In an era where our distractions have become gods as we succumb to the allure of our invisible tethers (a.k.a.—digital devices) it is even more important to disconnect from our devices and be where we are, poised to recognize the small voices inviting us to express embodied kindness. Of course, our distractions may continue unabated within our own mind, but we can disconnect from those too. 

As I shovel the next sidewalk in front of me, it gathers all my attention. Birds flitter and chirp in the trees above, sweat pours from my pores, and my mind settles. All kinds of dharma merge into Dharma and Buddha smiles in the snow.