SAMANTABHADRA GREETS THE MANTIS. Color pencil and gold ink on black paper, 22″x30″. Samantabhadra is the bodhisattva of great action, whose gentle persistence is represented as an unstoppable elephant. This piece is inspired by a line from Yung-chia’s “Song of Enlightenment”:

“The elephant-drawn carriage moves like a mountain; how can the mantis block the road?”

The “elephant-drawn carriage,” in this instance, is Mahayana Buddhism, while the mantis represents lesser doctrines. Yet when we encounter delusive thoughts and beliefs, we need not rage or seek to destroy them, but can rather raise our hands palm-to-palm in greeting, recognizing these errors as old friends, like the foibles of a beloved brother or sister. Presenting no true obstacle, they are no threat to us, and so our minds and hearts move freely, unencumbered by any hindrance.