Dear Eltopo,
some more about this subject.

op 13-04-2003 13:39 schreef eltopo1uk op eltopo_@...:

'he who

> attends the sick' today in the twenty first century (or any other
> century) in some sense attends on the Buddha.

N: My husband was quite enthusiastic about this text. He said: "It is all so
clear. Think of the mere passing fragrance of metta (Velama sutta, Ang. IV,
394), that is the practice." I remarked that who practises the Dhamma is
near the Buddha, attends to the Buddha, because who sees the Dhamma, sees
the Buddha. In the Velama sutta after metta, we read about the thought of
impermanence, just for a fingersnap. My husband said that the Christians
have a similar text about attending to the sick, that they took it all from
Buddhism. But they could not understand about impermanence. He found when
seeing such an old man dwindling away, you are reminded about impermanence
(maranadhammomhi marana.m anatiito'ti-) He found it very clear that, when
attending to my ailing father, we attend to the Buddha.
Thank you again,
Nina.