NUCLEAR GUARDIANSHIP FORUM, On The Responsible Care of Radioactive Materials
Issue # 1, Spring 1992, p. 2.
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          Buddhist Vows

          for Guardianship

          A modern addition to an

          ancient tradition

          In Mahayana Buddhism, the bodhisattva
          (one-on-the-way-to-enlightenment) acts
          for the welfare of all beings, and spiritual
          practice is strengthened by recitation of
          the Four Bodhisattva Vows. In a zendo in
          Ashland, Oregon, thanks to Dot and John
          Fisher-Smith, participants in the Nuclear
          Guardianship Project, a fifth vow on
          the "Poison Fire", toxic radioactive material,
          has been added to the customary four:

		      Sentient beings are numberless;

			    I'll do the best I can to save them.

		      Desires are inexhaustible;

			    I'll do the best I can to put an end to them.

		      The Dharmas are boundless;

			    I'll do the best I can to master them.

		      The Poison Fire lasts forever;

			    I'll do the best I can to contain it.

		      The Buddha way is unsurpassable;

			    I'll do the best I can to attain it.