Thursday, March 13, 2025

Via Apple News: A doomed journey to the South Pole captivated the world. Turns out there’s even more to the story.


 

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Action: Reflecting upon Social Action

 


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RIGHT ACTION
Reflecting Upon Social Action
However the seed is planted, in that way the fruit is gathered. Good things come from doing good deeds, bad things come from doing bad deeds. (SN 11.10) What is the purpose of a mirror? For the purpose of reflection. So too social action is to be done with repeated reflection. (MN 61)

One reflects thus: "Others may act in unhealthy ways; I shall refrain from acting in unhealthy ways." (MN 8) One lives with companions in concord, with mutual appreciation, without disputing, blending like milk and water, viewing each other with kindly eyes. One practices thus: "I maintain bodily acts of lovingkindness toward my companions both openly and privately." (MN 31)
Reflection
So much of what we think, say, and do affects the people around us. It is important to bring awareness and care to our social interactions. When we “view each other with kindly eyes,” it is natural and easy to be thoughtful. It is often the little things we do that have a big effect on maintaining harmony among friends, family, and co-workers.

Daily Practice
One simple way to practice living with others in harmony is to do kindly acts for them from time to time. Today, actively look for ways to do little things with the intention of pleasing someone. And don’t necessarily feel the need for such deeds to be acknowledged. Much value comes from performing acts of kindness in private. Take it up as a challenge—finding creative ways to do something nice for someone, even in secret.

Tomorrow: Abstaining from Intoxication
One week from today: Reflecting upon Bodily Action

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Via Daily Dharma: Enlightenment Arising

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Enlightenment Arising

Enlightenment is something we seek and something that seeks us, something that arises within us.

Aaron P. Proffitt, “Beyond Simplicity”


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Trusting in Simplicity
By Ajahn Sumedho
Awakening isn’t about struggle, it’s about presence.
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Via The Tricycle Community \\ Three Teachings: Pain

 


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March 13, 2025

Living and Practicing with Pain

Everyone has experienced physical pain to one degree or another, and, as Zen priest Annalisa Rakugo Castaldo says, “One of the most interesting things about pain is that it is a universal experience but also utterly personal.” As counterintuitive as that may seem, Buddhist wisdom reminds us that pain isn’t an enemy but a friend. Mindfulness is a great way to greet this friend.

The Buddha’s mindfulness instructions start with focusing on the felt sense. Through mindfulness we can see and experience that pain is not separate from us, and that trying to isolate and detach from pain can even cause more suffering. By investigating pain with curiosity and kindness, we can loosen its grip. As psychotherapist and spiritual teacher Robert Augustus Masters says, we can “skillfully relate to it rather than from it.” 

We can still wish pain away; that’s only natural. But we can also work on releasing our desire to wish it away, and thereby soften its power. 

This week’s Three Teachings offers three perspectives on living and practicing with pain.
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Belonging in the Body
By Sebene Selassie

“We can bring empathy to ourselves by meeting pain with embodied awareness, curious about the sensations. It’s not that we long for the pain to continue. We can aspire for a release from pain, but we bring kindness and compassion to whatever is happening. We accept what’s there, without contention,” writes meditation teacher Sebene Selassie.
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The Noble Truth of Pain
By Annalisa Rakugo Castaldo


“So how do you practice with pain? I can tell you what I do,” writes Zen priest Annalisa Rakugo Castaldo. “I accept the truth that I want pain-filled moments to be different. Breathe. Recognize that the pain is not other than myself, that it is an intrinsic part of being alive. Breathe. Remember that pain is not the same thing as suffering. Breathe. Let go of my desire to be free of the pain. Breathe. Gently turn my attention to one of the other many aspects of the present moment. Breathe. Repeat as necessary.”
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A Painless Present
By Robert Augustus Masters


“As we slowly but steadily undo our various ways of fleeing our pain, the energy we’ve invested in getting away from our pain—as opposed to simply being with our pain—is freed up, becoming available for us to use for truly life-giving purposes,” writes psychotherapist and spiritual teacher Robert Augustus Masters.
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