Via Tricycle \\ Three Teachings

 

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May 16, 2024   Taking Shelter   The act of taking refuge is the first step that sets us on the Buddhist path.  To formally become a Buddhist, a practitioner “takes refuge” in the three jewels: the Buddha, the dharma, and the sangha. We pledge to find home in the Buddha’s example, in his teachings, and in the community of fellow spiritual practitioners as we move along the spiritual path.  Taking refuge in the three jewels provides a basic sense of safety and belonging that becomes the foundation of all of our spiritual work. Whenever challenges arise, this is the place that we return to.  While taking refuge is a formal process and a religious ritual, it’s also a deeply personal act. The act of taking refuge can change us on the deepest level, with the potential to completely alter the way we engage with the world. Beyond words or formalities, the act of taking refuge reminds us that there is a home that we can always return to—no matter how turbulent or uncertain our lives become.  What does refuge look like in our lives? Perhaps the best way to discover the true meaning of refuge is to hear from Buddhist practitioners on how taking refuge has impacted them. In this week’s Three Teachings, Buddhist teachers and practitioners reflect on what refuge means to them. Join us for Aging as a Spiritual Practice, our most popular course featuring Zen teacher and author Lewis Richmond. The course offers teachings and guided practices for embracing the opportunities for spiritual transformation within the aging process.    Learn more and enroll today » A Refuge That No One Can Touch Helen Tworkov in Conversation with James Shaheen  For Tricycle founder, Helen Tworkov, practicing the dharma is a way to connect to the deepest part of her—a place that is untouched by the difficulties of life. In conversation with editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, she discusses her new book Lotus Girl and her path to the dharma.  Read more » Dwelling in the Casita of Equanimity  With Daisy Hernández During the pandemic, writer Daisy Hernández spent a lot of time thinking about refuge—a concept which, at the time, became more important than ever to many people. In this episode of Life As It Is, she shares how writing and spiritual practice offer places of sanctuary in her life.   Listen now » Teachings for Uncertain Times: Taking Refuge In Community With Tuere Sala According to Tuere Sala, a co-guiding teacher at Seattle Insight Meditation Society and retired prosecutor, taking refuge helps us develop trust during difficult times. In this video, she explains how being in community and sharing our experiences with others offers a deep courage and confidence to guide us on the path.  Watch now » Follow Us

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 “Não há nada mais brilhante do que o sol (日) e a lua. Não há nada mais puro do que a flor de lótus (蓮). Mas, o Sūtra do Lótus é mais brilhante que o sol e a lua. É tão puro quanto a flor de lótus. Por isso é chamado de “Sūtra da Flor de Lótus do Dharma Maravilhoso” ou “Sūtra do Lótus”. Eu, Nichiren (日蓮), também gostaria de ser como o sol, a lua e a flor de lótus”. Shijō Kingo nyōbō gosho (四条金吾女房御書). 

Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō

 

 

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Speech: Refraining from False Speech

 

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RIGHT SPEECH Refraining from False Speech False speech is unhealthy. Refraining from false speech is healthy. (MN 9) Abandoning false speech, one dwells refraining from false speech, a truth-speaker, one to be relied on, trustworthy, dependable, not a deceiver of the world. One does not in full awareness speak falsehood for one’s own ends or for another’s ends or for some trifling worldly end. (DN 1) One practices thus: “Others may speak falsely, but I shall abstain from false speech.” (MN 8) When one knows covert speech to be untrue, incorrect, and unbeneficial, one should on no account utter it. (MN 139)

Reflection This text makes a distinction between overt and covert speech—that which is open and public and that which is whispered in private. The point is that all false speech is harmful, even if it is uttered covertly, even if nobody else hears it, and even if it is only in your thoughts. The act of speaking falsely injures the speaker, regardless of whether or not the words are spoken aloud and heard by others. Daily Practice Practice always being truthful, not only when you speak openly but also in all your private conversations. Take it even farther and speak only what is true, correct, and beneficial when you're talking to yourself or going over in your mind what you would like to say to someone, even if you remain silent. The act of false speech itself causes harm to the speaker; it is not just the effect of the words on other people. Tomorrow: Reflecting upon Bodily Action One week from today: Refraining from Malicious Speech Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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Via Daily Dharma: Entering Practice

 

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Entering Practice

Science often leads me to the door of wonder, teaching me to see new things with my eyes. But practice is what trains me to enter, leaving behind my sight.

Rachael Petersen, “Zen Mind, Vegetal Mind”

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Via \\ Ram Dass - Love Serve Remember Foundation \\ Words of Wisdom - May 15, 2024 💌

 

"If you were resting in your ‘I am,’ you would look and you would see only the perfection of it all. And you would see that what we did in the ’60s is what created Ronald Reagan in the ’80s. You would see the way polarities work; you’d see the way forces polarize… You’d just see it as law unfolding right before you."

- Ram Dass -

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Via White Crane Institute // The Scientific-Humanitarian Committee (Wissenschaftlich-humanitäres Komitee, WhK)

 

Noteworthy

The Scientific-Humanitarian Committee (Wissenschaftlich-humanitäres Komitee, WhK)

1897 -

The Scientific-Humanitarian Committee (Wissenschaftlich-humanitäres Komitee, WhK) was founded in Berlin on the 14th or 15th of May, 1897, to campaign for social recognition of homosexual and transgender men and women, and against their legal persecution. It was the first such organization in history. It produced the Jahrbuch für sexuelle Zwischenstufen (Yearbook for Intermediate Sexual Types). This, as well as reporting the committee's activities, carried articles of scientific, polemical and literary natures. It was publish regularly from 1899 to 1923 (sometimes even quarterly) and more sporadically until 1933.

The initial focus of the WhK was Paragraph 175 of the Imperial Penal Code, which criminalized "coitus-like" acts between males — the WhK assisted defendants in criminal trials, conducted public lectures, and gathered signatures on a petition for the repeal of the law. Signatories included Albert Einstein, Hermann Hesse, Thomas Mann, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Leo Tolstoy. Petitions were submitted to parliament, in 1898, 1922 and 1925, but failed to gain the support of the parliament, and the law continued to criminalize all male-male sexual acts until 1969 and wasn't entirely removed until 1994. Original members of the WhK included physician Magnus Hirschfeld, publisher Max Spohr, lawyer Eduard Oberg and writer Max von Bülow. Adolf Brand, Benedict Friedländer, and Kurt Hiller also joined the organization.

In 1929, Hiller took over as chairman of the group from Hirschfeld. At its peak, the WhK had about 500 members and branches in approximately 25 cities in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands. The committee was dissolved in 1933 when the Nazis destroyed the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft in Berlin where the WhK was based.

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The Equality Act of 1974

1974 -

On this date the first federal Gay Rights bill is introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Equality Act of 1974, would have amended the 1964 Civil Rights Act, by adding "sexual orientation, to the list of protected from discrimination. Gay people in the United States are STILL waiting for these protections even though most Americans still believe we are covered.

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1981 -

The Reagan administration cancels the White House subscription to The Advocate.

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Gay Wisdom for Daily Living from White Crane Institute

"With the increasing commodification of gay news, views, and culture by powerful corporate interests, having a strong independent voice in our community is all the more important. White Crane is one of the last brave standouts in this bland new world... a triumph over the looming mediocrity of the mainstream Gay world." - Mark Thompson

Exploring Gay Wisdom & Culture since 1989!
www.whitecraneinstitute.org

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Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Intention: Cultivating Lovingkindness

 

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RIGHT INTENTION Cultivating Lovingkindness Whatever you intend, whatever you plan, and whatever you have a tendency toward, that will become the basis upon which your mind is established. (SN 12.40) Develop meditation on lovingkindness, for when you develop meditation on lovingkindness, all ill will will be abandoned. (MN 62)  Lovingkindness fails when it produces sentimentality. (Vm 9.93)

Reflection Believe it or not, lovingkindness is impersonal by nature. The feeling of care for another is not dependent on the specific qualities of that person but can be directed to anyone and everyone. This is what makes lovingkindness unsentimental. You don’t love only if the person is a family member or a friend. And you don’t love difficult people only if they deserve it or you have forgiven them. Lovingkindness rises above the personal.  Daily Practice See if you can discern, in your own experience, the difference between a feeling of lovingkindness that is laced with a sense of self and one that is not. See if you can sense the difference between the love you have for someone dear to you and the universal lovingkindness you cultivate while doing mettā practice. Personal connections are sentimental in a good sense, while lovingkindness transcends the personal. Tomorrow: Refraining from False Speech One week from today: Cultivating Compassion Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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Green Tara Mantra / heading mantra / long life , health, wealth, happy, ...

Via Daily Dharma: Anticipation Can Bring Peace

 

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Anticipation Can Bring Peace

Meditators who are having a difficult time achieving a peaceful state of mind sometimes start thinking, “Here we go again, another hour of frustration.” But often something strange happens; although they are anticipating failure, they reach a very peaceful meditative state. 

Ajahn Brahm, “Stepping Towards Enlightenment”

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Green Tara Mantra - Imee Ooi Offical Video

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