A personal blog by a graying (mostly Anglo with light African-American roots) gay left leaning liberal progressive married college-educated Buddhist Baha'i BBC/NPR-listening Professor Emeritus now following the Dharma in Minas Gerais, Brasil.
Wednesday, December 18, 2019
Via Daily Dharma: What Happens When You Still Your Mind
Our
mind is analogous to a cup of muddy water. The longer you keep a cup of
muddy water still, the more the mud settles down and the water will be
seen clearly.
—Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, “Sitting Still”
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—Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, “Sitting Still”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Via Ram Dass / Words of Wisdom - December 18, 2019 💌
"For every teacher, every life experience, everything we notice in the
universe is but a reflection of our attachments. That is just the way it
works.
"
- Ram Dass -
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
Via Daily Dharma: Understanding Buddhism
If our goal is to understand Buddhism accurately and to integrate it into our own lives authentically, we have to develop deep understanding both of Buddhist tradition and of ourselves.
—Linda Heuman, “A New Way Forward”
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—Linda Heuman, “A New Way Forward”
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Monday, December 16, 2019
Via Budismo Engajado / FB:
“Budismo Engajado, é um termo redundante, já que budismo significa estar consciente, estar desperto para o que está acontecendo no seu próprio corpo, sentimentos e mente, como também no mundo que o cerca. Se você está desperto, não pode agir de outra forma senão compassivamente para aliviar o sofrimento que vê ao redor.
O budismo é, portanto, implicitamente engajado. Se não é engajado, não é budismo”. - Thich Nhat Hanh
Via Budismo Engajado / FB:
Não fique recordando / Deixe ir o que passou
Não fique imaginando / Deixe ir o que possa estar vindo
Não fique pensando / Deixe ir o que está acontecendo agora
Não fique examinando / Não tente solucionar coisa alguma
Não fique controlando / Não tente fazer algo acontecer
Relaxe, agora mesmo, repouse (na verdadeira natureza da mente)
(Tilopa - 988-1069)
Arte: Matias Barahona / Budismo Engajado
Não fique imaginando / Deixe ir o que possa estar vindo
Não fique pensando / Deixe ir o que está acontecendo agora
Não fique examinando / Não tente solucionar coisa alguma
Não fique controlando / Não tente fazer algo acontecer
Relaxe, agora mesmo, repouse (na verdadeira natureza da mente)
(Tilopa - 988-1069)
Arte: Matias Barahona / Budismo Engajado
Via White Crane Institute / oday's Gay Wisdom
2017 -
The Wisdom of George Santayana
- Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
- To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring.
- Never build your emotional life on the weaknesses of others.
- History is a pack of lies about events that never happened told by people who weren't there.
- Friends are generally of the same sex, for when men and women agree, it is only in the conclusions; their reasons are always different.
- Tyrants are seldom free; the cares and the instruments of their tyranny enslave them.
- The Difficult is that which can be done immediately; the Impossible that which takes a little longer.
- Prayer, among sane people, has never superseded practical efforts to secure the desired end.
Via Daily Dharma: Examine Your Intention
The
Buddha’s focus was volition, intentional motivation. Everything hangs
on motivation and understanding as clearly as possible the individual’s
own motivation underlying all action.
—Interview with John Peacock by James Shaheen, “Investigating the Buddha’s World”
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—Interview with John Peacock by James Shaheen, “Investigating the Buddha’s World”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Sunday, December 15, 2019
Via Ram Dass / Words of Wisdom - December 15, 2019 💌
"If you were to take your consciousness and bring it out of your senses
and out of your thinking mind and bring it down into awareness, what
then? Who would you be? Well, what you would be at that point is
awareness. Just awareness or consciousness.
There are ways of subjectively being in the universe so that things are available to you, or in you, that would otherwise only be knowable to you by collecting them through your senses and through your thinking mind."
There are ways of subjectively being in the universe so that things are available to you, or in you, that would otherwise only be knowable to you by collecting them through your senses and through your thinking mind."
- Ram Dass -
Via Daily Dharma: Opening to All Things Equally
Equanimity
contains the complete willingness to behold the pleasant and the
painful events of life equally. It points to a deep balance in which you
are not pushed and pulled between the coercive energies of desire and
aversion.
—Shaila Catherine, “Equanimity in Every Bite”
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—Shaila Catherine, “Equanimity in Every Bite”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Saturday, December 14, 2019
Via Daily Dharma: Examining Our Actions and Intentions
In
trying to cultivate lucidity regarding our own actions, we gradually
become smarter about ourselves, more sensitive to other people, and more
nuanced in our actions.
—Krishnan Venkatesh, “How to Practice Right Speech Anywhere, Anytime, and With Anyone”
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—Krishnan Venkatesh, “How to Practice Right Speech Anywhere, Anytime, and With Anyone”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Friday, December 13, 2019
Via Kaiser-Permenent / Thrive: 52 positive affirmations to brighten your day
The old saying, “You are what you think” may be true. For example, negative thoughts may lead to a more negative outlook on life, which then can lead to more negative thoughts. This cycle of negativity may result in stress, anxiety, and depression, which can damage your physical health.
To break the cycle, it’s important to introduce more positive thoughts into your life as often as possible.
What is an affirmation?
The word “affirm” means to validate or confirm. In the mental health world, affirmations are short, encouraging statements that you can use to create a more positive frame of mind.
You can repeat an affirmation to yourself as often as you’d like — while brushing your teeth, driving to work, or before you fall asleep. The more often you use an affirmation, the more it can help reinforce your value and self-worth and it may even positively affect your behavior.
And with the New Year on the horizon there’s no better time to turn positivity into a year-long habit. Try using one of the following 52 affirmations each week in 2020 to help you tackle your goals.
1. I am ready.
2. My efforts help me succeed.
3. All is well.
4. I can make a real difference.
5. My hard work will pay off.
6. I am strong.
7. I choose happiness.
8. I have the power to make the right choices for me.
9. I have faith in my abilities.
10. I got this.
11. I am grateful for what I can do.
12. I am happy to be me.
13. My goals are achievable.
14. I am confident.
15. I will practice self-kindness.
16. I am on the right path for me.
17. I am thankful for the love in my life.
18. I will take action and accomplish my goals.
19. I am healthy.
20. Success is mine.
21. I will find the good in all things.
22. I am always learning.
23. I trust myself.
24. I will try new things.
25. I will turn negative thoughts into positive ones.
26. I can do this.
27. Anything is possible.
28. I am safe.
29. I love myself.
30. Life is beautiful.
31. I am powerful.
32. There’s no limit to what I can do.
33. Life brings me joy.
34. Good things are coming my way.
35. I believe in myself.
36. I release my fears.
37. Every day, I am getting better, stronger, healthier.
38. It’s OK for me to have fun.
39. My possibilities are endless.
40. I am well-rested and full of energy.
41. I am thriving.
42. I am relaxed and at peace.
43. I am strong in mind, body, and spirit.
44. My life is a gift.
45. I deserve love and happiness.
46. I care for myself.
47. New opportunities come easily to me.
48. Healthy food fuels my body.
49. Today, I will succeed.
50. I give myself room to grow.
51. Each day is filled with joy.
52. I embrace my power.
Via Daily Dharma: How to Let Go
We
can’t simply “let go.” It doesn’t work like that. It’s certainly not
what the Buddha teaches. Letting go, the Buddha tells us, will come when
we “develop” wisdom.
—Peter Doobinin, “Sutta Study: The Ship”
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—Peter Doobinin, “Sutta Study: The Ship”
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Thursday, December 12, 2019
Via Daily Dharma: Uncovering Enlightenment
Enlightenment
is not a matter of adding anything but rather of peeling away the
false, fabricated sense of self to allow the innate Buddha being to
emerge.
—Judith Hooper, “Prozac & Enlightened Mind”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE
—Judith Hooper, “Prozac & Enlightened Mind”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Via Daily Dharma: The Beauty of Impermanence
When we can accept that people and things are always shifting and changing, our hearts can open.
—Zenju Earthlyn Manuel, “The Hunger for Home”
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—Zenju Earthlyn Manuel, “The Hunger for Home”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Via Ram Dass / Words of Wisdom - December 11, 2019 💌
"Having empathy for another means your heart is breaking, because you understand the intensity of their experience, and at the same moment, you are absolutely, equanimously present. You are not clinging to anything, just watching the phenomena of the universe change.
It’s then that your acts can be compassionate. That is where the root of compassion is. The root of compassion is not empathy; that’s along the lines of kindness, and that’s good, but it’s not compassion. The ultimate compassion is the act itself, which has the potential to relieve every level of suffering, not just the food in the belly, or the mattress to safely sleep on at night. The suffering that comes from separateness is only relieved when you are present with another person."
It’s then that your acts can be compassionate. That is where the root of compassion is. The root of compassion is not empathy; that’s along the lines of kindness, and that’s good, but it’s not compassion. The ultimate compassion is the act itself, which has the potential to relieve every level of suffering, not just the food in the belly, or the mattress to safely sleep on at night. The suffering that comes from separateness is only relieved when you are present with another person."
- Ram Dass -
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