Via Daily Dharma: Find the Middle Path of Anger

 There is great potential for us to find a middle path with anger through mindfulness, not adding to our brutal self-judgments because of it, and not acting it out in ways that ultimately leave us isolated and regretful.

Sharon Salzberg, “The Deluding Force”

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LGBTQ Baha'i Experience Q and A, August 2022

Via Daily Dharma: Patience Is Self Care

 Anger, annoyance, and impatience deplete energy. Patient effort strengthens our resources.

Allan Lokos, “Cooling Emotional Fires”

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Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Mindfulness and Concentration: Establishing Mindfulness of Feeling and the Second Jhāna

 

RIGHT MINDFULNESS
Establishing Mindfulness of Feeling

A person goes to the forest or to the root of a tree or to an empty place and sits down. Having crossed the legs, one sets the body erect. One establishes the presence of mindfulness. (MN 10) One is aware: “Ardent, fully aware, mindful, I am content.” (SN 47.10)   When feeling a common pleasant feeling, one is aware: “Feeling a common pleasant feeling.” When feeling an uncommon pleasant feeling, one is aware: “Feeling an uncommon pleasant feeling”. . . One is just aware, just mindful: “There is feeling.” And one abides not clinging to anything in the world. (MN 10)

Reflection

A common pleasant feeling refers to the ordinary pleasures we are capable of experiencing through the gratification of the senses. Some things look really good, sound wonderful, taste and smell delicious, feel smooth and cool to the touch, and are great to think about. An uncommon pleasant feeling is the sort encountered during some meditation practices. In both cases it is okay to be closely aware of pleasure.

Daily Practice

When pleasure is encountered in ordinary life it is usually accompanied by desire and craving. When we practice mindfulness with pleasant feeling tones as an object, the goal is to experience the sensations with equanimity rather than with preference and attachment. It is natural to experience pleasure; the danger comes only when we allow it to carry us away into unhealthier mental and emotional states.

RIGHT CONCENTRATION Approaching and Abiding in the Second Phase of Absorption (2nd Jhāna)

With the stilling of applied and sustained thought, one enters upon and abides in the second phase of absorption, which has inner clarity and singleness of mind, without applied thought and sustained thought, with joy and the pleasure born of concentration. (MN 4) One practices: “I shall breathe in contemplating fading away";  one practices: “I shall breathe out contemplating fading away.” This is how concentration by mindfulness of breathing is developed and cultivated       so that it is of great fruit and great benefit. (A 54.8)

Tomorrow: Understanding the Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering
One week from today: Establishing Mindfulness of Mind and Abiding in the Third Jhāna

Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media
#DhammaWheel

Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

Via Ram Dass - Love Serve Remember Foundation // Words of Wisdom - August 21, 2022 💌

 

The next message you need is always right where you are.

- Ram Dass -
 

Via The Sacramento Bee // In Placer County, one church is healing the community through radical acceptance

 

Carving the Divine

Receding water levels of China's Yangtze reveal ancient Buddhist statues

 

Via FB

 

Via Krisna Das

 

Via FB

 

Via Tumblr / the Heart Sutra

 

Via FB

 

Via Ram Dass

 

Via FB

 

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Effort: Abandoning Arisen Unhealthy States

 

RIGHT EFFORT
Abandoning Arisen Unhealthy States

Whatever a person frequently thinks about and ponders, that will become the inclination of their mind. If one frequently thinks about and ponders unhealthy states, one has abandoned healthy states to cultivate unhealthy states, and then one’s mind inclines to unhealthy states. (MN 19) Abandoning restlessness, one abides unagitated with a mind inwardly peaceful; one purifies the mind of restlessness. (MN 51) Just as a person who had been a slave, unable to go where he liked, would be freed from slavery, so would one rejoice and be glad about the abandoning of restlessness. (DN 2)

Reflection

The most basic meditation instruction given at the start of any session is to relax the body and the mind. This is because restlessness is so prevalent in our lives. The mind cannot begin to see clearly until it has settled down and rid itself of distractions. This text likens attaining a peaceful mind to feeling liberated from slavery, a powerful image indeed. As Bob Marley sings, “Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery.”

Daily Practice

“None but ourselves can free our minds,” Marley continues. It is inevitable, and often outside our control, that our mind is put in chains by deadlines, multitasking, and the expectations of others. But we can free ourselves from this, if only for a few moments here or there or once a day when we sit down to practice. It can feel wonderful to “rejoice and be glad” when we are able to slip the bonds of mental slavery now and then.

Tomorrow: Establishing Mindfulness of Feeling and Abiding in the Second Jhāna
One week from today: Developing Unarisen Healthy States

Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media
#DhammaWheel

Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

Via White Crane Institute // John Ballew’s piece on Orgasm

 

Today's Gay Wisdom

2017 -

Issue #51 of White Crane was devoted to the discussion of Pleasure and featured John Ballew’s piece on Orgasm.

Orgasm

By John Ballew

Because orgasm and ejaculation tend to happen simultaneously in men, we often think they are the same thing. Understanding that they are not is the key to exploring ecstatic states.

Orgasm is described, even by sexologists, as just the all-of-a-sudden release of the sexual pressure that happens during arousal, followed by an intense relaxation. Sounds like ejaculation. Missing from this medical explanation is any understanding of what happens elsewhere in our multidimensional beings--that is, in our hearts, our souls, our minds. Orgasm doesn't happen just in the pelvis. Studies show changes in brain waves, for instance. Muscles all over the body tense and relax, emotions arise.

Some orgasms are more powerful than others. Sometimes we are seeking a simple release--we are feeling sexual tension, and we want to get rid of it. The resulting orgasm may be a bit of a thrill, and it is certainly pleasurable, but it is a pelvic sneeze compared with full-tilt, openhearted orgasm.

The French phrase for orgasm, "le petit morte" means "the little death." When we are in an orgasmic state, time seems to stop. We experience something transcendent and powerful. We may feel a sense of clarity, losing our sense of self-consciousness, living only in this present moment.

In this ecstatic state we let go of the ego. Our day-to-day anxieties no longer seem so important and we let go of our obsession with the self. We let go of our sense that we are separate from those around us; that's one reason why this ecstatic state is especially powerful for those who are in love. In this orgasmic state we are simply present, alone or with a lover, fully alive and connected with everything that is. It is a powerful spiritual experience, a miracle in itself. Small wonder that so many religions seem to fear sexuality and do everything they can to control it!

To be able to let go during sex and to savor this sense of transcendence is one of life's great joys.

Let's talk about how it increase your body's capacity for pleasure and how to open yourself more fully to this experience.

Bodies which are full of life are more capable of ecstasy than those which are half-asleep. Exercise of at least a mild sort helps. Sex isn't a marathon, but if you spend your life stuck behind a desk and are a couch potato at home and have trouble climbing a flight of stairs without getting winded, you're not likely to feel fully awake and at home in your body.

When having sex either with a partner or solo, let go of any goal other than to feel your body, feel pleasure and connect deeply with yourself or your partner. If you find yourself getting distracted by concerns about erections, what your partner is thinking, how you are doing, etc., notice them and let these thoughts go; be in the moment.

Focus on pleasure rather than orgasm as a goal in itself. Let go of any goal whatsoever. Are you tightening your muscles and holding your body tense? Let go. Relax. Breathe. Savor sensations and delights for their own sake. There is no hurry. What else could be more important than what you are doing right now?

When you start to cum, stay relaxed and breathing. This allows the sensations and rhythms of your body to increase and reverberate inside of you, and it greatly prolongs the pleasure. Keep breathing! Some of us tend to hold our breaths or to breathe very shallowly as we approach climax. Doing so shuts down sensation. In fact, half the pleasure some men's orgasms comes from simply relaxing their too-tense bodies.

A friend recently shared with me that when he starts to ejaculate, he recites to himself the Buddhist prayer of compassion and loving kindness: "May all beings be happy. May all beings be free." In doing so, he shifts his consciousness and expands his vision.

Our culture enshrines the idea of simultaneous orgasm. That can be fun if it happens spontaneously, but working to that end can turn sex into, well, work. Consider instead what can happen when you cum at different times. You can be your partner's witness--seeing him in this moment of transcendence, truly being there for him. He can be there for you, free from his own need to do anything other than just be with you; that's magic enough.

The time following orgasm is sacred time, sometimes referred to as "afterglow." Enjoy it, whether you are by yourself or with someone else. Notice what thoughts, even visions, come to you. Notice what you are feeling. Don't be in a big hurry to clean up. Stay where you are. If you have been making love to yourself, this can be a useful time to simply enjoy the feelings of peace and openness. If you are with a partner, this gentle, open time can be a wonderful opportunity to affirm your love for one another.

The openness that many of us feel after orgasm may also bring up negative feelings. Perhaps you realize that the person you just shared this experience with was someone with whom this level of intimacy was more awkward than you expected, or perhaps old messages about sex-and-shame made an unwelcome visit. This may be an opportunity for you to learn something about yourself.

John R. Ballew, M.S., is a licensed professional counselor in private practice in Atlanta. He specializes in issues related to coming out, sexuality, and relationships, spirituality and career. He can be reached via the web at www.bodymindsoul.org.

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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 Daily Dharma: Distinguishing Between Pain and Suffering

 If you distinguish between pain and suffering, change is possible. As the saying goes, “Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional.”

Jon Kabat-Zinn, “At Home In Our Bodies”

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Via The Tricycle Community // Watch Now: A Mind-Bending Buddhist Sci-Fi Thriller

 

August 20, 2022

Watch Karmalink with Tricycle’s Film Club

What if our past lives held the secrets to the mysteries of the present—and what if we could access past-life memories through our dreams?

Go on a mind-bending journey into karma, reincarnation, and artificial consciousness in the Cambodian sci-fi thriller Karmalink. The film tells the story of Leng Heng, a 13-year-old boy living in near-future Phnom Penh, who finds himself having vivid dreams of his previous incarnations. Following these dreams, he teams up with a young neighborhood detective to untangle his past and search for a stolen Buddha statue—and discovers in the process his connection with a neuroscientist seeking enlightenment through technology. 

Karmalink, the debut feature from American filmmaker Jake Wachtel, is Tricycle’s Film Club pick for the month of August. Watch it from home now through September 3!
 

Watch it now »