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.
RIGHT LIVING Undertaking the Commitment to Abstain from Misbehaving Among Sensual Pleasures
Sensual misconduct is
unhealthy. Refraining from sensual misconduct is healthy. (MN 9)
Abandoning sensual misconduct, one abstains from misbehaving among
sensual pleasures. (MN 41) One practices thus: “Others may engage in
sensual misconduct, but I will abstain from sensual misconduct.” (MN 8)
Forms cognizable by the eye are of two kinds: those to be cultivated and
those not to be cultivated. Such forms as cause, in one who cultivates
them, unhealthy states to increase and healthy states to diminish, such
forms are not to be cultivated. But such forms as cause, in one who
cultivates them, unhealthy states to diminish and healthy states to
increase, such forms are to be cultivated. (MN 114)
Reflection
As humans we
use our eyes a lot. Mostly we are free to choose what we gaze on, but in
many cases our attention is hijacked by visual images directed at us
from a billboard, a magazine page, or a computer screen. Sometimes this
provokes craving of various sorts and is thus a way of engaging us in
sensual misconduct against our will. Learning to resist being hijacked
by images and to abandon it when it happens is a healthy skill.
Daily Practice
Notice the
quality of your mind as you take in visual information. The more you
look at something, does it increase or decrease your stress? Does it
make you more calm and at ease or does it wind you up? What you look at
is one thing; how you feel when you do so is something else. Learn to
observe the inner state evoked by sensory inputs and to thereby learn
what to cultivate and what not to cultivate for your own well-being.
Tomorrow: Developing Unarisen Healthy States One week from today: Abstaining from Intoxication
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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 mental
action is to be done with repeated reflection. (MN 61)
When you wish to do an action with the mind, reflect upon that same
mental action thus: “Would this action I wish to do with the mind lead
to both my own affliction and the affliction of another?” If, upon
reflection, you know that it would, then do not do it; if you know that
it would not, then proceed. (MN 61)
Reflection
It may seem odd
to us that we could be aware of our intention to think thoughts before
actually doing so. Thinking before you speak is one thing, but thinking
before you think? And yet in the Buddhist model of mind and body,
actions of the mind are not so different from actions of body and
speech. We can learn to be aware of them before, during, and after
undertaking all forms of action.
Daily Practice
Identify some
of your thought patterns that are familiar to you: the stories you tell
yourself over and over, the episodes from the past you ruminate over.
Now make the decision not to go there yet again. Some of this
introspection can be helpful, but if it becomes repetitive and
involuntary it can “lead to your own affliction.” There are ways to take
more control over your mental action, and not ruminating is one of
those ways.
Tomorrow: Abstaining from Misbehaving Among Sensual Pleasures One week from today: Reflecting upon Social Action
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Storytelling, Death, and Putting Flesh Back on Bones Ann Tashi Slater in conversation with Edwidge Danticat
Writer
Edwidge Danticat uses her craft to explore the varying depths of
inevitable loss we experience in life. Rooted in Haitian storytelling,
her work explores migration, family, poverty, and violence, and sheds
light on the Haitian diaspora in the United States. In this interview,
she discusses how she finds meaning in the face of impermanence.
If
we indulge the human propensity to understate, exaggerate, and alter
facts for whatever comfort or false security a lie might accord us, we
forfeit our capacity to see reality clearly, and see only a world of our
own invention.
File under “You Can’t Make This Shit Up”: On this date the United States Pentagon receives a proposal from the Air Force requesting funds to build a "GAY BOMB"
that would turn enemy troops Gay. The proposal would not come to light
until 2007 when the Sunshine Project would discover it through a Freedom
of Information Act disclosure.
As part of a
military effort to develop non-lethal weapons, the proposal suggested,
"One distasteful but completely non-lethal example would be strong
aphrodisiacs, especially if the chemical also caused homosexual
behavior."
The documents
show the Air Force lab asked for $7.5 million to develop such a chemical
weapon. In both of the documents, the possibility was canvassed that a
strong aphrodisiac could be dropped on enemy troops, ideally one which
would also cause "homosexual behavior."
The documents
described the aphrodisiac weapon as "distasteful but completely
non-lethal". The "New Discoveries Needed" section of one of the
documents implicitly acknowledges that no such chemicals are actually
known. The reports also include many other off-beat ideas, such as
spraying enemy troops with bee pheromones and then hiding numerous
beehives in the combat area, and a chemical weapon that would give the
enemy bad breath.
The Wright
Laboratory, which had made the proposal, won the 2007 Ig-Nobel Peace
Prize for "instigating research & development on a chemical
weapon—the so-called 'Gay bomb' / 'poof bomb' —that will make enemy
soldiers become sexually irresistible to each other." However, Air Force
personnel contacted were not willing to attend the award ceremony at
Harvard University's Sanders Theater to accept the award in person.
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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
Harsh speech is unhealthy.
Refraining from harsh speech is healthy. (MN 9) Abandoning harsh speech,
one refrains from harsh speech. One speaks words that are gentle,
pleasing to the ear, and affectionate, words that go to the heart, are
courteous, and are agreeable to many. (DN 1) One practices thus: “Others
may speak harshly, but I shall abstain from harsh speech.” (MN 8)
When one speaks unhurriedly, one’s body does not grow tired and one’s
mind does not become excited, one’s voice is not strained and one’s
throat does not become hoarse. The speech of one who speaks unhurriedly
is distinct and easy to understand. (MN 139)
Reflection
The previous
text on right speech emphasized the drawbacks of speaking hurriedly, and
this one reverses the focus and speaks to the benefits of taking your
time when you have something to say. This can seem out of touch with the
pace of modern life, but does that mean we should ignore this advice to
fit in with the times? Might it be better to be guided by these wise
words and learn to slow down how we communicate?
Daily Practice
How much of the
stress in your experience comes from speaking too fast or trying to
follow the speech of others who are speaking at a mile a minute? Notice,
by paying attention, when this happens and make a conscious effort to
slow down the pace of your own speech. This can have the effect of
slowing down the people you talk with as well. You don’t have to be
swept along by the speaking habits of others.
Tomorrow: Reflecting upon Mental Action One week from today: Refraining from Frivolous Speech
Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel
Pay
attention to the world around you, to the leaves and the flowers, to
the birds and the rain. If you can stop and look deeply, you will
recognize your beloved manifesting again and again in many forms.
