Wednesday, October 2, 2024

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Speech: Refraining from False Speech

 



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 overt sharp speech to be true, correct, and beneficial, one may utter it, knowing the time to do so.  (MN 139)
Reflection
It is important to speak the truth, even if it is inconvenient for some to hear it. It is even more important to speak up when what you say is likely to be beneficial. When you can help a person or situation emerge from what is unhealthy or unwholesome and become established instead on a more healthy course, it is worthwhile and even necessary to say something. Even so, good timing and sensitivity are useful skills to employ.

Daily Practice
Speech is such a rich area for mindfulness practice. It is important to be aware of not only your own internal intentions as you speak but also the context and how your words are likely to be heard and received by others. Right speech is skillful speech, and one of the skills to be learned is knowing when and how to say things that are difficult for people to hear. You will need to balance being truthful, helpful, and timely.

Tomorrow: Reflecting upon Bodily Action
One week from today: Refraining from Malicious Speech

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#DhammaWheel

Questions?
Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.



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Via Daily Dharma: Pain Is Natural

 


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Pain Is Natural

It’s a relief to know that pain comes with life so that we can stop judging ourselves when it arises. 

Vidyamala Burch, “A Gateway to Freedom”


CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

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Exploring Consciousness 
By Henry Shukman
A brief teaching on how to approach your practice as a territory to be explored. 
Read more »

Tuesday, October 1, 2024

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 on 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 is like a mother who has a baby boy, for she just wants him to grow and thrive. (Vm 9.108)
Reflection
The image of a mother with a newborn child is used often in early Buddhist literature to help envision and define the emotional state of lovingkindness. While this might involve some idealization, the point is that this emotion can be viewed as natural, pure, and spontaneous. It is a caring for another that is not rooted in our own self-interest and not entangled with an exchange. Lovingkindness is just wanting the best for someone else.

Daily Practice
See what it feels like to regard all people as your newborn child, to look on all situations with the same benevolence you might extend to an infant and to cultivate a non-specific wish for all beings to be healthy, safe, and profoundly well. Lovingkindness is a quality of heart and mind that can be cultivated, and by doing so you transform “the basis on which your mind is established.” In short, you become a more caring person.

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.



Tricycle is a nonprofit and relies on your support to keep its wheels turning.

© 2024 Tricycle Foundation
89 5th Ave, New York, NY 10003

Via GBF: "Intimacy With the Yourself" with Daigan Gaither

Our latest dharma talk is now available.

Here's a 60-second audio preview

(part of our "Dharma Wisdom Nuggets" series)

______________

How can we become truly present and engage with each moment we experience?

In both interpersonal relationships and self-reflection, Daigan Gaither advocates for an open, curious approach where we allow things to be as they are, rather than forcing them to fit preconceived notions. This approach, he suggests, fosters deeper connection and understanding with ourselves and others, as well as with the world around us.

Daigan explains that we often misinterpret our emotions by labeling them (e.g., calling a physical sensation “anxiety”) and then react to those labels instead of the actual experience. This creates layers of stories and emotions, leading us further from the original feeling.

He encourages us to stay curious about our experience, letting go of certainty and rigid identities, and allowing the experience to tell us what it is. By doing so, we avoid creating fixed identities or stories about ourselves and our emotions, which can lead to suffering.

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You can watch or listen to the full talk on our website or YouTube:

Intimacy with Yourself – Daigan Gaither | Gay Buddhist Fellowship

Intimacy with Yourself - Daigan Gaither 2024-09-15 (youtube.com)

or listen on your favorite podcast player.

Via Daily Dharma: Cultivating the Causes of Freedom

 

October 1, 2024

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Please make a tax-deductible gift here »
Cultivating the Causes of Freedom

For a Buddhist, the question isn’t whether we have free will or not; it is how we cultivate the causes of freedom instead of the causes of imprisonment. This is the sole purpose of the Buddhist teachings.

Andy Karr, “Between Neuro-Skepticism and Ultimate Liberation”


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Silk Road Dharma
By Renée Lynn Ford
The history of a unique and little-known Buddhist culture that once flourished in Central Asia.
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