Thursday, January 29, 2026

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Action: Reflecting upon Verbal Action

 

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RIGHT ACTION
Reflecting Upon Verbal Action
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 verbal action is to be done with repeated reflection: (MN 61)

When you have done an action with speech, reflect upon that same verbal action thus: "Has this action I have done with speech led to my own affliction?" If, upon reflection, you know that it has, then tell someone you trust about it and undertake a commitment not to do it again. If you know it has not, then be content and feel happy about it.  (MN 61)
Reflection
People are always talking, if not to other people, then to themselves. And the words we use have consequences, sowing the seeds of both external and internal karma. External karma is the consequence of our actions in the world; internal karma is the effect of our thoughts and emotions on ourselves. This text is telling us that it is beneficial to reflect upon things you have said in the past, noticing anything that has been hurtful to yourself. It is not too late to change the pattern, to learn to speak to yourself and of yourself in healthier ways.
Daily Practice
Pay attention to what you say, both to others and to yourself. Notice if you find you are devaluing yourself—putting yourself down in some way or being harshly self-critical. As in the case of bodily action, revealing these things to another person who you trust and who has your best interests in mind can be unburdening. It is healthy to change unhealthy habits, even those that are the most intimate and personal.
Tomorrow: Abstaining from Taking What is Not Given
One week from today: Reflecting upon Mental Action

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Wednesday, January 28, 2026

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Meditation Month Day 28

 

Day 28
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PRACTICE PROMPT

You are ever-present.
 
Think of a TV screen that does not share the destiny of the characters in the program. The images and the screen are not actually separate, yet the images cannot change or contaminate the screen. In the same way, no matter how frightening or dangerous the “program” of your life may appear, the awareness in which it all unfolds remains untouched and free.

No effort by any character can make the screen appear, because it has always already been there. Likewise, no amount of sin or wrongdoing by the character can make the screen disappear. You are the ever-present, immaculate screen, not the personality in the show called “life.”
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Via Ram Dass - Love Serve Remember Foundation /// Words of Wisdom - January 28, 2026 ❄️

 


“The predicament is that once you awaken you cannot go back to sleep. You will try with all of your ingenuity, I absolutely assure you… because what lies before you is the fire - and burn, baby, burn.”
 
- Ram Dass

Source: Ram Dass – Here and Now – Ep. 85 – Dharmic Fire

Via Daily Dharma: The Fabric of Our Lives

 

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The Fabric of Our Lives

If we can keep walking the middle path with equanimity—neither attached nor averse to the oscillating conditions that arise and cease—the fabric of our lives, held together by stitches of right action, can be free from unnecessary suffering.

Tara Anand, “Reflections from the Yarn Bowl”


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