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.
When
we develop self-control and tolerance toward our difficult feelings and
impulses, instead of behaving thoughtlessly or reactively, we can
choose not to act at all.
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)
Here a person rouses the will, makes an effort, stirs up energy, exerts
the mind, and strives to abandon arisen unhealthy mental states. One
abandons the arisen hindrance of sense desire. (MN 141)
Reflection
Unhealthy
states arise in human experience all the time. This is not your fault;
you are not to be blamed for it or to feel guilty about it. What is
important is first of all to notice when an unhealthy state is
arising—hence the value of mindfulness training—and then to understand
that it is unhealthy, which comes gradually with wisdom, and finally to
let go of it—not suppress it or ignore it but simply let it pass through
the mind and go away.
Daily Practice
One of the most
persistent and common of the unhealthy states is sense desire. There is
a natural tendency for the senses to lean in to experience, to subtly
seek out and attach to things that give us a sense of gratification.
Make an effort to recognize when this is happening, and respond with
letting go. Notice, understand, and release. Repeat often.
Tomorrow: Establishing Mindfulness of Feeling and Abiding in the Second Jhāna One week from today: Developing Unarisen Healthy States
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RIGHT LIVING Undertaking the Commitment to Abstain from Taking What is Not Given
Taking what is not given is
unhealthy. Refraining from taking what is not given is healthy. (MN 9)
Abandoning the taking of what is not given, one abstains from taking
what is not given; one does not take by way of theft the wealth and
property of others. (MN 41) One practices thus: "Others may take what is
not given, but I will abstain from taking what is not given." (MN 8)
There is a gift, which is a great gift—pristine, of long standing,
traditional, ancient, unadulterated—that will never be suspect. Here a
noble person gives up taking what is not given and refrains from it. In
doing so, one gives freedom from fear, hostility, and oppression to an
immeasurable number of beings. (AN 8.39)
Reflection
This is the
precept against theft, which you will notice is broadly stated to
include a wide range of behaviors we might not consider stealing. There
are many subtle ways we might take what is not freely offered, including
exploiting the labor of others who may be unfairly remunerated. We
might also take from others non-material things, such as time, ideas,
credit, power, and freedom. Be careful not to do this.
Daily Practice
Making a
commitment to act with integrity regarding the property of others is
another way of giving the gift of harmlessness to all beings. Practice
being more attentive to when something is freely offered and when it is
not. "Finders keepers" does not apply to Buddhist ethics. Think how
grateful you are when someone returns something you left behind. Take up
the habit of paying it forward, preferring to give rather than take.
Tomorrow: Abandoning Arisen Unhealthy States One week from today: Abstaining from Misbehaving Among Sensual Pleasures
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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 verbal
action is to be done with repeated reflection. (MN 61)
When you wish to do an action with speech, reflect on that same verbal
action thus: "Would this action I wish to do with speech lead to my own
affliction?" If, on reflection, you know that it would, then do not do
it. If you know that it would not, then proceed. (MN 61)
Reflection
Verbal action
is as important a matter as bodily action, for much harm and much good
can be done with words. Reflecting on verbal action involves being
attentive to cause and effect, considering whether what you want to say
may cause harm to you or to someone else. The truth of the phrase "Bad
things come from uttering bad words" is plainly evident in the world
around us. Let's not contribute to it.
Daily Practice
This is a
practice familiar to us as "Think before you speak." It is simply a
matter of establishing and maintaining some space between what comes to
mind and what goes out into the world as speech. This moment of
reflection brings care to the process. Practice speaking slower and more
thoughtfully. Practice also placing yourself in the position of the
hearer and imagine how your words might be received by others.
Tomorrow: Abstaining from Taking What is Not Given One week from today: Reflecting upon Mental Action
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My
compassion is not me being a nice guy. My compassion is me realizing
who I am and knowing that having a heart of love for all creatures, all
beings, even a blade of grass, is true to who and what I am.
Malicious speech is
unhealthy. Refraining from malicious speech is healthy. (MN 9)
Abandoning malicious speech, one refrains from malicious speech. One
does not repeat there what one has heard here to the detriment of these,
or repeat here what he has heard there to the detriment of those. One
unites those who are divided, is a promoter of friendships, and speaks
words that promote concord. (DN 1) One practices thus: "Others may speak
maliciously, but I shall abstain from malicious speech." (MN 8)
When others address you, their speech may be timely or untimely. . . .
One is to train thus: "My mind will be unaffected, and I shall utter no
bad words. I shall abide with compassion for their welfare, with a mind
of lovingkindness, without inner hate." (MN 21)
Reflection
The second
category of right speech is refraining from malicious speech, which has a
lot to do with setting people against one another and causing
divisions. Such speech involves harmful intentions and is therefore
unhealthy. Notice the final phrase of the text, wherein one undertakes
to personally refrain from such speech even though others may do it. The
practice here is to change your own behavior, not that of others.
Daily Practice
Pay attention
to the speech you hear around you and see if you can identify malicious
speech when you hear it. Then listen for when you yourself engage in
such speech, often inadvertently. Finally, undertake a commitment to
refrain from malicious speech. This is particularly challenging when you
are interrupted by untimely speech, but such episodes provide an
opportunity to practice not being thrown off by the impropriety of
others.
Tomorrow: Reflecting upon Verbal Action One week from today: Refraining from Harsh Speech
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THORNTON WILDER, American playwright died (b. 1897); In 1926 Wilder's first novel The Cabala was published. In 1927, The Bridge of San Luis Rey brought him commercial success and his first Pulitzer Prize in 1928. From 1930 to 1937 he taught at the University of Chicago.
In 1938 he won the Pulitzer for drama for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth.
World War II saw him rise to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Army
Air Force and he received several awards. He went on to be a visiting
professor at the University of Hawaii and to teach poetry at Harvard.
Though he considered himself a teacher first and a writer second, he
continued to write all his life, receiving the Peace Prize of the German
Book Trade in 1957 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963. In
1967 he won the National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.
He died in his sleep, December 7, 1975 in Hamden, Connecticut, where he
had been living with his sister, Isabel, for many years.
Wilder had a wide
circle of friends and enjoyed mingling with other famous people,
including Ernest Hemingway, Willa Cather, Montgomery Clift and Gertrude
Stein. (Sensing any patterns here?) Although he never discussed his
sexuality publicly or in his writings, his close friend Samuel M.
Steward is generally acknowledged to have been his lover. This
relationship is explored in the fascinating biography of Steward, AKA
Phil Andros, written by Justin Spring, Secret Historian: The Life and Times of Samuel Steward, Professor , Tattoo Artist, and Sexual Renegade
Wilder’s father,
Amos Wilder was a stern, teetotaling Congregationalist who expected his
son to be scholar-athlete and a muscular Christian. When Thornton
announced that he had been cast as LadyBracknell in a school production of The Importance of Being Earnest,
the senior Wilder informed him that he would rather that Thornton not
play female roles. Papa would not absolutely forbid it, but he assumed
that his son would want to honor his father’s wishes. Thornton
reluctantly conceded, but later wrote to his father in China, “When you
have changed your mind as to it, please notify.”
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