Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Mindfulness and Concentration: Establishing Mindfulness of Mind and the Third Jhāna

RIGHT MINDFULNESS Establishing Mindfulness of Mind 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 the mind is beset by desire, one is aware that "the mind is beset by desire." One is just aware, just mindful: "There is mind." And one abides not clinging to anything in the world. (MN 10)

Reflection The third establishment of mindfulness is mindfulness of the quality of mind manifesting in any given moment. It is awareness of awareness itself, in particular of whether or not awareness is influenced by the influx of greed, hatred, or delusion. We start here with desire, a common state that can in many cases be quite subtle and hard to see. Here we are practicing becoming conscious of something that is normally unconscious. Daily Practice Sometimes the presence of desire can be detected in our experience. This is not bad or wrong—just something to be noticed. For example, seeing an object is one thing, while seeing it with a tinge of desire, of wanting it, is another. Notice that wanting is simply a quality of mind that is sometimes present and sometimes not. We are not trying to change anything here, just to learn to see what is really happening. RIGHT CONCENTRATION Approaching and Abiding in the Third Phase of Absorption (3rd Jhāna) With the fading away of joy, one abides in equanimity; mindful and fully aware, still feeling pleasure with the body, one enters into and abides in the third phase of absorption, on account of which noble ones announce: "One has a pleasant abiding who has equanimity and is mindful." (MN 4) Reflection Some people move easily and naturally through the stages of absorption, but many people do not. This is not something to be forced if it does not come on its own, and we should never judge our progress against the schema of four jhānas. As we can see, mindfulness and concentration each involve the other, so at a certain point it becomes unnecessary and unhelpful to compare the two and distinguish two different practices. Daily Practice As you settle into the pleasant feeling tones of the second level of absorption, the pleasure gradually subsides and resolves into a state of equanimity or even-mindedness. The body still feels tranquil and at ease, but the mind becomes more balanced as it becomes more mindful and fully aware. Simply rest at ease, doing nothing and striving for nothing, and let the mind settle naturally. Tomorrow: Understanding the Noble Truth of the Way to the Cessation of Suffering One week from today: Establishing Mindfulness of Mental Objects and the Fourth Jhāna Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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Via Daily Dharma: What Do We Own?

What can we really possess, after all? Our realization that there is actually nothing that can be held on to can become a powerful factor in cultivating our inner wealth of generosity, which is a wealth that can never be depleted.

Marcia Rose, “The Gift That Cannot Be Given”

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Via White Crane Institute // SAKI

 

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Saki aka H.H. Munro

1870 -

On this date the British writer SAKI was born (d. 1916). Born Hector Hugh Monro, his witty and sometimes macabre stories satirized Edwardian society and culture. He is considered a master of the short story and is often compared to O. Henry and Dorothy Parker. His tales feature delicately drawn characters and finely judged narratives. "The Open Window" may be his most famous, with a closing line ("Romance at short notice was her speciality") that has entered the lexicon.

His short stories are extraordinarily compact and cameo-like, wicked and witty, with cruelty and a powerful vein of supernatural fantasy. They deal, in general, with the same group of upper-class Britishers, whose frivolous lives are sometimes complicated by animals – the talking cat who reveals their treacheries in love, the pet ferret that is evil incarnate. A devotee of London's Jermyn Street baths, it is reported, now that it has been revealed that Hector Hugh Monroe was Gay, his stories are being re-read as allegories of the torment of remaining bottled up in hypocritical English society. The stories are even more entertaining with this new knowledge. The nom de plume, "Saki" was borrowed from the cup bearer in The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.

He never married. A J Langguth, in his biography, produces strong evidence to support the hypothesis that Munro was homosexual. Munro was guarded except in one or two of his stories and most of his readers would probably have been shocked had they known that his pen name refers to a cup bearer or beautiful boy and carries esoteric homoerotic connotations.

Today's Gay Wisdom

2017 -

The Wisdom of Saki (H.H. Munro)

• A little inaccuracy sometimes saves a ton of explanation.
• I always say beauty is only sin deep.
• Hors d'oeuvres have always a pathetic interest for me; they remind me of one's childhood that one goes through wondering what the next course is going to be like - and during the rest of the menu one wishes one had eaten more of the hors d'oeuvres.
• Great Socialist statesmen aren't made, they're still-born.
• He spends his life explaining from his pulpit that the glory of Christianity consists in the fact that though it is not true it has been found necessary to invent it.
• You needn't tell me that a man who doesn't love oysters and asparagus and good wines has got a soul, or a stomach either. He's simply got the instinct for being unhappy highly developed.
• It's no use growing older if you only learn new ways of misbehaving yourself.

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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 Ram Dass - Love Serve Remember Foundation // Words of Wisdom - December 18, 2022 💌

 

Real love is the One celebrating itself as the two.

- Ram Dass -

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Effort: Developing Unarisen Healthy States

 

RIGHT EFFORT Developing Unarisen Healthy States Whatever a person frequently thinks about and ponders, that will become the inclination of their mind. If one frequently thinks about and ponders healthy states, one has abandoned unhealthy states to cultivate healthy states, and then one’s mind inclines to healthy states. (MN 19) Here a person rouses the will, makes an effort, stirs up energy, exerts the mind, and strives to develop the arising of unarisen healthy mental states. One develops the unarisen awakening factor of mindfulness. (MN 141)

Reflection Effort is the tool we have to shape what we think, say, and do. Using it in healthy ways, we will become healthier. Just as we learn to guard against the arising of unhealthy states, we are also encouraged to develop healthy mental and emotional states. The text will take us through the seven healthy factors of awakening, beginning here with mindfulness. It is always beneficial to be aware, and we should practice doing so. Daily Practice Here you are invited to develop healthy mental states, which starts with creating the conditions that encourage them to arise. The first basic condition for healthy states to arise is mindfulness, for by being consciously aware of your experience you are not just reacting unconsciously to whatever comes up. Simply be attentive in every moment you can and notice what is happening. By doing so you participate in your life. Tomorrow: Establishing Mindfulness of Mind and Abiding in the Third Jhāna One week from today: Maintaining Arisen Healthy States Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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Via Daily Dharma: Searching for Solutions

When I have a problem that comes to me, I’m not looking for the solution in something other than the problem itself. Actually, the problem can be the solution. 

Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche in conversation with Helen Tworkov, “Mingyur Rinpoche on Overcoming Panic and Finding Joy Through Acceptance”

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Via Buddhist Global Relief // A New Year Retreat: Anchoring Our Lives in the Dharma

 

 

 

In reflecting on the past year, we at Buddhist Global Relief are filled with gratitude for each of the members of our global community—our donors, our supporters, and the thousands of people around the world whom BGR serves. 

 

Like a raindrop joining with others to become a river, your generosity joins with that of others to become the gift of hope for those in need. So your act of compassion may provide food to a hungry child in Mongolia or Haiti or Cameroon; a scholarship for an impoverished young woman in India or Cambodia; and desperately needed aid to thousands of other people around the world. What a beautiful example of the interconnection of all beings!

As we prepare to welcome the new year, we recommit together to building a world in which all children have enough to eat, all people are blessed with peace, justice, and the fulfillment of their material needs, and all of the Earth’s inhabitants collaborate in protecting the delicate web of life and the natural environment that sustains us. 

Please join us on the evening of January 6 for a special New Year blessing ceremony, and all day on January 7, as Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi leads us in meditation, learning, and reflection to welcome in the new year. He is joined by Dassanāya Buddhist Community founder Ayyā Dhammadīpa; Roshi Joan Hoeberichts of Heart Circle Sangha; and Uganda Buddhist Center founder and abbot Bhante Buddharakkita in an online retreat, “Anchoring Our Lives in the Dharma.”

There is no cost for the retreat, but all donations given will benefit Buddhist Global Relief. Please give as your means allow. Your generous contribution will support BGR’s work to feed the hungry, to educate children in need, to support sustainable agriculture, and to empower vulnerable women.

REGISTER NOW

Come together in the work of conscientious compassion at:
buddhistglobalrelief.org

 

G I V E   N O W

 

Buddhist Global Relief (BGR) is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Gifts are deductible to the full extent allowable under IRS regulations.

Buddhist Global Relief 2020 Route 301 Carmel, NY 10512 United States

Via FB // Zen Taoism Buddhism Thich Nhat Hanh Dalai lama

 

Via FB // Zen Taoism Buddhism Thich Nhat Hanh Dalai lama

 

Via FB // PEACE and Grace: Spirituality in a Broken World

 

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Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Living: Abstaining from Misbehaving Among Sensual Pleasures

 

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) 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 sensual misconduct 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 The path factor of right livelihood usually focuses on the trades and business practices of laypersons, and we will look at those in time. Here, however, right livelihood is translated as right living, in an attempt to be somewhat broader in outlook. In that context, this is the place to consider the basic ethical precepts of the Buddhist tradition. Here we focus on sexuality and the importance of refraining from unhealthy sexual conduct.  Daily Practice The text actually says to abstain from sensual misconduct, which is considerably broader in range than sexual misconduct. Anything that gives pleasure can be abused, and you might want to think about such things as the films you watch, the web sites you visit, and ordinary pastimes like eating, drinking, and carousing. The practice here is to be attentive to what you do and give the gift of harmlessness to yourself and others. Tomorrow: Developing Unarisen Healthy States One week from today: Abstaining from Intoxication Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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