Tuesday, August 4, 2015
Today's Daily Dharma: Good Impatience, Bad Impatience
Good Impatience, Bad Impatience
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Impatience
can be very good by helping us not put up with tyranny, but it can
distort our view of what is possible and how to bring about change. We
have to cultivate patience so that our perception isn't distorted.
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Monday, August 3, 2015
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 03/08/2015
“Estamos aprendendo a não resistir ao amor, ou seja, aprendendo a nos
tornarmos canais puros dele. Embora conscientemente esse seja o nosso
maior desejo, tememos nos tornar esse vazio que é inundado pelo amor.
Porque quando isso ocorre, experimentamos o êxtase divino, no qual a
ideia de eu desaparece. Essa experiência se assemelha à morte. É por
isso que nós pensamos tanto. O pensamento compulsivo é o maior mecanismo
de defesa. Ele nos mantém ocupados e nos dá uma sensação de segurança.”
“We are learning how not to resist love in order to become pure
channels of love. Even though this is, consciously, our greatest desire,
we fear turning into this emptiness and allowing ourselves to be
inundated with love. When this does occur, we experience divine ecstasy,
in which the idea of the self disappears. This experience is similar to
death, which is why we choose to think so much instead. Compulsive
thinking is the greatest defense mechanism: it keeps us busy and gives
us a sense of security.”
Today's Daily Dharma: Low-income Buddhism
Low-income Buddhism
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Those
of us in the lower class have no real disposable income, no truly
'free' time, and we have to keep up a break-neck speed just to break
even. We get up early to sit before heading to a job that we can
tolerate only because we sit. We meditate before bed to alleviate some
of the daily stress that would otherwise keep us up all night.
Economically and spiritually, it's always a battle just to stay put.
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Sunday, August 2, 2015
Via JMG: ISRAEL: 16 Year-Old Girl Stabbed At Jerusalem Pride Dies Of Her Wounds
Three days after being critically wounded by an ultra-Orthodox man that went on a stabbing rampage at Jerusalem's Gay Pride Parade, Shira Banki, a 16-year-old Israeli teen succumbed to her wounds Sunday afternoon. Five other people were wounded in the attack. Police confirmed that the suspected stabber is Yishai Schlissel, a Haredi man from Modiin Ilit who stabbed three participants in the 2005 Gay Pride march. He was recently released from prison after serving a 10-year sentence. Banki was a high-school student from Jerusalem, studying at the Hebrew University High School. She took part in Thursday's parade to show solidarity with her LGBT friends. She is survived by her parents and three siblings; her family decided to donate her organs.Shira's family has issued a statement.
"Our magical Shira was murdered because she was a happy 16-year-old – full of life and love – who came to express her support for her friends' rights to live as they choose. For no good reason and because of evil, stupidity and negligence, the life of our beautiful flower was cut short. Bad things happen to good people, and a very bad thing happened to our amazing girl. The family expresses hope for a less hatred and more tolerance."
JMG ISRAEL: Rallies To Be Held Nationwide In Aftermath Of Jerusalem Pride Stabbings
Rallies to protest Thursday's stabbing attack at Jerusalem's Gay Pride parade and the arson attack in which a Palestinian child was killed will be held in major Israeli cities on Saturday night. A rally in Tel Aviv already planned to mark six years since two people were killed in a shooting at Bar Noar, a Tel Aviv gay youth center, will be turned into a protest against violence following Thursday's stabbings. At 7:30 P.M a Peace Now rally will be held at Tel Aviv's Rabin Square, and from there the participants will march to Gan Meir, where another rally is scheduled to take place. Opposition leader and Zionist Union head Isaac Herzog is scheduled to speak at the Rabin Square rally, as well as Meretz leader Zehava Galon, Zionist Union MK Amir Peretz, former Shin Bet chief Carmi Gilon and more. The Jerusalem rally will begin at 9:30 P.M. in Zion Square. A protest will also take place at 8:00 P.M. in the northern city of Haifa, and at 8:45 P.M in the southern city of Be'er Sheva.During yesterday's arraignment the deranged attacker declared that he does not recognize the authority of Israel's legal system as he was acting under orders from God.
RELATED: Yesterday the New York Post published an op-ed which denounces the resurgent claims of "pinkwashing" that appeared on social media after Israeli politicians and religious leaders unanimously expressed outrage about the attack. An excerpt:
Their voices arrived this week both loudly and swiftly, often cloaked in the veil of “pink-washing” — the academically vogue assertion that Israel uses its pro-LGBT record to obscure its Gaza blockade and West Bank occupation. Transgender activist Pauline Park declared Thursday on Twitter: “Jerusalem LGBT PrideParade attack by Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Assailant undermines Zionist Pinkwashing Propaganda.” “Will the Zionists continue their pinkwashing campaign?” asked another on Twitter.
Indeed, across the #pinkwashing spectrum, posters insisted that Israel is actually unsafe for its LGBT citizens, that it’s far from a liberal haven and that Netanyahu’s good wishes are merely political showmanship. As with most socio-political-cultural conflicts, the truth is at once far simpler — and more complex. Indeed, much as in other Western democracies, Israel’s open society can cultivate extremists who may act out with violent results. Yet despite their horror, these egregious examples do not render those societies fundamentally violent.
Via JMG: Anti-Gay Texas AG Ken Paxton Indicted On Multiple Counts Of Securities Fraud
Ken Paxton, the Republican attorney general of Texas and a former state legislator, has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of securities fraud and of failing to register with the state securities board, officials said. The grand jury in the northern Dallas suburb of McKinney handed up a three-count indictment against Mr. Paxton on Tuesday, the officials said. The indictment is to be unsealed on Monday, when Mr. Paxton is expected to turn himself in to the authorities at the Collin County Jail. The charges — two counts of first-degree securities fraud and one count of third-degree failure to register — are tied to Mr. Paxton’s work soliciting clients and investors for two companies while he was a member of the Texas House of Representatives, before he was elected attorney general in November.RELATED: Several days after the Obergefell ruling, Paxton declared that county clerks were allowed to refuse to issue same-sex marriage licenses.
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 02/08/2015
“Uma das chaves fundamentais para a sustentação do êxtase, é não nos
apegarmos a um desfecho determinado para as situações. É aprender a se
mover na sabedoria da incerteza, ou seja, libertar-se de toda e qualquer
expectativa. Isso significa abrir mão do controle, e entregar-se para o
fluxo da vida. Permitir que Deus nos leve. Desde as coisas mais simples
até as mais complexas.”
“One of the fundamental keys to sustaining ecstasy is not to cling to any particular outcome of a situation. The key lies in learning how to move in the wisdom of uncertainty by freeing ourselves of any expectations. This means giving up our control and surrendering to the flow of life. We allow God to lead us – from the simplest of circumstances to the most complex.”
“One of the fundamental keys to sustaining ecstasy is not to cling to any particular outcome of a situation. The key lies in learning how to move in the wisdom of uncertainty by freeing ourselves of any expectations. This means giving up our control and surrendering to the flow of life. We allow God to lead us – from the simplest of circumstances to the most complex.”
Today's Daily Dharma: The Love Available to Us
The Love Available to Us
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There is far more love available to us in any given moment than we might be aware. And there is much, much more love in our hearts than we as adults have been conditioned to believe is appropriate to express.
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Saturday, August 1, 2015
Gay marriage in the year 100 AD
Gay marriage sounds like an ultra-contemporary idea. But almost twenty
years ago, a Catholic scholar at Yale shocked the world by publishing a
book packed with evidence that same-sex marriages were sanctioned by the
early Christian Church during an era commonly called the Dark Ages.
Illustration of Serge and Bacchus, in a same-sex union
John Boswell
was a historian and religious Catholic who dedicated much of his
scholarly life to studying the late Roman Empire and early Christian
Church. Poring over legal and church documents from this era, he
discovered something incredible. There were dozens of records of church
ceremonies where two men were joined in unions that used the same
rituals as heterosexual marriages. (He found almost no records of
lesbian unions, which is probably an artifact of a culture which kept
more records about the lives of men generally.)
Bolstered by this evidence, Boswell published a book in 1994, the year before his death from AIDS, called Same-Sex Unions in Pre-Modern Europe. The book comes out next month for the first time in a digital edition. It was an instant lightening rod for controversy, drawing criticism from both the Catholic Church and sex pundit Camille Paglia. Given the Church's present-day views on gay marriage, these detractors argued, Boswell's history seemed like wishful thinking.
Via WGB: Leslie Jordan Throws Coffee At Men Screaming Antigay Slurs Inside WEHO Starbucks
“You will die, fucking faggots!” one of the men allegedly announced to the entire store.
Joseph Daniels, who was waiting in line at the time, told WEHOville, “It was very scary and unexpected.” But he wasn’t going to let a group of d-bags get the best of him. He walked over to the men and told them their behavior was “rude.”
Then the manager came along and told them to get the hell out.
The thugs refused to leave and proceeded to call everyone in the store “faggots.” And that’s when things got really heated. Because unbeknownst to the homophobes, Leslie Jordan happened to be there.
Yes, the Leslie Jordan." Full story here!
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 01/08/2015
GURU SHARANAM HARI SHARANAM SACHCHE SHARANAM PRABHU SHARANAM ~ Estou
sob a guiança e a proteção do Mestre, da Verdade e de Deus ~
“Isso é entrega, isso é redenção. Para verdadeiramente entregar-se, se faz necessário muita confiança. Entregar significa se tornar livre do peso que você carrega. Você entrega e deixa que o mestre leva para você. Você entrega seus problemas e não pensa mais neles. Porque se você diz que entregou, mas continua preocupado ou não aceita a solução que lhe é oferecida, existe aí um autoengano. Significa que o ego ainda está tentando controlar o destino da embarcação, porque não confia que será levado para um lugar seguro. Mas afinal, o que é seguro? As referências do ego dizem respeito apenas a satisfação do corpo, e isso é muito limitado.”
“Isso é entrega, isso é redenção. Para verdadeiramente entregar-se, se faz necessário muita confiança. Entregar significa se tornar livre do peso que você carrega. Você entrega e deixa que o mestre leva para você. Você entrega seus problemas e não pensa mais neles. Porque se você diz que entregou, mas continua preocupado ou não aceita a solução que lhe é oferecida, existe aí um autoengano. Significa que o ego ainda está tentando controlar o destino da embarcação, porque não confia que será levado para um lugar seguro. Mas afinal, o que é seguro? As referências do ego dizem respeito apenas a satisfação do corpo, e isso é muito limitado.”
GURU SHARANAM HARI SHARANAM SACHCHE SHARANAM PRABHU SHARANAM ~ I am
under the guidance and protection of the master teacher, of truth and of
God. ~
“This is surrender; this is redemption. In order to truly surrender, a lot of trust is needed. Surrendering means becoming free of the weight that we carry. We surrender when we let the master teacher take this weight from us, and surrendering our problems means that we no longer think about them. If we say we have surrendered but continue to worry and do not accept the solution our teacher has offered, then there is still some self-deception happening. This means that the ego is still trying to control the fate of its vessel, because there is still mistrust that this vessel will be led to a safe port. In the end, what is safe? The references that the ego knows only involve corporeal satisfactions, and this is a very limited perspective.”
“This is surrender; this is redemption. In order to truly surrender, a lot of trust is needed. Surrendering means becoming free of the weight that we carry. We surrender when we let the master teacher take this weight from us, and surrendering our problems means that we no longer think about them. If we say we have surrendered but continue to worry and do not accept the solution our teacher has offered, then there is still some self-deception happening. This means that the ego is still trying to control the fate of its vessel, because there is still mistrust that this vessel will be led to a safe port. In the end, what is safe? The references that the ego knows only involve corporeal satisfactions, and this is a very limited perspective.”
Today's Daily Dharma: The Light Is Always There
The Light Is Always There
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Drawing
attention to stillness, silence, and spaciousness shifts your focus
from feeding the insecurity of the ego to connecting with pure being.
Anytime you identify with a sense of 'I' "'I feel something'; 'I have
lost some thing'; 'I am lost'" you are identifying with the wrong
person. You are identifying with the ego, with your pain body, not with
your true nature.
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Friday, July 31, 2015
Via JMG: COLOMBIA: Top Court Considers Marriage
Colombia’s top court held a day-long hearing on Thursday on whether it should interpret its constitution as giving marriage rights to same-sex couples — framing the debate in a wider discussion about whether international standards now dictate that marriage equality is a fundamental right. The hearing comes five weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to allow marriage equality, in a move that reverberated around the world. Unlike the U.S. Supreme Court, Colombia’s Constitutional Court weighs foreign precedent and international human rights law in its decisions. To discuss the question of marriage equality in Thursday’s debate, the Court’s judges invited a broad range of international opinions, including representatives of the United Nations’ human rights office, the U.S.-based conservative legal group the Alliance Defending Freedom, and Albie Sachs, the former chief justice of South Africa’s Constitutional Court who authored a 2005 marriage equality ruling.A decision is expected by the end of the summer.
RELATED: Elsewhere in South America same-sex marriage is legal in Argentina, Brazil, French Guiana, and Uruguay. Civil unions are legal in Chile, Colombia, and Ecuador. A same-sex marriage lawsuit is pending before the Venezuelan Supreme Court. Homosexual acts remain illegal in Guyana, but nowhere else on the continent.
JMG Quote Of The Day - Henry Rollins
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 31/07/2015
“Guru não é um corpo, é um poder que se manifesta através de um corpo. É
o poder de Deus que te levanta e te coloca no estágio além da mente; te
tira da sombra e te coloca na luz. Guru é uma palavra pequena, mas seu
significado está além das palavras.”
"Gurú no es un cuerpo, es un poder que se manifiesta a través de un cuerpo. Es el poder de Dios que te levanta y te coloca en un nivel más allá de la mente; te saca de la sombra y te coloca en la luz. Gurú es una palabra pequeña, pero su significado está más allá de las palabras"
"Gurú no es un cuerpo, es un poder que se manifiesta a través de un cuerpo. Es el poder de Dios que te levanta y te coloca en un nivel más allá de la mente; te saca de la sombra y te coloca en la luz. Gurú es una palabra pequeña, pero su significado está más allá de las palabras"
“The guru is not a body: the guru is a power that manifests itself
within a body. It is the power of God that elevates us and puts us in a
state beyond the mind. This power takes us out of the darkness and
places us in the light. ‘Guru’ is a small word, but its meaning is
beyond any words.”
Today's Daily Dharma: Rage Can Become Compassion
Rage Can Become Compassion
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Rage "whether
in reaction to social injustice, or to our leaders' insanity, or to
those who threaten or harm us" is a powerful energy that, with diligent
practice, can be transformed into fierce compassion.
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Thursday, July 30, 2015
Via WGB: In The Face Of Violent Homophobia, Jamaica Hosts Its First Pride
Jamaica is frequently cited as one of the worst places in the world to
be gay: sex between men is a jailable offense, the country’s leading gay
activist was murdered, and LGBT youth are forced to live in the sewers.Just this March, a gay man was stoned to death by a mob, but some brave activists are standing up to the hate and have scheduled Jamaica’s first Pride event next week.
But there won’t be a Pride parade, due to safety and security concerns. Full story here via NNN!
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 30/07/2015
“Os vícios funcionam como amortecedores ou anestésicos. Podem ser
coisas ou emoções que são elementos simbólicos, ou seja, algo externo
que representa o que está faltando dentro. Algo que acalme o furacão de
sentimentos e preencha, mesmo que temporariamente, o vazio interior.
Drogas, comida, sexo, internet, dinheiro... Tudo para amenizar a dor da
cisão com a essência, o que gerou a ilusão de que somos seres separados
do todo e que dependemos de algo externo para sermos felizes.”
“Los vicios funcionan como adormecedores o anestésicos. Pueden ser
cosas o emociones que son elementos simbólicos, es decir, algo externo
que representa lo que está faltando dentro. Algo que calme el huracán de
sentimientos y llene, aunque sea temporariamente, el vacío interior.
Drogas, comida, sexo, internet, dinero... Todo para aliviar el dolor de
la ruptura con la esencia, lo que generó la ilusión de que somos seres
separados del todo y que dependemos de algo externo para ser felices.”
“Addictions work like shock-absorbers or anesthetics. We can either be physically or emotionally addicted to things that symbolize what’s missing inside of us. These addictions serve to calm the whirlwind of feelings and temporarily fill the emptiness inside of us. Drugs, food, sex, Internet and money are all used to alleviate the pain of the split from our essence. This split created the illusion that we are separate from everything and rely on something external in order to be happy.”
“Addictions work like shock-absorbers or anesthetics. We can either be physically or emotionally addicted to things that symbolize what’s missing inside of us. These addictions serve to calm the whirlwind of feelings and temporarily fill the emptiness inside of us. Drugs, food, sex, Internet and money are all used to alleviate the pain of the split from our essence. This split created the illusion that we are separate from everything and rely on something external in order to be happy.”
Today's Daily Dharma: Not a Private Journey
Not a Private Journey
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The
way 'spirituality' is often used suggests that we exist solely as a
collection of individuals, not as members of a religious community, and
that religious life is merely a private journey. It is the religious
expression of the ideology of free-market economics and of the radical
'disencumbered' individualism that idolizes the choice-making individual
as the prime reality in the world.
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Wednesday, July 29, 2015
From another Chat Group: Exclusion Works both Ways
"It
may be time to include in workshops for Baha'is and other anti-gay
religions to let them know that exclusion works both ways. Their dynamic
is that if one is gay, Baha'is cannot give you full Baha'is rights.
They are trying to sort that out within the
religion. My message is increasingly, there is pretty much NOTHING the
Baha'i Faith can do right now to ever win someone like me back. And lots
of people like me. Its not that the Faith doesn't want us; rather we
do not want the Faith. It is too late and too much damage has been done
for the Faith to decide how tolerant it wishes to be within its
administrative parameters it has set for itself. So while it is very
nice that some people will come to a meeting about how to better
tolerate and treat gay people, they should be clearly told many of us
gay people have no wish to be tolerated by them. It is not our problem;
it is their problem. It is not that they have excluded us, but in fact
we have excluded them. ... They (the Baha'i Admin Order) have a really bad discriminatory rule that has harmed
lots of people and which the world increasingly is rejecting and makes
them irrelevant and unwanted. People are not knocking down doors to get
in to this religion. They have a serious problem. And it is not gay
people. But they might use the gay issue and the poor way they have
managed it to gain some insight into their irrelevance. They have
excluded the very people they need. Now many of those excluded people do
not want in. So perhaps include a segment ... that in
reality not many gay people want into this exclusive club no matter how
well they try to tolerate us."
- Anon Amigo
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 29/07/2015
“Esteja sempre atento, observando e testemunhando. Focalize na beleza e
realize sua prática espiritual diária. Faça uso da oração de forma
muito espontânea, como se estivesse conversando com a Divindade, assim
como faz uma criança que conversa com seus pais. De forma honesta e
pura, peça para que o véu da ilusão seja removido da sua visão.”
“Estate siempre atento, observando y atestiguando. Focaliza en la belleza y realiza tu práctica espiritual diaria. Haz uso de la oración de forma muy espontánea, como si estuvieras conversando con la Divinidad, así como hace un niño que conversa con sus padres. De forma honesta y pura, pide para que el velo de la ilusión sea removido de tu visión.”
“Estate siempre atento, observando y atestiguando. Focaliza en la belleza y realiza tu práctica espiritual diaria. Haz uso de la oración de forma muy espontánea, como si estuvieras conversando con la Divinidad, así como hace un niño que conversa con sus padres. De forma honesta y pura, pide para que el velo de la ilusión sea removido de tu visión.”
“Always remain attentive, observing and witnessing everything. Focus
on beauty and do your spiritual practice daily. Pray spontaneously, as
if you were having a conversation with the divine: like a child talking
to his or her parents. With honesty and purity, ask for the veil of
illusion to be removed from your sight.”
Today's Daily Dharma: The Process of Awakening
The Process of Awakening
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Awakening
is not a state but a process: an ethical way of life and commitment
that enables human flourishing. As such, it is no longer the exclusive
preserve of enlightened teachers or accomplished yogis. Likewise,
nirvana "the stopping of craving" is not the goal of the path but its very
source. For human flourishing first stirs in that clear, bright, empty
space where neurotic self-centredness realizes that it has no ground at
all to stand on. One is then freed to pour forth like sunlight.
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Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Via JMG: More Corporate Support For Equality Act
Via press release from the HRC:
Reposted from Joe Jervis
Today, just days after the introduction of the historic Equality Act in Congress, five new major American companies announced their support for comprehensive, federal LGBT non-discrimination protections. Each of these new leading corporations -- American Airlines, Facebook, General Mills, Google and Nike demonstrated their belief that all LGBT Americans should have the protections from discrimination in federal law that they deserve. These companies join Apple, The Dow Chemical Company, and Levi Strauss, & Co. in supporting comprehensive federal LGBT non-discrimination legislation.While few expect the Equality Act to get much traction in the current Congress, this sort of groundwork is critical. It's going to be a very long haul.
STATEMENT BY AMERICAN AIRLINES -- "We at American Airlines are proud of our long history of supporting LGBT equality. Now is the time for full equality for the LGBT community in the United States. Ensuring fairness in our workplaces and communities is both the right thing to do and simply good business."
STATEMENT BY FACEBOOK -- "We are open and vocal supporters of equality. Ensuring fairness in the workplace is a fundamental principle at Facebook and we support legal protections for LGBT Americans as outlined in the Equality Act."
STATEMENT BY GENERAL MILLS -- "At General Mills we have a long history of supporting LGBT equality and the time has come in this country for full, federal equality for the LGBT community. Ensuring fairness in our workplaces and communities is both the right thing to do and simply good business."
STATEMENT BY GOOGLE -- "Diverse perspectives, ideas, and cultures lead to the creation of better products and services and ideas. And it's the right thing to do. That's why we support protections for LGBT individuals as outlined in the Equality Act."
STATEMENT BY NIKE – "At NIKE, we are committed to diversity and inclusion, and we strive to treat our employees equally. We believe that diversity drives innovation and allows us to attract and retain world class talent. We need fair and equitable laws that prevent discrimination, and NIKE supports the Equality Act introduced by Senator Merkley and his colleagues in Congress. This is another important step in the fight for equality."
Thich Nhat Hanh: On Homosexuality
Posted on March 29, 2009
Thich Nhat Hanh, the noted Zen monk, poet, teacher who is the inspiration behind Deer Park Monastery and the Plum Village tradition, shares these words about the Buddhadharma’s view of “homosexuality” in the latest book, ANSWERS FROM THE HEART.
Thanks, Julia — for sharing the dharma for us to read!
excerpt from Thay’s new book Answers from the Heart
Q. What is the Buddhist view of homosexuality?
A.
The spirit of Buddhism is inclusiveness. Looking deeply into the nature
of a cloud, we see the cosmos. A flower is a flower, but if we look
deeply into it, we see the cosmos. Everything has a place. The base-the
foundation of everything-is the same. When you look at the ocean, you
see different kinds of waves, many sizes and shapes, but all the waves
have water as their foundation and substance. If you are born gay or
lesbian, your ground of being in the same as mine. We are different, but
we share the same ground of being. The Protestant theologian Paul Tillich
said that God is the ground of being. You should be yourself. If God
has created me as a rose, then I should accept myself as a rose. If you
are a lesbian, then be a lesbian. Looking deeply into your nature, you
will see yourself as you truly are. You will be able to touch the ground
of your being and find peace.
If
you’re a victim of discrimination, then your way to emancipation is not
simply by crying out against injustice. Injustice cannot be repaired by
recognition alone, but by your capacity to touch the ground of your
being. Discrimination, intolerance, and suppression stem from lack of
knowledge and lack of understanding. If you’re capable of touching the
ground of your being, you can be released from the suffering that has
been created in you through discrimination and oppression.
Someone
who discriminates against you, because of your race or the color of your
skin or your sexual orientation, is ignorant. He doesn’t know his own
ground of being. He doesn’t realize that we all share the same ground of
being; that is why he can discriminate against you.
Someone
who discriminates against others and causes them to suffer is someone
who is not happy with himself. Once you’ve touched the depth and the
nature of your ground of being, you’ll be equipped with the kind of
understanding that can give rise to compassion and tolerance, and you
will be capable of forgiving even those who discriminate against you.
Don’t believe that relief or justice will come through society alone.
True emancipation lies in your capacity to look deeply.
When you
suffer because of discrimination, there’s always an urge to speak out.
But even if you spend a thousand years speaking out, your suffering
won’t be relieved. Only through deep understanding and liberation from
ignorance can you be liberated from your suffering.
When you
break through to the truth, compassion springs up like a stream of
water. With that compassion, you can embrace even the people who have
persecuted you. When you’re motivated by desire to help those who are
victims of ignorance, only then are you free from your suffering and
feelings of violation. Don’t wait for things to change around you. You
have to practice liberating yourself. Then you will be equipped with the
power of compassion and understanding, the only kind of power that can
help transform an environment full of injustice and discrimination. You
have to become such a person-one who can embody tolerance,
understanding, and compassion. You transform yourself into an instrument
for social change and change in the collective consciousness of
mankind.
Thich Nhat Hanh, Answers from the Heart: Practical Responses To Life’s Burning Questions (Berkeley: Parallax Press, 2009), 119-122.
Via Shambala: 5 Practices for Nurturing Happiness
The great Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh suffered a serious stroke in November. (You can contribute to his relief effort, here.) We join practitioners around the world in sending our prayers and good wishes for his full recovery. Thich Nhat Hanh’s life is inspiring, his benefit great, and his teaching, like the dharma itself, profound and practical.
We all want to be happy and there are many books and teachers in the world that try to help people be happier. Yet we all continue to suffer.Mindfully make the jump here to read the full article
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