Tuesday, July 28, 2015
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
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 28/07/2015
“Nós somos diferentes somente por fora. Por dentro nós somos iguais.
Quando experimenta essa realidade, você se torna o amor. Então não é uma
questão de amar, porque o outro te dá alguma coisa; você ama porque
você é o amor. Tudo que sai da sua boca torna-se uma prece para o eterno
Um. Tudo se torna sagrado e divino.”
“Somos diferentes solamente por fuera. Por dentro somos iguales. Cuando experimentas esta realidad, te vuelves amor. Entonces no es una cuestión de amar porque el otro te da algo, amas porque eres amor. Todo lo que sale de tu boca se vuelve una plegaria para el eterno Uno. Todo se vuelve sagrado y divino.”
“Somos diferentes solamente por fuera. Por dentro somos iguales. Cuando experimentas esta realidad, te vuelves amor. Entonces no es una cuestión de amar porque el otro te da algo, amas porque eres amor. Todo lo que sale de tu boca se vuelve una plegaria para el eterno Uno. Todo se vuelve sagrado y divino.”
“We are only different on the outside. On the inside, we are all one
and the same. When you experience this reality, you become love. Then,
you no longer love because the other gives you something; you love
because you are love. Every word that comes out of your mouth becomes a
prayer to the Eternal One. Everything becomes sacred and divine.”
Today's Daily Dharma: Waking up to Racism.
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Waking up to Racism |
I
am often asked when talking about racism in Buddhist circles to be
specific, give examples. In part, this longing emerges from the
reluctance of white people in power to accept, and see clearly by
opening their eyes, that white supremacy informs the shaping of Buddhist
communities, individual interactions, publications, etc. That
reluctance can only be transformed in spiritual practice, not by proof.
There is never enough proof.
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Monday, July 27, 2015
Via JMG: Quote Of The Day - Sen. Cory Booker
"You'd think this problem is relegated to the history books. But in 2015 — today — a couple can try to purchase a home and in 31 states be told it is not available to them on the basis of their sexual orientation. More than half a century after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the federal government has yet to pass a large-scale law that protects Americans from discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. It's time for that to change." - Sen. Cory Booker, writing in support of the Equality Act.
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 27/07/2015
“Um passo fundamental para a desconstrução de um padrão negativo é
conseguir perceber que existe prazer investido nele. Primeiro você
identifica as situações negativas que se repetem e qual o ponto comum
entre elas, ou seja, o que causa a repetição. Depois você vai atrás da
voz dentro de você que diz: “Eu quero ficar isolado; eu quero do meu
jeito ou não quero nada”; “Eu quero fracassar”, ou ainda: “Eu quero
ficar doente, não quero mais viver”. Com isso você começa a identificar o prazer que dá sustentação ao sofrimento.”
“Un paso fundamental para la desconstrucción de un patrón negativo es
conseguir percibir que existe placer invertido en él. Primero
identificas las situaciones negativas que se repiten y cuál es el punto
en común entre ellas, es decir, lo que causa la repetición. Después vas
en busca de la voz dentro tuyo que dice: “Quiero quedarme aislado,
quiero que sea a mi manera o no quiero nada”, “Quiero fracasar”, o aún:
“Quiero enfermarme, no quiero vivir más”. Con esto comienzas a
identificar el placer que da sustento al sufrimiento.”
“A fundamental step towards deconstructing a negative pattern is being able to perceive the pleasure we feel in it. First, we identify the negative situations that repeat themselves in our lives and the common denominator between them. This means identifying what causes the repetition. Next, we go after the voices inside of us that may be saying, ‘I want to remain isolated,’ ‘It has to be my way or I don’t want it at all,’ ‘I want to fail,’ or even, ‘I want to get sick: I don’t want to live anymore’. By becoming aware of these aspects within us, we begin to identify the pleasure that sustains the suffering.”
“A fundamental step towards deconstructing a negative pattern is being able to perceive the pleasure we feel in it. First, we identify the negative situations that repeat themselves in our lives and the common denominator between them. This means identifying what causes the repetition. Next, we go after the voices inside of us that may be saying, ‘I want to remain isolated,’ ‘It has to be my way or I don’t want it at all,’ ‘I want to fail,’ or even, ‘I want to get sick: I don’t want to live anymore’. By becoming aware of these aspects within us, we begin to identify the pleasure that sustains the suffering.”
Today's Daily Dharma: The World Is Made of Stories
The World Is Made of Stories
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The
stories that make sense of this world are part of this world. It is not
by transcending the world that we are transformed but by storying it in
a new way.
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Saturday, July 25, 2015
BREAKING: Despite Threats, President Obama Makes A Case For Gay Rights In Kenya
President Obama is visiting Kenya, the first sitting American president to do so, where he lost no time addressing the subject of gay rights in spite of warnings and threats from some Kenyan lawmakers and demonstrations by Kenyan churches. The president held a joint press conference today with Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta, and "went there" on the very first question.
President Obama:
"Similarly, with respect to the rights of gays and lesbians, I have been consistent all across Africa on this. I believe in the principle of treating people equally under the law, and that they are deserving of equal protection under the law, and that the state should not discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation, and I say that recognizing there may be people who have different religious or cultural beliefs.Kenyan President Kenyatta then replied to the reporter's question, saying about gay rights:
But the issue is, how does the state operate relative to people. If you look at the history of countries around the world, when you start treating people differently, not because of any harm they are doing, but because they are different, that's the path whereby freedoms begin to erode, and bad things happen. And when the government gets in the habit of treating people differently, those habits can spread. And as an African American on the United States, I am painfully aware of what happens when people are treated differently. And there were all sorts of rationalizations by the power structure that were provided for decades in the United States for segregation and Jim Crow and slavery, and they were wrong.
So, I'm not equivocal on this; if somebody is a law abiding citizen, is going about their business and working at a job, obeying the traffic signs and doing all the other things good citizens are supposed to do and not harming anybody, the idea that they are going to be treated differently or abused because of who they love, is wrong. Full stop.
And, you know, the state does not need to weigh in on religious doctrine. The state just has to say, we're going to treat everyone the same under the law. And then everyone else can have their own opinions. Alright?"
"There are some things that we must admit we don't share, our culture, our societies, don't accept. It is very difficult for us to impose upon people what they themselves do not accept. This is why I repeatedly say that for Kenyans today the issue of gay rights is really a non-issue. We want to focus on other issues that are day-to-day living foe our people."I would suggest to President Kenyatta that as long as Kenyans can be legally imprisoned for having sex, gay rights are an issue.
We'll let you know what the President says on gay rights when he addresses the Kenyan Parliament, where lawmakers have threatened to walk out and/or have him removed, should he bring up the issue.
Read the original posting here
Today's Daily Dharma: Chanting for Things
Chanting for Things
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In
my experience, the activity of chanting for material or spiritual
things becomes a process of cleansing one's spirit, not corrupting it;
and Buddhists who began by chanting for hotter cars ended up driven to
awaken themselves and help others, at times with great energy and joy.
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Friday, July 24, 2015
Via WGB: 9.5M LGBT Adults Nationwide Would Be Protected under New Comprehensive Non-Discrimination Bill
The Equality Act, introduced today in Congress, would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, credit, federal funding and jury service.
About 9.5 million adults in the U.S. identify as LGBT, according to Williams Institute Research Director Gary Gates. Discrimination against LGBT people has been well documented in a variety of sources.
- In nine surveys conducted in the past 10 years, 19% to 78% of LGBT people reported experiencing discrimination or harassment based on their sexual orientation or gender identity at work.
- Gay men earn 10 percent to 32 percent less than heterosexual men who have the same productive characteristics, such as experience and level of education.
- About 83% of American adults report in recent polls that LGBT people face moderate to high levels of discrimination.
- LGBT workers file complaints under employment non-discrimination laws at comparable rates to female employees and employees who are people of color.
- Research has demonstrated that LGBT-supportive policies and workplace climates are linked to greater job commitment, improved workplace relationships, increased job satisfaction, and improved health outcomes in LGBT employees.
(SOURCE)
Via JMG: Houston Mayor Annise Parker: We'll Take This To The Voters And We'll Win
Labels: Annise Parker, gay politicians, hate groups, Houston, LGBT rights, religion, Texas, Texas Supreme Court
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