Saturday, August 15, 2020

Via Lion's Roar // When Sadness Rages Like Fire

 

Pema Khandro Rinpoche shares the life of the Tibetan yogi Shabkar, whose practice and teachings were inseparable from loss and grief. From the Fall 2020 issue of Buddhadharma.

“What the Mind Can Do,” by Antony Gormley, 1992. Earth and rabbit skin glue on paper. 

Sadness rages like a great fire, though in mind, there is no wood.
A storm of tears pours down ceaselessly, though in the sky of my eyes there are no clouds.[1] —Shabkar

Throughout his profound spiritual awakening, the great Tibetan yogi Shabkar experienced immense loss resulting in grief marked by raw pain, a sense of disorientation, sadness, and tears. Witnessing how a Buddhist master mourns can shed some light on how we can navigate our own grief and demystify any fantasies we might have about a peace that negates sadness.

Shabkar (1781–1851) lived in northeastern Tibet with his mother and sister. As he came of age, he yearned to go on a great spiritual journey. According to his autobiography, he believed he would be able to attain the great state of liberation that would relieve the suffering of all beings. But the journey he envisioned meant leaving home against the wishes of his mother, who begged him not to go. She told him, “You are like the very eyes in my head. If you go far away, your mother will be like a blind woman. You are like my very own heart. If you go, your mother will be like a corpse.”

Despite his mother’s pleas, Shabkar resolved to leave, promising to return soon and settle near home so that she would let him go. Not knowing that this conversation with his mother would be their last, his final words to her were a lie. Year after year he extended his travels despite his mother’s letters begging him to return. In the end, when he finally returned home, his mother had died and the home he had been raised in had fallen into ruins.

From the time of his great departure until his return, Shabkar’s life was one of great heroism and generosity. He gave away his wealth, clothing, and food to the hungry. He healed the sick, stopped the fighting between three tribes, and converted bandits and thieves. He ransomed the lives of thousands of animals who would have been slaughtered. He restored more than a hundred temples and ten thousand statues of the Buddha. He gave thousands of blessings, teachings, and empowerments. The list goes on.

Shabkar benefited countless people, and his life is still benefiting people today through his autobiography, which is a beautiful repository of Buddhist teachings on grief. Shabkar experienced great sadness and grief over the loss of his mother and was haunted by it until his death. He also experienced much sadness at the loss of his teacher, which revisited him often.

Shabkar did not hide his grief. In fact, his autobiography gives us a window into how he expressed it and also captures his direct advice for anyone burning with sorrow.

Go Ahead and Weep

In his autobiography, Shabkar recounts stopping at Mount Kailash to give advice to an assembly of people who followed him there. His speech was a long exposition about waking up from the denial of impermanence, a teaching typical of introductions to Vajrayana. But it also included something not so typical: a rare lesson on the importance of crying. Shabkar wrote:

To cry when parting from one’s guru, and when one’s father or mother dies, is a noble thing in this world. It is something you should wish for, not something despicable. Those who don’t cry need not feel uneasy about the many who do; those who are crying need not feel ashamed, since crying is quite just on this occasion. Anyone who feels like crying should just go ahead and weep—there is nothing wrong with it.

Shabkar’s suggestion that we should not hesitate to cry when the occasion calls for it, and also that we shouldn’t feel guilty if we can’t, is advice that would fit in well with modern psychology, which reminds us again and again that there is no one right way to grieve. Moreover, he cuts through the notion that Buddhist equanimity somehow means being stoic or unfeeling.

Indeed, Shabkar wept for three days when he left his teacher, and later wept more when his teacher died. He wept when he saw the tears of his own followers. He wept when his student died. When his mother died, his grief was infinite. Even when his tears had dried, it followed him throughout his life.

Transferring Compassion to Others

Shabkar processed his grief about his mother through his encounters with others who reminded him of her. This reflects the Buddhist practice of considering all beings to have been one’s mother at one time or another. It also reflects how Shabkar worked with his mind. The sorrow and loss he felt fostered a raw and openhearted compassion toward others.

On one occasion, he saw an old woman who could no longer walk lying in a hollow, with infections that oozed from her body. Seeing that she was starving, he begged for a month’s worth of food for her and prayed over her, saying, “There is not a single being who has not been my mother.” He wept upon seeing her helplessness, and when she saw his tears, she wept as well, telling him, “I had a dear son who died. Your coming here is like meeting him again; it’s as if he came back from death.” And they wept together for a long time. It is a poignant scene in which two people separated from their loved ones share a moment of grieving and love.

Grief opens us to much tenderness and love.

A life can be like this. Sometimes, we cannot give love to the one we wish to give it to. Maybe that person can’t receive it, or maybe they have passed away by the time we have the love to give. Other times we may try to give love and it falls on deaf ears. Sometimes it is not safe to love a person directly. But grief opens us to much tenderness and love, and we can give that love to someone else, even if it is only with our lost one’s memory in our heart. In doing so, we can also dedicate the merit of our altruism and compassion to the loved one we wish we could have given it to. There is satisfaction in this.

This transference of compassion happened again when Shabkar returned to his hometown after having been away a long time. Not only was his mother dead, but his childhood home had fallen into ruins. There in the wreckage he found a paralyzed homeless woman. It’s a scene that is common in India or Nepal today: people with disfigured bodies, living in alleyways and on corners, begging or sleeping. As Shabkar looked upon this woman with sorrow, the image of his mother arose in his mind. Her helplessness reminded him of his own mother’s pleas for his help and for his return, a wish Shabkar never granted. A deep sadness welled up from the depths of his being and he cried. When that woman saw his emotion, she cried too.

As they wept together, Shabkar sang a song of realization. In it, he mourned the loss of his home and his mother, and expressed sadness for his own helplessness and that of this woman. A song about realizing impermanence, it reveals how spiritual insight and grief go hand in hand. After the paralyzed woman died, Shabkar erected a stupa and temple at the site and it became a place of pilgrimage and prayer for years to come.

In Mahayana Buddhism, the bodhisattva has compassion for the suffering of all beings. The bodhisattva is a hero, with realization that has given rise to such great compassion and wisdom that it is the guiding principle of their life. In this scene, however, Shabkar is not portrayed as a bodhisattva hero, but as a grieving son. This is another face of compassion—compassion born not from esoteric realizations or the crisp, keen, logic of Buddhist philosophy, but rather from loss.

However many losses we go through, there remain many people who are suffering and need to be loved. Shabkar’s meetings with the two women are reminders that we can find healing for ourselves and others by continuing to love the ones we encounter.

Shabkar ends that song standing with this beggar woman, reciting a prayer that both he and his mother would be guides to relieve the suffering of beings in all future lives.

In Dreams

According to Buddhist philosophy, the denial of ceaseless change and impermanence drives our neurosis and suffering. Thus the key to becoming a buddha is recognizing impermanence as a mark of existence.

Sometimes impermanence is a radical rupture. Other times it is just another subtle, unnoticed change, the kind that we experience thousands of times each day. This series of changes, from day to day, season to season, one life to the next, all add up to the liminal experience of being that Buddhism so aptly describes. By liminal, I mean that it is in-between-ness, ever transitioning, beyond the reach of logic and control, beyond the bounds of the scripts of our culture and the straightjackets of our concepts. In Vajrayana Buddhism, one of the training grounds for integrating with this ever-changing world is in our dreams.

Tibetan Buddhism regards dreams as a rich and fertile place where spiritual training can continue—or where mental afflictions can be reinforced. Dreams are sometimes a source of revelations for advanced Buddhist masters. In Shabkar’s life, dreams were a domain of omens and meetings with teachers in which he received instruction and prophecy. It is also in dreams that Shabkar found assurance that his mother had journeyed toward blissful realms in the afterlife.

One night, toward the end of his life and the peak of his profoundly benevolent teaching career, Shabkar had a dream that he was in a paradise with a jeweled temple and three young maidens. One of them spoke to him and said, “Don’t you recognize me?” He realized it was his mother with her two old friends. He recalled a memory from his childhood watching these two ladies with his mother as they recited prayers to Tara. Now, they had been reborn in Tara’s pure land! He saw that his mother was happy. They spoke and she encouraged him to continue benefiting beings. Shabkar felt great joy. He remembered that his mother had accumulated much merit in her life and saw that it had delivered her to a blissful realm. In contrast to the image he had in his head of her desperately writing letters to him, he saw her now joyfully accompanied still by her close friends. And he saw her release him. She gave him the blessing he had so yearned for—the blessing to continue traveling and doing his work. In the dream, Shabkar was freed from decades of guilt and grief.

Dreams such as these may be regarded as either messages from beyond or messages from one’s own mind. The bereaved can’t make such dreams happen, but when they do come, we can cherish and welcome them.

Grief that Comes and Goes

Joy and sorrow are like travelers on the roadside,
suddenly come and suddenly gone. —Shabkar

It’s good to remember that grief was not Shabkar’s only experience. On the contrary, Shabkar lived a life of great joy and service, before, during, and after his grief. As he said in his song of realization, the sun of love and the moon of compassion arose again and again in him. His realization of impermanence did not leave him in despair; on the contrary, it was further training and insight confirming the teachings he had received. Although dreamlike and not to be reified, Shabkar saw reality as something to be enjoyed. He could dance with joy at the vivid, brilliant, immaculate clarity of awareness.

Grief is not necessarily the harbinger of a life of darkness that we sometimes fear it will be. For Shabkar, grief was part of his path to becoming true, openhearted, and free. And in the end, Shabkar’s grief was as impermanent as that which he grieved.

1]     This and subsequent quotations by Shabkar are from The Life of Shabkar: The autobiography of a Tibetan Yogin, translated by Matthieu Ricard (Snow Lion, 2001).

Make the jump here to read the original and more

 

Via Queerty Newsletter // Older gay gentlemen offer 15 life lessons to their younger gay counterparts

 

Men kissing
(Photo: Shutterstock)

Things are better for young queer or gay men coming to terms with their sexuality these days compared to the past, but that doesn’t mean they’re perfect. Advice from those that have struggled with the same things may help or give a different perspective.

“What I wish would have been available to me when I was 20, was the opportunity to speak with someone who had experienced what I was experiencing as I was coming out,” says Jeff Levy, a gay, Chicago-based psychotherapist.

“At the time, there were no role models in the media and I was coming out during the AIDS crisis. Although there are more role models for younger gay folks now, I’d encourage younger gay men to reach out to older gay men and to ask questions about their life experiences and relationships. I think intergenerational friendships and opportunities for mentoring could be incredibly valuable and enriching.”

We messaged some gay men over 50 and asked them about things they wished they’d known earlier about love, life, sex, and relationships. Some replied anonymously while others were happy to be named.

1. Don’t forget your friends

“When you are dating, don’t forget to maintain your close friendships. Friends often endure beyond romantic relationships. But they too require nurturing and maintenance.” (Dominic Davies, of UK-based Pink Therapy)

2. Own your sexuality

“Don’t be embarrassed to tell sex partners what you like doing in bed, or to ask for the sex you want. As gay men, we often taught to feel ashamed of our sexual desires, and that can leave many of us forever challenged when it comes to saying what we do and don’t enjoy.” (Anon.)

“Learn what turns you on and discuss that with your partner. Then explore more things to add to the list. Erotic pleasure is infinite, there is no need to be bored if you share your active imaginations!” (Dominic Davies)

3. Stay safe

“Have as much sex as you want with whoever you want and never feel guilty about it… but always be safe. There’s no sex so mind-blowing it’s worth risking your health for. And if someone tries to persuade you to be unsafe, that should be a reason to leave.” (SG)

4. Prioritize the right people

“Prioritize people who wish to prioritize you: not those who treat you as an option.” (DK)

5. Support others and they’ll support you

“Challenge prejudice and discrimination even when it isn’t aimed at you or people like you. Racism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia and, yes, even ageism, are toxic, depriving people of opportunities to fulfill their potential. Our enemies seek to divide us. Don’t let them. Support others and you will be supported by others.” (Matthew Hodson, Executive Director, NAM / aidsmap)

“Help when you can and accept help when you need it.” (JM)

6. Actions speak louder than words

“Someone may say that they’re committed to you or feel a certain way about you, but if their actions say otherwise, listen to what those actions are telling you. People really do reveal themselves through their actions.” (DK)

7. Strive to be kind

“Always try to treat others with kindness… even if you have the perfect, bitchy response to hand to put someone down.” (Anon.)

“Cruelty is not funny.” (Matthew Hodson)

8. Don’t ignore warning signs

“Don’t ignore red flags when getting involved with someone. They nearly always turn into bigger issues further down the line.” (Anon.)

9. Swap contact details

“If you have amazing sex with someone in a bathhouse or other sex venue, don’t be shy of asking them for their phone number. If you don’t, you’ll likely never see them again and may regret not asking for it. I never used to do this, but when I started doing so, I was surprised how often guys wanted to connect again or meet up. Not everyone is looking for an anonymous, brief encounter. In fact, most people aren’t.” (Anon.)

(Photo: Shutterstock)

10. The right partner goes beyond the physical

“Good sex involves your heart, head and dick. If your dick is the only part of you really involved, don’t be surprised if, after you orgasm, you feel lonelier than ever…this is your heart and head saying, ‘Hey, why didn’t you let us in on this?’ Learn to open your heart and your mind as well as your legs!” (Michael Dale Kimmel, a California-licensed psychotherapist)

“Don’t fall in love with a man just because he has a gorgeous dick … or any other gorgeous body part. In a long-term relationship, sex will only ever be a small part of your adventures together: and personality and shared values will become more important.” (Anon.)

11. Don’t fall for myths

“The old saying that ‘No-one loves a fairy over 40’ is a big, fat lie.” (Anon.)

12. Things will change and that’s OK

“What would I advise my 20-year-old self about love? Love is different when you’re in your twenties, it’s supposed to be an adventure; you’re meant to love lots of people in many ways. That’s what happens at your age. Love changes, as you get older: things get calmer, problems become more subtle, you’ll probably look for more stability and less drama. So, enjoy your lovers now, knowing it will just get better over time.” (Michael Dale Kimmel)

13. Cherish all generations

“Every generation is fabulous in its own way – and every generation will face its own struggles. My generation was decimated by AIDS. Chemsex continues to take a toll on our communities. We cannot be certain that the freedoms and rights we enjoy now will continue unless we remain vigilant. We deal with our challenges more effectively when we learn from the generations that came before us.” (Matthew Hodson)

14. Choose the relationship that’s right for you

“It’s possible to love more than one person at the same time, equally and differently. Some of us are naturally suited to non-monogamy and that can also be a ‘committed relationship.’ But be honest with yourself and your partner. Cheating sucks.” (Dominic Davies)

“Make sure you get the relationship you want. The great thing about being gay is that we don’t feel like we have to have a relationship like our parents. If you want to be open, negotiate that. And if you want to be monogamous, then that’s OK too.” (SG)

15. Life is too short to not be yourself

“Life is too short to spend time hiding your true self or trying to live up to the expectations of others. This is your life and you only get to live it once.” (DK)

Make the jump here to read the original and more

Via FB

 

Via Daily Dharma: Understanding Difficult Emotions

 When you ignore [a] difficult emotion, that's delusion, that's ignoring it. … When we have wisdom, mindfulness, and understanding, then we can resolve emotions.

—Bhante Buddharakkhita, “Overcoming Difficult Emotions in a Chaotic World”

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

Via Tricycle: How to Cultivate an Unshakable Inner Peace

 With so much chaos swirling around our world, many of us are experiencing waves of heightened anxiety, fear, anger, grief, despair, loneliness, and other difficult emotions. 


It’s easy to get swept up in the storm, but the teachings of Buddhism remind us that even in the midst of external chaos we can cultivate an unshakable inner peace. We can’t change what’s happening in the world, but we can choose to stay present no matter what’s going on around us. 

Mindfulness can act as an anchor, helping us to stay steady through these turbulent times. In our August Dharma Talk series, “Overcoming Difficult Emotions in a Chaotic World,” Bhante Buddharakkhita, a Ugandan Buddhist teacher, monk, and author, offers a series of mindfulness practices for navigating whatever emotional states may be arising for you right now.  

Watch the four-part series to better understand the roots of difficult emotions and learn how to apply mindfulness to overcome them.

Also this week:
  • Aging as a Spiritual Practice starts September 14! Join Zen teacher and author Lewis Richmond for a six-week course on finding ease in the process of growing older.
     
  • In a new essay for the Fall 2020 issue, Stephen Batchelor considers the benefits of contemplating the extinction of humankind.
     
  • Two chief architects of the Paris Climate Agreement say the first step to saving the planet is changing our mindset—and embracing an attitude of “gritty optimism.”
     
  • Find instant relief and resilience during difficult moments with the short and sweet practices featured in our new podcast, For the Moment.

Via NPR Story Corps: Falling In Love During The Era Of Don't Ask Don't Tell

 

Mike Rudulph (left) and Neil Rafferty.

Courtesy of Mike Rudulph  
 

Friday, August 14, 2020

Via FB // Spinoza Einstein

 

When Einstein was giving lectures at the numerous US universities, the most recurring question that students and scientists asked him was: Do you believe. In God? And he always answered: I believe in the God of Spinoza.
Baruch de Spinoza was a Dutch philosopher considered one of the three great rationalists of the 17th century philosophy, along with the French Descartes. This is the God or nature of Spinoza:
God would have said:
Stop praying and punching yourself in the chest!
What I want you to do is go out into the world and enjoy your life.
I want you to enjoy, sing,
have fun and enjoy everything I've made for you.
Stop going to those dark, cold temples
that you built yourself and say they are my house!
My house is in the mountains,
in the woods, rivers, lakes, beaches.
That's where I live and there I express my love for you.
Stop blaming me for your miserable life;
I never told you there was anything wrong with you
or that you were a sinner,
or that your sexuality was a bad thing!
Sex is a gift I have given you
With which you can express your love, your ecstasy, your joy.
So don't blame me for everything they made you believe.
Stop reading alleged sacred scriptures that have nothing to do with me.
If you can't read me in a sunrise, in a landscape,
in the look of your friends, in your son's eyes...
you will find me in no book!
Trust me and stop asking me. Will you tell me how to do my job?
Stop being so scared of me.
I do not judge you, criticize you,
nor get angry, or bother, or punishment.
I am pure love.
Stop asking for forgiveness, there's nothing to forgive.
If I made you...
I filled you with passions, limitations, pleasures,
feelings, needs, inconsistencies... free will.
How can I blame you if you respond to something I put in you?
How can I punish you for being the way you are,
if I'm the one who made you
Do you think I could create a place to burn all my children
who behave badly for the rest of eternity?
What kind of god can do that?
Forget any kind of commandments, any kind of laws;
those are wiles to manipulate you, to control you,
that only create guilt in you.
Respect your peers and don't do what you don't want for yourself.
All I ask is that you pay attention in your life,
that your alert is your guide.
My beloved, this life is not a test,
not a step, not a step in the way, not a rehearsal,
nor a prelude to paradise.
This life is the only thing here and now and all you need.
I have set you absolutely free, no prizes or punishments,
no sins or virtues, no one carries a marker, no one keeps a record.
You are absolutely free to create in your life heaven or hell.
I could tell you if there's anything after this life
but I can give you a tip. Live as if there is no.
As if this is your only chance to enjoy, to love, to exist.
So, if there's nothing,
then you will have enjoyed the opportunity I gave you.
And if there is, rest assured that
I won't ask if you behaved right or wrong,
I'll ask.
Did you like it?
Did you have fun?
What did you enjoy the most?
What did you learn?...
Stop believing in me;
believing is assuming, guessing, imagining.
I don't want you to believe in me,
I want you to feel in you.
I want you to feel me in you when you kiss your beloved,
when you tuck your little girl,
when you caress your dog,
when you bathe in the sea.
Stop praising me,
what kind of egomaniac God do you think I am?
I'm bored being praised,
I'm tired of being thanked.
Feeling grateful?
Prove it by taking care of you,
your health, your relationships, the world.
Feeling looked at, shocked?...
Express your joy!
That's the way to praise me.
Stop complicating things and
repeating as a parakeet what you've been taught about me.
The only thing for sure is that you are here,
that you are alive,
that this world is full of wonders.
What do you need more miracles for?
Why so many explanations?
look for me outside, you won't find me.
Find me inside... there I am beating on you.
Spinoza.

Via Daily Dharma: The Power of Forgiveness

 Without forgiveness, we’re forced to carry the sufferings of the past.

—Gina Sharpe, “The Power of Forgiveness”

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

Thursday, August 13, 2020

Happy VERTUMNALIA! via The White Crane Insitute

 


Vertumnus by Archimboldo
2017 -

VERTUMNALIA – Roman festival in honor of Vertumnus and Diana, on the Aventine Hill. In Roman mythology, Vertumnus is the god of seasons, change and plant growth, as well as gardens and fruit trees.

He could change form, at will; using this power, according to Ovid’s Metamorphoses, he tricked Pomona into talking to him by disguising himself as an old woman and gaining entry to her orchard, then using a narrative warning of the dangers of rejecting a suitor (the embedded tale of Iphis and Anaxarete) to seduce her. The Ides of August was also sacred to Jupiter and known as the feriae Jovi, or Festival of Jove, and to Diana, the goddess of the moon, and called the Festival of Diana.

Diana was sometimes viewed as Jupiter's female equivalent (not his wife, who was Juno). On this day, Diana's temple on the Aventine Hill was consecrated; today cow horns (symbols of Hercules), were hung in the front of the temple.

Via Ram Dass - Love Serve Remember Foundation // Words of Wisdom - August 12, 2020 💌

 

 "The transformation that comes through meditation is not a straight-line progression. It’s a spiral, a cycle. My own life is very much a series of spirals in which at times I am pulled toward some particular form of sadhana or lifestyle and make a commitment to it for maybe six months or a year.

After this time I assess its effects. At times I work with external methods such as service. At other times the pull is inward, and I retreat from society to spend more time alone. The timing for these phases in the spiral must be in tune with your inner voice and your outer life.

Don’t get too rigidly attached to any one method – turn to others when their time comes, when you are ripe for them."

- Ram Dass -

Via Tumblr

 


My Sacred Dharma Space:

 





Via FB // John Pavlovitz

 Apparently, I’ve been radicalized and I wasn’t aware.

Certain people call me the “radical Left” all the time.
 
I never considered myself radical before. I just thought I was normal, ordinary, usual.I thought equity was important to everyone.I imagined America was filled with people who took that Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness stuff seriously—for all people.I thought the Golden Rule was actually mainstream.
 
Recently I took an inventory of my positions, screening for the extremism:
 
I believe in full LGBTQ rights.
I believe we should protect the planet.
I believe everyone deserves healthcare.
I believe all religions are equally valid.
I believe the world is bigger than America.
I believe to be “pro-life,” means to treasure all of it.I believe women should have autonomy over their own bodies.
I believe whiteness isn’t superior and it is not the baseline of humanity.
I believe we are all one interdependent community.
I believe people and places are made better by diversity.
I believe people shouldn’t be forced to abide by anyone else’s religion.
I believe non-American human beings have as much value as American ones.
 
I believe generosity is greater than greed, compassion better than contempt, and kindness superior to derision.
 
I believe there is enough in this world for everyone: enough food, enough money, enough room, enough care—if we unleash our creativity and unclench our fists.
 
I’m not sure how these ideas became radical, though it seems to have happened in the last few years.
 
I grew up being taught they were just part of being a decent human being.
 
I grew up believing that loving my neighbor as myself, meant that I actually worked for their welfare as much as my own.
 
I was taught that caring for the least in the world, was the measure of my devotion to God.I thought that inalienable rights of other people were supposed to be a priority as a decent participant in the world.
I don’t think I’m alone.
 
In fact, I’m pretty sure that most people reside here in this place alongside me: the desire for compassion and diversity and equality and justice; that these things aren’t fringe ideologies or extremist positions—but simply the best way to be human.
 
I think most people want more humanity, not less.
 
I think the vast middle is exhausted by the cruelty of these days.
 
That these aspirations seem radical to some people, is probably an alarm that they’ve moved so far into the extremes of their fortified ideological bunkers and been so poisoned by the propaganda, that normal now seems excessive, that equality now seems oppressive, that goodness feels reckless.
 
Maybe the problem is, these people are so filled with fear for those who are different, so conditioned to be at war with the world, so indoctrinated into a white nationalistic religion of malice—that they’ve lost sight of what being a human being looks like anymore.
 
I am pretty sure that I don’t represent the “radical Left,” but the vast, disparate, compassionate, humane Middle; people who are not threatened by someone else’s presence, who do not see another person’s gain as their loss, who don’t worship a Caucasian, American god.
 
I suppose humanity feels radical to inhumane people.
In that case, I’ll gladly be here in my extremism.
 
-John Pavlovitz

Via Daily Dharma: Coming to Terms with Reality

 More often than we might think, there is nothing we can do beyond coming to terms with our experience not as we want it to be, but with it as it is.

— Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum, “Breathless”

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

Tuesday, August 11, 2020

Via White Crane Institute // Today's Gay Wisdom

 


Achilles and the death of Patroclus
2017 BCE -

TODAY'S GAY WISDOM

Notable ancient Greek warriors who had same-sex love relationships:

ARISTOMENES — Prince of the Messenians and Arcadians

CIMON — leader of the Delian League forces and the Athenian navy, gaining notoriety in the Persian Wars

ASOPHICHUS — great warrior and lover of Epaminondas

CAPHISODORUS — warrior and lover of Epaminondas whom he died with at the battle of Mantineia

CLEOMACHUS — led Chalcis to victory in the Lelantine Warns and introduced pederasty to the area

PAMMENES — general who was supposed to assume leadership after Epaminondas

THERON — warrior from Thessaly

HARMODIUS — credited with bringing about Athenian democracy with Aristogiton

ARISTOGITON — credited with bringing about Athenian democracy with Harmodius

PELOPIDAS — general of the elite Sacred Band of Thebes

EPAMINONDAS — Theban general and commander of the Boeotian army credited with ending Sparta’s dominance  Lover of Asophichus.

GORGIDAS — established the Sacred Band of Thebes selecting male couples within the Theban army

MELEAGER — infantry commander under Alexander

HEPHAESTION — top general and lover of Alexander

Via Daily Dharma: How to Cultivate Generosity

 Like any form of strength, generosity needs to be intentionally cultivated over time, and everyone must begin in whatever state of mind they already happen to be.

—Dale S. Wright, “The Bodhisattva’s Gift”

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE