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.
RIGHT MINDFULNESS Establishing Mindfulness of Body
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)
Breathing in and out, tranquilizing bodily activities … one is just
aware, just mindful: "There is a body." And one abides not clinging to
anything in the world. (MN 10)
Reflection
Sunday is a
good day to get in the habit of spending some time in mindful
meditation. When the quality of mind called mindfulness is nurtured and
developed, the mind inclines toward contentment, as this passage points
out. This might even be a good definition of mindfulness: feeling
content with whatever is happening by not wanting it to be anything
other than it is.
Daily Practice
The text that
teaches meditation begins with learning to breathe in and out, long and
short, mindfully, but here it shifts with a more intentional directive.
The instruction is to "tranquilize"—calm or relax—the breathing and all
bodily activity. In other words, we are now not simply being aware of
what is happening but also trying to direct our experience toward deeper
and deeper states of calm. With each breath, relax.
RIGHT CONCENTRATION Approaching and Abiding in the First Phase of Absorption (1st Jhāna)
Having abandoned the five
hindrances, imperfections of the mind that weaken wisdom, quite secluded
from sensual pleasures, secluded from unwholesome states, one enters
and abides in the first phase of absorption, which is accompanied by
applied thought and sustained thought, with joy and the pleasure born of
seclusion. (MN 4)
Reflection
We dedicate
Sundays to practicing mindfulness and concentration. Concentration
practice involves focusing the mind on a single object, such as the
breath, and returning attention to this focal point whenever it wanders
off (which it will surely do often). All forms of meditation involve
some level of concentration, so it is a good thing to practice.
Daily Practice
Formal
concentration practice, involving absorption (Pali: jhāna) in four
defined stages, requires more time and sustained effort than occasional
practice generally allows and would benefit from careful instruction by a
qualified teacher. You may begin on your own, however, simply by
practicing to abandon the five hindrances, since jhāna practice only
really begins when these temporarily cease to arise.
Tomorrow: Understanding the Noble Truth of the Origin Suffering One week from today: Establishing Mindfulness of Feeling and Abiding in the Second Jhāna
Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel
Every
day when we wake up, we have a choice. Will we choose fear or will we
choose compassion and love? These are very strong, but I’ve learned in
my short 28 years that anger and fear exhaust me, whereas if I do work
out of love and compassion and kindness, I’m actually nourished. It’s a
sustainable energy.
Ocean Vuong, “What Scares Writer and Zen Buddhist Ocean Vuong”
A
Theravada monk offers education and opportunity to the girls of Lumbini,
the Buddha’s birthplace and one of the four most important pilgrimage
sites in Buddhism.
When you have seen the perfection of form, including the suffering, then
that balances the feeling of the human heart, and you see that that
perfection includes your human heart’s pain. And then you start to
expand to embrace the paradox, and it is a paradox for the mind. The
paradox that it’s all perfect, and yet, there is so much suffering and
it stinks. And it hurts.
OLA HOFTUN LILLELIEN, born on this date, is a professional handball player who proudly came out as a gay man in April 2022.
Lillelien, 22,
plays for the nation of Denmark. Handball is a very popular sport in
Europe, wherein teams play keep away with a ball as they try to toss it
in the opposing team’s goal. Think of it as a combination of basketball
and soccer.
Lillelien took to
Instagram on April 21 to share the emotional revelation with his fans.
In coming out, he becomes one of the few openly LGBTQ players in the
league.
“I have been
thinking for a long time about whether I should publish this post, but I
now understand that it is something I want,” he wrote. “Not for my own
part, but to be a role model. Not just for young people, but for
everyone. About half a year ago, I told my family, friends and teammates
that I most likely do not end up with a sweet girl, but a handsome
boy. The response was exclusively positive!”
“I say it like
the king: Norway is boys who love boys, girls who love girls, and girls
and boys who love each other,” Lillelien said, quoting from a speech of
acceptance by King Harald V in 2016.
The athlete
deliberately published the post on a specific date: "On April 21, 2022,
it will be 50 years since loving who you want was decriminalized in
Norway," he continued. "This post was not made by me to seek validation
or attention, but to proudly thank those who fought before me for my
right to love who I want."
"I hope today's
society has come to the point where boys and girls don't have to worry
about not being accepted for who they are. Being in love with someone
isn't sensational, so I hope we've managed that it doesn't turn out to
be a big deal."
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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
Since you participated in Buddhafest, we believe you’ll find great value in this ten-day festival offering five feature-length films and five short films exploring the rich tapestry of Buddhist thought.
Tickets are $30 for Tricycle subscribers and $40 for general admission.
Your ticket includes access to the following ten films:
The Departure directed by Lana Wilson
The Sweet Requiem directed by Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam
Tukdam: Between Worlds directed by Donagh Coleman
Return to Gandhi Road directed by Yeshe Hegan
Geshe Wangyal. With Blessing of the Three Jewels directed by Ella Manzheeva
Dust to Light directed by Erika Houle
Drapchi Elegy directed by Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam
Windhorse directed by Sunil Gurung
The Altar directed by Moe Myat May Zarchi
Waking Up 2050 directed by Ray Choo
You'll be able to watch nine of the films at any point during the festival, PLUS enjoy a live screening of The Departure on Saturday, March 16 at 12:00 P.M. ET followed by a Q&A with director Lana Wilson moderated by Koshin Paley Ellison.
RIGHT EFFORT Restraining Unarisen Unhealthy States
Whatever a person frequently
thinks 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 restrain the arising of unarisen unhealthy
mental states. One restrains the arising of the unarisen hindrance of
restlessness. (MN 141)
Reflection
It should not
surprise us to hear that a person gradually becomes what they practice
being. If you complain a lot about all the things you are discontented
with, you will become a more discontented person and more inclined to
further discontent. This works in a positive direction also, allowing us
to develop healthy mental habits, but this passage focuses on
protecting ourselves from our own toxic qualities of mind.
Daily Practice
This passage
begins the process of walking us through the five hindrances, qualities
of mind that inhibit mental clarity and contribute to suffering. The
first of these is restlessness, a quality of mind that is active in some
moments and dormant in others. Here we are told to practice the states
of mind, primarily calm and tranquility, that prevent restlessness from
arising. A calm mind is a healthy mind; practice calming the mind often.
Tomorrow: Establishing Mindfulness of Body and Abiding in the First Jhāna One week from today: Abandoning Arisen Unhealthy States
Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel
There
can be no love without attention. In cultivating attention, we’re
cultivating a possibility for intention and a possibility for
connection. Connection is all about love.
Los cinco obstáculos: La mala voluntad By Vanessa Zuisei Goddard
Vanessa
Zuisei Goddard explica que el remedio principal para la mala voluntad
es permitir que el agua se calme, que nuestra visión sea expansiva, y lo
hacemos dirigiendo sabiamente nuestra atención hacia la bondad amorosa (metta) y cultivándola cuidadosamente.
NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIOis founded in the United States.
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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
