Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Via Daily Dharma: One Moment of Perfect Attention

 

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One Moment of Perfect Attention

One moment of kindness is greater than a hundred years of ordinary life. One moment of perfect attention is greater than a hundred years of kindness.

Kate Lila Wheeler, “Ringworm”


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Academia Meets Applied Buddhism
Interview with Dr. Henry Shiu by Pamela Gayle White
Henry Shiu moved to Canada from Hong Kong in 1990 with plans to study engineering or medicine. Thanks to an undergraduate elective that fellow students had suggested was an easy A, Shiu is now contributing to the evolving landscape of Buddhist chaplaincy studies in Canada.
Read more »


Buddhist Film Festival
Presented by Tricycle
March 15-24, 2024
We invite you to join us for our first-ever Buddhist Film Festival from March 15-24, offering five feature-length films, five short films, and a live Q&A with Lana Wilson, director of The Departure!
Get your ticket »

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Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Speech: Refraining from Malicious Speech

 



RIGHT SPEECH
Refraining from Malicious Speech
Malicious speech is unhealthy. Refraining from malicious speech is healthy. (MN 9) Abandoning malicious speech, one refrains from malicious speech. One does not repeat there what one has heard here to the detriment of these, or repeat here what he has heard there to the detriment of those. One unites those who are divided, is a promoter of friendships, and speaks words that promote concord. (DN 1) One practices thus: "Others may speak maliciously, but I shall abstain from malicious speech." (MN 8)

When others address you, their speech may be connected with good or with harm … One is to train thus: "My mind will be unaffected, and I shall utter no bad words; I shall abide compassionate for their welfare, with a mind of lovingkindness, without inner hate." (MN 21)
Reflection
Malice is the desire to do harm, and when we look closely and honestly we may notice that much of what we say is laced with this intention. One text calls a dispute “stabbing one other with verbal daggers.” Here we are being encouraged to receive the wound without striking back. It is ultimately an expression of freedom from compulsion when you are able to say, “Others may speak maliciously, but I choose not to.”

Daily Practice
Not being provoked to malice by the malice of others is a difficult but important practice. Try to do this in small ways and gradually build up to more difficult situations. If someone slights you in some small way, practice noticing this, understanding it as an aggressive verbal act and then deliberately choosing to not be provoked by it into some form of retaliation. Do this again and again, and you will gradually get the hang of it.

Tomorrow: Reflecting upon Verbal Action
One week from today: Refraining from Harsh Speech

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Tuesday, February 27, 2024

Via Daily Dharma: Stop, Breathe, and Consider

 

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Stop, Breathe, and Consider 

When we speak with greater skill, our true self—our compassionate, loving self—emerges with gentle ease. So before you speak, stop, breathe, and consider if what you are about to say will improve upon the silence.

Allan Lokos, “Skillful Speech”


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VIA Dhamma Wheel | Right Intention: Cultivating Compassion

 


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RIGHT INTENTION
Cultivating Compassion
Whatever you intend, whatever you plan, and whatever you have a tendency toward, that will become the basis on which your mind is established. (SN 12.40) Develop meditation on compassion, for when you develop meditation on compassion, any cruelty will be abandoned. (MN 62)

The manifestation of compassion is non-cruelty. (Vm 9.94)
Reflection
We are all born with the innate capacity for compassion, but that does not mean we will naturally express compassion. Like everything else, expressing compassion is something we learn to do or not do. The practice of right intention involves the deliberate development of benevolent states of mind such as compassion, and that will only happen when we do so again and again. Seeking out opportunities to be compassionate, we strengthen that muscle. 

Daily Practice
Each of the brahma-viharas, the sublime states of mind, is paired with an opposite to which it is the antidote. Compassion is the antidote to cruelty, one of the most heinous human emotions. Cruelty is the wish for beings to experience greater suffering; compassion is the wish for them to be relieved of their suffering. Look for instances of suffering around you and direct to each the healing power of a compassionate mind.

Tomorrow: Refraining from Malicious Speech
One week from today: Cultivating Appreciative Joy

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#DhammaWheel

Questions?
Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.



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