Rather than resisting,
practice accepting
followed by
resetting.
- Victor M. Parachin
practice accepting
followed by
resetting.
- Victor M. Parachin
|
We need devotion to enlightened beings and compassion to those who are not.
- Tulku Urgyen His Holiness the Dalai Lama last week urged women to take a more active role in promoting and guiding social values for humanity in the 21st century, noting that more equitable gender roles in society are fundamental to advancing humanity toward peace and economic prosperity for society as a whole.
Speaking to a delegation of 75 women from New Delhi at his official residence in Dharamsala, northern India, on 18 February, His Holiness explained that if more women took up leadership roles in fields such as politics it could have a positive impact on a global scale. He cited as an example former Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi, the first woman in the history of modern India to hold the post. “We are now in the 21st century. If we look back at the 20th century, it was a time of violence and fear. Therefore, we should make this century an era of non-violence and compassion,” said the Tibetan spiritual leader. “With regard to compassion, there is scientific evidence that women are more sensitive to others’ pain. Indeed in human history most warriors, or killers, were men, whereas women consistently show more concern for others’ well-being. In this century we should make special efforts to promote loving-kindness and women should take a leading role in this. They shouldn’t just stay at home, but should support and be actively involved with education.” (source: www.buddhistdoor.net) Though Buddhism has generally avoided the nonsensical in-fighting which characterizes Christianity and it's churches, the Buddha still encountered issues and frequently had to offer teaching such as this one:
There is one thing which, when it appears in the world, appears for the detriment of many, for the misery of many, for the loss, harm, and suffering of many. What is that one thing? It is disunity in the Sangha. When the Sangha is divided there are mutual quarrels, mutual recriminations, mutual denigrations, and mutual rejections. In this situation, those who are unsympathetic to the Dharma remain unsympathetic, and some who are sympathetic change their minds. I always like the mantra that “you can have it all, just not all at once.” There are seasons of life where you’ll have less time for yourself and will devote more to school or family or work. This is part of the normal ebb and flow of life. - Tracy Brower
An effective way to offset the fear which often accompanies change is to saturate your mind with positive slogans about change. Read and recite them until they are deeply embedded into your natural thought process. Here are some slogans to get you started:
“The key to change is to let go of fear.” - Rosanne Cash “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. ” - Maria Robinson “The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.” - Flora Whittemore. “There is nothing wrong with change if it is in the right direction.” - Winston Churchill “Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.” - Carol Burnett (please feel free to re-post and/or link to your social media) Every one of us is conditioned from birth,
programmed by our parents, teachers, peers, education and culture. By the time we reach adulthood, we’re living out of a program, responding to circumstances like robots. - John Daido Loori When I started about 40 years ago there was hardly a yoga studio in New York. And now every block has a yoga studio. And people are getting benefits because yoga is one thing that is very specific to mind-body coordination unlike regular exercise. - Deepak Chopra
 (public domain photo from www.pixabay.com) "B-a-a-maste" was the key word Saturday morning in Mesa, where more than 300 people gathered to set the world record for the largest goat yoga class. For the effort, 351 people, 84 goats, two alpacas and a dairy cow spent their morning at the Mesa Amphitheater doing what has become a nationwide phenomenon. People come from all over to try out goat yoga, said Sarah Williams, a goat yoga instructor. Williams had been a yoga instructor for 12 years when she decided to try teaching goat yoga at AZ Goat Yoga three years ago. "Goats are perfect for yoga because unlike dogs who are really attached, goats like you just enough," Williams said. In order to qualify for the Guinness World Record, the class had to be at least 30 minutes and everyone participating had to be over 18 years old. (source: azcentral.com) I've put the word enlightenment in quotes above because, like 'God', enlightenment is a word loaded with misconceptions. Simply stated, the point of 'enlightenment' is to make one a better human being. That's it!
Here is a little more elaboration from American Zen Master John Daido Loori: “When we start our practice, it is like climbing a mountain. We move a few feet ahead and then slide back a few feet. We repeat the process and gradually work our way to the peak, the enlightenment. The view is vast, boundless and no hindrances. But the practice doesn’t end there. You have to keep going when you reach the peak….We go straight ahead, and straight ahead takes us right back down the other side, into the valley, into the market place. It is there that our realization functions and manifests itself in everything that we do; in the way that we drive car, raise a child, maintain a relationship, grow a garden, live a life. If our practice doesn’t function there, what good is it? ” |
Victor M. Parachin ...is aVedic educator, yoga instructor, Buddhist meditation teacher and author of a dozen books. Buy his books at amazon or your local bookstore. Archives
January 2023
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