People who carry out spiritual cultivation must apply a spirit of asceticism to control their minds, so that they will not be enticed by the materialism of modern society. - Cheng Yen
It's impossible to go through life with experiencing disappointment and discouragement. When those enter your life, absorb what's happened, learn from it and then, move from setback to comeback. Consider this wisdom from Steve Jobs:
I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life. Most of consuming the news is us letting other people think for you, somebody else giving us an opinion that we take as our own. We forget that we get it from somebody else, somebody who's paid to come up with hundreds of opinions a year on a variety of subjects. - Shane Parrish
The innocent who suffers insults, whips, and chains; whose weapon is endurance and whose army is character – that person I call holy. - Buddha in the Dhammapada
The English word compassion is used to translate the Sanskrit word 'karuna' which means 'suspending happiness.'
Here's the application of that linguistic insight: Reach out with love, kindness and compassion to someone else who is in a tough place. For a few moments every day suspend your own happiness to focus on another. In an ironic twist of life, when we suspend our happiness to reach out with compassion and love toward another person, our own happiness is increased. That may be why the Dalai Lama famously said: If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion. People who stay young and energetic for life endure the same setbacks and frustrations as everyone else. Their secret is that they bounce back from setbacks. To do this, requires a sense of self that is centered and unshakable. - Deepak Chopra
Prince Chalres has announced that yoga could help save “precious and expensive” NHS resources due to its effectiveness as a tool for “health and healing”. Known for his beliefs in the power of alternative medicines, the Prince said yoga had “proven beneficial effects on both body and mind.” England’s senior health chiefs have since promised to fund more yoga classes.
In a written address to the Yoga in Healthcare conference, the Prince said: "For thousands of years, millions of people have experienced yoga's ability to improve their lives. “The development of therapeutic, evidence-based yoga is, I believe, an excellent example of how yoga can contribute to health and healing. "This not only benefits the individual, but also conserves precious and expensive health resources for others where and when they are most needed." The Prince said his general health had improved since taking up the activity. Money lost can be regained, but a ruined reputation is irreplaceable. - Hsing Yun
If you're one of those fortunate individuals who "has it all" but still find yourself discontent, consider this insight from Buddhist teacher Tim Olmsted:
"The Buddhist tradition starts with the historical Buddha: he had a beautiful life, but he saw that it was utterly pointless. He was willing to give it all up and endure tremendous hardship to find out what was on the other side." Maybe you need to take a risk and find out what's "on the other side." "WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A GOOD BUDDHIST?" - BEST ANSWER .... AND IT'S NOT RITUAL AND CEREMONY!2/20/2019
It's not by ceremony that you become a Buddhist. It is by committing to practice. Buddhists get caught in a lot of rituals and ceremonies, but the Buddha does not like that. In the sutras, specifically in the teaching given by the Buddha right after his enlightenment, he said that we should be free from rituals. You do not get enlightenment or liberation just because you perform rituals, but people have made Buddhism heavily ritualistic. We are not nice to the Buddha. - Thich Nhat Hanh
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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
April 2024
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