The learning of the petty man enters his ear and comes out of his mouth, the words have affected only the four inches between ear and mouth. Instead, the aim for a wise man should be that learning enters his ear, clings to his mind, spreads through his four limbs, and manifests itself in his actions. - Hsün-tzu
Just as all of us make great effort to maintain our everyday lives, we should make similarly great effort in our preparations for death. Everyone can benefit from preparing for death as a spiritual practice. - Anyen Rinpoche
Problems are inevitable but despair, discouragement, disillusionment are optional. The next time you encounter adversity, difficulty or sorrow repeat the mantra ‘I am not troubled by trouble’.
Then shift your perspective from a negative to positive. Start sensing that your problem may be an opportunity to develop persistence, cultivate patience, embrace change, strengthen willpower, experience growth. Begin learning to accept problems as normal and totally unavoidable. Rather than react negatively when an unwelcome issue takes you by surprise, respond with curiosity and creativity. That opens up the mental and emotional pathway for you to handle, skillfully and gracefully, any issues which emerge. Buddha is the Sanskrit word for “awakened one.” It was initially applied as an honor upon Siddhartha Gautama, the Indian prince who renounced power and privilege to seek enlightenment. The term is more general and refers to any being highly awakened.
“Anyone who is peaceful, loving and understanding can be called a buddha,” notes Thich Nhat Hanh. ‘There were many buddhas in the past, there are buddhas in the present moment, and there will be many buddhas in the future. Buddha is not the name of a particular person; buddha is just a common name to designate anyone who has a high degree of peace and who has a high degree of understanding and compassion. All of us are capable of being called by this name,” he explains. The presence of a buddha often depends on cultural, social and religions conditions. Zen master Shunryu Suzuki said: “The Buddha was great because the people were great. When the people are not ready there will be no Buddha.” Every day of your life, every morning of your life, you could ask yourself, ‘As I go into this day, what is the most important thing? What is the best use of this day?’ - Pema Chodron
A person with healthy self esteem will be proud of his or her achievements. This is a God like quality says Rabbi Joseph Telushkin. In the first chapter of Genesis, there are six occasions reported that God was proud of what He had created. One example is from Genesis 1:31: “God saw all that He had made, and found it very good.” (the other references are Genesis 1:4, 10, 12, 18 and 21). This repetition is likely present to emphasize God’s pleasure in his work.
“In contrast, there are many people who seem to feel guilty about or who are reluctant to take pleasure in, their accomplishments; instead they minimize them so as to make them seem insignificant.” A healthier and more positive approach is to be “like God” and “take pleasure in our accomplishment and good works,” Rabbi Telushkin says. Truly happy are those who can help others become happy. - Daisaku Ikeda
You must not allow yourselves to grow old before your time. Please live with a youthful spirit. That is what Buddhism teaches us to do and it is how life ought to be lived. If you make a commitment o work for the sake of others, you will be rejuvenated. If you devote your life to helping others, you’ll stay young. - Daisaku Ikeda
A meditation teacher is part of an emergency rescue operation, like when police, paramedics, and rescue workers go in with sirens blaring, red and blue lights flashing, helicopters whirling overhead with search lights - to help people drowning in danger and distress. - Lama Zopa
There are so many (far too many) incidents where adults are hitting other adults on planes, at sporting events, in malls, at stores. We are a strange species on this planet. In all honesty, I'm more and more comfortable staying away for crowded places, not frightened, but just can't quite appreciate many humans. So when I recently came across this insight from Buddhist author and psychologist Jack Kornfield, PhD, it caught my attention and has given me something to reflect on. Here's his take:
“Some days, I find it a terrible thing to go to the supermarket. I’ll see a two-year-old boy walking alongside his mother or father, and the boy accidentally knocks something over. Immediately the parent turns back, smacks the kid, and yells, “Don’t you dare do that!” And the poor toddler is shaken up and doesn’t understand. “What do they want from me?” he wonders. “I’m just learning to walk. It was an accident.” Right then, this child learns that he’s bad, and he also learns that if you don’t like what happens, you hit somebody else." |
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
March 2024
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