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BUDDHIST MONKS STUDY WHETHER OR NOT A NEW DALAI LAMA SHOULD REINCARNATE

11/30/2018

The Religion News Service (RNS) is reporting that senior Buddhist monks along with the 83 year-old Dalai Lama are studying whether or not a new Dalai Lama should be reincarnated. Here are some of the concerns and issues prompting this study:

1. How to prevent Beijing from claiming that Tibet’s next spiritual leader will reincarnate in China.
2. This statement from the Dalai Lama himself: "“There is no guarantee that some stupid Dalai Lama won’t come next, who will disgrace himself or herself,” the Dalai Lama told BBC in 2014. “That would be very sad. So, much better that a centuries-old tradition should cease at the time of a quite popular Dalai Lama.” Here, the current Dalai Lama acknowledges there have been some very poor past Dalai Lamas much like the Catholic Church has had some immoral, incompetent Popes.
3. The possibility of electing or voting into office a new Dalai Lama from a select group of senior, established Buddhist monks.

OH, OH! THIS NEEDS TO CHANGE . . . AND IT IS

11/30/2018

Nearly 37 million U.S. adults practice yoga. More than 70 percent are women and 85 percent identify as white. But it’s not just that yoga is an incredibly homogenous white female culture; it’s also an astoundingly upper-class culture. As of 2017, more than 40 percent of yoga practitioners earned over $75,000 a year, and 25 percent over $100,000 annually. In other words, yoga studios are the new country clubs. As the 21st-century version of exclusive and elitist recreational spaces, these studios are often located next to a coffee shop, health food store, juice bar or a lifestyle boutique that sells Orientalist curios.

Those stats and statements are made by Rumya S. Putcha, Ph.D., in her article "The Trouble With Yoga."

Here stats are correct as is her concern. This is changing. Little by little people with limited discretionary income and people of color are making their way to yoga studios. Many centers don't turn people away due to lack of funds by offering work exchange opportunities, discounted class passes and even scholarships. Yet, there is more which needs to be done especially in finding effective ways of reaching under-served populations.

EATING A DONUT: AN IMPORTANT LESSON FROM THE BUDHA

11/30/2018

Recently, I visited a new, premier donut operation. My partner and I each picked out a donut but, unlike my partner who enjoyed hers and ate all of it, I had two bites and stopped. "Don'ts aren't healthy!" a sad voice within me criticized.

The Buddha would not have approved of my act. Here's why.

After the Buddha gained what is called "enlightenment" he became the object of criticism from some ascetics. They considered him a fraud because he was no longer living an austere lifestyle. Some of the ancient texts indicate the Buddha was eating well, wore a fine robe while they, the ascetics existed on a few grains of rice and slept uncovered in the forests. Some of them even slept beds of nails.

Those ascetics asked the Buddha, “What kind of teacher and yogi are you? You are soft, weak, indulgent.”To which the Buddha replied, “I, too, have slept on nails; I’ve stood with my eyes open to the sun in the hot sands beside the Ganges. I’ve eaten so little food that you couldn’t fill one fingernail with the amount I ate each day. I became so thin I could feel my spine when I pressed on my stomach. Whatever ascetic practices under the sun human beings have done, I, too, have done. Through them all I have learned that fighting against oneself through such practices is not the way.”

The Buddha was big on moderation. It came to be called the middle way. Not too hard; not too easy.

So, the next time I visit a donut shop, I'm eating the whole donut and, possibly, ordering a second one to enjoy!

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

11/30/2018

Breathing is closely connected to your state of mind. People who are tense or angry breath
rapidly and irregularly; those who are calm, loving and secure breathe smoothly.
- Eknath Easwaranp

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

11/29/2018

The first step toward being beautiful is to speak good words, do good deeds, and to have good thoughts. By following these three rules, let us all beautify our world! - Hsing Yun

TEN YOGA RULES TO FOLLOW

11/28/2018

The following "rules" or etiquette matters should be obvious, but some appear to be uninformed.

1. Be on time. Once in a while we all run late but tardiness to a yoga class should never be a habit.

2. Understand what kind of class you’re signing up for. Don’t get upset because you’re a hard workout junkie and the class was gentle flow. Or, you're wanting a gentle stretch class but ended up in a power yoga session. Know ahead of time what your signing up for.

3. Dress comfortably for movement. This doesn’t need to be expensive. Just be sure your clothing isn’t restrictive, uncomfortable.

4. Take off your shoes and socks. Yoga is done barefoot because it’s good for the feet and better for the body.

5. Don’t wear perfumes, colognes. Many people have allergic reactions.

6. Let the teacher know if you have an injury are pregnant or other concern.

7. Put your phone on silent and don’t bring it to the mat. You shouldn’t answer or check a phone in yoga class. Also, if it’s on the floor someone may accidentally step on it injuring themselves or damaging your phone.
8. Use only spill proof drink containers. No matter how careful you plan to be, cups and containers are knocked over all the time in a yoga class. Starbucks coffee to go cups leave horrid stains on yoga floor surfaces.
9. If you’re using a studio mat, clean it after the class. Most yoga studios have cleaner and paper towels for this purpose.
10. Stay for savasana. This is very important as the “down” times gives your body and mind time to absorb everything which has been required of them during the class. If you absolutely must leave at savasana time, it should be an exception and you should mention this to the instructor ahead of time.

QUIT BEING SO HUMBLE ADVISES RABBI

11/28/2018

Rabbi Joseph Telushkin tells of a significant insight he gained from his grandfather, Rabbi Nissen Telushkin. The Elder Rabbi frequently reminded people:

“Don’t be so concerned with being humble that you try to hide from others all knowledge of the good you do. It is good to be known as being something of a tezaddik. If nothing else, you’ll be afraid to do something bad because you’ll fear that it will become known and will harm your good name.”

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

11/28/2018

The sounds we hear every day greatly influence our consciousness, and therefore, our health. We benefit when we seek out sounds the uplifts us and participate in our healing. - Catherine L. Schweig

HERE'S WHAT CELEBRITIES HAVE SAID ABOUT LOSS AND GRIEF

11/27/2018

Grief comes to everyone. Sooner or later, every person will experience the death of someone they love. Fortune and fame can buy many things but they cannot exempt a person from loss. Here’s the way some celebrities have expressed their experience with the death of a loved one.

Ryan O’Neal on his partner, Farah Fawcett: "I hear her voice, I see her silhouette. I miss her cooking. I haven’t had a good meal since she left me. It’s harder than I thought."

Liam Neeson on his wife, Natasha Richardson: "It hits you. It’s like a wave. You just get this profound feeling of instability. The Earth isn’t stable anymore and then it passes and it becomes more infrequent, but I still get it sometimes."

Mary Tyler Moore on her son, Richard. On scattering her son’s ashes: “ "It was a sunny day. The water was clear and high as I knelt over it. I opened the container and emptied it into the rushing water. What was meant to be a prayer became an outraged demand. 'You take care of him,' I screamed at the sky."

Jennifer Hudson on losing her mother, brother and nephew within twelve months: “"It's frustrating to have somebody who ain't lost nothing try to talk to me about it. I want to say, 'Don't even bother, because you know nothing.' But you never know how much you can get through until you're going through it."

Queen Latifah on her brother, Lancelot: “If the person who you lost loved you like you loved them, there’s no way they would not want you to live your life to the maximum, to appreciate it, to go for your dreams, go for your goals.”

Sylvester Stallone on his son, Sage: "I think it's important to get back and start reliving your life. Otherwise, you can go into a spiral."

Joe Biden on the death of his first wife, Neilia and 13 month daughter, Naomi, in an auto accident: "Folks, it can and will get better. There will come a day -- I promise you, and your parents as well -- when the thought of your son or daughter, or your husband or wife, brings a smile to your lips before it brings a tear to your eye. It will happen."

Keanu Reeves on his girlfriend, Jessica, and their still born daughter: "I miss being a part of their lives and them being a part of mine. I wonder what the present would be like if they were here—what we might have done together. I miss all the great things that will never be."

Katie Couric on her husband, Jay: "Talk about [the loved one who has died]. Tell the children how proud that person would be of them. Be as honest as you can with your children: Listen and talk to them about their fears and concerns."

Billy Bob Thornton on his brother, Jimmy: "I’ve never been the same since my brother died. There’s a melancholy in me that never goes away. I’m 50% happy and 50% sad at any given moment, and the only advice I can give people when you lose someone like that is you won’t ever get over it, and the more you know that and embrace it, the better off you’ll be."

Prince Harry on his mother, Dianna: “I still feel, 20 years later about my mother, I still have shock within me . . . People say shock can’t last that long, but it does. You never get over it. It’s such an unbelievably big moment in your life that it never leaves you, you just learn to deal with it.”

Kelsey Grammer on the murder of his sister, Karen, when asked ‘do you ever get over it?’ said: "No. But you put it in context of your life. I've tried since to … just cherish this presence in my life that is still my sister, that is still around."

TEN QUALITIES OF POSITIVITY

11/27/2018

What exactly does it mean to be a positive person? And, what are the personality - emotional ingredients which are common to people whose outlook is fundamentally positive.

Barbara Frederickson, the world-renowned researcher and positive psychologist, identifies 10 qualities of positivity that show up most often in people’s lives. Though there may be other ones as well, these ten are the ones most often cited and researched by psychologists.

Joy
Gratitude
Serenity
Hope
Interest
Pride
Amusement
Inspiration
Awe
Love

Right now is an ideal time to take a personal - emotional inventory. Ask yourself these types of questions: Do I have all ten in my life? If not, how many show up in my life regularly? What steps could I take to increase my positivity quotient?

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Victor M. Parachin ...is a

Vedic educator, yoga instructor, meditation teacher and author of a dozen books. Buy his books at amazon or your local bookstore.

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