Give thanks for everything in your world that cooperates to give you life and strength. - Ignatius Loyola
 (public domain image www.pixabay.com) Because the bamboo plant can survive harsh winters,blistering summers and fierce storms it is an important symbol of enlightenment in Buddhism. Like the bamboo, enlightenment requires persistence, strength, flexibility and adaptability. The presence of bamboo also creates a sense of quiet and peace while providing shelter for human and other beings. It is especially venerated in China, Korea and Japan where the relationship between Buddhism and Bamboo is tightly linked. For example, many Buddhist temples grow and nurture the plant on their properties. In addition, some temples include the word ‘bamboo’ in their names. Various bamboo species are named after the Buddha such as “Buddha Belly Bamboo”, “Mercy Buddha Bamboo”, and “Arhat Bamboo.” Buddhism has also inspired various wisdom statements around the bamboo plant – Bend but don’t break. Be flexible yet firmly rooted. You can lean on a bamboo stick but not on a rope. Like bamboo, be resilient and bounce back. The higher the bamboo, the more it bends. Commit to continuous growth. Anytime you face a major life obstacle, bring to mind the bamboo and it’s ability to adapt, adjust, survive and thrive. Do the same. We all carry in our mind streams the seeds of both positive and negative karma, and thus have the potential to be both good and evil. That is the case until we achieve the higher wisdom by which the power of inner karmic instinct is transcended. - Glenn Mullin
Give your time. Give your money.
Give encouragement. Give love. Give abundantly. - Stephen Dela Cruz It’s possible to practice alone, as individuals. But you might lose your practice after a few
months because you don’t have a sangha to guide you, to protect you, to support you. That’s why a good practitioner always tries to build a sangha in his town or village. Even a buddha needs a sangha. - Thich Nhat Hanh Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today. - Thich Nhat Hanh
There’s nothing wrong with acquisitions, but there’s something wrong with thinking they’ll bring you happiness. - Alan Wallace
"I think so. Dignity is key. Most people now die in a drug induced state, and in some cases, this interferes with dignity. In the past, a lot of people died in pain, but that wasn’t necessarily bad. A great example is Epicurus. He died in enormous pain, yet he endured and died with tranquility. This was essential to his teaching: do not fear death. These days, the overwhelming issue is not dying in pain, not being a burden to anybody else. So. there’s a sense that you should drug people, pacify them. Yet there are people in the modern age who have done other things – Freud, for instance. He had twenty-seven operations for cancer of the mouth and refused to take painkillers because, he said, he’d rather think in pain than not think at all."
- Simon Critchley. professor and chair of philosophy at the New School for Social Research in New York (from an interview with Andrea MIller and published in her book Awakening Heart) We tend to believe that what we see about us is not only real but permanent. This is not true. - Richard Hittleman
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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
June 2020
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