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Unfortunately, this morning, my cat captured and killed a small bird before I could attempt to rescue the small creature.
Attending a Christian church as a youth, I was taught repeatedly that a loving God is the source of our beautiful creation.
There are many hymns about this including one (All Things Bright and Beautiful) which speaks of beautiful animals - great and small God made them all..."
Here's the philosophical and theological question about a loving God and his creation which I've been puzzled by: "What kind of loving God creates a world where beings have to kill and eat each other to survive"?
I've been disturbed by the very logical question - why did a loving God create a world where that has to happen - birds kill and eat worms; cats kill and eat birds; coyotes kill and eat cats, etc., all the way up the food chain to humans who kill and eat other animals.
Truly, this does not seem to be a loving act at all, especially for creatures lower on the food chain.
Attending a Christian church as a youth, I was taught repeatedly that a loving God is the source of our beautiful creation.
There are many hymns about this including one (All Things Bright and Beautiful) which speaks of beautiful animals - great and small God made them all..."
Here's the philosophical and theological question about a loving God and his creation which I've been puzzled by: "What kind of loving God creates a world where beings have to kill and eat each other to survive"?
I've been disturbed by the very logical question - why did a loving God create a world where that has to happen - birds kill and eat worms; cats kill and eat birds; coyotes kill and eat cats, etc., all the way up the food chain to humans who kill and eat other animals.
Truly, this does not seem to be a loving act at all, especially for creatures lower on the food chain.
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If one is not greedy for material things, then one's spiritual life can rise to a higher level.
- Hsing Yun
- Hsing Yun
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Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over and over again. - Buddha
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Ajahn Brahm is Spiritual Director of the Buddhist Society of Western Australia. His initial training as a monk took place in northeast Thailand under the supervision of the renowned meditation teacher Ajahn Chah. When Brahm arrived in Thailand from England, he spoke no Thai but was required to use the language immediately at the monastery. It meant he had to learn "on the job".
One day he needed some soap so he asked the teacher. The Thai word for soap is saboo but he said sapo, which means "pineapple". Ajahn Chah asked Brahm "why do you need a pineapple?" Brahm answered "to wash with!" Ajahn Chah laughed hysterically and for days told visitors to the monastery that "Westerners wash with pineapples. They're such an advanced culture!"
One day he needed some soap so he asked the teacher. The Thai word for soap is saboo but he said sapo, which means "pineapple". Ajahn Chah asked Brahm "why do you need a pineapple?" Brahm answered "to wash with!" Ajahn Chah laughed hysterically and for days told visitors to the monastery that "Westerners wash with pineapples. They're such an advanced culture!"
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No matter to what culture we belong, the advice to avoid bad friends and keep the company of good ones is universal...for the good reason that the company we keep has a profound effect on us. The influence of good friends will help us get rid of physical, verbal and mental faults and overcome hindrances. - Khenpo Sonam Rinpoche
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No matter where you stay, be it a busy place or a solitary retreat, you only need to conquer your mind’s five poisons (attachment, aversion, indifference, jealousy, and pride), and your own true enemies, the eight worldly concerns (pleasure and pain, gain and loss, fame and infamy, praise and censure) —nothing else. - Chatral Rinpoche
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There's now another dramatic indicator that Christianity is losing it's hold in the West. According to the National Trust for Canada, low numbers of people making up congregations, combined with the high repair costs for old churches, is driving up to 9,000 of the churches in Canada to close in the coming ten years. That is nearly one-third of all churches in the country.
As in the United States, more and more people are migrating away from traditional Christianity opting to be "spiritual but not religious" (SBNR).. That group is finding their spirituality and community in yoga classes, meditation groups or increasing looking at Buddhist, Vedic and Taoist traditions for their spiritual focus.
( Read more here: https://www.worldreligionnews.com/religion-news/secularization-canada-set-shut-third-churches )
As in the United States, more and more people are migrating away from traditional Christianity opting to be "spiritual but not religious" (SBNR).. That group is finding their spirituality and community in yoga classes, meditation groups or increasing looking at Buddhist, Vedic and Taoist traditions for their spiritual focus.
( Read more here: https://www.worldreligionnews.com/religion-news/secularization-canada-set-shut-third-churches )
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In his book Seven Steps To Radical Well Being, Dr. Deepak Chopra writes: “Getting regular restful sleep is an essential key to staying healthy and vital, yet it is so often neglected or under emphasized. There is even a tendency for people to boast about how little sleep they can get by on. In reality, a lack of restful sleep disrupts the body’s innate balance, weakens our immune system, and speeds up the aging process.” Here are some suggestions Dr. Chopra offers to gain restful sleep:
- Aim for 6 to 8 hours of restful sleep nightly.
- Avoid using drugs or alcohol for sleep. “Restful sleep means that you’re not using pharmaceuticals or alcohol to get
- to sleep but that you’re drifting off easily once you turn off the light and are sleeping soundly through the night.”
- Respect “circadian” rhythms. “You can get the highest quality sleep by keeping your sleep cycles in tune with the
- rhythms of the universe, known as circadian rhythms. This means going to bed by about 10 p.m. and waking at 6 a.m.”
- Eat a light evening meal and get light evening exercise. Dr. Chopra advises eating no later than 7:30 pm, then going for a brief walk and retiring to bed by 10 pm.
- Use a journal to write out troublesome, anxiety producing thoughts. “It’s also very helpful to download your thoughts from the day in a journal before going to bed so that your mind doesn’t keep you awake.”
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Do not fear failure. Before you meet with success, failure is natural and necessary. As a baby learns to walk, it keeps falling down. Is this failure? - Sheng Yen
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First expressed in Buddhist teaching by Chogyam Trungpa, idiot compassion appears when the kindness and compassion are devoid of wisdom and insight. Buddhist nun Pema Chodron defines idiot compassion saying: "It refers to something we all do a lot of and call it compassion. In some ways, it’s what’s called enabling. It’s the general tendency to give people what they want because you can't bear to see them suffering."
Without the application of intelligence, awareness and wisdom, compassion is more harmful than it is helpful.
Without the application of intelligence, awareness and wisdom, compassion is more harmful than it is helpful.