August 2009
July 2009
“Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.”
—Dalai Lama XIV (via caraobrien)
“Buddha showed his way of deliverance to anyone who wanted to know it. He did not claim to be a saviour; instead, he insisted that people must learn to save themselves by awakening to their own true nature as enlighted beings.”
— Buddhism (via cakeylin)
“
Instruction for life:
Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.
Follow the three R’s:
- Respect for self.
- Respect for others.
- Responsibility for all your actions.
Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
” —H. Jackson Brown Jr. (via myserendipities) (via buddismo)
“In the tea ceremony, the expression ‘once in a lifetime, this one encounter’ is often used. The usual way this is interpreted is ‘a one-and-only encounter.’ In Zen, though, we interpret this expression in the following way: In the course of our lifetime, there is one person we must meet. No matter through which grasslands we may walk or which mountains we may climb, we must meet this person. This person is in this world. Who is this person? It is the true self. You must meet the true self. As long as you don’t, it will not be possible to be truly satisfied in the depths of your heart. You will never lose the sense that something is lacking. Nor will you be able to clarify the way things are. This is the objective of life as well as of the teaching of Buddhism - to meet yourself.”
—Sekkei Harada (via crashinglybeautiful)
“By trying to find a place in life where there are no thoughts, no desires, no love, no hate, no pain, no hunger, no sameness, no differences, we can find a place where we exist truly in the moment.”
—
Jacky Sach
(via passthemike)
“You know, in Zen, we talk a lot about keeping a not-knowing mind. And everybody usually… conventionally, we think we’re supposed to know things. So we fake it. You know, you ask me a question. I’m going to answer you because, you know, hey, you guys are all set up here with all these cameras. I’d better know something. But honestly, i don’t really know all that much. I mean, you know, clearly i’ve learned something about Buddhism and therapy, and can tell you those things. But the biggest wisdom really comes from not knowing. Because if you admit you don’t know, then you’re willing to look. One teacher said “A beginner’s mind is open” And you’re really, you know, you’re really ready to listen. “But an expert’s mind is closed”. Because I already know, so i don’t have to…i don’t have to listen to you. But that usually is when hubris forms, and you really fall flat on your face.”
—Zen Master Bon Soeng (via nudawn)
Is Mindfulness Meditation Right for You? An Excellent Test to Find Out →
anmolmehta.com
AmmolMehta - Mastery of Meditation, Yoga & Zen
“The highest form of mindfulness meditation is the awareness of each thought that arises and falls in the mind. This technique has been the method of many enlightened masters in the past and continues to be the technique of choice for those who are inclined towards Insight Meditation, Mind Meditation, Zen Meditation or Gyan Yoga.
As revealed in the epic article, Meditation Techniques, Types & Practice - A Comprehensive Guide, there are literally hundreds of meditation techniques and certainly Mindfulness Meditation is amongst one of the very best. The question that does come up though, is how do you know if this type of meditation is right for you?
Here is a simple, but effective test to help you decide if mindfulness meditation, of the kind indicated above, is something which you are cut out for.
Slowly and consciously…”
Continue reading this article on AnmolMehta
(via roamin)
“
You’re bound to become a Buddha
If you practice.
If water drips long enough,
Even rocks wear through.
It’s not true thick skulls
Can’t be pierced;
People just imagine their minds are hard.
-Shih-wu (1272-1352)
” —(via Daily Zen)
“All this world is in your own mind.”
—Zen Saying (via tylerknott)
"If you meet the Buddha, kill him."
-Linji
If you are thinking about Buddha, this is thinking and delusion, not awakening. One must destroy preconceptions of the Buddha. Zen master Shunryu Suzuki wrote in Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind during an introduction to Zazen, “Kill the Buddha if the Buddha exists somewhere else. Kill the Buddha, because you should resume your own Buddha nature.”
(via evan-g)
“The perfect way is without difficulty
Save that it avoids picking and choosing
Only when you stop liking and disliking
Will all be cleary understood
A splity in hairs difference
And heaven and earth are set apart!
If you want to get the plain truth
Be not concerned with right and wrong
The conflict between right and wrong
is the sickness of the mind” —Zen poetry (via dinnerwithfox)
Save that it avoids picking and choosing
Only when you stop liking and disliking
Will all be cleary understood
A splity in hairs difference
And heaven and earth are set apart!
If you want to get the plain truth
Be not concerned with right and wrong
The conflict between right and wrong
is the sickness of the mind” —Zen poetry (via dinnerwithfox)
“Drink your tea slowly and reverently,
as if it is the axis
on which the world earth revolves
- slowly, evenly, without
rushing toward the future;
Live the actual moment.
Only this moment is life.” —
as if it is the axis
on which the world earth revolves
- slowly, evenly, without
rushing toward the future;
Live the actual moment.
Only this moment is life.” —
Thich Nhat Hahn
(via lalay)
“What does it mean to achieve nirvana? Simply that our acts no longer cast shadows. While we are in this world we are subject to karma. Every one of our acts interweaves that mental structure called karma. When we have achieved nirvana our acts no longer cast shadows, we are free. Saint Augustine said that once we are saved we no longer have reason to think about good or about evil. We will continue doing the good, without thinking about it.”
—Buddhism - a lecture by Jorge Luis Borges (via 12minds)
“The real University, he said, has no specific location. It owns no property, pays no salaries and receives no material dues. The real University is a state of mind. It is that great heritage of of rational thought that has been brought down to us through the centuries and which does not exist in any specific location. It’s a state of mind which is regenerated throughout the centuries by a body of people who traditionally carry the title of professor, but even that title is not part of the real University. the real University is nothing less than the continuing body of reason in itself.”
—Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenence - Robert Pirsig(via felrod)
“What we call “I,” is just a swinging door which moves when we inhale and when we exhale. It just moves, that is all. When your mind is pure and calm enough to follow this movement, there is nothing: no “I,” no world, no mind nor body; just this swinging door.”
—Shunryu Suzuki Roshi (1904-1971), founder of the San Francisco Zen Center. (via crashinglybeautiful)
“At heart, a lot of white privilege could be seen as the right to MYOB. [In an event discussed in the post,] white people made a token attempt to help, but when they weren’t immediately drafted and directed how to help, they decided to MYOB. (Or MTOB.) While I recognize that this seems reasonable and polite… I also know that a lot of my Buddhist training taught me the value of actively resisting MYOB. My second year in seminary, my teacher P’arang saw some of my actions and gave me a new assignment: every day in my diary, I had to note one time that day I said, “How can I help?” Before then, I’d usually follow the MYOB rule. I’d be happy to help if someone asked me to, but otherwise, I’d just leave them alone. Live and let live. As I made an effort to offer my assistance more often, I found myself opening up to people more. It was a beautiful spiritual practice.”
—Diverse views on “white privilege” « Bija Andrew’s Zen Blog (via abbyjean)
“I’ve been making a list of the things they don’t teach you at school. They don’t teach you how to love somebody. They don’t teach you how to be famous. They don’t teach you how to be rich or how to be poor. They don’t teach you how to walk away from someone you don’t love any longer. They don’t teach you how to know what’s going on in someone else’s mind. They don’t teach you what to say to someone who’s dying. They don’t teach you anything worth knowing.”
—Neil Gaiman (via i’ll join the wolves) (via strepitupido) (via batchiara) (via rispostesenzadomanda) (via expectingtofly)
Play
50 questions to make you think.
Because sometimes asking the right questions is the answer.
- How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?
- Which is worse, failing or never trying?
- If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don’t like and like so many things we don’t do?
- When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?
- What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world?
- If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich?
- Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?
- If the average human life span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently?
- To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?
- Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?
- You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire. They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend. The criticism is distasteful and unjustified. What do you do?
- If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?
- Would you break the law to save a loved one?
- Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity?
- What’s something you know you do differently than most people?
- How come the things that make you happy don’t make everyone happy?
- What one thing have you not done that you really want to do? What’s holding you back?
- Are you holding onto something you need to let go of?
- If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?
- Do you push the elevator button more than once? Do you really believe it makes the elevator faster?
- Would you rather be a worried genius or a joyful simpleton?
- Why are you, you?
- Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend?
- Which is worse, when a good friend moves away, or losing touch with a good friend who lives right near you?
- What are you most grateful for?
- Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?
- Is is possible to know the truth without challenging it first?
- Has your greatest fear ever come true?
- Do you remember that time 5 years ago when you were extremely upset? Does it really matter now?
- What is your happiest childhood memory? What makes it so special?
- At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive?
- If not now, then when?
- If you haven’t achieved it yet, what do you have to lose?
- Have you ever been with someone, said nothing, and walked away feeling like you just had the best conversation ever?
- Why do religions that support love cause so many wars?
- Is it possible to know, without a doubt, what is good and what is evil?
- If you just won a million dollars, would you quit your job?
- Would you rather have less work to do, or more work you actually enjoy doing?
- Do you feel like you’ve lived this day a hundred times before?
- When was the last time you marched into the dark with only the soft glow of an idea you strongly believed in?
- If you knew that everyone you know was going to die tomorrow, who would you visit today?
- Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by 10 years to become extremely attractive or famous?
- What is the difference between being alive and truly living?
- When is it time to stop calculating risk and rewards, and just go ahead and do what you know is right?
- If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make a mistake?
- What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you?
- When was the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing?
- What do you love? Have any of your recent actions openly expressed this love?
- In 5 years from now, will you remember what you did yesterday? What about the day before that? Or the day before that?
- Decisions are being made right now. The question is: Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you?
from marcandangel.com
“Don’t underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”
— Winnie the Pooh (via justbesplendid) (via pleasedo)
“If you let go of your attachments,
the Universe will not fall apart.
Instead, it will come together for you at a higher level.
All suffering comes from attachment,
according to the Buddha.
What are you attached to that is causing you to suffer?
And if you let go….?” —Marianne Williamson (via myfengshuilife)
the Universe will not fall apart.
Instead, it will come together for you at a higher level.
All suffering comes from attachment,
according to the Buddha.
What are you attached to that is causing you to suffer?
And if you let go….?” —Marianne Williamson (via myfengshuilife)
“When you blame others, you give up your power to change.”
—Douglas Adams (via theelleword) (via fuckyeahdouglasadams)
“Live and work but do not forget to play, to have fun in life and really enjoy it.”
—Eileen Caddy (via borgomani)
“The best and shortest road towards knowledge of truth is Nature.”
—Ancient Egyptian Proverb (via borgomani)
“If you want peace and purity,
tear away the coverings!
This is the purpose of emotion,
to let a streaming beauty flow through you.” —Rumi (via myfengshuilife)
tear away the coverings!
This is the purpose of emotion,
to let a streaming beauty flow through you.” —Rumi (via myfengshuilife)
“Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”
—George Bernard Shaw (via kari-shma)
“I’ve spent too many years at war with myself
The doctor has told me it’s no good for my health
To search for perfection is all very well
But to look for heaven is to live here in hell” —
The doctor has told me it’s no good for my health
To search for perfection is all very well
But to look for heaven is to live here in hell” —
Consider Me Gone - Sting
(via bythesong)
“The three principles for life: responsibility for self, responsibility for others, responsibility for all your actions.”
—Buddha (via maluna)
“Sometimes the next step to take is not a step at all.
Sometimes all that is needed is stillness.
Stretch the non-doing muscle.” —BurnoutBlip on Twitter (via myfengshuilife)
Sometimes all that is needed is stillness.
Stretch the non-doing muscle.” —BurnoutBlip on Twitter (via myfengshuilife)
“If you don’t know what to do,
do nothing.
Seek a quiet mind.
Pray and ask God to handle the situation,
whatever it is.
Just open your heart” —Marianne Williamson (via myfengshuilife)
do nothing.
Seek a quiet mind.
Pray and ask God to handle the situation,
whatever it is.
Just open your heart” —Marianne Williamson (via myfengshuilife)
“Courage is the power to let go of the familiar.”
—Raymond Lindquist (via littlemiss) (via un-tout-petit-coeur)
“Life is the sum of all your choices.”
—Albert Camus (via littlemiss) (via un-tout-petit-coeur)
“Whatever you’re looking for,
it’s not out there.
It’s in here.
It isn’t something to find or to attain;
it’s something to allow to unfold.” —Marianne Williamson (via myfengshuilife)
it’s not out there.
It’s in here.
It isn’t something to find or to attain;
it’s something to allow to unfold.” —Marianne Williamson (via myfengshuilife)
“I read somewhere how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong, but to feel strong.”
—Into the Wild (via bazaaar) (via eveninthemorning)
“All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast.”
—John Gunther (via kari-shma)
“There is but one thing you should seek in life: your true, higher self.”
—M. Beckwith (via maluna)
“You have received a body. You may like it, you may tolerate it, or you may hate it, but it is yours and will follow you every second of every day for the rest of your life so you better take care of it.”
—M. Williamson (via maluna)
“We’re fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance.”
—Japanese proverb (via reluctantbuddha) (via quote-book) (via pleasedo)
