Being present plus non-attachment equals freedom:
I suppose the first thing I have to do is practice. I need to practice being present. It is an odd fact of being human that being present, being in the NOW, in the moment does not come naturally. Or maybe more to the point being natural does not come naturally. The innate inner state of being human is one of calm abiding and yet we don't get to experience this calm abiding unless we tame our wandering mind. The wandering mind is the thing that not only wanders but then gets attached to things that are wandering by. Without practice, practice, practice, I am easily blindsided by my thoughtless, unskillful, uncompassionate behaivour.
I have been mulling this over since I made the comment that just being present does not necessarily lead to freedom. You need to be present in nothingness, non-attachment. Nothingness is the sense of total interdependence, not oblivion. So you can sit and be present but as soon as you become attached to one of those flowing ideas/objects that are going through your mind you are no longer free.
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Thursday, March 23, 2006
This morning I woke up with every intention to write for half an hour. I didn't sleep well as my one daughter climbed into bed with my wife and I and then proceeded to kick the blankets off every 10 minutes. Our other daughter woke up and I had to go in and stay with her for the rest of the night. Then my dreams were anxiety driven sales performance, ebay store intoxicated. I woke up at 5:30 with my daughter clinging to my arm. I tried to extricate myself from her grasp, finally by 6:00 I got out of bed and started to write. I wrote for 5 minutes when who should appear but my kids wanting breakfast.
I screamed inside, but let out a grunt... can we never have any time alone!
On the bus to work I was reading The Spiritual Teaching of Ramana Maharshi, and just coincidentally, was on a chapter about solitude:
The universe is a good teacher!
I screamed inside, but let out a grunt... can we never have any time alone!
On the bus to work I was reading The Spiritual Teaching of Ramana Maharshi, and just coincidentally, was on a chapter about solitude:
- The disciple asks: Is solitude necessary for sannyasin?
- Maharashi replies: Solitude is in the mind of man. One might be in the thick of the world and yet maintain perfect serenity of mind; such a person is always in solitude. Another may stay in a the forest but still be unable to control his mind..... solitude is an attitude of mind.
The universe is a good teacher!
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Mantras
I recently came across a couple of really good books on mantras and mudras. The one is by Lillian Too.
This I am finding is a great resource for lots of mantras especially two that I've been looking for: 35 prostrations mantra and the Praise of the 21 Tara mantras. My wife is reading a feng shui book by her, which I suppose is her real specialty but the mantra book is good too.
The other book I've actually had on my shelf for a while but decided to pull it out again. It is Mudras, Yoga in your Hands. I find hand mudras interesting ways to approach the whole opening of channels and shifting energy. This one is by Gertrude Hirschi.
I recently came across a couple of really good books on mantras and mudras. The one is by Lillian Too.
This I am finding is a great resource for lots of mantras especially two that I've been looking for: 35 prostrations mantra and the Praise of the 21 Tara mantras. My wife is reading a feng shui book by her, which I suppose is her real specialty but the mantra book is good too.
The other book I've actually had on my shelf for a while but decided to pull it out again. It is Mudras, Yoga in your Hands. I find hand mudras interesting ways to approach the whole opening of channels and shifting energy. This one is by Gertrude Hirschi.
Burn baby burn continued
On Sunday I decided to initiate spring for myself and my family with a ritual fire. I say ritual fire to give it the sense that I was bringing the intention of getting rid of bad energy by making mantra offerings. I started the fire at 8:00 in the morning and found myself huffing and puffing away trying to get enough fire wood to burn. I was just using the brush from my backyard, our christmas tree, and some other seasonal ornaments made from pine and cedar. This was part of the ritual as well, send back the spirit of the christmas tree into the cosmos. It all sounds sort of funny but I think it was a good way of creating a sacred space.
At certain points I would throw on some pine boughs and the smoke would pour into the sky. The sun was brilliant and with the smoke plummeting out of the blaze I could peer at the sun and think that is what negative energy does to you, it blocks out the sunlight. Attention and intention allows you to see into that haze and clear out the smoke.
It was sort of like a fire puja but without too much ritualization.
A nice added element of the "ritual" was a pot of burning incense. My brother brought over some sage that burned for about an hour that added an amazing smell to the whole affair.
At the end of the fire, around noon, I felt very tired and sort of cleansed. It is certainly something I will do again.
On Sunday I decided to initiate spring for myself and my family with a ritual fire. I say ritual fire to give it the sense that I was bringing the intention of getting rid of bad energy by making mantra offerings. I started the fire at 8:00 in the morning and found myself huffing and puffing away trying to get enough fire wood to burn. I was just using the brush from my backyard, our christmas tree, and some other seasonal ornaments made from pine and cedar. This was part of the ritual as well, send back the spirit of the christmas tree into the cosmos. It all sounds sort of funny but I think it was a good way of creating a sacred space.
At certain points I would throw on some pine boughs and the smoke would pour into the sky. The sun was brilliant and with the smoke plummeting out of the blaze I could peer at the sun and think that is what negative energy does to you, it blocks out the sunlight. Attention and intention allows you to see into that haze and clear out the smoke.
It was sort of like a fire puja but without too much ritualization.
A nice added element of the "ritual" was a pot of burning incense. My brother brought over some sage that burned for about an hour that added an amazing smell to the whole affair.
At the end of the fire, around noon, I felt very tired and sort of cleansed. It is certainly something I will do again.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
One Pointed Concentration:
This is the opposite of mult-tasking which goes contrary to todays work environment. The idea for one-pointedness is that Zen philosophy, or more precisely buddhist teaching that when you walk, walk, when you talk, talk, when you write, write and so on.
But of course with the computer this becomes more entangled. Now I can check out books from the library, have a news feed coming in, browse wikipedia, work a bit on a spec, read some requirements, listen to a podcast and on and on.
I wrote about listening to teachings while working a while back and someone said isn't that distracting? And I said oh no I can just go back if I miss something, but I can't go back in time and give back to my work the distraction that I gave to it. And I've come to realize I get more frustrated trying to listen and do other things at the same time, which isn't good karma.
The trick that everyone has learned with the computer in the workplace is that you can do all this other stuff while still sitting at your desk. Maybe this is a problem with the modern worker and the dependence on the computer? I don't know but I do know you can bring more single pointedness to even this environment.
Take for example surfing the web. The very paradigm is one of distraction. Get online and start researching, then you start clicking links and before long you have lost your intention to pursue the topic that interested you and learned a little about a lot, if any of it sticks!
This is a lesson I learn over and over. When I was following Natalie Goldberg's Writing Practice, I learned to keep the pen moving to a timer. Don't stop writing until the timer goes off. Later I started using the timer for my meditation practice. It help to remove the distraction of always checking the time.
This is the opposite of mult-tasking which goes contrary to todays work environment. The idea for one-pointedness is that Zen philosophy, or more precisely buddhist teaching that when you walk, walk, when you talk, talk, when you write, write and so on.
But of course with the computer this becomes more entangled. Now I can check out books from the library, have a news feed coming in, browse wikipedia, work a bit on a spec, read some requirements, listen to a podcast and on and on.
I wrote about listening to teachings while working a while back and someone said isn't that distracting? And I said oh no I can just go back if I miss something, but I can't go back in time and give back to my work the distraction that I gave to it. And I've come to realize I get more frustrated trying to listen and do other things at the same time, which isn't good karma.
The trick that everyone has learned with the computer in the workplace is that you can do all this other stuff while still sitting at your desk. Maybe this is a problem with the modern worker and the dependence on the computer? I don't know but I do know you can bring more single pointedness to even this environment.
Take for example surfing the web. The very paradigm is one of distraction. Get online and start researching, then you start clicking links and before long you have lost your intention to pursue the topic that interested you and learned a little about a lot, if any of it sticks!
This is a lesson I learn over and over. When I was following Natalie Goldberg's Writing Practice, I learned to keep the pen moving to a timer. Don't stop writing until the timer goes off. Later I started using the timer for my meditation practice. It help to remove the distraction of always checking the time.
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Burn baby burn
Lately, I've been thinking about manifesting and I am reading Creative Visualization by Shakti Gawain. Here is a book that I've known about for years and yet it isn't until now that I flipped through the contents and said hey, this is good teaching.
So I have decided one of the visualizations I'm actively doing is the medicine buddha. I have been doing this for about six years now, but I have finally hit a point where I am now visualizing the medicine buddha over our house.
It is with this visualization and mantra and the purchase of incense today, that I come to the point of this blog. I am going to do a "spring cleaning" burn in my backyard. This is my own idea but one that I'm pretty sure I can track down to some practice some where, perhaps the native idea of a smudge? I am going to burn the christmas tree and other christmas ornaments as well as incense and hope to attain some sense of offering to all the protecting spirits.
Lately, I've been thinking about manifesting and I am reading Creative Visualization by Shakti Gawain. Here is a book that I've known about for years and yet it isn't until now that I flipped through the contents and said hey, this is good teaching.
So I have decided one of the visualizations I'm actively doing is the medicine buddha. I have been doing this for about six years now, but I have finally hit a point where I am now visualizing the medicine buddha over our house.
It is with this visualization and mantra and the purchase of incense today, that I come to the point of this blog. I am going to do a "spring cleaning" burn in my backyard. This is my own idea but one that I'm pretty sure I can track down to some practice some where, perhaps the native idea of a smudge? I am going to burn the christmas tree and other christmas ornaments as well as incense and hope to attain some sense of offering to all the protecting spirits.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Social Network for Change
I've been thinking about the social network phenomenon and what it means to me and my agenda for personal change. With Zaadz.com I've found I've been prompted to remember a lot of books and movies I've seen and when I add those to my profile, click on them and find a group of people who have also listed those things, I get to click on their profiles and find even more stuff.
Of course that is the danger as well, finding more stuff. Ultimately you need to have the confidence in your own experience that it is enough. That you have the wisdom of the ancient of days in you and that you need to listen to that voice.
On another tangent, I'm reading Ken Wilber's Eye to Eye text right now. It is some refresher for me concerning the history of scientism and philosophy but I like how he has defined body, mind and soul as three eyes. I've only read a bit of Wilber's stuff but I'm finding it really resonates with where I'm at right now.
I've been thinking about the social network phenomenon and what it means to me and my agenda for personal change. With Zaadz.com I've found I've been prompted to remember a lot of books and movies I've seen and when I add those to my profile, click on them and find a group of people who have also listed those things, I get to click on their profiles and find even more stuff.
Of course that is the danger as well, finding more stuff. Ultimately you need to have the confidence in your own experience that it is enough. That you have the wisdom of the ancient of days in you and that you need to listen to that voice.
On another tangent, I'm reading Ken Wilber's Eye to Eye text right now. It is some refresher for me concerning the history of scientism and philosophy but I like how he has defined body, mind and soul as three eyes. I've only read a bit of Wilber's stuff but I'm finding it really resonates with where I'm at right now.
Monday, March 06, 2006
I'm not getting older I'm getting better
I am listening to a program on aging right now with Angeles Arrien. It is a wise and insightful interview about aging based on her book The Second half of Life. One of the neat things I heard her say, was that journaling strengthens the immune system!
She is specifically talking about the wisdom years and there are some great examples of people coming into their own at age 55 and up. One person she talks about is Dr. Seuss. He didn't start writing his books till he was 53 or something.
The site that I found the interview on is New Dimensions Radio It seems like an inspiring place to tune in to.
Saturday, March 04, 2006
A quick post about a couple of neat sites I've found. First I came across
Zenubound. Looks like a site to aspire to. They have a good entry they call the blogisattva award that has good links to other intriguing dharma blogs.
The Awards (and here I thought I was being original!)
The other site is a social networking site called Zaadze. Zaad is Dutch for "seed."
It is in beta and you have to submit a request to become a member but it sounds totally cool. My user is called Magically Delicious.
Zenubound. Looks like a site to aspire to. They have a good entry they call the blogisattva award that has good links to other intriguing dharma blogs.
The Awards (and here I thought I was being original!)
The other site is a social networking site called Zaadze. Zaad is Dutch for "seed."
It is in beta and you have to submit a request to become a member but it sounds totally cool. My user is called Magically Delicious.
Friday, March 03, 2006
I've always thought the superhero genre has had a bigger influence on our culture than people know. O.K. I say always thought, but that isn't true. I guess I've only been reflecting on the idea since I started reading writers like Ken Kesey and other beatniks. They seem to have been influenced by their comic book heroes when they were kids.
I don't want to get into the notion of heroes and myths in detail other than to say I see the superheros as mythic characters. The reason I am thinking about this right now is because I listened to an interview yesterday between Andrew Cohen and three gurus:
The funniest thing they said was when they were talking about great power and great responsibility and they all said 'did you see that Spiderman movie?'.
I don't want to get into the notion of heroes and myths in detail other than to say I see the superheros as mythic characters. The reason I am thinking about this right now is because I listened to an interview yesterday between Andrew Cohen and three gurus:
- Swami Chetanananda
- Master Charles Cannon
- Swami Shankarananda
and
The funniest thing they said was when they were talking about great power and great responsibility and they all said 'did you see that Spiderman movie?'.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
What it Enlightenment
Just found the magazine What is Enlightenment at the Bookshelf, our local independent bookstore. The web site is worth checking out. I just created a 30 day trial and am listening to the dialogue between Ken Wilber and Andrew Cohen. It is quite engaging and I may even keep my account for the $10 a month fee.
The off the shelf magazine had an interesting article I purused on reincarnation and a sort of self incarnation tree of contemporary people claiming to be the incarnation of certain great people in history. At first I found it funny, and it is a hard thing to explain to people without sort of mocking, especially in our culture. However, if you think about it, it makes sense that highly developed people would be able to choose their current incarnation and then show their previous lives as a lesson.
Just found the magazine What is Enlightenment at the Bookshelf, our local independent bookstore. The web site is worth checking out. I just created a 30 day trial and am listening to the dialogue between Ken Wilber and Andrew Cohen. It is quite engaging and I may even keep my account for the $10 a month fee.
The off the shelf magazine had an interesting article I purused on reincarnation and a sort of self incarnation tree of contemporary people claiming to be the incarnation of certain great people in history. At first I found it funny, and it is a hard thing to explain to people without sort of mocking, especially in our culture. However, if you think about it, it makes sense that highly developed people would be able to choose their current incarnation and then show their previous lives as a lesson.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Frappr
I found this site a while ago but never bothered to investigate it. Well I've finally decided to stake my claim in its space with the buddha of infinite light. That, by the way is the way that I'm starting to see the buddha and Christ and all great avatars of God. I'm also using an image of the limitless diamond pointed arrows of light to shoot into the cloud of negativity that tries to enter into my confidence, but I digress.
Frappr is a cool social networking tool that lets you map your location and post to a blog and create groups of friends. It seems like a neat way to keep in touch with what individuals are doing in the world. And so I created a group as well called Buddha Live. Click Buddhatrip to see me on the map. Hey and join my group so I know where you live.
I found this site a while ago but never bothered to investigate it. Well I've finally decided to stake my claim in its space with the buddha of infinite light. That, by the way is the way that I'm starting to see the buddha and Christ and all great avatars of God. I'm also using an image of the limitless diamond pointed arrows of light to shoot into the cloud of negativity that tries to enter into my confidence, but I digress.
Frappr is a cool social networking tool that lets you map your location and post to a blog and create groups of friends. It seems like a neat way to keep in touch with what individuals are doing in the world. And so I created a group as well called Buddha Live. Click Buddhatrip to see me on the map. Hey and join my group so I know where you live.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Work/Meditate
I have a work/meditation practice that has been going on now for 2 years. I started it a while back, in the summer when I wanted to make some changes in my life. I already had a meditation practice but not everyday. Our company moved from a downtown location to one in the middle of nowhere so suddenly I wasn't going out everyday for lunch because there was nowhere to go. Some of my coworkers started playing cards, and that just seemed like a waste of time to me so I decided to use my lunch to calm my mind.
The practice started with just the breath. I would lie on my back and watch the sky and empty my mind and then I would just follow the breath in and out. Well eventually the cold weather returned and I wanted to continue my practice because I was experiencing some really good sits. So I asked the owner of the company if I could use the board room at lunch to continue my meditation. This is one of the good things about where I work. I can share my spiritual inclinations openly. Some people mock me but not too much.
When I began in the board room I decided to start using the meditation time for doing mantras instead of just the breath. Today for instance I sat for 15 minutes and said the Vajrasattva mantra, Manjushri and Medicine buddha. When I go through the mantras I then just sit with the breath again.
I can't tell you how much the practice has become essential to a more peaceful state for myself.
I have a work/meditation practice that has been going on now for 2 years. I started it a while back, in the summer when I wanted to make some changes in my life. I already had a meditation practice but not everyday. Our company moved from a downtown location to one in the middle of nowhere so suddenly I wasn't going out everyday for lunch because there was nowhere to go. Some of my coworkers started playing cards, and that just seemed like a waste of time to me so I decided to use my lunch to calm my mind.
The practice started with just the breath. I would lie on my back and watch the sky and empty my mind and then I would just follow the breath in and out. Well eventually the cold weather returned and I wanted to continue my practice because I was experiencing some really good sits. So I asked the owner of the company if I could use the board room at lunch to continue my meditation. This is one of the good things about where I work. I can share my spiritual inclinations openly. Some people mock me but not too much.
When I began in the board room I decided to start using the meditation time for doing mantras instead of just the breath. Today for instance I sat for 15 minutes and said the Vajrasattva mantra, Manjushri and Medicine buddha. When I go through the mantras I then just sit with the breath again.
I can't tell you how much the practice has become essential to a more peaceful state for myself.
Monday, February 27, 2006
Slow Down:
This was the homework given to us last night in our lo jong group. We read a piece from Eknath Easwaren's book, Meditation, the chapter on slowing down. In that chapter Easwaren describes his coming to America from a rural Indian village where he walked everyday at about 3km an hour and if for an emergency, 4km an hour. His arrival on New Yorks doorstep showed him immediatly a culture that is racing everyday and getting nowhere, fast!
So this morning I decided to slow down. I already bike to work but I know that speed is a state of mind. Somedays I'm racing just as fast as the person on the 401 accept it is all up in my head. I don't notice the little things about the weather and the wildlife. I just keep on going and show up to work if not as stressed as a regular commuter, nearly as stressed.
How did I change this morning you ask? Well for one I chose slightly different routes to work. I went through the park at a different place. I walked across the foot bridge instead of riding. I stopped to stare at the steam rising off of the river and watched the geese meandering along in the water. I thought about them!
Then I went throught the bushier part of the trail that I normally take to get to work. I stared at the diamond like reflections coming off of the snow and let the beauty of it enter me.
I went futher along the trail then normal instead of getting out to bike on the road.
I breathed differently.
What was the cost in time to me? Nothing. I thought I was going to be late but I got to work at the same time I normally do. I was quite surprised by that. It felt like I was taking all the time in the world but again perception was the key difference.
I also gained more insight into some imagery I've been developing as a result of taking the different routes to work.
It is hard to constantly try to apply the slow down motto. Speed is like an addiction, before you know it you're racing ahead again like everyone else. The impetus of the culture is huge. But the benefits of slowing down are enormous.
(mind you i did write this entry fairly quickly!)
This was the homework given to us last night in our lo jong group. We read a piece from Eknath Easwaren's book, Meditation, the chapter on slowing down. In that chapter Easwaren describes his coming to America from a rural Indian village where he walked everyday at about 3km an hour and if for an emergency, 4km an hour. His arrival on New Yorks doorstep showed him immediatly a culture that is racing everyday and getting nowhere, fast!
So this morning I decided to slow down. I already bike to work but I know that speed is a state of mind. Somedays I'm racing just as fast as the person on the 401 accept it is all up in my head. I don't notice the little things about the weather and the wildlife. I just keep on going and show up to work if not as stressed as a regular commuter, nearly as stressed.
How did I change this morning you ask? Well for one I chose slightly different routes to work. I went through the park at a different place. I walked across the foot bridge instead of riding. I stopped to stare at the steam rising off of the river and watched the geese meandering along in the water. I thought about them!
Then I went throught the bushier part of the trail that I normally take to get to work. I stared at the diamond like reflections coming off of the snow and let the beauty of it enter me.
I went futher along the trail then normal instead of getting out to bike on the road.
I breathed differently.
What was the cost in time to me? Nothing. I thought I was going to be late but I got to work at the same time I normally do. I was quite surprised by that. It felt like I was taking all the time in the world but again perception was the key difference.
I also gained more insight into some imagery I've been developing as a result of taking the different routes to work.
It is hard to constantly try to apply the slow down motto. Speed is like an addiction, before you know it you're racing ahead again like everyone else. The impetus of the culture is huge. But the benefits of slowing down are enormous.
(mind you i did write this entry fairly quickly!)
Friday, February 24, 2006
Buddha of Infinite Light
by D.T Suzuki
I am constantly being amazed these days by the similarities between certain teachings of Christianity and Buddhism. Suzuki's book, based on lectures given in the 1950's draws these parallels very clearly for me.
The school of buddhism is Pure Land buddhism or Shin Buddhism, the most popular form practiced in Japan. The main thing involved in the primal vow mantra which in many ways speaks to me of accepting Christ as your saviour. But even more parallel is the notion of monadism that Suzuki speaks of. He compares monadism to the idea of a mother cat carrying her baby in her mouth and the baby not doing anything to help. Contrast that with a baby monkey who rides on the mother's back and has to hang on for dear life so the mother doesn't have to work so hard.
In the Shin buddhist teaching we are all the baby cat. There isn't anything we can do to get to the other shore, or the Pure land. But we don't know that until we try our hardest to get there on our own. And then we see the Amida buddha holding out a hand for us to grab ahold of and be pulled ashore.
You can click here 48 vows to read the 48 vows that Shin buddhism is based upon.
by D.T Suzuki
I am constantly being amazed these days by the similarities between certain teachings of Christianity and Buddhism. Suzuki's book, based on lectures given in the 1950's draws these parallels very clearly for me.
The school of buddhism is Pure Land buddhism or Shin Buddhism, the most popular form practiced in Japan. The main thing involved in the primal vow mantra which in many ways speaks to me of accepting Christ as your saviour. But even more parallel is the notion of monadism that Suzuki speaks of. He compares monadism to the idea of a mother cat carrying her baby in her mouth and the baby not doing anything to help. Contrast that with a baby monkey who rides on the mother's back and has to hang on for dear life so the mother doesn't have to work so hard.
In the Shin buddhist teaching we are all the baby cat. There isn't anything we can do to get to the other shore, or the Pure land. But we don't know that until we try our hardest to get there on our own. And then we see the Amida buddha holding out a hand for us to grab ahold of and be pulled ashore.
You can click here 48 vows to read the 48 vows that Shin buddhism is based upon.
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
The Poet
by Jane Hirshfield
She is working now, in a room
not unlike this one,
the one where I write, or you read.
Her table is covered with paper.
The light of the lamp would be
tempered by a shade, where the bulb's
single harshness might dissolve,
but it is not; she has taken it off.
Her poems? I will never know them,
though they are the ones I most need.
Even the alphabet she writes in
I cannot decipher. Her chair --
let us imagine whether it is leather
or canvas, vinyl or wicker. Let her
have a chair, her shadeless lamp,
the table. Let one or two she loves
be in the next room. Let the door
be closed, the sleeping ones healthy.
Let her have time, and silence,
enough paper to make mistakes and go on.
© Jane Hirshfield
Just came across an article on Jane Hirshfield in Buddha News and reminded me how much I like her work. Thought I would post a poem of hers here.
by Jane Hirshfield
She is working now, in a room
not unlike this one,
the one where I write, or you read.
Her table is covered with paper.
The light of the lamp would be
tempered by a shade, where the bulb's
single harshness might dissolve,
but it is not; she has taken it off.
Her poems? I will never know them,
though they are the ones I most need.
Even the alphabet she writes in
I cannot decipher. Her chair --
let us imagine whether it is leather
or canvas, vinyl or wicker. Let her
have a chair, her shadeless lamp,
the table. Let one or two she loves
be in the next room. Let the door
be closed, the sleeping ones healthy.
Let her have time, and silence,
enough paper to make mistakes and go on.
© Jane Hirshfield
Just came across an article on Jane Hirshfield in Buddha News and reminded me how much I like her work. Thought I would post a poem of hers here.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
Saved!
I just read an article that got me thinking about my past christian days and the concept that all you have to do is accept Jesus as your personal saviour and you will be instantly transformed. The writer of the article expresses some envy over this notion because it seems to imply that there is no work involved in the born again christian world. Well I know from my own experience that this seems to be a misunderstanding not only of those who profess the born again faith but also of those looking in from the outside. I think it is quite plain that no change will happen if you don't hold your mind in check.
More and more I think the notion of being born again, being saved etc. is not unlike the belief that buddhists have about being enlightened. Apparently when you do awake you realize you were always awake, that you have buddha nature. Attachment to things is an obstacle to seeing your true essence. There are certainly obstacles for the christian who claims to be saved to realizing that salvation.
I just read an article that got me thinking about my past christian days and the concept that all you have to do is accept Jesus as your personal saviour and you will be instantly transformed. The writer of the article expresses some envy over this notion because it seems to imply that there is no work involved in the born again christian world. Well I know from my own experience that this seems to be a misunderstanding not only of those who profess the born again faith but also of those looking in from the outside. I think it is quite plain that no change will happen if you don't hold your mind in check.
More and more I think the notion of being born again, being saved etc. is not unlike the belief that buddhists have about being enlightened. Apparently when you do awake you realize you were always awake, that you have buddha nature. Attachment to things is an obstacle to seeing your true essence. There are certainly obstacles for the christian who claims to be saved to realizing that salvation.
Monday, February 13, 2006
Observe the observer
Another Monday morning bus ride and I was able to think through some stuff about fear and group consciousness. I'm reading a good book by Derrick Sweet right now and one of the things I'm taking away from it is the idea of Japa meditation. I know Wayne Dyer has talked about this form of meditation as well and I remember thinking at the time that I was reading his The Power of Intention that it was similiar to buddhist teaching on transmission. When you do an initiation you visualize your guru as the buddha and also yourself as the buddha. So the japa meditation is familiar in that you see yourself doing the thing that you want to do. I am starting to use that form more actively now, starting this morning, on the bus!
Another Monday morning bus ride and I was able to think through some stuff about fear and group consciousness. I'm reading a good book by Derrick Sweet right now and one of the things I'm taking away from it is the idea of Japa meditation. I know Wayne Dyer has talked about this form of meditation as well and I remember thinking at the time that I was reading his The Power of Intention that it was similiar to buddhist teaching on transmission. When you do an initiation you visualize your guru as the buddha and also yourself as the buddha. So the japa meditation is familiar in that you see yourself doing the thing that you want to do. I am starting to use that form more actively now, starting this morning, on the bus!
Sunday, February 12, 2006
What is buddhism? Once upon a time I thought I knew. I thought it was that other religion, the one where nothing really made sense. Not like the reason based religion that I practised, where all of the scripture was rooted in history and therefore provable.
I now am of the opinion that neither buddhism not my previous religious practice needs to worry about being rooted in history. History rots the truth, the same way time rots all things. Truth is beyond religious bigotry and bias. Now I am trying to see and hear with eyes that see and ears that hear. Beyond the anger and fear of cultural practices. And that goes for buddhism and christianity.
I find it odd that Islam is being so badly portrayed in the press thanks to the idiocy of a few ruling shahs. Surely the truth of Islam has nothing to do with violence or hatred of those who don't see things the same way that you do. That wouldn't be truth at all but something completely different.
I now am of the opinion that neither buddhism not my previous religious practice needs to worry about being rooted in history. History rots the truth, the same way time rots all things. Truth is beyond religious bigotry and bias. Now I am trying to see and hear with eyes that see and ears that hear. Beyond the anger and fear of cultural practices. And that goes for buddhism and christianity.
I find it odd that Islam is being so badly portrayed in the press thanks to the idiocy of a few ruling shahs. Surely the truth of Islam has nothing to do with violence or hatred of those who don't see things the same way that you do. That wouldn't be truth at all but something completely different.
Thursday, February 09, 2006
Despite its communist government, Vietnam remains steeped in Buddhist tradition and animist spirituality. You can see it in the dun- and pink-colored pagodas, the ancestor shrines on every street corner, and the incense sticks burning in the bumpers of transport trucks.
It’s a unique combination, a culture shaped by not one but two ostensibly anti-materialist philosophies, and it makes it especially intriguing that Vietnam is now being introduced to the fine art of advertising. In the early 1990s, the country opened its doors to the free market, and termed this political maneuvering "market socialism." So while Prime Minister Phan Van Khai's government continues to control the media, the brand names are given free reign.
Read More....
It’s a unique combination, a culture shaped by not one but two ostensibly anti-materialist philosophies, and it makes it especially intriguing that Vietnam is now being introduced to the fine art of advertising. In the early 1990s, the country opened its doors to the free market, and termed this political maneuvering "market socialism." So while Prime Minister Phan Van Khai's government continues to control the media, the brand names are given free reign.
Read More....
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