Sunday Meditation Group
Please Note: During the month of September, the theme in the Sunday Meditation Group will be: Compassion.
September 6
-"Meditation & Compassion"
-in his awakening the Buddha came to understand the dhamma: the truth. the dhamma, he came to see, is inside us. the qualities of the heart, including compassion, are found inside us. our task is to cultivate these qualities. compassion is the quality of the heart that drives awakened action: action in support of our wish to be free from suffering. we cultivate compassion, then, by taking action informed by this quality of the heart. to that end, our task is to establish resolve in taking action, to set intention. and to act accordingly. we set intention, and thereby cultivate compassion, by using thought: fabrication. we use the head to connect to the heart. as dharma students we learn to set intention informed by compassion. we learn to act with compassion. in practicing meditation, we learn to do this. we learn to practice meditation out of compassion.
-some things to remember as you learn to cultivate "meditation & compassion...
1-the quality of compassion is found inside us.....
-compassion is found inside us, in the heart....
-it is an element of who we are ... our true nature....
-it is one of the four sublime abidings in the hear (equanimity, appreciation, metta, compassion)....
-it is always there, in the heart....
-we develop conviction in the dharma inside us .. in the compassion that is inside us....
-we develop in this conviction by making an effort to take action informed by compassion.....
2- compassion is a quality of heart that informs action...
-compassion is a quality of intention (resolve).....
-the wish to be free from suffering (dukkha).....
-the function of compassion is to inform action.....
-we take action informed by compassion ... the wish to be free from suffering (dukkha).....
3- our task, in cultivating compassion, is to set intention....
-compassion is inside ... our task is to connect to it, to cultivate it, to set the intention to act with compassion.....
-we use thought fabrication to set intention ... to stay true to our intention....
-we use the head to connect to the heart....
-as the Buddha teaches, "all that we are begins with our thoughts...."
4-in practicing meditation we set intention informed by compassion....
-we learn to set intention ... to take action ... in meditation....
-we develop the skill....
-the Buddha's practice is pragmatic.....
-compassion is developed through taking action ... not through study or intellectual means....
5- we develop the skill of setting intention informed by compassion.....
-in meditation....
-we set intention....
-the process includes:
1-fabrication....
-we set intention, using thought fabrication....
-for example, "I am going to practice out of compassion...."
2-we have an understanding, in setting intention, what the words mean....
-understanding includes....
-the understanding that there is suffering/dukkha....
-in general....
-in specific terms....
-the understanding of what dukkha is....
-the state in which the heart is burdened.....
-the understanding of the compounded nature of dukkha....
3-saying the words/fabricating with sincerity....
4-having an embodied/felt sense of the fabrication....
5-having a felt sense of the wish itself....
-we stay in tune with our intention throughout the action of the meditation....
-we're heedful.....
-we notice if we're staying in tune with our intention to practice with compassion....
-we notice when we've veered off
-when we veer off, we reset our intention.....
-reading.....
-"The How & the Why" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow: acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings, in separation; births, in death. Knowing this, one should from the very first renounce acquisition and heaping-up, and building and meeting, and ... set about realizing the Truth. Life is short, and the time of death is uncertain; so apply yourself to meditation."
(Milarepa)
"Now, Kalamas, one who is a disciple of the noble ones — thus devoid of greed, devoid of ill will, undeluded, alert, & resolute .... keeps pervading the first direction — as well as the second direction, the third, & the fourth — with an awareness imbued with compassion. Thus he keeps pervading above, below, & all around, everywhere & in every respect the all-encompassing cosmos with an awareness imbued with compassion: abundant, expansive, immeasurable, free from hostility, free from ill will."
(AN 3.65)
At Savatthi. There the Blessed One said: "From an inconstruable beginning comes transmigration. A beginning point is not evident, though beings hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving are transmigrating & wandering on. What do you think, monks: Which is greater, the tears you have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time — crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing — or the water in the four great oceans?"
"As we understand the Dhamma taught to us by the Blessed One, this is the greater: the tears we have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time — crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing — not the water in the four great oceans."
"Excellent, monks. Excellent. It is excellent that you thus understand the Dhamma taught by me.
"This is the greater: the tears you have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time — crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing — not the water in the four great oceans."
(SN 15.3)
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with an impure mind
And trouble will follow you
As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with a pure mind
And happiness will follow you
As your shadow, unshakable.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Live with such thoughts and you live in hate.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Abandon such thoughts, and live in love.
In this world
Hate never yet dispelled hate.
Only love dispels hate.
This is the law,
Ancient and inexhaustible.
You too shall pass away.
Knowing this,
how can you quarrel?
How easily the wind overturns a frail tree.
Seek happiness in the senses,
Indulge in food and sleep,
And you too will be uprooted.
The wind cannot overturn a mountain.
Temptation cannot touch the man
Who is awake, strong and humble,
Who masters himself and minds the dharma.
If a man's thoughts are muddy,
If he is reckless and full of deceit,
How can he wear the yellow robe?
Whoever is master of his own nature,
Bright, clear and true,
He may indeed wear the yellow robe.
Mistaking the false for the true,
And the true for the false,
You overlook the heart
And fill yourself with desire.
See the false as false,
The true as true.
Look into your heart.
Follow your nature.
An unreflecting mind is a poor roof.
Passion, like the rain, floods the house.
But if the roof is strong, there is shelter.
Whoever follows impure thoughts
Suffers in this world and the next.
In both worlds he suffers
And how greatly
When he sees the wrong he has done.
But whoever follows the dharma
Is joyful here and joyful there.
In both worlds he rejoices
And how greatly
When he sees the good he has done.
For great is the harvest in this world,
And greater still in the next.
However many holy words you read,
However many you speak,
What good will they do you If you do not act upon them?
Are you a shepherd
Who counts another man's sheep,
Never sharing the way?
Read as few words as you like,
And speak fewer.
But act upon the dharma.
Give up the old ways –
Passion, enmity, folly.
Know the truth and find peace.
Share the way.
(Dhp 1)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"Meditation & Compassion"
-in his awakening the Buddha came to understand the dhamma: the truth. the dhamma, he came to see, is inside us. the qualities of the heart, including compassion, are found inside us. our task is to cultivate these qualities. compassion is the quality of the heart that drives awakened action: action in support of our wish to be free from suffering. we cultivate compassion, then, by taking action informed by this quality of the heart. to that end, our task is to establish resolve in taking action, to set intention. and to act accordingly. we set intention, and thereby cultivate compassion, by using thought: fabrication. we use the head to connect to the heart. as dharma students we learn to set intention informed by compassion. we learn to act with compassion. in practicing meditation, we learn to do this. we learn to practice meditation out of compassion.
-some things to remember as you learn to cultivate "meditation & compassion...
1-the quality of compassion is found inside us.....
-compassion is found inside us, in the heart....
-it is an element of who we are ... our true nature....
-it is one of the four sublime abidings in the hear (equanimity, appreciation, metta, compassion)....
-it is always there, in the heart....
-we develop conviction in the dharma inside us .. in the compassion that is inside us....
-we develop in this conviction by making an effort to take action informed by compassion.....
2- compassion is a quality of heart that informs action...
-compassion is a quality of intention (resolve).....
-the wish to be free from suffering (dukkha).....
-the function of compassion is to inform action.....
-we take action informed by compassion ... the wish to be free from suffering (dukkha).....
3- our task, in cultivating compassion, is to set intention....
-compassion is inside ... our task is to connect to it, to cultivate it, to set the intention to act with compassion.....
-we use thought fabrication to set intention ... to stay true to our intention....
-we use the head to connect to the heart....
-as the Buddha teaches, "all that we are begins with our thoughts...."
4-in practicing meditation we set intention informed by compassion....
-we learn to set intention ... to take action ... in meditation....
-we develop the skill....
-the Buddha's practice is pragmatic.....
-compassion is developed through taking action ... not through study or intellectual means....
5- we develop the skill of setting intention informed by compassion.....
-in meditation....
-we set intention....
-the process includes:
1-fabrication....
-we set intention, using thought fabrication....
-for example, "I am going to practice out of compassion...."
2-we have an understanding, in setting intention, what the words mean....
-understanding includes....
-the understanding that there is suffering/dukkha....
-in general....
-in specific terms....
-the understanding of what dukkha is....
-the state in which the heart is burdened.....
-the understanding of the compounded nature of dukkha....
3-saying the words/fabricating with sincerity....
4-having an embodied/felt sense of the fabrication....
5-having a felt sense of the wish itself....
-we stay in tune with our intention throughout the action of the meditation....
-we're heedful.....
-we notice if we're staying in tune with our intention to practice with compassion....
-we notice when we've veered off
-when we veer off, we reset our intention.....
-reading.....
-"The How & the Why" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow: acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings, in separation; births, in death. Knowing this, one should from the very first renounce acquisition and heaping-up, and building and meeting, and ... set about realizing the Truth. Life is short, and the time of death is uncertain; so apply yourself to meditation."
(Milarepa)
"Now, Kalamas, one who is a disciple of the noble ones — thus devoid of greed, devoid of ill will, undeluded, alert, & resolute .... keeps pervading the first direction — as well as the second direction, the third, & the fourth — with an awareness imbued with compassion. Thus he keeps pervading above, below, & all around, everywhere & in every respect the all-encompassing cosmos with an awareness imbued with compassion: abundant, expansive, immeasurable, free from hostility, free from ill will."
(AN 3.65)
At Savatthi. There the Blessed One said: "From an inconstruable beginning comes transmigration. A beginning point is not evident, though beings hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving are transmigrating & wandering on. What do you think, monks: Which is greater, the tears you have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time — crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing — or the water in the four great oceans?"
"As we understand the Dhamma taught to us by the Blessed One, this is the greater: the tears we have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time — crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing — not the water in the four great oceans."
"Excellent, monks. Excellent. It is excellent that you thus understand the Dhamma taught by me.
"This is the greater: the tears you have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time — crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing — not the water in the four great oceans."
(SN 15.3)
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with an impure mind
And trouble will follow you
As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with a pure mind
And happiness will follow you
As your shadow, unshakable.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Live with such thoughts and you live in hate.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Abandon such thoughts, and live in love.
In this world
Hate never yet dispelled hate.
Only love dispels hate.
This is the law,
Ancient and inexhaustible.
You too shall pass away.
Knowing this,
how can you quarrel?
How easily the wind overturns a frail tree.
Seek happiness in the senses,
Indulge in food and sleep,
And you too will be uprooted.
The wind cannot overturn a mountain.
Temptation cannot touch the man
Who is awake, strong and humble,
Who masters himself and minds the dharma.
If a man's thoughts are muddy,
If he is reckless and full of deceit,
How can he wear the yellow robe?
Whoever is master of his own nature,
Bright, clear and true,
He may indeed wear the yellow robe.
Mistaking the false for the true,
And the true for the false,
You overlook the heart
And fill yourself with desire.
See the false as false,
The true as true.
Look into your heart.
Follow your nature.
An unreflecting mind is a poor roof.
Passion, like the rain, floods the house.
But if the roof is strong, there is shelter.
Whoever follows impure thoughts
Suffers in this world and the next.
In both worlds he suffers
And how greatly
When he sees the wrong he has done.
But whoever follows the dharma
Is joyful here and joyful there.
In both worlds he rejoices
And how greatly
When he sees the good he has done.
For great is the harvest in this world,
And greater still in the next.
However many holy words you read,
However many you speak,
What good will they do you If you do not act upon them?
Are you a shepherd
Who counts another man's sheep,
Never sharing the way?
Read as few words as you like,
And speak fewer.
But act upon the dharma.
Give up the old ways –
Passion, enmity, folly.
Know the truth and find peace.
Share the way.
(Dhp 1)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
August 30
-"Never Too Late"
-we practice meditation, in practicing in accord with the Buddha's teaching, so that we can know the truth: the dhamma: the heart. we practice meditation, accordingly, so that we might live up to our potential as human beings. so that we might be who we are. most beings are cut off from the dhamma inside, the heart. they spend their lives in pursuit of worldly things. as we seek to know the light within, we might be deterred by doubt. we might believe that it's too late for us to know the truth. but it's never too late. if we make the effort, practice meditation ... and practice with the intention to know the dhamma inside, we'll come to the truth, the dhamma, the heart. this quality of intention is love. in making this effort, seeing how the heart is burdened, how we're cut off from the light within, how we've lost our way, we meet our suffering with compassion. the quality of compassion leads us from the darkness to the light.
-some things to remember as you learn to understand that it's "never too late"...
1-we practice meditation so that we might know the dhamma inside.....
-life is short, we should practice meditation so that we might know the truth....
-ultimate reality....
-the dhamma inside....
-the heart....
-we're asked, as dharma students, to make this effort now....
-we're asked to know the truth now....
-in the here & now.....
2- most beings are cut off from the dhamma inside...
-most beings, following "the ways of the world" are blocked off from the light within...
-most beings spend their time in pursuit of....
-sense pleasures....
-material gain....
-status & praise....
-the approval of others....
-the pursuit of worldly things leads to dukkha.....
-the burdening of the heart....
-the inability to know the dhamma inside ... the light within....
-the inability to be who we are.....
3- doubt is a significant obstacle to knowing the truth....
-as we follow the path and make an effort to know the dhamma inside, we should be heedful of doubt....
-thinking that suggests....
-we don't have the dhamma inside....
-we don't have what it takes to know the dhamma inside....
-we can't do it.....
-we should be heedful of the notion that suggests "it's too late...."
-our message, which we should take to heart, is, it's never too late....
-it's never to late to know the truth....
-to know the dhamma inside us ... the light within....
4-we learn to practice meditation informed by metta ....
-we make an effort to practice meditation....
-motivated by the intention to practice out of metta....
-so that we might know the dhamma inside....
-so that we might come to the light within....
-so that we might be who we are....
5-compassion leads us from the darkness....
-we see that we have been cut off from the heart....
-we see dukkha....
-we see that we have been blocked off from the light within....
-we see that we have not been able to assert who we are, our truth....
-we see, in turn, that we have been at odds with our predicament....
-we have been afflicted with judgement, self-loathing, criticism...
-we have been afflicted with doubt....
-seeing how we've been cut off from the heart, we cultivate compassion....
-the wish to be free from dukkha....
-we move, in turn, from the darkness, to the light....
-informed by this wish: compassion.....
-reading.....
-"At the Door of the Cage" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow: acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings, in separation; births, in death. Knowing this, one should from the very first renounce acquisition and heaping-up, and building and meeting, and ... set about realizing the Truth. Life is short, and the time of death is uncertain; so apply yourself to meditation."
(Milarepa)
Better than a hundred years
lived without virtue, uncentered, is
one day
lived by a virtuous person
absorbed in jhana.
And better than a hundred years
lived undiscerning, uncentered, is
one day
lived by a discerning person
absorbed in jhana.
And better than a hundred years
lived apathetic & unenergetic, is
one day
lived energetic & firm.
And better than a hundred years
lived without seeing
arising & passing away, is
one day
lived seeing
arising & passing away.
And better than a hundred years
lived without seeing
the Deathless state, is
one day
lived seeing
the Deathless state.
And better than a hundred years
lived without seeing
the ultimate Dhamma, is
one day
lived seeing
the ultimate Dhamma.
(Dhp 8)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"Never Too Late"
-we practice meditation, in practicing in accord with the Buddha's teaching, so that we can know the truth: the dhamma: the heart. we practice meditation, accordingly, so that we might live up to our potential as human beings. so that we might be who we are. most beings are cut off from the dhamma inside, the heart. they spend their lives in pursuit of worldly things. as we seek to know the light within, we might be deterred by doubt. we might believe that it's too late for us to know the truth. but it's never too late. if we make the effort, practice meditation ... and practice with the intention to know the dhamma inside, we'll come to the truth, the dhamma, the heart. this quality of intention is love. in making this effort, seeing how the heart is burdened, how we're cut off from the light within, how we've lost our way, we meet our suffering with compassion. the quality of compassion leads us from the darkness to the light.
-some things to remember as you learn to understand that it's "never too late"...
1-we practice meditation so that we might know the dhamma inside.....
-life is short, we should practice meditation so that we might know the truth....
-ultimate reality....
-the dhamma inside....
-the heart....
-we're asked, as dharma students, to make this effort now....
-we're asked to know the truth now....
-in the here & now.....
2- most beings are cut off from the dhamma inside...
-most beings, following "the ways of the world" are blocked off from the light within...
-most beings spend their time in pursuit of....
-sense pleasures....
-material gain....
-status & praise....
-the approval of others....
-the pursuit of worldly things leads to dukkha.....
-the burdening of the heart....
-the inability to know the dhamma inside ... the light within....
-the inability to be who we are.....
3- doubt is a significant obstacle to knowing the truth....
-as we follow the path and make an effort to know the dhamma inside, we should be heedful of doubt....
-thinking that suggests....
-we don't have the dhamma inside....
-we don't have what it takes to know the dhamma inside....
-we can't do it.....
-we should be heedful of the notion that suggests "it's too late...."
-our message, which we should take to heart, is, it's never too late....
-it's never to late to know the truth....
-to know the dhamma inside us ... the light within....
4-we learn to practice meditation informed by metta ....
-we make an effort to practice meditation....
-motivated by the intention to practice out of metta....
-so that we might know the dhamma inside....
-so that we might come to the light within....
-so that we might be who we are....
5-compassion leads us from the darkness....
-we see that we have been cut off from the heart....
-we see dukkha....
-we see that we have been blocked off from the light within....
-we see that we have not been able to assert who we are, our truth....
-we see, in turn, that we have been at odds with our predicament....
-we have been afflicted with judgement, self-loathing, criticism...
-we have been afflicted with doubt....
-seeing how we've been cut off from the heart, we cultivate compassion....
-the wish to be free from dukkha....
-we move, in turn, from the darkness, to the light....
-informed by this wish: compassion.....
-reading.....
-"At the Door of the Cage" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow: acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings, in separation; births, in death. Knowing this, one should from the very first renounce acquisition and heaping-up, and building and meeting, and ... set about realizing the Truth. Life is short, and the time of death is uncertain; so apply yourself to meditation."
(Milarepa)
Better than a hundred years
lived without virtue, uncentered, is
one day
lived by a virtuous person
absorbed in jhana.
And better than a hundred years
lived undiscerning, uncentered, is
one day
lived by a discerning person
absorbed in jhana.
And better than a hundred years
lived apathetic & unenergetic, is
one day
lived energetic & firm.
And better than a hundred years
lived without seeing
arising & passing away, is
one day
lived seeing
arising & passing away.
And better than a hundred years
lived without seeing
the Deathless state, is
one day
lived seeing
the Deathless state.
And better than a hundred years
lived without seeing
the ultimate Dhamma, is
one day
lived seeing
the ultimate Dhamma.
(Dhp 8)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
August 23
-"Permission to be Who You Are"
-we need people to support us, as we make an effort to live from the heart and be who we are. we need people to give us permission to be who we are. and, in the end, we need to learn to give ourselves permission to follow the heart, to be who we are. we need to learn to be sensitive to our gut feelings, to trust in our gut feelings, and, in turn, to give ourselves permission to follow our guts feelings. each of us has path, a way to express ourselves and, in that effort, be of service, offer ourselves to others, to the world, with love & compassion. the path the Buddha has laid out for us leads us to knowing who we are, how to establish our resolve to be who we are. and it gives us the strength to be who we are.
-some things to remember as you learn to give yourself "permission to be who you are"...
1-we learn, as dharma students, to be who we are.....
-it is essential to have the support of others as we make an effort to follow through on our truth ... to be who we are....
-it is essential that we have others in our lives who give us permission to be who we are.....
-ultimately, we have to give ourselves permission to be who we are....
-this is an important element of our mental training....
-to develop this voice in the mind....
-to abandon other voices, which take us away from our truth....
2- most beings will go through life simply following the ways of the world...
-most beings, in making their way in this life, simply follow "the ways of the world".....
-seeking happiness in....
-sense pleasures....
-material gain....
-status & praise....
-the approval of others....
-in following the path of the dharma, we may live in the world, but we don't follow the ways of the world....
-we seek to follow the truth in the heart....
-we seek to be true to ourselves....
-we seek to be who we are.....
3- meditation, when practiced accordingly, brings us to an understand of our truth, who we are....
-as we develop in virtue....
-as we develop in meditation....
-jhana....
-as we develop in heedfulness....
-we come closer to the heart.....
-we develop in wisdom & love....
-we develop in our sensitivity to our "gut feelings"
-to the heart....
-to the dhamma inside us ... the light within....
-we see more clearly....
-gradually, we see more clearly our truth ... who we are.....
-we develop in inner strength....
-the ability to follow through, take action ... to be who we are.....
4-there are basic guidelines that support our understanding of who we are....
-basic guidelines that determine our journey to be who we are....
-our karma....
-we each have a unique path in this life ...
-love & compassion for all beings....
-our guiding principle is love for all beings.....
-our journey to our truth is guided by our understanding of how we can live with love & compassion for all being...
-how we can be of use in this life....
5-as dharma students, we should learn to give ourselves permission to be who we are.....
-we gradually develop in our resolve to be who we are....
-this is a function of mental training....
-internal verbal fabrication....
-we develop the intention to take action that is an expression of our truth, our heart, who we are....
-over the long term....
-in the short term....
-from day to day.....
-reading.....
-"Crossing the Ocean of Life" (Ajaan Lee)
(Metta Sutta)
This is to be done by one skilled in aims
who wants to break through to the state of peace:
Be capable, upright, & straightforward,
easy to instruct, gentle, & not conceited,
content & easy to support,
with few duties, living lightly,
with peaceful faculties, masterful,
modest, & no greed for supporters.
Do not do the slightest thing
that the wise would later censure.
Think: Happy, at rest,
may all beings be happy at heart.
Whatever beings there may be,
weak or strong, without exception,
long, large,
middling, short,
subtle, blatant,
seen & unseen,
near & far,
born & seeking birth:
May all beings be happy at heart.
Let no one deceive another
or despise anyone anywhere,
or through anger or resistance
wish for another to suffer.
As a mother would risk her life
to protect her child, her only child,
even so should one cultivate a limitless heart
with regard to all beings.
With good will for the entire cosmos,
cultivate a limitless heart:
Above, below, & all around,
unobstructed, without hostility or hate.
Whether standing, walking,
sitting, or lying down,
as long as one is alert,
one should be resolved on this mindfulness.
This is called a sublime abiding
here & now.
Not taken with views,
but virtuous & consummate in vision,
having subdued desire for sensual pleasures,
one never again
will lie in the womb.
(Sn 1.8)
-"Permission to be Who You Are"
-we need people to support us, as we make an effort to live from the heart and be who we are. we need people to give us permission to be who we are. and, in the end, we need to learn to give ourselves permission to follow the heart, to be who we are. we need to learn to be sensitive to our gut feelings, to trust in our gut feelings, and, in turn, to give ourselves permission to follow our guts feelings. each of us has path, a way to express ourselves and, in that effort, be of service, offer ourselves to others, to the world, with love & compassion. the path the Buddha has laid out for us leads us to knowing who we are, how to establish our resolve to be who we are. and it gives us the strength to be who we are.
-some things to remember as you learn to give yourself "permission to be who you are"...
1-we learn, as dharma students, to be who we are.....
-it is essential to have the support of others as we make an effort to follow through on our truth ... to be who we are....
-it is essential that we have others in our lives who give us permission to be who we are.....
-ultimately, we have to give ourselves permission to be who we are....
-this is an important element of our mental training....
-to develop this voice in the mind....
-to abandon other voices, which take us away from our truth....
2- most beings will go through life simply following the ways of the world...
-most beings, in making their way in this life, simply follow "the ways of the world".....
-seeking happiness in....
-sense pleasures....
-material gain....
-status & praise....
-the approval of others....
-in following the path of the dharma, we may live in the world, but we don't follow the ways of the world....
-we seek to follow the truth in the heart....
-we seek to be true to ourselves....
-we seek to be who we are.....
3- meditation, when practiced accordingly, brings us to an understand of our truth, who we are....
-as we develop in virtue....
-as we develop in meditation....
-jhana....
-as we develop in heedfulness....
-we come closer to the heart.....
-we develop in wisdom & love....
-we develop in our sensitivity to our "gut feelings"
-to the heart....
-to the dhamma inside us ... the light within....
-we see more clearly....
-gradually, we see more clearly our truth ... who we are.....
-we develop in inner strength....
-the ability to follow through, take action ... to be who we are.....
4-there are basic guidelines that support our understanding of who we are....
-basic guidelines that determine our journey to be who we are....
-our karma....
-we each have a unique path in this life ...
-love & compassion for all beings....
-our guiding principle is love for all beings.....
-our journey to our truth is guided by our understanding of how we can live with love & compassion for all being...
-how we can be of use in this life....
5-as dharma students, we should learn to give ourselves permission to be who we are.....
-we gradually develop in our resolve to be who we are....
-this is a function of mental training....
-internal verbal fabrication....
-we develop the intention to take action that is an expression of our truth, our heart, who we are....
-over the long term....
-in the short term....
-from day to day.....
-reading.....
-"Crossing the Ocean of Life" (Ajaan Lee)
(Metta Sutta)
This is to be done by one skilled in aims
who wants to break through to the state of peace:
Be capable, upright, & straightforward,
easy to instruct, gentle, & not conceited,
content & easy to support,
with few duties, living lightly,
with peaceful faculties, masterful,
modest, & no greed for supporters.
Do not do the slightest thing
that the wise would later censure.
Think: Happy, at rest,
may all beings be happy at heart.
Whatever beings there may be,
weak or strong, without exception,
long, large,
middling, short,
subtle, blatant,
seen & unseen,
near & far,
born & seeking birth:
May all beings be happy at heart.
Let no one deceive another
or despise anyone anywhere,
or through anger or resistance
wish for another to suffer.
As a mother would risk her life
to protect her child, her only child,
even so should one cultivate a limitless heart
with regard to all beings.
With good will for the entire cosmos,
cultivate a limitless heart:
Above, below, & all around,
unobstructed, without hostility or hate.
Whether standing, walking,
sitting, or lying down,
as long as one is alert,
one should be resolved on this mindfulness.
This is called a sublime abiding
here & now.
Not taken with views,
but virtuous & consummate in vision,
having subdued desire for sensual pleasures,
one never again
will lie in the womb.
(Sn 1.8)
August 9
-"Trust in Your Gut"
-as dharma students, we seek to live from the heart, to take action informed by the heart. another way to think about what this means is, we seek to follow our gut. we learn to be sensitive to our gut feelings, and, in turn, to allow 'the gut' to guide us. we should learn to see what it is like when we do this. and, conversely, and very importantly, we should learn to see what it is like when we don't follow the gut. our capacity to follow our gut feelings requires developing in sensitivity. through the practice of breath meditation and mindfulness of the body we develop in this sensitivity,
-some things to remember as you learn to "trust in your gut"...
1-in following the path of the dharma, we learn to follow our gut feelings.....
-this is another way to think about what it means to follow the heart....
-to follow our innate wisdom.....
2- in trusting in our gut feelings we are changing in how we consider our lives & actions....
-we should ask....
-do I follow my gut feelings...?
-am I sensitive to my gut feelings....?
-do i ignore my gut feelings....?
-why do I ignore or put aside my gut feelings....?
-what is it like when I trust in my gut....?
-what is it like when I don't trust in my gut feelings....?
-when I ignore or reject my gut feelings....?
-what are the consequences....?
3- most beings are out of touch with their gut feelings....
-most beings are "in the head".....
-in thought worlds.....
-most beings, caught in their thought worlds, are involved in unskillful states....
-preoccupied with....
-sense pleasures....
-gain/material things....
-status & praise....
-most beings are guided by these preoccupations....
-most beings ignore their gut feelings....
4-meditation enable us to develop in sensitivity to our gut feelings....
-as dharma students, developing in mindfulness of breathing....
-we come 'out of the head" and into the body....
-we develop in mindfulness of the body.....
-in turn, we develop in sensitivity to our gut feelings....
-it is essential, therefore, that our meditation practice includes developing a full body awareness....
-as per 'step 3' in the meditation instructions....
5-as dharma students, following the Buddha's path, we learn to incline our gut feelings....
-this is a process, an ongoing learning experience....
-it includes trial and error....
-it includes developing in sensitivity to our gut feelings....
-it includes developing in trust....
-we might use questions in our efforts to align with our gut feelings.....
-asking, how can I live up to my potential....
-in this life...?
-in this day....?
-in this moment....?
-asking, how am I spending my time....?
-am I making the most of my time....?
-how can I make the most of my time....?
-how can i make the most of my days...?
-reading.....
-"Taking the Long View" (Ajaan Lee)
"Monks, I lived in refinement, utmost refinement, total refinement. My father even had lotus ponds made in our palace: one where red-lotuses bloomed, one where white lotuses bloomed, one where blue lotuses bloomed, all for my sake. I used no sandalwood that was not from Varanasi. My turban was from Varanasi, as were my tunic, my lower garments, & my outer cloak. A white sunshade was held over me day & night to protect me from cold, heat, dust, dirt, & dew.
"I had three palaces: one for the cold season, one for the hot season, one for the rainy season. During the four months of the rainy season I was entertained in the rainy-season palace by minstrels without a single man among them, and I did not once come down from the palace. Whereas the servants, workers, & retainers in other people's homes are fed meals of lentil soup & broken rice, in my father's home the servants, workers, & retainers were fed wheat, rice, and meat.
"Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: 'When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to aging, not beyond aging, sees another who is aged, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to aging, not beyond aging. If I — who am subject to aging, not beyond aging — were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is aged, that would not be fitting for me.' As I noticed this, the [typical] young person's intoxication with youth entirely dropped away.
"Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: 'When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to illness, not beyond illness, sees another who is ill, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to illness, not beyond illness. And if I — who am subject to illness, not beyond illness — were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is ill, that would not be fitting for me.' As I noticed this, the healthy person's intoxication with health entirely dropped away.
"Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: 'When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to death, not beyond death, sees another who is dead, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to death, not beyond death. And if I — who am subject to death, not beyond death — were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is dead, that would not be fitting for me.' As I noticed this, the living person's intoxication with life entirely dropped away."
(AN 3.38)
"I thought: 'I recall once, when my father the Sakyan was working, and I was sitting in the cool shade of a rose-apple tree, then — quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities — I entered & remained in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. Could that be the path to Awakening?' Then, following on that memory, came the realization: 'That is the path to Awakening.' I thought: 'So why am I afraid of that pleasure that has nothing to do with sensuality, nothing to do with unskillful mental qualities?' I thought: 'I am no longer afraid of that pleasure that has nothing to do with sensuality, nothing to do with unskillful mental qualities, but it is not easy to achieve that pleasure with a body so extremely emaciated. Suppose I were to take some solid food: some rice & porridge.' So I took some solid food: some rice & porridge. Now five monks had been attending on me, thinking, 'If Gotama, our contemplative, achieves some higher state, he will tell us.' But when they saw me taking some solid food — some rice & porridge — they were disgusted and left me, thinking, 'Gotama the contemplative is living luxuriously. He has abandoned his exertion and is backsliding into abundance.'
"So when I had taken solid food and regained strength, then — quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, I entered & remained in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I entered & remained in the second jhana: rapture & pleasure born of composure, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation — internal assurance. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain. With the fading of rapture I remained in equanimity, mindful & alert, and physically sensitive of pleasure. I entered & remained in the third jhana, of which the Noble Ones declare, 'Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding.' But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain. With the abandoning of pleasure & pain — as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress — I entered & remained in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain."
(MN 36)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"Trust in Your Gut"
-as dharma students, we seek to live from the heart, to take action informed by the heart. another way to think about what this means is, we seek to follow our gut. we learn to be sensitive to our gut feelings, and, in turn, to allow 'the gut' to guide us. we should learn to see what it is like when we do this. and, conversely, and very importantly, we should learn to see what it is like when we don't follow the gut. our capacity to follow our gut feelings requires developing in sensitivity. through the practice of breath meditation and mindfulness of the body we develop in this sensitivity,
-some things to remember as you learn to "trust in your gut"...
1-in following the path of the dharma, we learn to follow our gut feelings.....
-this is another way to think about what it means to follow the heart....
-to follow our innate wisdom.....
2- in trusting in our gut feelings we are changing in how we consider our lives & actions....
-we should ask....
-do I follow my gut feelings...?
-am I sensitive to my gut feelings....?
-do i ignore my gut feelings....?
-why do I ignore or put aside my gut feelings....?
-what is it like when I trust in my gut....?
-what is it like when I don't trust in my gut feelings....?
-when I ignore or reject my gut feelings....?
-what are the consequences....?
3- most beings are out of touch with their gut feelings....
-most beings are "in the head".....
-in thought worlds.....
-most beings, caught in their thought worlds, are involved in unskillful states....
-preoccupied with....
-sense pleasures....
-gain/material things....
-status & praise....
-most beings are guided by these preoccupations....
-most beings ignore their gut feelings....
4-meditation enable us to develop in sensitivity to our gut feelings....
-as dharma students, developing in mindfulness of breathing....
-we come 'out of the head" and into the body....
-we develop in mindfulness of the body.....
-in turn, we develop in sensitivity to our gut feelings....
-it is essential, therefore, that our meditation practice includes developing a full body awareness....
-as per 'step 3' in the meditation instructions....
5-as dharma students, following the Buddha's path, we learn to incline our gut feelings....
-this is a process, an ongoing learning experience....
-it includes trial and error....
-it includes developing in sensitivity to our gut feelings....
-it includes developing in trust....
-we might use questions in our efforts to align with our gut feelings.....
-asking, how can I live up to my potential....
-in this life...?
-in this day....?
-in this moment....?
-asking, how am I spending my time....?
-am I making the most of my time....?
-how can I make the most of my time....?
-how can i make the most of my days...?
-reading.....
-"Taking the Long View" (Ajaan Lee)
"Monks, I lived in refinement, utmost refinement, total refinement. My father even had lotus ponds made in our palace: one where red-lotuses bloomed, one where white lotuses bloomed, one where blue lotuses bloomed, all for my sake. I used no sandalwood that was not from Varanasi. My turban was from Varanasi, as were my tunic, my lower garments, & my outer cloak. A white sunshade was held over me day & night to protect me from cold, heat, dust, dirt, & dew.
"I had three palaces: one for the cold season, one for the hot season, one for the rainy season. During the four months of the rainy season I was entertained in the rainy-season palace by minstrels without a single man among them, and I did not once come down from the palace. Whereas the servants, workers, & retainers in other people's homes are fed meals of lentil soup & broken rice, in my father's home the servants, workers, & retainers were fed wheat, rice, and meat.
"Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: 'When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to aging, not beyond aging, sees another who is aged, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to aging, not beyond aging. If I — who am subject to aging, not beyond aging — were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is aged, that would not be fitting for me.' As I noticed this, the [typical] young person's intoxication with youth entirely dropped away.
"Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: 'When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to illness, not beyond illness, sees another who is ill, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to illness, not beyond illness. And if I — who am subject to illness, not beyond illness — were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is ill, that would not be fitting for me.' As I noticed this, the healthy person's intoxication with health entirely dropped away.
"Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: 'When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to death, not beyond death, sees another who is dead, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to death, not beyond death. And if I — who am subject to death, not beyond death — were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is dead, that would not be fitting for me.' As I noticed this, the living person's intoxication with life entirely dropped away."
(AN 3.38)
"I thought: 'I recall once, when my father the Sakyan was working, and I was sitting in the cool shade of a rose-apple tree, then — quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities — I entered & remained in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. Could that be the path to Awakening?' Then, following on that memory, came the realization: 'That is the path to Awakening.' I thought: 'So why am I afraid of that pleasure that has nothing to do with sensuality, nothing to do with unskillful mental qualities?' I thought: 'I am no longer afraid of that pleasure that has nothing to do with sensuality, nothing to do with unskillful mental qualities, but it is not easy to achieve that pleasure with a body so extremely emaciated. Suppose I were to take some solid food: some rice & porridge.' So I took some solid food: some rice & porridge. Now five monks had been attending on me, thinking, 'If Gotama, our contemplative, achieves some higher state, he will tell us.' But when they saw me taking some solid food — some rice & porridge — they were disgusted and left me, thinking, 'Gotama the contemplative is living luxuriously. He has abandoned his exertion and is backsliding into abundance.'
"So when I had taken solid food and regained strength, then — quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, I entered & remained in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I entered & remained in the second jhana: rapture & pleasure born of composure, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation — internal assurance. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain. With the fading of rapture I remained in equanimity, mindful & alert, and physically sensitive of pleasure. I entered & remained in the third jhana, of which the Noble Ones declare, 'Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding.' But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain. With the abandoning of pleasure & pain — as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress — I entered & remained in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain."
(MN 36)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
August 2
-"Learning Experience"
-in this life, there is agreeable and disagreeable experience. we learn, in practicing the dharma, to meet disagreeable experience, including disagreeable emotions, with acceptance. and, in turn, when we're afflicted with difficult emotions, we make it a learning experience. rather than try to fix or get rid of our experience, we make it a learning experience. this learning, however, is not an intellectual exercise. rather, as dharma students, we develop a deeper understanding. we allow our innate wisdom to comprehend our experience. we do this by bring awareness to our experience. we all have an innate wisdom. it is this innate wisdom that will free our heart of their burdens and lead us to a greater happiness in life.
-some things to remember as you learn make things a "learning experience"...
1-life by its nature includes agreeable & disagreeable experience.....
-there will always be disagreeable experience in life....
-including disagreeable emotions....
-anger, fear, sadness, etc....
-in and of themselves, disagreeable experiences, including disagreeable emotions, do not comprise dukkha....
-it is only when we cling to these experiences, emotions, that there is dukkha....
-only when we cling does the heart become burdened....
2- as dharma students, in meeting disagreeable emotions, we seek to develop acceptance....
-we develop equanimity....
-acceptance is a function of equanimity....
-when confronted with difficult emotions....
-we cultivate acceptance....
-seeing non-acceptance....
-inclining to acceptance....
-remembering that disagreeable experience is part of life ... it is "the way it is".....
3-in meeting disagreeable experience, including disagreeable emotions, we seek to make it a learning experience....
-as dharma students, meeting the disagreeable, with acceptance, we ask:
-"what is there to learn?"
-we see the tendency to want to change the experience....
-to want to get rid of it....
-to want to fix it....
-instead, we make it a learning experience....
-as the Buddha's teaching indicates, when there is suffering....
-our task is to "comprehend" suffering....
-(not to change it)
-in making it a learning experience, we are not "thinking about" the experience....
-learning in this case is not 'intellectual'.....
-we are allowing our innate wisdom to comprehend the experience....
4-in making it a learning experience, we are allowing our innate wisdom to comprehend our experience....
-making it a learning experience, developing wisdom, include two basic movement....
#1-we are aware of the experience as it manifests in the body....
-as it is, in the moment....
-the felt experience.....
#2-we bring awareness to the experience....
-we apply awareness....
-we all have the capacity for awareness....
-knowing our experience ... in a non-intellectual way....
-in the body....
-felt sense.....
-in the heart....
-we allow our innate wisdom to comprehend the experience....
-as dharma students, we learn to know awareness....
-it is very important that we learn to know awareness ... and, in turn, to apply it....
-it requires practice....
5-it is our innate wisdom that will free the heart of its burdens and lead us to true happiness.....
-the wisdom that will free the heart is inside us....
-gradually, if we make the effort, we come to learn to use this innate wisdom....
-gradually, the heart lets go of its burdens....
-gradually we move toward a greater happiness....
-listening.....
-"Trust in Awareness"
-reading.....
-"Right at Awareness" (Ajaan Fuang)
"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of stress: Birth is stressful, aging is stressful, death is stressful; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair are stressful; association with the unbeloved is stressful, separation from the loved is stressful, not getting what is wanted is stressful. In short, the five clinging-aggregates are stressful.”
(SN 56.11)
Another small but significant aspect to mention is that sometimes we mistake awareness or knowing, as understood from the Buddhist perspective, to mean a sort of mental agility. The quality of stream-entry is not dependent on being able to articulate or even to think clearly. This is an important principle. It is not dependent on clarity of thought. You don’t have to remember your lines. True insight can be established without a dependence on memory, conceptual thought or language. True insight is rather a quality of vision, a quality of attitude, and attitude is not a concept. It is a way of seeing, a way of being. It is an awakened knowing, awareness itself, rather than knowing about things.
(Ajahn Amaro)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"Learning Experience"
-in this life, there is agreeable and disagreeable experience. we learn, in practicing the dharma, to meet disagreeable experience, including disagreeable emotions, with acceptance. and, in turn, when we're afflicted with difficult emotions, we make it a learning experience. rather than try to fix or get rid of our experience, we make it a learning experience. this learning, however, is not an intellectual exercise. rather, as dharma students, we develop a deeper understanding. we allow our innate wisdom to comprehend our experience. we do this by bring awareness to our experience. we all have an innate wisdom. it is this innate wisdom that will free our heart of their burdens and lead us to a greater happiness in life.
-some things to remember as you learn make things a "learning experience"...
1-life by its nature includes agreeable & disagreeable experience.....
-there will always be disagreeable experience in life....
-including disagreeable emotions....
-anger, fear, sadness, etc....
-in and of themselves, disagreeable experiences, including disagreeable emotions, do not comprise dukkha....
-it is only when we cling to these experiences, emotions, that there is dukkha....
-only when we cling does the heart become burdened....
2- as dharma students, in meeting disagreeable emotions, we seek to develop acceptance....
-we develop equanimity....
-acceptance is a function of equanimity....
-when confronted with difficult emotions....
-we cultivate acceptance....
-seeing non-acceptance....
-inclining to acceptance....
-remembering that disagreeable experience is part of life ... it is "the way it is".....
3-in meeting disagreeable experience, including disagreeable emotions, we seek to make it a learning experience....
-as dharma students, meeting the disagreeable, with acceptance, we ask:
-"what is there to learn?"
-we see the tendency to want to change the experience....
-to want to get rid of it....
-to want to fix it....
-instead, we make it a learning experience....
-as the Buddha's teaching indicates, when there is suffering....
-our task is to "comprehend" suffering....
-(not to change it)
-in making it a learning experience, we are not "thinking about" the experience....
-learning in this case is not 'intellectual'.....
-we are allowing our innate wisdom to comprehend the experience....
4-in making it a learning experience, we are allowing our innate wisdom to comprehend our experience....
-making it a learning experience, developing wisdom, include two basic movement....
#1-we are aware of the experience as it manifests in the body....
-as it is, in the moment....
-the felt experience.....
#2-we bring awareness to the experience....
-we apply awareness....
-we all have the capacity for awareness....
-knowing our experience ... in a non-intellectual way....
-in the body....
-felt sense.....
-in the heart....
-we allow our innate wisdom to comprehend the experience....
-as dharma students, we learn to know awareness....
-it is very important that we learn to know awareness ... and, in turn, to apply it....
-it requires practice....
5-it is our innate wisdom that will free the heart of its burdens and lead us to true happiness.....
-the wisdom that will free the heart is inside us....
-gradually, if we make the effort, we come to learn to use this innate wisdom....
-gradually, the heart lets go of its burdens....
-gradually we move toward a greater happiness....
-listening.....
-"Trust in Awareness"
-reading.....
-"Right at Awareness" (Ajaan Fuang)
"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of stress: Birth is stressful, aging is stressful, death is stressful; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair are stressful; association with the unbeloved is stressful, separation from the loved is stressful, not getting what is wanted is stressful. In short, the five clinging-aggregates are stressful.”
(SN 56.11)
Another small but significant aspect to mention is that sometimes we mistake awareness or knowing, as understood from the Buddhist perspective, to mean a sort of mental agility. The quality of stream-entry is not dependent on being able to articulate or even to think clearly. This is an important principle. It is not dependent on clarity of thought. You don’t have to remember your lines. True insight can be established without a dependence on memory, conceptual thought or language. True insight is rather a quality of vision, a quality of attitude, and attitude is not a concept. It is a way of seeing, a way of being. It is an awakened knowing, awareness itself, rather than knowing about things.
(Ajahn Amaro)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
July 26
-"Commitment to Metta"
-metta, or lovingkindness, is found in the heart. it is the wish all beings have to have true happiness in this life. as such, metta is the primary intention that motivates skillful action. we act out of metta, in support of the wish for happiness. most beings, however, don't live in a way in which their actions are motivated by metta. they act in an effort to acquire sense pleasures, material gain, status & praise. as dharma students, we should pay close attention to our actions. what is driving what we do, how we live. are our actions motivated by a desire to have worldly things ... or happiness of heart? what actions do we need to abandon and which might we cultivate in support of metta, the wish for happiness of heart? can we develop in our commitment to metta? can we live with metta, taking action in support of the heart, today?
-some things to remember as you learn to strengthen your "commitment to metta"...
1-the dharma student seeks to take action informed by metta.....
-metta is the wish, in the heart, for happiness....
-true happiness....
-a heart that's free of its burdens....
-a dependable happiness....
-in living with metta, we seek to take action in support of the wish for happiness of heart....
2- it is important to reflect on our resolve to take action informed by metta....
-we should reflect....
-what is our resolve to take action informed by metta...?
-to live in accord with our wish for happiness of heart....?
-what is our commitment to metta....?
-what is our commitment to happiness of heart....?
-we should reflect....
-are our actions an expression of metta....?
-are our actions an expression of our wish to have happiness of heart....?
3-most beings take actions that are an expression of their desire to have a more worldly happiness....
-as the Buddha describes....
-most beings following the ways of the world....
-most beings look for happiness in conditioned things....
-in subscribing to the ways of the world, we look for happiness in:
-sense pleasure.....
-material gain....
-status & praise.....
-we should reflect.....
-to what degree am i looking for happiness in: sense pleasure, gain, status & praise....
-in looking for happiness in status & praise....
-we are looking for happiness in the approval of others....
4-making a commitment to metta asks for resolve and heedfulness.....
-making a commitment to metta....
-we resolve to live in a way in which our actions are in support of the wish for true happiness.....
-happiness of heart....
-we're heedful....
-we pay attention to our actions....
-are our actions in support of worldly happiness....?
-sense pleasure....
-material gain....
-status & praise....
-are our actions an expression of metta.....
-in support of the the wish to be happy of heart....
-we seek to abandon action that is in support of worldly happiness....
-we seek to cultivate action that is in support of happiness of the heart....
5-in making a commitment to metta we make a commitent to live with metta now.....
-we resolve to live today ... in the present moment.....
-to resolve to live with metta....
-today....
-now.....
-reading.....
-"The Honest Truth" (Ajahn Lee)
"Monks, these eight worldly conditions spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions. Which eight? Gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. These are the eight worldly conditions that spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions.
"For an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person there arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. For a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones there also arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. So what difference, what distinction, what distinguishing factor is there between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person?"
"For us, lord, the teachings have the Blessed One as their root, their guide, & their arbitrator. It would be good if the Blessed One himself would explicate the meaning of this statement. Having heard it from the Blessed One, the monks will remember it."
"In that case, monks, listen & pay close attention. I will speak."
"As you say, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said, "Gain arises for an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person. He does not reflect, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He does not reflect, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"His mind remains consumed with the gain. His mind remains consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind remains consumed with the pain.
"He welcomes the arisen gain and rebels against the arisen loss. He welcomes the arisen status and rebels against the arisen disgrace. He welcomes the arisen praise and rebels against the arisen censure. He welcomes the arisen pleasure and rebels against the arisen pain. As he is thus engaged in welcoming & rebelling, he is not released from birth, aging, or death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, or despairs. He is not released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"Now, gain arises for a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones. He reflects, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He reflects, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"His mind does not remain consumed with the gain. His mind does not remain consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind does not remain consumed with the pain.
"He does not welcome the arisen gain, or rebel against the arisen loss. He does not welcome the arisen status, or rebel against the arisen disgrace. He does not welcome the arisen praise, or rebel against the arisen censure. He does not welcome the arisen pleasure, or rebel against the arisen pain. As he thus abandons welcoming & rebelling, he is released from birth, aging, & death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, & despairs. He is released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"This is the difference, this the distinction, this the distinguishing factor between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person."
Gain/loss,
status/disgrace,
censure/praise,
pleasure/pain:
these conditions among human beings
are inconstant,
impermanent,
subject to change.
Knowing this, the wise person, mindful,
ponders these changing conditions.
Desirable things don't charm the mind,
undesirable ones bring no resistance.
His welcoming
& rebelling are scattered,
gone to their end,
do not exist.
Knowing the dustless, sorrowless state,
he discerns rightly,
has gone, beyond becoming,
to the Further Shore.
(AN 8.6)
This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard: "All the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising (in heaven) do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles.
"Just as the radiance of all the stars does not equal one-sixteenth of the radiance of the moon, as the moon — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles, even so, all the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising in heaven do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles.
"Just as in the last month of the rains, in autumn, when the sky is clear & cloudless, the sun, on ascending the sky, overpowers the space immersed in darkness, shines, blazes, & dazzles, even so, all the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising in heaven do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles.
"Just as in the pre-dawn darkness the morning star shines, blazes, & dazzles, even so, all the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising in heaven do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles."
(Iti 1.27)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"Commitment to Metta"
-metta, or lovingkindness, is found in the heart. it is the wish all beings have to have true happiness in this life. as such, metta is the primary intention that motivates skillful action. we act out of metta, in support of the wish for happiness. most beings, however, don't live in a way in which their actions are motivated by metta. they act in an effort to acquire sense pleasures, material gain, status & praise. as dharma students, we should pay close attention to our actions. what is driving what we do, how we live. are our actions motivated by a desire to have worldly things ... or happiness of heart? what actions do we need to abandon and which might we cultivate in support of metta, the wish for happiness of heart? can we develop in our commitment to metta? can we live with metta, taking action in support of the heart, today?
-some things to remember as you learn to strengthen your "commitment to metta"...
1-the dharma student seeks to take action informed by metta.....
-metta is the wish, in the heart, for happiness....
-true happiness....
-a heart that's free of its burdens....
-a dependable happiness....
-in living with metta, we seek to take action in support of the wish for happiness of heart....
2- it is important to reflect on our resolve to take action informed by metta....
-we should reflect....
-what is our resolve to take action informed by metta...?
-to live in accord with our wish for happiness of heart....?
-what is our commitment to metta....?
-what is our commitment to happiness of heart....?
-we should reflect....
-are our actions an expression of metta....?
-are our actions an expression of our wish to have happiness of heart....?
3-most beings take actions that are an expression of their desire to have a more worldly happiness....
-as the Buddha describes....
-most beings following the ways of the world....
-most beings look for happiness in conditioned things....
-in subscribing to the ways of the world, we look for happiness in:
-sense pleasure.....
-material gain....
-status & praise.....
-we should reflect.....
-to what degree am i looking for happiness in: sense pleasure, gain, status & praise....
-in looking for happiness in status & praise....
-we are looking for happiness in the approval of others....
4-making a commitment to metta asks for resolve and heedfulness.....
-making a commitment to metta....
-we resolve to live in a way in which our actions are in support of the wish for true happiness.....
-happiness of heart....
-we're heedful....
-we pay attention to our actions....
-are our actions in support of worldly happiness....?
-sense pleasure....
-material gain....
-status & praise....
-are our actions an expression of metta.....
-in support of the the wish to be happy of heart....
-we seek to abandon action that is in support of worldly happiness....
-we seek to cultivate action that is in support of happiness of the heart....
5-in making a commitment to metta we make a commitent to live with metta now.....
-we resolve to live today ... in the present moment.....
-to resolve to live with metta....
-today....
-now.....
-reading.....
-"The Honest Truth" (Ajahn Lee)
"Monks, these eight worldly conditions spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions. Which eight? Gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. These are the eight worldly conditions that spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions.
"For an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person there arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. For a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones there also arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. So what difference, what distinction, what distinguishing factor is there between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person?"
"For us, lord, the teachings have the Blessed One as their root, their guide, & their arbitrator. It would be good if the Blessed One himself would explicate the meaning of this statement. Having heard it from the Blessed One, the monks will remember it."
"In that case, monks, listen & pay close attention. I will speak."
"As you say, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said, "Gain arises for an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person. He does not reflect, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He does not reflect, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"His mind remains consumed with the gain. His mind remains consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind remains consumed with the pain.
"He welcomes the arisen gain and rebels against the arisen loss. He welcomes the arisen status and rebels against the arisen disgrace. He welcomes the arisen praise and rebels against the arisen censure. He welcomes the arisen pleasure and rebels against the arisen pain. As he is thus engaged in welcoming & rebelling, he is not released from birth, aging, or death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, or despairs. He is not released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"Now, gain arises for a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones. He reflects, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He reflects, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"His mind does not remain consumed with the gain. His mind does not remain consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind does not remain consumed with the pain.
"He does not welcome the arisen gain, or rebel against the arisen loss. He does not welcome the arisen status, or rebel against the arisen disgrace. He does not welcome the arisen praise, or rebel against the arisen censure. He does not welcome the arisen pleasure, or rebel against the arisen pain. As he thus abandons welcoming & rebelling, he is released from birth, aging, & death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, & despairs. He is released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"This is the difference, this the distinction, this the distinguishing factor between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person."
Gain/loss,
status/disgrace,
censure/praise,
pleasure/pain:
these conditions among human beings
are inconstant,
impermanent,
subject to change.
Knowing this, the wise person, mindful,
ponders these changing conditions.
Desirable things don't charm the mind,
undesirable ones bring no resistance.
His welcoming
& rebelling are scattered,
gone to their end,
do not exist.
Knowing the dustless, sorrowless state,
he discerns rightly,
has gone, beyond becoming,
to the Further Shore.
(AN 8.6)
This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard: "All the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising (in heaven) do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles.
"Just as the radiance of all the stars does not equal one-sixteenth of the radiance of the moon, as the moon — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles, even so, all the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising in heaven do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles.
"Just as in the last month of the rains, in autumn, when the sky is clear & cloudless, the sun, on ascending the sky, overpowers the space immersed in darkness, shines, blazes, & dazzles, even so, all the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising in heaven do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles.
"Just as in the pre-dawn darkness the morning star shines, blazes, & dazzles, even so, all the grounds for making merit leading to spontaneously arising in heaven do not equal one-sixteenth of the awareness-release through good will. Good will — surpassing them — shines, blazes, & dazzles."
(Iti 1.27)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
July 19
-"The Power of No"
-often times, we may say yes when it would be in our best interests to say no. in fact, saying no can be a way of coming to ourselves, our truth, our heart. we may say yes, when it would be better to say no, because we driven by habitual ways of thinking. perhaps by a need for approval. perhaps by fear. often, the inclination to say yes is driven by the desire to maintain a certain self image. these are habits of mind and ways of being that we can change. simply by being aware of our habitual tendences to say yes and in turn saying no, we change. we abandon unskillful habitual patterns. we cultivate love for ourselves and all beings. we come closer to who we are. our truth. our heart. the practice of saying no, then, can support us in coming to the happiness of heart.
-some things to remember as you learn to develop "the power of no"...
1-we can bring about change by learning to say no.....
-as dharma students, we are learning to change our habitual patterns....
-the patterns driven by unskillful mental qualities....
-the patterns that are driven by past karma....
-we change by changing our actions....
-doing things that, habitually, we haven't done....
-not doing thing that, habitually, we've done....
-by saying no ... when, in the past, we might have said yes....
2- our habitual tendencies to say yes are often driven by unskillful intentions & mental patterns....
-when there is tendency to say yes, even though it's not in our best interests....
-our tendency to say yes may be driven by unskillful qualities ... such as....
-the desire for approval....
-not wanting people to dislike us....
-fear.....
-the tendency to say yes is often driven by the desire to maintain a certain self identity view....
-these unskillful tendences are functions of clinging....
-dukkha....
3-our meditation practice enables us to discern what is skillful and whether saying yes is in our best interests....
-as we develop in meditation....
-we cultivate jhana....
-we develop in mindfulness of the body ... we have embodied awareness....
-we look at what its like when we are saying yes ... or when we've said yes and taken a certain action....
-we look to see:
-what is it like....?
-how is the body....?
-is there dis-ease....?
-am i cut off from the heart....?
-as we learn to say no ... we look to see what that is like....
-we are mindful of the body....
-what is it like...?
-how is the body....?
-is there ease....?
-are we in tune with the heart....?
4-we might think about making "saying no" a regular practice....
-making it a practice....
-being aware of circumstances ... blatant & subtle ... when our habitual tendency is to say yes....
-when saying yes, it would seem, is not in our best interests ... in the interests of the heart....
-in turn, saying no....
-seeing what that is like....
-this week, can be engage in this practice one time....?
-can we make it a practice....?
5-saying no supports our efforts to come closer to the heart....
-in saying no....
-we abandon unskillful tendencies of mind....
-forms of clinging....
-we abandon fear....
-we abandon the clinging to self identity views....
-in turn, we come to who we are....
-our truth....
-our dhamma....
-our heart....
-we are free from the bonds of self identity view....
-we know happiness of heart.....
-reading.....
-"The Way It Is" (Ajahn Sumedho)
The Journey (Mary Oliver)
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice --
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voice behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do --
determined to save
the only life that you could save.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"The Power of No"
-often times, we may say yes when it would be in our best interests to say no. in fact, saying no can be a way of coming to ourselves, our truth, our heart. we may say yes, when it would be better to say no, because we driven by habitual ways of thinking. perhaps by a need for approval. perhaps by fear. often, the inclination to say yes is driven by the desire to maintain a certain self image. these are habits of mind and ways of being that we can change. simply by being aware of our habitual tendences to say yes and in turn saying no, we change. we abandon unskillful habitual patterns. we cultivate love for ourselves and all beings. we come closer to who we are. our truth. our heart. the practice of saying no, then, can support us in coming to the happiness of heart.
-some things to remember as you learn to develop "the power of no"...
1-we can bring about change by learning to say no.....
-as dharma students, we are learning to change our habitual patterns....
-the patterns driven by unskillful mental qualities....
-the patterns that are driven by past karma....
-we change by changing our actions....
-doing things that, habitually, we haven't done....
-not doing thing that, habitually, we've done....
-by saying no ... when, in the past, we might have said yes....
2- our habitual tendencies to say yes are often driven by unskillful intentions & mental patterns....
-when there is tendency to say yes, even though it's not in our best interests....
-our tendency to say yes may be driven by unskillful qualities ... such as....
-the desire for approval....
-not wanting people to dislike us....
-fear.....
-the tendency to say yes is often driven by the desire to maintain a certain self identity view....
-these unskillful tendences are functions of clinging....
-dukkha....
3-our meditation practice enables us to discern what is skillful and whether saying yes is in our best interests....
-as we develop in meditation....
-we cultivate jhana....
-we develop in mindfulness of the body ... we have embodied awareness....
-we look at what its like when we are saying yes ... or when we've said yes and taken a certain action....
-we look to see:
-what is it like....?
-how is the body....?
-is there dis-ease....?
-am i cut off from the heart....?
-as we learn to say no ... we look to see what that is like....
-we are mindful of the body....
-what is it like...?
-how is the body....?
-is there ease....?
-are we in tune with the heart....?
4-we might think about making "saying no" a regular practice....
-making it a practice....
-being aware of circumstances ... blatant & subtle ... when our habitual tendency is to say yes....
-when saying yes, it would seem, is not in our best interests ... in the interests of the heart....
-in turn, saying no....
-seeing what that is like....
-this week, can be engage in this practice one time....?
-can we make it a practice....?
5-saying no supports our efforts to come closer to the heart....
-in saying no....
-we abandon unskillful tendencies of mind....
-forms of clinging....
-we abandon fear....
-we abandon the clinging to self identity views....
-in turn, we come to who we are....
-our truth....
-our dhamma....
-our heart....
-we are free from the bonds of self identity view....
-we know happiness of heart.....
-reading.....
-"The Way It Is" (Ajahn Sumedho)
The Journey (Mary Oliver)
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice --
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voice behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do --
determined to save
the only life that you could save.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
July 12
-"The Essence of Breath Meditation"
-the follower of the Buddha's path seeks to develop in mindfulness of the body. this is essential to the path. if we can maintain mindfulness of the body, the Buddha tell us, we can know a greater happiness in this life. the practice of breath meditation is the primary way that we develop mindfulness of the body. in breath mediation it is important that we follow the steps the Buddha laid out. in cultivating 'step 2' of the meditation, we evaluate the breath and, in turn, cultivate an easeful breath. by doing this we bring the nervous system- which is typically dysregulated - into a state of regulation. when we are able to regulate the body through cultivating an easeful breath, we're able to develop a pleasant abiding, maintain n ourselves in the body and stay close to the heart.
-some things to remember as you learn the "essence of breath meditation"...
1-it is essential to develop mindfulness of the body.....
-as the Buddha teaches....
-if we're able to maintain mindfulness of the body, we'll know a greater happiness in life....
-the happiness of heart....
-the 'run of the mill' person is not established in mindfulness of the body....
-the state in which we're not in the body, not present, the Buddha calls the state of becoming.....
-states of becoming include....
-being preoccupied with sense experiences....
-being preoccupied with thinking....
-in thought worlds....
2- when we are involved in states of becoming, caught in thought worlds, there is dis-ease, dukkha...
-when there is dis-ease, agitation, we are not inclined to keep the mind in the body....
-we seek to avoid the present moment....
-we find it difficult to meditate....
-the nervous system is dysregulated....
3-we follow the steps of breath meditation in an effort to develop mindfulness of the body....
-in step one, we put the mind on the breath....
-someplace where it feel comfortable....
-we put aside greed and distress with reference to the world....
-in step two, we evaluate the breath....
-seeing dis-ease....
-the breath is a reflection of the mind ... of our dysregulated state....
-cultivating ease.....
-we cultivate an easeful breath.....
-the breath regulates the nervous system.....
-as the breath becomes more easeful ... the body becomes more easeful....
-the nervous system regulates....
-as the body become more at ease, we're more able to maintain mindfulness of the body....
4-as we develop the steps we cultivate a good home for the mind....
-we're able more and more to stay in the body....
-in step three, we spread the breath energy throughout the body....
-we further bring the body into regulation....
-we cultivate a pleasant abiding....
-as we're more and more present, in the body....
-we're more and more in tune with the heart....
-we're closer the the heart....
-the heart....
-our innate wisdom....
-metta....
-compassion....
-as we come more and more into the body ... we're more and more in tune with the heart....
-we're able to abandon our suffering....
-we're able to take action that is in the service of happiness of heart....
5-conviction is essential to the practice of breath meditation.....
-conviction....
-conviction in the heart....
-in our innate wisdom....
-in the light within....
-when there is conviction.....
-we make an effort to develop the breath meditation steps....
-we rely on our innate wisdom ... in making our way in this life....
-reading.....
-"At Ease in the World" (from Skillful Pleasure)
-"The Essence of Breath Meditation"
-the follower of the Buddha's path seeks to develop in mindfulness of the body. this is essential to the path. if we can maintain mindfulness of the body, the Buddha tell us, we can know a greater happiness in this life. the practice of breath meditation is the primary way that we develop mindfulness of the body. in breath mediation it is important that we follow the steps the Buddha laid out. in cultivating 'step 2' of the meditation, we evaluate the breath and, in turn, cultivate an easeful breath. by doing this we bring the nervous system- which is typically dysregulated - into a state of regulation. when we are able to regulate the body through cultivating an easeful breath, we're able to develop a pleasant abiding, maintain n ourselves in the body and stay close to the heart.
-some things to remember as you learn the "essence of breath meditation"...
1-it is essential to develop mindfulness of the body.....
-as the Buddha teaches....
-if we're able to maintain mindfulness of the body, we'll know a greater happiness in life....
-the happiness of heart....
-the 'run of the mill' person is not established in mindfulness of the body....
-the state in which we're not in the body, not present, the Buddha calls the state of becoming.....
-states of becoming include....
-being preoccupied with sense experiences....
-being preoccupied with thinking....
-in thought worlds....
2- when we are involved in states of becoming, caught in thought worlds, there is dis-ease, dukkha...
-when there is dis-ease, agitation, we are not inclined to keep the mind in the body....
-we seek to avoid the present moment....
-we find it difficult to meditate....
-the nervous system is dysregulated....
3-we follow the steps of breath meditation in an effort to develop mindfulness of the body....
-in step one, we put the mind on the breath....
-someplace where it feel comfortable....
-we put aside greed and distress with reference to the world....
-in step two, we evaluate the breath....
-seeing dis-ease....
-the breath is a reflection of the mind ... of our dysregulated state....
-cultivating ease.....
-we cultivate an easeful breath.....
-the breath regulates the nervous system.....
-as the breath becomes more easeful ... the body becomes more easeful....
-the nervous system regulates....
-as the body become more at ease, we're more able to maintain mindfulness of the body....
4-as we develop the steps we cultivate a good home for the mind....
-we're able more and more to stay in the body....
-in step three, we spread the breath energy throughout the body....
-we further bring the body into regulation....
-we cultivate a pleasant abiding....
-as we're more and more present, in the body....
-we're more and more in tune with the heart....
-we're closer the the heart....
-the heart....
-our innate wisdom....
-metta....
-compassion....
-as we come more and more into the body ... we're more and more in tune with the heart....
-we're able to abandon our suffering....
-we're able to take action that is in the service of happiness of heart....
5-conviction is essential to the practice of breath meditation.....
-conviction....
-conviction in the heart....
-in our innate wisdom....
-in the light within....
-when there is conviction.....
-we make an effort to develop the breath meditation steps....
-we rely on our innate wisdom ... in making our way in this life....
-reading.....
-"At Ease in the World" (from Skillful Pleasure)
| skillful_pleasure_at_ease_in_world.pdf |
The Blessed One said: “This is the direct path1 for the purification of beings, for the overcoming of sorrow & lamentation, for the disappearance of pain & distress, for the attainment of the right method, & for the realization of unbinding—in other words, the four establishings of mindfulness. Which four?
“There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself—ardent, alert, & mindful—subduing greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings… mind… mental qualities in & of themselves—ardent, alert, & mindful —subduing greed & distress with reference to the world.
A. Body
“And how does a monk remain focused on the body in & of itself?
[1] “There is the case where a monk—having gone to the wilderness, to the shade of a tree, or to an empty building—sits down folding his legs crosswise, holding his body erect and establishing mindfulness to the fore. Always mindful, he breathes in; mindful he breathes out.
(MN 10)
Simply talking a lot
doesn’t maintain the dhamma.
Whoever
—although he’s heard next to nothing--
sees dhamma through his body,
is not heedless of dhamma:
he’s one who maintains the dhamma.
(Dhp 259)
They awaken, always wide awake:
Gotama’s disciples
whose mindfulness, both day & night,
is constantly immersed
in the body.
(Dhp 299)
With mindfulness immersed in the body
well established,
restrained with respect to the six
media of contact,
always concentrated, the monk
can know unbinding for himself.
(Ud 3.5)
“Whoever pervades the great ocean with his awareness encompasses whatever rivulets flow down into the ocean. In the same way, whoever develops & pursues mindfulness immersed in the body encompasses whatever skillful qualities are on the side of clear knowing.”
“When one thing is practiced & pursued, the body is calmed, the mind is calmed, thinking & evaluating are stilled, and all qualities on the side of clear knowing go to the culmination of their development. Which one thing? Mindfulness immersed in the body.”
“When one thing is practiced & pursued, ignorance is abandoned, clear knowing arises, the conceit ‘I am’ is abandoned, latent tendencies are uprooted, fetters are abandoned. Which one thing? Mindfulness immersed in the body.”
“Those who do not taste mindfulness of the body do not taste the Deathless. Those who taste mindfulness of the body taste the Deathless.”
“Those who are heedless of mindfulness of the body are heedless of the Deathless.”
“Those who comprehend mindfulness of the body comprehend the Deathless.”
(AN 1.225)
July 5
-"Foundations of Being a Dharma Student (Five Things)"
-the Buddha encouraged his disciples to establish themselves in certain basic practices. there are, in other words, certain foundational elements, to being a dharma student. we should develop these 'basics' for practice if we have a wish to know a greater happiness in our lives. as always, we keep coming back to the basics, the elements of the path that enable us to develop in wisdom & compassion. if we are focused in establishing ourselves in these basics, there's no question that the path will open up for us.
-some things to remember as you develop the "foundations of being a dharma student"...
1-the dharma student makes an effort to develop in virtue...
-the practice of virtue includes....
-for lay people, making an effort to follow the five precepts....
-following the guidelines for skillful speech...
-to refrain from false speech....
-to refrain from divisive speech....
-to refrain from harsh speech....
-to refrain from idle speech...
-cultivating skillful action....
-skillful action (deeds)...
-skilllful speech...
-skillful thinking....
-in developing in virtue, we learn to see the "danger" in unskillful action....
-in terms of the mind....
-craving....
-non-peace....
-in terms of the heart....
2- the dharma student makes an effort to practice restraint of the senses...
-the dharma student guards the sense doors....
-the dharma student is heedful ... pays attention to sense experience ....
-the dharma student practices restraint....
-in regard to sense experience....
-the dharma student learns to see the consequences of pursuing sense experience....
-in terms of the mind....
-in terms of the heart....
3-the dharma student seeks to limit her speaking/conversation....
-the dharma students seeks to limit the amount of speaking/conversation she engages in....
-understanding that too much speaking is a hindrance to the path.....
-too much speaking causes agitation, non-peace....
-too much speaking obscures our ability to be heedful....
-in paying attention to our speaking ... and how much speaking we engage in.....
-we should also pay attention to how much we are taking in other people speaking....
4-the dharma student practices seclusion.....
-we practice seclusion, understanding the important ... in terms of the mind ... in taking a step back...
-from sense experience......
-from 'the world'......
-we practice seclusion by taking the time for meditation....
-daiily meditation practice....
-retreat......
5-the dharma student cultivates right view......
-the dharma student cultivates right view by developing her view in terms of....
-the law of karma....
-the four noble truths.....
-an important element of having right vision is developing the fourth noble truth ....
-the path....
-the cultivation of right concentration.....
-reading.....
-"Mind What You Say" (Ajaan Fuang)
Andhakavinda Sutta
On one occasion the Blessed One was staying among the Magadhans at Andhakavinda. Then Ven. Ananda went to him and, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there the Blessed One said to him, "Ananda, the new monks — those who have not long gone forth, who are newcomers in this Dhamma & Discipline — should be encouraged, exhorted, and established in these five things. Which five?
"'Come, friends, be virtuous. Dwell restrained in accordance with the Patimokkha, consummate in your behavior & sphere of activity. Train yourselves, having undertaken the training rules, seeing danger in the slightest faults.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in restraint in accordance with the Patimokkha.
"'Come, friends, dwell with your sense faculties guarded, with mindfulness as your protector, with mindfulness as your chief, with your intellect self-protected, endowed with an awareness protected by mindfulness.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in restraint of the senses.
"'Come, friends, speak only a little, place limits on your conversation.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in limited conversation.
"'Come, friends, dwell in the wilderness. Resort to remote wilderness & forest dwellings.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in physical seclusion.
"Come, friends, develop right view. Be endowed with right vision.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in right vision.
"New monks — those who have not long gone forth, who are newcomers in this Dhamma & Discipline — should be encouraged, exhorted, and established in these five things."
(AN 5.114)
Don't be a busy-body. Wherever you live, try to be quiet and at peace. Don't get entangled or "play the gongs" with the other members of the group. Don't get involved in issues unless it really can't be helped. When you've studied and understand your duties, look for quiet, solitary places to live and to meditate. When you live with others, look for quiet groups to live with. When you live alone, in physical seclusion, be a quiet person. Even when you live with the group, be a secluded person. Take only the good, peaceful things the group has to offer. When you live alone, don't get involved in a lot of activity. Be quiet in your actions, quiet in your speech, quiet in your mind. When you live in a group — either two or three people — don't get involved in quarrels, for when there's quarreling there's no peace. Your actions aren't peaceful, for you have to get up and storm around. Your words aren't peaceful. Your mind — with its thoughts of anger, revenge, and ill will — isn't peaceful. And this gives rise to all sorts of bad karma. When you live in a community — anywhere from four on up to 99 — you have to make sure that the community is at peace, that there's no conflict, no quarreling, no hurting one another's feelings or doing one another harm. The community should be a cooperative for training peacefully in virtue and the Dhamma. That's when it's a good community, orderly and civilized, fostering progress for all its members. This is one of our duties as part of the Buddha's following, in line with the Buddha's instructions. It's called patañca sayanasanam: creating a quiet place to live, at your ease in both body and mind.
(Ajaan Lee)
Respect for the Dhamma means taking seriously all the things coming in and out the house of your mind. (1) The door of the body: You have to be careful to make sure that none of your actions stray into ways that are harmful. (2) The door of speech — the door of the mouth — is very large. The tongue may be only a tiny piece of flesh, but it's very important, because what we say today can keep echoing for an aeon after we die. When the body dies, the time isn't long before there's nothing left of it, and so it's not as important as our speech, for the stone engravings we make with our tongue last a long, long time. For this reason, we should show a great deal of respect for our mouths by saying only things that are worthwhile. (3) The door of the intellect: We have to be careful with our thoughts. If something is harmful to us when we think about it, then we shouldn't think about it. We should think only about things that are beneficial and good.
These three doors are always receiving guests into the mind, so we have to pay attention to see who is coming with good intentions and who is coming with bad. Don't let down your guard. Whoever comes with good intentions will bring you happiness and prosperity. As for troublemakers and thieves, they'll rob you and kill you and cause you all sorts of trouble.
As for your eyes, ears and nose, these are like three windows that you have to be careful about as well. You have to know when to open and when to close them. If you aren't discerning, you may invite thieves into your house to rob and kill you, plundering all the wealth your parents and teachers gave you. This is called being an ingrate — not knowing enough to care for the legacies that others have passed down to you. The legacies of your parents are your life, health, and strength. The legacies of your teachers are all the things they taught to make you a good person. If you leave your thoughts, words, and deeds wide open so that evil can flow into you, evil will keep pouring in, wearing down the health and strength of your body and mind. This is called having no appreciation for the kindness of your parents and teachers.
Sometimes we don't leave just the doors open — we leave the windows open as well. Lizards, snakes, scorpions, birds, and bats will come in through the windows and take up residence in our house. After a while they'll lay claim to it as theirs — and we give in to them. So they leave their droppings all over and make a mess of the place. If we don't exercise self-restraint, our body and mind are going to be ruined, and this will destroy the wealth our parents and teachers went to such great trouble to give us.
So if anyone tries to come into your house, you have to grill them thoroughly to see what they're up to and what they're coming for — for good or for bad. Look them straight in the eye. In other words, you have to be mindful and reflecting in all your actions. Anything that isn't good you have to drive out of your activities. Even if it would help you financially or make you popular and well-known, don't have anything to do with it. The same holds true with your speech. If something you're about to say will serve a good purpose, then open your mouth and say it. Say what should be said, and don't say what shouldn't. If something serves no real purpose, then no matter how fantastic it may be, don't say it. You have to know how to respond to all the activities that present themselves for you to do. Let in the good ones and drive out the bad.
As for the mind, you have to show restraint with that, too. If a thought will lead to good and happy results, you should let yourself think it. But as for thoughts that will cause harm, don't pull them in. If you go gobbling down everything you like, you're going to die. I.e., (1) your inner quality will deteriorate. (2) The wealth your parents and teachers gave you will disappear.
As for your senses — sight, hearing, smell, taste, feeling — you should show an interest in everything that will benefit you. Drive out what's bad and bring in what's good. When you can do this, it's called showing respect for your parents, your teachers, and yourself as well. Your house will be clean, and you can lounge around in comfort without having to worry about sitting on bird- or bat-droppings.
But if you don't exercise self-restraint, your actions will be defiled, your words will be defiled, so how can your mind live in comfort? Like a filthy house: No guests will want to go into it, and even the owner isn't comfortable there. If you keep your home clean and well-swept, though, it'll be nice to live in, and good people will be happy to come and visit. When good people come and visit, they won't cause you any harm. In other words, the things that come in through the senses are like guests and they won't cause any harm to the mind. The mind will be good and obedient and will stay put where you tell it to. But even if your couches and chairs are made of marble: If they're dusty and dirty, no guests will want to sit there, and you yourself won't want to, either.
(Ajaan Lee)
-"Foundations of Being a Dharma Student (Five Things)"
-the Buddha encouraged his disciples to establish themselves in certain basic practices. there are, in other words, certain foundational elements, to being a dharma student. we should develop these 'basics' for practice if we have a wish to know a greater happiness in our lives. as always, we keep coming back to the basics, the elements of the path that enable us to develop in wisdom & compassion. if we are focused in establishing ourselves in these basics, there's no question that the path will open up for us.
-some things to remember as you develop the "foundations of being a dharma student"...
1-the dharma student makes an effort to develop in virtue...
-the practice of virtue includes....
-for lay people, making an effort to follow the five precepts....
-following the guidelines for skillful speech...
-to refrain from false speech....
-to refrain from divisive speech....
-to refrain from harsh speech....
-to refrain from idle speech...
-cultivating skillful action....
-skillful action (deeds)...
-skilllful speech...
-skillful thinking....
-in developing in virtue, we learn to see the "danger" in unskillful action....
-in terms of the mind....
-craving....
-non-peace....
-in terms of the heart....
2- the dharma student makes an effort to practice restraint of the senses...
-the dharma student guards the sense doors....
-the dharma student is heedful ... pays attention to sense experience ....
-the dharma student practices restraint....
-in regard to sense experience....
-the dharma student learns to see the consequences of pursuing sense experience....
-in terms of the mind....
-in terms of the heart....
3-the dharma student seeks to limit her speaking/conversation....
-the dharma students seeks to limit the amount of speaking/conversation she engages in....
-understanding that too much speaking is a hindrance to the path.....
-too much speaking causes agitation, non-peace....
-too much speaking obscures our ability to be heedful....
-in paying attention to our speaking ... and how much speaking we engage in.....
-we should also pay attention to how much we are taking in other people speaking....
4-the dharma student practices seclusion.....
-we practice seclusion, understanding the important ... in terms of the mind ... in taking a step back...
-from sense experience......
-from 'the world'......
-we practice seclusion by taking the time for meditation....
-daiily meditation practice....
-retreat......
5-the dharma student cultivates right view......
-the dharma student cultivates right view by developing her view in terms of....
-the law of karma....
-the four noble truths.....
-an important element of having right vision is developing the fourth noble truth ....
-the path....
-the cultivation of right concentration.....
-reading.....
-"Mind What You Say" (Ajaan Fuang)
Andhakavinda Sutta
On one occasion the Blessed One was staying among the Magadhans at Andhakavinda. Then Ven. Ananda went to him and, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there the Blessed One said to him, "Ananda, the new monks — those who have not long gone forth, who are newcomers in this Dhamma & Discipline — should be encouraged, exhorted, and established in these five things. Which five?
"'Come, friends, be virtuous. Dwell restrained in accordance with the Patimokkha, consummate in your behavior & sphere of activity. Train yourselves, having undertaken the training rules, seeing danger in the slightest faults.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in restraint in accordance with the Patimokkha.
"'Come, friends, dwell with your sense faculties guarded, with mindfulness as your protector, with mindfulness as your chief, with your intellect self-protected, endowed with an awareness protected by mindfulness.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in restraint of the senses.
"'Come, friends, speak only a little, place limits on your conversation.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in limited conversation.
"'Come, friends, dwell in the wilderness. Resort to remote wilderness & forest dwellings.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in physical seclusion.
"Come, friends, develop right view. Be endowed with right vision.' Thus they should be encouraged, exhorted, & established in right vision.
"New monks — those who have not long gone forth, who are newcomers in this Dhamma & Discipline — should be encouraged, exhorted, and established in these five things."
(AN 5.114)
Don't be a busy-body. Wherever you live, try to be quiet and at peace. Don't get entangled or "play the gongs" with the other members of the group. Don't get involved in issues unless it really can't be helped. When you've studied and understand your duties, look for quiet, solitary places to live and to meditate. When you live with others, look for quiet groups to live with. When you live alone, in physical seclusion, be a quiet person. Even when you live with the group, be a secluded person. Take only the good, peaceful things the group has to offer. When you live alone, don't get involved in a lot of activity. Be quiet in your actions, quiet in your speech, quiet in your mind. When you live in a group — either two or three people — don't get involved in quarrels, for when there's quarreling there's no peace. Your actions aren't peaceful, for you have to get up and storm around. Your words aren't peaceful. Your mind — with its thoughts of anger, revenge, and ill will — isn't peaceful. And this gives rise to all sorts of bad karma. When you live in a community — anywhere from four on up to 99 — you have to make sure that the community is at peace, that there's no conflict, no quarreling, no hurting one another's feelings or doing one another harm. The community should be a cooperative for training peacefully in virtue and the Dhamma. That's when it's a good community, orderly and civilized, fostering progress for all its members. This is one of our duties as part of the Buddha's following, in line with the Buddha's instructions. It's called patañca sayanasanam: creating a quiet place to live, at your ease in both body and mind.
(Ajaan Lee)
Respect for the Dhamma means taking seriously all the things coming in and out the house of your mind. (1) The door of the body: You have to be careful to make sure that none of your actions stray into ways that are harmful. (2) The door of speech — the door of the mouth — is very large. The tongue may be only a tiny piece of flesh, but it's very important, because what we say today can keep echoing for an aeon after we die. When the body dies, the time isn't long before there's nothing left of it, and so it's not as important as our speech, for the stone engravings we make with our tongue last a long, long time. For this reason, we should show a great deal of respect for our mouths by saying only things that are worthwhile. (3) The door of the intellect: We have to be careful with our thoughts. If something is harmful to us when we think about it, then we shouldn't think about it. We should think only about things that are beneficial and good.
These three doors are always receiving guests into the mind, so we have to pay attention to see who is coming with good intentions and who is coming with bad. Don't let down your guard. Whoever comes with good intentions will bring you happiness and prosperity. As for troublemakers and thieves, they'll rob you and kill you and cause you all sorts of trouble.
As for your eyes, ears and nose, these are like three windows that you have to be careful about as well. You have to know when to open and when to close them. If you aren't discerning, you may invite thieves into your house to rob and kill you, plundering all the wealth your parents and teachers gave you. This is called being an ingrate — not knowing enough to care for the legacies that others have passed down to you. The legacies of your parents are your life, health, and strength. The legacies of your teachers are all the things they taught to make you a good person. If you leave your thoughts, words, and deeds wide open so that evil can flow into you, evil will keep pouring in, wearing down the health and strength of your body and mind. This is called having no appreciation for the kindness of your parents and teachers.
Sometimes we don't leave just the doors open — we leave the windows open as well. Lizards, snakes, scorpions, birds, and bats will come in through the windows and take up residence in our house. After a while they'll lay claim to it as theirs — and we give in to them. So they leave their droppings all over and make a mess of the place. If we don't exercise self-restraint, our body and mind are going to be ruined, and this will destroy the wealth our parents and teachers went to such great trouble to give us.
So if anyone tries to come into your house, you have to grill them thoroughly to see what they're up to and what they're coming for — for good or for bad. Look them straight in the eye. In other words, you have to be mindful and reflecting in all your actions. Anything that isn't good you have to drive out of your activities. Even if it would help you financially or make you popular and well-known, don't have anything to do with it. The same holds true with your speech. If something you're about to say will serve a good purpose, then open your mouth and say it. Say what should be said, and don't say what shouldn't. If something serves no real purpose, then no matter how fantastic it may be, don't say it. You have to know how to respond to all the activities that present themselves for you to do. Let in the good ones and drive out the bad.
As for the mind, you have to show restraint with that, too. If a thought will lead to good and happy results, you should let yourself think it. But as for thoughts that will cause harm, don't pull them in. If you go gobbling down everything you like, you're going to die. I.e., (1) your inner quality will deteriorate. (2) The wealth your parents and teachers gave you will disappear.
As for your senses — sight, hearing, smell, taste, feeling — you should show an interest in everything that will benefit you. Drive out what's bad and bring in what's good. When you can do this, it's called showing respect for your parents, your teachers, and yourself as well. Your house will be clean, and you can lounge around in comfort without having to worry about sitting on bird- or bat-droppings.
But if you don't exercise self-restraint, your actions will be defiled, your words will be defiled, so how can your mind live in comfort? Like a filthy house: No guests will want to go into it, and even the owner isn't comfortable there. If you keep your home clean and well-swept, though, it'll be nice to live in, and good people will be happy to come and visit. When good people come and visit, they won't cause you any harm. In other words, the things that come in through the senses are like guests and they won't cause any harm to the mind. The mind will be good and obedient and will stay put where you tell it to. But even if your couches and chairs are made of marble: If they're dusty and dirty, no guests will want to sit there, and you yourself won't want to, either.
(Ajaan Lee)
June 28
-"Compassion & the Smartphone"
-as we consider the ways of the world, we may have a tendency to register aversion, anger, judgment. or we may choose to ignore what we see. or we may feel fear. as dharma students, we learn bring awareness to these tendencies of mind. we learn to abandon unskillful ways of relating to our experience. we learn to cultivate wisdom and compassion. in seeing how the world is, and, specifically, in seeing the ways in which beings are carried away by technological forms such as the smartphone, we're asked to cultivate compassion. and, accordingly, we're asked, as dharma students, seeking a greater happiness in this life, to take action informed by compassion. we might consider what actions we can take, to help beings find freedom from suffering related to the excessive use of sense forms such as the smartphone. in doing so, we recognize that compassion is compassion for all beings. and that if we're to know happiness in this life, our actions must reflect this compassion
-some things to remember as you consider "compassion & the smartphone"...
1-the dharma student is asked to relate to the ways of the world in a skillful manner....
-the ways of the world comprise....
-beings taking action informed by desire & aversion....
-beings looking for happiness in....
-sense pleasure....
-including the technological forms ... like the smartphone....
-material gain....
-status....
-praise.....
-we should be mindful of our tendencies, in looking at the ways of the world, to react unskillfully....
-with aversion ... with anger....
-with ignorance (the tendency to ignore the world)....
-with fear....
2- the dharma student learns, in responding to the ways of the world, to cultivate wisdom & compassion...
-seeing how the world is ....
-seeing, specifically, how beings are caught up in sense pleasures ...like the smartphone.....
-the dharma student cultivates wisdom....
-seeing the suffering in the world....
-the dharma student cultivates compassion....
-in response to seeing the suffering in the world....
3-in developing compassion, we take action....
-we might ask, in regard to the suffering in the world ... including the suffering of beings afflicted by clinging to sense pleasures....
-are there actions we can take....?
-out of compassion for all beings....
-we might consider the way the world is, the preoccupation with technological forms like the phone, as opportunities for us to be of service ... to help others ... to take action informed by compassion....
-there may be opportunities for us to be of service ... to take compassionate action....
-blatant actions (like joining a particular organization)....
-more subtle actions....
-and, of course, we learn to model skillful action through our own skillful relationship to the various sense pleasures....
4-we should be mindful of the ways in which we resist taking action.....
-we should be mindful of the tendency to think that....
-there's nothing we can do ... we are powerless....
-our actions don't matter.....
-the problems we see in the world are not our problems....
5-compassion is compassion for all beings.....
-the truth the heart....
-when the heart shines it shines with compassion for all beings....
-we may be included to cultivate compassion ... and take action informed by compassion ... for only a select group of beings....
-ourselves....
-the being close to us in our lives....
-but when we restrict the heart to a select few beings, we cut ourselves off from the heart....
-we close off our hearts....
-we don't fulfill the potential of the heart....
-there is suffering/dukkha ... because we are cut off from the heart....
-in practicing the dharma accordingly, we come to understand that to live with compassion is to live with compassion for all beings.....
-when we live in this way, we live up to our potential in this life, we know the
happiness of the heart....
-reading.....
-"Looking Away from the Screen and Toward the Heart" (Peter Doobinin)
Look at people quarreling.
I will tell of how
I experienced
dismay.
Seeing people floundering
like fish in small puddles,
competing with one another --
as I saw this,
fear came into me.
The world was entirely
without substance.
All the directions
were knocked out of line.
Wanting a haven for myself,
I saw nothing that wasn't laid claim to.
Seeing nothing in the end
but competition,
I felt discontent.
(Sn 4.15)
I have heard that on one occasion, the Blessed One was staying at Uruvelā on the bank of the Nerañjarā River at the root of the Bodhi tree — the tree of awakening — newly awakened. And on that occasion he sat at the root of the Bodhi tree for seven days in one session, sensitive to the bliss of release. Then, with the passing of seven days, after emerging from that concentration, he surveyed the world with the eye of an Awakened One. As he did so, he saw living beings burning with the many fevers and aflame with the many fires born of passion, aversion, & delusion.
Then, on realizing the significance of that, he on that occasion exclaimed:
This world is burning.
Afflicted by contact,
it calls disease a 'self.'
By whatever means it construes [anything],
it becomes otherwise than that.[1]Becoming otherwise,
the world is
attached to becoming
afflicted by becoming
and yet delights
in that very becoming.
Where there's delight,
there is fear.
What one fears
is stressful.
This holy life is lived
for the abandoning of becoming.
(Ud 3.10)
"Now, Kalamas, one who is a disciple of the noble ones — thus devoid of greed, devoid of ill will, undeluded, alert, & resolute — keeps pervading the first direction [the east] — as well as the second direction, the third, & the fourth — with an awareness imbued with good will. Thus he keeps pervading above, below, & all around, everywhere & in every respect the all-encompassing cosmos with an awareness imbued with good will: abundant, expansive, immeasurable, free from hostility, free from ill will.
"He keeps pervading the first direction — as well as the second direction, the third, & the fourth — with an awareness imbued with compassion. Thus he keeps pervading above, below, & all around, everywhere & in every respect the all-encompassing cosmos with an awareness imbued with compassion: abundant, expansive, immeasurable, free from hostility, free from ill will."
(AN 3.65)
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
(Margaret Mead)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"Compassion & the Smartphone"
-as we consider the ways of the world, we may have a tendency to register aversion, anger, judgment. or we may choose to ignore what we see. or we may feel fear. as dharma students, we learn bring awareness to these tendencies of mind. we learn to abandon unskillful ways of relating to our experience. we learn to cultivate wisdom and compassion. in seeing how the world is, and, specifically, in seeing the ways in which beings are carried away by technological forms such as the smartphone, we're asked to cultivate compassion. and, accordingly, we're asked, as dharma students, seeking a greater happiness in this life, to take action informed by compassion. we might consider what actions we can take, to help beings find freedom from suffering related to the excessive use of sense forms such as the smartphone. in doing so, we recognize that compassion is compassion for all beings. and that if we're to know happiness in this life, our actions must reflect this compassion
-some things to remember as you consider "compassion & the smartphone"...
1-the dharma student is asked to relate to the ways of the world in a skillful manner....
-the ways of the world comprise....
-beings taking action informed by desire & aversion....
-beings looking for happiness in....
-sense pleasure....
-including the technological forms ... like the smartphone....
-material gain....
-status....
-praise.....
-we should be mindful of our tendencies, in looking at the ways of the world, to react unskillfully....
-with aversion ... with anger....
-with ignorance (the tendency to ignore the world)....
-with fear....
2- the dharma student learns, in responding to the ways of the world, to cultivate wisdom & compassion...
-seeing how the world is ....
-seeing, specifically, how beings are caught up in sense pleasures ...like the smartphone.....
-the dharma student cultivates wisdom....
-seeing the suffering in the world....
-the dharma student cultivates compassion....
-in response to seeing the suffering in the world....
3-in developing compassion, we take action....
-we might ask, in regard to the suffering in the world ... including the suffering of beings afflicted by clinging to sense pleasures....
-are there actions we can take....?
-out of compassion for all beings....
-we might consider the way the world is, the preoccupation with technological forms like the phone, as opportunities for us to be of service ... to help others ... to take action informed by compassion....
-there may be opportunities for us to be of service ... to take compassionate action....
-blatant actions (like joining a particular organization)....
-more subtle actions....
-and, of course, we learn to model skillful action through our own skillful relationship to the various sense pleasures....
4-we should be mindful of the ways in which we resist taking action.....
-we should be mindful of the tendency to think that....
-there's nothing we can do ... we are powerless....
-our actions don't matter.....
-the problems we see in the world are not our problems....
5-compassion is compassion for all beings.....
-the truth the heart....
-when the heart shines it shines with compassion for all beings....
-we may be included to cultivate compassion ... and take action informed by compassion ... for only a select group of beings....
-ourselves....
-the being close to us in our lives....
-but when we restrict the heart to a select few beings, we cut ourselves off from the heart....
-we close off our hearts....
-we don't fulfill the potential of the heart....
-there is suffering/dukkha ... because we are cut off from the heart....
-in practicing the dharma accordingly, we come to understand that to live with compassion is to live with compassion for all beings.....
-when we live in this way, we live up to our potential in this life, we know the
happiness of the heart....
-reading.....
-"Looking Away from the Screen and Toward the Heart" (Peter Doobinin)
Look at people quarreling.
I will tell of how
I experienced
dismay.
Seeing people floundering
like fish in small puddles,
competing with one another --
as I saw this,
fear came into me.
The world was entirely
without substance.
All the directions
were knocked out of line.
Wanting a haven for myself,
I saw nothing that wasn't laid claim to.
Seeing nothing in the end
but competition,
I felt discontent.
(Sn 4.15)
I have heard that on one occasion, the Blessed One was staying at Uruvelā on the bank of the Nerañjarā River at the root of the Bodhi tree — the tree of awakening — newly awakened. And on that occasion he sat at the root of the Bodhi tree for seven days in one session, sensitive to the bliss of release. Then, with the passing of seven days, after emerging from that concentration, he surveyed the world with the eye of an Awakened One. As he did so, he saw living beings burning with the many fevers and aflame with the many fires born of passion, aversion, & delusion.
Then, on realizing the significance of that, he on that occasion exclaimed:
This world is burning.
Afflicted by contact,
it calls disease a 'self.'
By whatever means it construes [anything],
it becomes otherwise than that.[1]Becoming otherwise,
the world is
attached to becoming
afflicted by becoming
and yet delights
in that very becoming.
Where there's delight,
there is fear.
What one fears
is stressful.
This holy life is lived
for the abandoning of becoming.
(Ud 3.10)
"Now, Kalamas, one who is a disciple of the noble ones — thus devoid of greed, devoid of ill will, undeluded, alert, & resolute — keeps pervading the first direction [the east] — as well as the second direction, the third, & the fourth — with an awareness imbued with good will. Thus he keeps pervading above, below, & all around, everywhere & in every respect the all-encompassing cosmos with an awareness imbued with good will: abundant, expansive, immeasurable, free from hostility, free from ill will.
"He keeps pervading the first direction — as well as the second direction, the third, & the fourth — with an awareness imbued with compassion. Thus he keeps pervading above, below, & all around, everywhere & in every respect the all-encompassing cosmos with an awareness imbued with compassion: abundant, expansive, immeasurable, free from hostility, free from ill will."
(AN 3.65)
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
(Margaret Mead)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
June 21
-"The Dharma Student & the Smartphone"
-as dharma students, we're asked to reflect on our relationship to sense pleasure. accordingly, in today's world, it's important that we reflect on our relationship to the various technologies that deliver sense experience. including the smart phone. as the Buddha teaches, the specific pleasure is not the issue, but rather our relationship to it. if we indulge in desire, we'll suffer. if we grasp, we'll suffer. which is to say, we'll cause the heart to be afflicted. as dharma students, we're asked to ask certain questions when it come to the pleasures of the world and our relationship to them. we're asked to practice wise reflection. we're asked to understand, through this reflection, the consequences of our relationship to the smartphone and the various sense pleasures.
-some things to remember as you learn to understand the relationship between "the dharma student & the smartphone"...
1-the dharma student learns to pay attention to her relationship to sense pleasure....
-the relationship we have to sense pleasure is an elemental aspect of dharma practice....
-we should reflect on our relationship to sense pleasures ... including the smartphone....
-it is particularly important to consider our relationship to the phone and other technological forms, given their prominence in the contemporary culture....
2- the dharma student learns to develop a skillful relationship to the smartphone and other technological forms...
-as the Buddha tells us, our suffering is not caused by the sense pleasure, such as the phone....
-rather, it's caused by having an unskillful relationship to the sense pleasure.....
-as always, our suffering or our happiness depends on what we do....
-we should, therefore, be careful of blaming the specific pleasure, such as the phone, for our suffering....
-we should be careful of blaming the culture ... and, in turn, not taking responsibility for our suffering or our happiness....
3-our task, in having a skillful relationship to the smartphone, is to abandon desire/grasping.....
-in regard to the sense pleasures, such as the phone, we suffer when we grasp ... when we cling to the sense experience....
-what enables us to refrain from clinging, and, in turn, to have a skillful relationship to sense pleasure is....
-jhana/concentration....
-jhana allows us to have some space ... and to consider our relationship to the sense pleasure....
-heedfulness....
-in practicing heedfulness... we pay attention to our relationship to the sense pleasure....
-we practice wise reflection: we ask: what are the consequences of engaging in this sense pleasure in the way I'm engaging with it...?
4-in practicing wise reflection, we learn to see the consequences of our actions in terms of the heart....
-we learn to ask: is this action, engaging with the phone, leading me to the heart or away from the heart....?
-we ask, look, see....
-is what i'm doing causing dis-ease....?
-is what i'm doing causing the heart to be afflicted....?
-is what i'm doing cutting me off from the heart....?
-is what i'm doing preventing me ... in the short-term ... and in the long-term ... from knowing happiness of heart....?
5-as dharma students, we learn to see that when we are grasping to sense pleasure, we are causing the heart to be afflicted.....
-as we develop in jhana, we see more and more clearly ... we discern the consequences of our actions, in terms of the heart....
-as we continue to be heedful, to practice wise reflection....
-we understand that we are causing the heart to be burdened....
-we understand that we are cutting ourselves off from our innate wisdom....
-we are cutting ourselves off from metta/compassion/joy.....
-we understand that we are hindering our efforts to live joyfully ... to know happiness of heart....
-reading.....
-"Looking Away from the Screen and Toward the Heart" (Peter Doobinin)
"There are these five strings of sensuality. Which five? Forms cognizable via the eye — agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering desire, enticing; sounds cognizable via the ear... aromas cognizable via the nose... flavors cognizable via the tongue... tactile sensations cognizable via the body — agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering desire, enticing. But these are not sensuality. They are called strings of sensuality in the discipline of the noble ones.
The passion for his resolves is a man's sensuality,
not the beautiful sensual pleasures
found in the world.
The passion for his resolves is a man's sensuality.
The beauties remain as they are in the world,
while the wise, in this regard,
subdue their desire.
(AN 6.63)
Not even if it rained gold coins
would we have our fill
of sensual pleasures.
'Stressful,
they give little enjoyment' --
knowing this, the wise one
finds no delight
even in heavenly sensual pleasures.
He is one who delights
in the ending of craving,
a disciple of the Rightly
Self-Awakened One.
(Dhp 186)
If, by forsaking
a limited ease,
he would see
an abundance of ease,
the enlightened man
would forsake
the limited ease
for the sake
of the abundant.
(Dhp 290)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"The Dharma Student & the Smartphone"
-as dharma students, we're asked to reflect on our relationship to sense pleasure. accordingly, in today's world, it's important that we reflect on our relationship to the various technologies that deliver sense experience. including the smart phone. as the Buddha teaches, the specific pleasure is not the issue, but rather our relationship to it. if we indulge in desire, we'll suffer. if we grasp, we'll suffer. which is to say, we'll cause the heart to be afflicted. as dharma students, we're asked to ask certain questions when it come to the pleasures of the world and our relationship to them. we're asked to practice wise reflection. we're asked to understand, through this reflection, the consequences of our relationship to the smartphone and the various sense pleasures.
-some things to remember as you learn to understand the relationship between "the dharma student & the smartphone"...
1-the dharma student learns to pay attention to her relationship to sense pleasure....
-the relationship we have to sense pleasure is an elemental aspect of dharma practice....
-we should reflect on our relationship to sense pleasures ... including the smartphone....
-it is particularly important to consider our relationship to the phone and other technological forms, given their prominence in the contemporary culture....
2- the dharma student learns to develop a skillful relationship to the smartphone and other technological forms...
-as the Buddha tells us, our suffering is not caused by the sense pleasure, such as the phone....
-rather, it's caused by having an unskillful relationship to the sense pleasure.....
-as always, our suffering or our happiness depends on what we do....
-we should, therefore, be careful of blaming the specific pleasure, such as the phone, for our suffering....
-we should be careful of blaming the culture ... and, in turn, not taking responsibility for our suffering or our happiness....
3-our task, in having a skillful relationship to the smartphone, is to abandon desire/grasping.....
-in regard to the sense pleasures, such as the phone, we suffer when we grasp ... when we cling to the sense experience....
-what enables us to refrain from clinging, and, in turn, to have a skillful relationship to sense pleasure is....
-jhana/concentration....
-jhana allows us to have some space ... and to consider our relationship to the sense pleasure....
-heedfulness....
-in practicing heedfulness... we pay attention to our relationship to the sense pleasure....
-we practice wise reflection: we ask: what are the consequences of engaging in this sense pleasure in the way I'm engaging with it...?
4-in practicing wise reflection, we learn to see the consequences of our actions in terms of the heart....
-we learn to ask: is this action, engaging with the phone, leading me to the heart or away from the heart....?
-we ask, look, see....
-is what i'm doing causing dis-ease....?
-is what i'm doing causing the heart to be afflicted....?
-is what i'm doing cutting me off from the heart....?
-is what i'm doing preventing me ... in the short-term ... and in the long-term ... from knowing happiness of heart....?
5-as dharma students, we learn to see that when we are grasping to sense pleasure, we are causing the heart to be afflicted.....
-as we develop in jhana, we see more and more clearly ... we discern the consequences of our actions, in terms of the heart....
-as we continue to be heedful, to practice wise reflection....
-we understand that we are causing the heart to be burdened....
-we understand that we are cutting ourselves off from our innate wisdom....
-we are cutting ourselves off from metta/compassion/joy.....
-we understand that we are hindering our efforts to live joyfully ... to know happiness of heart....
-reading.....
-"Looking Away from the Screen and Toward the Heart" (Peter Doobinin)
"There are these five strings of sensuality. Which five? Forms cognizable via the eye — agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering desire, enticing; sounds cognizable via the ear... aromas cognizable via the nose... flavors cognizable via the tongue... tactile sensations cognizable via the body — agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering desire, enticing. But these are not sensuality. They are called strings of sensuality in the discipline of the noble ones.
The passion for his resolves is a man's sensuality,
not the beautiful sensual pleasures
found in the world.
The passion for his resolves is a man's sensuality.
The beauties remain as they are in the world,
while the wise, in this regard,
subdue their desire.
(AN 6.63)
Not even if it rained gold coins
would we have our fill
of sensual pleasures.
'Stressful,
they give little enjoyment' --
knowing this, the wise one
finds no delight
even in heavenly sensual pleasures.
He is one who delights
in the ending of craving,
a disciple of the Rightly
Self-Awakened One.
(Dhp 186)
If, by forsaking
a limited ease,
he would see
an abundance of ease,
the enlightened man
would forsake
the limited ease
for the sake
of the abundant.
(Dhp 290)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
June 14
-"Beyond Virtue"
-the Buddha taught virtue, concentration & discernment. all three pillars must be developed if we're to know the happiness of heart. it's not enough to simply develop in virtue. if we rely only on virtue, we'll not develop the heart to the extent that we're able to, as human beings. there are, in fact, many pitfalls to a practice in which we develop only the first pillar. if we move beyond virtue, if we seek to awaken the heart, through concentration practice, and the cultivation of discernment, we'll know a greater happiness in this life. as dharma students, we need to reflect on our practice. are we striving to develop the full path, as the Buddha laid it out?
-some things to to remember as you learn to move in your practice "beyond virtue"...
1-the three pillars of dharma practice are virtue, concentration & discernment....
-as dharma students, we're asked to cultivate each of these three pillars.
-to know the happiness of heart, we're asked to develop these three pillars....
-to know the greatest happiness that is available to us as human beings....
-as the Buddha taught, we should all develop these three pillars....
-monks, nuns, lay men & lay women....
2- virtue is a foundational element of dharma practice...
-in cultivating virtue, we lay a foundation for the cultivation of concentration & discernment....
-virtue includes....
-ethical conduct....
-five precepts....
-generosity.....
-skillful action....
-as the Buddha taught his son Rahula....
-"Instructions to Rahula" (MN 61)
-the cultivation of virtue leads to self-esteem....
-self confidence....
-conviction....
-joy.....
-the self esteem & joy that follow on cultivating virtue are a foundation for the development of concentration & discernment....
3-as dharma students, we strive to develop a practice that includes more than just the development of virtue.....
-virtue is essential ... it provides a foundation for concentration & discernment....
-but, we should remember, virtue is not our goal....
-our goal is to free the heart of its burdens ... and, in turn, to know the happiness of heart....
-to achieve this goal our practice must include more than simply the cultivation of virtue....
-as Nietzsche puts it, we attempt, as dharma students, developing the pillars of the practice, to move "beyond good & evil"....
4-there are many pitfalls in a practice that is focused primarily on the cultivation of virtue.....
-in a practice focused on virtue....
-because the heart is not fully developed, we are subject to clinging....
-this clinging often takes the form of....
-clinging to self-judgment, in regard to our actions....
-clinging to a desire for people to like us....
-clinging to a fear of people not liking us....
-a practice focused on virtue may be a set up for clinging to the image of ourselves as "good" or a "good person".....
-we may judge others....
-we may forsake the heart, in the service of building this self image....
-we may revert to a fundamentalist or 'religious' bias....
-when we're focused primarily on "being good".....
-we don't develop in concentration....
-we don't develop in discernment....
-we don't develop the heart.....
5-as dharma students, we should reflect on our relationship to the three pillars.....
-we should ask....
-are we preoccupied with 'being good' ... ?
-are we focused primarily on developing virtue....?
-do we judge ourselves when we're not able to live up to our ideas about how we should act....?
-do we judge others....?
-is my practice inclined to striving for happiness of heart....?
-to more than simply being good ... being virtuous....?
-to developing concentration ... discernment....?
-to freeing the heart of its burdens....?
-to knowing happiness of heart....?
-to taking awakened action....?
-we should ask, in considering our actions.....
-how can I take action that is an expression of the heart....?
-how can I live joyfully....?
-how can I give meaning to my life....?
-what can I do...?
-what is love....?
-what is joy....?
-reading.....
"Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monks. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you."
(MN 19)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying among the Vajjians at Bhanda Village. There he addressed the monks, "Monks!"
"Yes, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said: "It's because of not understanding and not penetrating four things that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I. Which four?
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble virtue that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble concentration that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble discernment that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble release that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"But when noble virtue is understood & penetrated, when noble concentration... noble discernment... noble release is understood & penetrated, then craving for becoming is destroyed, the guide to becoming (craving & attachment) is ended, there is now no further becoming."
That is what the Blessed One said. When the One Well-gone had said that, he — the Teacher — said further:
Unexcelled virtue, concentration, discernment, & release: have been understood by Gotama of glorious stature. Having known them directly, he taught the Dhamma to the monks — the Awakened One the Teacher who has put an end to suffering & stress, the One with vision totally unbound.
(AN 4.1)
Then a third time, when the night was far advanced, at the end of the last watch, as dawn was approaching and the face of the night was beaming, Ven. Ānanda got up from his seat, arranged his robe over one shoulder, stood facing the Blessed One, paying homage with his hands placed palm-to-palm over his heart, and said to him, "Lord, the night is far advanced. The last watch has ended. Dawn is approaching and the face of the night is beaming. The community of monks has been sitting here long. May the Blessed One recite the Pāṭimokkha to the community of monks."
"Ānanda, the gathering isn't pure."
Then the thought occurred to Ven. Mahā Moggallāna: "In reference to which individual did the Blessed One just now say, 'Ānanda, the gathering isn't pure'?" So he directed his mind, encompassing with his awareness the awareness of the entire community of monks. He saw that individual — unprincipled, evil, unclean and suspect in his undertakings, hidden in his actions, not a contemplative though claiming to be one, not leading the holy life though claiming to do so, inwardly rotten, oozing with desire, filthy by nature — sitting in the midst of the community of monks. On seeing him, he got up, went over to that individual, and on reaching him said, "Get up, friend. You have been seen by the Blessed One. You have no affiliation with the community of monks." Then the individual remained silent. A second time... A third time, Ven. Mahā Moggallāna said, "Get up, friend. You have been seen by the Blessed One. You have no affiliation with the community of monks." And for a third time the individual remained silent.
Then Ven. Mahā Moggallāna, grabbing that individual by the arm, having expelled him through the outside door of the porch and locking the bolt, approached the Blessed One and on arrival said, "I have expelled that individual, lord. The gathering is now pure. Let the Blessed One recite the Pāṭimokkha to the community of monks."
"Isn't it amazing, Moggallāna. Isn't it astounding, how that worthless man waited until he was grabbed by the arm."
(Ud. 5.5)
Wild Geese (Mary Oliver)
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
-"Beyond Virtue"
-the Buddha taught virtue, concentration & discernment. all three pillars must be developed if we're to know the happiness of heart. it's not enough to simply develop in virtue. if we rely only on virtue, we'll not develop the heart to the extent that we're able to, as human beings. there are, in fact, many pitfalls to a practice in which we develop only the first pillar. if we move beyond virtue, if we seek to awaken the heart, through concentration practice, and the cultivation of discernment, we'll know a greater happiness in this life. as dharma students, we need to reflect on our practice. are we striving to develop the full path, as the Buddha laid it out?
-some things to to remember as you learn to move in your practice "beyond virtue"...
1-the three pillars of dharma practice are virtue, concentration & discernment....
-as dharma students, we're asked to cultivate each of these three pillars.
-to know the happiness of heart, we're asked to develop these three pillars....
-to know the greatest happiness that is available to us as human beings....
-as the Buddha taught, we should all develop these three pillars....
-monks, nuns, lay men & lay women....
2- virtue is a foundational element of dharma practice...
-in cultivating virtue, we lay a foundation for the cultivation of concentration & discernment....
-virtue includes....
-ethical conduct....
-five precepts....
-generosity.....
-skillful action....
-as the Buddha taught his son Rahula....
-"Instructions to Rahula" (MN 61)
-the cultivation of virtue leads to self-esteem....
-self confidence....
-conviction....
-joy.....
-the self esteem & joy that follow on cultivating virtue are a foundation for the development of concentration & discernment....
3-as dharma students, we strive to develop a practice that includes more than just the development of virtue.....
-virtue is essential ... it provides a foundation for concentration & discernment....
-but, we should remember, virtue is not our goal....
-our goal is to free the heart of its burdens ... and, in turn, to know the happiness of heart....
-to achieve this goal our practice must include more than simply the cultivation of virtue....
-as Nietzsche puts it, we attempt, as dharma students, developing the pillars of the practice, to move "beyond good & evil"....
4-there are many pitfalls in a practice that is focused primarily on the cultivation of virtue.....
-in a practice focused on virtue....
-because the heart is not fully developed, we are subject to clinging....
-this clinging often takes the form of....
-clinging to self-judgment, in regard to our actions....
-clinging to a desire for people to like us....
-clinging to a fear of people not liking us....
-a practice focused on virtue may be a set up for clinging to the image of ourselves as "good" or a "good person".....
-we may judge others....
-we may forsake the heart, in the service of building this self image....
-we may revert to a fundamentalist or 'religious' bias....
-when we're focused primarily on "being good".....
-we don't develop in concentration....
-we don't develop in discernment....
-we don't develop the heart.....
5-as dharma students, we should reflect on our relationship to the three pillars.....
-we should ask....
-are we preoccupied with 'being good' ... ?
-are we focused primarily on developing virtue....?
-do we judge ourselves when we're not able to live up to our ideas about how we should act....?
-do we judge others....?
-is my practice inclined to striving for happiness of heart....?
-to more than simply being good ... being virtuous....?
-to developing concentration ... discernment....?
-to freeing the heart of its burdens....?
-to knowing happiness of heart....?
-to taking awakened action....?
-we should ask, in considering our actions.....
-how can I take action that is an expression of the heart....?
-how can I live joyfully....?
-how can I give meaning to my life....?
-what can I do...?
-what is love....?
-what is joy....?
-reading.....
"Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monks. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you."
(MN 19)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying among the Vajjians at Bhanda Village. There he addressed the monks, "Monks!"
"Yes, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said: "It's because of not understanding and not penetrating four things that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I. Which four?
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble virtue that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble concentration that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble discernment that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"It's because of not understanding and not penetrating noble release that we have wandered & transmigrated on such a long, long time, you & I.
"But when noble virtue is understood & penetrated, when noble concentration... noble discernment... noble release is understood & penetrated, then craving for becoming is destroyed, the guide to becoming (craving & attachment) is ended, there is now no further becoming."
That is what the Blessed One said. When the One Well-gone had said that, he — the Teacher — said further:
Unexcelled virtue, concentration, discernment, & release: have been understood by Gotama of glorious stature. Having known them directly, he taught the Dhamma to the monks — the Awakened One the Teacher who has put an end to suffering & stress, the One with vision totally unbound.
(AN 4.1)
Then a third time, when the night was far advanced, at the end of the last watch, as dawn was approaching and the face of the night was beaming, Ven. Ānanda got up from his seat, arranged his robe over one shoulder, stood facing the Blessed One, paying homage with his hands placed palm-to-palm over his heart, and said to him, "Lord, the night is far advanced. The last watch has ended. Dawn is approaching and the face of the night is beaming. The community of monks has been sitting here long. May the Blessed One recite the Pāṭimokkha to the community of monks."
"Ānanda, the gathering isn't pure."
Then the thought occurred to Ven. Mahā Moggallāna: "In reference to which individual did the Blessed One just now say, 'Ānanda, the gathering isn't pure'?" So he directed his mind, encompassing with his awareness the awareness of the entire community of monks. He saw that individual — unprincipled, evil, unclean and suspect in his undertakings, hidden in his actions, not a contemplative though claiming to be one, not leading the holy life though claiming to do so, inwardly rotten, oozing with desire, filthy by nature — sitting in the midst of the community of monks. On seeing him, he got up, went over to that individual, and on reaching him said, "Get up, friend. You have been seen by the Blessed One. You have no affiliation with the community of monks." Then the individual remained silent. A second time... A third time, Ven. Mahā Moggallāna said, "Get up, friend. You have been seen by the Blessed One. You have no affiliation with the community of monks." And for a third time the individual remained silent.
Then Ven. Mahā Moggallāna, grabbing that individual by the arm, having expelled him through the outside door of the porch and locking the bolt, approached the Blessed One and on arrival said, "I have expelled that individual, lord. The gathering is now pure. Let the Blessed One recite the Pāṭimokkha to the community of monks."
"Isn't it amazing, Moggallāna. Isn't it astounding, how that worthless man waited until he was grabbed by the arm."
(Ud. 5.5)
Wild Geese (Mary Oliver)
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
June 7
-"Householder Practice"
-the Buddha taught monks, nun, lay men & lay women. in doing so, he encouraged all of his disciples, including householders, to develop strong concentration, jhana. for householders, living in the world, the ability to develop a maintainable concentration depends of being proactive and purposeful in our efforts. we have to make a strong effort and in doing so we have to apply the skills the Buddha taught. we have to develop in mindfulness, alertness, & ardency. if we do this, there's no question that our concentration will develop. there's no question that as we go through our days we'll be able to stay present, in the body & closer to the heart.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop "householder practice"...
1-as householders, we have the ability to develop strong concentration....
-as householders.....
-living in the world....
-with job/relationships/apartments....
-with a daily practice ... in which we meditate 30/45 minutes per day....
-we can develop the Buddha's concentration: jhana.....
-we can develop the qualities of jhana....
-we can develop a concentration that is maintainable in our daily lives....
2- as householders, our ability to develop concentration depends on taking a proactive approach...
-in taking a proactive approach.....
-we attend to the skill that the Buddha teaches....
-the steps of breath meditation....
-we make a proactive effort to develop these skills.....
-we put the time we have, in any given period of meditation, to good use....
-out of compassion & lovingkindness....
3-as householders, our practice is proactive and it is purposeful.....
-in developing meditation that is purposeful.....
-we develop skillful intention.....
-to be mindful of the breath/body.....
-to put aside greed & distress with reference to the world....
-to practice with compassion & lovingkindness....
-we are in tune with our intention.....
-to keep the mind on the breath ... out of compassion ... the wish to be free from suffering ... the wish for the heart to be free of its burdens....
- -to keep the mind on the breath ... out of lovingkindness... the wish to be be happy of heart....
-in the meditation, we set our intention at the outset of any period of sitting....
-and we keep in tune with our intention throughout the meditation....
-as we learn to be purposeful in meditation ... we learn to be purposeful in our lives ... we learn to go through our days, to take action, informed by compassion & lovingkindness...
4-in meditation, we make a proactive effort to keep the mind on the breath.....
-we practice directed thought.....
-we remind ourselves, throughout the meditation, to keep the mind on the breath....
-we're mindful of the breath ....
-we keep the breath in mind.....
-we're alert.....
-we notice when we lose our focus on the breath....
-we're ardent....
-we don't give in to thinking....
-we put aside greed & distress with reference to the world....
-we 'bring insight' when it's called for....
-we question the thinking, asking questions such as "is it useful....?"
5-we make a proactive effort to cultivate a pleasant abiding.....
-following the steps of breath meditation, we cultivate a pleasant abiding....
1-we keep the mind on the breath/body.....
2-we cultivate an easeful breath....
3-we cultivate a pleasant abiding in the full body....
-when we have a pleasant abiding, we're more inclined to stay with the breath, in the body, in the present moment....
-we're less interested in 'the world'.....
-a pleasant abiding is a goal for the household in his or her practice....
-to establish a pleasant abiding in a period of sitting....
-to maintain a pleasant abiding, a quality of ease, in all his or her postures....
-the more we have a pleasant abiding ... the more we stay in the present moment ... the more we stay in the body....
-the closer we are to the heart.....
-reading.....
-"Closer to the Heart" (from Skillful Pleasure)
-"Householder Practice"
-the Buddha taught monks, nun, lay men & lay women. in doing so, he encouraged all of his disciples, including householders, to develop strong concentration, jhana. for householders, living in the world, the ability to develop a maintainable concentration depends of being proactive and purposeful in our efforts. we have to make a strong effort and in doing so we have to apply the skills the Buddha taught. we have to develop in mindfulness, alertness, & ardency. if we do this, there's no question that our concentration will develop. there's no question that as we go through our days we'll be able to stay present, in the body & closer to the heart.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop "householder practice"...
1-as householders, we have the ability to develop strong concentration....
-as householders.....
-living in the world....
-with job/relationships/apartments....
-with a daily practice ... in which we meditate 30/45 minutes per day....
-we can develop the Buddha's concentration: jhana.....
-we can develop the qualities of jhana....
-we can develop a concentration that is maintainable in our daily lives....
2- as householders, our ability to develop concentration depends on taking a proactive approach...
-in taking a proactive approach.....
-we attend to the skill that the Buddha teaches....
-the steps of breath meditation....
-we make a proactive effort to develop these skills.....
-we put the time we have, in any given period of meditation, to good use....
-out of compassion & lovingkindness....
3-as householders, our practice is proactive and it is purposeful.....
-in developing meditation that is purposeful.....
-we develop skillful intention.....
-to be mindful of the breath/body.....
-to put aside greed & distress with reference to the world....
-to practice with compassion & lovingkindness....
-we are in tune with our intention.....
-to keep the mind on the breath ... out of compassion ... the wish to be free from suffering ... the wish for the heart to be free of its burdens....
- -to keep the mind on the breath ... out of lovingkindness... the wish to be be happy of heart....
-in the meditation, we set our intention at the outset of any period of sitting....
-and we keep in tune with our intention throughout the meditation....
-as we learn to be purposeful in meditation ... we learn to be purposeful in our lives ... we learn to go through our days, to take action, informed by compassion & lovingkindness...
4-in meditation, we make a proactive effort to keep the mind on the breath.....
-we practice directed thought.....
-we remind ourselves, throughout the meditation, to keep the mind on the breath....
-we're mindful of the breath ....
-we keep the breath in mind.....
-we're alert.....
-we notice when we lose our focus on the breath....
-we're ardent....
-we don't give in to thinking....
-we put aside greed & distress with reference to the world....
-we 'bring insight' when it's called for....
-we question the thinking, asking questions such as "is it useful....?"
5-we make a proactive effort to cultivate a pleasant abiding.....
-following the steps of breath meditation, we cultivate a pleasant abiding....
1-we keep the mind on the breath/body.....
2-we cultivate an easeful breath....
3-we cultivate a pleasant abiding in the full body....
-when we have a pleasant abiding, we're more inclined to stay with the breath, in the body, in the present moment....
-we're less interested in 'the world'.....
-a pleasant abiding is a goal for the household in his or her practice....
-to establish a pleasant abiding in a period of sitting....
-to maintain a pleasant abiding, a quality of ease, in all his or her postures....
-the more we have a pleasant abiding ... the more we stay in the present moment ... the more we stay in the body....
-the closer we are to the heart.....
-reading.....
-"Closer to the Heart" (from Skillful Pleasure)
| skillful_pleasure_closer_to_the_heart_pdf.pdf |
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying in the Kuru country. Now there is a town of the Kurus called Kammasadhamma. There the Blessed One addressed the monks, "Monks."
"Lord," the monks replied.
The Blessed One said this: "This is the direct path for the purification of beings, for the overcoming of sorrow & lamentation, for the disappearance of pain & distress, for the attainment of the right method, & for the realization of Unbinding — in other words, the four frames of reference. Which four?
"There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings... mind... mental qualities in & of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world.
A. Body"And how does a monk remain focused on the body in & of itself?
"There is the case where a monk — having gone to the wilderness, to the shade of a tree, or to an empty building — sits down folding his legs crosswise, holding his body erect and setting mindfulness to the fore [lit: the front of the chest]. Always mindful, he breathes in; mindful he breathes out.
"Breathing in long, he discerns, 'I am breathing in long'; or breathing out long, he discerns, 'I am breathing out long.' Or breathing in short, he discerns, 'I am breathing in short'; or breathing out short, he discerns, 'I am breathing out short.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to the entire body.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to the entire body.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming bodily fabrication.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming bodily fabrication.' Just as a skilled turner or his apprentice, when making a long turn, discerns, 'I am making a long turn,' or when making a short turn discerns, 'I am making a short turn'; in the same way the monk, when breathing in long, discerns, 'I am breathing in long'; or breathing out long, he discerns, 'I am breathing out long' ... He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming bodily fabrication.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming bodily fabrication.'
"In this way he remains focused internally on the body in & of itself, or externally on the body in & of itself, or both internally & externally on the body in & of itself. Or he remains focused on the phenomenon of origination with regard to the body, on the phenomenon of passing away with regard to the body, or on the phenomenon of origination & passing away with regard to the body. Or his mindfulness that 'There is a body' is maintained to the extent of knowledge & remembrance. And he remains independent, unsustained by (not clinging to) anything in the world. This is how a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself."
(MN 10)
"Furthermore, quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, he enters & remains in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. He permeates & pervades, suffuses & fills this very body with the rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal. Just as if a skilled bathman or bathman's apprentice would pour bath powder into a brass basin and knead it together, sprinkling it again & again with water, so that his ball of bath powder — saturated, moisture-laden, permeated within & without — would nevertheless not drip; even so, the monk permeates... this very body with the rapture & pleasure born of withdrawal. There is nothing of his entire body unpervaded by rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal. And as he remains thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, any memories & resolves related to the household life are abandoned, and with their abandoning his mind gathers & settles inwardly, grows unified & centered. This is how a monk develops mindfulness immersed in the body."
(MN 119)
Then Anathapindika the householder, surrounded by about 500 lay followers, went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there the Blessed One said to him, "Householder, you have provided the community of monks with robes, alms food, lodgings, & medicinal requisites for the sick, but you shouldn't rest content with the thought, 'We have provided the community of monks with robes, alms food, lodgings, & medicinal requisites for the sick.' So you should train yourself, 'Let's periodically enter & remain in seclusion & rapture.' That's how you should train yourself."
When this was said, Ven. Sariputta said to the Blessed One, "It's amazing, lord. It's astounding, how well put that was by the Blessed One: 'Householder, you have provided the community of monks with robes, alms food, lodgings, & medicinal requisites for the sick, but you shouldn't rest content with the thought, "We have provided the community of monks with robes, alms food, lodgings, & medicinal requisites for the sick." So you should train yourself, "Let's periodically enter & remain in seclusion & rapture." That's how you should train yourself.'"
(AN 5.176)
How very happily we live,
free from hostility
among those who are hostile.
Among hostile people,
free from hostility we dwell.
How very happily we live,
free from misery
among those who are miserable.
Among miserable people,
free from misery we dwell.
How very happily we live,
free from busyness
among those who are busy.
Among busy people,
free from busyness we dwell.
How very happily we live,
we who have nothing.
We will feed on rapture
like the Radiant gods.
(Dhp 197)
May 31
-"The Preciousness of Life"
-in cultivating appreciative joy we learn to reflect on the preciousness of life. we take the time to reflect, to let the truth of the blessing of life be know in the body and in the heart. our tendency may be to have a negative view of life. for this reason, it is especially important to make this reflection on an ongoing basis. we remember that life is short. and we take joy in knowing that the time we have is precious. we remember that this human life offers us the opportunity to know a profound happiness. we remember our potential as human beings. and, in turn, we practice the dharma. we make the most of this life.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop the reflection on "the preciousness of life"...
1-in cultivating appreciative joy we reflect on the preciousness of life....
-foll0wing the Buddha's teachings, we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dhamma....
4-the preciousness of life....
-we make an effort, on an ongoing basis, to reflect on the preciousness of life....
-we take the time to reflect....
-we cultivate the reflect ... let there be a felt sense of the reflection ... let the reflection go straight to the heart....
2- our tendency may be to take a negative view of life...
-many of us have developed, in our lives, a negative view of life....
-we've learned to take this view....
-by listening to others....
-by listening to the media etc....
-we've cultivated this view....
-by clinging to our aversion ... disliking ....
-by living in negative thought worlds....
-we've, perhaps, developed the habit....
-to complain about life....
-to take a pessimistic view....
-to think that happiness is not possible in this life....
-given our tendencies to negativity, it is especially important to make it a regular habit to reflect on the blessing of life....
3-in reflecting on the blessing of the life, we remember that the time we have in this life is very precious.....
-we remember that time is short.....
-we reflect, often, as the Buddha teaches, on the brevity of life....
-we develop, as the Buddha teaches, the mindfulness of death....
-in reflecting, we remember that life is precious....
-precious (definition): “very valuable or important : too valuable or important to be wasted or used carelessly”
-we develop gratitude ... appreciation .... for the time we have....
-we take joy, in having this time to be here.....
4-in reflecting on the blessing of life, we remember that human life is a fortunate birth..
-we remember that we are very fortunate to be born into this human realm....
-that we have been blessed with the heart....
-that we have the potential, in this life, to know the happiness of heart....
-we cultivate gratitude ... appreciation ... for this opportunity we have, to be here, to know true happiness....
-that we can know profound happiness in this very life....
-we cultivate gratitude for our potential....
5-the reflection on the preciousness of life, leads us to practice the dharma.....
-remembering the blessing of this life ... we make an effort, through our practice, to make the most of this life.....
-we make the most of the time we have....
-we practice the dharma....
-we practice meditation....
-we make an effort to be heedful....
-we make an effort to free the heart of its burdens....
-knowing the blessing of life ... we practice ... we practice for all beings....
-so that all beings may know happiness in this life....
-so that all beings may make the most of their lives....
-we take joy, knowing that we are making the most of our time....
-listening.....
-"This Very Life"
-reading.....
"Monks, suppose that this great earth were totally covered with water, and a man were to toss a yoke with a single hole there. A wind from the east would push it west, a wind from the west would push it east. A wind from the north would push it south, a wind from the south would push it north. And suppose a blind sea-turtle were there. It would come to the surface once every one hundred years. Now what do you think: would that blind sea-turtle, coming to the surface once every one hundred years, stick his neck into the yoke with a single hole?"
"It would be a sheer coincidence, lord, that the blind sea-turtle, coming to the surface once every one hundred years, would stick his neck into the yoke with a single hole."
"It's likewise a sheer coincidence that one obtains the human state. It's likewise a sheer coincidence that a Tathagata, worthy & rightly self-awakened, arises in the world. It's likewise a sheer coincidence that a doctrine & discipline expounded by a Tathagata appears in the world. Now, this human state has been obtained. A Tathagata, worthy & rightly self-awakened, has arisen in the world. A doctrine & discipline expounded by a Tathagata appears in the world.
"Therefore your duty is the contemplation, 'This is stress... This is the origination of stress... This is the cessation of stress.' Your duty is the contemplation, 'This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.'"
(SN 56.48))
"Once, monks, there was a teacher named Araka, a sectarian leader who was free of passion for sensual pleasures. He had many hundreds of students and he taught them the Dhamma in this way: 'Next to nothing, brahmans, is the life of human beings — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a dewdrop on the tip of a blade of grass quickly vanishes with the rising of the sun and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a dewdrop — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as when the rain-devas send rain in fat drops, and a bubble on the water quickly vanishes and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a water bubble — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a line drawn in the water with a stick quickly vanishes and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a line drawn in the water with a stick — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a river flowing down from the mountains, going far, its current swift, carrying everything with it, so that there is not a moment, an instant, a second where it stands still, but instead it goes & rushes & flows, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a river flowing down from the mountains — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a strong man forming a drop of spit on the tip of his tongue would spit it out with little effort, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a drop of spit — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a sliver of meat thrown into an iron pan heated all day quickly vanishes and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a sliver of meat — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a cow to be slaughtered being led to the slaughterhouse, with every step of its foot closer to its slaughtering, closer to death, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a cow to be slaughtered — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.'
"Now at that time, monks, the human life span was 60,000 years, with girls marriageable at 500. And at that time there were [only] six afflictions: cold, heat, hunger, thirst, defecation, & urination. Yet even though people were so long-lived, long-lasting, with so few afflictions, that teacher Araka taught the Dhamma to his disciples in this way: 'Next to nothing, brahmans, is the life of human beings — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.'
"At present, monks, one speaking rightly would say, 'Next to nothing is the life of human beings — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.' At present, monks, one who lives a long time is 100 years old or a little bit more. Living 100 years, one lives for 300 seasons: 100 seasons of cold, 100 seasons of heat, 100 seasons of rain. Living for 300 seasons, one lives for 1,200 months: 400 months of cold, 400 months of heat, 400 months of rain. Living for 1,200 months, one lives for 2,400 fortnights: 800 fortnights of cold, 800 fortnights of heat, 800 fortnights of rain. Living for 2,400 fortnights, one lives for 36,000 days: 12,000 days of cold, 12,000 days of heat, 12,000 days of rain. Living for 36,000 days, one eats 72,000 meals: 24,000 meals in the cold, 24,000 meals in the heat, 24,000 meals in the rain — counting the taking of mother's milk and obstacles to eating. These are the obstacles to eating: when one doesn't eat while angered, when one doesn't eat while suffering or stressed, when one doesn't eat while sick, when one doesn't eat on the observance day, when one doesn't eat while poor.
"Thus, monks, I have reckoned the life of a person living for 100 years: I have reckoned the life span, reckoned the seasons, reckoned the years,reckoned the months, reckoned the fortnights, reckoned the nights, reckoned the days, reckoned the meals, reckoned the obstacles to eating. Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monks. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you all."
(AN 7.70)
How short this life!
You die this side of a century,
but even if you live past,
you die of old age.
People grieve
for what they see as mine,
for nothing possessed is constant,
nothing is constantly possessed.
Seeing this separation
simply as it is,
one shouldn't follow the household life.
(Sn 4.6)
You shouldn't chase after the past
or place expectations on the future.
What is past
is left behind.
The future
is as yet unreached.
Whatever quality is present
you clearly see right there,
right there.
Not taken in,
unshaken,
that's how you develop the heart.
Ardently doing
what should be done today,
for — who knows? — tomorrow
death.
There is no bargaining
with Mortality & his mighty horde.
Whoever lives thus ardently,
relentlessly
both day & night,
has truly had an auspicious day:
so says the Peaceful Sage.
(MN 131)
-"The Preciousness of Life"
-in cultivating appreciative joy we learn to reflect on the preciousness of life. we take the time to reflect, to let the truth of the blessing of life be know in the body and in the heart. our tendency may be to have a negative view of life. for this reason, it is especially important to make this reflection on an ongoing basis. we remember that life is short. and we take joy in knowing that the time we have is precious. we remember that this human life offers us the opportunity to know a profound happiness. we remember our potential as human beings. and, in turn, we practice the dharma. we make the most of this life.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop the reflection on "the preciousness of life"...
1-in cultivating appreciative joy we reflect on the preciousness of life....
-foll0wing the Buddha's teachings, we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dhamma....
4-the preciousness of life....
-we make an effort, on an ongoing basis, to reflect on the preciousness of life....
-we take the time to reflect....
-we cultivate the reflect ... let there be a felt sense of the reflection ... let the reflection go straight to the heart....
2- our tendency may be to take a negative view of life...
-many of us have developed, in our lives, a negative view of life....
-we've learned to take this view....
-by listening to others....
-by listening to the media etc....
-we've cultivated this view....
-by clinging to our aversion ... disliking ....
-by living in negative thought worlds....
-we've, perhaps, developed the habit....
-to complain about life....
-to take a pessimistic view....
-to think that happiness is not possible in this life....
-given our tendencies to negativity, it is especially important to make it a regular habit to reflect on the blessing of life....
3-in reflecting on the blessing of the life, we remember that the time we have in this life is very precious.....
-we remember that time is short.....
-we reflect, often, as the Buddha teaches, on the brevity of life....
-we develop, as the Buddha teaches, the mindfulness of death....
-in reflecting, we remember that life is precious....
-precious (definition): “very valuable or important : too valuable or important to be wasted or used carelessly”
-we develop gratitude ... appreciation .... for the time we have....
-we take joy, in having this time to be here.....
4-in reflecting on the blessing of life, we remember that human life is a fortunate birth..
-we remember that we are very fortunate to be born into this human realm....
-that we have been blessed with the heart....
-that we have the potential, in this life, to know the happiness of heart....
-we cultivate gratitude ... appreciation ... for this opportunity we have, to be here, to know true happiness....
-that we can know profound happiness in this very life....
-we cultivate gratitude for our potential....
5-the reflection on the preciousness of life, leads us to practice the dharma.....
-remembering the blessing of this life ... we make an effort, through our practice, to make the most of this life.....
-we make the most of the time we have....
-we practice the dharma....
-we practice meditation....
-we make an effort to be heedful....
-we make an effort to free the heart of its burdens....
-knowing the blessing of life ... we practice ... we practice for all beings....
-so that all beings may know happiness in this life....
-so that all beings may make the most of their lives....
-we take joy, knowing that we are making the most of our time....
-listening.....
-"This Very Life"
-reading.....
"Monks, suppose that this great earth were totally covered with water, and a man were to toss a yoke with a single hole there. A wind from the east would push it west, a wind from the west would push it east. A wind from the north would push it south, a wind from the south would push it north. And suppose a blind sea-turtle were there. It would come to the surface once every one hundred years. Now what do you think: would that blind sea-turtle, coming to the surface once every one hundred years, stick his neck into the yoke with a single hole?"
"It would be a sheer coincidence, lord, that the blind sea-turtle, coming to the surface once every one hundred years, would stick his neck into the yoke with a single hole."
"It's likewise a sheer coincidence that one obtains the human state. It's likewise a sheer coincidence that a Tathagata, worthy & rightly self-awakened, arises in the world. It's likewise a sheer coincidence that a doctrine & discipline expounded by a Tathagata appears in the world. Now, this human state has been obtained. A Tathagata, worthy & rightly self-awakened, has arisen in the world. A doctrine & discipline expounded by a Tathagata appears in the world.
"Therefore your duty is the contemplation, 'This is stress... This is the origination of stress... This is the cessation of stress.' Your duty is the contemplation, 'This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.'"
(SN 56.48))
"Once, monks, there was a teacher named Araka, a sectarian leader who was free of passion for sensual pleasures. He had many hundreds of students and he taught them the Dhamma in this way: 'Next to nothing, brahmans, is the life of human beings — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a dewdrop on the tip of a blade of grass quickly vanishes with the rising of the sun and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a dewdrop — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as when the rain-devas send rain in fat drops, and a bubble on the water quickly vanishes and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a water bubble — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a line drawn in the water with a stick quickly vanishes and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a line drawn in the water with a stick — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a river flowing down from the mountains, going far, its current swift, carrying everything with it, so that there is not a moment, an instant, a second where it stands still, but instead it goes & rushes & flows, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a river flowing down from the mountains — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a strong man forming a drop of spit on the tip of his tongue would spit it out with little effort, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a drop of spit — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a sliver of meat thrown into an iron pan heated all day quickly vanishes and does not stay long, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a sliver of meat — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.
"'Just as a cow to be slaughtered being led to the slaughterhouse, with every step of its foot closer to its slaughtering, closer to death, in the same way, brahmans, the life of human beings is like a cow to be slaughtered — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.'
"Now at that time, monks, the human life span was 60,000 years, with girls marriageable at 500. And at that time there were [only] six afflictions: cold, heat, hunger, thirst, defecation, & urination. Yet even though people were so long-lived, long-lasting, with so few afflictions, that teacher Araka taught the Dhamma to his disciples in this way: 'Next to nothing, brahmans, is the life of human beings — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.'
"At present, monks, one speaking rightly would say, 'Next to nothing is the life of human beings — limited, trifling, of much stress & many despairs. One should touch this [truth] like a sage, do what is skillful, follow the holy life. For one who is born there is no freedom from death.' At present, monks, one who lives a long time is 100 years old or a little bit more. Living 100 years, one lives for 300 seasons: 100 seasons of cold, 100 seasons of heat, 100 seasons of rain. Living for 300 seasons, one lives for 1,200 months: 400 months of cold, 400 months of heat, 400 months of rain. Living for 1,200 months, one lives for 2,400 fortnights: 800 fortnights of cold, 800 fortnights of heat, 800 fortnights of rain. Living for 2,400 fortnights, one lives for 36,000 days: 12,000 days of cold, 12,000 days of heat, 12,000 days of rain. Living for 36,000 days, one eats 72,000 meals: 24,000 meals in the cold, 24,000 meals in the heat, 24,000 meals in the rain — counting the taking of mother's milk and obstacles to eating. These are the obstacles to eating: when one doesn't eat while angered, when one doesn't eat while suffering or stressed, when one doesn't eat while sick, when one doesn't eat on the observance day, when one doesn't eat while poor.
"Thus, monks, I have reckoned the life of a person living for 100 years: I have reckoned the life span, reckoned the seasons, reckoned the years,reckoned the months, reckoned the fortnights, reckoned the nights, reckoned the days, reckoned the meals, reckoned the obstacles to eating. Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monks. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you all."
(AN 7.70)
How short this life!
You die this side of a century,
but even if you live past,
you die of old age.
People grieve
for what they see as mine,
for nothing possessed is constant,
nothing is constantly possessed.
Seeing this separation
simply as it is,
one shouldn't follow the household life.
(Sn 4.6)
You shouldn't chase after the past
or place expectations on the future.
What is past
is left behind.
The future
is as yet unreached.
Whatever quality is present
you clearly see right there,
right there.
Not taken in,
unshaken,
that's how you develop the heart.
Ardently doing
what should be done today,
for — who knows? — tomorrow
death.
There is no bargaining
with Mortality & his mighty horde.
Whoever lives thus ardently,
relentlessly
both day & night,
has truly had an auspicious day:
so says the Peaceful Sage.
(MN 131)
May 24
-"The Blessing of Dhamma"
-in cultivating appreciative joy we learn to reflect on the blessing of the dhamma. this is an integral reflection, if perhaps overlooked. in the reflection we remember the blessing of this way of life and our gratitude for having found it. we remember the blessing it is to follow the path, to practice the skills the Buddha taught. we remember the blessing of this path that leads to the heart, to the dhamma inside. and we remember the blessing of the dhamma inside us, the blessing of our goodness, the blessing of the heart. if we develop in appreciation of the dhamma inside us, we'll gradually make more and more effort to find our way to it.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop the reflection on "the blessing of dhamma"...
1-we cultivate appreciative joy by reflecting on certain blessings....
-foll0wing the Buddha's teachings, we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dhamma....
4-the preciousness of life....
-we are focused in our efforts, when it comes to cultivating gratitude....
-we understand that certain reflections will lead us to the goal ... to the happiness of hear....
-we are disciplined in our efforts to put our time, in reflection, is these specific practices....
2- as dhamma students, we make an effort to reflect on the blessing of the dhamma...
-this is an integral reflection...
-we develop this reflection on an ongoing basis....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
-when we develop gratitude for the dhamma ... we practice the dhamma.....
-we practice accordingly....
-as the Buddha teaches us, when we develop this reflection, we are in tune with dhamma.....
-we know joy....
-our path unfolds....
3-in reflecting on the blessing of the dhamma, we cultivate gratitude for being able to follow this path.....
-we remember the blessing that it is to have found the path....
-as the Buddha notes, very few people ever find this path....
-we remember this blessing it is to have a "dhamma' ... a way of life .... a way of living....
-a way of life that leads to a greater happiness....
-a way of life that enables us to meet life ... all the circumstances of life....
-illness, aging, death, separation....
-all the experiences, agreeable & disagreeable, that comprise life....
-a way of life in which we're able to find freedom from suffering....
-a way of life in which we're able to know a true happiness....
4-in recollecting the blessing of dhamma, we remember the blessing of the teachings..
-we cultivate gratitude for the Buddha's teachings....
-for having found the teachings....
-for having practiced in accord with the teachings....
-we cultivate gratitude for the skills we've learned and practiced....
-skills that enable us to abandon the unskillful....
-skills that enable us to cultivate the skillful....
-we cultivate gratitude for having a path that leads us to freedom from suffering....
-a path that leads us to the happiness of heart....
5-in recollecting the blessing of dhamma, we remember the blessing of the dhamma inside..
-we cultivate gratitude for the dhamma inside us....
-that quality of dhamma that is....
-ever-present....
-timeless....
-within each of us....
-the dhamma inside....
-the heart....
-our innate wisdom....
-love....
-compassion....
-joy....
-if we cultivate appreciation for the dhamma inside ... we'll learn to make an effort to know it ... to develop in our ability to be in tune with it....
-more and more, we'll embody dhamma....
-listening.....
-"The Dharma is Inside"
-reading.....
"Furthermore, there is the case where you recollect the Dhamma: 'The Dhamma is well-expounded by the Blessed One, to be seen here & now, timeless, inviting verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting the Dhamma, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on the Dhamma. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated.
"Of one who does this, Mahanama, it is said: 'Among those who are out of tune, the disciple of the noble ones dwells in tune; among those who are malicious, he dwells without malice; having attained the stream of Dhamma, he develops the recollection of the Dhamma.'”
(AN 11.12)
The non-doing of any evil,
the performance of what is skillful,
the cleansing of one's own mind:
This is the Buddhas' teaching.
Not disparaging, not injuring,
restraint in line with the Patimokkha,
moderation in food,
dwelling in seclusion,
commitment to the heightened mind:
This is the Buddhas' teaching.
(Dhp 183)
This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard: "There are these two kinds of gifts: a gift of material things & a gift of the Dhamma. Of the two, this is supreme: a gift of the Dhamma. There are these two kinds of sharing: sharing of material things & sharing of the Dhamma. Of the two, this is supreme: sharing of the Dhamma. There are these two kinds of assistance: assistance with material things & assistance with the Dhamma. Of the two, this is supreme: help with the Dhamma."
The gift he describes
as foremost & unsurpassed,
the sharing the Blessed One has extolled:
who — confident in the supreme field of merit,
wise, discerning --
wouldn't give it at appropriate times?
Both for those who proclaim it
and those who listen,
confident in the message of the One Well-gone:
it purifies their foremost benefit --
those heeding the message
of the One Well-gone.
(Iti 98)
Then a certain monk went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he said to the Blessed One, "'One who dwells in the Dhamma, one who dwells in the Dhamma': thus it is said, lord. To what extent is a bhikkhu one who dwells in the Dhamma?"
"Monk, there is the case where a monk studies the Dhamma: dialogues, narratives of mixed prose and verse, explanations, verses, spontaneous exclamations, quotations, birth stories, amazing events, question & answer sessions.[1] He spends the day in Dhamma-study. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on study, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk takes the Dhamma as he has heard & studied it and teaches it in full detail to others. He spends the day in Dhamma-description. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on description, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk takes the Dhamma as he has heard & studied it and recites it in full detail. He spends the day in Dhamma-recitation. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on recitation, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk takes the Dhamma as he has heard & studied it and thinks about it, evaluates it, and examines it with his intellect. He spends the day in Dhamma-thinking. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on thinking, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk studies the Dhamma: dialogues, narratives of mixed prose and verse, explanations, verses, spontaneous exclamations, quotations, birth stories, amazing events, question & answer sessions. He doesn't spend the day in Dhamma-study. He doesn't neglect seclusion. He commits himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Now, monk, I have taught you the person who is keen on study, the one who is keen on description, the one who is keen on recitation, the one who is keen on thinking, and the one who dwells in the Dhamma. Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monk. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you."
(AN 5.73)
"Therefore, Ananda, each of you should remain with your self as an island, your self as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. Remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. And how does a monk remain with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? How does he remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings... mind... mental qualities in & of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. This is how a monk remains with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge. For those who — now or after I am gone — remain with their self as an island, their self as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, they will be the highest of the monks who desire training."
(SN 47.13)
Simply talking a lot
doesn’t maintain the dhamma.
Whoever
—although he’s heard next to nothing--
sees dhamma through his body,
is not heedless of dhamma:
he’s one who maintains the dhamma.
(Dhp 259)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"The Blessing of Dhamma"
-in cultivating appreciative joy we learn to reflect on the blessing of the dhamma. this is an integral reflection, if perhaps overlooked. in the reflection we remember the blessing of this way of life and our gratitude for having found it. we remember the blessing it is to follow the path, to practice the skills the Buddha taught. we remember the blessing of this path that leads to the heart, to the dhamma inside. and we remember the blessing of the dhamma inside us, the blessing of our goodness, the blessing of the heart. if we develop in appreciation of the dhamma inside us, we'll gradually make more and more effort to find our way to it.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop the reflection on "the blessing of dhamma"...
1-we cultivate appreciative joy by reflecting on certain blessings....
-foll0wing the Buddha's teachings, we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dhamma....
4-the preciousness of life....
-we are focused in our efforts, when it comes to cultivating gratitude....
-we understand that certain reflections will lead us to the goal ... to the happiness of hear....
-we are disciplined in our efforts to put our time, in reflection, is these specific practices....
2- as dhamma students, we make an effort to reflect on the blessing of the dhamma...
-this is an integral reflection...
-we develop this reflection on an ongoing basis....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
-when we develop gratitude for the dhamma ... we practice the dhamma.....
-we practice accordingly....
-as the Buddha teaches us, when we develop this reflection, we are in tune with dhamma.....
-we know joy....
-our path unfolds....
3-in reflecting on the blessing of the dhamma, we cultivate gratitude for being able to follow this path.....
-we remember the blessing that it is to have found the path....
-as the Buddha notes, very few people ever find this path....
-we remember this blessing it is to have a "dhamma' ... a way of life .... a way of living....
-a way of life that leads to a greater happiness....
-a way of life that enables us to meet life ... all the circumstances of life....
-illness, aging, death, separation....
-all the experiences, agreeable & disagreeable, that comprise life....
-a way of life in which we're able to find freedom from suffering....
-a way of life in which we're able to know a true happiness....
4-in recollecting the blessing of dhamma, we remember the blessing of the teachings..
-we cultivate gratitude for the Buddha's teachings....
-for having found the teachings....
-for having practiced in accord with the teachings....
-we cultivate gratitude for the skills we've learned and practiced....
-skills that enable us to abandon the unskillful....
-skills that enable us to cultivate the skillful....
-we cultivate gratitude for having a path that leads us to freedom from suffering....
-a path that leads us to the happiness of heart....
5-in recollecting the blessing of dhamma, we remember the blessing of the dhamma inside..
-we cultivate gratitude for the dhamma inside us....
-that quality of dhamma that is....
-ever-present....
-timeless....
-within each of us....
-the dhamma inside....
-the heart....
-our innate wisdom....
-love....
-compassion....
-joy....
-if we cultivate appreciation for the dhamma inside ... we'll learn to make an effort to know it ... to develop in our ability to be in tune with it....
-more and more, we'll embody dhamma....
-listening.....
-"The Dharma is Inside"
-reading.....
"Furthermore, there is the case where you recollect the Dhamma: 'The Dhamma is well-expounded by the Blessed One, to be seen here & now, timeless, inviting verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting the Dhamma, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on the Dhamma. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated.
"Of one who does this, Mahanama, it is said: 'Among those who are out of tune, the disciple of the noble ones dwells in tune; among those who are malicious, he dwells without malice; having attained the stream of Dhamma, he develops the recollection of the Dhamma.'”
(AN 11.12)
The non-doing of any evil,
the performance of what is skillful,
the cleansing of one's own mind:
This is the Buddhas' teaching.
Not disparaging, not injuring,
restraint in line with the Patimokkha,
moderation in food,
dwelling in seclusion,
commitment to the heightened mind:
This is the Buddhas' teaching.
(Dhp 183)
This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard: "There are these two kinds of gifts: a gift of material things & a gift of the Dhamma. Of the two, this is supreme: a gift of the Dhamma. There are these two kinds of sharing: sharing of material things & sharing of the Dhamma. Of the two, this is supreme: sharing of the Dhamma. There are these two kinds of assistance: assistance with material things & assistance with the Dhamma. Of the two, this is supreme: help with the Dhamma."
The gift he describes
as foremost & unsurpassed,
the sharing the Blessed One has extolled:
who — confident in the supreme field of merit,
wise, discerning --
wouldn't give it at appropriate times?
Both for those who proclaim it
and those who listen,
confident in the message of the One Well-gone:
it purifies their foremost benefit --
those heeding the message
of the One Well-gone.
(Iti 98)
Then a certain monk went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he said to the Blessed One, "'One who dwells in the Dhamma, one who dwells in the Dhamma': thus it is said, lord. To what extent is a bhikkhu one who dwells in the Dhamma?"
"Monk, there is the case where a monk studies the Dhamma: dialogues, narratives of mixed prose and verse, explanations, verses, spontaneous exclamations, quotations, birth stories, amazing events, question & answer sessions.[1] He spends the day in Dhamma-study. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on study, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk takes the Dhamma as he has heard & studied it and teaches it in full detail to others. He spends the day in Dhamma-description. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on description, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk takes the Dhamma as he has heard & studied it and recites it in full detail. He spends the day in Dhamma-recitation. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on recitation, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk takes the Dhamma as he has heard & studied it and thinks about it, evaluates it, and examines it with his intellect. He spends the day in Dhamma-thinking. He neglects seclusion. He doesn't commit himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who is keen on thinking, not one who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Then there is the case where a monk studies the Dhamma: dialogues, narratives of mixed prose and verse, explanations, verses, spontaneous exclamations, quotations, birth stories, amazing events, question & answer sessions. He doesn't spend the day in Dhamma-study. He doesn't neglect seclusion. He commits himself to internal tranquillity of awareness. This is called a monk who dwells in the Dhamma.
"Now, monk, I have taught you the person who is keen on study, the one who is keen on description, the one who is keen on recitation, the one who is keen on thinking, and the one who dwells in the Dhamma. Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monk. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you."
(AN 5.73)
"Therefore, Ananda, each of you should remain with your self as an island, your self as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. Remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. And how does a monk remain with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? How does he remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings... mind... mental qualities in & of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. This is how a monk remains with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge. For those who — now or after I am gone — remain with their self as an island, their self as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, they will be the highest of the monks who desire training."
(SN 47.13)
Simply talking a lot
doesn’t maintain the dhamma.
Whoever
—although he’s heard next to nothing--
sees dhamma through his body,
is not heedless of dhamma:
he’s one who maintains the dhamma.
(Dhp 259)
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
May 17
-"The Blessing of Your Goodness"
-in the practice of cultivating appreciative joy we make a proactive effort to recollect certain blessings. to this end, it is profoundly important for us to reflect on the blessing of our goodness. in doing so, as the Buddha teaches, we reflect on the blessing of our generosity, our virtue, and the effort we make to train the mind and open the heart. of course, this practice is, for most of us, a challenge. we're not accustomed to reflecting on our goodness. to the contrary, our habits of mind may be toward self criticism and negativity. it's very important, therefore, that we put in a wholehearted effort to cultivate the recollection of our goodness. we do this in meditation, in brightening the mind. and we do this in all our postures, as we go through our days. if we put in the effort, little by slowly, we connect to the truth of our goodness. we cultivate appreciation. we know joy.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop the reflection on "the blessing of your goodness...
1-we cultivate appreciative joy by reflecting on certain blessings....
-foll0wing the Buddha's teachings, we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dharma....
4-the preciousness of life....
2- it is very important that we make an effort to reflect on the blessing of our goodness...
-as we reflect on our goodness, as we cultivate appreciation for our goodness...
-we develop in concentration....
-we make an efffort, on an ongoing basis, to develop our goodness....
-it's a challenge for many of us to practice this reflection.....
-our tendency may be to neglect this reflection....
-do you practice this reflection....?
-if not, why....?
-can you make a commitment to yourself to practice this reflection on a daily basis....?
-instead of acknowledging our goodness, our tendency may be to....
-engage in self criticism....
-engage in negativity....
-for this reason, it is particularly important to reflect on the blessing of your goodness....
3-in reflecting on our goodness we learn to reflect on three specific qualities ...
-we reflect, in reminding ourselves of our goodness, on....
1-our generosity.....
-the effort we make to offer...
-the gift of our resources.....
-the gift of our time & attention....
-the gift of the dharma....
-the gift of fearlessness....
2-our virtue.....
-the effort we make to practice....
-five precepts....
-skillful action....
-our deeds....
-our speech....
-our thoughts....
3-our effort & determination....
-the effort we make to develop the path.....
-to train the mind and open the heart.....
-in meditation.....
-in all postures.....
4-in recollecting the blessing of our goodness, we practice repeated reflection...
-we practice on an ongoing basis....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
-we understand that the practice is one that we engage in, with determination, over a period of days, weeks, months, years.....
5-if we continue to reflect on our goodness, gradually we come to know the blessing of our goodness...
-over time, we practice with determination....
-in reflecting, we....
-remember the blessing of our goodness....
-using fabrication....
-allow the reflection to become felt, in the body.....
-gradually, we connect to the heart....
-as me continue, over time, to reflect.....
-we gradually know the blessing of our goodness ... in the heart....
-reading.....
-"Taking Joy" (from The Skill of Living)
-"The Blessing of Your Goodness"
-in the practice of cultivating appreciative joy we make a proactive effort to recollect certain blessings. to this end, it is profoundly important for us to reflect on the blessing of our goodness. in doing so, as the Buddha teaches, we reflect on the blessing of our generosity, our virtue, and the effort we make to train the mind and open the heart. of course, this practice is, for most of us, a challenge. we're not accustomed to reflecting on our goodness. to the contrary, our habits of mind may be toward self criticism and negativity. it's very important, therefore, that we put in a wholehearted effort to cultivate the recollection of our goodness. we do this in meditation, in brightening the mind. and we do this in all our postures, as we go through our days. if we put in the effort, little by slowly, we connect to the truth of our goodness. we cultivate appreciation. we know joy.
-some things to to remember as you learn to develop the reflection on "the blessing of your goodness...
1-we cultivate appreciative joy by reflecting on certain blessings....
-foll0wing the Buddha's teachings, we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dharma....
4-the preciousness of life....
2- it is very important that we make an effort to reflect on the blessing of our goodness...
-as we reflect on our goodness, as we cultivate appreciation for our goodness...
-we develop in concentration....
-we make an efffort, on an ongoing basis, to develop our goodness....
-it's a challenge for many of us to practice this reflection.....
-our tendency may be to neglect this reflection....
-do you practice this reflection....?
-if not, why....?
-can you make a commitment to yourself to practice this reflection on a daily basis....?
-instead of acknowledging our goodness, our tendency may be to....
-engage in self criticism....
-engage in negativity....
-for this reason, it is particularly important to reflect on the blessing of your goodness....
3-in reflecting on our goodness we learn to reflect on three specific qualities ...
-we reflect, in reminding ourselves of our goodness, on....
1-our generosity.....
-the effort we make to offer...
-the gift of our resources.....
-the gift of our time & attention....
-the gift of the dharma....
-the gift of fearlessness....
2-our virtue.....
-the effort we make to practice....
-five precepts....
-skillful action....
-our deeds....
-our speech....
-our thoughts....
3-our effort & determination....
-the effort we make to develop the path.....
-to train the mind and open the heart.....
-in meditation.....
-in all postures.....
4-in recollecting the blessing of our goodness, we practice repeated reflection...
-we practice on an ongoing basis....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
-we understand that the practice is one that we engage in, with determination, over a period of days, weeks, months, years.....
5-if we continue to reflect on our goodness, gradually we come to know the blessing of our goodness...
-over time, we practice with determination....
-in reflecting, we....
-remember the blessing of our goodness....
-using fabrication....
-allow the reflection to become felt, in the body.....
-gradually, we connect to the heart....
-as me continue, over time, to reflect.....
-we gradually know the blessing of our goodness ... in the heart....
-reading.....
-"Taking Joy" (from The Skill of Living)
| skill_of_living_taking_joy.pdf |
"Furthermore, there is the case where you recollect your own generosity: 'It is a gain, a great gain for me, that — among people overcome with the stain of possessiveness — I live at home, my awareness cleansed of the stain of possessiveness, freely generous, openhanded, delighting in being magnanimous, responsive to requests, delighting in the distribution of alms.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting generosity, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on generosity. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated.
"Mahanama, you should develop this recollection of generosity while you are walking, while you are standing, while you are sitting, while you are lying down, while you are busy at work, while you are resting in your home crowded with children."
(AN 11.13)
"Furthermore, there is the case where you recollect your own virtues: '[They are] untorn, unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised by the wise, untarnished, conducive to concentration.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting virtue, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on virtue. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated.
"Of one who does this, Mahanama, it is said: 'Among those who are out of tune, the disciple of the noble ones dwells in tune; among those who are malicious, he dwells without malice; having attained the stream of Dhamma, he develops the recollection of virtue.'"
(AN 11.12)
We must trust ourselves. We have everything in us that Buddha has, that Christ has – we’ve got it all. But only when we start to acknowledge it, is it going to get interesting. Our problem is we’re afraid to acknowledge our own beauty. We’re too busy holding on to our unworthiness. We’d rather be a schnook sitting before some great man. That fits in more with who we think we are. Well, enough already. We are beautiful.
(Ram Dass)
The bud
Stands for all things,
Even for those things that don’t flower,
For everything flowers, from within, of self-blessing;
Though sometimes it is necessary
To reteach a thing its loveliness,
To put a hand on the brow
Of the flower,
And retell it in words and in touch,
It is lovely
Until it flowers again from within, of self-blessing.
(Galway Kinnell)
To You
Whoever you are, I fear you are walking the walks of dreams,
I fear these supposed realities are to melt from under your feet and hands
Even now your features, joys, speech, house, trade, manners, troubles, follies, costume, crimes, dissipate away from you,
Your true soul and body appear before me,
They stand forth out of affairs, out of commerce, shops, work, farms, clothes, the house, buying, selling, eating, drinking, suffering, dying.
Whoever you are, now I place my hand upon you, that you be my poem,
I whisper with my lips close to your ear,
I have loved many women and men, but I love none better than you.
O I have been dilatory and dumb,
I should have made my way straight to you long ago,
I should have blabb'd nothing but you, I should have chanted nothing but you.
I will leave all and come and make the hymns of you,
None has understood you, but I understand you,
None has done justice to you, you have not done justice to yourself
None but has found you imperfect, I only find no imperfection in you,
None but would subordinate you, I only am he who will never consent to subordinate you,
I only am he who places over you no master, owner, better, God, beyond what waits intrinsically in yourself.
Painters have painted their swarming groups and the centre-figure of all,
From the head of the centre-figure spreading a nimbus of gold-color'd light,
But I paint myriads of heads, but paint no head without its nimbus of gold-color'd light,
From my hand from the brain of every man and woman it streams, effulgently flowing forever.
O I could sing such grandeurs and glories about you!
You have not known what you are, you have slumber'd upon yourself all your life,
Your eyelids have been the same as closed most of the time,
What you have done returns already in mockeries,
Your thrift, knowledge, prayers, if they do not return in mockeries, what is their return?)
The mockeries are not you,
Underneath them and within them I see you lurk,
I pursue you where none else has pursued you,
Silence, the desk, the flippant expression, the night, the accustom'd routine, if these conceal you from others or from yourself, they do not conceal you from me,
The shaved face, the unsteady eye, the impure complexion, if these balk others they do not balk me,
The pert apparel, the deform'd attitude, drunkenness, greed, premature death, all these I part aside
There is no endowment in man or woman that is not tallied in you,
There is no virtue, no beauty in man or woman, but as good is in you,
No pluck, no endurance in others, but as good is in you,
No pleasure waiting for others, but an equal pleasure waits for you.
As for me, I give nothing to any one except I give the like carefully to you,
I sing the songs of the glory of none, not God, sooner than I sing the songs of the glory of you.
Whoever you are! claim your own at any hazard!
These shows of the East and West are tame compared to you,
These immense meadows, these interminable rivers, you are immense and interminable as they,
These furies, elements, storms, motions of Nature, throes of apparent dissolution, you are he or she who is master or mistress over them,
Master or mistress in your own right over Nature, elements, pain, passion, dissolution.
The hopples fall from your ankles, you find an unfailing sufficiency,
Old or young, male or female, rude, low, rejected by the rest, whatever you are promulges itself,
Through birth, life, death, burial, the means are provided, nothing is scanted,
Through angers, losses, ambition, ignorance, ennui, what you are picks its way.
(Walt Whitman)
May 10
-"The Blessing of Other Beings: Those Who've Gone Out of Their Way to Help Us"
-the practice of appreciative joy includes making a proactive effort to remember our blessings. this effort goes into reflection: purposefully recollecting certain blessings. using fabrication, to remind ourselves. this reflection leads to the emotion of gratitude. we develop in gratitude by reflecting on certain categories of blessings. these reflection leads us to the heart. the reflection on the goodness of others is essential to the practice. in reflecting on the goodness of others, we learn to reflect on the goodness of our parents and teachers. we learn to reflect on the goodness of those beings who've gone out of their way to help us, to show us kindness.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the reflection on "the blessing of other beings...
1-we cultivate appreciative joy by reflecting on our blessings....
-the skill for cultivating appreciative joy includes these steps....
1-reflection on blessings....
2-gratitude
3-appreciative joy....
2- certain categories of blessings will lead to gratitude and the heart quality of appreciation...
-we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-the effort we make to train the mind and open the heart....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dharma....
4-the preciousness of life....
-in reflecting, we are proactive....
-we recollect our blessings, using fabrication....
-we engage in repeated reflection....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
3-in reflecting on the goodness of others we learn to reflect on the blessing of our parents ...
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that our parents gave us the gift of life....
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that they took care of us when we couldn't take care of ourselves.....
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that they went our of their way so that we could find our way into this life....
-it is essential, in following the path to the heart, that we learn to cultivate gratitude for our parents....
-for many of us, this is a process that may take some time.....
-we have to learn to, gradually, let go of afflictive emotions, such as anger and resentment, that we may have toward our parents...
-we have to be proactive in recollecting the goodness of our parents, in how they gave us the gift of life.....
4-in reflecting on the goodness of others we learn to reflect on the blessing of our teachers...
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that our teachers gave us the gift of the dharma ... they helped us to abandon suffering and know a greater happiness....
-they went out of their way, in teaching the dharma, to help us....
-they offered the gift of dharma out of compassion and love....
5-in reflecting on the goodness of others we learn to reflect on the blessing those beings who went out of their way to help and support us...
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that these beings have helped us in our efforts to develop our goodness ... to find freedom from suffering ... to know a greater happiness....
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that these beings have shown us kindness....
-in blatant ways....
-in subtle ways....
-we remember the goodness of these beings.....
-as we make a proactive effort to reflect, we recognize that many beings have been a blessing to us....
-reading.....
-"Lessons of Gratitude" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"These two people are hard to find in the world. Which two? The one who is first to do a kindness, and the one who is grateful and thankful for a kindness done."
(AN 2.118)
"Monks, I will teach you the level of a person of no integrity and the level of a person of integrity. Listen & pay close attention. I will speak."
"As you say, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said, "Now what is the level of a person of no integrity? A person of no integrity is ungrateful & unthankful. This ingratitude, this lack of thankfulness, is advocated by rude people. It is entirely on the level of people of no integrity. A person of integrity is grateful & thankful. This gratitude, this thankfulness, is advocated by civil people. It is entirely on the level of people of integrity."
"I tell you, monks, there are two people who are not easy to repay. Which two? Your mother & father. Even if you were to carry your mother on one shoulder & your father on the other shoulder for 100 years, and were to look after them by anointing, massaging, bathing, & rubbing their limbs, and they were to defecate & urinate right there [on your shoulders], you would not in that way pay or repay your parents. If you were to establish your mother & father in absolute sovereignty over this great earth, abounding in the seven treasures, you would not in that way pay or repay your parents. Why is that? Mother & father do much for their children. They care for them, they nourish them, they introduce them to this world. But anyone who rouses his unbelieving mother & father, settles & establishes them in conviction; rouses his unvirtuous mother & father, settles & establishes them in virtue; rouses his stingy mother & father, settles & establishes them in generosity; rouses his foolish mother & father, settles & establishes them in discernment: To this extent one pays & repays one's mother & father."
(AN 2.31)
A blessing: friends when the need arises.
A blessing: contentment with whatever there is.
Merit at the ending of life is a blessing.
A blessing: the abandoning of all suffering
& stress.
A blessing in the world: reverence to your mother.
A blessing: reverence to your father as well.
A blessing in the world: reverence to a contemplative.
A blessing: reverence for a brahman, too.
A blessing into old age is virtue.
A blessing: conviction established.
A blessing: discernment attained.
The non-doing of evil things is
a blessing.
(Dhp 331)
-"The Blessing of Other Beings: Those Who've Gone Out of Their Way to Help Us"
-the practice of appreciative joy includes making a proactive effort to remember our blessings. this effort goes into reflection: purposefully recollecting certain blessings. using fabrication, to remind ourselves. this reflection leads to the emotion of gratitude. we develop in gratitude by reflecting on certain categories of blessings. these reflection leads us to the heart. the reflection on the goodness of others is essential to the practice. in reflecting on the goodness of others, we learn to reflect on the goodness of our parents and teachers. we learn to reflect on the goodness of those beings who've gone out of their way to help us, to show us kindness.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the reflection on "the blessing of other beings...
1-we cultivate appreciative joy by reflecting on our blessings....
-the skill for cultivating appreciative joy includes these steps....
1-reflection on blessings....
2-gratitude
3-appreciative joy....
2- certain categories of blessings will lead to gratitude and the heart quality of appreciation...
-we learn to reflect on these four categories of blessings....
1-our goodness....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-the effort we make to train the mind and open the heart....
2-the goodness of other beings....
3-the goodness of the dharma....
4-the preciousness of life....
-in reflecting, we are proactive....
-we recollect our blessings, using fabrication....
-we engage in repeated reflection....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
3-in reflecting on the goodness of others we learn to reflect on the blessing of our parents ...
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that our parents gave us the gift of life....
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that they took care of us when we couldn't take care of ourselves.....
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that they went our of their way so that we could find our way into this life....
-it is essential, in following the path to the heart, that we learn to cultivate gratitude for our parents....
-for many of us, this is a process that may take some time.....
-we have to learn to, gradually, let go of afflictive emotions, such as anger and resentment, that we may have toward our parents...
-we have to be proactive in recollecting the goodness of our parents, in how they gave us the gift of life.....
4-in reflecting on the goodness of others we learn to reflect on the blessing of our teachers...
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that our teachers gave us the gift of the dharma ... they helped us to abandon suffering and know a greater happiness....
-they went out of their way, in teaching the dharma, to help us....
-they offered the gift of dharma out of compassion and love....
5-in reflecting on the goodness of others we learn to reflect on the blessing those beings who went out of their way to help and support us...
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that these beings have helped us in our efforts to develop our goodness ... to find freedom from suffering ... to know a greater happiness....
-we reflect, reminding ourselves that these beings have shown us kindness....
-in blatant ways....
-in subtle ways....
-we remember the goodness of these beings.....
-as we make a proactive effort to reflect, we recognize that many beings have been a blessing to us....
-reading.....
-"Lessons of Gratitude" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"These two people are hard to find in the world. Which two? The one who is first to do a kindness, and the one who is grateful and thankful for a kindness done."
(AN 2.118)
"Monks, I will teach you the level of a person of no integrity and the level of a person of integrity. Listen & pay close attention. I will speak."
"As you say, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said, "Now what is the level of a person of no integrity? A person of no integrity is ungrateful & unthankful. This ingratitude, this lack of thankfulness, is advocated by rude people. It is entirely on the level of people of no integrity. A person of integrity is grateful & thankful. This gratitude, this thankfulness, is advocated by civil people. It is entirely on the level of people of integrity."
"I tell you, monks, there are two people who are not easy to repay. Which two? Your mother & father. Even if you were to carry your mother on one shoulder & your father on the other shoulder for 100 years, and were to look after them by anointing, massaging, bathing, & rubbing their limbs, and they were to defecate & urinate right there [on your shoulders], you would not in that way pay or repay your parents. If you were to establish your mother & father in absolute sovereignty over this great earth, abounding in the seven treasures, you would not in that way pay or repay your parents. Why is that? Mother & father do much for their children. They care for them, they nourish them, they introduce them to this world. But anyone who rouses his unbelieving mother & father, settles & establishes them in conviction; rouses his unvirtuous mother & father, settles & establishes them in virtue; rouses his stingy mother & father, settles & establishes them in generosity; rouses his foolish mother & father, settles & establishes them in discernment: To this extent one pays & repays one's mother & father."
(AN 2.31)
A blessing: friends when the need arises.
A blessing: contentment with whatever there is.
Merit at the ending of life is a blessing.
A blessing: the abandoning of all suffering
& stress.
A blessing in the world: reverence to your mother.
A blessing: reverence to your father as well.
A blessing in the world: reverence to a contemplative.
A blessing: reverence for a brahman, too.
A blessing into old age is virtue.
A blessing: conviction established.
A blessing: discernment attained.
The non-doing of evil things is
a blessing.
(Dhp 331)
May 3
-"The Practice of Appreciative Joy"
-the dharma, the path that leads to the awakened heart, includes, as an element component, the development of appreciative joy. this quality of appreciation, joy, is a sublime abiding. it is found in the heart. but it must be cultivated. we cultivate joy by reflecting on the goodness in ourselves and the world. this reflection leads to gratitude. and gratitude leads to appreciative joy. in order for us to remain in the present moment, there needs to be joy. in order for us to meet the difficulties in life, there needs to be joy. in order to come closer to the heart, there needs to be joy.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop "the practice of appreciative joy"...
1-appreciative joy is an elemental component of the journey to awakening....
-in his teaching the Buddha describes the journey to awakening as having these steps....
-conviction....
-skillful action....
-joy....
-concentration/jhana....
-wisdom.....
-release....
-in order to make the journey, we need to cultivate joy....
2- we cultivate joy by reflecting on our goodness and the goodness around us...
-the skill for cultivating appreciative joy includes these basic steps....
1-reflection on goodness....
-we reflect on our blessings....
-the blessing of....
-our goodness....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-the effort we make to train the mind and open the heart....
-the goodness of other beings....
-the goodness of the dharma....
-the preciousness of life....
2-gratitude
-the reflection on blessings gives rise to the emotion of gratitude.....
3-appreciative joy....
-gratitude gives rise to the sublime abiding of appreciative joy.....
3-it is necessary to cultivate joy, in order to meet the experience of life and to flourish in this life ...
-reasons why we seek to cultivate joy include....
-we cultivate joy....
-so that we are able to establish and maintain ourselves in the present moment....
-so that we are able to meet the difficulties in life....
-so that we are able to come closer to the heart.....
4-joy is in the heart, but we must cultivate it.....
-joy is a sublime abiding....
-it is deathless, timeless....
-it is everpresent.....
-but it must be cultivated....
-our task, as dharma students, is to make an ongoing effort to cultivate appreciative joy....
-everyday.....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
-reading.....
-"Preparing the Mind for Meditation" (from Skillful Pleasure)
-"The Practice of Appreciative Joy"
-the dharma, the path that leads to the awakened heart, includes, as an element component, the development of appreciative joy. this quality of appreciation, joy, is a sublime abiding. it is found in the heart. but it must be cultivated. we cultivate joy by reflecting on the goodness in ourselves and the world. this reflection leads to gratitude. and gratitude leads to appreciative joy. in order for us to remain in the present moment, there needs to be joy. in order for us to meet the difficulties in life, there needs to be joy. in order to come closer to the heart, there needs to be joy.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop "the practice of appreciative joy"...
1-appreciative joy is an elemental component of the journey to awakening....
-in his teaching the Buddha describes the journey to awakening as having these steps....
-conviction....
-skillful action....
-joy....
-concentration/jhana....
-wisdom.....
-release....
-in order to make the journey, we need to cultivate joy....
2- we cultivate joy by reflecting on our goodness and the goodness around us...
-the skill for cultivating appreciative joy includes these basic steps....
1-reflection on goodness....
-we reflect on our blessings....
-the blessing of....
-our goodness....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-the effort we make to train the mind and open the heart....
-the goodness of other beings....
-the goodness of the dharma....
-the preciousness of life....
2-gratitude
-the reflection on blessings gives rise to the emotion of gratitude.....
3-appreciative joy....
-gratitude gives rise to the sublime abiding of appreciative joy.....
3-it is necessary to cultivate joy, in order to meet the experience of life and to flourish in this life ...
-reasons why we seek to cultivate joy include....
-we cultivate joy....
-so that we are able to establish and maintain ourselves in the present moment....
-so that we are able to meet the difficulties in life....
-so that we are able to come closer to the heart.....
4-joy is in the heart, but we must cultivate it.....
-joy is a sublime abiding....
-it is deathless, timeless....
-it is everpresent.....
-but it must be cultivated....
-our task, as dharma students, is to make an ongoing effort to cultivate appreciative joy....
-everyday.....
-in meditation....
-in all postures....
-reading.....
-"Preparing the Mind for Meditation" (from Skillful Pleasure)
| breath_meditation_preparing_the_mind.pdf |
"Furthermore, there is the case where you recollect the Dhamma: 'The Dhamma is well-expounded by the Blessed One, to be seen here & now, timeless, inviting verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting the Dhamma, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on the Dhamma. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated."
(AN 11.12)
"conviction has stress & suffering as its prerequisite, joy has conviction as its prerequisite, rapture has joy as its prerequisite, serenity has rapture as its prerequisite, pleasure has serenity as its prerequisite, concentration has pleasure as its prerequisite, knowledge & vision of things as they actually are present has concentration as its prerequisite, disenchantment has knowledge & vision of things as they actually are present as its prerequisite, dispassion has disenchantment as its prerequisite, release has dispassion as its prerequisite, knowledge of ending has release as its prerequisite."
(SN 12.23)
April 26
-"Inner Strength"
-in meditation, the dharma student meets difficulties, ups & downs, with composure, ease, strength. and in the course of her days & nights, she meets the experiences of life, including the difficulties, with the same qualities. she has inner strength. through our training, as dharma students, we develop in inner strength. this inner strength, the capacity to remain strong in all circumstances, enables us to meet the challenges of life and to flourish in this life. through breath meditation, we develop inner strength. the ability to keep the mind on the breath, in good home, is central to the quality of having inner strength.
-some things to to remember as we learn to have "inner strength"...
1-the dharma student meets the difficulties in meditation with inner strength.....
-in meditation, we meet obstacles, difficulties....
-thinking....
-hindrances....
-the difficulties the body presents....
-the difficulties that the senses present....
-in the face of these difficulties, we have equanimity.....
-we remain even-tempered....
-steady....
-in balance....
-in meeting difficulty, we learn to stay with the breath....
-we keep the mind there....
-the breath is a home for the mind....
2- in all our postures, in our days & nights, we meet life with inner strength....
-as the Buddha tells us, there are basic challenges, difficulties in life....
-illlness....
-aging....
-death....
-separation....
-as human beings we are subject to the vicissitudes of life....
-pleasure & pain....
-gain & loss....
-status & disrepute....
-praise & blame....
-as human beings we will have disagreeable experience....
-in the world....
-in relationship to others....
-in our personal experience.....
-body....
-mind.....
-the dharma students, we meet difficult experience with equanimity....
-inner strength....
3-as dharma students we meet adversity with inner strength ...
-the ability to meet adversity with inner strength is an important mark of an admirable being....
-to reflect:
-how do we meet adversity....?
-do we remain strong....?
-how can we learn to meet adversity with strength...?
4-the dharma student, developed in inner strength, keeps the mind on the breath....
-when there is diffculty ... most beings engage in lots of thinking....
-they become lost in thought worlds....
-they become fixated on thoughts, narratives...
-developed in inner strength, the dharma students....
-sees the thinking....
-with space....
-brings insight to it, asking questions such as, is it useful...?
-puts the mind on the breath....
-keeps the mind there....
-doesn't allow the mind to follow after the thinking....
-remains strong....
-even-tempered....
-at ease....
-we might, therefore, begin to ask: are there things, conventions, that we're holding on to ... that are not serving us....?
-why are we holding on....?
5-the benefits of having inner strength, being able to keep the mind on the breath, are profound.....
-developed in inner strength, the dharma student....
-keeps the mind on the breath ... in the body....
-when we're able to keep the mind on the breath ... in the body....
-there is less thinking....
-therefore, less suffering.....
-the mind regains its strength (when it is caught in thought, it weakens)....
-there is calmness....
-we function more effectively....
-we can meet the challenges of life....
-we can express our goodness....
-we have space ... we are able to have a wider view of things....
-we see the goodness in life....
-we are able to use our wisdom....
-our awareness....
-we are closer to the heart....
-our innate wisdom....
-compassion....
-love....
-joy.....
-reading.....
-"Strength for the Journey" (Ajaan Lee)
"There are these five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained. Which five?
"'I am subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging.' This is the first fact that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained.
"'I am subject to illness, have not gone beyond illness.' ...
"'I am subject to death, have not gone beyond death.' ...
"'I will grow different, separate from all that is dear and appealing to me.' ...
"'I am the owner of my actions, heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir.' ...
"These are the five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained."
(AN 5.57)
"Monks, these eight worldly conditions spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions. Which eight? Gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. These are the eight worldly conditions that spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions.
"For an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person there arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. For a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones there also arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. So what difference, what distinction, what distinguishing factor is there between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person?"
"For us, lord, the teachings have the Blessed One as their root, their guide, & their arbitrator. It would be good if the Blessed One himself would explicate the meaning of this statement. Having heard it from the Blessed One, the monks will remember it."
"In that case, monks, listen & pay close attention. I will speak."
"As you say, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said, "Gain arises for an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person. He does not reflect, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He does not reflect, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"His mind remains consumed with the gain. His mind remains consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind remains consumed with the pain.
"He welcomes the arisen gain and rebels against the arisen loss. He welcomes the arisen status and rebels against the arisen disgrace. He welcomes the arisen praise and rebels against the arisen censure. He welcomes the arisen pleasure and rebels against the arisen pain. As he is thus engaged in welcoming & rebelling, he is not released from birth, aging, or death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, or despairs. He is not released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"Now, gain arises for a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones. He reflects, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He reflects, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"His mind does not remain consumed with the gain. His mind does not remain consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind does not remain consumed with the pain.
"He does not welcome the arisen gain, or rebel against the arisen loss. He does not welcome the arisen status, or rebel against the arisen disgrace. He does not welcome the arisen praise, or rebel against the arisen censure. He does not welcome the arisen pleasure, or rebel against the arisen pain. As he thus abandons welcoming & rebelling, he is released from birth, aging, & death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, & despairs. He is released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"This is the difference, this the distinction, this the distinguishing factor between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person."
(AN 8.6)
Rāhula, develop meditation in tune with earth — for when you are developing meditation in tune with earth, agreeable & disagreeable sensory impressions that have arisen will not stay in charge of your mind. Just as when people throw what is clean or unclean on the earth — feces, urine, saliva, pus, or blood — the earth is not horrified, humiliated, or disgusted by it; in the same way, when you are developing meditation in tune with earth, agreeable & disagreeable sensory impressions that have arisen will not stay in charge of your mind."
(MN 62)
-"Inner Strength"
-in meditation, the dharma student meets difficulties, ups & downs, with composure, ease, strength. and in the course of her days & nights, she meets the experiences of life, including the difficulties, with the same qualities. she has inner strength. through our training, as dharma students, we develop in inner strength. this inner strength, the capacity to remain strong in all circumstances, enables us to meet the challenges of life and to flourish in this life. through breath meditation, we develop inner strength. the ability to keep the mind on the breath, in good home, is central to the quality of having inner strength.
-some things to to remember as we learn to have "inner strength"...
1-the dharma student meets the difficulties in meditation with inner strength.....
-in meditation, we meet obstacles, difficulties....
-thinking....
-hindrances....
-the difficulties the body presents....
-the difficulties that the senses present....
-in the face of these difficulties, we have equanimity.....
-we remain even-tempered....
-steady....
-in balance....
-in meeting difficulty, we learn to stay with the breath....
-we keep the mind there....
-the breath is a home for the mind....
2- in all our postures, in our days & nights, we meet life with inner strength....
-as the Buddha tells us, there are basic challenges, difficulties in life....
-illlness....
-aging....
-death....
-separation....
-as human beings we are subject to the vicissitudes of life....
-pleasure & pain....
-gain & loss....
-status & disrepute....
-praise & blame....
-as human beings we will have disagreeable experience....
-in the world....
-in relationship to others....
-in our personal experience.....
-body....
-mind.....
-the dharma students, we meet difficult experience with equanimity....
-inner strength....
3-as dharma students we meet adversity with inner strength ...
-the ability to meet adversity with inner strength is an important mark of an admirable being....
-to reflect:
-how do we meet adversity....?
-do we remain strong....?
-how can we learn to meet adversity with strength...?
4-the dharma student, developed in inner strength, keeps the mind on the breath....
-when there is diffculty ... most beings engage in lots of thinking....
-they become lost in thought worlds....
-they become fixated on thoughts, narratives...
-developed in inner strength, the dharma students....
-sees the thinking....
-with space....
-brings insight to it, asking questions such as, is it useful...?
-puts the mind on the breath....
-keeps the mind there....
-doesn't allow the mind to follow after the thinking....
-remains strong....
-even-tempered....
-at ease....
-we might, therefore, begin to ask: are there things, conventions, that we're holding on to ... that are not serving us....?
-why are we holding on....?
5-the benefits of having inner strength, being able to keep the mind on the breath, are profound.....
-developed in inner strength, the dharma student....
-keeps the mind on the breath ... in the body....
-when we're able to keep the mind on the breath ... in the body....
-there is less thinking....
-therefore, less suffering.....
-the mind regains its strength (when it is caught in thought, it weakens)....
-there is calmness....
-we function more effectively....
-we can meet the challenges of life....
-we can express our goodness....
-we have space ... we are able to have a wider view of things....
-we see the goodness in life....
-we are able to use our wisdom....
-our awareness....
-we are closer to the heart....
-our innate wisdom....
-compassion....
-love....
-joy.....
-reading.....
-"Strength for the Journey" (Ajaan Lee)
"There are these five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained. Which five?
"'I am subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging.' This is the first fact that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained.
"'I am subject to illness, have not gone beyond illness.' ...
"'I am subject to death, have not gone beyond death.' ...
"'I will grow different, separate from all that is dear and appealing to me.' ...
"'I am the owner of my actions, heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir.' ...
"These are the five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained."
(AN 5.57)
"Monks, these eight worldly conditions spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions. Which eight? Gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. These are the eight worldly conditions that spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions.
"For an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person there arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. For a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones there also arise gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain. So what difference, what distinction, what distinguishing factor is there between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person?"
"For us, lord, the teachings have the Blessed One as their root, their guide, & their arbitrator. It would be good if the Blessed One himself would explicate the meaning of this statement. Having heard it from the Blessed One, the monks will remember it."
"In that case, monks, listen & pay close attention. I will speak."
"As you say, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said, "Gain arises for an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person. He does not reflect, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He does not reflect, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He does not discern it as it actually is.
"His mind remains consumed with the gain. His mind remains consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind remains consumed with the pain.
"He welcomes the arisen gain and rebels against the arisen loss. He welcomes the arisen status and rebels against the arisen disgrace. He welcomes the arisen praise and rebels against the arisen censure. He welcomes the arisen pleasure and rebels against the arisen pain. As he is thus engaged in welcoming & rebelling, he is not released from birth, aging, or death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, or despairs. He is not released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"Now, gain arises for a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones. He reflects, 'Gain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"Loss arises... Status arises... Disgrace arises... Censure arises... Praise arises... Pleasure arises...
"Pain arises. He reflects, 'Pain has arisen for me. It is inconstant, stressful, & subject to change.' He discerns it as it actually is.
"His mind does not remain consumed with the gain. His mind does not remain consumed with the loss... with the status... the disgrace... the censure... the praise... the pleasure. His mind does not remain consumed with the pain.
"He does not welcome the arisen gain, or rebel against the arisen loss. He does not welcome the arisen status, or rebel against the arisen disgrace. He does not welcome the arisen praise, or rebel against the arisen censure. He does not welcome the arisen pleasure, or rebel against the arisen pain. As he thus abandons welcoming & rebelling, he is released from birth, aging, & death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, & despairs. He is released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.
"This is the difference, this the distinction, this the distinguishing factor between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person."
(AN 8.6)
Rāhula, develop meditation in tune with earth — for when you are developing meditation in tune with earth, agreeable & disagreeable sensory impressions that have arisen will not stay in charge of your mind. Just as when people throw what is clean or unclean on the earth — feces, urine, saliva, pus, or blood — the earth is not horrified, humiliated, or disgusted by it; in the same way, when you are developing meditation in tune with earth, agreeable & disagreeable sensory impressions that have arisen will not stay in charge of your mind."
(MN 62)
April 19
-"The Non-Conformist"
-the dharma student, the person following the Buddha's path, is, by definition, a non-conformist. she goes against the current. most beings, as the Buddha explains, go along with the current, with the flow of the culture. they do what everybody else is doing. the dharma student, on the other hand, looks to see what is in her best interests and she does that. which is to say, what is in the best interests of the heart. as the Buddha tells us, it's easier to go along with the current. the path of the dharma is difficult. we're asked to leave things behind. others don't understand what we're doing. it's one important reason why it's important to have a community of likeminded beings to practice with, beings who support us, understand us. as dharma students, we learn to adopt an attitude of non-conformism. we take joy in following a countercultural path, in doing what has to be done, in the service of knowing a greater happiness.
-some things to to remember as we learn to follow the way of "the non-conformist"...
1-the dharma student is a non-conformist.....
-the person following the Buddha's path goes against the current....
-doesn't simply do what everyone else is doing because they're doing it....
-in being on this path, we learn to accept that we're taking a countercultural path....
-others may not understand what we're doing
-we may find it difficult to explain to others what we're doing....
-in making the path, therefore, it's essential that we have kalyana mitta ... admirable friends....
-a community of others who are on the same journey.....
-as the Buddha tells us, it is difficult at times to go against the current....
-at first, we practice 'with tears in our eyes'.....
-gradually, though, we come to a greater happiness....
-we know the happiness of the heart.....
2- most beings will choose to go along with the current....
-as the Buddha notes, it's easier to go along with the current....
-to do what others are doing....
-we see the tendency to go along with the current in the way that most beings relate to sense pleasures like the smartphone....
-indulging in these sense pleasures ... following the way of the culture....
-the dharma student, seeking a greater happiness than the happiness that most beings seek, learns to question her actions....
-she asks, in considering her relationship to sense pleasures, is this action going to lead to the heart ... or away from the heart....
-the dharma students makes decisions about what to do based on what's in the best interests of the heart....
-not based on what others are doing....
3-as dharma students we develop the attitude of a non-conformist ...
-we learn to accept that what we're doing, the path we're taking, is different.....
-others may not understand....
-we learn to take joy in our countercultural journey....
-we recognize that we're fortunate to be on this journey....
-we have gratitude....
-we take joy in doing what has to be done, to know a greater happiness....
-even though it's difficult....
-we take joy in our goodness ... our strength ... in going against the current.....
4-the dharma student gradually abandons certain social conventions....
-the attachment to social conventions is gradually abandoned....
-in the service of knowing a greater happiness...
-as we practice the dharma....
-as we learn to be heedful ... as we learn to ask, is what i'm doing leading to the heart or away from the heart....
-as we learn to live in tune with the heart....
-we gradually abandon our attachment to social conventions ... conformities...
-we become disenchanted....
-we might, therefore, begin to ask: are there things, conventions, that we're holding on to ... that are not serving us....?
-why are we holding on....?
5-in following the path of a non-conformist we have to be mindful of doubt.....
-as we go against the stream...
-one of the dangers is doubt....
-as dharma students, we learn to be mindful of doubt....
-we see doubt for what it is....
-we abandon doubt....
-we continue to move forward, with love....
-reading.....
-"Affirming the Truths of the Heart" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
I learned this, at least, by my experiment; that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. He will put some things behind, will pass an invisible boundary; new, universal, and more liberal laws will begin to establish themselves around and within him; or the old laws be expanded, and interpreted in his favor in a more liberal sense, and he will live with the license of a higher order of beings. In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex, and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness. If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundation under them. . . .
(Thoreau/Walden)
Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation) there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too.
All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issue from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way.
Whatever you can do or dream you can begin it. Boldness has genius, magic and power in it.
Begin it now.
(Goethe)
The Journey (Mary Oliver)
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice --
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voice behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do --
determined to save
the only life that you could save.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"The Non-Conformist"
-the dharma student, the person following the Buddha's path, is, by definition, a non-conformist. she goes against the current. most beings, as the Buddha explains, go along with the current, with the flow of the culture. they do what everybody else is doing. the dharma student, on the other hand, looks to see what is in her best interests and she does that. which is to say, what is in the best interests of the heart. as the Buddha tells us, it's easier to go along with the current. the path of the dharma is difficult. we're asked to leave things behind. others don't understand what we're doing. it's one important reason why it's important to have a community of likeminded beings to practice with, beings who support us, understand us. as dharma students, we learn to adopt an attitude of non-conformism. we take joy in following a countercultural path, in doing what has to be done, in the service of knowing a greater happiness.
-some things to to remember as we learn to follow the way of "the non-conformist"...
1-the dharma student is a non-conformist.....
-the person following the Buddha's path goes against the current....
-doesn't simply do what everyone else is doing because they're doing it....
-in being on this path, we learn to accept that we're taking a countercultural path....
-others may not understand what we're doing
-we may find it difficult to explain to others what we're doing....
-in making the path, therefore, it's essential that we have kalyana mitta ... admirable friends....
-a community of others who are on the same journey.....
-as the Buddha tells us, it is difficult at times to go against the current....
-at first, we practice 'with tears in our eyes'.....
-gradually, though, we come to a greater happiness....
-we know the happiness of the heart.....
2- most beings will choose to go along with the current....
-as the Buddha notes, it's easier to go along with the current....
-to do what others are doing....
-we see the tendency to go along with the current in the way that most beings relate to sense pleasures like the smartphone....
-indulging in these sense pleasures ... following the way of the culture....
-the dharma student, seeking a greater happiness than the happiness that most beings seek, learns to question her actions....
-she asks, in considering her relationship to sense pleasures, is this action going to lead to the heart ... or away from the heart....
-the dharma students makes decisions about what to do based on what's in the best interests of the heart....
-not based on what others are doing....
3-as dharma students we develop the attitude of a non-conformist ...
-we learn to accept that what we're doing, the path we're taking, is different.....
-others may not understand....
-we learn to take joy in our countercultural journey....
-we recognize that we're fortunate to be on this journey....
-we have gratitude....
-we take joy in doing what has to be done, to know a greater happiness....
-even though it's difficult....
-we take joy in our goodness ... our strength ... in going against the current.....
4-the dharma student gradually abandons certain social conventions....
-the attachment to social conventions is gradually abandoned....
-in the service of knowing a greater happiness...
-as we practice the dharma....
-as we learn to be heedful ... as we learn to ask, is what i'm doing leading to the heart or away from the heart....
-as we learn to live in tune with the heart....
-we gradually abandon our attachment to social conventions ... conformities...
-we become disenchanted....
-we might, therefore, begin to ask: are there things, conventions, that we're holding on to ... that are not serving us....?
-why are we holding on....?
5-in following the path of a non-conformist we have to be mindful of doubt.....
-as we go against the stream...
-one of the dangers is doubt....
-as dharma students, we learn to be mindful of doubt....
-we see doubt for what it is....
-we abandon doubt....
-we continue to move forward, with love....
-reading.....
-"Affirming the Truths of the Heart" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
I learned this, at least, by my experiment; that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. He will put some things behind, will pass an invisible boundary; new, universal, and more liberal laws will begin to establish themselves around and within him; or the old laws be expanded, and interpreted in his favor in a more liberal sense, and he will live with the license of a higher order of beings. In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex, and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness. If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundation under them. . . .
(Thoreau/Walden)
Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation) there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too.
All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issue from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way.
Whatever you can do or dream you can begin it. Boldness has genius, magic and power in it.
Begin it now.
(Goethe)
The Journey (Mary Oliver)
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice --
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voice behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do --
determined to save
the only life that you could save.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
April 12
-"The Language of the Heart"
-it's sometimes said that in dharma practice we're 'learning to be alone.' in order to accomplish this difficult task, we need the support of others. we need admirable friends. as the Buddha tells us, the most important 'external' factor in making the path is the association with admirable beings. we seek to associate with beings of integrity. and, in turn, we strive to be a person of integrity. in his teachings the Buddha describes what it means to be a person of integrity. one of the key elements is how we relate to adversity. as dharma students, persons of integrity, we strive to meet adversity with equanimity, wisdom, compassion & love. as a dharma student, as a person of integrity, we learn to speak skillfully. and, importantly, we learn to listen. the skill of listening is integral to what it means to be a dharma student and essential to develop as we move along the path. in reflection, we should ask, do we listen?
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop "the language of the heart"...
1-having admirable friends is essential to the path that leads to true happiness.....
-the Buddha tells us that having admirable friendship is the most important 'external' factor in making the path....
-admirable friends include....
-teachers....
-our fellow dharma students....
-other beings in our lives who embody qualities of integrity....
-an admirable friend is a person of integrity....
-a person who is committed to the development of....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-concentration....
-wisdom....
-in making the path, we seek to have admirable friends....
-and, very important to remember, we seek to be an admirable friend....
2- there are certain conditions that enable us to identify admirable beings and ascertain if we are admirable beings....
-the Buddha speaks about four ways in which we learn to know if a being is admirable and if we are admirable....
1-we are around someone for a long time....
2-we have 'dealings' with the person....
3-we see how the person meets adversity....
4-we have discussions with the person....
3-we know if a person of integrity, and, in turn, if we are a person of integrity by how the person meets adversity ...
-a person of integrity meets the difficulties of life, the difficulties of practice, with....
-equanimity....
-acceptance.....
-composure.....
-balance....
-wisdom....
-compassion....
-love....
-we should ask, how do we meet adversity....?
-do we embody these qualities....?
4-the dharma student is someone who's resolved to develop the ability to listen....
-as dharma students, we seek to speak skillfully ... and listen skillfully.....
-it is extremely important, as we make the past, to learn to listen....
-to listen to the other....
-we should ask and look to see:
-do we listen...?
-do we pay attention to the other....?
-or, are we thinking about other things....
-or distracted by sense experiences....
-or, are we thining about what the other is saying....?
-are we commenting on what the other is saying....?
-or are we thinking about what we want to say....?
-caught in desire to speak....
-as a person of integrity, we learn to listen....
-with acceptance....
-with calmness...
-with compassion ... love....
-with the heart....
-we develop in our capacity to listen by....
-staying with the breath....
-staying in the body....
-staying close to the heart....
-we learn to listen....
-this quality is essential for the dharma student seeking to find a greater happiness in her life....
-we listen....
-to the other....
-to the silence....
-to the heart....
-reading.....
-"Thana Sutta: Traits" (AN 4.192)
"But, Ananda, haven't I already taught you the state of growing different with regard to all things dear & appealing, the state of becoming separate, the state of becoming otherwise? What else is there to expect? It's impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
"Just as if the largest limb were to fall off of a great tree composed of heartwood, standing firm; in the same way, Sariputta has attained total Unbinding from this great community of monks composed of heartwood, standing firm. What else is there to expect? It's impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
"Therefore, Ananda, each of you should remain with your self as an island, your self as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. Remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. And how does a monk remain with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? How does he remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings... mind... mental qualities in & of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. This is how a monk remains with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge. For those who — now or after I am gone — remain with their self as an island, their self as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, they will be the highest of the monks who desire training."
(SN 47.13)
"With regard to external factors, I don't envision any other single factor like friendship with admirable people as doing so much for a monk in training, who has not attained the goal but remains intent on the unsurpassed safety from bondage. A monk who is a friend with admirable people abandons what is unskillful and develops what is skillful."
A monk who is a friend
to admirable people
— who's reverential, respectful,
doing what his friends advise --
mindful, alert,
attains step by step
the ending of all fetters.
(Iti 17)
As he was seated to one side, Ven. Ananda said to the Blessed One, "This is half of the holy life, lord: having admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues."
"Don't say that, Ananda. Don't say that. Having admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues is actually the whole of the holy life. When a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues, he can be expected to develop & pursue the noble eightfold path.”
(SN 45.2)
"And what is meant by admirable friendship? There is the case where a lay person, in whatever town or village he may dwell, spends time with householders or householders' sons, young or old, who are advanced in virtue. He talks with them, engages them in discussions. He emulates consummate conviction in those who are consummate in conviction, consummate virtue in those who are consummate in virtue, consummate generosity in those who are consummate in generosity, and consummate discernment in those who are consummate in discernment. This is called admirable friendship.”
(AN 8.54)
"It's through living together that a person's virtue may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
"It's through dealing with a person that his purity may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
"It's through adversity that a person's endurance may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
"It's through discussion that a person's discernment may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
(AN 4.12)
“Ever tried. Ever failed. No Matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”
(S. Beckett)
-"We Are Not One" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
A Ritual to Read to Each Other (William Stafford)
If you don't know the kind of person I am
and I don't know the kind of person you are
a pattern that others made may prevail in the world
and following the wrong god home we may miss our star.
For there is many a small betrayal in the mind,
a shrug that lets the fragile sequence break
sending with shouts the horrible errors of childhood
storming out to play through the broken dike.
And as elephants parade holding each elephant's tail,
but if one wanders the circus won't find the park,
I call it cruel and maybe the root of all cruelty
to know what occurs but not recognize the fact.
And so I appeal to a voice, to something shadowy,
a remote important region in all who talk:
though we could fool each other, we should consider--
lest the parade of our mutual life get lost in the dark.
For it is important that awake people be awake,
or a breaking line may discourage them back to sleep;
the signals we give — yes or no, or maybe --
should be clear: the darkness around us is deep.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
-"The Language of the Heart"
-it's sometimes said that in dharma practice we're 'learning to be alone.' in order to accomplish this difficult task, we need the support of others. we need admirable friends. as the Buddha tells us, the most important 'external' factor in making the path is the association with admirable beings. we seek to associate with beings of integrity. and, in turn, we strive to be a person of integrity. in his teachings the Buddha describes what it means to be a person of integrity. one of the key elements is how we relate to adversity. as dharma students, persons of integrity, we strive to meet adversity with equanimity, wisdom, compassion & love. as a dharma student, as a person of integrity, we learn to speak skillfully. and, importantly, we learn to listen. the skill of listening is integral to what it means to be a dharma student and essential to develop as we move along the path. in reflection, we should ask, do we listen?
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop "the language of the heart"...
1-having admirable friends is essential to the path that leads to true happiness.....
-the Buddha tells us that having admirable friendship is the most important 'external' factor in making the path....
-admirable friends include....
-teachers....
-our fellow dharma students....
-other beings in our lives who embody qualities of integrity....
-an admirable friend is a person of integrity....
-a person who is committed to the development of....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-concentration....
-wisdom....
-in making the path, we seek to have admirable friends....
-and, very important to remember, we seek to be an admirable friend....
2- there are certain conditions that enable us to identify admirable beings and ascertain if we are admirable beings....
-the Buddha speaks about four ways in which we learn to know if a being is admirable and if we are admirable....
1-we are around someone for a long time....
2-we have 'dealings' with the person....
3-we see how the person meets adversity....
4-we have discussions with the person....
3-we know if a person of integrity, and, in turn, if we are a person of integrity by how the person meets adversity ...
-a person of integrity meets the difficulties of life, the difficulties of practice, with....
-equanimity....
-acceptance.....
-composure.....
-balance....
-wisdom....
-compassion....
-love....
-we should ask, how do we meet adversity....?
-do we embody these qualities....?
4-the dharma student is someone who's resolved to develop the ability to listen....
-as dharma students, we seek to speak skillfully ... and listen skillfully.....
-it is extremely important, as we make the past, to learn to listen....
-to listen to the other....
-we should ask and look to see:
-do we listen...?
-do we pay attention to the other....?
-or, are we thinking about other things....
-or distracted by sense experiences....
-or, are we thining about what the other is saying....?
-are we commenting on what the other is saying....?
-or are we thinking about what we want to say....?
-caught in desire to speak....
-as a person of integrity, we learn to listen....
-with acceptance....
-with calmness...
-with compassion ... love....
-with the heart....
-we develop in our capacity to listen by....
-staying with the breath....
-staying in the body....
-staying close to the heart....
-we learn to listen....
-this quality is essential for the dharma student seeking to find a greater happiness in her life....
-we listen....
-to the other....
-to the silence....
-to the heart....
-reading.....
-"Thana Sutta: Traits" (AN 4.192)
"But, Ananda, haven't I already taught you the state of growing different with regard to all things dear & appealing, the state of becoming separate, the state of becoming otherwise? What else is there to expect? It's impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
"Just as if the largest limb were to fall off of a great tree composed of heartwood, standing firm; in the same way, Sariputta has attained total Unbinding from this great community of monks composed of heartwood, standing firm. What else is there to expect? It's impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
"Therefore, Ananda, each of you should remain with your self as an island, your self as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. Remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. And how does a monk remain with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? How does he remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings... mind... mental qualities in & of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. This is how a monk remains with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge. For those who — now or after I am gone — remain with their self as an island, their self as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, they will be the highest of the monks who desire training."
(SN 47.13)
"With regard to external factors, I don't envision any other single factor like friendship with admirable people as doing so much for a monk in training, who has not attained the goal but remains intent on the unsurpassed safety from bondage. A monk who is a friend with admirable people abandons what is unskillful and develops what is skillful."
A monk who is a friend
to admirable people
— who's reverential, respectful,
doing what his friends advise --
mindful, alert,
attains step by step
the ending of all fetters.
(Iti 17)
As he was seated to one side, Ven. Ananda said to the Blessed One, "This is half of the holy life, lord: having admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues."
"Don't say that, Ananda. Don't say that. Having admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues is actually the whole of the holy life. When a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues, he can be expected to develop & pursue the noble eightfold path.”
(SN 45.2)
"And what is meant by admirable friendship? There is the case where a lay person, in whatever town or village he may dwell, spends time with householders or householders' sons, young or old, who are advanced in virtue. He talks with them, engages them in discussions. He emulates consummate conviction in those who are consummate in conviction, consummate virtue in those who are consummate in virtue, consummate generosity in those who are consummate in generosity, and consummate discernment in those who are consummate in discernment. This is called admirable friendship.”
(AN 8.54)
"It's through living together that a person's virtue may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
"It's through dealing with a person that his purity may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
"It's through adversity that a person's endurance may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
"It's through discussion that a person's discernment may be known, and then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning.
(AN 4.12)
“Ever tried. Ever failed. No Matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”
(S. Beckett)
-"We Are Not One" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
A Ritual to Read to Each Other (William Stafford)
If you don't know the kind of person I am
and I don't know the kind of person you are
a pattern that others made may prevail in the world
and following the wrong god home we may miss our star.
For there is many a small betrayal in the mind,
a shrug that lets the fragile sequence break
sending with shouts the horrible errors of childhood
storming out to play through the broken dike.
And as elephants parade holding each elephant's tail,
but if one wanders the circus won't find the park,
I call it cruel and maybe the root of all cruelty
to know what occurs but not recognize the fact.
And so I appeal to a voice, to something shadowy,
a remote important region in all who talk:
though we could fool each other, we should consider--
lest the parade of our mutual life get lost in the dark.
For it is important that awake people be awake,
or a breaking line may discourage them back to sleep;
the signals we give — yes or no, or maybe --
should be clear: the darkness around us is deep.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
More information about making a donation is found on the Support page.
Thank you for your generosity!
March 29
-"Practice More"
-as dharma students, our goal is to free the heart of its burdens and, in turn, to know the happiness of heart. we free the heart of its burdens through wisdom. and we attain wisdom, understanding, by developing the path. the heart of the path is concentration. specifically, jhana, the Buddha's concentration. if we seek to know a greater happiness, we must develop in our practice, in our meditation. this is the path. this is the way to a greater happiness. the dharma students seeks to deepen her practice, her meditation. she seeks to practice accordingly, following the Buddha's instructions. and she seeks to put time and effort into her practice. the more we practice, the closer we move toward the heart, toward wisdom, toward happiness of heart. we should, then, think about practicing more. can we make the resolve to practice more? this is a question that the serious dharma student must learn to ask
-some things to to remember as we seek to make the effort to "practice more"...
1-wisdom is what enables us to free the heart of its burdens and know true happiness.....
-this wisdom is not the wisdom acquired through study....
-it's not intellectual wisdom....
-this wisdom is cultivated by paying attention to our experience....
-understanding our experience, as it is, in the body....
-understanding our experience, gradually, in the heart....
2- the development of concentration leads to wisdom....
-as concentration develops, wisdom develops....
-specifically, the concentration known as jhana....
-strong concentration....
-including full body awareness....
-if we want to grown in wisdom ... and find a greater happiness ... we must develop our concentration/jhana....
3-to further develop in our practice, we should think about practicing more...
-we should learn to develop our skill....
-to 'practice accordingly', following the Buddha''s instructions for breath meditation....
-we should put more time into practicing meditation....
4-make a plan to practice more....
-a suggestion....
-make a plan to practice more....
-make a resolve to practice more....
-reflect on this resolve ... on why you are doing this....
-make a plan....
-even if it is very modest ... for instance, to sit for five additional minutes....
-choose a plan that is do-able....
-that you can follow wholeheartedly....
-pay attention to the results....
5- the "nava sutta' offers some insights into how we find freedom from suffering....
-"nava sutta" (the ship)
-the sutta includes three important metaphors....
1-the hen & her eggs....
-the hen wants her eggs to hatch ... but she has to sit on them....
-we want to end our suffering and know a greater happiness ... but we have to develop the path, concentration/jhana....
2-the axe handle....
-after using the axe for awhile, we don't notice a difference in the handle...
-we practice meditation and at first may not see results ... but we are making progress...
3-the ship....
-after months at sea and the long winter, the stays of the ship wither and fall away....
-when we develop our practice ... the fetters that bind us, our clinging, withers and falls away....
-reading.....
-"Nava Sutta/The Ship" (SN 22.101)
-"The Ship" (Peter Doobinin)
-"Practice More"
-as dharma students, our goal is to free the heart of its burdens and, in turn, to know the happiness of heart. we free the heart of its burdens through wisdom. and we attain wisdom, understanding, by developing the path. the heart of the path is concentration. specifically, jhana, the Buddha's concentration. if we seek to know a greater happiness, we must develop in our practice, in our meditation. this is the path. this is the way to a greater happiness. the dharma students seeks to deepen her practice, her meditation. she seeks to practice accordingly, following the Buddha's instructions. and she seeks to put time and effort into her practice. the more we practice, the closer we move toward the heart, toward wisdom, toward happiness of heart. we should, then, think about practicing more. can we make the resolve to practice more? this is a question that the serious dharma student must learn to ask
-some things to to remember as we seek to make the effort to "practice more"...
1-wisdom is what enables us to free the heart of its burdens and know true happiness.....
-this wisdom is not the wisdom acquired through study....
-it's not intellectual wisdom....
-this wisdom is cultivated by paying attention to our experience....
-understanding our experience, as it is, in the body....
-understanding our experience, gradually, in the heart....
2- the development of concentration leads to wisdom....
-as concentration develops, wisdom develops....
-specifically, the concentration known as jhana....
-strong concentration....
-including full body awareness....
-if we want to grown in wisdom ... and find a greater happiness ... we must develop our concentration/jhana....
3-to further develop in our practice, we should think about practicing more...
-we should learn to develop our skill....
-to 'practice accordingly', following the Buddha''s instructions for breath meditation....
-we should put more time into practicing meditation....
4-make a plan to practice more....
-a suggestion....
-make a plan to practice more....
-make a resolve to practice more....
-reflect on this resolve ... on why you are doing this....
-make a plan....
-even if it is very modest ... for instance, to sit for five additional minutes....
-choose a plan that is do-able....
-that you can follow wholeheartedly....
-pay attention to the results....
5- the "nava sutta' offers some insights into how we find freedom from suffering....
-"nava sutta" (the ship)
-the sutta includes three important metaphors....
1-the hen & her eggs....
-the hen wants her eggs to hatch ... but she has to sit on them....
-we want to end our suffering and know a greater happiness ... but we have to develop the path, concentration/jhana....
2-the axe handle....
-after using the axe for awhile, we don't notice a difference in the handle...
-we practice meditation and at first may not see results ... but we are making progress...
3-the ship....
-after months at sea and the long winter, the stays of the ship wither and fall away....
-when we develop our practice ... the fetters that bind us, our clinging, withers and falls away....
-reading.....
-"Nava Sutta/The Ship" (SN 22.101)
-"The Ship" (Peter Doobinin)
| the_ship_by_peter_doobinin.pdf |
"Even though this wish may occur to a monk who dwells without devoting himself to development — 'O that my mind might be released from effluents through lack of clinging!' — still his mind is not released from the effluents through lack of clinging. Why is that? From lack of developing, it should be said. Lack of developing what? The four frames of reference, the four right exertions, the four bases of power, the five faculties, the five strengths, the seven factors for Awakening, the noble eightfold path.
"Suppose a hen has eight, ten, or twelve eggs: If she doesn't cover them rightly, warm them rightly, or incubate them rightly, then even though this wish may occur to her — 'O that my chicks might break through the egg shells with their spiked claws or beaks and hatch out safely!' — still it is not possible that the chicks will break through the egg shells with their spiked claws or beaks and hatch out safely. Why is that? Because the hen has not covered them rightly, warmed them rightly, or incubated them rightly. In the same way, even though this wish may occur to a monk who dwells without devoting himself to development — 'O that my mind might be released from effluents through lack of clinging!' — still his mind is not released from the effluents through lack of clinging. Why is that? From lack of developing, it should be said. Lack of developing what? The four frames of reference, the four right exertions, the four bases of power, the five faculties, the five strengths, the seven factors for Awakening, the noble eightfold path.
"Even though this wish may not occur to a monk who dwells devoting himself to development — 'O that my mind might be released from effluents through lack of clinging!' — still his mind is released from the effluents through lack of clinging. Why is that? From developing, it should be said. Developing what? The four frames of reference, the four right exertions, the four bases of power, the five faculties, the five strengths, the seven factors for Awakening, the noble eightfold path.
"Suppose a hen has eight, ten, or twelve eggs that she covers rightly, warms rightly, & incubates rightly: Even though this wish may not occur to her — 'O that my chicks might break through the egg shells with their spiked claws or beaks and hatch out safely!' — still it is possible that the chicks will break through the egg shells with their spiked claws or beaks and hatch out safely. Why is that? Because the hen has covered them, warmed them, & incubated them rightly. In the same way, even though this wish may not occur to a monk who dwells devoting himself to development — 'O that my mind might be released from effluents through lack of clinging!' — still his mind is released from the effluents through lack of clinging. Why is that? From developing, it should be said. Developing what? The four frames of reference, the four right exertions, the four bases of power, the five faculties, the five strengths, the seven factors for Awakening, the noble eightfold path."
(SN 22.101)
So it is with the quality of your concentration. If your thinking and evaluation are subtle, thorough, and circumspect, your "concentration work" will result in more and more stillness of mind. If your thinking and evaluation are slipshod and crude, you won't get much stillness. Your body will ache, and you'll feel restless and irritable. Once the mind can become very still, though, the body will be comfortable and at ease. Your heart will feel open and clear. Pains will disappear. The elements of the body will feel normal: The warmth in your body will be just right, neither too hot nor too cold. As soon as your work is finished, it'll result in the highest form of happiness and ease: nibbana — Liberation. But as long as you still have work to do, your heart won't get its full measure of peace. Wherever you go, there will always be something nagging at the back of your mind. Once your work is done, though, you can be carefree wherever you go.
If you haven't finished your job, it's because (1) you haven't set your mind on it and (2) you haven't actually done the work. You've shirked your duties and played truant. But if you really set your mind on doing the job, there's no doubt but that you'll finish it.
(Ajaan Lee)
"Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monks. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you."
(MN 19)
March 22
-"The Further Shore"
-the dharma, the Buddha's path, is an optimistic path. as dharma students, we come to understand that there is a true happiness that we can know in this life. and we resolve to know this true happiness. to live happily. to live joyfully. in meditation, we learn to develop qualities that put us in position to live happily. and in the process of meditation itself, we learn to live joyfully. we cultivate appreciation and skillful intention. and, importantly, we learn to see the unskillful qualities of mind that prevent us from the heart, from happiness. we see the unskillful intentions in the mind. we cultivate wisdom, seeing these qualities of aversion, desire, delusion. as dharma students we bring these same skills into our daily lives. we learn to live our live happily by cultivating skillful intention, by seeing what's getting in the way of the heart. in practicing accordingly, we make it over the river of suffering and pain. we make our way to the further shore.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the skills that enable us to make it to "the further shore"...
1-the Buddha's path is an optimistic path.....
-our tendency of mind - our karma - may be to have a pessimistic view of life....
-but the path, the dharma, is an optimistic path....
-we understanding that we can live happily ... there is a happiness that we can know in this very life....
-understanding this ... we resolve to live happily....
2- in meditation practice, we learn skills that support us in efforts to live happily....
-we cultivate a bright mind.....
-gratitude....
-appreciation....
-we recognize the goodness in ourselves, the goodness in the world....
-we cultivate skillful intention....
-intention informed by compassion/metta....
-understanding that there is true happiness in this life and that we can know it ... we set the intention to practice in support of the wish we have to live happily....
-we remind ourselves of this intention....
-we make an effort to stay in tune with this intention...
3-in meditation, we are mindful & alert; we see when our intention is not skillful...
-we see how the mind is....
-we see how we are practicing.....
-we see when the mind/intention has turned unskillful....
-the three primary forms of unskillful mind/intention....
1-aversion
-aversive to some element of the meditation ... body ... mind....
-aversive to the meditation itself.....
-not wanting....
-disliking....
-negativity....
2-desire
-wanting it to be a certain way....
-wanting some sort of state ... state of concentration ... altered state....
-wanting to go into a deluded state....
-wanting to be good ... a good meditator, etc....
3-delusion
-lack of skillful intention....
-lack of sense of purpose....
-lack of motivation....
-laziness....
4-the states in which the mind/intention is unskillful are doorways....
-instead of disliking these states ... trying to get rid of them ... we bring attention to them....
-we understand that they are often doorways....
-we are seeing our habitual ways of being unskillful....
-we are seeing what is preventing us from the heart....
-it is only be seeing what is preventing us from the heart that we are able to get to the heart....
-first noble truth....
5- these skills that we practice in meditation, we bring into our daily lives....
-we see the quality of mind/intention in all our postures, as we go through our days....
-we are alert....
-we look to see the quality of mind/intention....
-we ask, how am I meeting my experience....?
-we ask, how am I going through my day....?
-in all postures we deepen our skillful intention....
-we make an effort to cultivate intention informed by compassion/love....
-we cultivate skillful intention in all our actions....
-blatant & subtle....
-reading.....
-the sections on "Preparing the Mind" from Skillful Pleasure...
-"The Further Shore"
-the dharma, the Buddha's path, is an optimistic path. as dharma students, we come to understand that there is a true happiness that we can know in this life. and we resolve to know this true happiness. to live happily. to live joyfully. in meditation, we learn to develop qualities that put us in position to live happily. and in the process of meditation itself, we learn to live joyfully. we cultivate appreciation and skillful intention. and, importantly, we learn to see the unskillful qualities of mind that prevent us from the heart, from happiness. we see the unskillful intentions in the mind. we cultivate wisdom, seeing these qualities of aversion, desire, delusion. as dharma students we bring these same skills into our daily lives. we learn to live our live happily by cultivating skillful intention, by seeing what's getting in the way of the heart. in practicing accordingly, we make it over the river of suffering and pain. we make our way to the further shore.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the skills that enable us to make it to "the further shore"...
1-the Buddha's path is an optimistic path.....
-our tendency of mind - our karma - may be to have a pessimistic view of life....
-but the path, the dharma, is an optimistic path....
-we understanding that we can live happily ... there is a happiness that we can know in this very life....
-understanding this ... we resolve to live happily....
2- in meditation practice, we learn skills that support us in efforts to live happily....
-we cultivate a bright mind.....
-gratitude....
-appreciation....
-we recognize the goodness in ourselves, the goodness in the world....
-we cultivate skillful intention....
-intention informed by compassion/metta....
-understanding that there is true happiness in this life and that we can know it ... we set the intention to practice in support of the wish we have to live happily....
-we remind ourselves of this intention....
-we make an effort to stay in tune with this intention...
3-in meditation, we are mindful & alert; we see when our intention is not skillful...
-we see how the mind is....
-we see how we are practicing.....
-we see when the mind/intention has turned unskillful....
-the three primary forms of unskillful mind/intention....
1-aversion
-aversive to some element of the meditation ... body ... mind....
-aversive to the meditation itself.....
-not wanting....
-disliking....
-negativity....
2-desire
-wanting it to be a certain way....
-wanting some sort of state ... state of concentration ... altered state....
-wanting to go into a deluded state....
-wanting to be good ... a good meditator, etc....
3-delusion
-lack of skillful intention....
-lack of sense of purpose....
-lack of motivation....
-laziness....
4-the states in which the mind/intention is unskillful are doorways....
-instead of disliking these states ... trying to get rid of them ... we bring attention to them....
-we understand that they are often doorways....
-we are seeing our habitual ways of being unskillful....
-we are seeing what is preventing us from the heart....
-it is only be seeing what is preventing us from the heart that we are able to get to the heart....
-first noble truth....
5- these skills that we practice in meditation, we bring into our daily lives....
-we see the quality of mind/intention in all our postures, as we go through our days....
-we are alert....
-we look to see the quality of mind/intention....
-we ask, how am I meeting my experience....?
-we ask, how am I going through my day....?
-in all postures we deepen our skillful intention....
-we make an effort to cultivate intention informed by compassion/love....
-we cultivate skillful intention in all our actions....
-blatant & subtle....
-reading.....
-the sections on "Preparing the Mind" from Skillful Pleasure...
| breath_meditation_preparing_the_mind.pdf |
-"The Road to Nirvana is Paved with Skillful Intentions" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
Where Everything is Music (Rumi)
Don’t worry about saving these songs!
And if one of our instruments breaks,
it doesn’t matter.
We have fallen into the place
where everything is music.
The strumming and the flute notes
rise into the atmosphere,
and even if the whole world’s harp
should burn up, there will still be
hidden instruments playing.
So the candle flickers and goes out.
We have a piece of flint, and a spark.
This singing art is sea foam.
The graceful movements come from a pearl
somewhere on the ocean floor.
Poems reach up like spindrift and the edge
of driftwood along the beach, wanting!
They derive
from a slow and powerful root
that we can’t see.
Stop the words now.
Open the window in the centre of your chest,
and let the spirits fly in and out.
The guest is inside you (Kabir)
The guest is inside you, and also inside me;
you know the sprout is hidden inside the seed.
We are all struggling; none of us has gone far.
Let your arrogance go, and look around inside.
The blue sky opens out farther and farther,
the daily sense of failure goes away,
the damage I have done to myself fades,
a million suns come forward with light,
when I sit firmly in that world.
I hear bells ringing that no one has shaken,
inside "love" there is more joy than we know of,
rain pours down, although the sky is clear of clouds,
there are whole rivers of light.
The universe is shot through in all parts by a single sort of love.
How hard it is to feel that joy in all our four bodies!
Those who hope to be reasonable about it fail.
The arrogance of reason has separated us from that love.
With the word "reason" you already feel miles away.
How lucky Kabir is, that surrounded by all this joy
he sings inside his own little boat.
His poems amount to one soul meeting another.
These songs are about forgetting dying and loss.
They rise above both coming in and going out.
March 15
-"Are We Moving Toward the Heart?"
-as dharma students, our task is to live joyfully, to that end, we make a decision to live joyfully. we make a decision to live happily, to take action supports us in knowing happiness of heart. a good question for us to ask, as we consider the actions we take, is: is this actions leading to the heart or away from the heart. this is the question that we should learn to ask in our relationship to sense pleasures, including the forms of technology, the phone, the Internet, and so forth. we should learn to ask: is partaking in this sense experience/technology leading me to the heart or away from the heart. this is our guiding principle. the Buddha is concerned with just this, is what we're doing causing the heart to be burdened. as dharma students, we ask the questions and we pay attention. we look to see if in fact what we're doing is causing the heart to be burdened. this is how we develop wisdom. it is through asking these questions and paying attention that we learn to do what will bring us happiness of heart. it is how we learn to live joyfully.
-some things to to remember as we learn to ask the question "are we moving toward the heart?"...
1-as dharma students, in considering our actions, we should learn to ask, are we moving toward the heart?.....
-as dharma students, our task is to live joyfully....
-to live happily....
-to have happiness of heart.....
-a heart that is unburdened....
-as we make an effort to fulfill our task, as dharma students, a good question for us to ask is:
-is what I'm doing leading to the heart ... or is what I'm doing leading away from the heart....?
2- as we make an effort to develop a skillful relationship to sense pleasures, including technological forms, we should ask this question....
-it is essential, in following the path, that we have a skillful relationship to sense pleasure....
-including the various forms of technology....
-phone....
-internet....
-television....
-in developing this skillful relationship, we might ask....
-is this action, in partaking in this sense experience, leading me to the heart ... or is it leading away from the heart....?
-we should, in considering our actions, and asking this question, practice what the Buddha calls "repeated reflection"....
-we ask this question on an ongoing basis....
-if we do this, understanding develops, gradually, in the heart.....
-it is this understanding, developed gradually, through repeated reflection, that leads to action that is in support of the heart....
-happiness of heart....
3-we ask the question, and we pay attention......
-our task is to ask the question....
-and to pay attention to our experience....
-as it is, in the body....
-as it is, in the heart....
-often our capacity to become more skillful, to abandon unskillful action, to let go of our preoccupation with certain sense experiences, comes from indulging in these experiences ... asking the questions ... and paying attention....
-not judging our actions....
-but rather seeing clearly the consequences of these actions....
-in terms of the heart....
-in terms of our ability to live joyfully....
-in terms of our ability to make the most of our lives....
4-meditation supports our ability to see clearly....
-our meditation practice is crucial in being able to ask the questions, pay attention, and develop in wisdom....
-meditation enables us to develop in our ability to keep our awareness in the body....
-we are therefore able to pay attention to our experience....
-we are able to develop in sensitivity....
-more and more, we see clearly....
-we discern the burdens on the heart, caused by certain actions....
-we discern the heart, when it is free of its burdens....
-we understand that the state in which the heart is free of its burdens is the state in which we'll be able to know happiness in this life....
-we are more resolved, therefore, to abandon any actions that cause the heart to be burdened.....
5- as we ask these questions, we live in tune with the heart....
-more and more, we take action that leads us to the heart....
-the question, is this action leading to the heart or away from the heart, is our guiding principle....
-as we develop in meditation, as we ask this question, our relationship to sense pleasures like the phone and the internet begins to change....
-we change, through wisdom....
-we change, through compassion ... we don't want to take any action that will cause the heart to be burdened....
-as we ask this question, we tune ourselves to the dharma....
-we become in tune with the dharma....
-we become in tune with the heart....
-reading.....
-the sections on "Renunciation" in The Skill of Living....
-"Trading Candy for Gold" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"What do you think, Rahula: What is a mirror for?"
"For reflection, sir."
"In the same way, Rahula, bodily actions, verbal actions, & mental actions are to be done with repeated reflection.
"Whenever you want to do a bodily action, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily action I want to do — would it lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Would it be an unskillful bodily action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it would lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it would be an unskillful bodily action with painful consequences, painful results, then any bodily action of that sort is absolutely unfit for you to do. But if on reflection you know that it would not cause affliction... it would be a skillful bodily action with pleasant consequences, pleasant results, then any bodily action of that sort is fit for you to do.
"While you are doing a bodily action, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily action I am doing — is it leading to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Is it an unskillful bodily action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it is leading to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both... you should give it up. But if on reflection you know that it is not... you may continue with it.
"Having done a bodily action, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily action I have done — did it lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Was it an unskillful bodily action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it led to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it was an unskillful bodily action with painful consequences, painful results, then you should confess it, reveal it, lay it open to the Teacher or to a knowledgeable companion in the holy life. Having confessed it... you should exercise restraint in the future. But if on reflection you know that it did not lead to affliction... it was a skillful bodily action with pleasant consequences, pleasant results, then you should stay mentally refreshed & joyful, training day & night in skillful mental qualities."
(MN 61)
Thus have I heard. At one time the Lord was staying at Anupiya in the Mango Orchard. At that time the Venerable Bhaddiya, Kaligodha's son, on going into the forest to the foot of a tree or to an empty place, constantly uttered, "Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!"
A number of bhikkhus heard the Venerable Bhaddiya... constantly uttering, "Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!" and the thought came to them: "No doubt, friend, the Venerable Bhaddiya, Kaligodha's son, is dissatisfied with leading the holy life, since formerly when he was a householder he enjoyed the bliss of royalty. And when recollecting that, on going into the forest... he utters, 'Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!'"
Then a number of bhikkhus approached the Lord, prostrated themselves, sat down to one side, and reported this to the Lord.
Then the Lord addressed a certain bhikkhu: "Come, bhikkhu, in my name tell the bhikkhu Bhaddiya, 'The Teacher calls you, friend Bhaddiya.'"
"Very well, revered sir," the bhikkhu replied and approaching the Venerable Bhaddiya, Kaligodha's son, he said, "The Teacher calls you, friend Bhaddiya."
"Very well, friend," the Venerable Bhaddiya replied, and approaching the Lord he prostrated himself and sat down to one side. The Lord then said to him: "Is it true, Bhaddiya, that on going into the forest... you utter, 'Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!'?"
"Yes, revered sir."
"But, Bhaddiya, what do you see that prompts you to do so?"
"Formerly, revered sir, when I was a householder and enjoyed the bliss of royalty, inside and outside my inner apartments guards were appointed; inside and outside the city guards were appointed; inside and outside the district guards were appointed. But, revered sir, although I was thus guarded and protected, I lived fearful, agitated, distrustful, and afraid. But now, revered sir, on going alone into the forest, to the foot of a tree or to an empty place, I am fearless, unagitated, confident, and unafraid. I live unconcerned, unruffled, my needs satisfied, with a mind become like a deer's. Seeing this, revered sir, prompts me, on going to the forest... to utter constantly, 'Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!'"
(Ud 2.10)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Sāvatthī at Jeta's Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika's monastery. And on that occasion, most of the people in Sāvatthī were excessively attached to sensual pleasures. They lived infatuated with, greedy for, addicted to, fastened to, absorbed in sensual pleasures. Then in the early morning, a large number of monks adjusted their under robes and — carrying their bowls & robes — went into Sāvatthī for alms. Having gone for alms in Sāvatthī, after the meal, returning from their alms round, they went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As they were sitting there, they said to the Blessed One, "Most of the people in Sāvatthī are excessively attached to sensual pleasures. They live infatuated with, greedy for, addicted to, fastened to, absorbed in sensual pleasures."
Then, on realizing the significance of that, the Blessed One on that occasion exclaimed:
Attached to sensual pleasures,
attached to sensual ties,
seeing no blame in the fetter,
never will those attached to the fetter, the tie,
cross over the flood
so great & wide.
(Ud 7.3)
-"Are We Moving Toward the Heart?"
-as dharma students, our task is to live joyfully, to that end, we make a decision to live joyfully. we make a decision to live happily, to take action supports us in knowing happiness of heart. a good question for us to ask, as we consider the actions we take, is: is this actions leading to the heart or away from the heart. this is the question that we should learn to ask in our relationship to sense pleasures, including the forms of technology, the phone, the Internet, and so forth. we should learn to ask: is partaking in this sense experience/technology leading me to the heart or away from the heart. this is our guiding principle. the Buddha is concerned with just this, is what we're doing causing the heart to be burdened. as dharma students, we ask the questions and we pay attention. we look to see if in fact what we're doing is causing the heart to be burdened. this is how we develop wisdom. it is through asking these questions and paying attention that we learn to do what will bring us happiness of heart. it is how we learn to live joyfully.
-some things to to remember as we learn to ask the question "are we moving toward the heart?"...
1-as dharma students, in considering our actions, we should learn to ask, are we moving toward the heart?.....
-as dharma students, our task is to live joyfully....
-to live happily....
-to have happiness of heart.....
-a heart that is unburdened....
-as we make an effort to fulfill our task, as dharma students, a good question for us to ask is:
-is what I'm doing leading to the heart ... or is what I'm doing leading away from the heart....?
2- as we make an effort to develop a skillful relationship to sense pleasures, including technological forms, we should ask this question....
-it is essential, in following the path, that we have a skillful relationship to sense pleasure....
-including the various forms of technology....
-phone....
-internet....
-television....
-in developing this skillful relationship, we might ask....
-is this action, in partaking in this sense experience, leading me to the heart ... or is it leading away from the heart....?
-we should, in considering our actions, and asking this question, practice what the Buddha calls "repeated reflection"....
-we ask this question on an ongoing basis....
-if we do this, understanding develops, gradually, in the heart.....
-it is this understanding, developed gradually, through repeated reflection, that leads to action that is in support of the heart....
-happiness of heart....
3-we ask the question, and we pay attention......
-our task is to ask the question....
-and to pay attention to our experience....
-as it is, in the body....
-as it is, in the heart....
-often our capacity to become more skillful, to abandon unskillful action, to let go of our preoccupation with certain sense experiences, comes from indulging in these experiences ... asking the questions ... and paying attention....
-not judging our actions....
-but rather seeing clearly the consequences of these actions....
-in terms of the heart....
-in terms of our ability to live joyfully....
-in terms of our ability to make the most of our lives....
4-meditation supports our ability to see clearly....
-our meditation practice is crucial in being able to ask the questions, pay attention, and develop in wisdom....
-meditation enables us to develop in our ability to keep our awareness in the body....
-we are therefore able to pay attention to our experience....
-we are able to develop in sensitivity....
-more and more, we see clearly....
-we discern the burdens on the heart, caused by certain actions....
-we discern the heart, when it is free of its burdens....
-we understand that the state in which the heart is free of its burdens is the state in which we'll be able to know happiness in this life....
-we are more resolved, therefore, to abandon any actions that cause the heart to be burdened.....
5- as we ask these questions, we live in tune with the heart....
-more and more, we take action that leads us to the heart....
-the question, is this action leading to the heart or away from the heart, is our guiding principle....
-as we develop in meditation, as we ask this question, our relationship to sense pleasures like the phone and the internet begins to change....
-we change, through wisdom....
-we change, through compassion ... we don't want to take any action that will cause the heart to be burdened....
-as we ask this question, we tune ourselves to the dharma....
-we become in tune with the dharma....
-we become in tune with the heart....
-reading.....
-the sections on "Renunciation" in The Skill of Living....
-"Trading Candy for Gold" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"What do you think, Rahula: What is a mirror for?"
"For reflection, sir."
"In the same way, Rahula, bodily actions, verbal actions, & mental actions are to be done with repeated reflection.
"Whenever you want to do a bodily action, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily action I want to do — would it lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Would it be an unskillful bodily action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it would lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it would be an unskillful bodily action with painful consequences, painful results, then any bodily action of that sort is absolutely unfit for you to do. But if on reflection you know that it would not cause affliction... it would be a skillful bodily action with pleasant consequences, pleasant results, then any bodily action of that sort is fit for you to do.
"While you are doing a bodily action, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily action I am doing — is it leading to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Is it an unskillful bodily action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it is leading to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both... you should give it up. But if on reflection you know that it is not... you may continue with it.
"Having done a bodily action, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily action I have done — did it lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Was it an unskillful bodily action, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection, you know that it led to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it was an unskillful bodily action with painful consequences, painful results, then you should confess it, reveal it, lay it open to the Teacher or to a knowledgeable companion in the holy life. Having confessed it... you should exercise restraint in the future. But if on reflection you know that it did not lead to affliction... it was a skillful bodily action with pleasant consequences, pleasant results, then you should stay mentally refreshed & joyful, training day & night in skillful mental qualities."
(MN 61)
Thus have I heard. At one time the Lord was staying at Anupiya in the Mango Orchard. At that time the Venerable Bhaddiya, Kaligodha's son, on going into the forest to the foot of a tree or to an empty place, constantly uttered, "Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!"
A number of bhikkhus heard the Venerable Bhaddiya... constantly uttering, "Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!" and the thought came to them: "No doubt, friend, the Venerable Bhaddiya, Kaligodha's son, is dissatisfied with leading the holy life, since formerly when he was a householder he enjoyed the bliss of royalty. And when recollecting that, on going into the forest... he utters, 'Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!'"
Then a number of bhikkhus approached the Lord, prostrated themselves, sat down to one side, and reported this to the Lord.
Then the Lord addressed a certain bhikkhu: "Come, bhikkhu, in my name tell the bhikkhu Bhaddiya, 'The Teacher calls you, friend Bhaddiya.'"
"Very well, revered sir," the bhikkhu replied and approaching the Venerable Bhaddiya, Kaligodha's son, he said, "The Teacher calls you, friend Bhaddiya."
"Very well, friend," the Venerable Bhaddiya replied, and approaching the Lord he prostrated himself and sat down to one side. The Lord then said to him: "Is it true, Bhaddiya, that on going into the forest... you utter, 'Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!'?"
"Yes, revered sir."
"But, Bhaddiya, what do you see that prompts you to do so?"
"Formerly, revered sir, when I was a householder and enjoyed the bliss of royalty, inside and outside my inner apartments guards were appointed; inside and outside the city guards were appointed; inside and outside the district guards were appointed. But, revered sir, although I was thus guarded and protected, I lived fearful, agitated, distrustful, and afraid. But now, revered sir, on going alone into the forest, to the foot of a tree or to an empty place, I am fearless, unagitated, confident, and unafraid. I live unconcerned, unruffled, my needs satisfied, with a mind become like a deer's. Seeing this, revered sir, prompts me, on going to the forest... to utter constantly, 'Ah, what bliss! Ah, what bliss!'"
(Ud 2.10)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Sāvatthī at Jeta's Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika's monastery. And on that occasion, most of the people in Sāvatthī were excessively attached to sensual pleasures. They lived infatuated with, greedy for, addicted to, fastened to, absorbed in sensual pleasures. Then in the early morning, a large number of monks adjusted their under robes and — carrying their bowls & robes — went into Sāvatthī for alms. Having gone for alms in Sāvatthī, after the meal, returning from their alms round, they went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As they were sitting there, they said to the Blessed One, "Most of the people in Sāvatthī are excessively attached to sensual pleasures. They live infatuated with, greedy for, addicted to, fastened to, absorbed in sensual pleasures."
Then, on realizing the significance of that, the Blessed One on that occasion exclaimed:
Attached to sensual pleasures,
attached to sensual ties,
seeing no blame in the fetter,
never will those attached to the fetter, the tie,
cross over the flood
so great & wide.
(Ud 7.3)
March 8
-"The Decision to Live Joyfully"
-it's important, when there is difficulty in life, that we stay true to the Buddha's message, the teachings of the dharma. as dharma students, we don't lose sight of the truth. we remember the brightness in life. we remember the joy in life. we remember our capacity for happiness. and through it all, we resolve to live live joyfully. we understand that it is up to us to make a decision to live joyfully. if we don't make a resolve to live joyfully, we won't ever know the happiness that is available to us in this life. it's a challenge to make this resolve. we come up against our karma and the distractions of the world. but the practice of meditation enables us to transcend past karma, to be heedful, to make a decision to live joyfully. for this reason, we should make a commitment to practice, to meditate. we should understand that there is a sense of urgency in this regard. as dharma students, we are determined to follow the path, to practice, understanding that it is the way to a greater happiness.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the ability to make "the decision to live joyfully"...
1-there is a potential for joy in this life, this is the message that the Buddha's path offers.....
-as dharma students, we remember....
-there is joy in life....
-there is a potential to live joyfully....
-there is goodness....
-wisdom....
-love....
-joy....
-we find it, inside....
-the dharma is inside us....
2- as dharma students we make a decision to live joyfully.....
-we make a decision to be happy....
-to have happiness of heart....
-in order to know happiness, to live joyfully ... we have to make a decision to live joyfully....
-our happiness is up to us....
-we resolve to live joyfully....
-we take actions in the service of shaping our live....
-to this end, we develop the skills that the Buddha teaches....
3-we experience challenges & obstacles in our efforts to make the decision to live joyfully....
-it is often difficult to let go of our unhappiness....
-it is difficult to let go of our commitment to unhappiness....
-it is difficult to let go of our negative view ... of ourselves ... of others ... of life....
-our negativity, pessimism, is deeply habitual....
-we are invested in it...
-we are identified with it....
-we ascribe self to it....
-we believe it is who we are....
-our task ... is to see our negativity ... to abandon it....
-we learn to reflect: can we let go of our negativity ... our unhappiness ....?
4-we should ask: can we make a resolve to live joyfully....?
-as dharma students, we're asked to make a resolve to live joyfully....
-can we do this...?
-what is stopping us....?
-in the end, it comes down to making a decision....
-understanding that we are responsible for our happiness....
-understanding that having this sort of resolve is imperative....
-understanding that the mind determines our happiness: all that we are begins with our thoughts, including our intentions....
5- meditation enables us to make the resolve to live joyfully.....
-we develop meditation practice, we cultivate concentration/jhana....
-meditation, the cultivation of concentration, enables us to see our past karma....
-our negativity....
-our resolves that lead to unhappiness....
-we see the drawbacks in replaying our past karma....
-meditation enables us to be heedful....
-to have space....
-to make a conscious decision to live joyfully.....
-in the long term....
-from day to day....
-from moment to moment....
-meditation enables us to see the brightness of the world....
-the joy of living....
-we come to know it, in the heart....
-we come to know the dharma inside.....
-there is a sense of urgency: we should make the effort to practice meditation, now, while we're able to....
-our practice is what will enable us to make the decision to live joyfully ... to know the joy of living....
-putting effort & determination into meditation is time well spent....
-reading.....
-"Making the Most of Each Day" (Ayya Khema)
"There are these five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained. Which five?
"'I am subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging.' This is the first fact that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained.
"'I am subject to illness, have not gone beyond illness.' ...
"'I am subject to death, have not gone beyond death.' ...
"'I will grow different, separate from all that is dear and appealing to me.' ...
"'I am the owner of my actions, heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir.' ...
"These are the five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained."
(AN 5.57)
You shouldn't chase after the past
or place expectations on the future.
What is past
is left behind.
The future
is as yet unreached.
Whatever quality is present
you clearly see right there,
right there.
Not taken in,
unshaken,
that's how you develop the heart.
Ardently doing
what should be done today,
for — who knows? — tomorrow
death.
There is no bargaining
with Mortality & his mighty horde.
Whoever lives thus ardently,
relentlessly
both day & night,
has truly had an auspicious day:
so says the Peaceful Sage.
(MN 131
We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn, which does not forsake us in our soundest sleep. I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by conscious endeavor. It is something to be able to paint a particular picture, or to carve a statue, and so to make a few objects beautiful; but it is far more glorious to carve and paint the very atmosphere and medium through which we look, which morally we can do. To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.
(Thoreau)
“The Way It Is” (William Stafford)
There’s a thread you follow. It goes among
things that change. But it doesn’t change.
People wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die: and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of the thread.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
Information about making a donation using a credit card are found on the Support page.
Thanks for your generosity!
-"The Decision to Live Joyfully"
-it's important, when there is difficulty in life, that we stay true to the Buddha's message, the teachings of the dharma. as dharma students, we don't lose sight of the truth. we remember the brightness in life. we remember the joy in life. we remember our capacity for happiness. and through it all, we resolve to live live joyfully. we understand that it is up to us to make a decision to live joyfully. if we don't make a resolve to live joyfully, we won't ever know the happiness that is available to us in this life. it's a challenge to make this resolve. we come up against our karma and the distractions of the world. but the practice of meditation enables us to transcend past karma, to be heedful, to make a decision to live joyfully. for this reason, we should make a commitment to practice, to meditate. we should understand that there is a sense of urgency in this regard. as dharma students, we are determined to follow the path, to practice, understanding that it is the way to a greater happiness.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the ability to make "the decision to live joyfully"...
1-there is a potential for joy in this life, this is the message that the Buddha's path offers.....
-as dharma students, we remember....
-there is joy in life....
-there is a potential to live joyfully....
-there is goodness....
-wisdom....
-love....
-joy....
-we find it, inside....
-the dharma is inside us....
2- as dharma students we make a decision to live joyfully.....
-we make a decision to be happy....
-to have happiness of heart....
-in order to know happiness, to live joyfully ... we have to make a decision to live joyfully....
-our happiness is up to us....
-we resolve to live joyfully....
-we take actions in the service of shaping our live....
-to this end, we develop the skills that the Buddha teaches....
3-we experience challenges & obstacles in our efforts to make the decision to live joyfully....
-it is often difficult to let go of our unhappiness....
-it is difficult to let go of our commitment to unhappiness....
-it is difficult to let go of our negative view ... of ourselves ... of others ... of life....
-our negativity, pessimism, is deeply habitual....
-we are invested in it...
-we are identified with it....
-we ascribe self to it....
-we believe it is who we are....
-our task ... is to see our negativity ... to abandon it....
-we learn to reflect: can we let go of our negativity ... our unhappiness ....?
4-we should ask: can we make a resolve to live joyfully....?
-as dharma students, we're asked to make a resolve to live joyfully....
-can we do this...?
-what is stopping us....?
-in the end, it comes down to making a decision....
-understanding that we are responsible for our happiness....
-understanding that having this sort of resolve is imperative....
-understanding that the mind determines our happiness: all that we are begins with our thoughts, including our intentions....
5- meditation enables us to make the resolve to live joyfully.....
-we develop meditation practice, we cultivate concentration/jhana....
-meditation, the cultivation of concentration, enables us to see our past karma....
-our negativity....
-our resolves that lead to unhappiness....
-we see the drawbacks in replaying our past karma....
-meditation enables us to be heedful....
-to have space....
-to make a conscious decision to live joyfully.....
-in the long term....
-from day to day....
-from moment to moment....
-meditation enables us to see the brightness of the world....
-the joy of living....
-we come to know it, in the heart....
-we come to know the dharma inside.....
-there is a sense of urgency: we should make the effort to practice meditation, now, while we're able to....
-our practice is what will enable us to make the decision to live joyfully ... to know the joy of living....
-putting effort & determination into meditation is time well spent....
-reading.....
-"Making the Most of Each Day" (Ayya Khema)
"There are these five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained. Which five?
"'I am subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging.' This is the first fact that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained.
"'I am subject to illness, have not gone beyond illness.' ...
"'I am subject to death, have not gone beyond death.' ...
"'I will grow different, separate from all that is dear and appealing to me.' ...
"'I am the owner of my actions, heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir.' ...
"These are the five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained."
(AN 5.57)
You shouldn't chase after the past
or place expectations on the future.
What is past
is left behind.
The future
is as yet unreached.
Whatever quality is present
you clearly see right there,
right there.
Not taken in,
unshaken,
that's how you develop the heart.
Ardently doing
what should be done today,
for — who knows? — tomorrow
death.
There is no bargaining
with Mortality & his mighty horde.
Whoever lives thus ardently,
relentlessly
both day & night,
has truly had an auspicious day:
so says the Peaceful Sage.
(MN 131
We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn, which does not forsake us in our soundest sleep. I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by conscious endeavor. It is something to be able to paint a particular picture, or to carve a statue, and so to make a few objects beautiful; but it is far more glorious to carve and paint the very atmosphere and medium through which we look, which morally we can do. To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.
(Thoreau)
“The Way It Is” (William Stafford)
There’s a thread you follow. It goes among
things that change. But it doesn’t change.
People wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die: and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of the thread.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
Information about making a donation using a credit card are found on the Support page.
Thanks for your generosity!
March 1
-"Keep to the Heart"
-as dharma students, as human beings, we meet difficulties in life. we meet difficulty, in ourselves, in others, in the world. through it all, we stay true. we stay true to ourselves. we stay true to the dharma. we stay true to the heart. we don't lose the heart. we don't lose heart. we keep to the heart. it's important to remember, what enables us to keep to the heart are the skills that we develop as dharma students. we practice these skills in meditation. and we learn to practice these skills in all our postures as we go through our days. we can think of these skills as encompassing two main elements. one, we make an effort to develop and maintain the qualities of jhana. and, two, we make an effort to cultivate a skillful attitude. if we do this, we'll be able to stay close to the heart. and, in turn, we'll be able to take action that is an expression of the heart, our goodness, and who we are.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the ability to "keep to the heart"...
1-in meeting the difficulties and challenges in life, we stay true to ourselves.....
-in this life, we meet difficulties....
-it is the nature of this life....
-we meet difficulty....
-in ourselves....
-our body....
-0ur mind....
-in others....
-in the world....
-as dharma students, we don't get thrown by difficulty....
-we don't lose ourselves ... we don't lose the heart....
-we don't lose ourselves in thinking....
-we don't lose ourselves in external sense experiences (technology etc).....
-we stay true to ourselves, to the dharma, to our heart....
-this ability to stay true, to keep to the heart, is achieved by practicing certain skills....
2- as dharma students we make a proactive effort to shape our experience.....
-in meditation, we develop this skill....
-we shape our experience....
-in all postures, in our days & nights, we maintain this skill.....
-we shape our experience...
-there are two primary factors in shaping our experience:
1-we cultivate jhana qualities....
2-we cultivate skillful attitude....
3-we shape our experience by cultivating the qualities of jhana.....
-in meditation, we learn to develop these qualities....
-singleness of mind: the ability to keep the mind in the present moment, in the body, with the breath....
-through mindfulness and alertness, we keep the mind on the breath ... we don't pursue thinking.....
-bringing insight to thinking is an essential element in this part of the training....
-asking questions such as "is it useful....?" when we engage in thinking....
-ease and inner pleasure....
-following the steps of breath meditation, we learn to shape an experience of the body that is easeful, pleasurable....
-in all postures, we seek to maintain these qualities of jhana....
-we make an effort to keep the mind in the present moment....
-we make an effort to "call up" the qualities of ease and inner pleasure.....
4-we shape our experience by cultivating skillful attitude.....
-in meditation, we cultivate a skillful attitude.....
-we engage in the action of meditation with a skillful attitude....
-we make an effort to cultivate attitudes of appreciation and skillful intention....
-skillful attitude; we shape our experience so that it is informed by....
-brightness (appreciation; joy)....
-we cultivate gratitude, remembering the blessing of our goodness and the goodness in life....
-skillful intention....
-in taking action, we set skillful intention....
-intention informed by lovingkindness....
-intention informed by compassion (when there is suffering)....
5- as we go through our days, we shape our experience, and in doing so, we stay close to the heart....
-we make an ongoing effort to shape our experience....
-as described above....
-shaping our experience, cultivating the an easeful abiding and taking action informed by skillful qualities....
-we keep to the heart.
-we are able to take action informed by the heart....
-action in the service of love for ourselves and all beings....
-reading.....
-"At Ease in the World" (from Skillful Pleasure)
-"Keep to the Heart"
-as dharma students, as human beings, we meet difficulties in life. we meet difficulty, in ourselves, in others, in the world. through it all, we stay true. we stay true to ourselves. we stay true to the dharma. we stay true to the heart. we don't lose the heart. we don't lose heart. we keep to the heart. it's important to remember, what enables us to keep to the heart are the skills that we develop as dharma students. we practice these skills in meditation. and we learn to practice these skills in all our postures as we go through our days. we can think of these skills as encompassing two main elements. one, we make an effort to develop and maintain the qualities of jhana. and, two, we make an effort to cultivate a skillful attitude. if we do this, we'll be able to stay close to the heart. and, in turn, we'll be able to take action that is an expression of the heart, our goodness, and who we are.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the ability to "keep to the heart"...
1-in meeting the difficulties and challenges in life, we stay true to ourselves.....
-in this life, we meet difficulties....
-it is the nature of this life....
-we meet difficulty....
-in ourselves....
-our body....
-0ur mind....
-in others....
-in the world....
-as dharma students, we don't get thrown by difficulty....
-we don't lose ourselves ... we don't lose the heart....
-we don't lose ourselves in thinking....
-we don't lose ourselves in external sense experiences (technology etc).....
-we stay true to ourselves, to the dharma, to our heart....
-this ability to stay true, to keep to the heart, is achieved by practicing certain skills....
2- as dharma students we make a proactive effort to shape our experience.....
-in meditation, we develop this skill....
-we shape our experience....
-in all postures, in our days & nights, we maintain this skill.....
-we shape our experience...
-there are two primary factors in shaping our experience:
1-we cultivate jhana qualities....
2-we cultivate skillful attitude....
3-we shape our experience by cultivating the qualities of jhana.....
-in meditation, we learn to develop these qualities....
-singleness of mind: the ability to keep the mind in the present moment, in the body, with the breath....
-through mindfulness and alertness, we keep the mind on the breath ... we don't pursue thinking.....
-bringing insight to thinking is an essential element in this part of the training....
-asking questions such as "is it useful....?" when we engage in thinking....
-ease and inner pleasure....
-following the steps of breath meditation, we learn to shape an experience of the body that is easeful, pleasurable....
-in all postures, we seek to maintain these qualities of jhana....
-we make an effort to keep the mind in the present moment....
-we make an effort to "call up" the qualities of ease and inner pleasure.....
4-we shape our experience by cultivating skillful attitude.....
-in meditation, we cultivate a skillful attitude.....
-we engage in the action of meditation with a skillful attitude....
-we make an effort to cultivate attitudes of appreciation and skillful intention....
-skillful attitude; we shape our experience so that it is informed by....
-brightness (appreciation; joy)....
-we cultivate gratitude, remembering the blessing of our goodness and the goodness in life....
-skillful intention....
-in taking action, we set skillful intention....
-intention informed by lovingkindness....
-intention informed by compassion (when there is suffering)....
5- as we go through our days, we shape our experience, and in doing so, we stay close to the heart....
-we make an ongoing effort to shape our experience....
-as described above....
-shaping our experience, cultivating the an easeful abiding and taking action informed by skillful qualities....
-we keep to the heart.
-we are able to take action informed by the heart....
-action in the service of love for ourselves and all beings....
-reading.....
-"At Ease in the World" (from Skillful Pleasure)
| skillful_pleasure_at_ease_in_world.pdf |
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Varanasi in the Game Refuge at Isipatana. There he addressed the group of five monks:
"There are these two extremes that are not to be indulged in by one who has gone forth. Which two? That which is devoted to sensual pleasure with reference to sensual objects: base, vulgar, common, ignoble, unprofitable; and that which is devoted to self-affliction: painful, ignoble, unprofitable. Avoiding both of these extremes, the middle way realized by the Tathagata — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"And what is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding? Precisely this Noble Eightfold Path: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. This is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of stress:[1] Birth is stressful, aging is stressful, death is stressful; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair are stressful; association with the unbeloved is stressful, separation from the loved is stressful, not getting what is wanted is stressful. In short, the five clinging-aggregates are stressful.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the origination of stress: the craving that makes for further becoming — accompanied by passion & delight, relishing now here & now there — i.e., craving for sensual pleasure, craving for becoming, craving for non-becoming.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of stress: the remainderless fading & cessation, renunciation, relinquishment, release, & letting go of that very craving.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress: precisely this Noble Eightfold Path — right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.'
(SN 56.11)
At Savatthi. Then, early in the morning, Soma the nun put on her robes and, taking her bowl & outer robe, went into Savatthi for alms. When she had gone for alms in Savatthi and had returned from her alms round, after her meal she went to the Grove of the Blind to spend the day. Having gone deep into the Grove of the Blind, she sat down at the foot of a tree for the day's abiding.
Then Mara the Evil One, wanting to arouse fear, horripilation, & terror in her, wanting to make her fall away from concentration, approached her & addressed her in verse:
That
which is
to be attained by seers
— the place so very hard to reach --
women
can't
— with their two-inch discernment --
attain.
Then the thought occurred to Soma the nun: "Now who has recited this verse — a human being or a non-human one?" Then it occurred to her: "This is Mara the Evil One, who has recited this verse wanting to arouse fear, horripilation, & terror in me, wanting to make me fall away from concentration."
Then, having understood that "This is Mara the Evil One," she replied to him in verses:
What
difference
does being a woman make
when the mind's well-centered,
when knowledge is progressing,
seeing clearly, rightly,
into the Dhamma.
Anyone who thinks
'I'm a woman'
or 'a man'
or 'Am I anything at all?' --
that's who Mara's
fit to address.
Then Mara the Evil One — sad & dejected at realizing, "Soma the nun knows me" — vanished right there.
(SN 5.2)
“The Way It Is” (William Stafford)
There’s a thread you follow. It goes among
things that change. But it doesn’t change.
People wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die: and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of the thread.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
Information about making a donation using a credit card are found on the Support page.
Thanks for your generosity!
February 22
-"The Challenges of Life"
-as dharma students, we develop meditation and the skills of mindfulness so that can awaken. in the process of awakening, we learn to meet life on life's terms. we learn to meet the difficulties and challenges of life. in doing so, we're not simply seeking to endure the challenges of life. we're seeking to learn. this is a crucial attitude for the dharma student to develop. to learn to see the challenges of life as places for learning, as opportunities, as doorways. typically, we run from the difficulties in life. as dharma students we meet difficulty with equanimity, calmness, and a willingness to learn. meditation is difficult; we accept the challenge of meditation. life is difficult; we accept the challenges it presents. we seek, as dharma students, to challenge ourselves. it is only when we're able to skillfully meet the challenges of life, head-on, that we're able to know the joy in life. dharma practice is about joy, true happiness, and being ourselves. the message of the path is a message of joy, brightness, true happiness. by meeting the challenges of life, we know the happiness that the path offers.
-some things to to remember as we learn to meet "the challenges of life"...
1-in following the path, we develop in qualities that enable us to awaken.....
-we cultivate good health....
-we take good care of the body....
-we cultivate....
-health....
-strength....
-ease....
-inner well being ... pleasure ... refreshment....
-the states of jhana -the Buddha's concentration - are states of 'good health'....
-ease/refreshment....
-inner pleasure....
-this 'good health' is conducive to awakening....
-awakening to the here & now....
-in the process of awakening we're asked to....
-meet life on life's terms....
-meet the challenges of life....
2- as dharma students we come to see the challenges of life as an opportunities....
-in meeting the challenges of life....
-we cultivate equanimity ... acceptance....
-and we learn to see these difficulties as places of learning....
-typically, we engender aversion/disliking when there is difficulty....
-as dharma students we cultivate a more skillful attitude, in the face of difficulty & challenge....
-we make it a learning experience....
-we understand that by skillfully meeting the challenges of life, we find our way through to true happiness....
3-we choose, as dharma students, to take on that which is difficult....
-meditation, if practiced accordingly, is difficult....
-in meditation, we're asked to confront the truth of our experience ... we're asked to meet ourselves....
-in dharma practice, following the Buddha's path, we're asked to meet dukkha/suffering....
-we practice in accord with the 1st noble truth; we seek to comprehend dukkha....
-it is through the comprehension of dukkha, that we come to know the heart ... joy ... happiness of heart....
-we learn, as dharma students, to be fully present and aware, when confronted with difficulty....
-the difficulty of illness/aging/death/separation....
-the difficulty that is inherent in living in the conditioned realm....
-the difficulty of body & mind....
4-as dharma students, we should seek to do things that are difficult....
-the tendency, for most beings, is to choose that which is comfortable....
-to go along with the stream....
-it behooves us, as dharma students, to take on challenges....
-everyday presents us with the opportunity to take on challenges....
-blatant & subtle.....
5- when we are able meet the challenges of life, we are able to know that joy in life....
-our tendency is to run from life, from reality....
-but when we run from life, we run from the joy in life....
-the path of the dharma is a path of joy ... true happiness....
-as we learn to meet life, we come to understand the joy that is innate to life....
-the joy in the heart....
-the happiness of heart....
-the practice is just this: to know this joy.....
-reading.....
-"At the Door of the Cage" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
Ven. Gavampati: Face to face with the Blessed One did I hear this, face to face did I learn it: whoever sees stress also sees the origination of stress, the cessation of stress, & the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.
Whoever sees the origination of stress also sees stress, the cessation of stress, & the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.
Whoever sees the cessation of stress also sees stress, the origination of stress, & the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.
Whoever sees the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress also sees stress, the origination of stress, & the cessation of stress.
(SN 56.20)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Varanasi in the Game Refuge at Isipatana. There he addressed the group of five monks:
"There are these two extremes that are not to be indulged in by one who has gone forth. Which two? That which is devoted to sensual pleasure with reference to sensual objects: base, vulgar, common, ignoble, unprofitable; and that which is devoted to self-affliction: painful, ignoble, unprofitable. Avoiding both of these extremes, the middle way realized by the Tathagata — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"And what is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding? Precisely this Noble Eightfold Path: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. This is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of stress:[1] Birth is stressful, aging is stressful, death is stressful; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair are stressful; association with the unbeloved is stressful, separation from the loved is stressful, not getting what is wanted is stressful. In short, the five clinging-aggregates are stressful.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the origination of stress: the craving that makes for further becoming — accompanied by passion & delight, relishing now here & now there — i.e., craving for sensual pleasure, craving for becoming, craving for non-becoming.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of stress: the remainderless fading & cessation, renunciation, relinquishment, release, & letting go of that very craving.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress: precisely this Noble Eightfold Path — right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration."
(SN 56.11)
-"The Challenges of Life"
-as dharma students, we develop meditation and the skills of mindfulness so that can awaken. in the process of awakening, we learn to meet life on life's terms. we learn to meet the difficulties and challenges of life. in doing so, we're not simply seeking to endure the challenges of life. we're seeking to learn. this is a crucial attitude for the dharma student to develop. to learn to see the challenges of life as places for learning, as opportunities, as doorways. typically, we run from the difficulties in life. as dharma students we meet difficulty with equanimity, calmness, and a willingness to learn. meditation is difficult; we accept the challenge of meditation. life is difficult; we accept the challenges it presents. we seek, as dharma students, to challenge ourselves. it is only when we're able to skillfully meet the challenges of life, head-on, that we're able to know the joy in life. dharma practice is about joy, true happiness, and being ourselves. the message of the path is a message of joy, brightness, true happiness. by meeting the challenges of life, we know the happiness that the path offers.
-some things to to remember as we learn to meet "the challenges of life"...
1-in following the path, we develop in qualities that enable us to awaken.....
-we cultivate good health....
-we take good care of the body....
-we cultivate....
-health....
-strength....
-ease....
-inner well being ... pleasure ... refreshment....
-the states of jhana -the Buddha's concentration - are states of 'good health'....
-ease/refreshment....
-inner pleasure....
-this 'good health' is conducive to awakening....
-awakening to the here & now....
-in the process of awakening we're asked to....
-meet life on life's terms....
-meet the challenges of life....
2- as dharma students we come to see the challenges of life as an opportunities....
-in meeting the challenges of life....
-we cultivate equanimity ... acceptance....
-and we learn to see these difficulties as places of learning....
-typically, we engender aversion/disliking when there is difficulty....
-as dharma students we cultivate a more skillful attitude, in the face of difficulty & challenge....
-we make it a learning experience....
-we understand that by skillfully meeting the challenges of life, we find our way through to true happiness....
3-we choose, as dharma students, to take on that which is difficult....
-meditation, if practiced accordingly, is difficult....
-in meditation, we're asked to confront the truth of our experience ... we're asked to meet ourselves....
-in dharma practice, following the Buddha's path, we're asked to meet dukkha/suffering....
-we practice in accord with the 1st noble truth; we seek to comprehend dukkha....
-it is through the comprehension of dukkha, that we come to know the heart ... joy ... happiness of heart....
-we learn, as dharma students, to be fully present and aware, when confronted with difficulty....
-the difficulty of illness/aging/death/separation....
-the difficulty that is inherent in living in the conditioned realm....
-the difficulty of body & mind....
4-as dharma students, we should seek to do things that are difficult....
-the tendency, for most beings, is to choose that which is comfortable....
-to go along with the stream....
-it behooves us, as dharma students, to take on challenges....
-everyday presents us with the opportunity to take on challenges....
-blatant & subtle.....
5- when we are able meet the challenges of life, we are able to know that joy in life....
-our tendency is to run from life, from reality....
-but when we run from life, we run from the joy in life....
-the path of the dharma is a path of joy ... true happiness....
-as we learn to meet life, we come to understand the joy that is innate to life....
-the joy in the heart....
-the happiness of heart....
-the practice is just this: to know this joy.....
-reading.....
-"At the Door of the Cage" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
Ven. Gavampati: Face to face with the Blessed One did I hear this, face to face did I learn it: whoever sees stress also sees the origination of stress, the cessation of stress, & the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.
Whoever sees the origination of stress also sees stress, the cessation of stress, & the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.
Whoever sees the cessation of stress also sees stress, the origination of stress, & the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.
Whoever sees the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress also sees stress, the origination of stress, & the cessation of stress.
(SN 56.20)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Varanasi in the Game Refuge at Isipatana. There he addressed the group of five monks:
"There are these two extremes that are not to be indulged in by one who has gone forth. Which two? That which is devoted to sensual pleasure with reference to sensual objects: base, vulgar, common, ignoble, unprofitable; and that which is devoted to self-affliction: painful, ignoble, unprofitable. Avoiding both of these extremes, the middle way realized by the Tathagata — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"And what is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding? Precisely this Noble Eightfold Path: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. This is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of stress:[1] Birth is stressful, aging is stressful, death is stressful; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair are stressful; association with the unbeloved is stressful, separation from the loved is stressful, not getting what is wanted is stressful. In short, the five clinging-aggregates are stressful.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the origination of stress: the craving that makes for further becoming — accompanied by passion & delight, relishing now here & now there — i.e., craving for sensual pleasure, craving for becoming, craving for non-becoming.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of stress: the remainderless fading & cessation, renunciation, relinquishment, release, & letting go of that very craving.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress: precisely this Noble Eightfold Path — right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration."
(SN 56.11)
February 15
-"Physiology, Psychology & Spirituality"
-in dharma practice, we could say, the elemental components are physiology, psychology & spirituality. we develop each of these elements of the practice. and each element supports and strengthens the others. in attending to the element of physiology we take good care of the body. we cultivate a state of good health. jhana is a state of good health. this state of good health, as the Buddha discovered, is essential to fulfilling our human potential. in attending to our psychology, we cultivate the health of the mind. a mind that is free from afflicted thinking and grasping is in a state in which we can know a greater happiness; the happiness of heart. in developing in spirituality, we're seeking to know that which transcends the ways of the world. that which transcends, in fact, body & mind. the heart. the timeless. the deathless. the dharma inside.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the elements of "physiology, psychology & spirituality"...
1-physiology.....
-in dharma practice, we cultivate good physical health....
-we take good care of the body....
-we cultivate....
-health....
-strength....
-ease....
-inner well being ... pleasure ... refreshment....
-when the body is in good health we function at a higher level....
-the neuroscientist Antonio Damasio refers to this "most favorable state" as homeostasis...
-it is a state at which we are able to flourish....
-as the Buddha realized it is the state most conducive to awakening....
-factors that support good health....
-staying fit.....
-nutrition...
-sleep....
-the states of jhana -the Buddha's concentration - are states of 'good health'....
-ease/refreshment....
-inner pleasure....
-meditation practice, the cultivation of jhana qualities, supports good health and healing....
-for this reason, we should practice meditation if we are ill ... as long as we're not 'too ill'....
2- psychology....
-in dharma practice, we cultivate good mental/emotional health....
-the cultivation of jhana qualiites, including ease/inner pleasure, conduces to good mental health....
-we gradually become less inclined to craving external sense pleasure ... to grasping after the things of the world....
-we are in a position to understand the mind, to comprehend dukkha (suffering)....
-all dukkha (suffering/affliction) is rooted in craving....
-wanting....
-not wanting....
-in our practice, we learn to....
-see our tendencies for craving....
-craving ... leads to the 'effluents' ... our narratives, thinking....
-in our practice, essential to our mental health, we learn to be heedful of our thinking....
-seeing thinking....
-questioning thinking....
-asking, 'is it useful?' is a basic foundational question for this discernment....
-in our practice, we learn to bring awareness to our grasping to certain mental states.....
-ABC....
-we bring awareness to these states....
-we maintain space, ease, centered in the breath...
-we cultivate compassion....
3-spirituality....
-in dharma practice, we cultivate that which transcends the conditioned realm: the heart, the dhamma....
-we lessen our preoccupation with the ways of the world....
-looking for happiness in...
-external sense pleasure....
-gain/material things...
-status/praise....
-the ways of the culture ... conforming to the ways of the culture....
-we incline to knowing that which is beyond the ways of the world....
-that which is timeless...
-that which is deathless....
-we find this timeless quality -the dhamma - inside us....
-in the heart....
-the knowing quality/innate wisdom....
-love....
-joy....
-the path leads to the heart ... the dhamma inside....
-we seek to live from the heart....
-we seek, in living from the heart, to know true happiness...
-reading.....
-here is a Bibliography of books that you may find useful in understanding the elements of "Physiology, Psychology & Spirituality"....
-Descartes' Error (Antonio Damasio)
-The Strange Order of Things (Antonio Damasio)
-Beyond the Pleasure Principle (Sigmund Freud)
-Civilization and Its Discontents (Sigmund Freud)
-Tristes Tropiques (Claude Levi-Strauss)
-"The Most Favorable State" (from Skillful Pleasure)
-"Physiology, Psychology & Spirituality"
-in dharma practice, we could say, the elemental components are physiology, psychology & spirituality. we develop each of these elements of the practice. and each element supports and strengthens the others. in attending to the element of physiology we take good care of the body. we cultivate a state of good health. jhana is a state of good health. this state of good health, as the Buddha discovered, is essential to fulfilling our human potential. in attending to our psychology, we cultivate the health of the mind. a mind that is free from afflicted thinking and grasping is in a state in which we can know a greater happiness; the happiness of heart. in developing in spirituality, we're seeking to know that which transcends the ways of the world. that which transcends, in fact, body & mind. the heart. the timeless. the deathless. the dharma inside.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop the elements of "physiology, psychology & spirituality"...
1-physiology.....
-in dharma practice, we cultivate good physical health....
-we take good care of the body....
-we cultivate....
-health....
-strength....
-ease....
-inner well being ... pleasure ... refreshment....
-when the body is in good health we function at a higher level....
-the neuroscientist Antonio Damasio refers to this "most favorable state" as homeostasis...
-it is a state at which we are able to flourish....
-as the Buddha realized it is the state most conducive to awakening....
-factors that support good health....
-staying fit.....
-nutrition...
-sleep....
-the states of jhana -the Buddha's concentration - are states of 'good health'....
-ease/refreshment....
-inner pleasure....
-meditation practice, the cultivation of jhana qualities, supports good health and healing....
-for this reason, we should practice meditation if we are ill ... as long as we're not 'too ill'....
2- psychology....
-in dharma practice, we cultivate good mental/emotional health....
-the cultivation of jhana qualiites, including ease/inner pleasure, conduces to good mental health....
-we gradually become less inclined to craving external sense pleasure ... to grasping after the things of the world....
-we are in a position to understand the mind, to comprehend dukkha (suffering)....
-all dukkha (suffering/affliction) is rooted in craving....
-wanting....
-not wanting....
-in our practice, we learn to....
-see our tendencies for craving....
-craving ... leads to the 'effluents' ... our narratives, thinking....
-in our practice, essential to our mental health, we learn to be heedful of our thinking....
-seeing thinking....
-questioning thinking....
-asking, 'is it useful?' is a basic foundational question for this discernment....
-in our practice, we learn to bring awareness to our grasping to certain mental states.....
-ABC....
-we bring awareness to these states....
-we maintain space, ease, centered in the breath...
-we cultivate compassion....
3-spirituality....
-in dharma practice, we cultivate that which transcends the conditioned realm: the heart, the dhamma....
-we lessen our preoccupation with the ways of the world....
-looking for happiness in...
-external sense pleasure....
-gain/material things...
-status/praise....
-the ways of the culture ... conforming to the ways of the culture....
-we incline to knowing that which is beyond the ways of the world....
-that which is timeless...
-that which is deathless....
-we find this timeless quality -the dhamma - inside us....
-in the heart....
-the knowing quality/innate wisdom....
-love....
-joy....
-the path leads to the heart ... the dhamma inside....
-we seek to live from the heart....
-we seek, in living from the heart, to know true happiness...
-reading.....
-here is a Bibliography of books that you may find useful in understanding the elements of "Physiology, Psychology & Spirituality"....
-Descartes' Error (Antonio Damasio)
-The Strange Order of Things (Antonio Damasio)
-Beyond the Pleasure Principle (Sigmund Freud)
-Civilization and Its Discontents (Sigmund Freud)
-Tristes Tropiques (Claude Levi-Strauss)
-"The Most Favorable State" (from Skillful Pleasure)
| skillful_pleasure_the_most_favorable_state.pdf |
“Then there is the case where a monk comes down with a slight illness. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have come down with a slight illness. Now, there’s the possibility that it could get worse. Why don’t I make an effort beforehand for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the seventh ground for the arousal of energy.
“Then there is the case where a monk has recovered from his illness, not long after his recovery. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have recovered from my illness. It’s not long after my recovery. Now, there’s the possibility that the illness could come back. Why don’t I make an effort beforehand for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the eighth ground for the arousal of energy."
(AN 8.95)
Near Sāvatthī. There the Blessed One said: “From an inconceivable beginning comes the wandering-on. A beginning point is not discernible, though beings hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving are transmigrating & wandering on. What do you think, monks? Which is greater, the tears you have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time—crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing—or the water in the four great oceans?”
“As we understand the Dhamma taught to us by the Blessed One, this is the greater: the tears we have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time—crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing—not the water in the four great oceans.”
“Excellent, monks. Excellent. It is excellent that you thus understand the Dhamma taught by me.
“This is the greater: the tears you have shed while transmigrating & wandering this long, long time—crying & weeping from being joined with what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing—not the water in the four great oceans."
(SN 15.3)
February 8
-"How to Ease Fixation"
-as dharma students, it is our task to stay in the body. to develop a felt sense of experience. to have an embodied awareness. much of the time, however, we spend 'in the head'. and it is a tendency of the mind to fixate, to become preoccupied with certain things, with certain stories. when we became fixated, there are certain things that we learn to do, to ease fixation. listening to the dharma. associated with admirable friends. changing our physical posture, something as simple as going for a walk. being in nature. ultimately, we ease fixation by having mindfulness of the body. seeing that what we're fixated on, our stories, are not all of our experience. when we're mindful of the body, we have a wider field of awareness. we recognize that our experience if made of various experiences. our pain. but also ease. and also the heart. wisdom. love. joy. this is the truth of our experience: reality. our path is one of knowing reality. and knowing that we have a choice, we can choose suffering or the end of suffering. it's up to us.
-some things to to remember as we learn "how to ease fixation"...
1-we learn as dharma students to develop embodied awareness.....
-we develop a felt sense of experience....
-we know things in the body....
-we know things, ultimately, in the heart....
-the path is a path of coming to the body....
-in support of coming to the body we....
-lessen our preoccupation with sense pleasure.....
-lessen our preoccupation with thinking....
-we practice meditation....
-mindfulness of the body.....
-we cultivate a pleasant abiding in the body....
2- it is a tendency of the mind to fixate....
-we fixate on certain things....
-we become preoccupied....
-caught in our stories.....
-it is found within....
-as dharma students, seeing that we are fixated....
-we seek to "ease fixation".....
3-we learn to ease fixation....
-in our efforts to ease fixation....
-we take refuge in dharma....
-we take refuge in admirable friends....
-we look to 'take a wider view' of experience....
-shifting our posture, changing the position of the body is very helpful....
-as, for instance, in going for a walk....
-shifting our posture, going for a walk, we begin to see that our pain, our stories, is not all of our experience....
-nature supports our ability to take a wider view of things....
-in nature, the mind brightens....
-it is important, in easing fixation, that we are able to keep the mind bright....
4-we seek to come out of the head, to the body, in easing fixation....
-when we are able to come out of the head, to the body...
-we see, clearly, that our experience is made of various experiences....
-there is our pain....
-there is also, at the same time, ease....
-there is also, at the same time, always, the heart....
-wisdom....
-love....
-joy.....
5-when we ease fixation, we remember the heart.....
-we see that there is that which is painful ... and that which is not painfu.....
-suffering & the end of suffering....
-it is important to see our pain ... to have a skillful relationship to it...
-equanimity, acceptance....
-non-acceptance (disliking) suffering ... exacerbates suffering ... reinforces fixation....
-seeing clearly, with acceptance, our pain ... we are able to see that it is not all our experience....
-there is ease...
-there is the heart....
-this is the truth of our experience ... the reality of our experience....
-seeing things clearly, seeing the reality of our experience, we are able to ease fixation....
-we are able to live from the heart.....
-reading.....
-"Song of the Open Road" (Walt Whitman)
I think heroic deeds were all conceiv’d in the open air, and all free poems also,
I think I could stop here myself and do miracles,
I think whatever I shall meet on the road I shall like, and whoever beholds me shall like me,
I think whoever I see must be happy.
*************
Allons! the road is before us!
It is safe—I have tried it—my own feet have tried it well—be not detain’d!
Let the paper remain on the desk unwritten, and the book on the shelf unopen’d!
Let the tools remain in the workshop! let the money remain unearn’d!
Let the school stand! mind not the cry of the teacher!
Let the preacher preach in his pulpit! let the lawyer plead in the court, and the judge expound the law.
Camerado, I give you my hand!
I give you my love more precious than money,
I give you myself before preaching or law;
Will you give me yourself? will you come travel with me?
Shall we stick by each other as long as we live?
(Walt Whitman)
I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there. Perhaps it seemed to me that I had several more lives to live, and could not spare any more time for that one. It is remarkable how easily and insensibly we fall into a particular route, and make a beaten track for ourselves. I had not lived there a week before my feet wore a path from my door to the pond–side; and though it is five or six years since I trod it, it is still quite distinct. It is true, I fear, that others may have fallen into it, and so helped to keep it open. The surface of the earth is soft and impressible by the feet of men; and so with the paths which the mind travels. How worn and dusty, then, must be the highways of the world, how deep the ruts of tradition and conformity! I did not wish to take a cabin passage, but rather to go before the mast and on the deck of the world, for there I could best see the moonlight amid the mountains. I do not wish to go below now.
I learned this, at least, by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. He will put some things behind, will pass an invisible boundary; new, universal, and more liberal laws will begin to establish themselves around and within him; or the old laws be expanded, and interpreted in his favor in a more liberal sense, and he will live with the license of a higher order of beings. In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex, and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness. If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.
(Thoreau)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Varanasi in the Game Refuge at Isipatana. There he addressed the group of five monks:
"There are these two extremes that are not to be indulged in by one who has gone forth. Which two? That which is devoted to sensual pleasure with reference to sensual objects: base, vulgar, common, ignoble, unprofitable; and that which is devoted to self-affliction: painful, ignoble, unprofitable. Avoiding both of these extremes, the middle way realized by the Tathagata — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"And what is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding? Precisely this Noble Eightfold Path: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. This is the middle way realized by the Tathagata that — producing vision, producing knowledge — leads to calm, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to Unbinding.
"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of stress: Birth is stressful, aging is stressful, death is stressful; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair are stressful; association with the unbeloved is stressful, separation from the loved is stressful, not getting what is wanted is stressful. In short, the five clinging-aggregates are stressful.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the origination of stress: the craving that makes for further becoming — accompanied by passion & delight, relishing now here & now there — i.e., craving for sensual pleasure, craving for becoming, craving for non-becoming.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of stress: the remainderless fading & cessation, renunciation, relinquishment, release, & letting go of that very craving.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress: precisely this Noble Eightfold Path — right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration."
(SN 56.11)
February 1
-"The Dharma is Inside"
-in dedicating the merit of our practice, we acknowledge and pay homage to the goodness of others. and we remember our own goodness. our goodness, our dharma, is timeless. it is everpresent. we find it within us. our tendency is to believe that we don't have this goodness, this dharma within. our tendency is to look outside ourselves, to depends on what it outside of us for our happiness. teachers do not give us the dharma. they teach us how to know it, by teaching us skills. they point us toward the dharma within us. dharma is inside. it is found in this body. in this very life. the practice of meditation is practice of mindfulness of the body. as we develop mindfulness of the body we become more and more in tune with the dharma within us. so, we should make an effort to practice, in the service of knowing the heart, our goodness, the dharma inside us.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in knowing that "the dharma is inside"...
1-dedication of merit is an important practice.....
-in Buddhist tradition, we a dear being passes on, we dedicate the merit of our practice to this being....
-we acknowledge their goodness ...
-we pay homage to their goodness....
-in doing so, in understanding goodness, the truth of dharma, we are moved to develop our own goodness ... to practice ... to make the most of our lives....
2- the dharma is found within....
-the dharma is timeless....
-it transcends birth & death....
-it is everpresent.....
-it is found within....
-inside us....
-in this body ... in this very life....
-it is always there, but it is obstructed by the burdens on the heart (dukkha).....
3-our tendency is to look outside ourselves....
-in our efforts to know happiness our tendency is to look outside of ourselves....
-in sense pleasure, gain, status, praise...
-in seeking goodness, truth, dharma, we tend to look outside of ourselves....
-we look to others to give it to us....
-we think it is something we don't have, that we have to somehow get....
-we look outside ourselves....
-to others....
-to teachers....
-to books, etc.....
4-we seek in our efforts to know truth, dharma to be a lamp unto ourselves.....
-as the Buddha taught, our ability to know happiness, truth, goodness depends not on what is outside of us ... it depends on us being a lamp (island, refuge) unto ourselves....
-we look within, to know the dharma....
-we shine the light of awareness on that which is within....
-wisdom....
-love....
-teachers point the way, to the dharma that is inside us.....
-by teaching us skills....
-how to practice in accord with the dharma....
-by encouraging us to practice....
-by reminding us of our goodness, the dharma inside us....
5-meditation enables us to know the dharma inside us.....
-we find the dharma inside us....
-in the body....
-the practice of meditation, as taught by the Buddha, brings us to the body....
-we develop in mindfulness of the body....
-the more we develop in mindfulness of the body, the closer we come to the heart ... to the dharma inside us....
-so, we should practice meditation ...
-we should make this noble effort....
-in the service of know the dharma inside us....
-reading.....
On one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery. Now at that time Ven. Sāriputta was staying among the Māgadhans in Nālaka village—diseased, in pain, severely ill. Cunda the novice was his attendant. Then, because of that illness, Ven. Sāriputta totally unbound.
So Cunda the novice, taking Ven. Sāriputta’s bowl & robes, went to Ven. Ānanda in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery, near Sāvatthī, and on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he said to Ven. Ānanda: “Venerable sir, Ven. Sāriputta has totally unbound. Here are his bowl & robes.”
“Cunda, my friend, this news is reason for seeing the Blessed One. Come, let’s go to the Blessed One and report this matter to him.”
“Yes, venerable sir,” Cunda the novice responded to him.
So Ven. Ānanda & Cunda the novice went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As they were sitting there, Ven. Ānanda said to the Blessed One, “Lord, just now Cunda the novice said to me, ‘Venerable sir, Ven. Sāriputta has totally unbound. Here are his bowl & robes.’ It was as if my body were drugged, I lost my bearings, things weren’t clear to me, on hearing that Ven. Sāriputta had totally unbound.”
“But, Ānanda, when he totally unbound, did Sāriputta take the aggregate of virtue along with him? Did he take the aggregate of concentration… discernment… release… the aggregate of knowledge & vision of release along with him?”
“No, lord, when he totally unbound, Ven. Sāriputta didn’t take the aggregate of virtue… concentration… discernment… release… the aggregate of knowledge & vision of release along with him. It’s just that he was my instructor & counselor, one who exhorted, urged, roused, & encouraged me. He was tireless in teaching the Dhamma, a help to his companions in the holy life. We miss the nourishment of his Dhamma, the wealth of his Dhamma, his help in the Dhamma.”
“But, Ānanda, haven’t I already taught you the state of growing different with regard to all things dear & appealing, the state of becoming separate, the state of becoming otherwise? What else is there to expect? It’s impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
“Just as if the largest limb were to fall off of a great tree composed of heartwood, standing firm; in the same way, Sāriputta has totally unbound from this great Saṅgha of monks composed of heartwood, standing firm. What else is there to expect? It’s impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
“Therefore, Ānanda, each of you should remain with your self as an island, your self as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. Remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. And how does a monk remain with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? How does he remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself—ardent, alert, & mindful—subduing greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings… mind… mental qualities in & of themselves—ardent, alert, & mindful—subduing greed & distress with reference to the world. This is how a monk remains with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge. For those who—now or after I am gone—remain with their self as an island, their self as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, they will be the foremost of the monks: those who are desirous of training.”
(SN 47.13)
Now on that occasion the twin Sal trees were in full bloom, even though it was not the time for flowering. They showered, strewed, & sprinkled on the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly coral-tree blossoms fell from the sky, showering, strewing, & sprinkling the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly sandalwood powder fell from the sky, showering, strewing, & sprinkling the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly music was playing in the sky, in homage to the Tathāgata. Heavenly songs were sung in the sky, in homage to the Tathāgata.
Then the Blessed One said to Ven. Ānanda, “Ānanda, the twin Sal trees are in full bloom, even though it’s not the flowering season. They shower, strew, & sprinkle on the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly coral-tree blossoms are falling from the sky.… Heavenly sandalwood powder is falling from the sky.… Heavenly music is playing in the sky.… Heavenly songs are sung in the sky, in homage to the Tathāgata. But it is not to this extent that a Tathāgata is worshipped, honored, respected, venerated, or paid homage to. Rather, the monk, nun, male lay follower, or female lay follower who keeps practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, who keeps practicing masterfully, who lives in accordance with the Dhamma: That is the person who worships, honors, respects, venerates, & pays homage to the Tathāgata with the highest homage. So you should train yourselves: ‘We will keep practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, we will keep practicing masterfully, we will live in accordance with the Dhamma.’ That’s how you should train yourselves.”
(DN 16)
Simply talking a lot
doesn’t maintain the dhamma.
Whoever
—although he’s heard next to nothing--
sees dhamma through his body,
is not heedless of dhamma:
he’s one who maintains the dhamma.
(Dhp 259)
Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhāna, monks. Don’t be heedless. Don’t later fall into remorse. This is our message to you.”
(MN 19)
-"The Dharma is Inside"
-in dedicating the merit of our practice, we acknowledge and pay homage to the goodness of others. and we remember our own goodness. our goodness, our dharma, is timeless. it is everpresent. we find it within us. our tendency is to believe that we don't have this goodness, this dharma within. our tendency is to look outside ourselves, to depends on what it outside of us for our happiness. teachers do not give us the dharma. they teach us how to know it, by teaching us skills. they point us toward the dharma within us. dharma is inside. it is found in this body. in this very life. the practice of meditation is practice of mindfulness of the body. as we develop mindfulness of the body we become more and more in tune with the dharma within us. so, we should make an effort to practice, in the service of knowing the heart, our goodness, the dharma inside us.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in knowing that "the dharma is inside"...
1-dedication of merit is an important practice.....
-in Buddhist tradition, we a dear being passes on, we dedicate the merit of our practice to this being....
-we acknowledge their goodness ...
-we pay homage to their goodness....
-in doing so, in understanding goodness, the truth of dharma, we are moved to develop our own goodness ... to practice ... to make the most of our lives....
2- the dharma is found within....
-the dharma is timeless....
-it transcends birth & death....
-it is everpresent.....
-it is found within....
-inside us....
-in this body ... in this very life....
-it is always there, but it is obstructed by the burdens on the heart (dukkha).....
3-our tendency is to look outside ourselves....
-in our efforts to know happiness our tendency is to look outside of ourselves....
-in sense pleasure, gain, status, praise...
-in seeking goodness, truth, dharma, we tend to look outside of ourselves....
-we look to others to give it to us....
-we think it is something we don't have, that we have to somehow get....
-we look outside ourselves....
-to others....
-to teachers....
-to books, etc.....
4-we seek in our efforts to know truth, dharma to be a lamp unto ourselves.....
-as the Buddha taught, our ability to know happiness, truth, goodness depends not on what is outside of us ... it depends on us being a lamp (island, refuge) unto ourselves....
-we look within, to know the dharma....
-we shine the light of awareness on that which is within....
-wisdom....
-love....
-teachers point the way, to the dharma that is inside us.....
-by teaching us skills....
-how to practice in accord with the dharma....
-by encouraging us to practice....
-by reminding us of our goodness, the dharma inside us....
5-meditation enables us to know the dharma inside us.....
-we find the dharma inside us....
-in the body....
-the practice of meditation, as taught by the Buddha, brings us to the body....
-we develop in mindfulness of the body....
-the more we develop in mindfulness of the body, the closer we come to the heart ... to the dharma inside us....
-so, we should practice meditation ...
-we should make this noble effort....
-in the service of know the dharma inside us....
-reading.....
On one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery. Now at that time Ven. Sāriputta was staying among the Māgadhans in Nālaka village—diseased, in pain, severely ill. Cunda the novice was his attendant. Then, because of that illness, Ven. Sāriputta totally unbound.
So Cunda the novice, taking Ven. Sāriputta’s bowl & robes, went to Ven. Ānanda in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery, near Sāvatthī, and on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he said to Ven. Ānanda: “Venerable sir, Ven. Sāriputta has totally unbound. Here are his bowl & robes.”
“Cunda, my friend, this news is reason for seeing the Blessed One. Come, let’s go to the Blessed One and report this matter to him.”
“Yes, venerable sir,” Cunda the novice responded to him.
So Ven. Ānanda & Cunda the novice went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As they were sitting there, Ven. Ānanda said to the Blessed One, “Lord, just now Cunda the novice said to me, ‘Venerable sir, Ven. Sāriputta has totally unbound. Here are his bowl & robes.’ It was as if my body were drugged, I lost my bearings, things weren’t clear to me, on hearing that Ven. Sāriputta had totally unbound.”
“But, Ānanda, when he totally unbound, did Sāriputta take the aggregate of virtue along with him? Did he take the aggregate of concentration… discernment… release… the aggregate of knowledge & vision of release along with him?”
“No, lord, when he totally unbound, Ven. Sāriputta didn’t take the aggregate of virtue… concentration… discernment… release… the aggregate of knowledge & vision of release along with him. It’s just that he was my instructor & counselor, one who exhorted, urged, roused, & encouraged me. He was tireless in teaching the Dhamma, a help to his companions in the holy life. We miss the nourishment of his Dhamma, the wealth of his Dhamma, his help in the Dhamma.”
“But, Ānanda, haven’t I already taught you the state of growing different with regard to all things dear & appealing, the state of becoming separate, the state of becoming otherwise? What else is there to expect? It’s impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
“Just as if the largest limb were to fall off of a great tree composed of heartwood, standing firm; in the same way, Sāriputta has totally unbound from this great Saṅgha of monks composed of heartwood, standing firm. What else is there to expect? It’s impossible that one could forbid anything born, existent, fabricated, & subject to disintegration from disintegrating.
“Therefore, Ānanda, each of you should remain with your self as an island, your self as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. Remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as your refuge, without anything else as a refuge. And how does a monk remain with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? How does he remain with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge? There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself—ardent, alert, & mindful—subduing greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings… mind… mental qualities in & of themselves—ardent, alert, & mindful—subduing greed & distress with reference to the world. This is how a monk remains with his self as an island, his self as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as his refuge, without anything else as a refuge. For those who—now or after I am gone—remain with their self as an island, their self as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, the Dhamma as their refuge, without anything else as a refuge, they will be the foremost of the monks: those who are desirous of training.”
(SN 47.13)
Now on that occasion the twin Sal trees were in full bloom, even though it was not the time for flowering. They showered, strewed, & sprinkled on the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly coral-tree blossoms fell from the sky, showering, strewing, & sprinkling the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly sandalwood powder fell from the sky, showering, strewing, & sprinkling the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly music was playing in the sky, in homage to the Tathāgata. Heavenly songs were sung in the sky, in homage to the Tathāgata.
Then the Blessed One said to Ven. Ānanda, “Ānanda, the twin Sal trees are in full bloom, even though it’s not the flowering season. They shower, strew, & sprinkle on the Tathāgata’s body in homage to him. Heavenly coral-tree blossoms are falling from the sky.… Heavenly sandalwood powder is falling from the sky.… Heavenly music is playing in the sky.… Heavenly songs are sung in the sky, in homage to the Tathāgata. But it is not to this extent that a Tathāgata is worshipped, honored, respected, venerated, or paid homage to. Rather, the monk, nun, male lay follower, or female lay follower who keeps practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, who keeps practicing masterfully, who lives in accordance with the Dhamma: That is the person who worships, honors, respects, venerates, & pays homage to the Tathāgata with the highest homage. So you should train yourselves: ‘We will keep practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, we will keep practicing masterfully, we will live in accordance with the Dhamma.’ That’s how you should train yourselves.”
(DN 16)
Simply talking a lot
doesn’t maintain the dhamma.
Whoever
—although he’s heard next to nothing--
sees dhamma through his body,
is not heedless of dhamma:
he’s one who maintains the dhamma.
(Dhp 259)
Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhāna, monks. Don’t be heedless. Don’t later fall into remorse. This is our message to you.”
(MN 19)
January 25
-"Skillful Thinking: Affirmative Thinking"
"We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world."
-in following the Buddha's path, we're asked to develop skills. the mechanism by which we develop and practice skills is thinking. we fabricate certain thoughts, skillful thoughts, in an effort to develop the path. in order to be able to lay down skillful tracks in the mind, we need to abandon unskillful thoughts. for most of us, negative thinking is a primarily affliction. accordingly, we need to be heedful, ardent, and resolute in our efforts to abandon thoughts imbued with negativity. and, in turn, we need to be proactive in our efforts to cultivate thoughts that are affirmative. we learn to cultivate thoughts that are affirming in regard to the world, others & ourselves. thoughts of appreciation are elemental to this effort. all thinking that affirms is rooted in metta, the wish for true happiness. as we move forward in our efforts to cultivate skillful, affirmative thoughts we know a greater happiness. this, as the Buddha tells us, is something we can do.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in our ability to cultivate "affirmative thinking"...
1-in order to change, to know a greater happiness, we have to change our habits of thinking.....
-we learn, as dharma students, to develop skills that lead us to a greater happiness....
-the critical element, or tool, in developing skills is skillful fabrication....
-we proactively fabricate thinking that guides us in developing and practicing skills....
2- in developing skillful thinking, we seek to abandon negative thinking and cultivate affirmative thinking.....
-for most of us, pursuing thinking that's negative is a habitual tendency....
-culturally, there's a widespread propensity for negative thinking....
-in the media....
-in terms of other beings....
-as dharma students, we're heedful, seeing our propensity for thinking imbued with negativity....
-negative thoughts about the world, others, ourselves....
-thinking informed by....
-aversion....
-resentment....
-complaining....
-judging....
-it is particularly important to be heedful of thinking informed by resentment....
3-we seek, in cultivating skillful thinking, to proactively cultivate thinking that is affirmative.....
-some reflections we might make....
-do i pursue negative thinking....?
-do i cultivate affirmative thinking....?
-how can i cultivate affirmative thinking....?
-can i make a resolve to cultivate affirmative thinking....?
-in cultivating affirmative thinking....
-we cultivate affirmative thoughts about....
-the world....
-others....
-ourselves....
-we cultivate thoughts of appreciation....
-we cultivate thoughts of gratitude, recalling the blessing of....
1-our goodnes....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-effort to train the mind....
2-the goodness of others....
3-the goodness of the dharma....
4-the blessing of life....
-all affirmative thinking is rooted in metta.....
-we think about the wish for true happiness....
-we remember that there is a true happiness that is available to us....
4-we seek to cultivate affirmative thoughts on an ongoing basis.....
-in our training, it is essential that we make an effort to cultivate affirmative thoughts in all postures, as we go through our days....
-gradually as we do this, we bend the mind in the direction of affirmative thoughts....
-we change our karma....
-it is difficult at times....
-we are often swept away by our habitual tendencies of mind....
-but if we stay with it ... practice determination ... we can change the habits of mind.....
5-if we wish for a joyful life, we have to cultivate joyful thoughts......
-as we learn to cultivate joyful thinking ... we know a greater happiness....
-in and of themselves, joyful thoughts enable us to have a more joyful presence in this life....
-joyful thoughts bring ease to the body.....
-joyful thoughts bring ease to the mind....
-joyful thoughts bring us to the heart.....
-as our thoughts become more affirmative, joyful ... we incline to actions that in the service of the heart.....
-we know a greater happiness....
-reading.....
-"Taking Joy" (from The Skill of Living)
-"Skillful Thinking: Affirmative Thinking"
"We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world."
-in following the Buddha's path, we're asked to develop skills. the mechanism by which we develop and practice skills is thinking. we fabricate certain thoughts, skillful thoughts, in an effort to develop the path. in order to be able to lay down skillful tracks in the mind, we need to abandon unskillful thoughts. for most of us, negative thinking is a primarily affliction. accordingly, we need to be heedful, ardent, and resolute in our efforts to abandon thoughts imbued with negativity. and, in turn, we need to be proactive in our efforts to cultivate thoughts that are affirmative. we learn to cultivate thoughts that are affirming in regard to the world, others & ourselves. thoughts of appreciation are elemental to this effort. all thinking that affirms is rooted in metta, the wish for true happiness. as we move forward in our efforts to cultivate skillful, affirmative thoughts we know a greater happiness. this, as the Buddha tells us, is something we can do.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in our ability to cultivate "affirmative thinking"...
1-in order to change, to know a greater happiness, we have to change our habits of thinking.....
-we learn, as dharma students, to develop skills that lead us to a greater happiness....
-the critical element, or tool, in developing skills is skillful fabrication....
-we proactively fabricate thinking that guides us in developing and practicing skills....
2- in developing skillful thinking, we seek to abandon negative thinking and cultivate affirmative thinking.....
-for most of us, pursuing thinking that's negative is a habitual tendency....
-culturally, there's a widespread propensity for negative thinking....
-in the media....
-in terms of other beings....
-as dharma students, we're heedful, seeing our propensity for thinking imbued with negativity....
-negative thoughts about the world, others, ourselves....
-thinking informed by....
-aversion....
-resentment....
-complaining....
-judging....
-it is particularly important to be heedful of thinking informed by resentment....
3-we seek, in cultivating skillful thinking, to proactively cultivate thinking that is affirmative.....
-some reflections we might make....
-do i pursue negative thinking....?
-do i cultivate affirmative thinking....?
-how can i cultivate affirmative thinking....?
-can i make a resolve to cultivate affirmative thinking....?
-in cultivating affirmative thinking....
-we cultivate affirmative thoughts about....
-the world....
-others....
-ourselves....
-we cultivate thoughts of appreciation....
-we cultivate thoughts of gratitude, recalling the blessing of....
1-our goodnes....
-generosity....
-virtue....
-effort to train the mind....
2-the goodness of others....
3-the goodness of the dharma....
4-the blessing of life....
-all affirmative thinking is rooted in metta.....
-we think about the wish for true happiness....
-we remember that there is a true happiness that is available to us....
4-we seek to cultivate affirmative thoughts on an ongoing basis.....
-in our training, it is essential that we make an effort to cultivate affirmative thoughts in all postures, as we go through our days....
-gradually as we do this, we bend the mind in the direction of affirmative thoughts....
-we change our karma....
-it is difficult at times....
-we are often swept away by our habitual tendencies of mind....
-but if we stay with it ... practice determination ... we can change the habits of mind.....
5-if we wish for a joyful life, we have to cultivate joyful thoughts......
-as we learn to cultivate joyful thinking ... we know a greater happiness....
-in and of themselves, joyful thoughts enable us to have a more joyful presence in this life....
-joyful thoughts bring ease to the body.....
-joyful thoughts bring ease to the mind....
-joyful thoughts bring us to the heart.....
-as our thoughts become more affirmative, joyful ... we incline to actions that in the service of the heart.....
-we know a greater happiness....
-reading.....
-"Taking Joy" (from The Skill of Living)
| skill_of_living_taking_joy.pdf |
-"Mahanama Sutta" (AN 11.13)
[4] "Furthermore, there is the case where you recollect your own virtues: '[They are] untorn, unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised by the wise, untarnished, conducive to concentration.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting virtue, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on virtue. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated.
"Of one who does this, Mahanama, it is said: 'Among those who are out of tune, the disciple of the noble ones dwells in tune; among those who are malicious, he dwells without malice; having attained the stream of Dhamma, he develops the recollection of virtue.'
[5] "Furthermore, there is the case where you recollect your own generosity: 'It is a gain, a great gain for me, that — among people overcome with the stain of possessiveness — I live at home, my awareness cleansed of the stain of possessiveness, freely generous, openhanded, delighting in being magnanimous, responsive to requests, delighting in the distribution of alms.' At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting generosity, his mind is not overcome with passion, not overcome with aversion, not overcome with delusion. His mind heads straight, based on generosity. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dhamma, gains joy connected with the Dhamma. In one who is joyful, rapture arises. In one who is rapturous, the body grows calm. One whose body is calmed experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated.
"Of one who does this, Mahanama, it is said: 'Among those who are out of tune, the disciple of the noble ones dwells in tune; among those who are malicious, he dwells without malice; having attained the stream of Dhamma, he develops the recollection of generosity.'"
(AN 11.12)
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with an impure mind
And trouble will follow you
As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with a pure mind
And happiness will follow you
As your shadow, unshakable.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Live with such thoughts and you live in hate.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Abandon such thoughts, and live in love.
In this world
Hate never yet dispelled hate.
Only love dispels hate.
This is the law,
Ancient and inexhaustible.
(Dhp 1)
For the new year. — I still live, I still think: I still have to live, for I still have to think. Sum, ergo cogito: cogito, ergo sum. Today everybody permits himself the expression of his wish and his dearest thought; hence I, too, shall say what it is that I wish from myself today, and what was the first thought to run across my heart this year — what thought shall be for me the reason, warranty, and sweetness of my life henceforth. I want to learn more and more to see as beautiful what is necessary in things; then I shall be one of those who make things beautiful. Amor fati: let that by my love henceforth! I do not want to wage war against what is ugly. I do not want to accuse; I do not even want to accuse those who accuse. Looking away shall be my only negation. And all in all and on the whole: some day I wish to be only a Yes-sayer.
(Nietzsche/from The Gay Science)
“Poetry is the gai science. The trait and test of the poet is that he builds, adds and affirms.”
(Emerson)
Work. Keep digging your well.
Don’t think about getting off from work.
Water is there somewhere.
Submit to a daily practice.
Your loyalty to that
Is a ring on the door.
Keep knocking, and the joy inside
Will eventually open a window
And look out to see who’s there.
(Rumi)
January 18
-"Skillful Thinking: Asking Questions"
"We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world."
-in order to know a greater happiness, we have to learn to abandon unskillful thinking and cultivate skillful thinking. the proactive effort toward cultivating skillful thinking will lead us to happiness of heart. as we make this effort to cultivate skillful thinking, we gradually incline the mind toward this sort of thinking. the Buddha has certain guidelines that we seek to follow in cultivating skillful thinking. it's important that we don't 'overthink'. doing so, tires the mind and brings about unskillful thinking. our default position for the mind is the breath. in all postures we use thought to direct the mind to the breath. we ask question in an effort to develop insight. it begins with the breath, by asking how the breath is. and asking how the body is. we develop insight by asking whether there is suffering. a good question for us to learn to ask is: how is the heart? asking this question, we look to see if the the heart is afflicted. and we can ask questions, such as 'is there that which is beyond birth & death,' to point us in the direction of the state that is free from suffering. by asking question in these ways we learn to free the heart of its burdens and know the happiness inside, the happiness of heart.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in our ability to practice "asking questions"...
1-we follow certain basic principle in cultivating skillful thinking.....
-as the Buddha explains in the sutta "Two Sorts of Thinking".....
-we cultivate skillful thinking ... but we are careful not to "over-fabricate"....
-we keep the thinking 'short & simple'....
-we fabricate skillfully ... and then put our mind on the breath, in the body....
-the breath, we could say, is the 'default' position for the mind....
-we keep the mind on the breath, in all postures, by using thought....
-this is 'directed thought".....
-we remind ourselves, in breath meditation, and in all postures, to keep the mind on the breath.....
-in the body....
-in the frame of reference.....
2- we ask questions in the service of developing insight.....
-the practice of insight begins in the Buddha's teaching with the breath....
-we 'evaluate' the breath....
-we ask questions, such as, 'how is the breath'.....
-'what is it like to breath in an easeful way'.....
-we ask questions in an effort to discern how the body is ... and how to develop an easeful abiding in the body....
-we ask questions, such as, 'how is the body'.....
-is there dis-ease in the body....?
-is there ease in the body....?
-where can i put my mind in an effort to cultivate and easeful abiding....?
3-we ask questions in an effort to understand suffering and the end of suffering.....
-in all postures, a good question to learn to ask is: 'how is the heart"
-is the heart afflicted....?
-is there dukkha....?
-in seeing dukkha, we learn to ask....
-am i in a narrative....?
-is it useful...?
-am i clinging....?
-am i involved in clinging to some form of desire/aversion....?
-am i clinging to an emotional/mind state....?
-how can I meet this clinging/dukkha in a skillful way....?
-what is it like when i get some space from the clinging...?
-what is it like when there is a lessening of clinging....?
4-we use skillful thinking, including questions, to recognize the characteristics of conditioned experience.....
-we reflect, as the Buddha teaches, on nature of conditioned experience....
-we reflect on the truth of illness/aging/death/separation....
-we reflect on the truth of impermanence....
-we reflect on the truth of not-self....
-we reflect on the truth of the unsatisfactory nature of conditioned experience....
5-asking questions, we incline ourselves to knowing the state which is not subject to birth and death......
-we learn to ask, is there that which is beyond birth & death....?
-is there that which is deathless....?
-is there that which is timeless....?
-by asking these sorts of questions, we incline the mind to knowing the happiness that does not die.....
-happiness of heart, the dharma....
-the happiness that is always there, in the heart....
-reading.....
-"The Path of Questions" (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
"Abandon what is unskillful, monks. It is possible to abandon what is unskillful. If it were not possible to abandon what is unskillful, I would not say to you, 'Abandon what is unskillful.' But because it is possible to abandon what is unskillful, I say to you, 'Abandon what is unskillful.' If this abandoning of what is unskillful were conducive to harm and pain, I would not say to you, 'Abandon what is unskillful.' But because this abandoning of what is unskillful is conducive to benefit and pleasure, I say to you, 'Abandon what is unskillful.'
"Develop what is skillful, monks. It is possible to develop what is skillful. If it were not possible to develop what is skillful, I would not say to you, 'Develop what is skillful.' But because it is possible to develop what is skillful, I say to you, 'Develop what is skillful.' If this development of what is skillful were conducive to harm and pain, I would not say to you, 'Develop what is skillful.' But because this development of what is skillful is conducive to benefit and pleasure, I say to you, 'Develop what is skillful.'"
(AN 2.19)
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with renunciation arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with renunciation has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with non-ill will arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with non-ill will has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with harmlessness arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with harmlessness has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with renunciation, abandoning thinking imbued with sensuality, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with renunciation. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with non-ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with non-ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmlessness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmfulness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmlessness.
"Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply keeps himself mindful of 'those cows.' In the same way, I simply kept myself mindful of 'those mental qualities.'"
(MN 19)
Whatever an enemy might do
to an enemy,
or a foe to a foe,
the ill-directed mind
can do to you
even worse.
Whatever a mother, father
or other kinsman
might do for you,
the well-directed mind
can do for you
even better.
(Dhp 3)
January 11
-"Skillful Thinking: Cultivating Skillful Thinking"
"We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world."
-in his teaching on being heedful of thinking, "Two Sorts of Thinking," the Buddha describes the process for abandoning unskillful thinking. he also describes the process for cultivating skillful thinking. as dharma students we need to attend to both aspects of the practice. it is challenging to cultivate skillful thinking, to think in a new way because our patterns of thought are deeply habitual. but we can change. we have to make a proactive effort to cultivate skillful thinking. being centered in all postures, practicing natural meditation, is essential. we learn to ask how we can cultivate skillful thinking. we make an effort, in doing so, to incline the mind to skillful thinking. difficult is, as always, an entry point. when there is difficulty, we learn to abandon unskillful ways to relating, unskillful ways of thinking. and in turn we learn to ask, what is a skillful way to think about this. in doing this, we learn, gradually, to rely on the heart to guide us. we rely on our innate wisdom. it is of course a process of trial and effort. but it we make the effort we'll learn to cultivate thoughts that will lead us to the happiness of heart.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in our ability to practice "cultivating skillful thinking"...
1-skillful thinking leads us to happiness of heart.....
-as the Buddha describes in the sutta "Two Sorts of Thinking".....
-we should learn to abandon unskillful thinking...
-we should cultivate skillful thinking....
-it is important to abandon unskillful thinking ... but it is not enough.....
-if we are going to know a greater happiness, we have to proactively cultivate skillful thinking....
2- it is difficult develop skillful thinking because our patterns of thinking are deeply habitual.....
-the patterns of mind are habitual ... there are "grooves" in the mind that the our thinking goes quickly into....
-the mind bends in these unskillful directions....
-we must learn skills to abandon unskillful thinking....
-natural meditation is essential....
-when there is an easeful abiding in all postures we're less likely to follow habitual patterns....
-we're more able to have space ... and cultivate skillful thinking....
3-in all postures we seek to develop skillful thinking.....
-we are alert and resolute....
-we are resolved to cultivate skillful thinking....
-we make an effort, in all postures, to ask....
-right now, how can I think in a skillful way....?
-how can I think in a way that is for my long term welfare....?
-how can I think in a way that will lead to a greater happiness....?
4-difficult is often an entry point for the developing skillful thinking.....
-when there is difficulty.....
-we see the tendency to relate unskillfully ... to pursue unskillful thinking....?
-we seek to abandon unskillful thinking....
-we make a proactive effort to cultivate skillful thinking.....
-thinking informed by compassion is a 'default setting' here ... we seek to cultivate thoughts of compassion, in view of our difficulty....
-and, importantly, in the effort to engender skillful thinking, we might ask questions.....
-such as.....
-" what is a skillful way to think about this situation...?"
5-in cultivating thinking, asking questions, we learn to tune ourselves to the dhamma......
-we learn to turn to our innate wisdom....
-we create a 'script' based on our innate wisdom ... the heart ... the dhamma inside....
-this is always a process of trial and error, this is how we learn to tune to our innate wisdom....
-we make an effort to cultivate skillful thinking....
-we look to see whether we are in tune with the heart....
-we look at the body....
-we look at the heart.....
-we develop sensitivity to the heart, to what comprises skillful thinking....
-in this way we learn to guide ourselves through our days....
-we learn to live with wisdom and love.....
-we move closer to the heart....
-reading.....
"Two Sorts of Thinking"
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Savatthi, in Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's monastery. There he addressed the monks: "Monks!"
"Yes, lord," the monks replied.
The Blessed One said, "Monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened Bodhisatta, the thought occurred to me: 'Why don't I keep dividing my thinking into two sorts?' So I made thinking imbued with sensuality, thinking imbued with ill will, & thinking imbued with harmfulness one sort, and thinking imbued with renunciation, thinking imbued with non-ill will, & thinking imbued with harmlessness another sort.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with sensuality arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with sensuality has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding.'
"As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others... to the affliction of both... it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with sensuality had arisen, I simply abandoned it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with ill will arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with ill will has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding.'
"As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others... to the affliction of both... it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with ill will had arisen, I simply abandoned it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with harmfulness arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with harmfulness has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding.'
"As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others... to the affliction of both... it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with harmfulness had arisen, I simply abandoned it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.
"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with sensuality, abandoning thinking imbued with renunciation, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with sensuality. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with non-ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmfulness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmlessness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmfulness.
"Just as in the last month of the Rains, in the autumn season when the crops are ripening, a cowherd would look after his cows: He would tap & poke & check & curb them with a stick on this side & that. Why is that? Because he foresees flogging or imprisonment or a fine or public censure arising from that [if he let his cows wander into the crops]. In the same way I foresaw in unskillful qualities drawbacks, degradation, & defilement, and I foresaw in skillful qualities rewards related to renunciation & promoting cleansing.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with renunciation arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with renunciation has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with non-ill will arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with non-ill will has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with harmlessness arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with harmlessness has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with renunciation, abandoning thinking imbued with sensuality, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with renunciation. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with non-ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with non-ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmlessness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmfulness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmlessness.
"Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply keeps himself mindful of 'those cows.' In the same way, I simply kept myself mindful of 'those mental qualities.'
"Unflagging persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness established. My body was calm & unaroused, my mind concentrated & single. Quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, I entered & remained in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I entered & remained in the second jhana: rapture & pleasure born of composure, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation — internal assurance. With the fading of rapture I remained in equanimity, mindful & alert, and physically sensitive of pleasure. I entered & remained in the third jhana, of which the Noble Ones declare, 'Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding.' With the abandoning of pleasure & pain — as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress — I entered & remained in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it to the knowledge of recollecting my past lives. I recollected my manifold past lives, i.e., one birth, two... five, ten... fifty, a hundred, a thousand, a hundred thousand, many eons of cosmic contraction, many eons of cosmic expansion, many eons of cosmic contraction & expansion: 'There I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure & pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose there. There too I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure & pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose here.' Thus I remembered my manifold past lives in their modes & details.
"This was the first knowledge I attained in the first watch of the night. Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose — as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it to the knowledge of the passing away & reappearance of beings. I saw — by means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human — beings passing away & re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma: 'These beings — who were endowed with bad conduct of body, speech & mind, who reviled the Noble Ones, held wrong views and undertook actions under the influence of wrong views — with the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. But these beings — who were endowed with good conduct of body, speech, & mind, who did not revile the Noble Ones, who held right views and undertook actions under the influence of right views — with the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the good destinations, in the heavenly world.' Thus — by means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human — I saw beings passing away & re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma.
"This was the second knowledge I attained in the second watch of the night. Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose — as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it to the knowledge of the ending of the mental fermentations. I discerned, as it had come to be, that 'This is stress... This is the origination of stress... This is the cessation of stress... This is the way leading to the cessation of stress... These are fermentations... This is the origination of fermentations... This is the cessation of fermentations... This is the way leading to the cessation of fermentations.' My heart, thus knowing, thus seeing, was released from the fermentation of sensuality, released from the fermentation of becoming, released from the fermentation of ignorance. With release, there was the knowledge, 'Released.' I discerned that 'Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, the task done. There is nothing further for this world.'
"This was the third knowledge I attained in the third watch of the night. Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose — as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"Suppose, monks, that in a forested wilderness there were a large low-lying marsh, in dependence on which there lived a large herd of deer; and a certain man were to appear, not desiring their benefit, not desiring their welfare, not desiring their rest from bondage. He would close off the safe, restful path that led to their rapture, and would open up a false path, set out a male decoy, place a female decoy, and thus the large herd of deer would eventually fall into ruin, disaster, & decimation. Then suppose that a certain man were to appear to that same large herd of deer, desiring their benefit, desiring their welfare, desiring their rest from bondage. He would open up the safe, restful path that led to their rapture, would close off the false path, take away the male decoy, destroy the female decoy, and thus the large herd of deer would eventually come into growth, increase, & abundance.
"I have given this simile in order to convey a meaning. The meaning is this: 'The large, low-lying marsh' stands for sensuality. 'The large herd of deer' stands for beings. 'The man not desiring their benefit, not desiring their welfare, not desiring their rest from bondage' stands for Mara, the Evil One. 'The false path' stands for the eightfold wrong path, i.e., wrong view, wrong resolve, wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness, & wrong concentration. 'The male decoy' stands for passion & delight. 'The female decoy' stands for ignorance. 'The man desiring their benefit, desiring their welfare, desiring their rest from bondage' stands for the Tathagata, the Worthy One, the Rightly Self-awakened One. 'The safe, restful path that led to their rapture' stands for the noble eightfold path, i.e., right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, & right concentration.
"So, monks, I have opened up the safe, restful path, closed off the false path, removed the male decoy, destroyed the female. Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monks. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you."
That is what the Blessed One said. Gratified, the monks delighted in the Blessed One's words.
(MN 19)
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-"Skillful Thinking: Cultivating Skillful Thinking"
"We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world."
-in his teaching on being heedful of thinking, "Two Sorts of Thinking," the Buddha describes the process for abandoning unskillful thinking. he also describes the process for cultivating skillful thinking. as dharma students we need to attend to both aspects of the practice. it is challenging to cultivate skillful thinking, to think in a new way because our patterns of thought are deeply habitual. but we can change. we have to make a proactive effort to cultivate skillful thinking. being centered in all postures, practicing natural meditation, is essential. we learn to ask how we can cultivate skillful thinking. we make an effort, in doing so, to incline the mind to skillful thinking. difficult is, as always, an entry point. when there is difficulty, we learn to abandon unskillful ways to relating, unskillful ways of thinking. and in turn we learn to ask, what is a skillful way to think about this. in doing this, we learn, gradually, to rely on the heart to guide us. we rely on our innate wisdom. it is of course a process of trial and effort. but it we make the effort we'll learn to cultivate thoughts that will lead us to the happiness of heart.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in our ability to practice "cultivating skillful thinking"...
1-skillful thinking leads us to happiness of heart.....
-as the Buddha describes in the sutta "Two Sorts of Thinking".....
-we should learn to abandon unskillful thinking...
-we should cultivate skillful thinking....
-it is important to abandon unskillful thinking ... but it is not enough.....
-if we are going to know a greater happiness, we have to proactively cultivate skillful thinking....
2- it is difficult develop skillful thinking because our patterns of thinking are deeply habitual.....
-the patterns of mind are habitual ... there are "grooves" in the mind that the our thinking goes quickly into....
-the mind bends in these unskillful directions....
-we must learn skills to abandon unskillful thinking....
-natural meditation is essential....
-when there is an easeful abiding in all postures we're less likely to follow habitual patterns....
-we're more able to have space ... and cultivate skillful thinking....
3-in all postures we seek to develop skillful thinking.....
-we are alert and resolute....
-we are resolved to cultivate skillful thinking....
-we make an effort, in all postures, to ask....
-right now, how can I think in a skillful way....?
-how can I think in a way that is for my long term welfare....?
-how can I think in a way that will lead to a greater happiness....?
4-difficult is often an entry point for the developing skillful thinking.....
-when there is difficulty.....
-we see the tendency to relate unskillfully ... to pursue unskillful thinking....?
-we seek to abandon unskillful thinking....
-we make a proactive effort to cultivate skillful thinking.....
-thinking informed by compassion is a 'default setting' here ... we seek to cultivate thoughts of compassion, in view of our difficulty....
-and, importantly, in the effort to engender skillful thinking, we might ask questions.....
-such as.....
-" what is a skillful way to think about this situation...?"
5-in cultivating thinking, asking questions, we learn to tune ourselves to the dhamma......
-we learn to turn to our innate wisdom....
-we create a 'script' based on our innate wisdom ... the heart ... the dhamma inside....
-this is always a process of trial and error, this is how we learn to tune to our innate wisdom....
-we make an effort to cultivate skillful thinking....
-we look to see whether we are in tune with the heart....
-we look at the body....
-we look at the heart.....
-we develop sensitivity to the heart, to what comprises skillful thinking....
-in this way we learn to guide ourselves through our days....
-we learn to live with wisdom and love.....
-we move closer to the heart....
-reading.....
"Two Sorts of Thinking"
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Savatthi, in Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's monastery. There he addressed the monks: "Monks!"
"Yes, lord," the monks replied.
The Blessed One said, "Monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened Bodhisatta, the thought occurred to me: 'Why don't I keep dividing my thinking into two sorts?' So I made thinking imbued with sensuality, thinking imbued with ill will, & thinking imbued with harmfulness one sort, and thinking imbued with renunciation, thinking imbued with non-ill will, & thinking imbued with harmlessness another sort.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with sensuality arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with sensuality has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding.'
"As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others... to the affliction of both... it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with sensuality had arisen, I simply abandoned it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with ill will arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with ill will has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding.'
"As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others... to the affliction of both... it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with ill will had arisen, I simply abandoned it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with harmfulness arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with harmfulness has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding.'
"As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others... to the affliction of both... it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to Unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with harmfulness had arisen, I simply abandoned it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.
"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with sensuality, abandoning thinking imbued with renunciation, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with sensuality. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with non-ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmfulness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmlessness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmfulness.
"Just as in the last month of the Rains, in the autumn season when the crops are ripening, a cowherd would look after his cows: He would tap & poke & check & curb them with a stick on this side & that. Why is that? Because he foresees flogging or imprisonment or a fine or public censure arising from that [if he let his cows wander into the crops]. In the same way I foresaw in unskillful qualities drawbacks, degradation, & defilement, and I foresaw in skillful qualities rewards related to renunciation & promoting cleansing.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with renunciation arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with renunciation has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with non-ill will arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with non-ill will has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with harmlessness arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with harmlessness has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with renunciation, abandoning thinking imbued with sensuality, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with renunciation. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with non-ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with non-ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmlessness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmfulness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmlessness.
"Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply keeps himself mindful of 'those cows.' In the same way, I simply kept myself mindful of 'those mental qualities.'
"Unflagging persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness established. My body was calm & unaroused, my mind concentrated & single. Quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, I entered & remained in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I entered & remained in the second jhana: rapture & pleasure born of composure, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation — internal assurance. With the fading of rapture I remained in equanimity, mindful & alert, and physically sensitive of pleasure. I entered & remained in the third jhana, of which the Noble Ones declare, 'Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding.' With the abandoning of pleasure & pain — as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress — I entered & remained in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it to the knowledge of recollecting my past lives. I recollected my manifold past lives, i.e., one birth, two... five, ten... fifty, a hundred, a thousand, a hundred thousand, many eons of cosmic contraction, many eons of cosmic expansion, many eons of cosmic contraction & expansion: 'There I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure & pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose there. There too I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure & pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose here.' Thus I remembered my manifold past lives in their modes & details.
"This was the first knowledge I attained in the first watch of the night. Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose — as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it to the knowledge of the passing away & reappearance of beings. I saw — by means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human — beings passing away & re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma: 'These beings — who were endowed with bad conduct of body, speech & mind, who reviled the Noble Ones, held wrong views and undertook actions under the influence of wrong views — with the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. But these beings — who were endowed with good conduct of body, speech, & mind, who did not revile the Noble Ones, who held right views and undertook actions under the influence of right views — with the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the good destinations, in the heavenly world.' Thus — by means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human — I saw beings passing away & re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma.
"This was the second knowledge I attained in the second watch of the night. Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose — as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it to the knowledge of the ending of the mental fermentations. I discerned, as it had come to be, that 'This is stress... This is the origination of stress... This is the cessation of stress... This is the way leading to the cessation of stress... These are fermentations... This is the origination of fermentations... This is the cessation of fermentations... This is the way leading to the cessation of fermentations.' My heart, thus knowing, thus seeing, was released from the fermentation of sensuality, released from the fermentation of becoming, released from the fermentation of ignorance. With release, there was the knowledge, 'Released.' I discerned that 'Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, the task done. There is nothing further for this world.'
"This was the third knowledge I attained in the third watch of the night. Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose — as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"Suppose, monks, that in a forested wilderness there were a large low-lying marsh, in dependence on which there lived a large herd of deer; and a certain man were to appear, not desiring their benefit, not desiring their welfare, not desiring their rest from bondage. He would close off the safe, restful path that led to their rapture, and would open up a false path, set out a male decoy, place a female decoy, and thus the large herd of deer would eventually fall into ruin, disaster, & decimation. Then suppose that a certain man were to appear to that same large herd of deer, desiring their benefit, desiring their welfare, desiring their rest from bondage. He would open up the safe, restful path that led to their rapture, would close off the false path, take away the male decoy, destroy the female decoy, and thus the large herd of deer would eventually come into growth, increase, & abundance.
"I have given this simile in order to convey a meaning. The meaning is this: 'The large, low-lying marsh' stands for sensuality. 'The large herd of deer' stands for beings. 'The man not desiring their benefit, not desiring their welfare, not desiring their rest from bondage' stands for Mara, the Evil One. 'The false path' stands for the eightfold wrong path, i.e., wrong view, wrong resolve, wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness, & wrong concentration. 'The male decoy' stands for passion & delight. 'The female decoy' stands for ignorance. 'The man desiring their benefit, desiring their welfare, desiring their rest from bondage' stands for the Tathagata, the Worthy One, the Rightly Self-awakened One. 'The safe, restful path that led to their rapture' stands for the noble eightfold path, i.e., right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, & right concentration.
"So, monks, I have opened up the safe, restful path, closed off the false path, removed the male decoy, destroyed the female. Whatever a teacher should do — seeking the welfare of his disciples, out of sympathy for them — that have I done for you. Over there are the roots of trees; over there, empty dwellings. Practice jhana, monks. Don't be heedless. Don't later fall into regret. This is our message to you."
That is what the Blessed One said. Gratified, the monks delighted in the Blessed One's words.
(MN 19)
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January 4
-"Skillful Thinking: The Fundamentals of Skillful Thinking"
-the Buddha's path is pragmatic. it's a path of developing skills. the skill of skillful thinking is integral to the path. through developing skillful thinking we are able to shape our lives, we are able to live with wisdom & compassion, we are able to know the happiness of heart. the path also is proactive. it is a path of practice. we learn about the mind by practicing with it, by learning to put it to good use. we are able to develop in this skill by putting the effort into practice. certain fundamentals are essential to our practice. in cultivating skillful thinking we are cultivating thinking informed by the dharma, by the heart. we are cultivating thoughts in tune with compassion, lovingkindness, joy, and equanimity. importantly, in cultivating skillful thinking we abide by the Buddha's injunction to keep it simple, to not over fabricate. we learn, in doing so, to touch in to thinking that is skillful. if we put the effort into this practice, we bring about transformation.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in our ability to practice with "the fundamentals of skillful thinking"...
1-the practice of skillful thinking is pragmatic.....
-it is a skill that we learn to develop.....
-it is a skill that we learn to apply in meditation....
-it is a skill that we learn to apply in all our postures, in all the activities of our lives....
-just as we learn to guide the meditation with our thinking....
-we learn to guide our actions as we go through the day ... with our thinking.....
2- we learn to develop skillful thinking through practice.....
-as with all skills we develop this skill through practice....
-making the effort to fabricate skillful thinking ... in all postures....
-we learn, by using the mind, by practice, about the mind.....
-we learn how to put the mind to good use....
-we learn how to fabricate skillfully ... in the service of abandoning suffering and knowing happiness of heart....
3-skillful thinking is thinking informed by the dharma.....
-our tendency ... our habit ... is to think unskillfully....
-this is our past karma....
-we pursue thinking informed by desire & aversion....
-in cultivating skillful thinking we proactively fabricate thinking informed by the dharma....
-by the heart....
-by the sublime attitudes....
-compassion....
-lovingkindness....
-joy....
-equanimity....
4-skillful intention is a key skill in the skill of skillful thinking.....
-we seek to set skillful intention ... in all our actions.....
-skillful intention is informed by....
-compassion (our wish to be free from suffering).....
-lovingkindness (our wish to be happy of heart).....
-we set skillful intention by....
-seeing how the mind is....
-seeing unskillful intention....
-setting skillful intention....
-fabricating skillful intention....
-internal verbal fabrication....
5-in cultivating thinking that is skillful there are some basic rules of thumb......
-as the Buddha indicates, in cultivating skillful thinking....
-we keep it simple....
-we're careful not to engender an excessive amount of thought....
-we touch into skillful thoughts....
-after touching in, we center ourselves in the breath.....
-in fabricating skillful thinking....
-we pay attention to the affect....
-how we are saying the words....
-the tone of the inner voice....
-we cultivate a quality of sincerity, earnestness....
-we understand what the words mean....
-we know the 'subtext'....
-for example, in using the word compassion we have a sense that this means we have a wish for the heart to be free from its burdens....
-as dharma students, over time, we learn to develop, by using words, a sense of the subtext....
6-as we practice skillful thinking we become sensitive to when thinking is skillful......
-we learn, by being mindful of the body, to know whether thinking is skillful or unskillful....
-when thinking is unskillful....
-there is a quality of dis-ease in the body.....
-when thinking is skillful.....
-there is a quality of ease in the body....
-when thinking is skillful, we have a felt sense of the heart....
-there is happiness of heart.....
-reading.....
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with an impure mind
And trouble will follow you
As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with a pure mind
And happiness will follow you
As your shadow, unshakable.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Live with such thoughts and you live in hate.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Abandon such thoughts, and live in love.
In this world
Hate never yet dispelled hate.
Only love dispels hate.
This is the law,
Ancient and inexhaustible.
You too shall pass away.
Knowing this,
how can you quarrel?
How easily the wind overturns a frail tree.
Seek happiness in the senses,
Indulge in food and sleep,
And you too will be uprooted.
The wind cannot overturn a mountain.
Temptation cannot touch the man
Who is awake, strong and humble,
Who masters himself and minds the dharma.
If a man's thoughts are muddy,
If he is reckless and full of deceit,
How can he wear the yellow robe?
Whoever is master of his own nature,
Bright, clear and true,
He may indeed wear the yellow robe.
Mistaking the false for the true,
And the true for the false,
You overlook the heart
And fill yourself with desire.
See the false as false,
The true as true.
Look into your heart.
Follow your nature.
An unreflecting mind is a poor roof.
Passion, like the rain, floods the house.
But if the roof is strong, there is shelter.
Whoever follows impure thoughts
Suffers in this world and the next.
In both worlds he suffers
And how greatly
When he sees the wrong he has done.
But whoever follows the dharma
Is joyful here and joyful there.
In both worlds he rejoices
And how greatly
When he sees the good he has done.
For great is the harvest in this world,
And greater still in the next.
However many holy words you read,
However many you speak,
What good will they do you If you do not act upon them?
Are you a shepherd
Who counts another man's sheep,
Never sharing the way?
Read as few words as you like,
And speak fewer.
But act upon the dharma.
Give up the old ways –
Passion, enmity, folly.
Know the truth and find peace.
Share the way.
(Dhp 1)
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with non-ill will arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with non-ill will has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with harmlessness arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with harmlessness has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with renunciation, abandoning thinking imbued with sensuality, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with renunciation. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with non-ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with non-ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmlessness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmfulness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmlessness.
"Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply keeps himself mindful of 'those cows.' In the same way, I simply kept myself mindful of 'those mental qualities.'"
(MN 19)
Lovingkindness Retreat – An Online Daylong Retreat
Saturday, January 10
10am -11:30am (USA/EST)
1pm - 2:30pm
4pm - 5:30pm
Fee by donation
To sign up and receive the zoom link please send an email.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
Information about making a donation using a credit card are found on the Support page.
Thanks for your generosity!
-"Skillful Thinking: The Fundamentals of Skillful Thinking"
-the Buddha's path is pragmatic. it's a path of developing skills. the skill of skillful thinking is integral to the path. through developing skillful thinking we are able to shape our lives, we are able to live with wisdom & compassion, we are able to know the happiness of heart. the path also is proactive. it is a path of practice. we learn about the mind by practicing with it, by learning to put it to good use. we are able to develop in this skill by putting the effort into practice. certain fundamentals are essential to our practice. in cultivating skillful thinking we are cultivating thinking informed by the dharma, by the heart. we are cultivating thoughts in tune with compassion, lovingkindness, joy, and equanimity. importantly, in cultivating skillful thinking we abide by the Buddha's injunction to keep it simple, to not over fabricate. we learn, in doing so, to touch in to thinking that is skillful. if we put the effort into this practice, we bring about transformation.
-some things to to remember as we learn to develop in our ability to practice with "the fundamentals of skillful thinking"...
1-the practice of skillful thinking is pragmatic.....
-it is a skill that we learn to develop.....
-it is a skill that we learn to apply in meditation....
-it is a skill that we learn to apply in all our postures, in all the activities of our lives....
-just as we learn to guide the meditation with our thinking....
-we learn to guide our actions as we go through the day ... with our thinking.....
2- we learn to develop skillful thinking through practice.....
-as with all skills we develop this skill through practice....
-making the effort to fabricate skillful thinking ... in all postures....
-we learn, by using the mind, by practice, about the mind.....
-we learn how to put the mind to good use....
-we learn how to fabricate skillfully ... in the service of abandoning suffering and knowing happiness of heart....
3-skillful thinking is thinking informed by the dharma.....
-our tendency ... our habit ... is to think unskillfully....
-this is our past karma....
-we pursue thinking informed by desire & aversion....
-in cultivating skillful thinking we proactively fabricate thinking informed by the dharma....
-by the heart....
-by the sublime attitudes....
-compassion....
-lovingkindness....
-joy....
-equanimity....
4-skillful intention is a key skill in the skill of skillful thinking.....
-we seek to set skillful intention ... in all our actions.....
-skillful intention is informed by....
-compassion (our wish to be free from suffering).....
-lovingkindness (our wish to be happy of heart).....
-we set skillful intention by....
-seeing how the mind is....
-seeing unskillful intention....
-setting skillful intention....
-fabricating skillful intention....
-internal verbal fabrication....
5-in cultivating thinking that is skillful there are some basic rules of thumb......
-as the Buddha indicates, in cultivating skillful thinking....
-we keep it simple....
-we're careful not to engender an excessive amount of thought....
-we touch into skillful thoughts....
-after touching in, we center ourselves in the breath.....
-in fabricating skillful thinking....
-we pay attention to the affect....
-how we are saying the words....
-the tone of the inner voice....
-we cultivate a quality of sincerity, earnestness....
-we understand what the words mean....
-we know the 'subtext'....
-for example, in using the word compassion we have a sense that this means we have a wish for the heart to be free from its burdens....
-as dharma students, over time, we learn to develop, by using words, a sense of the subtext....
6-as we practice skillful thinking we become sensitive to when thinking is skillful......
-we learn, by being mindful of the body, to know whether thinking is skillful or unskillful....
-when thinking is unskillful....
-there is a quality of dis-ease in the body.....
-when thinking is skillful.....
-there is a quality of ease in the body....
-when thinking is skillful, we have a felt sense of the heart....
-there is happiness of heart.....
-reading.....
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with an impure mind
And trouble will follow you
As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with a pure mind
And happiness will follow you
As your shadow, unshakable.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Live with such thoughts and you live in hate.
"Look how he abused me and hurt me,
How he threw me down and robbed me."
Abandon such thoughts, and live in love.
In this world
Hate never yet dispelled hate.
Only love dispels hate.
This is the law,
Ancient and inexhaustible.
You too shall pass away.
Knowing this,
how can you quarrel?
How easily the wind overturns a frail tree.
Seek happiness in the senses,
Indulge in food and sleep,
And you too will be uprooted.
The wind cannot overturn a mountain.
Temptation cannot touch the man
Who is awake, strong and humble,
Who masters himself and minds the dharma.
If a man's thoughts are muddy,
If he is reckless and full of deceit,
How can he wear the yellow robe?
Whoever is master of his own nature,
Bright, clear and true,
He may indeed wear the yellow robe.
Mistaking the false for the true,
And the true for the false,
You overlook the heart
And fill yourself with desire.
See the false as false,
The true as true.
Look into your heart.
Follow your nature.
An unreflecting mind is a poor roof.
Passion, like the rain, floods the house.
But if the roof is strong, there is shelter.
Whoever follows impure thoughts
Suffers in this world and the next.
In both worlds he suffers
And how greatly
When he sees the wrong he has done.
But whoever follows the dharma
Is joyful here and joyful there.
In both worlds he rejoices
And how greatly
When he sees the good he has done.
For great is the harvest in this world,
And greater still in the next.
However many holy words you read,
However many you speak,
What good will they do you If you do not act upon them?
Are you a shepherd
Who counts another man's sheep,
Never sharing the way?
Read as few words as you like,
And speak fewer.
But act upon the dharma.
Give up the old ways –
Passion, enmity, folly.
Know the truth and find peace.
Share the way.
(Dhp 1)
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with non-ill will arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with non-ill will has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with harmlessness arose in me. I discerned that 'Thinking imbued with harmlessness has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to Unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night... even for a day... even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed; and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.' So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.
"Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with renunciation, abandoning thinking imbued with sensuality, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with renunciation. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with non-ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with non-ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmlessness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmfulness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmlessness.
"Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply keeps himself mindful of 'those cows.' In the same way, I simply kept myself mindful of 'those mental qualities.'"
(MN 19)
Lovingkindness Retreat – An Online Daylong Retreat
Saturday, January 10
10am -11:30am (USA/EST)
1pm - 2:30pm
4pm - 5:30pm
Fee by donation
To sign up and receive the zoom link please send an email.
Teacher Support
Donations to support the teacher, Peter Doobinin, can be made through Zelle using the email address: [email protected]
Donations can also be made via PayPal by using the address: [email protected]
(If using PayPal, this is the preferred method; please use the "personal/family & friends" function.)
Information about making a donation using a credit card are found on the Support page.
Thanks for your generosity!
