That’s when we have truly become students of the Dharma.
-- Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, from "Sadness, Love, Openness: The Buddhist
Path of Joy", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Buddha qualities are indivisible.
+The disposition is attained as it is.
+The true state is [always] free from any fickleness and deceit.
+Since beginningless time the nature has been peace itself.
+
+Direct perfect enlightenment [with regard to] all aspects,
+and abandonment of the stains along with their imprints
+[are called] buddha and nirvana respectively.
+In truth, these are not two different things.
+
+ -- Maitreya, Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Taye, Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso, and
+ Asanga in "Buddha Nature: The Mahayana Uttaratantra Shastra with Commentary",
+ Translated by Rosemarie Fuchs, published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Like vines that wrap themselves round sandal trees,
+People who keep company with holy ones
+Become, in their turn, holy.
+
+And like kusha grass left in a fetid marsh,
+People who keep company with evil beings
+Will in their turn be evil.
+
+So keep the company of holy beings
+And from bad teachers strive to keep your distance.
+
+ -- Longchenpa, in "Finding Rest in the Nature of the Mind, The Trilogy of
+ Rest, Volume 1", Translated by Padmakara Translation Group, published by
+ Shambhala Publications
+~
+Thinking about the self as composed of "aggregates" (Skt. skandha) can
+help us reflect on our personal identity in new ways. Generally, we attribute
+characteristics to our personal identity, feeling that it is solid, permanent,
+and real. But here, describing the self as being composed of aggregates can
+help us see ourselves more accurately. The word skandha can be translated
+literally as "heap." This definition, when applied to ourselves, can help
+us see that we do not have a cohesive, real, and solid self. We are just a
+heap of stuff — flesh, blood, veins, nerves, bones, hair, cartilage, and so
+on. When we sort through this heap, what are we actually? None of the
+elements of the heap is actually "me." We are a mere mishmash of material
+conditions that we have identified with and labeled "I."
+ -- Anyen Rinpoche and Allison Choying Zangmo, in "Stop Biting the Tail
+ You're Chasing: Using Buddhist Mind Training to Free Yourself from Painful
+ Emotional Patterns" published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+I once heard a Buddhist teacher say that the whole point of having a teacher
+was to become autonomous. I considered that for a while. I thought, "Well,
+yes, as a mother, I did everything I could to help my son stand on his own two
+feet. I get that." But is it possible for anyone to stand on their own two
+feet without their mother, father, or guardian to guide them? When we are
+born, we are completely helpless and dependent. We would never survive
+without the help of others. There is truly no such thing as autonomy. So if
+you want to live in accordance with the nature of things—which means living
+in grace—practically speaking, it will require some humility and gratitude
+for the ways in which your tradition has come down to you with so much care.
+ -- Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel, from "The Logic of Faith: The Buddhist Approach
+ to Finding Certainty Beyond Belief and Doubt", published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+If we are attached to a thought, it becomes an obstacle to the development of
+our meditation or samadhi. The remedies for reducing attachments to thoughts
+are called "pacification" and "taming the mind," which involve what to
+do when we are unwilling to let go of thoughts. Normally we regard thoughts,
+and especially certain thoughts, as either particularly important or
+particularly pleasant and therefore worthwhile or entertaining. However, in
+meditation, thoughts are nothing other than impediments to what we are trying
+to do. So, when we are practicing meditation, we have to maintain the
+attitude, "This is my time to meditate and now I am not trying to think
+thoughts. If I let myself think, I am wasting this time I have to practice."
+ -- Khenchen Thrangu, from "The Mahamudra Lineage Prayer: A Guide to
+ Practice", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+The arrogant mind never stops searching for identity, and this identity always
+defines itself through attributes: "the beautiful one," "the smart one,"
+"the creative one," "the successful one." Sometimes we take this further by
+creating a more elaborate persona: "the rebel," "the maverick," "the suffering
+artist," "the fearless leader." We can hold onto these labels on a "good" day.
+But when we feel insecure about our attributes, or our lack thereof, we start
+to wonder how to define ourselves; we wonder who it is we really are.
+Regardless of whether we’re having a good day or a low self-esteem day, the
+point is, we haven’t found a way to relax, to be natural, unself-conscious.
+We don’t know how to take our seat in ordinariness and feel comfortable in
+our own skin. We’re always searching for something to be.
+ -- Dzigar Kongtrul, from "Light Comes Through: Buddhist Teachings on
+ Awakening to Our Natural Intelligence", published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+VOTE DEMOCRAT 2018
+It's time for the adults to take back the wheel
+WE KNOW OUR ABCS...
+Apple pie, Baseball, Compassion, & Science
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+Elevate your experience and remain wide-open like the sky.
+Expand your mindfulness and remain pervasive like the earth.
+Steady your attention and remain unshakable like a mountain.
+Brighten your awareness and remain shining like a flame.
+Clear your thought-free wakefulness and remain lucid like a crystal.
+ -- Dakpo Tashi Namgyal, "Clarifying the Natural State", from "Jewels of
+ Enlightenment: Wisdom Teachings from the Great Tibetan Masters", compiled
+ and translated by Erik Pema Kunsang, published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Meditation, by nature, is like tasting nectar.
+
+To meditate on the meaning of what you have heard and contemplated
+pacifies all the illnesses of negative emotions.
+
+You will cross the ocean of conditioned existence and arrive at the
+far shore--the heart essence.
+
+Please meditate in the forest from now on.
+
+ -- Longchenpa, from "The Life of Longchenpa: The Omniscient Dharma King of
+ the Vast Expanse", Compiled and edited by Jampa Mackenzie Stewart, published
+ by Shambhala Publications
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