Shambhala Publications and Snow Lion Publications.
~
Bodhichitta can be understood as a quality of intention, sometimes called a
-“great will.” This great will does not come from the ego; it is
+"great will." This great will does not come from the ego; it is
paradoxically an intention that arises through the surrender of the ego. As
the ego lets go of its assumption that it has a real understanding of what is
needed in the path of awakening, it surrenders to a deeper quality of will and
-wisdom. The shift from the ego’s center of will to the intention of our
+wisdom. The shift from the ego's center of will to the intention of our
buddha nature to awaken us for the welfare of others aligns us with a source
of will far beyond our limited sense of self. I have often described this
will as a river of intention, which once stepped into becomes an undercurrent
natural resources. It finances startups. It helps to sell our products
overseas. It provides security to our diplomats abroad.
So let's work together to make government work better, instead of treating
-it like an enemy or purposely making it work worse. That’s not what the
+it like an enemy or purposely making it work worse. That's not what the
founders of this nation envisioned when they gave us the gift of self-
-government. You don’t like a particular policy or a particular president,
+government. You don't like a particular policy or a particular president,
then argue for your position. Go out there and win an election. Push to
-change it. But don’t break it. Don’t break what our predecessors spent
+change it. But don't break it. Don't break what our predecessors spent
over two centuries building. That's not being faithful to what this country
is about.
-- Barack Obama, after the US government shutdown of 2013 had ended.
When the teachings say we need to reduce our fascination with the things of
this life, it does not mean that we should abandon them completely. It means
avoiding the natural tendency to go from elation to depression in reaction to
-life’s ups and downs, jumping for joy when you have some success, or wanting
+life's ups and downs, jumping for joy when you have some success, or wanting
to jump out the window if you do not get what you want. Being less concerned
about the affairs of this life means assuming its ups and downs with a broad
and stable mind.
an exercise") without acceptance of their results.
Critical thinking varies according to the motivation underlying it. When
grounded in selfish motives, it is often manifested in the skillful
-manipulation of ideas in service of one’s own, or one's groups’, vested
+manipulation of ideas in service of one's own, or one's groups', vested
interest. As such it is typically intellectually flawed, however
pragmatically successful it might be. When grounded in fairmindedness and
intellectual integrity, it is typically of a higher order intellectually,
Buddhist teachings compare the mind and the breath to a rider and its mount.
In this metaphor, the wind energy is the mount and the mind is the rider.
This metaphor illustrates how it is the wind energy that carries the mind and
-that influences and shapes the mind’s energy. The wind energy is the root
-of all of our experience, since it provides energy for the mind’s movement.
+that influences and shapes the mind's energy. The wind energy is the root
+of all of our experience, since it provides energy for the mind's movement.
So, wind energy training is a powerful tool for purifying, calming, taming,
and relaxing the wind energy to impact the expression of neurotic mind.
-- Anyen Rinpoche and Allison Choying Zangmo, from "The Tibetan Yoga of
the Mind of Dzogchen", published by Shambhala Publications and Snow Lion
Publications.
~
-Detachment doesn't mean "throw it away" or "don’t have feelings
+Detachment doesn't mean "throw it away" or "don't have feelings
about it." It definitely does not mean denying or obstructing the mind's
natural tendency to project. Imagine you are about to go into a cotton
factory. Before entering you pour glue all over your body, and then you
-demand, "I don’t want any cotton balls to stick to my body, but I won’t
+demand, "I don't want any cotton balls to stick to my body, but I won't
remove the glue from my body either." Then you enter the cotton factory.
Of course the glue, by its nature, makes cotton balls stick to you. In
meditative language, that kind of stickiness is called deliberation or
mastery over their minds, which abide like space without any appearance of
characteristics. Thus, no matter what they encounter, they are able to act as
they please without being bound by any attachment or aversion.
- -- Karl Brunnhölzl, from "Mining for Wisdom within Delusion: Maitreya’s
+ -- Karl Brunnhölzl, from "Mining for Wisdom within Delusion: Maitreya's
Distinction between Phenomena and the Nature of Phenomena and Its Indian
and Tibetan Commentaries", published by Shambhala Publications and Snow
Lion Publications
our pleasure, displeasure, or indifference, but have feelings just like ours.
By turning our awareness outward and closely applying mindfulness to other
sentient beings, we can empathize with their feelings. When we empathize with
-another’s suffering and we attend closely, compassion arises. The suffering
+another's suffering and we attend closely, compassion arises. The suffering
of unpleasant feelings is the very source of the experience of compassion.
-- B. Alan Wallace, in "Minding Closely: The Four Applications of
Mindfulness", works published by Shambhala Publications and Snow Lion
-- Chögyam Trungpa, from "The Path of Individual Liberation, Volume One of
The Profound Treasury of the Ocean of Dharma", published by Shambhala
Publications
+~
+ So, what makes you a Buddhist? You may not have been born in a Buddhist
+country or to a Buddhist family, you may not wear robes or shave your head,
+you may eat meat and idolize Eminem and Paris Hilton. That doesn't mean you
+cannot be a Buddhist. In order to be a Buddhist, you must accept that all
+compounded phenomena are impermanent, all emotions are pain, all things have
+no inherent existence, and enlightenment is beyond concepts.
+ It's not necessary to be constantly and endlessly mindful of these four
+truths. But they must reside in your mind. You don't walk around
+persistently remembering your own name, but when someone asks your name, you
+remember it instantly. There is no doubt. Anyone who accepts these four
+seals, even independently of Buddha's teachings, even never having heard the
+name Shakyamuni Buddha, can be considered to be on the same path as he.
+ -- Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse, from "What Makes You Not a Buddhist",
+ published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+The self-centered thought is not who we are. The self-centered thought is
+different from the mind that wants to be happy because we’re sentient
+beings. Everybody wants to be happy. There’s no problem with wanting to be
+happy. The problem is the way the self-centered thought goes about thinking
+of our happiness and the way it goes about getting happiness. It is a
+distorted mental state that can be eliminated by seeing its disadvantages,
+applying the antidotes, and cultivating the mind that cherishes others.
+ - Thubten Chodron, from "Don’t Believe Everything You Think: Living with
+ Wisdom and Compassion", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+ According to the sutras, numerous eons ago, when the Buddha was an ordinary
+being, he took rebirth in a hell realm. He suffered gravely there as a result
+of his past negative karma.
+ He and a companion were forced to pull a wheel of fire on which a wrathful
+hell-guard was sitting, holding a burning club with which to beat them. His
+companion was so weak that he couldn’t pull the wheel anymore. The hell-
+guard stabbed his companion with a burning trident. His companion kept crying
+loudly and bleeding profusely. At that moment, with strong love and
+compassion, the Buddha developed enlightened aspiration, a vow to take
+responsibility for helping his companion and all the suffering beings from the
+depth of his heart, and he became a bodhisattva for the first time.
+ The bodhisattva begged the hell-guard, "Please have a little mercy on my
+suffering companion." At that, in a rage the hellguard hit him with a
+burning trident. Because of the power of his strong compassion, the
+bodhisattva died and was liberated from the hell-realm. His evil deeds of
+many eons were purified instantly by the power of such enlightened aspiration.
+Thereafter, he started his journey toward the fully enlightened state of
+buddhahood.
+ -- Tulku Thondup, from "Incarnation: The History and Mysticism of the Tulku
+ Tradition of Tibet", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Below rocky cliffs,
+a vivid sense of impermanence and disenchantment dawns,
+clear and inspired, helping us to achieve
+the union of calm abiding and penetrating insight.
+ -- Longchenpa, from "The Life of Longchenpa: The Omniscient Dharma King of
+ the Vast Expanse", by Jampa Mackenzie Stewart, published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+From one point of view, personal liberation without freeing others is selfish
+and unfair, because all sentient beings also have the natural right and desire
+to be free of suffering. Therefore, it is important for practitioners to
+engage in the practice of the stages of the path of the highest scope,
+starting with the generation of bodhichitta, the altruistic aspiration to
+achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. Once one has
+cultivated bodhichitta, all the meritorious actions that are supported by and
+complemented with this altruism—even the slightest form of positive
+action—become causes for the achievement of omniscience.
+ -- H. H. the Dalai Lama, from "The Fourteenth Dalai Lama in A Beginner’s
+ Guide to Meditation: Practical Advice and Inspiration from Contemporary
+ Buddhist Teachers", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Note that all dualistic concepts and emotions—even positive ones such as
+caring, compassion, and wishing others well—are accompanied by grasping at
+“self.” So although positive emotions are good, they still fall short of
+perfection, which is the primordial wisdom beyond dualistic thinking and
+emotional sensations. Grasping at positive qualities is nonetheless a
+stepping-stone to perfection, helping us eventually to loosen the grip of
+grasping at “self” and to experience sensations of peace and joy. So,
+transforming from negative to positive, and then from positive to perfection,
+is the ideal way to move toward buddhahood, or full perfection.
+ -- Tulku Thondup, from "Peaceful Death, Joyful Rebirth: A Tibetan Buddhist
+ Guidebook", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+ In the final stanza of his salutation, Tsong-kha-pa (1: 34) calls upon
+readers who may benefit from this approach, asking them to listen well. Such
+readers will be those with minds unclouded by biased thinking, the mental
+capacity to distinguish right from wrong, and an interest in finding real
+meaning in their human existence of leisure and opportunity. He asks those of
+us with such good fortune, "Please listen to what I have to say with a
+single-pointed mind."
+ Again, this is strikingly similar to Aryadeva’s Four Hundred, which says
+that a practitioner of the Dharma who is listening to the teachings needs
+three qualities: objectivity, critical intelligence, and a real interest in
+what is being taught.
+ -- H. H. the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, in "From Here to Enlightenment: An
+ Introduction to Tsong-kha-pa’s Classic Text The Great Treatise on the
+ Stages of the Path to Enlightenment", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+When we look back, at the time of death, the experience of this life will seem
+like a dream. And—just as with our nighttime dreams—it will seem useless
+to have put so much effort into it. The fear we experience in a dream is gone
+when we wake up; feeling afraid was just an unnecessary exertion of effort
+causing us to lose sleep! When we look back on our lives at death, the amount
+of time we spent in hesitation, aggression, ignorance, selfishness, jealousy,
+hatred, self-preservation, and arrogance will seem like an equally useless
+exertion of energy. So be able to regard all of these illusory thoughts and
+concepts as dreams. Within this illusory existence, what, if anything, is the
+logic behind any stubbornness, distraction, hesitation, or habitual emotions
+of aggression, desire, selfishness, and jealousy? What is the use of holding
+on to these useless emotions within impermanence? Impermanence is the nature
+of everything.
+ -- Khandro Rinpoche, from "Buddha’s Daughters: Teachings from Women Who
+ Are Shaping Buddhism in the West", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Please listen without your minds wandering.
+Though I am not skilled in composing songs,
+This is the way to understand the true oral instructions.
+Keep this in mind and ponder it.
+
+The three worlds are primordially pure.
+Ultimately, there is nothing more to understand.
+Not negation, unceasing continuity,
+Unchanging—such is the view.
+
+The innate essence is naturally luminous.
+Unconditioned, meditation is unceasing.
+Not negation, beyond losing and gaining,
+Without desire or attachment—such is the meditation.
+
+Arising from the natural occurrence of various coincidences,
+The play of illusion is unobstructed.
+Not negation,
+Things are unpredictable, abrupt—such is the action.
+
+Mind shines as bodhicitta.
+There is no attainment of the three kayas of buddha.
+Not negation, beyond hope and fear,
+Without ground or root—such is the fruition.
+ - from "The Life of Marpa the Translator", translated by Chögyam Trungpa
+ and the Nalanda Translation Committee, published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+FDR's Economic Bill of Rights
+
+ It is our duty now to begin to lay the plans and determine the strategy
+for the winning of a lasting peace and the establishment of an American
+standard of living higher than ever before known. We cannot be content, no
+matter how high that general standard of living may be, if some fraction of
+our people—whether it be one-third or one-fifth or one-tenth—is ill-fed,
+ill-clothed, ill-housed, and insecure.
+ This Republic had its beginning, and grew to its present strength, under
+the protection of certain inalienable political rights—among them the right
+of free speech, free press, free worship, trial by jury, freedom from
+unreasonable searches and seizures. They were our rights to life and liberty.
+ As our nation has grown in size and stature, however—as our industrial
+economy expanded—these political rights proved inadequate to assure us
+equality in the pursuit of happiness.
+ We have come to a clear realization of the fact that true individual
+freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence.
+"Necessitous men are not free men."[3] People who are hungry and out of a
+job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.
+ In our day these economic truths have become accepted as self-evident. We
+have accepted, so to speak, a second Bill of Rights under which a new basis of
+security and prosperity can be established for all—regardless of station,
+race, or creed.
+
+ Among these are:
+
+ The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or
+farms or mines of the nation;
+
+ The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and
+recreation;
+
+ The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which
+will give him and his family a decent living;
+
+ The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere
+of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or
+abroad;
+
+ The right of every family to a decent home;
+
+ The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and
+enjoy good health;
+
+ The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age,
+sickness, accident, and unemployment;
+
+ The right to a good education.
+
+ All of these rights spell security. And after this war is won we must be
+prepared to move forward, in the implementation of these rights, to new goals
+of human happiness and well-being.
+ America's own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how
+fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for all our
+citizens.
+ For unless there is security here at home there cannot be lasting peace in
+the world.
+ -- Excerpt from President Roosevelt's January 11, 1944 message to the
+ Congress of the United States on the State of the Union
projects / feisty_meow.git / blobdiff