And you may say to yourself "MY GOD! WHAT HAVE I DONE?"
-- The Talking Heads
~
-The nice thing about standards is that there are
-so many of them to choose from.
+The nice thing about standards is that you have so many to choose from;
+furthermore, if you do not like any of them,
+you can just wait for next year's model.
-- Andrew S. Tanenbaum
~
A bore is a man who, when you ask him how he is, will tell you.
Whenever you have an efficient government you have a dictatorship.
-- Harry S. Truman, 1959
~
-A little more moderation would be good. Of course,
-my life hasn't exactly been one of moderation.
- -- Donald Trump, in "Time", 16 January 1989
-~
-I like thinking big. If you're going to be thinking
-anything, you might as well think big.
- -- Donald Trump, in "Time", 16 January 1989
-~
The more laws and order are made prominent,
the more thieves and robbers there will be.
-- Lao Tsu
and when death is present we no longer exist.
-- Epicurus
~
-Singing and danching are the voice of dharma. -- Hakuin
+Singing and dancing are the voice of dharma. -- Hakuin
~
All great truths begin as blasphemies. -- George Bernard Shaw
~
~
Parents were invented to make children happy
by giving them something to ignore.
- -- Ofden Nash
+ -- Ogden Nash
~
Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality.
-- Jules de Gaultier
-- Glenn Mullin, "The Practice of Kalachakra", foreword by H.H. the Dalai
Lama, published by Snow Lion Publications
~
-After suffering severe puncture wounds without shooting any goop on my
-opponent, I realized I was simply outgunned. Never bring caulk to a
+After suffering severe puncture wounds without shooting any goop on my
+opponent, I realized I was simply outgunned. Never bring caulk to a
nailgun fight.
-- Stephanie S. Thompson
~
attachment, aggression, jealousy, arrogance, and stupidity. It can manifest
as feeling like we're better than others, but just as easily it can manifest
as low self-esteem, or even self-hatred. The bottom line is that we regard
-this self—whatever or wherever it is—as the most important thing in the
+this self--whatever or wherever it is--as the most important thing in the
entire universe.
-- Dzigar Kongtrul, from "The Intelligent Heart: A Guide to the
Compassionate Life", published by Shambhala Publications.
proving far more hospitable to our growth than past eras of idealized calm and
simplicity. When we figure out for ourselves how to apply the wisdom of books
to whatever difficult circumstances arise in life, then that wisdom becomes
-part of our mind. We become transformed. My hope for every reader—as well
-as for myself—is that we will apply these lojong teachings again and again
+part of our mind. We become transformed. My hope for every reader--as well
+as for myself--is that we will apply these lojong teachings again and again
until they become part of who we are.
-- Dzigar Kongtrul and Joseph Waxman, in "The Intelligent Heart: A Guide
to the Compassionate Life", published by Shambhala Publications
caves in order to actualize what had been transmitted. After only nine days
of meditation, he spontaneously experienced a strong feeling of warmth and
bliss. He removed his monk robes and dressed himself in the simple attire of
-white cotton—repa—worn by yogis. He meditated for nine months,
+white cotton-repa--worn by yogis. He meditated for nine months,
concentrating in particular on the practice of calm abiding (samatha), which
allows practitioners to pacify and stabilize their mind. Having excelled in
this, he continued his retreat for three more years, perfecting his meditative
nonperception.
These states can certainly appear enormously attractive from our human
point of view. In fact, they correspond to what many think religious practice
-is all about—attaining some kind of heaven or some sort of tranquillity or
+is all about--attaining some kind of heaven or some sort of tranquillity or
bliss. But from the Buddhist viewpoint, the sublimity even of these states is
not a worthy ultimate goal. One may ask, "What can possibly be wrong with
such attainments?"
The path of insight begins after the highest worldly dharma and consists
of calm abiding as a basis for special insight focused on the Four Noble
Truths. Four insights correspond to each of the Four Noble Truths, making a
-total of sixteen—eight patient acceptances and eight cognitions: the patient
+total of sixteen-eight patient acceptances and eight cognitions: the patient
acceptance of the cognition of the dharma with respect to suffering, the
cognition of the dharma with respect to suffering, the patient acceptance of
the cognition that is the subsequent realization with respect to suffering,
wisdom clearly observes the exhaustion of the cause and non-production of the
result and is called the "awareness of the exhaustion and non-production."
Why is this called the path of perfection? Because the training is
-perfected and one enters the city of nirvana—this is why it is called the
+perfected and one enters the city of nirvana--this is why it is called the
path of perfection. At this stage, there are ten attainments of no-more-
training: starting with perfect view of no-more-training through the perfect
absorption of no-more-training and then the full liberation of no-more-
-training and the perfect primordial wisdom of no-more-training—these ten
+training and the perfect primordial wisdom of no-more-training--these ten
attainments of no-more-training are included in the five unafflicted skandas:
perfect speech of no-more-training, perfect action, and perfect
There is but one truth: absence of all origin,
Yet some will crow about there being four.
But in the essence of enlightenment,
- Not one is found—why speak of four?
+ Not one is found--why speak of four?
But whereas on the ultimate level, the two truths are not posited, on the
relative level, they are. For there is certainly a difference between the way
things are and the way they appear. As was said earlier, "These the two
truths are declared to be."
- -- The Wisdom Chapter: Jamgön Mipham’s Commentary on the Ninth Chapter of
+ -- The Wisdom Chapter: Jamgön Mipham's Commentary on the Ninth Chapter of
The Way of the Bodhisattva, translated by the Padmakara Translation
Group, published by Shambhala Publications
~
wish to practice in accordance with the teaching expounded by their master and
should (4) zealously adopt the supreme protection afforded by the merit
accumulated in their past and present existences. The venerable Nagarjuna
-refers to these four conditions as the ‘‘four wheels,’’ the idea being
+refers to these four conditions as the "four wheels," the idea being
that, just as someone riding in a (horse-drawn) chariot can cover in a short
time a distance that would take many days for a cow or ox, a Bodhisattva
taking advantage of these four conditions will progress speedily toward
Your dwelling place befits the task,
You keep the company of holy beings.
With highest aspirations and a store of merit,
- You have indeed the ‘‘four wheels’’ all complete.
+ You have indeed the "four wheels" all complete.
-- from "Treasury of Precious Qualities, Book One: Sutra Teachings", by
Jigme Lingpa, translated by the Padmakara Translation Group, published
Will flow unceasing.
Especially to those who in the future meditate
Upon the subtle veins and energies,
- I’ll show myself--at best directly,
+ I'll show myself--at best directly,
Else in visions, or at least in dreams,
Appearing as a common person, or as the secret consort.
I shall clear the obstacles of those who keep samaya,
As promised, she continuously appears to lead and inspire the faithful in
dreams, visions, and real life. As well, her human reincarnations ceaselessly
return to the world, guiding others in whatever capacity is needed.
- -- from "The Life and Visions of Yeshé Tsogyal", by Drimé Kunga and Yeshé
- Tsogyal Translated by Chönyi Drolma, published by Shambhala Publications
+ -- from "The Life and Visions of Yeshe Tsogyal", by Drime Kunga and Yeshe
+ Tsogyal, translated by Chönyi Drolma, published by Shambhala Publications
~
It is impossible to conceive how many beings, from beginningless time in
samsara, have been related to us--as parents, as enemies, or as people
begging for alms, he came across a group of people and, perceiving the karmic
links that bound them together, commented:
- He strikes his mother, eats his father’s flesh;
+ He strikes his mother, eats his father's flesh;
His hated foe he dandles on his lap.
- Here is a wife that sucks her husband’s bones--
+ Here is a wife that sucks her husband's bones--
At this samsara how can I not laugh?
-- from "Treasury of Precious Qualities, Book One: Sutra Teachings", by
-- H.H. the Dalai Lama, from "The Heart of Meditation", translated and
edited by Jeffrey Hopkins, published by Shambhala Publications
~
- There’s a common misunderstanding among all the human beings who have
+ There's a common misunderstanding among all the human beings who have
ever been born on the earth that the best way to live is to try to avoid pain
and just try to get comfortable. You can see this even in insects and animals
and birds.
to begin to develop our curiosity, not caring whether the object of our
inquisitiveness is bitter or sweet.
When people start to meditate or to work with any kind of spiritual
-discipline, they often think that somehow they’re going to improve, which is
-a sort of subtle aggression against who they really are. It’s a bit
-like saying, “If I jog, I’ll be a much better person.” Or the scenario
-may be that they find fault with others; they might say, “If it weren’t
-for my husband, I’d have a perfect marriage.” And “If it weren’t for
-my mind, my meditation would be excellent.”
- But loving-kindness--maitri--toward ourselves doesn’t mean getting rid
+discipline, they often think that somehow they're going to improve, which is
+a sort of subtle aggression against who they really are. It's a bit like
+saying, "If I jog, I'll be a much better person." Or the scenario may be
+that they find fault with others; they might say, "If it weren't for my
+husband, I'd have a perfect marriage." And "If it weren't for my mind, my
+meditation would be excellent."
+ But loving-kindness--maitri--toward ourselves doesn't mean getting rid
of anything. Maitri means that we can still be crazy after all these years.
We can still be angry after all these years. We can still be timid or jealous
-or full of feelings of unworthiness. Meditation practice isn’t about trying
-to throw ourselves away and become something better. It’s about befriending
+or full of feelings of unworthiness. Meditation practice isn't about trying
+to throw ourselves away and become something better. It's about befriending
who we are already.
Perhaps we will experience what is traditionally described as the fruition
of maitri--playfulness...
Publications
~
In texts we inherited from India, the basic principle is sometimes called
-the “fundamental innate mind of clear light” and the “fundamental innate
-wisdom of clear light”— these two terms having the same meaning. In other
-texts, it is called the “space-diamond pervading space,” whereas in even
-others it is called the “jewel mind,” as, for example, when it is said,
-“Separate from the jewel mind, there is no buddha and no sentient being.”
- Then, in Tibet, in some texts, it is called “ordinary consciousness”
-and “innermost awareness.” These terms are used in the context of speaking
+the "fundamental innate mind of clear light" and the "fundamental innate
+wisdom of clear light"--these two terms having the same meaning. In other
+texts, it is called the "space-diamond pervading space," whereas in even
+others it is called the "jewel mind," as, for example, when it is said,
+"Separate from the jewel mind, there is no buddha and no sentient being."
+ Then, in Tibet, in some texts, it is called "ordinary consciousness"
+and "innermost awareness." These terms are used in the context of speaking
about freedom from thought, which is psychologically and experientially
-described as “self-release,” “naked release,” and “unimpeded
-penetration”; we will be discussing these in detail later. The innermost
+described as "self-release," "naked release," and "unimpeded
+penetration"; we will be discussing these in detail later. The innermost
awareness is said to be the basis of the appearance of all of the round of
-suffering (called “cyclic existence”) and also the basis of liberation
-(called “nirvana”). Everything, without exception, is complete in the
-continuum of innermost awareness. It is even said to be “naturally arisen,”
+suffering (called "cyclic existence") and also the basis of liberation
+(called "nirvana"). Everything, without exception, is complete in the
+continuum of innermost awareness. It is even said to be "naturally arisen,"
since it has always been and always will be.
-- H.H. the Dalai Lama, from "The Heart of Meditation", translated and
edited by Jeffrey Hopkins, published by Shambhala Publications
living beings who circle in samsara through their clinging to true existence.
For as it has been taught, it is in the nature of things that such an attitude
is born.
- -- from "The Wisdom Chapter: Jamgön Mipham’s Commentary on the Ninth
+ -- from "The Wisdom Chapter: Jamgön Mipham's Commentary on the Ninth
Chapter of The Way of the Bodhisattva", published by Shambhala
Publications
~
If appearances cease and you are without thoughts,
These are the doings of a lethargic shamatha.
But when you rouse yourself with mindfulness,
-It’s like a candle, self-luminous and shining bright,
-Or like a flower that’s naturally vivid and clear.
+It's like a candle, self-luminous and shining bright,
+Or like a flower that's naturally vivid and clear.
Like looking with your eyes at the glow of the sky,
Awareness-emptiness is naked, open, and clear.
-That nonconceptuality that’s luminous and clear
+That nonconceptuality that's luminous and clear
Is the arising of the shamatha experience.
On the basis of that meditative experience,
While supplicating the precious jewels,
Having been lifted up with a pure aspiration
To the completely pure path of seeing,
There, vipashyana directly realizes the purity that cannot be seen
-And then the faults of mind’s hopes and fears will be known.
-Without going anywhere, you’ll arrive at the Buddha’s ground.
-Without looking at anything, you’ll see dharmakaya.
+And then the faults of mind's hopes and fears will be known.
+Without going anywhere, you'll arrive at the Buddha's ground.
+Without looking at anything, you'll see dharmakaya.
Without achieving anything, your aim will be spontaneously accomplished.
-- from "The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa", By Tsangnyon Heruka,
- Translated by Christopher Stagg, published by Shambhala Publications
+ translated by Christopher Stagg, published by Shambhala Publications
~
Trying to find the pain in life is the renunciation of hinayana. Trying to
find the ambition in life, trying to reach higher goals, is the
-bodhisattva’s ambition in the mahayana. Trying to find the subtleties of
-life is the tantric discovery of mystical experience in the vajrayana.
- -- Milarepa, from "Milarepa: Lessons from the Life and Songs of Tibet’s
+bodhisattva's ambition in the mahayana. Trying to find the subtleties of
+life is the tantric discovery of mystical experience in the vajrayana.
+ -- Milarepa, from "Milarepa: Lessons from the Life and Songs of Tibet's
Great Yogi", by Chögyam Trungpa, published by Shambhala Publications
~
The root of our current unsatisfactory condition in a cycle of death and
conceived does not exist at all. In order reach this realization, according
to Tsong kha pa, one must use reason to refute the existence, and to prove the
nonexistence, of this reified self or essence. Having intellectually arrived
-at the correct philosophical view—that the self lacks a shred of intrinsic
-nature—one proceeds along the path to spiritual liberation through intense,
+at the correct philosophical view--that the self lacks a shred of intrinsic
+nature--one proceeds along the path to spiritual liberation through intense,
deep, and extensive meditative familiarization with this view. At the same
time, however, the practitioner also cultivates compassionate engagement with
other living beings, making a commitment to help all of them reach perfect
happiness.
-- from "Ask a Farmer: Ultimate Analysis and Conventional Existence in
- Tsong kha pa’s Lam rim chen mo", by Guy Newland from Changing Minds:
+ Tsong kha pa's Lam rim chen mo", by Guy Newland from Changing Minds:
Contributions to the Study of Buddhism and Tibet in Honor of Jeffrey
Hopkins, edited by Guy Newland, published by Shambhala Publications
~
order to gain experience with the inner subtle elements, which are the source
of the outer gross elements. Then they can make art which reflects what
people need.
- According to the Buddhist point of view, an artist’s intention is
+ According to the Buddhist point of view, an artist's intention is
compassion. Buddhist artists create in order to make a link with other beings
through their inner pure elements, and to transform their outer ordinary gross
-elements into enlightenment by means of that connection.
+elements into enlightenment by means of that connection.
-- Thinley Norbu, from "Magic Dance: The Display of the Self-Nature of the
Five Wisdom Dakinis", published by Shambhala Publications
~
real world grokking just not ready.
-- fred t. hamster
~
- Generally speaking, when we are too desirous of something in life, we’re
+ Generally speaking, when we are too desirous of something in life, we're
less likely to attain it. Success seems to increase in direct proportion to
the diminution of our desires. The same logic applies to our need for
recognition. We might want to be appreciated and respected, but we have only
-a limited ability to influence how other people respond and we can’t make
+a limited ability to influence how other people respond and we can't make
somebody show us gratitude any more than we can force someone to love us. If
we show love without expecting it to be reciprocated, we will have more chance
of finding love than if we simply yearn for it. Likewise, doing something
Rinpoche has given us the essential opening instructions for practicing
Pristine Mind meditation in four steps:
- Don’t follow the past.
- Don’t anticipate the future.
+ Don't follow the past.
+ Don't anticipate the future.
Remain in the present moment.
Leave your mind alone.
flowers grow in the summer but not in the winter. If causes were not
necessary, flowers would grow in the winter also. They would grow at all
times.
- -- Khenchen Thrangu, "Essential Practice: Lectures on Kamalashīla’s
+ -- Khenchen Thrangu, "Essential Practice: Lectures on Kamalashīla's
Stages of Meditation in the Middle Way School", published by Shambhala
Publications
~
suffer greatly. Therefore, sentient beings born in the states of the six
wanderers have nothing but suffering. If we think about that, compassion can
arise.
- -- Khenchen Thrangu, "Essential Practice: Lectures on Kamalashīla’s
+ -- Khenchen Thrangu, "Essential Practice: Lectures on Kamalashīla's
Stages of Meditation in the Middle Way School", published by Shambhala
Publications
~
When they related this to Buddha, he poured water into a little vessel and
-asked, “Will this water remain without evaporating?” Because India is very
-hot, the Hearers thought, “In a few days the water will evaporate. This
-must mean that our virtue will not remain at all.” They were extremely
-worried. Then Buddha asked, “If this water is poured in the ocean, how long
-will it stay? It will remain until the ocean itself evaporates.”
+asked, "Will this water remain without evaporating?" Because India is very
+hot, the Hearers thought, "In a few days the water will evaporate. This
+must mean that our virtue will not remain at all." They were extremely
+worried. Then Buddha asked, "If this water is poured in the ocean, how long
+will it stay? It will remain until the ocean itself evaporates."
Therefore, if you do not just leave this virtue, but dedicate it, making a
prayer petition that it become a cause of help and happiness for limitless
sentient beings, then until that actually occurs, the virtue will not be lost.
causing all persons to possess happiness and the causes of happiness, is
inconceivable, but if it is not dedicated, then when anger arises, it will be
destroyed. This benefit cannot be seen with the eye, but it is inconceivable.
-Â -- Kensur Lekden, from "Meditations of a Tibetan Tantric Abbot: The Main
+ -- Kensur Lekden, from "Meditations of a Tibetan Tantric Abbot: The Main
Practices of the Mahayana Buddhist Path", translated and edited by
Jeffrey Hopkins, published by Shambhala Publications
~
meditate. In this world there were nihilists who said that one should not
meditate, doing only those activities that will bring about marvelous
happiness, comfort, and prosperity in this lifetime. The nihilists said that
-one should gather possessions and clothing, and if one’s body is sick, one
+one should gather possessions and clothing, and if one's body is sick, one
should take medicine, that these activities were justified, but that nothing
else was needed. Such a philosophy appeared in the world and with respect to
it there is this Buddhist teaching: You need a job for your livelihood, you
countless future lives. If you consider only this which you can see now and
you do not consider all the future lives which you cannot see, you will incur
immeasurable fault. You will harm yourself.
-Â -- Kensur Lekden, from "Meditations of a Tibetan Tantric Abbot: The Main
+ -- Kensur Lekden, from "Meditations of a Tibetan Tantric Abbot: The Main
Practices of the Mahayana Buddhist Path", translated and edited by
Jeffrey Hopkins, published by Shambhala Publications
~
-- Longchenpa, from "Finding Rest in the Nature of the Mind", published
by Shambhala Publications
~
- The most important thing is to have faith and trust in the Buddha’s
-words. The Buddha’s teachings were not taught to deceive us but to explain
-the way things actually are. Many people try to analyze the Buddha’s
-teachings, but how is it possible to scrutinize a buddha’s qualities? We
-don’t even know what will happen tomorrow, or when we will die, or anything
+ The most important thing is to have faith and trust in the Buddha's
+words. The Buddha's teachings were not taught to deceive us but to explain
+the way things actually are. Many people try to analyze the Buddha's
+teachings, but how is it possible to scrutinize a buddha's qualities? We
+don't even know what will happen tomorrow, or when we will die, or anything
about our future lives, so how could we possibly examine the teachings of the
Omniscient One? Since we are totally obscured by our strong disturbing
emotions, in order to progress on the path toward enlightenment, we have no
-choice but to have faith in the Buddha’s teachings and apply them in our own
+choice but to have faith in the Buddha's teachings and apply them in our own
lives.
The ability to practice Dharma depends on certain conditions. For
example, this is a rare time during which the teachings of the Great
-Perfection are said to flourish. We’re very fortunate that through
-Padmasambhava’s blessings, such teachings have appeared and we’re able to
+Perfection are said to flourish. We're very fortunate that through
+Padmasambhava's blessings, such teachings have appeared and we're able to
receive them. We must have accumulated incredible merit and made fervent
prayers very sincerely over numerous lifetimes to be able to encounter such
amazing teachings now. Still, most people are just too involved in worldly
one vessel breaks, then the reflection of the sun does not appear in it. Do
you think it is the fault of the sun that its reflection does not appear
there?"
- "No--it is just because the vessel is broken; it’s no fault of the sun."
+ "No--it is just because the vessel is broken; it's no fault of the sun."
"The knowledge of realization of Thusness, buddha-knowledge, is also like
this, appearing throughout the cosmos, without before or after: Buddha appears
in the clean mind-vessels of all sentient beings. If the mind-vessel is
Thus with patience I will strive with diligence.
For in such diligence enlightenment is found.
If no wind blows, then nothing stirs,
- And neither is there merit without diligence.
+ And neither is there merit without diligence.
-- H.H. the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, from "The Bodhisattva Guide: A Commentary
on The Way of the Bodhisattva", The Bodhisattva Guide was originally
published as For the Benefit of All Beings, also published by Shambhala
Publications
~
- I am not angry with my bile and other humors—
+ I am not angry with my bile and other humors--
Fertile source of suffering and pain!
So why should living beings give offence,
They likewise are impelled by circumstance?
--Walt Whitman
~
These delightful mountain solitudes
-Are like the family estate to the supreme guide’s heirs,
+Are like the family estate to the supreme guide's heirs,
And, as the best of protectors himself has said,
To rely on solitude is indeed the pinnacle of joys!
-Forests, hermitages, and isolated dwelling places—
-These are the outer solitude of the Victor’s heirs.
-Avoiding selfishness and fainthearted fears—
-This is the bodhisattvas’ internal isolation.
+Forests, hermitages, and isolated dwelling places--
+These are the outer solitude of the Victor's heirs.
+Avoiding selfishness and fainthearted fears--
+This is the bodhisattvas' internal isolation.
Keeping, therefore, to outer forms of solitude,
Tame the inner afflictions through tranquility and insight
-And aspire to the supreme conduct of Samantabhadra—
-Possessing such good fortune one is truly the Buddha’s heir.
+And aspire to the supreme conduct of Samantabhadra--
+Possessing such good fortune one is truly the Buddha's heir.
With sweetly cascading mountain streams,
Rocky mountain shelters ascending to heaven,
The dance of the slender trees does not stir the passions,
And sweet birdsong brings neither attachment nor aversion,
-Enveloped in nonconceptuality’s gentle, cooling shade—
+Enveloped in nonconceptuality's gentle, cooling shade--
Such youthful companionship is surely better than a silent void!
-Undisturbed by noisy chatter, that thorn in meditation’s side,
+Undisturbed by noisy chatter, that thorn in meditation's side,
Alone in this excellent place of unattended solitude,
The old monkey of the mind has nowhere left to roam
And, settling down within, finds satisfaction.
Under the bright, oppressive sunlight of busy, bustling crowds,
Our faults and unhelpful thoughts eclipse the constellations,
-But when embraced by threefold solitude’s cooling nectar beams,
+But when embraced by threefold solitude's cooling nectar beams,
Such faults can easily be overcome through proper antidotes.
When it is undisturbed by rippling thoughts of sadness,
The pool-like surface of the mind is still, unmoving,
-And faith and compassion’s reflections readily arise.
+And faith and compassion's reflections readily arise.
In such constancy, what need is there for a companion?
If the mirror of mind is wiped clean, time and again,
And uncluttered with objects or circumstances,
Study, reflection, and meditation present a clear impression.
-What is there to prevent the dawn of Dharma’s light?
+What is there to prevent the dawn of Dharma's light?
-Hunger, thirst, cold, and the like—all forms of physical affliction—
+Hunger, thirst, cold, and the like--all forms of physical affliction--
Together with sadness, fear, and all such mental suffering,
Can, through the teachings, enhance the purifying path
-And, unburdened by avoidance or indulgence, adorn the mind!
+And, unburdened by avoidance or indulgence, adorn the mind!
-- Patrul Rinpoche, from "Beyond the Ordinary Mind: Dzogchen, Rimé, and the
- Path of Perfect Wisdom", Translated by Adam Pearcey, published by
+ Path of Perfect Wisdom", translated by Adam Pearcey, published by
+ Shambhala Publications
+~
+ Our endeavor is not religious, but rather a test of what we as a human
+ being can become, the greatest unfolding of our potential.
+ -- Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche
+
+Because everything leans, you belong to something much, much greater than what
+you may often refer to as "the world" or "my life"; you belong to something
+greater than your community, political party, nation, or even this magnificent
+planet Earth. You are a noble citizen of the boundless field of contingent
+relationships, pratityasamutpada.
+ -- Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel, from "The Logic of Faith", published by
+ Shambhala Publications
+~
+It is through the teacher's blessing that you see
+The self-arisen primal wisdom, inexpressible,
+Beyond both word and thought.
+And in the moment of its seeing,
+Timeless are the three times,
+No difference separates the future from the past.
+This is the Wisdom That Has Gone Beyond; the Middle Way;
+The Stilling (of all thought and sorrow); the Great Seal;
+The Great Perfection of the quintessential ultimate reality,
+That is, the fundamental natural state
+Where, from the very first,
+Phenomena are all exhausted.
+It is mind's luminosity,
+The self-arisen primal wisdom.
+Many names it has received, yet all have but one meaning:
+Ultimate reality, beyond the range
+Of speech, of thought, of explanation:
+The enlightened mind,
+The space-like nature where saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are not two.
+ -- Longchenpa, from "Finding Rest in Meditation", published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+ Become accustomed to the fact that all we accept or reject, dualistically
+affirm or deny (such as enjoyment and disgust, happiness and frustration,
+beauty and ugliness, fear and security, sickness and health, enemies and
+friends, love and hatred, or whatever), has one taste, thus judgments are
+reversed.
+
+Listen great being: do not create duality from the unique state.
+Happiness and misery are one in pure and total presence.
+Buddhas and beings are one in the nature of mind.
+Appearances and beings, the environment and its inhabitants are one in
+ reality.
+Even the duality of truth and falsehood are the same in reality.
+Do not latch onto happiness; do not eliminate misery.
+Thereby everything is accomplished.
+Attachment to pleasure brings misery.
+Total clarity, being non-conceptual,
+Is self-refreshing pristine awareness.
+ -- Longchenpa, from "You Are the Eyes of the World", published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+The realizations that arise through meditating thus
+Are all of the same taste.
+They are not manifold; they are not different.
+It is like those who come from three directions
+And meet together in a single place,
+And like the different flowing streams
+That join and are as one within a single sea.
+Bliss, luminosity, and no-thought--
+Whichever of these methods one may practice--
+When mental movement comes to complete rest
+And in the nature of the mind, the unborn space, dissolves,
+The enlightened mind, devoid of concepts
+(Whether of existence or of nonexistence),
+The sun of fundamental nature, bright and clear,
+Will rise up from within.
+In this realization, changeless and unmoving,
+There is nothing to be added, nothing to remove.
+ -- Longchenpa, from "Finding Rest in Meditation", published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+Listen! I, pure and total presence, the creative intelligence
+ which manifests universes,
+Do not teach those who surround me,
+A reality that can be affirmed or denied.
+I do not teach about splitting the unique into two.
+I do not analyze that which is beyond analysis.
+I do not correct that which is naturally uncontrived.
+Let whatever you do or whatever appears
+Just be in its natural state, without premeditation.
+That is true freedom.
+ -- Longchenpa, from "You Are the Eyes of the World", published by
+ Shambhala Publications
+~
+Milarepa's Song on the Way of the Yogi
+
+I am just a man, a yogi of Tibet;
+I am Milarepa.
+I've studied little but have many key instructions.
+Though I'm humble, I have great perseverance.
+I sleep little and have great endurance in meditation.
+I'm an expert in all by knowing one thing
+And I understand everything to be one:
+I am an expert in genuine reality.
+On my small seat, stretching my legs is pleasant.
+With thin clothes, my body is perfectly warm.
+With small bits of tsampa, my stomach is full.
+My example is that which all meditators aspire to.
+I'm a gathering place for those with faith.
+I'm an object of reliance for those fearful of birth and death.
+I go in no fixed direction
+And I stay in no one particular place.
+For conduct, I go without reference points.
+I have no attachment to material things
+And no notion of clean or dirty food.
+For me, the pain of the afflictions is small.
+I have little self-regard and few desires.
+I've little attachment to perceiver and perceived
+And I've loosened the knots of the state of nirvana.
+I'm a friend of the elderly, a shoulder to lean on,
+And a playmate for young children.
+I'm a yogi who roams the country far and wide.
+May you devas and humans be healthy and happy.
+ -- Milarepa and Tsangnyon Heruka, "The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa",
+ published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+It's very important to keep examining your mind at all times and be aware of
+what occurs in it. We have this habit of criticizing others; we are very good
+at pointing out their faults, but we have a hard time being aware of our own
+flaws. Examining the faults of others will not benefit anyone and only leads
+to more disturbing emotions, blocking our path to liberation. Whatever anyone
+else does, let them do it. It's not your business to find other people's
+flaws, and even if you do point them out, there is no way for you to correct
+them. On the other hand, it is very important to watch your own mind and
+train in subduing and reducing your own disturbing emotions. Analyze your
+mind, constantly watch your thoughts, recognizing whether they are positive or
+negative, and become aware of your faults. If you constantly observe yourself
+and analyze your thoughts, you will eventually be able to tame your mind.
+Since we haven't been able to purify our karmic and emotional obscurations,
+our gross disturbing emotions can come up anytime, and whenever these emotions
+come up, we should apply the antidote by looking into our mind and trying to
+understand that all phenomena are emptiness. If you leave your mind in a
+relaxed state without contriving anything, disturbing emotions will cease.
+ -- Drubwang Penor Rinpoche, from "An Ocean of Blessings", published by
+ Shambhala Publications
+~
+In general, all joys and sorrows that seem outside
+Are magical creations of one's mind alone;
+Reflections from inside that appear outside,
+Not things outside that have come near.
+
+Knowing this well, when analysis
+Severs the root of the basic mind,
+You will abide in the true sky of reality
+Beyond this fog of appearance.
+
+This so-called existence is a fiction.
+This so-called nonexistence is a fiction.
+Untainted by all such fictions,
+The nature of the mind is perfect buddhahood.
+
+Thoughts of "is" and "is not" are like ripples in water;
+They follow one after the other.
+Dissolving easily into the aimless state,
+They arrive at the ocean of the primordial sphere of reality.
+
+Appearances are the magical display of the mind.
+The mind is empty, without base, without foundation.
+By holding baseless phenomena to be the self
+You and I wander in the realm of samsara.
+
+Without pursuing perceptions,
+When you look directly at the perceiver itself,
+You will see your own inexpressible face;
+The path to achieve buddhahood is not far.
+
+Through the blessings of the divine three foundations,
+May you quickly find the emptiness of your own mind,
+And from the kingdom of the ever-pure great perfection,
+Bring about the great aims of boundless beings.
+ -- from "Gendun Chopel: Tibet's Modern Visionary", by Donald S. Lopez
+ Jr., published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Parallel to compassion, the Buddhist teachings emphasize loving-kindness--the
+wish for others to have happiness and the causes of happiness. A traditional
+way of generating loving-kindness begins by looking at our own constant
+longing for happiness and its causes. Then we contemplate how all others have
+this same longing, every bit as intense as our own. When we understand that
+we are no different from other beings in this way, we see how unreasonable it
+is to care so much more about ourselves than others. We do so only out of
+sheer habit--ignorant habit. At that point, once we've shed some light on
+our habit, we turn our mind toward others, wishing them happiness as much as
+we wish it for ourselves. Then, in our daily lives, we try to behave in
+accord with this wish, by being kind with our actions, in our speech, and in
+our thoughts.
+ -- Dzigar Kongtrul, from "Training in Tenderness: Buddhist Teachings on
+ Tsewa, the Radical Openness of Heart That Can Change the World",
+ published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+So many wonderful qualities are already present within us, just waiting to be
+discovered. The key lies in understanding that things are impermanent and
+unreal. Sadness, of course, is not an end in itself. But deep sorrow comes
+with realizing that everything we previously took to be lasting and real is
+actually just about to disappear--and it never even existed in the first
+place. Such sadness and disillusionment have a wonderful effect. Sorrow
+makes us let go. As we stop chasing futile and ultimately painful goals, we
+embark on the spiritual path with superior strength and resolve.
+ -- Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, from "Sadness, Love, Openness: The Buddhist Path
+ of Joy", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+The blind ant runs about for the sake of happiness.
+The legless worm crawls about for the sake of happiness.
+In brief, all the world is racing with each other,
+Running toward happiness, one faster than the next.
+
+Sometimes, seeing a goddess is revolting.
+Sometimes, seeing an old woman creates lust.
+Thinking, "This is it," something else comes along.
+How can the deceptions of the mind be counted?
+
+Our attitudes change so much
+From childhood to when we are old and decrepit.
+Analyze your own experience and you know this.
+How can you have confidence in today's thoughts?
+
+Due to the mind's insanity, we do not recognize our own face,
+Yet we constantly measure the secular and sacred, heaven and earth.
+Courageous are we who seek lasting refuge
+In this series of mistaken appearances.
+ -- from "Gendun Chopel: Tibet's Modern Visionary", by Donald S. Lopez
+ Jr., published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+When people say that I have worked a lot for peace, I feel embarrassed. I
+feel like laughing. I don't think I have done very much for world peace.
+It's just that my practice is the peaceful path of kindness, love,
+compassion, and not harming others. This has become part of me. It is not
+something for which I have specially volunteered. I am simply a follower of
+the Buddha, and the Buddha taught that patience is the supreme means for
+transcending suffering. He said, "If a monk harms others, he is not a monk."
+I am a Buddhist monk, so I try to practice accordingly. When people think
+this practice is something unique and special and call me a leader of world
+peace, I feel almost ashamed!
+ -- H.H. the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, from "The Bodhisattva Guide", published
+ by Shambhala Publications
+~
+We have talked about impermanence and how painful it is to acknowledge that
+everything, including ourselves and all that we love, is going to perish. But
+the recognition of impermanence is also the threshold to something more,
+something greater. The reason we take impermanence to heart is that we need
+that understanding to inspire and guide us. Impermanence closes the gap
+between others and ourselves. When we recognize that everyone is subject to
+the same merciless conditions, we cannot but respond with affection. With the
+recognition of the impermanent world comes great compassion, genuine care.
+This pivotal discovery provides the circumstance for a complete opening of our
+minds. As compassion gains force, it enables our minds to recognize the
+profound nature of emptiness--the true nature of things that lies beyond all
+concepts. Sorrow and pain become catalysts for deep-felt loving care, and the
+power of universal compassion delivers the realization of the true view.
+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
+~
+Compassion has no hierarchy of worthy and unworthy suffering; it makes no
+distinctions between the deserving and the undeserving. Wherever there is
+suffering, there is a need for compassion. Finding compassion for those who
+cause pain is an ongoing practice requiring remarkable patience and
+perseverance. It is a difficult journey, but the path of bitterness and
+division is far more painful. The path of compassion begins with your
+willingness to soften and stay present in all the moments when you are prone
+to recoil and flinch. You learn to open your eyes and heart in all the places
+you have been blinded by fear or rage. You begin to dismantle the boundaries
+that have too long divided you from others.
+ -- "All the Rage--Buddhist Wisdom on Anger and Acceptance", Edited by Andrea
+ Miller and the Editors of the Shambhala Sun, published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+Each and every being in this world, including animals and all other beings of
+the six realms, wants to be happy. Nobody wants to suffer. Even through we
+have no wisdom or clairvoyance, we can see that everyone in this world is
+afflicted with disturbing emotions and delusion based on their karma\97not only
+we humans, but all beings in the six realms. Even a tiny little ant is
+constantly afflicted by the five poisons, and it\92s impossible for such a being
+to generate bodhichitta, faith, devotion, or pure perception for an instant.
+It can\92t even conceive of a path to liberation or ultimate happiness. Due to
+karma accumulated throughout beginningless lifetimes, all sentient beings
+experience various kinds of sorrow and happiness. Yet this isn\92t just random,
+for all that we experience is the result of our past actions.
+##--#Penor Rinpoche, from "An Ocean of Blessings: Heart Teachings of Drubwang
+ Penor Rinpoche", translated by Ani Jinba Palmo, published by Shambhala
+ Publications
+~
+ Dreaming is a dynamic process. Unlike the static images of film that we
+use as a metaphor, the images of a dream are fluid: they move, beings talk,
+sounds vibrate, sensation is vivid. The content of dream is formed by the
+mind, but the basis of the vitality and animation of the dream is the prana.
+The literal translation of the Tibetan word for prana, lung, is "wind," but
+it is more descriptive to call it the vital wind force.
+ Prana is the foundational energy of all experience, of all life.
+ -- Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and edited by Mark Dahlby, from "The Tibetan
+ Yogas of Dream and Sleep", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Do they know this kid likes his chemistry set a little too much?
+ -- The Sopranos
+~
+The Nine Expressions of Dance
+
+The upper part of one's body should have the demeanor of a lion.
+The waist should maintain the demeanor of elegance.
+The wrists and ankles should maintain a demeanor of dexterity.
+The thigh muscles should maintain a relaxed demeanor.
+The blood should maintain a fiery red demeanor.
+The countenance should maintain a handsome demeanor.
+The movements should maintain a slow demeanor.
+The knees should maintain a supple demeanor.
+The feet and head should maintain a demeanor of happiness.
+And overall [the dancer] should maintain a demeanor
+That is both heroic and magnificent.
+
+ -- by Konchog Lhadrepa and Charlotte Davis, from "The Art of Awakening:
+ A User's Guide to Tibetan Buddhist Art and Practice", published by
+ Shambhala Publications
+~
+Advice to Myself
+
+ Stop living a false and empty life.
+ Drop those deceptions of your own mind
+ And endless projects that you don't need!
+
+ Don't make your head spin with the burden
+ Of strings of ideas that never come true
+ And endless distracting activities--
+ They're just waves on water.
+ Just keep quiet.
+
+ -- Patrul Rinpoche, from "Enlightened Vagabond: The Life and Teachings of
+ Patrul Rinpoche", By Matthieu Ricard, Edited by Constance Wilkinson,
+ published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Like the vast expanse of the ocean, birthplaces of other beings are vast and
+multitudinous. Just as the yoke has only a single opening, human birth is
+small in extent and few in number. Just as the tortoise rises up only once
+every hundred years, so it is rare to accumulate the karma that results in
+human birth. Just as the tortoise is blind, so one's accumulated karma is
+feeble. Just as the yoke is tossed about in every direction by the wind, so
+there are many adverse forces obstructing the coincidence of conditions needed
+for human birth.
+ -- Ngorchen Konchog Lhundrub, from "Three Visions: Fundamental Teachings of
+ the Sakya Lineage of Tibetan Buddhism", translated by Lobsang Dagpa and
+ Jay Goldberg, published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+ The actual nature of things is inconceivable and inexpressible. Yet, for
+those fortunate individuals who seek to penetrate the profound meaning of
+dharmata, I shall offer here a few words by way of illustration.
+ What we call the essence of mind is the actual face of unconditioned pure
+awareness, recognized through receiving the guru's blessings and
+instructions. If you wonder what this is like, it is empty in its essence,
+beyond conceptual reference; it is cognizant by nature, spontaneously present;
+and it is all-pervasive and unobstructed in its compassionate energy. This is
+the pure awareness (rigpa) in which the three kayas are inseparable.
+ -- from "Beyond the Ordinary Mind: Dzogchen, Rime, and the Path of
+ Perfect Wisdom", translated by Adam Pearcey, published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Being attached to your ordinary dualistic considerations is a pitfall in your
+way of living. No matter what appears, by applying yourself without being at
+all distracted from the perspective and meditation, this unobstructed,
+powerful way of life will come about with the six senses naturally relaxed.
+Apply yourself without contradicting this.
+ -- Longchenpa, from "You Are the Eyes of the World", translated by Kennard
+ Lipman and Merrill Peterson, published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Kyema!
+Hear me, young and faithful girl!
+I, the Lotus-Born, will preach the Dharma in the land of ogres.
+My flawless adamantine form, surpassing change,
+Is not to be compared with that of beings racked by ills.
+The country of Tibet I filled with Dharma, within the earth and on it.
+If you are strong in practice and instruction,
+No shortage of the Dharma will there be.
+ -- Yeshe Tsogyal, from "Lady of the Lotus-Born: The Life and Enlightenment
+ of Yeshe Tsogyal", by Gyalwa Changchub and Namkhai Nyingpo, translated by
+ Padmakara Translation Group, published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+Ultimately, spiritual and worldly values are totally contradictory; this is
+something we simply have to accept. In the materialistic world, being "rich"
+means that you own plenty of property, run various businesses, and have a
+great deal of money; whereas the spiritual world defines being "rich" as
+perfect contentment. From a spiritual point of view, we are rich when we no
+longer torture our minds with thoughts about everything we lack.
+ -- Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse, from "Best Foot Forward: A Pilgrim's Guide
+ to the Sacred Sites of the Buddha", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+The cultivation of Pure Awareness does not evolve in a straight line. It is
+not that we have a certain realization and then it is ours and we can hang on
+to it and in the next practice session begin from there and move on to the
+next higher realization. Every time we sit down to practice, it's a brand new
+situation, a new journey. "Back to square one," as Trungpa Rinpoche used to
+say. Back to Suzuki Roshi's "beginner's mind."
+ -- Reginald A. Ray, from "The Practice of Pure Awareness: Somatic Meditation
+ for Awakening the Sacred", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+When the seven consciousnesses melt
+Into the consciousness of the universal ground,
+And the universal ground is purified in the ultimate expanse,
+There occurs primordial coemergent wisdom,
+Empty, luminous, and self-arisen.
+This is what yogis must recognize.
+ -- Longchenpa, from "Finding Rest in the Nature of the Mind: The Trilogy
+ of Rest, Volume 1", translated by Padmakara Translation Group, published
+ by Shambhala Publications
+~
+The purpose of a knife is much like the purpose of the brain, and that is to
+stop being used. Just as the brain should do some computation and then desist
+from functioning for a while to rest and relax, so too should one stop using a
+knife as soon as the purpose for which the knife was picked up is achieved.
+If it seems like it's fun to play with a knife or if one feels that the knife
+is an extension of one's penis, then that is not a very good reason to pick up
+a knife; one should probably put the knife right back down in those degenerate
+(in the mathematical sense) cases. #WhatILearnedFromTheBoyScouts
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+Full of trust you left home,
+and soon learned to walk the Path--
+making yourself a friend to everyone
+and making everyone a friend.
+
+When the whole world is your friend,
+fear will find no place to call home.
+
+And when you make the mind your friend,
+you'll know what trust
+really means.
+
+Listen.
+
+I have followed this Path of friendship to its end.
+And I can say with absolute certainty--
+it will lead you home.
+
+ -- from "The First Free Women: Poems of the Early Buddhist Nuns",
+ by Matty Weingast
+~
+If we are honest with ourselves, we know from our own experience that the more
+we try to find solutions to our problems through thinking about them, the more
+we start going around in circles, sometimes interminably. Buddhism counsels
+us to resist being abused by our conflicting emotions and to let go of
+excessive thinking. Emotions can be expressed in an unhealthy, self-
+destructive manner or in a healthy and constructive fashion. Similarly, we
+can think in a self-destructive, confused way, which reinforces our negative
+habits, or we can think in a constructive way. Buddhism emphasizes that
+overindulgence in conflicting emotions and distorted forms of thinking only
+reinforces our old habits, which solidifies our karmic tendencies even
+further.
+ -- Traleg Kyabgon, from "Mind at Ease: Self-Liberation through Mahamudra
+ Meditation", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+ACHTUNG!
+ALLES TURISTEN UND NONTEKNISCHEN LOOKENSPEEPERS!
+DAS KOMPUTERMASCHINE IST NICHT FÜR DER GEFINGERPOKEN UND MITTENGRABEN!
+ODERWISE IST EASY TO SCHNAPPEN DER SPRINGENWERK, BLOWENFUSEN UND POPPENCORKEN
+MIT SPITZENSPARKEN.
+IST NICHT FÜR GEWERKEN BEI DUMMKOPFEN. DER RUBBERNECKEN SIGHTSEEREN KEEPEN
+DAS COTTONPICKEN HÄNDER IN DAS POCKETS MUSS.
+ZO RELAXEN UND WATSCHEN DER BLINKENLICHTEN.
+~
+ATTENTION
+This room is fullfilled mit special electronische equippment.
+Fingergrabbing and pressing the cnoeppkes from the computers is allowed for
+die experts only!
+So all the "lefthanders" stay away and do not disturben the brainstorming von
+here working intelligencies.
+Otherwise you will be out thrown and kicked anderswhere!
+Also: please keep still and only watchen astaunished the blinkenlights.
+~
+Naval Lint! Belly up to the finest barnacle scrub on the market, and have
+your teams boat bright as a button!
+Only $9.99 a bottle, sold at all Ben Franklin Department Stores.
+ -- fictional product developed due to misspelling of navel lint
+~
+(a missing phone haiku)
+
+tech disconnection
+no friends, no spam, brain at peace
+must log back in now!
+
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+Many people, especially ignorant people, want to punish you for speaking the
+truth, for being correct, for being you. Never apologize for being correct,
+or for being years ahead of your time. If you're right and you know it,
+speak your mind. Speak your mind. Even if you are a minority of one, the
+truth is still the truth.
+ -- Mahatma Gandhi
+~
+ The sky is pure, open space, free from all obstructions. The nature of
+our mind is similar: the afflictions, self-centered attitude, and other
+obscurations are not in its essential nature. Just as clouds may temporarily
+obscure the open sky, anger, attachment, and confusion can temporarily obscure
+our mind. When they do, the pure, open nature of the mind still remains; we
+just can't see it at the time.
+ By generating the wisdom realizing the emptiness of inherent existence, we
+will be able to eradicate obscurations from our mind forever and enjoy the
+sky-like spaciousness of a purified mind.
+ -- Thubten Chodron, from "Awaken Every Day: 365 Buddhist Reflections to
+ Invite Mindfulness and Joy", Shambhala Publications
+~
+i buy all my hats
+at interdimensional
+pancake restaurant
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+Love is about finding something pleasant in everyone. It can't be external
+appearance, or what the person is engaged in at the moment; it has to be just
+the fact that this is a sentient being who wants happiness and does not want
+suffering and who has been the best of friends at some time in the limitless
+past. A Tibetan definition of love is that the person pleasantly comes to
+mind (yid du 'ong ba). Rather than pushing people away, you experience a core
+similarity and closeness in them that makes you receptive to their basic
+being, regardless of the problem--regardless of how distorted their current
+attitudes and behavior are. That's how strong spiritual love is.
+ -- Jeffrey Hopkins, from "A Truthful Heart: Buddhist Practices for
+ Connecting with Others", Shambhala Publications
+~
+this is not confirmed yet, but UVa is changing the name of its funding tokens.
+UVa is moving away from the PTAO payment codes (Project, Task, Award, and
+Organization) to a new acronym using "Cost center, Activity, Program, Spend
+category" or... CAPS!!!
+finally all my hard work in fallout new vegas will be paying off.
+~
+Rob's Meeting Mantra:
+
+Is what I am thinking necessary to say?
+Is it necessary for this to be said by ME?
+Is it necessary for me to say this RIGHT NOW?
+
+ -- Rob Diethorn
+~
+fred's chow mantra:
+ just eat when you're hungry,
+ and be sure you're hungry and not just sating an appetite,
+ because scheduled food times are irrelevant to your body,
+ and can lead to overfeeding unless you're malnourished;
+ so let the body decide when to eat,
+ and use your brain to decide what you feed it.
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking.
+ -- Voltaire
+~
+Clear thinking requires courage rather than intelligence.
+ -- Thomas Szasz
+~
+Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again?
+ -- Winnie the Pooh
+~
+It is well for people who think,
+to change their minds occasionally
+in order to keep them clean.
+ -- Luther Burbank
+~
+Language shapes the way we think, and determines what we can think about.
+ -- Benjamin Lee Whorf
+~
+Misery is almost always the result of thinking.
+ -- Joseph Joubert
+~
+Most of the mistakes in thinking
+are inadequacies of perception
+rather than mistakes of logic.
+ -- Edward de Bono
+~
+Thought is the blossom; language the bud; action the fruit behind it.
+ -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
+~
+What we think, we become. -- Shakyamuni Buddha
+~
+pseudo-code for our daily lives:
+
+repeat:
+ if (not one_thing) then {
+ other_thing
+ }
+:forever
+~
+U R brilliant,
+U need 2 keep working on that shine,
+U can't lord it over others,
+U R your own completeness as they are theirs.
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+and goddess said to me, she said like, "i am omni-sexual and pan-gender...
+bitches." i apologize for her language, but that's what she said.
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+
+vape temperature mantra for cannabis
+(also a haiku if you don't pronounce the numbers...)
+
+ things are tastiest,
+ celsius degrees ranging 164 -> 228,
+ dank vaporizer.
+
+ get lightly toasted 164+,
+ proceed on to half baked at 180+,
+ way fully baked at 200+.
+
+ dude, know when it's cooked,
+ never go over 230 ever,
+ we vape you long time.
+ -- fred t. hamster
+~
+ I found I was able to get a lot of tension off my shoulders by almost
+"outing" myself in the press in that way, in very early circumstances. So
+I wasn't going to get people crawling out the woodwork saying [seedy, muck-
+raking voice]: "I'll tell you something about David Bowie that you don't
+know..." I wasn't going to have any of that. I knew that at some point I
+was going to have to say something about my life. And, again, Ziggy enabled
+me to make things more comfortable for myself. There was an excitement that
+the age of exploration was really finally here. Which is what I was going
+through. It perfectly mirrored my lifestyle at the time. It was exactly what
+was happening to me. There was nothing that I wasn't willing to try, to
+explore and see if it was really part of my psyche or my nature. I was
+terribly exploratory in every way, not just culturally but sexually and...
+God, there was nothing I would leave alone. Like a--it's a terrible pun,
+but--like a dog with a bone, I suppose! So I buried it!
+ The quote has taken on far more in retrospect than actually it was at the
+time. I'm quite proud that I did it. On the other hand I didn't want to
+carry a banner for any group of people, and I was as worried about that as
+the aftermath. Being approached by organisations. I didn't want that. I
+didn't feel like part of a group. I didn't like that aspect of it: this is
+going to start overshadowing my writing and everything else that I do.
+But there you go.
+ -- David Bowie, in Mojo, July 2002
+~
+I am King Gesar of Ling,
+not so long ago named king
+and principal ruler of the six provinces of Ling,
+mandated by the gods to be the destined leader
+and the one to quell the demons of the dark side.
+Since I am the one entrusted with this aspiration,
+my deeds and actions must follow.
+ -- from "The Taming of the Demons: From the Epic of Gesar of Ling",
+ translated by Jane Hawes, David Shapiro, and Lama Chönam, published
+ by Shambhala Publications
+~
+ One of the stories that drew me to Zen was about how one of our Zen
+ancestors responded to both insult and praise. In this story, Hakuin Zenji
+was falsely accused of impregnating a young girl who lived in the village near
+his hermitage. When her parents and the villagers came to accuse him, he said
+merely, "Is that so?"
+ When the baby was born, Hakuin received the infant and cared for the child
+with the help of a wet nurse. Sometime later, the girl confessed to her
+parents that a village boy was the father of her child. Those who had accused
+him earlier came then to reclaim the child and to praise Hakuin.
+ In response to their praise, he simply said, again, "Is that so?"
+ -- Reb Anderson, from "Entering the Mind of Buddha: Zen and the Six Heroic
+ Practices of Bodhisattvas", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
+One day in a lecture Suzuki Roshi said, "When you see one leaf falling, you
+may say, Oh, autumn is here! One leaf is not just one leaf; it means the
+whole autumn. Here you already understand the all-pervading power of your
+practice. Your practice covers everything."
+ -- Shunryu Suzuki, from "Zen Is Right Here: Teaching Stories and Anecdotes
+ of Shunryu Suzuki, author of Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind", published by
+ Shambhala Publications
+~
+Compared with the force of the all-powerful weapons that exist today, we are
+nothing, even less than ants. And yet those weapons were not made by demons
+or aliens from another planet. They were made by humans just like me and
+you... If we ever press the red button, others will do the same. If we bomb
+them, bombs will rain on us. That's cause and effect, and it will just go
+on and on. So what can we do? Only one thing can help us: loving-kindness.
+Loving-kindness is the very foundation of a civilized world.
+ -- Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, from "Sadness, Love, Openness: The Buddhist Path
+ of Joy", published by Shambhala Publications
+~
projects / feisty_meow.git / blobdiff