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Dharma Quote of the WeekOur mind needs to stretch to encompass emptiness. Our minds are so stuck in the idea, “Things exist the way they appear to me. What I see is reality. It is 100 percent true. There’s nothing to doubt. Things exist exactly as they appear to my senses, exactly as they appear to my mental consciousness.” We hardly ever doubt that. Not only do we have the appearance of inherent existence to our sense consciousnesses and mental consciousness, but also our mental consciousness grasps on to that appearance and says, “Yes! Everything really exists in this findable, independent way. Everything is real as it appears to me.” When we believe there’s a real “me,” then we have to protect that self and bring it happiness. Thus, we are attached to things that are pleasurable and become angry at anything unpleasant. Pride, jealousy, laziness, and the whole gamut of negative emotions follow. Motivated by these, we act physically, verbally, and mentally. These actions, or karma, leave seeds on our mindstream, and when these ripen, they influence what we experience. We again relate to these experiences ignorantly, so more emotions arise, motivating us to create more karma. As a result, cyclic existence with all its difficulties continues on and on, created by our mind, dependent on the ignorance that misconceives the nature of ourselves and all other phenomena. …However, when we investigate more deeply and look beyond appearances, we realize that it’s impossible for things to exist in the way they appear. Seeing this gives us a kind of spaciousness and freedom because, if samsara were inherently existent and everything really did exist the way it appears to us, then transformation and change could not occur…and the best we could ever have is what we have right now. Thinking about the emptiness of inherent existence shows us the possibility for change. Beauty can come forth because nothing is inherently concrete, fixed, or findable.(p.105) –from Cultivating a Compassionate Heart: The Yoga Method of Chenrezig by Thubten Chodron, foreword by H.H. the Dalai Lama, published by Snow Lion Publications Cultivating a Compassionate Heart • Now at 5O% off! |
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Archive for March 2012
Dharma Quote from Snow Lion Publications
March 22, 2012Kindness Daily: Using My Hobby To Help The Homeless
March 22, 2012
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Then it dawned on me. I could stock up on sweaters and jackets for the impending cold weather and donate them to the homeless shelter! In the last couple of weeks I’ve gotten six huge bags of sweaters, jackets, sweatpants, and long-sleeved shirts for under $20! I also got a small bag of soap, toothbrushes and shampoo for $1.
An Ordinary Magical Life
March 22, 2012Things that I will do my best to carry on in your honor: I will order salad with french fries on the side, with a straight face. I will drink my tea with too much milk. I will carry cookies in my coat pocket for all the dogs. I will love unconditionally. — Eulogy for Shelagh Gordon, Feb 2012
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Inspiration of the Day:
“I met Shelagh Gordon at her funeral. My sharpest impression of her that day, as mourners in black pressed around me, was of her breathtaking kindness. Shelagh was freshly-in-love thoughtful. If she noticed your boots had holes, she’d press her new ones into your arms. When you casually admired her coffeemaker, you’d wake up to one of your own. A bag of chocolates hanging from your doorknob would greet you each Valentine’s Day, along with some clippings from the newspaper she thought you’d find interesting. Shelagh made people around her feel not just loved but coveted. That was the golden thread that stitched together the ordinary seams of her life.” The Star newspaper dedicated unprecedented coverage to this relatively unknown 55-year-old woman’s funeral … this remarkable story explains why.
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Be The Change:
Honor an ordinary, magical life in your own world.
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10 Points on the Science of Spreading Good
March 21, 2012Spread love everywhere you go: First of all in your own house … kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness. — Mother Teresa
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Good News of the Day:
“Good deeds are contagious. We naturally imitate the people around us, we adopt their ideas about appropriate behavior, and we feel what they feel. Acts of charity are no exception. In our 2010 generosity experiment, we showed that every extra dollar of giving in a game designed to measure altruism caused people who saw that giving to donate an extra twenty cents. Furthermore, the network acts like a matching grant: that same experiment showed that contagious generosity spreads up to three steps through the network (from person to person to person to person), and when we added up all the extra donations that resulted at every step, we found that an extra dollar in giving yielded three extra dollars by everyone else in the network.” Internationally recognized political scientist James Fowler shares the science of spreading good.
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Be The Change:
Spread good today. Find something inspiring, make it more visible, and let the good ripple through your network.
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Kindness Daily: Breakfast For A Tired Mom
March 20, 2012
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hen I pulled out and continued on my way, my car windows open, my hair blowing in the long-awaited cool breeze, my favorite music playing. The morning seemed even sweeter than before.Meditation: A Compass and a Path
March 20, 2012This mind-and-body is the vessel of my life. I want to know it with the same organic immersion that sets a snow goose flying ten thousand miles every winter and spring. — Paul R. Fleischman
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Inspiration of the Day:
“When I started meditation in the 1970s, people like my parents would say that ‘Meditation is staring at your navel. It’s self absorbed.’ I’d been through medical school and I’d say that when you’re in medical school, you go in a room, you close the door and you don’t come out for four years. But no one says that’s selfish. Everyone knows that it is preparation to do something valuable for society. So I if I meditate — that’s like preparation for the rest of my day — it’s a self education and one that you want to renew everyday…I sit to anchor and organize my life around my heart and mind, and to radiate out to others what I find.” A fascinating DailyGood interview with psychiatrist and meditation teacher Paul R. Fleischman.
http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=16A990D:C3009629A010612C5E12F0FA820A2863B4B847859706E37D&
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Be The Change:
Spend some time observing and learning from your own mind and body today.
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InnerNet Weekly: Living Lessons of Biomimicry
March 20, 2012
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Year of Dancing with Life – Week 24
March 20, 2012
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From Selling to Serving
March 19, 2012Human life runs its course in the metamorphosis between receiving and giving. — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
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Tip of the Day:
“The topic for this week’s meeting was: ‘What are you doing to keep your business going in these crazy-making economic times?’ Several people said they have upped the number of cold calls they’re making; others talked about creative ways they’re using social networking to market themselves. Some are revamping their web sites and blogs; a few are exploring new business ideas, as they worry that their current businesses might not survive. When it was my turn to speak, I said, ‘I’ve stopped making sales calls. I make service calls instead.’ The group looked at me, their faces registering everything from confusion to curiosity to disbelief to disdain. So I explained what I had learned.” Author BJ Gallagher explains how she made the transition in her own life and work.
http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=16A9686:C3009629A010612C44702075DF980BB9B4B847859706E37D&
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Be The Change:
At work, school, or at home, try unconditionally offering something, just to be of service.
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Broken Bodies, Broken Minds, Amazing Spirits
March 18, 2012Half the spiritual life consists of remembering what we are up against and where we are going. — Ayya Khema
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Inspiration of the Day:
“Yesterday I went to the nursing home to visit my step mom’s grandma. She just got out of the hospital recently where she underwent some serious operations. I wanted to surprise her after work so I stopped by for a quick visit. When I got there she was happy to see me. We hugged, kissed and exchanged greetings. Then I heard a woman crying. It was my great grandma’s roommate. The curtain was drawn so I could not see her. She started calling out a name that wasn’t mine but she was definitely talking to me, begging me to go to her side of the room. I ignored her at first and continued visiting with my great grandma. Then she started begging and saying, ‘Please, come see me!’ So I went to see her. When I drew the curtain back she looked so old and frail but flashed me the biggest smile!” So begins this real world kindness story.
http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=16A9643:C3009629A010612CF59ECB6DD334B250B4B847859706E37D&
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Be The Change:
Call or visit someone undergoing physical or mental healing.
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Dalai Lama Foundation Study Circle Montreal 