Words Of Wisdom {Page Twenty Three}

There's nothing to understanding people. All you have to do is take a close look at yourself and you will understand everyone else.

~Isaac Asimov~

Intellect is what brings about the sense of fear, because it is the intellect that rejects change and wants security.

~Ramesh S. Balsekar~

Prayer is not asking for what you think you want, but asking to be changed in ways you can't imagine.

~Kathleen Norris~

The world is like a sheet of paper on which something is typed. The reading and the meaning will vary with the reader, but the paper is the common factor, always present, rarely perceived. When the ribbon is removed, typing leaves no trace on the paper. So is my mind - the impressions keep on coming, but no trace is left.

~Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj~

With one who does not Speak his every thought I spend a pleasant evening.

~Hyakuchi~

The feeling of being hurt or the feeling of being fulfilled in the ego is the same, it is the same wound! The only thing that is needed is to be watchful, to be alert about it. The more watchful you are, the less ego there will be. And when the alertness is almost like a light inside you, then whether people insult you or praise you makes no difference. In being watchful the ego becomes ridiculous....

~Osho~

Disentangling oneself From desire and evil ways Requires both vision and wisdom. Disentangling oneself from the world And discovering inner joy Is the start of meditation.

~Perfection of Wisdom~

You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him.

~Leo Aikman~

Have patience and indulgence toward the people...� reexamine all you have been told in school or church or in any book, dismiss what insults your very soul, and your flesh shall become a great poem.

~Walt Whitman~

Many of us are in circumstances right now where it seems unreasonable to look for the good. We have a hard time convincing ourselves there is a blessing in a moment that feels so painfully unfair. And the truth is, no good comes of denying reality. Rather, we are asked to be open to possibilities we cannot yet see. Our Divine nature will reveal good to us in time. Our Divine nature will provide us comfort, even as we move through difficulty. What will it take for you to remain open to good in an experience you want to deem as bad?�

~Mary Manin Morrissey~

Fear comes into being when I desire to be in a particular pattern. To live without fear means to live without a particular pattern. When I demand a particular way of living that in itself is a source of fear.

~J. Krishnamurti~

Not knowing is the secret of wisdom. That's the mystery that gives us access to the very source of liberating clarity. When we don't know, there is an empty space through which the mysteries of life and death are revealed to us. But most of us don't have the courage to not know, because we're too attached to the ego, and the ego is deeply identified with knowing.

~Andrew Cohen~

Buddha is Sanskrit for what you call aware, miraculously aware. Responding, perceiving, arching your brows, blinking your eyes, moving your hands and feet, it's all your miraculously aware nature. And this nature is the mind. And the mind is the buddha. And the buddha is the path. And the path is zen. But the word zen is one that remains a puzzle to both mortals an sages. Seeing your nature is zen. Unless you see your nature, it's not zen.

~Bodhidharma~

Life always gives us exactly the teacher we need at every moment. This includes every mosquito, every misfortune, every red light, every traffic jam, every obnoxious supervisor (or employee), every illness, every loss, every moment of joy or depression, every addiction, every piece of garbage, every breath. Every moment is the Guru.

~Joko Beck~

Ceasing is the same as samadhi, and contemplation is the same as wisdom. All good dharmas arise from cultivating these two. And why is this so? This is so because ceasing overcomes attachment while contemplating disentangles one entirely from it.

~Treatise on Completion of Truth~

Happiness cannot be found through great effort and willpower, but is already present, in open relaxation and letting go. Don't strain yourself, there is nothing to do or undo. Let the entire game happen on its own.

~Gendun Rinpoche~

The Height of Heaven, the Thickness of Earth

The body of heaven is extremely high. Open, round, immeasurable, it is boundlessly vast. Covering everything, containing everything, it produces myriad beings without presuming on its virtue, it bestows blessings on myriad beings without expectation of reward. Whether people are respectful or insincere, supportive or antagonistic, is left up to them. Whether people are good or bad, attractive or repulsive, and whether creatures are violent and stubborn or docile and obedient, they are allowed to be so of themselves, without any contrivance.

~Lui I-Ming~

If we have...presence of mind then whatever work we do will be the very tool which enables us to know right and wrong continually. There's plenty of time to meditate, we just don't fully understand the practice, that's all. While sleeping we breathe, eating we breathe, don't we? Why don't we have time to meditate? Wherever we are we breathe. If we think like this then our life has as much value as our breath, wherever we are we have time.

~Ajahn Chah~

Meditation is simple. Precisely because it is simple, it looks difficult. Your mind is accustomed to dealing with difficult problems, and it has completely forgotten how to respond to the simple things of life.

~Osho~

The sage sees how to stop clinging While all others find this very hard. If you can see through joy and sorrow, Then you too will glimpse the great peace.

~Perfection of Wisdom~

A time comes in your life when you finally get it� when in the midst of all your fears and insanity you stop dead in your tracks and somewhere the voice inside your head cries out, ENOUGH! fighting and crying or struggling to hold on. And, like a child quieting down after a blind tantrum, your sobs begin to subside, you shudder once or twice, you blink back your tears and through a mantle of wet lashes you begin to look at the world through new eyes.

This is your Awakening

You realize it's time to stop hoping and waiting for something to change or for happiness, safety and security to come galloping over the next horizon. You come to terms with the fact that he is not Prince Charming and you are not Cinderella and in the real world there aren't always Fairy Tale endings (or beginnings for that matter) and that any guarantee of "happily ever after" must begin with you and in the process a sense of serenity is born of acceptance.

You awaken to the fact you are not perfect and not everyone will always love, appreciate or approve of who or what you are, and that's OK.

(They are entitled to their own views and opinions.) And you learn the importance of loving and championing yourself and in the process a sense of new found confidence is born of self approval.

You stop complaining and blaming other people for the things they did to you (or didn't do for you) and you learn that the only thing you can really count on is the unexpected. You learn people don't always say what they mean or mean what they say and not everyone will always be there for you and that it's not always about you.

So, you learn to stand on your own and to take care of yourself and in the process a sense of safety and security is born of self-reliance.

You stop judging and pointing fingers and you begin to accept people as they are, and to overlook their shortcomings and human frailties, and in the process a sense of peace and contentment is born of forgiveness. You realize that much of the way you view yourself, and the world around you, is as a result of all the messages and opinions that have been ingrained into your psyche. And you begin to sift through all the things you've been fed about how you should behave, how you should look, and how much you should weigh, what you should wear, and where you should shop, and what you should drive, how and where you should live, and what you should do for a living, who you should sleep with, who you should marry, and what you should expect of a marriage, the importance of having and raising children or what you owe your parents.

You learn to open up to new worlds and different points of view. And you begin reassessing and redefining who you are what you really stand for.

You learn the difference between wanting and needing and you begin to discard the doctrines and values you've outgrown, or should never have bought into to begin with, and in the process you learn to go with your instincts.

You learn it is truly in giving that we receive. And there is power and glory in creating and contributing and you stop maneuvering through life merely as a "consumer" looking for your next fix. You learn principles such as honesty and integrity are not the outdated ideals of a by-gone era but the mortar that holds together the foundation upon which you must build a life. You learn you don't know everything, it's not your job to save the world and you can't teach a pig to sing.

You learn to distinguish between guilt and responsibility and the importance of setting boundaries and learning to say NO. You learn the only cross to bear is the one you choose to carry and that martyrs get burned at the stake.

Then you learn about love. Romantic love and familial love. How to love, how much to give in love, when to stop giving and when to walk away. You learn not to project your needs or your feelings onto a relationship.

You learn you will not be more beautiful, more intelligent, more lovable or important because of the man or woman on your arm or the child that bears your name.

You learn to look at relationships as they really are and not as you would have them be. You stop trying to control people, situations and outcomes. You learn just as people grow and change so it is with love, and you learn you don't have the right to demand love on your terms, just to make you happy.

You learn that alone does not mean lonely, And you look in the mirror and come to terms with the fact you will never be a size 5 or a perfect 10 and you stop trying to compete with the image inside your head and agonizing over how you "stack up."

You also stop working so hard at putting your feelings aside, smoothing things over and ignoring your needs. You learn feelings of entitlement are perfectly OK, and that it is your right to want things and to ask for the things that you want, and that sometimes it is necessary to make demands.

You come to the realization you deserve to be treated with love, kindness, sensitivity and respect and you won't settle for less. And, you allow only the hands of a lover who cherishes you to glorify you with her or his touch, and in the process you internalize the meaning of self-respect.

And you learn your body really is your temple. And you begin to care for it and treat it with respect. You begin eating a balanced diet, drinking more water and taking more time to exercise. You learn fatigue diminishes the spirit and can create doubt and fear. So you take more time to rest. And, just as food fuels the body, laughter fuels our soul. So you take more time to laugh and to play.

You learn, that for the most part, in life you get what you believe you deserve, and that much of life truly is a self-fulfilling prophecy.

You learn anything worth achieving is worth working for and wishing for something to happen is different from working toward making it happen.

More importantly, you learn in order to achieve success you need direction, discipline and perseverance. You also learn no one can do it all alone and that it's OK to risk asking for help.

You learn the only thing you must truly fear is the great robber baron of all time, FEAR itself. You learn to step right into and through your fears because you know whatever happens you can handle it and to give in to fear is to give away the right to live life on your terms. And you learn to fight for your life and not to squander it living under a cloud of impending doom. You learn life isn't always fair, you don't always get what you think you deserve and sometimes bad things happen to unsuspecting, good people. On these occasions you learn not to personalize things.

You learn no one is punishing you or failing to answer your prayers. It's just life happening.

And you learn to deal with evil in its most primal state, the ego.

You learn negative feelings such as anger, envy and resentment must be understood and redirected or they will suffocate the life out of you and poison the universe that surrounds you. You learn to admit when you are wrong and to building bridges instead of walls.

You learn to be thankful and to take comfort in many of the simple things we take for granted, things that millions of people upon the earth can only dream about: a full refrigerator, clean running water, a soft warm bed, a long hot shower.

Slowly, you begin to take responsibility for yourself by yourself and you to make yourself a promise to never betray yourself and to never ever settle for less than your heart's desire. And you hang a wind chime outside your window so you can listen to the wind. And you make it a point to keep smiling, to keep trusting, and to stay open to every wonderful possibility. Finally, with courage in your heart and with faith by your side you take a stand, you take a deep breath and you begin to design the life you want to live as best as you can.

~Source Unknown~

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.

~Buddha~

Zazen is the practice of "turning your light inward." The mind is forever running out the gates of the senses, trapped by our rigid concepts. Zazen is the practice of turning the light of consciousness around, illuminating the source. While this is certainly true enough in one sense, zazen is actually the practice of not-doing-a-single-thing. When we are "not-doing-a-single-thing," all things and myself are illumined of themselves. Only then can we see that all things and myself are Thus.

~Anon~

The golden opportunity you are seeking is in yourself. It is not in your environment; it is not in luck or chance, or the help of others; it is in yourself alone.

~Orison Swett~

The soul of man sees much more deeper than the angels, because he sees as much of heaven as of hell.

~Jacob Boehm~

The earth is very thick. Lowly, below all else, it bears everything and nurtures all beings. It can bear even the weight of the great mountains, and it can endure even the erosive force of great waters. It tolerates being pierced by plants and trees, and it submits to the tread of bird and beasts.

What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of emulating heaven and earth. If people can be open-minded and magnanimous, be receptive to all, take pity on the old and poor, assist those in peril and rescue those in trouble, give of themselves without seeking reward, never bear grudges, look upon others and self impartially, and realize all as one, then people can be companions of heaven.

~Lui I-Ming~

Whatever appears in your life is the perfect teacher or you. No two lives are the same. Don't get lost in comparing your experiences to anybody else's experiences. Each life is beautifully unique, and each reflects the whole.

~Joko Beck~

Knowing that sentient beings All have a thousand desires Gripping the depths of their minds, The Buddha teaches them In accordance with their characters And conditions. With stories, words, and skillful means He teaches them the truth.

~Lotus Sutra~

If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.

~Booker T. Washington~

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

~Goethe~

So an ancient once said, "Accept the anxieties and difficulties of this life". Don't expect your practice to be clear of obstacles. Without hindrances the mind that seeks enlightenment may be burnt out. So an ancient once said, "Attain deliverance in disturbances".

~Zen Master Kyong Ho~

Genius is another word for magic, And the whole point of magic is that it is inexplicable.

~Margot Fontayne~

Once you have found the meaning of life, will there be enough life left to live meaningfully? Better to live life as meaningfully as you know how, and find more meaning as you go along. You will gain and so will those you influence.

~Tzvi Freeman~

Zen-sitting has nothing to do with the doctrine of "teaching, practice, and elucidation" or with the exercise of "commandments, contemplation, and wisdom." You are like a fish with no particular design of remaining in the sea. Nor do you bother with sutras or ideas. To control and pacify the mind is the concern of lessor men. Still less can you hold an idea of Buddha and Dharma. If you attempt to do so, if you train improperly, you are like one who, intending to voyage west, moves east. You must not stray.

~Meiho~

If, in your course, you don't meet your equal, your better, then continue your course firmly, alone. There's no fellowship with fools.

~Dhammapada~

There are two dimensions to life, and we should be able to touch both. One is like a wave, and we call it the historical dimension. The other is like the water, and we call it the ultimate dimension, or nirvana. We usually touch just the wave, but when we discover how to touch the water, we receive the highest fruit that meditation can offer.

~Thich Nhat Hanh~

Within the Way there are no obstacles at all, not even a pinpoint of obstruction. There are, however, obstacles in training. These are all self-created and due to the grasping nature of our practice. The coarse obstacles we create are doubt, fear, and taking the Way to exist objectively. The more subtle are the concepts of attainment and various levels. The Way avoids nothing at all, so we may be grateful even for obstacles. Apart from obstacles, there is no training.

~Anon~


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