Author: Posts

Everyday there is more aggression throughout the world and that pain escalates indefinitely.  Everyday ask yourself, “Am I going to add to the aggression in the world?”  Everyday, at the moment things get edgy, take time to ask yourself, “Am I going to practice peace or am I going to war?”

No matter what circumstances life may present we must adapt, whether we think the situation is good or bad, resistance is useless.  Concentrate on perceiving the circumstances around us and act accordingly.  Being flexible and  adjusting to the times is one of the secrets of life.

We are busy with our lives doing things, but discover we are sometimes bored, looking for ways to relieve this boredom.  Practice living naturally, working virtuously, this will fill you with vitality and you will never be bored, you can know this by looking inside your heart.

No matter how difficult a situation is there is always a solution.  Your attitude is the most important part of that solution.  Do not act with undo haste or continue in your old ways or be content with partial success.  Have a plan before beginning and reflect on finishing.

Quote: Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. Thomas Edison 

When we act out or tell someone off, there is some relief for the moment but it doesn’t last.  If we surrender and drop the story line, there is tenderness under all that harshness.  By being kind to ourselves, we become kind to others; done properly it benefits everybody.

There are times when matters do not go your way, you feel confused and disorientated.  Whether it’s action or waiting patiently, we should always try to bring the situation back into harmony.  Once we are back on track we should reflect and learn to prevent reoccurrences.

When you have no enemy, you will always be victorious.  If you have enemies, never underestimate them.  Underestimating your enemy is thinking that they are evil, thus you become an enemy yourself.  Victory will always go to the one that knows how to yield.

Change comes whether one prepares for it or not.  It should be noted that making or preparing for change is considered a good practice.   Engaging with society and others will help you notice and prepare for changes; also, it will help you find a way to deal with change and society.

Quote: If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things. Albert Einstein

To be fearless is not really to overcome fear, its to come to know its nature.  To do this, develop compassion for yourself and others, not always wanting things to work out on your own terms, just be curious.  Relax, befriend your feelings, then you begin to understand.

If your mind is focused on desires, judging other people, and problems that you can do little about it is like you are in a closed room with no vision. If your mind is open and not clouded with desires and worries, you are able to see many things with much more clarity.

Life is a competition with everybody and everything.  In competition we want our opponents to be at their best.  Its not that you don’t want to compete, but you want to do it in the spirit of play.  In this way you are like a child at play, in harmony with life.

Having the courage to face things exactly as they are without illusions, you will be able to recognize the path to success.  This recognition should be followed by resolute and preserving action, this way you will be able to surmount any obstacles in your path.

Quote: One thing I know for sure is that I know nothing. Socrates

When we think something is going to bring us pleasure or misery, we really don’t know what is going to happen.  Letting there be room for not knowing is the most important thing of all.  We don’t know if it is the end of a story or the beginning of a great adventure.

Find the way that natural forces work and borrow their power.  When you harness natural forces, you harness something of great power.  However, we can only borrow their energy.  When initiative and natural forces are combined there is true harmony.

There are three things to treasure simplicity, patience, and compassion. Simple in your actions and thoughts and you return to the source of being.  Patience with both friends and enemies, you accord with the way things are.   Compassionate towards yourself and all is at peace.

If you have opposition do not proceed to brusquely, limit yourself to producing gradual effects in small matters.  This will help you achieve success because opposition does not preclude all agreement.  Opposition can represent a polarity, that can be very useful.

Quote: Natural laws do not bend to anybody’s favour.

Practicing being gentle with yourself helps awaken your genuine heart.  This compassion, this clarity, this openness is like something we have forgotten.  Lightening up in your practice, sitting there being gentle with yourself, you are rediscovering something.

Life is a constant series of opportunities.  Whatever comes to you, you must engage it somehow.  You may receive it, you may alter it, or you may let it pass; this way you will be in harmony with the essential nature of life.  Participating fully in life is the way to success and happiness.

Listen to people, respond to their needs only when asked, do not manipulate them, do not give advice.  If you give advice, do you notice that most people don’t act on it?  And it probably frustrates you that they didn’t, even though you “know what’s best for them”?

Every relationship between individuals bears in it the danger that a wrong turn may be taken, leading to misunderstandings and disagreements.  If you remain mindful and aware, you will succeed in avoiding the pitfalls that confront close relationships with others.

Quote: Bring your shift away from accumulation to contribution.

Things come together and they fall apart.  We think the point is to pass the test or overcome the problem but the truth is things never really get solved.  The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen, room for grief, for relief, for misery, and for joy.

If we are physically or mentally attacked, we must defend ourselves the best we can.  Our compassion, our humility will not help us.  It is advisable to learn as much as you can about self-defense, this training will help you to work out your fears, inhibitions, and anxieties.

When we think we know the answers we are difficult to guide.  When we realize we don’t know it becomes easy to find our way, by keeping your mind open you become aware of numerous possibilities.  The ancients taught the supreme value of a beginner’s mind.

Fellowship among us should be based on concerns that are universal.  Lasting fellowship should not be the private interests of individuals, but rather the goals of humanity.  Fellowship in the open succeeds.  If unity like this prevails, even difficult and dangerous tasks can be accomplished.

Quote: Nothing is so strong as gentleness.  Nothing is so gentle as real strength. Saint Francis de Sale

Some say our path is up the mountain, but in reality, the path is down; not up.  The path is right here amongst us exploring the idea of unpredictability, of insecurity and of pain, trying not to push it all away.  Right there in the thick of everyday things we can discover the love that will not die.

Contemporary minds need contemporary concepts to interest them.  If we are to follow the ancient teaching, do not rely on their old standards, but try to experience the concept of them directly by using these teachings as a guide in your daily everyday living.

Study the patterns that underline all things, devote yourself to learning the natural rhythms of nature and follow them.  Live simply and serenely, sensitive to the changes that naturally occur, and adjust so you are compatible with the energies of the day.

During an extremely difficult situation, hide your brilliance, bide your time and be patient.  Realize the difficulty and hardship, remain steadfast and upright.  Refuse to take actions that you know and feel are unrighteous.  By doing this you can overcome the greatest difficulties.

Quote: Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.

All of us are like eagles who have forgotten we know how to fly and are trapped in our nest of old food, excrement, and stale air.  We need to let go of everything, step to the edge of our nest and soar.  You cannot soar and carry all the baggage with you.  Let go!

Just as the sun is at the center of our solar system, so to must our mind of wisdom be at the center of our diverse personalities.  If our minds are strong and balanced, the various parts of our lives will be held firmly in their proper courses and there will be less deviation.

Begin a large task in its formative state because larger problems grow from small ones.  You can accomplish great tasks with a series of small acts.  Be aware of those who promise quick and easy solutions, accept problems as challenges, do not dwell on them, take action.

Growth does not need to mean that things get larger.  When we learn to unlearn what no longer serves us, things may even get smaller and better.  Do more with less and yet hold more of the world in your grasp.  Our job is to give gains value, and not merely learn they are there.

Quote: Dwelling on trivial things is how one finds calamities.

The more you practice loving kindness towards others, as well as yourself, the more your heart opens.  The more you open your heart, the more challenges come your way and you want to close it.  When you practice loving kindness at this deep level you will discover more kinder aspects of yourself.

Peace and harmony are always available to you.  It is not out there, something external to you in books or somebody instructing you.  Everything you want you already have just open your heart and your mind and it will be right there, look inside, and feel it.

There are three kinds of energy.  The first is earth energy or your physical energy.  The second is heaven energy centered in the mind, it expresses itself as knowledge and wisdom.  The third is harmonized energy centered in the heart, it is expressed as spiritual insight.

Watching the laws of nature and their meanings, and the underling workings of the universe, will enable you to give expression to those laws in one’s own person.  By watching the actions of others will allow you to put yourself in another’s place and understand their motives.

Quote: Into each life some rain must fall.

Do not shut anyone out of your heart and don’t make the other into an enemy.  If we live like this, we can’t make things right or wrong anymore.  Everything is ambiguous, there are as many different takes on any situation as there are people involved.

Through our life we have failures, humiliation, and acquire scars from injuries, both physical and emotional trauma.  Healing is up to us and the method we use to heal is up to us alone.  Through our own positive practices that we do on a regular basis do we learn how to heal.

Realize and admit when you make a mistake, then set about correcting it.   Consider a person who points out your faults as your most benevolent teacher.  Think of your enemy as the shadow you cast.  Do not meddle in the affairs of others, and you will be a light to all.

If a species in nature dominates others, the resulting imbalance destroys habitats for all.  The same situation occurs when one person or group tries to use power over others.  Learning to live a balanced life, while taking others into consideration, means walking a path of humility and integrity.

Quote: You can only succeed with one thing at a time.